Mustangs

Nekias Duncan breaks down the 2022 NBA Finals between the Celtics and Warriors from a multitude of angles.

2022 NBA Finals Scouting Report: How the Celtics and Warriors match up

The Oklahoma City Thunder came out of last Tuesday&rsquo;s NBA Draft Lottery as the night&rsquo;s runner-up, taking home the No. 2 overall pick.&nbsp;
The Thunder have never received the first-overall pick in their franchise history, which technically goes back to 1967 when they were still the Seattle Supersonics. They have selected second on two occasions though, and both worked out really well (Kevin Durant in 2007 and Gary Payton in 1990).
The Thunder have a war-chest of draft picks in the coming years, but those picks are meaningless if they don&rsquo;t select a franchise-altering talent. Fortunately, the No. 2 pick should provide an opportunity to do so. The 2022 draft class features a few &ldquo;can&rsquo;t-miss&rdquo; prospects, including Auburn&rsquo;s Jabari Smith, Gonzaga&rsquo;s Chet Holmgren and Duke&rsquo;s Paolo Banchero. All three have their pros and cons, but adding any of them to the existing core of Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Josh Giddey should work out beautifully.
In the 2021 NBA Draft, the Thunder made six selections, but they traded three of those players. They added Giddey (who was named to the 2021-22 All-Rookie Second Team), Tre Mann and Aaron Wiggins &ndash; none of whom are bigs. The Thunder did trade for a seven-footer in the 2020 draft (Aleksej Pokusevski), but he&rsquo;s still extremely raw and is not the same caliber of player as the top-three prospects.
Of course, there is still a lot of work to be done through the scouting process to effectively evaluate all three of this draft's most-coveted prospects, but a look back at the last 10 NBA drafts reveals a murkier history than one might assume. After <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/examining-the-success-of-teams-selecting-first-in-the-nba-draft" target="_blank" rel="noopener">examining the success of teams selecting No. 1 in the NBA Draft</a> last week, let's look at how recent No. 2 overall picks have fared.&nbsp;
2012 NBA Draft: Michael Kidd-Gilchrist, Charlotte Bobcats/Hornets
The Hornets bombed with the second pick in 2012. Kidd-Gilchrist had a fine career, averaging 12.3 points and 7.9 rebounds per game across eight seasons in the NBA. The thing is, Bradley Beal was selected third and Damian Lillard was selected fifth, and both of those guys are All-NBA-caliber players annually. Comparatively, that&rsquo;s a huge miss for Charlotte.
Verdict: Failure.
2013 NBA Draft: Victor Oladipo, Orlando Magic
The Cavaliers certainly surprised many of us by picking Anthony Bennett with the first overall pick, but the Magic stuck to the script. Oladipo was universally seen as a top-three player in this draft, and he became the second-best player in the class before knee and quad injuries derailed his career.
As much as injuries have robbed much of what Oladipo was, he is still an intriguing player, and he&rsquo;ll probably command some decent free-agent offers this offseason. Obiously, CJ McCollumn (selected 10th) and Giannis Antetokounmpo (selected 15th) are better players, but neither was being considered by the Magic. Considering that Oladipo is a two-time All-Star, an All-Defensive selection and a one-time All-NBA selection, I&rsquo;d say the Magic did a fine job in picking Oladipo.
Verdict: Success
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2014 NBA Draft: Jabari Parker, Milwaukee Bucks
The 2014 draft was a weird one. Neither the first nor the second pick ended up being the best player from this draft class. Andrew Wiggins found a good role, even if he is far less successful than most thought he&rsquo;d be, but Jabari Parker really underwhelmed. Granted, Parker stuck around in the league for eight seasons, including some of the current one, but his career simply never materialized even if it&rsquo;s not his (nor Milwaukee&rsquo;s) fault.
Parker tore his ACL twice. He looked like he was becoming a pretty darn good player (even if he was a defensive liability) before the second ACL injury, averaging 20.1 points and 6.2 rebounds per game in 2016-17. However good Parker could have been, the fact of the matter is that Joel Embiid was intriguing enough as of draft night to be taken one pick later, and that stings.
Verdict: Failure
2015 NBA Draft: D&rsquo;Angelo Russell, Los Angeles Lakers
Here&rsquo;s an instance where a player actually was worth a top-three pick. The problem is that the Lakers had the second pick, and there&rsquo;s a big difference between Karl-Anthony Towns or Devin Booker and Russell. Making matters worse, the Lakers sent Russell to Brooklyn before he matured. His immaturity was part of the reason he was traded, but that doesn&rsquo;t change the fact that the Lakers picked him and moved on very quickly. Russell may or may not end up being a franchise-altering talent, but he hasn&rsquo;t realized his full potential yet, and he clearly won&rsquo;t do so for the Lakers.
Verdict: Failure
2016 NBA Draft: Brandon Ingram, Los Angeles Lakers
Ingram is one of the best No. 2 picks in the last 10 drafts. He&rsquo;s a true number one option on a playoff team, a career 18.5 points-per-game scorer and a one-time All-Star. It&rsquo;s debatable that Jaylen Brown (selected third) and/or Jamal Murray (selected seventh) are as good or better players, but both have played alongside more talented teammates throughout their careers.
Ingram has been the best player on the New Orleans Pelicans for a few years now, and we shouldn&rsquo;t take for granted the fact that Ingram led a playoff team this season. Sure, the Lakers didn&rsquo;t cash in on him specifically, but he was part of the package that led to Anthony Davis landing in Los Angeles. So, it worked out for them too.
Verdict: Success
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2017 NBA Draft: Lonzo Ball, Los Angeles Lakers
The Lakers picked second overall again in 2017. They weren&rsquo;t as successful this time around. First, there&rsquo;s Jayson Tatum to consider. Tatum was selected third and is the best player in the 2017 draft class. Being selected by the Lakers wouldn&rsquo;t have changed that, and that should be enough. But there&rsquo;s also Ball&rsquo;s rough shooting mechanics to consider. Sure, he&rsquo;s grown into a good shooter, but the Lakers didn&rsquo;t benefit from that. It&rsquo;s hard to categorize Ball&rsquo;s selection as an outright failure because like Ingram, he helped facilitate Davis to the Lakers. Still, it's tough to classify his selection a success.
Verdict: Push
2018 NBA Draft: Marvin Bagley III, Sacramento Kings
Bagley might be the worst second pick in the last 10 years. The 2018 NBA Draft will forever be remembered as the Luka Doncic class. The Kings could have drafted Doncic, as he was still on the board, but they chose to go with Bagley instead. Bagley isn&rsquo;t even on the Kings any longer, and his time in Sacramento was not memorable.
Bagley is a sub-par defender and three-point shooter. He&rsquo;s scored the ball at a decent pace, averaging 19.5 points per-36 minutes, but he&rsquo;s never earned a big enough role to demonstrate what he can really do, and he&rsquo;s exclusively been on losing teams. Comparatively, Doncic and Trae Young (selected No. 5 in 2018) have turned their franchises around.
Verdict: Failure
2019 NBA Draft: Ja Morant, Memphis Grizzlies
Ingram was the best second pick in the last 10 years, until 2019. Morant stole that made-up accolade almost immediately in his rookie season. The thing is, the 2019 NBA Draft was supposed to be all about Zion Williamson. However, unlike Williamson, Morant has backed up all the hype and then some. So, while Williamson has dealt with injuries for much of his young career, Morant has brazenly become the face of his draft class.
Morant is drawing comparisons to numerous superstars, and he was named to the 2021-22 All-NBA Second Team. No one selected after him comes close to making the Grizzlies think twice about their decision.
Verdict: HUGE success
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2020 NBA Draft: James Wiseman, Golden State Warriors
Unlike his brother Lonzo, LaMelo Ball was deserving of the second pick in 2020. Instead, the Golden State Warriors went with James Wiseman, though the logic behind the pick is clear, even in retrospect. The Warriors already had two All-NBA guards. The thing is, Jordan Poole looks pretty good alongside Steph Curry and Klay Thompson, doesn&rsquo;t he? So, it&rsquo;s feasible to assume that Ball would have fit too.
After two seasons, Ball is a significantly better player, but he&rsquo;s also had plenty of opportunity to demonstrate that fact. Wiseman has had terrible health-related luck. He played in 39 of the Warriors' first 53 games in 2020-21, but he tore his meniscus in Golden State&rsquo;s 53rd&nbsp;game of the season and hasn&rsquo;t been seen since. Wiseman could still be a serious contributor, as his per-36 numbers were impressive for a rookie (19.3 points, 9.7 rebounds, 1.6 blocks and 1.1 assists on .542/.316/.628 shooting). This is one we&rsquo;ll have to continue monitoring.
Verdict: Unclear
2021 NBA Draft: Jalen Green, Houston Rockets
Basing the success of a pick on only a rookie season is tough. Green posted an impressive rookie campaign, but his defensive deficiencies were clear. That&rsquo;s an understandable flaw for a rookie. Green was the assumed second-best player in the class. Having the luxury of hindsight, we now know that Scottie Barnes (selected fourth) and Evan Mobley (selected third) translated to the NBA incredibly well. But wing scorers have a tougher time making the jump, as they must shoot deeper three-pointers and compete against far more athletic competition. Green&rsquo;s floor may be lower than that of Barnes and Mobley, but I'd argue that his ceiling is still higher. Let&rsquo;s give him a little more time.
Verdict: Unclear&nbsp; &nbsp;&nbsp;
In the last 10 drafts, the second overall pick has clearly been one of the best players in the draft class just three times (2013, 2016 and 2019).&nbsp;
A deeper examination of No. 2 overall picks reveals a limited number of franchise-altering talents. For every Kevin Durant, Jason Kidd, Gary Payton, Earl Monroe and Bill Russell, there are a number of players who didn't live up to expectations. Sometimes, there isn't a generational player on the board; other times, the team picking No. 2 overall just overthinks it or goes in the wrong direction. Either way, No. 2 hasn&rsquo;t produced as many all-time greats as you might expect, but there have been quite a few significant contributors.
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Oklahoma City will pick No. 2 in the 2022 draft. A look back at the last 10 drafts reveals that there are no guarantees for No. 2 picks.

Examining the success of teams selecting No. 2 in the NBA Draft

Changes are coming in Minnesota.
Fresh off a 46-36 campaign and competitive first-round exit, the Timberwolves have already gone swinging. There's a new sheriff in town, with former <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/nuggets-tim-connelly-to-become-wolves-president-of-basketball-ops" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Denver Nuggets president Tim Connelly joining the team</a> in a similar role. The price was huge: a five-year deal worth north of $40 million and&nbsp; &mdash; and! &mdash; equity in the organization, per The Athletic. It's a monstrous deal with the potential for more &mdash; a deal, as my Dunker Spot co-host <a href="https://twitter.com/stevejones20" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Steve Jones Jr.</a> described on <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/podcasts/the-dunker-spot" target="_blank" rel="noopener">our latest episode</a>, that the Nuggets weren't likely to match.
There's obvious intrigue in Connelly's move to Minnesota, namely him leaving a successful division rival that currently rosters a back-to-back MVP in Nikola Jokic to do so. But the interest for me has come with the reporting around the move. Take this passage from The Athletic's <a href="https://theathletic.com/3320881/2022/05/18/timberwolves-tim-connelly-president-basketball-ops/?source=emp_shared_article" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Jon Krawczynski and Shams Charania</a> as negotiations were heating up between the two sides.
<blockquote>
Leaving the two-time MVP for upstart Minnesota would be a bold move. But the Timberwolves do have a pair of building blocks in Karl-Anthony Towns and Anthony Edwards, promising young talent in Jaden McDaniels and Jarred Vanderbilt, a coach who is revered throughout the organization and an ownership group that appears to be motivated to invest in the organization.
</blockquote>
Hmm... notice anyone missing? Also, the "ownership group that appears to be motivated to invest" portion could be seen as subtle shade toward the organization that was on track to lose Masai Ujiri (killing it in Toronto since 2014) and Connelly due to being outbid.&nbsp;
And how about this one, from Krawczynski and Charania again, after the <a href="https://theathletic.com/3326241/2022/05/23/tim-connelly-wolves/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">deal was done</a>?&nbsp;
<blockquote>
There are reasons beyond financial for him to be optimistic about the situation in Minnesota. Connelly will be taking over a team with two stars in Towns and Edwards, promising young players in Jaden McDaniels and Vanderbilt and a top-notch coach in Chris Finch, who spent one season working with Connelly in Denver as an assistant on Malone&rsquo;s staff. D&rsquo;Angelo Russell had a strong season before struggling in the playoffs and Patrick Beverley asserted himself as a tough, veteran leader for a young group.
</blockquote>
Ah,&nbsp;there's&nbsp;the name. But you see why my brow is raised, right? Towns and Edwards represent the core. McDaniels and Vanderbilt are the young pieces dubbed to grow alongside them. The 26 year-old Russell &mdash; one of Towns' best friends making north of $30 million this season &mdash; went from not being mentioned at all in the lead-up piece, to essentially getting a throw-in line with Beverley in the update five days later.
Oh, it doesn't help that Jordan McLaughlin was closing out playoff games while a healthy Russell watched in Round 1. Add in the fact that Russell's future has <a href="https://nba.nbcsports.com/2022/05/03/report-timberwolves-will-attempt-to-trade-dangelo-russell-this-offseason/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">already been questioned</a>, and I think it's fair to assume what the big&nbsp;roster&nbsp;swing for the Wolves will be.&nbsp;
Any team acquiring him will be on the hook for over $31 million next season, though that's the only&nbsp;year left on Russell's deal.&nbsp;
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WHAT RUSSELL BRINGS
Russell remains a smooth operator. He's a proactive passer, one who's able to see and&nbsp;fire into a gap before most players know what's happening. You'll see it with his transition hit-aheads, as well as some of the reads he'll make in pick-and-roll.
And about pick-and-roll: Not many players blend pull-up shooting and high-level passing like Russell does. You can't afford to duck under against him, or drop your big back too far. He will absolutely waltz into jumpers. Once he gets hot, you're forced to press up &mdash; and that opens up even more passing windows for him.
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Russell was one of 31 players to receive at least 1,500 on-ball picks this season, per Second Spectrum. Russell-led ball screens were good for nearly 1.03 points per possession (PPP), a top-10ish mark in NBA among high volume ball-handlers.
You can thank the jumper for that &mdash; Russell converted 37% of the pull-up threes he attempted out of pick-and-roll, per InStat tracking. For comparison, that put him in line with high volume pull-up artists like Stephen Curry (38.9%) and Trae Young (37.0%).
(Also: Shout out to Darius Garland for bombing away at a 42.5% clip. That guy's getting paid.)&nbsp;
LIMITATIONS
Russell is what I'd describe as a two-level scorer. He's comfortable firing from deep, and he's able to snake and hunt shots around the elbow area with the best of them. Rim pressure is... simply not his thing. Only 16% of Russell's shots came at the rim last season, a mark that ranks in the 16th percentile per Cleaning The Glass. (Not great!)
And as someone who rarely got to the rim, Russell didn't draw many shooting fouls either. The lack of "easy points" lends to a boom-or-bust nature in Russell's game. His pull-up jumper is a legit weapon, but things kinda crater for him if it isn't falling in a way that isn't helpful for your&nbsp;lead&nbsp;ball-handler.&nbsp;
I think a truth has become (more) clear &mdash; Russell needs to be paired with a ball-dominant rim threat to get the best out of him.
That was the intrigue around Edwards taking more of a lead role in the second half of the season. In theory, Edwards ability to touch the paint on any given possession would lead to easier catch-and-shoot &mdash; or catch-and-drive &mdash; opportunities for Russell. A team trading for Russell should have a similar infrastructure in place.
Defensively, Russell found his home as a middle linebacker. Most teams rely on their primary rim-protector to call out coverages and actions. For Minnesota, that responsibility was Russell's. It was an odd dynamic, but one that worked. He was often seen and&nbsp;heard barking out instructions while he zoned up behind the action.
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I remained worried about him in more conservative defensive schemes. Russell isn't the quickest laterally. And while he's improved a bit from his rookie season (I'd hope so!), screen navigation remains an issue for him overall.
With the Wolves, Russell was blessed with the opportunity to roam off-ball (his ideal role) while having the screen navigation issues limited due to his big hedging ball-screens with him. If Russell's dumped into a drop scheme, the onus flips back on him to stay attached to ball-handlers. That could be a tricky bet.
LANDING SPOTS
Due to Russell's contract and the context needed to unlock him on both ends, it's hard to imagine 20+ teams blowing up the phones in Minnesota. There are a few teams that:
1) Make theoretical sense for Russell's game
2) Have the contracts to at least get conversations started
The New York Knicks have been searching for a calming presence at point guard for ages; at the very least, a guy that can grease the wheels of an offense with pick-and-roll play. While an in-house option is staring them in the face &mdash; <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/explain-one-play-young-knicks-playing-chess" target="_blank" rel="noopener">I'm with you, Knick fans</a> &mdash; it wouldn't shock me to see the Knicks take a flier on a talent like Russell, especially if it doesn't cost a core piece.&nbsp;
The contracts of Alec Burks, Derrick Rose, and Nerlens Noel get you in the ballpark of Russell's number. The Knicks have the Mavericks' first rounder in 2023 &mdash; a likely low 20s pick &mdash; to toss in if the Wolves don't think that's enough.
In theory, you'd have Russell playing off the rim-battering of RJ Barrett and Julius Randle. Maybe you get a more unlocked Randle with someone that can thread the needle on tight-window passes more consistently.&nbsp;
The Wolves would be able to bolster their depth, adding some rim pressure (Rose), movement shooting (Burks) and a big that can do work in an aggressive scheme (Noel). The Knicks losing the latter would be buffered by the retention of Mitchell Robinson and the likely growth from Jericho Sims.
Quick question: Who's the best passer for the Los Angeles Clippers? Follow-up question: How many names did you list before naming an actual guard? The combined deals of Reggie Jackson and Luke Kennard get you in the door. I can hear arguments about that already being too much for L.A. I'd argue that Russell gives you more on the playmaking front, gives you more size in the backcourt and helps your defense without tapping into your wing depth. Again, there's at least a conversation to be had.
If you're looking to pair Russell with a ball-dominant rim threat, how about Luka Doncic and Dallas? At worst, Russell could serve as a buffer to Jalen Brunson signing elsewhere. Tim Hardaway Jr. and Dwight Powell would give the Wolves the movement shooting, plus big-man depth combination to bolster their supporting cast. I'd argue the Mavericks may have to throw in a pick, though they're a little light on that front.
Lastly, would you rather have Russell or Cole Anthony? Actually, don't answer that.
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Nekias Duncan looks at potential landing spots for Wolves guard D'Angelo Russell this offseason.

Examining potential trade destinations for D'Angelo Russell

In one week, we saw the 2022 NBA Draft picture begin to clarify.&nbsp;
The Orlando Magic jumped to the No. 1 pick after last Tuesday's NBA Draft Lottery, with the Oklahoma City Thunder earning the No. 2 pick and the Houston Rockets selecting third. Throughout the week, draft hopefuls also went under the microscope at the NBA Draft Combine, showing their skills in front of NBA teams and media members.
Our Senior NBA Draft Analyst Matt Babcock was in Chicago for the Combine and NBA G League Elite Camp, and over the next month, he'll be gathering intel and updating our <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/draft" target="_blank" rel="noopener">2022 NBA Mock Draft</a> regularly.
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With the Combine in the rear-view mirror, Babcock provides his thoughts on some of the most pressing topics before the stretch run of the pre-draft process in a Q&amp;A:
What are your initial thoughts on how the NBA Draft Lottery results could affect things come June?
"Two picks towards the top stand out to me: Oklahoma City at No. 2 and Sacramento at No. 4. My big question is: Does Sam Presti take Jaden Ivey? I&rsquo;ve been saying this for a while, but the impression is that Ivey&rsquo;s actual stock among NBA circles is higher than what&rsquo;s being portrayed in most of the media and the public. I believe that he&rsquo;s No. 1 or No. 2 on more teams' boards rather than being No. 4 or No. 5 as he is on most of the media&rsquo;s mock drafts.
"The other pick is Sacramento &mdash; the early word is this pick could easily be on the move. I&rsquo;m not quite sure what to make of it just yet, but I&rsquo;ll surely be keeping a pulse."
Several prospects who participated in the first day of scrimmages opted not to return for the second day. What do you think of this move?
"Well, if the player got hurt, or if a team made a guarantee to select them, that&rsquo;s one thing. But if it&rsquo;s just to avoid the possibility of not playing well the second day, I&rsquo;m not into that at all. I think it&rsquo;s safe to say that all of the players who chose to play think they deserve a higher projected draft status. In that case, play. Show your stuff! Go out there and earn what you think you deserve. It not only sends a bad message to teams &mdash; I think it&rsquo;s a slippery slope regarding how they approach their careers too."
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Much was made of Patrick Baldwin Jr.'s underwhelming athletic testing results. Do you see this notably impacting his draft stock?
"Patrick Baldwin Jr. battled some injuries this past season. His unwillingness to play through those minor injuries and his lack of toughness has raised concerns. He also chose to not play in the 5-on-5 games at the NBA Draft Combine. So for him to have such an underwhelming vertical jump just adds another negative element to the overall evaluation. He&rsquo;s a very skilled and talented player, but I&rsquo;ll be direct here: I think he should go back to school."
Santa Clara wing Jalen Williams has been a buzzing name on social media. How has his Combine performance resonated with teams?
"Jalen Williams definitely helped himself last week. He&rsquo;s versatile, skilled, and long for a player that&rsquo;s nearly 6-foot-6. I don&rsquo;t think he&rsquo;s overly athletic, but he&rsquo;s moved up a little bit. I think some teams liked him more than others, but his name was certainly buzzing. I think he&rsquo;s solidified himself as a solid draft pick."
Kendall Brown appears to be the biggest winner in the NBA combine testing. Are his standout numbers helping his draft stock?
"No, I don&rsquo;t think Kendall Brown&rsquo;s athletic testing helped him much, but let me explain. Coming into the season, Brown was widely regarded as a high-priority prospect, so everyone in the league saw him at some point or another. I think I can speak for all scouts on this one; we don&rsquo;t need to see any metrics to figure out that Kendall Brown is a freak athlete. So, although the numbers are impressive, it was expected."
Which other players significantly improved their draft stock with strong efforts at the combine?
"A few guys who helped themselves were Darius Days of LSU and Marcus Sasser of Houston, both of whom played their ways into the NBA Draft Combine by competing at the G League Elite Camp first.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-theme="dark">
Let the games begin! 🙌 <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/NBADraftCombine?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#NBADraftCombine</a> <a href="https://t.co/iVRC9VzzyE">pic.twitter.com/iVRC9VzzyE</a>
&mdash; Matt Babcock (@MattBabcock11) <a href="https://twitter.com/MattBabcock11/status/1527368377353678848?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 19, 2022</a></blockquote>

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"Another player who impressed me was Gonzaga&rsquo;s Andrew Nembhard."
Did any other draft hopefuls personally stand out to you that you might not have known well before the combine?
"Yes &mdash; Ryan Rollins of Toledo. He didn&rsquo;t light the world on fire by putting up huge numbers, but he really caught my eye. He&rsquo;s very shifty and quick. I think he has the potential to develop into a dynamic on-ball creator. I had the chance to meet him briefly, and Derek Murray will be interviewing him for us soon. I&rsquo;m looking forward to learning more about Ryan over the course of the next few weeks."
With a month still left before the draft, how can prospects most directly impact their pre-draft image at this point?
Players are beginning to visit teams now. On those visits, some players will play competitive 1-on-1, 2-on-2 and 3-on-3, in addition to individual drills. That is the best way to move the needle for a player. The teams will also be interviewing the players and getting to know them on a personal level.
Many players have either recently hired an agent (or plan to) as the draft process continues. As a former agent, what advice can you offer to players currently making these decisions?
"At this point, players should have already signed with an agent. This doesn&rsquo;t exactly answer your question, but one bit of advice that I&rsquo;d share with players who just recently hired agents is to stick to the plan. They signed with their agents for a reason. These prospects are in probably the most vulnerable situation they&rsquo;ve ever been in, as they don&rsquo;t know how things will unfold, where they&rsquo;ll live and play next year, or how much money they&rsquo;ll make. It&rsquo;s nerve-wracking. They need to trust their agents and let them do their jobs. They&rsquo;re experts. See the plan through &mdash; at least the imminent one."
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The NBA Draft Lottery and NBA Draft Combine have set the stage for the next month of the 2022 draft process.

2022 NBA Draft Combine Q&A: Matt Babcock on takeaways, teams to watch

Similar to when we discussed <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/nba-draft-combine-takeaways-from-anthro-testing" target="_blank" rel="noopener">anthro testing</a>, the NBA Draft Combine provides opportunities for both fans and scouts alike to overreact. Some around the league put lots of stock into agility and strength testing, while others do not. The eye of the beholder takes each test into account in his or her own way.&nbsp;
Our Sr. NBA Draft Analyst, Matt Babcock, weighs in: &ldquo;I can't say I put a ton of stock into the physical testing, but I certainly look at them. I'm usually not too surprised at the results, as I think a decently experienced scout can generally judge a player's athleticism relatively well by watching them play in person. However, seeing results like Kennedy Chandler jumping an impressive 41.5 inches on his max vertical and Patrick Baldwin Jr. jumping a Combine-worst 26.5 inches does sway my opinion of them some.&rdquo;
Here are a few of my takeaways from agility testing:
<a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/draft/2022-nba-mock-draft/players/kendall-brown" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Kendall Brown</a>, Baylor
Kendall Brown leaped to a 41-inch max vertical in Chicago. This explosiveness, paired with being 6-foot, 7.5 inches and 201 pounds, gives insight into the physical athlete he really is. While there are concerns about some of Brown&rsquo;s perimeter skills, his athleticism and ability to impact the game on both ends will translate. He&rsquo;ll be a coveted player in next month&rsquo;s draft.
<a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/draft/2022-nba-mock-draft/players/kennedy-chandler" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Kennedy Chandler</a>, Tennessee
Although only measuring in at 5-foot, 11.5 inches without shoes, Kennedy Chandler posted the highest vertical leap of the day at 41.5 inches. Scouts and media alike were impressed with the athleticism, as he makes a strong case for himself as a first-round pick.&nbsp;
<a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/draft/2022-nba-mock-draft/players/jalen-williams" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Jalen Williams</a>, Santa Clara
After registering tremendous numbers in the anthro testing, Jalen Williams then posted a 39-inch max vertical, giving real promise to how he'll fit on an NBA floor. His defense leaves a lot to be desired, but his shooting, offensive skill set and obvious athleticism may lead to a rise in his draft value.&nbsp;
<img style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" src="https://cdn.basketballnews.com/images/story/body/usatsi_18295573_lg.jpg" alt="" width="547" height="400" />
Terquavion Smith, NC State
It&rsquo;s been a solid week of measurements for Terquavion Smith as he continues to consider whether he'll stay in the 2022 NBA Draft. After measuring in at 6-foot, 2.25 inches without shoes, he then posted a 10.63 lane agility time and a 38.5-inch max vertical. He&rsquo;s twitchy and explosive, and has a chance to be a reliable guard in the NBA regardless of when he declares.&nbsp;
<a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/draft/2022-nba-mock-draft/players/david-roddy" target="_blank" rel="noopener">David Roddy</a>, Colorado State
Roddy is 6-foot-6 in his shoes, 260 pounds, has a 6-foot, 11.5-inch wingspan and registers a 35.5-inch max vertical. Not only would these be strong at an NFL Combine, they were in a solid tier in Chicago as well. Roddy has a real chance to be a first-round pick next month and has helped himself this week.&nbsp;
<a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/draft/2022-nba-mock-draft/players/patrick-baldwin-jr" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Patrick Baldwin Jr.</a>, UW-Milwaukee
Baldwin Jr. recorded a 23.5-inch standing vert and 26.5-inch max vert. The 26.5-inch mark is the fourth-lowest number at the Combine since 2011, ahead of only Dakari Johnson, Dedric Lawson and Nikola Vucevic. While he shows incredible potential as a shooter at the NBA level, these numbers will likely be taken into heavy consideration around the league.
<div class="mceNonEditable"><spike>&nbsp;</spike></div>
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Derek Murray highlights key observations from the agility testing portion of the 2022 NBA Draft Combine.

2022 NBA Draft Combine: Takeaways from agility testing

The NBA announced the 76 players who are expected to attend the 2022 NBA Draft Combine, which is scheduled for May 18-20 at Wintrust Arena and the Marriott Marquis in Chicago.
The 2022 NBA Draft Combine is an important step in the draft process for NBA prospects, leading up to 2022 NBA Draft on June 23.&nbsp;
Players will have interviews with NBA teams and participate in five-on-five games, shooting drills and strength-and-agility drills from May 18-20. Coverage of the 2022 NBA Draft Combine begins Thursday, May 19 on ESPNews from 3-5 p.m. ET and transitions to ESPN2 from 5-7 p.m. ET. The coverage continues on Friday, May 20 from 1-2 p.m. ET on ESPN2 and 2-5 p.m. ET on ESPNews.
Additionally, a select number of standout players from the <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/nba-announces-field-of-44-draft-prospects-for-g-league-elite-camp" target="_blank" rel="noopener">2022 NBA G League Elite Camp</a>, which takes place May 16-17 at Wintrust Arena, will be invited to participate in the 2022 NBA Draft Combine.
Here is the complete list of expected attendees for this year's NBA Draft Combine (and check out <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/draft" target="_blank" rel="noopener">BasketballNews.com's 2022 NBA Mock Draft</a> to see where each player is projected to go):&nbsp;
<table style="font-weight: 400;">
<tbody>
<tr>
<td colspan="2" width="832">
Player (College/Club)
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="390">
Ochai Agbaji (Kansas)
</td>
<td width="442">
Jake LaRavia (Wake Forest)
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="390">
Patrick Baldwin Jr. (Milwaukee)
</td>
<td width="442">
Justin Lewis (Marquette)
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="390">
Paolo Banchero (Duke)
</td>
<td width="442">
E.J. Liddell (Ohio State)
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="390">
Dominick Barlow (Overtime Elite)
</td>
<td width="442">
Bennedict Mathurin (Arizona)
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="390">
Marjon Beauchamp (G League Ignite)
</td>
<td width="442">
Matthew Mayer (Baylor)
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="390">
Hugo Besson (New Zealand Breakers)
</td>
<td width="442">
Bryce McGowens (Nebraska)
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="390">
Malaki Branham (Ohio State)
</td>
<td width="442">
Leonard Miller (Fort Erie Intl. Academy [Canada] )
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="390">
Christian Braun (Kansas)
</td>
<td width="442">
Josh Minott (Memphis)
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="390">
Kendall Brown (Baylor)
</td>
<td width="442">
Aminu Mohammed (Georgetown)
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="390">
John Butler Jr. (Florida State)
</td>
<td width="442">
Iverson Molinar (Mississippi State)
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="390">
Julian Champagnie (St. John&rsquo;s)
</td>
<td width="442">
Jean Montero (Overtime Elite)
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="390">
Kennedy Chandler (Tennessee)
</td>
<td width="442">
Wendell Moore Jr. (Duke)
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="390">
Max Christie (Michigan State)
</td>
<td width="442">
Keegan Murray (Iowa)
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="390">
Kofi Cockburn (Illinois)
</td>
<td width="442">
Andrew Nembhard (Gonzaga)
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="390">
Dyson Daniels (G League Ignite)
</td>
<td width="442">
Scotty Pippen Jr. (Vanderbilt)
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="390">
Johnny Davis (Wisconsin)
</td>
<td width="442">
Gabriele Procida (Fortitudo Bologna [Italy] )
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="390">
JD Davison (Alabama)
</td>
<td width="442">
Orlando Robinson (Fresno State)
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="390">
Moussa Diabate (Michigan)
</td>
<td width="442">
David Roddy (Colorado State)
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="390">
Ousmane Dieng (New Zealand Breakers)
</td>
<td width="442">
Ryan Rollins (Toledo)
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="390">
Khalifa Diop (Gran Canaria [Spain] )
</td>
<td width="442">
Dereon Seabron (North Carolina State)
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="390">
Jalen Duren (Memphis)
</td>
<td width="442">
Shaedon Sharpe (Kentucky)
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="390">
Tari Eason (LSU)
</td>
<td width="442">
Jabari Smith (Auburn)
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="390">
Keon Ellis (Alabama)
</td>
<td width="442">
Terquavion Smith (North Carolina State)
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="390">
Michael Foster Jr. (G League Ignite)
</td>
<td width="442">
Jeremy Sochan (Baylor)
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="390">
Collin Gillespie (Villanova)
</td>
<td width="442">
Matteo Spagnolo (Cremona [Italy] )
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="390">
AJ Griffin (Duke)
</td>
<td width="442">
Julian Strawther (Gonzaga)
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="390">
Jaden Hardy (G League Ignite)
</td>
<td width="442">
Dalen Terry (Arizona)
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="390">
Ron Harper Jr. (Rutgers)
</td>
<td width="442">
Drew Timme (Gonzaga)
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="390">
Chet Holmgren (Gonzaga)
</td>
<td width="442">
Jabari Walker (Colorado)
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="390">
Harrison Ingram (Stanford)
</td>
<td width="442">
TyTy Washington Jr. (Kentucky)
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="390">
Jaden Ivey (Purdue)
</td>
<td width="442">
Peyton Watson (UCLA)
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="390">
Trayce Jackson-Davis (Indiana)
</td>
<td width="442">
Blake Wesley (Notre Dame)
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="390">
Nikola Jovic (Mega [Serbia] )
</td>
<td width="442">
Alondes Williams (Wake Forest)
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="390">
Johnny Juzang (UCLA)
</td>
<td width="442">
Jalen Williams (Santa Clara)
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="390">
Ismael Kamagate (Paris [France] )
</td>
<td width="442">
Jaylin Williams (Arkansas)
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="390">
Trevor Keels (Duke)
</td>
<td width="442">
Mark Williams (Duke)
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="390">
Walker Kessler (Auburn)
</td>
<td width="442">
Trevion Williams (Purdue)
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="390">
Christian Koloko (Arizona)
</td>
<td width="442">
Fanbo Zeng (G League Ignite)
</td>
</tr>
</tbody>
</table>
&nbsp;

The NBA announced the 76 players who are expected to attend the 2022 NBA Draft Combine, which takes place May 18-20 in Chicago.

NBA announces 76 prospects who will attend 2022 NBA Draft Combine

The NBA G League today announced the field of 44 draft prospects who will attend the 2022 NBA G League Elite Camp, which will take place May 16 and 17 at Wintrust Arena in Chicago.
The 2022 NBA G League Elite Camp gives draft prospects an opportunity to display their skills in front of NBA and NBA G League scouts, coaches and front-office executives over the course of the camp by playing in five-on-five games and participating in strength and agility drills.
Based on performance, select players from the NBA G League Elite Camp will be invited to participate in 2022 NBA Draft Combine, which will be held May 18-22 at Wintrust Arena.
&ldquo;We are thrilled to host this talented group of draft prospects at our NBA G League Elite Camp,&rdquo; said NBA G League head of basketball operations Malik Rose. &ldquo;This is an incredible opportunity for these 44 young men to showcase their basketball abilities in front of both NBA and NBA G League front office personnel.&rdquo;
NBA players who have participated in past NBA G League Elite Camps include New Orleans Pelicans guard Jose Alvarado, Indiana Pacers forward Oshae Brissett, LA Clippers guard Terance Mann and Miami Heat guard Max Strus.
Here are this year's participants:
<table>
<tbody>
<tr>
<td colspan="2" width="567">NBA Draft-Eligible Players (College/Club)</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="266">Abmas, Max (Oral Roberts)</td>
<td width="300">Lee, Hyunjung (Davidson)</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="266">Akinjo, James (Baylor)</td>
<td width="300">Lofton Jr., Kenneth (Louisiana Tech)</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="266">Aluma, Keve (Virginia Tech)</td>
<td width="300">Manek, Brady (North Carolina)</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="266">Bernard, Jules (UCLA)</td>
<td width="300">Martin, Tyrese (Connecticut)</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="266">Boeheim, Buddy (Syracuse)</td>
<td width="300">McCormack, David (Kansas)</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="266">Bouyea, Jamaree (San Francisco)</td>
<td width="300">McCullar, Kevin (Texas Tech)</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="266">Brooks, Eli (Michigan)</td>
<td width="300">McGusty, Kameron (Miami FL)</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="266">Brooks Jr., Keion (Kentucky)</td>
<td width="300">Nance, Pete (Northwestern)</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="266">Brown, Tevin (Murray State)</td>
<td width="300">Notae, J.D. (Arkansas)</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="266">Brown, Gabe (Michigan State)</td>
<td width="300">O&rsquo;Neal, Shareef (LSU)</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="266">Burton, Tyler (Richmond)</td>
<td width="300">Randolph, M.J. (Florida A&amp;M)</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="266">Days, Darius (LSU)</td>
<td width="300">Rhoden, Jared (Seton Hall)</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="266">Devoe, Michael (Georgia Tech)</td>
<td width="300">Samuels, Jermaine (Villanova)</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="266">Flanigan, Allen (Auburn)</td>
<td width="300">Sasser, Marcus (Houston)</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>Foster, Kyle (Howard)</td>
<td>Scheierman, Baylor (South Dakota State)</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>Freeman-Liberty, Javon (DePaul)</td>
<td>Travers, Luke (Perth Wildcats)</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>Grady, Kellan (Kentucky)</td>
<td>Turell, Ryan (Yeshiva University)</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>Green, A.J. (Northern Iowa)</td>
<td>White Jr., Fabian (Houston)</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>Gresham, Brison (Texas Southern)</td>
<td>Williams, Bryson (Texas Tech)</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>Gueye, Mouhamed (Washington State)</td>
<td>Williams Jr., Vince (VCU)</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>Hall, Jordan (St. Joseph&rsquo;s PA)</td>
<td>Wilson, Jalen (Kansas)</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>Jackson, Quenton (Texas A&amp;M)</td>
<td>Yat, Kok (Overtime Elite)</td>
</tr>
</tbody>
</table>
&nbsp;

The NBA G League announced the field of 44 draft prospects who will attend the 2022 NBA G League Elite Camp in Chicago.

NBA announces field of 44 draft prospects for G League Elite Camp

MILWAUKEE (AP) &mdash; Giannis Antetokounmpo scored 42 points and made the go-ahead basket with 44.3 seconds left and the Milwaukee Bucks withstood a frantic flurry of shots in the final seconds to beat the Boston Celtics 103-101 on Saturday in Game 3 of the Eastern Conference semifinal.
The defending champion Bucks lead the best-of-7 series 2-1, with Game 4 on Monday night in Milwaukee.
Boston trailed 103-100 when Marcus Smart was fouled by Jrue Holiday just before attempting a potential tying 3-pointer with 4.6 seconds remaining. Smart made the first free throw, then missed the second intentionally &mdash; flinging it at the rim.
That&rsquo;s when things got wild.
Smart got the rebound but missed his putback attempt. Boston&rsquo;s Robert Williams got that rebound but also missed. Boston&rsquo;s Al Horford was just to the right of the basket when he converted his putback opportunity, but the shot came just after the buzzer sounded. Replays confirmed Horford didn&rsquo;t beat the clock.
Antetokounmpo also had 12 rebounds and eight assists. His driving finger roll helped the Bucks pull back ahead after blowing a 14-point lead.
After trailing by 13 with less than 10 minutes left, the Celtics pulled ahead 100-99 and took their first lead since early in their third quarter on Jaylen Brown&rsquo;s two free throws with 1:49 remaining.
Both teams failed to score on their next possessions before Antetokounmpo put the Bucks back ahead. Antetokounmpo then blocked Brown&rsquo;s driving layup attempt, leading to Holiday's basket that made it 103-100 with 11.2 seconds remaining.
Holiday had 25 points.
Brown led the Celtics with 27 points and 12 rebounds. Horford had 22 points and 16 rebounds.
TIP-INS
Celtics: Robert Williams went to the locker room in the third quarter after taking an elbow to the face from Milwaukee's Bobby Portis as they tangled under the basket while pursuing the ball. Williams returned later in the third. ... Reserve forward Sam Hauser, who had played two minutes in each of the series&rsquo; first two games, was unavailable Saturday due to an injured right shoulder. Celtics coach Ime Udoka said Hauser took a fall in practice. &ldquo;He&rsquo;ll be OK long-term,&rdquo; Udoka said. &ldquo;It&rsquo;s just something where he could be out a few weeks based on that.&rdquo;
Bucks: Reserve guard George Hill played for the first time this postseason after recovering from a strained abdominal muscle. ... Grayson Allen made his first career playoff start Saturday as part of a lineup change after the Bucks posted their lowest point total of the season in a 109-86 Game 2 loss. Portis moved into a bench role.

The Bucks managed to steal a close Game 3 against the Boston Celtics.

Bucks edge Celtics 103-101 after frantic final second

As the NBA season has wound down and funneled into fewer and fewer games, I've had the chance to dive deeper into the grassroots circuit and hone in more on what this next season of college hoops could look like.
I am irrationally excited about the Baylor Bears coming into the 2022-23 NCAA season.
After a second-round exit in the NCAA Tournament to eventual finalist North Carolina, the Bears are in a state of flux. <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/draft/2022-nba-mock-draft/players/jeremy-sochan" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Jeremy Sochan</a> and <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/draft/2022-nba-mock-draft/players/kendall-brown" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Kendall Brown</a>, two projected first-round picks, are in the <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/draft" target="_blank" rel="noopener">2022 NBA Draft</a> pool. Starting point guard James Akinjo, who led the Big 12 with 5.8 assists per game this past season, announced he'd also enter the draft and hire an agent. Starting forward Matthew Mayer also entered, and recently entered the transfer portal. And finally, leading scorer Adam Flagler too entered the draft, although he remains NCAA eligible as he tests the waters of his draft stock.
Needless to say, things are changing in Waco, Texas! Baylor big man Flo Thamba will return for a fifth year and Jonathan Tchamwa-Tchatchoua is coming back from the knee injury that sidelined him late in conference play. LJ Cryer missed the NCAA Tournament and end of last year with a foot injury, and should step into an even larger role as a third-year player.
Five of the top six in minutes played on the team last year might not be back in the rotation, which is equally jarring and exciting. With that being said, open minutes means new opportunities!
Where things start for me in my intrigue is Keyonte George. The five-star shooting guard out of IMG Academy has a legitimate chance to be the best guard to play at Baylor, which is high praise considering the wealth of NBA talent that's flowed through head coach Scott Drew's tenure.
George is an effortless shooter off a variety of movements. He's comfortable off the ball and moves well as a cutter. His pull-up and shot creation are routinely cash for him. George's handle shifts defenders with guile, and he can maneuver his way through tight spaces with ease.
<div style="width: 100%; height: 0px; position: relative; padding-bottom: 56.250%;"><iframe style="width: 100%; height: 100%; position: absolute; left: 0px; top: 0px; overflow: hidden;" src="https://streamable.com/e/3djdhl" width="100%" height="100%" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen" data-mce-fragment="1"></iframe></div>
He has real pop around the rim, and some of the finishes through contact he pulls off are WILD. So often, we talk about three-level scorers and look at guys who can handle and operate behind the arc and in the mid-range with lesser efficacy at the rim; George is a plus pretty much anywhere on the court, which makes him a remarkably tough guard.
<div style="width: 100%; height: 0px; position: relative; padding-bottom: 56.250%;"><iframe style="width: 100%; height: 100%; position: absolute; left: 0px; top: 0px; overflow: hidden;" src="https://streamable.com/e/8o884e" width="100%" height="100%" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen" data-mce-fragment="1"></iframe></div>
He can capably run offense, setting up incredibly well out of pick-and-roll situations with pocket passes, dump-offs and a really impressive lob game as well.
<div style="width: 100%; height: 0px; position: relative; padding-bottom: 56.250%;"><iframe style="width: 100%; height: 100%; position: absolute; left: 0px; top: 0px; overflow: hidden;" src="https://streamable.com/e/zz2e5k" width="100%" height="100%" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen" data-mce-fragment="1"></iframe></div>
George is a stout defender at the point of attack with active hands, and routinely will make the right plays off the ball as well. He's a tremendous all-around player with a real opportunity to make waves as a freshman. His shot creation next year is going to be a joy to watch against some of the best defenses in college basketball.
Another one of the major reasons I'm excited for Baylor is Langston Love's return to the court! Love was the 35th-ranked recruit in the 2021 high school class, but missed the entirety of his freshman season with an ACL tear. It would be unfair to expect him to come back without rust, but it's good to get a reminder of just how good Love is when healthy.
While it'd be tough to crack the starting lineup given who's returning, Love's shotmaking and creation (a theme for Baylor) could be a boon.
<div style="width: 100%; height: 0px; position: relative; padding-bottom: 56.250%;"><iframe style="width: 100%; height: 100%; position: absolute; left: 0px; top: 0px; overflow: hidden;" src="https://streamable.com/e/5qm1l7" width="100%" height="100%" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen" data-mce-fragment="1"></iframe></div>
Love has a really explosive drive game that allows him to get into the paint, but he tends to rely more on speed rather than his handle &mdash; which isn't neccesarily a bad thing &mdash; but will likely be there for him less in college.
<div style="width: 100%; height: 0px; position: relative; padding-bottom: 56.250%;"><iframe style="width: 100%; height: 100%; position: absolute; left: 0px; top: 0px; overflow: hidden;" src="https://streamable.com/e/qx4sf2" width="100%" height="100%" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen" data-mce-fragment="1"></iframe></div>
Watch that first clip. Love does a great job getting into the paint, but that's the sort of play where I really want to see him take a hang dribble and a momentary pause off the screen. He doesn't typically see skip passes from here &mdash; which again, not an indictment &mdash; but it's where he's at as a playmaker right now. There's a lot of room to grow with reps.
When he gets an ideal lane or angle, Love can collapse a defense, but I like what he can do operating on the second side of actions more. Getting involved in an empty-corner action, using pistol exchanges to get him open looks and getting the most out of his shooting gravity and straight-line speed are where a lot of his best reads come from as a playmaker. He's so solid at hitting backline cutters from the middle of the floor.
<div style="width: 100%; height: 0px; position: relative; padding-bottom: 56.250%;"><iframe style="width: 100%; height: 100%; position: absolute; left: 0px; top: 0px; overflow: hidden;" src="https://streamable.com/e/t4h5gl" width="100%" height="100%" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen" data-mce-fragment="1"></iframe></div>
As mentioned, the creation is what stands out with this Baylor squad.
Up and down the roster, there are players who can dribble, shoot and make the right plays.
Cryer was one of the best shooters on volume in basketball last season, canning 46.8% of his threes (5.8 per game). Flagler was a 38.7% shooter on 6.3 attempts per game last season.
Baylor is a team that's thrived upon having multiple shot-creators over the last few seasons, and the Bears have fully leaned into that identity headed into the upcoming year. As different as this team will be made up, its apparent strengths could make for some incredible offensive ball.
One of the bigger questions is the defense. While Love and George are both capable defenders to be sure, they're a significant downshift in size from Sochan and Brown. With Mayer out of the picture as well, things get murky on the wing.
Baylor added Caleb Lohner, a starter at BYU last year, via the transfer portal. The 6-foot-8 forward showed some ability to play defense out on the perimeter, although seems much more adept in help and as the low man. It'll be interesting to see how he factors in.
The Bears also added West Virginia transfer Jalen Bridges, who brings a vital skill set and versatility to Baylor and seems to be a likely starter (started all 33 games for the Mountaineers last season).
I was really intrigued by Bridges as a freshman, but last year's WVU team was a tough to evaluate contextually. After a 13-2 start, the team went 3-15 the rest of the way. The defense was average, but pretty awful by Bob Huggins' standards, and the offense was among the worst in the country. Bridges' efficiency dropped without much of an increase in usage, which was odd and a bit discouraging. Yet, with a new team and alongside better offensive talent, I think there's a chance Bridges really pops as a player &mdash; but much of it will be determined by how his shot falls.
Bridges has good size at 6-7 with a sizable wingspan and solid instincts. He has some really good moments both on and off the ball with active hands, but finding consistency on that end will be key for him and for Baylor.
This Baylor team has a new look, a retooled roster and a bright future this season if things really click.
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A retooled Baylor team could have a lot of upside and reason for excitement headed into a new season, writes Mark Schindler.

Why the new-look Baylor Bears could bring excitement in 2022-23

Yeah, the Minnesota Timberwolves' repeated shipwreckings in the first round might be tough to swallow for the next month. However, the blown leads and Karl-Anthony Towns trash talk undermine what was, in my estimation, one of the most promising seasons in recent franchise history.
Minnesota has made the playoffs twice since 2004. The only other time was a whimper of a first-round exit in 2018 that foreshadowed the collapse of a Jimmy Butler-led, Tom Thibodeau-coached roster. This season, Minnesota constructed a top-10 defense with the league's seventh-youngest roster, per RealGM, and went 30-17 in the 2022 calendar year.
Make no mistake: This franchise is on a positive trajectory, and is finally turning potential into production. Now, Minnesota has to make one of the most difficult leaps in basketball &mdash; going from a winning team to a true contender &mdash; at a time where the NBA wields some of the widest parity in recent memory.
The 2022 offseason can be a pivotal building block towards that leap. First, the franchise needs to secure its chief decision-maker.
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Sachin Gupta assumed interim duties as president of basketball operations following Gersson Rosas' departure last fall. The Wolves made all of five in-season acquisitions under his tenure (three of which were 10-day signings), and executed zero trades. It was a quiet season on paper for the creator of ESPN's Trade Machine.&nbsp;
According to the <a href="https://www.startribune.com/timberwolves-sachin-gupta-chris-finch/600169496/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Minneapolis Star Tribune</a>, Gupta seems prepared to navigate the Timberwolves through the summer, though the franchise has not made any move towards announcing a permanent head of operations yet. Wolves head coach Chris Finch has voiced his support for Gupta.
"They know my feelings about Sach," Finch said. "They know that I think he's outstanding and he's been a huge reason that we have stability in this organization right now. He's very smart. We have complete alignment. The players love him. He's appropriate in his presence around the team. He's not heavy-handed with the coaching staff. He does his job.
"I'm a huge fan, and I've advocated for him to have his opportunity to be the guy to run this team. Nothing would make me happier than that."
So time will tell if the new ownership group, currently including Glen Taylor, Alex Rodriguez and Marc Lore, feel the same.
Minnesota has most of its current roster contractually intact. The team holds $1.9 million team options on 2019 second round pick Jaylen Nowell and undrafted Naz Reid, who have both emerged as quality rotation-caliber players. Perhaps the biggest free agent name is Taurean Prince (UFA), who solidified a solid floor-spacing role off the bench in the regular season, but struggled in the playoffs.&nbsp;
Meanwhile, defensive-minded wing Josh Okogie enters restricted free agency after playing just 10.5 minutes per game this season. The former 2018 first-round pick has seen his playing time decrease in each of the last three years. Nathan Knight and McKinley Wright IV also enter restricted free agency, while Jake Layman and Greg Monroe hit the unrestricted open market.
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The Wolves likely won't have the salary cap room for flashy free agent acquisitions. According to Spotrac, Minnesota is all-but guaranteed to be over the cap before free agency even opens. Their best spending asset will be a $10.2 million non-taxpayer exception. Interestingly, Gupta has already commented on a potential team need.
"Defensive rebounding was obviously a big issue in this series and all year long," Gupta said. "That might be a more personnel thing and more size can certainly help. There's a mix for sure in terms of how we can address some of those areas and weaknesses just with development and internal growth and others that we may have to address with the roster."
Minnesota should have plenty of chances to fill this need with its exception. Purely spitballing, but some rebounding bigs who might fit in the $10.2 million exception include: Derrick Favors, Ivica Zubac, Thomas Bryant and Andre Drummond.&nbsp;
But if the front office feels a greater compulsion to act, they have the players and draft picks to create enticing trades. Minnesota holds the No. 19 pick in the first round of the NBA Draft, and Nos. 40, 48 and 50 in the second round. How many of these selections will stay in the Twin Cities with a roster nearly full already?&nbsp;
Our Senior NBA Draft Analyst Matt Babcock projects Minnesota to select Kennedy Chandler at No. 19, and then Ismael Kamagate, Jalen Williams and Hugo Besson in the second round of <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/draft" target="_blank" rel="noopener">his latest 2022 NBA Mock Draft</a>. Chandler could develop into a steady backup point guard behind D'Angelo Russell, while the others profile as high-upside swings that Minnesota doesn't need to step into the game right now.
One more wrinkle to monitor is Leandro Bolmaro, the No. 23 pick from the 2020 NBA Draft. The Argentinian wing spent most of 2021-22 with the Iowa Wolves in the G League, and put up 12.9 points, 5.4 assists and 5.0 rebounds per game. Is Bolmaro ready to make an NBA impact?
The Timberwolves don't need to rush their franchise timeline. Anthony Edwards is only in his second season, and as we saw in the playoffs, still radiates untapped potential despite his ascendancy. Towns is the second-oldest player currently under contract, and even he's still just 26.&nbsp;
But there's no turning back once a young roster makes the NBA playoffs. Minnesota has set postseason play as the minimum standard for next season, and with youth comes expected improvement in each subsequent season.
Now Gupta, or whoever the next president of basketball operations is, must steer the franchise toward a path to greater heights this summer.
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A disappointing first-round series masked what was a breakout season for the Minnesota Timberwolves.

2022 NBA offseason preview: What's next for the Minnesota Timberwolves?

The Utah Jazz&rsquo;s 2021-22 season is officially over. The Jazz believed they were a championship contender, but this marks another season ending in disappointment and heartbreak. Now, looking ahead at what&rsquo;s to come in Salt Lake City, massive changes seem to be on the horizon. Whether it be Donovan Mitchell or Rudy Gobert on the move, something&rsquo;s gotta give. Other veterans such as Mike Conley and Bojan Bogdanovic could be on the move too.
While our Bryan Fonseca recently broke down <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/examining-potential-trade-desinations-for-donovan-mitchell-2022" target="_blank" rel="noopener">possible trade destinations for Mitchell</a>, it's seems likely that the Jazz will try to appease their young star shooting guard. Gordon Hayward already broke Utah&rsquo;s heart a few years ago when he left in free agency. If Mitchell requested a trade, it would send shockwaves throughout Utah. Unlike Hayward, Mitchell has star power that transcends Utah and he could potentially lead the team to heights they haven&rsquo;t reached since the 1990s with John Stockton and Karl Malone.
If the Jazz have to move their homegrown three-time Defensive Player of the Year in order to keep Mitchell, I'm almost certain it would happen. It&rsquo;s an unfortunate twist of fate for Gobert, but leaving the Jazz&rsquo;s system might be the best thing for him so he can truly blossom into a true two-way presence.
As seen throughout Utah's first-round series against the Dallas Mavericks, Gobert was ignored or simply used as a decoy more often than not. If Gobert is used on a more consistent basis in a different environment, who knows what he could accomplish as one of the NBA&rsquo;s premier lob threats?
Gobert hitting the trade market would result in a feeding frenzy around the Association. Whether it be title contenders or rebuilding teams who feel close to a massive leap, Gobert could be viewed as the missing piece to the puzzle.
Without further ado, let&rsquo;s dive into five realistic destinations for a Gobert blockbuster deal this offseason.
Chicago Bulls
Chicago knows they&rsquo;re in desperate need of a defensive jolt. Adding Lonzo Ball and Alex Caruso in the backcourt already brought a new identity to the Bulls, who were seemingly allergic to defense before their arrival. Myles Turner has been mentioned as a possible target for Chicago, but the Indiana Pacers are <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/despite-trade-talks-the-pacers-want-to-keep-myles-turner-longterm" target="_blank" rel="noopener">reportedly</a> expected to keep him long-term. Why not swing for the fences with Gobert? Acquiring the 29-year-old would be a crown-jewel moment for the organization.&nbsp;
Imagine the possibilities for Chicago with Gobert patrolling the paint with Ball and Caruso hawking the perimeter. It&rsquo;s the perfect complement to offensive dynamos Zach LaVine and DeMar DeRozan. Chicago&rsquo;s new starting lineup of Ball, Caruso, LaVine, DeRozan and Gobert would seemingly have no holes in it from a two-way perspective.
I absolutely love this idea for Chicago, and they should be blowing up the Jazz&rsquo;s phone this summer if it seems plausible.
Jazz receive: Nikola Vucevic, Patrick Williams, Coby White, draft compensation
Bulls receive: Rudy Gobert
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New York Knicks
The Knicks are bound to blow it up one way or another soon enough. Julius Randle feels like <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/five-nba-players-who-feel-destined-to-be-traded-this-offseason" target="_blank" rel="noopener">one of the most obvious trade candidates</a> to potentially hit the market this offseason. If the Knicks are done with Randle, could they parlay him and other young pieces to acquire Gobert? While <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/examining-potential-trade-desinations-for-donovan-mitchell-2022" target="_blank" rel="noopener">New York would love to land Mitchell</a>, the Knicks should seriously explore a Gobert trade since the organization needs some sort of game-changing move.
The 2022-23 season feels like a make-or-break year for the current Knicks regime. Head coach Tom Thibodeau&rsquo;s seat is red-hot, plus the Knicks&rsquo; front office has to be itching to make some sort of move to change course from a stale build.
Gobert&rsquo;s arrival would signal New York is ready to finally ascend the Eastern Conference standings. Sure, Gobert isn&rsquo;t a true &ldquo;superstar,&rdquo; but he&rsquo;s far and away the most impactful player the Knicks could realistically reel in this offseason. Gobert being the adult in the room for an accelerated rebuild in the Big Apple is a fun scenario, especially as it provides a high-floor outcome immediately.
New York&rsquo;s current roster has ample flexibility to turn it all over again by 2023. If the Knicks clear out all of their contracts with team options and expiring deals, sans the young core, they will have a max slot open for the loaded 2023 free-agent class. Would Gobert and RJ Barrett be able to sell a star on New York? If Barrett takes the leap forward that many expect, that&rsquo;s a fun big/wing duo to build around long-term.
Utah will likely want at least another young asset or two in return as part of this projected blockbuster, but the framework is strong enough to build off it.
Jazz receive: Julius Randle, Alec Burks, Quentin Grimes, draft compensation
Knicks receive: Rudy Gobert
Atlanta Hawks
Want to find the perfect fit for Gobert outside of Utah? The Hawks are the ideal destination for Gobert, who would be able to shine outside of the Jazz&rsquo;s system. Trae Young pick-and-rolls with Gobert would simply be unfair to try to guard, and it would help insulate their star point guard in a better situation.
Atlanta also has the right amount of assets to make this compelling for Utah to pull the trigger. Whether it be John Collins or Bogdan Bogdanovic, either one could be the centerpiece to a Gobert deal. Also, Atlanta has an upcoming expiring salary in Danilo Gallinari with only $5 million guaranteed on his contract. If you throw together Collins, Gallinari and future draft compensation, it could be enough for the Jazz to take negotiations more seriously. Clint Capela could also be re-routed to another team to free up further cap flexibility as well.
For Atlanta, they are ready to win right now with Young leading the way. With Young, Kevin Huerter, De&rsquo;Andre Hunter, Onyeka Okongwu and Jalen Johnson, they have a young core that's ready to take the next step. Gobert brings a star piece to an organization that has the urgency to compete right now in the East, and they'll want to bounce back after how they crashed and burned to end their 2021-22 season. Also, the Hawks had the NBA's 26th-ranked defense this season (allowing 112.1 points per 100 possessions), so adding a three-time Defensive Player of the Year could be just what they need.
It wouldn&rsquo;t be a surprise to see a player of Young&rsquo;s caliber push for Gobert to join him in Atlanta too. With all the trade rumors swirling around Collins since he signed a five-year extension, this deal makes a lot of sense for both sides to explore further.
Jazz receive: John Collins, Danilo Gallinari, future draft compensation
Hawks receive: Rudy Gobert
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Golden State Warriors
Smoke is already forming around this possibility, if the Jazz indeed decide to blow it up in a few months. For the Warriors, it&rsquo;s an all-in move to create another dynasty in the final prime years of Stephen Curry, Klay Thompson and Draymond Green. With so much young talent climbing the ladder in the reloaded Western Conference, the time is now for the Warriors to make a splashy move to keep themselves atop the standings.
This will be the last time the Warriors can explore potential deals revolving around Andrew Wiggins&rsquo; bloated salary as well. Next season, Wiggins will be on an expiring contract making $33.6 million. With Wiggins, Golden State can immediately enter the conversation for Gobert while also having some intriguing young pieces that could appeal to Utah.
Jonathan Kuminga is likely off limits from the Warriors&rsquo; perspective, flashing real two-way potential throughout this season. However, what about a combination of Moses Moody and James Wiseman? Instantly, Utah can replenish their young core with two immediate contributors to place alongside Mitchell long-term. Throw in some future draft picks and the Jazz might be the ones who are ready to press &ldquo;accept&rdquo; on this hypothetical trade.
Golden State&rsquo;s new-age lineup of dominance would simply be unfair. Take a look at the Warriors&rsquo; projected lineup with Gobert: Curry, Jordan Poole, Thompson, Green and Gobert. With all of the versatility on display here, it could vault Golden State into a different stratosphere entirely.
Jazz receive: Andrew Wiggins, James Wiseman, Moses Moody, future draft compensation
Warriors receive: Rudy Gobert, Rudy Gay
Detroit Pistons
Here&rsquo;s a surprise team that could become very aggressive in the Gobert sweepstakes if the chips fall their way this offseason. No. 1 overall pick Cade Cunningham flashed superstar potential for the Pistons during his rookie campaign, especially after the All-Star break.
If the Pistons get lottery luck once more with a top pick in this year&rsquo;s draft, could they decide to push some chips into the middle of the table for Gobert? Imagine if the Pistons had a trio of Cunningham, Gobert and a top prospect (Jabari Smith or Paolo Banchero?) to build around for the next five-plus years.
For the Pistons, acquiring stars via the draft or trades is the only realistic route to obtaining a game-changing talent. We already saw it on display with their former regime when they traded for Blake Griffin, which led to little progress long-term. Unlike Griffin, Gobert actually fits into the organization's long-term calculus.
From the Jazz&rsquo;s perspective, they would be asking for a heavy return from a team like Detroit. We&rsquo;re talking two key pieces to their core as well as veteran wing Jerami Grant. Would the Pistons feel comfortable moving Saddiq Bey and Isaiah Stewart for Gobert? That may be Utah's asking price.
Jazz receive: Jerami Grant, Saddiq Bey, Isaiah Stewart, Kelly Olynyk, future draft compensation
Pistons receive: Rudy Gobert, Nickeil Alexander-Walker
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Entering a pivotal offseason, will the Utah Jazz blow it up? If so, which teams make sense as a landing spot for Rudy Gobert?

Examining potential trade destinations for Rudy Gobert

Yes, the Toronto Raptors were eliminated by the Philadelphia 76ers last week. They demonstrated potential in their first-round series but didn&rsquo;t have the chops to take down the 76ers.
While fan bases are generally indifferent about first-round eliminations, Raptors fans should be ecstatic. Not because they should perceive a playoff appearance as a success. That&rsquo;s nothing to write home about. No, Toronto fans should instead be happy about the quick rebuild from their 2019 championship team, and the underlying foundation they&rsquo;ve built.
Before we dive into exactly how Toronto accomplished their turnaround, let&rsquo;s take inventory of the other 29 teams&rsquo; recent successes, or lack thereof. There are 16 teams that haven&rsquo;t won a championship in 20 or more years and five that haven&rsquo;t won in 40 or more years. There are also 13 teams that haven&rsquo;t made the NBA Finals in 10 or more years and 14 teams that haven&rsquo;t won a playoff series in three or more years.
Juxtapose that with Toronto&rsquo;s situation. As I mentioned above, the Raptors won the 2019 championship in their 24th season in the league. They did so by being ultra-aggressive in adding Kawhi Leonard. While history could view the decision to swap DeMar DeRozan, Jakob Poeltl and a protected 2019 first-round pick for only one year of Leonard negatively, the fact of the matter is that DeRozan and Kyle Lowry led Toronto as far as they could. The only way the Raptors were going to win big was by acting boldly, which is exactly what they did.
But bold moves like adding players on expiring contracts can backfire, as it did for Toronto with Leonard leaving. Leonard was a particularly risky gamble given that his desire to return to Southern California was a badly-kept secret. &nbsp;
As many expected, Leonard signed with the Los Angeles Clippers as an unrestricted free agent in 2019. The Raptors' pursuit (and acquisition) of a championship cost them the ability to compete for the foreseeable future, or at least that&rsquo;s how it was initially perceived.
Surprisngly, 2019-20 went well for the Raptors. They received contributions from nearly everyone on their roster. The next season didn't go nearly as well, perhaps due to the loss of Marc Gasol and Serge Ibaka (or maybe something else entirely). Whatever the reason, the 2020-21 Raptors finished the season 27-45, good for the sixth-worst record in the league.
But those struggles were short-lived. The 2021-22 season started out well with victories in six of their first nine games. The Raptors miraculously ended this season with a 48-34 record, good for fifth-best in the Eastern Conference.
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Park Life - Ep.6 Thanks for riding with us all year long! We appreciate y&rsquo;all and can&rsquo;t wait to see you next season. <a href="https://t.co/EzK3bKK05L">pic.twitter.com/EzK3bKK05L</a>
&mdash; Toronto Raptors (@Raptors) <a href="https://twitter.com/Raptors/status/1520117178921537537?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">April 29, 2022</a></blockquote>

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Rebuilds are tricky in the NBA. The 76ers underwent a painful rebuild from 2013-2018. The Knicks have arguably been stuck in a rebuild since 2001. So, how did Toronto accomplish it after just one year? Much of the credit is owed to their president of basketball operations, Masai Ujiri.
Ujiri re-signed with the Raptors last Summer after joining Toronto in 2013. Before landing with Canada&rsquo;s only NBA franchise, Ujiri was the Denver Nuggets&rsquo; general manager from 2010 to 2013, where he won executive of the year in 2012-13.
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Ujiri&rsquo;s fingerprints are all over Toronto&rsquo;s roster. Ujiri&rsquo;s trade for Leonard was bold, but his moves since Leonard left Toronto are arguably more impressive.
Most notably, Ujiri and the Raptors convinced Fred VanVleet to stay in Toronto on a four-year/$85 million deal in November 2020. And they did so anti-climactically, with no free agent meetings or bidding wars.
VanVleet is a key example of Ujiri&rsquo;s brilliance. VanVleet was an undrafted rookie, signed by Ujiri and the team to a multi-year contract after a strong showing in the 2016 Summer League. He played well for the Raptors&rsquo; G-League affiliate, earning a place on the NBA team&rsquo;s roster. He&rsquo;s since become an All-Star.
But Toronto&rsquo;s success is about way more than just VanVleet. Ujiri also traded Norman Powell to Portland for Gary Trent Jr. and Rodney Hood last season. Powell signed a five-year/$90 million deal with Portland but was traded from the Trail Blazers to the Clippers this season. Conversely, Trent re-signed with the Raptors for a comparative bargain, three-years/$52 million. And Trent had a career year for the Raptors in 2021-22, with career-bests in points, assists and minutes per game.
Ujiri also drafted Scottie Barnes over Jalen Suggs. Barnes was seen as a gamble entering the draft. While some made comparisons to Draymond Green, others doubted his offensive ability, whereas Suggs was widely believed to be the fourth-best player in the draft. Barnes was recently named the 2021-22 Rookie of the Year.
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ROTY 4 SCOTTIE Open Gym: Moment presented by <a href="https://twitter.com/Bell?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@Bell</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/ScottBarnes561?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@ScottBarnes561</a> <a href="https://t.co/ZChgqo4nec">pic.twitter.com/ZChgqo4nec</a>
&mdash; Toronto Raptors (@Raptors) <a href="https://twitter.com/Raptors/status/1517922023137288192?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">April 23, 2022</a></blockquote>

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Additionally, the Raptors agreed on a sign-and-trade with the Miami Heat prior to 2021-22, sending Lowry to the Miami in exchange for Precious Achiuwa, Goran Dragic and a traded player exception (TPE). Lowry was an unrestricted free agent, but Miami didn&rsquo;t have the cap space to sign him outright. So, while this deal fell in Ujiri&rsquo;s lap, the fact that Toronto received Achiuwa, the 20th pick in the 2020 NBA Draft, as part of it was slightly surprising. Achiuwa was sixth in minutes, seventh in points and third in rebounds for the Raptors this season.
Toronto continues to benefit from other moves made by Ujiri, too, including the drafting of Pascal Siakam and OG Anunoby. Siakam has grown into the team&rsquo;s best player and leading scorer, and Anunoby has proven himself a wildly versatile wing. Siakam and Anunoby signed extensions with the Raptors in 2019 and 2020, respectively.
Team success is rarely, if ever, the product of one person, especially in basketball. Still, Ujiri has collected great talent and built an impressive culture. He&rsquo;s also developed and retained players better than most other executives. Credit whomever you&rsquo;d like, but the Raptors barely skipped a beat after losing a top-three player, and that is something to write home about.
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Despite losing a top-three player just a few seasons ago, the Raptors repositioned themselves for the future. How did they do it so quickly?

How Masai Ujiri and the Toronto Raptors rebuilt after Kawhi Leonard

The NBA Playoffs can initially seem like a statistical nightmare littered with small sample sizes, outlier performances and a lack of context. Those challenges also make the postseason one of the most exciting sandboxes for analysis &mdash; a place to marvel at a player's career-defining games and wonder: Is this replicable?
That's what I thought as I watched Jalen Brunson's dynamic 41-point explosion unfold in Monday's 110-104 win over the Jazz in Game 2. Brunson was simply unstoppable, stepping up in the absence of Luka Doncic to turn a series that felt like a lost cause into a very winnable matchup. He's currently tied for the second-highest scoring outing in the 2022 playoffs with DeMar DeRozan.
More interesting to me, though, are Brunson's two games in attack mode. His mark of 24 drives to the basket per game leads all postseason players, and his average of 13.5 field goal attempts per game via drives ranks second behind Donovan Mitchell. Brunson toasted a <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/utah-blues-whose-fault-is-it-anyway-jazz-fourth-quarter-game-2-mavericks" target="_blank" rel="noopener">disjointed Utah defense</a> in Game 2, blowing by opponents 1-on-1 and dissecting them with his shifty ball-handling.
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So to my question: Is this sustainable enough to propel the Mavericks to the next round, with or without Doncic? Though 40-point games might be a tall ask, Brunson has already proven himself to be one of the premier driving threats in the entire NBA.
Let's travel back to the regular season. According to Second Spectrum, Brunson drove toward the basket 13.6 times per game, good for 17th in the NBA but well under his current playoff pace. However, Brunson was not the lead ball-handler or driving catalyst for most of the season. Those responsibilities belonged to Doncic, who was second at a whopping 22.2 drives per game.
That being said, Brunson's 13.6 drives were the second-most in the league among secondary options, behind only Caris LeVert, who split time with the Pacers and Cavaliers. So he did attack with high frequency relative to his role, and when Brunson did, he was extremely effective.
The 25-year-old drilled 56.7% of his driving field goal attempts, eighth among 112 players averaging at least 5 drives per game. His 4.5% turnover rate was the seventh-lowest in that group.&nbsp;
What makes Brunson so successful? Though he doesn't get all the way to the rim very often (40th percentile at his position), he is simply an elite finisher around the basket. This regular season, the 6-foot-3-inch combo guard finished 68% of his attempts within 4 feet of the cup, per Cleaning the Glass &mdash; fourth among all guards.
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Brunson's acceleration and deceleration skills are eye-catching. He can use a quick crossover or between-the-legs dribble to instantly get up to speed and blow past defenders. Then, he gets the ball high early on his layup attempts, and has the strength to deal with contact from contesting opponents. There's nifty footwork in the above clips too, reinforcing that Brunson is not just a straight-line player.
While Brunson is strong at the rim, he is&nbsp;lethal&nbsp;just beyond it. A whopping 36% of his field goal attempts came in the "short mid-range" area between 4 and 14 feet from the basket. He knocked down 51% of those attempts, which is fifth among guards with at least 800 minutes played, per Cleaning the Glass.
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Here, you see the same on/off-speed changes, plus a methodical probing of the defense to find floaters and mid-range pull-ups.&nbsp;
These are some of the plays that stood out to me from the first two playoff games. Not all of the shots go in, but they demonstrate the confidence Brunson has in his ability to generate open looks. Brunson can turn the corner on opponents who switch or show aggressively on ball-screens, and pin defenders on his back and rock into a floater. He also has flashed a liking to attacking Rudy Gobert in deep drop coverage, getting the center on his heels and pulling back out for a mid-range jumper.&nbsp;
Utah can't really counter. Gobert is going to be a drop defender for the rest of the playoffs, and defenders like Mitchell, Jordan Clarkson, Royce O'Neale and Bojan Bogdanovic just don't seem to have the strength or lateral quickness to keep Brunson in front. That's especially devastating in pick-and-roll actions, where Brunson was frankly dominant in the regular season. Take a look at his numbers among the 99 players who logged at least 150 possessions as a pick-and-roll ball-handler:
<table style="border-collapse: collapse; width: 100%;" border="1">
<tbody>
<tr>
<td style="width: 12.03%;">P&amp;R Stats</td>
<td style="width: 6.61578%;">Playtype Freq.</td>
<td style="width: 11.1552%;">Points Per Poss. </td>
<td style="width: 7.49058%;">eFG%</td>
<td style="width: 10.8284%;">TOV%</td>
<td style="width: 11.4959%;">FT Rate</td>
<td style="width: 14.9672%;">Score Freq.</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="width: 12.03%;">Number</td>
<td style="width: 6.61578%;">32.4%</td>
<td style="width: 11.1552%;">1.06</td>
<td style="width: 7.49058%;">54.3%</td>
<td style="width: 10.8284%;">9.2%</td>
<td style="width: 11.4959%;">9.2%</td>
<td style="width: 14.9672%;">51.1%</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="width: 12.03%;">NBA Rank</td>
<td style="width: 6.61578%;">39th</td>
<td style="width: 11.1552%;">T-1st</td>
<td style="width: 7.49058%;">7th</td>
<td style="width: 10.8284%;">6th (Best)</td>
<td style="width: 11.4959%;">39th</td>
<td style="width: 14.9672%;">3rd</td>
</tr>
</tbody>
</table>
Mobile users scroll right to view full table
*Data via Synergy
Brunson is a poster child for reliability and soundly moves the ball, boasting an assist rate of 23.8% (75th percentile at his position) and an overall turnover rate of 9.4% (77th percentile). But that often overshadows his untapped upside as a scoring engine, which we saw in Game 2. Brunson did knock down 6 of his 10 pull-up attempts from long range in the victory. That likely won't sustain; he shot just 31.0% on pull-up threes on low volume in the regular season.
If Doncic returns soon, Brunson's life as a driver should become easier with the defense's focus shifted towards the Mavericks' superstar. Until then, Brunson has shown he's more than capable of holding down the fort as the top scoring option. Hopefully, offseason spenders recognize Brunson's malleability and pay the upcoming free agent accordingly.
THE OUTLIERS (a.k.a. other random interesting numbers I found in the void):
<ul>
<li>I'm going to throw some more super-small-sample early playoff stats at you that are nonetheless interesting. First: Pascal Siakam is leading the postseason in passes per game (69.3) and is second in touches per game (95.0).</li>
<li>Jayson Tatum (5.0) and Jaylen Brown (4.5) both rank in the top-five in deflections per game so far. Tatum in particular stood out to me as an individual and team defender in Boston's Game 2 victory.</li>
<li><a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/with-no-devin-booker-the-phoenix-suns-will-need-a-lift" target="_blank" rel="noopener">As our Nekias Duncan wrote</a>, the Phoenix Suns generated 1.5 points per possession on plays with Chris Paul utilizing a ball screen in Tuesday's loss to the Pelicans. CP3's pick-and-roll mastery will be a focal point for the Suns offense without Devin Booker.</li>
</ul>
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Jalen Brunson's 41-point game Monday highlighted his prowess as a driver and pick-and-roll playmaker.

NBA Stats Notebook: Jalen Brunson is in the driver's seat

NBA playoff basketball is finally here! With things kicking off on Saturday, I decided to highlight an X-factor I'll be keeping tabs on for each first-round series. Let's dig in, shall we?
(For deeper thoughts on each series, listen to <a href="https://twitter.com/HPbasketball" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Part I</a> and <a href="https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/play-in-weigh-in-part-two/id1547857052?i=1000557698545" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Part II</a> of our series previews at <a href="https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-dunker-spot/id1547857052" target="_blank" rel="noopener">The Dunker Spot</a>.)
(1) HEAT VS (8) HAWKS: STAR SWITCH BATTLE
Any hope of an Atlanta Hawks upset begins with the virtuosic creation ability of Trae Young. He's one of the NBA's best pick-and-roll creators, blessed with the ability to bend defenses to his will with a blend of pull-ups, floaters, stop-on-a-dime foul-drawing and every pass in the book.
Enter the Miami Heat, who do a tremendous job of flattening out offenses with switches. And that&nbsp;discussion begins with the versatility of Bam Adebayo.
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The Hawks score on this possession, but look at how much work it takes. Double drag? Nope. Running to a handoff to create an advantage? Nope. Forcing a favorable switch (Tyler Herro will have his work cut out for him) and hoping to attack? Nope, here comes a double.
Only two teams &mdash; the New Orleans Pelicans (0.847 PPP) and the Sacramento Kings (0.722 PPP) allowed fewer points per possession against Young-led ball screens than the Heat (0.851 PPP), and Miami faced more picks (182) than those two teams combined (119).&nbsp;
There's a reason for that. The Heat have the personnel and scheme versatility to make Young's life difficult.
(2) CELTICS VS (7) NETS: BRUCE BROWN'S PLAYMAKING
"We got to be physical with them. Now they don&rsquo;t have Robert Williams, so they have less of a presence in the paint. We can attack Al Horford and [Daniel] Theis. Them not having Rob Williams is huge.&rdquo;
That was Bruce Brown following the Brooklyn Nets' victory over the Cleveland Cavaliers in Round 1 of the Play-In Tournament on Tuesday night. Kevin Durant had to put out the fire shortly after, but the message rang loud: We think we have another avenue to attack your defense.
I think a lot about this possession from their most recent outing.
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The Nets opened the quarter with Spain pick-and-roll (!!!) and Boston switched every bit of it. That led to an Al Horford-Kyrie Irving matchup, but Williams felt comfortable trapping Kyrie to get the ball out of his hands. Brown has been making hay as a short-roll threat in 2022, and does so here by nailing a floater.
How often will those advantages be there for Brown? With no Williams, the Celtics will have to decide which of their frontcourt guys &mdash; Horford or Theis &mdash; will take the Brown assignment. And from there, what coverage will they go with? Will they switch, possibly throwing Horford or Theis on Kyrie or Kevin Durant in space? WIll they trap from there?
If so, the Nets may have a way to create some advantage situations aside from their stars.
(3) BUCKS VS (6) BULLS: KHRIS MIDDLETON LEADING THE DANCE
This doesn't seem like a great series for the Chicago Bulls. Quick hat tip to <a href="https://twitter.com/HPbasketball" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Matt Moore</a> for detailing just <a href="https://twitter.com/HPbasketball/status/1515199182641926145?s=20&amp;t=9hbXMskZXIW6rvu06kVdpQ" target="_blank" rel="noopener">how much of a mismatch</a> &mdash; on paper, at least! &mdash; this matchup projects to be.&nbsp;
If there's a Milwaukee Bucks thing to keep an eye on, it's the Khris Middleton-led stuff. The Bucks swept the season series, but Middleton wasn't his best self. He shot a shade under 28% from three and, for the purposes of this section, averaged nearly 4 turnovers per contest.
For the brilliance that Middleton can provide with his shot-making, his handle has long been a weak point against the peskiest of defenders. He's likely to see a steady dose of Ayo Dosunmu and Alex Caruso, guards who don't mind getting in his jersey.&nbsp;
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If Middleton isn't able to get to his spots comfortably &mdash; or worse, turns the ball over &mdash; the Bulls may have an avenue to junk up the Bucks' half-court attack.
(4) SIXERS VS (5) RAPTORS: JAMES HARDEN'S STEPBACK
I think James Harden's hamstring has been talked about enough. I'm not a doctor; I simply hope he's good to go because he's freaking awesome when he's healthy. It unlocks the full breadth of his game.
Regardless of which version of "Harden, The Driver" we get, he's going to need this shot.
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Harden made one of his eight stepback-three attempts against Toronto this season, and has converted just 31.6% of his stepback threes this season (roughly 4.0 attempts per game) via InStat tracking. That's a wild dip from last season (36.7% overall on 4.3 attempts) and the year before that (34.7% on 6.5 attempts).
I don't have to explain why shooting under 32% on an already-tough shot isn't ideal. The layer beyond that shot is the real issue; the nature of the shot, and location of the shot, makes Harden one of the last lines of defense in transition. The Sixers have been bad at getting back &mdash; they rank 20th or worse in every transition defense stat, per Cleaning The Glass &mdash; while the Raptors have been incredibly fruitful when they're able to run.
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(1) SUNS VS (8) PELICANS: WHO DEFENDS CHRIS PAUL?
Herb Jones is one of the best defenders in the sport. My pals and I landed on him as the <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/defensive-awards-and-a-celebration-of-defense" target="_blank" rel="noopener">NBA's best screen navigator</a> already. His nimbleness and persistence will bother someone in this series.
That's the thing though: He's only one dude.
If Jones gets the Devin Booker matchup (a reasonable guess), who's defending the other All-NBA caliber guard for Phoenix? That might land on nominal point guard CJ McCollum, who hasn't had the best luck at defending Paul.
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Paul-led pick-and-rolls with McCollum as the primary defender have generated well over 1.5 points per possession over the last three seasons, per Second Spectrum. That number drops to the 1.3 PPP range when filtered for drop coverage, but, like, that's still pretty absurd.
The Pelicans will have some options. Chief among them: Switching screens between Paul and Deandre Ayton, then tasking Jaxson Hayes (likely to defend Jae Crowder) with saving McCollum by executing a scram switch.
Of course, the Suns have counters to that counter; don't be surprised if Crowder is used as an off-ball screener to occupy Hayes' attention.
(2) GRIZZLIES VS (7) TIMBERWOLVES: WHERE IS JAREN JACKSON JR.?
Let's take a look at two possessions. Ja Morant-led pick-and-rolls, the Minnesota Timberwolves in their base "two to the ball" pick-and-roll coverage. Two missed shots. Keep an eye on Jaren Jackson Jr. for both.
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That's JJJ chilling at the left wing, with Jarred Vanderbilt stunting at the roll from Steven Adams before retreating. D'Angelo Russell is now tasked with making the rotation as the low-man.
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On this one, Jackson is chilling in the dunker spot after clearing the left side of the floor. The Memphis Grizzlies are setting up a screening action for Desmond Bane &mdash; a smart counter to the Wolves sending two players to Morant &mdash; but look at Vanderbilt. He's able to peel over early while Karl-Anthony Towns works his way back to Adams. Russell tasked with dropping down to Jackson if a full rotation from Vanderbilt is needed.
When I say "Where is JJJ.?", you can take that in a "Will he show up?" context. He will need to knock down threes, and his mobility will be needed against Towns in space when he's asked to play the 5.
But it's important to note Jackson's literal location on the court. Where he's stationed can lead to some tough rotations for the Wolves if they continue to defend aggressively.&nbsp;
(3) WARRIORS VS (6) NUGGETS: FINDING THE BLEND WITH NIKOLA JOKIC
Nikola Jokic has improved quite a bit as a defender over the past three seasons. He's firmly good as an at-the-level defender, and he made real strides as a drop defender this season. Arguing for an All-Defensive team selection is a bridge (or two) too far, but the liability talk should've died a while ago.
With that being said, the Golden State Warriors pose some real trouble for him. The Stephen Curry-Jordan Poole-Klay Thompson triumvirate has the pull-up chops to abuse drop coverage. Kevon Looney screens and hand-backs could also create open threes.
With Draymond Green (or Gary Payton II when he's out there), the Warriors have the short-roll playmaking chops to beat a two-to-the-ball scheme.
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We get both coverages from Jokic on this possession. He starts in drop, with Monte Morris doing a fine-enough job staying attached to Poole. The ball swings to Thompson, and Jokic plays higher up. Two screens, two coverages, two solid results for Denver.
Then the&nbsp;third&nbsp;action happens, which also coincides with Poole jetting to the right corner and Aaron Gordon being occupied with Andrew Wiggins. Jokic is in another drop but he can't beat Thompson to his spot, nor does he have help on the backline.
What do you do with that?
Probably not drop.&nbsp;
The Warriors generated north of 1.3 points per possession (!!!) when facing Jokic in drop coverage during their regular season meetings, per Second Spectrum. Playing Jokic to the level will be a tough task, especially considering the offensive workload he'll have to carry, but that may be the easier poison to deal with.&nbsp;
(4) MAVERICKS VS (5) JAZZ: SPENCER DINWIDDIE'S DRIVES
With no Luka Doncic for at least Game 1, more offensive responsibility will fall into the hands of Spencer Dinwiddie.&nbsp;
He's been a godsend for the Dallas Mavericks, averaging 16-3-4 while shooting over 40% from three since joining the team. He's been a great complement to Doncic; naturally, some of Dinwiddie's success is due to Doncic drawing the best perimeter defender on the opposing team.
That may shift to Dinwiddie now &mdash; I doubt we're going to see, like, Royce O'Neale on Jalen Brunson for extended stretches. It'll be up to Dinwiddie to puncture defenses and start the chain of rotations. He hasn't had much success against Utah this season; he's shooting just 44.4% off of drives against the Jazz, and he's paired that with a paltry 8.5% assist rate.
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Nekias Duncan breaks down a key factor for each first round series of the 2022 NBA Playoffs.

Pressure points: Critical first-round battles in the 2022 NBA Playoffs

PHILADELPHIA (AP) &mdash; Joel Embiid made his closing argument for MVP votes and all but wrapped up the NBA scoring title, scoring 41 points while adding 20 rebounds and four assists to lead the Philadelphia 76ers to a 133-120 victory Saturday over the Indiana Pacers.
Embiid shot 14 for 17 from the floor, went 11 of 15 from the foul line and made both his 3-point attempts in a game that Philadelphia (50-31) needed to win to remain alive in the hunt for the third seed in the Eastern Conference playoffs. It was the first time this season that an NBA player scored 40 or more points and had 20 or more rebounds in a game. It was the third time in Embiid's career it has happened &mdash; with all three times coming against the Pacers.
&ldquo;I've always said that every single night, I want to dominate,&rdquo; Embiid said. &ldquo;If you are dominating, things can show up in a lot of different ways &mdash; whether it is offensively or defensively. Sometimes, the numbers don't show it. But it's good, I guess.&rdquo;
Philadelphia coach Doc Rivers said: &ldquo;It's methodical and historical. Whatever the calls you want to put on it, it's what's he's been."
James Harden had 22 points and 14 assists for Philadelphia, who also got double-digit point performances from Tobias Harris (18), Tyrese Maxey (18) and Danny Green (15).
&ldquo;We're getting better,&rdquo; Rivers said.
Oshae Brissett scored 20 points and Tyrese Haliburton had 19 for Indiana (25-56), which lost its ninth straight game. The Pacers fell behind by 21 points in the first half, then cut the deficit to five late in the third quarter before Embiid and Harden began to take control of the game.
&ldquo;We haven&rsquo;t seen a guy like this in the history of the league who has this kind of power and skill,&rdquo; Indiana coach Rick Carlisle said of Embiid. &ldquo;He's able to score on all three levels effortlessly. He's an amazing player and it will be interesting to see what teams do in the playoffs to try to slow him down.&rdquo;
Embiid is now averaging 30.6 points for the season, which is just ahead of LeBron James&rsquo; 30.3-point-per-game clip for the Los Angeles Lakers and Kevin Durant&rsquo;s 30.1 average for the Brooklyn Nets.
But neither James nor Durant will play enough games to qualify for the statistical title; in an 82-game season, 58 games played is the minimum. That means the scoring race comes down to Embiid and Milwaukee&rsquo;s Giannis Antetokounmpo, who would need a miracle finish to grab the scoring crown. The last center to win a scoring title with a more than 30 ppg average was Bob McAdoo, who averaged 31.1 points in 1976-77.
Embiid also has been considered one of main contenders for league MVP, along with Antetokounmpo and Denver's Nikola Jokic. Saturday's game was Embiid's 13th scoring 40 or more points.
The Sixers can move up to the third seed in the East and a first-round matchup with Chicago with a victory over Detroit on Sunday and a Boston loss at Memphis. Otherwise, Philadelphia will face Toronto in the 4-5 matchup in the first round of the postseason tournament.
Embiid said no decision was made about his playing status for Sunday night's game, which takes place at the same time Boston faces Memphis.
&ldquo;I want to, but at the same time it's a back to back and we have to get ready for the playoffs,&rdquo; Embiid said. &ldquo;I want to play because we still need to work on my spacing and chemistry. Whatever we can get out of this last game, it will be good.&rdquo;
TIP-INS
Pacers: Indiana guard Malcolm Brogdon was ruled out with lower back soreness while Jalen Smith sat because of left groin soreness. Reserve forward Nate Hinton was ruled out for the final two games because of the NBA's health and safety protocols. &ldquo;He's in a van heading home,&rdquo; coach Rick Carlisle said.
76ers: For the second straight game, Philadelphia inserted veteran guard Danny Green into the starting lineup in the spot normally held by top defender Matisse Thybulle. Thybulle may not be able to play in a possible first-round series in Toronto because of his COVID-19 vaccination status. Canadian rules forbid cross-border travel to anyone not vaccinated; Thybulle has not said publicly whether he is vaccinated. He missed Thursday night's 119-114 road loss to the Raptors and was listed as &ldquo;ineligible to play." ... Guard Georges Niang missed Saturday's game with left knee soreness. Rivers said the move was precautionary. &ldquo;If this was a playoff game, he would be in there,&rdquo; the coach said in his pre-game meeting with the media.
UP NEXT
Pacers: Play at Brooklyn on Sunday to finish their season.
76ers: Host Detroit on Sunday night in regular-season finale.

Joel Embiid makes one last MVP push with 41 points and 20 rebounds in Philadelphia's season finale.

Embiid has 41 points, 20 rebounds as Sixers down Pacers

DETROIT (AP) — Luka Doncic has helped the Dallas Mavericks win 50 games, a relatively rare feat lately for the franchise.
The All-Star guard had 26 points, 14 assists and eight rebounds to lead Dallas in a 131-113 win over the Detroit Pistons on Wednesday night.
The Mavericks reached the 50-win mark for the first time in seven years, and just the second since winning their only NBA title.
“It’s a great accomplishment," coach Jason Kidd said. “The guys in that locker room can’t take that lightly because it’s not easy to do."
Dallas is 20 games above .500 for the first time since 2011, when they went on to win the NBA title. The franchise is set up to earn home-court advantage in the playoffs, for the first time since Kidd was their point guard during the championship season, after starting 2022 with a losing record.
“I think it’s pretty impressive," Doncic said. “We started the season kind of slow. I’m proud of how we played and hopefully we get to 52 (wins)."
Jalen Brunson had 24 points for the Mavericks, who have won five of their last six to build momentum going into the playoffs next week.
Rookie of the Year candidate Cade Cunningham had 25 points, nine assists and seven rebounds for the Pistons, who had won three straight to match what was their longest winning streak of the season.
Even with the game out of reach in the final minutes, coach Dwane Casey had his starters on the floor.
“That’s going to be a top team in the West," Casey said. “I wanted them to feel it and experience it."
Dallas led by as much as eight in the first, but trailed 34-32 after Doncic and Cunningham each had their fourth assist over the last 3.4 seconds of the quarter.
The Mavs moved back ahead in the second quarter and led 65-58 at halftime with Doncic scoring 16 points, making six assists. 
Doncic was called for his fourth foul at the 8:05 mark of the third. Kidd left him in the game and it turned out to be a wise move as Doncic was dominant, making a 3-pointer and assist that put the Mavs ahead 93-77 late in the quarter.
Dallas didn't have any trouble keeping its comfortable cushion in the fourth, finishing with 15 3-pointers on 33 shots beyond the arc.
“They do a great job of spreading out and making 3-point shots," Casey said. “You make one mistake and they make you pay. They’re a great offensive team, exactly what we want to be in terms of moving the basketball and knocking down 3s," 
CROSSOVER
Kidd is among the many marveling that Tiger Woods is teeing off at the Masters on Thursday morning, 14 months after a car crash left him in a hospital bed for three months.
“What Tiger is doing has already broken the internet,” Kidd said. “If he’s in the running for winning it, he definitely will shut down the internet. What he’s done to just come back, is incredible. I think everyone will be watching.”
TIP-INS
Mavericks: Reserve Sterling Brown missed the game for personal reasons. ... Forward Maxi Kleber (right ankle) missed a second straight game. ... The Mavs have won five straight against Detroit, winning each game by double digits.
Pistons: The banged-up, rebuilding team was without several injured players Marvin Bagley (hip), Hamidou Diallo (finger), Jerami Grant (calf), Cory Joseph (back), Rodney McGruder (hip) and rested Kelly Olynyk. “I think we have a couple of coaches, and we are ready to go," Casey joked. ... Faces in the crowd included Michigan State coach Tom Izzo, sitting with former players Mateen Cleaves and Mat Ishbia, who has courtside seats.
UP NEXT
Mavericks: Close the regular season at home against Portland on Friday night and San Antonio on Sunday.
Pistons: End the regular season against Milwaukee on Friday night at home and at Philadelphia on Sunday.
___
More AP NBA: https://apnews.com/hub/nba and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports

Luka Doncic leads the Dallas Mavericks over the Detroit Pistons for Dallas' 50th win on the season.

Luka Doncic-led Mavericks beat Pistons 131-113 for 50th win

Kyrie Irving scored 42 points and the Brooklyn Nets beat the Houston Rockets 118-105 on Tuesday night to improve their position in the race for play-in seeding.
Irving had 17 points in the fourth quarter. Kevin Durant added 18 points, Bruce Brown had 15 and Cam Thomas 13 for the Nets. Andre Drummond finished with 10 points and 11 rebounds.
With Cleveland, Atlanta and Charlotte all losing, the Nets climbed into a tie for eighth place in the Eastern Conference, just 1 1/2 games behind the Cavaliers. The No. 7 seed hosts a game to open the tournament.
Kevin Porter Jr scored a season-high 36 points and Jalen Green added 30 for the Rockets.
The Nets led by as many as 21 points late in the third quarter, but a 15-0 Houston run brought the Rockets within 90-84. Irving scored the game&rsquo;s next eight points and Brooklyn held a double-digit lead the rest of the way.
The Nets led by nine early, but a 12-2 Houston run capped by Alperen Sengun&rsquo;s breakaway dunk gave the Rockets their only lead of the game, 18-17.
Brooklyn scored the next eight points and led 30-25 after the first quarter.
After the Rockets tied the game at 32, the Nets went on a 10-0 run. They increased their lead to 51-37 on Kessler Edwards&rsquo; short jumper with 5:14 left in the half and went into halftime up 64-47 following Irving's 3-pointer with 44 seconds remaining.
Porter&rsquo;s 3-pointer cut it to 77-65 midway through the third quarter but the Nets scored the next seven points and took their biggest lead at 90-69 on Thomas&rsquo; short jumper with 1:21 remaining in the quarter.
But those were the last points Brooklyn scored until Irving&rsquo;s jumper with 8:33 left in the game snapped that 15-0 Houston run.
Sengun added 14 points and 11 rebounds for the Rockets, who have lost five straight games and have the worst record in the NBA.
TIP-INS
Rockets: No Houston player has seen action in each of the team&rsquo;s 80 games this season. Kenyon Martin Jr. has played in the most (77), while Jae&rsquo;Sean Tate (75) has the most starts.
Nets: Seth Curry (left ankle soreness), Goran Dragic (health and safety protocols) and James Johnson (non-Covid illness) were all out of the Brooklyn lineup. &hellip; LaMarcus Aldridge played for the first time since March 6.
UNFAMILIAR FACES
Brooklyn debuted a new starting five on Tuesday (Durant, Brown, Drummond, Patty Mills, Irving). They became the 43rd different starting lineup in Brooklyn&rsquo;s 79 games. Overall, 19 players have made at least one start for the Nets this season.
PASSING OF A FRANCHISE FIXTURE
Herb Turetzky, who was the <a href="https://apnews.com/article/brooklyn-nets-nba-sports-nyc-state-wire-new-jersey-919f9ac84293b2d378c26397f159de3a">Nets&rsquo; official scorer for 54 years</a> across multiple leagues and states, died Monday at 76. Turetzky was a senior at Long Island University when he scored the first game in franchise history &mdash; when the New Jersey Americans of the American Basketball Association hosted the Pittsburgh Pipers on Oct. 23, 1967, in Teaneck, New Jersey. He went on to score more than 2,200 games, a record for pro basketball games that was certified in the Guinness Book of World Records.
&ldquo;He was a beloved figure within the organization and beyond,&rdquo; coach Steve Nash said. &ldquo;We want to make sure his family recognizes how important he was to the franchise and how our thoughts are with them at this time.&rdquo;
UP NEXT
Rockets: Houston visits Toronto on Friday.
Nets: Brooklyn visits New York on Wednesday.

Kyrie Irving scored 42 points and the Nets beat the Rockets 118-105 to improve their position in the race for play-in seeding.

Irving scores 42, Nets beat Rockets 118-105 to move to 8th

Whether Orlando Magic big man Wendell Carter Jr. is retweeting praise for Duke basketball's March Madness run or hyping up his girlfriend, Olivia Nelson-Ododa, during her own tourney run as a senior at UConn, one thing is a constant part of Carter's social media presence: the hashtag #ABC.&nbsp;
Accept, believe and confess.
"Accept that whatever happens happens, believe that it happens for a reason," Carter said. "If you did something good, confess that. If you did something bad, confess that too. It's allowing yourself to think on certain things that happened in your life, but not allow them to dictate what's going to happen next."
It's his life mantra, instilled in him by his mother, Kylia. He credits Duke head coach Mike Krzyzewski for continuing to build those qualities in him, reinforcing the importance of enjoying the moment and remaining present.
Carter is a spiritual person, having grown up in the church. As such, confession as a concept is essential to him, and it comes through in his honesty as a speaker and openness about his development. The work speaks for itself, but he's transparent in the time and energy that's gone into a career-year, crediting those who have been key in finding his game in Orlando.
Acceptance was a key element for Carter at the 2021 trade deadline, when he was traded from Chicago to Orlando in the deal for Nikola Vucevic. He thought Chicago was going to be his home as a professional and couldn't fathom being traded.
"I thought I was going to be there forever," Carter said.
The move took him by surprise and hurt in the moment, but he was quick to shift and reframe his mindset.
"I felt what happened," he said. "I believed that one person didn't want me, but the next person does."
Carter says that the confession aspect of things didn't really factor in, but anyone who has watched him this season knows he's confessed every night on the court with his play.
He's averaging career-highs across the board both in per-game and per-minute queries. It's not just the production but also how he is producing that's been the difference. His aggression is staggering compared to his first three seasons, which has resulted in his creating more shots for himself.
<table style="border-collapse: collapse; width: 89.5856%; height: 66px;" border="1">
<tbody>
<tr style="height: 22px;">
<td style="width: 16.9718%; height: 22px; text-align: center;">Time Frame</td>
<td style="width: 13.2375%; height: 22px; text-align: center;">2 point %</td>
<td style="width: 16.1731%; height: 22px; text-align: center;">2 point assisted %</td>
<td style="width: 20.0959%; height: 22px; text-align: center;">Pull-up 2s taken and %</td>
<td style="width: 15.5609%; text-align: center;">True-shooting %</td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 22px;">
<td style="width: 16.9718%; height: 22px; text-align: center;">First 3 seasons</td>
<td style="width: 13.2375%; height: 22px; text-align: center;">53.4%</td>
<td style="width: 16.1731%; height: 22px; text-align: center;">74.7%</td>
<td style="width: 20.0959%; height: 22px; text-align: center;">61 (26.2%)</td>
<td style="width: 15.5609%; text-align: center;">56.6%</td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 22px;">
<td style="width: 16.9718%; height: 22px; text-align: center;">2021-22</td>
<td style="width: 13.2375%; height: 22px; text-align: center;">61.5%</td>
<td style="width: 16.1731%; height: 22px; text-align: center;">60.9%</td>
<td style="width: 20.0959%; height: 22px; text-align: center;">60 (55%)</td>
<td style="width: 15.5609%; text-align: center;">60.1%</td>
</tr>
</tbody>
</table>
(Scroll right for full table on mobile)
To put into perspective how remarkable that two-point percentage is, Carter is on the verge of breaking Orlando's single-season record previously held by Dwight Howard (who shot 61.7% from two in 2009-10).
Carter is launching more from three, and while the percentages have dipped as the season has gone on, he's no longer hesitating from behind the arc like in past season. According to <a href="https://dunksandthrees.com/player?player_id=1628976" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Dunks and Threes</a>, Carter has a career-high in Offensive Estimated Plus-Minus (+1.2) after not posting a neutral mark any of the prior three seasons.
Carter's handle is also noticeably tighter. He's more fluid off the bounce and has real verve in face-ups and isolation. He's flashed these skills throughout his career, but he has emboldened and exacerbated them this season.
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He's finishing better through contact and has more control and counters near the basket, shooting 75% at the rim this season, per Cleaning the Glass. That's a near 10% uptick compared to his career rate from 0-4 feet (65.9%).
Furthemore, he's played more at the four this season than he has his entire career, and his skill growth has made that much more viable and realistic than in prior years.&nbsp;
Carter gives a great deal of credit to Orlando's coaching staff for their belief in him, but also for empowering him to be this player every day. He had three different head coaches in Chicago, and it was difficult to find a consistent footing with so much in flux. That changed in Orlando, where he has found stability.
"They've kind of instilled in me like, 'Man, you're a great player. We've seen plenty of flashes. We know what Wendell can really be. Can we see you do this for a whole 48-minute game? Can we see you play like those little spurts we'll see every now and then? Can you do that more often?'"
He says they didn't put pressure on him but rather enabled his upside and fostered his development. He credits head coach Jamahl Mosley, associate head coach Nate Tibbets and assistant coach Dale Osbourne with helping him start to realize his potential.
"Coach Mos, Nate, Os, they all really helped me, and they all believe that there's something special in the kind of player I am," Carter said.
Carter also works out with video coordinator Randy Gregory every night.
"That's a guy I definitely trust and have a lot of respect and love for," Carter said.
That in-season work coupled with his offseason training set the table for his career-year. He notes that conditioning was the biggest thing he tackled over the summer, putting in the work to keep up with smaller and quicker players on defense. In order to tighten his handle and hone his shot, he worked on them each day, fine-tuning them with repetition and mental imagery, repeating scenarios in his head and replicating in-game scenarios.
The process has helped him find his "swagger," which oozes on-court with his play and intensity.
"The work shows up at some point," he said. "I'm grateful that I'm able to display that each night."
He laughs that it's a cliche statement, but it resounds in truth, cliche or not. The consistency he's displayed this season shouldn't be taken with a grain of salt, as the reps he put in have instilled that confidence and augmented his game, allowing him to become one of the better up-and-coming players in the NBA.
Carter has always possessed a good feel for the game and playmaking chops, but he's put it all together this season. Orlando has a great deal of ball-handlers and players who can soak up some on-ball usage, including Franz Wagner, Cole Anthony, Jalen Suggs, Markelle Fultz and others. The Magic run an offense predicated on motion and flow, so without a true primary option, they rely on advantage continuation buffering from smaller actions to open up better looks.
Dribble handoffs are a staple of this offense, and Carter is the main vessel for stabilizing the offense through DHOs. At times with the Bulls when he'd run these actions, he could get stuck and hesitate if the offensive player coming to the ball was denied. Not anymore. He's reading, reacting and taking what the defense gives him with gumption.
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Another part of his offseason and in-season prep has been a heavy dose of breaking down tape and segmenting the game. He's looked to find new ways to process the game. Slowing things down off the court has allowed him to speed up his on-court activity.
"I've been training my mind and looking at film and doing the little things," Carter said. "Now when I get in those situations, it's not that I'm overthinking, but that's literally just what I see."
If his defender leans one way, he knows he has the crossover and can take it to the rack. If the incoming defender goes under the DHO, he has the throwback to his man outside the arc.
He's a bonecrushing screener, capable of creating separation at a high level to screen open a ball-handler. But it's not just the strength; he's adept at flipping and angling his screens and adjusting for each individual handler on the team.
"Certain guards like for screens to be set at certain angles and come up with their left hand," Carter said. "Some like to come up with the right hand. Some like the pick to be flat so they can come off either way to create their own advantage for themselves."
There's <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/explaining-why-we-need-to-appreciate-screening-more" target="_blank" rel="noopener">a lot more that goes into setting a screen</a> than meets the eye, and Carter is a master of of it. His amalgamation of strength, playmaking and ferocity as a roller afford him the blend of skills necessary to create offense at a high level with and without the ball.
"I think there's so many ways in which he can go," Jamahl Mosley said when asked about Carter's growth and future development. "He&rsquo;s shown the ability to finish at the rim and to step out and make the three. The next step is continuing to make his teammates better by making those decisions and getting guys open and good looks.&rdquo;
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Carter has a wide array of passes in his bag. He can make a pocket pass, put good touch on a post-entry, paint the corners or slot on the short roll, hit cutters out of the mid or high post and even throw in some enamoring one-handers off the dribble. The consistency has improved, but as Mosley notes, there's even more for Carter on the table.&nbsp;
The passing and processing strides this season are notable and play out routinely on the court, but one of Carter's most sizable gains have been as a leader of Orlando's young core.
"His growth is not just on the floor, it&rsquo;s off the floor as well," Mosley said. "His voice in that locker room, keeping guys up, keeping guys accountable. Our group is a group of that, just tied together, continuing to communicate and working on and off the floor."
While that growth in leadership isn't fully visible to an outside observer, the communication comes through on the court, and not just from Carter. The Magic have struggled offensively like any young team still searching for more consistent and efficient modes of creation, but they're building a rock-solid defensive foundation.
Since the All-Star Break, the Magic are second in the NBA in defensive efficiency (allowing 109.9 points per 100 possessions) behind only the Memphis Grizzlies, per Cleaning the Glass. They're 7-11 in that time frame, including quality wins (over the Golden State Warriors, Minnesota Timberwolves, Toronto Raptors and New Orleans Pelicans) and close games against some top-notch competition (such as the Phoenix Suns and Philadelphia 76ers). Widen the lens, and the Magic are eighth in defense since the turn of the calendar. There's something here, and Carter is central to Orlando's growth as a defensive unit.
Carter has been among the league's best rim protectors this season, capable of operating in a deep drop, higher up in centerfield or helping off the weak-side as a secondary rim protector alongside Mo Bamba. According to Second Spectrum Tracking, opponents shoot 11.2% worse than expected when Carter is defending the rim, a mark that puts him in the upper tier of paint protectors in the league and comfortably in the top 10 of that metric. He doesn't block an outlier number of shots, but don't let that fool you. Come at the king, and you best not miss because he's going to be in the right spot with extremely well-timed contests and verticality, getting the most of his 7-foot-3 wingspan.
In a pinch, he can switch onto smaller players and hold his own on the perimeter, something Carter mentions he focused on as he prepared for the season. 
"I had to kind of tackle that this past offseason, being able to keep up with a lot of these 4s and 3s," he said.
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"He&rsquo;s taken on the defensive challenge of playing some of these big-time bigs," Mosley said. "He&rsquo;s guarding 1-through-5 in situations, being able to step into big moments as he has."
Orlando's game against Philadelphia earlier in March was a showcase of Carter's growth on both ends, as he matched up with top-notch competition. He went right at Joel Embiid all night off the dribble, attacking from the outside in and finishing with 23 points and 12 rebounds. He defended Embiid most of the night, and while Embiid scored 35 points, it was on mediocre efficiency (49.3% TS), buoyed by trips to the line. Carter defended the MVP candidate one-on-one better than just about anyone has this season while giving him work on the other end. 
There's a short list of players in the world who can put together that sort of game, and those performances are becoming more of a regularity. Carter recently set a new career-high in scoring (30) against Oklahoma City, and he has scored fewer than 10 points just once in 2022.
The foundation is set, and the seeds of the next hopeful era of Magic basketball have been sown over the course of the regular season. Orlando's year will end in roughly a week after the final buzzer sounds out at Amway Center on April 10, closing out against the Miami Heat at home. In spite of a losing record, the future seems much brighter in Orlando than recent years. Carter's strides underscore the budding potential of a young and talented organization.
He wants to be an All-Star someday. He says he wants to make All-Defensive teams and earn a First-Team All-NBA selection in the future.
"On a deeper level, I feel like just turning up Orlando to the levels that Shaq and Penny had this place rockin' &mdash; sold-out games every night, don't matter who we play, because they come to see us," Carter said.
He loved the 30 for 30 "This Magic Moment" about the '90s Magic and says that documentary and "The Last Dance"&nbsp;got him hyped and motivated about the future in Orlando.
He details the process, which involves taking the next steps as a competitive team, getting to the playoffs, winning rounds and developing the confidence as an organization to eventually win a championship.
"That's the game within the game that I'm looking at," Carter said. "If we get that swag, that feeling, you know we've got the whole city behind us, rocking with us. I feel like that's just such a dope feeling to have."
Hitting higher grounds as an individual clearly means a lot to Carter, but he lit up in an entirely different way when talking about revitalizing Magic basketball. He wants it bad. He's spearheading Orlando's youth movement with his play and development this season, showing his commitment to the process and growth while building upon and unsheathing his potential. As the Magic continue to take steps forward, Carter has cemented himself as a franchise cornerstone as they carve out a more auspicious horizon.
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Wendell Carter Jr. has made leaps across the board and is primed for more, foreshadowing a bright future for himself and the Magic.

Wendell Carter Jr.: Turning up his game and 'turning up Orlando'

BOSTON (AP) &mdash; Jaylen Brown scored 32 points and Jayson Tatum had 31 to help the Boston Celtics stop a rare late-season stumble and beat the Indiana Pacers 128-123 on Friday night.
It was the eighth time this season that &ldquo;The Jays&rdquo; each scored at least 30 points.
&ldquo;We're not trying to take turns. Just playing the game the right way,&rdquo; Tatum said. &ldquo;If he takes six good shots in a row, that&rsquo;s fine with me.&rdquo;
The Pacers lost their sixth straight game despite getting 30 points from Tyrese Haliburton before he fouled out early in the fourth quarter with Indiana trailing 103-101. The Celtics led 124-120 with 40 seconds left when <a href="https://twitter.com/celtics/status/1510075050048688135">Al Horford found Tatum coming down the lane </a> for a dunk that all but sealed Boston's win.
Horford scored 17 points with 10 rebounds for the Celtics, who had won 24 of 28 games before losing to Toronto on Monday night without four of their starters. They followed it up with a loss to Miami on Wednesday &mdash; the first time they lost back-to-back games in two months as they climbed from below .500 to the top of the Eastern Conference standings.
But a loss to the Pacers, a non-playoff team with the fifth-most losses in the league, would have been more concerning.
&ldquo;Credit to them for making it tough on you,&rdquo; Celtics coach Ime Udoka said. &ldquo;They&rsquo;re playing loose and free with nothing to lose right now. You can tell. At the same time, we&rsquo;re aiding them.&rdquo;
Oshae Brissett and Jalen Smith scored 17 points apiece for the Pacers.
The Celtics scored 11 of the first 13 points in the game before giving up the next nine to tie it. Boston took a 37-28 at the end of the first quarter and led by as many as 10 points in the second.
FOULED OUT
Haliburton had 22 points at halftime and had 30 points on 10-for-11 shooting &mdash; including 6 for 6 from 3-point range &mdash; before picking up his fifth foul with 4:27 left in the third quarter on a collision with Boston&rsquo;s Derrick White while going for a loose ball.
Haliburton complained about the call, and got coach Rick Carlisle to challenge it, but it was upheld. Haliburton sat out the rest of the third and the first 3:33 of the fourth, then lasted just 14 seconds before fouling out, drawing jeers from the crowd.
INJURIES
The Celtics, who lost center Robert Williams III to a meniscus tear on Sunday, had a few injury scares against Indiana, but Udoka said everyone is OK.
Brown appeared wobbly after getting hit in the face by teammate Grant Williams but he returned. Williams is OK after stepping on someone's foot. Guard Marcus Smart limped off to the locker room at the end of the first half after a collision with Daniel Theis but returned for the third quarter.
&ldquo;I reaggravated an injury in my right ankle. It scared me for a moment as well,&rdquo; Smart said. &ldquo;Don&rsquo;t need to be going down at this time, getting close to the playoffs. But I&rsquo;m fine. Checked it out. I&rsquo;ll be all right.&rdquo;
TIP-INS
Before the game, the Celtics honored longtime Pacers director of media relations David Benner. Celtics vice president Jeff Twiss presented Benner, who has worked for the Pacers for 28 years, with a piece of the Boston Garden parquet floor. ... Celtics swingman Nik Stauskas missed the game with a right ankle sprain. ... Pacers guard Malcolm Brogdon missed his seventh straight game. ... For '90s night, the Celtics brought back 1991 slam dunk contest winner Dee Brown. ... Tatum had three 3-pointers, giving him 222 for the season, tying Antoine Walker's 2002 mark for the second-most in franchise history.
UP NEXT
Pacers: Host Detroit on Sunday.
Celtics: Host Washington in regular-season home finale on Sunday.
&nbsp;

Jaylen Brown scored 32 points and Jayson Tatum had 31 to help the Boston Celtics beat the Indiana Pacers 128-123.

Brown, Tatum pair up to lead Celtics past Pacers 128-123

In today's NBA, we&rsquo;re seeing more and more second-generation players. Stephen Curry is probably the most notable example, but Jerami Grant, Jalen Brunson and Jaren Jackson, Jr. are also the sons of former NBA players. And there&rsquo;s a lot more of them out there.
Throughout the course of NBA history, there have been a lot of basketball dads, including some who were able to coach their sons. Doc Rivers coached his son, Austin, and George Karl coached against his son Coby.
However, there&rsquo;s something we&rsquo;ve never seen before, and that&rsquo;s a teammate dad.
During All-Star Weekend, LeBron James admitted that he wants to become the first dad to play alongside his son, Bronny, and I'm hoping that we can witness that.
LeBron teaming up with his son would be a completely different level of accomplishment. And yes, it would be an accomplishment.
As athletes (especially NBA players) trying to win championships, we know that there&rsquo;s only so much we can control. We can eat right, have the best habits and act as great teammates and good coaches. Winning is hard, succeeding is hard, and doing so for 20 years is damn-near impossible.
LeBron has done it, though.
A lot has to line up for that to potentially happen. LeBron is 37 years old and much closer to the end of his career than the beginning, but that&rsquo;s why this is an incredible accomplishment and why it&rsquo;s worth pursuing.
LeBron came into the league and fulfilled every expectation people ever had of him. He&rsquo;s been so good for so long that, even at this point in his career, any team in the league would want to have him. He&rsquo;s been so good for so long that he was able to have a son, help raise him into a young man and help put him in a pretty good situation, all while still being arguably the best player in the league.
For Bronny, the NBA is the goal, and it&rsquo;s not too far off.
If things continue to play out the way they have been, LeBron sharing an NBA floor with his son may actually be a reality one day. That&rsquo;s not something that anyone could have ever imagined being possible, probably not even LeBron himself.
I also am a very proud basketball dad. My son Jace is about Bronny&rsquo;s age, and as he&rsquo;s grown up, Jace and I have had plenty of competitions, teaching moments and conversations about the chase to be great. Some of my fond memories from coaching in Cleveland are flashbacks of Jace and Bronny as young kids playing pickup and doing their own shooting drills in our practice gym. They were more interested in playing and getting better than they were watching us, so much so that they would be in the practice gym even while we had games going on.
I know what it feels like to watch your son grow up and try to follow in your footsteps. I also know that, for our children, it&rsquo;s not easy.
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If you <a href="https://twitter.com/james_posey41" target="_blank" rel="noopener">follow me on social media</a>, you&rsquo;ve probably seen me retweeting things about Jace. Even though I want him to stay grounded, I also want him to know that I&rsquo;m his biggest supporter.
As a basketball dad, I have to walk a fine line between being my son&rsquo;s biggest motivator and his biggest critic. On one hand, as a former pro player, I feel like I can help to guide him and develop him, but on the other, I want him to understand that being a pro player's son is a bit of a burden that he&rsquo;ll carry whenever he laces up his sneakers.
When Bronny, Jace and other players' children walk on the court, they may as well be wearing a target on their back. There are young, hungry players out there who look at kids like Jace and Bronny as opportunities to get some shine. That&rsquo;s something they've got to be ready for.
At the same time, people are going to have high expectations for these young players, because if their dad played professionally, they'll be expected to have similar abilities. But not every kid can handle that, and a lot of them decide not to follow in their dad&rsquo;s footsteps for that exact reason.
So, yeah. Tough love.
To this day, Jace hasn&rsquo;t beaten me in a pickup game, and I&rsquo;m damn sure never going to take it easy on him because I know nobody else competing against him will. I want him to stay humble and realize that the work never stops, and that just because he&rsquo;s my son, it doesn&rsquo;t mean things will be handed to him. If anything, it means he&rsquo;s going to have to work that much harder.
Bronny's experience must be magnified by 1,000. To be honest, I can&rsquo;t even imagine what it must be like for him. Imagine being the son of the world&rsquo;s most famous basketball player. Imagine what it must be like for everyone out there to want to bust your ass so they can say they got the better of LeBron&rsquo;s son.
Jace faces that as my son, and there&rsquo;s really no comparison between LeBron and me.
Like I said, tough love.
When I watch Jace play, I try to make sure I never get too hyped up or too excited about the things he&rsquo;s able to do on the court because I want him to maintain his edge and never be satisfied. That&rsquo;s a challenge that we as basketball dads have &mdash; we&rsquo;re constantly coaching and criticizing but always trying to stay positive and encouraging.
Why am I even saying all of this? Because basketball dads, particularly those who played in the NBA, have a unique perspective. When Jace picked up a basketball at 4 years old and decided he wanted to shoot hoops like his daddy, I couldn&rsquo;t imagine being able to play with him as a pro. Part of that is because when Jace was born, I was about 10 years older than LeBron was when Bronny was born, but another part of it was that I just can&rsquo;t say I envisioned being able to have the will, desire and good fortune to last in the league for as long as it would have taken.
Truth be told, it was probably hard for LeBron to imagine that too, which is probably why this has only become a conversation in the very recent past. But, because &lsquo;Bron is still playing at such a high level, it feels like it&rsquo;s close. How can we not be intrigued?
As a dad, there&rsquo;s no better feeling than watching your child set a goal, commit to it and accomplish it. That&rsquo;s not just in the world of sports, but in all walks of life. But man, I remember seeing Greg Anthony shed tears when his son Cole Anthony was drafted by the Orlando Magic, and I know that every other NBA dad felt the same way when their sons made it. They all know what their kids had to go through to get to that moment.
I can&rsquo;t even begin to imagine what Bronny has had to overcome. I&rsquo;m pretty sure LeBron knows, just like LeBron knows what he&rsquo;s had to do to maintain his status as one of the top players in the league for so long. If the day comes where those two share an NBA court &mdash; and it&rsquo;s obviously no guarantee &mdash; they will share one of the most incredible accomplishments the league has ever seen.
I, for sure, am rooting for it to happen.
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LeBron James could someday play alongside his son, Bronny James. Fellow NBA dad James Posey is rooting for it to happen.

Jalin