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Thunder

The article was initially published on BasketballNews on April 6, 2022.
Anyone else love going back and looking at old box scores and falling down afternoon-long rabbit holes, or am I the weirdo?
You might&rsquo;ve read the headline and either recalled this event actually happening, or are befuddled at how such a thing could take place, even in that NBA.
This article, published on April 6, 2022, marks 25 years since the Del Harris-led Los Angeles Lakers held Jim Cleamons and his Dallas Mavericks to 2 points in the third quarter of a regular-season game.
The contest was held at the LA Forum, where a 50-24 Laker team met a 22-53 Mavs squad with two weeks remaining before the playoffs started. Staples wasn&rsquo;t that big yet, and Crypto didn&rsquo;t exist. (Some might say it still doesn&rsquo;t, but you can fight about that amongst yourselves.)
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A large-ass, Biggie verse-having, All-Star center named Shaquille O&rsquo;Neal had been <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/1997/02/14/sports/injury-to-o-neal-is-a-blow-to-lakers.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">out with a knee injury</a> suffered that February, which he returned from five days later. Something tells me, if you made it here, you&rsquo;ve heard of him. Also on the Lakers, quite famously, was a talented rookie named Kobe Bryant, who had been playing regular rotation minutes at 18 years old, but wasn&rsquo;t yet Kobe.
The Mavericks had traded a controversial-but-talented point guard in Jason Kidd earlier in the season &mdash; along with Tony Dumas and Loren Meyer &mdash; to the Phoenix Suns for a package highlighted by Michael Finley, Sam Cassell and A.C. Green. They also dealt Jamal Mashburn to the Miami Heat several weeks later for Kurt Thomas, Sasa Danilović and Martin M&uuml;&uuml;rsepp.
And right before the deadline, Dallas rerouted Cassell as part of a five-man package including Jim Jackson, George McCloud (who wound up on the Lakers retroactively), Eric Montross and Chris Gatling for Shawn Bradley, Khalid Reeves, Robert Pack and Ed O&rsquo;Bannon &mdash; famously the Most Outstanding Player of the 1995 Final Four, and <a href="https://www.primerus.com/business-law-articles/ed-obannon-shines-a-light-upon-student-athletes-right-of-publicity-624201.htm" target="_blank" rel="noopener">killer of EA's NCAA Football and NCAA Basketball video game franchises</a>. This move not only cemented Dallas&rsquo; rebuild, but it officially made way for a <a href="https://www.dallasnews.com/sports/mavericks/2018/06/06/flashback-jamal-mashburn-on-what-really-happened-between-jason-kidd-jim-jackson-and-toni-braxton/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Toni Braxton-less future in Texas</a>.
The Mavericks, <a href="https://www.basketball-reference.com/teams/DAL/1997_games.html">who came in as losers of 10 straight heading into this game</a> &mdash; a lengthy skid that never saw the team score more than 92 points &mdash; went into Hollywood and started Pack, Finley, Green, Bradley and Derek Harper. Without Shaq, the Lakers began with Derek Fisher, Eddie Jones, Jerome Kersey, Corie Blount and Sean Rooks, who played a game-high 43 minutes (33 over his season average).
<a href="https://www.basketball-reference.com/boxscores/199704060LAL.html">The Mavericks led 30-17 after the first quarter and 51-37 at halftime</a>. The teams combined to attempt 12 threes in the first half, which most teams would typically combine to do in a quarter today. The Mavericks shot 21 of 44 from the field and outrebounded the Lakers 24-16 while holding L.A. to 12 of 32 shooting.
Bryant and Robert Horry went a combined 2 of 9 off the bench, and Rooks had logged 10 points and 7 boards to that point. Harper and Finley combined for 25 points on 9 of 15 shooting, while Bradley had 9 points and 9 rebounds.
Okay, now let's get to why you&rsquo;re here.
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Not only did the Mavericks score 2 points in the entire third quarter, but the points came from a pair of Harper free throws with 1:51 left in the quarter. So it took over 10 minutes to even get on the board in this period.
Anyway, the Mavericks shot 0 of 15 from the field for the quarter and missed all 4 of their three-balls. They also had 9 turnovers and only made one substitution over the entire 12 minutes, removing Pack for Sa&scaron;a Danilović about halfway through the third. That meant Green, Harper, Finley and Bradley were each a minus-25 for the quarter, and Pack was a minus-20.
For good measure, the Mavericks third quarter could be summed up like this:
<ul>
<li>Points: 2</li>
<li>Fouls: 3</li>
</ul>
The Lakers outscored the Mavericks 27-2 and still just led 64-53 after three. L.A. shot 10 of 17 in the quarter, made 5 of 7 triples, only needed to pull down 8 rebounds and turned the ball over just twice.
The Mavs outdid their horrific third quarter only 48 seconds into the fourth with two layups. They even cut their deficit to as close as 7 points in garbage time before the Lakers pulled away with a 87-80 win.
Fisher scored 21 points &mdash; not even close to a career-high for him &mdash; but to that point, his highest point tally had been just 14. In fact, the 21 points would remain a career-best mark for Fisher until he netted 26 points on March 13, 2001 in a win over the Boston Celtics four years later.
Sean &ldquo;2019 Bam Adebayo&rdquo; Rooks ended the night with 15 points, 11 rebounds, 5 assists and 3 blocks. Bryant logged about 22 minutes off the bench, netting 13 points on 3 of 9 shooting, also finishing with 3 steals and going a perfect 5 of 5 at the free-throw line.
Harper led the Mavs with 18 points on 6 of 15 shooting. Finley only put up 9 shots in over 34 minutes of play. The next time he put up just 9 shots in that many minutes? <a href="https://www.basketball-reference.com/boxscores/200203310WAS.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">March 31, 2002</a>.
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So, what ended up happening to these two teams? Glad you asked!
The Lakers finished 56-26 and fourth in the Western Conference, sweeping the Kenny Anderson, Isaiah Rider, and Rasheed Wallace-led Portland Trail Blazers in Round 1. Then, in the West semifinals, L.A. fell to the No. 1 seed Utah Jazz, who eventually lost to the Chicago Bulls in the 1997 NBA Finals. The Lakers still had a few more years of Harris before Phil Jackson eventually came to clean things up prior to the 1999-2002 three-peat era.
The Mavericks finished 24-58 and were actually still fourth in the Midwest Division among seven teams, completing 1996-97 with only the sixth-worst record in the league. Unfortunately, they didn&rsquo;t own their own draft pick, but fortunately, the Celtics &mdash; who had it at No. 6 &mdash; used it on Ron Mercer, so it wasn&rsquo;t an egregious miss.
Tracy McGrady did go No. 9 overall, and the Mavs did settle on Kelvin Cato at No. 15, but they landed with a kid named Dirk Nowitzki in the 1998 NBA Draft after another 20-win season.
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Bryan Fonseca revisits when the Mavericks only mustered a measly 2 points in the third quarter against the Lakers.

Revisiting the time the Mavericks scored just 2 points in a quarter

The 2023 NBA Draft could go down as a special class, with talented prospects such as Victor Wembanyama, Scoot Henderson, Brandon Miller and the Thompson twins as well as some interesting depth pieces.
But will it ever be considered one of the best draft classes in NBA history? That remains to be seen.
Today, we're going to identify the cr&egrave;me de la cr&egrave;me of NBA draft classes.
The 2003 NBA Draft
The 2003 NBA Draft featured multiple generational talents that would come to define the NBA for the next two decades. Led by LeBron James, this class also included household names such as Carmelo Anthony, Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh. Not only did this draft have star power, it was also very deep. Twenty-seven players from the 2003 class played at least 10 seasons in the NBA: James, Wade, Anthony, Bosh, Kyle Korver, David West, Zaza Pachulia, Nick Collison, Boris Diaw, Kendrick Perkins, Leandro Barbosa, James Jones, Chris Kaman, Kirk Hinrich, Dahntay Jones, Steve Blake, Mo Williams, Luke Ridnour, Willie Green, Matt Bonner, Travis Outlaw, Keith Bogans, Darko Milicic, Mickael Pietrus, Sasha Pavlovic, Josh Howard and Luke Walton. This class featured nine All-Stars and plenty of quality role players.
The 1984 NBA Draft
The 1984 NBA Draft stands as a legendary class, and some might argue that it's the greatest draft of all-time. Two of the top three picks &mdash; Michael Jordan and Hakeem Olajuwon &mdash; would ultimately etch their names in the annals of basketball history and redefine greatness. In addition to Jordan and Olajuwon, players like Charles Barkley, John Stockton and Alvin Robertson showcased their immense talent as well. This class produced five Hall-of-Famers and seven All-Stars.
The 1996 NBA Draft
The 1996 NBA Draft changed the landscape of the league, heralding the arrival of future Hall-of-Famers and icons. Led by the legendary Kobe Bryant and the enigmatic Allen Iverson, this class boasted an array of talent that reinvigorated the game. This class also featured Ray Allen, Steve Nash, Jermaine O'Neal, Ben Wallace, Stephon Marbury, Peja Stojakovic, Shareef Abdur-Rahim, Antoine Walker, Marcus Camby, Zydrunas Ilgauskas and Derek Fisher. The 1996 NBA Draft was deep, producing 10 All-Stars and five Hall-of-Famers. Jon Finkel recently revisited this star-studded class in his book "1996," and he <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/revisiting-the-starstudded-1996-nba-draft-kobe-bryant-ray-allen-steve-nash-allen-iverson" target="_blank" rel="noopener">ran a terrific excerpt on Basketball News</a>.
The 1985 NBA Draft
The 1985 NBA Draft was certainly special. This class featured 10 All-Stars including Karl Malone, Patrick Ewing, Chris Mullin, Joe Dumars, Detlef Schrempf, Xavier McDaniel, Charles Oakley, &nbsp;AC Green, Terry Porter and Michael Adams. The class also featured Arvydas Sabonis, an overseas legend and terrific Portland Trail Blazer. Like the 1996 NBA Draft, this class has the star power and depth to be considered one of the best drafts in NBA history.
The 2009 NBA Draft
While not as immediately illustrious as some of the other classes on this list, the 2009 NBA Draft proved to be a treasure trove of talent. This class exemplified the importance of patience and player development, as Stephen Curry, James Harden, Blake Griffin, DeMar DeRozan, Jrue Holiday and Jeff Teague would all go on to become All-Stars. Griffin missed his rookie year with an injury, but dominated as soon as he stepped on an NBA court. Curry battled injuries early in his career, but would become a four-time champion and two-time MVP. Harden went from being an elite sixth man to an MVP once he got the opportunity in Houston. This class also featured Brandon Jennings, Ricky Rubio, Tyreke Evans, Darren Collison, Ty Lawson, Patty Mills, Danny Green, Taj Gibson and Patrick Beverley among others.
Which class is the greatest in NBA history? <a href="https://twitter.com/basketbllnews" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Tweet us your thoughts</a>!&nbsp;

Basketball News examines the crème de la crème of draft classes throughout NBA history.

Exploring the 5 best draft classes in NBA history

EL SEGUNDO, Calif. (AP) &mdash; As his NBA career approaches the dawn of its third decade, LeBron James plays almost exclusively alongside teammates who grew up watching him dominate their game.
He has played against the sons of his basketball contemporaries, and he has played against one of his own 18-year-old son&rsquo;s former high school teammates. That son, Bronny, is headed to college at USC in the fall, an achievement that sparks a father&rsquo;s proud smile whenever he mentions it.
Signs of time&rsquo;s passage are all around the 38-year-old James, yet&nbsp;<a class="paragraph-link" href="https://apnews.com/article/los-angeles-lakers-nba-sports-lebron-james-9641258f6600e91d99e4dc8d518deeaa">the new top scorer in NBA history</a>&nbsp;is defying all conventional wisdom about growing older in his mercilessly athletic sport.
When he&rsquo;s fully healthy &mdash; which is admittedly true less often than he would like &mdash; the third-oldest active player in the league still sprints, dunks,&nbsp;<a class="paragraph-link" href="https://twitter.com/NBA/status/1657242100734259201" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">throws no-look passes</a>&nbsp;and competes with the intensity that has kept him at the top for 20 punishing NBA seasons.
&ldquo;Bron is just different,&rdquo; Lakers big man Anthony Davis said. &ldquo;He keeps showing us, showing you. He&rsquo;s not done yet, either.&rdquo;
Two days before his Los Angeles Lakers&nbsp;<a class="paragraph-link" href="https://apnews.com/article/nba-playoffs-2023-warriors-lakers-lebron-curry-470bae4da1526ce6b86be6b1bfb1b442">eliminated the vaunted Golden State Warriors</a>&nbsp;to&nbsp;<a class="paragraph-link" href="https://apnews.com/article/nba-playoffs-2023-lakers-lebron-darvin-e3d5dea52e558a1780cb736e44c43cc4">reach the Western Conference finals</a>&nbsp;last week, James was named to the All-NBA third team. James made one of the three teams for the jaw-dropping 19th time even though he played in only 56 games this season.
&ldquo;I don&rsquo;t take those moments for granted,&rdquo; James said. &ldquo;I don&rsquo;t take anything that I&rsquo;ve been able to accomplish for granted, and I&rsquo;m always appreciative. To be a part of that class of 15 guys is still pretty cool, even at my age and where I&rsquo;m at right now, Year 20. Just don&rsquo;t take it for granted.
&ldquo;Obviously, I&rsquo;ve got bigger fish to fry. But those small moments, those small wins right there, is all part of the journey, all part of the legacy.&rdquo;
The big fish is his fifth NBA championship, which is somehow just eight wins away from being caught at the close of a tumultuous Lakers season. Even getting this close to James&rsquo; 11th career NBA Finals appearance is incredible, considering these Lakers started the season 2-10 and sat at 26-32 in mid-February, shortly after James broke Kareem Abdul-Jabbar&rsquo;s league scoring record.
But after a 27-12 run through the past two months highlighted by knocking off second-seeded Memphis and the defending NBA champions, James&rsquo; Lakers open the conference finals at top-seeded Denver on Tuesday night. The Lakers haven&rsquo;t lost back-to-back games since March 17, and they&rsquo;ve lost just once at home since March 26.
To use the phrase frequently deployed by first-year Lakers coach Darvin Ham, James&rsquo; fingerprints are all over the Lakers&rsquo; success &mdash; particularly in their biggest games.
In the first round, James had&nbsp;<a class="paragraph-link" href="https://apnews.com/article/grizzlies-lakers-lebron-morant-9e8a719125079093104db8145d90ac43">the first 20-point, 20-rebound playoff game</a>&nbsp;of his career during the Lakers&rsquo; Game 4 victory over Memphis &mdash; and he also hit the dramatic tying shot in the final second of regulation. In the second round, James racked up 30 points, nine rebounds and nine assists in the clinching Game 6 victory over defending champion Golden State, conjuring his first 30-point playoff outing since the 2020 season.
Ham was still a player in James&rsquo; first two NBA seasons. He calls LeBron&rsquo;s Year 20 performance, particularly after a late-season injury, &ldquo;unreal.&rdquo;
&ldquo;I&rsquo;ve been around some elite, top-tier, top-5 talent in the NBA as a player and a coach,&rdquo; Ham said. &ldquo;Kobe was nothing short of amazing. Giannis (Antetokounmpo). (But) LeBron, I&rsquo;ve never seen anything like it. ... Top five, dead or alive, ever to play in the NBA.&rdquo;
Indeed, no basketball player has ever stood on the sport&rsquo;s biggest stages as often and as long as James, and he has repeatedly thrived under the spotlight of 16 NBA postseasons and three Olympics. The Lakers&rsquo; elimination of the Warriors was James&rsquo; 41st career playoff series victory, passing Derek Fisher for the most series wins by one player in NBA history.
He has played in a league-record 278 postseason games, and his 7,912 career playoff points are nearly 2,000 more than Michael Jordan (5,987) atop the NBA&rsquo;s career playoff scoring list. He&rsquo;s even the fourth-leading rebounder in NBA playoff history with 2,511 boards &mdash; that&rsquo;s a whopping 1,120 more than the next-highest active player, Draymond Green.
The Lakers&rsquo; achievements are even more impressive because James missed a full month down the regular-season stretch due to a right foot injury that still limits his explosiveness. Los Angeles went 8-5 without him and then went 6-2 after he returned in late March.
One play-in victory and two commanding playoff series wins later, the seventh-seeded Lakers are four wins away from another Finals for the four-time championship series MVP.
&ldquo;That&rsquo;s been us since we made acquisitions with our new guys,&rdquo; James said. &ldquo;We&rsquo;ve been able to be very resilient in games. Like I said, we&rsquo;ve been playing lot of basketball for about 2 1/2 months now, just trying to punch our clock and to be able to play the right way in the postseason.&rdquo;
Indeed, James and Davis realize they wouldn&rsquo;t be in this position without an impressive midseason reconfiguration of the roster around them. D&rsquo;Angelo Russell was the Lakers&rsquo; centerpiece addition at the trade deadline, and the well-traveled guard soon learned something he didn&rsquo;t know about the hard work behind James&rsquo; transcendence.
&ldquo;Bron&rsquo;s niche has always been preparedness,&rdquo; Russell said. &ldquo;A lot of guys&rsquo; niches is shooting the ball, working hard, outworking guys. LeBron is a film junkie, a basketball junkie, a leadership junkie. To be able to watch it all from the front row, it&rsquo;s almost like a cheat code.&rdquo;

As his NBA career approaches its third decade, LeBron James plays almost exclusively alongside teammates who grew up watching him.

LeBron James defies time, propels Lakers to Conference Finals

LOS ANGELES (AP) &mdash; Two-time WNBA Coach of the Year Curt Miller is the new coach of the Los Angeles Sparks after seven seasons with the Connecticut Sun, the team said Friday.
Miller, also the general manager for the past six years, led the Sun to two trips to the WNBA finals, including this year when they lost to the Las Vegas Aces in four games in the best-of-five series. He was an assistant for the Sparks in 2015 before going to Connecticut.
&ldquo;It was an exciting time, such fond memories of my 2015 experience,&rdquo; Miller said. &ldquo;You still, to this day, pinch yourself that I walked into the league from the collegiate game and walked into an opportunity to work with Brian Agler and learn from him and be mentored by him.&rdquo;
Miller &mdash; the 2019 and 2021 WNBA Coach of the Year &mdash; replaces Derek Fisher, who was fired as coach and general manager after a 5-7 start to the latest season. The Sparks have missed the playoffs the past two seasons.
&ldquo;Curt brings extensive experience as a WNBA head coach, where he has won at a historic pace and helped develop several All-WNBA and MVP-level players,&rdquo; Sparks managing partner Eric Holoman said in a statement. &ldquo;His teams play with an intensity and attention to detail our players will embrace, and a passion our fans will appreciate.&rdquo;
Los Angeles, which is the last WNBA franchise to win back-to-back titles, doing so in 2001 and 2002, hadn&rsquo;t missed the playoffs in consecutive seasons since 1997-98.
Miller is excited to help rebuild this original franchise.
&ldquo;I view myself as a program builder. It energizes me and motivates me and the challenges that come with that,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;LA is in this retool era. While it&rsquo;s scary in some ways, it is really a challenge that I love to take on throughout my career.&rdquo;
Miller has a WNBA regular-season record of 140-86 and is the fifth-winningest coach in league history with a 61.9% percentage. Before going to the WNBA, he coached Bowling Green for 11 seasons (2001-12) and Indiana for two (2012-14) with a collegiate mark of 290-124.
He is one of four coaches to have won at least 250 collegiate and 100 WNBA games. The others are Van Chancellor, Lin Dunn and Marynell Meadors.
Even though Miller did double duty in Connecticut, the Sparks plan to also hire a general manager during the offseason.
&ldquo;I was in conversation with them from the beginning only for a head coaching position,&rdquo; Miller said. &ldquo;To have that sole focus that I can just coach the team as we have this new beginning and put this new era out excites me.&rdquo;

Two-time WNBA Coach of the Year Curt Miller is the new coach of the L.A. Sparks after seven seasons with the Connecticut Sun.

WNBA Coach of Year Curt Miller leaves Sun for Sparks

On Thursday, HBO Sports Documentaries announced an upcoming four-part documentary series called "SHAQ," which details the life and career of NBA legend Shaquille O&rsquo;Neal.
Directed by Robert Alexander and executive produced by Peter Berg, the show will give an in-depth look at O'Neal's life on and off the court &mdash; delving into his upbringing in a military family, his Hall-of-Fame career, his deepest personal relationships, his successful off-court endeavors and more.
The docuseries features interviews with O'Neal, Penny Hardaway, Dwyane Wade, Phil Jackson, Pat Riley, Jerry West, Dennis Scott, Brian Shaw, Derek Fisher, Rick Fox and many of Shaq's relatives.
&ldquo;We kept this documentary real from the start, and I do feel like it is the most honest look into my life and career up until this point," O'Neal said in a statement. "This process allowed me to reflect publicly in a way I haven&rsquo;t before, and I&rsquo;m so proud of the work everyone has done to put it all together.&rdquo;
Throughout the course of his 19-year NBA career, O'Neal won four NBA championships, three Finals MVP awards and an NBA MVP award. Also, he earned 15 All-Star selections, 13 All-NBA nods, a Rookie of the Year award and two scoring titles.
The Hall-of-Famer racked up 28,596 points (10th-most in NBA history), 13,099 rebounds (16th-most) and 2,732 blocks (9th-most). His popularity transcended sports and allowed him to become a cultural icon, which led to <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/shaquille-oneal-on-todays-nba-salaries-im-jealous-but-happy-for-the-kids" target="_blank" rel="noopener">a ton of success away from basketball</a> as an investor, rapper, actor, broadcaster and more.
The first episode of "SHAQ" will debut on November 23, 2022 at 9 p.m. ET.&nbsp;

HBO Sports announced an upcoming four-part documentary series called "SHAQ," detailing the life and career of Shaquille O’Neal.

HBO Sports announces 'SHAQ,' a new docuseries about Shaquille O'Neal

In his "Blazing the Trail" series, Mat Issa analyzes Chauncey Billups' dual-threat nature and impact on the next generation of point guards.

Blazing the Trail: Chauncey Billups, the basketball cheat code

There's never a dull moment in The W, even on off days.
The Los Angeles Sparks have been shuffling through changes for most of the season due to injuries, COVID and other outside commitments &mdash; guard Kristi Tolliver joined the team late due to her assistant coaching work with the Dallas Mavericks, for example. Even the coaching staff has seen some turnover, with Derek Fisher abruptly leaving in early June.
They've been an enigma of sorts; a clearly talented roster with a lack of cohesion. Just when you feel like they're starting to round things together for a stretch,&nbsp;something happens.&nbsp;
We've got a pretty big "something" now, figuratively and literally.
As first reported by <a href="https://theballout.com/2022/07/los-angeles-sparks-elizabeth-cambage-leaving-wnba" target="_blank" rel="noopener">The Ball Out</a> a little after midnight on Tuesday, Sparks center Liz Cambage will be departing the team. <a href="https://twitter.com/Khristina" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Khristina Williams</a> of Girls Talk Sports <a href="https://twitter.com/Khristina/status/1551929158321717252?s=20&amp;t=0SKRLYYPfPluSKeqEqhvkA" target="_blank" rel="noopener">later confirmed the report</a>, adding that Cambage "quit" on the team and made her intentions to leave known to multiple people in the organization.
The Sparks released a statement shortly after on Tuesday morning, announcing Cambage and the team have agreed to a contract divorce.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
Los Angeles Sparks announce a &ldquo;contract divorce&rdquo; with center Liz Cambage. <a href="https://t.co/1olUZRWgTC">pic.twitter.com/1olUZRWgTC</a>
&mdash; Chris Haynes (@ChrisBHaynes) <a href="https://twitter.com/ChrisBHaynes/status/1551942268927365120?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">July 26, 2022</a></blockquote>

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

It's unclear why Cambage is leaving, especially now. It's worth noting that she's averaging the lowest amount of minutes (23.4), field goal attempts (9.2) and points (13.0) per game since her age-20 season back in 2013.
The frontcourt minutes were split between her, fringe MVP candidate Nneka Ogwumike, Chiney Ogwumike and rookie Olivia Nelson-Ododa. Finding the balance between featuring Cambage in a post-heavy offense and playing with more tempo has been a constant battle. The defensive trade-off is also worth noting; though Cambage has played higher up in pick-and-roll since interim head coach Frank Williams has taken over, the Sparks have been able to toggle through schemes a little easier with Cambage off the floor.
With Cambage out of the picture, it's fair to expect an uptick in playing time from both Chiney Ogwumike and Nelson-Ododa. Ogwumike remains a prolific defender and energizer bunny on the offensive glass. The latter is fresh off playing a career-high 20 minutes against the Las Vegas Aces on Saturday, finishing with 7 points, 5 rebounds and a block. Her work as a handoff hub and screener should vibe well with the Sparks' stable of guards. Her defensive work &mdash; namely her ability to navigate in space and deal with quicker forwards &mdash; could also prove valuable.
As uneven as the fit was at times, it's hard to ignore the presence Cambage provided on the interior. Her deep seals into the post threaten defenses in a way few players in The W can replicate. She finishes her Sparks tenure having made nearly 74% of her shots inside of 3 feet, <a href="https://www.basketball-reference.com/wnba/players/c/cambael01w.html#shooting0" target="_blank" rel="noopener">per Basketball-Reference</a>. Teams have been able to fluster the Sparks with zone defense; having a 6-foot-8 target like Cambage was a nice release valve to have.
The timing of the departure couldn't come at a weirder time. The Sparks have nine games left in their season. And though they currently hold the sixth seed, they're only a half-game ahead of the ninth-place Phoenix Mercury and three games ahead of the 11th-place Minnesota Lynx.
The hope for the Sparks will be to shore up their rotation while leaning more into the mobility of their roster on both ends.

Nekias Duncan explores what the departure of Liz Cambage means for the Los Angeles Sparks.

With Liz Cambage set to leave the Los Angeles Sparks, what's next?

Year 26 of the WNBA is finally here! There will be plenty of storylines to follow this year: Swan songs for long-time legends (Sylvia Fowles, Sue Bird), highly anticipated returns (Elena Delle Donne), new faces in new places (Tina Charles and Liz Cambage among others), and plenty of young stars looking to make leaps. It's a great time to get invested in the W if you haven't already.
Opening night was a doozy: four games featuring eight teams with wildly different expectations. Every game got my brain churning in some capacity, and the same can be said for my pal <a href="https://twitter.com/MG_Schindler" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Mark Schindler</a>.
So, naturally, we decided to team up and share our takeaways from each game. Let's dig in!
INDIANA FEVER VS WASHINGTON MYSTICS
THE SCORE: 84-70 MYSTICS
THE STORY: MYSTICS' OFFENSE SCARY HOURS
This was a weird game to say the least, something that will likely be the norm for an extremely young Fever team that started three rookies and had five who played significant rotation minutes last night.
The youth was apparent, but so was the budding potential. NaLyssa Smith finished her first game in the pros with a 13-point, 13-rebound double-double while showcasing the footwork, fluidity and athleticism that make her a remarkable prospect.
Destanni Henderson carved up the floor with passes, hitting cutters with ease and operating out of ball screens with the guile that made her a joy to watch at South Carolina.
Most importantly, seeing a healthy Elena Delle Donne back was just awesome. She's gone through an insane amount medically in the past few seasons, and to come in without a minutes restriction was great.
The 84 points scored by the Mystics last night undersells the brilliant flashes they put together offensively. While noting again that this Fever team is of course inexperienced, Washington put them through the ringer. They threw so many actions and looks at the wall in the first game that impressed, and it felt like a playoff gameplan at times. The second Crystal Dangerfield checked into the game, sets were called to run lead guard Natasha Cloud off screens or cuts to post the much smaller Dangerfield up and draw a foul or easy bucket.
Cloud saw the court extremely well last night, and her control of the offense and ability to shift east and west to find better angles to attack was impressive.&nbsp;
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For a roughly five-minute stretch in the second quarter, the Mystics went to Delle Donne at the 5 with Cloud, Ariel Atkins, Shatori Walker-Kimbrough and Tianna Hawkins. All five players can shoot, pass, handle and attack the floor. While it's not a look that the Mystics can fully embrace for large chunks of the game, the run they went on (outscoring Indiana by 8 in a 4:47 stretch, per InStat scouting) showed glimpses of a potent lineup.
With Delle Donne up screening this high and three shooters fanned out, Fever rookie big Queen Egbo has to play at the level. Cloud is capable of hitting a pull-up two against drop. Delle Donne is too good of a shooter from *checks notes* everywhere to give her any modicum of space. It's hard to draw help from any of the off-ball defenders given the personnel the Mystics are employing.
Washington went repeatedly to a 5-out look with this group. Space Delle Donne and use Hawkins as a popper off a pick for Cloud, as she can drive to the basket off a hard close. This is a stout group defensively as well! There's length and mobility. While they'd likely struggle against a true post, the offense feels like it could be so good that it can dictate matchups and opposing lineups.
This Mystics team has a chance to really pop, and it's great to see them whole again. - Mark
STRAY THOUGHTS
-&nbsp;I was a bit surprised by how straight-up the Fever defended the Mystics in this one. Pick-and-rolls were defended two-on-two, often allowing Delle Donne to pop into open space or, if the Fever executed a late switch, drivers to get one-on-ones against bigs. Delle Donne saw plenty of single coverage on post-ups, including a notable up-and-under against NyLyssa Smith. Bless her heart.&nbsp;
- On the pick-and-roll front, I'm curious to see how teams defend the Cloud-Delle Donne duo moving forward. Drop is a non-starter, and switches aren't ideal considering the scoring ability of both. Do you really want to give Delle Donne short-roll opportunities with traps? Good luck.
- The post-up bullying aside, it was nice to see Dangerfield scooting around out there. I'm still a little shellshocked by the Lynx waiving her, especially considering the struggles they had generating offense in their game against the Storm. - Nekias
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LOS ANGELES SPARKS VS CHICAGO SKY
THE SCORE: 98-91 (OT), SPARKS
THE STORY: DANA EVANS!!!!
The most competitive game of the evening was also a cagey affair! Both teams have new faces in prominent roles, and it was clear that both coaching staffs were trying to pinpoint these new areas early to test the waters of their personnel.
Chennedy Carter had great flashes as a scorer out of transition and in the halfcourt, but she was also on a very different rhythm than the rest of the team, which was to be expected in her first game in LA. Derek Fisher rode with Jordin Canada down the stretch, as she cut up the Sky in the halfcourt on drives and set up her teammates extremely well. They don't win the game without her shotmaking (and that call on the last shot).
Candace Parker and Nneka Ogwumike were both fantastic &mdash; Parker with her playmaking and defensive freneticism, Ogwumike with her aggression on offense and defense as well. It was great to see Nneka look this fluid and fully healthy.
The story of the game for me was backup guard Dana Evans. A member of the Sky's title team as a rookie last season, Evans shined bright, going for a career-high 24 points, easily surpassing her 14-point outing that paced her scoring last season.
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Evans toggled on and off the ball, which made her performance all the more impressive. She got to her pull-up and operated well as a ball-handler in pick-and-roll. She canned some deep threes, which opened up even more for her off the catch. She was great intiating sets and then relocating and making herself involved in play, which is essential playing alongside star players.
Evans was great drawing contact, finishing through it and making herself a weapon as a secondary scorer and advantage attacker last night, feasting off of initial plays in sets.&nbsp;
With Julie Allemand (part of the Diamond DeShields trade in the offseason) coming over from overseas to play soon, it'll be interesting to see how the backup guard rotation shapes up in Chicago. Allie Quigley was out last night and Kahleah Copper (who is also finishing up overseas play) is really the only true wing on the roster. As <a href="https://twitter.com/5outbasketball" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Peter Kilkelly</a> pointed out last night, we should expect a lot of 3-guard sets from the Sky this season. This was a special, special performance from Dana that perhaps signified even more reason for excitement this season. - Mark
STRAY THOUGHTS
-&nbsp;Consider me intrigued with Chicago's frontcourt. Starting big with Parker, newcomer Emma Meesseman, and Azura Stevens is sure to pose problems for everyone. That combination of size and ball skills can only be matched by... two other teams? Maybe three? To the three-guard point, I'm excited to see more of the Parker-Meesseman duo. They already showcased some high-low chemistry in the opener.
- How about Jordin Canada, Starting Point Guard? It's about darn time! She's been one of the W's best drivers and point-of-attack defenders for quite some time. Watching her direct the offense and call her own number down the stretch was pretty fun. I don't think she's a 21-and-8 player, but there's clearly more in the bag than she was able to show in Seattle.
- Chennedy Carter is playing basketball again! Her shot creation should pop in this bench role. One might say she'll provide a Spark. - Nekias
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LAS VEGAS ACES VS PHOENIX MERCURY
THE SCORE: 106-88, ACES
THE STORY: OFFENSIVE FREEDOM
Let's get the caveats out of the way early. It's one (1) game. The Mercury, in particular, were missing a ton of talent. There was no Brittney Griner (GET BRITTNEY HOME) as she's still detained in Russia. Brianna Turner, one of the best young frontcourt players in the W, is still playing overseas. The same is true for Diamond DeShields, one of the most athletic wings in the W. That's a pretty large chunk of the Mercury's defensive infrastructure missing.&nbsp;
With that said:&nbsp;whew, buddy, did the Aces put the ball in the basket.
Not only did they drop 106 points, a mark they eclipsed just twice last season, the way they went about it was encouraging.&nbsp;
With A'ja Wilson starting alongside Dearica Hamby, there was more space to operate with. The pace was pushed more frequently &mdash; they won the fastbreak points battle, 15-6 &mdash; and the tempo was up in the half-court. More pace and space means Wilson and Hamby getting busy as screeners or post hubs. Actions with an empty corner have a little more juice now.
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Ah, and then there were the threes.&nbsp;
The Aces were the league's most efficient offense last season, but did so in the most predictable, traditionalist way. They fed the block and brutalized opponents inside. This wasn't a team that shot threes often; their 13.5 attempts last season ranked last in the league by a pretty decent margin.&nbsp;
The tide seems to be turning for the group under new head coach Becky Hammon. They attempted 23 triples in their lone preseason game. They took 21 on Friday night, making 11 of them. It was, per the broadcast, the third time in&nbsp;franchise history&nbsp;that they made 11 or more threes in a game.&nbsp;
Between Kelsey Plum and Chelsea Gray bombing away from deep (hitting a combined 6-of-11 from three), and the complementary play styles (and general mobility) of Wilson and Hamby, it should come as no shock that Jackie Young (20 points on 8-of-10 shooting) was also&nbsp;able to shake loose.
Good freaking luck with this group. - Nekias
STRAY THOUGHTS
- I've already started the Kelsey Plum All-Star campaign, and Kelsey has done so accordingly with her play!
- I was so so impressed by Las Vegas' ball movement and connective passing. While it's important to note that the Mercury were pretty depleted heading into game one, the Aces exacerbated all the advantages they could find and make.
- Jackie Young!!! Entering her fourth season, I have really high expectations for who Jackie can be. With a new coach and system, I think Friday night was a glimpse of her bright spots from past years as well as how beneficial pacing and an even more spread floor benefits her game. She's so strong on her power-drives to the rim and such a fantastic mid-range shooter on a variety of self-created looks. Her defense on Diana Taurasi was extremely fun and effective as well, really sticking to her off the ball. - Mark
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SEATTLE STORM VS MINNESOTA LYNX
THE SCORE: 97-74, STORM
THE STORY: GABBY WILLIAMS IS BACK
It's been a tumultuous stretch from Gabby Williams, a UConn standout turned gap-filler for the Chicago Sky. She had her contract suspended for roster-spot reasons &mdash; you can get a breakdown of that ordeal <a href="https://www.courant.com/sports/uconn-womens-basketball/hc-sp-uconn-women-gabby-williams-explainer-20210508-20210507-gtqqe5sspjdrfncall7kpcxzm4-story.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">here</a> &mdash; and was then traded from the Sky to the Los Angeles Sparks before the 2021 season began.
She was traded again over the offseason, this time to the Seattle Storm for Katie Lou Samuelson and the pick (#9 overall) that became Rae Burrell.
We're only a game in, but this is already looking like one of the best moves of the offseason for the Storm.
Wiilliams can do just about everything but shoot from deep (as she's a career 24.8% from three), which bodes well for a Storm team as active as this one.&nbsp;
Offensively, she's able to get the machine churning with her passing ability. Whether it's making entry passes, making kicks off the dribble or running the occasional ball screen, Williams can find her teammates. Off the ball, she's a willing screener and heady cutter. You can't really afford to "gap" her because she'll make herself &mdash; or a teammate &mdash; a threat.
The real appeal comes on the other end. Williams is a true multi-positional defender. She has the mobility to slide with guards, can deal with virutally any wing you throw at her, and is pesky enough to bother bigger players as well. Watching her slither across screens and mirror ball-handlers is a joy.&nbsp;
For people who aren't familiar or needed the reminder of what she can do defensively, look no further than her work in the second quarter of this game. These are just&nbsp;three&nbsp;examples of her versatility.
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You get it all here. Active hands, timely rotations off the ball, switchability, contesting without fouling. She's a beast. - Nekias
STRAY THOUGHTS
- I'm super intrigued by who Jessica Shepard could be for this team. Her shot was there and she looked confident in it. She displayed some really fun and tantalizing ball skills and court vision as a DHO operator and high-post playmaker. With the Lynx this depleted to start the season, they'll need as much as she can offer as well.
- The Storm miss Mercedes Russell's post presence without a doubt, as Sylvia Fowles bodied them early (a norm for W frontcourt players the past decade-and-a-half). Yet, their ability to rotate backline and flash recovery skills and communicate as a defense throughout the game was impressive. Williams and Briann January bring extra pop at the point of attack and this team shows real capability early to be a more stout defense. - Mark
<a href="https://twitter.com/MG_Schindler" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Mark Schindler contributed to this article.</a>
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Nekias Duncan and Mark Schindler team up to give their observations from the opening night of the 2022 WNBA season.

2022 WNBA season: Thoughts from each opening-night game

Metta World Peace opens up about Suns-Bucks, gambling in the NBA, why he wants a spot on Team USA and more.

Q&A: Metta World Peace on the Finals, Team USA, gambling in the NBA

Devin Booker scored 22 of his 47 points in a phenomenal first quarter, and the Phoenix Suns won their first playoff series since 2010, eliminating the defending NBA champion Los Angeles Lakers with a 113-100 victory in Game 6 on Thursday night.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-theme="dark">
Devin Booker was on a mission tonight 😤 His <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/NBAPlayoffs?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#NBAPlayoffs</a> career-high 47 points, 11 rebounds and 64.7 fantasy points pushes the <a href="https://twitter.com/Suns?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@Suns</a> past the Lakers and onto the Western Conference Semifinals! <a href="https://t.co/cgewe15OI9">pic.twitter.com/cgewe15OI9</a>
&mdash; NBA Fantasy (@NBAFantasy) <a href="https://twitter.com/NBAFantasy/status/1400683694474633217?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">June 4, 2021</a></blockquote>

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

Jae Crowder scored 18 points for the second-seeded Suns, who won three consecutive games to send LeBron James to a first-round series loss for the first time in his 18-year NBA career.
Phoenix will meet Denver in the second round. Game 1 is Monday in Phoenix.
Chris Paul had eight points and 12 assists for the Suns, who jumped to a huge early advantage in the opening minutes of Game 6 while Anthony Davis struggled and eventually left due to his groin injury.
Although the Suns lost much of their early 29-point lead, they patiently held off the Lakers and James, who had 29 points, nine rebounds and seven assists.
Booker and Paul stayed strong in the fourth quarter, and Phoenix ended a decade of hoops frustration in the Valley of the Sun with the clinching victory of Booker's first career playoff series.
Davis returned to the Lakers' starting lineup after missing the second half of Game 4 and all of Game 5, but the eight-time All-Star played less than 5 1/2 minutes before being sidelined again by his groin injury.
Booker and the Suns surged to a 29-point lead in the first half, but the Lakers trimmed it to 10 midway through the fourth quarter. Paul, Mikal Bridges and Crowder all hit big shots down the stretch to make sure the lead never went to single digits.
Dennis Schr&ouml;der scored 20 points and Kentavious Caldwell-Pope had 19 for the Lakers, who won&rsquo;t get to properly celebrate a title in front of their wild home fans this summer after last October&rsquo;s sterile victory in the Florida bubble. The Lakers were 21-6 before they lost Davis and then James to long-term injuries starting on Valentine&rsquo;s Day, and the champs never regained their best form.
Even with a healthy Davis, the Lakers would have hard-pressed to keep up on Booker's latest evening of brilliance.
Booker hit all six of his 3-point attempts and went 8 for 9 overall while the Suns took a 36-14 lead after one quarter. The six-year veteran showed none of the shakiness from earlier in the series against the Lakers, shredding the NBA&rsquo;s best defensive team with his silky-smooth jumper and heady penetration.
While Paul played through a persistent shoulder problem, injuries were insurmountable for Los Angeles, which had a 2-1 series lead on Phoenix when Davis injured his groin midway through Game 4 and subsequently missed Game 5.
Caldwell-Pope played well after missing most of the past two games with a bruised knee, but the Lakers also lost backup guard Alex Caruso to a left ankle injury midway through Game 6.
James had been 14-0 in first-round series during his career, which includes four championships. Only Lakers greats Derek Fisher and Robert Horry ever had more first-round perfection in NBA history, with both going 16-0.
With the resurgence of the injury problems that forced the Lakers down to the seventh seed in the West, they couldn't recover against the Suns and Booker, who rose to lead Phoenix to its decisive wins.
Booker, who scored 30 points in Game 5, got help in the first quarter of Game 6 from three of Crowder's six 3-pointers. Phoenix took a 21-point lead to halftime, but the Lakers trimmed it to only 13 heading to the fourth quarter with big efforts from James, Schr&ouml;der and Wesley Matthews, who combined for 27 points.
TIP-INS
Suns: Crowder and Torrey Craig got technical fouls during a sequence that included a flagrant foul on Caldwell-Pope. Crowder was then ejected with 30.6 seconds left for a second T, and he sprinted to the locker room. Booker also got a final-minute technical.
Lakers: They didn&rsquo;t face an elimination game during their title run last year. ... Schr&ouml;der gave a much-improved effort after going scoreless in Game 5. The German guard is an unrestricted free agent this summer.
SENSING A THEME HERE
The Lakers are the third conference finalist from the 2020 postseason to be eliminated in the first round this year, joining Miami and Boston. All four finalists endured significant injury problems this season after a radically truncated offseason, but the Nuggets held off Portland in six games earlier Thursday to advance despite losing Jamal Murray to a knee injury in April.
ROAD WARRIORS
The NBA&rsquo;s best road team in the regular season won two straight at Staples Center, taking Game 4 after Davis went down at halftime with a groin injury.
Phoenix has won five consecutive closeout games in best-of-seven playoff series &mdash; although the Suns hadn&rsquo;t closed out anybody since San Antonio in the 2010 Western Conference semifinals before Kobe Bryant and the Lakers beat them in the conference finals.
___
More AP NBA: https://apnews.com/hub/NBA and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports

Devin Booker scored 22 of his 47 points in a phenomenal first quarter, and the Suns won their first playoff series since 2010.

Devin Booker scores 47, Suns eliminate LeBron and champion Lakers, 113-100

LeBron James has entered uncharted waters.
He has been to the NBA playoffs in 15 of his 18 NBA seasons, and has never missed the second round &mdash; a streak that is now very much in doubt. James and the Los Angeles Lakers trail their first-round series against Phoenix 3-2, with Game 6 in Los Angeles on Thursday.
Game 7, if necessary, is back in Phoenix on Saturday.
James&rsquo; 14-0 record in first-round series &mdash; counting his times in Cleveland, his four-year run in Miami and now his Lakers&rsquo; stint &mdash; is almost beyond compare in NBA history. Robert Horry and Derek Fisher both played in the first round 16 times; their teams went 16-0 in those series. They are the only players who have enjoyed more first-round success than James.
Now, he&rsquo;s on the brink of something he&rsquo;s never experienced. The approach, from here, is simple.
&ldquo;You shoot all the bullets you&rsquo;ve got and throw the gun too,&rdquo; James said. &ldquo;I look forward to the environment. Obviously, our Laker faithful are going to give us a lot of energy. I look forward to the moment. I look forward to the challenge and see if it brings out the best in me and my teammates.&rdquo;
This marks the first time that James has been on a team that is trailing after five games of a first-round series. He has played one elimination game in a first round, that being three years ago when Indiana took Cleveland to a Game 7.
Yet there are numbers, particularly in Phoenix&rsquo;s Game 5 romp, the likes of which that James has never previously had to deal with.
His Lakers lost the second quarter of Game 5 by 22 points, the most lopsided quarter James has been on the wrong end of during a playoff game. They were down by 30 at halftime, another first in his career.
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A look, by the numbers, at this unprecedented moment in James&rsquo; career:
0 &mdash; The number of times, before this series, that a team with James lost consecutive first-round games. Entering these playoffs, a team with James had been 11-0 in first-round games immediately following losses. The Lakers are 1-2 after losses in this series.
1 &mdash; James has faced an elimination game in the first round of the playoffs only one other time, that being Game 7 of the 2018 opening round between Cleveland and Indiana. James scored 45 points and the Cavaliers won 105-101.
2 &mdash; The number of players with a better series record in first-round matchups than James. Robert Horry and Derek Fisher were both 16-0 in opening rounds. For comparison&rsquo;s sake, Karl Malone and John Stockton were both 10-9, Michael Jordan was 10-3 and Kobe Bryant was 13-2.
14-10 &mdash; James&rsquo; record in elimination games. His Cleveland teams were 9-8 when facing elimination, his Miami teams were 5-2 and this is the first time he&rsquo;s faced elimination as a member of the Lakers.
21 &mdash; James&rsquo; teams once won 21 consecutive first-round games, a stint spanning 2012 through the start of the 2018 playoffs with Miami and Cleveland.
22.2 &mdash; James&rsquo; scoring average in this series against Phoenix so far. That is his lowest average in 15 career first-round matchups. He&rsquo;s had a lower average in only two of his 49 previous playoff series; he averaged 22.0 points in Cleveland&rsquo;s 2007 NBA Finals loss to San Antonio and 17.8 points in Miami&rsquo;s 2011 NBA Finals loss to Dallas.
128 &mdash; The number of players who, in the NBA&rsquo;s 16-team playoff format since 1984, have appeared in at least 44 first-round games. (The number becomes 129 when Jae Crowder plays for Phoenix in Game 6.) None of them have a better record in those games than James does; his teams have gone 58-14, a winning percentage of .806. Jordan&rsquo;s first-round winning percentage was .674 (with a 1-9 start), Bryant&rsquo;s was .676, Fisher&rsquo;s was .740 and Horry&rsquo;s was .750. Malone (44-42) was barely over .500 in first-round games and Stockton (43-43) was exactly .500.
___
More AP NBA: https://apnews.com/hub/NBA and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports

A look, by the numbers, at this unprecedented moment in LeBron James’ career.

By the numbers: LeBron James in a most unusual position

To celebrate Kobe Bryant's incredible life and legacy, BasketballNews.com's Alex Kennedy asked a number of current and former NBA players to share their favorite Kobe stories. We've compiled them below:
<a href="https://hoopshype.com/2020/02/20/nba-rumors-isaiah-thomas-free-agency-celtics-wizards-kobe-bryant-interview-waived-chyna-ainge/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">ISAIAH THOMAS</a>: "One on-court story that stands out was facing off against Kobe in my first NBA game. I was on the Sacramento Kings and during training camp, Coach Paul Westphal had a rule that nobody could back me down. Everybody always turned the ball over or was forced into a bad shot when they tried to post me up, so he&rsquo;d always say that nobody could back me down. When he subbed me into my first NBA game for the first time, he was telling everybody who they were guarding and he didn&rsquo;t say who had Kobe. I looked at him like, 'Uh, who has Kobe?!' Paul Westphal goes, 'IT, you&rsquo;ve got Kobe. Remember, nobody can back you down!' (laughs) He was hyping me up and I don&rsquo;t know if he even realized that Kobe was my favorite player. For three-straight possessions, Kobe backed me down and he scored two out of three times (laughs). I was just smiling on the way back down the court. It was just hilarious. That was an on-court memory that stands out, even though at that point I didn&rsquo;t have a close relationship with him yet.
&ldquo;But the biggest memory for me was when Kobe and I sat down after every game of my series against the Chicago Bulls in 2017 and watched film together. I had my people send the film to him and he&rsquo;d look it over. Then, we&rsquo;d be on speaker-phone and he&rsquo;d be telling me everything that he saw, breaking the game down the way he would if he was in the series. I think that&rsquo;s why he started doing that Detail show with ESPN because it was basically just like that, but it was just me and him. I was going through one of the toughest times in my life with the passing of my sister and he took the time out of his day to help me. We were on the phone for about an hour-and-a-half to two hours the day after every game, looking over the film and seeing how I&rsquo;d adjust for the next playoff game. It was so surreal. It didn&rsquo;t seem real that Kobe Bryant was really on the phone with me, helping through playoff situations. That was probably my biggest memory of Kobe, taking the time to really be there and help me... 
"For me to have Kobe Bryant basically on speed dial, where I could call him or text him anytime I needed him and he was there for me? That meant so much to me. For someone of that stature to always be there for me and always lend a helping hand, whether it was with basketball or when I was dealing with my sister passing, it meant so much. When my sister passed away, he was one of the first people to reach out and he sent a long text message on that game-day. I remember he said, &ldquo;If you&rsquo;re going to play, you play. You play like Isaiah Thomas plays and nobody knows how to make that happen but you.&rdquo; That goes a long way. He&rsquo;s someone who is close to my heart.&rdquo;
KERRY KITTLES: &ldquo;Playing against Kobe in the 2002 NBA Finals, he and Shaq that year were No. 1 and No. 2 in the whole league. We had the best player in the league and the second-best player in the league coming at us, taking all of the shots. Occasionally, they&rsquo;d pass the ball to Rick Fox or Robert Horry or Derek Fisher every now and then, but those two guys were just as dominant as could be. And Kobe, to me, was just so hard to guard because he didn't have any weakness. With most players back then, you could key in on certain tendencies, but he didn&rsquo;t have tendencies! He had countermoves and then he had more countermoves! Kobe was more skilled than Jordan, but Jordan was more effective than Kobe. Jordan would hit you with pump fakes and drive by you; he was a little bit more predictable. With Kobe, you didn't know what he was going to do because he didn&rsquo;t know what he was going to do. That's the most dangerous player, when you think about it. As far as trying to guard him one-on-one, you didn&rsquo;t know what he was going to do. At least with Mike, you had a little bit of an idea what he wanted to do. Kobe was the toughest match-up for me and the hardest to guard."
<a href="https://twitter.com/SpinDavies/status/1222004243185504257?s=20" target="_blank" rel="noopener">TRISTAN THOMPSON:</a> "I remember my rookie year, I was wearing LeBron shoes and playing at Staples [Center], and he said, 'Young fella, if you had my shoes on, you would get more buckets.' That made me laugh, and it was cool. The fact a guy I looked up to my whole life, for him to say something like that to me, especially as a rookie, was like, 'This guy's a human.' Growing up as a kid, you view those guys as superheroes. The fact that he said that to me was something that I'll always tell my kids when I get older. Kyrie [Irving] got [his shoes after the game] -- No. 1 pick. (laughs) I got my pictures, though, so those will be framed in and going up in my house. [I'm] gonna show my kids and my grandkids and pass 'em down. I'll always have that in the Thompson estate."
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JOSH POWELL: &ldquo;With Kobe, it was his attention to detail and his obsession with the game and getting better [that stood out to me]. I was more impressed watching him in practice than I was in games. I&rsquo;ve been on both sides of it; I was in Dallas when he put up 62 points in three quarters on us and I was with the Lakers when he put up 61 at the Garden. But watching him in practice, he would come in there and his presence alone would change how guys were attacking and going at it every day. You had to elevate your game because you were around greatness.
"He ain't for everybody, I'll tell you that. (laughs) I was fortunate to be as close as I was with him, God rest his soul. You can't be on no bullsh*t [around Kobe]. That's the one thing about him: If he felt like you were some sucker or on some soft sh*t, he ain't respect that. That&rsquo;s why you&rsquo;d see him go at guys the way he did -- because if he doesn&rsquo;t respect you, he ain&rsquo;t f*cking with you. And if he does f*ck with you, it's because he does respect you. When you see a guy like that -- one of the all-time greats -- with that type of work ethic and that type of obsession, it makes you tighten your sh*t up and bring your A game. Because how in the hell am I going to let someone like that outwork me? I remember when I first got signed by the Lakers, it was like me and him were battling to [get to] the gym first at 3 or 4 in the morning, but that's how I earned his respect. Even when I was at NC State, I would be in that b*tch at 3:30 or 4 and that was prior to meeting or knowing [Kobe]; that was just a part of my make-up. From the time I was in college through my pro years, I stayed in the gym and was in there three or four times a day. But he appreciated that.
"For the guys at that level, I don't think people realize how f*cking sick it must be to have a brain like that. I did film work with Kobe and just watching how he would break down film [was incredible]. He'd be like, 'JP, look at how they're guarding me on the left side. Here&rsquo;s what I&rsquo;ll do to counter that. Now, look at the middle, they have no answer for this. And watch how they guard me on the right side, and now watch what happens when Tony [Allen] is on me versus Ray [Allen] being on me.' The sh*t is insane... the attention to detail. Think about how crazy their mind is to have that attention to detail! The way that they process sh*t and look at sh*t&nbsp;is just different. That was amazing to watch and be a part of.&rdquo;
<a href="https://hoopshype.com/2020/02/17/nba-rumors-collin-sexton-cleveland-cavaliers-andre-drummond-all-star-trade-chris-paul-rising-stars/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">COLLIN SEXTON</a>: &ldquo;My favorite [players] were Allen Iverson and Kobe Bryant. Those two are my guys. I got a chance to sit down with Kobe and talk to him for about 40-to-45 minutes, just picking his brain. It was cool. I&rsquo;m [glad] that I got to meet him before the tragedy. But it was cool, just being able to sit down with Kobe Bryant &ndash; one of the best to ever play &ndash; and being able to ask him pretty much anything. We talked about everything.&rdquo;
JAMES POSEY: "Playing in Denver my rookie year, Coach John Lucas made me pick Kobe up full-court. Luc was yelling, 'Turn him, Pose! Turn him! You got him!' So I&rsquo;m working him and then he passes the ball away and then gets it back in the mid-post and... hits a turnaround jumper. Luc yells, 'That&rsquo;s okay, Pose! He can&rsquo;t do it again!' Next trip down, I&rsquo;m doing the same thing defensively and I get back-screened and Kobe GETS A LOB DUNK. Luc jumps up again and says, 'That&rsquo;s okay, Pose!' The third trip down, I&rsquo;m doing the same thing, but I make sure I don&rsquo;t get back-screened. They run some action out of the triangle and Kobe gets ball in the mid-post again, puts me in the blender and goes to the basket and gets an AND-1. Luc is still talking sh*t&nbsp;while he's at the free-throw line, saying, 'YOU GOT HIM, POSE!' That's when Nick Van Exel yells at Luc, 'MAAAAN, SHUT THE F*CK UP, LUC!' (laughs) Then, while Kobe is getting ready to shoot the free throw, Van Exel jokingly says, 'You got him, Pose!' Kobe gave Van Exel and I that look and then he started laughing. Then... SWISH!"
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CHUCKY BROWN: &ldquo;I was coaching [the Los Angeles Defenders] in the D League and we would have 8 a.m. practices. I'd get to the gym around 7:00 or 7:15 a.m. One day, I get there and I hear a ball bouncing in the gym. I thought I was the first person there and I&rsquo;m thinking, &lsquo;Who the hell is here already?!&rsquo; I stuck my head in the gym and it was Kobe. He was working on his footwork and getting lathered up and stuff. Their practice didn&rsquo;t start until 11:00! But he was there at 7:00 and he had already worked up a sweat, so he&rsquo;d been there for a bit too. I tell my young players that story because I just found it so impressive that a guy at THAT level was in the gym so early and doing his thing. And when he came in there for practice, you better be ready to go. And if you're not ready to go? He had no problem being the a**hole. I remember him getting on Sasha [Vujacic] a couple of times and then D-Fish would come smooth it over and mellow everything out. I'm glad I got to witness his work ethic.&rdquo;
<a href="https://omny.fm/shows/the-hoopshype-podcast-with-alex-kennedy/celebrating-kobe-bryants-life-with-former-teammate">MO EVANS</a>: &ldquo;The things I appreciated the most about him as a player were how well-rounded he was and dedicated to the game he was. He would literally run our shootarounds and put everyone in position and share the strengths and weaknesses of the opposing players. He could just manipulate the game because in the triangle offense, and I&rsquo;m not sure if most people know this, it&rsquo;s interchangeable. The reason it&rsquo;s so hard for some players is because you need to know all five positions fluently. Just as he spoke multiple languages fluently, he knew that offense inside and out, and he was so good at utilizing his skill set to find an advantage and exploit weaknesses in his defender. He was a savant.&rdquo;

To celebrate Kobe Bryant's life, BasketballNews.com asked current and former NBA players to share their favorite Kobe stories.

NBA players share their favorite Kobe Bryant stories

The following is an excerpt from "1996: A Biography &ndash; Reliving the Legend-Packed, Dynasty-Stacked Most Iconic Sports Year Ever" by Jon Finkel. <a href="https://www.amazon.com/1996-Reliving-Undefeated-Undisputed-Greatest/dp/1635767504/ref=tmm_pap_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&amp;qid=&amp;sr" target="_blank" rel="noopener">The book is available now on Amazon.</a>
To borrow a song title from Green Day (the perfect mid-90s band), picks seven through 12 of the 1996 NBA Draft were a boulevard of broken dreams for NBA executives. They contain a collection of men that run the gamut from &ldquo;solid pro&rdquo; to &ldquo;absolute bust&rdquo; and no matter how defensible the selection was at the time, within 24 months it was clear that, to be blunt, these six franchises missed. This isn&rsquo;t 2021 revisionist history. This is 1997-1998 near-immediate regret.
It&rsquo;s one thing as a general manager to look in the mirror and know that taking Allen Iverson or Marcus Camby or Shareef Abdur-Rahim or Stephon Marbury or Ray Allen or Antoine Walker with one of the first six picks of the &rsquo;96 draft was the right basketball call at the time. They all made the &rsquo;96-&rsquo;97 All-Rookie Team (1st or 2nd) and there were two bona fide Hall of Famers (Iverson and Allen) several all-stars (Abdur-Rahim, Marbury and Walker) and Camby was a 4x All-Defensive Team player.
It&rsquo;s quite another thing to know that from the seventh through 12th picks, you took one of these half-dozen guys:
<ul>
<li> Lorenzen Wright &ndash; L.A. Clippers</li>
<li> Kerry Kittles &ndash; New Jersey Nets</li>
<li> Samaki Walker &ndash; Dallas Mavericks</li>
<li> Erick Dampier &ndash; Indiana Pacers</li>
<li> Todd Fuller &ndash; Golden State Warriors</li>
<li> Vitaly Potapenko &ndash; Cleveland Cavaliers</li>
</ul>
Over Kobe Bryant. Or Steve Nash. Or Jermaine O&rsquo;Neal. Or even Peja Stojakovic. That&rsquo;s a clean 35 All-Star selections from picks 13 to 17 versus none from picks seven to 12.&nbsp;
Ooooof.
Even in the moment, there was a lack of, let&rsquo;s say, sexiness, to picks seven through 12. In person, Kittles was the fastest coast-to-coast player in basketball (my opinion but I&rsquo;m right) and showed flashes of excellence, but few projected him as an All-Star-caliber talent. Wright, Walker, Dampier and Potapenko became serviceable, and in some cases, solid NBA players. But as they came off the draft board, Hubie Brown and other 1996 NBA draft analysts used phrases like &ldquo;will help shore up the defense&rdquo; and &ldquo;this helps them get bigger&rdquo; and other vague, roster-rounding-out terms, rather than things like &ldquo;game changer&rdquo; and &ldquo;potential superstar&rdquo; and &ldquo;special talent&rdquo; which he, and other draft gurus, reserved for the man picked after all of these guys: Kobe Bryant.
It&rsquo;s worth noting here that just because Bryant wasn&rsquo;t discussed as a #1 overall pick, it&rsquo;s not as if nobody knew how good Bryant could be. In fact, a lot of people suspected he could be the prize of the draft: they just didn&rsquo;t have the guts to put their jobs on the line for a high school kid, or they got talked out of it, or bullied out of it, or both.
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John Calipari really, really, really wanted him. He worked him out three times, each time becoming more and more convinced that Bryant was going to be special. So why didn&rsquo;t he take him with the eighth pick? There are three versions: one of them involves Calipari, a first-time NBA head coach, pleading with ownership to take him, but getting turned down. He described the scenario like this:
&ldquo;I had the eighth pick in the draft, and everyone thought I was nuts,&rdquo; Calipari said. &ldquo;A 17-year-old kid, a high school kid who&rsquo;s just now getting to the NBA? It shows you don&rsquo;t know what you&rsquo;re doing.&rdquo;
Version two was described in Jeff Pearlman&rsquo;s excellent book, <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/nba-rumors-shaquille-oneal-shaq-los-angeles-lakers-best-teammate-jeff-pearlman" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Three-Ring Circus</a>, and it involves Kerry Kittles&rsquo; agent strong-arming Calipari and telling him that if he didn&rsquo;t take Kittles&rsquo; (instead of Bryant), he&rsquo;d never let any other clients sign with the Nets.
Version three involves Kobe Bryant&rsquo;s agent, Arn Tellem, talking to Calipari and telling him that if he drafted Bryant, the teenager would never suit up for the Nets.
&ldquo;It was a calculated gamble," Tellem <a href="https://www.charlotteobserver.com/sports/charlotte-hornets/article239760573.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">told The</a><a href="https://www.charlotteobserver.com/sports/charlotte-hornets/article239760573.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">&nbsp;Charlotte Observer</a>.&nbsp;"I remember meeting with John Calipari and John Nash, pressing them not to take him if he fell. I left not knowing if they would pass. I thought they would pass, but didn't know.&rdquo;
In the end, it really doesn&rsquo;t matter which version is right, or even if it&rsquo;s a combination of all three. Calipari and the Nets didn&rsquo;t select Kobe Bryant and neither did the next four teams in line or any of the top-12 teams in the draft. It was only at Jerry West&rsquo;s urging, after a trade involving Lakers center Vlade Divac, that Kobe went off the board and found his way to the Lakers.
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West coveted Bryant like card collectors covet the Honus Wagner T206 and he planned to do whatever it took to land him. He worked with Tellem to limit Bryant&rsquo;s&rsquo; workouts. He massaged Vlade Divac&rsquo;s hesitation about going to Charlotte (Vlade once threatened to retire if traded).&nbsp;
As Bryant fell in the draft, West realized that his plan was coming to fruition when the Hornets selected him. And then the whole thing almost fell through because, well, someone on the Hornets said, &ldquo;Holy sh*t, we just got Kobe Bryant.&rdquo;
&ldquo;There was such excitement about the pick that Charlotte didn&rsquo;t want to go through with the deal,&rdquo; Mitch Kupchak, Los Angeles&rsquo; assistant general manager in 1996, said. &ldquo;There was a time there, whether it was Vlade (Divac threatening to retire) or just pressure on the franchise, where the deal was actually in jeopardy.&rdquo;
But it got done.
And instead of Bryant joining Anthony Mason, Glen Rice, Dell Curry and Muggsy Bogues in Charlotte, he teamed up with Shaq in Los Angeles and you know the rest.
***
With 25 years having passed since that epic day in East Rutherford, New Jersey, the legacy of the draft has been solidified.
Looking back on his class, Ray Allen says, &ldquo;You&rsquo;ve got to remember where our mindset was. We&rsquo;re walking into a league with Jordan, Barkley, Patrick Ewing, Reggie Miller, Hakeem Olajuwon, Scottie Pippen. There were some horses in this league that we were stepping into that we had been watching forever. We didn&rsquo;t think we were the next coming or next generation, but we were excited to be there.&rdquo;
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Allen explains that the toughest part about being drafted is balancing your excitement with any inclination to sit back and say, &ldquo;I made it." Guys who do that don&rsquo;t go far. He goes on to say that one thing that &rsquo;96 draft class shared was the mentality to keep pushing yourself and to self-motivate like you&rsquo;re on a mission.
&ldquo;When you look at myself, Nash, Kobe, Iverson, Marbury, Camby, Shareef, Jermaine, Peja, [Derek] Fisher, Walker, all these guys, they were all good to great in college [or high school] and scored a lot of points,&rdquo; Allen says. &ldquo;But they weren&rsquo;t in it to be famous or liked by everybody. It was evident in someone like Steve Nash, a white kid from Canada out of Santa Clara, he was on a mission. Kobe came in from high school and he was on a mission. Marbury wanted to prove what the legacy of New York City ballers could do, and he was on a mission. I came from meager beginnings and I was on a mission.&rdquo;
That was the big differentiator between past &ldquo;great draft classes." Rather than two or three or even five guys with the mindset to chase greatness, the &rsquo;96 class had a dozen.
&ldquo;That&rsquo;s the reason the &rsquo;96 draft class is thought of as one of the best,&rdquo; Allen says. &ldquo;It&rsquo;s the mentality we had. We were all on a mission to be better than we were. For all of us, there was a constant search to win. Every year, the championship was a carrot we were chasing. I didn&rsquo;t win until my 12th season. It comes down to watching basketball in June or playing basketball in June. This class had a lot of guys play in June. We knew what it took.&rdquo;
<a href="https://twitter.com/jon_finkel" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Follow Jon on Twitter: @Jon_Finkel</a>
<a href="https://www.amazon.com/1996-Reliving-Undefeated-Undisputed-Greatest/dp/1635767504/ref=tmm_pap_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&amp;qid=&amp;sr=" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Buy this book on Amazon: 1996: A Biography &ndash; Reliving the Legend-Packed, Dynasty-Stacked Most Iconic Sports Year Ever.</a> 
<img style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" src="https://cdn.basketballnews.com/images/story/body/1996-ad_lg.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="464" />

Jon Finkel looks back at the 1996 NBA Draft, which included Kobe Bryant, Allen Iverson, Steve Nash, Ray Allen, Jermaine O'Neal, etc.

Revisiting the star-studded 1996 NBA Draft: 'We were all on a mission'

One month from now, we will all be enjoying the NBA play-in tournament, a precursor to the postseason.
But until then, we are enduring what is known in the Association as &ldquo;dog day&rdquo; games, in which there is no telling exactly what will be compelling.&nbsp;
So tonight, we aim to change that by making every team interesting. Every single NBA team has something interesting going on, from the very best to the very worst. So let&rsquo;s have a look at all 30 of them, starting with the East before tackling the West.
Consider this a reset/refresher column as we all prepare for the final 24 days of the regular season.
EASTERN CONFERENCE
PHILADELPHIA 76ers (39-19): A home loss to Phoenix last night kept them from picking up a game on the Brooklyn Nets, who remain a half-game behind the Sixers. Ben Simmons (illness) was not available to defend Stephen Curry on Monday or Chris Paul on Wednesday, and those missed games won't help his Defensive Player of the Year candidacy. The team has a measuring stick game against the Milwaukee Bucks tonight.
BROOKLYN NETS (39-20): It has now been more than two weeks since they put together back-to-back wins, which is understandable because their big three of Kevin Durant, Kyrie Irving and James Harden have not been together on the court since the dead of winter. Mike James of CSKA Moscow was released from his contract and will be joining them next.&nbsp;
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MILWAUKEE BUCKS (35-22): They and the 76ers have lost back-to-back games, but one of those skids will end tonight after they play each other in Milwaukee. This is their second game of the season vs. Philly, and the teams end their season series on Saturday afternoon. If the Bucks win both home contests, they will be only one game back of Philly in the loss column. But that seems to be asking a lot of a Milwaukee team that has allowed 128 points in each of its last two games.
NEW YORK KNICKS (33-27): They are the hottest team in the NBA right now with an eight-game winning streak, which means it is time to resume the conversation of Tom Thibodeau as the leading candidate for Coach of the Year. The Knicks have the NBA&rsquo;s stingiest defense (allowing 104.7 points per game) and have the likely Most Improved Player, Julius Randle, who has scored 32 or more points in five of the last six games. The seven-year playoff drought is ending. They have not won a second-round series in 21 years.
ATLANTA HAWKS (32-27): Nate McMillan is 18-7 since taking over for Lloyd Pierce, Clint Capela has shot no worse than 65.8% in the past 12 games and is leading the league in rebounds per game (14.7), and Bogdan Bogdanovic is averaging 21.6 points per game this month while shooting 49.1% on threes. There's a big stretch upcoming: Miami, Milwaukee and two vs. Philadelphia among Atlanta's next five games.&nbsp;
BOSTON CELTICS (31-27): Eight wins in nine games seemed to straighten them out before they lost Wednesday night to Chicago, but entering the playoffs with a head of steam is a tried-and-true formula for success. Last night&rsquo;s loss was excusable given the absences of Marcus Smart, Evan Fournier, Kemba Walker and Robert Williams. The Celtics have two games left vs. Charlotte and two vs. Miami. Fourth place is within reach.
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MIAMI HEAT (31-28): Let&rsquo;s not forget that nobody saw them coming last season, so doubt them at your own risk. We go into Thursday night&rsquo;s games with one game separating the No. 4 to No. 7 teams in the loss column, and let&rsquo;s not forget that these guys were 11-17 a little more than two months ago. The Heat's schedule is easy until four of their final five are against Boston (twice), Philadelphia and Milwaukee.
CHARLOTTE HORNETS (28-29): The Hornets franchise has not won a playoff series since 2001-02, but is currently the eighth seed in the East. Terry Rozier is not being discussed in the Most Improved Player debate, but he is averaging a career-high 20.7 points and his field goal percentage is up four-and-a-half points to 46.8%. The best news for Charlotte? LaMelo Ball is expected to return very soon.
INDIANA PACERS (27-31): They are looking like a play-in game team, and they are 0-1 against their likely (as of now) No. 10 opponent, Washington, although they have two games remaining against the Wizards. Caris LeVert is getting up a lot of shots, but not making them at a particularly good clip. Except for his field goal percentage, Malcolm Brogdon is having a solid April production-wise, most notably with an assist-to-turnover ratio of 4.0.&nbsp;
WASHINGTON WIZARDS (25-33): At least we can always count on Russell Westbrook filling up the stat sheet, and Bradley Beal, when healthy, showing why everyone always wants to trade for him. They are going to have to hold off Chicago and Toronto for the No. 10 spot, and the Raptors have suddenly strung together four-straight wins. The Wizards have won six in a row and eight of nine, so keep that &ldquo;head-of-steam&rdquo; thing in mind.
TORONTO RAPTORS (25-34): They have an absolutely brutal schedule the rest of the way, playing the Clippers (twice), Nuggets, Jazz, Lakers, Knicks, Nets, Grizzlies and Mavericks. The Raptors have played every single one of their games on the road, having temporarily relocated to Tampa from the still-on-lockdown province of Ontario, so making the top 10 will be especially difficult. Their end-of-winter stretch of 15 losses in 17 games was a killer.
CHICAGO BULLS (24-34): Billy Donovan is tasked with assimilating several newly-acquired rotation players into the lineup on the fly, and the Bulls are 5-10 since the trade deadline. The No. 10 spot is the goal, and Washington is only one game ahead of them in the loss column. But 13 of their final 14 are against East teams with better records. They will not play any more West teams.&nbsp;
CLEVELAND CAVALIERS (21-37): Out of the rotation with a fluctuating role, Cedi Osman has scored in single digits in nine of his last 10 games and has missed 27 of his last 30 three-point shots over that span. That, to use a nice word, is peculiar. In addition to the first season of his contract, will make roughly $31 more million by the time his contract expires, unless whoever he plays for in 2023-24 declines the $6.7 million option in the final season.
ORLANDO MAGIC (18-40): They are 3-11 since the fire-sale/trade deadline, and there is not a lot to be positive about when looking ahead to next year (aside from the hope that Markelle Fultz and Jonathan Isaac recover successfully from their injuries). At least the players can ditch their winter clothes for a while. The Magic have only one cold-weather city road game ahead, and that's May 11 in Milwaukee.
DETROIT PISTONS (18-41): Troy Weaver got rid of all the dead money, which is Step 1 in a rebuild. Jerami Grant, Saddiq Bey and Killian Hayes are the main building blocks, and the Pistons will have a very good lottery pick. Weaver has his work cut out for him.
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WESTERN CONFERENCE
UTAH JAZZ (44-15): &nbsp;Nobody makes this argument, but a guy who studies this stuff believes Joe Ingles is a better Sixth Man of the Year candidate than Jordan Clarkson. He cites Ingles' superior three-point numbers (49.4% to 35.0%), double the assists (4.4 to 2.2) and better overall field goal percentage (52.5% to 42.4). On a broader note, the Jazz are ahead in the West by one-and-a-half games over Phoenix, with one game against the Suns remaining. Phoenix is 2-0 against Utah and owns the tiebreaker.
PHOENIX SUNS (42-16): They are 31-7 since Feb. 5, and nobody in the league can touch that type of stretch over that long of a period. (The Jazz have lost 10 games over that span). So why exactly are we not talking about Monty Williams for Coach of the Year? Nobody on this team is in the MVP conversation because none of them are doing the type of night-in, night-out spectacular things that Nikola Jokic, Joel Embiid and Steph Curry do, but doubt the Suns at your own risk. They could have the No. 1 seed.
LOS ANGELES CLIPPERS (42-19): They are 16-3 in their last 19 games, and are 25-10 against Western Conference teams &ndash; tops in the West in terms of winning percentage. They are 11-1 in the second half of back-to-back games, winning again last night with Amir Coffey in the starting five, as Ty Lue used his 22nd different starting lineup. The Clippers would lose the tiebreaker with the Jazz and win the tiebreaker with the Suns; still, they are almost locked into the No. 3 seed. They have litmus-test games left vs. the Suns, Lakers and Nuggets.
DENVER NUGGETS (38-20): With Steph Curry having a bad shooting game last night, perhaps the &ldquo;Steph-for-MVP&rdquo; bandwagon lost a wheel. Nikola Jokic is two-tenths of an assist away from averaging a triple-double this month, as the Nuggets have gone 9-2. Denver still must play road games against the Clippers, Jazz, Lakers and Blazers, but for now seem locked into a No. 4 seed with a likely first-round matchup against a Lakers team that is getting Anthony Davis back on Thursday and LeBron James soon after.&nbsp;
LOS ANGELES LAKERS (35-23): Their regular-season record means absolutely nothing, because there have been a total of zero games in which Anthony Davis, LeBron James and Andre Drummond have been on the court together. The Lakers have alternated wins and losses in their past 12 games, and they&rsquo;ll probably be at full strength for their final 10 or so games to figure each other out prior to the playoffs. One would imagine that Drummond, Davis and Montrezl Harrell can combine to contain Jokic in the first round.
PORTLAND TRAIL BLAZERS (32-26): They'll want to hold off the Mavericks for sixth to avoid the play-in tournament &ndash; unless they would prefer a first-round matchup with Phoenix instead of the Clippers. The Blazers have the tiebreaker over the Mavs from winning the season series 2-1, and the schedule-makers have given them three of their next four games against the Memphis Grizzlies. The two components that they did not have a year ago -- when Jusuf Nurkic was hurt -- are a rebounding machine at backup center (Enes Kanter) and a stud perimeter defender (Robert Covington).
DALLAS MAVERICKS (31-26): They are only .500 (14-14) at home and .500 (17-17) against Western Conference teams. Kristaps Porzingis has only 15 double-doubles after having 21 in his rookie season under Derek Fisher, when Phil Jackson was running the New York Knicks franchise. Assuming they are a play-in team, Luka Doncic will still make it a must-watch No. 7 - No. 8 game, even for casual fans. The Mavs have already clinched the season series against Memphis.
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MEMPHIS GRIZZLIES (29-28): If only they played in the East... The Grizzlies are 17-8 against teams from the opposite conference, 12-20 against the West. There are enough cupcakes left on their schedule to keep them safe, so it is probably a matter of whether they finish No. 8, 9 or 10. Oh, and welcome back, Jaren Jackson Jr. Eight of their players are averaging double figures in points, and Desmond Bane is 0.5 points per game away from making it nine. Jonas Valanciunas has missed a double-double in two straight games after doing it in 16-straight, and missing the last two contests with a concussion.
GOLDEN STATE WARRIORS (29-30): Steph Curry&rsquo;s streak of 30-point games ended last night at 11, but one would imagine that he will have another good game sometime soon. His MVP odds were 100-1 last Sunday and are 17-1 today. Whether the Warriors end up in the No. 7 - No. 8 game or the No. 9 - No. 10 game in the play-in tournament, we will not want to miss it. The Warriors' final regular-season game is against Memphis, and it could be a tiebreaker game. The Grizzlies are 1-1 vs. GSW.
SAN ANTONIO SPURS (28-29): Gregg Popovich will eventually get a haircut... we think. But in all seriousness, Pop has done quite well with a team that will likely undergo a roster overhaul in the offseason, and presumably, he and San Antonio CEO R.C. Buford will address a position other than point guard. They have lost 8 of 12 and 13 of 19, but eight of their final 15 games are against East teams. They will not play a West team at home until a home back-to-back vs. Phoenix to end the regular season.
NEW ORLEANS PELICANS (25-33): If not for their current four-game losing streak, they would have caught the Spurs by now.&nbsp; The Pelicans have a must-win game Saturday against San Antonio because it would clinch the season series, but four games in the loss column is a lot of ground to cover over the remainder of the season. The schedule is packed with road games, and there are only two easy opponents: Orlando on Thursday and Minnesota on May 1.
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SACRAMENTO KINGS (24-35): They have lost 10 of 12, so it would take a miracle for them to climb to No. 10. Buddy Hield is only a shade above 40% from the field, which is not what you want from your shooting guard who just signed a huge extension. A massive offseason overhaul seems likely, as the playoff-free streak probably reaches 15 years in late May.&nbsp;
OKLAHOMA CITY THUNDER (20-39): When you have nothing to do, Google &ldquo;McLovin&rdquo; and &ldquo;Aleksej Pokusevski&rdquo; and see if that looks like a match. Jeff Sherman of LV Sportsbook says the Thunder have a power rating worse than the tanking Sixers from back when Sam Hinkie was running the team, but they certainly will be entertaining on draft night when general manager Sam Presti (presumably) starts packaging multiple future first-round picks for better first-round picks and/or players.
MINNESOTA TIMBERWOLVES (16-44): They have a new ownership group coming in that will keep the team in its current location, which means expansion is coming to Seattle and a second city (Las Vegas? Kansas City? Louisville?). Those expansion teams will help the current owners mitigate the financial losses they have sustained the past two seasons during the pandemic.&nbsp;
HOUSTON ROCKETS (15-44): They are a pleasure to watch when the only alternative is the Home Shopping Network. The Victor Oladipo thing really did not work out, and they are now stuck with John Wall for the next two seasons. It'll be a long rebuild for the Rockets.

Chris Sheridan checks in with every team in the league as we prepare for the final stretch of the regular season.

All 30 NBA teams have interesting situations as season hits home stretch

Sure, Montrezl Harrell is a mammoth of a man and tenacious defender, but Shai Gilgeous-Alexander was already oozing with confidence by the time he got the switch.&nbsp;
The young Canadian had already made a fool of Dennis Schroder on a few possessions, so when Kentavious Caldwell-Pope came with a hard show to trap the Oklahoma City Thunder&rsquo;s young star, Shai crossed over from left to right, faking the two defenders out of their shoes. He slithered to the rack and threw down a two-handed dunk.
Somewhere, Chris Paul was smiling.
Gilgeous-Alexander, of course, spent last season as Paul&rsquo;s understudy. And although Paul would&rsquo;ve probably finished the play off by finding a backdoor cutter, the entire sequence had Paul&rsquo;s fingerprints on it.
So know this: the journey to becoming a superstar in the NBA isn&rsquo;t as simple as giving a kid the ball and the keys to a franchise. More often than not, young players with promise have to learn as they go. Just like Gilgeous-Alexander did. Just like RJ Barrett, Obi Toppin and Immanuel Quickley will.
Above all else, that&rsquo;s why the New York Knicks&rsquo; decision to run it back with Derrick Rose -- especially considering what they had to give up in exchange for him -- was a no-brainer.
It&rsquo;s disconcerting the extent to which NBA fans allow themselves to be peddled falsities. Once upon a time, we were told that tanking was the best way to building a contender. Not too long ago, we were led to believe that hoarding cap space was the way to sign impact free agents and more recently, for some reason, many have been led to believe that players with promise need to be force-fed the ball for 40 minutes per night.
You know what young players really need more than anything else? Guidance and experienced wisdom.
Neophytes need to learn how to win games and see, first-hand, what kind of commitment it takes to be successful in the NBA. They don&rsquo;t need to be on the receiving end of 30-point blowout losses or to be torn apart by the likes of Jrue Holiday or Patrick Beverley. They need veteran players whose attitudes and habits help them get to the next level. They need a coaching staff that connects with them and helps them develop their talents, and they need to be properly primed before they&rsquo;re entrusted with the marbles.
They need to marinate, and they need players who've been there and done that before them help with their seasoning. For the gross majority of players, this is fact even if&nbsp;some players &nbsp;-- LeBron James, Damian Lillard, Donovan Mitchell and Luka Doncic to name a few -- are ready from Day 1.
Far more players have been brought along slowly and surely. In a basketball culture that is often fooled into thinking there&rsquo;s only one way to do things, the want to see immediate dividends on the investment in a player with potential is understandable... It&rsquo;s just not usually the reality.
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About 25 years ago, a young backup guard named Sam Cassell was instrumental in helping deliver two NBA championships to the Houston Rockets. Nonetheless, he couldn&rsquo;t find a starting role playing behind a bevy of accomplished veterans that included Kenny Smith, Vernon Maxwell and Clyde Drexler.
Humbled, Cassell studied under the veterans, learned some lessons and applied the teachings in his subsequent stops. He ended up enjoying a fruitful career, to say the least.
The late, great Kobe Bryant became a starter in his third season, but only after it became apparent that he was the franchise&rsquo;s future and that Eddie Jones, Nick Van Exel and Derek Fisher didn&rsquo;t quite have the same gifts.
In more recent times, Draymond Green, CJ McCollum, Jaylen Brown and Fred VanVleet are examples of players who spent their first couple years fighting for their keep. Before Giannis Antetokounmpo was a two-time MVP, he was playing behind the likes of Ersan Ilyasova, John Henson, Larry Sanders and Zaza Pachulia. Same with Stephen Curry, who has preached patience with rookie James Wiseman and <a href="https://twitter.com/ThompsonScribe/status/1351418668131864577?s=20" target="_blank" rel="noopener">pointed out</a>&nbsp;that Curry himself "used to get benched for Acie Law."
In other words, most young NBA players are like seeds. They need to be planted, given proper conditions and some time. Not everyone comes into the league 100 percent ready, and that&rsquo;s fine. Nobody likes force-ripened fruit, anyway.
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That&rsquo;s exactly where players like Derrick Rose come in.
Given his relationship with Tom Thibodeau, the early returns suggest that he&rsquo;ll fit right in by providing the Knicks a much-needed attack guard who can help make the game easier for the team's youngsters, who&nbsp;Rose will ultimately help bloom.
At this point in his career, on an individual level, the former MVP is a player who has gone from the top of the mountain to the bottom of the barrel and back. Through it all, he&rsquo;s kept a positive attitude and persevered. A step slower and less athletic than he was 10 years ago, he's come to rely more on his ability to see through defenses and penetrate them than his blinding athleticism. At 32 years old, he plays the game more like an aging halfback who has to plan his cuts rather than a greyhound chasing a rabbit. As he&rsquo;s aged and enjoyed his renaissance, Rose has naturally become more methodical about his game. Those are qualities that any young guard would be wise to develop.
Serving as understudy worked out quite well for Gilgeous-Alexander. There's no reason to believe the same fate doesn't await Quickley and the Knicks' other promising youngsters.
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Although far from a front-office lifer, Leon Rose has spent a lot of time around the Knicks organization. In the recent past, New York has always sought the shortcut. In the end, they discovered that the only thing shortcuts are good for is making you bleed.
The road to respectability in the NBA -- a long, windy, treacherous one -- can only be successfully traversed with steps on the court.
Today more than ever, players watch one another, talk, share war stories, form relationships and create alliances, but nobody wants to join a sinking ship. No franchise-altering player will proactively take his talents to a losing franchise more renowned for its off-court shenanigans than on-court promise. So the first step toward helping the Knicks regain some respect around the NBA is to string together some wins, show some sort of developmental culture and overachieve relative to the individual parts. It&rsquo;s precisely <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/nba-rumors-kevin-durant-kyrie-irving-brooklyn-nets-los-angeles-clippers-kawhi-leonard-paul-george-learn-mistakes-culture-kenny-atkinson-doc-rivers" target="_blank" rel="noopener">what the Brooklyn Nets did</a> and, if you look closely, it seems to be precisely what the Knicks are attempting to do. Rose is a means to that end.
Despite the Knicks' inclusion of Charlotte's second-round draft pick, trading Smith for Rose is a no-brainer. Rose provides the club with attributes they need that Smith didn&rsquo;t possess, and the 11-year veteran gets them closer to the playoffs than Smith would have.
For a franchise attempting to find its way, the Rose acquisition is a low-risk move with a potentially high reward, especially if Rose is able to impart any of his wisdom or teachings to Thibodeau&rsquo;s young and impressionable group of players.
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<div>So the next time Jaylen Brown draws praise or Gilgeous-Alexander impresses you, remember when they were seeds. Realize that now, in New York, they&rsquo;ve just begun planting.</div>
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With his experiences and wisdom, at this point in his career, Derrick Rose is properly cast on a young, upstart Knicks team.

Second time's the charm: Derrick Rose trade was right decision for Knicks

Steve Nash, the incoming coach of the Brooklyn Nets, got peppered with so many different questions about so many different things on Tuesday that he literally ran out of answers.
But the ones he provided were revealing.
Nash is the first ex-player to take on an NBA head coaching job with no prior head coaching experience since Derek Fisher and Steve Kerr did it in 2014. Jason Kidd preceded them in 2013, and others who have &ldquo;jumped the line&rdquo; include Mark Jackson, Vinny Del Negro, Kevin McHale, Isaiah Thomas, Doc Rivers and Larry Bird.
That puts Nash in a pretty exclusive club, and he sounded more than ready to take on the task in an hour-long &ldquo;Town Hall&rdquo; broadcast on the YES Network hosted by Nets play-by-play announcer Ian Eagle.
And despite the offensive talents that Nash will have at his disposal in Kevin Durant, Kyrie Irving, Caris LeVert, Spencer Dinwiddie and Joe Harris (if he is retained as an unrestricted free agent), Nash said his singular focus in discussions with the team thus far has been defensive philosophy. He refused to put a number of how many points he expects opponents to average, but he sounded especially genuine, emphasizing that defense wins championships.&nbsp;
&ldquo;The offense is still to be determined. I don&rsquo;t want to come in with a whole lot of concepts and designs,&rdquo; Nash said. &ldquo;When I played under Mike D&rsquo;Antoni, he let it evolve. We want to play fast, space the floor and incorporate philosophical thoughts that fit our group, but we&rsquo;ve spent recent time building our defense.&rdquo;
The interview was sort of a <a href="https://twitter.com/BrooklynNets/status/1321162538722168835?s=20" target="_blank" rel="noopener">getting-to-know-Nash session</a>, with many of the questions submitted by Nets season-ticket holders via Facebook. Eagle was the only media member asking questions.
Nash said the biggest change that he has seen in the NBA since his playing days ended is the emphasis on analytics, including how they are at the heart of creating defensive strategies and opportunities for three-pointers.
&ldquo;You see that on the floor a lot without knowing how much of it is data-driven,&rdquo; he said.
Nash was hired over the summer by longtime friend and Nets general manager Sean Marks. Nash was a player-development consultant on the Golden State Warriors while Durant was on the team. Nash's assistant coach, Adam Harrington, also worked with Durant in the past as KD's personal coach.
Nash called Kyrie Irving &ldquo;as skilled of a player as I have ever seen in this league.&rdquo; He noted that because they both have played point guard, they share a commonality on the court, as well as a commonality off of it -- related to Irving&rsquo;s offseason donation of $1.5 million to WNBA players who sat out their bubble restart for a variety of reasons.
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Asked by one season-ticket holder to define what &ldquo;success&rdquo; would look like for this team, Nash replied: &ldquo;We&rsquo;re playing for a championship. I don&rsquo;t want to say anything less than a championship is a failure, but we&rsquo;re playing for a championship.&rdquo;
That is music to the ears of Brooklyn fans. New Yorkers have watched the crosstown Knicks fail to make the playoffs in each of the past seven seasons while being spurned by big-name free agents, including Durant and Irving a year ago. This interview also offered a stark contrast between the two metropolitan-area franchises in terms of their approach to engaging their fans. Nash was colorful and engaging, showing personality and humor. Knicks coach Tom Thibodeau is similarly engaging, although he has been kept mum by New York's front office (aside from brief Zoom interviews following the Delete-Eight mini-bubble practices).
Nash said he was impressed by the Nets' 5-3 performance in the NBA bubble despite the team missing so many of its regular players, singling out LeVert and Jarrett Allen as players who were especially impressive.
The geographical separation of the team members due to COVID restrictions has been a hindrance in preparations, but about two months still remain before the season could reportedly begin. The Nets still have to make two draft picks (No. 19 and No. 55) on Nov. 18; Nash said he is largely staying out of the draft process other than offering his opinion when asked, saying that the front office's responsibility.&nbsp;
Nash was barraged with a variety of personal questions including what he can cook best (avocado toast), what his favorite concert was (Jay-Z, Prince, Radiohead), who his favorite soccer players are (Tottenham legend Glenn Hoddle and Lionel Messi), which athlete posters he had on his bedroom wall as a child (Michael Jordan and Darryl Strawberry), his favorite Christmas present (Air Jordan 1s), who he would most like to have dinner with (Barack Obama) and which actor he would choose to play him in a Steve Nash biography (Sean Penn). He had no answer when asked what his biggest hidden talent was.
All-in-all, it was an entertaining and insightful window into a two-time MVP who is better known in Phoenix, Dallas and Canada than he is in Brooklyn, where he lives with his wife and five children.
The Nets are projected as the favorite to win the Eastern Conference by many sports gambling companies, and the expectations are huge after the fan base waited out Durant&rsquo;s recovery from a torn Achilles tendon and Irving endured sporadic injuries that sidelined him for 52 games.
Nash will be the 23rd coach in franchise history.
&ldquo;Over the last five years, I realized I had the itch [to coach],&rdquo; Nash said.
Now he gets to scratch it, and the Nets more than scratched the surface of what kind of a person Nash is with one of the better television interviews that the franchise has produced in ages.&nbsp;
&ldquo;I am not here to raise my profile or get credit,&rdquo; Nash said.
But those things will happen if he leads the Nets to a championship, which is his own stated goal.

Chris Sheridan breaks down Steve Nash's appearance at the Brooklyn Nets Town Hall and what we learned.

Nets head coach Steve Nash: 'We're playing for a championship'

The NBA Finals — and Miami’s title chances — are not over, not after Butler and the Heat beat the Lakers in Game 5 on Friday night.

Heat top Lakers, stave off elimination

LeBron James will turn 36 years old in December, but you'd never know it if you saw his performance in the Los Angeles Lakers' Game 3 win over the Houston Rockets.
James dominated on both ends of the floor, finishing with 36 points, 7 rebounds, 5 assists, 4 threes, 4 blocks and 1 steal while shooting 13-23 from the field (including 4-9 from three-point range).
Anthony Davis also chipped in 26 points, 15 rebounds, 6 assists and 1 steal against the small-ball Rockets. Rajon Rondo added 21 points, 9 assists, 3 threes, 2 rebounds and 1 steal off the bench.
For Houston, James Harden and Russell Westbrook combined for 63 points, 17 rebounds, 15 assists, 6 threes and 2 steals on 24-47 shooting from the field (including 6-13 from three) in the losing effort. Jeff Green had 16 points off the bench as well.
In the fourth quarter, Davis and Robert Covington had a scary collision; Davis seemed alright, but a bloody Covington went back to the locker room for treatment. BasketballNews.com will keep you updated on both players' status as more information becomes available.
The Lakers are up 2-1 in the Western Conference semifinals series, with Game 4 on Thursday.
ASSOCIATED PRESS GAME RECAP:
LeBron James added another record to his resume as he continues his chase for a fourth career title.
Nobody has played in as many NBA playoff victories.
James scored 36 points, Rajon Rondo sparked a fourth-quarter rally and the Los Angeles Lakers beat the Houston Rockets 112-102 on Tuesday night to take a 2-1 lead in their Western Conference playoff series.
The triumph gave James his NBA-record 162nd postseason victory, surpassing former Lakers guard Derek Fisher&rsquo;s 161.
&ldquo;It&rsquo;s very humbling,&rdquo; James said. &ldquo;It&rsquo;s something that I never dreamed of.&rdquo;
James had seven rebounds, five assists and four blocks as he helped lead the Lakers&rsquo; second-half defensive surge. The Rockets had 64 points at halftime but were held to 38 the rest of the way.
&ldquo;Nobody impacts winning more than LeBron James,&rdquo; Lakers coach Frank Vogel said. &ldquo;That&rsquo;s true for this season. That&rsquo;s why he should be MVP. Honestly, it&rsquo;s probably true in the history of the game. Nobody impacts winning more than LeBron James. To see him have that actual numerical statistic is just indicative of that.&rdquo;
James reached the milestone with plenty of help from Rondo, who became the first player to have at least 12 points and five assists in the fourth quarter of a playoff game since James for the Cleveland Cavaliers on April 22, 2010, according to STATS.
Rondo finished with 21 points and nine assists. He scored eight straight points during a 10-0 run early in the period that put the Lakers ahead for good. Rondo assisted on the other basket during that stretch.
&ldquo;I just took what was given,&rdquo; Rondo said. &ldquo;It started on the defensive end for me. Guys found me when I was open, and I took the shots with confidence. And I got some easy layups.&rdquo;
Anthony Davis had 26 points and Kyle Kuzma added 14. James Harden scored 33 points and Russell Westbrook had 30 for the Rockets.
Rockets forward Robert Covington was taken to the locker room after colliding with Davis in the fourth quarter. The left side of Covington&rsquo;s face hit Davis&rsquo; right arm, while Covington&rsquo;s left elbow hit Davis&rsquo; right side.
Houston coach Mike D&rsquo;Antoni didn&rsquo;t have an update on Covington after the game.
The game featured 16 lead changes and 15 ties, with neither team pulling ahead by more than six points until the Lakers took control late.
&ldquo;Too many 50-50 balls we didn&rsquo;t get, too many times we just weren&rsquo;t sharp,&rdquo; D&rsquo;Antoni said. &ldquo;We just weren&rsquo;t quick to the ball or quick to a play and it got away from us. They hit a lot of good hard shots. Tonight they got us. Next time, we&rsquo;ll see what we can do.&rdquo;
Rondo assisted on a layup by James that put the Lakers ahead with about 10 minutes remaining. Rondo then hit a 3-pointer to give the Lakers an 89-85 advantage, their largest lead to that point.
After a Houston timeout, Westbrook missed a shot and Rondo sank another 3. Rondo then stole the ball from Harden and made a layup to cap the 10-0 run.
&ldquo;Playoff Rondo is real,&rdquo; Davis said. &ldquo;His intensity picks up. He wants to guard the best perimeter guy. ... He&rsquo;s shooting the ball very well, making the right passes. His IQ is on another level.&rdquo;
LA controlled the final period for the second straight game. The Lakers blew a 21-point lead in Game 2 but outscored Houston by 10 in the fourth quarter to win 117-109.
&ldquo;I just thought in the second half they played a little bit harder than we did," D'Antoni said. "Our legs, we were a little slow off a lot of things, especially on the defensive end. We didn&rsquo;t create enough turnovers to run.&rdquo;
TIP-INS
Lakers: C JaVale McGee returned to action, playing 6 minutes, but G Dion Waiters was unavailable after both players were hurt in Game 2. Vogel said Waiters is day to day with a strained groin.
Rockets: Danuel House missed the game for what D&rsquo;Antoni said were personal reasons unrelated to COVID-19. House had scored 13 points off the bench in Game 2. ... This marked the fourth time in D'Antoni's tenure that Houston split the first two games of a playoff series. In the previous three instances, the Game 3 victor went on to win the series.
UP NEXT
Game 4 is Thursday.

LeBron James didn't look 35 years old in the Los Angeles Lakers' Game 3 win over the Houston Rockets.