Seahawks

As the 2025 NBA Playoffs begin, the Western Conference presents no shortage of compelling narratives and unanswered questions. Each team comes in with a storyline that could define their entire postseason. From young squads making their playoff debut to experienced rosters led by superstars, here's the biggest question facing each Western Conference playoff team.
Oklahoma City Thunder &mdash; Can their historic defense carry over to the playoffs?
The Oklahoma City Thunder have fielded the league&rsquo;s best defense this season, boasting a 106.6 defensive rating &mdash; the lowest mark in the NBA and one of the best over the past decade. Anchored by a core of versatile perimeter defenders like Lu Dort, Cason Wallace, Jalen Williams, and MVP candidate Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, along with interior enforcer Isaiah Hartenstein and shot blocker Chet Holmgren, the Thunder built a defensive identity predicated on length, switchability, and relentless pressure.
But as history has shown, regular-season defense doesn&rsquo;t always translate to playoff dominance. Matchups become more intentional, rotations tighten, and elite scorers are given room to manipulate even the best schemes. For a team like OKC that leans heavily on team defense rather than individual stoppers, their system will be tested in a postseason series where adjustments are key. Moreover, the Thunder&rsquo;s youth &ndash; despite being a strength in the regular season &ndash; may also be a vulnerability when the game slows down and every possession is magnified.
This Thunder squad has the makings of a historically great defense, but now comes the true test: whether that same system can hold up when a superstar like Luka Doncic or Steph Curry start hunting matchups in isolation. If OKC can sustain their defensive intensity in a seven-game series, their path to a deep run remains wide open.
Houston Rockets &mdash; Will their inexperience hinder them from going too far?
After years of rebuilding, the Houston Rockets are finally back in the playoffs &mdash; and this time, with a young core brimming with talent. Alperen Sengun, Jalen Green, Jabari Smith Jr., and Amen Thompson are all making their playoff debuts, and they&rsquo;ve formed a competitive group that finished with the fifth-best defense in the league (110.3 DRtg) and earned the second seed. Their turnaround under head coach Ime Udoka has been remarkable, fueled by a defense-first identity and the emergence of Sengun as one of the best passing bigs in the league.
However, playoff basketball is a different beast. It&rsquo;s about adjustments, discipline, and poise under pressure &ndash; things young teams usually need time to learn. In their first-round matchup, the Rockets face the battle-tested Golden State Warriors, a team that features championship experience across the board. Houston&rsquo;s youth could be exposed if the moment becomes too big, especially with Golden State&rsquo;s ability to dissect inexperience through smart off-ball actions and defensive schemes.
Players like Fred VanVleet and Dillon Brooks, the Rockets&rsquo; veterans, will be counted on to provide leadership and stabilize the team when things go sideways. But this postseason will ultimately serve as a litmus test for how ready the Rockets&rsquo; young stars are to take the leap. Even if they fall short, the experience could be invaluable moving forward.
Los Angeles Lakers &mdash; How viable is their roster construction?
The Lakers shocked the league by acquiring Luka Doncic midseason, pairing him with LeBron James and Austin Reaves to form a high-powered offensive trio. Since then, they&rsquo;ve leaned heavily into small-ball, often starting lineups with Rui Hachimura and Dorian Finney-Smith alongside the core trio, while Jaxson Hayes remains their only true center. First-year head coach JJ Redick has installed a modern, five-out system that prioritizes spacing and switchable defense &mdash; a style tailor-made for the postseason.
But viability is still a concern. While the offense has thrived, their defense has some slippages, particularly when LeBron and Luka are on the floor together. Their lack of rim protection and size could be exploited by teams that boast elite drivers to the rim. Additionally, the wear-and-tear of postseason play could take a toll on their aging core, especially LeBron, who is playing his 22nd season and logging heavy minutes in the postseason
Ultimately, the Lakers&rsquo; playoff ceiling hinges on whether their current roster configuration &ndash; heavy on wings, light on bigs &ndash; can hold up when the game slows down and physicality ramps up. If it works, Redick could be hailed as a tactical genius. If it doesn&rsquo;t, questions about roster balance and long-term direction will resurface.
Denver Nuggets &mdash; Do they have enough help around Nikola Jokic?
Nikola Jokic is once again doing everything for the Denver Nuggets &mdash; and doing it at an MVP level. He finished the regular season averaging a triple-double and top 3 in every major statistical category. His ability to control the game as both scorer and facilitator remains unmatched, and he remains the engine of everything Denver does offensively. But after a sluggish finish to the season, the biggest concern for the Nuggets is whether Jokic has enough help to mount another deep playoff run.
Jamal Murray has battled through injuries and hasn&rsquo;t quite looked like the same dynamic scorer from their 2023 championship run. Michael Porter Jr. has been inconsistent, while Aaron Gordon&rsquo;s offensive impact has waned due to multiple injuries. Denver&rsquo;s bench has also taken a step back this year, with limited contributions outside of Russell Westbrook, Julian Strawther and Peyton Watson.
If Murray can elevate his game and Porter Jr. can knock down shots consistently, Denver remains a title threat. But the margin for error is much slimmer than last year. Jokic can only carry so much weight &ndash; the Nuggets need their supporting cast to deliver, or another early exit could be looming.
Los Angeles Clippers &mdash; Can we see James Harden and Kawhi Leonard lead this team to playoff glory?
After losing Paul George to free agency last summer, many assumed the Clippers&rsquo; title window had slammed shut. But the resurgence of James Harden and Kawhi Leonard has breathed life back into their playoff hopes. Harden has embraced the role of primary playmaker, averaging 22.8 points and 8.7 assists per game, while Leonard has quietly had one of the most efficient scoring seasons of his career in recent years, shooting 49.8% from the field and 41.1% from deep.
The Clippers finished the season strong with their offense clicking and defense holding steady. Yet the question remains &ndash; can their two stars carry them through the gauntlet of the Western Conference? Leonard&rsquo;s health has always been a question mark, and Harden&rsquo;s playoff track record has been a mixed bag at best.&nbsp;
This postseason may be one of the last chances for this iteration of the Clippers to make a real push. If Harden and Kawhi can replicate their regular-season success and stay healthy, they could make noise. Along with steady role players like Norman Powell and Ivica Zubac, the Clippers are darkhorse contenders and will be dangerous out in the West.
Minnesota Timberwolves &mdash; How will Julius Randle perform in the playoffs?
Minnesota shocked many by acquiring Julius Randle at the trade deadline, moving on from Karl-Anthony Towns in the process. The Wolves hoped that Randle, a more physical and downhill-oriented forward, would provide a better playoff fit alongside Anthony Edwards and Rudy Gobert. However, Randle&rsquo;s postseason history raises concerns &mdash; in 15 career playoff games, he&rsquo;s averaged just 15.6 points on 34.4% shooting from the field.
Minnesota will need more than that if they hope to build on last year&rsquo;s conference finals run. Randle must adapt his game to playoff basketball, where defenses are better prepared and isolation-heavy play often becomes less efficient. His ability to stretch the floor, make quick decisions, and play through contact will be tested, especially against elite defenses like OKC.
If Randle rises to the occasion, Minnesota could have one of the most balanced starting fives in the conference. But if he reverts to his inefficient playoff habits, the Wolves could find themselves stalling in critical moments &ndash; a risk that looms large in what could be a defining postseason for the franchise.
Golden State Warriors &mdash; How far can Jimmy Butler take them?
The Warriors made arguably the boldest trade of the deadline by acquiring Jimmy Butler from Miami, forming a star duo with Stephen Curry. Since the move, Golden State has looked rejuvenated, going on a tear to close the regular season and boasting the third-best net rating in the league during that span (+7.2). Butler&rsquo;s leadership, defense, and shot creation have given the Warriors a legitimate second option and re-energized their playoff outlook.
Butler has a proven playoff track record &ndash; he led the Heat to two Finals appearances in four years &ndash; and is widely regarded as one of the most clutch postseason performers. His fit with Golden State has been seamless, and the team&rsquo;s defense has improved significantly, ranking 6th in opponent points per game since the trade. The question is how far Butler can carry this version of the Warriors, who still lean heavily on their aging core.
If Butler can replicate his past postseason heroics and stay healthy, the Warriors have a real shot to upset higher-seeded teams and return to the Finals.
Memphis Grizzlies &mdash; Can they survive this tough season?
No team has faced more adversity this year than the Memphis Grizzlies. Between Ja Morant&rsquo;s on-court antics, injuries to key players, and coaching instability and firing, Memphis stumbled to a slump at the end of the regular season but managed to squeak into the playoffs as the 8-seed. Despite the chaos, the team has shown remarkable resilience, with Jaren Jackson Jr. and rookie Zach Edey emerging as bright spots with their improved play.
Now they face the top-seeded Thunder in a first-round matchup that few give them a chance to win. But if there&rsquo;s one thing the Grizzlies have shown, it&rsquo;s that they won&rsquo;t go down without a fight. Their defense could keep them competitive, and their physical style of play may pose problems for the Thunder.
Ultimately, the playoffs may serve more as a building block than a real title push. But if Memphis can steal a game or two &mdash; or even push OKC to the brink &mdash; it would be a testament to the team&rsquo;s grit and foundation heading into next season.

Breaking down the biggest question each Western Conference team faces heading into the 2025 NBA Playoffs.

2025 NBA Western Conference Playoffs: Each team’s biggest question in the playoffs

Team USA players came inside the Kerry Sports basketball facility one by one, each sporting their preferred and comfortable gear from the blazing heat of the Philippine weather they were not so accustomed to. They were about to hold their first practices in Manila for the FIBA World Cup 2023, the sport&rsquo;s world championship meet.
Anthony Edwards was one of the last ones to enter the gym along with fellow NBA no.1 overall pick Paolo Banchero. He had his Adidas Adilette comfort slides put on with black Team USA jogger pants and an Adidas triple-colored hoodie. Edwards was fixated on his phone, walking past whispering reporters onto the team&rsquo;s huddle at center court, clearly being the center of attraction for the young Team USA squad.
&ldquo;That&rsquo;s who they call the Ant-Man.&rdquo;
Once upon a time, Edwards&rsquo; name was held in a much lower regard. The 22-year-old is considered to be one of the best and brightest young players in the league but has yet to establish himself as one of the staples and premier superstars with an iconic and deep playoff performance that cements him in that tier.
Until these playoffs.
Edwards has separated himself from the pack of young superstars leading their teams and entered the upper echelon of basketball royalty in the NBA. With the league anticipating the &lsquo;changing of the guard&rsquo; as current faces LeBron James, Stephen Curry, and Kevin Durant eventually diminish their shining glories as the league&rsquo;s best of the best, Edwards comes in as one of the hopefuls to take the mantle when that inevitable day comes.
&ldquo;I&rsquo;ve been saying that he (Edwards) is the face of the league but he hates it when I say it &ndash; but it&rsquo;s true. The future&rsquo;s so bright you gotta put the sunglasses on when you&rsquo;re walking around him,&rdquo; Karl-Anthony Towns said, in their post-game interview after their first-round series with the&nbsp;Phoenix Suns.
Edwards glanced briefly at Towns, who was beside him at the podium. He had that little smile on his face while bowing down his head as his teammate praised him in front of the listening reporters. He looked at Towns again, this time shaking his head in disbelief, but it had the element of confidence. There was obviously a focus on what Towns was talking about but with Edwards&rsquo; elite level-headedness through it all.&nbsp;
&ldquo;You&rsquo;re a young superstar in the league and you have to face it,&rdquo; the statement emphasized on Edwards as he&rsquo;s trying to soak it all in.
Ever since Edwards has been adamant about not calling himself anything until he wins in the playoffs. Now that his Wolves beat the Suns to win the franchise&rsquo;s first playoff series since 2004, Edwards certainly has all the right in the world to give himself even the tiniest bit of praise.
He thought for a good three seconds, glancing at the reporter and the horizon for a moment. He was just asked if he was now able to give himself some grace in that regard when people call him that &lsquo;young superstar&rsquo; label. A small grin emerged onto his face, clearly oozing with confidence albeit a controlled one. He looked back with that smile on his face while nodding, he said:
&ldquo;Nah, not yet a man. Not yet.&rdquo;
Behind this usual brash, confident, and charismatic Edwards is a hungry side that never gets contented and satisfied until he achieves his ultimate goal: winning a championship. Maybe he&rsquo;ll have the guts to call himself one when they reach the Finals and end up going all the way. But that remains to be seen.
He&rsquo;s got the swagger, the personality, and the charisma to be marketable by the league. Edwards mentioned wanting to go kill everybody that&rsquo;s in front of him, and boy, he did.&nbsp;
Edwards swept the Suns featuring his childhood idol and favorite player of all time Kevin Durant, who he has been jawing back and forth at several times in the series. This was him going at his childhood hero, taking on the challenge and never backing down. However, the play of the series happened in Game 4 when Minnesota was trying to put the nail in the coffin for Phoenix.&nbsp;
With 2:18 left on the clock in the 4th quarter, Edwards blew by Beal and rose through the air as high as he could. Durant made the right business decision by not going up together with a rampaging bull as he should For a brief moment, he looked like the second coming of a certain Michael Jordan &ndash; yet again &ndash; after he&rsquo;s been labeled as such throughout the course of the season after each jaw-dropping spectacular play. Edwards threw down a ferocious poster slam dunk that might have literally blown the roof over the Footprint Center as the play signaled the beginning of the end for the Suns.
Durant and Edwards will play together in Team USA in August for the Paris Olympics, and these two for sure would go head to head making their practice sessions much more interesting. &ldquo;It&rsquo;s definitely a good feeling because he&rsquo;s my favorite player of all time, and I can tell him that I was the one who sent him home. It&rsquo;s gonna be a fun summer for sure,&rdquo; Edwards said.
First game of the Western Conference Finals and up against the Nuggets, Edwards scored a playoff career-high 43 points. He dissected their entire defense, scoring in all types of ways imaginable for a superstar. Edwards hit threes, blown by some of the toughest defenders in the NBA Aaron Gordon, and hit fadeaway mid-range jumpers reminiscent of Jordan. More importantly, Edwards displayed the level of maturity a superstar has to make in the playoffs &ndash; playing off of your teammates and playmaking for the entire team. He has done it so far with relative ease and that&rsquo;s why the Timberwolves have found their early success in this postseason.
He&rsquo;s doing it against supposedly their biggest challenge &ndash; the defending champions &ndash; who sent them home a year ago. &ldquo;Last year we didn&rsquo;t have Jaden (McDaniels) and Naz (Reid) against them so it was quite frustrating. Now that we have both I think we can definitely do better,&rdquo; Edwards said about their biggest thing in this rematch series vs Denver is being healthy.
Before the season started, Edwards was this up-and-coming 22-year-old star leading his nation at the World Championships for a chance at glory. Although the Americans ended up not medalling after losing to eventual world champions Germany in the semifinals and to neighboring Canada in the third-place game, Edwards was clearly the best player on the team filled with young American talent. He led Team USA in scoring, and at 22 years old, this was only the start of a big year ahead.
Edwards then was the clear-cut best player for the third-best team in the West, with Minnesota having a 56-26 record. Those 56 wins were the most since 2004 when they had 58 and went to the Western Conference Finals. They were led back then by legend Kevin Garnett but that was also their last time seeing the playoffs.&nbsp;
20 years later, Edwards is now shouldering all the burden by taking this Wolves team back to relevance, basking in all the glory he&rsquo;s worked so hard to attain. He&rsquo;s one of the bonafide young rising superstars in the league, and he intends to take them all the way.
Edwards&rsquo; huge season and ascension to superstardom could be attributed back to something you see coming even from a mile away. And it all started in that summer lengthy yet productive summer in 2023.
While most players use their summers to recuperate, have a vacation somewhere, and spend time with families and loved ones, Edwards took a privileged yet opportunistic route: play with the National Team at the FIBA World Cup. Usually, NBA superstars all express their willingness to play with the National Team at the Olympics. For no definite reason, somehow the FIBA World Cup does not seem appealing to play for the older/senior superstar guys, so it&rsquo;s usually the juniors/young guys who represent Team USA. Anthony Edwards took up that challenge and became the best player for the team and in turn, he&rsquo;s reaping the benefits of it in the playoffs.
&ldquo;I&rsquo;ve put in work this summer. Big shoutout to the USA team, man. They got me ready for the season.&rdquo;
That killer mentality that Edwards has is something that&rsquo;s never seen often and has been with only a select few in the history of the game, particularly Jordan and Lakers great Kobe Bryant. Behind all that bold and tough personality, however, is a side of himself that genuinely enjoys playing with his teammates.
When asked about the prospect of having his Wolves&rsquo; teammates, the first thing out of his mouth was how he was excited to meet them while playing for their respective countries (Rudy Gobert for France, Karl-Anthony Towns for Dominican Republic, Kyle Anderson for China, and Nickeil Alexander-Walker for Canada). He looked forward to playing against them, citing how much fun he would have once it happened.
Despite his clear burgeoning superstardom, however,&nbsp; Edwards still deflected every credit thrown towards him. When asked what he feels as one of the guys being billed as one of the next faces of the league, Edwards dismissed the idea faster than a Math teacher dispersing students after giving out a tough assignment due &ndash;&nbsp; immediately answering without hesitation that he does not make anything of it.&nbsp;
&ldquo;I&rsquo;m just gonna keep working, man. I make nothing of it, yeah. I just hope that I keep getting better.&rdquo;
It was clear all along among all the people in the gym that fateful day: Edwards had the most aura out of them all. It was just oozing, something you can feel when you&rsquo;re around certain people. It&rsquo;s kind of intimidating, but only to a certain extent. You can just feel the energy brewing and that certain look when you come across one of the ones. The underlying factor before the season was Minnesota only having five national TV games all season long. With most of their games out of the eyes of the majority, Edwards assured one thing going into the season sternly and convincingly.
&ldquo;We just gonna try to keep playing, man. We&rsquo;re not really worried about the national TV games. As long as we win, we&rsquo;ll be on TV when we make it into the playoffs. The world will know about us.&rdquo;
As their playoff mantra suggests, the Timberwolves have been waiting for this moment since 2004. From the annals of the great Kevin Garnett&rsquo;s era to ushering this new one paved by superstar-in-the-making, young Anthony Edwards, the Minnesota Timberwolves have arrived.

The underlying factor before the season was Minnesota only having five national TV games all season despite having Anthony Edwards.

‘WOLVES BACK’: Anthony Edwards introduces the Timberwolves back to the world

Blake Stern previews the NBA's Central Division, breaking down each team's projected lineup and burning question entering the year.

NBA Central Division Preview: Burning questions, rotation projections

When the new league year began on July 1, NBA teams were quick to sign free agents and start negotiating extensions with some of their younger players.&nbsp;
Players who were selected in the first round of the NBA Draft are signed to rookie-scale contracts, which are eligible to be extended on the first day (July 1) of the fourth and final year of their deal. This past offseason, the vast majority of players eligible for rookie-scale extensions were picked in the first round in 2020. Teams have until the day before the start of the 2023-24 regular season (which begins on October 24) to agree to an extension, or else those players will hit restricted free agency next summer.&nbsp;
Out of the 30 first-round picks in the 2020 NBA Draft, 27 were eligible for rookie-scale extensions. In addition, the Orlando Magic&rsquo;s Chuma Okeke also became eligible for a rookie-scale extension because he signed his rookie deal in 2020, a year after he was drafted due to injury. So far this offseason, five players have signed extensions, with four of them receiving maximum contracts.&nbsp;
Those who received the max signed what&rsquo;s called a Designated Rookie Extension, which has a starting salary at 25% of the 2024-25 salary cap (projected at $37,405,750) with 8% raises over five years (for a total contract value of $216,953,350). However, via the &ldquo;Derrick Rose rule,&rdquo; if any of the players who signed one of these extensions is a member of any of the 2023-24 All-NBA teams, their starting salary will be set at 30% of the 2024-25 salary cap (projected at $44,886,900) with 8% raises over five years (for a total contract value of $260,344,020). These players include Minnesota&rsquo;s Anthony Edwards, Charlotte&rsquo;s LaMelo Ball, Indiana&rsquo;s Tyrese Haliburton and Memphis&rsquo; Desmond Bane. However, Bane&rsquo;s extension doesn&rsquo;t contain the &ldquo;Rose Rule&rdquo; language, so he can&rsquo;t receive a starting salary raise even if he earns an All-NBA nod.
There is also a new wrinkle in the Collective Bargaining Agreement that changed the rules in regards to rookie-scale extensions, allowing teams to offer all players an extension up to five years. Previously, only players who were offered maximum contracts could agree to an extension up to five years. So far, no team has given out a five-year non-max extension.
The only player who has signed a non-max rookie extension this offseason is Detroit&rsquo;s Isaiah Stewart. Stewart, the No. 16 pick in 2020, has been a starter for the rebuilding Pistons over the past few years. The tough, defensive big man agreed to a four-year, $64 million extension with $60 million guaranteed, $4 million in potential performance bonuses and a team option in the final season. Stewart&rsquo;s extension could serve as a potential benchmark for other big man extension candidates like Toronto&rsquo;s Precious Achiuwa and Atlanta&rsquo;s Onyeka Okongwu.
With 21 first-round picks (and Okeke) still awaiting a potential extension, let&rsquo;s take a look at who is most likely to receive an extension and what their deals might look like.
LIKELY TO BE EXTENDED
Patrick Williams (Chicago Bulls): Williams has been a steady force for the Bulls amid the team&rsquo;s struggles to consistently play winning basketball. The former Florida State forward has improved his shooting each year of his career but has yet to really break out as a primary scoring option for Chicago. Williams is just 22 years old and still has a lot of potential, so he should command an extension similar to what Atlanta&rsquo;s De&rsquo;Andre Hunter received last summer.
Extension Prediction: Four years, $90,000,000, no options
Onyeka Okongwu (Atlanta Hawks): Okongwu has been slotted as the Hawks&rsquo; center of the future for a few years now and has mostly looked the part backing up Clint Capela. Atlanta has a very crowded cap sheet, especially after extending Dejounte Murray. It is possible they could look to move Capela soon in order to free up cap space and give the starting center job to Okongwu. As mentioned above, look for Okongwu to ask for slightly above what Detroit gave Isaiah Stewart.
Extension Prediction: Four years, $72,000,000, could earn up to $80,000,000 with incentives, no options
Devin Vassell (San Antonio Spurs): The Spurs should try to lock up some of their reliable young pieces as they begin the Victor Wembanyama era. Similar to what San Antonio did with Keldon Johnson, they&rsquo;ll likely look to give Vassell a long-term value deal. They also could take advantage of the new CBA rules, keeping the former No. 11 pick under contract through 2029.
Extension Prediction: Five years, $110,000,000, no options
Josh Green (Dallas Mavericks): Green has quietly been developing very nicely with the Mavericks and could fight for a spot in the starting lineup this fall. The Australian native has shown real potential as a 3-and-D wing and could command the full mid-level exception if he reaches the open market next summer. Dallas shouldn&rsquo;t (and most likely won&rsquo;t) let that happen.
Extension Prediction: Four years, $65,000,000, no options
Immanuel Quickley (New York Knicks): Quickley is coming off his best season as a pro that saw him finish as runner-up for the NBA&rsquo;s Sixth Man of the Year award. A scoring machine, the former Kentucky guard would likely start for a good chunk of NBA teams, but will likely have to be the backup as long as Jalen Brunson is in New York. The Knicks would certainly love to keep Quickley, but look for them to wait all the way up to the October 23 deadline to pay him in order to maintain trade flexibility.
Extension Prediction: Four years, $88,000,000, could earn up to $92,000,000 with incentives, no options
Jaden McDaniels (Minnesota Timberwolves): McDaniels is certainly viewed as a core piece by the Timberwolves&rsquo; brass as they fought hard to keep him out of the Rudy Gobert trade, sacrificing more draft capital instead. The Washington product has been a versatile, two-way player since arriving in Minnesota and is an ideal wing next to Anthony Edwards. He should be paid accordingly.
Extension Prediction: Four years, $100,000,000, no options, declining annual salary
LIKELY TO REACH RESTRICTED FREE AGENCY
James Wiseman (Detroit Pistons): Wiseman has been better on both sides of the ball since being traded to Detroit last February, but his game still needs to be developed further if the Pistons are to seriously invest in him.
Isaac Okoro (Cleveland Cavaliers): Cleveland has been looking for a permanent solution at their starting small-forward position for some time now, resulting in them paying Caris LeVert and signing Max Strus. Okoro hasn&rsquo;t shown he can be the Cavs&rsquo; long-term solution.
Obi Toppin (Indiana Pacers): If Toppin had stayed in New York, there&rsquo;s no way he would have been extended. Now in Indiana, the former Naismith National Player of the Year should get a chance to start and improve his stock going into next summer.
Deni Avdija (Washington Wizards): Avdija is a pretty good young player outside of his shooting struggles. With a new regime in Washington, Avdija may be a trade candidate if new president Michael Winger doesn&rsquo;t see him as a part of the team&rsquo;s long-term plan.
Aaron Nesmith (Indiana Pacers): A starter for the Pacers last year, Nesmith may be buried on the depth chart with the additions of Toppin and rookie Jarace Walker. He hasn&rsquo;t made enough of an impact to warrant an extension.
Cole Anthony (Orlando Magic): Anthony has been a solid bench contributor for Orlando since being drafted out of North Carolina. However, the Magic backcourt is extremely crowded with the addition of rookie Anthony Black, making them unlikely to prioritize securing a deal with Anthony.
Aleksej Pokusevski (Oklahoma City Thunder): Poku is coming off a fractured leg that kept him out for the back half of last season. He needs to show that he can be a long-term piece if he wishes to stay with the Thunder.
Saddiq Bey (Atlanta Hawks): Bey is certainly talented enough to warrant an extension, fitting into the starting five seamlessly after being acquired from Detroit at the trade deadline. However, the team may have to choose between extending Bey or Okongwu in order to manage their already-very-full salary cap sheet.&nbsp;
Precious Achiuwa (Toronto Raptors): The Raptors have already committed to a center in Jakob Poeltl this offseason. Achiuwa hasn&rsquo;t shown enough to break through outside of his bench role to warrant an extension.
Zeke Nnaji (Denver Nuggets): Despite not being a regular member of the rotation, Nnaji has shown he is a capable backup option to Nikola Jokic when he&rsquo;s on the floor. While an extension isn&rsquo;t in the cards, the Nuggets should look to retain him.
Payton Pritchard (Boston Celtics): Boston would probably love to keep Pritchard on a team-friendly deal, as he has been a reliable insurance option for them since coming into the league. The former Oregon guard will more than likely want to test the free-agency market to see if he can possibly find a path to more playing time elsewhere.
LIKELY TO NOT RECEIVE A QUALIFYING OFFER, BECOME AN UNRESTRICTED FREE AGENT NEXT SUMMER
Killian Hayes (Detroit Pistons): Hayes has not lived up to his top-10 pick billing and has fallen out of Pistons general manager Troy Weaver&rsquo;s long-term outlook. Detroit could extend him a qualifying offer next summer, but he likely won&rsquo;t receive much interest on the open market.
Kira Lewis Jr. (New Orleans Pelicans): Lewis has been relegated to a reserve while suffering through multiple injuries through his first three years in the NBA. The Pelicans have made it known league-wide that he is available for trade.
Chuma Okeke (Orlando Magic): Okeke has struggled with his all-around game for the better part of the last two years and is unlikely to be retained by Orlando going forward.
Malachi Flynn (Toronto Raptors): Flynn hasn&rsquo;t taken advantage of the many opportunities he&rsquo;s had to be a part of the Raptors&rsquo; rotation as the backup point guard. He may see some run this year, but the Raptors may have seen enough to move on this summer.
THE TYRESE MAXEY WILD CARD
Tyrese Maxey (Philadelphia 76ers): Maxey is the wild card of the rookie-extension candidates, as Sixers general manager Daryl Morey has said that the team will hold off on extending the 22-year-old shooting guard in order to maintain trade and cap flexibility going into next summer. Maxey has blossomed into a core member of the 76ers going forward and would likely receive close to, if not the full, max rookie extension. With no end in sight to the James Harden debacle, the Sixers may want to secure their young prize before their situation could turn worse.

Blake Stern takes a look at which players are most likely to receive a rookie-scale extension prior to the October 23 deadline.

Checking in on the NBA's rookie-scale extension candidates

The Phoenix Suns are finalizing a trade to acquire three-time All-Star Bradley Beal from the Washington Wizards, <a href="https://www.espn.com/nba/story/_/id/37873714/sources-suns-finalizing-trade-wizards-bradley-beal" target="_blank" rel="noopener">ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski reports</a>.
The trade is expected to include Chris Paul, Landry Shamet, several second-round picks and pick swaps, Woj <a href="https://www.espn.com/nba/story/_/id/37873714/sources-suns-finalizing-trade-wizards-bradley-beal" target="_blank" rel="noopener">notes</a>. The deal is expected to be completed in the coming days.
Beal is waiving his no-trade clause to join the Suns. Beal's no-trade clause gave him a lot of power throughout this process, as he could force his way to a specific team even if they didn't have the best offer. This is why the Wizards' return for Beal is significantly worse than what we've seen in other recent blockbuster deals.
No-trade clauses are incredibly rare in the modern NBA, as Beal is the only active player with this kind of clause in his contract (and he's one of just 10 players in NBA history to have one). Even after this trade is completed, Beal will still have the no-trade clause in his contract with the Suns.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-theme="dark">
Bradley Beal is forming a new Suns&rsquo; Big 3 with Kevin Durant and Devin Booker <a href="https://t.co/Klz1wmUVLQ">pic.twitter.com/Klz1wmUVLQ</a>
&mdash; Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) <a href="https://twitter.com/wojespn/status/1670530277104398339?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">June 18, 2023</a></blockquote>

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Beal will join Kevin Durant and Devin Booker in Phoenix, giving the Suns' one of the most talented trios in the NBA (particularly on the offensive end). The Suns will acquire Beal after beating out the other finalist in this sweepstakes, the Miami Heat. Now, Miami will shift their focus to Damian Lillard and trying to acquire him from the Portland Trail Blazers, according to <a href="https://twitter.com/ChrisBHaynes/status/1670535333140914178" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Bleacher Report's Chris Haynes</a>.
Phoenix is coming off of a 45-win season in which they lost in the Western Conference Semifinals to the Denver Nuggets, who went on to win the championship. They're making this splashy addition in hopes of contending next year and taking advantage of their championship window.
Given how little the Suns are giving up in exchange for Beal, it's a relatively low-risk, high-reward move. Phoenix was reportedly planning to cut Paul anyway if they couldn't find a trade partner.
Last season, Beal averaged 23.2 points, 5.4 assists, 3.9 rebounds and 1.6 threes with Washington, while shooting 50.6% from the field, 36.5% from three and 84.2% from the free-throw line.

The Phoenix Suns are finalizing a trade to acquire three-time All-Star Bradley Beal from the Washington Wizards.

Suns finalizing trade to acquire Bradley Beal from Wizards

Golden State Warriors guard Stephen Curry has been named the 2022-23 Kareem Abdul-Jabbar Social Justice Champion, the NBA announced today.
Curry was selected from a group of <a href="https://www.nba.com/news/2023-kareem-abdul-jabbar-finalists-revealed" target="_blank" rel="noopener" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.nba.com/news/2023-kareem-abdul-jabbar-finalists-revealed&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1684950559417000&amp;usg=AOvVaw0yR7wPqL_AlyY9Kx217W6h">five finalists</a>&nbsp;for his dedication to pursuing social justice and advancing Abdul-Jabbar&rsquo;s life mission to engage, empower and drive equality for individuals and groups who have been historically marginalized or systemically disadvantaged.
Curry prioritizes uplifting communities by fostering equity and creating access to opportunity. As a co-chair of former First Lady Michelle Obama&rsquo;s &ldquo;When We All Vote&rdquo; initiative, Curry uses his platform to drive voter registration, education and turnout, most recently during the 2022 election season. His role encouraged millions of new voters to participate in the political process and make their voices heard through civic engagement. As part of his ongoing voting-related efforts, Curry participated in the National Basketball Social Justice Coalition&rsquo;s &ldquo;Freedom to Vote&rdquo; <a href="https://twitter.com/representus/status/1470182428547244034?s=20" target="_blank" rel="noopener" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://twitter.com/representus/status/1470182428547244034?s%3D20&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1684950559417000&amp;usg=AOvVaw2xr1diKYJYDyNGBlgPRMQb">social-media campaign</a>&nbsp;to help advocate for the passage of the&nbsp;Freedom to Vote Act in the U.S. Senate. Curry is also committed to raising awareness around issues of community safety, utilizing the Warriors&rsquo; 2023 White House visit to engage directly with President Biden and participate in a White House press briefing with head coach Steve Kerr to publicly address the matter.
Much of Curry&rsquo;s work also focuses on supporting underrepresented groups and reducing barriers to opportunity. In 2022, he graduated from Davidson College and wrote his final thesis on gender equity in sports, an issue that anchors his progressive and innovative ventures across the consumer, entertainment and non-profit spaces. Through UNDERRATED, Curry&rsquo;s lifestyle brand that empowers underrated and underrepresented individuals by opening doors for often-overlooked student-athletes, he creates equity, access and opportunity for basketball and golf athletes around the world to be seen by college recruiters, sports agents and other industry leaders. UNDERRATED has also enabled female athletes to access the same opportunities as their male counterparts, provided scholarships for athletes and offered personal development programming for young people. Among these efforts, Curry committed $6 million in funding to the men&rsquo;s and women&rsquo;s golf team at Howard University, which hadn&rsquo;t been active for 50 years.
Unanimous Media, Curry&rsquo;s multimedia company rooted in the mission to inspire audiences through authentic storytelling, is dedicated to collaborating with underrepresented filmmakers, creators and writers across the entertainment industry.
Through Eat. Learn. Play., Curry&rsquo;s nonprofit co-founded with his wife Ayesha, Curry works to ensure every child in Oakland has access to nutritious food they need to be healthy and thrive, resources to foster a love for learning and reading, and safe places with equitable opportunities to play. With a mission to address and overcome the systemic socio-economic barriers facing underserved communities, Eat. Learn. Play. and its partners continue making a positive impact in the lives of children and families in need. Over the last year, Eat. Learn. Play. has provided over two million meals and 500,000 books to Oakland students, funded over 1,500 teacher-led classroom literacy projects, remodeled four new playspaces complete with multi-sport courts, playgrounds, gardens and murals, and more.
Curry has selected University of San Francisco Institute for Nonviolence and Social Justice, which investigates, illuminates, and advances the theory and practice of transformational nonviolence to confront and overcome injustice and systemic violence and contribute to the just resolution of communal conflict, to receive a $100,000 contribution from the NBA on his behalf.&nbsp;
&ldquo;I&rsquo;m passionate about the work of the University of San Francisco Institute for Nonviolence and Social Justice and its commitment to overcoming injustice and systemic violence through peace,&rdquo; said Curry.&nbsp; &ldquo;As an athlete, I consistently leverage my platform to amplify advocacy and address the pervasive issue of systemic racism. I firmly believe that we must be vocal both on social media and in real life, taking tangible actions to effect real change in our society and for generations to come. Together, with the organization's co-founder and director, Dr. Clarence B. Jones, we have initiated meaningful conversations around social justice with the school's student body, doubled the charity&rsquo;s donations through my foundation Eat. Learn. Play.'s gift matching initiatives, and continued building on its mission in my personal and professional life by holding people accountable and promoting the principles of justice, fairness and equality today, tomorrow and in the future.&rdquo;
The four other finalists &ndash; Memphis Grizzlies forward-center Jaren Jackson Jr., San Antonio Spurs guard Tre Jones, Phoenix Suns guard Chris Paul and Boston Celtics forward Grant Williams &ndash; will each receive $25,000 donations from the NBA to the following social justice organizations of their choosing: VisionC (Williams), The Girls Opportunity Alliance/The Obama Foundation (Jackson), Children's Bereavement Center of South Texas (Jones) and the Social Change Fund United (Paul).
The winner of the Kareem Abdul-Jabbar Social Justice Champion award was determined by a selection committee comprised of Abdul-Jabbar and notable social justice leaders Director of The Institute for Diversity and Ethics in Sport Dr. Richard Lapchick, National Urban League President and CEO Marc Morial, UnidosUS President and CEO Janet Murgu&iacute;a, Rise Founder and CEO Amanda Nguyen and NBA Deputy Commissioner and Chief Operating Officer Mark Tatum. This year&rsquo;s youth representative and Jr. NBA Court of Leaders member was Leah Harmon.&nbsp;

Golden State Warriors guard Stephen Curry has been named the 2022-23 Kareem Abdul-Jabbar Social Justice Champion.

Stephen Curry named Kareem Abdul-Jabbar Social Justice Champion

When a generational talent like&nbsp;<a class="paragraph-link" href="https://apnews.com/article/wemby-victor-wembanyama-nba-draft-f5be654cce544c675559bad526220a9e">Victor Wembanyama</a>&nbsp;comes along, it&rsquo;s clear that he would make any team that he&rsquo;s with better in a multitude of ways.
And the team that wins Tuesday&rsquo;s&nbsp;<a class="paragraph-link" href="https://apnews.com/article/wembanyama-nba-draft-spurs-ee1a9bd2232173666d3302bb491c7c5c">NBA draft lottery</a>&nbsp;in Chicago &mdash; and the right to draft Wembanyama next month &mdash; will be immediately improved. Here&rsquo;s a look at the 14 hopefuls in the lottery, and their odds of landing the&nbsp;<a class="paragraph-link" href="https://apnews.com/article/nba-sports-basketball-las-vegas-6f4ac3d44f624ef36ddb00e314cf0401">7-foot-3 French teen phenom.</a>
DETROIT
Odds: 14%, or about 7-1
Outlook: A new coach is coming, and if Wembanyama goes to the Pistons he&rsquo;d be teaming up with Killian Hayes &mdash; whose mother is French, so there would be some comforts of home at least.
Jalen Duren and Jaden Ivey were&nbsp;<a class="paragraph-link" href="https://apnews.com/article/nba-all-rookie-team-e70909b25b2ae3fabd26d3c380e4f07c">All-Rookie picks</a>&nbsp;this season. Cade Cunningham was one last season, after he was the No. 1 pick in 2021. It&rsquo;s hard to envision how exactly Wembanyama and Cunningham would play together, since there&rsquo;s still so much mystery about Cunningham&rsquo;s game, especially after he missed much of this season. But two great young talents surely would figure it out.
HOUSTON
Odds: 14%, or about 7-1
Outlook:&nbsp;<a class="paragraph-link" href="https://apnews.com/article/rockets-udoka-e24d2a5ccedef68bf86faee4ba2b5917">Ime Udoka is in place as the new coach</a>, there&rsquo;s a belief around the league that the Rockets will change their roster considerably in free agency &mdash; bringing James Harden back, perhaps &mdash; and Wembanyama would energize the fan base in many of the same ways Yao Ming&rsquo;s arrival did.
It would take some shots away from Houston&rsquo;s young players and adjustments would have to be made. And the pairing of Wembanyama with Alperen Sengun would be so interesting on defense.
SAN ANTONIO
Odds: 14%, or about 7-1
Outlook: Gregg Popovich would get another incredibly talented big to build around, just as was the case with David Robinson and Tim Duncan.
The Spurs have flourished with international players, such as Tony Parker and Manu Ginobili. The Spurs haven&rsquo;t won a playoff series since 2017 and haven&rsquo;t played in one since 2019. But all the losing, all the drafting, all the player development has built them for this &mdash; and Wembanyama would be the springboard to make San Antonio a playoff town again right away.
CHARLOTTE
Odds: 12.5%, or 8-1
Outlook: Maybe this would convince Michael Jordan to not sell the majority stake of the Hornets after all. (Or maybe it&rsquo;ll just raise his price.) Imagine &mdash; the most recognizable player maybe ever, with an iconic brand, getting to draft a kid who is surely going to be a global marketing dream.
As often is the case with top draft picks, much of the attention goes to Wembanyama&rsquo;s offensive game. But Charlotte is desperately in need of more defense, and Wembanyama will make an immediate impact on that end &mdash; which would only further endear him to Hornets coach Steve Clifford. And Wembanyama and LaMelo Ball together would be instantly something to watch.
PORTLAND
Odds: 10.5%, or about 10-1
Outlook: Damian Lillard is tired of waiting and wants the Trail Blazers to become a contender. This would be a great start to that plan.
There is a ton of talent in Portland, led by the all-world guard, and the Blazers packed it in early this season with an eye on the draft. And the ping-pong balls don&rsquo;t care about fairness, but after Sam Bowie and Greg Oden, it surely could be argued that Portland deserves a draft break.
ORLANDO
Odds: 9%, or about 11-1
Outlook: Now this would be spicy. If the Magic win the lottery again, the pairing of Paolo Banchero with Wembanyama would give Orlando an immediate shot in the arm.
The Magic were 5-20 and refused to tank. They went 29-28 the rest of the way, and the young core &mdash; Banchero, Franz Wagner, Markelle Fultz, etc. &mdash; seems like it&rsquo;s poised for bigger things in the Eastern Conference already. Fultz, like Banchero, was a No. 1 pick as well.
INDIANA
Odds: 6.8%, or about 15-1
Outlook: With Tyrese Haliburton, the Pacers want to play fast. And he would benefit greatly from an athletic big to play pick-and-roll with (as would plenty of other people in the NBA, of course).
There&rsquo;s a lot to like about Indiana as a landing spot. Championship coach in Rick Carlisle. One of the league&rsquo;s best atmospheres. Basketball is a religion in Indiana. Make no mistake, they&rsquo;d be good right away.
WASHINGTON
Odds: 6.7%, or about 15-1
Outlook: Two things immediately jump off the page with the Wizards. One, Bradley Beal would probably become an even better version with Wembanyama. And two, with Kristaps Porzingis, this might be the rare spot for Wembanyama to not be the tallest player on his own roster.
UTAH
Odds: 4.5%, or about 22-1
Outlook: Wembanyama is obviously familiar with the Jazz, given his relationship with former Utah center Rudy Gobert. It would be a unique parallel; the Jazz trade Gobert in 2022, fall into the lottery a year later, get Wembanyama to add to a good young cast led by Lauri Markkanen.
DALLAS
Odds: 3%, or about 33-1
Outlook: Dallas raised the NBA&rsquo;s ire by tanking at the end to protect its lottery odds. If the Mavericks win the lottery and can pair Wembanyama with Luka Doncic &mdash; and perhaps Kyrie Irving &mdash; the $750,000 tanking fine might end up as the best money Mark Cuban ever spent.
CHICAGO
Odds: 1.8%, or about 55-1
Outlook: DeMar DeRozan would be a great first vet for Wembanyama to open his NBA career with and learn from.
OKLAHOMA CITY
Odds: 1.7%, or about 60-1
Outlook: The Thunder were one of the best stories in the league this season with a budding star like Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and last year&rsquo;s No. 2 pick &mdash; Chet Holmgren &mdash; set to make his NBA debut this fall. Put Wembanyama on the Thunder, and it&rsquo;ll be scary.
TORONTO
Odds: 1%, or 100-1
Outlook: The Raptors will have a new coach and nobody knows what direction they&rsquo;re going yet this summer. Wembanyama would surely change some of their plans.
NEW ORLEANS
Odds: 0.5%, or 200-1
Outlook: Everyone can see the Pelicans&rsquo; potential, even with the annual mystery of how durable Zion Williamson will (or won&rsquo;t) be. To overcome 200-1 odds would be just amazing luck, and as the city&rsquo;s motto goes, it would truly mean that the good times will roll in New Orleans.

Victor Wembanyama is one of the most hyped-up prospects in years. Tim Reynolds examines how he would impact each lottery team.

Wemby watch: How Victor Wembanyama may help each draft lottery team

DENVER (AP) &mdash; Jamal Murray kept imploring the crowd to get louder and louder with each trip down the floor.
As if the Nuggets point guard even needed to. His play was already rocking the arena.
Murray scored 34 points, hitting six of Denver&rsquo;s 16 3-pointers, and the Nuggets sprinted past the Phoenix Suns 125-107 on Saturday night in Game 1 of their second-round series.
&ldquo;He&rsquo;s a bad man,&rdquo; Nuggets coach Michael Malone said.
Any response to that adulation?
&ldquo;Thanks?&rdquo; Murray said. &ldquo;Appreciate it. ... I&rsquo;m just playing my game. ... I&rsquo;m doing whatever it takes to win.&rdquo;
And maybe show a nation that doesn&rsquo;t always get to watch the Nuggets &mdash; you know, because they&rsquo;re usually on so late &mdash; what the players have known all season: They&rsquo;re talented and worthy of their top seed in the Western Conference. They don&rsquo;t mind if the Suns, as the fourth seed, are the trendy pick to beat them, either.
&ldquo;We&rsquo;re going to keep doing what we&rsquo;re doing, keep proving everybody wrong,&rdquo; Murray said.
Reigning back-to-back NBA MVP Nikola Jokic had 24 points and 19 rebounds, while Aaron Gordon finished with 23 points. But this was the Murray Show, where he went 6 of 10 from 3-point land and frequently exhorted for more noise from the already raucous crowd.
&ldquo;Let&rsquo;s be honest, some of the shots he hit tonight I don&rsquo;t think anybody could have stopped him,&rdquo; Suns coach Monty Williams said.
Kevin Durant scored 29 points and grabbed 14 boards for the Suns, with Devin Booker adding 27 points and Chris Paul 11. Booker averaged 37.2 points in a first-round series win over the Los Angeles Clippers.
&ldquo;I thought that they were just more physical, played with more force,&rdquo; Williams said. &ldquo;We&rsquo;ve got to regroup and do a much better job of playing with pace on offense.&rdquo;
Game 2 is Monday night in Denver.
This is a different sort of playoff series than two years ago, when the Suns swept the Nuggets in the second round. Back then, Denver was without Murray after he tore his ACL.
Now healthy, Murray is flashing his 2020 form inside the NBA bubble that helped Denver advance to the Western Conference finals.
&ldquo;Jamal just continues to add to the legend of playoff Jamal,&rdquo; Malone said.
Murray had the play of the night when he stole a pass, split defenders Paul and Durant at top speed and knocked in a layup high off the glass. It brought the capacity crowd to its feet.
The dynamic point guard was far from done energizing the fans, hitting a 3-pointer with just under 7 minutes remaining. He implored them for more noise, even holding a hand to his ear.
Leading 106-95 with 7:40 remaining, the Nuggets went on a 14-0 run to put away the game. Denver led by as much as 25 and improved to 38-7 at home through the regular season and playoffs.
Durant cut off a question about whether he was surprised by the Nuggets.
Because he&rsquo;s not.
&ldquo;They&rsquo;re the No. 1 seed for a reason. They got a two-time MVP. They&rsquo;ve got a deep team. I&rsquo;m not surprised,&rdquo; Durant said. &ldquo;We&rsquo;ve got our work cut out for us.&rdquo;
The difference was the 3-point line, where the Nuggets outscored the Suns by a 48-21 margin. That and turnovers, where the Suns had 16, including seven by Durant.
&ldquo;I&rsquo;ve got to be way more careful with the ball,&rdquo; Durant said. &ldquo;I&rsquo;ve to look to either shoot the ball or make the correct pass. ... I dang got near half our turnovers. We&rsquo;ll be fine. I think we&rsquo;ve just got to play with confidence, shoot with confidence and see what happens next game.&rdquo;
TIP-INS
Suns: Williams used his challenge early &mdash; with 55.4 seconds left in the first quarter &mdash; when Booker was called for a charge on a made a basket. It paid off as the call was overturned and Booker awarded a free throw, which he made. ... Deandre Ayton scored 14 points. ... Durant has 4,730 playoff points to move closer to passing Karl Malone (4,761) seventh place on the NBA&rsquo;s postseason points leaderboard.
Nuggets: Malone called a timeout 32 seconds into the second half to settle his team down. Malone said the conversation was simple: &ldquo;Wake up,&rdquo; he recounted. ... Bruce Brown had 14 points.
PAUL PRAISE
As Paul approaches his 38th birthday next week, Malone said the one thing that hasn&rsquo;t changed over the years is Paul&rsquo;s elite competitiveness.
&ldquo;He&rsquo;ll be 55 years old, playing in a rec league back in North Carolina, and he&rsquo;s going to be the same guy,&rdquo; Malone said. &ldquo;The guy hates to lose, ultra-competitive and one of the greatest leaders I&rsquo;ve ever been around. ... No matter what stage of his career, he still finds a way to impact winning at a high level.&rdquo;

Murray scored 34 points, and the Nuggets sprinted past the Suns 125-107 on Saturday night in Game 1 of their second-round series.

Jamal Murray scores 34, Nuggets beat Suns 125-107 in Game 1

DETROIT (AP) &mdash; Tyler Herro scored 10 of his 19 points in the final 3:20 and the Miami Heat rallied for a 112-100 victory over the Detroit Pistons on Sunday night.
Miami improved to 39-34, one game behind the Brooklyn Nets for the sixth seed in the Eastern Conference. The Heat host the Nets on Saturday.
&ldquo;This is going to be our March Madness and April Madness,&rdquo; Heat coach Erik Spoelstra said. &ldquo;The opportunity is right in front of us, and that&rsquo;s all you can ask for at this part of the season. We are going to have to fight for it - that&rsquo;s what this is all about.&rdquo;
Herro&rsquo;s 3-pointer gave the Heat a 101-98 lead with 3:20 left. After he and Jimmy Butler hit jumpers, Herro made another 3-pointer to put Miami up 108-98.
&ldquo;Tyler lives for those moments,&rdquo; Spoelstra said. &ldquo;He has the clutch gene - he really does - and we know he will knock down some really tough shots when we need them.&rdquo;
Butler had 26 points and 10 assists and Bam Adebayo added 22 points and 10 rebounds for the Heat, who won for the third time in four games. Miami lost 113-99 in Chicago on Saturday.
&ldquo;We definitely let one slip away yesterday, so we knew we had to get one back today,&rdquo; Adebayo said. &ldquo;I&rsquo;ve been saying this all season, but we have to build on this - we have to buy into playing this way every night.&rdquo;
James Wiseman led the Pistons with 22 points and 13 rebounds. Killian Hayes put up 13 points and 11 assists. Detroit has lost 14 of its last 15 games.
&ldquo;Our execution wasn&rsquo;t there down the stretch,&rdquo; Pistons coach Dwane Casey said. &ldquo;James played a hell of a game, but our transition defense is still tough. We&rsquo;re getting there, but we&rsquo;re not there yet.&rdquo;
Detroit&rsquo;s Jalen Duren and Miami&rsquo;s Kevin Love left the game in the third quarter after banging heads under the basket. Love received four stitches and could have returned, but Duren was being evaluated for a brain injury after feeling &ldquo;woozy.&rdquo;
Detroit put up a 34-point third quarter, led by 12 points and five rebounds from Wiseman, and took an 81-74 lead on Eugene Omoruyi&rsquo;s buzzer-beating 3-point play.
&ldquo;When I&rsquo;m not getting touches, I know I have to find other ways to help us win,&rdquo; Wiseman said. &ldquo;That means rebounding and defense.&rdquo;
TIP-INS
Heat: After losing to the Pistons by 20 points at home on Dec. 6, Miami made its first appearance of the season in Detroit. They return on April 4.
Pistons: The Little Caesars Arena scoreboard displayed the score backward for the first quarter. When the period ended, the fans cheered after being informed the Pistons were leading 29-26, not Miami.
PISTONS STILL TRYING TO GO BIG
Marvin Bagley III returned after missing three games with ankle soreness and scored 14 points in 30 minutes. However, he and Duren combined for only four rebounds in 39 minutes as the Pistons continue to work on getting them into two-big lineups with Wiseman.
&ldquo;It&rsquo;s tough for our bigs to get into the habit of matching up on the perimeter,&rdquo; said Casey, who has said the team needs to dominate the boards when the big lineup is on the floor.
HEAT GET BENCH SPARKS
Kyle Lowry and Caleb Martin combined for 20 points, 11 rebounds and 10 assists for Miami&rsquo;s second unit. Lowry was a plus-28 in 25 minutes while Martin was a plus-25 in 31 minutes.
&ldquo;Caleb was really inspiring tonight - he made some shots and he anchored our defense at some key moments,&rdquo; Spoelstra said. &ldquo;Kyle just has a huge impact on winning games, because he&rsquo;s so active on both ends of the floor.&rdquo;
UP NEXT
Heat: Host the New York Knicks on Wednesday.
Pistons: Visit the Atlanta Hawks on Tuesday.

Tyler Herro scored 10 of his 19 points in the final 3:20 and the Miami Heat rallied for a 112-100 victory over the Detroit Pistons on Sunday.

Tyler Herro’s late run helps Heat come back to beat Pistons

DETROIT (AP) &mdash; James Wiseman had 18 points and 14 rebounds as the Detroit Pistons ended an 11-game losing streak with a 117-97 win over the Indiana Pacers on Monday night.
The Pistons, who hadn&rsquo;t won since beating San Antonio 138-131 in double overtime on Feb. 10, led by 31 points in the first half and held off an Indiana surge late in the second quarter and early in the third.
&ldquo;When you come in having lost 11 or 12 games in a row - whatever it was - you know you have to stay focused to win a game,&rdquo; said Cory Joseph, who had a game-high 22 points. &ldquo;We played extremely hard and got off to a great start.&rdquo;
The Pacers beat Detroit 121-115 at Little Caesars Arena on Saturday night.
&ldquo;The difference in the two games was obvious,&rdquo; Pacers coach Rick Carlisle said. &ldquo;That was the edge the Pistons played with from start to end. We simply did not match it.&rdquo;
Jalen Duren put up 12 points and 11 rebounds and Killian Hayes had 10 points and 11 assists.
&ldquo;Our guys played with a lot of grit tonight, and I think we surprised the Pacers a little bit,&rdquo; Pistons coach Dwane Casey said. &ldquo;This was a little like the playoffs - we made some adjustments from Saturday and they made some adjustments - but the difference was our toughness.&rdquo;
Jordan Nwora had 20 points off the bench for Indiana.
As they had on Saturday, both teams played with shorthanded rosters. Detroit added Marvin Bagley III (ankle) to its lengthy injury list, while the Pacers were missing Tyrese Haliburton, Bennedict Mathurin, T.J. McConnell and Myles Turner.
Indiana dominated Saturday&rsquo;s first half inside, but Detroit took control early on Monday. The Pistons had a 20-6 edge on points in the paint and a 15-7 rebounding advantage as they outscored the Pacers 38-20 in the first quarter. Eugene Omoruyi, making his third NBA start, had 11 of his 17 points in the quarter.
&ldquo;We got a lot of easy shots early in the game on Saturday, but the Pistons really flipped the script on that tonight,&rdquo; Carlisle said. &ldquo;Omoruyi starting gave them more quickness and toughness in the lineup and we didn&rsquo;t get a lot of good shots.&rdquo;
Detroit led 52-23 after four minutes of the second quarter, but Indiana was back within 67-49 at halftime.
The Pacers cut the deficit to 69-57 early in the third quarter, but Detroit answered with a 13-point run to go up by 25 points.
TIP-INS
Pacers: Indiana went from 64 points in the paint and 26 second-chance points on Saturday to 44 and 14 on Monday. ... Chris Duarte was limited to 24 minutes by a sore ankle.
Pistons: Detroit&rsquo;s win was their first against a Central Division opponent this season after twelve straight losses. ... The Pistons hadn&rsquo;t won by a double-digit margin since beating Portland 135-118 on Jan. 11.
LOCAL HOLIDAY
The game drew 18,313 fans on for a special &ldquo;3-1-3 Day&rdquo; promotion. March 13 is celebrated as an unofficial holiday in Detroit as the date matches the city&rsquo;s area code.
&ldquo;The fans have stuck with us all season, and they&rsquo;ve been great during this losing streak,&rdquo; Joseph said. &ldquo;I&rsquo;m glad we could get them a win on 3-1-3 Day.&rdquo;
UP NEXT
Pacers: Visit the Milwaukee Bucks on Thursday.
Pistons: Visit the Washington Wizards on Tuesday.

James Wiseman had 18 points and 14 rebounds as the Pistons ended an 11-game losing streak with a 117-97 win over the Pacers.

James Wiseman’s double-double helps Pistons end 11-game skid

TUSCALOOSA, Ala. (AP) &mdash; Former Alabama basketball player Darius Miles and another man have been indicted by a grand jury on capital murder charges for the January shooting death of a 23-year-old woman near campus, defense lawyers confirmed to The Associated Press on Friday.
Miles was charged with capital murder in the shooting death of Jamea Harris, his defense lawyer Mary Turner told the AP. Michael Davis, who police investigators said was the triggerman, was also indicted, his lawyer, John Charles Robbins, said.
Tuscaloosa County District Attorney Hays Webb&nbsp;<a class="paragraph-link" href="https://www.al.com/alabamabasketball/2023/03/former-ua-basketball-player-darius-miles-friend-michael-davis-indicted-in-the-strip-shooting-death-of-jamea-jonae-harris.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">told AL.com that the indictments against Miles and Davis, who&rsquo;ve been held without bond since their arrest, were issued on Wednesday</a>.
Harris was sitting in a car when she was struck by a bullet. A police investigator testified last month that Miles provided the handgun Davis allegedly used in the shooting.
During a court hearing last month, Turner suggested Miles was in a defensive posture when he told Davis where the gun was located.
But prosecutors maintained there was ample evidence to pursue charges in the shooting, which happened early Jan. 15 on &ldquo;The Strip,&rdquo; a district of bars and restaurants near the Tuscaloosa campus. Testimony at the hearing last month indicated there had been some type of verbal altercation before the shooting.
The Turner Law Group, which is representing Miles, issued a statement Friday, saying they were disappointed by the decision to pursue capital murder charges &ldquo;considering the evidence uncovered during our investigation and the obvious weaknesses in the government&rsquo;s case brought to light during the preliminary hearing.&rdquo;
Davis maintains he is innocent, Robbins, his attorney, said. &ldquo;I look forward to the opportunity to vigorously defend Michael at trial and to defend his right to protect himself when somebody points a gun at him and shoots him,&rdquo; Robbins said.
Miles was a reserve on the Crimson Tide, but an ankle injury sidelined him for the rest of the season.&nbsp;<a class="paragraph-link" href="https://apnews.com/article/politics-sports-crime-alabama-crimson-tide-top-25-college-basketball-today-b7fb03d271a2fb7a99076f34e2565b08" target="_blank" rel="noopener">After he was charged in January, Alabama said he was &ldquo;removed from campus&rdquo; and the team.</a>
During the February court hearing, Tuscaloosa Police investigator Brandon Culpepper testified that Miles texted Tide freshman basketball star Brandon Miller to bring him his gun. Police have said another player, guard Jaden Bradley, also was at the scene.
Neither Miller nor Bradley have been charged with anything.
&ldquo;This whole situation is just really heartbreaking, but respectfully that&rsquo;s all I&rsquo;m going to be able to say on that,&rdquo;&nbsp;<a class="paragraph-link" href="https://apnews.com/article/alabama-brandon-miller-8180ff86600e1204bcb80a222d2144ad" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Miller told reporters</a>&nbsp;Wednesday in his first public comments about the case.
Both Miller and Bradley have continued to play as the No. 4-ranked team in the country makes its way through the Southeastern Conference Tournament ahead of the NCAA Tournament. Miller scored 18 points and had nine rebounds in Friday&rsquo;s SEC quarterfinal win over Mississippi State.
In the postgame news conference, Miller was asked his thoughts on the indictment. He said, &ldquo;I can&rsquo;t &mdash; I&rsquo;m not going to be able to say on that.&rdquo;
Coach Nate Oats was asked whether he has a weapons policy for his team, and said that &ldquo;our players are required to follow the university policy on guns, which essentially bans them on campus.&rdquo;
He also was asked who was involved in deciding whether Miller and Bradley could continue to play.
&ldquo;It&rsquo;s been a difficult situation, as you understand. I mean, we&rsquo;re dealing with a criminal matter,&rdquo; Oats said, adding that as the school received &ldquo;facts from law enforcement as they do their investigation,&rdquo; &ldquo;this was a decision made, based on all the facts we had, with, obviously, my boss, (Director of Athletics) Greg Byrne; his boss, (President) Dr. (Stuart) Bell; and the Board of Trustees.
&ldquo;And everybody was comfortable, and based on the information we had, Brandon didn&rsquo;t break any school policy or team policy, so ... I was comfortable with the decision that was made.&rdquo;
Harris&rsquo; mother told reporters last month that she is frustrated by the focus on basketball instead of her daughter&rsquo;s death. She said her daughter was a beautiful person who was trying to have a night out with friends when she was killed.
&ldquo;She has a 5-year-old son that is still waiting for his mother to come home,&rdquo; DeCarla Heard told reporters. &ldquo;I want justice for my grandson.&rdquo;
Oats was asked Friday whether he has spoken to Harris&rsquo; family.
&ldquo;Listen, this whole situation has been, obviously, as you know, hard to deal with, tragic, to have any involvement in a young woman losing her life. What you ask is a private matter. I&rsquo;m not going to discuss publicly with everybody,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;A lot of this is just hard to deal with, to be honest with you. But it&rsquo;s a private matter.&rdquo;

Former Alabama player Darius Miles was indicted by a grand jury on capital murder charges after shooting a 23-year-old lady in January.

Ex-Alabama player Darius Miles indicted on capital murder charges

NEW ORLEANS (AP) &mdash; CJ McCollum scored 13 of his 32 points in the final four minutes and the New Orleans Pelicans held off the Dallas Mavericks 113-106 on Wednesday night.
McCollum&rsquo;s compelling finish came after each team lost a top player. The Pelicans&rsquo; Brandon Ingram left late in the second quarter with a sprained right ankle after scoring 12 points. Dallas star guard Luka Doncic left in the third with a strained left thigh after scoring 15 points.
The Mavericks were down by as many as 19 in the third quarter and by double digits well into the fourth. But the Mavs suddenly surged within striking distance with a 12-0 run that began with Davis Bertans 3, Kyrie Irving&rsquo;s 4-point play on a 3 as he was fouled, and Christian Wood&rsquo;s 3-point play on a layup as he was fouled.
Irving capped the spurt with driving layup along the baseline that made it 97-94 with 4:12 left.
That&rsquo;s when McCollum snapped the run with two clutch baskets &mdash; a 14-foot pull-up and a 3. He added two more 3s and a floating bank shot to make it 110-103 in the final minute, and New Orleans held on from there.
Trey Murphy III scored 16 for New Orleans. Herb Jones and Jaxson Hayes each added 14 points for the Pelicans.
Irving scored 27 points and Tim Hardaway Jr added 17 points for Dallas.
Coming off a four-point victory over Utah on Tuesday night, Dallas faded quickly after a promising first few minutes. After hitting two of their first four 3s and going up 14-6 on Powell&rsquo;s alley-oop dunk of Doncic&rsquo;s lob, the Mavs missed 13 of their next 14 shots from deep.
By the end of the first quarter, the Pelicans had tied it at 24 on rookie Dyson Daniels&rsquo; 3-pointer.
New Orleans then opened the second quarter with eight straight points on McCollum&rsquo;s 3, Hayes&rsquo; alley-oop dunk and Naji Marshall&rsquo;s banked 3, and went on to lead by as many as 18 before taking a 59-43 lead into halftime.
Despite Ingram&rsquo;s inability to return after the second quarter, New Orleans maintained a comfortable lead for most of the second half.
Jones scored eight of his points in the third quarter, when Murphy hit two 3s, and New Orleans led 90-74 after Murphy&rsquo;s third 3 of the half early in the fourth.
TIP-INS
Mavericks: Wood finished with 15 points and Jaden Hardy 11. ... Finished 16 of 46 (34.8%) from 3-point range. Doncic was assessed a technical foul in the first quarter while staring down official Natalie Sago after making a driving shot on which he apparently thought he&rsquo;d also been fouled. ... Reggie Bullock missed the game with a bruised right quadriceps, Maxi Kleber was out with a right hamstring injury and center JaVale McGee was sidelined by a sprained right ankle.
Pelicans: The club announced before tip-off that All-Star forward Zion Williamson will be out at least two more weeks while he recovers from a Jan. 2 right hamstring injury. ... Shot 50.6% (42 of 83) overall and 48.1% (13 of 27) from deep. ... Outrebounded Dallas 49-34.
UP NEXT
Mavericks: At Memphis on Saturday.
Pelicans: Host Oklahoma City on Saturday.

CJ McCollum scored 13 of his 32 points in the final four minutes and the Pelicans held off the Mavericks 113-106 on Wednesday.

CJ McCollum scores 32, Pelicans hold off Mavericks 113-106

BOSTON (AP) &mdash; The Celtics got back their offensive and defensive spark plugs. Together, they gave Boston the jolt it needed to head into the All-Star break on track to accomplish all its goals this season.
Jayson Tatum scored 38 points, including 24 in the third quarter, and the Celtics rolled to a 127-109 victory over the Detroit Pistons on Wednesday night.
Malcolm Brogdon had 25 points off the bench, and Al Horford added 11 points and seven rebounds for Boston. Derrick White finished with 11 points and six assists.
Reigning NBA Defensive Player of the Year Marcus Smart contributed nine points, seven rebounds, six assists and six steals in his first game back after missing nine with a sprained right ankle.
&ldquo;We missed a lot,&rdquo; Celtics interim coach Joe Mazzulla said of Smart&rsquo;s absence. &ldquo;We missed his joy. He brought a level of joy into the game.&rdquo;
The Eastern Conference-leading Celtics (42-17) enter the break with five wins in their last six games. They have a one-game lead over second-place Milwaukee, which has won 11 straight and plays its final game before All-Star Weekend on Thursday at Chicago.
Tatum said he likes the way Boston is trending as it rests before trying to complete a run back to the NBA Finals in the second half.
&ldquo;All things considered, everything that we&rsquo;ve went through this season as a team with coaching changes and guys getting injured, missing games and being in and out of the lineup. ... Overall, it&rsquo;s been a hell of a start,&rdquo; Tatum said.
Detroit trimmed a 19-point deficit to five late in the third quarter. But Tatum scored 24 points in the period to give the Celtics an eight-point cushion entering the fourth. Boston then got its lead back up to 19 with 4:29 to play.
Bojan Bogdanovic led the Pistons with 28 points and five rebounds. Isaiah Stewart added 14 points. Detroit has lost five of six.
The Celtics&rsquo; lead in the East was cut to a half-game after they lost in overtime Tuesday at Milwaukee while playing without Tatum (illness), Jaylen Brown (facial fracture), Smart and Horford (right knee swelling).
Wednesday brought the return of Smart, Tatum and Horford. White also played despite dealing with a hole in his right eardrum from a hit he took against the Bucks.
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The extra personnel helped the Celtics jump out to an 18-point lead in the first half, overwhelming a Pistons team that turned the ball over nine times in the opening 24 minutes. Four of those came off steals by Smart.
Third-year big man James Wiseman finally debuted for the Pistons following the four-team trade that sent him from Golden State to Detroit. The deal was initially held up by the part that sent Gary Payton II from Portland to the Warriors after concerns arose surrounding Payton&rsquo;s health following offseason surgery.
Wiseman checked in for the first time at the 3:29 mark of the first quarter, playing alongside Killian Hayes, Alec Burks, Isaiah Livers and Bogdanovic.
Wiseman finished with 11 points and five rebounds in 24 minutes.
TIP-INS
Pistons: Outscored the Celtics 38-31 in the third quarter. &hellip; Finished with 14 turnovers, leading to 15 points for Boston.
Celtics: Robert Williams (left ankle soreness), Jaylen Brown (facial fracture), Mike Muscala (right ankle management) and Mfionda Kabengele (personal reasons) all sat out. ... Boston went 21 of 45 from behind the 3-point line (47%). &hellip; Led 66-51 at halftime.
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Jayson Tatum scored 38 points, and the Boston Celtics rolled to a 127-109 victory over the Detroit Pistons.

Tatum’s 38 points help Celtics roll past Pistons 127-109

TORONTO (AP) &mdash; Fred VanVleet scored 35 points, topping 30 for a career-best ninth time this season, and Pascal Siakam added 28 points as the Toronto Raptors beat the Detroit Pistons 119-118 Sunday for their fourth win in five games.
Scottie Barnes scored 20 points and Precious Achiuwa had 11 points and 11 rebounds as Toronto won its second straight win over Detroit after losing the previous six meetings.
VanVleet and the Raptors bounced back after blowing a 12-point lead in the final five minutes of Friday&rsquo;s home loss to Utah.
&ldquo;That hurt,&rdquo; VanVleet. &ldquo;Everyone was frustrated for sure, but the game goes on. We&rsquo;ve got to stay focussed on the games in front of us and pile them up as best as we can.&rdquo;
Toronto is 20-7 all-time when VanVleet scores 30 or more points. Siakam has scored 25 or more in three straight games.
&ldquo;It&rsquo;s certainly a treat to have two guys out there who you can coach the team through,&rdquo; said Toronto assistant coach Adrian Griffin, who led the Raptors Sunday with head coach Nick Nurse away for personal reasons.
Detroit&rsquo;s Dwane Casey worked with both Siakam and VanVleet when he was head coach in Toronto.
&ldquo;They were the difference in the game,&rdquo; Casey said of Toronto&rsquo;s duo. &ldquo;They carried the team, they did a great job.&rdquo;
Bojan Bogdanovic scored 33 points, Alec Burks had 21, and Hamidou Diallo and Jaden Ivey each had 18 for the Pistons. Detroit failed once again to win consecutive games for the second time this season.
Detroit beat San Antonio in double overtime Friday in a matchup of two of the NBA&rsquo;s worst teams. The Pistons haven&rsquo;t won back-to-back games since victories at Denver and Utah on Nov. 22 and 23, following all 10 wins since with defeats.
Ivey&rsquo;s 3-pointer with 10.1 seconds left in the fourth quarter cut it to 116-113 before VanVleet answered with a pair of free throws.
Bogdanovic hit two free throws, but Achiuwa made one of two at the line to put Toronto up by four points with 4.4 seconds left. Ivey&rsquo;s 3 at the buzzer wasn&rsquo;t enough for Detroit.
Pistons center Jalen Duren injured his right ankle in the second quarter, but returned to start the second half. The rookie teenager scored a career-high 30 points Friday. The 19-year-old Duren finished with six points in 21 minutes.
&ldquo;He turned it pretty good,&rdquo; Casey said. &ldquo;Just trying to go up and down the floor and when they were attacking the rim, he just couldn&rsquo;t pivot and move. Hopefully it&rsquo;s not something that&rsquo;s long lasting.&rdquo;
Toronto scored 14 points off 18 Detroit turnovers. The Raptors allowed a season-low five points off their eight turnovers.
&ldquo;We&rsquo;ve just got to be smarter with the ball, stronger with the ball,&rdquo; Casey said. &ldquo;A lot of our turnovers were self-inflicted, throwing it to nobody, throwing it to air.&rdquo;
Raptors center Jakob Poeltl started for the first time in two games since rejoining the team that drafted him. He took the spot of guard Gary Trent Jr., who sat because of a sore left calf.
Toronto held a 53-52 edge at halftime and took an 85-77 lead to the fourth.
HAYES STRUGGLES AGAIN
Detroit&rsquo;s Killian Hayes shot 1 for 10 and scored two points. He shot 1 for 11 Friday.
&ldquo;He&rsquo;s pressing a little bit,&rdquo; Casey said. &ldquo;I told him &lsquo;Relax, have fun, play basketball.&rsquo; He&rsquo;s overthinking things with his shooting.&rdquo;
TIP-INS
Pistons: Stewart scored 16 points.. &hellip; Outscored Toronto 43-19 in bench points. &hellip; Detroit is 7-22 on the road, the worst mark in the Eastern Conference.
Raptors: VanVleet had eight 30-point games in 2021-22. He has five such games since Jan. 1. &hellip; Poeltl fouled out in the fourth. He finished with six points and five rebounds in 25 minutes. &hellip; F O.G. Anunoby (sprained left wrist) missed his eighth straight game&hellip;. Toronto signed G/F Joe Wieskamp to a multi-year contract Saturday.
UP NEXT
Pistons: Visit Boston on Wednesday.
Raptors: Host Orlando on Tuesday.

Fred VanVleet scored 35 points, as the Raptors beat the Pistons 119-118 on Sunday for their fourth win in five games.

Fred VanVleet tops 30 for ninth time, Raptors beat Pistons 119-118

The Portland Trail Blazers, Charlotte Hornets and Philadelphia 76ers have made a 3-way deal with defense specialist Matisse Thybulle headed to the Blazers says <a href="https://twitter.com/ChrisBHaynes/status/1623737180664524803" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Chris Haynes of Bleacher Report</a>. The Hornets are shipping Jalen McDaniels to the 76ers wihle the Hornets getting multiple second-round picks.&nbsp;
Svi Mykhailiuk, who the Blazers acquired in the Josh Hart trade with the Knicks, will go to the Hornets as part of the deal.&nbsp;
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Here&rsquo;s the Philly/Charlotte/Portland breakdown No whiteboard! PHL &ndash; trades Thybulle, 2023 more favorable of ATL, CHA &amp; BRK and receive JMcDaniels, 2029 POR 2nd &amp; 2024 NYK 2nd POR &ndash; trades two 2nds (2027 more favorable of NOP/POR, 2029 POR) and receive Thybulle
&mdash; Bobby Marks (@BobbyMarks42) <a href="https://twitter.com/BobbyMarks42/status/1623744237043843075?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 9, 2023</a></blockquote>

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The Blazers, Hornets, and 76ers are making a 3-way deal with Matisse Thybulle going to Portland.

Blazers, Hornets, 76ers 3-way trade; Thybulle to Portland

Russell Westbrook may be on the move, again.
Following Westbrook's inclusion in <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/woj-lakers-timberwolves-jazz-agree-to-threeway-deal" target="_blank" rel="noopener">a three-team deal</a> between the Lakers, Timberwolves and Jazz, Westbrook and the Jazz are expected to reach agreement on a buyout.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
In three-team deal being discussed between Lakers, Wolves and Jazz, a buyout for Russell Westbrook in Utah would be the likely path, league sources tell <a href="https://twitter.com/NBAonTNT?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@NBAonTNT</a>, <a href="https://twitter.com/BleacherReport?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@BleacherReport</a>.
&mdash; Chris Haynes (@ChrisBHaynes) <a href="https://twitter.com/ChrisBHaynes/status/1623425850543681540?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 8, 2023</a></blockquote>

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While the trade value for Westbrook was on the lower side &mdash; his limitations, in addition to a gargantuan salary ($47 million) made trading for him a tough sell without pick compensation attached to him &mdash; Westbrook's market on the buyout market should be more robust.
He isn't the superstar he once was, operating in a primary bench role for the first time in his career. Westbrook remains a productive player, though: 15.9 points, 6.2 rebounds, 7.5 assists and 1.0 steals are marks matched by three other players in the NBA this season &mdash; Nikola Jokic, Luka Doncic and James Harden.
More specifically, Westbrook still lives at the rim.
A whopping 44% of his shots come at the rim, a 94th-percentile mark among combo guards, per Cleaning The Glass. He ranks eighth in total drives (792), with the Lakers generating roughly 1.04 points per possession (PPP) on trips featuring a Westbrook drive, per Second Spectrum.
The Lakers have played at the <a href="https://www.nba.com/stats/teams/advanced?dir=A&amp;sort=PACE" target="_blank" rel="noopener">second-highest pace</a> in the league this year. They've gotten in transition more often with Westbrook on the floor, a trend that has held in literally every season of Westbrook's career.
His ability to generate paint touches, with or without a screen, is still valuable to offenses. Once there, Westbrook has proven able to spray the ball out to the perimeter, or drop slick interior feeds. He's <a href="https://www.nba.com/stats/players/passing?CF=PASSES_MADE*LE*50:POTENTIAL_AST*GE*12&amp;dir=D&amp;sort=POTENTIAL_AST" target="_blank" rel="noopener">one of four players</a> averaging at least 12 potential assists per game while averaging 50 or fewer passes. To the interior feed point, Westbrook ranks third in the league in at-rim assists.
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That he's been able to do it with this volume, within a Laker offense that doesn't feature ideal spacing for drivers, should spark intrigue around what he could do in a better context.&nbsp;
While Westbrook has generated paint touches at a high level, his efficiency as a scorer has declined from peak form. For the second season in a row, he's converted just 58% of his shots in the rim. He's made a career-low 29% of his shots from floater range. Some of that is due to the roster construction during his Laker tenure, but the interior touch has been shaky independent of that.
There's also the matter of the jumper. His 32% clip from mid-range ties a career-low (2018-19), while he's drained a paltry 29% of his threes. A year after knocking down 44% of his threes from the corner (on admittedly low volume), he's down to 27% this year.&nbsp;
Teams aggressively gap him when he's off the ball. He can make hay as a cutter from the wing, but that isn't something you can build the boat around. Slotting him in the dunker spot, or using him as a screener, have seemingly been brought up as ideas more than we've seen it in practice. That could change in a new spot, but I'd temper expectations there.&nbsp;
So, which teams make sense for Westbrook? Let's go down the list.
NAH, WE'RE GOOD &mdash; PLAYOFFS/IN EDITION (13)
Teams: Atlanta, Boston, Cleveland, Dallas, Denver, Golden State, Indiana, Memphis, New Orleans, New York, Oklahoma City, Philadelphia, Portland, Sacramento
This is pretty straightforward. All of these teams either have a star-caliber point guard, a deep point guard room or both.
NAH, WE'RE GOOD &mdash; DEVELOPMENT EDITION (5)
Teams: Charlotte, Detroit, Houston, Orlando, San Antonio
This is also straightforward. These teams are young and have more incentive to give their guards a runway rather than bringing Westbrook into the fold.
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CAN'T SAY I SEE IT (4)
Teams: Brooklyn, Minnesota, Toronto, Washington
The Nets didn't seem super interested in Westbrook before Kyrie Irving was ultimately moved; the picks were the real assets, and there were rumblings of Westbrook being rerouted in such a deal. In light of Durant being moved, I really don't see the point now.
The Wolves just made their own point-guard swap, bringing the veteran Mike Conley into the fold. You could make the argument for Westbrook bolstering their second unit, running ball screens with Naz Reid &mdash; or Karl Anthony-Towns, when he's back and if they're staggered together. Ultimately, trying to sort through touches with Westbrook and&nbsp;Rudy Gobert&nbsp;and&nbsp;Edwards&nbsp;and&nbsp;Towns is probably too much.
The Raptors with an actual point guard who could consistently generate paint touches and feed their talented forwards &mdash; all of which offer intrigue as screeners &mdash; would be nice. But I don't think Westbrook should be that option in light of the spacing issues the Raptors already face.&nbsp;
We've frankly done the Westbrook-in-Washington thing. He'd be an upgrade over the current point guards there, but I don't think that would be worth exploring.
HEAR ME OUT, THOUGH (2)
Teams: Milwaukee, Phoenix
This may be an unpopular opinion, but the Bucks could probably use another shot creator. Among perimeter players, Jrue Holiday and Khris Middleton are kinda it.
Jevon Carter has taken a step as a pull-up shooter &mdash; did you know he's draining nearly 37% of his pull-up threes this year? &mdash; but he's not someone that can carry a unit. Grayson Allen and Pat Connaughton &mdash; whichever is replaced by Middleton when he returns to the starting lineup &mdash; are complementary pieces, not players who can handle significant on-ball usage.
All I'm saying is a second unit headlined by Westbrook and Sixth-Man-of-the-Year candidate* Bobby Portis (when he returns) could be good stuff. Joe Ingles could help balance things out with his blend of playmaking and shooting. Being able to have two of Holiday, Middleton, Giannis Antetokounmpo and Westbrook on the floor at all times would be quite the luxury.&nbsp;
If the Suns were interested in Irving &mdash; and were possibly, maybe, allegedly, reportedly willing to involve Chris Paul in a deal to get it done &mdash; it stands to reason that they'd be in the market for more shot creation.
At the very least, the Suns need to pressure the rim more than they do.
Shout out to their increased work on the offensive glass &mdash; fifth in offensive rebound rate after ranking 21st last season &mdash; as well as the on-ball aggression they got from Mikal Bridges before moving him in a deal for some Kevin Durant dude.
They still rank 25th in drives per 100 possessions, 27th in free throw rate and 29th in rim rate (percentage of field goal attempts coming at the rim).&nbsp;
Westbrook could help in all of those areas.
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THE FAVORITES (3)
Teams: Chicago, Los Angeles, Miami
Bleacher Report's Chris Haynes has reported that <a href="https://twitter.com/ChrisBHaynes/status/1623503500088070146?s=20&amp;t=CvvJPgcuaCLuvtoLr_Nfbg" target="_blank" rel="noopener">the Bulls</a> and <a href="https://twitter.com/ChrisBHaynes/status/1623494584524505088?s=20&amp;t=CvvJPgcuaCLuvtoLr_Nfbg" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Clippers</a> are expected to show interest in Westbrook, provided he's bought out.
I'll start here: without the Haynes report, I'd probably have Chicago in the "can't-see-it" section. I still want to put them there, but it's telling that we heard about their interest so early.
I get&nbsp;why there would be interest. Much like Phoenix, the Bulls have a mid-range heavy shot profile while ranking toward the bottom of the league in drives. Adding Westbrook to the fold could help that, while also taking some of the creation burden off of DeMar DeRozan and Zach LaVine.
Nikola Vucevic could be a versatile screening partner for Westbrook, or someone that could space the floor while giving him room to work. If the pick-and-roll partnership between Westbrook and Thomas Bryant can be fruitful &mdash; 1.06 PPP on direct plays, per Second Spectrum, a quality number &mdash; then surely he and Vucevic could make music together.&nbsp;
And ultimately, the Bulls' offense has underwhelmed this year. They're in the bottom third of the league in offensive rating; their 114.5 offensive rating with DeRozan, LaVine and Vucevic on the floor would only rank 15th league-wide. Constantly being flanked with a passive guard &mdash; either the budding Ayo Dosunmu or the versatile Alex Caruso &mdash; puts a bit of a cap on the offensive ceiling of this group.
I'm not convinced Westbrook would be a great answer in practice, but I understand the logic behind how he could be.&nbsp;
The Clippers seem to be the natural fit for Westbrook for a multitude of reasons. They could also use his rim pressure, and could especially use the juice he provides in transition. There are enough shooters on the roster, including their two best players, to create a favorable context for Westbrook. On a personal note, it'd be pretty convenient for Westbrook, who wouldn't have to move at all.&nbsp;
If there's such a thing as a darkhorse favorite, the Heat would be it. They're the worst offense of this group of teams &mdash; 25th in offensive rating (112.2) when removing garbage time. Both on and off the floor, the Heat feel like a team that could use an outside jolt.
The biggest drawback to the fit is the spacing. Erik Spoelstra is one of the most creative minds in NBA history, but constructing a workable offense around Westbrook, Jimmy Butler and Bam Adebayo would be quite the challenge.&nbsp;
A challenge doesn't mean it'd be impossible.
We've seen Westbrook and Anthony Davis generate good looks <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/explain-one-play-lakers-go-low-against-the-bucks" target="_blank" rel="noopener">on low pick-and-rolls</a>; it's not hard to envision Westbrook and Adebayo doing the same. Westbrook could receive screens from, or be the screener for, Butler. In a vacuum, Westbrook's paint-heavy style could complement the pull-up chops of Tyler Herro in the backcourt.
All the Heat may need is a slight boost; even with their offense and the injuries they've had to sort through, they're a playoff team right now while playing in a league-leading 38 clutch games. Westbrook doesn't have to be a superstar; he simply needs to be an additive. There's enough in the tank to talk yourself into it.

Nekias Duncan explores the Russell Westbrook buyout market.

Exploring potential landing spots for Russell Westbrook after buyout

DETROIT (AP) &mdash;&nbsp;Jayson Tatum&nbsp;started slow and finished strong with 34 points, 11 rebounds and six assists, leading the&nbsp;Boston Celtics&nbsp;to a 111-99 victory over the&nbsp;Detroit Pistons&nbsp;on Monday night.
&ldquo;You know at some point, he&rsquo;s going to be a superstar,&rdquo; Pistons coach Dwane Casey said.
The All-Star forward missed his first five shots and had as many fouls (three) as field goals after missing 10 shots in the first half. Tatum made three 3-pointers and an array of driving layups in the third, scoring 18 points in the quarter to turn a seven-point halftime lead into a 18-point cushion.
&ldquo;He took what the defense gave him,&rdquo; Celtics interim coach Joe Mazzulla said. &ldquo;He got downhill. He was aggressive. I thought he took some really good shots early in the shot clock to keep his confidence going.&rdquo;
With Tatum on the bench, Detroit rallied to pull within seven points midway through the fourth quarter. Seconds after entering the game, the All-NBA player promptly set up Robert Williams for a dunk on his fourth assist to help stunt the potential comeback.
Tatum was 11 of 23 overall, 3 of 9 on 3-pointers, and 9 of 10 at the line.
&ldquo;A guy like that, you give him any opportunity, he&rsquo;s going to take it,&rdquo; Detroit guard Killian Hayes said. &ldquo;He didn&rsquo;t make a 3-pointers in the first half, and then he hit one and he&rsquo;s hard to guard. A guy like that, you can&rsquo;t let him get going.&rdquo;
Celtics guard Jaylen Brown, who averages 27 points, missed the game with a non-COVID illness. Sam Hauser filled in, making his first start in two seasons, and had five 3-pointers in the first half when he scored all of his 15 points.
Hauser said he was informed of the opportunity about 90 minutes before the game started.
&ldquo;It kind of took me by surprise,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;I thought they would maybe plug someone else in to start. They called my number and I was ready for it. It was my first start ever in the NBA, and it was a cool moment.&rdquo;
Boston reserves Marcus Smart and Luke Kornet (left ankle) missed the game with ankle injuries.
Derrick White had 23 points, and reserve Malcolm Brogdon and Williams scored 15 points apiece for the Eastern Conference-leading Celtics, who lost four of their previous six games.
&ldquo;For 95% of the game, I thought we did a great job of taking away the momentum plays that Detroit is capable of making,&rdquo; Mazzulla said.
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Bojan Bogdanovic scored 21 for the Pistons, who have won just one-fourth of their games and are likely vying with Houston and Charlotte for the No. 1 pick and a chance to select&nbsp;7-foot-3 French phenom Victor Wembanyama.
Detroit rookies Jaden Ivey had 14 points and five assists, while Jalen Duren scored seven points and grabbed 14 rebounds. Hayes scored 17 points and fellow reserve Saddiq Bey added 14 for the Pistons, who have lost eight of their last 10 games.
BEY OFF THE BENCH
Casey likes what he&rsquo;s seeing with Bey, a former starter, settling into being a backup.
&ldquo;He&rsquo;s found a rhythm and a niche with the second unit,&rdquo; Casey said. &ldquo;Once we are ready to play for playoff positioning and championships, I feel like that&rsquo;s going to be his role with us.&rdquo;
TIP-INS
Celtics: The 24-year-old Tatum is the youngest player in team history to be a four-time All-Star. ... Hauser&rsquo;s younger brother, Joey, is a senior forward at Michigan State.
Pistons: The NBA rescheduled Detroit&rsquo;s home game against Washington to March 7 that was postponed last week when the Pistons were stranded in Dallas due to a winter storm.
</div>

Jayson Tatum finished with 34 points, leading the Boston Celtics to a 111-99 victory over the Detroit Pistons.

Jayson Tatum scores 34, Celtics cruise past Pistons 111-99

Only 18 times in NBA history has a player averaged 20-plus points, 10-plus assists and 5-plus rebounds per game across an entire season. James Harden and Nikola Jokic are on pace to join the list this year.
Three NBA players &mdash; Russell Westbrook, Oscar Robertson and Isiah Thomas &mdash; have put up at least 20 points and 10 assists per game over four or more separate seasons in their career. Harden is on pace to be the fourth.
Harden missing out on his 11th NBA All-Star appearance is simply a travesty. Maybe it's because the scoring volume is down, or because he's no longer the top bucket-getting option on his team. Whatever the case may be, he deserves applause for the way he has adapted with age and in a new role to help Philadelphia reinvent its path to contention.&nbsp;
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6 threes for <a href="https://twitter.com/JHarden13?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@JHarden13</a> and call it a SZN HIGH! <a href="https://t.co/OZF4WCWR1i">pic.twitter.com/OZF4WCWR1i</a>
&mdash; Philadelphia 76ers (@sixers) <a href="https://twitter.com/sixers/status/1620969675780935684?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 2, 2023</a>
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Harden is currently posting 21.0 points, 10.9 assists and 6.4 rebounds per contest. His mark of 14.9 field goal attempts per game is the lowest since his days on the Oklahoma City Thunder, but his overall efficiency is on par with his prime years in Houston &mdash; albeit in different forms. And with a dominant scorer in Joel Embiid by his side, Harden has reached new heights as a table-setter.
At 33 years old, Harden doesn't attack the basket with the same ferocity as his peak years. Only 24% of his shot attempts are coming at the rim (career-low), per Cleaning the Glass, and he's driving the basketball 13.3 times per game (lowest since 2013-14), according to Second Spectrum. They're still high numbers for most NBA players, but low by Harden's standards. His straight-line speed, probably still underrated in his heyday, has been sapped a great deal.
That's okay. Harden has been&nbsp;relatively&nbsp;confined to the perimeter, and he's made it work with a 38.8% three-point clip, his best since 2011-12. One key reason for the jump: Harden is canning a red-hot 47.7% of his attempts off the catch, which make up over one-eighth (12.7%) of his total shot diet, according to PBP Stats. That's the largest share of catch-and-shoot treys he's logged since 2016-17 and almost double last year's frequency.&nbsp;
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James Harden&rsquo;s reaction to making three catch-and-shoot 3s was pretty funny. And then, more serious: &ldquo;I&rsquo;ve been working on it, so that&rsquo;s pretty exciting. You don&rsquo;t do too much, just catch-and-shoot it. You put the work in, I work on it every day.&rdquo; <a href="https://t.co/bH9p2iGTNX">pic.twitter.com/bH9p2iGTNX</a>
&mdash; Rich Hofmann (@rich_hofmann) <a href="https://twitter.com/rich_hofmann/status/1620982628995448832?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 2, 2023</a>
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This isn't to say Harden has completely disavowed his iso-ball ways. According to Synergy, he takes the third-most isolation possessions per game (6.2) in the NBA. But those possessions are less taxing because he has a co-superstar beside him; Embiid actually logs a slightly higher isolation volume (6.3). And Harden doesn't have to will himself to the basket at his age &mdash; Embiid is also collapsing defenses.
The Harden-to-Embiid assist combination is the most popular connection in the league this season. The Beard has hit up The Process 150 times, per PBP Stats, including 71 Embiid buckets at the rim. Their 40-assist lead on the second-most prominent combo of Tyrese Haliburton and Buddy Hield (110) is as large as that duo's edge between it and the 31st-ranked coupling (a tie between Jalen Brunson and RJ Barrett, Killian Hayes and Bojan Bogdanovic, and Chris Paul and Deandre Ayton).&nbsp;
Meanwhile, though much less often, Embiid is the most frequent passer when Harden picks up an assisted bucket. They've teamed up 19 times this season, including 11 Harden makes from beyond the arc.
The Embiid-Harden pick-and-roll has boosted their ascension to perhaps the most dynamic two-man action tandem in the league. But Harden's comfort in Philly is also boosting the supporting cast &mdash; most exemplified in Tobias Harris.&nbsp;
Harris, now 30 years old, has quietly settled into an efficient complementary role while Harden, Embiid, Tyrese Maxey and Shake Milton initiate most offensive possessions. He's shooting a career-best 58% from two-point range. Harris' at-rim frequency (34%), field goal percentage (69%) and assisted-make rate (62%) are all the highest of his four-plus seasons with the Sixers, according to Cleaning the Glass.
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Less than a minute into the second half, James Harden records his 71st career triple-double with this dime to Tobias Harris 🔥<a href="https://t.co/uC4MpbmmYv">pic.twitter.com/uC4MpbmmYv</a> <a href="https://t.co/VEgsAzQYG2">https://t.co/VEgsAzQYG2</a>
&mdash; ClutchPoints (@ClutchPointsApp) <a href="https://twitter.com/ClutchPointsApp/status/1612200618436730880?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 8, 2023</a></blockquote>

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The scoring opportunities get easier with Harden on the floor. The former MVP sends 18.1% of his passes to Harris, who in turn makes 59.2% of his ensuing twos and 37.7% of his threes. Harris has typically averaged 8-10 drives per game over the course of his prime years vs. his 6.7 drives this season. The creation burden has been lessened and the efficiency has increased.
It helps that the Sixers added De'Anthony Melton to space the floor and act as a secondary ball-handler, and Maxey certainly gives them another sharp driving punch. But Harden has made everyone, including Harris and Embiid, better since finding his comfort level on the team.
Harden's average of 92.7 touches per game ranks third in the NBA and is still on par with his typical touch rate throughout his career. He's still the ignition for Philly's ninth-ranked offense and a matchup nightmare when he's on the floor, even if the picture looks a little different.&nbsp;
Whether it's the lack of All-Star recognition or the general lack of buzz, Harden's superstardom has taken a back seat in the national consciousness. Don't make that same mistake.
THE OUTLIERS (a.k.a. other random interesting numbers I found in the void):
<ul>
<li>A cool blocked shot locations graphic from Edoardo Vergani. Look at Bol Bol!</li>
</ul>
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NBA: Blocked shot location of the 12 players with most blocks during this season! What pops out? Let me know! <a href="https://t.co/shFXLWFonW">pic.twitter.com/shFXLWFonW</a>
&mdash; Edoardo Vergani (@ed_vergani) <a href="https://twitter.com/ed_vergani/status/1621863738931400705?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 4, 2023</a></blockquote>

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<ul>
<li>Brandon Miller is such a fascinating NBA Draft prospect:</li>
</ul>
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Brandon Miller is putting up unprecedented versatility and efficiency in his jumpshot diet for a college big wing. Here's how he compares to some other 6'7+ shooters - Jabari Smith, Keegan Murray, Saddiq Bey, Brandon Ingram, and Khris Middleton. <a href="https://t.co/DUNsKNXfb4">pic.twitter.com/DUNsKNXfb4</a>
&mdash; Mark (@MarkC_NBA) <a href="https://twitter.com/MarkC_NBA/status/1621229412091039744?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 2, 2023</a></blockquote>

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<ul>
<li>The Pacers are an absolutely chaotic basketball team, as shown in this table from Tom Bassine:</li>
</ul>
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Net rating in each quarter. Best by Q: 1 - Nuggets 2 - Pacers 3 - Thunder 4 - Cavs <a href="https://t.co/0dKf9ChDbI">pic.twitter.com/0dKf9ChDbI</a>
&mdash; Tom Bassine (@tvbassine) <a href="https://twitter.com/tvbassine/status/1622230703017525249?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 5, 2023</a></blockquote>

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James Harden is on pace to be the third player to average 20 points and 10 assists in five seasons. Ethan Fuller praises his play.

NBA Stats Notebook: Giving James Harden the flowers he deserves

Trust me, I know.
Following the blockbuster trade that <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/mavericks-owner-mark-cuban-breaks-silence-on-kyrie-irving-trade" target="_blank" rel="noopener">sent Brooklyn Nets guard Kyrie Irving to the Dallas Mavericks</a>, much of the conversation surrounding the deal focused on risk &mdash; how Irving's presence may affect the Mavericks' locker room, and especially, Luka Doncic; how the Mavericks would (struggle to) pivot if Irving were to walk in the offseason; how Kevin Durant is feeling in Brooklyn, seeing his co-star total drop from two to zero in a calendar year.
All of those concerns are valid.
There's a reason we immediately got a report from Bleacher Report's Chris Haynes saying the Phoenix Suns &mdash; who offered a package headlined by Chris Paul for Irving &mdash; are ready to push their chips in for Durant if he becomes available again.
The Mavericks absolutely should be keeping an eye on Doncic's long-term happiness. And with Irving, he hasn't been the beacon of reliability or availability. (That's putting it conservatively, for the sake of this piece and this piece only.)
Let's put that to the side for just a moment.&nbsp;
From an on-court perspective, the Mavericks have added a really good basketball player. The entire reason they made this gamble is because of the ceiling-raising that Irving's talent signifies. Let's take a look at what things could look like.
ON-BALL USAGE
Frankly, this should be pretty seamless.
Irving is one of the best isolation scorers of the modern era. His free-verse handle allows him to get wherever he wants to, whenever he wants to get there. He's quick enough to speed past off-balanced defenders, mixes in deceleration to keep defenders off balance (and flow into pull-ups on a dime) and has the body control and dexterity to create finishing angles out of mid-air.&nbsp;
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Over the past four seasons, trips featuring an Irving isolation have generated 1.12 points per possession (PPP). That's first in the NBA among 38 players with at least 1,000 isolations during that time frame. Drop the requirements to 500 isolations, expanding the field to 81 players, and Irving barely trails Zion Williamson (724 isolations, 1.123 PPP) despite having 463 more reps.
This season alone, trips featuring an Irving isolation have produced an absurd 1.21 PPP &mdash; third in the NBA among 88 players with at least 100 clear-outs under their belt. It's worth noting that the two players ahead of Irving &mdash; Lauri Markkanen (1.22 PPP) and D'Angelo Russell (1.213 PPP) &mdash; have combined for 214 isolations, while Irving is at 328 by himself.&nbsp;
I start with pure isolations because that's what the Mavericks have leaned into this season. They lead the NBA in isolations in whatever way you'd like to measure it: Total (1,397), per game (25.8) or per 100 possessions (26.9). Naturally, Doncic paces the league in total isolations (673) on elite efficiency to boot (1.14 PPP).
Even if you project this to be the most blatant my-turn-your-turn pairing in the leauge &mdash; and I don't, but we'll get into that shortly &mdash; these two are good enough to make that offense fruitful.&nbsp;
Irving's scoring chops also help him in ball-screens. Drop coverage is untenable because of his ability to chew up space. He's also, quietly, a pretty creative interior passer. Diverting too much attention to him can lead to a nice mix of pocket passes, dump-offs and lobs.
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Irving made sweet music with Nicolas Claxton in pick-and-roll this year (1.09 PPP). There shouldn't be a steep learning curve receiving screens from Dwight Powell or Christian Wood, assuming the latter is on the roster.&nbsp;
Also, prepare yourself to watch Doncic screen for Irving sometimes. Doncic is setting nearly three on-ball picks per 100 possessions this year, a career-high for him, though pretty low overall. If I had to guess, that number should perk up.
On-ball screens from Doncic have mostly been used to manufactor favorable matchups. That was more of a given when screening for Spencer Dinwiddie since they're close to the same size. Switching was, per Second Spectrum, easily the most common coverage that two-man pairing saw.&nbsp;
With Irving, that could shift a bit. Irving's defenders tend to be smaller than Dinwiddie's; this is an imperfect measure, but per NBA.com's matchup data, Irving has been <a href="https://www.nba.com/stats/player/202681/by-position?Matchup=Offense" target="_blank" rel="noopener">defended by guards</a> roughly 69% of the time, <a href="https://www.nba.com/stats/player/203915/by-position?Matchup=Offense" target="_blank" rel="noopener">slightly higher</a> than Dinwiddie's 61.8% clip.
At almost 6-foot-6, it would make sense that teams would feel more comfortable stashing wings and forwards on the latter. While throwing size on Irving makes sense in theory, even asking traditional wings to navigate screens or mirror Irving in space is a tall task.
(Yes, the joke was intentional.)
By the way, it's worth keeping an eye on how Irving deals with blitzes. To say he gets overwhelmed is overselling it, but there can be a bit of catch-hold-read-then-pass to those situations that may not vibe well with how slowly the Mavericks play. The short-roll playmaking on this roster continues to be a subplot worth following.
Because Irving can generate high-level offense, the Mavericks should be able to breathe easier in non-Luka lineups. Prior to the trade, the Nets were outscoring opponents by 44 points (plus-4.2 net rating) in the 676 minutes Irving played without Durant this season, <a href="https://www.pbpstats.com/wowy/nba?Season=2022-23&amp;SeasonType=Regular%2BSeason&amp;TeamId=1610612751&amp;Type=Team&amp;0Exactly1OnFloor=202681&amp;1Exactly1OffFloor=201142" target="_blank" rel="noopener">per PBP Stats</a>. The Mavericks have <a href="https://www.pbpstats.com/wowy-combos/nba?TeamId=1610612742&amp;Season=2022-23&amp;SeasonType=Regular%2BSeason&amp;PlayerIds=203915,1629029" target="_blank" rel="noopener">lost the Dinwiddie on/ Doncic off minutes</a>, though you can shoot some bail based on the sheer volume of talent missing in some of the games Doncic hasn't been available.&nbsp;
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OFF-BALL VALUE
This is where the on-court hand-wringing begins offensively, and honestly, I'm not sure where the major concern comes from.
It's very much true that Irving and Doncic like the ball in their hands. It's especially true for Doncic, who <a href="https://www.nba.com/stats/players/touches?CF=GP*GE*30&amp;dir=D&amp;sort=TIME_OF_POSS" target="_blank" rel="noopener">leads the NBA</a> in average time of possession (9.6 minutes) and seconds per touch (6.39), ranks second to Trae Young in dribbles per touch (5.59) and fourth in touches per game (90.5) overall.
Irving isn't close to any of those marks. Would it shock you to learn that the Dribble Gawd himself ranks 22nd &mdash; in a tie with Dinwiddie, oddly enough &mdash; in time of possession (5.7), 41st in seconds per touch and 53rd in dribbles per touch (3.77)? You're welcome, friends.
But seriously, it feels like people are extrapolating some of Irving's iso exploits and turning him into a heliocentric nightmare that can't fit alongside Doncic. It couldn't be further from the truth.
On a basic level, Irving's ability to shoot &mdash; and opponents treating him like a top-of-the-line threat, which can't be said for Dinwiddie &mdash; should open up the floor for other Mavericks.&nbsp;
Jason Kidd isn't the NBA's Andy Reid, nor should he be confused as such; he won't be drawing up fancy screen designs to confuse defenses. It became a running joke in Dunker Spot watch parties (<a href="https://www.playback.tv/thedunkerspot" target="_blank" rel="noopener">rock with us, folks</a>) that fan pleas for more off-ball movement led Kidd to essentially respond with, "Here's a stagger for Tim Hardaway Jr. &mdash; enjoy!"
As bland as the movement stuff for Dallas can be, Irving can operate within those concepts. The Mavs love "Chicago" action, a common set in the league where a player receives a pindown before flowing into a handoff.
Josh Green misses the assignment in the first clip, but you can see the Nets run it for Irving in the second.
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That basic stagger for Hardaway? They'll run it for Dinwiddie too, in order to get him a head start downhill. With Irving's downhill funk and pull-up chops, it's easy to envision him cooking more in that setup.
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What stands out about Irving is how smart of a cutter he is. That bodes well considering the amount of double-teams Doncic draws in the post. But even in off-ball actions designed for him, he's fine going off script to find a better opening.
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And speaking of Doncic: Get ready for Irving to set screens for Doncic too, particularly during clutch time.
Irving has plenty of experience screening for bigger ball-handlers. He's done so for LeBron James during their Cleveland years together. The Nets were generating good looks out of the Durant-Irving inverted ball screen this season, even if the numbers behind it (0.88 PPP) were underwhelming. Screening for Doncic should be money.
As mentioned earlier, Irving likely being defended by smaller players may make it less enticing for defenses to switch that action. If teams opt to throw two defenders at Doncic, that'll open up short-roll opportunities for Irving. That doesn't seem ideal.
Off rip, Doncic is a&nbsp;much&nbsp;better passer than Durant, meaning Irving should have earlier, more fruitful short-roll opportunities than he saw in Brooklyn. Beyond that, Irving's best traits &mdash; pull-up mid-range shooting, rim finishing, dump-off passes &mdash; are highlighted in this setup.
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Have fun dealing with that.&nbsp;
The cloud hovering over all of this is, of course, how often we'll see Irving, period. Beyond that, it's fair to wonder what the defense will look like.
Irving is a more stout on-ball defender than Dinwiddie by my eye, though that isn't the highest bar. For whatever it's worth to you, Irving grades out as a slight positive (plus-0.2) according to DunksAndThree's Estimated Plus-Minus (EPM) metric, while Dinwiddie is firmly negative (minus-1.9). The size difference may hurt, especially once teams get into mismatch-hunting mode as the postseason nears.&nbsp;
But in a Western Conference that feels up in the air, I understand why the Mavericks made the gamble. When examining the on-court fit, I'd argue it's a pretty good one.

Nekias Duncan analyzes how Kyrie Irving will mesh with Luka Doncic and the Mavericks following the trade from Brooklyn.

Examining Kyrie Irving's basketball fit with the Dallas Mavericks

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) &mdash; A&nbsp;fight broke out and punches were thrown&nbsp;during the game between the Orlando Magic and Minnesota Timberwolves on Friday night.
Five players were ejected following the brawl, which started in front of the Orlando bench late in the third quarter. Minnesota guard Austin Rivers and Magic center Mo Bamba were the initial players involved, and it spilled over to include several others on the court.
Rivers, Jaden McDaniels and Taurean Prince were ejected from the Timberwolves. Jalen Suggs was tossed along with Bamba for Orlando, which went on to win 127-120.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-theme="dark">
The Target Center Tussle 👀<a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/RaisedByWolves?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#RaisedByWolves</a> | <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/NBA?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#NBA</a> <a href="https://t.co/7DPJwnELgS">pic.twitter.com/7DPJwnELgS</a>
&mdash; Bally Sports North (@BallySportsNOR) <a href="https://twitter.com/BallySportsNOR/status/1621704987012206595?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 4, 2023</a></blockquote>

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&ldquo;This isn&rsquo;t like a cool moment for me,&rdquo;&nbsp;<a class="paragraph-link" href="https://twitter.com/BallySportsNOR/status/1621726026945396736" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Rivers said after the game.</a>&nbsp;&ldquo;I feel embarrassed. I&rsquo;m the oldest on the team. I consider myself the leader of the team, or one of the leaders of the team. It was a weird game, and I don&rsquo;t think that helped at all. If anything right now, I&rsquo;m just (ticked off) that we lost, and that I had (something) to do with that. It doesn&rsquo;t make me feel good.&rdquo;
Bamba and Suggs were not available for comment after the game.
&ldquo;You obviously want to have your teammate&rsquo;s back and at the same time, you&rsquo;ve got to be a professional,&rdquo; said Orlando center Moritz Wagner, also involved in a skirmish with Detroit in December.
&ldquo;So, that&rsquo;s a challenge for a young team like us. I think this time around we did a good job compared to last time. So, yeah, I don&rsquo;t really know. It&rsquo;s a weird dynamic. You don&rsquo;t really want to be in those situations and it&rsquo;s not really the best look. You want to be professional. At the same time, there is something in me that appreciates the team sticking together like that.&rdquo;
Wagner appeared to get knocked out in that fight with the Pistons in Detroit. Wagner and Detroit&rsquo;s Killian Hayes and Hamadou Diallo were all ejected.
On this night, the fight began with Rivers right in front of the Magic bench as play was ongoing at the far end of the court. Bamba came off the bench and Rivers threw punches at him. Suggs later pulled Rivers away and swung him to the court. McDaniels and Prince joined the scrum.
&ldquo;Their guy came off the bench and threw a punch,&rdquo; Timberwolves coach&nbsp;<a class="paragraph-link" href="https://twitter.com/BallySportsNOR/status/1621722960921772033" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Chris Finch said</a>. &ldquo;Pretty egregious. Then it&rsquo;s a melee, and somehow our guys get punished a lot worse. One guy got sent for not being a peacekeeper. I just looked at the film, and I didn&rsquo;t see any difference between what their guys were doing and what our guys were doing.&rdquo;
The altercation seemed to stem from talk from the Magic bench, particularly Bamba. A few moments earlier, Rivers missed a 3-point attempt in front of the Orlando bench, and Bamba and Markelle Fultz could be seen reacting to the miss.
Rivers said he approached the 7-foot, 231-pound Bamba about his comments.
&ldquo;I&rsquo;m not gonna snitch on the dude or whatever, but I just didn&rsquo;t like the way he was talking to me,&rdquo; said Rivers, listed at 6-4 and 200 pounds. &ldquo;For no reason, too. I don&rsquo;t even know that dude. I don&rsquo;t know anything about him. Obviously, I just know he&rsquo;s a player for the Magic. And he proceeded to talk, so that next possession, when I went down there, I just said, pretty much, &lsquo;Just keep it respectful, bro.&rsquo;&rdquo;
Rivers later added: &ldquo;I went up to him and I pressed him, and at that point, it can go one of two ways. I didn&rsquo;t think we were going to get in a fight. But when you stand up that fast and put your hands up &mdash; he threw a punch and missed, thankfully. At that point, I&rsquo;ve got to protect myself. Ain&rsquo;t no one worried about him.&rdquo;
The fight came one night after&nbsp;<a class="paragraph-link" href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/nba-news-donovan-mitchell-dillon-brooks-get-into-scuffle-cleveland-cavaliers-memphis-grizzlies-react-ja-morant-darius-garland-taylor-jenkins-jb-bickerstaff" target="_blank" rel="noopener">an on-court altercation between Memphis Grizzlies guard Dillon Brooks and Cleveland Cavaliers guard Donovan Mitchell.</a>
Brooks swung and struck Mitchell in the groin area during the third quarter Thursday after the Grizzlies guard had fallen to the floor. Mitchell retaliated by throwing the ball at Brooks and then shoving him.
Both players were ejected from Cleveland&rsquo;s 128-113 win. Afterward,&nbsp;<a class="paragraph-link" href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/nba-news-donovan-mitchell-dillon-brooks-get-into-scuffle-cleveland-cavaliers-memphis-grizzlies-react-ja-morant-darius-garland-taylor-jenkins-jb-bickerstaff" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Mitchell accused Brooks of being a dirty player.</a>
<a class="paragraph-link" href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/dillon-brooks-suspended-one-game-donovan-mitchell-fined-20000" target="_blank" rel="noopener">The NBA announced punishments for both players</a>&nbsp;Friday, with Brooks getting suspended one game without pay and Mitchell fined $20,000.

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In Orlando's win over Minnesota, Wolves guard Austin Rivers and Magic center Mo Bamba got into a fight that led to five ejections.