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NBA announces 242 early-entry candidates for 2023 NBA Draft

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It's almost play-in and playoff time, folks!
This season has felt more jumbled than ever, which has led to more teams in some sort of contention. Naturally, most conversations around the league will focus on the contenders and the various seeding battles still happening.
It's easy for the teams at the bottom to get lost in the shuffle. They generally reach a point where lottery odds take precedence; in some instances, important young pieces are getting shut down like veterans.
<a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/views-from-the-bottom-young-players-to-keep-an-eye-on" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Much like last year</a>, I wanted to take a moment to highlight some players who are likely flying under the radar. You have to take post-All-Star break stretches with at least two grains of salt, but this is a time for unheralded players to stretch themselves. In a best-case scenario, they wind up showing you something that transfers to the next season.
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Here are a few players &mdash; just a few! &mdash; who have caught my eye recently.
All stats are updated through games played on April 4.
JALEN GREEN, HOUSTON ROCKETS
The Stats: 23.4 points, 3.2 rebounds, 3.8 assists (2.2 turnovers) since the All-Star break&nbsp;
The Skill: Foul-Drawing Craft
For the second year in a row, Jalen Green is popping off the screen after the All-Star break.&nbsp;
He represents a rare blend of athleticism &mdash; slippery and explosive &mdash; and skill. Watching him try to harness that has been equal parts fun and frustrating, depending on how invested you are in his growth.&nbsp;
Drives from Green have been an adventure since he set foot in the league. He's blessed with a handle that can get him most places, a first step that only a handful of guys can slide with and vertical pop that nobody can really deal with if he has a launching pad.&nbsp;
Green hasn't had much issue accessing the paint in his career. How he's gotten there, and what he does once there, has been the work in progress.
Quietly, he's become a little more selective with the turbo button when putting his head down. He's taking advantage of defenders scrambling to stay attached to him. He's feeling out the defender more in a literal sense; if he senses a defender out of position or leaning towards him, he's going right into their shoulder or chest, absorbing the blow and getting a shot up.&nbsp;
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Green is living at the line these days. He's averaging nearly seven free throw attempts per game since the break. Per Cleaning The Glass, Green is drawing fouls on 14.5% of his shot attempts during this stretch, a mark that ranks in the 97th percentile among his position group.
Filter specifically for drives, and Green is still drawing shooting fouls on 14.5% of them &mdash; 10th among 100 players with at least 100 drives, per Second Spectrum.
There's still growth to be had inside the arc. There's a little Anthony Edwards there, where he feels like he can defeat anyone &mdash; or any amount of bodies &mdash; at the rim when easier kicks are available. There's more comfort to be developed as an inside-out passer versus the interior feeds he likes.&nbsp;
But, man, being able to generate freebies at this rate is a welcomed sight. We're not that far away from teams not having a real answer for him as a scorer.
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SVI MYKHAILIUK, CHARLOTTE HORNETS
The Stats: 16.2 points, 3.7 rebounds, 5.2 assists (1.5 turnovers), 1.3 steals over last six games&nbsp;
The Skill: Avoiding Danger
Mykhailiuk is in the midst of one of his most productive stretches. He's provided a healthy dose of shooting, converting 44.4% of his threes (6.0 attempts) over his last six games. Due to the injuries around him, he's gotten to do more with the ball in his hands. Nothing particularly wild on the playmaking front, but he's proven compentent as a second-side creator.&nbsp;
None of the offensive productivity surprises me. The fact that we're even getting to see it to this degree speaks to his work on the other end. I am not here to argue that Mykhailiuk is an elite defender; in fact, most of the numbers I'd use to highlight defensive growth don't paint him in a favorable light. As <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/nba-film-breakdown-charlotte-hornets-defense-steve-clifford-dennis-smith-jr-theo-maledon-gordon-hayward-jt-thor-mark-williams-nick-richards" target="_blank" rel="noopener">I wrote recently</a>, the Hornets aren't afraid to switch-and-double against matchups they deem unfavorable to them; they've done so with Mykhailiuk.
I'd just like to say that man is&nbsp;working&nbsp;defensively. He's had to take up defensive assignments well above his pay grade as of late: Zach LaVine, Scottie Barnes, some Luka Doncic possessions during their two-game series and it hasn't been a disaster.
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The shift from "obvious weak link" to "best option to attack available" is a subtle, yet important mark of growth. It feels like he's starting to land in the latter camp. All the Hornets, or any team moving forward, needs from him is for him to hold his own. If he can do that, he'll have more opportunities for the shooting and ball skills to pop.&nbsp;
SANDRO MAMUKELASHVILI, SAN ANTONIO SPURS
The Stats: 13.0 points, 6.8 rebounds, 2.9 assists (1.9 turnovers), 2.8 steals over last eight games&nbsp;
The Skill: Passing Chops
I am an absolute sucker for tall players with passing ability. I gravitate towards playmaking wings, and I especially enjoy watching actual big men dice up defenses with nifty feeds.&nbsp;
Insert Mamu, whom the Spurs have thankfully given room to do stuff with the ball in his hands.
That simply wasn't going to happen in Milwaukee, who needed Mamu to either space or defend &mdash; preferably both, of course &mdash; at a certain level in order to garner consistent playing time. He isn't there yet on either end, and the rest of the roster was too good to justify letting him run things with the second unit.
Because that isn't the case with the Spurs, we've gotten to see stuff like this:
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For those keeping track at home, that was:
<ul>
<li>a transition push after a board, then a kick to a three-point shooter on the move</li>
<li>a slip against a switch, followed by a no-look pass to the corner in an attempt to manipulate Steph Curry's weakside responsibilities</li>
<li>a leaping lay-down pass to Zach Collins</li>
<li>a quick feed to Collins versus a fronting defender, conveniently timed as Talen Horton-Tucker is leaning the wrong way</li>
<li>A pass fake into a skip to Tre Jones for a three</li>
<li>A pump-and-drive, followed by a Haliburton-esque jump-pass for a dunk</li>
<li>A baseline drive against&nbsp;Brook Lopez,&nbsp;puncutated by a kick to the corner</li>
</ul>
There's still plenty of work to be done, particularly on the non-glamour end of the floor. The Spurs, or whoever commits to him moving forward, has to find a coverage for him, have a strong defensive infrastructure around him or both.&nbsp;
If nothing else, though, there's some Hartenstein-lite potential here as a second-unit hub. The passing pops. The screens are good. Being able to credibly drive as a 5 is valuable stuff. More Mamu, please!
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MARKELLE FULTZ, ORLANDO MAGIC
The Stats: 16.5 points, 4.0 rebounds, 6.3 assists (2.4 turnovers), 1.5 steals since the All-Star break&nbsp;
The Skill: Big Man Things
It's been a joy watching Markelle Fultz graduate from the "really good redemption story" arc to the basic reality that he's good at basketball. Period. Full stop.
A smooth operator in ball screens; a crafty finisher at the rim; he's quietly reliable as a pull-up option inside the arc &mdash; did you know he's canned <a href="https://www.nba.com/stats/player/1628365/shots-dash?Season=2022-23" target="_blank" rel="noopener">45.1% of his pull-up 2s</a> this season? He remains a dogged point-of-attack defender.
&nbsp;What's popped for me in a few matchups &mdash; against the Utah Jazz and Washington Wizards, in particular &mdash; is his willingness to do the little things. Or rather, the "big" things. Both teams stashed their centers on Fultz &mdash; the Jazz with Walker Kessler, the Wizards with Kristaps Porzingis &mdash; in a way to keep them near the basket.
Fultz countered by setting screen, after screen, after screen, creating opportunities for his teammates and himself.&nbsp;
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Fultz has set 131 on-ball screens this season, after setting 77 over his first five seasons combined, per Second Spectrum.&nbsp;
STRAY THOUGHTS
<ul>
<li>Though the Jazz are techincally still in the play-in hunt, It's worth noting the heater that Talen Horton-Tucker has been on since becoming a starter after the All-Star break. He's averaging 31-5-7 over his past four games, shooting 36% from deep on a heavy diet of pull-ups and getting to the line nearly nine times per contest. It's still hard to have faith in the jumper, and he remains a little tunnel vision-y for my sensibilities, but this has been a nice stretch for him. </li>
<li>Corey Kispert has slotted in nicely as a starter. I've enjoyed his usage under Wes Unseld Jr., running him <a href="https://twitter.com/NekiasNBA/status/1638566356005146626?s=20" target="_blank" rel="noopener">through staggers</a> or, when spaced, often being the <a href="https://twitter.com/NekiasNBA/status/1638567273832095747?s=20" target="_blank" rel="noopener">only player on his side of the floor</a> to stress out help defenders. It helps that Kispert's been shooting the leather off the ball too: 21.3 points while converting 49.1% of his threes (9.2 attempts) over his last six games is nothing to sneeze at.&nbsp; </li>
<li>Hawks legend Skylar Mays is averaging 17 points and 7.3 assists across three starts with the Blazers. Not quite sure what it means, but I've enjoyed his pacing inside the arc. I also don't think I've seen him miss a floater or a pull-up middy, so that's fun.</li>
</ul>
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Before focusing on the NBA playoffs, Nekias Duncan breaks down young players on lottery teams who have caught his eye lately.

Views from the bottom: 5 young NBA players to keep an eye on

"We're a championship team."
That's what Nuggets guard Jamal Murray said, as <a href="https://www.denverpost.com/2023/02/03/nuggets-jamal-murray-championship-team/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">part of a larger answer</a> about the team's prospects after Thursday night's 134-117 win over the Golden State Warriors. Murray was a big part of the win, scoring 33 points (9-of-12 from two, 3-of-11 from three), dishing out 8 assists and grabbing 5 rebounds in a little over 30 minutes.
"All that stuff, not being happy, has gotta go out the window or else we&rsquo;re not going to win," Murray said. "It&rsquo;s nice to have a coach that knows that and knows what we&rsquo;re trying to accomplish.&rdquo;
There are a couple of ways to decipher the rest of Murray's words. You can take the "duh" approach and leave it there. Any team with title aspirations &mdash; and the Nuggets, headlined by MVP frontrunner Nikola Jokic while boasting the West's best record, certainly fit the bill &mdash; needs buy-in. Beyond the Xs and Os and rotation decisions, a head coach's primary responsibility is to get buy-in from its players.&nbsp;
Michael Malone has appeared to get that for the most part. You can see that most blatantly with the Nuggets' defensive performance. Per Cleaning The Glass, they're up to 16th in defensive rating on the year, excluding garbage time. <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/nba-examining-the-denver-nuggets-poor-defense-nikola-jokic-michael-malone-bruce-brown-michael-porter-jr" target="_blank" rel="noopener">In early December</a>, I wrote about how pourous their then-ranked 27th defense was; Coach Malone seemingly lamented it every other game.
If you read a little deeper into Murray's reminder for connectivity, you could interpret it as a message to second-year guard Bones Hyland.
Hyland didn't appear in Thursday night's game. He only played four minutes in Tuesday's win over (what's left of) the New Orleans Pelicans. In fact, here is Hyland's minute count over the Nuggets' past 10 games: 8, 15, 18, 8, 11, 0 (inactive), 24, 21, 4, 0 (DNP).
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There have been reports of Hyland and Malone not seeing eye-to-eye. It would make sense; young players &mdash; especially young guards &mdash; have to do a lot to earn Malone's trust on both ends of the floor.
Hyland is a microwave scorer, unafraid to pull from 30 feet if he's feeling it. He's drained nearly 38% of his threes on high volume (5.7 attempts in 19.5 minutes) this season. He's also, at this stage of his career, a harmful defender due to his off-ball awareness and shaky screen navigation. Those are hard sells for Malone fundamentally, even while acknowledging how talented Hyland is.
But with the relationship appearing to deteriorate, trade rumors have <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/report-bones-hyland-is-one-of-the-most-likely-players-to-be-dealt" target="_blank" rel="noopener">continued to swirl</a>. Most recently, ESPN's Tim MacMahon essentially called a Hyland trade an inevitability. Brian Windhorst didn't go that far, but it seems the writing is on the wall in Denver.&nbsp;
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
&ldquo;Bones Hyland is getting traded. It&rsquo;s a matter of where and for what.&rdquo; (via <a href="https://twitter.com/espn_macmahon?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@espn_macmahon</a>) <a href="https://t.co/JlUJQI7YnW">pic.twitter.com/JlUJQI7YnW</a>
&mdash; The Trade Deadline (@_TradeDeadline) <a href="https://twitter.com/_TradeDeadline/status/1621550941500473348?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 3, 2023</a></blockquote>

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

Beyond the intrigue of the Nuggets potentially moving Hyland this early, figuring out who they'd actually pursue is also challenging.
It's easy to look at the roster and pinpoint&nbsp;what&nbsp;they should pursue. Finding a bigger, more reliable two-way presence on the perimeter would be at the top of the list. As it stands, rookies Christian Braun and Peyton Watson are the only "3s" between 6-foot-6 and 6-foot-8 on the roster. Braun has been in and out of the rotation this season despite his positive flashes, and we've seen virtually nothing from Watson.
If they land on another guard to directly replace Hyland, that player would need to hold their own defensively &mdash; and likely be capable of punching above their weight &mdash; while being able to toggle between on and off-ball duties. Murray has been commanding the second unit when staggered away from Jokic; ideally, you'd want to take some of that creation burden off of him.
The "who" of it is what makes this tough. Hyland isn't just a young trade chip &mdash; he might be the&nbsp;trade chip for the Nuggets considering their first-round pick situation. <a href="https://www.prosportstransactions.com/basketball/DraftTrades/Future/Nuggets.htm" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Due to prior trades</a>, the earliest available first-rounder they can move <a href="https://www.denverstiffs.com/2023/1/10/23547887/the-denver-nuggets-trade-deadline" target="_blank" rel="noopener">is their 2029 first</a>. Cashing in Hyland for a veteran could still be the move, but it'd be beneficial to add a vet who could move the needle this year and&nbsp;next year, at the very least.
No team wants to "lose" a deal obviously, but there's heightened importance in nailing a trade involving Hyland because of it.
For that reason, I'd imagine the first call would be to the Chicago Bulls. Alex Caruso doesn't fit the wing-with-size archetype, but he doubles as one of the NBA's stingiest and most versatile perimeter defenders. He is one of the best screen navigators in the sport, possesses quick hands that allow him to pester ball-handlers and restrict passing lanes and has the strength and guile to defend bigger wings or forwards when called upon.
A fun stat, per Second Spectrum: Over the past two seasons, possessions featuring a post-up defended by Caruso have garnered just 0.82 points per possession (PPP). Among the 114 players who have defended at least 75 post-ups in that time frame, that mark ranks 11th. Players ahead of him include Pascal Siakam (0.74 PPP), Draymond Green (0.75 PPP), PJ Tucker (0.76 PPP), Onyeka Okongwu (0.78 PPP) and Jayson Tatum (0.8 PPP).
Any questions concerning Caruso come on the offensive end of the floor. He's currently shooting 40.2% from deep, but is only attempting 4.3 threes per 100 possessions, the second-lowest clip of his career. Because of his infrequent trigger &mdash; with more infuriating catch-and-holds sprinkled in this season &mdash; defenses are okay defending him conservatively on the perimeter.&nbsp;
Caruso remains a smart cutter and a tough-as-nails screener, making him an ideal partner for Nikola Jokic whenever they play together. His cross screens consistently help Nikola Vucevic establish deep post position; it's easy to see him doing the same for Jokic. There's also room for him to act as a brush screener whenever the Nuggets want to utilize Jokic as the pick-and-roll ball handler.
Per <a href="https://marcstein.substack.com/p/the-latest-nba-trade-winds?utm_source=post-email-title&amp;publication_id=392205&amp;post_id=99187151&amp;isFreemail=false&amp;utm_medium=email" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Marc Stein of Substack ($)</a>, the Bulls reportedly want two first-round picks in a deal for Caruso. Would the Bulls consider Hyland as a first-rounder, and would the 2029 first the Nuggets could actually offer be enough to entice them? If so, Hyland, Jeff Green, Ish Smith and the 2029 first is a package that could get the ball rolling.
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(There would be haggling, of course. The Nuggets would rather add second-rounders &mdash; they have six, including two this year. If they do include the first-rounder, I'm sure they'd ask for protections &mdash; or explore what it would take to get the Bulls to include Andre Drummond in the deal as well. In short, there are conversations to be had here.)
If not the Bulls, the Nuggets should check in with the Washington Wizards again. They just did business over the summer with the wing room; why not see if they could pry Delon Wright out of there? It would take one of Green or Smith along with Hyland for salary-matching purposes. Because of the age gap and team control aspect, the Nuggets may be able to ask for minor draft compensation.
Among available forwards, I wonder if they'd call the Phoenix Suns and check in on Jae Crowder. Because of Crowder's contract status &mdash; he's set to become an unrestricted free agent this summer &mdash; the Nuggets likely wouldn't have to think about including a future first. The Hyland-Green-Smith triumvirate would work salary-wise for Crowder and a minimum piece (maybe Jock Landale or Josh Okogie).
STRAY THOUGHTS
<ul>
<li>If the San Antonio Spurs didn't already have multiple guards they're somewhat invested in, a Hyland-led package for Josh Richardson would be something worth exploring.</li>
<li>Same guard-heavy issue with the Utah Jazz, otherwise a Jarrod Vanderbilt deal would be at the top of the list for me.</li>
<li>The Sacramento Kings and Warriors have reportedly been linked to Matisse Thybulle. The Nuggets have the offensive infrastructure to slot Thybulle in as a cutter and occasional screener. How would we feel about a Hyland/Green for Thybulle/Shake Milton swap? Feels like a third team would be needed to balance things further for the Sixers, but I'd be intrigued.</li>
<li>Hyland for Cam Reddish is the "Man, everybody would hate this" trade that I can't push in good faith.</li>
</ul>

The Denver Nuggets may be on the verge of trading Bones Hyland. Nekias Duncan explores which landing spots make sense for Hyland.

Exploring possible trade destinations for Nuggets' Bones Hyland

Nekias Duncan takes an early look at this year's NBA award races with an in-depth look at who leads the pack through mid-December.

Nekias Duncan's 2022-23 NBA award front-runners: MVP, DPOY, ROY, more

HOUSTON (AP) &mdash; Marcus Sasser scored 25 points, Tramon Mark added 16 and No. 1 Houston routed Norfolk State 100-52 Tuesday night in the Cougars&rsquo; first game as the top-ranked team in nearly 40 years.
Sasser finished 7 of 12 on 3-pointers, rebounding nicely after making only one of 10 from behind the arc in Houston&rsquo;s win over Kent State on Saturday.
Houston (7-0) was 17 of 33 on 3s, including 10 of 18 in the first half. The Cougars went on a 42-7 first-half run.
Jamal Shead finished with 12 points and 11 assists, J&rsquo;Wan Roberts had 10 points and Ja&rsquo;Vier Francis had 11 points and eight rebounds off the bench.
Kris Bankston scored 14 points and Cahiem Brown added 11 points for Norfolk State (5-3).
NO. 3 VIRGINIA 70, MICHIGAN 68
ANN ARBOR, Mich. (AP) &mdash; Jayden Gardner made a go-ahead jumper with 39.9 seconds left and blocked Jett Howard&rsquo;s 3-point shot just before the buzzer, allowing Virginia to hold on and beat Michigan in the ACC/Big Ten Challenge.
The Cavaliers (6-0) trailed by 11 points at halftime, rallied to go ahead with 7:25 left and built a five-point lead that didn&rsquo;t last.
The Wolverines (5-2) went ahead 66-65 at the 1:42 mark when Hunter Dickinson made one of two free throws, but the standout center missed a hook shot in the final minute. Dickinson scored 23 points and Howard had 15.
Reece Beekman finished with 18 points for Virginia. Gardner, Kihei Clark and Kadin Shedrick scored 12 apiece and Ben Vander Plas had 10.
MARQUETTE 96, NO. 6 BAYLOR 70
MILWAUKEE (AP) &mdash; Olivier-Maxence Prosper scored 24 points and Marquette capitalized on a dominant start from its defense to roll past Baylor in the Big 12-Big East Battle.
Marquette (6-2) raced to a 51-25 halftime lead thanks to a 24-0 edge in points off turnovers. This was the highest-ranked team Marquette has beaten under second-year coach Shaka Smart.
Kam Jones had 20 points and David Joplin added 19 as Marquette shot 58.3% overall to win its third straight.
LJ Cryer scored 19 points, Adam Flagler 16 and Keyonte George 12 for Baylor (5-2).
NO. 16 ILLINOIS 73, SYRACUSE 44
CHAMPAIGN, Ill. (AP) &mdash; Coleman Hawkins had 15 points, 10 rebounds and 10 assists, and Illinois thumped Syracuse.
Illinois (6-1) hit six of its 15 3-point attempts in the second half to send the Orange (3-4) home with their third straight loss.
Terrence Shannon Jr. had 17 points on 5-of-17 shooting for the Illini. All of his makes were 3s. RJ Melendez scored 15 points.
Jesse Edwards had nine points and 17 rebounds to lead Syracuse, and Judah Mintz also scored nine.
Hawkins sent a lively crowd into a frenzy by securing his 10th rebound to complete the triple-double with 1:34 to go and Illinois up 68-44.
NO. 19 KENTUCKY 60, BELLARMINE 41
LEXINGTON, Ky. (AP) &mdash; Antonio Reeves scored 18 points to lead Kentucky past Bellarmine.
Jacob Toppin had 12 points and CJ Fredrick finished with 11 as the Wildcats (5-2) overcame a slow start. Trailing 32-28 with 15 minutes left, Kentucky used a 23-3 run to pull away.
Curt Hopf led Bellarmine (2-6) with 15 points.
NO. 22 MARYLAND 79, LOUISVILLE 54
LOUISVILLE, Ky. (AP) &mdash; Donta Scott scored 18 points and Maryland made five consecutive 3-pointers to open the second half and run away from Louisville.
The Terrapins (7-0) led throughout, including 37-26 at halftime, before Don Carey sank the first of two from long range during the 15-6 surge that featured two 3s from Scott and one from Hakim Hart.
Maryland shot 50% overall while posting its seventh consecutive double-digit win under new coach Kevin Willard.
El Ellis scored 15 points for the Cardinals (0-7), whose nightmarish start continued as they shot 34% against their third ranked opponent in four games.
NO. 24 SAN DIEGO STATE 72, UC IRVINE 69
SAN DIEGO (AP) &mdash; Micah Parrish hit a 3-pointer from the left corner with 2.4 seconds left and San Diego State rallied to beat UC Irvine.
Nathan Mensah scored 18 points to lead the Aztecs (5-2).
DJ Davis scored 28 points for the Anteaters (6-2), who had a three-game winning streak snapped.

A recap of Monday evening's men's college basketball slate includes a number of interconference battles and the No. 1 Cougars' rout.

Houston debuts at No. 1 by beating Norfolk State 100-52

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 fourth installment, Mat goes in-depth on one of the greatest shooters of all-time: Reggie Miller. He explains what made him different from the marksmen who came before him, with insights from his former coaches in Indiana &mdash; Dan Burke and Bob Ociepka &mdash; his former teammate Rik Smits and basketball analyst Mike Prada.
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In his critically acclaimed, historical rendition of the NBA, "The Book of Basketball," The Ringer's Bill Simmons ranked NBA and Indiana Pacers legend Reggie Miller outside of the top 60 all-time:
&ldquo;Reggie Miller was the most overrated &lsquo;superstar&rsquo; of the past thirty years,&rdquo; Simmons opined.
To Simmons' credit, however, he later retracted this statement in the sequel podcast, "<a href="https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/book-of-basketball-2-0/id1483525141?i=1000462435000">The Book of Basketball 2.0.</a>" Revising his previous comments, Simmons suggested that in today's game, Miller would indeed constitute superstar status.
But what if Miller would have been a superstar in any era? What if he was an elite scorer and playmaker in ways that we couldn&rsquo;t comprehend during his time? And what if he served as an inspiration to the most prolific dynasty of the NBA's pace-and-space era?
Let's find out.
WHAT MADE MILLER SPECIAL
As a child, Miller would regularly participate in 1-on-1 matchups against his older sister, Cheryl, who turned out to be one of the greatest women's basketball players of all-time prior to untimely injuries. (She's enshrined in the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame.)
Because of Cheryl's superior size and strength, Reggie going inside was a moot point.
&ldquo;One of the reasons I practiced shooting from the outside was that Cheryl used to block my shots when I drove to the hoop,&rdquo; Miller recalled in <a href="https://www.amazon.com/Love-Being-Enemy-Reggie-Miller/dp/0684870398" target="_blank" rel="noopener">his autobiography</a>. &ldquo;It&rsquo;s a bad feeling when your sister is knocking your best stuff into the rosebushes.&rdquo;
To defeat his sibling, Miller needed to hone in on his perimeter game.&nbsp;
That's exactly what he did.
Miller endured his sister&rsquo;s challenges and triumphed to become one of the premier shooters the NBA had ever seen. According to Cerebro Sports' Three-Point Efficiency metric (a shooting metric that combines three-point volume and efficiency to show the most lethal shooters), Miller finished in the 97th percentile or higher in all but one year from 1988 to 2004.
(The 2002-03 campaign was the exception, where he finished in the 94th percentile).
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Visual provided by Cerebro Sports
Even more impressive is how he earned his standing in this data set. Unlike many of the great shooters of his time &mdash; who made their mark primarily off standstill catch-and-shoot opportunities &mdash; a majority of Miller&rsquo;s triples came while he was circling the half-court at top speed.
And again, much like his pickup contests growing up, this strategy was rooted in necessity.
&ldquo;The chances for spot-up [threes] weren&rsquo;t really there,&rdquo; said Dan Burke, Miller&rsquo;s former coach in Indiana and now an assistant with the Philadelphia 76ers. &ldquo;You have to have a real big, key player [you&rsquo;re playing off of] to get spot-ups.&rdquo;
To back Burke's words, think of one of the other notable three-point shooters of that time: Dan Majerle. Throughout his time in Phoenix and Miami, Majerle was gifted with potent penetrators like Kevin Johnson and Tim Hardaway, who could both consistently <a href="https://streamable.com/wd17v5" target="_blank" rel="noopener">break down a defense and get two feet in the paint</a>.
Meanwhile, Miller&rsquo;s most accomplished backcourt mate, Mark Jackson, was more of a post facilitator than a downhill threat.
Instead, Miller achieved sage status in the art of movement shooting. And for those following along at home, his technique can be divided into <a href="https://youtu.be/tv3EyzBuRb4" target="_blank" rel="noopener">three keys</a>.
Key 1: Set up the Defender
Miller was an avid participant in basketball grappling &mdash; the practice of using physicality to manipulate and gain separation from your defender.
&ldquo;[Miller] embraced contact and sometimes got the feel of a guy so [he] could push off him and get open,&rdquo; Burke said.
The cunning sharpshooter also deployed harsh cuts and abrupt changes in speed to further decrease the likelihood that his opponent could shadow his movements.
&ldquo;When you watch him, it wasn&rsquo;t always the same speed,&rdquo; Burke continued. &ldquo;He changed speeds. He&rsquo;d stop and go.&rdquo;
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Key 2: Read the Screen
Once he gained a step, Miller could interpret his optimal route-running path based on the direction his defender was chasing him. If his defender trailed outside the screen, Miller would juke inwards. If his defender rushed from the inside, Miller would retreat outside.
Miller's astute ability in this regard was largely based upon the continuity he achieved with his screen-setting bigs &mdash; Antonio Davis, Dale Davis and Rik Smits.
&ldquo;We would run through our sets almost every practice,&rdquo; Smits recalled to Basketball News. &ldquo;[A lot] of dummy offenses. Just run, run, run. We really concentrated on getting good screens set just to take full advantage of everything [Miller brought to the table].&rdquo;
"Reggie would talk to those bigs too," Burke added. "'Just stand there, I&rsquo;ll use you.'&rdquo;
Key 3: Footwork
Miller boasted balletic footwork, akin to that of a peak-<a href="https://youtu.be/Ye7xMqYqAbA">Torture Chamber Kevin McHale</a>, able to stop and pop effortlessly regardless of his travel velocity and angle.
&ldquo;[Typically], if you are right-handed, you want to come off [a pindown screen] going to your left so that your shoulder is closer to the rim,&rdquo; Burke said. &ldquo;It didn&rsquo;t matter with Reggie. He could come with his right hand or with his left hand.&rdquo;
Miller's ambidexterity is a testament to his impeccable footwork. The direction didn't matter because his stride was sound both ways. And his ability to maintain balance during these sequences is even more impressive when you consider the defensive physicality that was accepted during his era.
&ldquo;Every time a guy like Reggie cut through the lane, the goal was to smack him. We used to say, &lsquo;Pinball him,&rsquo;" Burke recalled.&nbsp;
&ldquo;The league allows no &lsquo;impeding&rsquo; cutters now. There was much more holding then. But Reggie would stay locked and still get a rhythm jumper.&rdquo;
Here are all three of those keys in action:
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ON-COURT PRODUCTION
Miller&rsquo;s shooting served as a double-edged sword for his reputation. On one end, he was revered as one of the game&rsquo;s top snipers. On the other, he&rsquo;d been pigeonholed into a singular role on the floor.
However, Miller was more than a marksman. He was a three-level scorer who utilized the <a href="https://streamable.com/ykdkx5" target="_blank" rel="noopener">triple-threat</a> position to score from the mid-range and at the rim.
&ldquo;One thing Reggie worked on, we used to call it &lsquo;Pete Newell,&rsquo;" Burke explained. &ldquo;Pete Newell was an old coach who used to have a big-man camp. His whole thing was: Jab, catch, create space. If the guy doesn&rsquo;t honor your jab, you go by him. If he backs up, you raise up and shoot it.
&ldquo;It was a series. And [Reggie] really worked on it.&rdquo;
This combination of three-level scoring and high conversion rates from the most efficient spots on the floor made Miller arguably the best backcourt scorer of the 1990s not named Michael Jordan.
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To compare the two, from 1989 to 1999, Miller tallied nine seasons where he ranked in the 90th percentile in both scoring volume and efficiency, while Jordan only touted two such seasons.&nbsp;
Additionally, Miller&rsquo;s unpredictable tendencies coming off screens and counter-laden arsenal made him one of the few stars to rarely improve his volume and efficiency during postseason play.
For instance, in 1994-95, Miller averaged 23.9 points per 75 possessions on 62.0% True Shooting. In the playoffs, those averages ballooned to 28.0 points and 63.2% True Shooting, respectively.&nbsp;
To show how rare that is, there was an inverse trend of that with John Stockton and Mitch Richmond &mdash; two guards who were (<a href="https://twitter.com/matissa15/status/1556676428426612738?s=20&amp;t=haKXS_VAVIAeIw7hLdSqkQ" target="_blank" rel="noopener">wrongfully?</a>) regularly awarded All-NBA selections over Miller.&nbsp;
WEAVING THE THREAD
The first guard to function as an off-ball superstar was John Havlicek. When "Hondo" wasn&rsquo;t ripping and running in transition, he was usually <a href="https://streamable.com/uzgwhw" target="_blank" rel="noopener">curling off screens</a> for leaning mid-range jumpers.
A post-three-point line precursor to Miller was Joe Dumars (who coincidentally probably also took some of his All-NBA accolades). Another one of Miller&rsquo;s coaches in Indiana, Dick Versace, spent time as an assistant on the Detroit Pistons before becoming the head coach of the Pacers in 1988.
&ldquo;Joe Dumars had that knack for getting free off screens,&rdquo; said Bob Ociepka, an assistant on Versace's staff in Indiana and a 23-year NBA coach. &ldquo;Coach Versace, coming from [Detroit], ran a lot of the things Chuck Daly did &mdash; [like Dumars] coming off those staggered screens from the baseline.&rdquo;
Miller expressed a great admiration toward Dumars, even going as far as to call him the "unsung MVP of Dream Team II" in his book.
Dale Ellis was another <a href="https://twitter.com/matissa15/status/1555600444763869186?s=20&amp;t=EBeojEhLms-WUc2csgmNdA" target="_blank" rel="noopener">sniper</a> from that generation who cratered defenses using floppy action &mdash; a play in which a player, positioned under the basket, can choose whether to cut off a single screen to one side or a double screen to the other, per Basketball Dictionary.
However, because of the typical constraints placed on 2-guards at the time, neither Dumars nor Ellis could fully leverage their shooting prowess to their advantage.
&ldquo;[In that era], the shooting guard was supposed to be Jordan-esque,&rdquo; said Mike Prada, editor at The Athletic and "Spaced Out" <a href="https://www.amazon.com/Spaced-Out-Three-Point-Revolution-Everything/dp/1629378860/ref=asc_df_1629378860/?tag=hyprod-20&amp;linkCode=df0&amp;hvadid=564700905732&amp;hvpos=&amp;hvnetw=g&amp;hvrand=6603785140486578978&amp;hvpone=&amp;hvptwo=&amp;hvqmt=&amp;hvdev=c&amp;hvdvcmdl=&amp;hvlocint=&amp;hvlocphy=9016969&amp;hvtargid=pla-1645726366795&amp;psc=1" target="_blank" rel="noopener">author</a>. &ldquo;You were an all-around player, you got a lot of rebounds and assists, you went 1-on-1 a lot, you were explosive, you could dunk on people &mdash; sort of that Platonic Ideal.&rdquo;&nbsp;
Miller was different from those guards; he didn&rsquo;t possess the same ball-handling or rebounding acumen. He was an outlier who weaponized his extraordinary gift to buoy an offense almost entirely through his off-ball presence.
Notably, the Pacer legend pioneered a term deeply entrenched in today&rsquo;s basketball jargon: gravity.
Dangerous from deep, Miller made <a href="https://en.mimi.hu/basketball/double_down.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">doubling down</a> on his big-men teammates in the post a conversation killer. Teams would rather face guard him at the three-point line than send reinforcements to the interior, which opened up room for his low-post executioners to make decisions.
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Smits expressed a great deal of gratitude for the space Miller provided him to operate.
&ldquo;I was glad he was on my team. I could tell you that,&rdquo; Smits laughed.&nbsp;
Miller&rsquo;s landscape-altering effect is felt when you look through the lens of historian Ben Taylor&rsquo;s passing and playmaking statistics.
For example, in 1993-94, Gary Payton finished in the 80th percentile in Taylor&rsquo;s Box Creation stat &mdash; a metric that estimates playmaking (per <a href="https://backpicks.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Backpicks.com</a>). Payton did this while simultaneously scoring in the 94th percentile in Passer Rating.
In the same season, despite only scoring in the 37th percentile in passing, Miller finished in the 77th percentile in playmaking.
Miller wasn&rsquo;t the on-ball initiator that Payton was, but this conveys that the former was still able to operate as a high-end creator thanks to the attention he garnered from his opponents.
&ldquo;The thing that Reggie Miller had that we didn&rsquo;t know how to identify back when he played &mdash; but now it&rsquo;s a no-brainer concept &mdash; is this idea of gravity,&rdquo; Prada said.
IMPACT ON TODAY'S GAME
In many circles, Ray Allen is often cited as the disciple who bears the most resemblance to Miller. Along with Allen, Richard Hamilton, JJ Redick and Kyle Korver have all played the part of "<a href="https://grantland.com/features/kyle-korver-nba-atlanta-hawks/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">offense unto themselves</a>" by utilizing their off-ball gravitational pull.
In the current NBA landscape, Miller&rsquo;s most obvious descendants share the same squad.
&ldquo;Two guys on the same team,&rdquo; Burke pointed out. "Stephen Curry and Klay Thompson."
The dynastic Golden State Warriors have become famous for pushing the boundaries of time and space by exploiting the shooting gravity their dynamic duo wields.&nbsp;
And, as fate would have it, Miller also once teamed up with a fellow gravity co-founder, Chris Mullin.&nbsp;
Mullin was arguably the closest comparison to Miller at the time, and together, the tandem caused wide-scale chaos and confusion &mdash; the likes of which the league would not see again until the Splash Brothers coalesced in the Bay Area nearly two decades later.
Tell me if these sequences look familiar:
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In both plays, the two pairs create a defensive breakdown simply by running past each other in the opposite direction.
Even more poetic, take a look at the Pacers&rsquo; opponent in the first clip. Who was a reserve on that team? None other than Warriors head coach Steve Kerr.
&ldquo;All of the stuff that the Warriors did in the early days with the Steph/Klay combo &mdash; the crazy, figure-eight-type stuff &mdash; was very much ripped right from the Pacers,&rdquo; Prada explained.
Golden State expanded on Miller&rsquo;s semi-contained havoc, turning half-court offensive sets into absolute anarchy.
Miller&rsquo;s movement authored a great deal of mayhem, more than anyone of his time, but he was still forced to rein it in a bit to accommodate the structure of his offense. Nowadays, engines like Curry and Thompson have the discretion to graze the terrain as they see fit.
&ldquo;[For Miller], his was set plays, so it was easier for teams to really dial in,&rdquo; Burke explained. &ldquo;Curry is more of a constant, built into a random system.&rdquo;
But it was still the audacious Miller who paved the way. He crawled so that the Golden State empire could walk.
&ldquo;He was this type of player that, in an era that did not have a blueprint for this style of play, he provided it,&rdquo; Prada concluded.&nbsp;
He's the player responsible for the outline that triggered a dynasty.
Are we sure Reggie Miller was overrated?
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Tune in next week for Part V of Blazing the Trail, which focuses on Andrei Kirilenko &mdash; the five-tool defender.
<a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/nba-blazing-the-trail-shane-battier-the-databall-defender-memphis-grizzlies-houston-rockets-miami-heat-daryl-morey-david-fizdale-detroit-pistons-draymond-green" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Click here to read Part III: "Shane Battier, the data-ball defender."</a>
<a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/nba-blazing-the-trail-rashard-lewis-all-star-stretch-four-orlando-magic-stan-van-gundy-dwight-howard-hedo-turkoglu" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Click here to read Part II: "Rashard Lewis, the All-Star stretch 4."</a>
<a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/nba-blazing-the-trail-steve-nash-phoenix-suns-mike-dantoni-raja-bell-steph-curry-all-time-great-point-guard" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Click here to read Part I: "Steve Nash, the magician who danced in the paint."</a>

In his "Blazing the Trail" series, Mat Issa analyzes all-time shooting great Reggie Miller and what separated him from the rest.

Blazing the Trail: Reggie Miller, the moving target

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

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

Brad Stevens deserves massive credit for the Celtics' success

After months of speculation, we are finally (hopefully) approaching the finish line of the Ben Simmons saga.
According to ESPN&rsquo;s <a href="https://twitter.com/wojespn/status/1469418952136835085" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Adrian Wojnarowski and Zach Lowe</a>, the Philadelphia 76ers are garnering much more interest in potential two- or three-team deals involving Simmons as more than 85% of the NBA&rsquo;s players will be eligible to trade next week.
Before the Association&rsquo;s biggest domino falls, which teams make sense as a landing spot for the 25-year-old three-time All-Star? Will Simmons flourish elsewhere in a bigger role?
The Simmons-Sixers situation could truly end up being a win-win scenario for both sides, so let&rsquo;s examine some potential trades that make sense for the disgruntled point-forward.
SACRAMENTO KINGS
The pressure is on for Sacramento to finally field a winning team and snap their 15-year playoff drought. Since the offseason, we've suggested that the Kings finally push their chips into the middle of the table and make an aggressive win-now move.
Simmons would be the perfect piece to fit into their puzzle alongside De&rsquo;Aaron Fox and Tyrese Haliburton. The Kings&rsquo; backcourt duo had a positive net rating last season, and adding Simmons to the mix gives them a very fun playmaking trio that can play off one another.
Playing the four alongside Richaun Holmes provides little spacing, but Simmons could become the de-facto primary ball-handler with Fox and Haliburton providing spacing around the perimeter. A potential starting unit featuring Fox, Haliburton, Harrison Barnes, Simmons and Richaun Holmes could hold up on both ends of the court.
However, Philadelphia continues to hold out hope that they'll get a top-25 player in return for Simmons. Would Sacramento feel comfortable saying goodbye to Fox, who just signed a five-year rookie-scale max extension? Philadelphia has been reluctant to discuss deals with Sacramento unless it includes Fox. With Haliburton and Davion Mitchell as their last two lottery picks, maybe Kings GM Monte McNair will shake things up in a major manner? Let&rsquo;s start our first scenario with a league-altering blockbuster:
Philadelphia receives: De&rsquo;Aaron Fox
Sacramento receives: Ben Simmons
MINNESOTA TIMBERWOLVES
In a similar position as Sacramento, Minnesota could rise in the Western Conference standings if they make the right move. Karl-Anthony Towns is a bonafide superstar, while <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/how-high-can-anthony-edwards-fly-examining-the-20yearolds-ceiling" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Anthony Edwards has great potential</a>. Adding Simmons to the Timberwolves&rsquo; lineup would make them a more well-rounded team.
The question is, would Minnesota pull the trigger on trading Towns&rsquo; good friend D&rsquo;Angelo Russell? If so, Minnesota&rsquo;s new Big 3 would be outstanding.
Imagine the endless possibilities with Simmons flanking Towns and Edwards. The Wolves&rsquo; primary scoring duo could still have their way offensively, but Simmons would be the glue holding everything together from a playmaking and defensive standpoint.
Philadelphia receives: D&rsquo;Angelo Russell, Jaden McDaniels, Leandro Bolmaro, future first-round pick
Minnesota receives: Ben Simmons
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SAN ANTONIO SPURS
San Antonio has been surprisingly competitive this season. Spurs head coach Gregg Popovich really has this intriguing young core humming, and they&rsquo;re one big move away from potentially making some noise in the Western Conference.
An interesting note to report from <a href="https://marcstein.substack.com/p/secrets-out-pop-at-last-is-happy?token=eyJ1c2VyX2lkIjoxNjkxNTY4LCJwb3N0X2lkIjo0NTIzMzI4OSwiXyI6Im1ldEtUIiwiaWF0IjoxNjM5MDc1MzYxLCJleHAiOjE2MzkwNzg5NjEsImlzcyI6InB1Yi0zOTIyMDUiLCJzdWIiOiJwb3N0LXJlYWN0aW9uIn0.5ZGjmeTrbYxMRpsZwDxBziBlrMR23PwdZ73k5hs2118" target="_blank" rel="noopener">longtime NBA insider Marc Stein</a> is that Simmons would welcome a trade to San Antonio. Also, Popovich would love to coach a player like Simmons. This sounds like a perfect marriage on paper, so let&rsquo;s make it happen.
San Antonio can offer Philadelphia a very enticing package of young prospects and picks. It may not fit the &ldquo;top-25 player&rdquo; criteria that Sixers GM Daryl Morey is hoping for, but it could get pretty close. The Spurs have a number of really attractive assets, but it remains to be seen how many they'd be willing to move.
San Antonio has a strong ecosystem in which Simmons could rebuild his value. Surrounded by plus role players who thrive within San Antonio&rsquo;s system, Simmons can reach his ceiling in a role where everything is built around his strengths.
Philadelphia receives: Derrick White, Keldon Johnson, Thaddeus Young, draft compensation
San Antonio receives: Ben Simmons
WASHINGTON WIZARDS
One team that has finally built around their star the right way is Washington, as they've surrounded Bradley Beal with a competent roster. However, Beal is in the final year of his deal.
Would Simmons work well alongside Beal? That&rsquo;s a legitimate concern, but making this deal is a home-run swing that could be necessary for Beal to commit long-term in the nation&rsquo;s capital.
Simmons and Beal flanked by shooters and prospects would give Washington a nice foundation for Wizards GM Tommy Shepard to build around for the next five-plus years.
Philadelphia receives: Davis Bertans, Kyle Kuzma, Deni Avdija, two future first-round picks
Washington receives: Ben Simmons
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TORONTO RAPTORS
Another team that's facing a fork in the road with their current roster, Toronto has to decide what to do with Pascal Siakam. Over the offseason, there were reports that Siakam could be available. Will Toronto keep Siakam around with their young core or flip him for more long-term value?
If the Raptors want to offload Siakam and make an aggressive win-now push, enter Simmons.
A potential lineup of Simmons alongside Fred VanVleet, OG Anunoby, Scottie Barnes and Precious Achiuwa sounds like something Toronto would love to try.
This could be a win-win deal for both sides as they begin new eras for their respective organizations. Siakam and Embiid is a terrifying frontcourt for Philadelphia, and the duo would allow Tobias Harris to slide back to the small forward position. Meanwhile, Toronto brings Simmons aboard as their new face of the franchise with a solid young nucleus surrounding him.
Philadelphia receives: Pascal Siakam
Toronto receives: Ben Simmons
INDIANA PACERS
No surprise, Indiana is another team that could be staring down the barrel of important, franchise-altering decisions within a year. The Pacers have a very good, balanced roster that&rsquo;s been plagued by injuries over the last few seasons. T.J. Warren, who broke out in a huge way during the Orlando Bubble, only played four games during the 2019-20 campaign. Caris LeVert missed time due to a cancerous tumor that was discovered after the James Harden trade. Myles Turner and Malcolm Brogdon continue to miss time here and there due to various injuries as well.
The Pacers are about to blow everything up, though (and <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/pacers-must-accept-new-reality-and-become-sellers-at-trade-deadline" target="_blank" rel="noopener">it's long overdue</a>). Indiana is <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/examining-potential-trade-destinations-for-caris-levert" target="_blank" rel="noopener">likely to move Caris LeVert</a> with Chris Duarte&rsquo;s fast emergence, plus one of their two bigs: <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/exploring-trade-destinations-for-domantas-sabonis" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Domantas Sabonis</a> or <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/examining-potential-trade-destinations-for-myles-turner" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Myles Turner</a>.&nbsp;
Indiana sniffed around Simmons' availability last offseason too. Since it's tough to pitch top free agents on coming to Indianapolis, making an aggressive trade might be the only way to land their star.
Although one of Turner or Sabonis would need to be moved to a third team in this hypothetical scenario, especially to meet Philadelphia's asking price for Simmons, Indiana going star hunting could be the necessary tweak to change their long-term fortunes.
Philadelphia receives: Caris LeVert, Justin Holiday, Jeremy Lamb, two future first-round picks (plus more from a third team)
Indiana receives: Ben Simmons
PORTLAND TRAIL BLAZERS
The Blazers are stuck in the middle, which is the worst place to be. With that being said, it&rsquo;s time to finally break up the Damian Lillard, C.J. McCollum backcourt. Portland needs to finally make an aggressive push in order to put the right pieces around Lillard and turn this team into a contender.
A deal revolving around Simmons and McCollum makes sense for both parties. McCollum can function as a score-first combo guard who can play well off of Embiid, while Simmons provides a beautiful blend of playmaking and defense alongside Lillard.&nbsp;
McCollum recently suffered a collapsed lung, which could complicate things. Prior to the injury, he followed all of the Sixers on social media and <a href="https://theathletic.com/3002581/2021/12/07/inside-the-mind-of-cj-mccollum-a-conversation-and-a-text-message-show-the-blazers-guards-current-struggle/?source=emp_shared_article" target="_blank" rel="noopener">all but said goodbye</a> to Portland and the fan base, so it remains to be seen what the future holds for McCollum.
Philadelphia receives: C.J. McCollum, Nassir Little, two future first-round picks
Portland receives: Ben Simmons
Simmons' future is the biggest storyline around the NBA. Odds are, he'll be moved to the highest bidder before February&rsquo;s trade deadline. Perhaps it'll end up being one of the aforementioned teams.

The Ben Simmons saga could soon be coming to an end. Which teams around the NBA would make sense for a Simmons trade?

Examining 7 potential trade destinations for Ben Simmons

Several marquee players who were expected to hit the open market in 2022 have signed extensions, so next summer's free-agent crop isn't nearly as star-studded as other classes.
However, there are still plenty of quality players who may be up for grabs. In this three-part series, we&rsquo;ll examine the best players who will potentially enter free agency next July.&nbsp;
After previously <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/2022-nba-freeagent-rankings-harden-beal-among-top10-guards" target="_blank" rel="noopener">ranking the best guards set to hit free agency next summer</a>, let's examine the top free-agent forwards ready to enter the open market in 2021.&nbsp;
1. Michael Porter Jr. - Denver Nuggets - Restricted
Due to a back injury sustained in college, Porter Jr. was considered a boom-or-bust prospect when the <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/how-michael-porter-jr-became-a-star-after-career-ending-diagnosis" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Nuggets selected him with the 14th overall pick</a> in the 2018 draft. Well, three years later, MPJ has boomed. After Jamal Murray tore his ACL last season, Porter emerged as Denver's second option alongside Nikola Jokic and exceeded even lofty expectations. Over a 25-game stretch from late March through mid-May, MPJ averaged a whopping 24.0 points, 7.4 rebounds and 3.4 made three-pointers, while shooting a scorching 56.9% from the floor, 47.2% from downtown and 82.5% at the free-throw line. After the season, Denver's president of basketball operations <a href="https://www.denverpost.com/2021/06/18/nuggets-tim-connelly-michael-porter-jr-s-extension-jamal-murrays-return/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Tim Connelly said</a>: "Our M.O. is when we can, we try to lock guys up and reward them for what they've done." According to a <a href="https://www.denverpost.com/2021/06/18/nuggets-tim-connelly-michael-porter-jr-s-extension-jamal-murrays-return" target="_blank" rel="noopener">report by the Denver Post</a>, Connelly and his staff want to reach a contract extension with MPJ rather than have him hit the market as a restricted free agent next summer. However, per the report, "given Porter's history of back injuries, it's likely the Nuggets add some type of provision to help protect them." Porter is eligible for a five-year, $168 million extension.&nbsp;
2. Mikal Bridges - Phoenix Suns - Restricted
Another member of the 2018 draft class, Bridges isn't as offensively gifted as Porter Jr., but he has established himself as a <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/nba-mikal-bridges-phoenix-suns-breakout-season-three-point-shooting-pick-and-roll-defense-deandre-ayton-turnover-percentage-monty-williams-chris-paul-villanova-jay-wright-ashley-howard" target="_blank" rel="noopener">phenomenally well-rounded player and integral part of a Suns team</a> that advanced all the way to the NBA Finals last season. In the process, Bridges averaged a career-high 13.5 points, 4.3 rebounds and 1.9 threes while posting a True Shooting percentage of 66.7%. <a href="https://www.espn.com/nba/insider/story/_/id/31361074/lowe-ten-nba-things-like-including-limitless-flair-nikola-jokic-beef-stew-bully-ball" target="_blank" rel="noopener">According to ESPN's Zach Lowe</a>, rival executives expect Bridges to secure a deal in the neighborhood of $20 million per season on his next contract.
3. Joe Ingles - Utah Jazz - Unrestricted 
Ingles matched a career-high last season by averaging 12.1 points per game to go along with 4.7 assists, 3.6 rebounds, 0.7 steals and a career-best 2.7 made three-pointers per game. He finished the year ranked fifth among qualified players in three-point percentage (45.1%) and posted a phenomenal True Shooting percentage of 67.2% (with a 48.9/51.3/84.4 slash line), which was the third-best mark in the NBA and best among non-centers. In a league that places a high value on efficient scoring, Ingles' skill set is a highly sought-after commodity.&nbsp;
4. T.J. Warren - Indiana Pacers - Unrestricted 
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At the end of the 2019-20 season, Warren was playing the best basketball of his career. Over the six games the Pacers played in the Orlando bubble, Warren averaged 31.0 points, 6.3 boards and 3.7 made treys, while shooting over 57% from the floor and 52% from downtown. Unfortunately, that's the <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/a-100-million-payday-awaits-tj-warren-if-he-continues-to-silence-the-critics" target="_blank" rel="noopener">last time we've seen him healthy</a>. He appeared in just four games last season before undergoing surgery for a stress fracture in his foot in January. Worse yet, the Pacers announced earlier this month that Warren's recovery from the surgery has been slower than anticipated, and he will remain sidelined indefinitely. Warren will have to prove he is healthy over the second half of the 2021-22 season to boost his stock before hitting the open market.&nbsp;
5. Miles Bridges - Charlotte Hornets - Restricted 
After a relatively slow start to the 2020-21 campaign, Bridges exploded over the season's final six weeks. With LaMelo Ball, Gordon Hayward and Malik Monk all sidelined by injuries late in the year, Bridges was a focal point of the Hornets' offense. Over his final 15 games, Bridges averaged 21.0 points, 6.9 rebounds, 3.1 assists, 1.1 blocks and 3.1 made three-pointers while shooting over 50% from the floor, 42% from downtown and 84% from the charity stripe. If the Hornets don't sign Bridges to an extension, he'll be a restricted free agent next summer.&nbsp;
6. Kevin Huerter - Atlanta Hawks - Restricted
This offseason, the Hawks locked up both Trae Young (five-year, $207 million extension) and John Collins (five-year $125 million contract). Will they be able to come to an extension agreement with Huerter as well? In early August, Atlanta general manager Travis Schlenk told reporters the team would speak with Huerter's representatives: "His agent wanted to wait a little bit and get all his free agents signed before he went into extensions &mdash; less time-sensitive matters like the extension &mdash; but certainly his agent and Kevin are hoping to have that dialogue, and certainly we are as well. Our intention is to try and get something done with Kevin, for sure." <a href="https://www.si.com/nba/hawks/news/what-to-expect-from-kevin-huerters-ongoing-contract-negotiations" target="_blank" rel="noopener">According to Sports Illustrated</a>, "there is speculation that Huerter could garner between $15-$20 million a season."
7. Thaddeus Young - San Antonio Spurs - Unrestricted 
Young proved last season in Chicago that he is still capable of playing at a high level. In his age-32 season last year, Young averaged 12.1 points (on 55.9% shooting), 6.2 rebounds, 1.1 steals and 0.6 blocks in just 24.3 minutes a night off the bench. Most notably, he dished out a career-high 4.3 assists per game. Young had the highest plus/minus (+4.1) of any rotational regular on the Bulls roster, and Chicago was outscored by 5.9 points per 100 possessions with Young on the bench. Expect plenty of contenders to try and pry Young loose from San Antonio at the trade deadline next winter.&nbsp;
8. Blake Griffin - Brooklyn Nets - Unrestricted 
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After a disappointing two years in Detroit, Griffin reached a buyout agreement with the Pistons last March, enabling him to join the Nets. He signed with Brooklyn on March 8 and <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/blake-griffin-on-exit-from-pistons-nodunksin464days-narrative" target="_blank" rel="noopener">looked like a new player</a>, as Griffin averaged 10.0 points, 4.7 rebounds and 2.4 assists in 26 appearances. Over the final three games of Brooklyn's playoff series vs. the Bucks, Griffin averaged 15.3 points (on 58% shooting), 6.7 rebounds and 2.3 made treys. He signed a one-year deal with the Nets for the 2021-22 campaign and will hit the free-agent market again next offseason.&nbsp;
9. Marvin Bagley III - Sacramento Kings - Restricted
Unfortunately for Kings fans, after three years in the league, Bagley is probably best known as being the player selected ahead of Luka Doncic and Trae Young. While both Doncic and Young have led their teams to the postseason and secured $200+ million max extensions, Bagley has been unable to stay healthy (appearing in just 118 out of a possible 230 games since being drafted), and has seen his scoring average decrease in each of the past three seasons. However, Bagley won't turn 23 until March of next year and is blessed with the rare combination of size and athleticism that led to him being selected second overall in the 2018 draft. Assuming he doesn't ink an extension, Bagley will look to boost his stock by staying on the floor long enough to showcase his skill set in 2021-22.
10. Kyle Anderson - Memphis Grizzlies - Unrestricted 
It seems as though he's been around forever, but Anderson is just 27 years old and is coming off the best all-around campaign of his career. The man affectionately nicknamed "Slow-Mo" averaged a career-high 12.4 points last season to go along with 5.7 rebounds, 3.6 assists, 1.2 steals and 1.4 made three-pointers in 27.3 minutes per contest. Only three other players in the league matched or exceeded those per-game averages in each of those statistical categories: Kawhi Leonard, LaMelo Ball and James Harden.&nbsp;
Best of the Rest 
Robert Covington, Otto Porter Jr., P.J. Tucker, Jeremy Lamb, Derrick Jones Jr., Carmelo Anthony, Nicolas Batum (player option), Bobby Portis (player option), Al-Farouq Aminu, Andre Iguodala, Taurean Prince

Tommy Beer ranks the top players who could be available as part of the 2022 free-agent class. Today, he examines the top-10 forwards.

2022 NBA Free-Agent Rankings: Bridges, Bagley among top-10 forwards

Chris Duarte's path to the NBA is one that's rarely traveled. Entering the league at age 24 &mdash; only seven months younger than Phoenix Suns star Devin Booker &mdash; Duarte had to work pretty hard to even get noticed on a national stage. Beginning his collegiate basketball career at Northwest Florida State, a junior college, Duarte was able to catch the attention of D1 programs and eventually landed at the University of Oregon, a long way away from his native Dominican Republic.
The Indiana Pacers fell in love with Duarte as both a prospect and a person and selected him with the 13th overall pick in this year's draft. On draft night, the 24-year-old Dominican wing accomplished one of his major goals. There were trials and tribulations along the way, though. Nowadays, it&rsquo;s rare to ever see a draft prospect like Duarte go from unnoticed in junior college to being a lottery pick.
Duarte&rsquo;s new journey is just now beginning, and the realization started to kick in of how far he&rsquo;s come during the MGM Grand NBA Las Vegas Summer League.
"It's amazing, man. It's amazing,&rdquo; Duarte said of reaching the NBA. &ldquo;I was just excited about coming to Indy. Just excited about getting drafted. So whatever happened, it happens, so that's the way I was thinking. I was just really excited about seeing my dream come true.&rdquo;
Before becoming one of the hottest names in the pre-draft process &mdash; rising from a late first-round pick to someone who garnered significant buzz from multiple teams in the lottery &mdash; Duarte shined in his final season at Oregon. He averaged 17.1 points, 2.7 assists, 1.9 steals and 0.8 blocks per game while shooting a blistering 42.4% from three-point territory. The 24-year-old do-it-all wing also became one of the NCAA&rsquo;s most efficient scorers, turning in a true shooting percentage of 65.7.
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For a team like Indiana &mdash; one that feels it's ready to win right now with a strong, well-rounded roster &mdash; Duarte fits into their culture seamlessly. New head coach Rick Carlisle, who returns to Indiana after over a decade with the Dallas Mavericks, feels Duarte has a role within their already deep rotation. After sharpshooter Doug McDermott&rsquo;s departure to the San Antonio Spurs in free-agency, Duarte figures to fill that role while also providing even more two-way versatility.
"He's a guy that we feel can play three positions &mdash; two, three and play some one,&rdquo; Carlisle said after the draft about Duarte. &ldquo;He&rsquo;s a terrific offensive player. He's a terrific defender. And a guy that's very mature we feel like can help us now.&rdquo;
Duarte became regarded as one of the most NBA-ready prospects in the 2021 draft class. Now with the Pacers in Las Vegas, Duarte is proving those thoughts to be right on the money. Already, he looks the part of an instant-impact rotation player who is reaching the &ldquo;too good for summer league&rdquo; threshold. In Las Vegas, Duarte is averaging 17.5 points, 2.5 assists, two steals and one block while shooting an eye-opening 47.1% from three-point range.
Duarte&rsquo;s confidence is at an all-time high in Las Vegas, allowing the Pacers to experiment with other elements of his game. Although he figures to jump between shooting guard and small forward, there&rsquo;s untapped playmaking potential due to his extremely high basketball IQ. Based off Carlisle&rsquo;s post-draft comments, Duarte could see time as a tertiary playmaker who can create easy looks for others in certain situations.&nbsp;
"Coach Carlisle likes to have multiple ball-handlers,&rdquo; Pacers summer league head coach Mike Weiner said after Indiana's second game on Tuesday. "The league is going more skill-oriented and the more attackers and ball-handlers we have, the better. We feel Chris is going to fit in with that. We&rsquo;re putting him in different situations, wanting him to read the game, feel the game. A lot of the NBA game right now is feel.&rdquo;
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Duarte&rsquo;s feel for the game is already outstanding. Couple that with his pro-ready shooting and defensive versatility, and Indiana has a player poised to take on an important role in his rookie campaign. So far, the returns in summer league on the Duarte pick have been outstanding for Indiana &mdash; and there&rsquo;s no wonder why multiple teams tried to trade up on draft night for him.
"Well, that's me. I let the game come to me,&rdquo; Duarte said after his summer league debut. &ldquo;I don't force a lot of shots. And when I do, I just feel bad about myself, because that's not the right way to play basketball. I'm a team player. I try to make the simple play, so that's me."
Currently, outside of Duarte, one Dominican-born player is on an NBA roster: Al Horford of the Boston Celtics. Duarte is putting a whole country on his back with his strong professional debut in Las Vegas.
Moving forward, keep your eye on Duarte. He&rsquo;s already proving worthy of his lottery status with a well-rounded game that surprisingly has plenty of untapped potential.
Duarte has cleared a major hurdle in getting drafted by the Pacers, but he&rsquo;s not satisfied yet.

Chris Duarte was the oldest prospect in the draft. However, thus far, the Indiana Pacers look like they made a wise decision with their 13th pick.

Chris Duarte showcasing NBA readiness with strong summer league debut

USA Basketball <a href="https://www.usab.com/news-events/news/2021/07/m-select-team.aspx" target="_blank" rel="noopener">announced the roster</a> for its Select Team today in a statement:
Featuring 14 players owning USA Basketball experience, 17 athletes have been selected to the 2021 USA Basketball Select Team that will train with the USA Basketball Men&rsquo;s National Team during its Las Vegas training camp.
The Select Team features a roster of 13 young standout NBA players and four veteran players with international and USA Basketball experience.Members of the USA Select Team will train daily with the USA National Team from July 6-9 at UNLV&rsquo;s Mendenhall Center.
Named to the 2021 USA Basketball Select Team were: Saddiq Bey (Detroit Pistons/Villanova); Miles Bridges (Charlotte Hornets/Michigan State); Anthony Edwards (Minnesota Timberwolves/Georgia); Darius Garland (Cleveland Cavaliers/Vanderbilt); Tyrese Haliburton (Sacramento Kings/Iowa State); Tyler Herro (Miami Heat/Kentucky); John Jenkins (Bilbao Basket, Italy/Vanderbilt); Keldon Johnson (San Antonio Spurs/Kentucky); Josh Magette (Dar&uuml;şşafaka Tekfen, Turkey/Alabama-Huntsville); Dakota Mathias (Philadelphia 76ers/Purdue); Immanuel Quickly (New York Knicks/Kentucky); Naz Reid (Minnesota Timberwolves/LSU); Cam Reynolds (Houston Rockets/Tulane); Isaiah Stewart (Detroit Pistons/Washington); Obi Toppin (New York Knicks/Dayton); P.J. Washington (Charlotte Hornets/Kentucky); and Patrick Williams (Chicago Bulls/Florida State).
Miami Heat head coach Erik Spoelstra will serve as head coach of the 2021 USA Select Team, and serving as assistant coaches will be Gonzaga University head coach Mark Few, who served as an assistant coach with the 2019&nbsp;USA&nbsp;Select Team and head coach of the 2015 U.S. Pan American Games Team, as well as Dallas Mavericks assistant coachJamahl Mosley, who served as an assistant coach at the 2018 USA National Team minicamp.
&ldquo;This USA Select Team continues the legacy established by previous Select teams of helping prepare our&nbsp;USA&nbsp;National Team for the Tokyo Olympic Games," said Jerry Colangelo, USA Basketball Men&rsquo;s National Team managing director. &ldquo;With all the uncertainty of how many of our Olympic Team members will be available for the USA training camp because of the overlap with the NBA Finals, we chose a USA Select Team consisting of many of the top young NBA players and four players who not only owninternational experience, but who played recently for USA Basketball in important national team qualifying competitions.If we need to add players to fill out our roster for any of our exhibition games, we feel this USA Select Team has an excellent variety of skilled players to choose from.&rdquo;
The roster, which features 12 players who just completed either their first or second NBA season, includes six members of the 2021 NBA All-Rookie first and second teams. Bey, Edwards and Haliburton were 2021 All-NBA Rookie first team selections,&nbsp;while&nbsp;Quickley, Stewart and Williams garnered All-Rookie second team honors. Additionally, Herro and Washington were second team All-Rookie selections in 2020.
Jenkins, Magette, Mathias and Reynolds, the four oldest members of the team, all bring recent USA Basketball playing experience as members of either the USA World Cup Qualifying or USA AmeriCup Qualifying teams. Jenkins played during the November 2019 World Cup Qualifying window and the November 2020 AmeriCup Qualifying window and helped the USA to a combined 4-0 record. Reynolds was a member of the USA World Cup Qualifying team for the November 2018 and February 2019 teams and helped the Americas to a 4-0 record. Magette played for the USA in the AmeriCup Qualifying in the February 2020 and November 2020 windows, while Mathias was a member of the February 2021 USA AmeriCup Qualifying Team that finished 2-0 in San Juan, Puerto Rico.
Garland (2018), Herro (2018), Johnson (2018) and Stewart (2019) were all selected for USA Junior National Select Teams that participated in the Nike Hoop Summit.
Haliburton was a member of the 2019 USA U19 World Cup team that captured the gold medal; Jenkins was part of the 2011 USA World University Games Team; Quickley was part of bronze medalist 2017 USA U19 World Cup and the gold medalist 2016 U17 World Cup teams; Stewart played on the gold medalist 2018 U17 World Cup Team; Washington was a member of the bronze medalist 2017 U19 World Cup Team, the gold medalist 2016 USA U18 Championship Team and was on the 2015 USA 3x3 U18 World Cup Team. Additionally, Edwards, Garland, Herro, Johnson, Quickley, Reid, Stewart and Washington were all part of&nbsp; USA Basketball&rsquo;s Junior National Team program, and Bridges was part of the 2016 U18 Championship Team trials.

Anthony Edwards and Tyrese Haliburton are among the members of the roster.