Builders

SINGAPORE INDOOR STADIUM, SINGAPORE &ndash; No Jack McVeigh, no problem for Tasmania JackJumpers.&nbsp;
Australia&rsquo;s champions did not skip a beat despite not having the 2024 NBL Finals MVP on their roster to put out Argentina&rsquo;s champions Quimsa, 81-59, at the FIBA Intercontinental Cup Day 2 game day here.
McVeigh recently signed a two-way contract with the Houston Rockets to try his luck out in the NBA.&nbsp;
American imports Jordon Crawford and Milton Doyle led the charge for the JackJumpers in McVeigh&rsquo;s absence with 15 and 12 points while Australia Boomers national player Will Magnay added 12 points himself.&nbsp;
The win allowed Tasmania to face the NBA G League United tomorrow for a slot in the title game on Sunday. Quimsa is now relegated to the 5th-6th place game with their second loss of the tournament, after also bowing out against the United yesterday.
Spanish side Unicaja has also booked their place in the Finals after beating Lebanon&rsquo;s Al Riyadi, 96-59, for their second win.
Tyler Kalinoski was efficient yet again with 13 points on 5/10 shooting as Unicaja shot more than 50 percent from the field, while Kendrick Perry led the team overall in scoring with 17 points.
Unicaja now awaits the winner of the NBA G League United - Tasmania JackJumpers game for their title game opponent.
Al Riyadi will have a shot to play for the 3rd place match when they face Petro de Luanda tomorrow.

Australia's Tasmania JackJumpers and Spain's Unicaja took care of their respective opponents on Day 2 of the FIBA ICC 2024.

FIBA ICC Day 2: Tasmania secures first win; Unicaja moves on to title game

SINGAPORE INDOOR STADIUM, SINGAPORE &ndash; The NBA G League United wasted no time in establishing their caliber after beating Quimsa, 78-65, on the first day of the FIBA Intercontinental Cup 2024 Thursday night here.
The Americans, mostly made up of former NBA players, G League mainstays, and bright young, upcoming stars took advantage of their height and athletic advantage against Argentinian side Quimsa.
&ldquo;We knew we&rsquo;re the most athletic team out here, so we tried to take advantage of that &ndash; and we did,&rdquo; Brodric Thomas said.
Former NBA player from the Golden State Warriors and Los Angeles Lakers Juan Toscano-Anderson led the way for the United with an all-around game of 13 points, 8 rebounds, 6 assists, and 3 steals while Deonte Burton, a former OKC Thunder player, top scored for the team with 17 points.
Thomas added 12 markers, while Rob Baker II and Charlie Brown Jr. chipped in with 11 apiece as the Americans had five players in double digits for their first win of the tournament.
The FIBA Intercontinental Cup is a tournament featuring the six champion teams from each continent, and the NBA G League United is representing the USA for North America. Quimsa, a club from Argentina, represents South America.
&ldquo;We wanted to be aggressive and make a statement. I believe the G League is the 2nd-best league in the world [after the NBA] and we wanna come and show that,&rdquo; Toscano-Anderson said post-game.
In the second match of the day, Spanish side Unicaja representing Europe dominated the Angolan squad Petro de Luanda representing Africa, 95-75. Tyler Kalinoski was phenomenal for Unicaja with 16 points on an efficient 6/9 shooting night in just 15 minutes.
The FIBA Intercontinental Cup 2024 continues tomorrow with Australian squad Tasmania JackJumpers battling against Quimsa in the first match then Lebanese side Al Riyadi going up against Unicaja still here at the Singapore Indoor Stadium.

The NBA G League United established their caliber after beating Quimsa, 78-65, on the first day of the FIBA Intercontinental Cup.

FIBA Intercontinental Cup 2024 Day 1: NBA G League United scores first win over Quimsa

Blake Stern previews the NBA's Central Division, breaking down each team's projected lineup and burning question entering the year.

NBA Central Division Preview: Burning questions, rotation projections

DENVER (AP) &mdash; All those smooth-looking, long-range jumpers Michael Porter Jr. hits have definitely been a reward for Denver.
Easy to forget just how much of a risk he was early on for the Nuggets.
They rolled the dice at No. 14 in the 2018 draft on a 6-foot-10 forward with a balky back to go with a tremendous set of skills. He&rsquo;s gone through three back procedures since college and missed basically two of his five NBA seasons, but still showed enough flashes of talent to earn a max extension.
Without taking that gamble on Porter, the&nbsp;<a class="paragraph-link" href="https://apnews.com/article/nba-finals-nuggets-jokic-murray-malone-18329e13dfecae50834ebc06d409027c">Nuggets might not be</a>&nbsp;here, starting their first NBA Finals on Thursday night with a 104-93 win over Miami. He&rsquo;s become their X factor &mdash; the third part of a hard-to-contain trio that also includes Nikola Jokic and Jamal Murray. Porter had 14 points and 12 rebounds against the Heat.
&ldquo;It&rsquo;s just cool looking back on the journey,&rdquo;&nbsp;<a class="paragraph-link" href="https://twitter.com/pgraham34/status/1663249469264240640" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">said Porter, who</a>&nbsp;turns 25 on June 29. &ldquo;You try not to spend too much time looking back right now, just stay focused on getting this ring. But you&rsquo;ve got to take moments to just look back.&rdquo;
Rewind a few years: Porter was a senior at Nathan Hale High School in Seattle and learning from a coach who wasn&rsquo;t just a coach. This was former NBA All-Star guard Brandon Roy &mdash; someone who had been in the league and done the things Porter was hoping to do.
&ldquo;He really helped me take my game to the next level,&rdquo; Porter said.
A top recruit, he chose Missouri. It was home, with Porter growing up in Columbia. His brother, Jontay, joined him at Missouri. His dad&nbsp;<a class="paragraph-link" href="https://mutigers.com/sports/mens-basketball/roster/coaches/michael-porter-sr-/927" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">was added to the staff</a>&nbsp;after coaching at the University of Washington.
But his time with the Tigers was cut short by his ailing back. Two minutes into his inaugural college game, he went out. He later underwent microdiscectomy&nbsp;<a class="paragraph-link" href="https://mutigers.com/news/2017/11/21/mens-basketball-statements-michael-porter-jr.aspx" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">surgery to fix herniated discs</a>&nbsp;but made it back for the SEC Tournament &mdash; a loss to Georgia &mdash; and then the NCAA Tournament, where the Tigers fell to Florida State.
Despite his back issues, the Nuggets selected him in a draft that included Deandre Ayton (No. 1), Luka Doncic (No. 3) and Trae Young (No. 5).
Porter missed his first season in Denver after undergoing another back procedure. The following year, he showed what he could do in the 2020 NBA bubble when the Nuggets made it to the Western Conference finals before losing to the Los Angeles Lakers. In 2020-21, he averaged 19 points in the regular season over 61 games.
Last season, though, brought another road block for Porter and his back. After nine games, he was shut down for a third surgery.
On the sideline with him was Murray, who was coming back from a torn ACL. Watching Porter work in rehab made Murray appreciate the accomplishments of Porter in these playoffs all the more.
Porter is averaging 14.6 points and 8.3 rebounds through the playoffs, while also holding his own on the defensive end of the floor. He had two blocked shots against Miami.
&ldquo;He&rsquo;s done amazing,&rdquo; Murray said. &ldquo;Just playing a more complete game throughout the game.&rdquo;
Porter also has been dealing with serious family matters.
Earlier this year, younger brother Coban, a&nbsp;<a class="paragraph-link" href="https://denverpioneers.com/sports/mens-basketball/roster/coban-porter/3562" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">basketball player at the University of Denver,</a>&nbsp;was charged with&nbsp;<a class="paragraph-link" href="https://apnews.com/article/denver-nuggets-sports-crime-coban-porter-michael-jr-ebfaffc1725e926851ff20c794b928fa">felony counts of vehicular homicide and vehicular</a>&nbsp;assault stemming from a suspected drunken-driving crash that killed a 42-year-old woman. Coban Porter has a status conference and a preliminary hearing scheduled for Tuesday in Denver. Game 3 is Wednesday in Miami.
Anytime Porter needs advice or feedback on his game, he rings up his mentor Roy.
&ldquo;He definitely means the world to me,&rdquo; said Porter, who signed a five-year deal in 2021 worth up to&nbsp;<a class="paragraph-link" href="https://apnews.com/article/nba-sports-basketball-denver-denver-nuggets-609d666320914d3c84632879628e8e2c">$207 million</a>. &ldquo;He was my coach in high school, so he sees kind of how my game has evolved since my injuries and things.&rdquo;
Nuggets coach Michael Malone has seen Porter&rsquo;s unabashed confidence steadily returning.
&ldquo;When you&rsquo;re not healthy and you can&rsquo;t move and do the things that you&rsquo;re accustomed to doing, that really makes it hard to go out there and be confident in your game and what you&rsquo;re able to do,&rdquo; Malone said. &ldquo;He&rsquo;s in a very good place right now.&rdquo;
And now, Porter loathes being taken out of games. He&rsquo;s known to shoot assistant coach Ryan Saunders a mean stare when a sub replaces him.
&ldquo;Like, &lsquo;I can&rsquo;t believe you&rsquo;re taking me out,&rsquo;&rdquo; Malone recounted. &ldquo;He&rsquo;s closed a lot of games for us lately because he&rsquo;s 6-10, he&rsquo;s defending well and he&rsquo;s rebounding at a high level. He&rsquo;s confident, he&rsquo;s aggressive and he&rsquo;s had a huge impact on this team.&rdquo;
Porter keeps a gratefulness journal. Just little reminders he&rsquo;s taken to heart: Stay hungry. Keep working. Never let up. Reflect.
&ldquo;To get back here and be competitive in a playoff series, man, it&rsquo;s a great feeling,&rdquo; Porter said. &ldquo;Especially considering everything I&rsquo;ve been through.&rdquo;

Michael Porter Jr. has been incredible for Denver. It's easy to forget just how much of a risk he was early on for the Nuggets.

Once a risky pick, Michael Porter Jr. turns in big rewards for Nuggets

Purdue&rsquo;s Zach Edey decided it was the right call to go back to school instead of staying in the NBA draft. His predecessor as national player of the year, Kentucky&rsquo;s Oscar Tshiebwe, is sticking with his pro pursuit.
And Connecticut&rsquo;s reign as NCAA champion will begin with multiple starters having left for the NBA draft and one returning after flirting with doing the same.
The 7-foot-4 Edey and UConn guard Tristen Newton were among the notable names to announce that they were withdrawing from the draft Wednesday, the NCAA&rsquo;s deadline for players who declared as early entrants to pull out and retain their college eligibility.
Edey&rsquo;s decision came Wednesday night, in social media posts from both&nbsp;<a class="paragraph-link" href="https://twitter.com/zach_edey/status/1664075497490227202?s=20" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">the center</a>&nbsp;and&nbsp;<a class="paragraph-link" href="https://twitter.com/boilerball/status/1664076605637947392?s=12&amp;t=srroTo7kpdGXnm7-atvQSA" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">the Boilermakers program</a>&nbsp;that earned a No. 1 seed in the NCAA Tournament&nbsp;<a class="paragraph-link" href="https://apnews.com/article/ap-player-of-year-edey-97210ca64c44cd64ca0120406dcc969a">behind Edey, The Associated Press men&rsquo;s national player of the year</a>.
But Tshiebwe&nbsp;<a class="paragraph-link" href="https://www.instagram.com/p/Cs7A_lVv4CC/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">announced late in the afternoon that he would remain in the draft</a>&nbsp;after a college career that included&nbsp;<a class="paragraph-link" href="https://apnews.com/article/march-madness-st-peters-peacocks-mens-basketball-sports-oscar-tshiebwe-johnny-davis-7174341881f37ac8750f8f9119a6fce8">being named the AP national player of the year in 2022</a>.
For the current champions, Newton (10.1 points, 4.7 assists, 4.5 rebounds)&nbsp;<a class="paragraph-link" href="https://twitter.com/D1Tristen/status/1663887976647237632?s=20" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">is returning</a>&nbsp;after being one of four Huskies to declare for the draft after a run&nbsp;<a class="paragraph-link" href="https://apnews.com/article/final-four-uconn-san-diego-state-1de224560610defcbc4eb9c40cbb588a">to UConn&rsquo;s fifth national championship in early April</a>. He scored a game-high 19 points to go with 10 rebounds in the victory over San Diego State in the title game.
The others were&nbsp;<a class="paragraph-link" href="https://apnews.com/article/ncaa-championship-uconn-san-diego-state-782bd15323bda90f2b664653cae99e6e">Final Four Most Outstanding Player Adama Sanogo</a>, wing Jordan Hawkins and versatile guard Andre Jackson Jr. Sanogo (17.8 points) and Hawkins (16.3) have made it clear they have closed the door on their college careers, while team spokesman Phil Chardis said Wednesday night that Jackson (6.1 points, 5.8 rebounds, 4.6 assists) would remain in the draft.
The Huskies have 247sports&rsquo; No. 3-ranked recruiting class for next year to restock the roster, led by McDonald&rsquo;s All-American point guard Stephon Castle.
The NBA&rsquo;s withdrawal deadline is June 12, but is moot when it comes to college players returning to school due to the NCAA&rsquo;s earlier timeline to retain playing eligibility.
STAYING IN SCHOOL
TREY ALEXANDER:&nbsp;<a class="paragraph-link" href="https://twitter.com/TrickyTrey23/status/1664070367982280707?s=20" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Creighton gets back</a> a 6-4 guard who averaged 13.6 points and shot 41% from 3-point range in his first full season as a starter.
ADEM BONA: The 6-foot-10 forward and Pac-12 freshman of the year&nbsp;<a class="paragraph-link" href="https://twitter.com/UCLAMBB/status/1663947898332286976?s=20" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">is returning to UCLA</a>&nbsp;after starting 32 games as a rookie and averaging 7.7 points, 5.3 rebounds and 1.7 blocks &mdash; with coach Mick Cronin praising his toughness for &ldquo;competing through multiple injuries for as long as he could&rdquo; in a statement Wednesday.
EDEY: He averaged 22.3 points, 12.9 rebounds, 2.1 blocks and 1.5 assists while shooting 60.7% from the field. His presence alone helps Purdue be a factor in the Big Ten race.
JOSIAH-JORDAN JAMES: The 6-6 guard went through the NBA G League Combine and had workouts with multiple teams&nbsp;<a class="paragraph-link" href="https://utsports.com/news/2023/5/31/mens-basketball-james-set-to-rejoin-vols-for-fifth-year.aspx" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">before opting to return</a>&nbsp;to Tennessee for a fifth season alongside teammate Santiago Vescovi.
JUDAH MINTZ: The 6-3 freshman averaged 16.3 points and 4.6 assists&nbsp;<a class="paragraph-link" href="https://cuse.com/news/2023/5/31/mens-basketball-hes-back" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">for Syracuse</a>, ranking third among Division I freshmen in scoring behind only Alabama&rsquo;s Brandon Miller and Lamar&rsquo;s Nate Calmese.
OWLS&rsquo; RETURNEES: Florida Atlantic got good news after its surprise Final Four run with the return leading scorers Johnell Davis (13.8) and Alijah Martin (13.4).&nbsp;<a class="paragraph-link" href="https://www.espn.com/college-football/story/_/id/37768605/johnell-davis-alijah-martin-withdraw-nba-draft-return-florida-atlantic" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">ESPN first reported</a>&nbsp;their decisions, while Martin later&nbsp;<a class="paragraph-link" href="https://twitter.com/martin_alijah/status/1664007891882328066" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">posted a social media statement</a>.
TERRENCE SHANNON JR.: Illinois got a big boost with Shannon&nbsp;<a class="paragraph-link" href="https://twitter.com/Sn1per_T/status/1664063397468438530?s=20" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">announcing his return Wednesday night in a social media post</a>. The 6-6 guard is returning for a fifth college season after averaging 17.2 points.
SPARTANS&rsquo; RETURNEES:&nbsp;<a class="paragraph-link" href="https://twitter.com/MSU_Basketball/status/1663931468761169926" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Michigan State announced</a>&nbsp;that guards Jaden Akins and A.J. Hoggard have withdrawn from the NBA draft. Standout guard Tyson Walker had previously withdrawn in April, setting up Tom Izzo to have five of his top scorers back.
GOING PRO
KOBE BROWN: Missouri&rsquo;s 6-8 swingman&nbsp;<a class="paragraph-link" href="https://twitter.com/TheKobe24Brown/status/1664041800917729281" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">opted against returning for a fifth college season</a>&nbsp;after being an&nbsp;<a class="paragraph-link" href="https://apnews.com/article/all-sec-team-brandon-miller-tshiebwe-taylor-aa366b637e7352bacaab5e7cd4e5dd9e">AP first-team all-Southeastern Conference pick</a>&nbsp;averaging 15.8 points last season.
JAYLEN CLARK: The third-year UCLA guard averaged 13.0 points and 6.0 rebounds while leading the Pac-12 with 2.6 steals en route to being named Naismith national defensive player of the year. Cronin called him a winner with strong intangibles who made UCLA &ldquo;a better program because he chose to be a Bruin.&rdquo;
BRICE SENSABAUGH: The Ohio State freshman averaged 16.3 points and 5.4 rebounds in 31 games before missing his final two in the Big Ten Tournament due to a knee injury. He&rsquo;s a potential first-round prospect.
TSHIEBWE: The 6-9, 260-pound forward is a tough interior presence who led the country in rebounds for two straight seasons (15.1 in 2022, 13.7 in 2023) while racking up 48 double-doubles. But he faces an uncertain next stop and is projected at best as a second-round prospect.

Purdue’s Zach Edey decided it was the right call to go back to school instead of staying in the NBA draft.

Purdue’s Edey returning to school; Kentucky’s Tshiebwe stays in NBA draft

On Tuesday afternoon, the NBA announced the 78 players who are expected to attend the 2023 NBA Draft Combine, which will take place at the Wintrust Arena and Marriott Marquis in Chicago from May 15-21.
Players will have interviews with NBA teams and participate in five-on-five games as well as shooting and strength-and-agility drills. Coverage of the 2023 NBA Draft Combine will begin May 17 on ESPN2 from 2-6 p.m. ET and continues May 18 from 4-8 p.m. ET on ESPN2.
The NBA Draft Combine will also be available on the ESPN App. Strength-and-agility drills and shooting drills will be broadcast live on the NBA App on May 15 from 3-5 p.m. ET.
Additionally, a select number of standout players from the <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/nba-g-league-announces-45-draft-prospects-competing-in-g-league-elite-camp" target="_blank" rel="noopener">2023 NBA G League Elite Camp</a>, which takes place May 13-14 at Wintrust Arena, will be invited to participate in the NBA Draft Combine.
Unfortunately, projected No. 1 pick Victor Wembanyama won't be in attendance at the 2023 NBA Draft Combine as he has yet to finish his season overseas with Metropolitans 92.
Below is a list of expected attendees for the 2023 NBA Draft Combine:
<table border="0" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0">
<tbody>
<tr>
<td valign="top" width="312">
Trey Alexander (Creighton)
</td>
<td valign="top" width="354">
Seth Lundy (Penn State)
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td valign="top" width="312">
Amari Bailey (UCLA)
</td>
<td valign="top" width="354">
Kevin McCullar (Kansas)
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td valign="top" width="312">
Emoni Bates (Eastern Michigan)
</td>
<td valign="top" width="354">
Mike Miles Jr. (TCU)
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td valign="top" width="312">
Reece Beekman (Virginia)
</td>
<td valign="top" width="354">
Brandon Miller (Alabama)
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td valign="top" width="312">
Anthony Black (Arkansas)
</td>
<td valign="top" width="354">
Jordan Miller (Miami)
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td valign="top" width="312">
Adem Bona (UCLA)
</td>
<td valign="top" width="354">
Leonard Miller (G League Ignite)
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td valign="top" width="312">
Kobe Brown (Missouri)
</td>
<td valign="top" width="354">
Judah Mintz (Syracuse)
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td valign="top" width="312">
Kobe Bufkin (Michigan)
</td>
<td valign="top" width="354">
Dillon Mitchell (Texas)
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td valign="top" width="312">
Toumani Camara (Dayton)
</td>
<td valign="top" width="354">
Omari Moore (San Jose State)
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td valign="top" width="312">
Sidy Cissoko (G League Ignite)
</td>
<td valign="top" width="354">
Kris Murray (Iowa)
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td valign="top" width="312">
Jaylen Clark (UCLA)
</td>
<td valign="top" width="354">
Grant Nelson (North Dakota State)
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td valign="top" width="312">
Noah Clowney (Alabama)
</td>
<td valign="top" width="354">
James Nnaji (Barcelona [Spain] )
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td valign="top" width="312">
Ricky Council IV (Arkansas)
</td>
<td valign="top" width="354">
Julian Phillips (Tennessee)
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td valign="top" width="312">
Gradey Dick (Kansas)
</td>
<td valign="top" width="354">
Jalen Pickett (Penn State)
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td valign="top" width="312">
Nikola Djurisic (Mega [Serbia] )
</td>
<td valign="top" width="354">
Brandin Podziemski (Santa Clara)
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td valign="top" width="312">
Zach Edey (Purdue)
</td>
<td valign="top" width="354">
Olivier-Maxence Prosper (Marquette)
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td valign="top" width="312">
Adam Flagler (Baylor)
</td>
<td valign="top" width="354">
Rayan Rupert (New Zealand Breakers [Oceania] )
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td valign="top" width="312">
Keyonte George (Baylor)
</td>
<td valign="top" width="354">
Adama Sanogo (Connecticut)
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td valign="top" width="312">
Mouhamed Gueye (Washington State)
</td>
<td valign="top" width="354">
Marcus Sasser (Houston)
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td valign="top" width="312">
Coleman Hawkins (Illinois)
</td>
<td valign="top" width="354">
Brice Sensabaugh (Ohio State)
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td valign="top" width="312">
Jordan Hawkins (Connecticut)
</td>
<td valign="top" width="354">
Terrence Shannon Jr. (Illinois)
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td valign="top" width="312">
Scoot Henderson (G League Ignite)
</td>
<td valign="top" width="354">
Ben Sheppard (Belmont)
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td valign="top" width="312">
Taylor Hendricks (UCF)
</td>
<td valign="top" width="354">
Jalen Slawson (Furman)
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td valign="top" width="312">
DaRon Holmes II (Dayton)
</td>
<td valign="top" width="354">
Nick Smith Jr. (Arkansas)
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td valign="top" width="312">
Jalen Hood-Schifino (Indiana)
</td>
<td valign="top" width="354">
Terquavion Smith (North Carolina State)
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td valign="top" width="312">
Jett Howard (Michigan)
</td>
<td valign="top" width="354">
Julian Strawther (Gonzaga)
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td valign="top" width="312">
Andre Jackson Jr. (Connecticut)
</td>
<td valign="top" width="354">
Amen Thompson (Overtime Elite)
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td valign="top" width="312">
GG Jackson II (South Carolina)
</td>
<td valign="top" width="354">
Ausar Thompson (Overtime Elite)
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td valign="top" width="312">
Trayce Jackson-Davis (Indiana)
</td>
<td valign="top" width="354">
Drew Timme (Gonzaga)
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td valign="top" width="312">
Jaime Jaquez Jr. (UCLA)
</td>
<td valign="top" width="354">
Oscar Tshiebwe (Kentucky)
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td valign="top" width="312">
Keyontae Johnson (Kansas State)
</td>
<td valign="top" width="354">
Azuolas Tubelis (Arizona)
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td valign="top" width="312">
Colby Jones (Xavier)
</td>
<td valign="top" width="354">
Tristan Vukcevic (Partizan [Serbia] )
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td valign="top" width="312">
Ryan Kalkbrenner (Creighton)
</td>
<td valign="top" width="354">
Jarace Walker (Houston)
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td valign="top" width="312">
Arthur Kaluma (Creighton)
</td>
<td valign="top" width="354">
Cason Wallace (Kentucky)
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td valign="top" width="312">
Mojave King (G League Ignite)
</td>
<td valign="top" width="354">
Jordan Walsh (Arkansas)
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td valign="top" width="312">
Bobi Klintman (Wake Forest)
</td>
<td valign="top" width="354">
Dariq Whitehead (Duke)
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td valign="top" width="312">
Maxwell Lewis (Pepperdine)
</td>
<td valign="top" width="354">
Cam Whitmore (Villanova)
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td valign="top" width="312">
Dereck Lively II (Duke)
</td>
<td valign="top" width="354">
Jalen Wilson (Kansas)
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td valign="top" width="312">
Chris Livingston (Kentucky)
</td>
<td valign="top" width="354">
Isaiah Wong (Miami)
</td>
</tr>
</tbody>
</table>

The NBA announced the 78 players who are expected to attend the 2023 NBA Draft Combine.

NBA announces 78 Draft Combine participants, but no Victor Wembanyama

The NBA announced that 242 players have filed as early-entry candidates for the 2023 NBA Draft. Here is the complete list.

NBA announces 242 early-entry candidates for 2023 NBA Draft

Michigan State coach Tom Izzo said &ldquo;a bunch of guys&rdquo; in college basketball are putting their names in the NBA draft.
&ldquo;I think that&rsquo;s the popular thing to do,&rdquo; Izzo said Wednesday.
A few Spartans may join the trend, declaring themselves eligible to at least be evaluated for the draft with an opportunity to withdrawal from it in June, he said.
&ldquo;Jaden (Akins) could,&rdquo; Izzo said. &ldquo; (A.J.) Hoggard and Tyson (Walker) could. Guys could put their names in and see where they&rsquo;re at. That&rsquo;s the next thing to deal with, and it seems to be more common now. We&rsquo;ll find out in the next couple of weeks.&rdquo;
If all three of the Spartans&rsquo; standout guards return, Izzo will have a talented and experienced team that will get a boost from one of the top recruiting classes that includes a pair of McDonald&rsquo;s All-America selections.
&ldquo;We got something to celebrate,&rdquo; Izzo said.
Recently, Walker and forward Malik Hall announced plans to come back for a fifth season. Izzo said Hall had foot surgery after being hobbled for much of last season.
Walker, Hoggard and Akins helped Izzo become the first coach to earn 25 straight bids to the NCAA Tournament this year. Izzo advanced to his 15th Sweet 16, winning a record 16th March Madness game with a lower-seeded team before being eliminated by Kansas State in overtime.
The Hall of Fame coach won the 2000 national championship and reached the Final Four for the eighth time in 2019.
Izzo seems set up to have a chance to add to both totals next season.
Five of his top six scorers are back &mdash; potentially at least &mdash; and a few reserves return along with highly-touted freshmen Xavier Booker and Jeremy Fears.
&ldquo;Pretty solid group coming back with a great group of recruits coming in,&rdquo; Izzo said. &ldquo;There is a lot of optimism.&rdquo;

"Guys could put their names in and see where they’re at. That’s the next thing to deal with, and it seems to be more common now."

Michigan State’s Izzo says a few players could have entered draft

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) &mdash; Eric Musselman and his players rushed across the floor at the final buzzer to celebrate with their joyfully delirious friends from Arkansas.
The 58-year-old coach jumped onto the press table, ripped off his red polo shirt and waved it over his head, shouting all the while to the fans&rsquo; delight, as has become his tradition after the biggest of his wins.
And this was a really big one.
Kansas&rsquo; national title defense ended in the second round of the NCAA Tournament on Saturday when Arkansas&rsquo; Ricky Council IV made five free throws in the closing seconds and the eighth-seeded Razorbacks beat the No. 1 seed Jayhawks 72-71.
&ldquo;I would love to lie and say that I felt composed, but we only led for 1:43,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;This has been as challenging and as up-and-down a season as I&rsquo;ve ever been a part of.
&ldquo;For these guys to be rewarded for sticking with it and being able to go to Las Vegas and participate with only 16 teams still standing. ... It&rsquo;s really hard to make this tournament. It&rsquo;s really hard to win a game in this tournament. It&rsquo;s really hard to beat defending champions, No. 1 seed. We did it.&rdquo;
Arkansas was playing a No. 1 seed for the third straight year. Last year, the Razorbacks knocked out Gonzaga on the way to their second straight Elite Eight. This time, the Razorbacks survived shaky offensive play early and foul trouble late. They became the first team to beat a No. 1 seed with three players fouling out, according to&nbsp;<a class="paragraph-link" href="https://twitter.com/OptaSTATS/status/1637245525572440064?s=20" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">OptaSTATS</a>.
&ldquo;That&rsquo;s such an unbelievable win for our program,&rdquo; Musselman said. &ldquo;I keep telling people that we&rsquo;re getting better. Not many teams can get better this time of year. I&rsquo;ve never been prouder of a team like tonight.&rdquo;
Davonte Davis scored 25 points and Council added 21 as Arkansas rallied from a 12-point second-half deficit. Kansas,&nbsp;<a class="paragraph-link" href="https://apnews.com/article/march-madness-kansas-bill-self-4ad50feff4c6e12b4722de893edfc059" target="_blank" rel="noopener">playing without ailing coach Bill Self,</a>&nbsp;became the second top seed not to escape the tournament&rsquo;s first weekend after Purdue lost on Friday night to No. 16 seed Fairleigh Dickinson.
Arkansas (22-13) is in the Sweet 16 for the third straight year and will play either Saint Mary&rsquo;s or UConn in the West Region semifinals in Las Vegas on Thursday.
Self has been with the Jayhawks (28-8) since they arrived in Des Moines and has attended practices and meetings, but he still didn&rsquo;t feel well enough to coach a game after having a heart procedure March 8 to clear clogged arteries.
Longtime assistant Norm Roberts was acting coach for a fifth straight game in Self&rsquo;s absence.
Kansas, bidding to become the first repeat national champion since Florida in 2006-07, was ahead 35-27 at halftime and lost for the first time in 27 games when entering the second half with a lead. Kansas had been 47-0 in the NCAA Tournament when leading by eight points or more at the half.
&ldquo;Our guys have been terrific all year,&rdquo; Roberts said. &ldquo;They fought to the very end, made huge plays. It was tough not having Coach here, but we don&rsquo;t make any excuses. We have to line up and get it done, and we came up a little bit short today.&rdquo;
Davis scored 21 of his points in the second half. He fouled out with 1:56 left, turning things over to the veteran Council, a transfer from Wichita State who scored nine of the Razorbacks&rsquo; final 11 points.
&ldquo;This team was struggling and we figured it out,&rdquo; Davis said. &ldquo;I&rsquo;m glad we did at the right time. Hopefully we continue to do it.&rdquo;
Outside the locker room, a sobbing Musselman hugged Davis and shouted, &ldquo;I (expletive) love you, man!&rdquo;
Council&rsquo;s free throw put Arkansas ahead to stay, 68-67, with 24 seconds left. He then rebounded his own miss of the second free throw and made two more to give the Razorbacks a three-point lead.
The teams traded free throws, and Arkansas sent Kansas&rsquo; Jalen Wilson to the line with 3 seconds left to prevent a potential tying 3-pointer. Wilson made the first free throw and appeared to try to miss the second intentionally, but it banked hard off the glass and in, and Kansas never regained possession.
Wilson led the Jayhawks with 20 points but lamented grabbing only four rebounds, which he said was a factor in Arkansas holding a 15-2 advantage in second-chance points. No missed rebound hurt more, he said, than when Kansas failed to grab the ball off Council&rsquo;s missed free throw in the waning seconds.
&ldquo;It always comes down to one play, especially hustle plays like that,&rdquo; Wilson said. &ldquo;It&rsquo;s just disappointing to end like that, especially with how great our year was. Credit to them for how they played.&rdquo;
Arkansas,&nbsp;<a class="paragraph-link" href="https://apnews.com/article/march-madness-illinois-arkansas-9c5294f8634c1fc2903b6e8b8b84df82" target="_blank" rel="noopener">which beat Illinois in the first round,</a>&nbsp;was considered a scary matchup for the Jayhawks with its explosive transition game and ability to play lockdown defense.
But circumstances were less than ideal for the Razorbacks. Guard Anthony Black tweaked a nagging ankle injury early and went to the bench to get re-taped and change shoes, and fellow guard and projected high NBA first-round draft pick Nick Smith Jr. picked up two quick fouls and was limited to 10 minutes and no points in the first half. Also, big man Kamani Johnson was ill and played with a sore toe.
The Razorbacks were too eager to shoot 3-pointers early. They missed 8 of 9 in the first half and couldn&rsquo;t get their running game going.
Kansas was in control for stretches but never could put away the Razorbacks.
Davis started a game-turning 11-0 Arkansas run in the middle of the second half and Jordan Walsh&rsquo;s 3-pointer with eight minutes left gave the Razorbacks their first lead since their first basket of the game.
Arkansas neutralized Wilson when it mattered most, allowing the All-American only two shots over a 15-minute stretch of the second half.
Arkansas is in the Sweet 16 for the 14th time. The only lower-seeded Razorbacks team to reach a regional semifinal was the 1996 squad, which was a No. 12 under Nolan Richardson, who led the school to its only national title two years earlier.
If Musselman reaches his first Final Four, he will evoke more memories of those glory years.

The 8th-seeded Razorbacks beat the No. 1 seed Jayhawks 72-71, ending Kansas’ national title defense in the second round.

March Madness: Eighth-seeded Arkansas ousts defending champ Kansas

Longtime pro Jordan Crawford opens up to Spencer Davies about his unpleasant NBA experience, his Detroit connection and more.

Ex-NBA pro Jordan Crawford has a story to tell — and a whole lot more

COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP) &mdash; Aliyah Boston had 11 points and 10 rebounds for her 68th career double-double to keep No. 1 South Carolina undefeated with a 102-39 victory over Coastal Carolina on Wednesday.
Boston, who played just 13 minutes, moved four games away from matching the program&rsquo;s all-time mark for double-doubles held by Sheila Foster established four decades ago.
Freshman Ashlyn Watkins had a career high 16 points and Zia Cooke 14 as the defending national champs improved to 12-0 for a second straight season and fourth time in Dawn Staley&rsquo;s 15 years as coach.
This figured to be a challenge for the Chanticleers (5-6), who have just two players 6 feet or taller while South Carolina had 10.
NO. 3 OHIO STATE 84, NO. 16 OREGON 67
SAN DIEGO (AP) &mdash; Rebeka Mikulasikova scored 27 points, Taylor Mikesell added 25 and Ohio State remained undefeated to win the San Diego Invitational.
Ohio State (13-0) is off to its best start since 2011-2012, when the Buckeyes won their first 15 games
Oregon (10-2) was led by forward Grace VanSlooten, who scored 29 points on 7-of-9 shooting. Freshman teammate Te-Hina Paopao, who grew up in Oceanside, California, just outside San Diego, added 17.
NO. 4 INDIANA 67, BUTLER 50
BLOOMINGTON, Ind. (AP) &mdash; Mackenzie Holmes scored 17 of her 21 points in the first half, and Indiana completed an unbeaten nonconference schedule with a win over Butler.
Yarden Garzon added 13 points and Sydney Parrish 10 for the Hoosiers (12-0).
Rachel McLimore scored 13 and Sydney Jaynes 11 for Butler (5-7).
Indiana is nearing the program record for most successive wins to open a season: 15-0 in 1972, the first year for women&rsquo;s basketball at the school. The Hoosiers were 14-0 in 2013-14.
NO. 5 NOTRE DAME 85, WESTERN MICHIGAN 57
SOUTH BEND, Ind. (AP) &mdash; Maddy Westbeld scored 10 points in four minutes and Notre Dame started the second half on a 17-0 spree en route to a big win over Western Michigan.
The Fighting Irish (10-1) led 38-30 at the half, but scored on seven of their first eight possessions during the third quarter with a trio of 3-pointers. Westbeld scored a season-high 23 points, including 15 in the third quarter, and grabbed a game-high eight rebounds.
The Broncos (5-6) missed their first nine shots from the field in the period and saw their three-game winning streak snapped. Lauren Ross led Western Michigan with 15 points.
NO. 8 VIRGINIA TECH 86, HIGH POINT 66
HIGH POINT, N.C. (AP) &mdash; Elizabeth Kitley scored 25 points and dished out a career-best seven assists as Virginia Tech captured a road victory over High Point.
Kitley, the reigning ACC Player of the Year, shot a season-high 78.5% from the floor, making 11-of-14 field goals, and had seven rebounds and four blocks for the Hokies (11-1). Taylor Soule added 24 points and Kayana Traylor chipped in 22 for Virginia Tech.
Claire Wyatt led High Point (2-8) with 17 points on 5-of-7 shooting from 3-point land. Callie Scheier added 11 points and Nakyah Terrell had 10.
NO. 9 UCONN 98, SETON HALL 73
STORRS, Conn. (AP) &mdash; Aaliyah Edwards had 23 points, leading six players who scored in double figures for UConn in its rout of Seton Hall.
Caroline Ducharme and Nika Muhl each had 16 points and were a combined 8 of 11 from 3-point range. Lou Lopez Senechal had 14 points, Aubrey Griffin added 13 points and seven rebounds, and Dorka Juhasz had 10 points and 10 rebounds for UConn (9-2, 2-0 Big East).
Sidney Cooks had 18 points and Lauren Park-Lane finished with 17 for Seton Hall (9-4, 2-1), which had its seven-game winning streak snapped.
UConn coach Geno Auriemma missed his second straight game due to illness. Associate coach Chris Dailey ran the team and improved to 15-0 when filling in for Auriemma.
NO. 13 IOWA 92, DARTMOUTH 54
IOWA CITY, Iowa (AP) &mdash; Caitlin Clark&rsquo;s 20 points tied her for the quickest men&rsquo;s or women&rsquo;s Division I player to reach 2,000 career points since at least 1999-2000, and Iowa beat Dartmouth for its fifth straight victory.
Clark hit the career scoring mark in her 75th game, tying Elena Delle Donne for the quickest DI player to hit the mark, according to ESPN Stats &amp; Info. And Clark did it in style with her 242nd career 3-pointer.
Clark also had 10 rebounds and six assists. Teammate Monika Czinano, who entered with 1,969 career points in 98 games, also scored 20 points for Iowa (10-3).
Iowa scored 34 points in the first quarter and held Dartmouth to just five points in the second quarter.
Allie Harland led Dartmouth (2-11) with 11 points.
NO. 15 MARYLAND 88, PURDUE FORT WAYNE 51
FORT WAYNE, Ind. (AP) &mdash; Shyanne Sellers scored 18 points, Diamond Miller had 17 points, six rebounds, four assists and four blocks and Maryland beat Purdue Fort Wayne in the final nonconference matchup for the Terps.
Abby Meyers added 14 points and Brinae Alexander had 13 off the bench for Maryland (10-3).
Shyanne Sellers, Miller, Meyers and Alexander were all in double figures by the end of the third quarter when Maryland led 71-35. Amellia Bromenschenkel led Purdue Fort Wayne (4-8) with 25 points and 10 rebounds.
SOUTH FLORIDA 66, NO. 17 ARKANSAS 65, OT
SAN DIEGO (AP) &mdash; Elena Tsineke scored all four of South Florida&rsquo;s points in overtime and finished with 23 points lifting the Bulls over Arkansas in the San Diego Invitational.
Maria Alvarez forced overtime against Arkansas by making three free throws with 17 seconds left to tie it at 62-all. Arkansas was trapped in the corner at the other end and wasn&rsquo;t able to get a shot off before the buzzer.
Fankam Mendjiadeu finished with 16 points and 12 rebounds for South Florida (11-4).
Erynn Barnum scored 21 points and Daniels added 20 for Arkansas (13-2).
NO. 18 ARIZONA 78, UT ARLINGTON 59
ARLINGTON, Texas (AP) &mdash; Esmery Martinez scored 13 points and was part of dominating Arizona rebounding performance with nine boards in a win over UT Arlington.
Lauren Fields, Shaina Pellington, and Cate Reese scored 10 points apiece for Arizona (10-1), which won its third straight game. Maya Nnaji grabbed nine rebounds to go with six points before fouling out at the start of the fourth quarter.
Arizona outrebounded the Mavericks 47-26, including 17-7 on the offensive glass resulting in a 22-4 bulge in second-chance points.
Starr Jacobs scored 15 points, Kayla White 13 and Taleya Jones 12 for the Mavericks (6-6), who lost their first home game this season after four wins.
NEBRASKA 85, NO. 20 KANSAS 79, 3OT
LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) &mdash; Jaz Shelley scored 24 points, hitting two of Nebraska&rsquo;s three 3-pointers in the third overtime, and the Cornhuskers handed Kansas its first loss of the season.
Alexis Markowski had 18 points and 10 rebounds for the Cornhuskers (10-3), who are now 2-2 against ranked teams with their next two games against ranked Big Ten rivals. Sam Haiby had 12 points in just her third game after an offseason injury and Isabelle Bourne scored 10.
Zakiyah Franklin finished with a career-high 27 points in 54 minutes for Kansas (10-1). Taiyanna Jackson had 18 points and a career-high 21 rebounds, Holly Kersgieter had 12 and 11. Ioanna Chatzileonti had 10 points and Chandler Prater had 10 rebounds as Kansas had a 68-46 advantage on the boards, including 25 offensive rebounds.
NO. 22 GONAZAGA 82, MONTANA 67
SPOKANE, Wash. (AP) &mdash; Brynna Maxwell scored 23 points and Kaylynne Truong added 18 and the pair combined to hit nine of Gonzaga&rsquo;s 12 3-pointers to lead the Bulldogs over Montana.
Maxwell made 8 of 12 from the field and 5 of 9 from 3-point range and Truong finished with five rebounds, seven assists and three steals.
Yvonne Ejim had 15 points and nine rebounds, Eliza Hollingsworth scored 13 points and McKayla Williams finished with 11 points, five assists and two steals for Gonzaga (12-2).
Carmen Gfeller had 22 points and eight rebounds for Montana (4-7) and Sammy Fatkin added 21 points and five steals. Libby Stump scored 14.
NO. 23 OKLAHOMA 95, FLORIDA 79
CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) &mdash; Madi Williams had had 22 points and 11 rebounds, Taylor Robertson added 18 points on six 3-pointers, and Oklahoma defeated Florida at the Jumpman Invitational.
Robertson made 6-of-7 3-pointers and matched her own Big 12 record of 53 consecutive games with a 3-pointer. It marked the 14th time during the current streak that she has made at least five 3-pointers.
Skylar Vann had 15 points and Nevaeh Tot scored 12 for the Sooners (10-1), who have won seven in a row.
Florida&rsquo;s KK Deans made a career-high seven 3-pointers, scored 28 points and had nine assists. Ra Shaya Kyle had 16 points and 13 rebounds for her second consecutive double-double, the fifth in her career. Nina Rickards added 15 points for the Gators (11-2).
NO. 24 BAYLOR 73, LONG BEACH STATE 52
WACO, Texas (AP) &mdash; Caitlin Bickle scored 17 points, Sarah Andrews missed a triple-double by one point and Baylor pulled away for a win over Long Beach State.
Andrews had career highs of 14 assists and 12 rebounds to go with nine points on 2-of-11 shooting. Je&rsquo;Mee Asberry and Bella Fontleroy both had 11 points for the Bears (9-3).
Tori Harris scored 14 points for the Beach (5-5) and Ma&rsquo;Qhi Berry and Kianna Hamilton-Fisher had 10 each.
NO. 25 ST. JOHN&rsquo;S 80, WAGNER 51
NEW YORK (AP) &mdash; Jayla Everett scored a season-high 24 points to lead St. John&rsquo;s over Wagner and its best start in program history.
St. John&rsquo;s (12-0), ranked for the first time in almost seven years, surpassed the 11-0 start of the 2004-05 team for the best in the history of the program&rsquo;s 48 years.
Kadaja Bailey added 14 points for the Red Storm, who had 11 of 12 players reach the scoring column.
Lina Loceniece scored 13 points for Wagner (5-6) and Zhaneia Thybulle had 10.

A recap of Wednesday night's women's college hoops slate includes Aliyah Boston notching another double-double for South Carolina.

Boston four double-doubles from tying Gamecocks’ all-time mark

The Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame announced the list of eligible candidates for the Class of 2023, including several high-profile, first-time nominees including Pau Gasol, Dirk Nowitzki, Tony Parker, Gregg Popovich, Dwyane Wade and the 1976 U.S. Olympic Women&rsquo;s Basketball Team. &nbsp; A first look at the list of eligible nominees was provided by &ldquo;NBA Today&rdquo; on ESPN; the complete list of eligible candidates can be found below. &nbsp; Finalists from the North American and Women&rsquo;s committee for the Class of 2023 will be announced on February 17, at 5:30 p.m. ET in Salt Lake City, Utah, during NBA All-Star Weekend. &nbsp; The entire Class of 2023, including those selected by the direct-elect committees, will be unveiled during the NCAA Final Four in Houston, Texas, on April 1, in a nationally televised broadcast at 11 a.m. EST.
NORTH AMERICAN NOMINATIONS &bull; &nbsp; &nbsp; Ken Anderson (COA) &bull; &nbsp; &nbsp; John Beilein (COA)* &bull; &nbsp; &nbsp; Gene Bess (COA) &bull; &nbsp; &nbsp; Chauncey Billups (PLA) &bull; &nbsp; &nbsp; Tom Chambers (PLA) &bull; &nbsp; &nbsp; John Clougherty (REF) &bull; &nbsp; &nbsp; Michael Cooper (PLA) &bull; &nbsp; &nbsp; Joey Crawford (REF) &bull; &nbsp; &nbsp; Jack Curran (COA) &bull; &nbsp; &nbsp; Mark Eaton (PLA) &bull; &nbsp; &nbsp; Cliff Ellis (COA) &bull; &nbsp; &nbsp; Michael Finley (PLA) &bull; &nbsp; &nbsp; Pau Gasol (PLA)* &bull; &nbsp; &nbsp; Leonard Hamilton (COA) &bull; &nbsp; &nbsp; Lou Henson (COA) &bull; &nbsp; &nbsp; Ed Hightower (REF) &bull; &nbsp; &nbsp; David Hixon (COA) &bull; &nbsp; &nbsp; Mark Jackson (PLA) &bull; &nbsp; &nbsp; Marques Johnson (PLA) &bull; &nbsp; &nbsp; Gene Keady (COA) &bull; &nbsp; &nbsp; Jim Larranaga (COA)* &bull; &nbsp; &nbsp; Maurice Lucas (PLA) &bull; &nbsp; &nbsp; Shawn Marion (PLA) &bull; &nbsp; &nbsp; Rollie Massimino (COA) &bull; &nbsp; &nbsp; Dick Motta (COA) &bull; &nbsp; &nbsp; Dirk Nowitzki (PLA)* &bull; &nbsp; &nbsp; Jake O&rsquo;Donnell (REF) &bull; &nbsp; &nbsp; Tony Parker (PLA)* &bull; &nbsp; &nbsp; Jim Phelan (COA) &bull; &nbsp; &nbsp; Gregg Popovich (COA)* &bull; &nbsp; &nbsp; Bo Ryan (COA) &bull; &nbsp; &nbsp; Stan Spirou (COA)* &bull; &nbsp; &nbsp; Reggie Theus (PLA) &bull; &nbsp; &nbsp; Dwyane Wade (PLA)* &bull; &nbsp; &nbsp; Buck Williams (PLA) &bull; &nbsp; &nbsp; John Williamson (PLA)* &bull; &nbsp; &nbsp; Paul Westhead (COA)
WOMEN&rsquo;S NOMINATIONS &bull; &nbsp; &nbsp; Leta Andrews (COA) &bull; &nbsp; &nbsp; Jennifer Azzi (PLA) &bull; &nbsp; &nbsp; Gary Blair (COA) &bull; &nbsp; &nbsp; Doug Bruno (COA)* &bull; &nbsp; &nbsp; Becky Hammon (PLA) &bull; &nbsp; &nbsp; Becky Martin (COA) &bull; &nbsp; &nbsp; Debbie Miller-Palmore (PLA) &bull; &nbsp; &nbsp; Kim Mulkey (PLA) &bull; &nbsp; &nbsp; Valerie Still (PLA) &bull; &nbsp; &nbsp; Marian Washington (COA) &nbsp; INTERNATIONAL DIRECT-ELECT &bull; &nbsp; &nbsp; Jackie Chazalon &bull; &nbsp; &nbsp; Mirza Delibasic &bull; &nbsp; &nbsp; Dusan Ivkovic &bull; &nbsp; &nbsp; Semen Khalipski &bull; &nbsp; &nbsp; Vladimir Kondrashin &bull; &nbsp; &nbsp; Eduardo Lamas &bull; &nbsp; &nbsp; Marcos Leite &bull; &nbsp; &nbsp; Shimon Mirrahi &bull; &nbsp; &nbsp; Amaury Pasos &bull; &nbsp; &nbsp; Manuel Sainz &bull; &nbsp; &nbsp; Togo Soares &bull; &nbsp; &nbsp; Ranko Zeravica &nbsp; WOMEN&rsquo;S VETERANS DIRECT-ELECT &bull; &nbsp; &nbsp; 1976 US Olympic Team (TEA)* &bull; &nbsp; &nbsp; 1982 Cheyney University NCAA Final Four Team (TEA)* &bull; &nbsp; &nbsp; Alline Banks Sprouse (PLA) &bull; &nbsp; &nbsp; Edmonton Commercial Grads (TEA) &bull; &nbsp; &nbsp; John Head (COA) &bull; &nbsp; &nbsp; Yolanda Laney (PLA)* &bull; &nbsp; &nbsp; Nashville Business College (TEA) &bull; &nbsp; &nbsp; Lometa Odom (PLA) &bull; &nbsp; &nbsp; Harley Redin (COA) &bull; &nbsp; &nbsp; Hazel Walker (PLA) &bull; &nbsp; &nbsp; Valerie Walker (PLA)* &bull; &nbsp; &nbsp; Dean Weese (COA)*
CONTRIBUTOR DIRECT-ELECT &bull; &nbsp; &nbsp; Pete Babcock &bull; &nbsp; &nbsp; Dick Baumgartner &bull; &nbsp; &nbsp; Henry Bibby &bull; &nbsp; &nbsp; Marty Blake &bull; &nbsp; &nbsp; Vic Bubas &bull; &nbsp; &nbsp; Doug Collins &bull; &nbsp; &nbsp; Wayne Duke &bull; &nbsp; &nbsp; Bill Foster &bull; &nbsp; &nbsp; Bob Gibbons &bull; &nbsp; &nbsp; Simon Gourdine &bull; &nbsp; &nbsp; Tim Grgurich &bull; &nbsp; &nbsp; Junius Kellogg &bull; &nbsp; &nbsp; Johnny &ldquo;Red&rdquo; Kerr &bull; &nbsp; &nbsp; Tom Konchalski &bull; &nbsp; &nbsp; Bobby Lewis &bull; &nbsp; &nbsp; Fred McCall &bull; &nbsp; &nbsp; Jack McCloskey &bull; &nbsp; &nbsp; Jon McGlocklin &bull; &nbsp; &nbsp; Speedy Morris &bull; &nbsp; &nbsp; Dennis Murphy &bull; &nbsp; &nbsp; Curly Neal &bull; &nbsp; &nbsp; Jack Powers &bull; &nbsp; &nbsp; Will Robinson &bull; &nbsp; &nbsp; Gene Shue &bull; &nbsp; &nbsp; Jim Valvano &bull; &nbsp; &nbsp; Donnie Walsh &nbsp; VETERANS DIRECT-ELECT &bull; &nbsp; &nbsp; 1936 US Olympic Team (TEA) &bull; &nbsp; &nbsp; 1972 US Olympic Team (TEA) &bull; &nbsp; &nbsp; Dick Barnett (PLA) &bull; &nbsp; &nbsp; Tom Blackburn (COA) &bull; &nbsp; &nbsp; Sid Borgia (REF) &bull; &nbsp; &nbsp; Charles Brown (PLA)* &bull; &nbsp; &nbsp; Freddie Brown (PLA)* &bull; &nbsp; &nbsp; Jack Coleman (PLA) &bull; &nbsp; &nbsp; Charles Eckman (REF) &bull; &nbsp; &nbsp; Leroy Edwards (PLA) &bull; &nbsp; &nbsp; Leo Ferris (CONT) &bull; &nbsp; &nbsp; Hy Gotkin (PLA) &bull; &nbsp; &nbsp; Travis Grant (PLA) &bull; &nbsp; &nbsp; Jack Hartman (COA)* &bull; &nbsp; &nbsp; Cam Henderson (COA) &bull; &nbsp; &nbsp; Robert Hopkins (PLA) &bull; &nbsp; &nbsp; Charles Keinath (PLA) &bull; &nbsp; &nbsp; Greg Kelser (PLA)* &bull; &nbsp; &nbsp; Kentucky Wesleyan 1966, 1968, 1969 (TEA) &bull; &nbsp; &nbsp; Bob Love (PLA) &bull; &nbsp; &nbsp; Loyola of Chicago (TEA) &bull; &nbsp; &nbsp; Billy Markward (CONT) &bull; &nbsp; &nbsp; Ed McCluskey (COA) &bull; &nbsp; &nbsp; Jack McKinney (CONT) &bull; &nbsp; &nbsp; Bill Melchionni (PLA)* &bull; &nbsp; &nbsp; Francis Meehan (PLA) &bull; &nbsp; &nbsp; Lucias Mitchell (COA) &bull; &nbsp; &nbsp; Donald &ldquo;Dudey&rdquo; Moore (COA) &bull; &nbsp; &nbsp; Joe Mullaney (COA) &bull; &nbsp; &nbsp; Willie Naulls (PLA) &bull; &nbsp; &nbsp; North Catholic High School Junior Varsity (Philadelphia, PA) (TEA) &bull; &nbsp; &nbsp; Don Otten (PLA)* &bull; &nbsp; &nbsp; Philadelphia SPHAS (TEA) &bull; &nbsp; &nbsp; Kevin Porter (PLA)* &bull; &nbsp; &nbsp; Glenn Roberts (PLA) &bull; &nbsp; &nbsp; Lennie Rosenbluth (PLA) &bull; &nbsp; &nbsp; Kenny Sailors (PLA) &bull; &nbsp; &nbsp; Fred Schaus (CONT) &bull; &nbsp; &nbsp; Sam Schulman (CONT) &bull; &nbsp; &nbsp; Paul Silas (PLA) &bull; &nbsp; &nbsp; Dick Van Arsdale (PLA) &bull; &nbsp; &nbsp; Tom Van Arsdale (PLA) &bull; &nbsp; &nbsp; Lambert Will (CONT)* &bull; &nbsp; &nbsp; Max Zaslofsky (PLA)

Pau Gasol, Dirk Nowitzki, Tony Parker, Gregg Popovich and Dwyane Wade are among the candidates for the Basketball Hall of Fame.

Basketball Hall of Fame announces candidates for Class of 2023

Spencer Davies details Jamal Cain's climb from Pontiac, Michigan to the NBA level through the lens of longtime friend Mychal Covington.

Outwork everybody: Two-way Heat rookie Jamal Cain catches you sleeping

MILAN (AP) &mdash; The stars showed up at EuroBasket on Tuesday in a big way.
Giannis Antetokounmpo scored 41 points in 27 minutes for Greece, Luka Doncic had 36 points for Slovenia and two-time reigning NBA MVP Nikola Jokic scored 29 points for Serbia &mdash; three of the world&rsquo;s best players all leading their teams to big group-stage wins at the European championships.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-theme="dark">
Ain&rsquo;t nothing but a little Luka Magic 🪄 36 PTS 10 REB 4 AST<a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/EuroBasket?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#EuroBasket</a><a href="https://t.co/hIo3xZOABm">pic.twitter.com/hIo3xZOABm</a>
&mdash; NBA (@NBA) <a href="https://twitter.com/NBA/status/1567255650132004865?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">September 6, 2022</a></blockquote>

<script src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js"></script>

There&rsquo;s one more group-stage game left for each to play, and then a trip to Berlin awaits since Greece, Slovenia and Serbia have all clinched spots in the 16-team knockout round that begins Saturday.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-theme="dark">
Nikola Jokic had himself a night at <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/EuroBasket?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#EuroBasket</a>. 🃏👀 29 PTS, 11 REB, 5 AST<a href="https://t.co/yqgLLMI2AS">pic.twitter.com/yqgLLMI2AS</a>
&mdash; NBA (@NBA) <a href="https://twitter.com/NBA/status/1567261660729032706?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">September 6, 2022</a></blockquote>

<script src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js"></script>

Antetokounmpo&rsquo;s point total was the most in a EuroBasket game since Dirk Nowitzki had 43 for Germany in 2001. And when he heard that stat, all Antetokounmpo did was nod.
&ldquo;I try not to rate my performance,&rdquo; Antetokounmpo said. &ldquo;I just try to go out there and have fun as much as possible, try to focus as much as I can on what I can control, try to bring energy any way possible. ... But I&rsquo;ll say this: I think this is one of the years where I feel very, very excited to go out there on the court and play with my teammates.&rdquo;
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-theme="dark">
Giannis went OFF today in <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/EuroBasket?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#EuroBasket</a>. 41 PTS 9 REB 72% FGM On fire. 🔥<a href="https://t.co/XRF620yKBK">pic.twitter.com/XRF620yKBK</a>
&mdash; NBA (@NBA) <a href="https://twitter.com/NBA/status/1567208097826963458?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">September 6, 2022</a></blockquote>

<script src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js"></script>

As Antetokounmpo did, Doncic also deflected credit after the game. Told that Germany&rsquo;s postgame reaction was &ldquo;Luka Doncic happened,&rdquo; Doncic replied by saying &ldquo;Slovenia happened.&rdquo;
&ldquo;The whole team was ready,&rdquo; Doncic said. &ldquo;Everybody who stepped on the court was fighting, whether they played one minute or 30. I&rsquo;m really proud of this team.&rdquo;
Doncic was asked after the game if he or Antetokounmpo was in a better position to break the EuroBasket single-game scoring record.
Doncic didn&rsquo;t hesitate with his answer: He picked Antetokounmpo.
&ldquo;I would bet on Giannis,&rdquo; Doncic said. &ldquo;Why? Because he&rsquo;s Giannis Antetokounmpo.&rdquo;
GROUP C
GREECE 99, UKRAINE 79
At Milan, Antetokounmpo simply overpowered Ukraine and ensured that Greece would finish atop its group.
Antetokounmpo &mdash; who got Monday off to rest &mdash; had his 41 points and nine rebounds in just 27 minutes to lead Greece (4-0).
He was 13 for 18 from the floor, 15 for 18 from the foul line.
&ldquo;It was very easy to prepare the team because it is absolutely clear what Greece does when Giannis is out there,&rdquo; Ukraine coach Ainars Bagatskis said. &ldquo;They play really aggressive basketball. And if you don&rsquo;t put against them the same aggressiveness, even higher aggressiveness, then you have big problems.&rdquo;
Nick Calathes and Tyler Dorsey had 13 apiece for Greece.
Issuf Sanon and Svi Mykhailiuk each scored 16 for Ukraine (3-1), while Alex Len and Illya Sydorov added 10 apiece. Ukraine led by seven at the half, before Greece won the third quarter 32-11.
ESTONIA 94, GREAT BRITAIN 62
Henri Drell scored 20 points, Siim-Sander Vene added 18 and Estonia had no trouble on the way to its first win of the tournament.
Maik-Kalev Kotsar scored 15, Kristjan Kitsing added 14 and Janari Joesaar finished with 11 for Estonia (1-3).
Myles Hesson scored 14 for Great Britain (0-4), with Carl Wheatie and Patrick Whelan each scoring 12.
ITALY 81, CROATIA 76
Simone Fontecchio and Nicolo Melli each scored 19 points to lead Italy (2-2).
Bojan Bogdanovic led Croatia (2-2) with 27 points, while Ivica Zubac scored 13 and Dario Saric added 10.
Both teams are headed to the knockout round.
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GROUP B
SLOVENIA 88, GERMANY 80
At Cologne, Germany, Doncic&rsquo;s 36 points came with him making 14 of 25 shots. He also had 10 rebounds for Slovenia (3-1).
Goran Dragic scored 18 points and Mike Tobey added 10 for Slovenia.
&ldquo;We showed what we are made of,&rdquo; Dragic said.
Dennis Schroder scored 19 points, Andreas Obst had 14 and Maodo Lo added 13 for Germany (3-1).
LITHUANIA 87, HUNGARY 64
Lithuanian basketball is known for a lot of things, including passionate fans.
They go everywhere to cheer for their national team. And Tuesday, they even cheered for France &mdash; for good reason.
Lithuania topped Hungary and that, combined with France&rsquo;s win over Bosnia and Herzegovina, means the last qualifying spot out of Group B is still unclaimed. It&rsquo;ll be decided Wednesday when Lithuania plays Bosnia and Herzegovina, the winner moving on to Berlin and a round-of-16 game, the loser heading home eliminated.
&ldquo;Lithuanian fans are the best,&rdquo; France guard Evan Fournier said.
If France had lost Tuesday, Lithuania would have been eliminated. Instead, those Lithuanian fans serenaded the French with cries of &ldquo;Merci!&rdquo; for keeping their national team&rsquo;s hopes alive.
&ldquo;It feels amazing,&rdquo; Lithuania forward Domatas Sabonis said. &ldquo;They travel to every championship to support us. It&rsquo;s sad we couldn&rsquo;t give them a win over the weekend, but we&rsquo;re glad we could give them one today and the goal is to give them another one tomorrow.&rdquo;
Jonas Valanciunas scored 21 points on 10-of-13 shooting and Sabonis added 19 for Lithuania (1-3).
Marius Grigonis had 15 points and Rokas Jokubaitis added 10 for Lithuania. Zoltan Perl scored 16 for Hungary (0-4), while David Vojvoda and Rosco Allen each finished with 10.
FRANCE 81, BOSNIA AND HERZEGOVINA 68
Thomas Heurtel&rsquo;s 3-pointer with 5:49 left put France ahead to stay and started a game-ending 22-7 run for the winners, who were already assured of a spot in the round of 16.
Guerschon Yabusele scored 15 for France (3-1), while Heurtel and Fournier each had 14 and Rudy Gobert posted an 11-point, 12-rebound performance.
Jusuf Nurkic, Miralem Halilovic and Dzanan Musa all had 14 for Bosnia and Herzegovina (2-2), while John Roberson had 13 and Edin Atic finished with 10.
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GROUP A
TURKEY 78, BELGIUM 63
At Tbilisi, Georgia, Alperen Sengun scored 24 points, Furkan Korkmaz had 16 and Turkey (3-1) remained tied atop Group A.
Ercan Osmani added 12 for Turkey.
Haris Bratanovic scored 15 for Belgium (2-2) and Hans Vanwijn scored 11.
SPAIN 82, MONTENEGRO 65
Spain (3-1) clinched its berth in the round of 16, with Dario Brizuela leading the way with 18 points.
Willy Hernangomez scored 14 for Spain, while Jaime Pradilla and Lorenzo Brown added 12 apiece.
Vladimir Mihailovic scored 18 for Montenegro (2-2), which got 11 from Marko Simonovic and 10 from Kendrick Perry.
BULGARIA 92, GEORGIA 80
Dee Bost had 33 points and 12 assists, Aleksandar Vezenkov finished with 28 points and 14 rebounds, and Bulgaria kept its hopes alive.
Pavlin Ivanov scored 17 for Bulgaria (1-3).
Goga Bitadze scored 21 for Georgia (1-3), while Thaddus McFadden had 19, Alexander Mamukelashvili scored 13, and Giorgi Shermadini and Duda Sanadze scored 10 apiece.
GROUP D
SERBIA 89, ISRAEL 78
At Prague, Jokic was 11 of 13 from the floor and also grabbed 11 rebounds for Serbia (4-0), while Vasilije Micic added 19.
Nikola Kalinic and Ognjen Jaramaz each scored 10 for Serbia.
Yam Madar scored 20 for Israel (2-2), while Deni Avdija had 14 and Roman Sorkin added 11.
POLAND 75, NETHERLANDS 69
Poland was down by 13 in the third quarter before closing the game on a 39-20 run to tune up for its knockout-stage appearance.
Michal Sokolowski scored 24 for Poland (3-1), which got 16 from Aleksander Balcerowski and 10 from Jakub Garbacz.
Charlon Kloof led the Netherlands (0-4) with 26, and Yannick Franke scored 13.
FINLAND 98, CZECH REPUBLIC 88
Lauri Markkanen continued his strong tournament with 34 points and 10 rebounds, and Finland clinched its berth in the round of 16.
Sasu Salin scored 23 and Petteri Koponen added 14 for Finland, with Elias Valtonen finishing with 11.
Vojtech Hruban scored 22 for the Czech Republic, with Jan Vesely adding 15 and Patrik Auda and Jaromir Bohacik scoring 13 apiece. The Czechs play Israel on Thursday and, according to FIBA, could reach the knockout stage with a win.
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WEDNESDAY&rsquo;S SCHEDULE
First-round play in Groups A and B concludes, with Groups C and D getting the day off before they finish their round-robins on Thursday. Friday is an off day and the knockout round in Berlin starts Saturday.
Group A: Turkey (3-1) vs. Spain (3-1), Bulgaria (1-3) vs. Belgium (2-2), Georgia (1-3) vs. Montenegro (2-2). The Turkey-Spain winner will win the group. Bulgaria and Georgia are in must-win scenarios.
Group B: Lithuania (1-3) vs. Bosnia and Herzegovina (2-2), France (3-1) vs. Slovenia (3-1), Hungary (0-4) vs. Germany (3-1). France, Slovenia (which wins the group with a victory) and Germany have already qualified, Hungary is eliminated and the Lithuania-Bosnia game is the one that matters most.

Antetokounmpo scored 41 points in 27 minutes for Greece, Doncic had 36 points for Slovenia and reigning MVP Nikola Jokic scored 29 points for Serbia.

Stars shine bright: Giannis, Luka, Jokic lead at EuroBasket

Welcome to Basketball News' 10-part mini-series, Blazing the Trail, where Mat Issa breaks down the most revolutionary players of the 1990s and 2000s. Throughout this series, we'll examine how these players changed basketball and pioneered their respective skills. 
In this first installment, Mat goes in-depth on Hall-of-Fame point guard Steve Nash and his incredible effect on the point guard position, with insight from Mike D'Antoni, Raja Bell and more. 
<iframe style="border-radius: 12px;" src="https://open.spotify.com/embed/episode/3hPjoiK7lHNPIS1hfRWIWG?utm_source=generator" width="100%" height="152" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>
When Steve Nash earned back-to-back NBA MVP awards in the mid-2000s, some circles viewed his achievements as a horrid oversight on the part of voters.
How is it possible that &mdash; in a world featuring the likes of Kobe Bryant and Shaquille O&rsquo;Neal &mdash; the league&rsquo;s most prestigious regular-season honor could be awarded to someone averaging less than 20 points per game? The nerds are ruining our sport!
But what if I told you the so-called "nerds" got this one right? What if Nash really was the most valuable player in the world? And what if he was a pioneer who blazed the trail for a generation of All-Star floor generals?
Let&rsquo;s find out.
What Made Nash Special
To understand Nash as a quarterback, we first need pick the brain of his offensive coordinator that season: then-Phoenix Suns head coach Mike D&rsquo;Antoni.&nbsp;
D'Antoni is a well-traveled basketball mind with an ideology morphed during his playing days at the University of Marshall, a brief stint in the NBA and his legendary career in Italy. At his core, he believed in efficiency, creativity and enabling players with the freedom to express themselves.
&ldquo;Basketball is an art,&rdquo; D&rsquo;Antoni told Basketball News via Zoom. &ldquo;Everybody could be Picasso if you had rules. [In basketball], there are no rules.&rdquo;
Raja Bell, a two-time All-NBA defender and Nash&rsquo;s former running mate, explained D&rsquo;Antoni&rsquo;s philosophy in detail.
&ldquo;Taking the reins all the way off &mdash; that&rsquo;s what D&rsquo;Antoni essentially did for players, and that&rsquo;s why most people have so much success with him offensively," Bell explained to Basketball News. "[With him], there are no bad shots. Every time you toe that line, and you're open, he wants you to let it go. [With] other coaches, you miss one, they might get you out of there or talk to you about driving the ball. Mike never did that.&rdquo;
D&rsquo;Antoni&rsquo;s greatest contribution to the game was, without question, his implementation of the spread pick-and-roll offense.&nbsp;
For those unfamiliar with the scheme, Orlando Magic assistant Dylan Murphy (better known by some as the author of the invaluable <a href="https://medium.com/the-basketball-dictionary/the-basketball-dictionary-5c3835e9fe58">Basketball Dictionary</a>) defined the concept in layman's terms.
&ldquo;It&rsquo;s just the basic idea of putting guys around the three, running pick-and-roll and making [the defense] pick between protecting against the roll, protecting against the ball-handler getting to the rim or protecting the three-point line,&rdquo; Murphy said.
To visualize how the Suns utilized this pick-and-roll variation, here's an example.
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In Nash, D&rsquo;Antoni obtained the conduit who could bring his pace-and-space vision to fruition. As D&rsquo;Antoni puts it, Nash wielded four attributes that made him the ideal spread pick-and-roll conductor: great shooting, playmaking, decision-making and finishing.
D&rsquo;Antoni called Nash one of the greatest shooters ever, and like one of Steve&rsquo;s jumpers, he was right on the money. According to Cleaning the Glass, Nash placed in the 90th percentile or higher in three-point and mid-range shooting every season from 2004 to 2010. Nash's proficiency from long range made drop coverage and going under screens a moot point for defenses.
His playmaking and decision-making exist in the same rarified air. The ultimate <a href="https://www.npr.org/2006/05/16/5408616/steve-nash-basketballs-selfless-socialist" target="_blank" rel="noopener">on-court Marxist</a>, Nash had every high-value delivery method in the book at his disposal. From 2000 to 2012, he placed in the 97th percentile or higher in Ben Taylor&rsquo;s Box Creation stat (a metric that estimates playmaking), leading the league in that category seven times during that span.&nbsp;
Lastly, the Canadian floor general boasted a reliable finishing profile thanks to his dexterity and footwork that were groomed by years of soccer and jump-roping. His training as a finisher made him a master of dribble penetration, something that separated him from Utah Jazz great John Stockton. Nash constantly got two feet in the paint, which allowed him to hypnotize defenses and pick them apart accordingly.
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On-Court Production
Despite facing a great deal of criticism for their offensive-orientated approach, the Suns demonstrated a championship-caliber recipe nearly a decade before The Splash Brothers hung a banner at Oracle Arena.
<a href="https://www.compare.bet/en-us/news/which-teams-are-eligible-for-an-nba-finals-run-this-season">Historically</a>, teams that make the Finals either have a great deal of balance on both ends of the court or are outlier-level elite at one end of the floor.
Under Nash, Phoenix finished top-two in the league in Offensive Rating every season from 2004 to 2010. For reference, the only other all-time primary ball-handler to accomplish this feat was Magic Johnson (1984-90), and it&rsquo;s safe to say that those offensively-slanted Los Angeles Lakers teams were indeed championship-caliber.
Individually, Nash put together the best offensive profile of any of the other MVP contenders of his time (not to mention that his team had the best record in the league that year):
2004-05 MVP Candidates: Offensive Stats (By Percentile)*
<table style="border-collapse: collapse; width: 100%;" border="1">
<tbody>
<tr>
<td style="width: 12.9243%;">
Player
</td>
<td style="width: 17.1018%;">
Scoring Volume
</td>
<td style="width: 18.6684%;">
Scoring Efficiency
</td>
<td style="width: 13.3159%;">
Passing
</td>
<td style="width: 14.6214%;">
Playmaking
</td>
<td style="width: 10.9661%;">
Spacing
</td>
<td style="width: 12.2715%;">
Off. BPM
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="width: 12.9243%;">
Duncan
</td>
<td style="width: 17.1018%;">
93rd
</td>
<td style="width: 18.6684%;">
56th
</td>
<td style="width: 13.3159%;">
61st
</td>
<td style="width: 14.6214%;">
64th
</td>
<td style="width: 10.9661%;">
12th
</td>
<td style="width: 12.2715%;">
87th
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="width: 12.9243%;">
Iverson
</td>
<td style="width: 17.1018%;">
99th
</td>
<td style="width: 18.6684%;">
47th
</td>
<td style="width: 13.3159%;">
81st
</td>
<td style="width: 14.6214%;">
99th
</td>
<td style="width: 10.9661%;">
64th
</td>
<td style="width: 12.2715%;">
87th
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="width: 12.9243%;">
Nash
</td>
<td style="width: 17.1018%;">
55th
</td>
<td style="width: 18.6684%;">
97th
</td>
<td style="width: 13.3159%;">
100th
</td>
<td style="width: 14.6214%;">
100th
</td>
<td style="width: 10.9661%;">
97th
</td>
<td style="width: 12.2715%;">
100th
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="width: 12.9243%;">
Nowitzki
</td>
<td style="width: 17.1018%;">
96th
</td>
<td style="width: 18.6684%;">
84th
</td>
<td style="width: 13.3159%;">
69th
</td>
<td style="width: 14.6214%;">
78th
</td>
<td style="width: 10.9661%;">
99th
</td>
<td style="width: 12.2715%;">
98th
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="width: 12.9243%;">
O&rsquo;Neal
</td>
<td style="width: 17.1018%;">
97th
</td>
<td style="width: 18.6684%;">
89th
</td>
<td style="width: 13.3159%;">
62nd
</td>
<td style="width: 14.6214%;">
72nd
</td>
<td style="width: 10.9661%;">
1st
</td>
<td style="width: 12.2715%;">
95th
</td>
</tr>
</tbody>
</table>
*Data Provided by Backpicks.com (scroll right to view full table on mobile) 
And while guards typically have a limited impact on the defensive side of the ball, Nash did enough on that end (by way of charge-drawing and off-ball intellect) to help propel the Suns to around average on defense from 2004 to 2010.
So why didn&rsquo;t the Suns make the NBA Finals?
Luck and shooting variance are two obvious, uncontrollable factors. However, Nash and D&rsquo;Antoni have both <a href="https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/steve-nash-on-the-horry-shove-2007s-heartbreak/id1483525141?i=1000461769297" target="_blank" rel="noopener">admitted</a> that they wished they doubled down more on what made them so special: zagging when others continued to zig.
&ldquo;You got all the criticism. You got all the people [criticizing you]. And you do sometimes back off when you should double down on it,&rdquo; D&rsquo;Antoni said.
&ldquo;At the time, Mike was so ahead of most of the NBA. There probably was some pressure &mdash; even within his own camp &mdash; to do things he might not have in his gut wanted to do, and given the time that&rsquo;s passed, wouldn&rsquo;t do now,&rdquo; Bell added. &ldquo;You could see that manifest itself in the way Mike coached with Houston, where he essentially said, 'F*** everything else. This is what we&rsquo;re going to do.'&rdquo;
To understand what "doubling down" essentially entails, let&rsquo;s take a look at a play from the Suns' infamous clash with the San Antonio Spurs in 2007.
<div style="width: 100%; height: 0px; position: relative; padding-bottom: 56.250%;"><iframe style="width: 100%; height: 100%; position: absolute;" src="https://streamable.com/e/nss7yq" width="100%" height="325" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen" data-mce-fragment="1"></iframe></div>
In this clip, Nash forces the legendary Tim Duncan out to the perimeter in a manner analogous to how Stephen Curry <a href="https://streamable.com/fps4dz" target="_blank" rel="noopener">forced Robert Williams III and Al Horford to the three-point line </a>in the 2022 Finals.&nbsp;
Unfortunately for Phoenix, instances like that were few and far between. After Duncan strummed their defense to the tune of 33 points in Game 1, the Suns scrapped their original starting lineup that featured Amar'e Stoudemire at center, and instead turned to a more conventional rotation with Kurt Thomas playing the 5. The two teams were playing chicken, and the Suns were the ones to duck first.&nbsp;
The following year, Phoenix acquired an aging Shaquille O&rsquo;Neal as a last-ditch effort to battle with Duncan. But all this countermeasure amounted to was a gentleman&rsquo;s sweep at the hands of the Spurs in the 2008 postseason.
&ldquo;The way we beat them was not gonna be to match up to their better bigs," Bell said. "It was going to be to make them match down to, in theory, our better smalls."
Rather than try to outbid the best big in the Western Conference, Phoenix should have forced San Antonio to keep pace with its superior spacing.
&ldquo;I should have made Steve shoot more," D&rsquo;Antoni reflected. "He should have shot more threes. He&rsquo;s one of the best shooters ever."
Weaving the Thread&nbsp;
The dirty little secret about our series is that basketball has existed for far too long for there to be any true pioneers in the 1990s and 2000s. Each of these trailblazers was influenced in some way or another by the players who came before them.
For Nash, that player was Isiah Thomas.
&ldquo;My hero growing up was Isiah Thomas," Nash stated on the <a href="https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/steve-nash-ep-34-all-the-smoke-full-episode-stayhome/id1483638752?i=1000473893537">All the Smoke</a> podcast in May 2020. "He had everything, but he wasn&rsquo;t jumping over people, so I was like, 'Okay, there is someone I can try and emulate.' He was quick, but other than that, he used his skill level, his creativity [and] his competitive nature. The fight in him was incredible."
Like Nash, Thomas was adept at knifing his way into the paint and making mincemeat of his adversaries once he got there (<a href="https://streamable.com/vlfunj" target="_blank" rel="noopener">like this</a>).
However, Nash wasn&rsquo;t a mere copycat. He expanded on his idol&rsquo;s dribble penetration. Before him, a ball-handler's entry into the paint signified one of four outcomes: a shot, a pass, a foul or a turnover. Nash&rsquo;s odyssey to stardom birthed a new wrinkle to basketball's dark arts &mdash; the perpetual dribble probe.&nbsp;
Better known today as &ldquo;Nashing.&rdquo;
&ldquo;Just because Steve was driving to the basket, didn&rsquo;t mean that he was going to finish right there,&rdquo; D&rsquo;Antoni explained.&nbsp;
Akin to how a hockey player may continuously cycle the puck around the ice to tire out an opponent, Nash would often maintain his dribble in the paint to extend the period in which he commanded the defense's gaze, which created more opportunities for teammates to spring free.
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&ldquo;With Nash, he popularized it, where he would keep his dribble alive past the basket," Sporting News writer Steph Noh explained to Basketball News. "He would go along the baseline and circle around the lane. And by extending his dribble like that, it would extend the time where teammates could get open, [and] it would give defenses the opportunity to make a mistake and let their guard down.
"And you&rsquo;ve seen that pretty much every small point guard that isn&rsquo;t a freak has found how effective that technique is and incorporated it into their own game &mdash; across all levels."
D&rsquo;Antoni believes Nash owns original patent rights on the technique.
"I think he was the first one that started doing that," D'Antoni said.
Impact on Today&rsquo;s Game
When asked who in today&rsquo;s game most resembles the former two-time MVP, Bell immediately suggested the reigning Finals MVP, Stephen Curry.
&ldquo;Steph Curry reminds me a lot of Nash. They&rsquo;re great athletes, don&rsquo;t get me wrong. But they&rsquo;re not put-your-elbow-in-the-rim type athletes.&rdquo; Bell said. &ldquo;These are athletes that people could see themselves in.
&ldquo;They both have really great hand-eye coordination, really good pace, great handle &mdash; like, they have it on a string. Even if it doesn&rsquo;t look like the AND1 mixtape all the time, I think they use it efficiently and effectively. They both have a great ability to be in the pocket [and] under control. [Both] have great vision. They are very similar.&rdquo;&nbsp;
Along with Curry, another All-NBA guard who warrants comparison to the Phoenix legend is Trae Young. Young even <a href="https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/episode-116-trae-young/id1525281746?i=1000562762348" target="_blank" rel="noopener">publicly stated</a> that he picked up one of his most recognizable dribble moves &mdash; <a href="https://youtu.be/spnrMvqzjek" target="_blank" rel="noopener">his hesitation dribble</a> &mdash; from studying Nash.&nbsp;
Nash&rsquo;s legacy doesn&rsquo;t end there. Young guards like Fred VanVleet have earned All-Star nominations by following the pathway Nash carved out for them when he was dealing in the mid-2000s.&nbsp;
&ldquo;He kind of made it okay to dribble the air out the ball a little bit, keeping looking, because you knew he wasn&rsquo;t being selfish about it,&rdquo; VanVleet said in an March 2018 interview with <a href="https://www.sportsnet.ca/basketball/nba/steve-nashs-basketball-legacy-can-seen-played-every-night/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">SportsNet</a>.
There&rsquo;s no question that Nash&rsquo;s environmental footprint on the league is intense. And when you combine those innovative tactics with progressive coaching and elite scoring efficiency and playmaking, you get something more than just a great player.
You get an MVP, a Hall-of-Famer and, most importantly for us &mdash; you get a revolutionary.&nbsp;
<img src="https://cdn.basketballnews.com/images/story/body/nash-tree.jpg" alt="" width="599" height="599" />
Tune in next week for Part 2 of Blazing the Trail, which focuses on Rashard Lewis &mdash; the pioneer of the modern-day stretch 4.

In the first installment of his "Blazing the Trail" series, Mat Issa goes in-depth on Steve Nash and his effect on the point guard position.

Blazing the Trail: Steve Nash, the magician who danced in the paint

The first round series between the Minnesota Timberwolves and Memphis Grizzlies has been equally riveting and rickety. The energy and intensity of the first five games have been as compelling, if not more, than any of the other seven (well, five now) first-round matchups.
In Game 5 on Tuesday night, the youth of both squads (seventh and second-youngest teams in the league respectively, per <a href="https://basketball.realgm.com/nba/transactions/composition_search" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Real GM</a>) was on full display, as the game was more akin to an NCAA Tournament game. The ebbs and flows, sheer inconsistency and exuberance played out with a myriad of turnovers, missed lobs, jumbled passes and a wealth of fouls (63 combined free throws).
While the series has certainly been messy, it's been equally endearing. Ja Morant has been bottled up by the Wolves, with his efficiency tanking and defensive limitations put on full display. Yet, for all of the struggles that he's endured throughout the series, if the Grizzlies win one more game and advance, few will remember or even care about what his True Shooting percentage was or wasn't, how many turnovers he had or what Patrick Beverley did to him in Game 4. (I, however, will not forget the Pat Bev game, nor will Pat Bev!)
As the clock wound down toward the end of the third quarter during Tuesday night's game, Morant transcended the game and possibly the series.
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This is one of those "Where were you?" moments.
Watching live, my immediate reaction was euphoric:
<ol>
<li>How on earth?</li>
<li>WOW.</li>
<li>This might be the greatest dunk I've seen live when accounting for timing, audacity, implications and shock factor.</li>
</ol>
From Paul George over Chris "Birdman" Andersen, to Michael Jordan on Dikembe Mutombo, to Baron Davis over Andrei Kirilenko, to Scottie Pippen on Patrick Ewing, Ja has cemented himself among the greats. The greatest of all time, I'm not sure &mdash; but upon dunk-hangover research, man, it's right there.
To say Memphis' offense was stuck in the mud prior to Ja's dunk would be an understatement. Minnesota's defense was incredibly active, forcing turnovers, halting drives and mucking up the half-court. The Grizz went on a 39-24 run to close out the game, including the aforementioned slam.
Morant hit the game-winning lefty layup with a second to spare, and scored the final 13 Memphis points in the fourth, as the dunk uncorked his own game as well.
Another angle.
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Dunk of the year! <a href="https://t.co/U1McHfpZHQ">pic.twitter.com/U1McHfpZHQ</a>
&mdash; shot by nie 🔴 (@shotbynie) <a href="https://twitter.com/shotbynie/status/1519265068772380674?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">April 27, 2022</a></blockquote>

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Shout out to Malik Beasley for doing his very best to slide over and prevent the play. Jordan McLaughlin kinda digs at the nail to no avail. What happened on this screen is a wonderful question to ask.
Was Naz Reid <a href="https://youtu.be/ayAu5OkvwGY" target="_blank" rel="noopener">supposed to</a> come all the way to the level at 30 feet? I'm guessing not, but maybe there was some miscommunication between him and Jaden McDaniels. McDaniels pretty clearly denies Morant the screen, which probably means it's unlikely that the Wolves are trying to give Morant a wide-open run to the rim.
Is there anything better than a perfectly ripped off vicious tomahawk slam? I'm going with "No." There are more picturesque or aesthetic dunks, but in terms of actual on-your-head moments, the tomahawk cocked back sits on the throne.
We can get caught up in analyzing everything, picking apart the minutiae of the game, and rightfully so; there's so much to dig into and find understanding with. But sometimes, the vibes and moment just need to reign supreme.
I don't care why the dunk happened or who did or didn't blow that defensive coverage. The dunk is SICK.
He takes his plant step like 2 feet inside of the free-throw line and gets that much air! There are only a handful of players in the NBA who could pull that off.
Part of what makes the game so amazing to me is the individuality, and personality, that shines through. This was another clip in the highlight reel of Morant's personified athleticism. The first time All-Star, former Rookie of the Year and recently-crowned Most Improved Player continues to mesmerize with joyous vibrancy.
What a player, what a game, what a dunk. Remember this moment!
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Ja Morant hammered home one of the all-time great playoff dunks in Game 5, spearheading a Memphis victory to take the series lead.

Ja-Dropping! Morant's tomahawk an unforgettable moment in dunk history

Right before officially clinching their seventh Final Four berth this past weekend, the Villanova Wildcats lost junior guard Justin Moore, who had to be helped off the floor after a freak injury while dribbling to kill the clock with less than 45 seconds to go.
'Nova beat Houston 50-44 in the Elite Eight to become one of the last four standing teams in the Big Dance for the first time since 2018. However, it was announced days later that Moore &mdash; Villanova&rsquo;s second-leading scorer at 14.8 points per game on .397/.356/.750 shooting splits &mdash; ruptured his right Achilles tendon, prematurely ending his season.
Much of the basketball world united in comforting Moore during an excruciatingly awful time to receive such news, including Kevin Durant, who ruptured his own Achilles during the 2019 NBA Finals.
&ldquo;I texted Kevin; he called me,&rdquo; Wright recalled <a href="https://www.inquirer.com/college-sports/villanova/justin-moore-achilles-kevin-durant-villanova-20220331.html">to the Philadelphia Inquirer</a>. &ldquo;And Kevin said, &lsquo;I was watching that, and it looked just like &mdash; I knew it when he went down; it looked just like mine.&rsquo; So we talked for a while about it.
&ldquo;What was so impressive to me was, Durant said, &lsquo;I&rsquo;d like to talk to [Justin], talk to the parents about the process. I want to tell him that.&rsquo; He listed himself, Klay Thompson, a couple other guys I can&rsquo;t remember &mdash; he goes, 'Look, these guys had it in the NBA.' And people in the NBA know now that you can come back from that.&rdquo;
Moore wasn&rsquo;t just 'Nova&rsquo;s second-best scorer throughout the 2021-22 season, but the 6-foot-4 guard earned Second Team All-Big East honors and All-Big East Tournament honors earlier this month. Moore&rsquo;s been a starter in all three of his seasons at Villanova, and has seen his scoring averages jump from 11.3 to 12.9 to 14.8 points per game. This season, he netted a career-best 17.1 points per 40 minutes while also being the Wildcats&rsquo; best rebounding guard, pulling down 4.8 boards per contest.
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According to FiveThirtyEight, there have been six major injuries to Final Four bound teams in the Men&rsquo;s NCAA Tournament since 2010. Using the qualifier of players logging at least 20 minutes in an NCAA Tournament, these players include Kalin Lucas of Michigan State in 2010, Darryl Bryant of West Virginia that same year, Louisville&rsquo;s Kevin Ware (do not Google it if you&rsquo;re reading this during lunch) in 2013, Willie Cauley-Stein of Kentucky in 2014, Auburn&rsquo;s Chuma Okeke in 2019, and now Moore.
Lucas <a href="https://www.espn.com/mens-college-basketball/tournament/2010/news/story?id=5017721" target="_blank" rel="noopener">ruptured his Achilles against Maryland</a> in Round 2, and the Spartans subsequently lost in the Final Four. Oddly enough, <a href="https://www.espn.com/mens-college-basketball/tournament/2010/news/story?id=5022928" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Bryant broke his foot in the same round</a>, and his Mountaineers were also eliminated in the Final Four. Ware had a gruesome injury against Duke in the Elite Eight, and his Cardinals are the only team of this specific group that became national champions so far. Cauley-Stein <a href="https://www.sbnation.com/college-basketball/2014/3/28/5559920/willie-cauley-stein-injury-kentucky-vs-louisville" target="_blank" rel="noopener">suffered a left ankle injury in Round 1</a>, and his Wildcats lost in the title game. And Okeke <a href="https://www.sbnation.com/college-basketball/2019/3/29/18287843/chuma-okeke-injury-bruce-pearl-crying-auburn-sweet-16-ncaa-tournament-2019" target="_blank" rel="noopener">tore his ACL in the Sweet 16</a>; Auburn reached the Final Four round before having its season end.
So, how does 'Nova piece together the production and minutes to replace Moore? He&rsquo;s logged 35.9 minutes per game since the beginning of the Big East Tournament, and has led the Wildcats with 34.6 minutes per contest this season.
Collin Gillespie &mdash; the 2022 Big East Player of the Year, Big East Tournament MVP and Third-Team All-American &mdash; will likely be keyed in on that much harder against Kansas this weekend. (I mean, that&rsquo;s what you&rsquo;d all do if you were in charge of the Jayhawks' defense, right?)
Gillespie&rsquo;s dropping a team-best 15.6 points and 3.3 assists per game on .431/.409/.905 shooting splits. Team sixth-man Caleb Daniels, a 6-foot-4 guard like Moore, has averaged 10.2 points on .427/.377/.851 in 27.3 minutes per contest this season.
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Though the Villanova-Houston offense resembled the (lack of) effectiveness of the Brock Lesnar-Goldberg match at WrestleMania 20, Daniels came up big with 12 points in 35 minutes, even as it came on 4 of 16 shooting. Every point matters against Houston, who had become a tournament favorite with sportsbooks due to its defensive run to the Elite Eight.
Jermaine Samuels, who led the game with 16 points, is 'Nova&rsquo;s leading non-guard scorer at 11.1 points per contest. The 6-foot-7 big also pulls down a team-high 6.5 boards per contest while shooting 47.4% from the field and 77.3% on free throws. Eric Dixon and Brandon Slater are the other two starting forwards, and there, you have 'Nova&rsquo;s main minute-eaters.
Moore, Gillespie, Slater, Samuels, Daniels and Dixon are the only Wildcats averaging at least 10 minutes per game this season, ranging from 34.6 to 25.1 in the order they&rsquo;re listed.
At least one of the following two guys will have to step up going forward to really alleviate the non-Moore minutes. The first would be Bryan Antoine, a junior who has come off the bench for three seasons with the Wildcats and wasn&rsquo;t one of the seven players to log minutes against Houston. Antoine hasn&rsquo;t played more than 11 minutes in a game since Jan. 25 and has scored 2 points since Feb. 12 (seven games, 35 minutes), but has battled injuries of his own, which is why he didn&rsquo;t appear until December.
He <a href="https://nypost.com/2022/03/29/march-madness-justin-moore-injury-gives-bryan-antoine-big-chance/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">recently told the New York Post</a> that &ldquo;I&rsquo;d say I&rsquo;m pretty confident. I&rsquo;ve had the same mindset from Day 1. It hasn&rsquo;t really changed for me. Obviously with the injuries, I have been set back, but I&rsquo;m still the same player from high school.&rdquo;
Three years ago, Antoine was a five-star, top-20 recruit and McDonald&rsquo;s All-American who <a href="https://www.espn.com/mens-college-basketball/story/_/id/24575439/bryan-antoine-commits-villanova-wildcats" target="_blank" rel="noopener">chose Villanova over Duke, Florida, Kentucky, and Kansas</a>. The 6-foot-5 guard should have a chance to prove he can still resemble that as the Wildcat rotation now has to expand beyond six.
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The other guard in waiting is fellow 6-foot-5 junior Chris Arcidiacono, the brother of the Ryan. The younger Arcidiacono did log two minutes against Houston but hasn&rsquo;t cracked 10 since March 5, which is the only other time he&rsquo;s scored in a game since Feb. 22. <a href="https://villanovan.com/20381/sports/with-moore-out-its-time-for-arch-madness/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Per the Villanovan</a>, Arcidiacono downplayed his potentially increased role with a boring quote.
&ldquo;Really, nothing changes,&rdquo; Arcidiacono said. &ldquo;My role is I come off the bench, bring energy, and just make sure we&rsquo;re playing Villanova basketball for 40 minutes. So whenever I&rsquo;m in, I&rsquo;m going to help our team play Villanova basketball.&rdquo;
He&rsquo;s downplaying it here, but no doubt that it&rsquo;s possible both Antoine and Arcidiacono receive increased roles against Kansas this Saturday.
Villanova will need to squeeze everything they can out of their non-regulars in hopes of finding something unexpected to help their championship quest.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-theme="dark">
Villanova played one game this season without Justin Moore --- an 85-74 win over UConn on February 5th in South Philadelphia. Chris Arcidiacono had nine points in 26 minutes off the bench. The Wildcats don't have what they had, but they still have enough. <a href="https://t.co/DckgK3BJyi">https://t.co/DckgK3BJyi</a>
&mdash; Jon Rothstein (@JonRothstein) <a href="https://twitter.com/JonRothstein/status/1508236981083553793?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">March 28, 2022</a></blockquote>

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Bryan Fonseca looks at who 'Nova can turn to with Justin Moore sidelined for the rest of the NCAA Tournament.

Villanova will have to survive without Justin Moore in the Final Four

With the 2022 NCAA Tournament right around the corner, it's time for conference tournaments to begin so teams can begin punching their ticket to The Big Dance in March.
Mid-major tournaments have already gotten underway, on Wednesday, five Power Five tournaments will have begun theirs to join the club.
(Editor's note: Check out our breakdowns of the <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/top-2022-nba-draft-prospects-acc-tournament" target="_blank" rel="noopener">ACC</a>, <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/top-2022-nba-draft-prospects-big-ten-tournament" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Big Ten</a>, <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/top-2022-nba-draft-prospects-pac12-tournament" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Pac-12</a> and <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/top-2022-nba-draft-prospects-sec-tournament" target="_blank" rel="noopener">SEC</a>.)
Since everyone will have their eyes on the best players in these conferences over the next few weeks, BasketballNews.com has highlighted each Power Five and its top 2022 NBA Draft prospects.
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Here are the names to look out for in the Big 12.
<a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/draft/2022-big-board/players/kendall-brown" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Kendall Brown</a>
Forward | Baylor
Height: 6-8 Weight: 205 Wingspan: 6-10
Class: Freshman Draft Day Age: 19.1 Nationality: USA
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A big, strong and explosive wing with a high motor, Kendall Brown has provided an impact as a freshman at Baylor this season. Brown can finish with both athleticism and finesse as a slasher despite lacking elite self-creation. He is also a terrific defender, using his length and quickness to disrupt the opposition. Brown is a potential lottery pick in the 2022 NBA Draft.
<a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/draft/2022-big-board/players/ochai-agbaji" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Ochai Agbaji</a>
Guard-Forward | Kansas
Height: 6-5 Weight: 215 Wingspan: 6-10
Class: Junior Draft Day Age: 22.2 Nationality: USA
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Ochai Agbaji is a versatile wing who has shown promise as a defender, slasher and shooter. Early in his career, he was known for his athleticism and defense. However, this season, he has emerged as one of the best shooters in America, making giant leaps as a scorer in both volume and efficiency. Agbaji has solidified himself as a viable 3-and-D option at the NBA level, and is a candidate for National Player of the Year.
<a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/draft/2022-big-board/players/jeremy-sochan" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Jeremy Sochan</a>
Forward | Baylor
Height: 6-9 Weight: 230 Wingspan: 7-0
Class: Freshman Draft Day Age: 19.1 Nationality: Poland, UK
Jeremy Sochan is an energetic, athletic forward with positional size at 6-foot-9. He has a tremendous motor and excels as a defender and rebounder due to his footwork and length. Although still 18 years old, Sochan has shown flashes of self-creation, but is primarily scoring off of cuts at the rim and catch-and-shoot threes at the moment. He will still only be 19 on Draft Day, but he is already showing why he has big-time potential at the NBA level. Sochan's combination of size, athleticism, instincts and skill is unique.&nbsp;
<a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/draft/2022-big-board/players/christian-braun" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Christian Braun</a>
Guard-Forward | Kansas
Height: 6-6 Weight: 205 Wingspan: N/A
Class: Junior Draft Day Age: 21.2 Nationality: USA
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At 6-foot-6, Christian Braun has positional size, showing the ability to score from anywhere on the floor. He has a smooth release from three and can pick his spots off the dribble. He is reliable on and off the ball on offense, while providing intelligent defense on the other end. Braun is a well-rounded player and makes a strong case for the 2022 NBA Draft.
<a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/draft/2022-big-board/players/matthew-mayer" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Matthew Mayer</a>
Forward | Baylor
Height: 6-9 Weight: 225 Wingspan: 6-10
Class: Senior Draft Day Age: 22.6 Nationality: USA
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At 6-foot-9, Matthew Mayer is a fluid ball-handler and scorer who has been an essential piece of Baylor's success the last two seasons. Although his role and usage have never been overly significant, his impact is often felt on both ends of the floor. He projects as a scoring wing at the NBA level who plays strongly on and off-ball defense, providing true versatility. In addition, Mayer has positional size, making him worth monitoring down the stretch as he makes a case for himself in 2022.
<a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/draft/2022-big-board/players/terrence-shannon-jr" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Terrence Shannon Jr.</a>
Guard-Forward | Texas Tech
Height: 6-6 Weight: 215 Wingspan: 6-8
Class: Junior Draft Day Age: 22.1 Nationality: USA
Terrence Shannon Jr. is an energetic, athletic wing who hangs his hat on defense. He possesses an impressive frame and mobility, and is a solid on-ball defender who provides versatility. He missed many games due to injury to start this season, and will need to show more consistency as a shooter and rim-finisher. However, Shannon&rsquo;s physical tools alone make him a viable option in the 2022 NBA Draft.
Others worth noting:
James Akinjo | Baylor
Izaiah Brockington | Iowa State
Mike Miles | TCU
Taz Sherman | West Virginia
Jalen Wilson | Kansas
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Matt Babcock highlights the top 2022 NBA Draft prospects in the Big 12 Tournament.

2022 NBA Draft: Top prospects in the Big 12 Tournament

Red Auerbach. Lenny Wilkens. Don Nelson. Going back to the end of the NBA&rsquo;s inaugural season 75 years ago, before it was even called the NBA, they&rsquo;re the only coaches to hold the distinction of having more wins than anyone else.
Until now.
Pop has finally joined the club.
Soon, perhaps as soon as Wednesday, Gregg Popovich will stand alone in NBA history. The longtime San Antonio coach &mdash; a winner of five NBA titles, the coach of the reigning Olympic gold medalists, a lock for enshrinement in the Basketball Hall of Fame as soon as he tells them that he'd like to be considered &mdash; got career win No. 1,335 on Monday night when the Spurs beat the Los Angeles Lakers 117-110, tying him with Nelson atop the league&rsquo;s all-time regular season victory list.
&ldquo;He deserves it," Spurs guard Dejounte Murray said.
Predictably, Popovich never was on board with that sentiment. He&rsquo;s been waiting somewhat impatiently for the last couple weeks for the pursuit &mdash; more specifically, all the questions about it &mdash; to end. Making matters worse, the Spurs had lost each of their first four attempts to get him the record-tying victory.
Now, one more win &mdash; the first chance comes Wednesday against Toronto &mdash; and he&rsquo;ll be alone atop the regular-season victory list. More importantly to him, he won&rsquo;t have to hear as much about it anymore.
&ldquo;That&rsquo;ll be a good thing,&rdquo; Popovich conceded.
His place in basketball history, his legacy, his stamp as one of the game&rsquo;s all-time greats &mdash; if not the greatest of the greats &mdash; was secure long ago. He's one of only eight coaches in the four major U.S. sports leagues to be with one team for at least 25 years. And by adding in his 170 playoff victories, his total is at 1,505 in the NBA, which is 93 more than anyone else.
It was a circuitous path to this point. He played at the U.S. Air Force Academy, famously wasn't picked in a bid to make the 1972 U.S. Olympic team, wound up becoming a coach and probably would have been perfectly content to run a Division III program in California for the entirety of his professional life.
Eventually, the NBA called. In time, Popovich would be paired with David Robinson, then the patriarch of a dynasty fueled by Tim Duncan, Tony Parker and Manu Ginobili. The rest is history. Historic, actually.
&ldquo;Everyone knows the amazing job he&rsquo;s done and all the accomplishments,&rdquo; longtime coach Larry Brown said last year. &ldquo;I wish more people really could know the type of person that he is.&rdquo;
Brown was a big part of how Popovich got here.
Popovich&rsquo;s path to the NBA, and then to the role as coach of the Spurs, wasn't exactly traditional. Popovich was coaching at Pomona-Pitzer, a small Division III school in California. He inherited a program not exactly teeming with expectations: Pomona-Pitzer had lost 88 consecutive conference games before hiring Popovich.
He delivered a league title in 1985-86, the school&rsquo;s first in about 70 years. And then Popovich asked for a sabbatical, telling the school he needed to go learn more about the game. He spent a month at North Carolina, absorbing the teachings of Dean Smith. And then he sat on Brown&rsquo;s bench at Kansas, reuniting with a coach he met through ties he made while a student at the Air Force Academy.
Popovich acknowledged that he has wondered what would have happened if Smith and Brown hadn&rsquo;t extended those opportunities his way.
&ldquo;Each of us does that, right? Each of our lives is the sum of experiences, if-this, if-that,&rdquo; Popovich said. &ldquo;I&rsquo;m no different than anybody else.&rdquo;
After the sabbatical, Popovich, true to his word, returned to Pomona-Pitzer. Brown invited his team to Kansas for a game the following season; the Jayhawks, predictably, toyed with the D-III team, winning 94-38.
A year later, Brown called again. He had left Kansas to coach the Spurs. He wanted Popovich to come along. Popovich was in San Antonio until 1992, when Brown &mdash; and the whole coaching staff &mdash; got fired. Popovich got a job as an assistant in Golden State, working for Nelson.
It was at a cost.
&ldquo;He emptied my wallet every time we golfed. He knew he was better than me and he did it anyway,&rdquo; Popovich said.
It begged the question why Popovich continued golfing and giving away his money.
&ldquo;He was my boss,&rdquo; Popovich said.
Consider the golf money tuition for a basketball education. Popovich is still affected by Nelson; a recent highlight play from Murray was akin to something Nelson had drawn up a couple decades ago, Popovich said. And even the reminders that Popovich uses on the bench to keep some thoughts fresh are a nod to the lessons learned from Nelson.
&ldquo;To this day, I have plays and things written on cards &mdash; I keep them now in my pants, used to be your sportcoat &mdash; and I couldn&rsquo;t live without them,&rdquo; Popovich said. &ldquo;I never used them before. I got that from him and now I need them, badly. He was a joy and there was a lot to learn from him.&rdquo;
After two seasons with Nelson, Popovich was wanted by the Spurs again &mdash; this time, as vice president for basketball operations. That was in 1994. In 1996, he fired Bob Hill and named himself coach of the Spurs. And he&rsquo;s stayed in that chair ever since.
&ldquo;They were two wonderful, wonderful years,&rdquo; Popovich said of his time with Nelson. &ldquo;Basketball-wise, the biggest thing I took away was he was a master of understanding the rules and knowing how to use the rules, isolate players, take advantage of another team&rsquo;s weaknesses based on your own personnel. Very creative on offense, very much so. He got a big kick out of it.&rdquo;
Funny. That&rsquo;s what many say about Popovich now. At 73, he&rsquo;s teaching a young team, building a new program with the Spurs, and still innovating.
&ldquo;Every way you can win in this league, they&rsquo;ve done it,&rdquo; Heat coach Erik Spoelstra said.
Spoelstra and Popovich are forever linked, after going head-to-head as coaches in the NBA Finals in 2013 and 2014. The Heat won the first one, the Spurs won the rematch for Popovich&rsquo;s fifth and most recent title. They have spoken of each other in the most admirable terms since.
&ldquo;The basketball part of it is Hall of Fame, arguably the greatest to ever do it,&rdquo; Spoelstra said. &ldquo;But it&rsquo;s the human side that has really impacted everybody.&rdquo;
The stories are legendary. If Popovich sees players in a restaurant, he picks up their check or sends something over. USA Basketball coaches have raved about his infamous dinners, where everything but basketball is discussed, usually over copious amounts of some of the world's finest wine. This is a man who considered becoming a spy &mdash; he majored in Soviet studies at the Air Force Academy &mdash; before deciding to make a life out of basketball.
&ldquo;He has an amazing sense of humor,&rdquo; Boston forward Jayson Tatum said during the Olympic run. &ldquo;I guess the casual fan sees the person who does those interviews postgame, but that&rsquo;s not the case of who he is at all. I absolutely love spending time with him."
Seems like everybody does.
Exactly 200 players have appeared in a game for the Spurs during the Popovich era. He's coached against 1,991 different players, including a bunch of fathers and then their sons. He's coached against 163 different men, who have held 273 different jobs over that span.
Pop has remained the constant. And the standard.
&ldquo;It's hard to put into words just how much he's meant," Spurs guard Josh Richardson said.
Auerbach was the NBA&rsquo;s winningest coach after its first season and held that spot atop the list for nearly a half-century.
Wilkens passed Auerbach with win No. 939 on Jan. 6, 1995, when he and the Atlanta Hawks topped the Washington Bullets 112-90. And Wilkens stayed in the top spot until April 7, 2010, when he was passed by Nelson on a night where he and the Golden State Warriors beat the Minnesota Timberwolves 116-107.
At that point, Popovich was 15th on the all-time list.
No more. He&rsquo;s tied for No. 1 now.
And soon, the top spot will be all his.

Soon, perhaps as soon as Wednesday, Spurs head coach Gregg Popovich will stand alone in NBA history.

Pop's way: From a sabbatical to the NBA coaching summit

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) &mdash; Stephen Curry has made Azzi Fudd his Splash Sister.
Curry is bringing the star Connecticut freshman into his SC30 Inc. brand in a unique, wide-ranging partnership that will support her successes both on and off the court as the nation&rsquo;s top recruit builds her collegiate career &mdash; a multi-dimensional name, image and likeness contract.
Golden State&rsquo;s reigning NBA scoring champion, with two young daughters, has long been dedicated to helping women shine and vowed to do more for the women&rsquo;s game. In 2018, Fudd&nbsp;<a class="" href="https://apnews.com/article/north-america-ap-top-news-basketball-sports-stephen-curry-4869df139a714a5da07854abf35e3d83">participated in Curry&rsquo;s elite camp&nbsp;</a>as one of two women invited to take part and she and Curry have continued to build their friendship since. Curry also held an all-girls camp that summer.
Fudd&rsquo;s involvement with SC30 &mdash; the athlete-run organization handling Curry&rsquo;s off-court business &mdash; will entail far more than strictly a sponsorship deal, too.
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<div class="Component-adTitle-0-2-15">Curry plans to personally mentor the 5-foot-11 guard from Arlington, Virginia, who played at St. John&rsquo;s College High School in Washington, D.C., as she balances school, basketball and the demands of being a face for female athletes. He wants to help Fudd show the world who she is through not only her personality and passions but by also providing a platform and financial backing to share her values and ideas.</div>
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&ldquo;Azzi Fudd is the best choice to start a brand relationship like this because she is the next face of women&rsquo;s basketball and has been a part of SC30 Inc. and the Curry Brand family since she was an invitee to the All-American Camp,&rdquo; Curry said.
Two-time MVP Curry and his SC30 team plan to give Fudd guidance through professional services and growth opportunities to develop her brand. That will mean chances to host and attend events and be part of new brand partnerships, and to deliver her personal social impact initiatives while additionally promoting and being involved in some of those dear to Curry and his family.
&ldquo;Our values are aligned when it comes to family, and in terms of hard work and for the appreciation of blessings in your life,&rdquo; Curry said. &ldquo;For me, this is the right time because I have identified the platforms that I have, aligning purpose over profit, and the ability to collaborate with the right partners for the right opportunities. I want to be able to unlock that for Azzi, and for other talented athletes and influencers that see the world the same way I do. It is my hope that we can inspire the next generation of athletes and non-athletes who want to do amazing things.&rdquo;
College student-athletes can now be compensated, and Fudd&rsquo;s UConn teammate, Paige Bueckers, received a deal from Gatorade on Monday.
For Fudd, like Curry, this could just be the start.
&ldquo;Since I first met Steph at his camp a few years ago, I&rsquo;ve stayed connected to him and have always admired his incredible talent and accomplishments, but also his humility and the impact he has on people,&rdquo; Fudd said. &ldquo;As I continue to focus on becoming the best player and student I can be while in college, I also look forward to broadening my understanding of business and life beyond basketball. This partnership with Steph and his SC30 team will help me do that. I&rsquo;m really excited about everything we&rsquo;ll do together in the future.&rdquo;
___
More AP women&rsquo;s college basketball:&nbsp;<a class="" href="https://apnews.com/hub/womens-college-basketball">https://apnews.com/hub/womens-college-basketball</a>&nbsp;and&nbsp;<a class="" href="https://apnews.com/hub/ap-top-25-womens-college-basketball-poll">https://apnews.com/hub/ap-top-25-womens-college-basketball-poll</a>&nbsp;and&nbsp;<a class="" href="https://twitter.com/AP_Top25" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">https://twitter.com/AP_Top25</a>

Fudd joins teammate Paige Bueckers as UConn athletes to sign major NIL deals in recent days.