Panthers

Game 1 of the 2022 NBA Finals will be played on Thursday, June 2. Remarkably, that date is the exact one-year anniversary of the Boston Celtics' announcing Brad Stevens had stepped away from head coaching duties to assume the role of president of basketball operations in place of the departing Danny Ainge.
Let's have a look back at what has been an extraordinary and almost unimaginable 12 months&hellip;
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During his eight seasons on the sidelines in Boston, Stevens was viewed as one of the league's better head coaches. He was regarded as an elite tactician and considered an important part of the Celtics' sustained success. Under his stewardship, Boston advanced to the Eastern Conference Finals three times in four years.
So when the club announced that its long-time top executive in Ainge was retiring and that Stevens would be promoted to team president last June, it came as a shock to most. Would Stevens be able to replicate the regular-season success he enjoyed as head coach? Could Boston get over the hump and advance all the way to the NBA Finals?
Although Ainge left a roster stocked with a budding superstar in Jayson Tatum, his All-Star caliber sidekick in Jaylen Brown, veteran stalwart Marcus Smart and a few promising youngsters, Stevens took control at a precarious juncture. Boston entered last summer capped out (with a directive from ownership not to incur a costly luxury tax bill) and lacking excess draft capital.&nbsp;
Stevens' first order of business was parting ways with Kemba Walker and his cumbersome contract. With two years and $73 million remaining on his deal, Walker was the team's highest-paid player. When healthy, the four-time All-Star Walker was highly productive on the offensive end for the C's, but his balky left knee had robbed him of his quickness. Some suggested the Celtics sit tight, hoping that an entire offseason of rest would allow Kemba to re-establish himself as a quality starter. If Boston wanted to trade Walker, Stevens would have to get creative.
The week before the 2021 NBA Draft, Stevens dealt Boston's first-round pick (16th overall) and a 2025 second-round draft pick to the Oklahoma City Thunder for Al Horford and a 2023 second-rounder.&nbsp;
At the time, Stevens' first significant move as team president was considered highly questionable.&nbsp;
Following the 2019-20 season, when Horford posted career-worst numbers for the Philadelphia 76ers after signing a monstrous four-year, $109 million pact, the veteran big man's contract was viewed as one of the worst in the league. In December 2020, the Sixers were forced to attach a future first-round pick and the draft rights to Vasilije Micic (who just won his second EuroLeague Final Four MVP) in a trade with OKC just to get out from under Horford's contract.
During his lone season in Oklahoma City, Horford appeared in just 28 games for the Thunder. After the trade deadline passed in February 2021, the Thunder shut him down for the rest of the season. At the time, it felt like Stevens was trading for a potentially washed-up 35-year-old center with two years and $53.5 million left on his contract ($41 million of it guaranteed).
But after struggling at times to find his groove in the regular season, Horford has been a crucial cog in the Celtics' run to the Finals. During these playoffs, he is averaging 11.9 points, 9.6 rebounds, 3.5 assists, 1.9 three-pointers,1.6 blocks and 0.9 steals per game, all while shooting 50.0% from the floor, a scorching 43.2% from downtown, and 83.3% from the free-throw line.
Per Basketball-Reference, Horford is just the third player in NBA history (joining Draymond Green and Rasheed Wallace) to average more than 1.5 blocks and more than 1.5 made treys in a postseason (minimum 15 games played). Horford is also the first player ever over the age of 35 to tally more than 25 blocks and more than 25 three-pointers in a single postseason.
To say the Walker/Horford trade has worked out well for Boston would be a dramatic understatement.&nbsp;
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After acquiring Horford, Stevens' next critical decision would be choosing a new head coach. After interviewing several candidates, Stevens zeroed in on Ime Udoka and officially hired him in late June. Udoka was a bit of a gamble, as he had never been a head coach, having spent the previous nine seasons as an assistant with San Antonio (2012-13 to 2018-19), Philadelphia (2019-20) and Brooklyn (2020-21).&nbsp;
Udoka's job was made that much more difficult when the C's stumbled out of the gates this season. By the turn of the new year, there was some finger-pointing in the locker room with the Celtics losing too many winnable games. Three weeks into January, Boston was still below .500 with a 23-24 record.
However, Udoka remained stoically stern, providing a calm and reassuring presence in the locker room and on the sideline. His ability to outcoach opponents and his command of the X's and O's gained him the trust of his team. Over the second half of the season, Boston ranked in the top three in Defensive Efficiency, and led the league in Offensive Efficiency (122.6) and Net Rating (plus-12.7) by a wide margin.
Udoka earned Coach of the Month honors on multiple occasions, and would go on to finish fourth in the NBA Coach of the Year voting. The league-wide respect he's garnered has only increased as he's helped guide his team to the championship series.&nbsp;
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When the free agency frenzy commenced in July 2021, Stevens had to decide what to do with shooting guard Evan Fournier. Ultimately, Boston opted to let Fournier leave for New York.
The Celtics' only free-agent addition of note last summer was inking Dennis Schroder to a team-friendly, one-year deal for $5.9 million. However, Stevens signed Marcus Smart (four years, $76.5 million) and Robert Williams III (four years, $48 million) to lengthy extensions.
The Smart signing, in particular, looks genius in retrospect.&nbsp;
It had been rumored that Ainge was seriously considering trading away Smart in different deals in years past. However, Stevens made it clear that he was committing to Smart for the long term. Just as importantly, Stevens let it be known he would entrust Smart with the team's primary point guard duties. This may seem like an easy decision with the benefit of hindsight, but it's important to point out that entering this season, Smart had started in just 228 of the 449 games he had appeared in. And a large percentage of those starts were alongside point guards such as Kemba Walker, Kyrie Irving and Isaiah Thomas.&nbsp;
The C's flourished with Smart installed as the floor general, especially on the defensive end. Smart, as we know, would be named NBA Defensive Player of the Year, becoming the first guard to win the award since Gary Payton in 1996.
Starting in each of the 71 regular-season games he played, Smart finished the season ranked seventh in the NBA in steals per game (1.68), ranked fifth among all guards with a Defensive Rating of 105.2, and led the NBA with 1.1 loose balls recovered per contest. He was also near the top of the league in deflections, charges drawn and defensive rebounds. On the offensive end, he averaged a career-high 5.9 assists per game and posted an Effective Field Goal percentage above 50% for the first time.
Had Stevens not locked up Smart last summer, he would undoubtedly have been one of the most highly sought-after players on the free-agent market next month.&nbsp;
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Before being sidelined by a knee injury late in the season, Williams had also been enjoying a breakout 2021-22 campaign, averaging career-highs in points (10.0), rebounds (9.6), blocks (2.2), steals (0.9), field-goal percentage (73.6%) and free-throw percentage (72.2%). Like Smart, Williams' value now exceeds his salary.&nbsp;
In February, Stevens recognized Boston's backcourt needed an upgrade. Hence, he sent Josh Richardson and Romeo Langford and a top-four-protected 2022 first-round pick to the San Antonio Spurs in exchange for Derrick White at the trade deadline. Udoka, who was familiar with White having spent time as an assistant in San Antonio, asked him to sacrifice some of his offense. White would serve as a reserve, which meant fewer field goal attempts and fewer minutes. White embraced the role, supplied solid defense on the perimeter and knocked down a handful of big buckets during Boston's run to the Finals.
Ironically, of all the trades and signing Stevens has made over the past 12 months, arguably the most important and impactful are the ones he did NOT agree to. It sounds outlandish now because the C's are four wins away from the franchise's 18th championship, but plenty of pundits and fans in New England had been calling for the Celtics to break up the duo of Brown and Tatum.
While there was no denying their collective talent, many argued the roster was unbalanced, and that the skill sets Tatum and Brown brought to the table were a bit duplicitous. Thus, some folks contended that the best path forward was trading Brown (possibly in a package with Smart) for a pure point guard (such as Damian Lillard).
Pressure and the corresponding rumors reached a fever pitch in the dark days of December and January.&nbsp;
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-theme="dark">
Damnit I&rsquo;m holding everybody in Boston accountable, from the front office, to the coaching staff and down to Jaylen and Tatum. It&rsquo;s time to break them up! Carry on&hellip; <a href="https://twitter.com/FirstTake?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@FirstTake</a> <a href="https://t.co/2fNHMFavfd">pic.twitter.com/2fNHMFavfd</a>
&mdash; Kendrick Perkins (@KendrickPerkins) <a href="https://twitter.com/KendrickPerkins/status/1479494503765524483?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 7, 2022</a></blockquote>

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As noted above, Boston was below .500 for much of the season. On Jan. 15, the Celtics had a worse record than both the Knicks and Washington Wizards. Boston was 11th in the East, on the outside of the Play-in Tournament looking in.&nbsp;&nbsp;
But Stevens never budged, trusting in the roster he helped construct. And the results speak for themselves. Twelve months after he was hired, Stevens's squad is preparing for the NBA Finals.&nbsp;
Earlier this month, the NBA announced Memphis Grizzlies General Manager Zach Kleiman as the winner of the 2021-22 Basketball Executive of the Year Award. Stevens came in sixth, receiving only one first-place vote. However, that award is based on regular-season accomplishments.
Given how well Boston has performed in the playoffs, there is little doubt about which executive's moves have looked best in the postseason.&nbsp;
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Tommy Beer reviews Brad Stevens' first season as Celtics president with his one-year anniversary coinciding with NBA Finals Game 1.

Brad Stevens deserves massive credit for the Celtics' success

Nekias Duncan breaks down the 2022 NBA Finals between the Celtics and Warriors from a multitude of angles.

2022 NBA Finals Scouting Report: How the Celtics and Warriors match up

By appearing in the Western Conference Finals, the Dallas Mavericks showed that they have collected some of the ingredients of an NBA title contender.
Prior to that, the Mavs had not made it out of the first round of the playoffs since winning the Finals in 2010-11, and had exited the postseason in the first round each of the last two years. Even this season, Dallas had its doubters in the first round against the Utah Jazz, and most of the national audience was against them versus the dominant Phoenix Suns.&nbsp;
Then, the Mavericks won. Luka Doncic continues to ascend as one of the best basketball players on the planet. Several supporting cast members helped carry the load as well, whether it was Jalen Brunson in the first round, Maxi Kleber's Round 2 fireworks or Spencer Dinwiddie's production in the West Finals.
For so long, the narrative in Dallas had been: Does Luka have any help? After 2021-22, we at least know the Mavs have pieces to the puzzle. This summer presents the opportunity to shape the vision of a championship under Doncic and second-year head coach Jason Kidd.
The Mavericks boasted the sixth-best Defensive Rating (109.4) in the NBA during the regular season, per Basketball-Reference. That's impressive growth from a 20th-ranked unit in 2020-21 that didn't undergo massive roster overhaul. Our <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/how-do-the-mavericks-have-an-elite-defense" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Nekias Duncan covered Dallas' defense back in January</a>, and it kept up the work even after trading Kristaps Porzingis away in the deal that returned Dinwiddie and Davis Bertans.&nbsp;
No single, All-Defense-caliber player even stands out on the roster right now. Dorian Finney-Smith is very solid and so is Frank Ntilikina, though his minutes are too inconsistent currently. It's a true team-wide shift that significantly raises the team's floor come playoff time.&nbsp;
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With that being said &mdash; finding a true center to anchor the paint and provide stability on the glass remains a high priority. Dallas was 15th among the 16 playoff teams in offensive rebounding percentage (45.1%) and second chance points per game (9.0). They also gave up 14.2 second-chance points per game to their opponents, ranking fourth-highest in the postseason. The Mavs scored just 42.9 points in the paint per game during the regular season (ranked 29th of 30) and 35.4 in the playoffs (13th of 16) despite boasting two of the league's best driving threats in Doncic and Brunson.
Dwight Powell is a fine, rotation-caliber NBA player, but his minutes decreased in each subsequent series. Kleber is an awesome sharpshooting big and solid defender, but not an impactful interior presence.
Fortunately, there are several available free agents who Mavs president and general manager Nico Harrison could pursue in his second offseason with the team. Unfortunately, they have severely hamstrung themselves financially. According to Spotrac, they're a luxury taxpayer, which only leaves a mid-level exception worth just over $6.3 million to spend on a free agent. Dallas has virtually no path to cap space this season.
Jusuf Nurkic and Mitchell Robinson are the biggest names to hit unrestricted free agency as a center. They would almost instantly plug the rebounding hole, but are they the types of defenders and rim-runners who would thrive with Doncic? And is there a realistic way for the Mavericks to even sign them?
Other free agent centers who could fit in the mid-level exception include JaVale McGee, Andre Drummond and Bismack Biyombo, for some quick suggestions. Dallas does also hold a $10.2 million trade exception that it created when the team traded Josh Richardson to the Boston Celtics. It expires on June 27, before free agency begins, but it provides another avenue to acquire a rotation-level player.
It might make more sense for the Mavs to pursue a sign-and-trade with a restricted free agent. Obviously, Deandre Ayton is the marquee man. Evan Sidery toyed with <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/examining-potential-destinations-for-deandre-ayton" target="_blank" rel="noopener">potential trade packages for the Suns</a>; could Dallas offer something in this ballpark?
I personally am intrigued by Mo Bamba's potential fit. The 2018 No. 5 overall pick had a solid developmental year in Orlando, but appears to be the odd man out in a crowded young locker room. Bamba feels like a worthwhile gamble as a rebounder and rim-protector with a bit more mobility and shooting than your traditional bruising center.
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Of course, all this free agency discussion will come after the Mavericks address their largest elephant in the room. Jalen Brunson broke out as a secondary scorer this season, culminating in his huge games that gave Dallas the edge against Utah. <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/examining-potential-destinations-for-jalen-brunson" target="_blank" rel="noopener">He's an unrestricted free agent</a> who deserves a bag this summer.
"It&rsquo;s the top priority,&rdquo; Harrison said about re-signing Brunson in his <a href="https://www.mavs.com/brunson-is-top-priority/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">exit interview Friday</a>. &ldquo;We got to figure that out. Obviously, we&rsquo;re not in control of it. But he&rsquo;s definitely a priority. We want to re-sign him. He knows it. And we want him back. He&rsquo;ll be a big part of our future.&rdquo;
The Mavs' last route to improve is with their No. 26 overall draft pick. Dallas has been a mixed bag with drafting in recent seasons, but this is the first year Harrison will be at the helm after the franchise passed on the process in 2021. Most recently, the franchise selected Josh Green at No. 20 and Tyrell Terry at No. 31 in 2020. Green's development has been slow but notable through two seasons, while Terry is no longer in the organization.&nbsp;
Matt Babcock's latest&nbsp;<a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/nba-draft" target="_blank" rel="noopener">2022 NBA Mock Draft</a> projects the Mavericks to select Max Christie, a freshman wing from Michigan State. Christie was a five-star high school talent who struggled to produce as a college freshman. But his tools as a shooter, scorer and on-ball defender have all flashed and can be sharpened in the right environment.&nbsp;
Aside from Brunson, reserves Trey Burke and Theo Pinson are the only other players entering free agency. However, Dallas notably has just four players under fully guaranteed contracts in 2023-24, per Spotrac: Doncic, Finney-Smith, Bertans and Tim Hardaway Jr. If the squad underwhelms next year, the 2023 offseason could open up a serious roster makeover.&nbsp;
Dallas is on the cusp of true title contention. This offseason is all about checking off some final boxes, keeping the successful core intact and adding depth to a team that persevered through several injuries during the season.
If the summer breaks right, it wouldn't be surprising to see the Mavericks emerging as everyone's favorite championship sleeper by October.
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The Mavericks exited the Western Conference Finals with a strong playoff run, but have several glaring needs.

2022 NBA offseason preview: What's next for the Dallas Mavericks?

The NBA is undergoing an epiphany on positional value, much like the NFL has begun to re-evaluate modern-day running backs. Since positions are becoming less and less important and versatility is the name of the game, what&rsquo;s next for NBA centers?
Centers are slowly but surely being phased out, aside from some rare exceptions. Long gone are the Roy Hibbert-archetype bigs who patrolled the paint with slow-footed speed. The upgraded version looks more like Rudy Gobert in Utah, producing at an even higher level. But even with Gobert, long-term questions have arisen due to his bloated super-max salary.
If Gobert&rsquo;s on-court value is diminishing as well, which bigs will be deemed worthy of a lucrative second contract? It&rsquo;s an elite club where the positional value more than outweighs the price tag: Nikola Jokic, Joel Embiid, Karl-Anthony Towns, Giannis Antetokounmpo and Bam Adebayo top the list. For all other centers, will they be worth their price in the long run?
For the Phoenix Suns, a $100-plus million decision awaits on Deandre Ayton, their only No. 1 overall pick in franchise history. Does Ayton deserve to be mentioned among those names, or does he fall a tier or two below? Ayton is an anchor of the Suns&rsquo; historic defensive turnaround under head coach Monty Williams, plus his soft touch on the offensive end already brings super efficient scoring value too.
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The Suns and Ayton&rsquo;s representation are about to enter an awkward period, and it seems like the odds of Ayton playing elsewhere next season are increasing. Do the Suns believe Ayton is worth a max-level contract? Does Suns general manager James Jones believe Ayton can be on the same tier as an Adebayo or Gobert?
Based on Ayton's usage within Williams&rsquo; system (19.8% usage rate since 2020-21), Phoenix&rsquo;s need to reconstruct the roster for more wing-based scoring as well as the big man's own desire to be a more featured piece on offense (plus his desire for a max deal), I wouldn't be surprised if Ayton&rsquo;s days with the Suns are numbered.
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One could argue that Ayton would be even more valuable if he were to leave Phoenix and sign elsewhere. In another situation &mdash; in Detroit with Cade Cunningham, for example &mdash; giving Ayton the max would be an acceptable allocation of resources that benefits both parties. However, in the Suns&rsquo; system, I don&rsquo;t believe Ayton is worthy of max-level money.
A fatal flaw that prevents Ayton from being mentioned in the top tier of big men is his lack of self-creation ability, which he's failed to develop throughout his first four seasons with the Suns. According to Cleaning The Glass, 74.8% of Ayton's shots have been assisted on in his career. Compared to his max-salary counterparts, Ayton is nowhere close on self-creation capabilities. And at this point, I have serious doubts that this will ever become a consistent part of his game during his upcoming prime years.
Percentage of FGs Assisted in 2021-22
Deandre Ayton: 81%
Rudy Gobert: 72%
Nikola Jokic: 62%
Karl-Anthony Towns: 62%
Bam Adebayo: 61%
Joel Embiid: 54%
Giannis Antetokounmpo: 43%
The NBA&rsquo;s elite big men buck the trend of super small-ball and three-point-shooting barrages because they bring unique traits to the table.&nbsp;Antetokounmpo and Embiid can simply punish any defenses that are thrown at them. Jokic&rsquo;s demigod-like ability to run an offense and be its primary scoring engine speaks for itself. Towns is one of the greatest perimeter-shooting bigs of all-time. Adebayo&rsquo;s defense and playmaking versatility, coupled with his recent development as an on-ball creator, raise his value. Gobert&rsquo;s price tag is a tough pill to swallow, especially later on, but he&rsquo;s one of the most impactful rim-protectors we&rsquo;ve ever seen (while also providing efficient scoring around the rim).
Ayton is a very good basketball player, but he fails to emphatically check any of the boxes that the other max bigs do. He brings immediate value as a scoring threat and rim-protector, with a rare ability to easily rack up 20-and-10 outings like it&rsquo;s nothing. His stat line shows that there&rsquo;s real promise if he is fed like a primary offensive hub, but that&rsquo;s not going to happen in Phoenix.
The Suns are moving away from the inside-out approach in favor of outside-in, a modern flip of the script that likely provides some insight into how they view centers. JaVale McGee was an excellent free-agent addition for Phoenix last summer, and he ended up putting up nearly identical numbers to Ayton on a per-36-minute basis:
Ayton: 21.0 points, 12.5 rebounds, 1.8 assists, 0.8 blocks, 65.6 TS%
McGee: 20.9 points, 15.2 rebounds, 1.3 assists, 2.5 blocks, 65.1 TS%
McGee is another example where working within the Suns&rsquo; system, especially playing alongside Chris Paul and Devin Booker, brings immense improvement on the margins. From the Suns&rsquo; perspective, would they rather just pay McGee $5 million again and add a difference maker elsewhere for the same price as Ayton? For example, would it make more sense to <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/examining-potential-destinations-for-deandre-ayton" target="_blank" rel="noopener">bring aboard a unique modern fit in Jerami Grant via a sign-and-trade deal</a>? There&rsquo;s no doubt that these discussions are ongoing for the Suns, because this decision will decide what direction the team is heading in the post-CP3 era.
As a restricted free agent, Ayton is heading toward a negotiation standoff with Phoenix. If the organization doesn&rsquo;t view him as a max-level player, expect to see the Suns&rsquo; offer come in around a similar annual value as Al Horford ($27.8 million) or Nikola Vucevic ($25.0 million). John Collins provides a recent example of restricted free agency leading to a cheaper payday, as he signed a five-year, $125 million deal with the Atlanta Hawks in the 2021 offseason.
For Ayton, it seems like a lock that he'll get a max contract from some front office. The Detroit Pistons, Portland Trail Blazers, San Antonio Spurs, Atlanta Hawks, Charlotte Hornets and Indiana Pacers are all expected to show interest once free agency's moratorium period opens on July 1. Will Phoenix try to pull off a <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/examining-potential-destinations-for-deandre-ayton" target="_blank" rel="noopener">sign-and-trade to bring back some win-now pieces</a>? If another team extends a max-level offer sheet, would the Suns match it or let him walk? These are the big questions entering this offseason.
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Another angle that is falling under the radar is how the Suns view Ayton&rsquo;s motor. Will Ayton continue to improve his game or eventually become an albatross contract a few years from now?&nbsp;
&ldquo;Definitely getting to my second contract; that&rsquo;s my success,&rdquo; Ayton said before being drafted by the Suns.
Throughout Ayton&rsquo;s career in Phoenix, teammates like Paul, Booker and Mikal Bridges have had to keep him locked in throughout games to ensure he's playing at a certain intensity level. They have even mentioned it during press conferences. When Ayton is locked in, he&rsquo;s one of the most dominant two-way bigs in the NBA. The issue is his inconsistency and those moments where he loses focus. It's unclear why this occurs, but there are some games where it's apparent in the first few minutes whether it will be a positive or negative outing for the big man. If there are concerns about Ayton&rsquo;s motor, that will also enter this discussion.
Jones and Williams know more about Ayton's work ethic and motor than just about anyone given all the time they've spent with him behind the scenes, so we'll see if this factors in to their decision.&nbsp;
The drive to be great and the sheer will to refuse failure are what separate great players from good ones. Does Ayton possess this trait to become one of those exceptions to the rule for non-floor spacing bigs within the modern NBA?
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This year&rsquo;s Finals matchup between the Golden State Warriors and Boston Celtics further paints a picture of spacing and wings/on-ball creators buttering the bread of success nowadays. For their bigs, the postseason usage rate is a tell-tale sign of letting the perimeter-oriented stars cook (Al Horford: 13.0 USG%, Robert Williams: 13.0%, Kevon Looney: 11.2%). Can the Suns rely upon Ayton to be a player who takes over 20% of their offensive possessions? If it&rsquo;s a hit-or-miss proposition in their eyes, Ayton will be looking for greener pastures within the next six weeks.
As an elite finisher around the rim who also excels in pick-and-roll and pick-and-pop situations, Ayton already brings a rock solid baseline for a floor. When you add in his supreme athleticism for his position, it brings even more intrigue as a two-way force. Entering into his age-24 season in 2022-23, what&rsquo;s the next step for Ayton? If there&rsquo;s not much room left for Ayton on the developmental curve, a max contract shouldn&rsquo;t be coming his way from Phoenix.
&ldquo;I don&rsquo;t think he&rsquo;s so divisive here,&rdquo; Suns owner Robert Sarver told BasketballNews.com in April about Ayton&rsquo;s future in Phoenix. &ldquo;I think he&rsquo;s shown that he&rsquo;s improved each year, helps us both on the defense and the offense. I think offensively, you see this year he&rsquo;s taken another good step in terms of his touch and his ability to score around the basket. So, he&rsquo;s been a key part of what we&rsquo;re doing.&rdquo;
Ayton averaged 17.3 points, 10.0 rebounds, 1.5 assists and 0.7 blocks for the Suns this past season. In an environment where he's more heavily featured, those numbers likely rise closer to 22-23 points and 12-13 rebounds per game. Is that the way to go though?
Welcome to the new evaluation process of great, non-transcendent bigs. Ayton is the first case study, and this expensive decision that's on the horizon is going to change the Suns&rsquo; future one way or another.
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With centers becoming the NBA's version of running backs, is Deandre Ayton worthy of a max deal? Evan Sidery explores.

Should Suns give Deandre Ayton a max deal? Positional value says no

Klay Thompson drained the 3-pointers. Draymond Green anchored the defense and even chipped in on the offensive end for a change. Stephen Curry capped off an MVP performance.
The trio that led Golden State to so much success in recent years is whole again and and has the Warriors in position for another title after advancing to the NBA Finals with a <a href="https://apnews.com/article/dallas-mavericks-golden-state-warriors-nba-sports-stephen-curry-3fe45e8158653547bb782fe769242a60">120-110 victory</a> over the Dallas Mavericks on Thursday night.
&ldquo;Like I&rsquo;ve said over and over again, I&rsquo;m going to keep saying it: No one has proven that they can move us off that spot,&rdquo; Green said. &ldquo;That&rsquo;s the mindset we come into this thing with. We understand what it takes to win a championship.&rdquo;
The triumvirate of Curry, Thompson and Green is in rarified air in NBA lore as the core of a team that has made it to six NBA Finals in an eight-year span. It's an accomplishment only the greatest groups have reached with Bill Russell's Celtics of the 1950s and &lsquo;60s, Magic Johnson's Lakers in the 1980s and Michael Jordan's Bulls of the 1990s doing it.
Now the Warriors hope to add a fourth title to the ones they captured in 2015, &lsquo;17 and &rsquo;18 when the Finals start June 2.
&ldquo;We&rsquo;re happy to be here, but it would help our legacy a lot if we completed the mission and won the whole thing,&rdquo; Thompson said. &ldquo;We can be happy tonight, and we will be, I&rsquo;ll celebrate tonight. But tomorrow when this Game 6 comes on, I&rsquo;m turning the page and I&rsquo;m scouting because we want to finish this thing off the right way.&rdquo;
(Editor's Note: The Boston Celtics will represent the Eastern Conference after Sunday's Game 7 win in Miami.)
The last time the Warriors made it to the Finals they fell short, starting a two-year spiral filled with losing and injuries. Thompson tore his left ACL during a season-ending Game 6 loss in the 2019 NBA Finals.
Kevin Durant tore his Achilles' tendon earlier that series and then left for Brooklyn that summer, leading to the Warriors finishing an NBA-worst 15-50 in the pandemic shortened 2019-20 season.
Thompson then tore his right Achilles' tendon just before the start of the next season and the Warriors were unable to make it back to the playoffs, getting knocked out by Memphis in the play-in game.
But Thompson returned in January and the combination of the aging trio of stars with an infusion of youth from players like Andrew Wiggins, Jordan Poole and others has Golden State back at the top of the league again.
&ldquo;We never lost the faith, but you understand how hard of a process it was going to be to climb the mountain again,&rdquo; Curry said. &ldquo;I think internally we are all extremely proud of what it took to get back here. Yeah, it&rsquo;s definitely sweet based on what we went through.&rdquo;
Thompson led the way in the clinching Game 5 win of the Western Conference finals over Dallas, making eight 3-pointers for a record-setting fifth time in his playoff career and scoring 32 points.
Green added 17 points, six rebounds and nine assists to go along with his usual defensive brilliance and Curry had 15 points and nine assists as he was named series MVP.
It's a level of play that reminds coach Steve Kerr of the Bulls teams he played on with Jordan and Scottie Pippen that won so many titles in the 1990s.
&ldquo;The common denominator is just talented players who are fierce competitors,&rdquo; Kerr said. &ldquo;Whether you talk about Michael and Scottie, Steph, Draymond, Klay, it takes a special kind of athlete to have both dynamics. The skill and the athleticism and all that, but to also be just incredibly competitive and to want to win so badly. It&rsquo;s the only way you can have a run like that because you get exhausted, you get tired, you get frustrated. If you don&rsquo;t have that type of competitive desire and that type of skill combined, it&rsquo;s just not going to happen six times out of eight years.&rdquo;

The trio that led Golden State to so much success in recent years is whole again and and has the Warriors in position for another title.

Star trio leads Warriors to 6th NBA Finals spot in 8 years

New Orleans guard and NBA Players Association president CJ McCollum has added another title to his busy schedule &mdash; NBA analyst for ESPN.
The network announced Monday that they have signed the Pelicans star to a multi-platform deal. He will make his ESPN debut on Thursday during &ldquo;NBA Finals: Celebrating 75&rdquo;, which will be ESPN2's alternate presentation of Game 1 of the NBA Finals between the Golden State Warriors and Boston Celtics.
McCollum graduated from Lehigh University with a journalism degree and has made past appearances on ESPN as an analyst.
&ldquo;I am excited to bring what I feel is my unique perspective, based on my vast knowledge of the game that I&rsquo;ve gained during my nine years as a player in the NBA,&rdquo; McCollum said in a statement. &ldquo;To have an opportunity to put my journalism background to use on the largest stage with the many talented professionals at ESPN is a dream come true.&rdquo;
McCollum will work with ESPN to develop a new podcast. He will also be an analyst on games during coverage of the NBA Summer League as well as some appearances on studio shows throughout the year.
&ldquo;CJ is one of the most respected players in the NBA, which is evident by his role as President of the NBA PA. Furthermore, he&rsquo;s an extremely talented member of &mdash; and leader on &mdash; one of the most interesting teams in the league: the New Orleans Pelicans," said David Roberts, ESPN head of NBA and studio production. "CJ&rsquo;s commitment to this opportunity, combined with his passion for journalism and sports broadcasting, will be a clear benefit for NBA fans.&rdquo;
McCollum was traded from Portland to New Orleans near the February trade deadline. He averaged 24.3 points once he joined the Pelicans and helped them make the playoffs.
McCollum is part of an increasing number of players who are year-around analysts while still playing. Los Angeles Sparks forward Chiney Ogwumike has been working for ESPN since 2018, including a stint hosting an afternoon radio show. Golden State's Draymond Green signed a multi-platform deal with Turner Sports in January.

CJ McCollum graduated from Lehigh University with a journalism degree and has made past appearances on ESPN as an analyst.

Pelicans' CJ McCollum joining ESPN as an NBA analyst

MIAMI (AP) &mdash; Somewhere, Gregg Popovich must be pleased.
Ime Udoka and Steve Kerr played for Popovich with of the San Antonio Spurs, both served as assistant coaches under him, and neither makes any effort to hide the affinity they have for the NBA&rsquo;s career victory leader.
And now, Udoka and Kerr are about to go head-to-head &mdash; in the NBA Finals.
The title matchup is set: It&rsquo;ll be Udoka and the Eastern Conference champion Boston Celtics facing Kerr and the Western Conference champion Golden State Warriors, a series that begins Thursday night in San Francisco. The teams split their two regular-season meetings, each winning on the other&rsquo;s home floor.
The Warriors have been waiting for an opponent since this past Thursday after needing only five games to beat Dallas for the West title. The Celtics got there the hard way, winning Game 7 in Miami on Sunday night to capture the East.
&ldquo;We stayed with it. We believed in each other. We made a commitment on the defensive end," said Celtics forward Al Horford, who, after 141 playoff games, is headed to the NBA Finals for the first time. &ldquo;That was the biggest thing, defending."
For the Celtics, it&rsquo;s a chance at an 18th NBA championship &mdash; which would break the tie with the Los Angeles Lakers for the most in league history. For the Warriors, it&rsquo;s a chance at a seventh crown &mdash; which would break a tie with the Chicago Bulls for third-most in league history.
It&rsquo;s also a rematch of the 1964 finals, when Bill Russell and the Celtics topped the Warriors in five games.
&ldquo;I&rsquo;ve said it many times: You go to the finals, it&rsquo;s almost a two-month journey filled with stress and fatigue and everything else,&rdquo; said Kerr, who gave his team Friday and Saturday off before bringing them back to work Sunday. &ldquo;So, if you can get a little bit of a break, it&rsquo;s very meaningful. Hopefully, we can get healthy and have a few days of really good prep and be ready to go on Thursday.&rdquo;
Golden State won at Boston 111-107 on Dec. 17, behind 30 points from Stephen Curry. The Celtics rolled on Golden State&rsquo;s home floor in the rematch on March 16, winning 110-88 in the game in which Curry injured his foot &mdash; and that&rsquo;s where his regular season ended.
Curry was ready to go for the playoffs. So were the rest of the Warriors. They&rsquo;re 12-4 in the playoffs, getting through Denver, Memphis and Dallas to get to the title round.
&ldquo;It all starts with Steph,&rdquo; Kerr said.
Udoka has a chance to become the 10th coach to win a title in his first season. Eddie Gottlieb (1947 Philadelphia Warriors), Buddy Jeanette (1948 Baltimore Bullets), John Kundla (1949 Minneapolis Lakers), George Senesky (1956 Philadelphia Warriors), Paul Westhead (1980 Los Angeles Lakers), Pat Riley (1982 Los Angeles Lakers), Tyronn Lue (2016 Cleveland Cavaliers) and Nick Nurse (2019 Toronto Raptors) are eight of the coaches who have pulled off the feat.
The other name on that list is Kerr &mdash; who did it with Golden State in 2015, the start of this run of greatness from the Warriors. That was the beginning of six finals appearances in eight years, the two exceptions being when injuries and a roster reset kept them from the playoffs in 2020 and 2021.
&ldquo;You can&rsquo;t take it for granted,&rdquo; Curry said after the West title series. &ldquo;Nothing&rsquo;s ever guaranteed. We understand how hard it is to win. We&rsquo;ve said that until we&rsquo;re blue in the face the last two years. This is definitely special. Proud of everybody that is in that locker room, that came with it all year. Now we have an opportunity to go finish a job.&rdquo;
Udoka played for Popovich and later was a San Antonio assistant. Kerr played for the Spurs, then assisted Popovich with USA Basketball through last summer&rsquo;s Tokyo Olympics &mdash; when the Americans won a fourth consecutive gold medal.
The Warriors&rsquo; Draymond Green was on that Olympic team. So was Boston&rsquo;s Jayson Tatum. They celebrated winning gold together, and now they&rsquo;ll try to go through one another to get their fingerprints on the gold trophy that goes to the NBA champions &mdash; the Larry O&rsquo;Brien.
&ldquo;This is an opportunity that players dream of,&rdquo; Golden State's Andrew Wiggins said. &ldquo;To be put in a position to win it all.&rdquo;
And if nothing else, a Warriors-Celtics matchup made Green seem prophetic.
After the Warriors won the West, Green visited the TNT broadcast set after the game and was prodded by Shaquille O&rsquo;Neal to say which team from the then-undecided East title series that he would like to play.
Green began giving a diplomatic answer, saying that both the Heat and Celtics were tough. O&rsquo;Neal pressed him to be honest, and Green &mdash; never shy with words &mdash; gave in.
&ldquo;You&rsquo;re asking me who I want to play. I&rsquo;m gonna tell who I think we&rsquo;re going to play: We&rsquo;re going to play Boston,&rdquo; Green said Thursday night. &ldquo;That&rsquo;s who we&rsquo;re going to play.&rdquo;
He was right.
&nbsp;

The matchup is set: it will be the Boston Celtics facing the Golden State Warriors in the NBA Finals.

The Finals matchup: Celtics vs. Warriors for NBA title

The Oklahoma City Thunder came out of last Tuesday&rsquo;s NBA Draft Lottery as the night&rsquo;s runner-up, taking home the No. 2 overall pick.&nbsp;
The Thunder have never received the first-overall pick in their franchise history, which technically goes back to 1967 when they were still the Seattle Supersonics. They have selected second on two occasions though, and both worked out really well (Kevin Durant in 2007 and Gary Payton in 1990).
The Thunder have a war-chest of draft picks in the coming years, but those picks are meaningless if they don&rsquo;t select a franchise-altering talent. Fortunately, the No. 2 pick should provide an opportunity to do so. The 2022 draft class features a few &ldquo;can&rsquo;t-miss&rdquo; prospects, including Auburn&rsquo;s Jabari Smith, Gonzaga&rsquo;s Chet Holmgren and Duke&rsquo;s Paolo Banchero. All three have their pros and cons, but adding any of them to the existing core of Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Josh Giddey should work out beautifully.
In the 2021 NBA Draft, the Thunder made six selections, but they traded three of those players. They added Giddey (who was named to the 2021-22 All-Rookie Second Team), Tre Mann and Aaron Wiggins &ndash; none of whom are bigs. The Thunder did trade for a seven-footer in the 2020 draft (Aleksej Pokusevski), but he&rsquo;s still extremely raw and is not the same caliber of player as the top-three prospects.
Of course, there is still a lot of work to be done through the scouting process to effectively evaluate all three of this draft's most-coveted prospects, but a look back at the last 10 NBA drafts reveals a murkier history than one might assume. After <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/examining-the-success-of-teams-selecting-first-in-the-nba-draft" target="_blank" rel="noopener">examining the success of teams selecting No. 1 in the NBA Draft</a> last week, let's look at how recent No. 2 overall picks have fared.&nbsp;
2012 NBA Draft: Michael Kidd-Gilchrist, Charlotte Bobcats/Hornets
The Hornets bombed with the second pick in 2012. Kidd-Gilchrist had a fine career, averaging 12.3 points and 7.9 rebounds per game across eight seasons in the NBA. The thing is, Bradley Beal was selected third and Damian Lillard was selected fifth, and both of those guys are All-NBA-caliber players annually. Comparatively, that&rsquo;s a huge miss for Charlotte.
Verdict: Failure.
2013 NBA Draft: Victor Oladipo, Orlando Magic
The Cavaliers certainly surprised many of us by picking Anthony Bennett with the first overall pick, but the Magic stuck to the script. Oladipo was universally seen as a top-three player in this draft, and he became the second-best player in the class before knee and quad injuries derailed his career.
As much as injuries have robbed much of what Oladipo was, he is still an intriguing player, and he&rsquo;ll probably command some decent free-agent offers this offseason. Obiously, CJ McCollumn (selected 10th) and Giannis Antetokounmpo (selected 15th) are better players, but neither was being considered by the Magic. Considering that Oladipo is a two-time All-Star, an All-Defensive selection and a one-time All-NBA selection, I&rsquo;d say the Magic did a fine job in picking Oladipo.
Verdict: Success
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2014 NBA Draft: Jabari Parker, Milwaukee Bucks
The 2014 draft was a weird one. Neither the first nor the second pick ended up being the best player from this draft class. Andrew Wiggins found a good role, even if he is far less successful than most thought he&rsquo;d be, but Jabari Parker really underwhelmed. Granted, Parker stuck around in the league for eight seasons, including some of the current one, but his career simply never materialized even if it&rsquo;s not his (nor Milwaukee&rsquo;s) fault.
Parker tore his ACL twice. He looked like he was becoming a pretty darn good player (even if he was a defensive liability) before the second ACL injury, averaging 20.1 points and 6.2 rebounds per game in 2016-17. However good Parker could have been, the fact of the matter is that Joel Embiid was intriguing enough as of draft night to be taken one pick later, and that stings.
Verdict: Failure
2015 NBA Draft: D&rsquo;Angelo Russell, Los Angeles Lakers
Here&rsquo;s an instance where a player actually was worth a top-three pick. The problem is that the Lakers had the second pick, and there&rsquo;s a big difference between Karl-Anthony Towns or Devin Booker and Russell. Making matters worse, the Lakers sent Russell to Brooklyn before he matured. His immaturity was part of the reason he was traded, but that doesn&rsquo;t change the fact that the Lakers picked him and moved on very quickly. Russell may or may not end up being a franchise-altering talent, but he hasn&rsquo;t realized his full potential yet, and he clearly won&rsquo;t do so for the Lakers.
Verdict: Failure
2016 NBA Draft: Brandon Ingram, Los Angeles Lakers
Ingram is one of the best No. 2 picks in the last 10 drafts. He&rsquo;s a true number one option on a playoff team, a career 18.5 points-per-game scorer and a one-time All-Star. It&rsquo;s debatable that Jaylen Brown (selected third) and/or Jamal Murray (selected seventh) are as good or better players, but both have played alongside more talented teammates throughout their careers.
Ingram has been the best player on the New Orleans Pelicans for a few years now, and we shouldn&rsquo;t take for granted the fact that Ingram led a playoff team this season. Sure, the Lakers didn&rsquo;t cash in on him specifically, but he was part of the package that led to Anthony Davis landing in Los Angeles. So, it worked out for them too.
Verdict: Success
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2017 NBA Draft: Lonzo Ball, Los Angeles Lakers
The Lakers picked second overall again in 2017. They weren&rsquo;t as successful this time around. First, there&rsquo;s Jayson Tatum to consider. Tatum was selected third and is the best player in the 2017 draft class. Being selected by the Lakers wouldn&rsquo;t have changed that, and that should be enough. But there&rsquo;s also Ball&rsquo;s rough shooting mechanics to consider. Sure, he&rsquo;s grown into a good shooter, but the Lakers didn&rsquo;t benefit from that. It&rsquo;s hard to categorize Ball&rsquo;s selection as an outright failure because like Ingram, he helped facilitate Davis to the Lakers. Still, it's tough to classify his selection a success.
Verdict: Push
2018 NBA Draft: Marvin Bagley III, Sacramento Kings
Bagley might be the worst second pick in the last 10 years. The 2018 NBA Draft will forever be remembered as the Luka Doncic class. The Kings could have drafted Doncic, as he was still on the board, but they chose to go with Bagley instead. Bagley isn&rsquo;t even on the Kings any longer, and his time in Sacramento was not memorable.
Bagley is a sub-par defender and three-point shooter. He&rsquo;s scored the ball at a decent pace, averaging 19.5 points per-36 minutes, but he&rsquo;s never earned a big enough role to demonstrate what he can really do, and he&rsquo;s exclusively been on losing teams. Comparatively, Doncic and Trae Young (selected No. 5 in 2018) have turned their franchises around.
Verdict: Failure
2019 NBA Draft: Ja Morant, Memphis Grizzlies
Ingram was the best second pick in the last 10 years, until 2019. Morant stole that made-up accolade almost immediately in his rookie season. The thing is, the 2019 NBA Draft was supposed to be all about Zion Williamson. However, unlike Williamson, Morant has backed up all the hype and then some. So, while Williamson has dealt with injuries for much of his young career, Morant has brazenly become the face of his draft class.
Morant is drawing comparisons to numerous superstars, and he was named to the 2021-22 All-NBA Second Team. No one selected after him comes close to making the Grizzlies think twice about their decision.
Verdict: HUGE success
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2020 NBA Draft: James Wiseman, Golden State Warriors
Unlike his brother Lonzo, LaMelo Ball was deserving of the second pick in 2020. Instead, the Golden State Warriors went with James Wiseman, though the logic behind the pick is clear, even in retrospect. The Warriors already had two All-NBA guards. The thing is, Jordan Poole looks pretty good alongside Steph Curry and Klay Thompson, doesn&rsquo;t he? So, it&rsquo;s feasible to assume that Ball would have fit too.
After two seasons, Ball is a significantly better player, but he&rsquo;s also had plenty of opportunity to demonstrate that fact. Wiseman has had terrible health-related luck. He played in 39 of the Warriors' first 53 games in 2020-21, but he tore his meniscus in Golden State&rsquo;s 53rd&nbsp;game of the season and hasn&rsquo;t been seen since. Wiseman could still be a serious contributor, as his per-36 numbers were impressive for a rookie (19.3 points, 9.7 rebounds, 1.6 blocks and 1.1 assists on .542/.316/.628 shooting). This is one we&rsquo;ll have to continue monitoring.
Verdict: Unclear
2021 NBA Draft: Jalen Green, Houston Rockets
Basing the success of a pick on only a rookie season is tough. Green posted an impressive rookie campaign, but his defensive deficiencies were clear. That&rsquo;s an understandable flaw for a rookie. Green was the assumed second-best player in the class. Having the luxury of hindsight, we now know that Scottie Barnes (selected fourth) and Evan Mobley (selected third) translated to the NBA incredibly well. But wing scorers have a tougher time making the jump, as they must shoot deeper three-pointers and compete against far more athletic competition. Green&rsquo;s floor may be lower than that of Barnes and Mobley, but I'd argue that his ceiling is still higher. Let&rsquo;s give him a little more time.
Verdict: Unclear&nbsp; &nbsp;&nbsp;
In the last 10 drafts, the second overall pick has clearly been one of the best players in the draft class just three times (2013, 2016 and 2019).&nbsp;
A deeper examination of No. 2 overall picks reveals a limited number of franchise-altering talents. For every Kevin Durant, Jason Kidd, Gary Payton, Earl Monroe and Bill Russell, there are a number of players who didn't live up to expectations. Sometimes, there isn't a generational player on the board; other times, the team picking No. 2 overall just overthinks it or goes in the wrong direction. Either way, No. 2 hasn&rsquo;t produced as many all-time greats as you might expect, but there have been quite a few significant contributors.
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Oklahoma City will pick No. 2 in the 2022 draft. A look back at the last 10 drafts reveals that there are no guarantees for No. 2 picks.

Examining the success of teams selecting No. 2 in the NBA Draft

In the modern NBA, multi-positional versatility is something all teams covet. Evidenced by the current playoff finalists, pace-and-space offenses finding mismatches on every possession is the name of the game. For 19-year-old Australian combo guard Dyson Daniels, his strengths mesh well within what will be valued most at the next level.
Forgoing the college route as an International import, Daniels instead went the more challenging route by immersing himself into preparing for the 2022 NBA Draft. Daniels spent this past season with the G League Ignite, which is now forming a consistent pipeline of top prospects like Jalen Green and Jonathan Kuminga. Daniels averaged 11.3 points, 6.2 rebounds, 4.4 assists and 1.9 steals on a 54.0 True Shooting percentage in the G League last season.
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The ability to adapt and play the role of a playmaking wing or secondary ball handler makes the upside with Daniels even more intriguing, especially if he lands in the right player development system that focuses on his long-term outlook.
&ldquo;I always want to be in the gym. I always want to be the best I can,&rdquo; Daniels told <a href="http://BasketballNews.com">BasketballNews.com</a>'s Spencer Davies last September. &ldquo;I don&rsquo;t want anyone to outwork me. I want to be the hardest worker there is.&rdquo;
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Daniels bet on himself playing with the Ignite over national NCAA exposure, which is paying huge dividends leading up to the draft. ESPN&rsquo;s Jonathan Givony recently reported that Daniels had one of the most impressive pre-draft workouts he&rsquo;d ever witnessed, and thanks to those workouts, Dyson is seeing his stock soar in the month before the draft.
The jumbo-sized do-it-all playmaker and defender is slotted in at No. 8 overall to the New Orleans Pelicans in <a href="http://BasketballNews.com">BasketballNews.com</a>'s latest mock draft according to our Senior NBA Draft Analyst, Matt Babcock:
&ldquo;At nearly 6-foot-7, Dyson Daniels is incredibly versatile, as he can play several positions effectively on both ends of the floor. After a stellar season with the G League Ignite, Daniels is seemingly on the rise, as there have been rumblings recently that his draft value is increasing. It&rsquo;s looking like he&rsquo;ll have a good chance of being selected in the mid-lottery on draft night.&rdquo;
Daniels is generating buzz to the point where it would be a surprise if he fell past the top 10 picks without being selected. As a likely lottery pick, Daniels&rsquo; versatility could help a needy team immediately. With such a high basketball IQ, the ceiling for Daniels all depends on if he can develop a reliable jump shot (25.5 3PT%). If Daniels rounds into form and becomes a reliable engine to an elite offense, the possibilities truly are endless for the Aussie.
&ldquo;I have a good floater game, but I&rsquo;m also a defender,&rdquo; Daniels described at the NBA Draft Combine in Chicago earlier this month. &ldquo;I like to break it down on the offensive end. I&rsquo;m a little bit like a Tyrese Haliburton kind of guy that&rsquo;s in control. On the defensive end, I like to look at guys like Lonzo Ball and Alex Caruso and people like that. I feel like I have the frame, and once the game slows down for me a bit, I hope I could develop into a Luka Doncic-type role.&rdquo;
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While those comparisons are lofty for Daniels, we can&rsquo;t rule it out. Who&rsquo;s to say Daniels doesn&rsquo;t become a valuable rotation piece with the potential to become even more a few years down the line? It&rsquo;s why Daniels is generating immense buzz from teams leading up to the draft. At the combine, he met with the following teams: Sacramento Kings, Portland Trail Blazers, New York Knicks, Cleveland Cavaliers, Atlanta Hawks, Milwaukee Bucks and Toronto Raptors.
&ldquo;I try not to take it as pressure, but I&rsquo;m trying to do everything to get Bendigo and Australia on the map. Just be the best version of me I can and do my best,&rdquo; Daniels said.
When trying to find the best attributes to fit with where the NBA is heading, a player in the mold of Daniels becomes extremely valuable the more layers you discover in his game. That&rsquo;s exactly why Daniels is regarded as one of this year&rsquo;s biggest pre-draft risers across the board.
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One of the biggest pre-draft risers is versatile Australian guard Dyson Daniels. How he fits the modern NBA explains his huge rise.

2022 NBA Draft: Dyson Daniels fits the modern trends

Following the Miami Heat's 111-103 victory over the Boston Celtics in Game 6 of the Eastern Conference Finals, several Heat players "thanked" Draymond Green.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-theme="dark">
"Tell Draymond thank you." Dray picked the Celtics to win the series, so Udonis Haslem had a message for their possible NBA Finals opponent 👀 🎥: <a href="https://twitter.com/BleacherReport?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@BleacherReport</a> <a href="https://t.co/xhZPVvKWFZ">pic.twitter.com/xhZPVvKWFZ</a>
&mdash; FanDuel (@FanDuel) <a href="https://twitter.com/FanDuel/status/1530395382710247424?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 28, 2022</a></blockquote>

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During an interview on TNT's "Inside the NBA" on Thursday, Green wrote off the Heat and predicted with confidence that the Golden State Warriors would be facing the Boston Celtics in the NBA Finals.
&ldquo;I&rsquo;m going to tell you who I think we&rsquo;re going to play. We&rsquo;re going to play Boston,&rdquo; Green told Shaquille O'Neal, who had asked him which team he wanted to face. &ldquo;That&rsquo;s who we&rsquo;re going to play.&rdquo;
This comment upset several players on the Heat.
&ldquo;I don&rsquo;t know what part of the game is that,&rdquo; Heat forward PJ Tucker <a href="https://sports.yahoo.com/udonis-haslem-draymond-broke-the-code-saying-warriors-would-face-celtics-in-nba-finals-050925538.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">told Yahoo Sports</a>. &ldquo;A player picking a team before they&rsquo;re out? That&rsquo;s crazy, bro.&rdquo;
&ldquo;He let Shaq peer pressure him into saying some s*** he ain&rsquo;t got no business saying,&rdquo; Udonis Haslem <a href="https://sports.yahoo.com/udonis-haslem-draymond-broke-the-code-saying-warriors-would-face-celtics-in-nba-finals-050925538.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">told Yahoo Sports</a>. &ldquo;I didn&rsquo;t sleep much after he said that. That was some bulls***. Draymond broke the code. You ain&rsquo;t supposed to say some s*** like that. That&rsquo;s disrespectful. He know better than that.
&ldquo;We&rsquo;re going home [for Game 7]. We did what we were supposed to do. Don&rsquo;t ever count us out.&rdquo;
Game 7 between the Heat and Celtics is Sunday at 8:30 p.m. ET on ESPN.

Draymond Green said that the Warriors would end up facing the Celtics in the NBA Finals, which upset several players on the Heat.

Haslem: Draymond Green 'broke the code' by predicting Celtics win

Here&rsquo;s a bit of trivia for you: Which rookie from this <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/why-they-are-all-special-a-guide-to-the-best-rookies-of-the-2021-class" target="_blank" rel="noopener">stacked</a> 2021 NBA Draft class has played the most minutes in the Conference Finals?
Considering most of the top rookies didn't advance very far, surely the answer has to be the Golden State Warriors' heralded No. 7 overall pick, Jonathan Kuminga &mdash; the same player who earlier this postseason was <a href="https://www.nbcsports.com/bayarea/warriors/warriors-jonathan-kuminga-vows-learn-despite-historic-nba-playoff-game" target="_blank" rel="noopener">the youngest rookie to start a playoff game since 1971</a>, right?&nbsp;
Wrong!
The answer, with an impactful 64 minutes played over the course of five games, is none other than Golden State&rsquo;s other rookie: the No. 14 overall pick Moses Moody.
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Our story begins in the fourth quarter of Game 1 of the Western Conference Finals, where a 104-76 score prompted both the Golden State and Dallas coaches to empty their benches for the home stretch of the blowout series opener.
In response, Reggie Miller on the call proclaimed: &ldquo;I have a sneaky feeling. I think these minutes are going to be important for [Nemanja] Bjelica and Kuminga because, at some point, those two guys are going to have to play significant minutes in this series.&rdquo;
Unbeknownst to him, he made a glaring omission in his statement; the player who really needed these repetitions was Moody. And during that seemingly meaningless stretch, Moody flashed two features that would prove useful to Golden State later in the series &mdash; his play-finishing and defensive versatility.
Play-Finishing&nbsp;
Nowadays, NBA offenses are so prolific that even the most venerable defenses can&rsquo;t eliminate every piece on the board. This leads to teams having to strategically <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/the-nba-playoffs-and-the-art-of-concessions-" target="_blank" rel="noopener">concede</a> certain shots in order to hone-in on the player(s) they deem the most dangerous (see the Milwaukee Bucks' defense vs. the Boston Celtics in Round 2).
When you&rsquo;re going up against the Warriors, the Splash Trio receives the highest priority, and these standards lead to open looks for the group&rsquo;s least esoteric marksman.
As of this moment, Moody falls under this designation. And to his credit, he did an excellent job of burning the Mavericks for their negligence in defending him, draining 50% of his triples (albeit in a miniature sample size).
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Cutting and movement rule the day in Golden State's perpetual motion offensive system. Moody got the memo, and he did a great job of knowing when it was appropriate to shag back and maintain his spacing on the perimeter, and when it was time to fill the lane and shake the Golden Gate bridge with a <a href="https://streamable.com/k3xuy0" target="_blank" rel="noopener">seismic eruption</a> at the rim.
Defensive Versatility&nbsp;
As Seth Partnow noted in his <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/seth-partnow-qa-a-sitdown-with-the-author-of-the-midrange-theory" target="_blank" rel="noopener">recent book</a>, "The Midrange Theory," versatility is the key to playoff success &mdash; the ol' Carlos Boozer and Robert Horry paradigm.
This maxim reigns especially true in defense, where we&rsquo;ve already seen multiple playoff runs abbreviated due to a lack of scheme versatility. (I hope the folks in Utah are doing well on this fine Friday afternoon.)
Moody was far from the anchor out there, but the Warriors&rsquo; defense stayed afloat during his minutes, partially because of his ability to wear multiple hats on that end of the floor.
We&rsquo;ll start with his off-ball work and this snag-tastic reception:
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-theme="dark">
Moses Moody legit Odell Beckham-ed this ball. <a href="https://t.co/tC54YzUzhG">pic.twitter.com/tC54YzUzhG</a>
&mdash; Mat Issa (@matissa15) <a href="https://twitter.com/matissa15/status/1530189122886897664?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 27, 2022</a></blockquote>

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Along with that reception, Moody deflected two additional passes in that very same quarter, prompting Warriors writer Marcus Thompson to cite Moody&rsquo;s contributions as an <a href="https://theathletic.com/3332392/2022/05/25/warriors-mavericks-young-game-4/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">integral part of the team&rsquo;s Game 4 comeback</a>.
Despite only authoring 2 steals the entire series, spurts like the one he demonstrated in Game 4 leave room for potential growth into a future defensive playmaker.
Moody also did surprisingly well navigating the <a href="https://medium.com/the-basketball-dictionary/2-9-6fb93080023c" target="_blank" rel="noopener">2.9 spot</a> as a low-man. He was well attuned to his positioning, consistently swaying in and out of the paint to avoid garnering a three-second call, while also timing his re-entries in a manner that enabled him to wall off forays at the rim when the moment presented itself.&nbsp;
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Lastly, Moody even showed some chops as a man defender. On <a href="https://streamable.com/b6cjoa" target="_blank" rel="noopener">this play</a>, he manages to stay attached to Jalen Brunson amid Jordan Poole&rsquo;s hedge endeavor, and then mirrors his movements before hindering his attempt at the rim.
Moody&rsquo;s point-of-attack prowess is more apparent when you understand the amount of leeway he was granted within the Warriors&rsquo; scheme. In my <a href="https://theanalyst.com/na/2022/05/western-conference-finals-can-the-golden-state-warriors-continue-to-slow-luka-doncic-and-the-dallas-mavericks/">recent article</a> on this series, I looked into how Golden State has specific principles for Luka Doncic ball screens. Well, Moody was one of the few players given the green light to switch onto him immediately.
He was also empowered by Steve Kerr to captain the ship of the Warriors' revered Box-and-1 alignment a few times during the third quarter of Game 3. And Moody even got the chance to moonlight as the team&rsquo;s defensive coordinator, <a href="https://streamable.com/a8geaq" target="_blank" rel="noopener">calling for a zone formation on defense</a> at one point in Game 4. (For the Warriors, you can tell it's a zone when the signal-caller executes a <a href="https://www.goldenstateofmind.com/2022/5/21/23133463/warriors-mavericks-game-2-steph-curry-kevon-looney-luka-doncic-film-breakdown" target="_blank" rel="noopener">raised double fist</a>).
To conclude our tale, let&rsquo;s take a gander at Moody&rsquo;s best two-way sequence of the series, where he blocks Doncic and then proceeds to commandeer free-throw attempts at the other end of the floor. A perfect encapsulation of his imprint on this series.
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Nice.
In a class as talent-laden and promising as the 2021 draft pool, who would have guessed that the player picked last in the lottery would be the last rookie standing.
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Mat Issa gives props to Moses Moody for his finishing and defensive contributions to the Warriors when his number was called upon.

Moses Moody: The last rookie standing in the 2022 NBA Playoffs

Klay Thompson shimmied his way to 32 points and the Golden State Warriors advanced to their sixth NBA Finals in the past eight seasons by beating the Dallas Mavericks 120-110 in Game 5 of the Western Conference finals on Thursday night.
Thompson scored 19 points in the first half, including a 3-pointer that he punctuated with teammate Stephen Curry&rsquo;s signature shake as the Warriors raced out to a 17-point halftime lead and coasted the rest of the way.
Andrew Wiggins added 18 points and 10 rebounds, Draymond Green scored 17 points and Curry had 15 points and nine assists for Golden State.
Luka Doncic overcame a slow start to score 28 points for the Mavericks. Spencer Dinwiddie added 26.
After missing the playoffs in 2020 and &rsquo;21 in back-to back injury-plagued seasons, the Warriors are returning to a familiar stage. They are the first team to make six finals appearances in an eight-year span since the Michael Jordan-led Chicago Bulls had a pair of three-peats from 1991-93 and 1996-98.
Golden State will host the winner of the Eastern Conference finals between Boston and Miami on June 2 in Game 1 of the NBA Finals. The Celtics hold a 3-2 lead heading into Game 6 at home on Friday night.
The Warriors followed their pattern from the first two rounds by bouncing back after squandering a chance to end a series on the road by winning at home. Golden State is now 9-0 at the Chase Center this postseason, tying the 2017 team for the the most consecutive home wins in a single postseason in NBA history.
The star this game was Thompson, who sat out the past two seasons with injuries but showed flashes of his old self in this clincher.
After making just seven 3-pointers in the first four games of the series, Thompson had eight this game. He gave the Warriors a 13-point lead in the first half when he hit one from the corner before dancing and added two early in the third quarter for a 23-point lead.
Dallas cut a 25-point deficit down to eight in the final minute of the third quarter but couldn&rsquo;t get over the hump in the fourth. Thompson&rsquo;s 3-pointer with just under 3 minutes left gave the Warriors a 15-point lead.
SLOW START
Doncic has typically been a playoff star. His 32.7 points per game in his first 27 playoff games were second best to Jordan&rsquo;s 33.4 ppg among players with at least 10 playoff games.
But he had a rough start in this elimination game against Golden State. He shot 2 for 10 in the first quarter with his eight misses, tied for the most in the opening quarter of a playoff game since LeBron James missed all nine of his attempts in Game 3 of the Eastern Conference finals against Atlanta in 2015.
Doncic was held to six points in the first half, his lowest opening half of his postseason career, on 2-for-12 shooting before finding his stroke in the third quarter.
MOODY MANIA
With Otto Porter (left foot) sidelined for a second straight game, the Warriors got a big boost in the first half from 19-year-old rookie Moses Moody.
Moody scored all of his seven points in the second quarter with his 3-pointer giving Golden State a 56-38 lead. Moody scored just six points the first three games of this series for the Warriors before scoring 17 the past two games with Porter sidelined.

Klay Thompson shimmied his way to 32 points and the Warriors advanced to their sixth NBA Finals in the past eight seasons.

Warriors beat Mavericks 120-110 to return to NBA Finals

In the only two seasons he played after winning Big Ten Rookie of the Year at the University of Illinois, Kofi Cockburn was a two-time consensus All-American.
His scoring jumped from 13.3 to 17.4 to 20.9 points per game, and his rebounding leapt from 8.8 to 9.5 to 10.6 boards per contest. Over his three-season career, he shot 59.6% from the field, and although he isn&rsquo;t a perimeter threat, he made 62.3% of his free throws on 6.5 attempts per contest.
Basically, the former Oak Hill Academy and Christ The King center has been one of the most productive collegiate bigs in the past couple of seasons.
Unfortunately, like other traditional 5s who get theirs in the post and probably would&rsquo;ve been a first-round pick a decade or two ago, the 7-foot, 293-pound big man starting at a lottery green room in his future.
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At the NBA Draft Combine last week, Cockburn let it be known to reporters that he could be staring at being undrafted right in the face.
&ldquo;I think it&rsquo;s very unique,&rdquo; Cockburn said of his situation. &ldquo;A lot of people tell me, back then, if it was the 1990s, I&rsquo;d be drafted probably top-10. When I look at it now, the game has changed, but it hasn&rsquo;t changed that much. There are still big men that need to rebound that need to play defense, be vocal, give their guards, put their guards in better position to score.&rdquo;
<a href="https://theathletic.com/3325417/2022/05/20/illinois-kofi-cockburn-nil-nba/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">One executive told The Athletic</a> that Cockburn should&rsquo;ve stayed in school. Cockburn insists, however, that he&rsquo;s ready and people are underestimating his ability to produce in the modern NBA.
&ldquo;A lot of people doubt my ability to adapt to make the NBA,&rdquo; Cockburn said. &ldquo;(I just want) to show that you could put me in whatever situation (and) I&rsquo;ll definitely contribute &mdash; whether that&rsquo;s rebounding, setting good screens, rolling &mdash; just to show them I can do that at the next level... My motor, I&rsquo;m relentless, I&rsquo;ll give you extra possessions, definitely set good screens, I roll, I play good defense, I bring the energy, I talk.&rdquo;
BasketballNews.com's draft coverage team doesn&rsquo;t have Cockburn listed on <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/draft" target="_blank" rel="noopener">its latest 2022 NBA Mock Draft</a> as of this writing.
Our Sr. NBA Draft Analyst Matt Babcock explains that, while Cockburn&rsquo;s ability is unquestionable, the reason he&rsquo;s not registering on mock drafts is rooted in the questions he is attempting to answer to.
Though, Babcock adds that he&rsquo;s not a name to be ignored with the draft looming less than a month away:
<blockquote>
There is no denying that Kofi Cockburn had a significant impact at the college level. However, there are legitimate concerns about how he&rsquo;ll translate to the next level. He is a big-bodied 5 who is incredibly physical, but he doesn&rsquo;t have much perimeter skills on the offensive end, and it&rsquo;s questionable whether he can keep up on the defensive side in the NBA, which is more spread out and fast.
I do not currently have Cockburn projected to be selected in the draft, but he is a relevant prospect. I wouldn&rsquo;t be surprised to hear his name called on draft night.
</blockquote>
Although we might not hear his name called on draft night, it&rsquo;s likely we&rsquo;ll hear about Cockburn at some point this summer &mdash; regardless of if he&rsquo;s one of 60 picks made on June 23. (Note: It&rsquo;s actually 58 picks since the Miami Heat and Milwaukee Bucks forfeited their second-rounders this year.)
Cockburn, who also entered the draft in 2021 and <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Yg45tIlOdV4" target="_blank" rel="noopener">produced in the G League Elite Camp</a> before returning to school, believes that he&rsquo;ll be impactful however it shakes out for him. Sure, he probably won&rsquo;t get 20 and 10 a night in the NBA, but could he follow a model being laid out by current bigs of similar size and skill sets.
&ldquo;The NBA is changing obviously,&rdquo; Cockburn acknowledges. &ldquo;It&rsquo;s all about big guys being in shape and being able to have an impact &mdash; whatever that impact is. Not necessarily coming in and shooting threes, but always having an impact on the game.&rdquo;
For him &mdash; as is the case with at least 95% of prospects and players in the league overall &mdash; fit will be significant, as will be his own player development and work ethic.
He recognizes that, and hopes to change some minds going forward.
<a href="https://therookiewire.usatoday.com/2022/05/23/hawks-kofi-cockburn-nba-pre-draft-workout/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Getting a workout with the Atlanta Hawks</a> isn&rsquo;t a bad start.
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Bryan Fonseca takes a look at Kofi Cockburn's potential at the NBA level and why being a traditional big man shouldn't hold him back.

2022 NBA Draft: Kofi Cockburn insists he'll have impact at next level

Luka Doncic had 30 points and 14 rebounds, and the Dallas Mavericks beat the Golden State Warriors 119-109 on Tuesday night to avoid being swept in the Western Conference finals.
It was the 10th double-double in his 14 games this postseason for Doncic, who also had nine assists and got some help from his supporting cast to extend this series. He had 40 points in Game 3, when Reggie Bullock shot 0 for 10 shooting with seven misses from 3-point range.
Dorian Finney-Smith had 23 points and Bullock had 18 on 6-of-10 shooting &mdash; all 3-pointers. Jalen Brunson had 15 points. The Mavs were 20 of 43 on 3-pointers.
The loss snapped the Warriors&rsquo; nine-game winning streak in Western Conference finals games, though they are still firmly in control of this series headed back to California for Game 5 on Thursday night.
Stephen Curry had 20 points and returned to the game with 3:22 left &mdash; his first appearance in the fourth quarter &mdash; after the Warriors had cut a 29-point deficit to 110-102. But they never got closer even with Curry and other starters returning to the floor.
Doncic then drove for a dunk and Bullock made his sixth 3-pointer.
No NBA team has ever come back from a 3-0 deficit to win a series. Only three of the 146 teams to fall in that deep hole have even been able to force a seventh game.&nbsp;
Jonathan Kuminga had 17 points and Andrew Wiggins 13 points for the Warriors, who had seven players score in double figures.
There was even a 16-minute rain delay, when the start of the second half was held up because of rain leaking through the roof at American Airlines Center. There was heavy rain outside, and there were at least two leaks. One was dropping water near the Golden State bench, and at the other end of the court water appeared to be falling in the stands.
A 3-pointer by Doncic put the Mavs up 81-56 with 6:57 left in the third quarter, their largest lead to that point.
Draymond Green was fouled on the ensuing Golden State possession, and his first free throw attempt stopped on the wide back side of the rim. After Doncic and Green stood in the lane together laughing about that, before the ball was eventually knocked down, Green then missed the second attempt as well, though that one just didn&rsquo;t go through the rim and was rebounded by Doncic.
Dallas went ahead to stay with a 25-6 run over a nearly 7-minute span of the second quarter during which the Warriors missed nine of 10 shots and had two turnovers.
Golden State was up 31-29 after a jumper by Moses Moody, then had only one made basket the next seven minutes. A 3-pointer by Davis Bertans put the Mavericks in the lead for good.
The Mavericks had a 62-47 halftime after Doncic drove for a hard layup, responding to Curry&rsquo;s basket at the other end.&nbsp;

Luka Doncic had 30 points and 14 rebounds, and the Mavericks beat the Warriors 119-109 on Tuesday night to avoid the sweep.

Doncic, Mavs avoid sweep with 119-109 win over Warriors

DALLAS (AP) &mdash; Stephen Curry and the Golden State Warriors have won nine consecutive games in the Western Conference finals.
They can make it an even 10, eliminate Luka Doncic and the Dallas Mavericks and return to the NBA Finals after three years away with a victory in Game 4 in Dallas on Tuesday night.
&ldquo;I&rsquo;m not going to fast forward,&rdquo; Curry said after a <a href="https://apnews.com/article/dallas-mavericks-golden-state-warriors-nba-sports-klay-thompson-2f6a0c58ab25f6512ffe1f090224f272">109-100 victory in Game 3</a> for a 3-0 series lead. &ldquo;We can play better, but we&rsquo;re finding ways to win games. There&rsquo;s no expectation other than what&rsquo;s the challenge ahead of us, and the challenge now is to close out a series against a really good team to get back to an opportunity to win the Finals.&rdquo;
The Warriors haven't lost in the West finals since erasing a 3-2 deficit to Houston in 2018, when they won the last of their three titles in four years by beating Cleveland in the NBA Finals. Golden State swept Portland for a fifth consecutive trip to the Finals in 2019 before losing in six games to Toronto.
The Mavericks are playing beyond the first round for the first time since <a href="https://apnews.com/article/dallas-mavericks-golden-state-warriors-milwaukee-bucks-brooklyn-nets-nba-7e323815c5abcc72eefbad4c6a6b2f36">first-year coach Jason Kidd</a> was the point guard on the Dirk Nowitzki-led team that won the 2011 title.
Dallas was down 2-0 to top-seeded Phoenix in the West semifinals before winning twice as the home team took the first six games. <a href="https://apnews.com/article/phoenix-suns-dallas-mavericks-milwaukee-bucks-nba-sports-1e6827985892edd105afa343820edddb">The Mavs stunned the Suns</a> with a 33-point victory in Game 7 in Phoenix, putting Doncic a year ahead Nowitzki's schedule in reaching his first conference finals.
Golden State rallied from 19 points down to win Game 2 at home before erasing a nine-point deficit in the final four minutes of the first half in Game 3 &mdash; and ending any hope of Dallas repeating its Phoenix feat.
Instead of winning four out of five, the Mavericks have to win the last four games of the series. No NBA team has done that.
Doncic scored 21 of his 40 points in the fourth quarter, but a desperate Dallas rally never gained traction. The young superstar masked a mediocre first half by hitting a 32-footer at the first-quarter buzzer.
&ldquo;I think the first two quarters I played very bad. That&rsquo;s on me,&rdquo; Doncic said after the Mavs fell to 2-6 in three playoff years when their All-Star scored at least 40. &ldquo;But I&rsquo;m still learning. I think after this season is done, whatever we are, I think we&rsquo;re going to look back and learn a lot of things. I&rsquo;m 23, man. I&rsquo;m still learning a lot.&rdquo;
Doncic also learned what it's like to be on the wrong end of a moment that will live forever on highlight reels.
The three-time All-Star who is used to sending defenders stumbling with crossover and step-back moves was posterized on a dunk by Andrew Wiggins.
Yes, the same Wiggins was who criticized by some after being chosen as an All-Star starter in his first appearance this year. He got the nod over Doncic, who started the season poorly by his standards because of issues with weight and conditioning.
That wasn't Wiggins' only dunk on his way to a playoff career-high 27 points, and he had another off one of his six offensive rebounds, just one fewer than Dallas had as a team.
The 2014 No. 1 overall pick also has been one of the primary defenders on Doncic in a multifaceted scheme that has limited Dallas' career triple-double leader to five assists per game &mdash; three below his career playoff average.
&ldquo;He&rsquo;s a fantastic two-way player,&rdquo; coach Steve Kerr said. &ldquo;You don&rsquo;t win in the playoffs without guys like Wiggs. We&rsquo;re basically mirroring Doncic&rsquo;s minutes so that Wiggs can stay on him and he&rsquo;s another guy like Steph who just never seems to get tired. He&rsquo;s in amazing shape.&rdquo;
The Mavericks are in bad shape in this series because they've been outscored on average 62-47 in the second half. Part of the reason is the inconsistency of Doncic's supporting cast.
In Game 3, Spencer Dinwiddie scored 26 of Dallas' 28 bench points after the Mavs' reserves were outscored 36-13 in Game 2. But key 3-point specialists Dorian Finney-Smith, Maxi Kleber and Reggie Bullock combined for just nine points &mdash; all of them from Finney-Smith after Kleber and Bullock missed all 12 of their 3s and all 15 of their shots overall.
Pardon the Mavs if they sounded a bit defeated, knowing the history of 3-0 deficits.
&ldquo;When you&rsquo;re in a battle, you&rsquo;re not thinking about the big picture,&rdquo; Kidd said. &ldquo;But as we reflect this summer, whenever that starts, we&rsquo;ll understand what we did and how we can get better. And that&rsquo;s the blessing of this whole thing is, we truly believe we belong here.&rdquo;
For now, the Mavs have to believe they can prolong things.
&nbsp;

The Warriors look to eliminate the Mavericks and return to the NBA Finals after three years away with a win in Game 4.

Curry, Warriors go for sweep of Doncic, Mavs in West finals

DALLAS (AP) &mdash; Stephen Curry scored 31 points, Andrew Wiggins added 27 while posterizing Luka Doncic on a dunk and the Golden State Warriors beat the Dallas Mavericks 109-100 Sunday night for a 3-0 lead in the Western Conference finals.
Klay Thompson scored 19 with a pair of big fourth-quarter 3-pointers as the Warriors moved within a victory of a return to the NBA Finals, three years after the end of a run of five consecutive trips that yielded three championships.
Golden State, which swept Portland in its most recent West finals in 2019 before Toronto won the title, goes for the sweep in Game 4 on Tuesday in Dallas. No team has rallied from 3-0 down to win an NBA playoff series.
Doncic scored 40 and beat the first-quarter buzzer with a 32-footer that got the crowd going with the Mavericks again at home trailing 2-0, as they did against top-seeded Phoenix before winning the West semifinal series in seven games.
But that shimmy-inducing bucket was a blip on an otherwise rough night from 3-point range for the Mavericks, who missed their first seven and finished 13 of 45.
Reggie Bullock and Maxi Kleber, two long-range specialists for Dallas, missed all 12 of their 3s combined and were 0-15 overall. Both went scoreless, offsetting Spencer Dinwiddie's 26 points off the bench. Jalen Brunson scored 20.
Wiggins' dunk over Doncic was originally ruled an offensive foul midway through the fourth quarter. The Warriors challenged, and the ruling was Wiggins' elbow to Doncic was incidental contact, giving Golden State a 93-83 lead.
About a minute later, Wiggins, who had 11 rebounds, moved quickly down the right baseline for a follow dunk on a miss by Curry as the Warriors extended their NBA record with a 26th consecutive series in which they won at least one road game.
One of Dinwiddie's 3-pointers got Dallas within five points with 1:15 remaining, but Jordan Poole answered with one from the left wing just inside the final minute.
WHAT JUST HAPPENED?
The most tense moment of the series came late in the first half after <a href="https://twitter.com/NBAonTNT/status/1528557592779165697?s=20&amp;t=cABubKSbS8jV6RFWmjglSw">a corner 3 from Curry capped an 8-0 run</a> that put the Warriors in front by a point and helped them to a 48-47 halftime lead. And it left Curry confused.
Curry ran the length of the court with his tongue hanging out after Dallas called timeout. As he circled back toward his bench, Curry walked by Doncic with teammate Juan Toscano-Anderson nearby.
Doncic appeared to take issue with something Toscano-Anderson said and started toward the Golden State bench before officials along with coaches and players from both teams intervened. Meantime, Draymond Green and injured Dallas guard Tim Hardaway Jr. exchanged unpleasantries about 45 feet apart.
After the timeout, Curry could been seen saying, &ldquo;What happened?&rdquo; and approached Doncic to talk about it. The exchange ended with Green as the peacemaker with Doncic.
TIP-INS
Warriors: Green got a technical foul, his second of the series, after an extended conversation with official Marc Davis when he was called for a backcourt violation when he hurriedly tried to step back over the midcourt line to catch a long, unexpected pass from Curry. The crowd was howling for a technical and finally got it. Seconds later, Green was called for his first foul and didn't like the call. But he directed his complaint at his own bench instead of the officiating crew. ... Otto Porter Jr., who averaged 10.5 points on 82% shooting the first two games, limped to the locker room in the first half and was ruled out with left foot soreness.
Mavericks: <a href="https://twitter.com/NBA/status/1528536430280065024?s=20&amp;t=cABubKSbS8jV6RFWmjglSw">Bullock won the Kareem Abdul-Jabbar social justice award</a>. He has been active in the LGBTQ+ community. His sister, a transgender woman, was killed in 2014. Bullock worked with several organizations in the Dallas area after signing as a free agent in the offseason and has long been active in similar pursuits in his native North Carolina. ... Dorian Finney-Smith got a technical early in the second half for an elbow to the back of Green after a made Dallas free throw.

Behind big games from Stephen Curry and Andrew Wiggins, the Golden State Warriors took a 3-0 series lead over Dallas.

Curry, Warriors take 3-0 lead on Mavericks with 109-100 win

Luka Doncic didn&rsquo;t have another &ldquo;believe&rdquo; in him with the Mavericks facing a 2-0 deficit for a second consecutive series.
Not that the Dallas superstar doesn&rsquo;t believe. There&rsquo;s just a difference after&nbsp;losing a 19-point lead against title-tested Stephen Curry&nbsp;and the Golden State Warriors.
The Mavericks are headed home to try to stay in the Western Conference finals after they beat championship-less Chris Paul and Phoenix four times in five games, starting in Dallas, to get there. Game 3 against Golden State is Sunday night.
If Dallas is going to repeat what Doncic said he believed his team could pull off against the top-seeded Suns, it&rsquo;ll start with defense. The Mavericks got 42 points from their All-Star guard, but they quit defending the Warriors when the shots stopped falling.
Golden State shot 61% in the second half of a 126-117 victory &mdash; 79% in the fourth quarter, almost matching Phoenix from Game 2 in the West semifinals &mdash; as Dallas fell to 2-5 in Doncic&rsquo;s three playoff seasons when he scores at least 40.
&ldquo;We play defense when we play offense, and we play no defense when we can&rsquo;t score,&rdquo; Dallas coach Jason Kidd said. &ldquo;That&rsquo;s something that we have to get better at this time of the year. You can get away with it in the regular season.&rdquo;
There&rsquo;s a little something about offense Kidd wants the Mavericks to understand too. Always reliant on 3-point shooting, Dallas took its big lead because those shots were going in.
When the 3s stopped falling in the third quarter, Doncic and company kept shooting them. He missed a pair and Reggie Bullock was off on all three of his as Dallas ended up 2 of 13 from deep while a 14-point halftime lead was cut to two.
&ldquo;We got to attack the paint more, like they did,&rdquo; Doncic said. &ldquo;They attacked the paint a lot. They have two of the best shooters in the world, and they still attack the paint.&rdquo;
Curry did his thing with 32 points while fellow Splash Brother Klay Thompson had another relatively quiet night with 15 points &mdash; except for two driving dunks after halftime.
When the Warriors didn&rsquo;t have free runs to the basket, center Kevon Looney was often waiting underneath. His career-high 21 points, regular season or playoffs, helped the Warriors to a 62-30 advantage in the paint, the most points the Mavericks have allowed inside in the postseason.
With 12 rebounds, Looney became the first Golden State center since Robert Parish in 1977 to have at least 20 points and 10 rebounds in a playoff game, according to StatMuse.
&ldquo;Playing center for the Warriors, it&rsquo;s a different type of job from other teams,&rdquo; Looney said. &ldquo;A lot of the scoring and stuff, we don&rsquo;t really need us to do. I&rsquo;m going to remember that stat, so I can tell somebody else about it.&rdquo;
The Mavericks found a way to limit the efficiency of Deandre Ayton after a big game from the Suns center in the opener of that series.
The growing ineffectiveness of Dwight Powell (zero points, two rebounds in eight minutes in Game 2) has forced Dallas to go small. The Mavericks can&rsquo;t keep doing it if they can&rsquo;t limit Looney, who had five offensive rebounds and helped offset a dud from Draymond Green (minus-19 before fouling out with six points).
&ldquo;He&rsquo;s one of the guys that no one writes about or talks about,&rdquo; Kidd said. &ldquo;But we understand the impact he has on the game of giving those guys second or third opportunities.&rdquo;
Golden State is 14-1 when leading a series 2-0 since Kerr took over in 2014-15. It is two wins from a return to the NBA Finals after the last of five consecutive appearances in 2019. The Warriors are in control because they won when trailing by as many as 19 for the first time in these playoffs.
&ldquo;Hopefully this is a game that we can kind of put in our back pocket and remember because there&rsquo;s a good chance we&rsquo;ll be in this situation again,&rdquo; Kerr said. &ldquo;This is a team that is explosive and you&rsquo;re dealing with one of the great players in the game who can create for himself and others, and it will be a hard series.&rdquo;

The Mavericks overcame an 0-2 deficit to beat the Suns in the last round. Can they do the same against the experienced Warriors?

Can the Mavericks climb out of an 0-2 hole once again?

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) &mdash; Luka Doncic was dominating, yelling in celebration and flexing his arms in Stephen Curry&rsquo;s house.
Then Curry and the Golden State Warriors delivered one of those signature third-quarter flurries that have defined so many of their postseason runs &mdash; with this one being sparked by Kevon Looney.
Just like that, they&rsquo;re two wins away from getting back to another NBA Finals.
Curry scored 32 points with six 3-pointers and eight more rebounds, Looney had a career-high 21 points and 12 rebounds and the Warriors rallied past the Dallas Mavericks 126-117 on Friday for a 2-0 lead in the Western Conference finals.
&ldquo;I feel honored just to be a part of the ride,&rdquo; Looney said.
Doncic scored 42 points and the Mavericks led most of the way before the Warriors took their first lead of the night on Otto Porter Jr.&rsquo;s 3-pointer 18 seconds into the fourth.
Doncic had 18 points in the first quarter &mdash; two shy of his 20-point Game 1 total. His 3-pointer with 13 seconds before halftime &mdash; the Mavs&rsquo; 15th of the first half &mdash; made it 72-58 at the break and gave him 24 points.
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&ldquo;Against someone that good you&rsquo;re just trying to limit some of the easy stuff,&rdquo; Warriors coach Steve Kerr said.
Doncic even got a Twitter shoutout from&nbsp;<a class="" href="https://twitter.com/MCHammer/status/1527835832458960898" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Oakland&rsquo;s own MC Hammer</a>: &ldquo;Ok young Luka &hellip; We see you.&rdquo;
But Golden State answered with a 25-13 third quarter to pull to 85-83 going into fourth &mdash; coming out of halftime with a performance reminiscent of those thrilling third quarters of past.
&ldquo;We know how good they are as a third-quarter team,&rdquo; Dallas forward Reggie Bullock said. &ldquo;It&rsquo;s just something that slipped away from us as the game continued to go on.&rdquo;
Doncic shot 12 for 23 and shined in a game of brilliant shotmaking &mdash; the Warriors finished 56.1% from the floor. In the first half alone, Dallas edged Golden State 52.3% to 51.2%, including a remarkable 55.6% to 53.3% from 3-point range.
The series shifts to Dallas for Game 3 on Sunday. Golden State is two wins from a return to the NBA Finals for the first time since making five straight trips from 2015-19.
&ldquo;We&rsquo;re on the road against one of the best teams in the league. It happens. They held serve,&rdquo; Mavs coach Jason Kidd said. &ldquo;We&rsquo;ve seen this in Phoenix so now we have to go back and just focus on Game 3.&rdquo;
Jordan Poole scored 23 points off the bench, Andrew Wiggins had 16 and Klay Thompson &mdash; held scoreless in the first half of the series opener &mdash; added 15 points for a second straight game. Golden State scored 62 points in the paint.
Jalen Brunson scored eight of the first 14 Dallas points on the way to 31. The Mavericks didn&rsquo;t have to see as much of Draymond Green, who picked up his fifth foul with 6:01 left in the third, then returned with 6:33 left before fouling out with 2:25 to go.
The teams tangled with 8:03 left in the second quarter in front of the Dallas bench. Warriors reserve Damion Lee closed out as Davis Bertans hit a 3-pointer from the corner and Bertans tripped Lee and sent him in a flip hard to the floor. Lee had to be held back by official Eric Lewis.
The players were issued double technicals.
In Game 1 two days earlier, Doncic faced smothering defense from Wiggins and shot just 6 for 18 and 3 of 10 from deep. Kidd expected a far better outing in Game 2.
Golden State continued to push the pace and committed 16 turnovers after 15 in the opener.
RELIABLE LOONEY
Moved back into the starting lineup for the clinching Game 6 of the semifinals against Memphis, Looney shot 10 for 14 after making all five of his field goals in Game 1.
He notched his second career postseason double-double.
&ldquo;Tonight was my night to make a big difference and I just stepped up,&rdquo; Looney said.
TIP-INS
Mavericks: Dallas led by as many as 16 in the opening quarter. ... The Mavs were outrebounded again at 43-30 after a 51-35 disadvantage in Game 1. They committed one fewer turnovers with 12 after Doncic had seven in the series opener. &ldquo;We&rsquo;ve got to take care of the ball because the Warriors once you turn the ball over, they&rsquo;re gone, and a lot of times it&rsquo;s an open 3,&rdquo; Kidd said beforehand.
Warriors: G Gary Payton II &mdash; who broke his left elbow on a hard foul when Memphis star Dillon Brooks clobbered him May 3 on a fast break for a Flagrant 2, ejection and one-game suspension &mdash; is doing light individual work on court that includes shooting with his non-dominant right hand and will be re-evaluated in a week. ... F Andre Iguodala missed his ninth straight game with a disc injury in his neck is continuing his rehab with physical therapy and training in the weight room with some light on-court work. The Warriors said they will provide an update when he&rsquo;s cleared to practice. ... Golden State improved to 8-0 at home this postseason and is 18-5 in Game 2s dating to the 2015 title run. ... Green was voted to the NBA All-Defensive Second Team.
QUOTABLE
&ldquo;Steph is the best-conditioned athlete in this game, he never stops moving.&rdquo; -- Kidd
</div>

The Golden State Warriors rallied from an early deficit to take their second straight win in the Western Conference Finals.

Steph Curry, Warriors rally past Mavs for 2-0 lead in West finals

BasketballNews.com's Senior NBA Draft Analyst Matt Babcock presents a series that will peel back the curtain from his time as a sports agent, giving a glimpse at some of his personal experiences working in the sports agency business for over a decade.
In the second entry of the series, Babcock outlines his summer internship at high-powered sports agency Wasserman Media Group before the 2006 NBA Draft. 
When I was 22 years old, I was an intern at Wasserman Media Group's sports agency in Los Angeles, California. The internship not only had me doing typical intern-type tasks, but most importantly to me (because I had ambitions of being a coach), it had me working on the court daily with the company's newest clients &mdash; Shelden Williams, Brandon Roy, JJ Redick (<a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/podcasts/the-dunker-spot/episodes/basketballnews-com-episode-105-young-man-the-three" target="_blank" rel="noopener">who guested on The Dunker Spot this week</a>), Jordan Farmar and Joel Freeland &mdash; as they prepared for the 2006 NBA Draft. It was an exciting summer!
At that time, I was admittedly horrible with basic tasks in the office that were typical responsibilities asked of interns. Besides being a ball boy, working basketball camps and helping out at the NBA Draft Combine a few times, I had never had a real job before, as I'd always been busy being a basketball player. Anyway, my low-point while at Wasserman as an intern was being made responsible to send basketballs via FedEx for the agency's players and designated coaches to use at a pro-day workout in Florida that NBA scouts would attend.
I sent the basketballs out just fine. However, I sent them "ground," and they didn't arrive until days after the workout had happened. Greg Lawrence, who was in charge of managing the interns at Wasserman, had every reason to let me have it on that one, but fortunately for me, he didn't &mdash; thanks, Greg! In all honesty, I had some growing up to do. Luckily I did, eventually.
Despite my challenges in the office, I was right at home on the court, which was the main reason I was there from my perspective. I assisted Dave Joerger in working out and preparing all of Wasserman's new clients for the NBA pre-draft process. (Joerger was a D-League head coach at the time and eventually became the head coach of the Memphis Grizzlies and Sacramento Kings. He's currently an assistant coach for the Philadelphia 76ers).
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Former NBA player and current Wasserman agent BJ Armstrong (<a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/podcasts/the-rex-chapman-show/episodes/basketballnews-com-episode-41-episode-40-bj-armstrong" target="_blank" rel="noopener">who was recently a guest on The Rex Chapman Show</a>) also worked with the players occasionally. Darren Erman volunteered to help us with the workouts as well. (Erman, a corporate lawyer at the time, went on to have a successful career as an NBA assistant coach, and he is currently an assistant coach for the New York Knicks). An impressive group of coaches &mdash; I was lucky to have had the opportunity to work with them.
I worked on the court with the coaches and players a lot, but I spent a lot of quality time with the players off the court too. We routinely had lunches and dinners, and watched NBA playoff games together. I became close with Shelden, "B-Roy," and JJ; I got along with Jordan Farmar too, but because he had already lived in L.A. &mdash; being from there and attending UCLA &mdash; he wasn't around as much as the other guys, so I didn't get to know him quite as well. But, all in all, we had a great group of guys, and we had a good time together.
After 15 seasons in the NBA, JJ concluded a successful career and is now a rising star in the media. But in 2006, his fame was at its peak. A star at Duke, JJ generated a ton of media attention and was even on the cover of Sports Illustrated. He was treated like a rock star anywhere he would goShelden (JJ's teammate at Duke) once told me that fans would regularly avoid getting autographs from him and his teammates if JJ had already signed the item. Supposedly, if anyone else would sign the memorabilia, it would decrease the value. Think about that for a minute. Shelden was a consensus first-team All-American and one of the top NBA prospects in the country while at Duke!
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While in Los Angeles, JJ and I had a couple of nights out on the town (with the approval of his agents and my bosses, of course). One night, we went to an exclusive nightclub in Hollywood. We stood in a long line just like ordinary people; me, who was not famous, and JJ, who looked like the typical college frat boy. After standing in a hopeless line, I decided to talk to the bouncer to see if I could somehow get us in; I told him I was with JJ Redick. Within moments, we were taken into the club and seated at a table next to reality TV star Kristin Cavallari and former boxer and heavyweight champion Mike Tyson.
Hanging with JJ was a lot of fun.
After a month or so of us establishing a steady daily routine with the players, agent Thad Foucher let Coach Joerger and I know that he had a client named Joel Freeland from England who would be joining our workouts. Thad decided to have Joel enter his name in that year's draft. We needed to get him polished up for a showcase workout that we would be hosting the following week &mdash; every team in the NBA would be in attendance.
Every player we worked with up to that point was well-known. Joel was from England and played for a small team in Spain, so he was virtually unknown by NBA folks. However, at 6-foot-10, Joel was athletic and skilled for a player his size. After working with him, Coach Joerger and I agreed that he was a worthy prospect. Thad knew this already, of course; he wouldn't have signed him otherwise. We thought Joel might make a big splash at the showcase workout, and he did.
Following the workout in front of the entire NBA, Thad called me into his office and explained that Joel's draft stock had suddenly erupted, and he had more teams wanting to bring him into workout than days left until the draft. Therefore, he needed to be aggressive in organizing his schedule. It was the first time Joel had visited the United States, so Thad asked me to accompany him as he traveled around the country visiting different NBA teams. I essentially served as Joel's manager from that point until draft night. I remember vividly walking out of Thad's office to call my dad to tell him the good news. I was so excited to get that opportunity.
Before I knew it, Joel and I were off to Portland for his first team workout with the Trail Blazers. Joel and I shared a hotel room, and the team gave him per diem to cover his dinner. We ate at the hotel that night and had breakfast there the following day. While Joel was at the Blazers' practice facility for his workout, I stayed at the hotel killing time because the team didn't allow me to attend. Following his workout, we flew back to L.A. for one day so Joel could work out for the Lakers. Altogether, the trip to Portland was pretty uneventful for me. However, our journey was just getting started. Our next stop was Phoenix.
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When we landed in Phoenix, we were greeted by a car service: a gentleman in a black suit and tie with a fancy black car. He took us to the hotel, where Joel and I were given our own rooms at The Ritz Carlton. I felt like I was big time. Upon settling into our hotel rooms, the Suns' director of player personnel at the time (and current executive vice president of basketball operations for the New Orleans Pelicans), David Griffin, called to invite Joel and I to dinner at a steakhouse within walking distance from the hotel. He also asked me to attend the workout the next day. I must say that I am very appreciative of the first-class treatment David and the Suns gave me considering I was just a young guy trying to find my place in the business. "Griff" is undoubtedly a class act.
After a terrific trip to Phoenix, Joel and I continued our hectic travel, making stops in Houston, Dallas and Memphis. Aside from the Suns, no other teams allowed me to attend the workouts. Although it was perhaps a bit overzealous, it didn't stop me from trying.
While we were in Memphis, I casually walked into the practice gym with Joel and quietly took a seat, hoping no one would take too much notice of me where I could watch the workout. Shortly after I sat down, Ryan West, a scout with the Grizzlies and the son of the general manager and Hall-of-Fame player Jerry West, told me he wasn't sure if I'd be able to stay for the workout, but that he'd check.
Ryan and I were friends, and his dad and my uncle Pete had a close relationship, so I thought maybe I'd get the Griff/Suns treatment. The next thing I knew, Jerry was making his way toward me. My heart began to race; it wasn't that big of a deal to me whether I watched the workout or not, but the fact that "The Logo" was about to speak to me &mdash; that was a big deal!
As he approached me, he stuck out his hand and introduced himself; a really classy man with such an incredible presence. I'm not even entirely sure what I did or said. I'm not even sure if I responded at all initially. Ironically, I choked when meeting "Mr. Clutch." Anyway, the rest of our brief conversation went something like this:
Jerry West: Matt, would you like to watch the workout?
Me: Yes, I would like to, but it's not that big of a deal if it's an issue.
Jerry West: Do you speak to your father? (My dad worked for another NBA team).
Me: Well, of course, I do but...
(And before I could finish&hellip;)
Jerry West: It's nice to meet you, but we will have to ask you to wait for Joel in the locker room.
And that was my experience meeting Jerry West.
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Following the Memphis trip, we made our way to New York so Joel could work out for the Knicks the morning of the NBA Draft. Because I planned to pursue coaching jobs for the following season, the NBA Draft was when my internship would wrap up, as I prepared to attend Summer League in Las Vegas to hunt for coaching opportunities in July.&nbsp;
So just like that, my time with Wasserman was suddenly coming to an end &mdash; but first, we needed to see how the draft unfolded.
Although I was just an intern who had only known these players for a few months, we collectively put some real work together and created a bond. I cared about those players &mdash; I was invested. I especially cared for Joel, who quickly became like a little brother to me during our travels together as he chased his dream to play in the NBA.
So, our moment of truth was upon us. NBA Commissioner David Stern approached the podium, and the NBA Draft began. I anxiously watched, waiting to hear our guys' names called. Here's how it played out:
<ul>
<li>Shelden Williams &mdash; drafted No. 5 overall by the Atlanta Hawks</li>
<li>Brandon Roy &mdash; drafted No. 6 overall by the Minnesota Timberwolves and traded to the Portland Trail Blazers</li>
<li>JJ Redick drafted No. 11 overall by the Orlando Magic</li>
<li>Jordan Farmer drafted No. 26 overall by the Los Angeles Lakers</li>
<li>Joel Freeland drafted No. 30 overall by the Portland Trail Blazers</li>
</ul>
All of our players were selected in the first round (yes, even my "little brother," Joel Freeland)! I couldn't have been happier for all of the guys, especially for Joel, who played in the NBA for several years and had an incredibly successful career overseas.
The night of the 2006 NBA Draft, Shelden Williams, Brandon Roy, JJ Redick, Jordan Farmar, Joel Freeland, their families, the Wasserman agents and I celebrated the fruits of our labor. It was undoubtedly a great night and a terrific summer, which I will never forget.&nbsp;
Little did I know at that time that it was just the beginning of my involvement in the sports-agency business.
Stay tuned for the next entry of this series: "My past life as a sports agent: The 2006 NBA Draft." 
<a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/my-past-life-as-a-sports-agent-going-to-california" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Read the last entry of this series</a>: "My past life as a sports agent: "Going to California."
Editor's Note: This article was originally published on <a href="https://www.babcockhoops.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">BabcockHoops.com</a>.
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Matt Babcock recounts his summer internship at high-powered sports agency Wasserman Media Group before the 2006 NBA Draft.

My past life as a sports agent: The 2006 NBA Draft

The energy in The Bay was palpable, a crowd starved for its team's first Western Conference Finals berth since 2019. The dominant rule of this Golden State dynasty had been rudely interrupted by a once-in-a-generation global pandemic, a slew of untimely injuries and a superstar migrating across the country to skyscraping lands. Even the Chase Center flooring glimmered in anticipation.
The only thing that gleamed more was the twinkle in the eye of the Warriors' team defense.
The Warriors faced a new challenge in the West Finals, going from containing the quick-twitch athleticism strewn across the Memphis Grizzlies' roster to now containing the pick-and-roll craftsmanship of Luka Doncic, arguably the best player of the 2022 postseason. Luka's a nightmare to deal with, to say the least. He can attack your bigs or smalls on switches in isolation. He makes passes that only a select few across the globe can make should he even gain the slightest bit of an advantage. Most of all, he's a true-blue three-level scorer, geared up with step-back threes, post-ups with Dirk Nowitzki-legged fadeaways, sikly floaters and elongated layups at his disposal.&nbsp;
Containing a player of that ilk is not as simple as just throwing one perimeter player his way and hoping for the best. And while Luka's primary defender, Andrew Wiggins, did an admirable job on Wednesday of holding Doncic to 4-of-10 shooting, it was Golden State's medley of defensive coverages that kept Dallas at bay during the 25-point evisceration.&nbsp;
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Steve Kerr's crew threw out six different coverages in the first half &mdash; blitzes, hedge-and-recovers, a shallow drop coverage, pick-and-roll switches, a 3-2 zone and even a Box-and-1 &mdash; to stifle Dallas' second-ranked playoff half-court offense to a crawl. Golden State's coordinated chaos worked effectively, as Dallas put up just 78.8 points per 100 possessions in the half-court during Game 1 (10th percentile, yikes!), well below the 101.3 Offensive Rating that Dallas normally averages in this setting.&nbsp;
We'll touch on a few of those coverages momentarily, but it was Golden State's zone looks that were particularly interesting. The Mavericks haven't seen a ton of zones this postseason, especially coming off a series against the Phoenix Suns that featured mostly drop coverage or the occasional switch with Deandre Ayton manning the middle.
Interestingly, Golden State aligned its 3-2 zone so that Stephen Curry was atop the formation, meaning that he was typically Luka Doncic's primary defender. This goes against conventional thinking; normally, you'd expect the Warriors to hide Curry in the corners on one of Dallas' non-threatening options (think: how Miami deployed Duncan Robinson and Tyler Herro in the 2020 postseason) instead of guarding the best mismatch-hunter on the floor. The Warriors, however, felt confident about shuttling defensive possessions to Curry at the point-of-attack, trusting their superstar to <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/stephen-currys-defense-continues-to-shine-for-the-warriors" target="_blank" rel="noopener">utilize his best defensive attribute</a> &mdash; his quick hands&mdash; to frustrate Maverick ball-handlers.
Of course, it helps with Wiggins and Draymond Green situated at the nearby wings, able to sink down and contain should Doncic bullrush his way past the slighter Curry. That's exactly what happened during this first-quarter possession below; Curry bothered Doncic's dribble by sticking in an arm, and when Doncic gathered himself and prepared his attack, Wiggins provided assistance at the nail to erase the driving lane and coerce the kick out. Jalen Brunson, of course, misses the spot-up three (a trend on Wednesday night), and Golden State gets its desired result from the 3-2 zone.
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There's some irony in the Warriors &mdash; the same team that once complained about Toronto's "junk defenses" in the 2019 NBA Finals &mdash; throwing out Box-and-1s to fluster Dallas' heliocentric offense. And yet, a minute later, Golden State busted out that janky look, with Curry, Jordan Poole, Green, and Otto Porter Jr. spread across the lane lines to form the "box," and Wiggins smothering Luka from basically the mid-court line.
<img style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" src="https://cdn.basketballnews.com/images/story/body/box-and-1_lg.png" alt="" width="701" height="348" />
When Maxi Kleber comes to set a screen for Doncic, Poole and Wiggins trap Luka and use the sideline as a third defender to force the pass. Dallas hot-potatoes the ball across the perimeter, frantically searching for a vialble option, and eventually the Mavs are left with a 27-foot three from Kleber. A result the Warriors will live with.
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The Mavericks mustered up just 18 total points in the first quarter, which effectively set the tone for the rest of Game 1. Looking ahead after the brutal loss, it begs the question: Where can the Mavericks go next?
Well, there's the obvious answer, for one: Make more friggin' threes. Duh. The Mavericks whiffed on 37 of their 48 total outside looks, with some of those misses being <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OT-vnjKYwf0&amp;ab_channel=MattBrooksNBA" target="_blank" rel="noopener">pretty dang brutal</a>. But there's more to the game than just blindly hoping for better results.
Thinning Out the Hedges
As mentioned, one of the coverages that Golden State threw at Luka was hedging and recovering on pick-and-rolls. Typically, this was done when Doncic and the Mavericks looked to target Curry in screening actions. Dallas would have Curry's defender &mdash; Reggie Bullock in the first clip; Spencer Dinwiddie in the second&mdash;set a screen on Luka's defender, Wiggins.
Rather than having Curry switch outright onto Doncic, Steph would instead jump out toward the 6-foot-8 ball-handler to buy Wiggins time as he recovered back to his assignment. Though it goes in, a tightly contested step-back three &mdash; which Luka is shooting just 32.1% on in the postseason &mdash; is a result the Warriors can stomach, especially with one of its smallest defenders (Curry) involved in the play.
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Thus, going at Curry with a slew of straight pick-and-rolls wasn't particularly profitable in Game 1. Golden State is too experienced, too disciplined and too even-tempered to be caught off-guard by opponents repeatedly targetting its superstar. After all, that's been the game plan since, what, 2015? Steph is well-versed in evading such narrow offensive game planning.
But Dallas has some unexplored avenues.
One such way could be to mix in more slips to the rim. Below, after Golden State pre-switches to initially neutralize the Doncic-Bullock pick-and-roll, Luka calls for a second screen from Brunson to bring Curry into the fold. When Steph hedges, Brunson then cuts to the rim instead of flaring out to the perimeter. And although the possession is smothered by Draymond Green audibling a switch with Curry and playing some free safety (goodness was he ever incredible in Game 1!), Dallas was able to get two feet into the middle of the paint to make decisions.&nbsp;
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Flipping the angle of the screen at the very last second, which is something the <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/grizzlies-flattening-out-the-warriors" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Grizzlies did against the Warriors</a> in the second round, is a counter yet to be tested by the Mavericks' offense. When Dallas did elect to re-screen in Game 1, it was only because the initial screen failed to connect.&nbsp;
Dallas could also add some intricacy to its pick-and-rolls by forcing Golden State to navigate secondary screens. Screen-the-screener (STS) plays were, once again, something the <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/memphisminnesota-game-5-was-a-masterclass-in-playcalling-wizardry" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Grizzlies tinkered with</a> in the earlier rounds of the postseason, and forcing Curry to navigate an off-ball screen before being dragged into a ball-screen for Luka could put him behind the play, thus throwing off the timing of his hedge.
All Doncic needs is a moment of hesitation to create for himself or others, so mixing in each of the following&mdash; re-screens, slips to the rim, ram screens and/or STS plays and straight pick-and-roll&mdash;to keep the Warriors on pins and needles could prove to make the difference going forward.
Sniffing Out the Proper Switches
So yes, scoping out Curry on pick-and-roll-induced switches didn't go as planned for Dallas in Game 1 given his comfort level with hedging those plays into oblivion; but that's not to say that Dallas failed to get any sort of traction when Golden State swapped assignments after ball screens.
Here's something that should keep Mavericks fans up at night: Dallas was hunting the wrong Warrior guard. Poole was tested by both of Dallas' secondary and tertiary options (Brunson and Dinwiddie), and he looked like a fish out of water on switches. Collectively, Dinwiddie and Brunson went 2-for-3 from the field when defended by Poole in Game 1.
Dinwiddie is both too tall and too quick to be even slightly bothered by Golden State's prolific 22-year-old, and Brunson's veteran craft left Poole stumbling. Jalen's portfolio of pump-fakes, B-Boy dancer pivots and up-and-unders was one hell of a handful for the third-year player.
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Even when Golden State attempted to hide Poole with hedges, he just wasn't disciplined enough to masterfully pull off this coverage with regularity. Here, he "shows" (or hedges) way, way too high up the floor against Brunson, who has yet to burn Golden State with pull-up threes, and Poole ends up getting flamb&eacute;d in isolation.
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Dallas' one-two punch of Doncic and Brunson also got off some pretty clean looks when served up Kevon Looney on a platter. Look, Looney had himself one hell of a Wednesday evening and was maybe the Game 1 MVP, but his lateral mobility was tested by Dallas' lead options. Take a look for yourself:
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Dallas should continue to hammer this home in the series. Though it's admirable that Looney feels empowered to pick up individual creators of Doncic and Brunson's ilk so high up the floor, his hip flexibility doesn't afford him the requisite oomph when changing directions on either player's array of dribbling moves. Doncic found relative consistency in forcing Golden State rotations and passing to open shooters after beating Looney off the dribble; Brunson, meanwhile, danced and jitterbugged his way to his spots to go 3-of-4 when defended by the Warriors' starting center.
It's integral that Dallas continues to exhaust Curry by involving him in a never-ending loop of pick-and-rolls. The more mileage put on his body defensively, the better. But there's also some value in getting some easy ones against guys like Looney and Poole.
Other notes:
<ul>
<li>Testing Klay Thompson, still fresh off two major injuries, is inherently not a terrible idea. Doing so by posting him up and allowing him to use his strong base and 6-6 frame, however, is not so brilliant. Doncic wasn't able to gain any ground against Golden State's sturdy wing, and the Mavericks would be better suited having the bursty Dinwiddie or even the guileful Brunson go at Thompson in space.</li>
</ul>
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<ul>
<li>Speaking of Brunson, how often he can make Golden State pay via pull-up threes should be a major theme in the West Finals. Golden State regularly went under ball-screens against Brunson, daring him to shoot, and he responded with a whole bundle of record-scratch moments. Brunson has shot a combined 30.4% on pull-up three-pointers in the regular season and the postseason on just 105 total attempts, and if he continues to feign at chucking them up when the defense drifts underneath screens, Dallas' offense will sludge itself to death.</li>
</ul>
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<ul>
<li>The Mavericks are one of those teams where you just wish they'd incorporate a little more movement into their offense. Dallas leaves food on the table with screening actions on the weak side of the floor, and it allows the low man to stay engaged when helping over should Doncic (or Brunson or Dinwiddie) discover a crack in the defense. That's particularly problematic against a team like the Warriors and Green, a hellish secondary defender to tangle with. Notice how Golden State preoccupies Luka, the low man in the clip below, with screening action between Wiggins and Thompson. When Looney slips to the rim, Doncic is late on his rotation because of the ensuing traffic on the weak side.&nbsp;</li>
</ul>
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It'd be great if Dallas could incorporate some of&nbsp;that&nbsp;stuff into their pick-and-roll heavy offense.
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Matt Brooks goes in-depth to break down what the Mavericks can improve on offensively against a stout Warriors defense.