Los Angeles Lakers

LAWRENCE, Kan. (AP) &mdash; Shahada Wells scored 17 points as No. 14 TCU beat No. 2 Kansas 83-60 on Saturday in one of the worst losses in Bill Self&rsquo;s 20-year coaching career with the Jayhawks.
The loss snapped a 16-game winning streak at home for Kansas and was the second-largest home loss under Self. The Jayhawks (15-3, 5-2 Big 12), who lost 83-82 in overtime at Kansas State on Tuesday, had not lost consecutive games in the state since 1989 &mdash; against K-State and Missouri.
Kansas trailed by 10 at halftime and never closed the gap within single digits. TCU extended the lead to as many as 24 points. The Jayhawks shot only 32.1% in the second half.
TCU (15-4, 4-3 Big 12), which shot 54.4% (31 of 57) from the field, got 15 points from Mike Miles Jr. and 11 from Damion Baugh.
NO. 4 ALABAMA 85, MISSOURI 64
COLUMBIA, Mo. (AP) &mdash; Noah Clowney and Mark Sears each scored 17 points, and Alabama remained undefeated against unranked teams this season.
Freshman Brandon Miller added 15 points and eight rebounds for Alabama (17-2, 7-0 Southeastern Conference), and reserve Jahvon Quinterly scored 13 points. Clowney also had 14 rebounds, and Sears finished with eight rebounds and three steals.
Isiaih Mosley led Missouri (14-5, 3-4) with 19 points. Mohamed Diarra had eight points and 12 rebounds.
NO. 11 ARIZONA 58, NO. 5 UCLA 52
TUSCON, Ariz. (AP) &mdash; Oumar Ballo scored 16 points, Azuolas Tubelis had a double-double and Arizona withstood a late rally to end UCLA&rsquo;s 14-game winning streak.
The Wildcats (17-3, 5-3 Pac-12) took a 56-44 lead on Ballo&rsquo;s alley-oop dunk with 2:07 left. But the Bruins (17-3, 8-1) fought back, creating four straight turnovers to pull within 56-52. UCLA then blocked consecutive shots but couldn&rsquo;t convert on two shots of its own. Arizona&rsquo;s Pelle Larsson hit two free throws with 0.9 seconds to close it out.
Tyger Campbell led the Bruins with 13 points and Jaime Jaquez Jr. added 12 with 11 rebounds.
NO. 6 GONZAGA 99, PACIFIC 90
STOCKTON, Calif. (AP) &mdash; Drew Timme scored 24 of his career-high 38 points in the second half, including 18 straight points during one stretch, and Gonzaga pulled away in the closing minutes.
Timme made 17 of 23 shots and almost all of them within a couple feet of the rim. Anton Watson added 16 points and 13 rebounds for Gonzaga (17-4, 6-1 WCC). Rasir Bolton added 16 points for the Bulldogs, who had won their previous three road games in conference play by a combined eight points, and Julian Strawther had 15.
Jordan Ivy-Curry led five Pacific players in double figures with 17 points. Nick Blake scored 16 before fouling out. Keylan Boone finished with 15, Luke Avdalovic added 13 and Judson Martindale finished with 12. Pacific (10-12, 3-4) made eight 3-pointers in the first half and was tied at 47 at halftime, but the Tigers were just 1 of 8 from deep in the second half.
NO. 7 TEXAS 69, WEST VIRGINIA 61
MORGANTOWN, W.Va. (AP) -- Marcus Carr scored 19 of his 23 points in the second half to lead Texas.
Dylan Disu added 13 points before fouling out, and Christian Bishop and Tyrese Hunter scored 11 apiece for the Longhorns (16-3, 5-2 Big 12), who bounced back from a double-digit loss at No. 12 Iowa State on Wednesday.
The Mountaineers (11-8, 1-6) had several players in early foul trouble. Kedrian Johnson had a career-high 22 points, but his teammates fell flat in the second half against the Longhorns.
NO. 8 XAVIER 95, GEORGETOWN 82
CINCINNATI (AP) &mdash; Zach Freemantle tied a career-high with 30 points and Colby Jones had 20 as Xavier handed Georgetown its 29th straight Big East loss.
Adam Kunkel scored 14 points to help the Musketeers (16-4, 8-1 Big East) bounce back from a 73-72 loss at DePaul on Wednesday.
Primo Spears scored a career-high 37 points and Akok Akok had 14 for the Hoyas (5-15, 0-9 Big East), who have lost 10 straight. Spears&rsquo; previous high was 34 against LaSalle on March 5, 2022.
NO. 9 TENNESSEE 77, LSU 56
BATON ROUGE, La. (AP) &mdash; Josiah-Jordan James scored a season-high 22 points and Tennessee defeated LSU, which has lost six straight.
James, who missed eight games in November and December due to injury, made his second straight start for the Volunteers (16-3, 6-1 Southeastern Conference). Playing 31 minutes, James was 9-of-16 from the field and matched his career-high with four 3-pointers.
Tennessee point guard Zakai Zeigler had 12 points and 10 assists, which tied his career high. Julian Phillips and Tyreke Key each had 10 points.
KJ Williams led LSU (12-7, 1-6) with 16 points. Trae Hannibal added 10 points. The Tigers committed 19 turnovers which resulted in 33 Volunteers points.
NO. 10 VIRGINIA 76, WAKE FOREST 67
WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. (AP) &mdash; Armaan Franklin scored 18 of his 25 points during the first half and Virginia survived blowing nearly all of a 19-point lead to beat Wake Forest.
Kihei Clark added 12 points despite getting into foul trouble for the Cavaliers (15-3, 7-2 Atlantic Coast Conference). But it was a day of wild swings for Virginia, who went from missing its first eight shots to suddenly being unable to miss to go up 34-15 &mdash; only to see the Demon Deacons push back to within a single point with 8 1/2 minutes left.
Damari Monsanto had a career-high 25 points for the Demon Deacons (14-6, 6-3), highlighted by making 7 of 15 3-pointers.
OKLAHOMA STATE 61, NO. 12 IOWA STATE 59
STILLWATER, Okla. (AP) &mdash; Avery Anderson scored 18 points, including the go-ahead free throws, and Oklahoma State defeated Iowa State for its first win over a ranked team this season.
Kalib Boone added 13 points for the Cowboys (11-8, 3-4 Big 12), who won their second straight game.
Osun Osunniyi scored 15 points and Gabe Kalscheur added 14 for Iowa State (14-4, 5-2), which had won seven of its last eight games. Cyclones sharpshooter Caleb Grill spent most of the second half on the bench wearing a back brace and wasn&rsquo;t in the game in the closing minutes.
NO. 13 KANSAS STATE 68, TEXAS TECH 58
MANHATTAN, Kan. (AP) &mdash; Markquis Nowell had 23 points, eight rebounds and five assists in Kansas State&rsquo;s win over Texas Tech.
Keyontae Johnson had 15 points and 11 rebounds for the Wildcats (17-2, 6-1 Big 12), who won for the 11th time in 12 games. Ismael Massoud scored 12 points.
Pop Isaacs and De&rsquo;Vion Harmon each scored 13 points for Texas Tech (10-9, 0-7), which shot 32.4% (23 for 71) from the field.
NO. 16 AUBURN 81, SOUTH CAROLINA 66
COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP) &mdash; Johni Broome had a season-high 27 points and 11 rebounds as Auburn took control late in the opening half to run past struggling South Carolina.
Broome&rsquo;s performance helped the Tigers to their fifth straight win and offset a career-best 30 points from Gamecocks&rsquo; freshman Gregory &ldquo;GG&rdquo; Jackson II.
The 6-foot-10 Broome took full advantage of South Carolina&rsquo;s undersized interior for the Tigers (16-3, 6-1 Southeastern Conference). He hit 12 of his 17 shots in 30 minutes for his sixth double-double this season and fifth against an SEC opponent.
Meechie Johnson was the only other player for South Carolina (8-11, 1-5) in double figures with 11 points.
DUKE 68, NO. 17 MIAMI
DURHAM, N.C. (AP) &mdash; Kyle Filipowski had 17 points and 14 rebounds and Jeremy Roach scored 14 points in his first game in more than two weeks to lift Duke over Miami.
Tyrese Proctor had 11 points and Dariq Whitehead added 10 points for the Blue Devils (15-4, 5-3 Atlantic Coast Conference), who played their first game of the season without a national ranking.
Jordan Miller&rsquo;s 19 points and Nijel Pack&rsquo;s 18 were tops for Miami (15-4, 6-3), which has lost three of its last five games.
NO. 18 CHARLESTON 87, NORTHEASTERN 61
BOSTON (AP) &mdash; Ben Burnham scored 15 points, Pat Robinson III added 14 and Ryan Larson had 12 to lead Charleston to its 20th win in a row.
The Cougars (21-1, 9-0 Colonial Athletic Association) scored 13 straight points in the first half to pull away and extend the longest active winning streak in the nation. They have not lost since the second game of the season, to then-No. 1 North Carolina on Nov. 11, climbing to their highest ranking in The Associated Press Top 25 since 1999.
Chris Doherty had 11 points and 13 rebounds and Jared Turner also scored 11 for Northeastern (8-11, 4-4). The Huskies haven&rsquo;t beat a Top 25 team since 2015.
NO. 19 CLEMSON 51, VIRGINIA TECH 50
CLEMSON, S.C. (AP) &mdash; Hunter Tyson&rsquo;s 3-pointer with 12 seconds left lifted Clemson to a dramatic victory over Virginia Tech.
Tyson caught a pass just left of the key, took a look at at the basket and let it fly. The crowd exploded as the ball went through and the Tigers (16-4, 8-1 Atlantic Coast Conference) continued their unexpected run atop the ACC.
PJ Hall led Clemson with 20 points and eight rebounds.
Grant Basile led the Hokies (11-8, 1-7) with 13 points.
NO. 20 MARQUETTE 74, SETON HALL 53
NEWARK, N.J. (AP) &mdash; Kam Jones scored 22 points, Oso Ighodaro had 18 on 7-for-7 shooting and Marquette beat Seton Hall.
Marquette (16-5, 8-2 Big East) shot 54% (29 for 54) from the field in its second straight win since an 80-76 loss to Xavier last weekend.
Kadary Richmond led Seton Hall (12-9, 5-5) with 10 points and five assists. The Pirates committed a season-high 26 turnovers.
NO. 21 BAYLOR 62, OKLAHOMA 60
NORMAN, Okla. (AP) &mdash; Jalen Bridges scored 11 points and hit a trio of game-turning 3-pointers in the final five minutes as Baylor rallied to hold off Oklahoma.
Adam Flagler had 16 points and five assists, and Keyonte George added 11 points as Baylor (14-5, 4-3 Big 12) won its fourth straight game after opening conference play with three straight losses and briefly dropping out of The Associated Press Top 25.
Jalen Hill had 17 points and nine rebounds, while Tanner Groves added 16 points, nine rebounds and three blocked shots for the Sooners (12-7, 2-5).
NO. 22 PROVIDENCE 75, DEPAUL 64
PROVIDENCE, R.I. (AP) &mdash; Noah Locke had a career-high 29 points, including seven 3-pointers, to help Providence fend off DePaul.
Bryce Hopkins added 20 points and 11 rebounds as the Friars (15-5, 7-2 Big East) snapped a two-game losing skid and improved to 11-0 at home. They are 2-2 without point guard Jared Bynum, who missed his fourth consecutive game with a torso injury.
The Blue Demons (9-11, 3-6) came in fresh off a home victory over eighth-ranked Xavier. But they dropped their sixth straight road game and are now 0-4 in conference games away from home. Umjoja Gibson had 16 points and five assists for DePaul and Da&rsquo;Sean Nelson added 13 points.
NO. 24 FLORIDA ATLANTIC 67, UTEP 59
EL PASO, Texas (AP) &mdash; Johnell Davis scored 20 points on 6-for-9 shooting and Florida Atlantic extended its program record for consecutive wins to 18.
Davis hit 2 of 3 attempts from 3-point distance and was perfect on six shots from the line for FAU (19-1, 9-0 Conference USA). Vladislav Goldin finished with 11 points, six rebounds and three blocks for the Owls.
Calvin Solomon finished with 16 points and 10 rebounds, and Tae Hardy also scored 16 points for UTEP (11-9, 4-5). Mario McKinney Jr. added 11 points, seven rebounds and two steals.
NO. 25 ARKANSAS 69, OLE MISS 57
FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. (AP) &mdash; Anthony Black scored 17 points, reserve Joseph Pinion had 13 and Arkansas snapped a four-game losing streak by topping Mississippi.
Only nine teams in Division I had made fewer 3-pointers than Arkansas (13-6, 2-5 Southeastern Conference) this season, but the Razorbacks tied a season high by making eight from beyond the arc. They led by as many as 21 points.
Pinion and Devo Davis each made three 3s. Davis had 16 points and Jordan Walsh finished with 13.
Ole Miss (9-10, 1-6) committed 17 turnovers. The Rebels had six giveaways in the first six minutes of the second half, helping Arkansas extend its three-point halftime lead to 11 at the first media timeout after the break.

A roundup of Saturday's top-25 action in men's college basketball includes a TCU rout of the second-ranked Jayhawks on the road.

No. 14 TCU blows out No. 2 Kansas in Allen Fieldhouse

FRESNO, Calif. (AP) &mdash; Isaih Moore scored 16 points and Fresno State beat the last unbeaten team in the nation, topping No. 21 New Mexico 71-67 on Tuesday night.
Isaiah Hill added 14 points, making three free throws in the final seconds to wrap up the victory for the Bulldogs (6-8, 2-1 Mountain West).
&ldquo;It&rsquo;s definitely a physical fight tonight,&rdquo; Hill said. &ldquo;It came down to some free throws, and we had to make them.&rdquo;
Jemarl Baker added 13 points and five assists, and 6-foot-11 Eduardo Andre, averaging just over four points a game, scored a career-high 12 and had eight rebounds.
&ldquo;This group has been working really hard, and they stick with it, and that&rsquo;s what it&rsquo;s about, right?&rdquo; Fresno State coach Justin Hutson said. &ldquo; To continue to stick with it, stick through the good times and bad times. We&rsquo;ve had some defeats that we didn&rsquo;t like.&rdquo;
After sitting out for over nine minutes of the second half with four fouls, Andre returned with 20 seconds left and the Bulldogs leading 70-67. He blocked a layup by Jamal Mashburn Jr. and grabbed the rebound, leading to Hill&rsquo;s final free throws.
The Lobos came in as the last remaining unbeaten Division I team after No. 1 Purdue&rsquo;s loss to Rutgers on Monday. The 14-0 start was their best since a school-record 17-0 in 1967-68.
&ldquo;I told the team we have to keep it in perspective,&rdquo; Lobos coach Richard Pitino said. &ldquo;We are 14-1. It&rsquo;s been an unbelievable run to go two months without a loss. It is tough to win on the road, especially in conference. We will try not to get too emotional about this, but just get back home and learn from it.&rdquo;
Mashburn finished with 22 points for New Mexico (14-1, 2-1). Morris Udeze added 18 and Jaelen House had 15.
&ldquo;It kind of went the other way than some of those close games that we won at the end,&rdquo; Pitino said. &ldquo;They made one or two plays more than us, one or two more free throws than us. The game went the way I thought it would go. They slowed down the pace.&rdquo;
There were 19 lead changes and 13 ties in a game in which neither team led by more than eight. Moore made the go-ahead basket with 1:30 to go after Josiah Allick had given the Lobos their final lead on two free throws. The Lobos didn&rsquo;t have a field goal over the final 4:30.
Fresno State led 36-32 at halftime but the Lobos quickly overtook the Bulldogs in the opening minutes of the second half. The Bulldogs regained the lead with eight minutes left and the game went back-and-forth from there.
Fresno State snapped a 28-game losing streak to teams in The Associated Press Top 25, the last victory coming over No. 14 Oklahoma State on Feb. 10, 2002.
The Bulldogs have won the last seven meetings with the Lobos and the eight straight on their home court.
HOUSE-FUL OF SCORERS
House became the fourth member of his extended family to score 1,000 career points. His father, Eddie, had 2,044 career points from 1997-00 at Arizona State; grandfather Henry Bibby scored 1,293 points from 1970-72 at UCLA and uncle Mike Bibby scored 1,061 points at Arizona (1997-98).
UP NEXT
New Mexico: Hosts UNLV on Saturday night.
Fresno State: At Colorado State on Saturday.

Isaih Moore scored 16 points and Fresno State beat the last unbeaten team in the nation, topping No. 21 New Mexico 71-67.

Fresno State edges last unbeaten team in No. 21 New Mexico

Tim Hardaway took the stage and told a story of his early days in the NBA, when Golden State teammates Mitch Richmond and Chris Mullin would often ask him the same question.
&ldquo;They would ask me, &lsquo;Tim, how great do you want to be?&rsquo;&rdquo; Hardaway said.
They have their answer. So does everyone else. He&rsquo;s a basketball immortal.
Hardaway, Manu Ginobili, Swin Cash, Bob Huggins, Del Harris, Lindsay Whalen, Marianne Stanley, Theresa Shank Grentz and George Karl all delivered their enshrinement addresses as new members of the Basketball Hall of Fame on Saturday night in Springfield, Massachusetts.
&ldquo;A kid from the east side of Chicago made it all the way to Springfield, Massachusetts,&rdquo; Hardaway said. &ldquo;Incredible.&rdquo;
Such was the theme throughout the night: how an honor that none of the new Hall members imagined has now come their way, each of them thanking those who helped them reached the pinnacle.
<a class="paragraph-link" href="https://apnews.com/article/san-antonio-spurs-winter-olympics-nba-sports-massachusetts-b0c090443bd6a3a40518bd7340ecfbdb" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Ginobili was presented by Tim Duncan,</a>&nbsp;already a Hall of Famer himself, and next year the third member of San Antonio&rsquo;s legendary Big 3 of players &mdash; Tony Parker &mdash; will be eligible for selection.
&ldquo;The Spurs were one big, strong, supportive family for me,&rdquo; Ginobili said.
Someday, Spurs coach Gregg Popovich will be in the Hall as well; the NBA&rsquo;s all-time wins leader doesn&rsquo;t want to be considered until his career is over. Ginobili reserved special tribute for him.
&ldquo;Pop, what can I say? You&rsquo;ve been so, so important for me and my family, on and off the court, that&rsquo;ll I never be able to thank you enough,&rdquo; Ginobili said, his voice cracking.
Cash &mdash; an NCAA, WNBA and Olympic champion &mdash; also paid tribute to her coach at UConn, Hall of Famer Geno Auriemma and her Huskies teammates, including the group that went 39-0 for her senior season in 2001-02.
&ldquo;If anyone&rsquo;s debating the greatest basketball team ever, ask about us,&rdquo; said Cash, who now works in the front office of the New Orleans Pelicans.
Duncan and Ginobili weren&rsquo;t the only teammates in the building. Stanley and Shank Grentz were teammates at Immaculata in the 1970s, before going on to coaching careers &mdash; and now, the Hall, together.
&ldquo;It&rsquo;s the privilege of a lifetime,&rdquo; Stanley said.
Added Shank Grentz, who, like all inductees, learned of her selection in April: &ldquo;I am still overwhelmed.&rdquo;
Whalen, whose legendary playing career has been followed by her returning to alma mater Minnesota and coaching there, might have had a Hall of Fame first by thanking a fast-food company.
&ldquo;Thank you, Burger King,&rdquo; Whalen said.
To explain: When Whalen &mdash; a converted hockey player &mdash; was going to her first basketball camp, she was anxious, crying, not wanting to go into the gym. But her parents had paid for camp and weren&rsquo;t going to let her back out, so negotiations quickly took place. The agreement was eventually struck; if Whalen would go to camp, she&rsquo;d get a Whopper Jr., with cheese, for the ride home.
&ldquo;I ended up having a great time,&rdquo; Whalen said.
Her parents not wanting her to play hockey was her twist of fate. For Harris, his was a professor encouraging him to take a year to coach a junior-high basketball team before joining the seminary.
Harris was going to be a pastor; ironically, basketball&rsquo;s founder, Dr. James Naismith, also was a pastor. Instead, Harris followed in another set of Naismith&rsquo;s footsteps, as a coach.
&ldquo;After that year, I knew what I wanted to do with my life,&rdquo; said Harris, who coached at just about every imaginable level &mdash; high school, college, the NBA, international teams and at the FIBA level.
His path to the Hall came from modest beginnings, just like Huggins &mdash; who now coaches at his alma mater, West Virginia and has won more than 900 games in his collegiate career &mdash; and Karl, who got emotional when he paid tribute to his college coach at North Carolina, Dean Smith, and got laughs when talking about the challenge of coaching a Hall of Famer like Gary Payton.
&ldquo;This is really incredible for a guy from Penn Hills, Pennsylvania,&rdquo; Karl said. &ldquo;This is a &lsquo;wow&rsquo; moment for me.&rdquo;
Huggins even did a little coaching as he paid tribute during his speech to Jerry Colangelo, the chairman of the Naismith Memorial Hall of Fame.
&ldquo;You&rsquo;re allowed to clap, I think,&rdquo; Huggins said. &ldquo;I&rsquo;m not real sure of the rules, but what the hell, let&rsquo;s just make them as we go.&rdquo;
Hardaway, Richmond and Mullin formed the trio known as &ldquo;Run TMC,&rdquo; which remains popular today. Mullin entered the Hall in 2011, Richmond three years later. And they were on the stage Saturday night, seated just to Hardaway&rsquo;s left, when his wait finally ended.
&ldquo;Legendary, baby,&rdquo; Hardaway said. &ldquo;We was legendary.&rdquo;
Also honored were seven more new Hall members, all deceased: one of NBA&rsquo;s first Black referees in Hugh Evans, six-time All-Star Lou Hudson, former coach Larry Costello, international great Radivoj Korac and a trio of former Harlem Globetrotters in Wyatt &ldquo;Sonny&rdquo; Boswell, Inman Jackson and Albert &ldquo;Runt&rdquo; Pullins.
And special tribute was paid to two-time Hall of Fame inductee Bill Russell, who made it in as a player, then as a coach.&nbsp;<a class="paragraph-link" href="https://apnews.com/article/bill-russell-a-life-lived-e316a0f489cf8fd9251dbfde92847076" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Russell died earlier this year,</a>&nbsp;and the ceremony Saturday began with Hall of Famers Jerry West and Alonzo Mourning paying respect to the 11-time champion.
&ldquo;Bill was the ultimate competitor on the court and a remarkable human being off of it,&rdquo; West said. &ldquo;And in his own way, he made all the lives he touched a little better. That&rsquo;s why he&rsquo;ll be missed, especially by those who were fortunate enough to know him.&rdquo;
Added Mourning, who spoke of Russell&rsquo;s work as a champion of social justice: &ldquo;Rest in power, my friend.&rdquo;

Tim Hardaway, Manu Ginobili, Swin Cash, Bob Huggins, Del Harris and George Karl headline the Hall of Fame's Class of 2022.

Basketball Hall of Fame enshrines its new Class of 2022

George Karl lost 19 of his first 21 games as an NBA coach. Tim Hardaway spent hours dribbling alone in an unfinished basement when it was too cold to go outside in his native Chicago. Theresa Grentz&rsquo;s family lost all its belongings in a 1970 house fire, leaving her with only the yellow pajamas she was wearing at the time.
There were no signs that basketball immortality awaited any of them.
Now, they&rsquo;re members of the most sought-after club in the game. Karl, Hardaway and Grentz are among 13 people who will be officially enshrined in the Basketball Hall of Fame in Springfield, Massachusetts on Saturday night -- a group that largely was tied together by what they overcame on their way to a long list of accomplishments that include NCAA titles, NBA titles and Olympic gold medals.
&ldquo;You learn from the adversity,&rdquo; Grentz said Friday. &ldquo;You don&rsquo;t have to have everything perfect. You take what you have, make that work, make the most of what you have, not what you think you need. There we were, I had absolutely nothing, but yet tomorrow night &mdash; and I&rsquo;m a nervous wreck about this &mdash; I&rsquo;m going in the Hall of Fame.&rdquo;
Karl was one of five people selected by the North American Committee, alongside West Virginia coach Bob Huggins, the late referee Hugh Evans and&nbsp;<a class="paragraph-link" href="https://apnews.com/article/san-antonio-spurs-winter-olympics-nba-sports-massachusetts-b0c090443bd6a3a40518bd7340ecfbdb" target="_blank" rel="noopener">longtime NBA stars Manu Ginobili</a> and Tim Hardaway.
Swin Cash, Marianne Stanley and Lindsay Whalen were selected by the women&rsquo;s committee. Longtime coaches Del Harris and Larry Costello were picked by the contributor committee, while six-time All-Star Lou Hudson was chosen by the veterans committee. Grentz &mdash; who played for the legendary Immaculata program and guided Rutgers to the final AIAW title in 1982 &mdash; was chosen by the women&rsquo;s veteran committee and FIBA Hall of Famer Radivoj Korac by the international committee.
Karl&rsquo;s career as an NBA coach started in 1984 with the Cleveland Cavaliers, starting 0-9 and 2-19, but rallying that season to face Boston in the opening round of the playoffs. The Celtics won the series 3-1, and Karl remains of the belief that the Celtics got favorable whistles.
&ldquo;They got all the calls,&rdquo; Karl lamented.
Maybe so. But half a lifetime later, Karl got the Hall&rsquo;s call.
Harris&rsquo; coaching career included him working with numerous Hall of Fame players &mdash; Rick Barry, Magic Johnson, Kobe Bryant, Steve Nash, Yao Ming and Magic Johnson among them &mdash; along with some sure-fire future ones like Dirk Nowitzki.
&ldquo;To think that still, somehow or another, I contributed to the game and not just played it or coached it, it&rsquo;s more humbling to me than anything I would have ever thought about,&rdquo; Harris said.
Hardaway was a finalist four other times for the Hall, never getting in. This year&rsquo;s call from Hall of Fame President and CEO John Doleva was one he didn&rsquo;t want to take, for fear that he was about to go 0-for-5.
&ldquo;Shaking, sweating, lot of emotions going on,&rdquo; Hardaway said of that moment. &ldquo;Saw the Hall of Fame number come through my phone. Did not want to answer the phone because I didn&rsquo;t want to take another rejection.&rdquo;
He&rsquo;ll never have to worry about that again.
Whalen, a four-time WNBA champion and now the coach at her alma mater Minnesota, said one of the first great teams she saw in person was the 2002 UConn Huskies &mdash; a team that featured Cash. And it wasn&rsquo;t lost on Whalen that she is entering the Hall alongside Cash, Grentz and Stanley, who also played at Immaculata before embarking on a long coaching career.
&ldquo;Myself and Theresa, Marianne, Swin, going in together, I think we represent a lot of what&rsquo;s been great with women&rsquo;s basketball over the years,&rdquo; Whalen said. &ldquo;And I think there&rsquo;s young girls and women right now that are sitting there that are seeing us and that can become a realistic goal and dream for them if they work hard.&rdquo;
Among the five presenters that Cash selected to be alongside her for Saturday&rsquo;s ceremony is her UConn coach, Geno Auriemma.
Cash lauded Auriemma for his constant pursuit of nothing but excellence.
&ldquo;You were trying to be the best and practices were always harder than a game,&rdquo; said Cash, a two-time NCAA champion, three-time WNBA champion, two-time Olympic gold medalist and now part of the front office with the NBA&rsquo;s New Orleans Pelicans. &ldquo;But that prepared you mentally to understand what you wanted to achieve. And every year, the bar was a national championship. With some people, the bar is a conference championship or &lsquo;Hey, we made the tournament.&rsquo; Whereas, at Connecticut, we hang banners.&rdquo;
Also now members of the Hall are three selections made by the Early African-American Pioneer Committee: Wyatt &ldquo;Sonny&rdquo; Boswell, Inman Jackson and Albert &ldquo;Runt&rdquo; Pullins &mdash; all of them, among other things, having been members of the Harlem Globetrotters.
Huggins &mdash; who, like Whalen, is also coaching at his alma mater &mdash; deflected credit for his 916 career wins as a college coach, 844 of those coming at the Division I level.
&ldquo;Good players,&rdquo; Huggins said. &ldquo;I&rsquo;ve been fortunate.&rdquo;

George Karl, Tim Hardaway and Manu Ginobili headline this year's class of Basketball-Hall-of-Fame inductees.

Basketball Hall of Fame set to welcome 13 new inductees

The Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame announced today the list of Hall of Famers scheduled to present the Class of 2022 at the Enshrinement Ceremony to be held Saturday, September 10 at Symphony Hall. More than 50 Hall of Famers are expected to be in attendance for the ceremony, including all presenters.
Members of the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame Class of 2022 were asked to select previous inductees to accompany and present them to their peers. The choice is solely the decision of the incoming Hall of Famers, or their family members if recognized posthumously.
This year&rsquo;s class includes nine honorees from the North American and Women&rsquo;s committees: two-time NBA All-Star and four-time NBA champion Manu Ginobili, five-time NBA All-Star Tim Hardaway, two-time NCAA National Coach of the Year Bob Huggins, the NBA&rsquo;s sixth-winningest coach of all-time George Karl and longtime NBA referee Hugh Evans. On the women&rsquo;s side, the Hall of Fame is proud to welcome five-time WNBA All-Star, three-time WNBA Champion, and two-time Olympic Gold Medalist Lindsay Whalen, four-time WNBA All-Star and two-time Olympic gold medalist Swin Cash and NCAA national champion and WNBA Coach of the Year Marianne Stanley.
Distinguished committees focused on preserving all areas from the game also selected eight directly elected enshrinees. They include Lou Hudson from the Veterans Committee, Larry Costello and Del Harris from the Contributor Committee, Theresa Shank-Grentz from the Women&rsquo;s Veterans Committee, Radivoj Korac from the International Committee, and Wyatt &ldquo;Sonny&rdquo; Boswell, Inman Jackson, and Albert &ldquo;Runt&rdquo; Pullins from the Early African American Pioneers Committee. &nbsp;
The 2022 Hall of Fame Inductees and Presenters:
Tim Hardaway, presented by Isiah Thomas (&rsquo;00), Mitch Richmond (&lsquo;14), Chris Mullin (&lsquo;11), Yolanda Griffith (&lsquo;21), Nate Archibald (&lsquo;91)
Manu Ginobili, presented by Tim Duncan (&rsquo;20)
Lindsay Whalen, presented by Dawn Staley (&lsquo;13), Charles Barkley (&rsquo;06) &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp;
Swin Cash, presented by Tamika Catchings (&lsquo;20), Teresa Weatherspoon (&lsquo;19), Tina Thompson (&lsquo;18), Isiah Thomas (&rsquo;00), Geno Auriemma (&lsquo;06)
Bob Huggins, presented by Jerry West (&lsquo;80), Rod Thorn (&lsquo;18)
George Karl, presented by Roy Williams (&lsquo;07), Gary Payton (&lsquo;13), Bobby Jones (&lsquo;19)
Marianne Stanley, presented by Cathy Rush (&lsquo;08), Lisa Leslie (&lsquo;15), Nancy Lieberman (&lsquo;96)
Hugh Evans, presented by Reggie Miller (&lsquo;12), George Gervin (&lsquo;96)
Theresa Shank-Grentz, presented by Cathy Rush (&lsquo;08), Charles Barkley (&rsquo;06), Vivian Stringer (&lsquo;09)
Del Harris, presented by Nancy Lieberman (&lsquo;96), John Calipari (&lsquo;15), Sidney Moncrief (&lsquo;19)
Lou Hudson, presented by Spencer Haywood (&lsquo;15), Jamaal Wilkes (&lsquo;12)
Larry Costello, presented by Billy Cunningham (&lsquo;86), Wayne Embry (&lsquo;99), Bob Dandridge (&rsquo;21)
Radivoj Korac, presented by Spencer Haywood (&lsquo;15) &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp;
Tickets for the 2022 Enshrinement Ceremony and all Enshrinement events are on sale now and available online at www.hoophall.com or by calling the Basketball Hall of Fame at (413) 231-5513.
For more information and the latest updates, visit http://www.hoophall.com/Enshrinement or follow @hoophall on Twitter and Instagram.
About the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame 
Located in Springfield, Massachusetts, the city where basketball was born, the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame is an independent non-profit 501(c)(3) organization dedicated to promoting, preserving and celebrating the game of basketball at every level &ndash; men and women, amateur and professional players, coaches and contributors, both domestically and internationally. The Hall of Fame museum is home to more than 400 inductees and over 40,000 square feet of basketball history. Nearly 200,000 people visit the Hall of Fame museum each year to learn about the game, experience the interactive exhibits and test their skills on the Jerry Colangelo "Court of Dreams." Best known for its annual marquee Enshrinement Ceremony honoring the game&rsquo;s elite, the Hall of Fame also operates over 70 high school and collegiate competitions annually throughout the country and abroad. For more information on the Basketball Hall of Fame organization, its museum and events, visit www.hoophall.com, follow @hoophall #22HoopClass or call 1-877-4HOOPLA.

The Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame announced the list of Hall of Famers scheduled to present the Class of 2022.

Basketball Hall of Fame reveals 2022 Enshrinement Ceremony presenters

Truer words have never been formed in any medium.
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Dudes can literally just sit around and name old sports players and just have the best time.
&mdash; E.M. Hudson (@EMHudsonlives) <a href="https://twitter.com/EMHudsonlives/status/1415513767337762817?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">July 15, 2021</a></blockquote>

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I have a group chat that solely exists for this purpose, and it pops!
Part of what makes basketball so incredible is its growth and evolution across time. Not even a decade ago, the game looked quite different compared to what it is today on either end. Pick-and-roll offense was less prolific, ICE defense was en vogue and the utilization of space on the court was drastically different.
Understanding and appreciating the game today is even better achieved through grasping how we got here, what the pathways were, why and how they were taken, and the context surrounding each era. The spacing revolution didn't just happen. The seeds were set and nourished over decades, with gradual shifts and eventually an explosion in the 2010s.
Who from past years might be even better today? That's not to say that these players weren't good in their own time, but rather that they may have thrived to even greater heights in today's game. Why? Each player fits some semblance of the proliferation of today's game, whether it be through shooting, decision-making, ground coverage, switchability or a conglomeration of many skills.&nbsp;
So let's dig into two perfect examples.
Josh Smith
It wasn't all that long ago that Josh Smith was in the league, and you may not remember that he last played on a 10-day for the Pelicans during the 2017-18 season!
He's such a difficult player to parse through, but I think he fits today's game much better than general thought may hold. As we know (as does Stan Van Gundy), Smith was a pretty rough shooter from just about anywhere on the court. I don't think it matters when looking at projection to today.
I don't think Smith would magically develop touch in 2022, but I also think it would be odd to ask him to. Would it be great if he was a shooter from deep on volume? Of course! But, he'd be utilized much more as a screener and roller today. Smith would be so dynamic making plays on the roll, hitting the corners, finding cutters and even tossing in lobs. He could be utilized in the post with split-cut actions similarly to what we see with Draymond Green in Golden State's offense.
One of the coolest parts about his expansion with the Houston Rockets after his Detroit Pistons tenure was seeing some shades of what he'd look like in today's game.
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While he had an underwhelming game from the short mid-range (39.5% from 3-10 feet from 2008-13), Smith had a really good handle for his size that would make him even more difficult to play against defensively when attacking on the short roll. You could certainly try and play him into floaters and post-ups, but he was so athletic and coordinated that he could easily draw fouls or find easy at-rim attempts when he had momentum.&nbsp;
Lest we forget what Smith did to the rim when given even a sliver of space to leap.
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With more opportunities to attack on the move and potentially more chances to play as a 5 in smaller lineups, Smith's athleticism could potentially be even better emphasized today. With more open lanes, the tomahawks would rain down supremely.
Smith was a borderline All-Star a little over a decade ago, and today's game arguably would benefit his skill set with a reigned-in shot selection and honed-in role.
It's actually criminal that Smith only made one All-Defensive team. He was an exceptional rover, blowing plays up from the weak side as a shot-blocker, disrupting in passing lanes and covering ground exceptionally. From 2007-2010, Smith averaged 3.9 combined steals and blocks per game. Smith was so incredible as a help defender, often leaking off of a spaced shooter to clean up looks at the rim.
His synergy with Al Horford was so fun, as Horford was a fantastic defender already at that point, stonewalling bigs in the post with Smith adding his verticality emphatically over top.
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Other than LeBron James, there was no more imposing chase-down shot-blocker in the NBA from the late 2000's into the early 2010's.
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Smith would be a star role player in the NBA today and greater appreciated for the things he excelled at a decade ago.
Jamal Mashburn
I would pay an exorbitant amount of money to see Monster Mash play his prime days today. (Be sure to check out his son Jamal Mashburn Jr. at New Mexico &mdash; fun player.) He had a fascinating career.
Jamal Mashburn started with a young and exciting Dallas Mavericks squad featuring Jason Kidd and Jim Jackson that flamed out. Then, he really began finding his stride with the Miami Heat as more of a role player for a few years. But after that, he ended up as an All-NBA player and had the best season of his pro life, leading the Charlotte Hornets as a big shot-making and playmaking wing/forward late in his career.
It's not often that a player downsizes his/her role after a huge usage start and then reverts back to high usage later down the road. Even less common is doing it with even greater efficacy.
Mash was a bit of a tweener, caught between the 3 and 4 for much of his career, although he'd be pretty cleanly a 4 today in my opinion. At 6-foot-8 and 240 pounds, Mashburn was ridiculously strong and powerful, operating a lot out of the mid-post. What I find most interesting about Mashburn is that he's someone I actually don't think would have to change his game to the amount you'd expect.
He might exchange a lot of his mid-range looks to opt for a greater deal of threes, but how he was able to operate from the middle of the floor is what I most enjoyed about his game. A solid enough mid-range shooter to make defenders care, you couldn't leave him open. Imagine him in some Triangle-akin actions in the corner, or out of Horns operating as a high-post playmaker. Drawing two with his scoring gravity and ability to generate a mismatch due to his mesh of size and skill would equate to many forced rotations and drawn double teams.
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He'd be so intriguing to me with how he could toggle on and off the ball to maximize his skill set and the abilities of his teammates. That's a large part of what made him so good in Charlotte/New Orleans. A 27.4% usage in his 2002-03 season is nothing to scoff at, but it wouldn't rank top-20 in the league in usage today. Playing alongside a young Baron Davis and veteran David Wesley, Mashburn showcased his ability to operate as a primary, but also make himself a tremendous outlet.
We'd see a lot more of this today!
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Mashburn had the chops to be a tough shot-maker, but the screening and versatility of his shooting and scoring profle make him so enticing as a player who could also dominate on the roll.
While he wasn't an above-the-rim athlete, his strength, touch and playmaking made him remarkably difficult to guard, and I'd argue that modern spacing and offense could put him in even better positions more routinely.
While both Josh Smith and Jamal Mashburn were excellent players in their own time, it's tantalizing to envision them playing today. The skill sets they possessed were valuable at the time, but have only grown in commodity in recent years. If you can extrapolate or minimize space, you have a place in the NBA today.
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With how the game has continued to evolve, Mark Schindler breaks down a pair of players who would've worked well in the current NBA.

Analyzing 2 tweener forwards who would have thrived in today's NBA

Karl-Anthony Towns roared back from two rough games with a career playoff-best 33 points and 14 rebounds, helping the Minnesota Timberwolves move past their Game 3 collapse and pull out a 119-118 victory over the Memphis Grizzlies on Saturday night to even the first-round series at 2-2.
Anthony Edwards scored 24 points and backup Jordan McLaughlin went 4 for 4 from 3-point range to pitch in 16 points as the Timberwolves relentlessly attacked the basket and went 31 for 40 from the foul line.
The series shifts back to Memphis for Game 5 on Tuesday night.
Desmond Bane, who hit his eighth 3-pointer at the buzzer to finish with 34 points, and Dillon Brooks with 24 points kept the Grizzlies going on another quiet night for star point guard Ja Morant. Morant went 4 for 13 from the floor, and had 11 points, 15 assists and eight rebounds.
Jaren Jackson Jr. fouled out with seven points, and 25 of the Grizzlies' 33 fouls were called their starters.
Towns, who took four shots and had just eight points in Game 3, hit 14 of 17 free throws and was the catalyst down the stretch with 13 points in the fourth quarter.
Patrick Beverley missed two free throws with 43 seconds left. With the Wolves leading 115-110, Morant answered with a layup and Edwards missed a pull-up 3. But Tyus Jones had his 3-pointer fall short with 10.5 seconds to go, and Edwards grabbed the rebound. He sank both free throws as the crowd chanted, &ldquo;Wolves in six! Wolves in six!&rdquo;
McLaughlin's first 3 put Minnesota in front in the second quarter to start a 17-1 run that maxed out with a 50-35 lead &mdash; the largest of the night that quickly got whittled by the Grizzles back down to single digits.
The Wolves might have been better off playing a tighter game this time, after their pair of 25-point advantages in Game 3 went for naught.
AMPED UP
Game 3 was an anomaly, considering the Timberwolves were just the ninth NBA team in 389 situations over the past 25 postseasons to lead by 25-plus points and lose the game, <a href="https://twitter.com/ESPNStatsInfo/status/1517325199611469824" target="_blank" rel="noopener">according to ESPN.</a>
And while it fits right into the Minnesota sports scene that has been filled for decades with such disappointment, the crowd didn&rsquo;t quit on creating a raucous advantage Saturday.
Troy Hudson and Wally Szczerbiak, standouts on the last Timberwolves team that captivated the town in 2004, were courtside with an endless supply of high-fives for fans seated nearby.
When Towns swished a 3 from the top of the key on the first possession, a jet-like roar followed.
Towns knew how critical the game was and came out with a ferocity suggesting he knew precisely how much criticism he'd been dealt for <a href="https://apnews.com/article/minnesota-timberwolves-memphis-grizzlies-nba-sports-chris-finch-f5eecbb956912af32863cd408990434d" target="_blank" rel="noopener">his Game 3 dud</a>. When he hit his opening 3, he looked down at his hands and yelled to no one in particular about the importance of passing him the ball.
BUMPS AND BRUISES
Bodies crashed to the floor on almost every possession in what was perhaps the most physical game of the series to date. Morant, who has been playing through nagging leg injuries, took several hard landings after layup attempts.
Grizzlies backup Ziaire Williams sustained an eye injury in the second quarter, when Morant drew a flagrant foul on D&rsquo;Angelo Russell as he drove to the hoop and caught a hand to the face.
Edwards left for a bit in the first quarter with an injury to his right knee unrelated to any contact, but after having trouble walking to the locker room for further examination he returned less than 3 minutes later without any trouble.
PROTEST, INTERRUPTED
Two more animal rights protesters attempted to interrupt the game in the third quarter. One woman <a href="https://twitter.com/GrizzOnBally/status/1518074056339296256" target="_blank" rel="noopener">leaped over the courtside seats</a> of Timberwolves owner Glen Taylor and his wife, Becky, before being tackled by security and carried away. Her companion remained behind the Taylors and next to the second row of Timberwolves assistant coaches, who helped security wrestle her out.
The group has been protesting the way that a chicken farm that's part of Taylor's enterprises has allegedly handled an avian flu outbreak. The highly contagious virus <a href="https://apnews.com/article/business-health-environment-iowa-animals-d76524dace2b34e2cb0dc25925cead65" target="_blank" rel="noopener">has killed roughly 28 million poultry</a>.
TIP-INS
Grizzlies: Xavier Tillman started at center, the fourth player in the series for the Grizzlies in an opening-half lineup to join Jaren Jackson Jr. in the frontcourt as coach Taylor Jenkins continued to employ a variety of methods for trying to take Towns out of his element. Brandon Clarke, Kyle Anderson and Steven Adams have all taken turns. ... Brooks, who was listed as questionable to play with a sore left foot, shot 10 for 20.
Timberwolves: Beverley had 17 points. ... Jarred Vanderbilt had 12 points and eight rebounds.

The Minnesota Timberwolves moved past their Game 3 collapse and pulled out a 119-118 win over the Memphis Grizzlies on Saturday.

Timberwolves beat Grizzlies 119-118 to even series at 2-2

The Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame today announced the 13 honorees in the Class of 2022 to be celebrated September 9-10 during this year&rsquo;s Enshrinement festivities in Springfield, Massachusetts. The announcement was made in New Orleans, Louisiana, the site of the 2022 NCAA Men&rsquo;s Final Four and was televised live on ESPN2.&nbsp;
This year&rsquo;s class includes two-time NBA All-Star and four-time NBA champion&nbsp;Manu Ginobili,&nbsp;five-time NBA All-Star&nbsp;Tim Hardaway,&nbsp;two-time NCAA National Coach of the Year&nbsp;Bob Huggins,&nbsp;the NBA&rsquo;s sixth-winningest coach of all-time&nbsp;George Karl&nbsp;and longtime NBA referee&nbsp;Hugh Evans.&nbsp;On the women&rsquo;s side, the Hall of Fame is proud to welcome five-time WNBA All-Star, three-time WNBA Champion, and two-time Olympic Gold Medalist&nbsp;Lindsay Whalen,&nbsp;four-time WNBA All-Star and two-time Olympic gold medalist&nbsp;Swin Cash&nbsp;and NCAA national champion and WNBA Coach of the Year&nbsp;Marianne Stanley.
Distinguished committees focused on preserving all areas from the game also selected five directly elected enshrines. They include&nbsp;Lou Hudson&nbsp;from the Veterans Committee,&nbsp;Larry Costello&nbsp;and&nbsp;Del Harris&nbsp;from the Contributor Committee,&nbsp;Theresa Shank-Grentz&nbsp;from the Women&rsquo;s Veterans Committee and&nbsp;Radivoj Korac&nbsp;from the International Committee.&nbsp;&nbsp;
&ldquo;Year after year, we are constantly reminded of the extraordinary and transcendent efforts of the remarkable men and women who have impacted the game of basketball from a global perspective,&rdquo; said John L. Doleva, President and CEO of the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame. &ldquo;The Class of 2022 is ripe with individuals who have had a significant historical impact on the game we love. We congratulate and thank them for everything they&rsquo;ve done to better the sport and look forward to honoring them during Enshrinement this fall.&rdquo;
To be elected, North American and Women&rsquo;s Committee finalists must receive 18 of 24 votes from the Honors Committee for election into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame. Direct elect committees are incorporated into the election process to maintain a strong focus on keeping history on the forefront of the voting procedures and to preserve a balance between two eras of basketball.
The Class of 2022 will be enshrined during festivities in Springfield, Mass., the Birthplace of Basketball, on September 9-10, 2022. Here's some more information about each of the inductees:
HUGH EVANS&nbsp;[Referee] &ndash; Evans served as an NBA Official for 28 consecutive years (1973-2001), tallying over 1,900 regular season games, 170 playoff games, 35 NBA Finals games and four NBA All-Star Games. Following his on-court officiating career, Evans worked as the NBA Assistant Supervisor of Officials (2001-03). He is a recipient of the Each One Teach One Community Service Award and is enshrined in the New York City Basketball Hall of Fame as well as the North Carolina A&amp;T Hall of Fame.
MANU GINOBILI&nbsp;[Player] &ndash; Ginobili is a two-time NBA All-Star (2005, 2011) and four-time NBA Champion with the San Antonio Spurs (2003, 2005, 2007, 2014). Over his 16-year NBA career, all with the Spurs, the Argentine guard amassed 14,043 points, 4,001 assists, 3,697 rebounds and 1,392 steals and was honored with the NBA Sixth Man of the Year Award in 2008, as well as twice being named to the All-NBA Third Team (2008, 2011). On the international stage, Ginobili helped deliver the first and only Gold Medal in the country&rsquo;s basketball history at the 2004 Olympics, as well as the bronze at the 2008 games. He joins Bill Bradley as the only two players to have won a EuroLeague title (2001), an NBA championship and an Olympic Gold Medal.
TIM HARDAWAY&nbsp;[Player] &ndash; A 2000 Olympic Gold Medalist, Hardaway played 13 NBA seasons scoring a total of 15,373 points while averaging more than 20 points per game for four consecutive seasons. He is the 1990 recipient of the Jack McMahon Award for most inspirational player and a 1997 All-NBA First Team selection. He currently ranks 18th in NBA history with 7,095 career assists. The Chicago native was a member of the men&rsquo;s basketball team at the University of Texas at El Paso (1985-1989) and is known for making his signature move &ndash; the &ldquo;UTEP Two-step&rdquo; &ndash; famous in 1989, the same year he was named WAC Player of the Year.
BOB HUGGINS&nbsp;[Coach] &ndash; Huggins has been coaching in the collegiate ranks for 45 years, including the last 15 as the head coach at West Virginia University. Over the course of his career, Huggins has led his teams to 25 NCAA Tournament berths, including nine appearances in the Sweet Sixteen (1992, 1993, 1996, 200, 2008, 2010, 2015, 2017, 2018), four trips to the Elite Eight (1992, 1993, 1996, 2010), and two appearances in the NCAA Final Four (1992, 2010). In 16 years as the head coach at the University of Cincinnati (1989-2005), Huggins led the Bearcats to eight Conference USA regular season championships (1996-2002, 2004), four Conference USA Tournament championships (1996, 1998, 2002, 2004), was a three-time Conference USA Coach of the Year (1998-2000) and was honored as the Conference USA Coach of the Decade in 2005. On the national level, he a was tabbed as the&nbsp;Sporting News&nbsp;National Coach of the Year in 2000 and the&nbsp;ESPN.com&nbsp;National Coach of the Year in 2002.
GEORGE KARL&nbsp;[Coach] &ndash; Karl spent 27 seasons as a head coach in the NBA, leading the Cleveland Cavaliers (1984-1986), Golden State Warriors (1986-88), Seattle Supersonics (1992-1998), Milwaukee Bucks (1998-2003), Denver Nuggets (2005-2013) and Sacramento Kings (2015-2016). During his career, he guided five different franchises to a total of 22 playoff appearances, led the Supersonics to the NBA Finals (1996), was named the NBA Coach of the Year (2013), and was called upon to be an All-Star Game head coach four times (1994, 1996, 1998, 2010). Karl owns a lifetime coaching record of 1,175-824 (.588), ranking sixth all-time in NBA career wins and posted 12 seasons of 50+ victories and three seasons of 60-plus.
SWIN CASH&nbsp;[Player] &ndash; Cash is a four-time WNBA All-Star (2003, 2005, 2009, 2011) and two-time Olympic gold medalist (2004, 2012). A true champion, she was a member of three WNBA championship teams during her 15-year career with the Detroit Shock (2003, 2006) and Seattle Storm (2010) as well as two NCAA National Championships at the University of Connecticut (2000, 2002) and a Gold Medal at the 2010 FIBA World Championships. Cash was recognized as one of the 20 best WNBA players of all time in 2016 as she twice named WNBA All-Star Game MVP (2009, 2011) and twice received All-WNBA Second Team (2003-2004) honors. During her collegiate career, she was named the NCAA Final Four Most Outstanding Player and received Kodak First Team All-America honors in 2002 after UConn won their third national title in program history after finishing the season a perfect 39-0. In 2021, Cash was inducted into the Women&rsquo;s Basketball Hall of Fame.
MARIANNE STANLEY&nbsp;[Coach] &ndash; Coaching in the collegiate and professional ranks for a combined 45 years, Stanley currently serves as the head coach of the WNBA&rsquo;s Indiana Fever. In 22 years as a college coach with Old Dominion (1977-1987), Penn (1987-1989), USC (1989-1993), Stanford (1995-1996) and Cal (1995-1996), Stanley compiled a 416-222 (.652) record, including a NCAA National Championship in 1985, three Final Four appearances (1983, 1985, 1996) and back-to-back AIAW National Titles (1979-1980). She has accumulated numerous Coach of the Year honors, including AIAW National Coach of the Year (1979), Virginia Coach of the Year (1979, 1980, 1981, 1984, 1985), Sun Belt Conference Coach of the Year (1984, 1985), Pac-10 Conference Coach of the Year (1993) and WNBA Coach of the Year (2002). On the national team level, she helped lead the United States to a Goodwill Games Gold Medal (1983) and FIBA World Championship Gold Medal (1986). Stanley has been enshrined in the Women&rsquo;s Basketball Hall of Fame (2002) and the Philadelphia Sports Hall of Fame (2010).
LINDSAY WHALEN&nbsp;[Player] &ndash; Whalen is a five-time WNBA All-Star (2006, 2011, 2013-2015), four-time WNBA Champion (2011, 2013, 2015, 2017) and two-time Olympic Gold Medalist (2012, 2016). After averaging 11.5 points and 4.9 assists over 15 seasons in the WNBA, she was named to the WNBA First Team three times (2008, 2011, 2013) and was recognized&nbsp;as one of the 20 best WNBA players of all time in 2016.&nbsp;Whalen ranks third all-time in assists (2,345) and led the league in total assists five times (2007, 2011-2015) and assists per game on three occasions (2008, 2011, 2012). During her collegiate career at University of Minnesota, Whalen led the Golden Gophers to the NCAA Final Four in 2004 and was twice named a finalist for the Naismith Award (2003, 2004) and Wade Trophy (2003, 2004). She also received numerous accolades for her on-court performance, including being named to the Kodak/WBCA All-America Team (2003-2004), USBWA All-America Team (2002-2004), AP Second Team All-America Team (2003-2004) and the All-Big Ten First Team (2002-2004).Whalen currently serves as the head coach of the women&rsquo;s basketball program at her alma mater.
LOU HUDSON&nbsp;[Player] &ndash; Recognized posthumously, Hudson was a six-time NBA All-Star (1969-1974) and averaged 20.2 points and 4.4 rebounds per game in 13 NBA seasons. The athletic shooting guard played 11 seasons with the St. Louis/Atlanta Hawks (1966-1977) and has his jersey No. 23 retired by the franchise. A native of Greensboro, North Carolina, Hudson attended the University of Minnesota where he was part of the first African American recruiting class in school history and went on to receive All-American honors and had his jersey No. 14 retired. He is also a member of the Minnesota Hall of Fame as well as the North Carolina Hall of Fame.
LARRY COSTELLO&nbsp;[Contributor] &ndash; Recognized posthumously, Costello was a six-time NBA All-Star (1958-1962, 1965), a member of the 1967 World Champion Philadelphia 76ers and coached the Milwaukee Bucks to the 1971 NBA title, as well as a Finals appearance in 1974. As a player, he averaged 12.2 points and 4.9 assists per game over 12 NBA seasons, earning All-NBA Second Team in 1961. Known as the last two-handed set shooter, the point guard led the NBA in free throw percentage twice (.881 in 1963; .877 in 1965). As a coach, he was one of the first people to employ a working, accountable assistant coach and employ videotape to analyze the game. He also traveled extensively for the U.S. State Department, lecturing in Germany, Africa, Asia and Europe. Costello is also a member of the Niagara University Hall of Fame, Syracuse Sports Hall of Fame, Greater Buffalo Hall of Fame and the New York State Hall of Fame.
DEL HARRIS&nbsp;[Contributor] &ndash; Harris has dedicated his life to basketball, serving as a coach, mentor and tireless advocate for the game. In his more than 50-year coaching career, he coached every level of the sport, ranging from junior high hoops to the NBA. Harris is deeply respected by players, coaches and executives alike, having earned the Jerry Colangelo Award for Leadership and Character in 2010, the Coach John Wooden &ldquo;Keys to Excellence&rdquo; Award in 2014 and the Basketball Hall of Fame&rsquo;s John W. Bunn Lifetime Achievement Award in 2019. For over 35 years, he served as both a treasured assistant coach and head coach of several franchises including the Houston Rockets, Milwaukee Bucks, Los Angeles Lakers, Dallas Mavericks, Chicago Bulls, and New Jersey Nets. Harris led the Houston Rockers to the NBA Finals in 1981 and was recognized as the NBA Coach of the Year in 1995 while at the helm of the Los Angeles Lakers. Harris currently serves as Vice President of the Mavericks G League affiliate, the Texas Legends, while providing game analysis for the Mavericks on Fox Sports Southwest. He is also a member of the NAIA Basketball Hall of Fame and Indiana Basketball Hall of Fame.
THERESA SHANK-GRENTZ&nbsp;[Player] &ndash; Shank-Grentz was a member of three consecutive AIAW National Championship teams and was a three-time All-American at Immaculata University from 1972-74. The 1974 title game was the first ever live coverage of a women&rsquo;s basketball game in the United States. She scored over 1,000 career points at Immaculata, including a record 104 points and 76 rebounds in the 1973 AIAW Tournament. Shank-Grentz was named the AMF Collegiate Player of the Year in 1974 and has her jersey No. 12 retired by the university. She also scored over 1,200 points as a prep player at Cardinal O&rsquo;Hara High School in Springfield, PA, and was a three-time All-Conference Philadelphia Catholic League.
RADIVOJ KORAC&nbsp;&nbsp;[Player] &ndash; Recognized posthumously, Korac is known as Yugoslavia&rsquo;s first basketball superstar, helping lead the country to the silver medal at the 1968 Olympics after leading all players in averaging 23.6 points per game during the Games. He also led Yugoslavia to silver medals in FIBA World Cup play in 1963 and 1967. He still holds the EuroLeague&rsquo;s all-time single-game scoring record with 99 points in a game vs. Alviks during the 1964-65 season. Korac tragically passed away in a car accident in 1969 at the age of 30 and has been remembered as the namesake of FIBA&rsquo;s Korac Cup in 1971 and Serbia&rsquo;s Korac Cup in 2002. He was named one of FIBA&rsquo;s Greatest Players in 1991, was enshrined in the FIBA Hall of Fame in 2007 and was named one of the 50 Greatest EuroLeague Contributors in 2008.

The Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame announced the 13 honorees in the Class of 2022 to be celebrated September 9-10.

Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame announces Class of 2022 inductees

With the No. 4 pick in the 2021 NBA Draft, Toronto selected a player who fits the Raptors&rsquo; signature archetype: a versatile-and-eager project with a good work ethic, defensive intangibles and length.&nbsp;
At 6-foot 9, with a 7-foot-3 wingspan, Barnes provides myriad possibilities that excite Raptors head coach Nick Nurse.
&ldquo;He's a multi-faceted, multi-positional, two-way player... It's a great pick for us,&rdquo; Raptors head coach Nick Nurse said.
Barnes is now slated to become the latest &lsquo;jack-of-all-trades&rsquo; wing in the team&rsquo;s recent history. Nurse also appreciates the 19-year-old&rsquo;s infectious charisma.&nbsp;
"He really has a magnetic personality,&rdquo; Nurse said. &ldquo;He has a high-energy type of personality... He is a great communicator and has a passion for winning."
Over the last few weeks, the rumor mill was churning and leaks indicated that the Raptors had been taking a closer look at Barnes.&nbsp;
Jalen Suggs was the assumed choice at No. 4 on countless mock drafts, presenting as the most linear positional fit. Since recent rumblings suggest that Kyle Lowry&rsquo;s departure is almost inevitable, Suggs seemed to be the natural replacement guard with his two-way talent and history of embracing the spotlight in the tensest moments.
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Jalen Suggs' all-time game-winner against UCLA called by Gonzaga's IMG radio team of Tom Hudson and Adam Morrison (yes, that Adam Morrison): <a href="https://t.co/DBtqdFjenL">pic.twitter.com/DBtqdFjenL</a>
&mdash; Brian Fonseca (@briannnnf) <a href="https://twitter.com/briannnnf/status/1378553798411628545?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">April 4, 2021</a></blockquote>

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It&rsquo;s tempting to criticize Toronto for choosing to bypass what was seen as the consensus choice, but the organization&rsquo;s confidence in Barnes, coupled with their record for drafting overlooked gems, suggests his game will translate well into the league. 
Coach Nurse also cited a "combination of size, length, two-way [ability], possible potential down the road" as qualities that stood out about Barnes in comparison to his peers that were considered.&nbsp;
Again, textbook Raptor stuff.&nbsp;
Toronto entered Thursday&rsquo;s draft with their first top-five pick since selecting Jonas Valančiūnas at No. 5 in 2011. How they fell into possession of the fourth overall pick was a little untraditional. Following a disappointing start to the 2020-21 regular season, Toronto couldn&rsquo;t find footing, continuously struggling with obstacles that disrupted their season. There was their relocation to Tampa Bay, the COVID-19 outbreak that affected the bulk of players and coaches, and a series of unfortunate injuries sidelining a host of contributors.
Eventually, the team realized their year was unsalvageable, and the final month or so of Raptors basketball consisted of Stanley-Johnson-and-Yuta-Watanabe-led starting lineups &mdash; a complete shell of the dominant rotation we witnessed just a season before.&nbsp;
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The Raptors were presented with a unique opportunity to <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/nba-to-tank-or-not-to-tank-analyzing-the-toronto-raptors-present-and-future" target="_blank" rel="noopener">go all-in with the tank</a>. It's safe to say the team&rsquo;s end-of-season performance didn't accurately depict their ceiling or talent-level. The opportunity to land a top-five pick and welcome a special young talent into the fold &mdash; hopefully in the comfort of Scotiabank Arena, before the team&rsquo;s ravenous fans &mdash; was too good to pass up. Consider it a reset of sorts, to reinvigorate an organization that was going through the motions after repeatedly drawing the shortest end of the stick.
In <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/should-nba-teams-draft-for-fit-or-take-the-best-player-available" target="_blank" rel="noopener">a recent piece for BasketballNews.com</a>, we discussed the layers involved in drafting for the &ldquo;best fit&rdquo; vs. selecting the &ldquo;best player available&rdquo; and the approaches that teams use in what could be a franchise-altering night. A major component of each team&rsquo;s approach is intel, as our Matt Babcock noted. The word in scouting circles was that Barnes impressed at his workouts with the Raptors. And considering Toronto&rsquo;s thinness at the forward spot, it isn&rsquo;t shocking that they went with Barnes. The Florida State product is eager to improve under the supervision of Toronto&rsquo;s respected player-development staff.
&ldquo;If they feel like they need to fix something, I'm willing to work with them,&rdquo; Barnes told reporters shortly after being drafted. &ldquo;I'm willing to do whatever it takes to be the best player I can be."&nbsp;
With all of the boxes Barnes checks, a shot that needs work is probably a drop in the bucket to the Raptors, who have polished multiple players into serviceable (and even top-percentile) shooters over the last half-decade. Rookies are rarely ever finished products, and there seems to be enough upside in Barnes to make the risk worthwhile for the franchise.
Amidst the talk of whether the front office made the correct decision, Barnes doesn&rsquo;t hold a shred of doubt regarding his fate in the NBA.
&ldquo;I feel I can be the greatest player in the league," he said.
This jolt of confidence and joy might be exactly what Toronto needs after a season they&rsquo;re likely trying to forget.

Many mock drafts had the Raptors selecting Jalen Suggs at No. 4. Instead, Toronto chose Scottie Barnes. Was that the right call?

Was Scottie Barnes the right pick for the Toronto Raptors at No. 4?

Kevin Durant went down with another injury last night, a thigh contusion, just a couple days after LaMarcus Aldridge was forced into retirement due to an irregular heartbeat. After weighing their options, the Brooklyn Nets decided to sign an overseas player, Mike James, to address their depth. James spent part of this season with CSKA Moscow, but he was recently released after clashing with his coach.
Over the next few weeks, don&rsquo;t be surprised if more NBA teams look to sign overseas players who are suddenly available after wrapping up their campaign abroad.&nbsp;
A bunch of American players who had been playing in China are now available, and a few more will become available once their teams are eliminated from the Chinese Basketball Association playoffs. Other Americans are playing in Europe and could become available just before the NBA postseason begins, if their contract allows for it.
Teams in the Western Conference now have to find ways to defeat a Los Angeles Lakers team that has added Andre Drummond. They also need to compete with a Utah Jazz team that has the league&rsquo;s best overall record (42-16), best home record (42-3) and best point differential (+9.1), as Donovan Mitchell has become the second-leading scorer in the NBA since the All-Star break (29.6 points per game, behind only Stephen Curry at 34.4). The Jazz are the only team in the NBA to rank among the top-five in both offensive rating (116.7, fourth) and defensive rating (107.8, fourth).
So, who is available?
Let&rsquo;s start with China, where the CBA playoffs resumed Monday with six teams remaining. Dominique Jones led the CBA in scoring this season with an average of 38.0 points per game for the Jilin Northeast Tigers, who were eliminated in the first round of the playoffs. Another American whose season has already ended is Trae Golden of the Fujian Sturgeons (30.4 PPG).
MarShon Brooks (Guangdong Southern Tigers), Lester Hudson and Manny Harris (Shandong Heroes), O.J. Mayo (Liaoning Flying Leopards), and Darius Adams and Dakari Johnson (Qingdao Eagles) remain alive in the postseason, but they will be available whenever their season concludes.
All of the aforementioned players have NBA experience, and it will come down to which holes need to be plugged on a team-by-team basis as the final month of the NBA season winds down and postseason planning reaches its final stages.
The leading rebounder in China was Donatas Motiejunas from Lithuania (13.7 RPG), whose Xinjiang Fighting Tigers were eliminated from the playoffs Sunday by Shandong. Hamed Haddadi of the Sichuan Blue Whales, who finished second in the CBA in rebounding (13.5 RPG), is also available if visa issues do not exist.
Will visa issues be problematic for these overseas players?
&ldquo;If a player has visa issues, we do try to help them if one of our teams wants to sign them,&rdquo; NBA spokesman Tim Frank said.&nbsp;&rdquo;But we can&rsquo;t speak to any specific individuals, as we certainly haven&rsquo;t studied them nor would we speak about any person&rsquo;s visa status, generally speaking.&rdquo;
In Europe, the Euroleague playoffs begin this week with recently unretired Pau Gasol having joined FC Barcelona, which finished the regular season tied for first place with CSKA Moscow, who lost their leading scorer (Mike James).&nbsp;
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Titula la foto 😜 <a href="https://t.co/6wUUafsAdT">pic.twitter.com/6wUUafsAdT</a>
&mdash; Pau Gasol (@paugasol) <a href="https://twitter.com/paugasol/status/1383844239105089538?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">April 18, 2021</a></blockquote>

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Jordan Loyd (Red Star Belgrade) and Scottie Wilbekin (Maccabi Tel Aviv) did not make the Euroleague playoffs but will continue domestic league play. Meanwhile, Wade Baldwin and Jalen Reynolds (Bayern Munich), Shane Larkin (Anadolu Efes Istanbul), Cory Higgins and Nikola Mirotic (Barcelona) will be competing in the Euroleague postseason.
&ldquo;Mirotic has a contract that requires him to compete in the Euroleague playoffs and Spanish league playoffs, so in his case he will be unavailable,&rdquo; said former NBA player Bostjan Nachbar, who now runs the Euroleague Players&rsquo; Association. &ldquo;It is a case-by-case, contract-by-contract thing, but for all of the main guys on big teams here, it does not make much sense [to leave].&rdquo;
Nachbar, speaking via WhatsApp from Barcelona, pointed to Mike James as a case study of someone who can sign with an NBA team. James was having issues with the coach of CSKA Moscow, Dimitrios Itoudis, and was let out of his contract. Now, <a href="https://www.si.com/nba/pacers/news/the-brooklyn-nets-will-sign-mike-james-according-to-chema-de-lucas">he will be signing with Brooklyn</a>.
Kyle O'Quinn (Fenerbahce) received some interest from the Toronto Raptors and Dallas Mavericks among other teams last offseason, but he signed in Turkey after he wasn't able to reach a deal with an NBA squad. This season, he's averaging 11.9 points, 6.8 rebounds and 1.1 blocks, and he'll be eligible to sign with an NBA team that needs frontcourt depth once Fenerbahce's campaign concludes.&nbsp;
Reynolds is the Euroleague&rsquo;s fifth-leading rebounder (5.8 RPG in 34 games), while Nikola Milutinovic of CSKA Moscow is first with 8.5 rebounds per game (and 14.5 rebounds per 40 minutes). The leading three-point shooter in the Euroleague is Kyle Kuric of Slovakia. He plays for Barcelona and is shooting a ridiculous 58.6% from deep, while also leading all players in threes per game (3.1). Loyd, Baldwin and Wilbekin are all in the top-10 in fouls drawn.
As the Nets look to bolster their roster for the playoffs, could they add another overseas player?
&ldquo;We&rsquo;ll do our due diligence as always and keep grinding away,&rdquo; general manager Sean Marks said last week prior to Durant&rsquo;s latest injury. &ldquo;We&rsquo;ll look at what we got. I think with certain guys coming back this week and working themselves back into the rotation and playing more minutes, I don&rsquo;t think we want to jump to any conclusions on what we might need or what we might be missing. We&rsquo;ll look at every alternative and everybody out there. Obviously, losing a player like LaMarcus is without a doubt a blow to us. It&rsquo;s about us being flexible and it&rsquo;s a great opportunity for somebody else -- a group or a person -- to step up and take advantage of this opportunity.&rdquo;
Remember, what a team&lsquo;s roster looks like now and what it looks like when playoff rosters are set could be very different. A lot of basketball remains to be played worldwide, and every team is just one injury away from needing an extra body from overseas.

As NBA teams look to bolster their roster, they could turn to unrestricted free agents who recently finished playing abroad.

Which overseas players could be free-agent targets for NBA teams?

FORT LEE, N.J. -- &ldquo;Which Starbucks?&rdquo; the police officer was asked.
&ldquo;It&rsquo;s gotta be the one at Linwood Plaza,&rdquo; a friendly officer with the name tag Liguori responded.
&ldquo;We get &lsquo;suspicious person&rsquo; calls on the place all the time.&rdquo;
Those &rdquo;suspicious&rdquo; people are actually New Yorkers with too much time and too much money. They are flocking to Fort Lee, N.J. every single day with so much gambling gusto that they have made the border town of approximately 40,000 people &mdash; the first exit in New Jersey after crossing the George Washington Bridge from New York &mdash; one of the top gambling hotspots in the entire United States.
Sportsbook insiders say Fort Lee is often pulling in more money on any given day than the entire state of Nevada, as the U.S. legalized sports gambling marketplace continues to boom. Often, those bets come in from the parking lots of three Starbucks coffee shops near highway exit ramps. Sports gambling will be legal in New York eventually, but <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/new-york-sports-gambling-law-doomed-to-failure" target="_blank" rel="noopener">the law passed earlier this month at the state capitol in Albany is problematic</a>.
&ldquo;I was talking to an [NBA] owner who told me in three-to-five years, we will not even need the TV money. That&rsquo;s how big this thing is going to be,&rdquo; Charles Barkley said to BasketballNews.com, who quipped after the 2007 NBA All-Star game in Las Vegas that the oversized $50,000 check he was handling represented &ldquo;two hands of blackjack.&rdquo;
Barkley is well-versed in gambling, and so are more and more Americans as the nation continues to pass gambling legalization laws nearly three years after the Supreme Court overturned PASPA &ndash; the Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act, allowing states to make their own rules.
New Jersey, which was the plaintiff in Christie v. NCAA &mdash; the lawsuit that led to the overturning of PASPA &mdash; is one of two states, along with Michigan, that allows gamblers to wager on both sports and casino games from their phones.
New York has legalized sports gambling, but will not have it up and running for several months, and New Yorkers are seeking someplace to have a little action. They are ponying up the $16 toll to drive to New Jersey and back into NY via the George Washington Bridge, Lincoln Tunnel or Holland Tunnel, or are boarding trains that travel under the Hudson River and heading into New Jersey&rsquo;s border cities and towns, including Hoboken and Jersey City. As a result, they&rsquo;ve become the gambling capitals of America -- in terms of where the most money is being wagered.
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Sports gambling industry insiders explained that smartphone technology allows them to &lsquo;ping&rsquo; with high levels of precision to discover where wagers are coming from, and a small strip mall in Fort Lee with an H-Mart, a pizzeria and a teeny-tiny Starbucks is lighting up the geo-locator boards at the books.
&ldquo;What we also are seeing consistently is that East Rutherford, the Meadowlands, has become the No. 1 sportsbook on the East Coast in terms of the number of bets, and anecdotally, it is bigger than anything in Las Vegas on a daily basis,&rdquo; said Kevin Hennessey, a spokesman for FanDuel. &ldquo;Twenty five percent of our customer base is New Yorkers, and 50% of our daily handle comes from the Meadowlands.&rdquo;
PointsBet spokesman Patrick Eichner said the border town phenomenon in Northern New Jersey is similar to what they were seeing before Pennsylvania legalized sports gambling.
&ldquo;We were getting heavy traffic from Camden and Cherry Hill, places just across the water from Philadelphia. Now, going on the PATH train to New Jersey and placing bets on games, then grabbing breakfast and going back to New York on an NFL Sunday has become a ritual.&rdquo;
All of the sportsbooks guard their financial information very closely, and none were willing to quantify exactly how much money they are handling on a daily, weekly or monthly basis. But sports gambling stocks have been very strong since the pandemic shut down most of the world, with Penn National Gaming closing at $99.94 on Friday on the NASDAQ. It was trading at $7.89 on March 20, 2020.
DraftKings stock closed at $57.98 Friday, up from $12.25 on March 30, 2020. Roundhill Sports Betting &amp; iGaming is up 96 percent since debuting on the market last June, and tracking the hottest sports gaming company stocks <a href="https://money.usnews.com/investing/stock-market-news/slideshows/stocks-to-bet-on-sports-gambling">has become a bit of an obsession</a> for day traders and large investors alike.
Talented gamblers are known as &ldquo;sharps,&rdquo; and semi-retired New York sportswriter and broadcaster Andy Roth is now making a living by gambling, having to cross state lines to do it.
He is sitting on several Most Improved Player tickets on Julius Randle of the New York Knicks at odds as high as 65-1, and his Defensive Player of the Year Strategy was to play Ben Simmons of Philadelphia at 40-1, Myles Turner of the Indiana Pacers at 100-1 and Rudy Gobert at 3-1. Simmons ($17,000) and Turner ($14,000) would provide the biggest payouts, and Roth feels fortunate to have gotten those wagers in because BetMGM and Borgata have tagged him as a sharp. The last time he tried to wager at BetMGM, they limited his maximum wager to 70 cents.
Last season, Roth made $3,000 on a $150 wager on Nick Nurse to win Coach of the Year and the Toronto Raptors to win the Atlantic Division.
&ldquo;The trick is being able to ID talent that bookmakers cannot see and odds that are the wrong price, and it&rsquo;s no secret that the oddsmakers are not all that good at pricing the futures market,&ldquo; said Roth, who also has an open ticket on Corbin Burnes of the Milwaukee Brewers to win the National League Cy Young Award at spring training odds of 50-1.
The odds on Burnes, who has 30 strikeouts and no walks allowed on 18 &frac12; innings this season (allowing only four hits with an ERA of 0.49) have dropped to 5-1.
Obviously, Roth &mdash; a New York resident &mdash; has found a way to make it work. Judging by the amount of action we're now seeing in New Jersey, scores of others are, as well.

Believe it or not, some small municipalities in New Jersey are now seeing more sports gambling action than any casino in Las Vegas.

New Jersey border towns surpass Las Vegas as sports gambling hotspot

Legalized sports gambling is coming to New York sometime this year. Whether it will work and exactly when it will be up and operating remain open questions. That means New Yorkers will have to drive to New Jersey if they want to wager on the Brooklyn Nets to win the NBA championship.
Assemblyman J. Gary Pretlow, a Democrat who works with state governor Andrew Cuomo, has some serious doubts and concerns about the law. He wonders whether New Yorkers will even want to use the new system whenever it is up and running.
&ldquo;New Hampshire did not make a single dollar on Super Bowl Sunday, and Governor Cuomo is using New Hampshire as his model,&rdquo; said Pretlow, whose own proposed legislation calling for a responsible gambling law (which included a &ldquo;kill switch&rdquo; for problem gamblers) did not get enacted during the prolonged budget process in the State Capitol of Albany.
As a result, the exact dates and rules for New York&rsquo;s new law are complicated and fluid.&nbsp;
There will be at least two operators that will be issued licenses through an auction process, but what that process will look like remains vague. There will be at least four &ldquo;skins&rdquo; &ndash; lingo for smartphone gambling apps on which New Yorkers can wager -- by the time the system becomes operative.&nbsp;
Exactly how many skins? Nobody knows. The proper acronym is TBD (to be determined).
The Nets are currently the favorite to win the title, listed Wednesday at +250 (wager $100 to win $250). The Los Angeles Lakers are +350, and the New York Knicks are 250-1. Julius Randle of the Knicks is the favorite to win the Most Improved Player award at -200. Michael Porter Jr. of Denver, who was 150-1 Sunday when this site <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/can-michael-porter-jr-beat-the-odds-and-win-most-improved-player" target="_blank" rel="noopener">highlighted his recent surge</a>, dropped from 100-1 to 20-1 on Wednesday following the news that teammate Jamal Murray is out for the season with a torn ACL.
New York politics are complicated, and Cuomo is fighting for his political life after several former female staffers accused him of <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2021/03/19/nyregion/alyssa-mcgrath-cuomo-harassment.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">inappropriate comments and sexual advances</a>. But he retains enormous power, and as a practical matter, he gets whatever he wants in the state budget process. That budget was passed on April 7 &ndash; seven days late.
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The gambling law negotiations included a number of compromises and verbal agreements, but the 3,000-page state budget document includes pages and pages and pages of vague language. The process now goes to the state lottery commission, which falls under the auspices of the state gaming commission (which is run by Pretlow but has several members appointed by Cuomo who answer to gaming commission executive director Rob Williams, a Cuomo ally who earned $166,393 in 2019, <a href="https://govsalaries.com/williams-robert-t-89173702" target="_blank" rel="noopener">according to a state website</a>).
The commission has up to 180 days to set rules for a public auction of operating licenses, and Cuomo&rsquo;s press office has said the state will earn $50 million from the auction process.&nbsp;
But if it is an auction, how could anybody know the price?&nbsp;
It is all very complicated, and as a practical matter, we will continue to see New Yorkers wager tremendous amounts of money across state lines in New Jersey. Officials at various U.S. sportsbooks say the amount of money being wagered daily in New Jersey is astonishing. (New Jersey and Michigan allow online sports gambling and online casino gambling). Sports gambling stocks have been rallying since the pandemic began, and is an enormous growth industry in America.
New York remains in a state of semi-lockdown, with bars and restaurants continuing to close at 11 p.m. under an executive order issued by Cuomo early in the pandemic.&nbsp;
So New Yorkers have been watching a lot of basketball.
New York has an acute information void caused by a 13-month suspension of traditional news meetings at mainstream media entities whose employees have been working remotely for more than a year. Pretlow complained that when it comes to media coverage of this story, roughly 60% of what he reads in articles and sees on television includes blatant inaccuracies. He tried to explain this legalized gambling story to all of the major New York newspapers, but he was met with disinterest, which is astonishing given the growth of the legalized sports gambling industry in U.S. states where it has been legalized.
The District of Columbia and 20 states now have various sports gambling laws.&nbsp;
New Jersey&rsquo;s law allows gamblers to wager on just about anything with the exception of New Jersey's college teams (such as Rutgers and Seton Hall). It is also illegal in West Virginia, which basically copied and pasted New Jersey&rsquo;s law and enacted it.&nbsp;
Since the Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act (PASPA) was overturned by the U.S. Supreme Court on May 14, 2018, New Jersey has processed $13,548,845,123 in wagers, just shy of Nevada&rsquo;s $13,881,507,631. Gambling has been legal inside several of New York&rsquo;s upstate Native American casinos, and Pretlow cast the first legal bet in New York. But when he went to check the ticket (a $20 wager on the Seattle Seahawks), it was unreadable because someone had forgotten to change the ink cartridge at the casino&rsquo;s ticket printing machine.
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Legal gambling in New York &ldquo;is not going to start for a while,&rdquo; Pretlow said, adding that Cuomo wanted to allow only one licensed operator, but yielded during budget negotiations.&nbsp;
&ldquo;The state, being the bookie, actually can lose money,&rdquo; Pretlow added. &ldquo;There is no enthusiasm for this new law from the betting public, and everybody I have spoken to in the gambling industry said this just won&rsquo;t work.&rdquo;
The legislation includes language calling for a &ldquo;minimum&rdquo; of two licenses, which in actuality could become as many as 10 or 20 licenses depending upon how the process evolves. Gambling apps (a.k.a. skins) were going to be limited to four. But after reviewing the legal documents during a three-and-a-half-hour interview at Pretlow&rsquo;s office in Mount Vernon, N.Y., it was discovered that the language could allow many more.&nbsp;
The gaming commission has until July 1 to set the auction rules and alert all of the sportsbooks about what the exact rules will be, and the sportsbooks will then have 30 days to apply for a license. After that, the commission has up to 150 days to accept bids.
The political appointees on the gaming and lottery commissions can speed up the process if they choose, so all dates remain fluid. But given that many industries in New York are not operating at optimal efficiency because of the number of people working remotely, having a wagering system that is up and running efficiently will likely take several months.
Pretlow said the goal was to have the system running by the beginning of the NFL season. But because of the peculiarities of New York politics, he does not expect that to happen. Sometime around Thanksgiving is more likely, he told BasketballNews.com.
And if it fails, it might be fixed next year when the legislature reconvenes in January.
&ldquo;I hate to wish against myself, but I just don&rsquo;t see this working. But we do have a built-in fail-safe that if this is not successful under the governor&rsquo;s proposal, we can revert back to the legislative proposal, which is all-inclusive,&rdquo; Pretlow said.
In the meantime, New Yorkers who choose to gamble will continue to place their bets across the Hudson River in New Jersey for the forseeable future. And the tax dollars from those wagers will go to the State Capitol instead of Albany.&nbsp;
Clearly, this story will evolve over the remainder of the NBA season and beyond.&nbsp;

Chris Sheridan spoke to Assemblyman J. Gary Pretlow about the future of sports gambling in New York and his concerns about the law.

Is New York's sports gambling law doomed to fail?

Some bask in the spotlight, while others prefer to hide in the shadows.
Attention is the friend of many; solitude the companion of choice for a few.
In today&rsquo;s day and age &ndash; particularly with the advent of social media and the 24/7 news cycle &ndash; it&rsquo;s difficult for a neophyte to maintain his anonymity. But, it&rsquo;s possible that, for a 20-year-old with promise, avoiding the radar may not be as difficult as we once thought.
All he has to do is play for the New York Knicks.
From Michael Sweetney to Channing Frye and Iman Shumpert to Jordan Hill, one of the few commonalities between the Knicks&rsquo; first-round draft picks over the past 20 years have been dashed hopes and disappointment.
The theme actually persists throughout every facet of the organization.
But alas, even the Hudson River&rsquo;s tide turns twice a day, so in this instance, the failures of regimes past don&rsquo;t necessarily provide evidence of future performance. New York isn&rsquo;t given the benefit of the doubt, because just as it did with Kristaps Porzingis and his predecessors, somehow, the Knicks will find a way to ruin it.
At least, that&rsquo;s the prevailing sentiment.
So here we are, the 2020-21 season. Believe it or not, the Knicks have surpassed last season&rsquo;s win total, enter play on April 2 at .500, and have managed to not resemble a dumpster fire behind the raspy bark and serious demeanor of Tom Thibodeau.
On the court, Julius Randle has rightfully received the credit and praise for the Knicks arriving to this point. A playoff shot is not a fate that many would have predicted, and although the national media has slowly bestowed some credit on Randle and Thibodeau, it&rsquo;s been much slower to recognize the obvious &mdash; RJ Barrett has given the franchise something to hold onto.
Almost 20 years later, one would be hard-pressed to argue that the 2003 NBA Draft class isn&rsquo;t one of the best in history. But sometimes, we got so fixated with the cream that rises to the top that we don&rsquo;t pay enough attention to what lies beneath.
When you think of 2003, you think of LeBron James and remember Dwyane Wade. Carmelo Anthony and Chris Bosh also certainly come to mind, while scores of others &mdash; including former All-Stars such as David West, Mo Williams and Kyle Korver &ndash; aren&rsquo;t even thought of.
Obviously, three of those are unlike the others. But it&rsquo;s quite possible to walk away from the craps table a winner even without bankrupting the casino.
In other words, Barrett may not have had anywhere near as immediate an impact as Zion Williamson or Ja Morant, but in the case of Anthony and the 2003 class, in this case, there&rsquo;s no shame in bronze.
As a sophomore, Barrett has shown appreciable growth. A throwback big guard, the defining characteristic of his game &mdash; so far &mdash; has been an understanding of how to use his body, strength and girth to get to precisely where he wants to on the floor. A soccer player before he decided to focus full-time on basketball, his light footedness and agility, at least for a second-year player whose body is still developing, is world class. If you tried hard enough, you could poke holes in Barrett&rsquo;s offensive repertoire; his handle isn&rsquo;t elite, and for a big guard whose size is among his best attributes, his back-to-basket game is fairly weak.
Yet still, the inroads he&rsquo;s made in terms of his sheer effectiveness on the floor are impressive. Be that as it may, what&rsquo;s been equally impressive for the young Canadian has been the strides he&rsquo;s made from Year 1 to Year 2 in an area critical to success in the modern NBA &mdash; spacing the floor.
Along with Randle, Barrett completes an effective duo. Unsurprisingly, the pair are together in four of the team&rsquo;s top-five offensive units in terms of points per possession, with Barrett dramatically (yet somehow, quietly) becoming a much more credible mid-range threat.
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As a rookie, Barrett connected on just 28% of his shots from 10-to-16 feet, and just 29% of his looks from further. This season, he&rsquo;s shown marked improvement, improving those same percentages to 36% and 38%, respectively. In terms of the percentage of shot attempts from those areas, they have also increased, though marginally. Nonetheless, combined with his overall improvements across the board &mdash; his scoring, rebounding and assists are significantly higher along with his shooting percentages &mdash; the simplest conclusion to draw is that he&rsquo;s improved. That&rsquo;s pretty obvious.
What&rsquo;s even more important than an increase in numbers, however &mdash; and something you could never understand without actually watching the game &mdash; is an understanding of how to be effective when advanced scouts and opposing assistant coaches begin planning for you.
It&rsquo;s typical for an NBA team to employ three or four assistant coaches, with other members of the organization invited to assist with reviewing tape and offering input into how to stop a team&rsquo;s featured players. It&rsquo;s commonplace for the support staff to spend days analyzing their opponents and building game plans to take away strengths. That&rsquo;s where the phrase &ldquo;appeared on the scouting report&rdquo; derives.
Due to relatively small sample sizes in some instances or just a lack of time, it&rsquo;s not always possible for a team to go into every contest with a complete understanding of what their opponent has been up to the past week, so there&rsquo;s a necessary prioritization; the higher a player&rsquo;s profile, the more resources dedicated to getting him on the scouting report.
Knicks fans probably remember all too well the rude awakening that Jeremy Lin encountered at the hands of the Miami Heat, but if you have a long enough memory, you&rsquo;d recall that this fate wasn&rsquo;t unique to him. There are a number of players who peak as rookies or sophomores, but it&rsquo;s not always due to any fault with the player.
As one&rsquo;s profile increases, so does the priority with which the opposition scouts him. Most often, it&rsquo;s a young player&rsquo;s ability to adapt his attack and improve his weaknesses that separate, say, Tyreke Evans and O.J. Mayo from Jayson Tatum and Donovan Mitchell.
A relatively small sample size it may be, but at a minimum, Barrett has already proven a few things: first, he&rsquo;s someone who takes his craft and the obligation of diligently improving seriously, and second, he at least hasn&rsquo;t peaked as a rookie.
If you were curious as to why the Knicks didn&rsquo;t approach the trade deadline with the type of urgency that one would have thought a newly installed front office would, aside from the team&rsquo;s favorable cap situation, at least some within the organization believe that the duo of Barrett and Randle have earned the opportunity to continue to develop together.
Together, Zion and Ja have lived up to the expectations, and then some. But when a young player such as Barrett improves in the way he has &mdash; and when those improvements yield wins &mdash; that means something.
In the case of Barrett, at a minimum, it means that we should continue watching.
The young Canadian is onto something, and it&rsquo;s only a matter of time before everyone else figures it out.

RJ Barrett's impressive strides this season have helped put the Knicks in the playoff hunt. Moke Hamilton believes credit is due.