Bruins

With just days left until the 2024-25 NBA season tips off, the Eastern Conference teams are settled, prepped, and ready for action. The offseason moves are done, rosters are set, and almost everyone&rsquo;s locked in for what&rsquo;s shaping up to be an intense race. From title contenders to dark horses, the East is packed with teams ready to make noise. So, let&rsquo;s dive into the top 15 teams in the East as we gear up for this brand-new season&mdash;no fluff, just what you need to know.
<ol>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">New York Knicks The Knicks made significant moves this offseason, adding Karl-Anthony Towns and Mikal Bridges while retaining key pieces like Jalen Brunson and OG Anunoby. With depth, defense, and firepower, they look primed for a deep playoff run. After a 50-win season in 2023-24, they now have realistic championship aspirations and could be the biggest threat to the Celtics in the East.</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">Boston Celtics The defending champions kept their core intact, extending Jayson Tatum and Derrick White. With Tatum, Jaylen Brown, and Jrue Holiday leading a formidable lineup, the Celtics are aiming to repeat as NBA champions. Despite concerns about Al Horford&rsquo;s age and frontcourt health, Boston remains the favorite heading into the 2024-25 season.</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">Milwaukee Bucks The Bucks didn&rsquo;t make major changes but added depth with Gary Trent Jr., Taurean Prince, and Delon Wright. After an injury-plagued season from Giannis Antetokounmpo and Damian Lillard, Milwaukee looks to bounce back under returning head coach Doc Rivers. With questions surrounding Lillard&rsquo;s form and Middleton&rsquo;s durability, the Bucks remain playoff contenders, but how far they go will depend on health and chemistry.</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">Philadelphia 76ers The 76ers had a big offseason, adding Paul George, Andre Drummond, and Caleb Martin to support Joel Embiid and Tyrese Maxey. Maxey&rsquo;s rise as a star solidifies Philly&rsquo;s title hopes, and Embiid&rsquo;s MVP-level play is crucial for their success. With an improved supporting cast, the Sixers could be serious challengers in the East, but Embiid&rsquo;s health remains the key.</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">Cleveland Cavaliers After a solid 48-win season, the Cavs focused on continuity by keeping their core of Donovan Mitchell, Evan Mobley, and Jarrett Allen. New coach Kenny Atkinson brings fresh leadership, and Cleveland hopes to build on last season&rsquo;s playoff run. With a healthier roster and improved coaching, the Cavs could reach 50 wins and challenge the top teams in the East.</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">Indiana Pacers The Pacers had a quiet offseason but retained Pascal Siakam and made a key addition in James Wiseman. Tyrese Haliburton&rsquo;s breakout season makes Indiana a team to watch, and they&rsquo;re looking to build on their deep playoff run. With improved chemistry and young talent, Indiana could surprise as a top-five team in the East.</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">Orlando Magic The Magic are banking on internal growth, led by Paolo Banchero and Franz Wagner. After winning 47 games and making the playoffs last season, they added veteran Kentavious Caldwell-Pope for shooting and leadership. With a young core developing, Orlando could win 50 games if they continue their upward trend and improve their perimeter shooting.</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">Miami Heat The Heat had a quiet offseason, adding Alec Burks while re-signing key players like Bam Adebayo. With Jimmy Butler&rsquo;s future uncertain and health concerns for both Butler and Tyler Herro, Miami could face challenges in a competitive Eastern Conference. However, Adebayo&rsquo;s All-NBA-level play will keep them in the playoff hunt.</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">Atlanta Hawks The Hawks overhauled their roster after a disappointing 36-46 season, headlined by trading Dejounte Murray and acquiring the No. 1 pick, Zaccharie Risacher. With Trae Young remaining the focal point, the Hawks are banking on Risacher&rsquo;s development and contributions from new additions like Larry Nance Jr. and Dyson Daniels. This team looks poised to contend for a Play-In spot but lacks the co-star power needed for a deep playoff run.</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">Charlotte Hornets The Hornets enter the season with fresh energy, thanks to the hiring of new coach Charles Lee and the re-signing of Miles Bridges. With LaMelo Ball back healthy and Brandon Miller continuing to impress after an All-Rookie season, Charlotte&rsquo;s young core could surprise many. If Ball stays on the floor and their youth develops quickly, the Hornets might find themselves contending for a Play-In spot and shaking off years of underachievement.</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">Detroit Pistons The Pistons are looking to turn the page on a tough 2023-24 season and have made moves to fast-track their rebuild. With Cade Cunningham healthy, new leadership under J.B. Bickerstaff, and rookie Ron Holland adding spark, Detroit could outperform expectations. If Cunningham returns to form and the team gels quickly, don&rsquo;t be surprised if the Pistons emerge as a dark horse in the East.</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">Toronto Raptors The Raptors are in transition, keeping their young core of Scottie Barnes, RJ Barrett, and Immanuel Quickley intact. After a poor finish to last season, Toronto is betting on Barnes&rsquo; continued growth and the addition of Davion Mitchell to improve their fortunes. While their ceiling might be a Play-In appearance, the Raptors are hoping their trio can take a big step forward.</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">Chicago Bulls The Bulls traded DeMar DeRozan and Alex Caruso, adding Josh Giddey and Jalen Smith to the mix. Zach LaVine&rsquo;s injury history remains a concern, but the Bulls are counting on Coby White&rsquo;s emergence and the potential of lottery pick Matas Buzelis. Chicago is likely to be a competitive team some nights, but they may struggle to rise above the Play-In threshold.</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">Brooklyn Nets The Nets are entering a rebuild after trading Mikal Bridges and Lonnie Walker. With a young roster led by Nic Claxton and Cam Thomas, Brooklyn&rsquo;s focus is on player development. Ben Simmons remains a question mark, but the team&rsquo;s recent moves set them up for future success with significant draft assets. A playoff berth seems unlikely as they look to position themselves for a high draft pick.</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">Washington Wizards The Wizards continue their rebuild with the addition of Alex Sarr, the No. 2 overall pick. With Malcolm Brogdon and Saddiq Bey joining the squad, Washington hopes to see growth from young talents like Bilal Coulibaly. However, they&rsquo;re still far from playoff contention and will likely be looking at another lottery-bound season.</li>
</ol>

Let's dive into the top 15 teams in the East as we gear up for this brand-new season.

2024-2025 NBA Eastern Conference Power Rankings: A new number one arises at the top

The Paris 2024 Olympics Basketball Tournament is now underway and each of these teams has registered opening day victories after taking care of their scheduled matches. Here are the results thus far:
Australia 92, Spain 80
Australia beat Spain after a close game in the third quarter after Patty Mills made a clutch bucket in the 4th quarter to keep them at bay. NBA guards Josh Giddey and Dyson Daniels were splendid for the Boomers to get their first win in the &lsquo;Group of Death&rsquo;.
Germany 97, Japan 77
The Germans showed once again why they are the World Champions of Basketball as they displayed stellar continuity to take care of business against Japan. Dennis Schroder with the Wagner brothers led the way for Germany in their first win of the Olympics.
France 78, Brazil 66
France survived a challenge from Brazil early on with phenom Victor Wembanyama leading the way to claim the hosts&rsquo; first win.
Canada 86, Greece 79
All-NBAers Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Giannis Antetokounmpo went on an insane duel in their Olympic debuts with SGA and Canada coming out on top over Greece in a hard-fought game.
South Sudan 90, Puerto Rico 79
Youngest country in the world South Sudan made history as they tallied their first-ever Olympic win in their first-ever Olympics, beating Puerto Rico which also happens to be searching for their first-ever Olympic win.

The Paris 2024 Olympics is now underway and each team of these teams has registered opening day victories.

Australia, Germany, France, Canada, South Sudan register opening day Olympic wins

The first round of the 2024 NBA Draft is done and dusted, and the second round will start today at 4 PM Eastern at ESPN&rsquo;s Seaport District Studios in New York. This will be the first time in NBA history that the draft will be separated into two days, with the first round being at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn.&nbsp;
Here are all the first-round selections courtesy of the NBA: (article to be updated with the second-round picks)
<ol>
<li> <a href="https://www.nba.com/draft/2024/prospects/zaccharie-risacher">Zaccharie Risacher</a> (JL Bourg-en-Bresse) to the Atlanta Hawks</li>
<li> <a href="https://www.nba.com/draft/2024/prospects/alexandre-sarr">Alex Sarr</a> (Perth) to the Washington Wizards</li>
<li> <a href="https://www.nba.com/draft/2024/prospects/reed-sheppard">Reed Sheppard</a> (Kentucky) to the Houston Rockets</li>
<li> <a href="https://www.nba.com/draft/2024/prospects/stephon-castle">Stephon Castle</a> (Connecticut) to the San Antonio Spurs</li>
<li> <a href="https://www.nba.com/draft/2024/prospects/ron-holland">Ron Holland II</a> (G League Ignite) to the Detroit Pistons</li>
<li> <a href="https://www.nba.com/draft/2024/prospects/tidjane-salaun">Tidjane Salaun</a> (Cholet Basket) to the Charlotte Hornets</li>
<li> <a href="https://www.nba.com/draft/2024/prospects/donovan-clingan">Donovan Clingan</a> (Connecticut) to the Portland Trail Blazers</li>
<li> <a href="https://www.nba.com/draft/2024/prospects/rob-dillingham">Rob Dillingham</a> (Kentucky) to the San Antonio Spurs &mdash; traded to the Minnesota Timberwolves</li>
<li> <a href="https://www.nba.com/draft/2024/prospects/zach-edey">Zach Edey</a> (Purdue) to the Memphis Grizzlies</li>
<li> <a href="https://www.nba.com/draft/2024/prospects/cody-williams">Cody Williams</a> (Colorado) to the Utah Jazz</li>
<li> <a href="https://www.nba.com/draft/2024/prospects/matas-buzelis">Matas Buzelis</a> (G League Ignite) to the Chicago Bulls</li>
<li> <a href="https://www.nba.com/draft/2024/prospects/nikola-topic">Nikola Topic</a> (KK Crvena Zvezda) to the Oklahoma City Thunder</li>
<li> <a href="https://www.nba.com/draft/2024/prospects/devin-carter">Devin Carter</a> (Providence) to the Sacramento Kings</li>
<li> <a href="https://www.nba.com/draft/2024/prospects/carlton-carrington">Bub Carrington</a> (Pittsburgh) to the Portland Trail Blazers &mdash; traded to Washington Wizards</li>
<li> <a href="https://www.nba.com/draft/2024/prospects/kelel-ware">Kel&rsquo;el Ware</a> (Indiana) to the Miami Heat</li>
<li> <a href="https://www.nba.com/draft/2024/prospects/jared-mccain">Jared McCain</a> (Duke) to the Philadelphia 76ers</li>
<li> <a href="https://www.nba.com/draft/2024/prospects/dalton-knecht">Dalton Knecht</a> (Tennessee) to the Los Angeles Lakers</li>
<li> <a href="https://www.nba.com/draft/2024/prospects/tristan-da-silva">Tristan da Silva</a> (Colorado) to the Orlando Magic</li>
<li> <a href="https://www.nba.com/draft/2024/prospects/jakobe-walter">Ja&rsquo;Kobe Walter</a> (Baylor) to the Toronto Raptors&nbsp;</li>
<li> <a href="https://www.nba.com/draft/2024/prospects/jaylon-tyson">Jaylon Tyson</a> (Cal) to the Cleveland Cavaliers</li>
<li> <a href="https://www.nba.com/draft/2024/prospects/yves-missi">Yves Missi</a> (Baylor) to the New Orleans Pelicans</li>
<li> <a href="https://www.nba.com/draft/2024/prospects/daron-holmes-ii">DaRon Holmes II</a> (Dayton) to the Phoenix Suns &mdash; traded to the Denver Nuggets</li>
<li> <a href="https://www.nba.com/draft/2024/prospects/aj-johnson">AJ Johnson</a> (Illawarra) to the Milwaukee Bucks</li>
<li> <a href="https://www.nba.com/draft/2024/prospects/kyshawn-george">Kyshawn George</a> (Miami) to the New York Knicks &mdash; traded to Washington Wizards</li>
<li> <a href="https://www.nba.com/draft/2024/prospects/pacome-dadiet">Pacome Dadiet</a> (Ratiopharm Ulm) to the New York Knicks</li>
<li> <a href="https://www.nba.com/draft/2024/prospects/dillon-jones">Dillon Jones</a> (Weber State) to the Washington Wizards &mdash; traded to Oklahoma City Thunder (via Knicks)</li>
<li> <a href="https://www.nba.com/draft/2024/prospects/terrence-shannon-jr">Terrence Shannon Jr.</a> (Illinois) to the Minnesota Timberwolves</li>
<li> <a href="https://www.nba.com/draft/2024/prospects/ryan-dunn">Ryan Dunn</a> (Virginia) to the Denver Nuggets &mdash; traded to the Phoenix Suns</li>
<li> <a href="https://www.nba.com/draft/2024/prospects/isaiah-collier">Isaiah Collier</a> (USC) to the Utah Jazz</li>
<li> <a href="https://www.nba.com/draft/2024/prospects/baylor-scheierman-2">Baylor Scheierman</a> (Creighton) to the Boston Celtics</li>
</ol>
&nbsp;
<ol start="31">
<li> <a href="https://www.nba.com/draft/2024/prospects/jonathan-mogbo">Jonathan Mogbo</a> (San Francisco) to the Toronto Raptors</li>
<li> <a href="https://www.nba.com/draft/2024/prospects/kyle-filipowski">Kyle Filipowski</a> (Duke) to the Utah Jazz</li>
<li> <a href="https://www.nba.com/draft/2024/prospects/tyler-smith">Tyler Smith</a> (G League Ignite) to the Milwaukee Bucks</li>
<li> <a href="https://www.nba.com/draft/2024/prospects/tyler-kolek">Tyler Kolek</a> (Marquette) to the Portland Trail Blazers &mdash; traded to the New York Knicks</li>
<li> <a href="https://www.nba.com/draft/2024/prospects/johnny-furphy">Johnny Furphy</a> (Kansas) to the San Antonio Spurs &mdash; traded to the Indiana Pacers</li>
<li> <a href="https://www.nba.com/draft/2024/prospects/juan-nunez">Juan Nunez</a> (Ratiopharm Ulm) to the Indiana Pacers &mdash; traded to San Antonio Spurs</li>
<li> <a href="https://www.nba.com/draft/2024/prospects/bobi-klintman">Bobi Klintman</a> (Cairns) to the Minnesota Timberwolves &mdash; traded to the Detroit Pistons</li>
<li> <a href="https://www.nba.com/draft/2024/prospects/ajay-mitchell">Ajay Mitchell</a> (UC Santa Barbara) to the New York Knicks &mdash; traded to Oklahoma City Thunder</li>
<li> <a href="https://www.nba.com/draft/2024/prospects/jaylen-wells">Jaylen Wells</a> (Washington State) to the Memphis Grizzlies</li>
<li> <a href="https://www.nba.com/draft/2024/prospects/oso-ighodaro">Oso Ighodaro</a> (Marquette) to the Portland Trail Blazers &mdash; traded to the Phoenix Suns (via Knicks)</li>
<li> <a href="https://www.nba.com/draft/2024/prospects/adem-bona">Adem Bona</a> (UCLA) to the Philadelphia 76ers</li>
<li> <a href="https://www.nba.com/draft/2024/prospects/kj-simpson">KJ Simpson</a> (Colorado) to the Charlotte Hornets</li>
<li> <a href="https://www.nba.com/draft/2024/prospects/nikola-djurisic">Nikola Djurisic</a> (KK Mega Basket) to the Miami Heat &mdash; traded to the Atlanta Hawks (via Heat)</li>
<li> <a href="https://www.nba.com/draft/2024/prospects/pelle-larsson">Pelle Larsson</a> (Arizona) to the Houston Rockets &mdash; traded to the Miami Heat (via Rockets)</li>
<li> <a href="https://www.nba.com/draft/2024/prospects/jamal-shead">Jamal Shead</a> (Houston) to the Sacramento Kings &mdash; traded to the Toronto Raptors</li>
<li> <a href="https://www.nba.com/draft/2024/prospects/cam-christie">Cam Christie</a> (Minnesota) to the Los Angeles Clippers</li>
<li> <a href="https://www.nba.com/draft/2024/prospects/antonio-reeves">Antonio Reeves</a> (Kentucky) to the Orlando Magic &mdash; traded to the New Orleans Pelicans</li>
<li> <a href="https://www.nba.com/draft/2024/prospects/harrison-ingram">Harrison Ingram</a> (North Carolina) to the San Antonio Spurs</li>
<li> <a href="https://www.nba.com/draft/2024/prospects/tristen-newton">Tristen Newton</a> (Connecticut) to the Indiana Pacers</li>
<li> <a href="https://www.nba.com/draft/2024/prospects/enrique-freeman">Enrique Freeman</a> (Akron) to the Indiana Pacers</li>
<li> <a href="https://www.nba.com/draft/2024/prospects/melvin-ajinca">Melvin Ajinca</a> (Saint-Quentin Basketball) to the New York Knicks &mdash; traded to the Dallas Mavericks</li>
<li> <a href="https://www.nba.com/draft/2024/prospects/quinten-post">Quinten Post</a> (Boston College) to the Golden State Warriors &mdash; traded to Thunder, then to Blazers, then to Warriors</li>
<li> <a href="https://www.nba.com/draft/2024/prospects/cam-spencer">Cam Spencer</a> (Connecticut) to the Detroit Pistons &mdash; traded to the Memphis Grizzlies (via Timberwolves)</li>
<li> <a href="https://www.nba.com/draft/2024/prospects/anton-watson">Anton Watson</a> (Gonzaga) to the Boston Celtics</li>
<li> <a href="https://www.nba.com/draft/2024/prospects/bronny-james">Bronny James</a> (USC) to the Los Angeles Lakers</li>
<li> <a href="https://www.nba.com/draft/2024/prospects/kevin-mccullar-jr">Kevin McCullar Jr.</a> (Kansas) to the Phoenix Suns &mdash; traded to the New York Knicks</li>
</ol>
&nbsp;

The first round of the 2024 NBA Draft is done and dusted, and the second round will start today at 4 PM Eastern at ESPN’s Seaport District Studios in New York.

2024 NBA Draft: Full results

Josh Childress is a retired American basketball player who played three years at Stanford University, where he became an AP first-team All-American, consensus second-team All-American, the Pac-10 Conference Player of the Year and Pac-10 Conference Tournament MVP as a junior in 2004.&nbsp;
He was selected by the Atlanta Hawks with the No. 6 overall pick in the 2004 NBA Draft, becoming the highest Stanford player to be drafted in the NBA. While Childress played in the NBA for the Hawks (2004-2008), Phoenix Suns (2010-2012), Brooklyn Nets (2012) and New Orleans Pelicans (2013), he made a name for himself overseas when he moved to Greece to play for Olympiacos from 2008 to 2010.&nbsp;
Childress had a fruitful career overseas, playing in leagues like the NBL (with the Sydney Kings and Adelaide 36ers) in Australia and the B-League (with the San-en Neo Phoenix) in Japan. Over the course of his 15-year basketball career, Childress averaged 9.1 points and earned a number of honors including All-NBL first team, NBL top scorer, All-Euroleague second team, Greek League top scorer, Greek League best defender and NBA All-Rookie second team.
Now, the 40-year-old Childress is an investor in the East Asian Super League, <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/east-asia-super-league-set-to-have-its-biggest-event-yet-in-cebu">a rapidly growing league across East Asia.</a> During the EASL's Final Four in the Philippines, Childress spoke with BasketballNews&rsquo; Mon Anthony L. Valmoria to share what he is up to nowadays, his venture with the EASL, his fond NBA memories, his journey playing overseas and more.
You are an investor in the EASL. When did this happen?&nbsp;
Josh Childress: &ldquo;I started as an investor last year, last summer. I talked about seeing the opportunity [to] kind of &lsquo;bridge&rsquo; the gap between the countries in Asian basketball and it's a fantastic opportunity to do that. So EASL did a great job here in its first year and we hope to build on this moving forward.&rdquo;
Why invest in the EASL? Why do you think it will be a successful league?
Childress: &ldquo;I think it&rsquo;s bringing together a bunch of different countries and leagues that have all increasingly gotten better and I think if you can find a way to connect Asian basketball across the board, it will be a fantastic league. A fantastic opportunity for fans, media and the players. So, I&rsquo;m hopeful that when this tournament &ndash; this Final Four &ndash; has more traction, you get more countries involved in the league and have some great basketball.&rdquo;
After your 15-year playing career, what are you up to these days?
Childress: &ldquo;I have an investment company. I run investments; we do real estate, we do sports properties, we do stuff like this (the EASL). We invest in a bunch of different things and I run it full-time &ndash; that&rsquo;s what keeps me busy these days.&rdquo;
Watching the EASL games and seeing how basketball is played over here, how would you describe the brand of basketball that's played on this side of the world?
Childress: &ldquo;It is very physical and very fast-paced. We&rsquo;ve seen really exciting games here and I think players here are playing for pride. There&rsquo;s obviously a nice prize &ndash; a cash prize &ndash; at the end of it. But at this point, it&rsquo;s just pride and making sure that you win and you&rsquo;re the champion of Asia. So I think [basketball here] is really exciting.&rdquo;
Let's talk about your experiences as an NBA player. What are your fondest memories from your playing days?
Childress: &ldquo;Most of your memories are around your teammates, you know? Around the locker room like how fun that was, those plane rides, just the camaraderie you have with your team &ndash; that&rsquo;s the thing that I missed the most about playing. The friendships and the teammates that you have over the years.&rdquo;
Speaking of your teammates, you played with a lot of teams in the NBA &ndash; who was your favorite teammate?&nbsp;
Childress: &ldquo;They were all my favorites (smiles). But I&rsquo;d say between Marvin Williams, Zaza Pachulia, Josh Smith, Joe [Johnson], Tyronn Lue, Mike Bibby &ndash; all those guys were great teammates. I&rsquo;m very thankful that I had the opportunity to play with them.&rdquo;
What is your best NBA memory?
Childress: &ldquo;Getting drafted. I mean, that&rsquo;s a dream come true. It&rsquo;s something that, as a kid, you always see on TV. So, that was an amazing experience.&rdquo;
When it comes to American NBA players deciding to play overseas, you were one of the pioneers. What were the pros and cons?
Childress: &ldquo;It was something that has been done before, but it was a great experience. I loved playing in Greece &ndash; the fans were amazing. I got the chance to experience European basketball, which was different. The pros and the cons are that it sets you up in a situation where you&rsquo;re playing a different style of basketball and having to figure out how to play there. But that was so much fun, you&rsquo;re in very hostile environments playing against teams that you never knew existed and having the chance to compete at a high level. So, I loved my time in Europe. In the EuroLeague, basketball was fantastic; in the Greek league, it was fantastic. So hopefully we can mirror that EuroLeague style format here with the EASL.&rdquo;
Other than monetary considerations, what would you advise fellow Americans about the decision to play overseas? What other factors do you think are crucial in choosing where to play?
Childress: &ldquo;I think the biggest thing is playing style &ndash; you know, going somewhere your style of play fits [in with] where you&rsquo;re going &ndash; or having the opportunity of playing a lot of minutes. I know some guys that are going to certain countries that may pay a little bit less, but they know they&rsquo;re going to play a lot, they&rsquo;re going to play their game. And that will lead them to those opportunities for success with bigger contracts and moving the following year. So, always make sure you go somewhere where you can be the best version of yourself and play at a high level.&rdquo;

Josh Childress shares what he's up to nowadays, his EASL investment, his NBA memories and his journey playing overseas.

Q&A: Josh Childress on NBA journey, EASL investment, overseas hoops

Today, the NBA announced the 28 players who have earned spots to compete in the 2024 Panini Rising Stars, which will take place on Friday, Feb. 16 at Gainbridge Fieldhouse in Indianapolis as part of NBA All-Star 2024. The annual showcase of premier young talent, featuring a mini-tournament with four teams and three games, will air live at 9 p.m. ET on TNT.
The player pool consists of 11 NBA rookies, 10 second-year NBA players and seven NBA G League players. The 21 NBA players, selected by NBA assistant coaches, will be drafted onto three seven-player teams. The seven NBA G League players, selected by the league office, will comprise the fourth team.
Six-time NBA All-Star and Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Famer Pau Gasol will return as one of the four honorary head coaches after leading his team to the Rising Stars championship last year. Joining Gasol as honorary head coaches are Indiana Fever legend and 10-time WNBA All-Star Tamika Catchings and former Indiana Pacers standouts Jalen Rose and Detlef Schrempf.
Catchings, a Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Famer, led the Fever to the 2012 WNBA championship. Rose helped the Pacers reach the 2000 NBA Finals and was the Kia NBA Most Improved Player that season. Schrempf, a three-time NBA All-Star, won back-to-back Kia NBA Sixth Man Awards with the Pacers in the 1990-91 and 1991-92 seasons.&nbsp;&nbsp;
Gasol (Team Pau), Catchings (Team Tamika) and Rose (Team Jalen) will select their teams through the Rising Stars Draft, which will take place on Tuesday, Feb. 6 at 4 p.m. ET and stream live on the NBA App.&nbsp; Schrempf (Team Detlef) will coach the team of NBA G League players.
All three games in Panini Rising Stars will be played to a Final Target Score, meaning each game will end with a made basket or a made free throw instead of with the clock running out. The semifinal games will be played to a Final Target Score of 40. The championship game will be played to a Final Target Score of 25.
Team A will face Team B in the first semifinal (Game 1), and Team C will play Team D in the second semifinal (Game 2). The winner of Game 1 will meet the winner of Game 2 in the championship (Game 3).&nbsp; The semifinal matchups will be announced at a later date.
In selecting the NBA players for Panini Rising Stars, each NBA team submitted one ballot per coaching staff. Each coaching staff selected four frontcourt players, four guards and two additional players at either position, in order of preference, for the rookie ballot and the sophomore ballot. Coaches were not permitted to vote for any player on their team.
The NBA participants for Panini Rising Stars were determined by the total points each player received from the ballots. Points were awarded based on where a player was ranked on each ballot. The player pool includes one more rookie than sophomore based on total points received.
Assistant coaches from the NBA All-Star Game coaching staffs will join the honorary head coaches in coaching the Panini Rising Stars teams. The NBA All-Star Game coaching staffs for both the Eastern Conference and the Western Conference have yet to be determined.&nbsp;
Tickets for Panini Rising Stars are available at NBAEvents.com and through the NBA Events App, which can be downloaded in the&nbsp;<a href="https://apps.apple.com/us/app/nba-events/id1488976283" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://apps.apple.com/us/app/nba-events/id1488976283&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1706738146537000&amp;usg=AOvVaw3KdgVz_lJtn5rLaTz7eq7b">Apple Store</a>&nbsp;or&nbsp;<a href="https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.greencopper.nbaallstar&amp;hl=en_US&amp;gl=US&amp;pli=1" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id%3Dcom.greencopper.nbaallstar%26hl%3Den_US%26gl%3DUS%26pli%3D1&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1706738146537000&amp;usg=AOvVaw0-CV5jwdxEhFcuZ8BRrarV">Google Play Store</a>.
Below is the player pool for the 2024 Panini Rising Stars.
<table style="width: 719px; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="607">
<tbody>
<tr>
<td style="width: 704.431px;" colspan="3">
PANINI RISING STARS: NBA PLAYERS
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="width: 358.75px; text-align: center;" colspan="2">
NBA Rookies
</td>
<td style="width: 324.604px; text-align: center;">
NBA Sophomores
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="width: 362.625px; text-align: center;" colspan="2">
Bilal Coulibaly (Guard | Washington Wizards)
</td>
<td style="width: 326.271px; text-align: center;">
Paolo Banchero (Frontcourt | Orlando Magic)
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="width: 363.59px; text-align: center;" colspan="2">
Keyonte George (Guard | Utah Jazz)
</td>
<td style="width: 326.701px; text-align: center;">
Dyson Daniels (Guard | New Orleans Pelicans)
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="width: 363.826px; text-align: center;" colspan="2">
Jordan Hawkins (Guard | New Orleans Pelicans)
</td>
<td style="width: 326.812px; text-align: center;">
Jalen Duren (Frontcourt | Detroit Pistons)
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="width: 363.875px; text-align: center;" colspan="2">
Scoot Henderson (Guard | Portland Trail Blazers)
</td>
<td style="width: 326.847px; text-align: center;">
Jaden Ivey (Guard | Detroit Pistons)
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="width: 363.889px; text-align: center;" colspan="2">
Chet Holmgren (Frontcourt | Oklahoma City Thunder)
</td>
<td style="width: 326.854px; text-align: center;">
Walker Kessler (Frontcourt | Utah Jazz)
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="width: 363.889px; text-align: center;" colspan="2">
Jaime Jaquez Jr. (Frontcourt | Miami Heat)
</td>
<td style="width: 326.861px; text-align: center;">
Bennedict Mathurin (Guard | Indiana Pacers)
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="width: 363.889px; text-align: center;" colspan="2">
Dereck Lively II (Frontcourt | Dallas Mavericks)
</td>
<td style="width: 326.861px; text-align: center;">
Keegan Murray (Frontcourt | Sacramento Kings)
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="width: 363.889px; text-align: center;" colspan="2">
Brandon Miller (Frontcourt | Charlotte Hornets)
</td>
<td style="width: 326.861px; text-align: center;">
Shaedon Sharpe (Guard | Portland Trail Blazers)
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="width: 363.889px; text-align: center;" colspan="2">
Brandin Podziemski (Guard | Golden State Warriors)
</td>
<td style="width: 326.861px; text-align: center;">
Jabari Smith Jr. (Frontcourt | Houston Rockets)
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="width: 363.889px; text-align: center;" colspan="2">
Cason Wallace (Guard | Oklahoma City Thunder)
</td>
<td style="width: 326.861px; text-align: center;">
Jalen Williams (Frontcourt | Oklahoma City Thunder)
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="width: 363.889px; text-align: center;" colspan="2">
Victor Wembanyama (Frontcourt | San Antonio Spurs)
</td>
<td style="width: 326.861px; text-align: center;">&nbsp;</td>
</tr>
</tbody>
</table>
&nbsp;
<table style="height: 454px; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="438">
<tbody>
<tr style="height: 54px;">
<td style="width: 423.431px; height: 54px;">
PANINI RISING STARS: NBA G LEAGUE PLAYERS
</td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 54px;">
<td style="width: 423.431px; height: 54px;">
Izan Almansa (Frontcourt | G League Ignite)
</td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 54px;">
<td style="width: 423.431px; height: 54px;">
Matas Buzelis (Frontcourt | G League Ignite)
</td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 54px;">
<td style="width: 423.431px; height: 54px;">
Ron Holland (Frontcourt | G League Ignite)
</td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 54px;">
<td style="width: 423.431px; height: 54px;">
Mac McClung (Guard | Osceola Magic)
</td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 54px;">
<td style="width: 423.431px; height: 54px;">
Tyler Smith (Frontcourt | G League Ignite)
</td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 54px;">
<td style="width: 423.431px; height: 54px;">
Oscar Tshiebwe (Frontcourt | Indiana Mad Ants)*
</td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 54px;">
<td style="width: 423.431px; height: 54px;">
Alondes Williams (Guard | Sioux Falls Skyforce)
</td>
</tr>
</tbody>
</table>
*Two-Way Player

The NBA announced the 28 players who have earned spots to compete in the 2024 Panini Rising Stars.

NBA announces 2024 Rising Stars participants

USA Basketball announced today a 41-athlete player pool for the 2024 USA Basketball Men&rsquo;s National Team. The players were selected by USA Basketball Men&rsquo;s National Team managing director&nbsp;Grant Hill&nbsp;and is subject to change. The 12-member 2024 USA Men&rsquo;s National Team, which will represent the United States at the 2024 Olympic Summer Games in Paris, will be announced at a later date.
Featuring 28 players who have represented the USA in Olympics and/or FIBA Men&rsquo;s World Cup and who together have collected 23 Olympic or World Cup gold medals, the 2024 USA Men&rsquo;s National Team finalists are&nbsp;Bam Adebayo,&nbsp;Jarrett Allen,&nbsp;Paolo Banchero,&nbsp;Desmond Bane,&nbsp;Scottie Barnes,&nbsp;Devin Booker,&nbsp;Mikal Bridges,&nbsp;Jaylen Brown,&nbsp;Jalen Brunson,&nbsp;Jimmy Butler,&nbsp;Alex Caruso,&nbsp;Stephen Curry,&nbsp;Anthony Davis,&nbsp;Kevin Durant,&nbsp;Anthony Edwards,&nbsp;Joel Embiid,&nbsp;De&rsquo;Aaron Fox,&nbsp;Paul George,&nbsp;Aaron Gordon,&nbsp;Tyrese Haliburton,&nbsp;James Harden,&nbsp;Josh Hart,&nbsp;Tyler Herro,&nbsp;Jrue Holiday,&nbsp;Chet Holmgren,&nbsp;Brandon Ingram,&nbsp;Kyrie Irving,&nbsp;Jaren Jackson Jr.,&nbsp;LeBron James,&nbsp;Cam Johnson,&nbsp;Walker Kessler,&nbsp;Kawhi Leonard,&nbsp;Damian Lillard,&nbsp;Donovan Mitchell,&nbsp;Chris Paul,&nbsp;Bobby Portis,&nbsp;Austin Reaves,&nbsp;Duncan Robinson,&nbsp;Jayson Tatum,&nbsp;Derrick White&nbsp;and&nbsp;Trae Young.
&ldquo;The United States boasts unbelievable basketball talent and I am thrilled that many of the game&rsquo;s superstars have expressed interest in representing our country at the 2024 Olympic Summer Games,&rdquo; Hill said. &ldquo;It is a privilege to select the team that will help us toward the goal of once again standing atop the Olympic podium. This challenging process will unfold over the next several months as we eagerly anticipate the start of national team activity."&nbsp;
The 2024 USA Men&rsquo;s National Team will be led by head coach&nbsp;Steve Kerr&nbsp;(Golden State Warriors), who is assisted by&nbsp;Mark Few&nbsp;(Gonzaga University),&nbsp;Tyronn Lue&nbsp;(L.A. Clippers) and&nbsp;Erik Spoelstra&nbsp;(Miami Heat). Last summer, the quartet coached the 2023 USA Basketball Men&rsquo;s National Team to a fourth-place finish at the 2023 FIBA Men&rsquo;s World Cup in Manila. Kerr is a 2020 Olympic gold medalist after serving as an assistant coach to&nbsp;Gregg Popovich&nbsp;in Tokyo.
In related news, USA Basketball also announced that the 2024 USA Men&rsquo;s National Team will host Canada at Las Vegas&rsquo; T-Mobile Arena as part of the USA Basketball Showcase. The exhibition contest is set for July 10 at 7:30 p.m. PT/10:30 p.m. ET live on FS1.
The USA Basketball Showcase features a series of games that help the USA Basketball National Teams prepare for major competitions, including the Olympic Summer Games and FIBA World Cup.
Following Las Vegas, the Americans will embark on an international training window that features exhibition games against the national teams of South Sudan on July 20 and Germany on July 22 at the O2 Arena in London.
Tickets for all three contests are on sale now at&nbsp;<a href="http://www.usab.com/tickets">www.usab.com/tickets</a>.
"USA Basketball is excited to return to Las Vegas as our men's national team program looks forward to tipping off the journey to the 2024 Olympic Games there in July," said&nbsp;Jim Tooley, USA Basketball CEO. "The game at T-Mobile Arena against Canada is an important opportunity in our preparations and a great opportunity for our fans to support the U.S. national team before heading overseas."&nbsp;
Prior to the Canada game, the USA will hold training camp in Las Vegas, its longtime training hub. Additional information will be announced at a later date.
The USA officially qualified for the 2024 Olympics as one of the top two nations from the FIBA Americas zone at the 2023 FIBA World Cup in September. The American men will compete for their fifth straight &ndash; and 17th&nbsp;overall &ndash; Olympic gold medal.
In total, USA Basketball will be represented by four teams at the 2024 Olympic Summer Games, including 5-on-5 men and women and 3x3 men and women. The USA are reigning Olympic champions in 5-on-5 men and women and 3x3 women, with 3x3 men set to make their Olympic debut next summer. &nbsp;More information about all four USA Basketball teams will be announced at a later date.

USA Basketball announced today a 41-athlete player pool for the 2024 USA Basketball Men’s National Team.

USA Basketball announces player pool for 2024 Men’s National Team

Following a slow start to this season, the Los Angeles Clippers have had an incredible turnaround.
 Immediately after acquiring star guard James Harden, the Clippers lost seven of 10 games, leading to some questions about Harden's fit and whether the team could right the ship.
However, since Harden&rsquo;s infamous &ldquo;give us 10 games and we&rsquo;ll figure it out&rdquo; statement, the Clippers have been one of the hottest teams in the NBA. They have the best record in the NBA since Dec. 1, and they have won 15 of their last 18 games and 20 of their last 26.&nbsp;
Los Angeles has the fourth-best record in the Western Conference (23-13), while boasting the NBA's seventh-best offense (scoring 116 points per 100 possessions) and ninth-best defense (allowing 110.4 points per 100 possessions).
The Clippers have been rolling as of late, and here are several reasons for their recent success.
Kawhi Leonard is healthy again and having an MVP-caliber season
The Clippers&rsquo; undisputed best player is currently having his healthiest season in years, playing 31-of-35 possible games. Leonard is currently shooting a career-best 52% from the field and is the biggest reason for Los Angeles' surge. The Clippers have registered 12-straight wins with Leonard in the lineup, and he ranks 10th in the league in scoring over that stretch. Leonard's numbers &ndash; 28.1 points, 6.4 rebounds and 3.9 assists &ndash; are impressive, and he recently became the first player in NBA history to shoot 60% from the field, 50% from three-point range and 90% from the free-throw line over a 13-game span &ndash; an astounding demonstration of his dominance and efficiency this season.
Paul George is playing as a second &lsquo;Batman&rsquo; rather than being a &lsquo;Robin&rsquo;
Rather than being Robin to Leonard&rsquo;s Batman, Paul George has proven he&rsquo;s more than just a second fiddle this season. The 6-foot-9 forward has a solid All-Star case so far, averaging 23.2 points, 5.5 rebounds, 3.8 assists, 3.4 threes and 1.6 steals, while shooting 45.8% from the field, 40.8% from three-point range and 92.4% from the free-throw line. George has taken it upon himself to carry more of the offensive load thus far even when Leonard is playing, scoring at least 20 points in nine-straight outings. This aggressive approach has done wonders for the Clippers.
James Harden is playing efficiently and making sacrifices
With the Clippers, James Harden isn't in a primary-scorer role. Although his resume speaks for itself, the 10-time All-Star and three-time scoring champ has deferred the scoring duties to Leonard and George. Instead, Harden&rsquo;s main job is to distribute the ball and keep the offense running, which makes scoring a secondary goal at this stage of his career. Also, he's constantly finding center Ivica Zubac for lob opportunities and even Norman Powell off catch-and-shoot actions.
This has led to one of Harden's most efficient seasons, as he's shooting a career-best 42% from three and a True Shooting percentage of 65%. Harden has been at his best when he's playing alongside the Clippers&rsquo; All-Star forwards, as the three-man lineup of Harden, Leonard and George has a net efficiency rating of plus-17.8 and has outscored opponents by 143 points.
Furthermore, the trio ranks first among the NBA's three-man lineups in several different categories including net rating (25.6), offensive rating (131.7), defensive rating (106), three-point percentage (43%), True Shooting percentage (65%) and turnovers (10.6).
Tyronn Lue finally playing bigs and shying away from center-less lineups
But perhaps the biggest difference between this year&rsquo;s Clippers and previous versions of the team might be Tyronn Lue finally playing his centers and using them to their full extent. His usual obsession with small-ball lineups &mdash; with wings at the 4 and 5 spots &mdash; has been non-existent this season, particularly since the team moved Nicolas Batum and Marcus Morris as part of the trade that netted Harden.
In previous seasons, Lue would close out games with Batum at the 5, or even at times playing George or Leonard there (which was kind of outrageous). Now, he utilizes his centers much better. On offense, Harden uses Zubac as a roller and rim threat for lobs, with Zubac catching and finishing easy buckets. Also, Russell Westbrook has good chemistry with backup center Daniel Theis in the second unit. Defensively, the Clippers no longer have a size disadvantage that leads to offensive rebounds by opposing players, as Zubac and incoming Mason Plumlee command minutes and bring physicality.
Using bigs has certainly changed the way Los Angeles plays. Everything seems to be going right for the Clippers, who will try to continue their strong play and contend for a championship.

The Los Angeles Clippers have been rolling as of late and Anthony Valmoria breaks down several reasons for their recent success.

The Los Angeles Clippers are rolling, and here are 4 reasons why

All of the great one-name classical artists that share names with the Ninja Turtles had apprentices they held in high regard. Willie Green, now going into his third season as one of the NBA&rsquo;s youngest head coaches, has been shaping a vision with the New Orleans Pelicans but there was an obvious need for a reshaping of the assistant coaching staff this summer. The franchise&rsquo;s scaffolding was in place, but the young coach was working with old hands from previous artists; he needed to bring in a trusted apprentice.
New assistant James Borrego is no apprentice outside of this analogy. He is a well-traveled former head coach with a proven track record of building top-10 offenses, which Green admitted during media day will alleviate some burdens on the offensive end. The new assistant will also have plenty of freedom to have some experiments fail.&nbsp;
&nbsp;One of Bob Ross' most famous sayings is, "We don't make mistakes, just happy little accidents." He encouraged artists to embrace unexpected turns and use them to their advantage. Like Ross cashing in on &ldquo;happy accidents,&rdquo; the Pelicans are betting on Borrego's schemes to raise their long-term offensive ceiling this season, and the missteps along the way are just learned experiences to be blended into the mosaic.
Green&rsquo;s focus on defense and deep personal connections took priority over offensive nuances the last few seasons, but there was an obvious need for some changes to the playbook and how the lessons learned are implemented. So, Green brought in Borrego.
Ross, with his trademark permed hair, paint brushes and soothing voice, often emphasized the importance of mastering the basics. Build creations from simple brushstrokes, with sound structures. Likewise, Borrego's offense is built on a foundation of fundamentals. He emphasizes ball movement, spacing and player movement to create scoring opportunities. Just as Ross began his paintings with a few basic elements, Borrego starts his offense with simple, well-executed plays.
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Last season&rsquo;s formula was too simple. And basics? The Pelicans had problems just inbounding the ball in critical situations and often would not begin an action until there were under 10 seconds left on the shot clock. Then, it was predictable: Brandon Ingram methodical in the midrange. Zion Williamson rumbles to the rim off of actions with very little space or off-ball movement. CJ McCollum was mostly stationary and waiting on the perimeter when not having to bail out a short-handed team late in the shot clock. Jonas Valanciunas was frustrated with his role, while Herb Jones was still growing into his on offense.
Trey Murphy III continued developing but everything was a reset of the same few actions, and it all fell apart once the injury report started filling up. Still, the sketches of a championship contender are already on the canvas in New Orleans. Borrego just has to bring out the best features. It should be a welcomed change for a not-so-young-anymore roster looking to show they are serious about winning a championship. With structure, the team will have a better ability to adapt on the fly. This hallmark of Borrego's coaching style is also reminiscent of Ross turning mistakes into opportunities on his canvas.
While Ross often started his paintings with a simple sky and landscape, he gradually added layers of detail and complexity to create stunning compositions. Similarly, Borrego's offense is designed to be layered. It begins with basic actions but can evolve into intricate plays with multiple options. Just as Ross patiently added trees, mountains, and rivers to his paintings, Borrego's teams gradually added complexity to their offense as the players became more comfortable with the system.
Alvin Gentry was an abstract artist with not a lot of museum showcase pieces, constructing a portfolio that was an interesting smorgasbord of ill-fitting talents and philosophies. Sure, it sometimes produced good-looking, free-flowing hoops but not often was the end product something worthy of the NBA Playoff platform. Stan Van Gundy tried to implement structure but just wound up erasing almost all of the goodwill between the locker room and front office.
Willie Green has mended those fences, taped together the tapestry if you will, and has a team on the verge of a breakout season. They just need an offense that is a bit more unpredictably efficient and some injury luck. Just get repetitions and a spot in the playoffs, then see what happens. An accidental, out-of-nowhere championship is still a banner raised. Some teams have to take smaller steps to a title, but why not dream of a historical breakout season? Even eighth seeds have made runs to the NBA Finals.
It all starts with Ingram. He needs to step into a bigger No. 2 role more than CJ McCollum, who would be perhaps the best fourth option in the NBA should Murphy III make a jump. Borrego should be able to get Ingram into easier-to-read actions and the former All-Star's assists numbers should take a jump. The team said Ingram is expected to be more of a ball-in-hand offensive initiator this season. This draws attention away from Williamson, instead of the Point Zion experiment that sometimes induces ball-watching.
That&rsquo;s not to say Point Zion does not have artistic merits. Williamson is a great passer, draws the attention of all 20,000 in attendance, and can be a one-man wrecking ball when the rest of the offense is just not working. It&rsquo;s just that Williamson cannot be the only attraction, dominating the canvas at the detriment of the rest of the bigger picture. It puts too much pressure on internal relationships and makes the team too predictable.
No worries. The Charlotte Hornets finished in the top-10 in three-point attempts in three of four seasons under Borrego. Charlotte was a top-10 team in points (fourth), three-pointers made (fifth), three-pointers attempted (sixth) and three-point percentage (sixth) that season. They were 11th in field goal percentage and snatched the ninth-most offensive rebounds. Charlotte led the NBA with 28.1 team assists per game and had the 10th-fewest turnovers.
Work hard, keep moving to provide options, don&rsquo;t get caught looking and fight for extra opportunities. Build greatness on the back of the basics, just like Bob Ross taught. Borrego&rsquo;s clear directions during training camp should have everyone on the same page to start the regular season in a few weeks. They also understand a few messy mistakes early will not have much of an effect on how this season is eventually framed. It&rsquo;s how they adapt to those moments that matter most.
New Orleans was near the bottom in offensive rating, assist-to-turnover ratio and true shooting percentage last season. Borrego had a rebuilding franchise&rsquo;s mismatched roster eighth in offensive rating, third in assist percentage, second in assist-to-turnover ratio, second in assist ratio and ninth-best in turnover percentage. Those Hornets played with the sixth-quickest pace, were third in shots at the rim, and second in corner three-pointers.
&ldquo;For the first three-quarters of the game, I&rsquo;m drawing stuff up based on concepts that we already know. I&rsquo;m just adding a little tweak here to maybe a few sets to disguise it," <a href="https://www.theringer.com/2020/3/5/21166585/conversation-with-hornets-head-coach-james-borrego" target="_blank" rel="noopener" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.theringer.com/2020/3/5/21166585/conversation-with-hornets-head-coach-james-borrego&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1696693000595000&amp;usg=AOvVaw2zQ3C-l7Klu8y6hMOUbdD6">Borrego has explained</a>. "I think that&rsquo;s one of the things that we do as coaches. You&rsquo;re just trying to disguise a concept. You&rsquo;re running your sets, your flow, throughout a game. Your ATOs, you&rsquo;ve got to try to come up with something a little bit trickier. But the concepts are the same, you&rsquo;re just trying to disguise it. The tough ones, and they&rsquo;re getting tougher now, are the fourth quarter/end-of-game situations because these timeouts are so quick. I don&rsquo;t even have time to think. I&rsquo;ve already got to know what play I have in mind.&rdquo;
When things start shaping up where everyone can see the bigger picture, the tougher moments start to become easier. That philosophy and Borrego&rsquo;s style will help hide the flaws and accentuate the strengths of role players like Jose Alvarado, Larry Nance Jr., Jones, Valanciunas, Dyson Daniels and Kira Lewis Jr.
Borrego was Green&rsquo;s NBA coach just over a decade ago. Now, the roles are reversed but cultural expectations and goals are the same. The Pelicans hope everything comes together in a way that looks like the Larry O&rsquo;Brien trophy.
Other news from around the web: <a href="https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/other/dress-to-impress-why-barbie-and-ken-are-the-hottest-couples-costume-this-halloween/ar-AA1iaTEh" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Barbie and Ken are the hottest couples costume this Halloween</a>

Can James Borrego's new offense bring out the best of Zion Williamson and Brandon Ingram for the Pelicans?

How James Borrego's offense could take Pelicans to next level

NBA free agency has died down and the 2023-24 NBA season is nearly three months away. This is why August is known as the dog days of the NBA calendar.
However, NBA fans will be able to watch some of their favorite players in action very soon, as the 2023 FIBA Basketball World Cup tips off tomorrow.
From Nov. 2021 through Feb. 2023, 80 countries battled for a spot in the World Cup but only 32 national teams qualified. There are a ton of NBA players participating, as Team USA has a talented young roster and they'll be facing stars such as Luka Doncic, Karl-Anthony Towns, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Lauri Markkanen and Rudy Gobert.
Here's everything you need to know about the 2023 FIBA Basketball World Cup.
WHEN IS IT?
World Cup games will be played Aug. 25 through Sept. 10. There have been a number of warm-up games in recent weeks, but the real action tips off tomorrow.
First Round (Group Phase): Aug. 25-30 Second Round (Group Phase): Aug. 31 - Sept. 4 Quarterfinals: Sept. 5-6 Semifinals: Sept. 8 Final: Sept. 10 Third-Place Game: Sept. 10
The <a href="https://www.nba.com/news/fiba-basketball-world-cup-2023-schedule" target="_blank" rel="noopener">full schedule of games can be found here</a>.
WHERE IS IT?&nbsp;
For the first time ever, the FIBA Basketball World Cup will feature three host countries: the Philippines, Japan and Indonesia.
WHICH COUNTRIES QUALIFIED?
These are the 32 countries that will be participating in the 2023 FIBA World Cup: Angola, Australia, Brazil, Canada, Cape Verde, China, Cote d&rsquo;Ivoire, Dominican Republic, Egypt, Finland, France, Georgia, Germany, Greece, Iran, Italy, Japan, Jordan, Latvia, Lebanon, Lithuania, Mexico, Montenegro, New Zealand, Philippines, Puerto Rico, Serbia, Slovenia, South Sudan, Spain, United States and Venezuela.
These are the groups for the first round:
Group A:&nbsp;Angola, Dominican Republic, Philippines, Italy
Group B:&nbsp;&nbsp;South Sudan, Serbia, China, Puerto Rico
(Groups A and B will play their games at Araneta Coliseum in the Philippines)
Group C:&nbsp;Team USA, Jordan, Greece, New Zealand
Group D:&nbsp;Egypt, Mexico, Montenegro, Lithuania
(Groups C and D will play their games at Mall of Asia Arena in the Philippines)
Group E:&nbsp;Germany, Finland, Australia, Japan
Group F:&nbsp;Slovenia, Cape Verde, Georgia, Venezuela
(Groups E and F will play their games at Okinawa Arena in Japan)
Group G:&nbsp;Iran, Spain, Cote d&rsquo;Ivoire, Brazil
Group H:&nbsp;Canada, Latvia, Lebanon, France
(Groups G and H will play their games at Jakarta Arena in Indonesia)
WHICH NBA PLAYERS ARE COMPETING?
There are quite a few NBA players participating in this tournament. The <a href="https://www.nba.com/news/fiba-world-cup-roster-tracker-2023" target="_blank" rel="noopener">full list can be found here</a>, but below are the national teams that feature notable NBA players:
Group A
Dominican Republic: Karl-Anthony Towns (Minnesota Timberwolves), Lester Quinones (Golden State Warriors)
Philippines: Jordan Clarkson&nbsp;(Utah Jazz)
Group B
China: Kyle Anderson&nbsp;(Minnesota Timberwolves)
Serbia: Bogdan Bogdanovic (Atlanta Hawks), Aleksej Pokusevski (Oklahoma City Thunder), Nikola Jovic (Miami Heat)
Group C
Greece: Thanasis Antetokounmpo (Milwaukee Bucks)
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United States: Paolo Banchero (Orlando Magic), Mikal Bridges (Brooklyn Nets), Jalen Brunson (New York Knicks), Anthony Edwards (Minnesota Timberwolves), Tyrese Haliburton (Indiana Pacers), Josh Hart (New York Knicks), Brandon Ingram (New Orleans Pelicans), Jaren Jackson Jr. (Memphis Grizzlies), Cameron Johnson (Brooklyn Nets), Walker Kessler (Utah Jazz), Bobby Portis (Milwaukee Bucks), Austin Reaves (Los Angeles Lakers)

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Group D
Lithuania: Jonas Valanciunas (New Orleans Pelicans)
Montenegro: Nikola Vucevic (Chicago Bulls)
Group E
Australia: Josh Giddey (Oklahoma City Thunder), Patty Mills (Atlanta Hawks), Matisse Thybulle (Portland Trail Blazers) Josh Green (Dallas Mavericks), Joe Ingles (Orlando Magic), Dyson Daniels (New Orleans Pelicans), Dante Exum (Dallas Mavericks), Jock Landale (Houston Rockets), Xavier Cooks (Washington Wizards)
Finland: Lauri Markkanen (Utah Jazz)
Germany: Franz Wagner (Orlando Magic), Dennis Schroder (Toronto Raptors), Moritz Wagner (Orlando Magic), Daniel Theis (Indiana Pacers),&nbsp;
Japan: Yuta Watanabe (Phoenix Suns)
Group F
Georgia: Goga Bitadze (Orlando Magic), Sandro Mamukelashvili (San Antonio Spurs)
Slovenia: Luka Doncic (Dallas Mavericks)
Group G
Brazil: Raul Neto (Cleveland Cavaliers)
Spain: Santi Aldama (Memphis Grizzlies), Usman Garuba (Atlanta Hawks)
Group H
Canada: Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (Oklahoma City Thunder), R.J. Barrett (New York Knicks), Dillon Brooks (Houston Rockets), Lu Dort (Oklahoma City Thunder), Nickeil Alexander-Walker (Minnesota Timberwolves), Dwight Powell (Dallas Mavericks)
France: Rudy Gobert (Minnesota Timberwolves), Nicolas Batum (Los Angeles Clippers), Evan Fournier (New York Knicks), Frank Ntilikina (Charlotte Hornets)
Latvia: Davis Bertans (Oklahoma City Thunder)
HOW TO WATCH
FIBA recently announced that all 92 World Cup games will be available across ESPN's platforms. Six games will air on ESPN2 (including Team USA's three first-round games), while the other 86 games will be available on ESPN+.
FIBA&rsquo;s official streaming service, <a href="https://www.courtside1891.basketball/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Courtside 1891</a>, will also air the games live and on-demand. If you're interested in Courtside 1891, FIBA is offering our readers 20% off their World Cup bundle. Follow the instructions below if you'd like to use the 20% discount:
<ul style="font-weight: 400;">
<li><a href="https://www.courtside1891.basketball/choose-a-package" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Click this link</a> and you&rsquo;ll get a prompt to register</li>
<li>You&rsquo;ll then be redirected to the choose-a-package page</li>
<li>Select the &lsquo;Max &ndash; World Cup Bundle&rsquo;&nbsp;</li>
<li>Use the discount code FIBAWCAK to get 20% off</li>
</ul>
Enjoy the 2023 FIBA Basketball World Cup, and hopefully the dog days of summer will fly by quickly!

The 2023 FIBA Basketball World Cup tips off tomorrow. Here's everything you need to know about the tournament.

Everything you need to know about the 2023 FIBA Basketball World Cup

Most NBA teams have a young core of some sort, but some are better than others.
Each year, teams try to add to their young nucleus through the draft. The 2023 NBA Draft just featured the most highly-anticipated prospect since LeBron James in Victor Wembanyama, plus a number of other talented rookies like Scoot Henderson, Brandon Miller and the Thompson twins.
Entering the 2023-24 season, which team has the best young core? Today, we'll rank the five best cores from around the league. The criteria is simple: players must be age-25 or younger to be considered.
5. Orlando Magic&nbsp;
The Magic landed young star Paolo Banchero with the No. 1 overall pick last season, pairing him with 2021 lottery pick Franz Wagner to form a nice one-two punch. Cole Anthony had high expectations entering the league, but he hasn't quite become the player that fans wanted him to be. One player who has exceeded expectations is Wendell Carter Jr. After a shaky start to his career with the Chicago Bulls, Carter has found his place on the Magic and is considered one of the better young starting centers in the NBA. He isn't the only player who turned his career around after landing in Orlando, as Markelle Fultz is playing his best basketball and has a nice redemption story of his own. Other young players who have an opportunity to make an impact going forward are Orlando's recent lottery picks Anthony Black and Jett Howard, both of whom are 19 years old. Orlando has consistently been one of the worst teams in the league for several years now and while their rebuilding roster is solid, it isn&rsquo;t quite as good or enticing as some of the other teams on our list.
Notable Players: Paolo Banchero (20), Franz Wagner (23), Wendell Carter Jr. (24), Anthony Black (19), Jett Howard (19), Markelle Fultz (25), Cole Anthony (23), Jalen Suggs (21), Jonathan Isaac (25), Caleb Houstan (20)
4. New Orleans Pelicans
The Pelicans are the only young core on this list with postseason experience, as they made the playoffs in 2021-22 and made the play-in tournament last season. Their young core is largely carried by four players: Brandon Ingram, Zion Williamson, Trey Murphy III and Herb Jones. Ingram has become a terrific scorer, and he's coming off a season in which he averaged career-highs in points (24.7) and assists (5.8). While Williamson has been one of the best players in the NBA when healthy, we haven&rsquo;t seen him on the court very much since he was drafted in 2019. Murphy is a terrific shooter and Jones has had a very solid start to his career as well, making a name for himself as a lockdown perimeter defender. New Orleans has a few other young players with potential including Dyson Daniels, Jordan Hawkins and Kira Lewis Jr., but they have yet to prove themselves. Ingram, Williamson, Murphy and Jones are the main reason why the Pelicans are ranked here.
Notable Players: Brandon Ingram (25), Zion Williamson (23), Trey Murphy III (23), Herb Jones (24), Dyson Daniels (20), Jordan Hawkins (21), Kira Lewis Jr. (22)
3. Houston Rockets
The Rockets have one of the more underrated young cores in the NBA, as their lack of success has prevented them from getting much recognition. Fortunately for the Rockets, their main issue has been lack of experience, and the team addressed it this offseason. They had money to spend and they brought in some veterans to help lead the team, most notably Fred VanVleet. That said, their young core is still extremely talented and got even better through this year&rsquo;s draft. The key for this Rockets team to succeed is to make sure these young players continue to develop at a high rate, which is where new head coach Ime Udoka and his staff come in. They have multiple players on their roster with All-Star potential, and it's possible they'll compete for a play-in spot by the end of the season.
Notable Players: Jalen Green (21), Jabari Smith (20), Alperen Sengun (21), Amen Thompson (20), Tari Eason (22), Kevin Porter Jr. (23), Cam Whitmore (19)
<img src="https://cdn.basketballnews.com/images/story/body/vw2.jpg" alt="" width="711" height="400" />
2. San Antonio Spurs&nbsp;
The Spurs undoubtedly have one of the NBA's best young cores. No. 1 overall pick Victor Wembanyama has made San Antonio the team to watch this season. That said, they likely won&rsquo;t be a playoff team for at least another year. While it's possible that they'll shock everyone, it will be difficult for Wembanyama to lead them to the postseason as a rookie. He will likely need at least a year to adjust to the NBA and develop before taking that next leap in his career. Wembanyama isn&rsquo;t the only young star on the Spurs, as they have already started developing fellow cornerstones Devin Vassell and Keldon Johnson, who have made quite an impression. Throw in Tre Jones, Jeremy Sochan, Malaki Branham, Romeo Langford and Blake Wesley, and it's clear why the Spurs are this high. Other young players who have shown promise are Charles Bassey and Julian Champagnie, both of whom came over from the Philadelphia 76ers&rsquo; organization. These two players have displayed a ton of potential, particularly in the G League and Summer League, and they could be solid contributors for years to come.&nbsp;
Notable Players: Victor Wembanyama (19), Keldon Johnson (23), Tre Jones (23), Devin Vassell (22), Jeremy Sochan (20), Malaki Branham (20), Romeo Langford (23), Zach Collins (25), Blake Wesley (20), Julian Champagnie (22), Charles Bassey (22), Dominick Barlow (20), Sandro Mamukelashvili (24)
1. Oklahoma City Thunder
The Spurs were a hard core to beat but, to nobody&rsquo;s surprise, the Oklahoma City Thunder have the best young core in the NBA. Not only do they have the youngest starting lineup in the league, it is filled with young stars. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander has emerged as one of the best guards in the league, while Josh Giddey and Rookie-of-the-Year runner-up Jalen Williams just had a terrific season. Chet Holmgren, the No. 2 overall pick in last year's draft, hasn't played yet but he will undoubtedly make an immediate impact and could give OKC a Rookie-of-the-Year finalist for the second year in a row. Despite how young the Thunder are, they could make a serious playoff push this season, with Shai at the steering wheel. Perhaps what's scariest about the Thunder is that they have 35 draft picks over the next seven years, including 15 first-rounders, so their already-impressive young core is still a work in progress.
Notable Players: Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (25), Chet Holmgren (21), Josh Giddey (20), Jalen Williams (22), Cason Wallace (19), Luguentz Dort (24), Aleksej Pokusevski (21), Isaiah Joe (24), Tre Mann (22), Jaylin Williams (21), Ousmane Dieng (20), Jeremiah Robinson-Earl (22), Keyontae Johnson (23)

Entering the 2023-24 season, which NBA teams have the best young core? Hunter Simpson ranks the best cores from around the league.

Ranking the NBA's top-5 young cores entering the 2023-24 season

With the 2023-24 NBA season fast approaching, discussions are beginning to ramp up surrounding team expectations. Which teams are the early favorites and contenders? Which teams are just wishful thinkers? These topics are debated often, usually leading to a select number of teams facing win-or-bust expectations.&nbsp;
But, of course, there can only be one team in June that hoists the Larry O&rsquo;Brien.&nbsp;
Entering a season with championship expectations isn&rsquo;t easy, as <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/nba-james-posey-championship-expectations-boston-celtics-doc-rivers-kevin-garnett-paul-pierce-ray-allen-cleveland-cavaliers-lebron-james-tyronn-lue-miami-heat-pat-riley-shaquille-o-neal" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Basketball News&rsquo; James Posey highlighted in this recent article</a>. Which teams fall into the win-or-bust category for the 2023-24 season? Let&rsquo;s look at two teams &ndash; one from each conference &ndash; who qualify.&nbsp;
LOS ANGELES LAKERS
The Los Angeles Lakers have dealt with championship aspirations and expectations maybe more than any other team in NBA history. With 17 championships, which is tied with the Boston Celtics for the most all-time, it's clear why. This franchise is used to collecting hardware by season&rsquo;s end, and did so as recently as 2020, defeating the Miami Heat to win the championship in the midst of a global pandemic and in the wake of the passing of Lakers legend Kobe Bryant.&nbsp;
So, how can a team that won a title in recent years already be facing pressure to win again?
The Lakers, led by LeBron James and Anthony Davis, are heading into this season fresh off a clean sweep in the Western Conference Finals by the eventual-champion Denver Nuggets. While seemingly negative on paper, the season was largely viewed as a success, as nobody expected this squad to make a Conference-Finals run after starting an abysmal 2-10.&nbsp;
How did they turn their season around? By ending the Russell Westbrook experiment, the Lakers landed D&rsquo;Angelo Russell and Jarred Vanderbilt in a trade, in addition to trading for Rui Hachimura. These three, along with a blossoming Austin Reaves and a rejuvenated James and Davis, brought the Lakers to familiar heights &ndash; defeating the Memphis Grizzlies in the first round and taking down the then-defending-champion Golden State Warriors in round two.&nbsp;
It was clear that the Lakers fixed their mistakes and were back on course. Even the naysayers had to tip their cap after the team&rsquo;s surprising Western Conference Finals run.
Now comes the familiar pressure.&nbsp;
This offseason, Lakers were able to keep last year&rsquo;s core together, re-signing Russell, Reaves and Hachimura, while adding quality role players in Gabe Vincent, Taurean Prince, Jaxson Hayes and Cam Reddish. This is really the first time in the LeBron-Lakers era that the team has been given the green light to try again for a second season. Seeing as the team didn&rsquo;t come together until late last season, it would have been very much in the Lakers&rsquo; nature to come into this year with a completely different-looking team. Instead, the front office chose to run it back, aside from some changes on the margins. This decision is what puts them in the win-or-bust category.&nbsp;
With LeBron entering his 21st NBA season, that sentiment is stronger than ever. The Lakers have to take advantage of the fact that James is still playing at such a high level so late in his career. Being a sports team in Hollywood (especially one with 17 championships) you need to not only have the stars, you need to win. If the Lakers have stars but aren&rsquo;t winning, then they are essentially just becoming their neighbors, the Angels. The Lakers have the script ready for them, but we&rsquo;ll have to wait and see if they can top the box office.
PHILADELPHIA 76ERS
 
With the Philadelphia 76ers coming off their second-round exit in the 2023 NBA Playoffs courtesy of the Boston Celtics in seven games, there&rsquo;s pressure to take the next step and win a championship. This pressure isn&rsquo;t new; they&rsquo;ve been feeling it for several years.&nbsp;
Superstar center Joel Embiid won his first Most Valuable Player award last season, giving the 76ers two MVPs on the team, with James Harden being the other. While the duo has looked good in the short time they&rsquo;ve been together, they haven&rsquo;t looked like two MVPs playing side-by-side. This is especially true in the postseason, with Embiid and Harden both known for sometimes regressing in playoff series compared to the regular season. 
The fact that Doc Rivers was the team&rsquo;s head coach, a man who has coached three teams that all lost a playoff series after being up 3-1 and someone who has a 6-10 record in Game 7s, certainly didn&rsquo;t help. There's no question that he also deserves his fair share of blame for the team&rsquo;s issues. All of this, along with the lingering effects of the Ben Simmons debacle, came to a head last season.&nbsp;
This offseason, the team parted ways with Rivers, and Harden requested a trade. While Harden has yet to be traded and it is possible he remains with the team, the Sixers obviously aren&rsquo;t in an ideal state. It remains to be seen what kind of pieces they can get back for Harden.
In the meantime, the Sixers hired former Toronto Raptors head coach Nick Nurse to replace Rivers. Nurse is a great coach who won a championship in 2019 and the NBA's Coach of the Year award in 2020. But if the team begins to underperform, a new coach &ndash; especially one who&rsquo;s known for previously incorporating a rougher defensive style when it came to guarding Embiid &ndash; could become an easy target for blame for the Philly faithful.&nbsp;
The 76ers might have more pressure on them than any other team this upcoming season. The reigning MVP, a former MVP (or the trade package they can get for him), a former Coach of the Year and a solid supporting cast mean this team is built to win now. This team is no stranger to win-or-bust expectations, but this may be the most pressure they&rsquo;ve faced yet.&nbsp;

Jack Maguire examines two teams facing win-or-bust expectations entering the 2023-24 NBA season.

Which NBA teams are under the most pressure entering 2023-24 season?

Today, the National Basketball Players Association (NBPA), Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SIAC) and Southwestern Athletic Conference (SWAC) announced their continued partnership in hosting the fifth&nbsp;annual Top 50 Basketball Camp. The camp will take place July 27&ndash;29 at Morehouse College and Clark Atlanta University in Atlanta, GA. &nbsp; The best players from each conference will be featured at the camp in a model like the NBPA's Top 100 Camp. Players at the Top 50 Camp will participate in basketball skill training exercises and attend leadership and life development sessions off the court. &nbsp; "NBPA members have a true appreciation for HBCUs, and the Top 50 Camp is a great way for the NBPA to continue strengthening its connection with the HBCU community," said Purvis Short, the NBPA's Chief of Player Programs. "Our partnership with the SIAC and SWAC has given us a unique opportunity to host a productive learning experience for HBCU athletes to better themselves as men on and off the court." The camp also aims to cultivate and create coaching and talent pipelines for current and retired NBA players exploring the transition into careers in intercollegiate athletics. &nbsp; "The Southwestern Athletic Conference is elated to continue our partnership with the NBPA Top 50 Camp," said SWAC Commissioner Dr. Charles McClelland. "This partnership is an amazing opportunity for our student-athletes to participate in athletic and professional development initiatives that will positively impact them both on and off the court. This event has steadily grown and has quickly become a signature event that our student-athletes look forward to participating in on an annual basis." &nbsp; In addition to skill development and on-court drills, the camp will include a series of highly-competitive scrimmages and games, allowing the players to showcase their talent against the best of their neighboring conference. &nbsp; "I commend the NBPA for its commitment to HBCUs as The Top 50 Camp serves as a basketball combine for our student-athletes to showcase their talents while receiving instruction from current and former NBA players," said SIAC Commissioner Anthony Holloman. &nbsp; Camp participants from the SIAC include:
<table border="0" width="432" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0">
<tbody>
<tr>
<td nowrap="nowrap">First Name</td>
<td nowrap="nowrap">Last Name</td>
<td nowrap="nowrap">College or University</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td nowrap="nowrap">Aziel</td>
<td nowrap="nowrap">Blackwell</td>
<td nowrap="nowrap">Kentucky State University</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td nowrap="nowrap">Devin</td>
<td nowrap="nowrap">Booker</td>
<td nowrap="nowrap">Tuskegee University</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td nowrap="nowrap">Eleik</td>
<td nowrap="nowrap">Bowles</td>
<td nowrap="nowrap">Savannah State University</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td nowrap="nowrap">Gregg</td>
<td nowrap="nowrap">Boyd II</td>
<td nowrap="nowrap">Tuskegee University</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td nowrap="nowrap">Steven</td>
<td nowrap="nowrap">Dulley</td>
<td nowrap="nowrap">Tuskegee University</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td nowrap="nowrap">Ashton</td>
<td nowrap="nowrap">Hawkins</td>
<td nowrap="nowrap">Spring Hill College</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td nowrap="nowrap">Martez</td>
<td nowrap="nowrap">Jones</td>
<td nowrap="nowrap">Tuskegee University</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td nowrap="nowrap">Robert</td>
<td nowrap="nowrap">Kendrick</td>
<td nowrap="nowrap">Fort Valley State University</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td nowrap="nowrap">Kong</td>
<td nowrap="nowrap">Kong</td>
<td nowrap="nowrap">Kentucky State University</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td nowrap="nowrap">Myson</td>
<td nowrap="nowrap">Lowe</td>
<td nowrap="nowrap">Fort Valley State University</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td nowrap="nowrap">Steven</td>
<td nowrap="nowrap">Lyles</td>
<td nowrap="nowrap">Spring Hill College</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td nowrap="nowrap">Chris</td>
<td nowrap="nowrap">Martin</td>
<td nowrap="nowrap">Clark Atlanta University</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td nowrap="nowrap">Joemel</td>
<td nowrap="nowrap">McNair</td>
<td nowrap="nowrap">Morehouse College</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td nowrap="nowrap">Jamir</td>
<td nowrap="nowrap">Moore</td>
<td nowrap="nowrap">Albany State University</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td nowrap="nowrap">Sean</td>
<td nowrap="nowrap">Paige</td>
<td nowrap="nowrap">Central State University</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td nowrap="nowrap">Ayjay</td>
<td nowrap="nowrap">Plain</td>
<td nowrap="nowrap">Savannah State University</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td nowrap="nowrap">Antwoin</td>
<td nowrap="nowrap">Reed Jr</td>
<td nowrap="nowrap">Central State University</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td nowrap="nowrap">Kerry</td>
<td nowrap="nowrap">Richardson</td>
<td nowrap="nowrap">Morehouse College</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td nowrap="nowrap">Jordan</td>
<td nowrap="nowrap">Simpson</td>
<td nowrap="nowrap">Albany State University</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td nowrap="nowrap">Raevon</td>
<td nowrap="nowrap">Thomas</td>
<td nowrap="nowrap">Central State University</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td nowrap="nowrap">Terin</td>
<td nowrap="nowrap">Wofford</td>
<td nowrap="nowrap">Albany State University</td>
</tr>
</tbody>
</table>
<div>&nbsp; &nbsp; Camp participants from the SWAC include: &nbsp;</div>
<table border="0" width="432" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0">
<tbody>
<tr>
<td nowrap="nowrap">First Name</td>
<td nowrap="nowrap">Last Name</td>
<td nowrap="nowrap">College or University</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td nowrap="nowrap">Chase</td>
<td nowrap="nowrap">Adams</td>
<td nowrap="nowrap">Jackson State University</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td nowrap="nowrap">Jaylen</td>
<td nowrap="nowrap">Bates</td>
<td nowrap="nowrap">Florida A&amp;M University</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td nowrap="nowrap">Eric</td>
<td nowrap="nowrap">Coleman</td>
<td nowrap="nowrap">Alabama State</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td nowrap="nowrap">Zeke</td>
<td nowrap="nowrap">Cook</td>
<td nowrap="nowrap">Jackson State university</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td nowrap="nowrap">Dhashon</td>
<td nowrap="nowrap">Dyson</td>
<td nowrap="nowrap">Bethune Cookman University</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td nowrap="nowrap">Ken</td>
<td nowrap="nowrap">Evans Jr.</td>
<td nowrap="nowrap">Jackson State University</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td nowrap="nowrap">Jeremiah</td>
<td nowrap="nowrap">Gambrell</td>
<td nowrap="nowrap">Alcorn State University</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td nowrap="nowrap">Kolby</td>
<td nowrap="nowrap">Granger</td>
<td nowrap="nowrap">Texas Southern University</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td nowrap="nowrap">Zion</td>
<td nowrap="nowrap">Harmon</td>
<td nowrap="nowrap">Bethune Cookman University</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td nowrap="nowrap">P. J.</td>
<td nowrap="nowrap">Henry</td>
<td nowrap="nowrap">Texas Southern University</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td nowrap="nowrap">Elijah</td>
<td nowrap="nowrap">Hulsewe</td>
<td nowrap="nowrap">Bethune Cookman University</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td nowrap="nowrap">Byron</td>
<td nowrap="nowrap">Joshua</td>
<td nowrap="nowrap">Alcorn State University</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td nowrap="nowrap">Jeremiah</td>
<td nowrap="nowrap">Kendall</td>
<td nowrap="nowrap">Alcorn State University</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td nowrap="nowrap">T. J.</td>
<td nowrap="nowrap">Madlock</td>
<td nowrap="nowrap">Alabama State</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td nowrap="nowrap">Romelle</td>
<td nowrap="nowrap">Mansel</td>
<td nowrap="nowrap">Jackson State University</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td nowrap="nowrap">Kylen</td>
<td nowrap="nowrap">Milton</td>
<td nowrap="nowrap">University of Arkansas Pine Bluff</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td nowrap="nowrap">Zytarious</td>
<td nowrap="nowrap">Mortle</td>
<td nowrap="nowrap">Texas Southern University</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td nowrap="nowrap">Festus</td>
<td nowrap="nowrap">Ndumanya</td>
<td nowrap="nowrap">Southern University</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td nowrap="nowrap">Omari</td>
<td nowrap="nowrap">Peek</td>
<td nowrap="nowrap">Alabama A&amp;M</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td nowrap="nowrap">Dailin</td>
<td nowrap="nowrap">Smith</td>
<td nowrap="nowrap">Alabama A&amp;M</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td nowrap="nowrap">D. K.</td>
<td nowrap="nowrap">Thorn</td>
<td nowrap="nowrap">Alcorn State University</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td nowrap="nowrap">Cameron</td>
<td nowrap="nowrap">Tucker</td>
<td nowrap="nowrap">Alabama A&amp;M</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td nowrap="nowrap">Ernest (EJ)</td>
<td nowrap="nowrap">Williams</td>
<td nowrap="nowrap">Alabama A&amp;M</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td nowrap="nowrap">Rashad</td>
<td nowrap="nowrap">Williams</td>
<td nowrap="nowrap">University of Arkansas Pine Bluff</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td nowrap="nowrap">Coltie</td>
<td nowrap="nowrap">Young</td>
<td nowrap="nowrap">Jackson State University</td>
</tr>
</tbody>
</table>

The NBPA, SIAC and SWAC will host the fifth annual Top 50 Basketball Camp from July 27-29 in Atlanta.

NBPA, SIAC and SWAC to host 5th annual Top 50 Basketball Camp

It&rsquo;s the easiest call of the&nbsp;<a class="paragraph-link" href="https://apnews.com/article/nba-draft-2023-wembanyama-b3449d1a5f7a7de5906bb1979ffb2a26">NBA draft</a>: The San Antonio Spurs won.
That&rsquo;s not to say other teams didn&rsquo;t do very well on Thursday, when 58 players were selected as the league&rsquo;s newest members. But the Spurs being able to take generational French talent Victor Wembanyama puts them at the head of the class.
Some of the teams that also did well: NBA champion Denver, Golden State, Toronto &mdash; even with just one pick &mdash; and Orlando, which might now be closer to returning to the postseason mix.
A breakdown of which teams had Excellent drafts, those that had Good drafts and others that will have to Wait and See:
<h2 class="Component-root-0-2-81 h2 Component-p-0-2-71">EXCELLENT</h2>
<h3 class="Component-root-0-2-81 h3 Component-p-0-2-71">DALLAS MAVERICKS</h3>
Picks: Dereck Lively II (12, via trade); Olivier-Maxence Prosper (24, via trade).
Dallas got the big man it wanted and created opportunity by moving Davis Bertans. Hard to argue that it wasn&rsquo;t a good night. And now free agency awaits. Prosper is another player with big potential and was extremely hard to guard at Marquette.
Picks: Julian Strawther (29), Jalen Pickett (32, will be acquired via trade), Hunter Tyson (37),
Pickett should have gone in the first round. He&rsquo;s that good, and the NBA champions just got another do-it-all guy who will also serve as insurance should Bruce Brown leave in free agency.
<h3 class="Component-root-0-2-81 h3 Component-p-0-2-71">DETROIT PISTONS</h3>
Picks: Ausar Thompson (5), Marcus Sasser (25, via trade), James Nnaji (31)
No matter what, the Pistons were going to get better and deeper on Thursday night. Thompson is incredibly athletic (even by NBA standards) and plays defense with a ton of energy.
<h3 class="Component-root-0-2-81 h3 Component-p-0-2-71">GOLDEN STATE WARRIORS</h3>
Picks: Brandin Podziemski (19), Trayce Jackson-Davis (57, via trade)
Play to your strength, and the Warriors got another shooter to add to the mix with Stephen Curry and Klay Thompson. Podziemski could add something right away, and came to Golden State on the same day that the Warriors swung a deal for Chris Paul by sending Jordan Poole to Washington.
<h3 class="Component-root-0-2-81 h3 Component-p-0-2-71">HOUSTON ROCKETS</h3>
Picks: Amen Thompson (4), Cam Whitmore (20)
Thompson is a great move and gives Detroit another great option as it builds. If Whitmore is healthy, then Houston got an absolute steal by getting the Villanova forward at No. 20.
<h3 class="Component-root-0-2-81 h3 Component-p-0-2-71">OKLAHOMA CITY THUNDER</h3>
Picks: Cason Wallace (10, via trade), Keyontae Johnson (50)
Wallace was great for Kentucky in his lone college season and played perhaps his best game in the Wildcats&rsquo; finale in the NCAA tournament. He can score; he didn&rsquo;t look to score quite often enough at times in college.
<h3 class="Component-root-0-2-81 h3 Component-p-0-2-71">ORLANDO MAGIC</h3>
Picks: Anthony Black (6), Jett Howard (11)
Paolo Banchero got a couple more shooters to help him out, and the young and talented Magic got more young talent. An excellent night again and it&rsquo;s time to start thinking about Orlando as a team that should make a run at the play-in &mdash; at minimum.
<h3 class="Component-root-0-2-81 h3 Component-p-0-2-71">SAN ANTONIO SPURS</h3>
Picks: Victor Wembanyama (1), Sidy Cissoko (44).
Their grade was secured at the very moment that the last ping-pong ball appeared at the lottery last month. Wembanyama was a no-brainer, and now it&rsquo;s up to the Spurs to start the real work &mdash; get him into the gym, see how he fits, and figure out what the plan is going forward.
<h3 class="Component-root-0-2-81 h3 Component-p-0-2-71">TORONTO RAPTORS</h3>
Pick: Gradey Dick (13)
Dick showed up to the draft in a red-and-black jacket &mdash; a nod to Dorothy from &ldquo;The Wizard of Oz&rdquo; and his Kansas roots. The color scheme will work in Toronto as well. Dick is a pure shooter, and no team can have too many of those. The jury&rsquo;s still out on what the Raptors will be this coming season, but this kid will be a rotation piece.
<h3 class="Component-root-0-2-81 h3 Component-p-0-2-71">UTAH JAZZ</h3>
Picks: Taylor Hendricks (9), Keyonte George (16), Brice Sensabaugh (28)
Hendricks is what an NBA big pretty much is now; a power forward who can also defend centers. George was the Big 12 rookie of the year at Baylor and is a proven scorer. He&rsquo;s good from the line, has 3-point potential and can get to the rim. There&rsquo;s some work to do, but he&rsquo;s a serious prospect.
<h2 class="Component-root-0-2-81 h2 Component-p-0-2-71">GOOD</h2>
<h3 class="Component-root-0-2-81 h3 Component-p-0-2-71">BROOKLYN NETS</h3>
Picks: Noah Clowney (21), Dariq Whitehead (22), Jalen Wilson (51)
Clowney is an athletic big from Alabama whose game is still a bit unfinished. Whitehead has enormous potential and was highly recruited by Duke, but foot issues are a concern. Wilson was the Big 12 player of the year at Kansas. The Nets likely didn&rsquo;t choose three elite programs accidentally. Lot to like here.
<h3 class="Component-root-0-2-81 h3 Component-p-0-2-71">CHARLOTTE HORNETS</h3>
Picks: Brandon Miller (2), Nick Smith Jr. (27), Amari Bailey (41).
Miller made sense over Scoot Henderson because the Hornets have a point guard already. But Henderson might be the more NBA-ready player.
<h3 class="Component-root-0-2-81 h3 Component-p-0-2-71">INDIANA PACERS</h3>
Picks: Jarace Walker (8, via trade), Ben Sheppard (26), Julian Strawther (29), Mojave King (47, via trade), Isaiah Wong (55)
Walker plays hard on both ends, and this is rare to say, but he might play harder on defense than he does on offense. And getting Wong &mdash; the ACC player of the year &mdash; so late is a steal.
<h3 class="Component-root-0-2-81 h3 Component-p-0-2-71">LOS ANGELES CLIPPERS</h3>
Picks: Kobe Brown (30), Jordan Miller (48)
Brown is a strong player, addicted to rebounding, and probably needs to improve considerably on the offensive end. Miller did a little of everything for the Miami Hurricanes in their run to the Final Four.
<h3 class="Component-root-0-2-81 h3 Component-p-0-2-71">LOS ANGELES LAKERS</h3>
Picks: Jalen Hood-Schifino (17), Maxwell Lewis (40, via trade).
Hood-Schifino got NBA coaching in college last season; Indiana is coached by Mike Woodson. He&rsquo;s a winner; his high school teams won, his Indiana team went to the NCAA Tournament and he&rsquo;ll obviously benefit from time with LeBron James.
<h3 class="Component-root-0-2-81 h3 Component-p-0-2-71">MIAMI HEAT</h3>
Pick: Jaime Jaquez Jr. (18)
A four-year college player whose game got more complete each year, Jaquez has a notorious work ethic that should fit in quite well with the Eastern Conference champions.
<h3 class="Component-root-0-2-81 h3 Component-p-0-2-71">NEW ORLEANS PELICANS</h3>
Pick: Jordan Hawkins (14)
Hawkins was a big part of UConn&rsquo;s team that won the national title last spring, earning his way onto the All-Tournament team. New Orleans got a winner.
<h3 class="Component-root-0-2-81 h3 Component-p-0-2-71">PORTLAND TRAIL BLAZERS</h3>
Picks: Scoot Henderson (3), Kris Murray (23), Rayan Rupert (43).
Henderson has shown that he&rsquo;s NBA-ready. The Blazers drafted well. But really, the only question now is whether Damian Lillard is happy or not. Murray is the twin brother of Sacramento&rsquo;s Keegan Murray and had a big season for Iowa &mdash; averaging just over 20 points per game.
<h3 class="Component-root-0-2-81 h3 Component-p-0-2-71">WASHINGTON WIZARDS</h3>
Picks: Bilal Coulibaly (7, via trade), Tristan Vukcevic (42)
The Wizards are starting over, and on the day they also agreed to acquire Jordan Poole from Golden State they just happened to get a French player. (No, not that one.) But Coulibaly is highly touted by No. 1 pick Victor Wembanyama, and that&rsquo;s enough of an endorsement for us.
<h2 class="Component-root-0-2-81 h2 Component-p-0-2-71">WAIT AND SEE</h2>
<h3 class="Component-root-0-2-81 h3 Component-p-0-2-71">ATLANTA HAWKS</h3>
Picks: Kobe Bufkin (15), Mouhamed Gueye (39, via trade), Seth Lundy (46)
Bufkin had a great second half of the season at Michigan, and left-handers always provide defenses with an extra challenge. The best way to describe his game is this: He doesn&rsquo;t do much wrong. Very solid, can help the Hawks in a lot of ways.
<h3 class="Component-root-0-2-81 h3 Component-p-0-2-71">BOSTON CELTICS</h3>
Picks: James Njaji (31, via trade), Jordan Walsh (38, via trade)
Still only 18, Njaji started playing the game about seven years ago and is not even close to reaching his potential yet. Big prospect.
<h3 class="Component-root-0-2-81 h3 Component-p-0-2-71">CHICAGO BULLS</h3>
Pick: Julian Phillips (35, via trade)
The Bulls had to forfeit what would have been their pick because of free-agency violations last summer, and swung a deal with Boston to land the Tennessee wing.
<h3 class="Component-root-0-2-81 h3 Component-p-0-2-71">CLEVELAND CAVALIERS</h3>
Pick: Emoni Bates (49)
He was touted as a star since basically middle school, had more than his share of promising moments in college, and now has to really prove himself.
<h3 class="Component-root-0-2-81 h3 Component-p-0-2-71">MEMPHIS GRIZZLIES</h3>
Picks: Gregory Jackson II (45), Tarik Biberovic (56)
Prospects. They&rsquo;re not expected to provide any real help anytime soon.
<h3 class="Component-root-0-2-81 h3 Component-p-0-2-71">MILWAUKEE BUCKS</h3>
Picks: Andre Jackson (36, via trade), Chris Livingston (58)
Jackson was a big part of UConn&rsquo;s national championship. He&rsquo;s only going to benefit from being around Giannis Antetokounmpo every day.
<h3 class="Component-root-0-2-81 h3 Component-p-0-2-71">MINNESOTA TIMBERWOLVES</h3>
Picks: Leonard Miller (33, via trade), Jaylen Clark (53)
Miller had a lot of big moments playing with Scoot Henderson and the G League Ignite this past season. Athleticism is tough to ignore.
<h3 class="Component-root-0-2-81 h3 Component-p-0-2-71">NEW YORK KNICKS</h3>
No picks.
<h3 class="Component-root-0-2-81 h3 Component-p-0-2-71">PHILADELPHIA 76ERS</h3>
No picks.
<h3 class="Component-root-0-2-81 h3 Component-p-0-2-71">PHOENIX SUNS</h3>
Pick: Toumani Camara (52)
Given the trades that they&rsquo;re making, this might be one of their last picks for quite some time. There&rsquo;s nothing wrong with not valuing the draft, but giving up on it entirely is a dangerous game to play too often.
<h3 class="Component-root-0-2-81 h3 Component-p-0-2-71">SACRAMENTO KINGS</h3>
Picks: Colby Jones (34, via trade), Jalen Slawson (54)
Jones has skills the Kings crave; great shooter, great passing and great vision. A young Kevin Huerter-type in those regards.

Which teams came away from the 2023 NBA Draft as big winners? Check out the AP's draft report cards.

NBA draft report cards: Spurs, Rockets among teams that hit it big

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

MIAMI (AP) &mdash; Miami&rsquo;s Erik Spoelstra and Denver&rsquo;s Michael Malone are two of the four NBA coaches to have spent at least eight years with their current team.
They know how rare that is &mdash; especially as the league&rsquo;s coaching changes mount.
Championship-winning or title-contending coaches aren&rsquo;t safe in the NBA these days. In recent days, 2019 NBA champion Nick Nurse, 2021 champion Mike Budenholzer, 2021 Western Conference champion and 2022 Coach of the Year Monty Williams and most recently 2008 NBA champion Doc Rivers were all fired.&nbsp;<a class="paragraph-link" href="https://apnews.com/article/raptors-nick-nurse-fired-c2b7dc404915ee3ae12fe1a52e589830">Nurse was fired by Toronto</a>,&nbsp;<a class="paragraph-link" href="https://apnews.com/article/milwaukee-bucks-budenholzer-fired-e9ab56f83d317afd621adb7d7c244006">Budenholzer by Milwaukee</a>,&nbsp;<a class="paragraph-link" href="https://apnews.com/article/suns-monty-williams-fired-53f33c2c3c8d69af7449cbfbf931bc0a">Williams by Phoenix</a>&nbsp;and&nbsp;<a class="paragraph-link" href="https://apnews.com/article/76ers-nba-doc-rivers-fired-09368e77a8f741576222c975c3affe55">Rivers by Philadelphia.</a>
&ldquo;It&rsquo;s disturbing,&rdquo; Spoelstra said. &ldquo;Doc&rsquo;s a Hall of Famer. ... There&rsquo;s only so many teams that can advance. It&rsquo;s just a really hard thing to do. Yeah, it&rsquo;s been a tough couple weeks, hearing the news of just some really surprising firings.&rdquo;
It doesn&rsquo;t make sense to Spoelstra, or likely to many other coaches. Spoelstra has the NBA&rsquo;s second-longest current tenure with one team. San Antonio&rsquo;s Gregg Popovich has coached the Spurs since 1996, Spoelstra took over the Heat in 2008, Steve Kerr became coach in Golden State in 2014 and Malone became coach in Denver in 2015.
&ldquo;I understand this business,&rdquo; said Malone, who&rsquo;ll lead Denver into the Western Conference finals starting Tuesday against the Los Angeles Lakers. &ldquo;You look around the coaching landscape, if you want a secure profession, coaching is not the one to get into. I should have been a TV reporter.&rdquo;
Of the last nine coaches to take a team to the NBA Finals, only two &mdash; Kerr and Spoelstra &mdash; are still with the franchise that they went to the title round with.
Three of the last four championship-winning coaches &mdash; Budenholzer in 2021, the Los Angeles Lakers&rsquo; Frank Vogel in 2020 and Nurse in 2019 &ndash; have since been fired by those clubs. Also no longer with their teams for various reasons after recent runs to the finals: Ime Udoka in Boston, Cleveland&rsquo;s David Blatt and then Tyronn Lue as well, and now Williams by the Suns.
&ldquo;This is the nature of this league and I think sometimes it&rsquo;s the chemistry,&rdquo; NBA Commissioner Adam Silver told ESPN in a televised interview before the draft lottery on Tuesday night. &rdquo;They don&rsquo;t go from being great coaches to bad coaches from one year to the next. It has to do with the chemistry of the team, the style, maybe somebody believes the players need to hear a new voice. But I&rsquo;m incredibly sympathetic. It&rsquo;s a rough side of this business and I think they understand it. They choose this profession. They&rsquo;re my friends and I hate to see it.&rdquo;
Budenholzer&rsquo;s dismissal left Kerr upset, as he revealed earlier this month &mdash; but noted that all coaches understand how vulnerable they are.
&ldquo;My first response is not necessarily shock, it&rsquo;s more disappointment because Bud is a fantastic coach,&rdquo; Kerr said. &ldquo;He just won a championship and has been wildly successful in his coaching career. But this is the business we&rsquo;re in. &hellip; Expectations every year for every team are so high, and only one team can win. It&rsquo;s sad news for the coaching profession.&rdquo;
At least six teams will have new coaches next season &mdash; Phoenix, Milwaukee, Toronto, Detroit and now Philadelphia are looking, and&nbsp;<a class="paragraph-link" href="https://apnews.com/article/rockets-udoka-celtics-b65d91fdfa3174b0c9fa36634cd20e42">Houston has hired Udoka</a>&nbsp;as the replacement for Stephen Silas. There were two in-season moves as well: Brooklyn&rsquo;s&nbsp;<a class="paragraph-link" href="https://apnews.com/article/brooklyn-nets-nba-sports-new-york-e72b511a6d8cdb4e4875dbc1b157557e">Jacque Vaughn was hired by the Nets</a>&nbsp;in November, and Atlanta&rsquo;s&nbsp;<a class="paragraph-link" href="https://apnews.com/article/utah-jazz-atlanta-hawks-nba-sports-playoffs-bce807f9f9f26951421f9ea2c2e5d52f">Quin Snyder was hired by the Hawks</a>&nbsp;in February. And two coaches in the conference finals are in Year 1 of their careers: the Lakers&rsquo; Darvin Ham, and the Celtics&rsquo; Joe Mazzulla, who had to take over unexpectedly in Boston last fall following&nbsp;<a class="paragraph-link" href="https://apnews.com/article/boston-celtics-nba-sports-basketball-ime-udoka-0f04a614b82c497346a423d9da036521">Udoka&rsquo;s suspension</a>&nbsp;for an inappropriate relationship with a Celtics employee.
Mazzulla will meet Spoelstra and Miami in the Eastern Conference finals starting Wednesday. Spoelstra has faced Boston three times for the East title in four years, going up against three different coaches &mdash; Brad Stevens in the NBA bubble restart in 2020, Udoka last year and now Mazzulla &mdash; and says while the coaches change, organizational stability exists and is crucial.
&ldquo;Joe was in the bubble. ... He&rsquo;s been part of some really good teams,&rdquo; Spoelstra said. &ldquo;That does have an impact. Probably more than anything in this league right now, you&rsquo;re looking for some kind of organizational stability between the front office and coaching staff.&rdquo;
There aren&rsquo;t many examples of that in the league right now. At minimum, 13 of the NBA&rsquo;s 30 teams will open next season with a coach who has been in place for no more than one season.
Rivers said Sunday that he expected to stay with the 76ers. &ldquo;No one&rsquo;s safe in our business. I get that,&rdquo; Rivers said.
Further proof of that came two days later, when he was dismissed.
&ldquo;It&rsquo;s just the business of basketball,&rdquo; Miami guard Kyle Lowry said. &ldquo;And one thing about our business is sometimes it gets a little cut-throat.&rdquo;
Spoelstra has long said part of Miami&rsquo;s strength is consistency. Managing general partner Micky Arison, CEO Nick Arison, team president Pat Riley, general manager Andy Elisburg and others have been with the Heat for decades &mdash; and from the very beginning, in Elisburg&rsquo;s case, since he&rsquo;s been with the franchise for all 35 of its seasons.
Spoelstra has been with the organization for more than half his life as well; he was 24 when he started in the video room, and now he&rsquo;s 52.
&ldquo;It takes so much time and energy to restart something,&rdquo; Spoelstra said. &ldquo;And I think that&rsquo;s part of the reason why we&rsquo;ve been able to reboot so many times, over and over and over. We&rsquo;re not reinventing a new culture and then trying to teach everybody and then all of a sudden, two years later, it&rsquo;s going to be somebody else doing the exact same thing. But particularly to have proven veteran guys (fired), it&rsquo;s just been stunning. It really has been disturbing.&rdquo;

Erik Spoelstra, Mike Malone and Adam Silver discussed the firings of Monty Williams, Doc Rivers, Mike Budenholzer and Nick Nurse.

As NBA coaching changes mount, some lament the lack of job security

The Phoenix Suns fired Monty Williams on Saturday, two years after reaching the NBA Finals and a year after he was the overwhelming choice as the coach of the year.
Williams had great success in his four regular seasons in Phoenix, winning 63% of his games. But three consecutive years of playoff frustration was likely too much for the Suns to overlook &mdash; especially after two straight years of Phoenix trailing by 30 points at halftime of elimination games at home.
ESPN and The Athletic first reported the decision.
&ldquo;Monty has been foundational to our success over the past four seasons,&rdquo; said James Jones, the Suns&rsquo; president of basketball operations and general manager. &ldquo;We are filled with gratitude for everything Monty has contributed to the Suns and to the Valley community.&rdquo;
Jones also said he made the decision to fire Williams.
The Suns had a 2-0 lead in the 2021 NBA Finals, only to lose in six games. They lost in the second round in each of the last two seasons, both times in an embarrassing home finale &mdash; last year to Dallas, this year to Denver.
&ldquo;Neither day feels good,&rdquo; Williams said after the loss earlier this week to Denver, when asked to compare last season&rsquo;s debacle to this year&rsquo;s season-ending loss.
Saturday likely didn&rsquo;t feel good, either.
The Suns now become yet another high-profile coaching opening, after Toronto fired Nick Nurse and Milwaukee fired Mike Budenholzer. Nurse won the 2019 NBA title with the Raptors, while Budenholzer was the coach who overcame Phoenix&rsquo;s 2-0 lead in the 2021 finals.
It&rsquo;s the second major move made by the Suns in the three months or so since new owner Mat Ishbia closed the sale that gave him control of the club. In February, Ishbia green-lighted a blockbuster trade that brought Kevin Durant to Phoenix and gave the Suns a core &mdash; him, Devin Booker, former No. 1 pick Deandre Ayton and Chris Paul &mdash; that the team hoped would be enough to deliver a title.
It just didn&rsquo;t work, at least, not this year. Paul got hurt in the playoffs to continue his run of bad luck on the health front in the postseason, Ayton sat out the finale and Booker and Durant simply looked gassed by the time it was over.
Williams, after the season ended, blamed himself.
&ldquo;I take that personally, not having our team ready to play in the biggest game of the year,&rdquo; Williams said. &ldquo;That&rsquo;s something that I pride myself on and it just didn&rsquo;t happen. ... That&rsquo;s something I have to take a deep look at, everything I&rsquo;m doing.&rdquo;
Williams had been the coach with the fifth-longest tenure with his current team entering Saturday &mdash; just four years. Gregg Popovich has been coach in San Antonio since 1996, Erik Spoelstra in Miami since 2008, Steve Kerr in Golden State since 2014 and Michael Malone in Denver since 2015.
Phoenix becomes the fourth team to currently have an opening, along with the Raptors, Bucks and Detroit Pistons.
Of the last nine coaches to take a team to the NBA Finals, only Kerr and Spoelstra are still with the franchise they got to the title series.
The others &mdash; Boston&rsquo;s Ime Udoka, the Los Angeles Lakers&rsquo; Frank Vogel, Cleveland&rsquo;s David Blatt and Tyronn Lue, along with Budenholzer, Nurse and now Williams -- have all been fired by the team that they brought to the finals.
&ldquo;When you look at really good coaches who have lost their jobs shortly after winning a championship, that&rsquo;s something that is just different about our business,&rdquo; Williams said Friday, adding that &ldquo;it&rsquo;s just a part of our NBA economy.&rdquo;
The Suns started 16-7 this season, looking every bit like a contender again. They were only 29-30 the rest of the way.
They used 26 starting lineup combinations, and had Durant for only eight regular-season games after the trade. They had to wait about a month after acquiring him for a January knee injury to heal, and then as he warmed up for what was supposed to be his home opener with the Suns on March 8 he slipped on the court during warm-ups, hurt an ankle and missed three more weeks.
The Suns were 12-1 in Durant&rsquo;s first 13 appearances, five of those in the playoffs. And then they went 2-4 against the Nuggets, all four losses by double figures.
And Williams took the fall.
Williams was second in the official NBA coach of the year balloting in 2021, behind New York&rsquo;s Tom Thibodeau. He was the coach of the year that season as chosen by his peers in the National Basketball Coaches Association.
A year later, Williams was the NBA&rsquo;s winner &mdash; and the NBCA one yet again.
Now, he&rsquo;s out, and the Suns will start anew.
This was Williams&rsquo; ninth season as a head coach, after a five-season run with New Orleans from 2010 through 2015. He was 194-115 with the Suns &mdash; an NBA-best 168-76 since the start of the restart bubble near Orlando to end the 2020 season.
Phoenix became one of the feel-good stories of the bubble, going 8-0 to narrowly miss out on what would have been a most improbable playoff appearance. Williams got elected as coach of the bubble &mdash; &ldquo;coach of the seeding games&rdquo; was the official NBA award &mdash; and was a four-time Coach of the Month in his tenure with the Suns as well.
That started the run of success. Paul got traded to the Suns in November 2020, the franchise&rsquo;s first finals trip since 1993 was how that season ended, and last season&rsquo;s 64-18 mark was the best in Suns history.
In his nine seasons overall, he&rsquo;s 367-336 in the regular season, plus 29-27 in the playoffs.

The Phoenix Suns fired Monty Williams on Saturday, two years after reaching the NBA Finals and a year after he was Coach of the Year.

Suns fire coach Monty Williams after 4 seasons with the club

The NBA announced the All-Rookie teams on Monday afternoon.
The All-Rookie First Team consists of Orlando Magic forward Paolo Banchero, Oklahoma City Thunder forward Jalen Williams, Utah Jazz center Walker Kessler, Sacramento Kings forward Keegan Murray and Indiana Pacers guard Bennedict Mathurin.
Banchero, who won the 2022-23 Rookie of the Year award, was the lone unanimous First-Team selection.
The All-Rookie Second Team features Detroit Pistons center Jalen Duren, Houston Rockets forward Tari Eason, Detroit Pistons guard Jaden Ivey, Houston Rockets forward Jabari Smith Jr. and San Antonio Spurs forward Jeremy Sochan.
The following players also received votes: Andrew Nembhard (Pacers), Shaedon Sharpe (Blazers), AJ Griffin (Hawks), Christian Braun (Nuggets), Jaylin Willams (Thunder), Jaden Hardy (Mavericks), Malaki Branham (Spurs), Dyson Daniels (Pelicans), Mark Williams (Hornets) and MarJon Beauchamp (Bucks).
Here are the complete results:
<img src="https://cdn.basketballnews.com/images/story/body/rook1.png" alt="" width="648" height="667" />
On Tuesday, the NBA will announce the All-Defensive Teams. On Wednesday, the league will announce the All-NBA Teams. And on Thursday, they'll announce the Teammate of the Year award.

The NBA announced the All-Rookie teams on Monday afternoon.

Paolo Banchero, Jalen Williams headline NBA All-Rookie Teams

On Friday afternoon, the NBA G League announced the field of 45 prospects from the 2023 NBA Draft who will participate in the 2023 NBA G League Elite Camp, which will take place May 13 and 14 at Wintrust Arena in Chicago.
The NBA G League Elite Camp gives draft prospects an opportunity to display their skills in front of NBA and G League scouts, coaches and front-office executives by playing in five-on-five games and participating in strength-and-agility drills.
Based on performance, select players from the NBA G League Elite Camp will be invited to participate in the NBA Draft Combine, which will be held May 15-21 at Wintrust Arena.
NBA players who have participated in past G League Elite Camps include New Orleans Pelicans guard Jose Alvarado, Indiana Pacers forward Oshae Brissett, Memphis Grizzlies forward Kenneth Lofton Jr. (who won the 2022-23 G League Rookie of the Year award), Los Angeles Clippers guard Terance Mann and Miami Heat guard Max Strus.
Below is a list of attendees for the 2023 NBA G League Elite Camp (although its subject to change):
Bediako, Charles (Alabama) Black, Leaky (North Carolina) Bridges, Jalen (Baylor) Broome, John (Auburn) Bryant, Joe (Norfolk State) Burton, Tyler (Richmond) Campbell, Tyger (UCLA) Castleton, Colin (Florida) Da Silva, Tristan (Colorado) Davis, Antoine (Detroit) Davis, Johnell (FAU) Davis, Kendric (Memphis) Doss, Shaun (Arkansas Pine-Bluff) Evbuomwan, Tosan (Princeton) Fudge, Alex (Florida) Gortman, Jazian (Overtime Elite) Hall, PJ (Clemson) Hart, Hakim (Maryland) Hauser, Joey (Michigan State) Hodge, D&rsquo;Moi (Missouri) James, Josiah-Jordan (Tennessee) Jones, Dillon (Weber State) Kinsey, Taevion (Marshall) Larsson, Pelle (Arizona) Lawrence, Tyrin (Vanderbilt) Martin, Jaylen (Overtime Elite) Mayer, Matthew (Illinois) McConnell, Caleb (Rutgers) Miller, Emanuel (TCU) Murrell, Matthew (Mississippi) Newton, Tristen (Connecticut) Nkamhoua, Olivier (Tennessee) Nolley II, Landers (Cincinnati) Nowell, Markquis (Kansas State) Omier, Norchad (Miami) Omoruyi, Clifford (Rutgers) Peterson, Drew (USC) Reeves, Antonio (Kentucky) Rice, Sir&rsquo;Jabari (Texas) Rodgers, Spencer (Kennesaw State) Sears, Mark (Alabama) Sharavjamts, Mike (Dayton) Stevens, Isaiah (Colorado State) Tyson, Hunter (Clemson) Watson, Anton (Gonzaga)

The NBA G League announced the field of 45 prospects from the 2023 NBA Draft who will attend the 2023 NBA G League Elite Camp.

NBA G League announces 45 prospects competing in G League Elite Camp

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

PHOENIX (AP) &mdash; Load management is a big topic across the NBA these days.
One great way to make sure players get rest in the playoffs is to end the series early.
The Phoenix Suns, Denver Nuggets and Boston Celtics all have that opportunity on Tuesday night when they host Game 5s with a 3-1 lead in the series.
&ldquo;Closeout games are always the hardest,&rdquo; Suns center Deandre Ayton said. &ldquo;We expect it&rsquo;s going to be a battle. We&rsquo;re just gearing up.&rdquo;
The Western Conference top-seed Nuggets already had one opportunity to end their series, but the feisty Timberwolves managed to extend it with a Game 4 win in overtime on Sunday.
&ldquo;We really wanted to come out and have a sweep under our belt. Didn&rsquo;t happen,&rdquo; Nuggets guard Jamal Murray said. &ldquo;They fought. They fought like hell, all game long. Even when we put a scare in their heart a little bit, they kept fighting, kept playing, and the crowd was into it.&rdquo;
The Suns-Los Angeles Clippers series has been shaped by Kawhi Leonard&rsquo;s knee injury. Leonard has missed the past two games with a sprained knee, which has helped tip the series in favor of Phoenix.
&ldquo;He&rsquo;s definitely hurt. It&rsquo;s not load management where he&rsquo;s taking time off,&rdquo; Clippers coach Tyronn Lue said. &ldquo;He&rsquo;s shown in the past that he&rsquo;s played through injuries in the playoffs and so if it&rsquo;s something he can&rsquo;t play through, then it has to be pretty serious.&rdquo;
L.A.&rsquo;s Paul George has been out since March 21 with the same injury as Leonard.
HAWKS AT CELTICS
Boston leads 3-1. Game 4, 7:30 p.m. EDT, TNT.
&mdash; NEED TO KNOW: The Celtics have never lost a best-of-seven playoff series after building a 3-1 lead. They are 27-0 in those situations over their storied history.
&mdash; KEEP AN EYE ON: Jaylen Brown&rsquo;s facial wear. The Boston star had been using a protective mask since February, when he sustained a broken bone in his face. But he ditched the mask in the second quarter of Game 4 after making just 1 of 7 shots. He went 11 of 15 the rest of the way to finish with 31 points in a 129-121 victory. Presumably, he won&rsquo;t be wearing the mask anymore in these playoffs. &ldquo;As soon as I took it off, things started to turn around a little bit,&rdquo; Brown said.
&mdash; INJURY WATCH: Boston G Marcus Smart looked just fine in Game 4 after falling hard on his tailbone in the previous contest. He said they were times when his lower back tightened up, and he&rsquo;ll have to remain diligent in his treatment to make sure the pain doesn&rsquo;t keep him off the court. &ldquo;Throughout the game, it got a little tight on me. It flared up. But once I got it stretched out again, got it loose, got some heat on it, it was pretty good,&rdquo; Smart said.
&mdash; PRESSURE IS ON: The Hawks. It looks like another brief playoff appearance unless they can pull of a win in Boston, and the challenge got even tougher when guard Dejounte Murray was suspended for Game 5 after bumping and verbally abusing an official after the end of Game 4. Murray is averaging 25.3 points in the series. Atlanta has lost five straight at TD Garden since its last victory on Feb. 17, 2021, including a pair of 13-point defeats in the first two games of this series. If the Hawks lose, it would be the second straight year they&rsquo;ve gone down in five games in the opening round and could signal major changes heading into the offseason.
TIMBERWOLVES AT NUGGETS
Denver leads 3-1. Game 5, 9 p.m. EDT, NBA TV.
&mdash; NEED TO KNOW: The Nuggets closed the last 2&frac12; minutes of the fourth quarter of Game 4 on a tying 12-0 run, but the Timberwolves recovered with an 18-point overtime on 6-for-8 shooting for a 114-108 victory. It denied Denver a first playoff-series sweep in franchise history and keep the first-round matchup alive despite Nikola Jokic&rsquo;s playoff-career-high-tying 43 points.
&mdash; KEEP AN EYE ON: Anthony Edwards. Minnesota&rsquo;s All-Star guard has 129 points in four games, the second-most in the NBA playoffs behind Phoenix&rsquo;s Devin Booker (139). He delivered a wide array of clutch baskets down the stretch for the Wolves in Game 4, including a pull-up 3-pointer from the wing with 11.5 seconds left in overtime to push their lead to four. He&rsquo;s the first player in Wolves&rsquo; history with 100-plus points over three consecutive playoff games. Only LeBron James (eight) had more 30-plus-point playoff games before age 22 than Edwards does (five). Still, Edwards was aiming for a higher bar after his 12-for-27 shooting performance.
&ldquo;I played terrible, if you ask me,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;I took three bad 3s, three terrible possessions, and I damn near shot us out the game.&rdquo;
&mdash; INJURY WATCH: Wolves sixth man Kyle Anderson was inadvertently struck by a stray arm from Edwards during a leap for a rebound late in the third quarter and did not return after suffering what the team announced as a left eye and facial contusion. Coach Chris Finch said Anderson went to see an eye specialist. ... Nuggets coach Mike Malone on Jokic&rsquo;s aggression with 12 free-throw attempts in Game 4 after zero in Game 3: &ldquo;He&rsquo;s banged up. He&rsquo;s playing hard.&rdquo;
&mdash; PRESSURE IS ON: Jamal Murray. After scoring 40 points in Game 2, Denver&rsquo;s standout point guard missed 26 of 43 shots over the two games in Minnesota. He had 19 points in Game 4, with Nickeil Alexander-Walker frequently picking up his defense before half court and making him work hard for every shot, drive and pass.
CLIPPERS AT SUNS
Phoenix leads 3-1, Game 5, 10 p.m. EDT, TNT
&mdash; NEED TO KNOW: The Suns took control of the series with two wins in Los Angeles and now return to Phoenix to try and close it out. The Suns have taken advantage of the absence of L.A. star Kawhi Leonard, who missed both Games 3 and 4 because of a sprained knee.
&mdash; KEEP AN EYE ON: Three-time All-Star Devin Booker is cooking for the Suns, averaging 34.8 points on 57.1% shooting. The 26-year-old isn&rsquo;t just scoring, he&rsquo;s averaging 5.5 assists, 4.3 rebounds, 2.8 steals and 1.3 blocks.
&mdash; INJURY WATCH: All eyes are on Leonard to see if he can return. The Suns have been without backup point guard Cam Payne, who hasn&rsquo;t played in the series because of a sore back.
&mdash; PRESSURE IS ON: Russell Westbrook. If Leonard can&rsquo;t play, the Clippers almost certainly have to have another massive game from Westbrook, who has played well in the series. He&rsquo;s improved his scoring total each game, rising from 9 points in Game 1 to 28 in Game 2, 30 in Game 3 and 37 in Game 4. L.A. might need a 40-spot from him on Tuesday to extend the series.

The Phoenix Suns, Denver Nuggets and Boston Celtics all have an opportunity to advance on Tuesday night when they host Game 5s.