Wildcats

The NBA announced that 242 players have filed as early-entry candidates for the 2023 NBA Draft. Here is the complete list.

NBA announces 242 early-entry candidates for 2023 NBA Draft

AUSTIN, Texas (AP) &mdash; Marcus Carr tied a Texas record with 10 3-pointers and matched his career high with 41 points as the sixth-ranked Longhorns beat Texas A&amp;M-Commerce 97-72 on Tuesday night.
Carr, a senior, previously scored 41 while playing for Minnesota against Nebraska on Feb. 27, 2021. He scored 33 points in the first half alone Tuesday, matching a Texas record for a half set by Jim Krivacs in 1978.
Carr&rsquo;s total was the most by a Texas player since Reggie Freeman had 43 points against Fresno State on Dec. 14, 1996.
&ldquo;We wanted to make Texas beat us from 3,&rdquo; A&amp;M-Commerce coach Jaret von Rosenberg said. &ldquo;Carr really had a night. The rim looked like an ocean for him.&rdquo;
Texas (11-1) played its fourth straight game without coach Chris Beard, who was suspended without pay after his Dec. 12 arrest on a felony family violence charge. It was the Longhorns&rsquo; first game since Beard&rsquo;s fianc&eacute;e, Randi Trew, issued a statement saying Beard did not strangle her and she never wanted him arrested or prosecuted.
Carr converted 13 of 19 shots in 30 minutes, including 10 of 15 3-pointers. He has totaled 103 points in his last four games. He made eight 3s in the first half, a school record for a half, as the Longhorns led 47-29 at the break.
&ldquo;Most of the shots that I put up felt really good,&rdquo; Carr said. &ldquo;I thought they were going in. My teammates just kept giving me confidence after they&rsquo;d seen me knock down the first couple. They just said, &lsquo;We&rsquo;re going to look for you. Keep shooting. Keep knocking them down.&rsquo;&rdquo;
Carr attempted only four shots in the second half. He had two assists in each half.
&ldquo;You&rsquo;d think he&rsquo;d want to try to continue gunning, but he came out the opposite,&rdquo; acting coach Rodney Terry said. &ldquo;He was a willing passer.&rdquo;
Terry removed Carr with 3:26 remaining knowing he needed one more 3-pointer to break Al Coleman&rsquo;s school record set in 1997.
&ldquo;We need him on Saturday (at Oklahoma),&rdquo; Terry said. &ldquo;We don&rsquo;t need him the last three, four minutes of the game, and he turns his ankle. We need him healthy.&rdquo;
Carr said he became aware of the 3-point record when it was posted on the arena&rsquo;s video board.
&ldquo;Timmy (Allen) looked at me and said get one more,&rdquo; Carr said. &ldquo;Not to say I didn&rsquo;t want to break it. But it wasn&rsquo;t of as much importance to me. Honestly, at that point, I was really just focused on trying to get better on defense.&rdquo;
Freshman Dillon Mitchell scored a season-best 16 points for Texas, providing an inside complement to Carr&rsquo;s long-range shooting. Arterio Morris scored 12 points. Allen had eight points, eight assists and six rebounds. Tyrese Hunter also had eight assists.
C.J. Roberts scored 20 points to lead A&amp;M-Commerce (4-10). Tommie Lewis added 19 points for the Lions.
Carr is the first Longhorn other than Terry to be allowed to speak to the media since Beard&rsquo;s arrest.
&ldquo;Right now, R.T. is our coach. We&rsquo;re focused on being led by him. Obviously, it&rsquo;s an adjustment, but a good and smooth one,&rdquo; Carr said.
BIG PICTURE
Texas A&amp;M-Commerce: The Lions moved up to Division I this season, and the transition has not been easy. They played 13 of their first 14 games on the road or at neutral sites and have lost six straight by an average of 15.8 points. They attempt a lot of 3-pointers, 29 a game before Tuesday, with 27% accuracy. Texas limited A&amp;M-Commerce to 15 attempts. The Lions made seven, and they shot 53% overall.
Texas: The Longhorns have 73 assists on 101 baskets in their last three games. They made 28 assists on 37 baskets against A&amp;M-Commerce.
DISU UPDATE
The Longhorns caught a break when the left knee injury starting forward Dylan Disu suffered last week against Louisiana-Lafayette was diagnosed as a sprain and not something more serious. Disu had season-ending surgery to the same knee while playing for Vanderbilt in 2020-21. Disu practiced this week but did not play Tuesday.
UP NEXT
Texas A&amp;M-Commerce hosts Incarnate Word Saturday in its Southland Conference opener.
Texas is at Oklahoma Saturday for its Big 12 opener.

Carr’s total was the most by a Texas player since Reggie Freeman had 43 points against Fresno State on Dec. 14, 1996.

Carr hits 10 threes, scores 41, No. 6 Texas beats A&M-Commerce

The Minnesota Timberwolves made a statement by taking Game 1 of their first-round matchup against the Memphis Grizzlies on Saturday afternoon. The statement was loud and it was clear &mdash; their seed was not indicative of their talent.
Tuesday night's Game 2 was a must-win for the Grizzlies, as higher seeds that have gone down 0-2 have only come back twice from such a hole.
The NBA Playoffs are all about the adjustments from game to game and which team can win the chess match. Whether by accident, chance or plan, the Grizzlies put the Timberwolves in check but is the adjustment enough for a checkmate? I worked with our Mat Issa of BasketballNews.com to look at the moves by Memphis head coach Taylor Jenkins in Game 2.
<div class="mceNonEditable"><spike>&nbsp;</spike></div>
In Game 1, Steven Adams was simply not useful, mate. After a turnaround year in Memphis, the New Zealand big man found himself hurting his team more than helping. It was a similar story for the Grizzlies, as last year Jonas Valanciunas had a career year during the regular season &mdash; only to become a defensive liability vs. the Utah Jazz in the 2021 first round.
It should have been predicted. This season, Adams had 2 of his 6 lowest minute totals in a game, 2 of his 5 worst plus-minus games and 2 of his 3 lowest rebounding totals in a game &mdash; all against Minnesota. In fact, in 25 career matchups against the Wolves, Adams has been a net positive player only 11 times, with his last coming in January 2020.&nbsp;
In this postseason's series opener, Adams played 24 minutes, taking 0 shots and grabbing only 3 rebounds while picking up 4 fouls. Much of Memphis' success in the regular season revolved around Adams' ability to grab offensive rebounds &mdash; a key reason as to why the Grizzlies led the league in second-chance points. But in Game 1, Memphis lost both the rebound and the second-chance battles.&nbsp;
Defensively, Adams had no place on the floor. The Timberwolves adjusted to how Memphis was playing Karl-Anthony Towns in the pick-and-roll, and it was all she wrote. KAT would pop and then simply beat Adams off the dribble time after time. Steven became borderline unplayable.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-theme="dark">
With Steven Adams as primary defender: Twolves 12/16 on FGs (75%), 2/3 from 3 (66%) With other Grizz starters as primary defender: Twolves 23/58 on FGs (40%), 10/26 on 3s (38.4%) With Grizz reserves as primary defender: Twolves 19/33 FGs (58%) 5/14 on 3s (37.5%)
&mdash; Shawn Coleman (@StatsSAC) <a href="https://twitter.com/StatsSAC/status/1515692055896510468?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">April 17, 2022</a></blockquote>

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

<iframe title="YouTube video player" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/dKCx5v8Jrpc" width="100%" height="325" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>
On this possession, Anthony Edwards puts Adams in a PNR with Towns, a common theme in the game. While Ja Morant was in good help position to stop the drive, Adams plays drop coverage, giving Ant all the space he needed to knock down the shot.&nbsp;
<iframe title="YouTube video player" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/muowP-lOhls" width="100%" height="325" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>
Adams finds himself defending yet another PNR with Edwards and Towns, where now the Timberwolves have adjusted, sending KAT on a pop. Again, Morant is in help position to stop the drive while Adams is in drop coverage, but this time Edwards kicks it to KAT. Rather than settling for the three, Towns beats Adams off the dribble, as he is too slow to slide in front.
<iframe title="YouTube video player" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/MtT84mHYico" width="100%" height="325" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>
Although this ends up being a blocked shot, this is a microcosm of the issue for Memphis. Out on the perimeter, Adams gets beat off the dribble by Towns, again, and puts pressure on Jaren Jackson Jr. &mdash; who is in foul trouble&mdash; to clean up the mess. Memphis needs JJJ on the floor way more than it needs Adams, so situations like this need to be avoided if possible.&nbsp;
Just 2 minutes and 50 seconds into Game 2, Adams came out of the game for the Grizzlies with a couple of fouls; the big man finished the contest with 2:50 of playing time. Who knows if Jenkins planned to make this adjustment or not, but the insertion of Xavier Tillman Sr. and extended minutes of Brandon Clarke have likely altered the course of this series.
The flashes were there with Clarke in Game 1. His switchability on defense has always been a key to his game, so despite being outsized by Towns, Clarke is able to switch on the ball-screens rather than play drop coverage. It seemed obvious that an increase in minutes for Brandon was due in Game 2.&nbsp;
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-theme="dark">
What are the chances that Tillman gets a look in the MEM/MIN series?
&mdash; Mat Issa (@matissa15) <a href="https://twitter.com/matissa15/status/1516100131392786432?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">April 18, 2022</a></blockquote>

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

In a world where it is commonplace to shrink rotations in the playoffs, Jenkins went to his 11th man in Tillman. As a reminder, X is no stranger to high stakes moments; let's remember he did this in overtime agaisnt the Warriors, on the road, in last year's Play-In Tournament:
<iframe title="YouTube video player" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/2pcUJwlUryQ" width="100%" height="325" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>
In almost 21 minutes of play &mdash; roughly the total of Adams' playing time in Game 1 &mdash; Tillman scored 13 points and grabbed 7 rebounds in Game 2. He also went an impressively efficient 6 of 7 from the field, which was a bonus because Tillman had one job: to defend.&nbsp;
<iframe title="YouTube video player" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/VH6F0rUxsZw" width="100%" height="325" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>
Compared to Jackson and Clarke, Tillman's impact against KAT is his strength. While not as agile as JJJ and Clarke, Tillman has the strength to take the body blows from Towns. On this possession, Tillman is both quick enough to stay with Towns and strong enough to withstand the shoulder check and recover to contest the shot.
Towns made 11 shots in Game 1; he only attempted 7 field goals in Game 2. Some of that was his own foul trouble, but with the subtraction of Adams, the easy opportunities were not there for Minnesota's All-Star center.
<div class="mceNonEditable"><spike>&nbsp;</spike></div>
In addition to Tillman, Clake's versatility was on full display in Game 2 with a number of perimeter opportunities on defense.
<iframe title="YouTube video player" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/Mrgj5oNBIxA" width="100%" height="325" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>
In Game 1, Edwards took advantage of the PNR, taking 12 shots inside the arc on his way to a 36-point night.
In Game 2, when someone like Clarke or Kyle Anderson switched onto Edwards, the ability to get downhill was neutralized. Of his 16 total shots, Edwards took 10 of them from beyond the arc. If the presence of Clarke causes Edwards to settle for jumpers, that is a win for Memphis.
The adjustment for Minnesota is more so an adjustment for Edwards in Game 3. Mat Issa believes that Edwards has the ability to dribble by almost any player Memphis may throw at him, so he needs to play with an agression rather than settling for long jumpers.
<iframe title="YouTube video player" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/xwGpbhzO4RI" width="100%" height="325" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>
On this particular play, Edwards drives right by De'Anthony Melton &mdash; arguably the Grizzlies' best perimeter defender &mdash; with ease. Mat's next point is that, while Ant has to drive, his playmaking has to take the next step. Edwards has not shown the ability to consistently make the right play, so if Memphis decides to pack the paint on him (like Minnesota has done vs. Morant), you might see more of this clip.
While Edwards gets by Melton, Morant has vacated Patrick Beverley and Anderson leaves Taurean Prince &mdash; both capable corner shooters. As the defense collapses on him, Edwards gets caught in the air and makes a bad pass.
<iframe title="YouTube video player" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/C3Rc2Ob23lk" width="100%" height="325" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>
This is a quick clip, but Edwards drives baseline and is met by a helping Clarke and Morant. Rushed by the triple team, Edwards throws the ball into the backcourt.
If Memphis continues to roll with switching guys like Clarke, Anderson and Tillman onto Edwards off the PNR, Ant is going to have to make the adjustment and slow the game down, finding his open teammates against the overhelping Memphis defense.
Game 3 is Thursday night in Minnesota. Will Memphis play Adams? Will the Timberwolves adjust?
Both teams will have to make their adjustments, as the chess match inches its way closer to its conclusion.

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

<div class="mceNonEditable"><spike>&nbsp;</spike></div>
Looking to go to the hottest concerts, sports, theater &amp; family shows near you? Get 100% guaranteed tickets to more than 125,000 live events from TicketSmarter, the official ticket marketplace of BasketballNews.com. <a href="https://www.ticketsmarter.com/?utm_source=basketballnewscom&amp;utm_medium=tsaff&amp;utm_campaign=referral" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Order online now</a>!

With Steven Adams struggling, Justin Lewis breaks down the impact of Xavier Tillman Sr. and Brandon Clarke on the Grizzlies.

Could Brandon Clarke, Xavier Tillman be the Grizzlies' escape plan?

In the NBA Playoffs, stars often shine the brightest, with the biggest names often delivering on the biggest stage. That's to be expected, but truthfully, games are often won and lost because of the production from key role players.
Throughout the regular season, coaches may roll out a 10- or 11-man rotation consistently, providing ample rest for everybody as the season goes, as well as ensuring the development of younger players. But as the postseason kicks off, that rotation shrinks down to about eight guys playing significant minutes.&nbsp;
For the Memphis Grizzlies, De'Anthony Melton is one of those essential bench pieces that has helped Memphis lock up the No. 2 seed in the Western Conference. In fact, Memphis is now 22-4 when Melton scores 10 or more points off the bench; last season, Memphis was 16-5 in the games Melton scored double digits. So that's a pretty good indicator of the impact he has on the team's success.
The 23-year-old guard has earned a couple of nicknames over his time in Memphis. Bally Sports Southeast analyst Brevin Knight calls him "Mr. Do Something" because Melton is always contributing, even when he is not scoring. But when he is scoring, Melton has become known as "Microwave Melt."
Melton is the prime example of a binge scorer.
From November through January, De'Anthony shot 29.5% from deep on 169 attempts. He began to turn it around in February, shooting 43.8% on 48 attempts. During the month of March, Melton was on an absolute heater, shooting 47.1% on 87 attempts.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-theme="dark">
De&rsquo;Anthony is only the 8th NBA player since the 83-84 season to have 5 straight games with 4+ 3s without starting a a game during the streak. His 26 total 3s are one of the five highest totals by a bench player over any five game span since 83-84 as well.
&mdash; Shawn Coleman (@StatsSAC) <a href="https://twitter.com/StatsSAC/status/1508628215673368581?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">March 29, 2022</a></blockquote>

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

Melton extended this 4-triple streak off the bench to six straight against the San Antonio Spurs on March 30. Even more impressive about this stretch is that he's shot 50% or better from deep in seven straight games and in eight of his last 10.&nbsp;
His ability to knock down the deep ball is crucial to the Grizzlies' spacing. With Steven Adams providing no ability to stretch the floor, and Ja Morant needing space to get downhill and continue his unbelievable paint scoring, Memphis needs someone other than Desmond Bane to make defenders think twice about helping.
Currently, this is how the team's three-point shooting lines up without its top two snipers (Bane and John Konchar).
<ul>
<li>Tyus Jones: 39.3%</li>
<li>Kyle Anderson: 32.4%</li>
<li>Jaren Jackson Jr.: 31.9%</li>
<li>Dillon Brooks: 30.3%</li>
<li>Ziaire Williams: 30.1%</li>
</ul>
Jones and Morant do not share the floor together often; however, their success in a small sample size this season may lead to Grizzlies head coach Taylor Jenkins playing them together in the postseason to take pressure off Morant and provide that aforementioned spacing. (Williams is likely to have his minutes diminished in the playoffs as well.) Come playoff time, Memphis is poised to run a nine-man rotation with Jones, Melton, Anderson and Brandon Clarke coming off the bench.
As the numbers suggest, the Grizzlies struggle to shoot the ball. They lead the league in a lot of categories, but simply cannot convert from downtown outside of Bane. So, quite frankly, Memphis needs Microwave Melt to carry over into the playoffs.&nbsp;
<div class="mceNonEditable"><spike>&nbsp;</spike></div>
Last season, Melton fell into one of his cold spells as the playoffs started. After winning the 9/10 game, and subsequently knocking off the Golden Warriors for the No. 8 seed, Memphis ran into a historically efficient Utah Jazz offense and simply could not keep up. Melton, at times, was unplayable due to his poor shooting in the series. Outside of Game 4 in Memphis, in which he went 3 of 6 from distance, Melton made just 3 of his 14 shots from deep and went 6 of 22 overall.
It was unexpected and certainly the worst case for the Grizzlies. In the months of March and April 2021, Melton shot 46.7% from deep on 107 attempts. But his frigid stretch hit right after. In the 10 games in May, Melton shot 30.8% on 3.9 attempts per game, and his streakiness reared its head at the wrong time.&nbsp;
For Melton, his shooting woes are almost always mechanical issues. Balance is crucial for jump shots. The ability to have a balanced base and rise straight up increases the likelihood of a made shot, so any lean towards the left or right then has to be accounted for on the trajectory of the ball.&nbsp;
Say your weight is evenly distributed (50-50 on each leg), and you rise straight up on the shot; no other adjustments on the shot must be made. If a right-handed shooter has a tendency to distribute his/her weight 60-40 in favor of the left leg &mdash; that slight lean left &mdash; it means the trajectory has to have a counter-adjustment to the right to compensate.&nbsp;
In an interview with DaMichael Cole of the Mempis Commercial Appeal, Melton <a href="https://www.commercialappeal.com/story/sports/nba/grizzlies/2022/03/30/memphis-grizzlies-guard-deanthony-melton-nbas-hottest-shooter/7184297001/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">spoke about his own adjustment</a>. "I would say for me just making sure my base is wide. Make sure I got a solid, good foundation to start there because I used to bring my feet in too close," Melton <a href="https://www.commercialappeal.com/story/sports/nba/grizzlies/2022/03/30/memphis-grizzlies-guard-deanthony-melton-nbas-hottest-shooter/7184297001/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">said</a>.
A shoulder-width base is almost a sure-fire way to get as close to a 50-50 weight distribution as possible.
<iframe title="YouTube video player" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/R4VR0acehx8" width="100%" height="325" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>
There are a couple of things to look for on this first clip. In regards to his feet, this is what Melton had been doing for much of his career, bringing his right foot in too close to his left and fighting his own body for balance. Then, he receives the pass shoulder-high, but brings it below his waist to load, adding more action than needed. Finally, though his release does not seem to have the hitch it did in 2020-21, his timing at the apex of his jump is off a tick.
<iframe title="YouTube video player" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/pIQBMd2oAyQ" width="100%" height="325" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>
This is another catch-and-shoot opportunity here for Melton, but it's in transition, so his momentum is carrying him forward. He overcompensates for the positive momentum, missing it on the front of the rim, attempting to take a little off of the shot. The timing of the release is better here, as he releases it just before the apex, but his knees are almost touching as he brings his right foot in too far once again.
<iframe title="YouTube video player" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/fPndj9KKczQ" width="100%" height="325" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>
Fast forward to March 23 when Melton hit a career-high 6 threes against the Brooklyn Nets. This angle gives you a great picture of what his mechanics are focused on. Many coaches at the youth levels teach their players to have their "toes pointed towards the basket," or to be square. That actually complicates the shooting motion. Notice the slight left turn of the feet. This small mechanical adjustment allows for the shooting elbow to be more comfortably and naturally aligned with the rim.&nbsp;
<iframe title="YouTube video player" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/l0qG1XDKhBI" width="100%" height="325" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>
The adjustments with his feet are noticeable. Rather than having his left foot planted on the catch and bringing his right foot in to initiate the shooting motion, Melton receives the pass with a slight two-footed hop that centers his weight on a more even stance. This allows for him to rise straight up with a fluid release that is on time.
The playoffs are around the corner, and the Grizzlies should not expect 50% shooting on 6 to 8 attempts per game, but even 36% on 4 to 5 triple tries would go a long way throughout the gauntlet in the Western Conference.
De'Anthony Melton is an X-factor to watch when the postseason begins on April 16.&nbsp;
<div class="mceNonEditable"><spike>&nbsp;</spike></div>
Looking to go to the hottest concerts, sports, theater &amp; family shows near you? Get 100% guaranteed tickets to more than 125,000 live events from TicketSmarter, the official ticket marketplace of BasketballNews.com. <a href="https://www.ticketsmarter.com/?utm_source=basketballnewscom&amp;utm_medium=tsaff&amp;utm_campaign=referral" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Order online now</a>!

Justin Lewis breaks down De'Anthony Melton's hot offensive stretch and why he'll be an X-factor for the Grizzlies this postseason.

Jared