Spartans

Paying customers and plenty of media members have loudly expressed their frustrations with how the New Orleans Pelicans have handled the injuries and updates regarding Zion Williamson and Brandon Ingram, to the point of calling the organization outright liars.
Sure, there were frustrations with injuries derailing the season, but the messaging did not come from a place of dishonesty. It came from the type of misunderstandings and miscommunications that can ravage any type of relationship.
The obvious friction within the team the last few seasons were publicly expressed through curt answers and solemn body language on gamedays. Executive vice president David Griffin even admitted last July that the Pelicans &ldquo;did a really bad job organizationally" in handling some situations, especially after Williamson&rsquo;s viral pregame dunk and vague comments to the media. It took a summer of reconciliation, but the most pressing relationship issues have been resolved. Everyone understands how to speak each other&rsquo;s basketball love language and approach expectations for the coming season.
It all started with listening sessions this summer, which were a reason Williamson stuck around town for the offseason. But go back and listen to how Williamson and Ingram talk about basketball in press conferences over the years. Examining how they speak about the game explains a lot in how they&rsquo;ve approached their careers thus far.
Ingram has been using the term "professional" and "basketball" while talking like a hardwood scientist since his rookie season. It would not be surprising for B.I. to break down film at 4 a.m., making calls to wake sleepy-eyed teammates. Specifically, Devonte&rsquo; Graham and Josh Hart have shared on record how Ingram&rsquo;s film studies helped their game. Even when Ingram was out with an injury, the deep film sessions to help his teammates improve remained part of his routine. His methodical game reflects his intense devotion to his craft, though Ingram&rsquo;s personality comes off as a bit more laid back.
Williamson &ldquo;just loves hooping&rdquo; by his admission this Monday and in past interviews. Both are highly talented and naturally gifted and, as one source put it, &ldquo;They both love the game, but show it in different ways. The game has loved them back in different ways.&rdquo; Organizationally, there have been some growing pains as perhaps some things got taken for granted along the way for a franchise shaping a new identity.
That&rsquo;s starting to change and it is a two-way street. This team knows it was in first place last December and Williamson&rsquo;s renewed commitment has been the theme of the offseason with those I&rsquo;ve spoken with.
"This was the first summer where we&rsquo;ve seen Zion take his profession seriously like that and invest in it off the court on his own in a way that, I think, is meaningful," Griffin revealed during media day.
This is a reassuring development considering the past four years. Now, Zion still loves to hoop. There is no doubt. No one shows up on an outdoor court in New Orleans to work up a mid-summer sweat with some high-school kids without loving to hoop. Roll a ball out on a court and a smiling Williamson is like an overeager puppy. At least Alvin Gentry got that right in Zion&rsquo;s rookie season.
However, Williamson has not had a healthy relationship with NBA basketball the last few years. The NBA Draft is a crap shoot and New Orleans was not exactly a prime location. The new front office had a few growing pains earlier than expect as a result. NBA HQ added some bumps and bruises to the process as well. The national-TV-heavy schedule as a rookie and through the COVID bubble was unwarranted, unnecessary attention; it was just premature pressure on someone who couldn't legally buy a drink.
Attention before production paired with injury setbacks put pressure on every strained relationship, which partly factored into the Pelicans parting ways with coaches Gentry and Stan Van Gundy after just a year each with Williamson on the roster. Zion even went to rehab in Oregon away from the team, returning to the bench just weeks before the team&rsquo;s playoff run.
Publicly and privately, it&rsquo;s &ldquo;all water under the bridge&rdquo; between the locker room and front office. Aaron Nelson is still with the team, but in an advisory role that&rsquo;s far more hands-off on the day-to-day. Newly-hired Amy Atmore, the team's physical/performance therapist and director of rehabilitation, has already made the players comfortable with the revamped staff and new "ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure" process. There are a few more full-time staffers to welcome into the group but by all accounts, head coach Willie Green has righted the ship culturally in the locker room. The leadership hierarchies and trust circle bonds are very strong and have been unanimously agreed upon.
In contrast to Williamson&rsquo;s on-court hooper mentality paired with a dozen endorsement deals, Ingram loves professional basketball and has been able to operate as an under-the-radar, one-time All-Star. This approach leads to multi-generational wealth that secures family futures. Ingram did not sign a contract extension this summer because "they handing a lot of people big money, [and] I&rsquo;m trying to get some big money&rdquo; next summer.
Ingram smiled while delivering that media-day-gold statement, but Zion was refusing to flash a grin for anyone to start training camp. This isn&rsquo;t just hooping anymore. This is serious, professional basketball and it would be a disservice to his talents and teammates to not approach this season as the opportunity of a lifetime. It&rsquo;s also a chance to win back all the fans and provide a return on the team&rsquo;s investment. Williamson loves to be loved. Ingram, especially after the FIBA experience, is after All-NBA respect before negotiating a contract extension.
The revamped player performance and medical staff changes were a direct result of the front office listening to player feedback. Williamson, who just signed a max-level extension, can see that.
"The Pelicans have put in a lot of things this offseason&hellip;" Williamson said. "I think what the Pelicans have done is add good structure and we'll see as the season goes&hellip; being on the same page with the personal trainers, really locking into every aspect of my body.''
Williamson also listened to feedback from the front office and the team&rsquo;s veterans. He got the message from CJ McCollum and Larry Nance Jr., who played through injuries last season, to set an example.
"I think [the changes] should help us," McCollum said. &ldquo;A lot of it is on us and how we prepare. Your staff can only do so much."
Off the court, Williamson&rsquo;s larger-than-life, crowd-pleasing ways mesh well with Ingram&rsquo;s reserved, low-key-funny, musically-inclined chill. Now, the Pelicans need them to make it work on the court when the stakes are highest. Like any relationship seemingly stuck running in place, huge consequences are resting on the next decision.
&ldquo;If this team can&rsquo;t take that next step, we need to know that as quickly as possible,&rdquo; Griffin stated straightforwardly at media day.
It&rsquo;s tough to hear for a young team, but at least the tough love is understood as coming from a place of caring about what&rsquo;s best for everyone.
Former NBA vet and Pelicans general manager Trajan Langdon said he felt players have returned with a bitter taste in their mouths after the way last season ended and expects them to come into camp highly motivated to show their true potential. Griffin, who is passing off some of the medical-team-oversight responsibilities to Langdon, feels this group is &ldquo;really optimistic."
"We have pieces that can be really dynamic and win together," Griffin said. "They haven&rsquo;t done a lot of it and they know they have something to prove."
Williamson definitely has something to prove and has new motivations in life to live up to his potential. The expecting father with no more viable professional excuses or blame to be placed on youth ''wanted change."
"If I want change, I have to do something different so I sat down with the Pelicans and came up with a great plan," Zion said.
All public signs from the front office, All-Stars and those speaking behind the scenes point to a mended, healthy relationship between all parties as reason for future optimism. Reports of mutiny or group dissension are downright wrong according to what I&rsquo;ve been hearing. Hot takes to insinuate the franchise operates from behind a smoke screen miss the mark at best and at times show the worst of biases from people who wouldn&rsquo;t know which coach or player had a family sitting next to them in the arena.
There were no ultimatums. It was a remodel, not a revolt. The front office took feedback from their players and ran with it. That&rsquo;s a positive relationship. It&rsquo;s boring for offseason news but has long-term benefits for the team and it&rsquo;s fans.
"If we would have controlled the narrative, it would have made (the media&rsquo;s) jobs a lot more boring, but it would have put [Williamson[ in a better position to succeed," Griffin said last summer. "I feel like to a huge degree, I failed him in that sense."
The Pelicans and Williamson are now in a position to succeed with a clear narrative: Win and show the world their true capabilities. Williamson, who trained to be &ldquo;un-guardable&rdquo; this offseason, switched vocabulary halfway through the press conference with an admission that he is &ldquo;a basketball player."
"I simply want to win and impact the game. I train to impact the game from all areas&hellip; Griff, Trajan and Swin [Cash], those three have been really helpful," Williamson added. "They've supported me, they've had my back and we all got the same goal in mind, which I think is what family is about &ndash; people having your back no matter what and wanting the best for each other.&rdquo;
Williamson went further, going out of the way to declare his loyalty to New Orleans.
&ldquo;This is home for me. This is where I want to be&hellip;" he said. "If something were to happen to me where basketball wasn&rsquo;t there or my life is changed, who would be there for me? Realistically, who would be there for me? I had to come to that realization that when it comes to them, the family, and the city, it&rsquo;s always good so I focus on that.&rdquo;
Frankly, if that doesn&rsquo;t hit you right in the feels as a fan of the Pelicans, it might be time to re-examine your engagement with basketball and this team. Either way the franchise is moving forward with stronger relationships just as their championship window is truly opening. A great start to the season might even feel like a second honeymoon for fans with an open mind and little bit of hope for the future.
Other news from around the web: <a href="https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/other/dress-to-impress-why-barbie-and-ken-are-the-hottest-couples-costume-this-halloween/ar-AA1iaTEh" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Barbie and Ken are the hottest couples costume this Halloween</a>

The New Orleans Pelicans are all on the same page and could be poised for a big season, writes Christopher Dodson.

Pelicans better understand love languages of All-Star relationships

PARIS (AP) &mdash; Adieu France, hello America.
They were hugs of goodbye &mdash; not of joy &mdash; for Victor Wembanyama as he bid farewell to his teammates and the French league, before jetting off for what&nbsp;<a class="paragraph-link" href="https://apnews.com/article/nba-draft-2023-wembanyama-396be2a8eeb0be8e3323bb509405695c">many predict</a>&nbsp;will be a glittering NBA career.
Wembanyama&rsquo;s performance &mdash; 22 points, seven rebounds and four blocks &mdash; couldn&rsquo;t prevent his Boulogne-Levallois team losing 92-85 to Monaco in a must-win Game 3 in the best-of-five French league championship series on Thursday.
To accommodate escalating interest in seeing the 19-year-old&nbsp;<a class="paragraph-link" href="https://apnews.com/article/nba-sports-basketball-las-vegas-6f4ac3d44f624ef36ddb00e314cf0401">French prodigy</a>, Game 3 &mdash; and 4 if they had won &mdash; were switched from a 4,000-seat venue to Court Philippe Chatrier at Roland Garros, home of the French Open tennis championship which seats&nbsp;<a class="paragraph-link" href="https://twitter.com/LNBofficiel/status/1669390713434275842" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">more than 14,000</a>.
Fans sang &ldquo;Merci, Wemby&rdquo; as&nbsp;<a class="paragraph-link" href="https://apnews.com/article/wembanyama-nba-lottery-draft-french-finale-e8d2b9e7cf97ab22df549a03d1124456">the hugely popular Wembanyama</a>&nbsp;waved and clapped at them.
&ldquo;I&rsquo;m sorry for the fans who love to see a show,&rdquo; Wembanyama said on beIN Sports television after the game. &ldquo;Of course I&rsquo;m proud of what I&rsquo;ve managed to do along with my coach (Vincent Collet), in bringing the team to the finals. But I&rsquo;m not satisfied.&rdquo;
Next week, the San Antonio Spurs are expected to make the 7-foot-3 Wembanyama&nbsp;<a class="paragraph-link" href="https://apnews.com/article/nba-draft-lottery-2023-victor-wembanyama-7ac2a47737c20c0df4543e1626407e47">the No. 1 pick in the NBA draft</a>, where he&rsquo;ll follow in the footsteps of France great Tony Parker and Hall of Famers David Robinson and Tim Duncan.
With Sacramento Kings owner Vivek Ranadiv&eacute; among the crowd &mdash; likely with an eye on&nbsp;<a class="paragraph-link" href="https://apnews.com/article/nba-mock-draft-wembanyama-c9dfd3d19592e1de44f5957ea2aa8b48">Wembanyama teammate Bilal Coulibaly</a>&nbsp;ahead of the draft &mdash; the Mets opened up big leads but with 50 seconds left the score was tied at 85-85. Jordan Loyd, a former NBA player with the Toronto Raptors, sank two 3-pointers to end Wembanyama&rsquo;s hopes of signing off with a French crown.
Ranadiv&eacute; told beIN Sport that Wembanyama is &ldquo;amazing&rdquo; but that &ldquo;I&rsquo;m also excited about Bilal. Young guy, lot of skills, so French basketball is in great shape.&rdquo;
Wembanyama, who opened the scoring with&nbsp;<a class="paragraph-link" href="https://twitter.com/LNBofficiel/status/1669413577068019712" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">a reverse alley-oop dunk</a>, looked sad as he hugged his teammates while Monaco celebrated.
&ldquo;Wemby had a great game, but this team&rsquo;s unbelievable,&rdquo; said Loyd, who finished with 22 points.
Everything had pointed to a special night for Wembanyama and then a Game 4 on Saturday. Wembanyama clenched his fist when his pass inside for Devante Jones made it 24-10, then drew roars when he used his giant frame to block a shot early in the second quarter.
The &ldquo;Wemby, Wemby&rdquo; chants became louder when&nbsp;<a class="paragraph-link" href="https://twitter.com/LNBofficiel/status/1669432798598381573" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">he hit a 3-pointer</a>&nbsp;to make it 47-37, louder still when&nbsp;<a class="paragraph-link" href="https://twitter.com/LNBofficiel/status/1669431516190101504" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">he dished to Coulibaly</a>&nbsp;for a dunk early in the third quarter.
It was not enough, though, and it was &ldquo;Wemby&rdquo; who put Elie Okobo on the foul line to give Monaco its first lead, 82-81, with just over three minutes left.
Loyd &mdash; not Wembanyama &mdash; ended up with&nbsp;<a class="paragraph-link" href="https://twitter.com/LNBofficiel/status/1669449924562305028" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">the MVP award</a>&nbsp;and the winners&rsquo; medal on the court where Novak Djokovic made men&rsquo;s Grand Slam history last Sunday with&nbsp;<a class="paragraph-link" href="https://apnews.com/article/novak-djokovic-grand-slam-titles-french-open-6f822dca855478163696538f37ff534b">his 23rd men&rsquo;s major title</a>.
<a class="paragraph-link" href="https://apnews.com/article/chicago-bulls-nba-sports-detroit-pistons-paris-ba85137c70a09ac5efcea7f5e8e472a1">Wembanyama&rsquo;s journey to greatness</a>&nbsp;in his sport, however, might only just be starting.

With today's loss to Monaco, Victor Wembanyama will leave his teammates and the French league to prepare for his NBA career.

Wembanyama bids adieu to France with a defeat as NBA Draft nears

SAN ANTONIO (AP) &mdash; Jalen Williams scored 21 points and the Oklahoma City Thunder used a balanced effort on offense to beat the San Antonio Spurs 102-90 on Sunday night.
Oklahoma City got their fifth win in the last six games despite being without Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, who was resting since the team is managing his abdominal strain and this was the second night of a back-to-back.
Ousmane Dieng had 17 points and Josh Giddey added 17 for the Thunder. Oklahoma City tied Utah for 10th place in the Western Conference at 33-35, but the Thunder hold the tiebreaker after winning the season series 2-1.
San Antonio&rsquo;s Zach Collins had 23 points and 11 rebounds for his ninth career double-double. Devonte&rsquo; Graham added 20 points.

Jalen Williams scored 21 points and the Thunder used a balanced effort on offense to beat the Spurs 102-90 on Sunday.

Thunder defeat Spurs 102-90 behind balanced offensive attack

SAN ANTONIO (AP) &mdash; Tari Eason matched his season high with 20 points and the Houston Rockets ended an 11-game losing streak, beating the San Antonio Spurs 122-110 on Saturday night.
Alperen Sengun had 16 points and K.J. Martin and Josh Christopher each added 14 points for the Rockets in the opener of a home-and-home series. Last in the NBA at 14-49, they hadn&rsquo;t won since Feb. 1.
Devonte&rsquo; Graham had 28 points to lead San Antonio. Zach Collins added 14 points and 10 rebounds.
The teams will play again Sunday night in Houston to close a back-to-back set.
San Antonio coach Gregg Popovich and lead assistant Brett Brown returned after missing the Spurs&rsquo; game Thursday night against Indiana because of non-COVID illnesses.
The Spurs are still without Keldon Johnson, however, and Devin Vassell sat out after playing Thursday following a 25-game absence.
Vying for the No. 1 pick in the NBA draft, San Antonio entered having won two straight after losing a franchise-record 16 straight. It is 4-24 in 2023. Houston is 4-23 in 2023.
TIP-INS
Rockets: San Antonio honored former Rockets and Spurs guard Mario Elie following the first quarter. Elie won three NBA titles during an 11-year career, helping San Antonio capture its first championship in 1999. The tribute is part of the Spurs&rsquo; season-long 50th Anniversary celebration. &hellip; Jae&rsquo;Sean Tate was held out for injury management following a sprained right ankle. &hellip; The Rockets&rsquo; last victory over the Spurs was Jan. 12, 2022, in San Antonio.
Spurs: Johnson missed his second straight game with a sprained left foot. Johnson has missed eight games this season while leading the Spurs in scoring at 21.8 points per game. &hellip; Vassell sat out for injury management after playing for the first time since undergoing arthroscopic left knee surgery on Jan. 11.

Tari Eason matched his season high with 20 points and the Rockets ended an 11-game losing streak, beating the Spurs 122-110.

NBA-worst Rockets beat Spurs to end 11-game losing streak

After clearing waivers following his post-trade buyout from the Houston Rockets, Danny Green has officially signed with the Cleveland Cavaliers for the remainder of the 2022-23 season, team president Koby Altman announced Wednesday morning.&nbsp;
&ldquo;Hypothetically, it could mean a lot. It's just there for support. And having people that you can lean on and depend on as a young player who's going to be in situations that maybe they've never been in before,&rdquo; Cavs head coach J.B. Bickerstaff said without acknowledging Green by name on Monday due to NBA tampering rules.&nbsp;
&ldquo;Someone who is about the team and who just wants to fit in and be a part of the group. You can use that experience and you listen to those guys. Guys who have been to the mountaintop and won championships and played in those type of games. But then, you obviously have the ability to put that guy on the floor, who's still capable of making shots and guarding his position, which, we know in the playoffs is a premium.&rdquo;
Green spent a tireless amount of time working his way back from an ACL injury he suffered 10 months ago in the playoffs while playing with the Philadelphia 76ers. The Sixers sent Green to the Memphis Grizzlies in a draft-night trade for De&rsquo;Anthony Melton last summer, and the veteran sharpshooter didn&rsquo;t suit up for the Grizzlies until Feb. 1. Eight days later, Green found himself on the move again.
At the NBA trade deadline, Memphis dealt the 35-year-old to the Rockets as a part of a three-team agreement with the Los Angeles Clippers. Luke Kennard landed with the Grizzlies and Eric Gordon ended up with the Clippers, while Green and John Wall went to Houston before being let go by the franchise.
Though Green has played a total of three games with Memphis in limited action, Cavs All-Star guard Donovan Mitchell knows what he&rsquo;s about and how he can give Cleveland a boost.
&ldquo;The easy answer would be his shooting. I mean, he's a three-time champion,&rdquo; Mitchell said of Green after Cleveland&rsquo;s win on Monday over the San Antonio Spurs. &ldquo;He is a guy I grew up watching. I remember watching him dancing on the bench with Bron and whatnot. I remember him, watching him against the (Miami) Heat, breaking Ray Allen's three-point record (for most threes in a single series). I hated him at the time. But I've known Danny and his family since I was probably 11 years old, 12 years old. We've played against AAU against his brother (Devonte). I know his dad (Danny Green Sr.). So it's kind of crazy how life works. A lot of things come full circle, especially for me this year.&nbsp;
&ldquo;I think the first thing you think of is his way to space to floor, but also his veteran presence around the locker room, calming presence, great personality. But when he gets in, he is a sniper, especially in big-time situations. He's done it year in and year out. So there's different things you can point to but the first thing I would say is the shooting.&rdquo;
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-theme="dark">
If the <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Cavs?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#Cavs</a> were to add a veteran sharpshooter using their open roster spot (maybe someone with three NBA championships, maybe someone like Danny Green), what would J.B. Bickerstaff think? &ldquo;Hypothetically, it could mean a lot.&rdquo; <a href="https://twitter.com/basketbllnews?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@basketbllnews</a> <a href="https://t.co/qDhfiVLmKI">pic.twitter.com/qDhfiVLmKI</a>
&mdash; Spencer Davies (@SpinDavies) <a href="https://twitter.com/SpinDavies/status/1625272791795904513?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 13, 2023</a></blockquote>

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

Green is just a hair below 40% as a career three-point marksman, having taken nearly five attempts per contest over his 13-year NBA stay. Altman bringing in a wing with size who can drill from distance and provide championship experience should prove to be wise. As for Green&rsquo;s minutes and role &mdash; especially for a red-hot Cavs team scaling the Eastern Conference standings &mdash; that would yet to be determined.
&ldquo;It would be an early conversation about the role and people understand when they are coming here what to expect,&rdquo; Bickerstaff said Monday if Cleveland was to add another player to its locker room. &ldquo;I think what we are going through now, and in that conversation would be, &lsquo;We&rsquo;re trending in a really good direction and we have to figure the balance between continuing with the group that has started to head that way,&rsquo; and how you mix in a piece that could possibly help you down the road. We will be very ginger with that because we do not want to disrupt the rhythm of what these guys are finding right now.&rdquo;
If anybody knows anything about his professionalism, it&rsquo;s Spurs head coach Gregg Popovich, who was just in town facing Green&rsquo;s new team. The pair won a ring together in the 2014 NBA Finals, which would be the first of three title teams (Toronto Raptors in 2019 and Los Angeles Lakers in 2020) Green would be a part of.
&ldquo;A guy that is a very confident shooter, an underrated defender and a great teammate. He&rsquo;s fun to be around. He loves playing the game and he understands his role completely. He&rsquo;ll fit right in,&rdquo; Popovich said.
&ldquo;Just logically, he&rsquo;s gonna say things. He&rsquo;ll be great for J.B. to have another person there who&rsquo;s been through all sorts of different situations. He&rsquo;ll talk to somebody on the bus or on the plane. It&rsquo;s just like osmosis. And so, he&rsquo;ll provide a lot of information that all the coaches won&rsquo;t have time for, or they&rsquo;ll be happy that they&rsquo;ll have an additional &lsquo;coach&rsquo; that knows what&rsquo;s going on. It&rsquo;s all good, for sure.&rdquo;
Spotted roaming the hallways at Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse on Monday before the deal was made official, Green appears eager to join his new group.
This will be Green&rsquo;s second stint in Cleveland &mdash; 14 years after the Cavs originally drafted him with the 46th overall pick in the 2009 NBA Draft.

Danny Green officially signed with the Cleveland Cavaliers after clearing waivers stemming from his buyout agreement with Houston.

Danny Green clears waivers, signs with Cavaliers: 'He'll fit right in'

ATLANTA (AP) &mdash; Trae Young had 24 points and a season-high 17 assists, De&rsquo;Andre Hunter added 24 points and the Atlanta Hawks beat the reeling San Antonio Spurs 125-106 on Saturday night.
The Spurs (14-43), losers of a season-high 12 straight, are a half-game ahead of last-place Houston (13-43) in the Western Conference. Atlanta (29-28) has won two straight and four of six. The Hawks are eighth in the East.
The losing streak is San Antonio&rsquo;s longest since the 1988-89 club dropped a team-record 13 in a row.
&ldquo;They play their (butt) off,&rdquo; Spurs coach Gregg Popovich said. &ldquo;They do everything they can. We&rsquo;ll just keep forming good habits and hope that this builds and builds as the weeks and months and next season come along.&rdquo;
Atlanta never trailed after Young&rsquo;s layup early in the third made it 65-64. The Hawks went on a 12-0 run to take a 75-64 lead, the game&rsquo;s first in double digits, on a pair of free throws by John Collins. A dunk by Clint Capela made it 82-70 at the 4:39 mark of the third, and the Spurs called timeout.
&ldquo;San Antonio is always going to play hard and always play the right way, meaning there&rsquo;s going to be five guys out there connected,&rdquo; Atlanta coach Nate McMillan said. &ldquo;They&rsquo;re going to be moving the ball. They&rsquo;re going to be working hard trying to outscrap you. That&rsquo;s just the way they play.
&ldquo;It took us 24 minutes to start establishing and coming with that urgency that we needed on both ends of the floor.&rdquo;
Young hit two free throws to make it 93-77 entering the fourth with Atlanta&rsquo;s biggest lead. San Antonio was just 5 for 22 from the field in the third and was outscored 32-17. The lead swelled to 23 in the fourth.
&ldquo;I think we just picked up the pressure defensively and got out and ran more and got some better shots and some faster shots,&rdquo; Young said. &ldquo;I think we were going too slow in that first half, and they were pushing the pace and pushing it at us. We just knew we had to pick up the pressure.&rdquo;
Keldon Johnson, San Antonio&rsquo;s leading scorer this season, was back in the lineup after missing Friday&rsquo;s double overtime loss at Detroit with left ankle soreness and finished with 25 points. Jeremy Sochan added 18.
Capela finished with 14 points and 12 rebounds, and Collins added 17 points for the Hawks.
The Hawks led 61-60 at halftime as Hunter had 17 points, Capela had 12 points with eight rebounds and Young 12 points with 10 assists. Johnson and Sochan each scored 18 before intermission for San Antonio.
Atlanta outscored the Spurs 25-12 in points off turnovers.
TIP-INS
Spurs: One night after scoring 31 points to set a franchise record in a San Antonio debut, Devonte&rsquo; Graham, acquired in Thursday&rsquo;s trade with New Orleans, finished with nine points off the bench. ... G Tre Jones was back in the lineup after missing four straight games with left foot soreness and scored eight points. ... Sochan returned after missing four straight games with lower back soreness. He scored 11 points in the first quarter and finished with a career-high nine rebounds.
Hawks: In his first game against his former team, Dejounte Murray scored 18 points. ... Young passed Lenny Wilkens for fourth place on the Hawks&rsquo; career assists list with 3,050. ... Newly acquired C Bruno Fernando and G Garrison Mathews were not in uniform, but McMillan hopes they will be ready to debut Monday at Charlotte. ... Hunter had 12 points and Young had six assists in the first quarter.
ON SITE
McMillan said Saddiq Bey sat on the bench as the newly acquired swingman was in limbo with Thursday&rsquo;s four-team trade uncertain because Gary Payton II allegedly failed a physical with Golden State. Payton was supposed to return to the Warriors from Portland. Bey was acquired from Detroit. Golden State has until Sunday to decide whether to go forward with the deal or nix it.

Trae Young had 24 points and a season-high 17 assists, and the Atlanta Hawks beat the reeling San Antonio Spurs 125-106.

Young, Hunter pace Hawks past reeling Spurs 125-106

Throughout his basketball journey, Jalen McDaniels points out that he&rsquo;s always had to &ldquo;take the long route&rdquo; and work extra hard to prove that he belonged.
After being ranked 98th in his high-school class and doing a red-shirt season at San Diego State, McDaniels would ultimately slip to No. 52 overall in the 2019 NBA Draft.
McDaniels entered draft night with a lot of nerves and excitement, but that quickly turned to frustration and confusion as he saw the players who were getting picked ahead of him.
&ldquo;Like, I played against some of these guys in the workouts [and I&rsquo;m thinking], &lsquo;What?! How?!&rsquo; I had so many questions,&rdquo; McDaniels told Basketball News. &ldquo;Like, how?! But it&rsquo;s all good. It worked out for me, so it&rsquo;s all good.&rdquo;
McDaniels would be picked by the Charlotte Hornets, but he spent most of his rookie campaign with their G League affiliate, the Greensboro Swarm. In 31 games with the Swarm, he averaged 15.9 points, 7.7 rebounds, 2.4 assists, 2.0 steals, 1.1 blocks and 1.4 threes on .443/.386/.828 shooting splits.&nbsp;
&ldquo;Playing in the G League, it just got me real confident &mdash; just letting me play through my mistakes and play a lot of minutes,&rdquo; McDaniels said. &ldquo;I was starting and playing probably 35 minutes per game and shooting the ball a lot, and through that, just building confidence, working on my game, doing stuff that me and my trainer had worked on in practice and implementing it in games. I played well down there, and it just made me real confident. That was one thing I took away from the G League: [I knew] that I could play in the NBA.&rdquo;
There's no guarantee that the No. 52 pick will even make their team's roster, much less carve out a significant role. But that's exactly what McDaniels managed to do. While his path has been frustrating at times, he believes that every step of his journey has helped him and he wouldn&rsquo;t have it any other way.
&ldquo;I embrace it, for sure. It&rsquo;s just who I am and how it&rsquo;s been for me my whole life, I feel like. It&rsquo;s nothing new to me,&rdquo; McDaniels explained. &ldquo;I just got a longer route; I don&rsquo;t know. Everybody&rsquo;s path is different. I just [had to] stick with it.&rdquo;
Now, in his fourth NBA season, McDaniels has become a key contributor for the Hornets, averaging 10.6 points, 4.6 rebounds, 2.2 assists, 1.3 threes and a steal &mdash; all of which are career-highs &mdash; while shooting 45.6% from the field, 37.1% from three and 88.1% from the free-throw line.&nbsp;
Last month against the Boston Celtics, McDaniels had 24 points and 4 threes, while shooting 75% from the field, 66.7% from three and 100% from the free-throw line. In early December, he had a 21-point, 5-rebound performance against the Milwaukee Bucks. Then, a week-and-a-half later, McDaniels had a 21-point, 6-rebound, 3-three outing against the Detroit Pistons.
He says his confidence is at an all-time high, which has translated into a breakout campaign.
&ldquo;I feel like in Year 4, I just know a lot,&rdquo; McDaniels explained. &ldquo;I learned a lot of the game, coming from the G League, playing in a lot of games and just knowing what to expect. I feel like my game is just locked in and I know where I&rsquo;m supposed to be. And just having that confidence that I&rsquo;ve worked on everything that I&rsquo;m doing out there; I&rsquo;m not doing anything outside of my game. I&rsquo;m confident in everything that I&rsquo;m doing. And when I&rsquo;m guarding, I&rsquo;m confident that I can stop my man as well.&rdquo;
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McDaniels is referencing the offseason work that he put in with his trainer, Clint Parks.
&ldquo;I just worked on my overall game. A lot of ball-handling, learning to create my own shots, finishing, pull-ups, one-dribble moves, counters, a lot of three-point shooting and just touching up a lot of things that I&rsquo;m already good at,&rdquo; McDaniels said. &ldquo;My trainer, Clint, just keeps it real simple. It&rsquo;s a lot of reps and it&rsquo;s the same stuff. It&rsquo;s just straight-to-the-point workouts &ndash; we&rsquo;re not doing any extra stuff. We&rsquo;re just getting straight to it.&rdquo;
When asked if his success is even sweeter after taking the long route, McDaniels smiles.
&ldquo;Definitely! It&rsquo;s just a crazy feeling and you just want to have a smile on your face,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;At times, you can be negative and go into a hole, like, &lsquo;I&rsquo;m not playing well&hellip;&rsquo; and stuff like that. But you just gotta grind through that and then when you make it through, you&rsquo;re like, &lsquo;Alright, I&rsquo;m prepared; I&rsquo;m ready for anything.&rsquo; You feel like you&rsquo;re built for this. And that&rsquo;s how I feel.&rdquo;
It certainly seems as if McDaniels is built for the modern NBA. As a versatile, two-way wing who can knock down three-pointers, his skill-set is highly coveted among NBA talent evaluators.
&ldquo;My game has always been like that &ndash; in college and even in high school,&rdquo; McDaniels said. &ldquo;In high school, on the defensive end, I was able to guard little guards. In college, my coaches would have me guard the point guard, shooting guard [and so on]; I&rsquo;d guard everybody. I feel like on the defensive end, that&rsquo;s been in me for so long. Offensively, I feel like being versatile and playing multiple positions &ndash; like the 2, 3, 4 or whatever it may be &ndash; [was the result of] me working on stuff like coming off of pick-and-rolls and stuff like that, so when I&rsquo;m in a position like that, I know what to do and can make the read.
&ldquo;I feel like I&rsquo;m one of those players who is versatile &ndash; you can throw me anywhere and I&rsquo;ll be fine. I feel like I can adapt well and just be a two-way player.&rdquo;&nbsp;
McDaniels knows his role and does whatever is asked of him, without trying to do too much. When asked about the keys to being a great role player in the NBA, he lights up.
&ldquo;Bringing energy, playing with a high motor and being able to change the game,&rdquo; McDaniels said. &ldquo;Defensively, you&rsquo;re in the right spots, you&rsquo;re guarding, you&rsquo;re picking up the pressure and people are feeding off of your energy. Offensively, you&rsquo;re making the right play. You&rsquo;re getting limited shots since you&rsquo;re a role player, so you&rsquo;ve gotta hit those shots and make those reads. You&rsquo;re still being aggressive, but making the right play. And being locked in, for sure. That&rsquo;s how to be a great role player, [following] all those rules.&rdquo;
By doing these things, McDaniels hopes to have a long, successful career in the league.
&ldquo;My long-term goal is to play for as long as I can &mdash; 10-15 years, you feel me?&rdquo; McDaniels said. &ldquo;I&rsquo;m just going out there and playing. I love the game and I love to compete.&rdquo;
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BROTHERLY COMPETITION
As middle-schoolers, people would tell Jalen and his brother, Jaden, that they were headed to the NBA.
&ldquo;People would say, &lsquo;Ya&rsquo;ll are going to the NBA!&rsquo; We&rsquo;d be like, &lsquo;Why would you say that? We&rsquo;re only in middle school!&rsquo;&rdquo; Jalen said with a laugh. &ldquo;Me and my brother would just say, &lsquo;Yeah, I guess, whatever.'&rdquo;
The brothers were gifted athletes who played multiple sports. Jalen and Jaden would compete constantly. They&rsquo;d have &ldquo;heated&rdquo; NBA 2K sessions. (&ldquo;He&rsquo;d get hot and throw the controller,&rdquo; Jalen recalls of his younger brother.) They&rsquo;d go head-to-head in various sports. Even if they were just working out or doing a shooting drill, it would quickly turn into a competition.
&ldquo;We&rsquo;ve always just been competitors,&rdquo; Jalen explained. &ldquo;That just came from me and my brother beating on each other in anything. Playing one-on-one football, trying to get past each other. [Playing] one-on-one basketball. Anything we did, we were just competitive. I felt like that just built us up, honestly&hellip;
&ldquo;So, when we would do AAU circuits, I feel like that competitiveness just always came out. Like [when we were] getting recruited and stuff, I feel like coaches have just always seen that.&rdquo;
While they loved battling one another, they dreamed of teaming up in the NBA.&nbsp;
&ldquo;We always used to talk about being on the same [NBA] team and how that would be crazy, throwing lobs to each other and stuff like that,&rdquo; Jalen said. &rdquo;We just always thought playing on the same team would be fun and just [with] our chemistry together, of course it would just go crazy. Yeah, that was one dream we had, for sure.&rdquo;
From a young age, Will McDaniels instilled a strong work ethic in his sons and taught them that nothing would ever be handed to them. If they wanted a new pair of shoes, they&rsquo;d have to work around the house for a week. And when his two kids dreamed of playing in the NBA, he&rsquo;d say, &ldquo;You&rsquo;ve gotta work to get there. It&rsquo;s not just gonna be given to you.&rdquo;&nbsp;
ESPN listed Jalen as a three-star recruit when he was in high school, while Jaden would later be a five-star recruit and one of the top players in his high-school class. While Jalen wasn&rsquo;t a McDonald&rsquo;s All-American like his brother, his high-school experience was a crucial part of his journey because it&rsquo;s when he fell in love with the grind and became obsessed with improving.&nbsp;
&ldquo;For me, it was high school,&rdquo; Jalen said when asked when he started taking basketball seriously. &ldquo;Freshman year AAU, I just kept taking steps forward. Junior year, I started getting recruited. Then, I started working out a lot and I felt like I just started getting better, and that&rsquo;s what made me really love it. Like, okay, I see the results, so I&rsquo;m just starting to go crazy &ndash; working out after practice, before 5 a.m. when my mom could drop me off, everything. I just started falling in love with seeing myself get better.&rdquo;
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At that time, Jalen&rsquo;s favorite players were LeBron James and Kevin Durant. He&rsquo;d watch their moves on TV and then try to copy them the next day while he was in the gym with Parks, who has trained him since college.
&ldquo;I&rsquo;m over here trying [their moves] in the gym and that&rsquo;s when I&rsquo;m like, &lsquo;Okay, I can really do some stuff!&rsquo; That built my confidence and ever since then, it just took off &ndash; just loving the game and loving being a competitor,&rdquo; McDaniels said.&nbsp;
Both brothers managed to turn their NBA dream into reality. Jalen is thriving with the Hornets, while Jaden has become an every-night starter for the Minnesota Timberwolves. Jalen and Jaden have now faced off three times in the NBA, which was surreal for the brothers.
&ldquo;It was dope. Like, we&rsquo;re on the same court in the NBA in a real game! It&rsquo;s crazy!&rdquo; Jalen said, before sprinkling in some trash-talk for his little brother. &ldquo;Like, you can&rsquo;t hide! And you can&rsquo;t foul me either, like how you would in one-on-one! No, this is a real game. And you know I&rsquo;m on top, 3-0, like I&rsquo;m supposed to be.&rdquo;
After Jaden was drafted by the Timberwolves with the No. 28 pick in the 2020 NBA Draft, Jalen would offer his brother advice as he got accustomed to playing in the NBA.
&ldquo;When he first got to the NBA, I remember he was struggling and I&rsquo;m like, &lsquo;Bro, you gotta play through it. You&rsquo;re just learning. It&rsquo;s a learning curve &ndash; you just gotta get through it and stick to your routine,&rsquo;&rdquo; Jalen said. &ldquo;He&rsquo;s had times where he isn&rsquo;t shooting it as well and I&rsquo;m always like, &lsquo;Stick to your routine and keep shooting. You aren&rsquo;t supposed to make every shot, bro. Just shake it off and be positive about it. Because as soon as you get in your head, it&rsquo;s over with; you start doing stuff you&rsquo;re not supposed to and now you&rsquo;re messing your whole game up.&rsquo; So I&rsquo;ve just always told him to stay positive and respond better than you did last time.&rdquo;
Now, Jaden is in his third NBA season and he has become a key piece for the Wolves. He&rsquo;s averaging career-highs in points (11.5), assists (1.7), blocks (1.2), steals (1.1), made threes (1.2) and three-point percentage (38%).&nbsp;
&ldquo;He&rsquo;s doing great. Ever since high school, he&rsquo;s been skilled &ndash; super skilled &ndash; you could just see it. For him to be doing what he&rsquo;s doing in the NBA, it&rsquo;s just great,&rdquo; Jalen said of his brother. &ldquo;Everybody&rsquo;s seen it coming, and he&rsquo;s just letting his game speak for itself. Every year, I feel like he&rsquo;s just gonna let more of his game come out; he&rsquo;s got so much skill. His role right now is to defend and make the right play, but when he can get that ability to really rock out, then I feel like he&rsquo;s really going to take off too.&rdquo;
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CHARLOTTE'S BRIGHT FUTURE
When Jalen looks back at how much he has improved from the start of his stint with the Hornets to now, it&rsquo;s a night-and-day difference. He recalls his first few weeks in Charlotte, when his veteran teammates would torch him in practice on a daily basis.
&ldquo;When I first got to Charlotte, I remember I was playing five-on-five and I had to guard guys like Dwayne Bacon and Devonte&rsquo; Graham. I&rsquo;m fresh in Charlotte and young, and I gotta guard Dwayne and he&rsquo;s [experienced], so he was getting buckets on me. And I&rsquo;m like, &lsquo;I gotta play with him every day in practice?!&rsquo;&rdquo; Jalen said with a laugh. &ldquo;As the weeks went on, it just kept getting better and better. I feel like them dudes made me better.&rdquo;
While McDaniels&rsquo; on-court impact is obvious these days, he&rsquo;s also a positive locker-room presence. He gets along with all of his teammates, and Terry Rozier recently told <a href="https://www.charlotteobserver.com/sports/charlotte-hornets/article269221222.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">The Charlotte Observer</a> that McDaniels is "the funniest person on the team."
&ldquo;[When it comes to] getting along with guys, I&rsquo;m just a cool dude, I guess!&rdquo; McDaniels said with a laugh. &ldquo;I don&rsquo;t know. I don&rsquo;t have problems with nobody, I just be chilling. I bring great energy and I&rsquo;m really positive. That&rsquo;s just me...
&ldquo;[I was always funny] with my friends. I wasn&rsquo;t a class clown; I was kinda shy. But with my friends, I&rsquo;m just myself &ndash; goofy, playing around all day, talking, whatever. So when Terry said that, I already knew what he was talking about. We just be making jokes &ndash; like someone will do something and we&rsquo;ll just make eye contact, like we&rsquo;re peeping the same stuff. It&rsquo;s just funny."
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McDaniels is grateful that he entered the NBA on an up-and-coming squad with plenty of other young players whom he could relate to.
&ldquo;You&rsquo;re going through the same stuff and having the same type of problems on the court, messing up. Like, bro, when we first got here, the defensive scheme and stuff like that, we were all going through it like, &lsquo;Man, this is different from college,&rsquo;&rdquo; McDaniels said.
&ldquo;We&rsquo;re all the same age, so I feel like we&rsquo;re all kinda going through the same types of things in life. Just growing together, that&rsquo;s what it&rsquo;s been like, to be honest. We&rsquo;re all just growing together.&rdquo;
Entering this season, the Hornets had the sixth-youngest roster in the NBA (with an average age of 24.6 years old). Jalen is one of nine players on the roster who is age-24 or younger.
The Hornets are currently 10-26, with the NBA's 30th-ranked offense and 26th-ranked defense. However, McDaniels believes that the young core has a lot of potential going forward.
"I feel like the young guys we&rsquo;ve got, we&rsquo;re growing now. Me, PJ [Washington], Cody [Martin], we&rsquo;re all in Year 4. LaMelo [Ball] is in Year 3. We all kinda came in together, and we&rsquo;re just gonna keep building, I feel like. Terry as well; he got here [in 2019]. I feel like we just gotta keep building off of that," McDaniels said.
&ldquo;I love our group&rsquo;s upside. We&rsquo;ve got great young players. I feel like we&rsquo;re building, and it can be something real special."

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NEW ORLEANS (AP) &mdash; CJ McCollum scored a season-high 40 points and the New Orleans Pelicans beat the San Antonio Spurs 126-117 on Thursday night to end their four-game losing streak.
Jonas Valanciunas had 16 points and 10 rebounds for the Pelicans, who won despite Zion Williamson being scratched from the lineup because of the NBA's health and safety protocols.
The Pelicans &mdash; who also were missing forwards Brandon Ingram and Larry Nance Jr. &mdash; made 13 3-pointers. McCollum hit seven from deep, and his first gave New Orleans the lead for good at 3-2 in the opening minutes.
&ldquo;We needed that type of production from him with the guys being out,&rdquo; Pelicans coach Willie Green said. &ldquo;It&rsquo;s beautiful to watch when he&rsquo;s on the floor and he&rsquo;s scoring like he does."
The Pelicans led by as many as 23 points and opened the fourth quarter with a 19-point lead.
The Spurs got back in the game with a 10-0 run fueled by Stanley Johnson, who scored nine of his 12 points in the final period.
McCollum, however, almost single-handedly kept the Spurs at bay. His floater off the glass was the first of 19 points he scored in a pivotal seven-minute stretch. The individual outburst included four 3s &mdash; one while McCollum was fouled for a 4-point play.
&ldquo;McCollum dominated the game from the very beginning,&rdquo; reserve center Willy Hernangomez said. &ldquo;I&rsquo;m happy for CJ. He&rsquo;s been really getting his rhythm back. Today was a big game for him. I'm happy to see him making shots and making the right decision over and over.&rdquo;
The last of McCollum's 3s made it 119-106 with 3:31 to go. Spurs coach Gregg Popovich subbed out his entire lineup moments later, and the Pelicans remained comfortably ahead after that.
&ldquo;We&rsquo;ll get down, figure it out, and then start playing,&rdquo; Popovich said. &ldquo;We don&rsquo;t have somebody like a McCollum that&rsquo;s going to come in and do what he did to us. We made it a decent game at that point and then he took over. He was great."
Jeremy Sochan scored a career-high 23 points for San Antonio.
&ldquo;I am becoming more comfortable and confident," Sochan said. "I had career highs tonight but we still lost, so it doesn&rsquo;t really matter.&rdquo;
Tre Jones added 19 points and Josh Richardson had 14 for the Spurs.
The Pelicans missed their first nine shots from close range but hit four of their six 3-point attempts &mdash; with McCollum making three &mdash; to take a 12-2 lead.
The Spurs missed eight of their first nine shots and committed three turnovers during that stretch.
&ldquo;Sometimes, like tonight, we come out slow on offense but we can&rsquo;t let that affect our game,&rdquo; Tre Jones said. "We have to keep our defensive mentality especially when shots are not falling at the start of the game.
By the end of the first quarter, the Pelicans had made six 3s, the last of those by Devonte' Graham putting New Orleans up 37-17.
&ldquo;We can&rsquo;t give away a quarter the way we did,&rdquo; Popovich said. "We played them pretty even after that first quarter, but we do that too often. ... We can&rsquo;t have those first quarters. That&rsquo;s the whole game.&rdquo;
TIP-INS
Spurs: Leading scorer Keldon Johnson missed his second straight game with right hamstring tightness. ... Jakob Poeltl scored 13 points and Devin Vassell scored 10. ... Missed 19 of 28 3-point shots.
Pelicans: Trey Murphy III scored 15 points, while Hernangomez scored 13 and Herb Jones scored 12 to go with his block and two steals. ... Jose Alvarado had nine points and three steals. ... Hit 25 of 27 free throws (92.6%). ... Ingram missed his 12th straight game with his left large toe injury and Nance missed his second straight game with a sore right Achilles tendon. Williamson also is expected to miss at least one more game.
&nbsp;

CJ McCollum scored a season-high 40 points and the New Orleans Pelicans beat the San Antonio Spurs 126-117.

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CHICAGO (AP) &mdash; DeMar DeRozan scored 28 points, Zach LaVine added 22 and the Chicago Bulls stopped Boston&rsquo;s nine-game win streak, beating the Celtics 121-107 on Monday night.
Patrick Williams scored a season-high 17, and the Bulls made it look rather easy against the team with the NBA&rsquo;s best record. They led by 13 at halftime, got it up to 21 in the third quarter and withstood a push to come away with the victory after dropping four straight and five of six.
Jayson Tatum led Boston with 28 points. Jaylen Brown scored 25 and Malcolm Brogdon finished with 23 points, shooting 5 of 6 on 3-pointers.
PELICANS 128, WARRIORS 83
NEW ORLEANS (AP) &mdash; Brandon Ingram scored a season-high 34 points on the night Zion Williamson returned from a three-game absence, and New Orleans routed depleted Golden State.
Playing one night after winning on the road for the first time this season at Houston, the Warriors scratched Stephen Curry, Klay Thompson, Draymond Green and Andrew Wiggins from the lineup.
Williamson played 23 minutes in his first game back from a bruised right foot, scoring nine points.
Devonte Graham had 19 for the Pelicans, who took the lead for good less than two minutes into the game and led by as many as 45. Jonas Valanciunas had 10 points and 13 rebounds.
Jordan Poole scored 26 for Golden State, which fell to 1-9 on the road.
BUCKS 119, TRAIL BLAZERS 111
MILWAUKEE (AP) &mdash; Giannis Antetokounmpo scored 37 points and Milwaukee pulled away in the second half to beat Portland.
Antetokounmpo shot 16 of 24 to go with seven rebounds and six assists in 35 minutes. Milwaukee improved to 12-4 overall and 9-1 at home.
Bucks guard Jrue Holiday scored 13 of his 17 points in the fourth quarter, and Grayson Allen added 17 points and eight rebounds. Holiday had the first nine Milwaukee points in the period.
Anfernee Simons paced the Trail Blazers (10-7) with 29 points. Jusuf Nurkic added 16 points and 10 rebounds, but Portland lost its third straight game.
CLIPPERS 121, JAZZ 114
LOS ANGELES (AP) &mdash; Norman Powell scored a season-high 30 points, Reggie Jackson added a season-best 27 and Los Angeles rallied in the fourth quarter to defeat Utah.
Ivica Zubac had 14 points and 14 rebounds as the Clippers extended their winning streak to three.
Los Angeles was without Paul George after he strained his right hamstring during Saturday&rsquo;s win over San Antonio.
Jordan Clarkson led Utah with 26 points and Lauri Markkanen had 25 points and 10 rebounds. The Jazz have dropped four of their last six after starting the season 10-3.
CAVALIERS 114, HAWKS 102
CLEVELAND (AP) &mdash; Donovan Mitchell had 29 points and nine assists, and Darius Garland scored 26 to send Cleveland past Atlanta in their first meeting since the play-in tournament last season.
Trae Young had 25 points and 10 assists, and Onyeka Okongwu had a season-high 18 points and 10 rebounds for the Hawks. Key offseason acquisition Dejounte Murray scored 11 on 4-of-18 shooting.
Atlanta claimed the final playoff berth in the East with a 107-101 win at Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse on April 15, extending Cleveland&rsquo;s postseason drought to four years. The Cavaliers have not made the playoffs without LeBron James since 1998.
Garland also had nine assists and tied his career high with eight turnovers. Cedi Osman scored a season-best 23 off the bench as Cleveland won its third in a row following a five-game losing streak. The Cavaliers are 7-1 at home.
PACERS 123, MAGIC 102
INDIANAPOLIS (AP) &mdash; Bennedict Mathurin scored 22 points and Indiana blew out Orlando for its fifth consecutive victory.
Tyrese Haliburton had 18 points and 14 assists for the Pacers. T.J. McConnell added 19 points and 10 assists. Oshae Brissett scored 18 as Indiana's bench accounted for 71 points.
Franz Wagner led the Magic with 20 points and Gary Harris had 18.
TIMBERWOLVES 105, HEAT 101
MINNEAPOLIS (AP) &mdash; Karl-Anthony Towns had 25 points and Anthony Edwards scored 10 of his 22 in the third quarter as Minnesota outlasted shorthanded Miami.
Down to eight players due to injuries and rest on the second night of a back-to-back, the Heat led by 15 in the first half before Edwards sparked a third-quarter run.
Jaden McDaniels added 18 points for the Timberwolves, who won their fourth straight.
Kyle Lowry led the Heat with 21 points and Max Strus had 19. Bam Adebayo, playing in back-to-back games while dealing with a knee injury, had 17 points and 14 rebounds for Miami, which has lost four in a row.
Jimmy Butler missed his third straight game with a knee injury for the Heat, who were also without Tyler Herro, Duncan Robinson and Gabe Vincent.
KNICKS 129, THUNDER 119
OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) &mdash; Jalen Brunson had a season-high 34 points while RJ Barrett and Julius Randle scored 25 each to lead New York over Oklahoma City.
Just eight days ago, the Thunder beat the Knicks in Madison Square Garden, scoring 145 points &mdash; including 79 in the opening half. But this time, New York held Oklahoma City&rsquo;s offense in check for the bulk of the game.
Randle also pulled down 11 rebounds. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander led the Thunder with 30 points and Lu Dort added 24.

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NEW ORLEANS (AP) &mdash; Trey Murphy III scored 22 points and the short-handed New Orleans Pelicans overcame Luka Doncic's latest prolific performance to beat the Dallas Mavericks 113-111 on Tuesday night.
The Pelicans entered the game missing two of their top three scorers in Brandon Ingram (concussion protocol) and Zion Williamson (hip bruise), as well as a third starter, Herb Jones (hyperextended knee), who is their top defensive player.
Available Pelicans responded with an all-hands-on-deck effort in which eight players reached double figures in scoring.
That included rookie and first-round pick Dyson Daniels, who scored his first career points on a jump hook in the second quarter and finished with 11 points in 22 minutes on 4-of-5 shooting.
Murphy hit all eight shots he took, including four 3s. He also mixed in some baskets on the drive, including a soaring dunk in the third quarter and a tip-in with six minutes to go.
Naji Marshall scored 15 points in a spot start. CJ McCollum and Devonte Graham each scored 14 points, with McCollum also assisting on 11 baskets. Jonas Valanciunas and Jose Alvarado each scored 13 and Larry Nance Jr. also scored 11 points.
Doncic scored 37 to go with 11 rebounds and seven assists, but his 3-point attempt at the final horn bounce off the front rim.
Spencer Dinwiddie scored 23 points for Dallas and former Pelican Christian Wood scored 23.
Dallas led by as many as six points in the fourth quarter when Wood's 3 made it 97-91. New Orleans responded with a 7-0 run capped by McCollum's step-back jumper from 16 feet to take the lead and the game remained tight from there.
OPENING SALVO
Alvarado had nine of his points in the first 5:43 of the game, helping the Pelicans off to a 40-point first quarter during which they led by as many as 14 points.
Alvarado's transition layup early in the second quarter gave him 13 points in his first 11 minutes on the court &mdash; and put the Pelicans in front 47-31.
The Pelicans led by as many as 16 in the second quarter and were up 64-54 after Valanciunas' 7-foot floater with about three minutes remaining in the half. But Dallas went on a 10-0 run to tie it on Doncic's driving floater off the glass.
Nance's dunk made it 66-64 at halftime.
TIP-INS
Mavericks: Tim Hardaway Jr. sat out because of a sore right foot. &ldquo;We will re-evaluate him tomorrow to see how he feels,&rdquo; coach Jason Kidd said. ... Doncic made 16 of 30 shots, but missed 11 of his 13 attempts from 3-point range. ... Dallas lost to New Orleans for just the third time in 12 meetings.
Pelicans: Shot 57.9% (44 of 76), including 12 of 27 (44.4%) from 3-point range. ... Combined for 25 assists as a team.
UP NEXT
Mavericks: At Brooklyn on Thursday night.
Pelicans: At Phoenix on Friday night
___
More AP NBA: https://apnews.com/NBA and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports

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The New Orleans Pelicans are a team on the rise.
Despite stumbling out of the gates this season (losing 12 of their first 14 games), the Pels were able to right the ship and advance to the postseason. Over the second half of the 2021-22 campaign, New Orleans finished in the top 10 in both Offensive and Defensive Efficiency. Their Net Rating of plus-4.7 in the 23 games played after the All-Star break was tied with the Miami Heat for the sixth-best mark in the NBA.
After beating both the San Antonio Spurs and Los Angeles Clippers in the Play-In Tournament, the Pelicans gave the Phoenix Suns a battle in the first round of the playoffs before bowing out in six games.&nbsp;&nbsp;
The addition of CJ McCollum at the trade deadline paid immediate dividends for New Orleans, as he averaged over 24 points per game to go along with 5.8 assists, 4.5 rebounds and 2.7 made three-pointers after coming over from Portland. McCollum also quickly established himself as a team leader on and off the floor. Jonas Valanciunas is another respected veteran still producing at a very high level as well.
The rest of the roster is teeming with promising young players. Brandon Ingram, who is still just 24 years old, was a beast in the postseason, averaging 27.2 points, 6.2 rebounds and 6.2 assists while shooting over 40% from downtown in the series vs. Phoenix. The team's three rookies &mdash; Herbert Jones, Trey Murphy III and Jose Alvarado &mdash; were all significant contributors too.
Jones exceeded even the loftiest of expectations, immediately establishing himself as an elite defender. The 35th overall pick in the 2021 NBA Draft, he led all rookies in total steals with 130 (50 more than Scottie Barnes, who ranked second) and was third in blocks. According to Basketball-Reference, he is the only rookie in New Orleans franchise history and just the seventh first-year pro in league history to tally more than 125 steals and 50 blocks. Jones' terrific all-around play earned him a spot on the NBA's All-Rookie Second Team.&nbsp;
Jaxson Hayes, who just celebrated his 22nd birthday last month, is coming off the best year of his young career. Despite an up-and-down season with different roles, Devonte' Graham still averaged double-figures.
And, remarkably, 14 of the 15 players on the Pels roster to end the season are under contract for at least one more season. The only free agent on the team is Tony Snell, who didn't log a single minute for New Orleans in the playoffs.
So, it'll be a stress-free summer for the Pelicans front office, as they don't have any significant decisions to make this offseason, right?&nbsp;
Wrong.&nbsp;
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On the contrary, the Pels have to make one of the most important determinations in the history of the franchise. As of next month, Zion Williamson will be eligible to sign a five-year, $181 million max rookie extension, which could increase by an additional $36 million, all the way up to $217.5 million, if he were to be named to an All-NBA team next season.
Let's start by recognizing that, dating back to high school, Williamson has been utterly dominant on both ends of the floor whenever he's been healthy enough to step foot on a basketball court.&nbsp;
During his lone season at Duke, Williamson was the consensus National Player of the Year. He tied for the ACC lead in scoring with 22.6 points per game, was third in rebounding (8.9 rebounds), second in steals (2.1) and fifth in blocks (1.8) on average. He also shot 68.0% from the floor, which led the ACC and was second nationally. Zion is the only NCAA player ever to average over 20 points a night and tally at least 70 steals and 50 blocks in the same season.
As a rookie in New Orleans, Williamson averaged 22.5 points and 6.3 rebounds per game, and gave glimpses of the enormous potential he possesses thanks to his almost unimaginable combination of size, strength and athleticism.&nbsp;&nbsp;
In 2020-21, his age-20 season, Zion averaged a whopping 27.0 points (including over 20 points per game in the paint &mdash; the most since Shaquille O'Neal in 1999-00), 7.2 rebounds and 3.7 assists, while shooting over 61% from the floor. In the process, he became the first player in NBA history to average at least 27 points on 60-plus% shooting for an entire season. Williamson tallied ​​20 or more points in 25 straight games, which is the longest streak in NBA history for a player under 21 years old.
He was named to the 2021 NBA All-Star Game, becoming the 10th player in league history to earn All-Star recognition before celebrating his 21st birthday and becoming the fourth-youngest player in NBA history behind only Kobe Bryant, LeBron James and Magic Johnson.
Through his first 60 career games, Williamson scored 1,457 points, trailing only Michael Jordan (1,664) for the most in the last 40 seasons.
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Zion Williamson will go off next season! NBA career stat line: 25.7 PPG (60.4% FG) 7.0 RPG, 3.2 APG <a href="https://t.co/oGRNIQXYt7">pic.twitter.com/oGRNIQXYt7</a>
&mdash; Courtside Films (@CourtsideFilms) <a href="https://twitter.com/CourtsideFilms/status/1532019142718640130?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">June 1, 2022</a></blockquote>

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So, given this nearly unprecedented production, signing him to a max contract in order to lock him up immediately is a no-brainer for New Orleans, right?&nbsp;
Wrong.
While Zion has been unguardable when he's on the floor, his inability to stay on the court has been a recurring concern.&nbsp;
Since being drafted No. 1 overall in 2019, Williamson has appeared in just 85 out of a possible 226 games. He missed the first 44 contests of his rookie season after tearing his meniscus, dealt with a thumb sprain, a fractured left ring finger and right knee soreness as a sophomore&nbsp;and sat out the entire 2021-22 season following surgery to repair a broken foot.
Over the last 30 years, the only top pick to play fewer games over his first three years in the league is former Portland Trail Blazer big man Greg Oden.&nbsp;
In addition to the injury issues, there have been reports about Williamson's unhappiness in New Orleans. Yet, when he was asked back in April if he would agree to sign a max offer from the Pels, <a href="https://twitter.com/FletcherWDSU/status/1520095546752516096?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1520095546752516096%7Ctwgr%5E%7Ctwcon%5Es1_&amp;ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fnba.nbcsports.com%2F2022%2F04%2F29%2Fzion-williamson-says-hed-sign-contract-extension-if-pelicans-offer-of-course-i-couldnt-sign-it-fast-enough%2F" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Zion responded</a>: "Of course, I couldn't sign it fast enough."
However, Pelicans executive vice president David Griffin acknowledged that contract-extension talks with Williamson would be difficult.
"Obviously, that conversation is going to be one that will be a challenge," <a href="https://www.nola.com/sports/pelicans/article_043ffe96-c7fd-11ec-a2e1-a7e798041444.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Griffin said</a> early last month. "When it's time to have that, we'll have it. And right now what we're focused on is him being healthy, and (being in) kind of elite condition to play basketball, and we'll start there."
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Williamson has one year left on his rookie-scale deal, which will pay him $13.5 million in 2022-23. If Zion and the Pels don't agree on an extension this offseason, he will be a restricted free agent next summer. In that scenario, both sides would be carrying considerable risk. Williamson would be gambling on not having his future earning power crippled by a career-altering injury, while, at the same time, the Pels would risk potentially losing a franchise-altering talent via free agency.
Meeting in the middle probably makes the most sense for both parties. When discussing the parameters of a compromise, the agreement between the Philadelphia 76ers and Joel Embiid back in 2017 provides a blueprint.
After sitting out the entirety of his first two NBA seasons due to a devastating foot injury, Embiid suited up for only 31 games in his third year. Although Embiid looked fantastic when he was finally cleared to play, the Sixers were understandably hesitant to commit massive sums of guaranteed money to the injury-prone big man.
Thus, that offseason, Philadelphia and Embiid agreed to a five-year, $148 million extension, but the deal included offset language that protected the team if the player could not stay healthy. If Embiid missed 25 or more games or played fewer than 1,650 minutes in any of the final four seasons of the extension, Philadelphia had the right to waive him and get out of paying the remaining years of his contract.
As it turned out, Embiid avoided the injury bug and established himself as one of the league's premier players, finishing second in MVP voting in each of the past two seasons. Last summer, he inked a four-year, $196 million supermax pact that will keep him with the 76ers through the 2026-27 season. His entire salary is fully guaranteed.&nbsp;
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In late May, <a href="https://twitter.com/FletcherWDSU/status/1530212975310667776" target="_blank" rel="noopener">ESPN's Brian Windhorst reported</a>:
<blockquote>
From what I have been told, the Pelicans, at this point, are not willing to offer a full five-year guaranteed deal. A lot of it is flowing down from ownership. Gayle Benson, the owner, is also the owner of the New Orleans Saints. And I have been told they're going to take a football-style, Saints-style mentality with this contract negotiation. They will offer him a huge contract, but will not guarantee all of it.
</blockquote>
It's possible such an approach by the Pels could offend Zion and lead to a standoff between the two parties. But the alternative (signing a max deal with no protections) seems like a non-starter for New Orleans ownership. So, even if the Pels front office were willing to gamble with the team's cap space, Benson likely wouldn't be willing to roll the dice.&nbsp;
Again, a compromise appears to be the most reasonable and plausible outcome. In this scenario, Zion would still bank north of $90 million if he was unable to stay healthy.
It's difficult to imagine a player who hasn't set foot on an NBA court during an actual game in over 13 months turning down that type of payday.&nbsp;
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Tommy Beer ponders how the Pelicans should handle Zion Williamson's extension-eligible period and weighs their options.

Should the Pelicans sign Zion Williamson to a max contract?

We have reached the point where Stephen A. Smith is conjuring up the narrative that Zion Williamson is holding back the New Orleans Pelicans from contending for a title.
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When did we get to this part of the Twilight Zone, I need to get out 😭😭😭 <a href="https://twitter.com/PelicansNBA?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@PelicansNBA</a> <a href="https://t.co/sOnggL7FYf">pic.twitter.com/sOnggL7FYf</a>
&mdash; Devonte Graham Bricks (@Marvason) <a href="https://twitter.com/Marvason/status/1521244564966756359?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 2, 2022</a></blockquote>

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Let's not discuss that clip any further besides pointing out how dramatically <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/wednesday-was-a-celebration-of-how-far-the-pelicans-have-come" target="_blank" rel="noopener">the Pelicans changed course and captured the respect of the national basketball audience</a> this season. Stephen A.'s rant is less relevant for its substance and more noteworthy because ESPN is&nbsp;still talking about the Pelicans even after they were eliminated from a hard-fought, first-round series. New Orleans started 1-12 (!!) and turned into one of the NBA's true darlings in a matter of months &mdash; all without its most marketable star.
Brandon Ingram asserted his star status, averaging 22.7 points, 5.8 rebounds and 5.6 assists per game (27.0/6.2/6.2 during the postseason) while taking a leap as a playmaker. CJ McCollum fit right in as a "1B" creator and microwave shooter after the trade deadline. Herb Jones is the <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/reassessing-herb-jones-upside" target="_blank" rel="noopener">certified steal of the 2021 NBA Draft</a>, and undrafted rookie Jose Alvarado isn't too far behind.
There is no hyperbole fit to describe the sheer joy I had watching the Pelicans through the wins and losses of this season, and if you followed along, you recognize the progress that far exceeded the record and results.
Perhaps the best part is that New Orleans remains built for the future.
Only three players hit free agency this offseason: Tony Snell, Jared Harper and Gary Clark. Everyone else is under contract for 2022-23 &mdash; no team options, no restricted free agents and no partial guarantees, per Spotrac. On the signing front, Zion is the biggest domino, as he'll be eligible to sign a rookie extension before hitting restricted free agency in summer 2023. At least publicly, he is giving positive indications:
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I asked Zion Williamson if offered an extension this summer by the Pelicans would he sign it? His answer. &ldquo;Of course, I couldn&rsquo;t sign it fast enough.&rdquo;
&mdash; Fletcher Mackel (@FletcherWDSU) <a href="https://twitter.com/FletcherWDSU/status/1520095546752516096?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">April 29, 2022</a></blockquote>

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However, Williamson has now missed a whopping 141 games in his NBA career. Even if he inks a max extension, which Dan Feldman of NBC Sports says <a href="&ldquo;Obviously,%20that%20conversation%20is%20going%20to%20be%20one%20that%20will%20be%20a%20challenge,&rdquo;%20Griffin%20said.%20&ldquo;When%20it&rsquo;s%20time%20to%20have%20that,%20we&rsquo;ll%20have%20it.%20And%20right%20now%20what%20we&rsquo;re%20focused%20on%20is%20him%20being%20healthy,%20and%20(being%20in)%20kind%20of%20elite%20condition%20to%20play%20basketball%20and%20we&rsquo;ll%20start%20there.&rdquo;" target="_blank" rel="noopener">could be worth well over $180 million</a>, Pelicans executive vice president David Griffin implied that talks might be complicated.
&ldquo;Obviously, that conversation is going to be one that will be a challenge,&rdquo; Griffin said. &ldquo;When it&rsquo;s time to have that, we&rsquo;ll have it. And right now what we&rsquo;re focused on is him being healthy, and (being in) kind of elite condition to play basketball and we&rsquo;ll start there.&rdquo;
Ultimately, Williamson's health and wealth are the rudder of the Pelicans' ceiling. But Griffin still has much to address on other fronts.
New Orleans has the Lakers' first round pick with zero protections &mdash; an exciting opportunity given that pick has the eighth-best lottery odds. At the very least, the Pelicans get a free chance to add another young talent to the rotation, and if things break right, they could add another franchise cornerstone.
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Senior NBA Draft Analyst Matt Babcock projects New Orleans to pick Duke freshman AJ Griffin in <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/draft" target="_blank" rel="noopener">our latest mock draft</a> if they remain at No. 8. Griffin is a high-upside choice as one of the youngest players in the draft class. A long, 6-foot-6 wing, he's returned from injuries in high school and at Duke, and flashes traits of a dynamic three-level scorer and creator.
The Pelicans send their first-rounder to Charlotte as part of last summer's Devonte' Graham trade. But they still hold their own second-round pick (No. 41 overall) and a pick from Utah (No. 52). Babcock has Kentucky center Oscar Tshiebwe and Villanova guard Collin Gillespie mocked to New Orleans in the second round.
Even with a packed roster and their draft picks, the Pelicans still have assets to get frisky in free agency. They'll have $10.2 million non-taxpayer mid-level exception to use on a free agent along with a $4 million bi-annual exception. More notable is their $17 million trade exception generated from trading Steven Adams to the Memphis Grizzlies. New Orleans could absorb a player into that exception with some financial flexibility.
But how much should the Pelicans shake things up? Since Jan. 1, they sported the 17th-best offense and defense, according to Cleaning the Glass, and were still only the ninth seed in a deep Western Conference at season's end. Yet we saw other young prospects &mdash; most notably Jaxson Hayes and Trey Murphy III &mdash; visibly develop as the year moved along. The five-man unit of McCollum, Ingram, Jones, Hayes and Jonas Valanciunas played 294 possessions after the trade deadline and was a solid plus-7.1 points per 100 possessions.
New Orleans receives one of the NBA's biggest boosts if Zion Williamson comes back healthy to open 2022-23. Willie Green gets a summer to prepare after a stellar first season as a head coach. The Pelicans have a bright future ahead, and this offseason should purely be icing on the cake.
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The Pelicans surprised everyone with their run to the NBA Playoffs, and have only just begun an exciting trajectory.

2022 NBA offseason preview: What's next for the New Orleans Pelicans?

While the Charlotte Hornets improved their win total by 10 games over last year&rsquo;s abbreviated 72-game season, the end result was the same: an embarrassing blowout loss in the play-in tournament.
Despite winning 43 games, the Hornets finished in 10th place in the Eastern Conference and <a href="https://apnews.com/article/miami-heat-charlotte-hornets-cleveland-cavaliers-atlanta-hawks-nba-3ecd373854232ff01332ae4f7cdd455b">lost 132-103 on Wednesday night to the Atlanta Hawks</a>. Charlotte lost by 27 points to Indiana in last year's play-in tournament as the 10 seed.
If the Hornets want to end that cycle, it'll have to start with defense.
Charlotte posted its highest offensive rating in franchise history and finished eighth overall in the NBA, but the defense continued to lag behind. Charlotte ranked 22nd in defense among the league&rsquo;s 30 teams.
The loss to the Hawks illustrated the dire need for a rim protector and better man-to-man defense on the perimeter.
&ldquo;We need to become more curious about how to guard," coach James Borrego said. &ldquo;We need to get better defensively by watching the best teams do it and learning from them and watching these (playoff) series.&rdquo;
Miles Bridges agreed with his coach, adding that he'd like to see the Hornets add an inside presence.
&ldquo;We have been saying this for the last few years, we have to get better on defense," Bridges said. "We can't keep saying it. We have to actually make it happen.&rdquo;
BRIDGES' FUTURE
The biggest personnel question heading into the offseason revolves around Bridges' future. He's a restricted free agent who's expected to command big money come July.
Bridges confirmed reports that he turned down a lucrative $60 million contract extension offer from the Hornets last year, hoping to prove he was worth even more with a big season. He did just that, averaging a career-high 20.2 points and 7 rebounds per game.
Borrego admitted he didn't foresee Bridges making this big of a leap.
The Hornets will have the option to match any offer made to Bridges by another team once he becomes a free agent, providing they make him a qualifying offer.
&ldquo;I anticipate him being back with us," Borrego said. "He&rsquo;s a major part of this core, we love him. He&rsquo;s a major part of this franchise.&rdquo;
Said Bridges: &ldquo;I mean I would love to come back, for sure. But I don't even worry about that stuff. I let my agent worry about it.&rdquo;
BALL WILL BE NO. 1
All-Star LaMelo Ball said he expects to be wearing a No. 1 jersey next season instead of the No. 2 he's donned the first two seasons in the league.
Ball petitioned the NBA for a number change, and said he's been told it has been granted.
&ldquo;It&rsquo;s supposed to happen,&rdquo; Ball said. &ldquo;I ain&rsquo;t ever supposed to wear No. 2 again. If I see a No. 2 next year, I don&rsquo;t know what I&rsquo;m going to do, for real.&rdquo;
Ball took No. 2 coming into the league because Malik Monk was wearing No. 1 for the Hornets at the time. Ball attempted to change numbers last year, but missed the deadline.
Ball said he's always felt &ldquo;weird&rdquo; wearing No. 2.
&ldquo;You don&rsquo;t feel like you&rsquo;re playing for real,&rdquo; Ball said. &ldquo;I don&rsquo;t know who this is. I don&rsquo;t know who No. 2 is.&rdquo;
PLUMLEE'S SHOT
Midway through his ninth NBA season, Hornets center Mason Plumlee abruptly and boldly decided to make a huge shift from free throws and shooting jump shots with his left hand instead of his right hand amid a tremendous slump.
Plumlee said he plans to continue shooting lefthanded next season &mdash; even though he looks extremely awkward doing so.
&ldquo;I'm going to stick with the left,&rdquo; Plumlee said. &ldquo;It feels good. I know the practice shooting is really good. I know it was an in-the-moment thing, but I'm happy with it."
HAYWARD'S STATUS
Gordon Hayward missed 22 games with a sprained ankle before returning for one game late in the season. But that return was cut short after Hayward experienced pain in the same left foot.
It turns out Hayward had a bone chip in the foot that was preventing him from getting back to full speed. He strolled into the press room on Thursday on a knee scooter, his lower left leg in a hard cast.
&ldquo;After talking to the doctors they felt like the best way to get this thing to heal would be to cast it and basically get off of it,&rdquo; Hayward said.
The 32-year-old small forward expects to be ready next season.
BIRD WATCHING
It turns out the Hornets can still have a chance to get a big win in the play-in tournament.
If Pelicans beat the Clippers on Friday night, Charlotte gets New Orleans' first-round draft pick this year (No. 15 overall) as part of the trade that sent Devonte Graham to the Big Easy. If the Pelicans lose, the Hornets get New Orleans' second round picks in 2022 and 2024 instead.

Charlotte posted its highest Offensive Rating in franchise history and finished eighth in the NBA, but the defense continued to lag behind.

Hornets need defense, rim protection to take the next step

MEMPHIS, Tenn. (AP) &mdash; Ja Morant had 21 points and nine assists in his return from soreness in his right knee, Dillon Brooks scored 23 points and the Memphis Grizzlies routed the New Orleans Pelicans 141-114 on Saturday night to tie the 2012-13 franchise record for victories in a season at 56.
After missing nine games, Morant played almost 27 minutes as the second-seeded Grizzlies got their starting lineup back together in preparation for the postseason. They will close the regular season at home against Boston on Sunday night.
Morant had not played since he was injured in a loss at Atlanta on March 18.
&ldquo;Being out there with my team is something I&rsquo;ve been waiting on since March 19,&rdquo; Morant said, referring to the day after his injury. &ldquo;I was finally able to do that. Excited to be out there. Had a lot of fun. Just preparing for this stretch we&rsquo;re about to go on in the playoffs.&rdquo;
Brandon Clarke added 20 points for Memphis, making all 10 of his field goal attempts. Ziaire Williams had 19 points, and Desmond Bane had 18. Bane was 6 of 7 on the night, including making all four 3-point attempts. The Grizzlies shot better than 60% through three quarters. They snapped a two-game losing streak.
CJ McCollum led New Orleans with 16 points but was 6 of 17 from the field. Willy Hernangomez added 15 points and 10 rebounds, and Jaxson Hayes had 13 points.
&ldquo;It was a tough night. Tough night for CJ. Tough night for me. Tough night for our group,&rdquo; Pelicans coach Willie Green said.
&ldquo;It just felt like they were more ready than use,&rdquo; Hayes added. &ldquo;They came out aggressive. Got up into us and just kind of pressured us the whole game. It was hard to get anything going.&rdquo;
Trying to secure the ninth seed for the play-in tournament, the Pelicans played without scoring leader Brandon Ingram. He&rsquo;s missed his second straight game because of hamstring tightness.
Memphis dominated through the middle stages. By the end point of the third quarter, the lead had reached 39, and Memphis was shooting 64% overall and 60% from 3-point range, connecting on 15 of 25 from distance. Memphis scored a franchise-record 55 points in the third quarter, giving the Grizzlies a 119-80 lead heading into the fourth.
Memphis was 20 of 26 shooting in the third, making 7 of 10 from 3-point range and handing out 16 assists in the period alone. Pelicans coach. Green said the third quarter was a bad sign, but more of a continuation of problems for New Orleans throughout the night.
&ldquo;The whole game we could have been better,&rdquo; Green said. &ldquo;The third quarter was by far our worst.&rdquo;
For Memphis, which did not play well in a loss last Thursday to Denver, the performance was a return to style the Grizzlies played before the two-game losing streak. And with a full complement of starters
&ldquo;All we need to do is attention to detail, know player personnel and give effort,&rdquo; Brooks said.
GOOD DILLON THE VILLAIN
Brooks, who has been known to jaw with referees and opponents while playing his physical style of defense, seemed to play a little looser Saturday night, even smiling at times, particularly after the Grizzlies built the insurmountable lead. &ldquo;I&rsquo;m trying to smile more so I don&rsquo;t get too upset out there and (officials) start T-ing me up,&rdquo; Brook said.
TIP-INS
Pelicans: Started 0 of 7 from outside the arc. &hellip; G Devonte&rsquo; Graham did not grab a rebound and still needs one for 600 in his career. &hellip; Trey Murphy III, who leads rookies in 3-point shooting percentage at 38.4%, was 1 of 3 from outside the arc. &hellip; C Jonas Valanciunas, who was in foul trouble most of the game, was limited to six minutes, scoring eight points and grabbing only one rebound. &hellip; McCollum who was 2 for 11 midway through the third, had 10 points in the period.
Grizzlies: Entered the game second in scoring at 115.4 a game. The franchise has never finished in the top 5 in scoring. &hellip; Are 30-0 when reaching 120 points. &hellip; While setting the franchise record for points in a quarter with 55 in the third, Memphis also set franchise marks for field goals in a period (20) and assists (16).
UP NEXT
Pelicans: Host Golden State on Sunday night.
Grizzlies: Host Boston on Sunday night.
&nbsp;

Ja Morant had 21 points and nine assists in his return and the Memphis Grizzlies routed the New Orleans Pelicans 141-114.

Ja Morant returns to help Grizzlies rout Pelicans, 141-114

The 2021-22 NBA season has been the hardest of CJ McCollum&rsquo;s career.
Entering this campaign, he had spent the entirety of his NBA career with the Portland Trail Blazers, making the playoffs every year. Since getting drafted in 2013, he had only ever played for one head coach (Terry Stotts) and one general manager (Neil Olshey).
However, this season would be full of challenging firsts for McCollum.
Over the summer, he experienced his first coaching change, as the Blazers fired Stotts and his staff. Just as McCollum and his teammates were adjusting to new head coach Chauncey Billups, Portland announced that Olshey was under investigation after complaints of bullying, hostility and creating a toxic work environment. Shortly after, Olshey was fired, with Joe Cronin being promoted to interim GM midseason. McCollum was shocked and admitted that the turnover affected him.
&ldquo;This is different than anything I&rsquo;ve ever experienced because of the circumstances,&rdquo; McCollum told <a href="https://theathletic.com/3002581/2021/12/07/inside-the-mind-of-cj-mccollum-a-conversation-and-a-text-message-show-the-blazers-guards-current-struggle/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">The Athletic</a> in December. &ldquo;This is the first year of my career where we lost our whole coaching staff, brought in a new coach, a new staff, the GM gets fired in the middle of the season... all of that affects you on the court. But there is no excuses. I didn&rsquo;t come here to tell you, &lsquo;There&rsquo;s a lot of sh** going on...&rsquo; but yeah, there is. There&rsquo;s sh** going on every day. And I&rsquo;m a fu**ing human being. But look, at the end of the day, my job is to play basketball. So, I go play basketball.&rdquo;
The day after Olshey was relieved of his duties, McCollum suffered what he thought was a rib injury during the Blazers&rsquo; game against the Boston Celtics. However, a CT scan revealed that he had a collapsed lung, which would ultimately sideline him for six weeks.
Several weeks later, McCollum became a father when his wife, Elise, gave birth to their first child. Jacobi James McCollum was born at 11:59 p.m. on Jan. 10, 2022. Becoming a first-time parent is scary enough, but there are additional concerns and stressors when your baby is born during a pandemic.
&ldquo;Try having a kid in the middle of COVID. That sh** ain&rsquo;t normal,&rdquo; McCollum told <a href="https://theathletic.com/3002581/2021/12/07/inside-the-mind-of-cj-mccollum-a-conversation-and-a-text-message-show-the-blazers-guards-current-struggle/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">The Athletic</a> in December. &ldquo;Now, try having a kid during COVID amid trade rumors in the middle of the season.&rdquo;
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Congratulations to <a href="https://twitter.com/CJMcCollum?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@CJMcCollum</a> &amp; his wife Elise on the birth of their son, Jacobi James McCollum! 😍 (via 3jmccollum / IG) <a href="https://t.co/GSvzwkY1P6">pic.twitter.com/GSvzwkY1P6</a>
&mdash; Portland Trail Blazers (@trailblazers) <a href="https://twitter.com/trailblazers/status/1482855754243706887?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 16, 2022</a></blockquote>

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As McCollum mentioned, his name had been surfacing in trade rumors for much of the season. He wasn&rsquo;t a stranger to the rumor mill, but the rumblings had never been quite this intense. And with Portland struggling, a number of Blazers were looking over their shoulders and wondering what moves might be coming as the trade deadline approached.
&ldquo;I&rsquo;d be lying if I told you that we don&rsquo;t hear it or that it doesn&rsquo;t affect us at all,&rdquo; Blazers forward Nassir Little <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/qa-nassir-little-on-blazers-struggles-his-development-gm-change" target="_blank" rel="noopener">told me</a> in December. &ldquo;At the end of the day, we&rsquo;re people. I get the excitement of trades and the eagerness to talk about them, but you&rsquo;re talking about people having to move their families and basically break off relationships that they&rsquo;ve built over the course of time and they have to start a whole moving process and adapt to a whole new situation. It&rsquo;s just a lot of things that go into getting traded as a player and those things don&rsquo;t really get taken into account [by fans]... There are a lot of different dynamics that are very taxing on somebody&rsquo;s mental when you get traded.&rdquo;
On Feb. 8, less than one month after his son was born, McCollum was traded for the first time in his NBA career. The Blazers dealt McCollum, Larry Nance Jr. and Tony Snell to the New Orleans Pelicans for Josh Hart, Tom&aacute;&scaron; Satoransk&yacute;, Nickeil Walker-Alexander, Didi Louzada, a protected first-round pick and two second-round picks.
In other words, McCollum and his family suddenly had to move across the country. After an athlete gets traded, it&rsquo;s emotional and stressful since you&rsquo;re relocating to a new city on very short notice. Sometimes, players will live in a nearby hotel until they find a place to rent or buy. Going through that adjustment with a newborn is less than ideal.
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After nearly nine years in Portland, McCollum was starting over with a new organization. Fortunately for McCollum, the Blazers&rsquo; front office gave him some say in where he ended up, so he was starting the next chapter of his NBA career in his preferred destination. Why was he drawn to New Orleans?
"It was a combination of things: the culture, the city, the people, the love &mdash; you can feel it, you know what I&rsquo;m saying? I felt it from afar,&rdquo; McCollum said on the <a href="https://youtu.be/AB-4HFR_jrE" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Knuckleheads Podcast</a>. &ldquo;I love the atmosphere. And if you do what you are supposed to do in a city like this, you will be loved forever. If you embrace them the way they embrace you, you can become legendary. I wanted to be where I was wanted, where I was needed. There's a lot of culture here, a lot of diversity and the food is fire. And they've got a lot of young talent. They&rsquo;ve got a lot of really good basketball players.&rdquo;
McCollum mentioned Zion Williamson, Brandon Ingram, Jonas Valanciunas, Devonte&rsquo; Graham and Herb Jones specifically, while also shouting out head coach Willie Green, general manager Trajan Langdon and executive VP of basketball operations David Griffin.
&ldquo;There's a lot of talent on this roster, and I think I can get the most not only out of my career, out of my situation, out of my development, but also out of the guys,&rdquo; McCollum added. &ldquo;I know what it takes to be successful consistently. And I can not only tell you about it, but I can show you because I've done it. I think that I'm just what they've needed and they're just what I've needed, especially at this stage in my life. And I think there's no better time for me to [make this move]. I&rsquo;m 30 years old, I've been in the playoffs for eight straight years and I'm trying to make it nine.&rdquo;
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New Orleans is now 32-43, which is the ninth-best record in the Western Conference. Since adding McCollum to their lineup, the Pelicans have the NBA's 10th-best offense (117.4 points per 100 possessions) and 14th-best defense (114.3 Defensive Rating). That is a plus-3.1 efficiency differential, which is eighth-best in the NBA over that span &mdash; ahead of the Philadelphia 76ers, Miami Heat, Brooklyn Nets, Milwaukee Bucks, Golden State Warriors and Dallas Mavericks.
Through 19 games with the Pelicans, McCollum is averaging 25.9 points, 6.5 assists, 4.9 rebounds and 1.2 steals while shooting 50.1% from the field &mdash; all of which would be career-highs. He's also knocking down 2.8 threes per game on 38.4% shooting from beyond the arc.
Also, he&rsquo;s posting a career-best Box Plus/Minus (+5.9), Player Efficiency Rating (23.3), True Shooting percentage (59.0%), assist percentage (33.9%) and total rebound percentage (7.7%). His turnover percentage is just 8.9%, which is one of the lowest marks of his career despite the fact that he has a career-high usage rate of 29.5%.
McCollum&rsquo;s teammates are thrilled to have him in New Orleans and they rave about his impact.
&ldquo;I told CJ that I love him; he makes our job easy,&rdquo; Willy Hernangomez said. &ldquo;He makes everybody&rsquo;s job easy. Everybody pays so much attention to him. We just need to set the screens and play the right way... We&rsquo;re trying to build something different and something special here. Every day, we just try to be 1% better than the day before. It has been amazing having CJ, Tony and Larry. Their experience has been helping us a lot. I think we&rsquo;re going to keep going and getting better. We&rsquo;re having fun, and that&rsquo;s the most important thing.&rdquo;
&ldquo;[We&rsquo;re] definitely locked in. That starts with [CJ] and BI just coming out, being aggressive, being under control,&rdquo; Graham said. &ldquo;They&rsquo;re making life easier for everybody.&rdquo;
"CJ is such an impressive human being," Nance <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/larry-nance-jr-qa-i-did-not-come-out-here-to-halfass-this-thing" target="_blank" rel="noopener">told me</a> earlier this season. "He has his hands in a lot of different things, and he&rsquo;s just such an impressive human that, like, how could you not get along with a guy like that?!"
Ingram and McCollum have only played 11 games together (since Ingram was recently sidelined for three weeks due to a hamstring injury), but they have shown flashes of the dynamic one-two punch that they could become. Across those 11 games, McCollum and Ingram have averaged a combined 48.1 points, 11.9 assists and 11.0 rebounds while shooting 51.6% from the field and 35.6% from three-point range.&nbsp;
&ldquo;He&rsquo;s very similar in his approach, in the way he watches film, in the way he communicates. He&rsquo;s receptive of information,&rdquo; Ingram said of McCollum. &ldquo;It&rsquo;s fun to play here right now.&rdquo;
The Pelicans are getting healthier just in time for the Play-In Tournament. Ingram is back in the lineup and McCollum is healthy after missing a few games due to COVID-19 (which had to be scary with a newborn at home). Also, Nance just made his Pelicans debut last week.&nbsp;
Unfortunately, the Pelicans won&rsquo;t be at full strength until next year, as Williamson has been ruled out for the rest of the season due to his foot injury. In addition, Kira Lewis Jr. is sidelined after tearing his ACL in December.
Still, it's fun to think about how good this squad could be next year if everything comes together.
"I'm excited, man. I'm thankful to be here,&rdquo; McCollum said. &ldquo;I've said it a thousand times, but I like what we're building here, I like the way we're playing, I like the way we're executing, and the sky&rsquo;s the limit for us.&rdquo;&nbsp;
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This has been the craziest season of CJ McCollum's NBA career, but now the 30-year-old is thriving with the New Orleans Pelicans.

CJ McCollum excited for next chapter with Pelicans after chaotic year

The NBA playoffs are fast approaching and as the season winds down, there are a total of 21 teams fighting for 16 playoff spots across the two conferences.
Every game matters.
Injuries have had a major impact on this season. In the Western Conference, a number of potential playoff teams are missing key pieces, including the Golden State Warriors (Stephen Curry and James Wiseman), Denver Nuggets (Jamal Murray and Michael Porter Jr.), Los Angeles Clippers (Kawhi Leonard and Paul George), Memphis Grizzlies (Ja Morant), Los Angeles Lakers (Anthony Davis), New Orleans Pelicans (Zion Williamson) and Portland Trail Blazers (Damian Lillard).
There are fewer injured stars in the Eastern Conference, but Jarrett Allen (CLE), Ben Simmons (BKN), Lonzo Ball (CHI), Gordon Hayward (CHA) and Colin Sexton (CLE) are currently sidelined.
Between now and the start of the playoffs on April 12, some important players are expected to return to their respective teams, which could alter the NBA landscape in a major way.
<h2>WESTERN CONFERENCE</h2>
DENVER NUGGETS
On March 15, the Nuggets assigned Jamal Murray to their G-League affiliate (the Grand Rapids Gold) to get some additional work at practice. This sent waves through social media, as fans anticipated Murray's long-awaited return to the Nuggets' lineup. However, just a few days later, Nuggets head coach Michael Malone said that Murray is "not close" to suiting up.
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Denver Nuggets HC Michael Malone says Jamal Murray is "not close" to rejoining the lineup, per <a href="https://twitter.com/HarrisonWind?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@HarrisonWind</a> <a href="https://t.co/7leLWbJe5W">pic.twitter.com/7leLWbJe5W</a>
&mdash; Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) <a href="https://twitter.com/BleacherReport/status/1505676501303320576?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">March 20, 2022</a></blockquote>

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It seems unlikely that Murray will be able to play during the regular season, but perhaps he'll be able to return at some point during the postseason.
Michael Porter Jr. is also on the mend, but the reports about his availability have been all over the place. There were rumblings that his rehab didn't go great and that he was further away than Murray. Then, there was a rumor that he's <a href="https://theathletic.com/3198516/2022/03/21/nuggets-hopeful-jamal-murray-and-michael-porter-jr-could-be-back-by-playoffs-but-no-immediate-return-on-the-horizon/?source=nbatw" target="_blank" rel="noopener">due back very soon</a>.

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A little over a week ago, Malone was asked about the possibility of Murray and Porter returning, and he <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/malone-michael-porter-jr-and-jamal-murrays-wont-be-back-soon" target="_blank" rel="noopener">said</a>, "There is no immediate return on the horizon for either one of those players."
Denver is currently the sixth seed in the Western Conference, trying to stave off the Minnesota Timberwolves and avoid the Play-In Tournament.&nbsp;
Nikola Jokic has played at an MVP level (again) and the absence of these two stars has allowed for Bones Hyland to emerge as a legitimate rotation player as a rookie. Adding even one of these two players back into the fold would make the Nuggets a significantly more threatening first-round opponent for the Grizzlies, Warriors or Mavericks.&nbsp;
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NEW ORLEANS PELICANS
Since the acquisition of CJ McCollum on February 8, the New Orleans Pelicans rank No. 10 in offensive rating and No. 6 in net rating. While the Pelicans won't be getting All-Star power forward Zion Williamson back at any point this season, they did just have another impact player return to their lineup.
Larry Nance Jr. was acquired as part of the McCollum trade and he made his Pelicans debut a few days ago. The 29-year-old is a seamless fit on the offensive end and he'll give New Orleans some defensive versatility.
Even though we all wanted to see how this team would look with a healthy Zion, they have a solid core with McCollum, Brandon Ingram, Jonas Valanciunas, Herb Jones, Devonte' Graham, Nance and Co. &mdash; making them a scary opponent in the Play-In Tournament.

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New Orleans likely won't catch the Clippers for the eighth seed, but they could steal homecourt advantage in the 9-10 game against the Lakers, as they are currently a half game behind L.A.
LOS ANGELES LAKERS
With LeBron James on roster, there always seems to be this lingering feeling that the Lakers will catch their stride and figure this thing out. But without Anthony Davis, it seems unlikely that Los Angeles will be able to escape the Play-In Tournament.
There has been no official word on a potential return date for Davis, but the Lakers would need him available if they hope to play beyond April 12.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
Anthony Davis continues to do on-court shooting, per Frank Vogel, and is progressing each day: &ldquo;Anthony has had a good week &hellip; He&rsquo;s had a productive week.&rdquo;
&mdash; Mike Trudell (@LakersReporter) <a href="https://twitter.com/LakersReporter/status/1504943043669106699?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">March 18, 2022</a></blockquote>

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The presence of Davis would inject a tiny sliver of hope that he and James could will this team to victory and into a revenge series against the Phoenix Suns in the first round.
GOLDEN STATE WARRIORS
Stephen Curry is expected to be out until mid-April at the earliest, which is a huge blow to the Warriors. Fortunately, Curry has <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/breakingnews/warriors-curry-expects-to-return-by-start-of-playoffs" target="_blank" rel="noopener">said</a> that he should be back in time for the first game of the playoffs.
The team has reintroduced Klay Thompson back into the fold, and Draymond Green is back in the lineup too. While Golden State's star-studded trio has only played three games together this season, at least the Warriors should have all three vets together for the postseason (barring any setbacks or new injuries).
Unfortunately, Golden State won't be at full strength, as James Wiseman was recently <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/warriors-james-wiseman-ruled-out-for-remainder-of-the-season" target="_blank" rel="noopener">ruled out</a> for the remainder of this season. The sophomore is still recovering from a torn meniscus that he suffered last April. Wiseman's size and versatility would have helped the Warriors, especially when facing the likes of Nikola Jokic, Rudy Gobert and Jaren Jackson Jr.
Golden State has been struggling without Curry, dropping four of their last five games (including surprising losses to the Orlando Magic, San Antonio Spurs and Atlanta Hawks). Golden State surrendered the No. 2 seed to the Memphis Grizzlies, and the Warriors could slip to fourth in the Western Conference, leading to a potential second-round matchup against Phoenix (instead of Memphis or Utah).&nbsp;
Still, assuming the Warriors have their Big Three, they will be dangerous in the playoffs.
LOS ANGELES CLIPPERS
Recently, Clippers head coach Ty Lue was asked about Kawhi Leonard and Paul George potentially returning prior to the playoffs, and he didn't shoot down the possibility.
"If guys are able to [return], they are gonna do it," Lue said. "But the most important part is making the sure the players are taken care of and making sure they're ready to go and fully healthy."
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-theme="dark">
Ty Lue says he&rsquo;ll keep the door open on Paul George, Kawhi Leonard, and/or Norman Powell returning if it&rsquo;s less than a week until the playoffs. <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Clippers?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#Clippers</a> <a href="https://t.co/iebGp2sRcp">pic.twitter.com/iebGp2sRcp</a>
&mdash; Tomer Azarly (@TomerAzarly) <a href="https://twitter.com/TomerAzarly/status/1505958728125739011?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">March 21, 2022</a></blockquote>

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Leonard has been sidelined since last postseason, and Clippers fans have been holding out hope for a late-season comeback. ESPN's Ohm Youngmisuk <a href="https://www.espn.com/nba/story/_/id/33579571/nba-playoffs-injury-updates-steph-curry-zion-williamson-anthony-davis-more" target="_blank" rel="noopener">reports</a> that Leonard may be able to return if the Clippers make it out of the Play-In Tournament.
George has been sidelined due to a torn ulnar collateral ligament in his right elbow, and there is no timetable for his return. Recently, he has <a href="https://www.espn.com/nba/story/_/id/33579571/nba-playoffs-injury-updates-steph-curry-zion-williamson-anthony-davis-more" target="_blank" rel="noopener">reportedly</a> made progress and been cleared for 4-on-4 and shooting drills, so a return still seems possible.&nbsp;
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<h2>EASTERN CONFERENCE</h2>
CHICAGO BULLS
The Bulls skyrocketed to the top of the East standings early in the season thanks to a supernova DeMar DeRozan and stellar defense. Two key cogs of that defense were Lonzo Ball and Alex Caruso, who have played just 35 and 36 games, respectively. Chicago also played most of the season without forward Patrick Williams, who's another important rotation player.&nbsp;
The absence of those two elite perimeter defenders caused the Bulls to slip to the East's five seed, and they are just one game ahead of the sixth-seeded Toronto Raptors.&nbsp;
Caruso returned on March 12 and Williams returned on March 21. But if Ball is able to return to the starting lineup, that could significantly affect the outcome of a series against the Celtics or 76ers.
However, here's the bad news:
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
Lonzo Ball will stop running on his knee for the next 10 days, per Billy Donovan. They&rsquo;ve been trying to ramp him up but he hasn&rsquo;t responded well
&mdash; Jamal Collier (@JamalCollier) <a href="https://twitter.com/JamalCollier/status/1506033717608865798?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">March 21, 2022</a></blockquote>

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Ball may not be needed for Chicago to avoid the Play-In Tournament, but his return is crucial in order for the Bulls to make a deep run in the playoffs.
CLEVELAND CAVALIERS
Colin Sexton is not coming back this season. In fact, it's possible that he has played his final game as a Cavalier since he's set to become a restricted free agent.
However, one of the main reason that the Cavaliers have exceeded expectations this season is the play of Jarrett Allen. Ricky Rubio was also a key cog in the Cleveland machine, but his injury back in December led to the acquisition of Rajon Rondo... who is also currently out with an ankle injury.&nbsp;
Allen's presence defensively next to Evan Mobley is crucial to the success of the Cavs. Cleveland's opponents take the ninth-most shots at the rim in the league, but they shoot the worst percentage. Their perimeter defense funnels opponents to the rim because of the three 7-footers they have on the floor.&nbsp;
For Cleveland to pull off a first-round upset, Allen must be present and continuing his career-year.&nbsp;
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Unfortunately, injuries are a part of the game and oftentimes play a major factor in the postseason. This year is proving to be no different, as the field seems wide open due to injuries and the players who are returning could have a major impact on who is eventually crowned champion.
BROOKLYN NETS
After arriving in Brooklyn, Ben Simmons began ramping up his conditioning and preparing to make his season debut, but then his back started giving him trouble. Initially, it was being described as back soreness, but he was recently diagnosed with a herniated disc and he needed an epidural for the pain.
Nets head coach Steve Nash has said that surgery isn't currently being considered. Simmons is working with a physical therapist and trying to get healthy enough to make his Nets debut. Nash told reporters that he's "fully expecting" Simmons to play at some point this season.
ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski and Ramona Shelburne <a href="https://www.espn.com/nba/story/_/id/33520712/brooklyn-nets-hold-hope-ben-simmons-return-couple-regular-season-games" target="_blank" rel="noopener">reported</a> that Brooklyn hopes to have Simmons for a "couple" regular-season games so that he can start shaking off the rust and getting acclimated prior to the postseason.
Whenever he returns, the Defensive-Player-of-the-Year runner-up will provide a huge boost for the Nets. Last season, Simmons averaged 14.3 points, 7.2 rebounds, 6.9 assists and 1.6 steals with the Philadelphia 76ers.
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Several NBA playoff teams are hoping to get back key contributors in time for the postseason. Justin Lewis examines these situations.

Examining 11 impact players whose return could alter NBA playoffs

NEW ORLEANS (AP) &mdash; Dejounte Murray could feel his annoyance building as San Antonio coaches repeatedly went back over video of the Spurs' blowout loss to New Orleans in the previous meeting between the two Western Conference play-in hopefuls.
Apparently, Spurs coach Gregg Popovich, the NBA's all-time leader in coaching victories, knows something about using bad memories to inspire better performances.
Murray had 15 points, 13 assists and 11 rebounds, Keldon Johnson punctuated his 21-point night with a breakaway dunk in the final seconds and the Spurs bolstered their postseason hopes with a 107-103 victory over the Pelicans on Saturday night.
&ldquo;Our two meetings today, I kind of was mad that we kept watching the film of that last game because they beat us really bad from tip all the way to the end of the game,&rdquo; Murray said. &ldquo;We all took that personal.&rdquo;
The Pelicans nearly wiped out a 10-point deficit in the final 3:43 and had the ball, down 105-103, in the final seconds. But the Spurs sent multiple perimeter defenders at CJ McCollum, who opted to pass to Jose Alvarado on the left wing. Alvarado, an undrafted rookie who scored a career-high 23 points, missed his final shot for the lead from the 3-point line.
Jock Landale rebounded and got to the ball to Murray, who found Johnson with a long cross-court pass for the put-away basket in a victory that pulled San Antonio (30-44) one game behind New Orleans (31-43) for the final Western Conference play-in spot.
Pelicans first-year coach Willie Green said that although Alvarado had &ldquo;a good look&rdquo; at his last shot, the coaching in that situation could have been better.
"In hindsight, that's a situation where I probably need to take a timeout and get us organized," Green continued. &ldquo;That's an area where I probably have to get a little better.&rdquo;
Green also sensed the Spurs were playing with the emotion and purpose of a team seeking redemption.
&ldquo;They remembered what happened the last time we played them and you could see they came out with a different force,&rdquo; Green said, calling the Spurs' 16 offensive rebounds and 22 second-chance points &ldquo;the biggest factor&rdquo; in the game.
&ldquo;Normally teams don't rebound the ball like that against us,&rdquo; Green added. &ldquo;It sort of negates what we do well.&rdquo;
Josh Richardson scored 18 points for the Spurs, who trailed 92-90 with less than nine minutes to play before stringing together a pivotal 12-0 run during which Landale scored eight on a pair of 3s and a layup set up by Zach Collins' shot fake and pass from underneath the basket.
&ldquo;We kind of all understood what this game meant to our record and the chase with those guys,&rdquo; Landale said. &ldquo;There was a different level of intensity in the locker room and walking out on the court. ... It was just good to see it all come together down the stretch.&rdquo;
McCollum scored 32 and Jonas Valanciunas had 18 points and 11 rebounds for New Orleans, which led most of the first half. The Pelicans were up by as many as 12 when Larry Nance Jr., in his second game back from arthroscopic surgery on his right knee, tipped in Devonte' Graham's missed 3 early in the second quarter to make it 34-22.
The Spurs controlled the rest of the quarter, however, thanks in large part to Richardson, who scored 11 of his points in a four-minute span in the middle of the period.
Richardson's three free throws after he was fouled on a 3-point attempt gave the Spurs a 50-46 lead with 4:30 left in the half.
New Orleans rallied to briefly take the lead when Herb Jones' forceful, fast-break two-handed jam and Alvarado's 3 made it 57-54. But Tre Jones' driving layup and Johnson's tip-in in the final seconds gave the Spurs a 58-57 halftime lead.
TIP-INS
Spurs: Jakob Poeltl and Jakob Primo each scored 12 points, while Landale and Collins each scored 10. ... Poeltl grabbed 11 rebounds. ... Made 22 of 25 free throws. ... Outrebounded New Orleans 49-42. ... Small forward Devin Vassell, who averages 11.9 points per game, was held out with a sore right Achilles tendon.
Pelicans: Brandon Ingram, who leads the Pelicans with 22.8 points per game, missed his 10th straight game with a sore hamstring after being listed as questionable coming in. ... Missed six of 19 free throws and missed 22 of 32 3-point shots. ... Pelicans forward Naji Marshall was called for a flagrant foul when his hand caught Collins in the face early in the fourth quarter.
UP NEXT
Spurs: Visit Houston on Monday night.
Pelicans: Host the Los Angeles Lakers on Sunday night in the last of three straight at home.

Dejounte Murray had a triple-double as the Spurs bolstered their postseason hopes with a 107-103 win over the Pelicans

Murray's triple-double lifts Spurs over Pelicans 107-103

ATLANTA (AP) &mdash; Jonas Valanciunas had 26 points and 12 rebounds, CJ McCollum added 25 points, and the New Orleans Pelicans beat the Atlanta Hawks 117-112 on Sunday night.
The Pelicans, who moved into ninth place in the Western Conference, have won their last two and three of four and were without leading scorer Brandon Ingram and fourth-leading scorer Devonte&rsquo; Graham. Both missed the game with injuries.
Danilo Gallinari scored 25 points for Atlanta, which had its seven-game home winning streak snapped. The Hawks, who had won 15 of 17 at State Farm Arena, stayed alone in 10th place in the East despite the loss.
New Orleans, the only team to rank among the top five in offensive and defensive rebounds, topped Atlanta 54-40 on the boards. All three of the Pelicans&rsquo; big men &mdash; Valanciunas, Jaxson Hayes and Willie Hernangomez &mdash; finished with a double-double.
Hawks star guard Trae Young, listed as questionable before the game with a left quadriceps contusion, finished with 21 points and 10 assists. He has career 90 games with at least 20 points and 10 assists, most in the NBA over the last four seasons. Young has 35 double-doubles this season.
Atlanta couldn&rsquo;t close the gap in the third as Valanciunas&rsquo; three-point play made it a 15-point lead in the final minute of the period. The Hawks trailed 48-28 in points in the paint through the first three quarters.
But Atlanta got hot in the fourth and tied it at 108-all on Young&rsquo;s with a 30-footer at the 2:08 mark. After a lay-in by Clint Capela made it 110-all, Jose Alvarado hit a layup to make it 114-110 with 48.5 seconds remaining.
It was a two-point game after Young hit a pair of free throws with 34.2 seconds to go, but that was as close as Atlanta would get.
New Orleans led by a game-high 19 early in the second before the Hawks got hot and trimmed the lead to four on Capela&rsquo;s tip-in at the 4:18 mark. The Pelicans, who were up 60-50 at intermission despite shooting just 41.2%, outscored Atlanta 14-0 on fastbreak points in the first half. New Orleans began the game ranked second in average transition points with 16.8.
McCollum scored 13 points in the first half. Gallinari had 18.
The Pelicans took a 23-11 lead in the first after going on a 13-2 run that ended with Herbert Jones&rsquo; basket and a Hawks timeout. New Orleans, which had nine steals for 12 points in the first, led 35-18 entering the second.
The Pelicans ended a six-game losing streak in the series.
TIP-INS
Pelicans: Graham was questionable with right hip soreness and was ruled out. Coach Willie Green said the team hopes he can play Monday in Charlotte. ... New Orleans improved to 24-4 when leading after three. ... Ingram (right hamstring soreness), G Kira Lewis Jr. (right knee sprain), F Larry Nance Jr. (right knee arthroscopy) and F Zion Williamson (right foot fracture) were out. ... Green said Ingram, who missed his seventh straight game, is progressing but the coach won&rsquo;t know more until the team reconvenes in New Orleans on Tuesday. Ingram is the only NBA player to average at least 22 points, 5.2 assists, 5.5 rebounds and three or less turnovers.
Hawks: F John Collins (right ring finger sprain and right foot strain) missed his fifth straight game. Since getting drafted 19th overall in 2017, Collins leads his classmates with 53 games of at least 20 points and 10 rebounds. Collins is Atlanta&rsquo;s second-leading scorer. ... Bogdanovic was coming off a season-high 30 points Friday against Memphis. ... The Hawks have at least 25 assists in seven straight games, the longest active streak in the NBA.
UP NEXT
Pelicans: At Charlotte on Monday.
Hawks: At New York on Tuesday.

Jonas Valanciunas had 26 points, CJ McCollum added 25 points, and the New Orleans Pelicans beat the Atlanta Hawks 117-112.