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NBA breaking news reporting and journalism will never be the same again.
In a shocking move that rocked the NBA world, heralded NBA reporter Adrian Wojnarowski has decided to retire and step out of NBA reporting and journalism altogether after an illustrious career that spanned over 37 years.
ESPN&rsquo;s head NBA reporter and insider announced his decision via X in a heartfelt message felt around the NBA landscape.&nbsp;
&ldquo;I&rsquo;ve decided to retire from ESPN and the news industry,&rdquo; Wojnarowski revealed in his letter. &ldquo;I understand the commitment required in my role and it&rsquo;s an investment that I&rsquo;m no longer driven to make. Time isn&rsquo;t in endless supply and I want to spend mine in ways that are more personally meaningful.&rdquo;
&ldquo;Woj&rdquo;, as he is fondly known by his peers and the entire NBA media, teams, and players, is most known for his &lsquo;Woj bombs&rsquo; as the main source of NBA insider info and being probably the best breaking news reporter over the past few years. He leaves NBA news reporting a huge gap considering how he has changed the landscape over time, as he&rsquo;s considered the best and most trusted source of all things NBA.
Following his retirement from ESPN, Wojnarowski will assume the general manager position for the St. Bonaventure&rsquo;s Men&rsquo;s Basketball program &ndash; his alma mater.&nbsp;
In this new position, Woj will handle NIL (Name, Image, and Likeness) allocation and recruiting efforts for the Bonnies. He&rsquo;ll also work closely with head coach Mark Schmidt to further elevate the program.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
BREAKING: Adrian Wojnarowski is stepping away from ESPN and the news industry. The NBA insider has agreed to become the General Manager of St. Bonaventure&rsquo;s men&rsquo;s basketball program, a role he&rsquo;s excited to take on. In this new position, Woj will handle NIL (Name, Image, and&hellip; <a href="https://t.co/JcYlEktCQD">pic.twitter.com/JcYlEktCQD</a>
&mdash; BasketballNews.com (@basketbllnews) <a href="https://twitter.com/basketbllnews/status/1836417586969612692?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">September 18, 2024</a>
<script src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js"></script>
</blockquote>
&nbsp;

In a shocking move that rocked the NBA, heralded NBA reporter Adrian Wojnarowski has decided to retire from NBA reporting.

ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski announces sudden retirement

The Orlando Magic have agreed to a multi-year extension with head coach Jamahl Mosely, the team announced today. The extension is for four years, according to <a href="https://www.espn.com/nba/story/_/id/39714206/sources-magic-coach-jamahl-mosley-reach-4-year-extension" target="_blank" rel="noopener">ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski</a>.
Additional details were not disclosed, but this deal will take Mosley through the 2027-28 season.
Mosley, who has been Orlando's head coach for three seasons, has led the franchise&rsquo;s steady rebuild around young stars Paolo Banchero and Franz Wagner.&nbsp;
Mosley created a strong culture in Orlando and turned the Magic into one of the best defensive teams in the league, ranking fourth in defensive efficiency so far this season. 
The Magic have been a pleasant surprise this season, as they are currently the fifth seed in the Eastern Conference with a 37-28 record (just a half-game back of the No. 4 seed).
"Jamahl and his staff have done a tremendous job not only this season, but since we hired him back in 2021," Magic president of basketball operations Jeff Weltman said in a statement. "His preparation, work ethic, ability to connect with the players and passion he brings to the job every day brings positive results, both on the court and off. We are very happy to have Jamahl lead the Magic for years to come."

The Orlando Magic have agreed to a four-year extension with head coach Jamahl Mosely.

Orlando Magic agree to 4-year extension with head coach Jamahl Mosley

After firing Adrian Griffin, the Milwaukee Bucks have hired Doc Rivers as their next head coach.
"This was a difficult decision to make during the season," Bucks general manager Jon Horst said in a statement. "We thank Coach Griffin for his hard work and contributions to the team."
Although the Bucks have the NBA's top-ranked offense (scoring 118.8 points per 100 possessions), they struggled defensively under Griffin, allowing 114.3 points per 100 possessions (which ranks 19th in the NBA).
While the Bucks compiled a 30-13 record under Griffin, trailing only the Boston Celtics in the Eastern Conference (by 3.5 games), they have been largely inconsistent throughout the season. 
Superstar Giannis Antetokounmpo has been lobbying for a better effort on defense, which seemed to be directed toward Griffin and his staff. 
Furthermore, Griffin wasn't able to utilize prized acquisition Damian Lillard to his full potential on offense, as the All-Star guard has had a hard time adjusting to Milwaukee&rsquo;s offensive scheme.
Rivers has an all-time coaching record of 1,097-763 in the regular season and 111-104 in the playoffs.
 Rivers' most-recent coaching gig was with the Philadelphia 76ers, but his three-year stint came to an end when he was fired following the 2022-23 season.

The Milwaukee Bucks have fired head coach Adrian Griffin, the team announced on Tuesday afternoon. Doc Rivers will replace him.

After firing Adrian Griffin, Bucks hire Doc Rivers as head coach

Kawhi Leonard will be staying in the City of Angels for at least three more years.
The two-time Finals MVP and NBA champion agreed to a three-year, $153 million contract extension with the Los Angeles Clippers, according to <a href="https://www.espn.com/nba/story/_/id/39279968/kawhi-leonard-signs-contract-extension-la-clippers" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN</a>.
"It just made sense from both sides," Clippers president of basketball operations Lawrence Frank <a href="https://www.espn.com/nba/story/_/id/39279968/kawhi-leonard-signs-contract-extension-la-clippers" target="_blank" rel="noopener">said</a>. "We both wanted the same thing. We wanted Kawhi to be a Clipper for a very long time and Kawhi wants to be a Clipper for a very long time, and we wanted to put the focus on the team and at the same time it just came together where it just made sense where it was a very fair deal for both sides.
"Kawhi was a great partner. Because of this new CBA, there's harsh penalties but team building penalties for high spending teams and Kawhi understood it."
The 6-foot-7 forward decided to come home and join the Clippers in 2019, teaming up with Paul George in hopes of adding another championship ring to his collection. However, a deep playoff run has eluded them for years thanks to myriad factors including injuries and bad matchups.
Frank said that the Clippers have discussed a possible extension with George's camp as well, but no deal is imminent.
This season, the Clippers are 23-13, which is the fourth-best record in the Western Conference and Leonard is at the forefront of it all &ndash; averaging 23.8 points, 6.1 rebounds and 3.4 assists in an All-Star-worthy season. He has also been extremely efficient, shooting 51.6% from the field, 43.0% from three-point range and 87.1% from the free-throw line.
Now, Leonard and the Clippers will continue their marriage for the foreseeable future with a goal of winning the franchise's first championship.&nbsp;

Kawhi Leonard will be staying in the City of Angels for at least three more years.

Kawhi Leonard signs three-year, $153 million extension with Clippers

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

NBA Central Division Preview: Burning questions, rotation projections

Today, the NBA Board of Governors approved a new Player Participation Policy, which is intended to prevent teams from resting players during the NBA&rsquo;s regular season.
The <a href="https://pr.nba.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/46/2023/09/NBA-Player-Participation-Policy.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://pr.nba.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/46/2023/09/NBA-Player-Participation-Policy.pdf&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1694714208060000&amp;usg=AOvVaw3e6h1969SP0HnACYwk7Bmc">new policy</a> will take effect with the start of the 2023-24 regular season and replace the Player Resting Policy, which was implemented prior to the 2017-18 season.
The Player Participation Policy will focus primarily on star players. A star player for purposes of the policy is any player who was selected to an All-NBA team or an All-Star team in any of the prior three seasons. Following a given season&rsquo;s All-Star game, this will also apply to any player who is named an All-Star during that season.
Under the new policy, unless a team demonstrates an approved reason for a star player not to participate in a game, then, among other things, the team must:
<ul>
<li style="font-weight: 400;">Manage its roster to ensure that no more than one star player is unavailable for the same game.</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;">Ensure that star players are available for all national television and NBA In-Season Tournament games.</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;">Maintain a balance between the number of one-game absences for a star player in home and road games.</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;">Refrain from any long-term &ldquo;shutdowns&rdquo; in which a star player stops playing games.</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;">If resting a healthy player, ensure that the player is present at the games and visible to fans.</li>
</ul>
The policy includes exceptions for injuries, personal reasons and pre-approved back-to-back restrictions based on a player&rsquo;s age, career workload or serious injury history.
As first reported by <a href="https://www.espn.com/nba/story/_/id/38380166/sources-nba-likely-pass-tougher-rules-resting-stars" target="_blank" rel="noopener">ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski:</a> "The NBA will incorporate a fine system for teams that begins with $100,000 for first offenses, $250,000 for second offenses and $1 million more than the previous penalty for each additional fine, sources said."

Today, the NBA Board of Governors approved a new Player Participation Policy to prevent teams from resting star players.

NBA Board of Governors approves new Player Participation Policy

On Friday, Los Angeles Lakers forward Anthony Davis signed a three-year, $186 million max contract extension, his agent Rich Paul <a href="https://www.espn.com/nba/story/_/id/38135013/lakers-anthony-davis-agree-nba-richest-annual-extension" target="_blank" rel="noopener">told ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski</a>.
This means that Davis will be under contract with the Lakers through 2028, when he'll be 35 years old. This "is the richest annual contract extension in NBA history, averaging $62 million a season," as Wojnarowski <a href="https://www.espn.com/nba/story/_/id/38135013/lakers-anthony-davis-agree-nba-richest-annual-extension" target="_blank" rel="noopener">noted</a>.
Davis has dealt with injuries throughout his stint with the Lakers, but he's coming off one of his best seasons with Los Angeles. In 56 games last year, he averaged 25.9 points, 12.5 rebounds, 2.6 assists, 2.0 blocks and 1.1 steals, while shooting 56.3% from the field.
Davis helped the Lakers win a championship in 2020, and he's an eight-time All-Star who has earned four All-NBA First Team selections and four All-Defensive Team nods. He's led the NBA in blocks three times, and he was a member of the NBA's 75th Anniversary Team.
After the Lakers were eliminated from the 2023 NBA Playoffs by the Denver Nuggets in the Western Conference Finals, Davis spoke about what he was planning to work on this offseason.
"Work on everything. I never try to single out one thing," Davis told reporters. "I mean, I can always get better at everything, shooting the three-ball, handling, more efficient in the post, mid-range, free throw line, everything. Just making sure that I was better than I was last year.
"I know that [LeBron James is] not getting any younger, so I have to be that driving force to pick him up some games, and there are games where he goes off where he's kind of carrying the team, but we can't expect for him to do that for a full 82 [games]. And that's where I come into play.
"I'm always a guy to look in the mirror. I'm my own biggest critic, and I know it's stretches throughout the season where I could have been better for our ballclub. There are stretches where I played extremely well for our ballclub. So, [I need] to find that consistency where it's always playing extremely well, not having those stretches where, to you guys, I played bad."

On Friday, Los Angeles Lakers forward Anthony Davis signed a three-year, $186 million max extension, his agent Rich Paul told ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski.

Anthony Davis signs three-year, $186 million extension with Lakers

After monitoring the NBA awards races all season, Nekias Duncan shares his final selections for DPOY, ROY, MIP, 6MOY and more.

Nekias Duncan's 2022-23 NBA award selections: DPOY, 6MOY, MIP, more

Heading into the weekend, I figured I'd followed the same script as the other two award pieces. Fill out and&nbsp; complete my (fake) ballot, sprinkle in some extra details or stray thoughts to account for questions that may pop up, then go about my business.
I dropped my "final rough draft" on Friday's episode of <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/podcasts/the-dunker-spot" target="_blank" rel="noopener">The Dunker Spot</a>, though I gave myself a weekend's worth of wiggle room to make any last-second changes. In typical fashion, I watched, researched and ultimately thought myself into a headache. The result of that is this piece: A separate article detailing where and how I landed on the 2022-23 NBA Most Valuable Player, with a follow-up article coming to reveal the rest of my (fake) ballot.
Throughout MVP discourse, many people &mdash; voters or people like me who wish they could vote &mdash; have made it a point to mention how tough it is. To highlight how the top three &mdash; Nikola Jokic, Joel Embiid and Giannis Antetokounmpo &mdash; are all worthy candidates to win, and that we shouldn't be all that upset by who wins. There's truth to that.
(You, savvy reader and/or listener, can also tell when someone is genuinely perplexed vs. when they're throwing in that platitude in an effort to avoid smoke for his/her opinion. We can be real here.)
I landed in the former camp. To refresh your memory, this is where I landed at the <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/2022-23-nba-award-picks-mvp-dpoy-rookie-sixth-man-most-improved-all-league-defensive-teams-volume-2" target="_blank" rel="noopener">beginning of March</a>:
Previous order (through Mar.1): 
<ol>
<li>Nikola Jokic (Previously No. 3)</li>
<li>Giannis Antetokounmpo (Previously No. 2)</li>
<li>Joel Embiid (Previously Honorable Mention, Record)</li>
<li>Jayson Tatum (Previously No. 1)</li>
<li>Luka Doncic (Previously No. 5)</li>
</ol>
This is where I am right now on April 11 with the regular season over:
<ol>
<li>Joel Embiid (Previously No. 3) </li>
<li>Giannis Antetokounmpo (Previously No. 2)</li>
<li>Nikola Jokic (Previously No. 1)</li>
<li>Jayson Tatum (Previously No. 4)</li>
<li>Domantas Sabonis (Previously Honorable Mention, Not As Good As Luka Doncic)</li>
</ol>
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With all due respect to Tatum and Sabonis, there isn't much to discuss with their placements.
Tatum was a two-way ironman for a team that flirted with the best record in the NBA. At full tilt, the Boston Celtics may very well be the best team in the league. Tatum became the first Celtic to average over 30 points per game for a season &mdash; a mind-blowing stat considering their history. Career-high averages in rebounds (8.8) and assists (4.6) are also nice. If you'd like to use Tatum's availability (and overall malleability) to argue for him to be higher, you can; it just wouldn't be my&nbsp;case.&nbsp;
Sabonis was the best player on the Western Conference's most (surprisingly) consistent team, acting as the hub of the NBA's most dangerous offense. He became just the fourth player in NBA history to average at least 19 points, 12 rebounds and 7 assists in a season; add in his 61.5% clip from the field (63.9% on twos, 37.3% on a low volume of threes), and the list shrinks to him and Wilt Chamberlain.&nbsp;
The battle for MVP ultimately became a three-man race in 2023 &mdash; if you recall, Tatum was my MVP <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/2022-23-nba-early-season-award-picks-mvp-dpoy-rookie-sixth-man-most-improved-all-league-defensive-teams" target="_blank" rel="noopener">in my first check-in</a> from mid-December &mdash; between Embiid, Giannis and Jokic.
There's more to discuss with Jokic, who nearly became the first center in NBA history to average a triple-double. Even that sells his season short; Jokic just logged the most efficient season in NBA history among players to average at least 20 points.
If Jokic and the Denver Nuggets hadn't, by their standards, sputtered to the finish line, he likely would've maintained the lead he had in my second check-in and gotten my fictitious vote. That he was already having a (much) worse defensive season than Embiid and Giannis and managed to go backwards over this recent stretch &mdash; particularly the <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/how-concerned-should-we-be-about-the-denver-nuggets" target="_blank" rel="noopener">middle portion of March</a> &mdash; made it tough for me in a race this close.
There was even a quieter dip in Jokic's production offensively, though he was still absurd overall.
<ul>
<li>Dec. 14 through Feb. 28 (32 games): 25.2 points on 71.2% True Shooting, 10.7 assists (3.7 turnovers)</li>
<li>From March 1 onward (14 games): 24.0 points on 69.6% True Shooting, 9.1 assists (3.6 turnovers)</li>
</ul>
That being said, it was a ridiculous season from Jokic. He was still the best offensive player in the league for me. The Nuggets showcased, on multiple occasions, that they didn't quite know how to function without him. Even with the recent "slippage," he paced the league in many advanced metrics. A worthy choice, just ultimately not my choice.
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From here, let's talk about Embiid vs Giannis for a bit. Here are a handful of Embiid's stat lines since the beginning of March:
<ul>
<li>52-13-6 (plus 2 blocks) in a win vs. the Celtics</li>
<li>46-9-8-2-1 in a loss vs. the Warriors</li>
<li>36-18 (plus 4 blocks) in a win vs. the Cavaliers</li>
<li>31-6-10 in a win vs. the Bucks</li>
<li>39-7-4-1-3 in a win vs. the Timberwolves</li>
</ul>
This ignores the 37 and 16 against Chicago; the 42-on-16-shots affair against the Pacers; the 38-14-5 he slapped up against the Hornets. Of the 18 games Embiid played during this stretch, he scored 30 or more 12 times and the Philadelphia 76ers went 12-6 in those contests. He fell below 20 points once &mdash; 12-7-7 in 16 first-half minutes against the Bulls before sitting the second half of that blowout for precautionary reasons. There's a rule about assuming, but it'd be fair to project him putting up a nutty stat line in that game had he played the second half.
There just hasn't been a consistent answer for this guy all year. Crowding the paint only does so much when he's willing to shoot over you &mdash; and do so at a high clip. Doubling can only do so much when he's grown as a passer &mdash; the Sixers scored at an elite rate on possessions that Embiid passed out of a post-double team (1.17 PPP) or isolation double (1.14 PPP), per Second Spectrum &mdash; and can <a href="https://www.theringer.com/nba/2023/3/31/23664110/joel-embiid-76ers-mvp-race" target="_blank" rel="noopener">brow-beat them</a> when necessary.&nbsp;
He's taken over half of his shots from mid-range this season and drilled them at a 49% clip. He drew 104 fouls in the mid-range area, per Cleaning The Glass; do you know how hard it is to have Embiid's shot profile and manage to get fouled as often as he does? It's insane stuff and speaks to the guard-like ability he has in this range.&nbsp;
<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/kymug6" width="100%" height="325" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen" data-mce-fragment="1"></iframe></div>
The defense has waxed and waned over the closing stretch, but the Sixers ended the year with a 94.5 half-court defensive rating with Embiid on the floor, per Cleaning The Glass; that's equivalent to the second-best half-court D in the NBA, and is a mark that shouldn't be that high considering Philly's overall roster construction.
Even "Lax Embiid" can goad opponents into pull-ups &mdash; though that's something worth keeping an eye on as the postseason hits. Engaged Embiid &mdash; the guy that can blow stuff up at the level of the screen and still strut back to challenge shots at the rim &mdash; is, and has been, a world-ender.
<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/cot2l0" width="100%" height="325" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen" data-mce-fragment="1"></iframe></div>
The TLDR summary: Embiid had a heavy load to carry on both ends of the floor, <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/nba-news-feature-philadelphia-76ers-sixers-joel-embiid-mvp-race-james-harden-tyrese-maxey" target="_blank" rel="noopener">dominated offensively and anchored a high-level defense while flashing an even higher level when fully locked in</a>. Having a 65% win rate in his games helped; the advanced metrics also paint him in a favorable light.
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Of course, we can't lose sight of the work Giannis did in a less-than-ideal context at the beginning of the year. He was without his best pick-and-roll partner in Khris Middleton and didn't always have Jrue Holiday by his side. It's not a coincidence that, once those two were in the lineup with Giannis more consistently, the Milwaukee Bucks (and Giannis) took off.
Giannis remained a battering ram at the rim, drawing shooting fouls on a career-best 24.6% of his shot attempts this year, per Cleaning The Glass. His mark of 12.3 free throw attempts per game led the NBA. Giannis' downhill passing also remained a legitimate weapon; his rate of kick-out passes rose to career-high levels (17.1 per 100 possessions), while his turnover rate on total passes (1.57%) was his lowest in three seasons, per Second Spectrum.
<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/gu65qp" width="100%" height="325" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen" data-mce-fragment="1"></iframe></div>
There was an obvious gap between Embiid and Giannis in points (33.1 vs. 31.1) and a larger one in efficiency (Embiid's 65.5% TS vs. Giannis' 60.7% TS). Again, it's hard to overstate the difference in shooting ability that the two displayed. Embiid was a monster from mid-range compared to Giannis' clip (31.8%), knocked down a higher percentage of threes (33.0% vs. 27.5%) and shot much better from the line (85.7% vs. 64.5%).
Milwaukee faithful would likely point to the context for the two, particularly what Giannis dealt with at the beginning of the year sans Middleton &mdash; and at times, with no Holiday. There's some credence to that.&nbsp;
How's this for a did-you-know: The Sixers logged a paltry 111.4 offensive rating in 333 minutes with Embiid on the floor without James Harden and Tyrese Maxey; the Bucks were slightly better &mdash; a 113.8 offensive rating in nearly double the sample (643 minutes) &mdash; with Giannis on the floor without Holiday and Middleton.
The scoring breakdown in those minutes:
<ul>
<li>Giannis: 608 points (34.0 points per 36 minutes), 57.7% on twos, 26.2% on threes, 60.3% TS</li>
<li>Embiid: 302 points (32.6 per 36), 51.4% on twos, 22.2% on threes, 58.4% TS</li>
</ul>
The playmaking still leans towards Giannis:
<ul>
<li>Giannis: 145 assists (8.1 per 36), 94 turnovers (5.3 per 36)</li>
<li>Embiid: 63 assists (6.8 per 36), 44 turnovers (4.8 per 36)</li>
</ul>
If you only filter for the minutes the two played with and without their primary ball-handler &mdash; <a href="https://www.pbpstats.com/wowy-combos/nba?TeamId=1610612755&amp;Season=2022-23&amp;SeasonType=Regular%2BSeason&amp;PlayerIds=203954,201935" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Harden for Embiid</a>, <a href="https://www.pbpstats.com/wowy-combos/nba?TeamId=1610612749&amp;Season=2022-23&amp;SeasonType=Regular%2BSeason&amp;PlayerIds=203507,201950" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Holiday for Giannis</a> &mdash; some fun stuff is revealed, namely:
<ul>
<li>The Bucks' offense burned a little brighter with Giannis and Holiday (123.9 ORTG) compared to the Sixers pairing (123.2 ORTG).</li>
<li>The Sixers still operated at a top-10 rate when Embiid played without Harden (117.8, would rank No. 7); the same could not be said for Giannis without Holiday (113.0, would rank No. 26).</li>
</ul>
Zooming out, the defense is where things got tight for me.
Full disclosure: On Friday's pod, I listed Embiid as my choice. By Sunday morning, I was ready to flip to Giannis. And that was before Bleacher Report's Chris Haynes <a href="https://twitter.com/ChrisBHaynes/status/1645111264623095808?s=20" target="_blank" rel="noopener">dropped his exclusive sit-down interview</a> with the 2021 NBA champion, surprisingly (and honestly, refreshingly) dipping into his, "Let's not get carried away, I still do this" bag. The Sixers tailing off defensively over the past couple of weeks really opened the door.
Giannis has been elite this year, an omnipresent deterrent lurking around the weak side. When challenged at the rim, opponents haven't had much success; they converted just 55.4% of their shots at the rim against Giannis, <a href="https://www.nba.com/stats/players/defensive-impact?CF=GP*GE*49:DEF_RIM_FGA*GE*4&amp;dir=A&amp;sort=DEF_RIM_FG_PCT" target="_blank" rel="noopener">which ranks 10th among 51 players</a> to defend at least four shots per contest.
But of that 51-player group, Giannis ranked 40th in shots defended per game. Embiid was third and Jokic was fourth; that obviously speaks to how willing teams were to attack the latter, but the discrepancy is at least kinda funny when considering the scheme differences between the two.&nbsp;
Embiid ranked 12th in contested shots per game (10.3). Giannis ranked 44th (6.6); his teammate, Brook Lopez, was first (17.5) by a comically large margin.
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That led me down the Giannis-at-the-5 rabbit hole, which revealed that the Bucks were a middling defense (114.2 DRTG, would rank 13th) with Giannis on the floor without Lopez, per Cleaning The Glass. When you also&nbsp;remove Bobby Portis from the equation, however, that drops to a would-be-league-leading 104.5 DRTG in nearly 850 possessions.
There were other searches I did that I won't bore you with, such as Giannis without Holiday and Lopez (116.7 DRTG in 1,034 possessions) compared to Embiid without De'Anthony Melton and PJ Tucker (111.8 DRTG in 561 possessions).
(It's worth noting that such a query left the Jevon Carter minutes on the table for Giannis, as it did the pre-trade Matisse Thybulle minutes for Embiid.)
Ultimately, the fundamental question became this: Do you value Giannis being better in a secondary rim-protecting role than Embiid with his primary responsibilities, or do you give Embiid the edge for having to carry more responsibility on that end?
You're more than welcome to disagree, but I landed on the responsibility angle.
Embiid getting this&nbsp;team to a top-10 finish defensively was impressive. Having the offensive year he had, on the shot diet he lived on, was also wildly impressive. Only Stephen Curry and 22 games of 1982-83 Adrian Dantley have posted more efficient 30-point seasons than Embiid, and the Sixers big man averaged more points than both of them.
I geniunely don't think you could go wrong with any of these three. Jokic's team performed better with him on the floor than Giannis or Embiid; Giannis paced both guys in wins and win percentage in addition to his excellence.
The combination of production, efficiency, winning and responsibility gave Embiid the narrow win for me.

Nekias Duncan narrows down his final candidates for the 2022-23 NBA MVP and picks the league's most valuable player.

Nekias Duncan's 2022-23 NBA award selections: Who wins MVP?

The Memphis Grizzlies will likely be missing a key piece during this year's playoffs.
Grizzlies center Steven Adams is expected to miss the entire postseason as he recovers from a right knee injury, according to <a href="https://twitter.com/wojespn/status/1644754411028365312" target="_blank" rel="noopener">ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski</a>.
Adams received a stem cell injection last month and was trying to get back on the court, but the PCL sprain that has kept him sidelined since late January needs more time to heal.
This season, Adams appeared in 42 games, averaging 8.6 points, 11.5 rebounds, 2.3 assists and 1.1 blocks, while shooting 59.7% from the field. Adams' impact goes beyond what shows up in the stat sheet, and there's no question that Memphis has missed him over the last few months.
In an effort to add some frontcourt depth for their postseason run, the Grizzlies waived guard Kennedy Chandler (whom the Grizzlies selected with the No. 38 overall in the 2022 NBA Draft) and signed two-way rookie Kenny Lofton Jr. to a four-year, $7 million contract, per Wojnarowski.
Lofton was the G League's Rookie of the Year, averaging 20.2 points, 10.4 rebounds, 3.9 assists and 1.2 steals while shooting 54.1% from the field. He has also appeared in 23 games with the Grizzlies since he was on a two-way deal.
The Grizzlies are the No. 2 seed in the Western Conference with a 51-30 record. Memphis has the NBA's second-best defense (allowing just 108.3 points per 100 possessions) and 13th-ranked offense (scoring 112.4 points per 100 possessions).

Memphis Grizzlies center Steven Adams is expected to miss the entire postseason as he recovers from a right knee injury.

Steven Adams likely to miss playoffs, Grizzlies sign Kenny Lofton Jr.

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) &mdash; Anthony Davis scored 17 of his 38 points in the fourth quarter and had 17 rebounds to lift the Los Angeles Lakers past Minnesota 123-111 and leapfrog the Timberwolves on Friday night in the crowded Western Conference playoff race.
&ldquo;You&rsquo;ve got to have that one pivotal force that&rsquo;s leading the charge, and in our case with this particular team here in the moment it&rsquo;s AD,&rdquo; Lakers coach Darvin Ham said. &ldquo;When he comes out and he&rsquo;s aggressive and we&rsquo;re feeding him and he&rsquo;s not settling and he&rsquo;s putting pressure on the paint, putting pressure on the rim, we find ourselves having a lot of success.&rdquo;
LeBron James added 18 points and 10 rebounds and D&rsquo;Angelo Russell had 12 points and 10 assists against his former team as the Lakers (39-38) won for the fifth time in six games to move into seventh place. They&rsquo;re even with New Orleans, owning the head-to-head tiebreaker over the Pelicans.
&ldquo;We&rsquo;ve made some huge climbs, but we&rsquo;re not finished,&rdquo; said Davis, who also had 38 points Wednesday in the win at Chicago. &ldquo;We&rsquo;re hungry to not only make the playoffs but make some noise.&rdquo;
The Lakers improved to 9-4 since losing at home to the Wolves on March 3.
&ldquo;We jumped on AD&rsquo;s back, and he brought us home,&rdquo; James said.
Mike Conley had 25 points on 7-for-11 shooting with seven assists before fouling out, and Karl-Anthony Towns scored 23 points for the Timberwolves (39-39), who tumbled into ninth place. They entered the evening one game behind Golden State and the cut to avoid the play-in tournament, with the Warriors tipping off later at home against San Antonio.
Davis scored 12 straight points for the Lakers over a 3:52 span late in the fourth quarter to seal the steely comeback from a deficit that hit 13 points shortly after halftime. He made five baskets in a row with Wolves center Rudy Gobert on the bench, dominating on the glass, in the post and at the rim.
&ldquo;He&rsquo;s playing at a super high level right now,&rdquo; Wolves coach Chris Finch said.
The Lakers took charge earlier with a 24-2 spurt over a 6:49 stretch of the third quarter with their defense on lockdown mode. Conley&rsquo;s turn to rest on the bench during that run was ill-timed. Davis rolled his left ankle around the start of the Lakers surge, a breath-holding sequence that only seemed to energize the visitors.
&ldquo;We started to turn the ball over, and the ball started to stick much more,&rdquo; Gobert said. &ldquo;We kind of lost our flow offensively, and it really affected our defense.&rdquo;
The Wolves, whose bench was shortened without center Naz Reid and his&nbsp;<a class="paragraph-link" href="https://apnews.com/article/Reid%20injured%20https://apnews.com/article/timberwolves-naz-reid-injury-bd6a7eaa1077434f088eadc549874d42" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">broken wrist</a>, went 2 for 14 from 3-point range in the third quarter and were outscored 35-18 in a discouraging stretch for a fired-up crowd that included local sports superstars Justin Jefferson and Kirill Kaprizov in floor seats.
FEELING BETTER
James has been rebuilding his stamina from the&nbsp;<a class="paragraph-link" href="https://apnews.com/article/lakers-lebron-james-return-injury-109c58929fb947c7ebd81540121a44f3" target="_blank" rel="noopener">month-long absence</a>&nbsp;to a torn tendon in his right foot, and the second time with this new starting lineup with Davis, Russell, Austin Reaves and Jarred Vanderbilt produced a second win to start this five-game road trip.
&ldquo;I&rsquo;ll be in the lineup on Sunday, so that&rsquo;s the best response I can have,&rdquo; James said.
Davis, for his part, said he finished the game on adrenaline and would be fine to play on Sunday, too.
WHISTLE STOP
Gobert ($25,000) and Finch ($15,000) were&nbsp;<a class="paragraph-link" href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/timberwolves-rudy-gobert-chris-finch-fined-for-criticizing-refs" target="_blank" rel="noopener">fined by the NBA</a> for criticizing the officiating Wednesday after their loss at Phoenix when the Suns had 27 free-throw attempts and the Wolves had 12.
In tonight's game, the Wolves went to the line 19 times &mdash; making 16 &mdash; and the Lakers had 30 tries.
TIP-INS
Lakers: Vanderbilt had 12 points. ... Another former Wolves player, Malik Beasley, had three first-quarter 3-pointers.
Timberwolves: Anthony Edwards had 11 points on just 4-for-16 shooting. ... Gobert had 14 points and 11 rebounds.
UP NEXT
Lakers: At Houston on Sunday night.
Timberwolves: Host Portland on Sunday.

Anthony Davis had 38 points and 17 rebounds to lift the Lakers past the Timberwolves 123-111 on Friday night.

Lakers overtake Timberwolves in standings with 123-111 win

Nekias Duncan checks back in with this year's NBA award races with an in-depth look at who leads the pack through the end of February.

2022-23 NBA award front-runners Vol. 2: MVP, DPOY, ROY, more

While many are spending the NBA All-Star break getting much-needed rest, the Washington Wizards are doing a little bit of housekeeping.&nbsp;
First, per ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski, the Wizards and wing Will Barton have agreed to a contract buyout, making Barton a free agent &mdash; assuming he clears waivers.&nbsp;
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Washington Wizards guard Will Barton has completed a contract buyout ahead of the March 1 deadline to become eligible to join a playoff roster on a new team, sources tell ESPN. Barton will become a free agent once he clears waivers.
&mdash; Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) <a href="https://twitter.com/wojespn/status/1628102734481358849?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 21, 2023</a></blockquote>

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As noted by Wojnarowski, it was important for the two sides to agree to something before March 1. Players must be waived &mdash; or bought out &mdash; of their deals by that date to remain eligible for playoff basketball this season. Since he was waived before that deadline, Barton can be signed at any point up until the postseason begins and still be able to play.
It's been a quiet season for Barton in Washington. He averaged just 19.6 minutes per game for the Wizards, his lowest workload since his third season in the league. In those minutes, he averaged 7.7 points on 50.5% True Shooting, 2.8 rebounds and 2.4 assists (1.1 turnovers) per contest. Barton drained a healthy 38.4% of his threes, but posted career-low efficiency inside the arc (39.5% on twos).
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To say that Barton has underwhelmed defensively would be selling it short. By virtually any measure, the Wizards suffered leaks while he was on the floor. Per Second Spectrum, possessions featuring Barton defending a ball-screen, isolation, off-screen action or drive all produced at least 1.1 points per possession (PPP). Barton's Defensive Estimated Plus-Minus (DEPM) this season is minus-6.5; it's easily the worst mark of his career, and a number that ranks in the first percentile.&nbsp;
Barton has had stretches of solid play on that end during his career; even if looking at DEPM, Barton was roughly a neutral defender across his last three seasons in Denver (plus-0.7, minus-0.9, minus-0.4). For a playoff hopeful looking to add him, it'll have to bank on a bit of rejuvenation that a winning situation can provide.&nbsp;
If the defense holds enough &mdash; or if the infrastructure around him is strong &mdash; Barton can still add value as a secondary creator. Barton has made roughly 37% of his threes over the past seven seasons on solid volume (4.8 attempts, 5.8 per 36 minutes), including a 39.0% clip on catch-and-shoot threes. His 33.7% clip on pull-up or stepback threes is slightly above league-average (33.3%) during that timeframe, per Second Spectrum.
For teams looking for a shot in the arm in terms of creation, Barton could provide that. The Milwaukee Bucks, for example, are a team that:
1) Is in contention
2) Has a strong defensive infrastructure
3) Has roster space available if they want to give it a shot.
Not long after we got word of Barton's buyout with the Wizards, The Athletic's Shams Charania reported the Wizards would be converting guard Jordan Goodwin's two-way deal into a standard contract.
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The Washington Wizards plan to convert two-way guard Jordan Goodwin to standard NBA contract, sources tell <a href="https://twitter.com/TheAthletic?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@TheAthletic</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/Stadium?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@Stadium</a>. Goodwin earns new deal, emerging as a rotation player this season for Wizards.
&mdash; Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) <a href="https://twitter.com/ShamsCharania/status/1628111779464351744?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 21, 2023</a></blockquote>

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It's a smart bit of business from the Wizards, and well-deserved for Goodwin.&nbsp;
His numbers don't jump off the page: 6.3 points on 54.2% TS, 3.3 rebounds, 2.5 assists (0.9 turnovers) and 1.0 steals per game.
But Goodwin has been a breath of fresh air in the guard room this season. He's been a patient ball-screen navigator, either chewing up space to get inside or quickly swinging the ball to the next option when he doesn't have anything. There's probably room for a little more exploration on his end; he sometimes finds himself pulling up a dribble early to look for kick-outs.&nbsp;
Goodwin has knocked down nearly 39% of his threes this year, though that's come on low volume (1.7 attempts). Being able to solidify himself as a reliable shooter likely cements him as a no-doubt-about-it rotation piece in the NBA.
Goodwin's calling card for now, however, is his on-ball defense. His combination of size, strength and on-ball tenacity &mdash; watching him get in a guy's jersey right before the screener comes up is a subtle joy in his minutes &mdash; makes him an irritating player to deal with at the point of attack.&nbsp;
His workload (40 games, 18.1 minutes) and the Wizards' place in the standings (No. 9, 4.0 games out of 6th) will work against him when award talk really ramps up. On a per-minute basis, he's proven worthy of making an "honorable mentions" list due to his work.&nbsp;
For one (1) reference point: Goodwin's DEPM (plus-1.6) puts him on par with Derrick White and Marcus Smart, and slightly ahead of guys like De'Anthony Melton (plus-1.4), Jrue Holiday (plus-1.2), Jose Alvarado (plus-0.9) and Fred VanVleet (plus-0.7).&nbsp;
I'm excited to see more from Goodwin in the second half* of the year.

Nekias Duncan reacts to Will Barton's buyout and Washington's decision to convert Jordan Goodwin to a standard deal.

Wizards waive Will Barton, convert Jordan Goodwin to standard contract

Following his buyout agreement with the Cleveland Cavaliers on Saturday, it appears Kevin Love will be moving south, as ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski reports that the veteran big man plans to sign with the Miami Heat after clearing waivers.
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After clearing waivers, Kevin Love plans to sign with the Miami Heat, his agent Jeff Schwartz of <a href="https://twitter.com/excelbasketball?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@Excelbasketball</a> tells ESPN. <a href="https://t.co/c1Ff4tLfKP">pic.twitter.com/c1Ff4tLfKP</a>
&mdash; Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) <a href="https://twitter.com/wojespn/status/1627349458865491973?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 19, 2023</a></blockquote>

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Love's addition will be welcome in South Beach, as the Heat rank 27th in the NBA in rebounding average (41.4) and defensive-rebounding average (31.3). Crashing the glass is a staple of the 34-year-old's game, as he has averaged 10.5 boards per contest over his entire career. 
Pending on the status of a thumb injury that hampered him before being booted from the Cavs' rotation, Love should be able to provide floor-spacing and a steady hand from long distance as a shooter too. Miami's been searching for a way to sustain production with Bam Adebayo resting, so it wouldn't be surprising to see Love incorporated quickly into Erik Spoelstra's system.

ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski reports that veteran big man Kevin Love plans to sign with the Miami Heat after clearing waivers.

Kevin Love plans to sign with Miami Heat after clearing waivers

After Suns owner Mat Ishbia and coach Monty Willams joined the pursuit, G Terrence Ross plans to sign with the Phoenix Suns, according to <a href="https://twitter.com/wojespn/status/1624636245929238528" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN</a>.
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After Suns owner Mat Ishbia and coach Monty Willams joined the pursuit, G Terrence Ross plans to sign with the Phoenix Suns, sources tell ESPN. Ross, finalizing a contract buyout with the Magic, brings his 38% 3-point shooting to Suns' title pursuit. <a href="https://t.co/AKTjsrT0dP">pic.twitter.com/AKTjsrT0dP</a>
&mdash; Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) <a href="https://twitter.com/wojespn/status/1624636245929238528?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 12, 2023</a></blockquote>

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ANALYSIS:&nbsp;After losing much of their depth in the trade for Kevin Durant, it makes sense that Ross would choose the Suns since they are low on rotation players outside of their top four.
Ross should bring a scoring spark and could thrive efficiency-wise playing off Durant, Devin Booker, and Chris Paul. Previously, the Dallas Mavericks were reported as the front-runners to sign Ross, but the Suns swooped in and stole him away.

Adrian Wojnarowski reports that Terrence Ross will sign with the Suns following his buyout with the Magic.

Woj: Suns to sign Terrence Ross following buyout

The Dallas Mavericks have emerged as the frontrunner to sign Terrence Ross once his buyout is complete, according to <a href="https://twitter.com/wojespn/status/1624477483004207104?s=46&amp;t=4BRGKUWtvHmMrkf1vS0Yrw" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN</a>.
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The Dallas Mavericks have emerged as the frontrunner to sign Terrence Ross once his buyout is complete, sources tell ESPN. <a href="https://t.co/YwdxwdgiIZ">https://t.co/YwdxwdgiIZ</a>
&mdash; Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) <a href="https://twitter.com/wojespn/status/1624477483004207104?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 11, 2023</a></blockquote>

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ANALYSIS: Ross may not bring much defensively, but his abilities as a scorer could help the Mavs, who have already proven be pretty lethal on that end since acquiring Kyrie Irving.
Though Ross is putting up his lowest scoring numbers since his rookie year at 8 points a game, this is actually his most efficient season in years, as he's shooting 43.1% from the field and 38.1% from three.

Adrian Wojnarowski reports that the Mavericks have emerged as the frontrunner for Terrence Ross after he was bought out by the Magic.

Woj: Mavericks considered 'frontrunner' to sign Terrence Ross

If you had the Los Angeles Lakers bolstering their forward room before the trade deadline &mdash; and sending off multiple future picks to do it &mdash; you can pat yourself on the back.
Don't pat too hard, though, because I doubt you had this deal on the bingo card.&nbsp;
On Monday, ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski reported that the <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/nba-trade-news-report-los-angeles-lakers-finalizing-trade-to-acquire-washington-wizards-rui-hachimura-kendrick-nunn-kyle-kuzma" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Lakers were acquiring former lottery pick Rui Hachimura</a> from the Washington Wizards in exchange for Kendrick Nunn and three second round picks &mdash; a 2023 second via Chicago (looking real top-40ish), the least favorable of LA or Washington's 2028 second rounder and LA's 2029 second-rounder.
More of a starter trade than a star trade, but you have to crawl before you walk.
The optics of this deal aren't great for Washington; it's not fun trading away a somewhat recent top-10 pick for three second-rounders and a bench guard you don't have long-term belief in. That doesn't mean the move was thoughtless.
Replacing Hachimura's salary with Nunn's makes the Wizards' tax figure a little easier to deal with this season &mdash; they're now $1.3 million below the tax line, <a href="https://www.spotrac.com/spots/lakers-make-low-risk-gamble-on-rui-hachimura-1753/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">per Keith Smith</a> &mdash; which could make them a candidate for more deals before the deadline. And if there was no intention of retaining Hachimura in the offseason, it's best to get&nbsp;something&nbsp;for him.
(And speaking of the offseason: It's clear the Wizards are gearing up to retain Kyle Kuzma, the former Laker who's blossomed into a multifaceted player.)
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The Laker side is more fun to think about.
They've needed reinforcements for a while, especially in the frontcourt. Prior to the deal, LeBron James was really the only bulky, athletic forward on the roster. The slight-bodied nature of the Lakers' wing/forward room has been an issue all season long. Hachimura won't solve that by himself, but he serves as a step in the right direction.
I'm curious to see how Hachimura slots in defensively. He's a mixed bag on the non-glamour end, able to bang and slide with 4s, and manage well enough against 3s. At worst, he should be able to funnel twitchier wings inside to Anthony Davis once he makes his return.&nbsp;
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To be clear, the Lakers do not (or at least should not) view Hachimura as an on-ball stopper. If he can serve as an innings eater of sorts, that will allow LeBron and Davis (when healthy) to patrol the back line. The collective size and length of those three &mdash; combined with the screen navigation they get up top from Dennis Schroder &mdash; should be the foundation of a solid defensive unit.
Beyond his stature, Hachimura's skill set should be useful for the Lakers. He's a load to deal with when getting downhill. That really shines through in transition, where he's generated 1.19 points per possession (PPP) on transition opportunities over the past two seasons per InStat tracking.
The Lakers rank sixth in the league in transition frequency per Cleaning The Glass, and seventh in the league in pace. Their willingness to push off misses and turnovers should vibe well with Hachimura. That intention picks up when Russell Westbrook is on the floor, an important note considering their time together in Washington.
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In the half-court, expect Hachimura to make his money as a complementary piece. He's shown the ability to punish sloppy closeouts by mixing in strong drives with mid-range pull-ups.&nbsp;
His propensity for turnarounds lead to underwhelming results against mismatches, but he's still someone teams shouldn't feel&nbsp;comfortable&nbsp;stashing smaller players against.
The swing skill for Hachimura will be his three-ball. This is a Laker team starved of reliable shooters &mdash; not just in terms of efficiency, but players that defenses allocate extra attention to. Hachimura hasn't accomplished the latter yet, and his efficiency has continued to fluctuate.
He drilled 44.7% of his threes last season, and was even better when filtering for catch-and-shoot looks (47.0%). The volume just wasn't high enough for it to matter (2.7 catch-and-shoot attempts on 2.9 overall per game), especially when considering his previous reputation. It doesn't help that Hachimura is down to 33.3% on catch-and-shoot looks this season, in line with the first two seasons of his career (32.1%).&nbsp;
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In order for this trade to pop offensively, Hachimura will have to ramp up his aggression against smaller defenders &mdash; someone with Hachimura's physical gifts drawing 38 shooting fouls over his last 70 games is hard to reckon with &mdash; or become a much more willing (and efficient) shooter from deep. Ideally, the Lakers get both, and I don't think either is out of the question.
Hachimura has shooting touch worth believing in. It's also not like Hachimura has dealt with the cleanest path of half-court development once you factor in roster changes, coaching changes and the start-and-stop nature of his availability the past three seasons.&nbsp;
With the Lakers, he'll have space to explore. LeBron will always draw two to the ball. There will be catch-and-shoot chances and catch-and-drive pockets.&nbsp;
Zooming out, this is a reasonable gamble for the Lakers considering the price point. If you can get someone with Hachimura's skill set and traits while giving up one (1) asset of moderate consequence (Chicago's second rounder), it's worth exploring.
Though Wojnarowski reported that the Lakers plan to retain Hachimura for the long haul, they also didn't give up enough to "force" them into that decision if he proves to be a poor fit.

Nekias Duncan analyzes how Rui Hachimura's acquisition can help the Lakers and the role he'll need to fill.

Exploring Rui Hachimura's fit with the Los Angeles Lakers

<a href="https://twitter.com/wojespn/status/1606747746748497920" target="_blank" rel="noopener">ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski reports</a> that Denver Nuggets forward Jeff Green will be out at least a month with a fractured left hand and a sprained finger.
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Denver's Jeff Green fractured his left hand and sprained a finger and will be re-evaluated in a month, Nuggets say.
&mdash; Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) <a href="https://twitter.com/wojespn/status/1606747746748497920?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 24, 2022</a></blockquote>

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The 36-year-old is averaging 7.5 points, 2.8 rebounds and 1.1 assists on 52.7% shooting this season.

The Nuggets will be without forward Jeff Green for at least a month due to a fractured left hand.

Nuggets' Jeff Green out a month with fractured hand

<a href="https://twitter.com/wojespn/status/1605256670824767498" target="_blank" rel="noopener">ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski</a> is reporting that billionaire mortgage lender Mat Ishbia is finalizing a purchase of the Phoenix Suns. The deal, expected to be completed in the near future, would end the tumultuous tenure of owner Robert Sarver.
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BREAKING: Billionaire mortgage lender Mat Ishbia is finalizing a purchase of the Phoenix Suns, sources tell ESPN. The deal, expected to be completed in the near future, would end the tumultuous tenure of owner Robert Sarver.
&mdash; Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) <a href="https://twitter.com/wojespn/status/1605256670824767498?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 20, 2022</a></blockquote>

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Sarver has been the owner of the Suns since 2004 when he purchased the franchise for $400 million. He is now selling it for an <a href="https://twitter.com/wojespn/status/1605259517901606914" target="_blank" rel="noopener">amount reported to be in the neighborhood for $4 billion</a>.
Following allegations of misogyny and racism, the NBA conducted an investigation where the league deemed there was a toxic culture in Phoenix. Among the finding were "instances of inequitable conduct toward female employees," the NBA said in its statement, including "sex-related comments" and inappropriate comments on employees' appearances.
Sarver was suspended one year and fined $10 million by the NBA as a result of the investigation into his behavior with the franchise. He disagreed with the punishment and soon thereafter announced that he would be selling the Suns along with the WNBA's Phoenix Mercury, saying it was no longer possible for him to successfully operate the franchise because of the "current unforgiving climate".
The 42-year-old Ishbia is the chairman and CEO of Michigan-based mortgage lender United Wholesale Mortgage, now UWM Holdings, that was founded by his father Jeff in 1986. <a href="https://www.forbes.com/profile/mat-ishbia/?sh=6f1e5e9718af" target="_blank" rel="noopener">According to a recent report by Forbes</a>, he has a net worth of $5.1 billion.

Billionaire mortgage lender Mat Ishbia is finalizing a purchase of the Phoenix Suns for reportedly around $4 billion.

Billionaire mortgage lender Mat Ishbia finalizing purchase of Phoenix Suns

Nekias Duncan takes an early look at this year's NBA award races with an in-depth look at who leads the pack through mid-December.