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Celtics

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

Jayson Tatum scored a season-high 54 points &mdash; 34 of them in the second half &mdash; and the Boston Celtics overcame a rare appearance of both Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving in the Nets lineup, beating Brooklyn 126-120 on Sunday.
Durant played in his second game since mid-January and scored 37 for the Nets to become the 23rd player in NBA history to reach 25,000 points. Irving joined him for just the fourth time all season, scoring 19 in his first game in three weeks and his first in Boston since he was pelted with a water bottle during the playoffs.
Jaylen Brown, who was cleared to return to Boston&rsquo;s lineup after testing his sprained ankle pregame, scored 21 for the Celtics. He beat the 24-second clock to hit a 3-pointer and give Boston a 121-115 lead in the final minute.
Durant missed a jumper the next time down &mdash; complaining that he was fouled, with no luck. Tatum was fouled the next possession and, as &ldquo;MVP!&rdquo; chants rang out in the TD Garden, he hit one of two free throws to surpass his previous season high of 51.
The Celtics have won five of their last six and 21 of their last 27 games.
EARLY ON
The Nets scored 11 straight points midway through the third and opened their biggest lead of the game, 90-81, with just over a minute left in the quarter. But Boston scored eight in a row to cut it to one point, then took the lead on the first basket of the fourth.
The Celtics opened a 108-100 lead in the middle of the fourth.
UNHAPPY RETURNS
Irving was booed by Boston fans still irked that he opted out of his contract after professing his love for the city. On his last visit &mdash; the Celtics&rsquo; first full house since the pandemic began &mdash; a fan threw a water bottle at him when he left the court following a playoff victory.
Irving stomped on the Celtics&rsquo; leprechaun logo at midcourt after that game. On Sunday, former Celtics Glen &ldquo;Big Baby&rdquo; Davis was sitting courtside wearing a T-shirt that read &ldquo;Respect the Logo.&rdquo;
TIP-INS
Nets: Irving had missed seven straight games and did not play in the Feb. 8 game against Boston in Brooklyn because of New York City&rsquo;s COVID-19 vaccine requirements. ... Durant missed 21 straight games before returning Thursday night.
Celtics: Nick Stauskas, the No. 8 overall pick in the 2014 draft, signed with Boston over the weekend but did not play. He played in two games for Miami this season and 26 games for the Grand Rapids Gold of the G League. ... Signed forwards Malik Fitts and Kelan Martin to their second 10-day contracts. They each have played in one game for the Celtics and did not get off the bench on Sunday.
UP NEXT
Nets: At Charlotte on Tuesday.
Celtics: At Charlotte on Wednesday.

Jayson Tatum scored a season-high 54 points — 34 of them in the second half — and the Celtics overcame the Nets' duo.

Tatum’s 54 leads Celtics past Durant, Irving, Nets 126-120

INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — Kyrie Irving scored 22 points and sparked Brooklyn to a big rally in the second half of his season debut, Kevin Durant had 39 and the Nets beat the Indiana Pacers 129-121 on Wednesday night.
Irving is ineligible to play home games because he is not vaccinated as mandated in New York City, and the Nets had decided against allowing him to just play road games for most of the season.
But they changed their mind last month and were glad they did Wednesday, when Irving helped them charge back from a 19-point deficit. The point guard played 32 minutes as Brooklyn snapped a three-game losing streak.
Domantas Sabonis had 32 points, 12 rebounds and 10 assists for the Pacers, who have lost in six in a row. Lance Stephenson, who had two previous stints with the Pacers, scored 30 in his first home game with the Pacers after signing a 10-day contract.
Stephenson delighted the home crowd by scoring the final 20 points for the Pacers in the first quarter as Indiana took a 37-32 lead. He hit 8 of 9 shots, 4 of 5 3-pointers in that 6-plus minute stretch.
The 20 points were a record for any Pacers player in the first quarter. It was also the most points in the opening quarter for a player coming off the bench.
The Pacers shot 62% to a grab a 73-60 lead at halftime. Irving hit a shot at the third-quarter buzzer to cut Indiana’s lead to 101-94. That capped an 8-0 run by the Nets.
Patty Mills sank a 3-pointer to put Brooklyn ahead for good at 107-106 with 7:23 left. Irving followed with two consecutive baskets to push the lead to 111-106 and Indiana never recovered.
Brooklyn shot 56% overall while Indiana finished at 49%.
TIP-INS
Nets: LaMarcus Aldridge, who has said he is still recovering his condition from his COVID-19 bout, scored 13 points in 16 minutes. He had missed the last game after returning to play two games following his COVID-19 bout. 
Pacers: Malcolm Brogdon, Chris Duarte and Jeremy Lamb have been cleared to play from health and safety protocols but held out for return to competition conditioning. … Caris LeVert, Kelan Martin, Isaiah Jackson and Goga Bitadze were sidelined by the COVID-19 protocols. … Torrey Craig was out with a right groin injury suffered in Tuesday night’s loss at New York.
UP NEXT
Nets: Host Milwaukee on Friday.
Pacers: Host Utah on Saturday.

Kyrie Irving made his season debut and the Brooklyn Nets beat the Indiana Pacers on the road.

Kyrie Irving helps Nets beat Pacers in season debut, Stephenson has 30

NEW YORK (AP) — RJ Barrett scored 24 of his 32 points in the first half, Julius Randle had 30 points and 16 rebounds in his first game after coming off the COVID-19 health and safety protocols list, and the New York Knicks beat the Indiana Pacers 104-94 on Tuesday night.
Alec Burks added 14 points for New York (18-20), which snapped a two-game losing streak. Immanuel Quickley chipped in with 11.
“With both guys the most important thing is them attacking the rim,” New York coach Tom Thibodeau said about Barrett and Randle. “The aggressiveness of RJ attacking the rim, and for Julius to do what he did today is just remarkable. 
“We had no idea what he was going to be like. So, unbelievable effort. Unbelievable game. Sixteen rebounds. Just all the things that he did.”
Kiefer Skyes scored 22 points in the Pacers' fifth straight loss. Duane Washington Jr. added 17. Domantas Sabonis and Torrey Craig each contributed 15.
“I'm not just here to survive,” said Sykes, who signed with the Pacers as a free agent on Dec. 27. “I'm here to thrive. I want to be in the NBA for a long time. So I'm going to continue to work and have that mindset and outwork everybody.” 
The New York-Indiana rivalry in the mid-to-late 1990s was among the NBA’s must-see matchups. This game was far from it, with a decimated Pacers squad taking on a Knicks team nearly back at full strength. 
Malcolm Brogdon, Chris Duarte, Isaiah Jackson, Jeremy Lamb, Caris LeVert, Goga Bitadze, Kelan Martin and T.J. Warren all missed the game for Indiana as they were in health and safety protocols. T.J. McConnell did not play as he is recovering from right wrist ligament surgery. By comparison, New York was aided by the returns of Randle, Mitchell Robinson and Jericho Sims from protocols. 
It was tied at 55 at halftime, even with Barrett's huge first half. The Pacers, who trailed by 12 early in the second quarter, finished the final seven minutes of the period with an 18-8 run.
“Just trying to be aggressive,” Barrett said of his approach early in the game. “That's really it. When you get into the paint, you make reads: You (have) to finish or kick out. It puts pressure on the defense.” 
Randle took over in the third, scoring 14 points on 5-for-7 shooting, including 2 for 2 from 3. New York led 84-77 after three and Barrett, Randle and Burks took turns knocking down big shots in the fourth. 
“He makes us different. That's his gift. He can play with speed. He can play with power. He can make decisions," Thibodeau said of Randle. “It does make us different, yeah.”
TIP-INS
Pacers: Rick Carlisle will be coaching Indiana at home on Wednesday while his one-time team, the Dallas Mavericks, will retire Dirk Nowitzki's number before their nationally televised game against the Golden State Warriors. “I’m really disappointed that I’m unable to attend that (ceremony),” Carlisle said. Carlisle coached the Mavericks from 2009-21. “It’s (going) to be so special. … Dirk just means so much to so many of us and he proved to be a great champion as well. It’ll be very emotional.“
Knicks: Thibodeau disagreed that an upcoming stretch of eight games out of 10 at Madison Square Garden could benefit his squad. “We can’t look ahead,” Thibodeau said before the game. “We’re not going to win just because we’re home. That’s not how you win. We’ve got to come in and put the work into it.”
UP NEXT:
Pacers: Host Brooklyn on Wednesday night.
Knicks: Begin a home-and-home series against Boston on Thursday night at Madison Square Garden.
___
More AP NBA: https://apnews.com/NBA and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports

RJ Barrett and Julius Randle led the New York Knicks to a win over the Indiana Pacers.

Barrett has 32, Randle has big return as Knicks beat Pacers

No matter where Villanova guards Justin Moore and Collin Gillespie turned, there was another Baylor defender smothering them.
And now the defending national champion Bears are poised to be No. 1 for the first time this season.
James Akinjo had 16 points and second-ranked Baylor defensively dominated in a 57-36 victory Sunday over the sixth-ranked Wildcats, who scored their fewest points and had their worst-shooting game in coach Jay Wright&rsquo;s 21 seasons.
&ldquo;We&rsquo;re a pretty good shooting team. I really chalk up our missed shots to their defense,&rdquo; Wright said, describing the Bears as physical, tough and quick.
&ldquo;They did a great job of being physical with us, getting up in us,&rdquo; Moore said. &ldquo;Then we make the extra pass, they&rsquo;re recovering.&rdquo;
The Bears (9-0) never trailed in their first nonconference home game ever against a top-six opponent, this one a rematch of an NCAA Sweet 16 game last March in Indianapolis. This Big East/Big 12 Battle matchup featured the teams that won three of the last five NCAA titles.
Villanova (7-3) shot only 22% (12 of 54) with several extended scoring droughts in its 689th game under Wright, whose two NCAA titles were both won recently in Texas &mdash; in Houston in 2016 and San Antonio in 2018. The 36 points tied the fewest by a top-10 team in the shot clock era (since 1985-86), and marked Nova&rsquo;s first game under 40 points since 1979.
&ldquo;We&rsquo;ve got a really good team, everybody can score 1 through 5. But the separator is getting those stops,&rdquo; Akinjo said. &ldquo;We all take pride in our individual matchups. We compete against each other every day.&rdquo;
Adam Flagler had 10 points as Baylor, which won its NCAA-best 15th game in a row dating to last season, shot 39% (22 of 56) and was held under 69 points for the first time this season. Jeremy Sochan had nine points and 10 rebounds before fouling out.
Moore had 15 points on 5-of-14 shooting for Villanova.
Top-ranked Purdue lost to Rutgers on Thursday night, clearing the way for Baylor to move up to the No. 1 spot when the new Associated Press poll comes out Monday. Baylor never made it to No. 1 in a poll during the regular season last year on the way to its national title, and last was in that spot during the 2019-20 season.
&ldquo;It&rsquo;s exciting, but we honestly don&rsquo;t really think about that,&rdquo; Flagler said. &ldquo;Like Coach (Scott) Drew said, the most important thing is being No. 1 at the end.&rdquo;
Baylor, which had to overcome a 30-23 halftime deficit in the Sweet 16 matchup, took control with an 11-0 run during a five-minute scoring drought by the Wildcats late in the first half. The Bears led 25-9 before Gillespie made a drought-breaking 3-pointer.
Villanova missed nine in a row in an early scoreless span of more than 7 1/2 minutes while the Bears only scored four points of their own. The Wildcats then missed six shots over more than five minutes during another scoreless drought in the second half.
BIG PICTURE
Villanova: The previous scoring low under Wright came in a 46-40 loss to UConn on Feb. 11, 2002, in Wright&rsquo;s first season. ... Gillespie, the team&rsquo;s leading scorer at 17.3 points per game, finished with six points on two 3s in the final 2:48 of the first half.
Baylor: Akinjo, a senior transfer in his first season at Baylor, began his college career in the Big East at Georgetown before playing at Arizona last year. He also had five assists. ... The Bears have won eight consecutive games against top-10 teams, and are 18-3 against ranked opponents over the last three seasons. They extended their record home winning streak to 19 in a row, and have won 33 consecutive nonconference games since November 2020.
JERSEY FOR DICKIE V
ESPN analyst Dick Vitale was presented with a No. 42 Baylor jersey before the game, marking 42 years in broadcasting and his first trip to Waco. It was only the third game this season for the 82-year-old Vitale, who in October was diagnosed with lymphoma after earlier surgeries to remove melanoma. He got a huge ovation then and at halftime when a video was shown with highlights from his career, including a clip from his first game for ESPN on Dec. 5, 1979, and his work with the Jimmy V Foundation. That video ended with Drew&rsquo;s imitation of Vitale&rsquo;s &ldquo;It&rsquo;s awesome, baby,&rdquo; and lauding Vitale for what he has done for college basketball and efforts to fight cancer, both personally and for others.
UP NEXT
Villanova: Plays its Big East opener at Creighton on Friday night.
Baylor: After final exams this week, the Bears play at Oregon on Saturday night.&nbsp;

James Akinjo had 16 points and second-ranked Baylor defensively dominated in a 57-36 victory Sunday over the sixth-ranked Wildcats.

No. 2 Baylor primed for top after 57-36 win over No. 6 Nova

The Indiana Pacers are finally embracing a rebuild. After years of toiling around in mediocrity, the Pacers realized their slow start and league-low attendance weren't going to turn around anytime soon. According to The Athletic&rsquo;s Shams Charania and Bob Kravitz, Indiana is open to trading the following players before February&rsquo;s deadline: Caris LeVert, Domantas Sabonis and Myles Turner.
We already covered <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/examining-potential-trade-destinations-for-caris-levert" target="_blank" rel="noopener">five potential destinations for LeVert</a>, who quickly became expendable with Chris Duarte emerging as a long-term building block. Nekias Duncan has some <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/exploring-trade-destinations-for-domantas-sabonis" target="_blank" rel="noopener">trade ideas cooking on Sabonis</a> as well. So now, to round things out, it&rsquo;s time to reveal the best win-win deals involving Turner.&nbsp;
Unlike Sabonis, who some teams may need to reinvent their entire system around, Turner is the ideal complementary piece for any contender looking to take a leap forward &mdash; this season and beyond. As a modern center who can stretch the floor and block shots at an elite level, many teams will be calling Indiana to inquire about a potential deal.
So, which teams actually make sense for Turner? Let&rsquo;s reveal our six best destinations:
Charlotte Hornets
I already mentioned Turner to the Hornets as a perfect fit for both player and team last week when discussing <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/five-potential-trades-that-make-way-too-much-sense-leading-up-to-februarys-deadline" target="_blank" rel="noopener">five potentially playoff-altering trades before the deadline</a>. Charlotte is so close to taking a massive step forward in the Eastern Conference. All the Hornets need is an adequate rim-protector to help them from leaking too many points to opponents on a nightly basis. Acquiring Turner not only solves that issue, it also raises the ceiling for young superstar point guard LaMelo Ball as well.
Imagining Turner catching lobs from LaMelo and spacing the floor is so much fun, in addition to what he would provide defensively. Charlotte&rsquo;s potential core of Ball, Miles Bridges, Terry Rozier, Gordon Hayward and Turner would be a well-put-together starting lineup. The Hornets could still have James Bouknight and Kai Jones developing off their bench as long-term lottery tickets too.
With Turner expected to fetch a nice return for Indiana, what actually makes sense in terms of an offer? There are two different scenarios to parse through:
Option 1: Kelly Oubre Jr., PJ Washington and a protected future first-round pick
Option 2: Gordon Hayward and a protected future first-round pick
The only reason why Hayward is included here is because we already know Indiana was seriously pursuing the former Indianapolis native during the 2020 offseason. When the Pacers offered Turner for Hayward in the past, former Boston Celtics general manager Danny Ainge didn't budge. Hayward instead bolted to Charlotte, receiving a big bag of cash in the process.
Would Indiana be open to revisiting a similar package 18 months later?
Pacers owner Herb Simon has been reluctant to dip his toes into any luxury-tax payments, so we know that&rsquo;s not happening as sellers. So, how about this Hayward-centric return to try out a &ldquo;soft rebuild&rdquo; or retool?
Pacers receive: Gordon Hayward, PJ Washington, JT Thor, protected first-round pick
Hornets receive: Myles Turner, Jeremy Lamb, Justin Holiday
Hayward would slide in as the 4 next to TJ Warren on the wing, forming an interesting duo. Washington&rsquo;s role in Charlotte isn&rsquo;t growing anytime soon, so giving the former lottery pick a bigger opportunity in Indiana makes sense as well. And from a pure fan perspective of putting butts in the seats, Brownsburg, Indiana native and former Butler Bulldog Gordon Hayward absolutely does that.
From Charlotte&rsquo;s perspective, it&rsquo;s a massive win. Acquiring Turner raises the team's immediate and long-term ceiling, with Lamb and Holiday bolstering that bench.
I doubt Indiana would be interested in Oubre, so let&rsquo;s roll with the options revolving around Hayward. What do you think of this big move for both sides?
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New Orleans Pelicans
As I mentioned yesterday with LeVert, keep an eye on New Orleans as the most desperate team in the NBA. Pelicans executive vice president David Griffin knows the hourglass could soon be running out on his tenure, plus Zion Williamson&rsquo;s injury history continues to pile on.
How about acquiring Turner as an ideal buffer between Brandon Ingram and Zion? It makes a lot of sense to help out a team that's in desperate need of a consistent defensive identity.
Turner is an absolutely perfect third piece to the puzzle in New Orleans, and hopefully a healthy and dominant version of Williamson reappears as well.
However, for a valuable piece like Turner, what would the Pelicans need to send back the Pacers&rsquo; way? Hint: it&rsquo;s going to be a lot.
Here&rsquo;s what I cooked up for a potential Pacers-Pelicans blockbuster revolving around Turner:
Pacers receive: Josh Hart, Kira Lewis Jr., Jaxson Hayes, two future first-round picks (via Lakers and Bucks)
Pelicans receive: Myles Turner, Jeremy Lamb, Brad Wanamaker
Indiana acquires two young assets in Lewis and Hayes, plus another player yet to hit his prime with Hart. The two first-round picks from the Los Angeles Lakers and Milwaukee Bucks are the icing on top of the cake from the Pelicans.
Yes, the Pelicans have Jonas Valanciunas and he&rsquo;s playing at an awesome level right now, but you have to begin thinking about accelerating the rebuild. New Orleans could play Turner and Valanciunas together at some points if necessary, but they could reroute the 29-year-old Valanciunas with his value at an all-time high.
With all three players age-25 or under, a trio of Williamson, Ingram and Turner is something to invest real assets into before it&rsquo;s too late.
<img style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" src="https://cdn.basketballnews.com/images/story/body/usatsi_15625217_lg.jpg" alt="" width="650" height="433" />
Golden State Warriors
Could you imagine Turner in the same role Kevon Looney is filling right now for Golden State? The Warriors&rsquo; defense would be incredible, and completely unfair. Turner and Draymond Green would make up a terrifying frontcourt duo, plus the former&rsquo;s floor-spacing is an ideal fit in Golden State&rsquo;s offense.
From Indiana&rsquo;s point of view, though, what makes sense in return for Turner? If I&rsquo;m in Pacers president Kevin Pritchard&rsquo;s shoes, I&rsquo;m holding out for Jonathan Kuminga in any Turner deal with Golden State. If push comes to shove with the Warriors refusing to include Kuminga, the following may make sense for both sides:
Pacers receive: James Wiseman, Moses Moody, Damion Lee, future protected first-round pick
Warriors receive: Myles Turner, Kelan Martin
Indiana would acquire two young prospects in Wiseman and Moody to add alongside Duarte and fellow first-round pick Isaiah Jackson. Golden State would probably become the true NBA Finals favorite bringing aboard Turner, plus a sharpshooting wing who can provide spot minutes in Martin.
The Warriors have the assets to make a title push even more likely. Don&rsquo;t be surprised if they have already called Indiana about Turner or Sabonis, because either one makes this team even more of a juggernaut in the Western Conference.
Chicago Bulls
This one is interesting, especially when you consider it would be Pacers 2.0 all over again with an offense-first big alongside Turner in Nikola Vucevic. However, Vucevic's contract expires after this season. If the Bulls retooled a little bit and moved Vucevic this summer, could you imagine the spacing and defensive versatility a frontcourt duo of Turner and Patrick Williams would provide? That sounds like a massive upgrade to me, allowing the ball to be in the hands of Zach LaVine and DeMar DeRozan even more.
Indiana would of course ask for Williams if the team were to trade Turner within its own division, but that would be a swift, "No." Instead, what about this compelling offer with a young prospect, salary filler and multiple first-round picks going back to Indiana?
Pacers receive: Coby White, Derrick Jones Jr., 2022 first-round pick via Portland, 2026 heavily protected first-round pick
Bulls receive: Myles Turner
Assuming Turner coming aboard would put into motion a long-term vision of him and Williams sharing a frontcourt (the more I talk about it, the more I love this idea), Chicago could offload Vucevic this offseason to recoup some sort of draft capital lost here.
LaVine and DeRozan being insulated defensively by the likes of Lonzo Ball, Alex Caruso, Turner and Williams is a dream scenario for Chicago. This would make the Bulls a terrifying team in the East for years to come.
Meanwhile, Indiana could be the ideal reset for a former lottery pick in White, who wasn&rsquo;t selected by the Bulls&rsquo; current front office regime.
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Milwaukee Bucks
Another Central Division team knocking down the door of Indiana? Again, this one seems far-fetched, but the possibilities are endless here. Imagining a modern big like Turner alongside Giannis Antetokounmpo brings forth mouth-watering possibilities for the Bucks.
However, with little draft capital, would Indiana even be interested in a package revolving around Brook Lopez&rsquo;s contract and Donte DiVincenzo? Maybe with a future pick or two thrown in, it could entice a conversation with Indiana.
Don&rsquo;t forget, there&rsquo;s already trade history between these two divisional teams. When the Pacers pulled off a sign-and-trade for Malcolm Brogdon, it was structured to be a win-win deal for both sides.
Could history repeat itself with Turner joining the Bucks this time around?
<img style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" src="https://cdn.basketballnews.com/images/story/body/usatsi_17027168_lg.jpg" alt="" width="651" height="435" />
Plopping Turner within the Bucks&rsquo; core is a game-changing move for them. Immediately, Milwaukee would stake its claim as the top team in the East in 2021-22 and beyond. Turner&rsquo;s shooting and rim-protection would essentially give Milwaukee a younger version of Lopez.&nbsp;
I would say this move is doubtful, but don&rsquo;t be surprised if Milwaukee calls about Turner to try to go all-in as they look to repeat.&nbsp;
Portland Trail Blazers
Portland needs to do something soon. Damian Lillard is obviously frustrated with the direction of the team, so what&rsquo;s going to happen with the Trail Blazers&rsquo; roster? As a team with little to no defensive integrity, currently and historically, inserting Turner would be a massive win for Portland.
Turner would become an immediate upgrade over Jusuf Nurkic, who would be sent back to Indiana as salary filler in this scenario. On top of Nurkic, the Blazers would attach promising combo guard Anfernee Simons.
Although Portland loves what it has seen from Simons and Nassir Little in terms of player development, these types of moves have to occur in order to raise the ceiling and floor of the team's current roster.
From Indiana&rsquo;s perspective, this deal is very interesting. The Pacers&rsquo; primary prize here would be Simons alongside a future first-round pick. (Nurkic may even be flipped again or bought out since a rebuilding team has no need for a veteran big on an expiring contract). Seeing Simons in a bigger role would be very intriguing, and that's exactly what would occur in Indy alongside Duarte.
***
So, there we have it. Six teams who stand out as possible landing spots and who should be banging down Indiana's door in pursuit of a perfect modern big man.
This isn&rsquo;t even the tip of the iceberg in terms of Turner&rsquo;s potential destinations though. Many other teams not listed will certainly call about the 25-year-old. As a floor-spacer and rim-protector who might not have hit his true ceiling yet, expect over the half of the league to inquire about Turner in some fashion.

The Pacers are about to blow up their roster. Which teams make the most sense to pursue Myles Turner? Evan Sidery lists six.

Examining potential trade destinations for Myles Turner

The college basketball season is underway, which means BasketballNews.com's scouting coverage has been kicked into full gear. The bulk of my travel and scouting schedule is set through the entire season, and let me tell you &mdash; I have some terrific basketball to see! As I scour the map evaluating prospects at various levels, I'll be sharing my takeaways every step of the way. I hope you enjoy it!
Here&rsquo;s where I was last week:
State Farm Champions Classic &mdash; New York, New York
Last Tuesday, Nov. 9, the college basketball season officially began, and I didn&rsquo;t waste any time getting out into the scouting trenches. I traveled to New York City for the State Farm Champions Classic to see a star-studded doubleheader that pitted Michigan State against Kansas and Kentucky against Duke. Here are a few of my thoughts and takeaways on some of the top prospects:
<a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/draft/2022-big-board/players/paolo-banchero" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Paolo Banchero, Duke</a> MIN: 31 | PTS: 22 | REB: 7 | AST: 0 | STL: 2 | FG: 7-11 | 3PT: 0-3 | FT: 8-9 | TO: 1
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I was already very familiar with Banchero prior to this trip. We had already discussed with our staff internally that Chet Holmgren and Banchero are likely in a category of their own in regards to the 2022 NBA Draft. We started the season with Holmgren at No. 1 and Banchero right behind him at No. 2.
After seeing Banchero in a Duke uniform &mdash; under the bright lights of Madison Square Garden, dominating a talented Kentucky team &mdash; it&rsquo;s hard not to get even more excited about him as a prospect. At 6-foot-10 and 250 pounds, Banchero possesses a unique combination of traits, as he is so strong and powerful, but also skilled. He does a little bit of everything, but what intrigues me the most about Banchero is his ability to create on his own versus essentially anyone that&rsquo;s matched up against him, big or small. There are not many players on the NBA level that you can run your offense through, and I think Banchero is going to be one of those guys. I&rsquo;m starting to think it could be the separating piece between Banchero and Holmgren. However, there&rsquo;s a lot more to watch in order to figure things out. But the good thing is we won&rsquo;t have to wait long to see them square off, and the next time I&rsquo;ll see Banchero in-person will be Nov. 26 in Las Vegas &mdash; facing off against none other than Holmgren&rsquo;s Gonzaga Bulldogs.
In the meantime, we&rsquo;ve moved Banchero into the No. 1 spot on our <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/draft" target="_blank" rel="noopener">2022 NBA Draft Big Board</a>.
<a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/draft/2022-big-board/players/ochai-agbaji" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Ochai Agbaji, Kansas</a> MIN: 36 | PTS: 29 | REB: 2 | AST: 1 | STL: 2 | FG: 9-17 | 3PT: 3-7 | FT: 8-8 | TO: 0
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It seems like it was just yesterday that my friend and former colleague, Luca Desta, called me after he scouted Kansas at Baylor for us while we worked for Babcock Hoops during the 2018-19 college season. A lot has changed since then: I&rsquo;ve transitioned our scouting coverage from Babcock Hoops to BasketballNews.com, Luca is now Vice President of Global Scouting for the Utah Jazz and Ochai Agbaji is now in his senior season for the Jayhawks. I&rsquo;m happy to say that we&rsquo;ve all been moving up, including Agbaji.&nbsp;
In New York, Agbaji showed me everything that I wanted to see from him. His athleticism and physical tools were never in question; however, he has always seemed a little bit mechanical and inconsistent on the offensive end. That was not the case at the State Farm Champions Classic. In 29 minutes, Agbaji played with such fluidity and confidence, knocking down shots from all over the place, and he seemed to be everywhere with lob finishes and slashing plays. He played with such great energy, and had a major presence. Naturally, some will be turned off since Agbaji is a bit older for an NBA prospect &mdash; he will be 22 on draft night &mdash; but I&rsquo;d like to remind those folks that Chris Duarte, who was 24 years old on draft night, is already contributing to the Pacers at a high level as a rookie. Although I&rsquo;ve scouted Agbaji for years now, I&rsquo;ve never been so excited about him as a prospect. Subsequently, we have moved him up our 2022 NBA Draft Big Board to No. 38.
<a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/draft/2022-big-board/players/trevor-keels" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Trevor Keels, Duke</a> MIN: 34 | PTS: 25 | REB: 1 | AST: 3 | STL: 3 | FG: 10-18 | 3PT: 1-4 | FT: 4-6 | TO: 2
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I had watched some film and was familiar with Trevor Keels&rsquo; status as a top recruit, but last Tuesday was the first opportunity I had to see him play in-person. In these scenarios, I go in with an approach to be a sponge and absorb as much information as possible. I do it in an effort to be able to create my own unique and unbiased evaluation of the player, rather than be influenced by rankings, hype or other people&rsquo;s opinions.
At first glance, I didn&rsquo;t know what to make of Keels&rsquo; body type. He&rsquo;s listed at 6-foot-4 and 221 pounds. He looks more like a football player rather than a basketball player &mdash; he&rsquo;s big and thick, especially for a guard. On the court, he was able to utilize his physicality and ball handling ability to regularly get to the rim and play &ldquo;bully-ball,&rdquo; effectively overpowering a Kentucky team that tends to play multi-guard lineups including Sahvir Wheeler, TyTy Washington and Davion Mintz. They all struggled to stop Keels. He also showed an ability to shoot the ball from outside. All in all, I&rsquo;m not sure he could have had a better start to his college career, as he scored 25 points on 10-of-18 shooting in 34 minutes.&nbsp;
I walked away a little torn in my opinion of Keels as a prospect. On one hand, he&rsquo;s a true freshman who lit up a talented Kentucky team in his first college game on a huge stage. You really can&rsquo;t ignore that. On the other hand, I question his body and his lack of athleticism. Also, what role will he fill in the NBA? Despite my questions (it&rsquo;s part of my evaluation process), I am certainly intrigued with Keels and plan to monitor him closely. In the meantime, I have decided to include him on our 2022 NBA Draft Big Board, at No. 29. &nbsp;
<a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/draft/2022-big-board/players/tyty-washington" target="_blank" rel="noopener">TyTy Washington, Kentucky</a> MIN: 28 | PTS: 9 | REB: 1 | AST: 3 | STL: 1 | FG: 3-14 | 3PT: 0-2 | FT: 3-4 | TO: 0
I&rsquo;ve gotten to know TyTy Washington as a player very well over the last year, and I think it would be safe to say that I&rsquo;m one of his biggest supporters. Unfortunately, opening night was not Washington&rsquo;s best game. Although his decision making was solid, he struggled to make shots, making only 3-of-14 shot attempts. I think he had a hard time finding his rhythm, as Kentucky played him mostly off the ball alongside small point guard, Savhir Wheeler.&nbsp;
Long-term, I see Washington being an on-ball point guard in the NBA who will play with a solid balance of scoring and facilitating. Unless head coach John Calipari makes some dramatic changes, Washington is going to need to adapt to his new role to make the most of this season. However, I believe that he will be able to do so effectively.&nbsp;
He didn&rsquo;t light the world on fire in his first game, but there won&rsquo;t be any knee-jerk reactions from me anytime soon. We currently have TyTy Washington at No. 11 on our 2022 NBA Draft Big Board.
<a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/draft/2022-big-board/players/max-christie" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Max Christie, Michigan State</a> MIN: 31 | PTS: 9 | REB: 3 | AST: 0 | STL: 1 | FG: 3-10 | 3PT: 2-4 | FT: 1-2 | TO: 2
My first thoughts when watching Max Christie for the first time last week was, &ldquo;He&rsquo;s very thin, he has a baby face and he looks like a young freshman.&rdquo; Furthermore, his stat line and production wouldn&rsquo;t blow away anyone either, as he only scored 9 points on 3-of-10 shooting. I could easily see someone thinking he blended into the game and was underwhelming, and subequently drawing a quick conclusion of &ldquo;he&rsquo;s not ready.&rdquo;
Christie certainly didn&rsquo;t dominate in that game by any means. However, one of my favorite things about evaluating young NBA prospects is reading between the lines. With Christie, I saw a 6-foot-6 guard with a sweet stroke that has a great feel for the game. I also find it to be interesting that Tom Izzo &mdash; a great, but demanding and tough coach &mdash; trusted Christie, a true freshman, to start and play 31 minutes in his first career college game. A huge one at that.
There&rsquo;s a reasonable argument that a player like Christie would benefit from staying in school to get stronger, mature as a player and get his game polished to a point where he could produce at a high level in college before entering the pros. However, the same exact thing could have been said about Josh Primo at Alabama, who only averaged 8.1 points in 22 minutes per game last season. Primo was selected No. 11 by the San Antonio Spurs in the 2021 NBA Draft. That leaves me thinking: Could Max Christie be this year&rsquo;s Josh Primo?
Christie is currently No. 18 on our 2022 NBA Draft Big Board.
<a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/draft/2022-big-board/players/oscar-tshiebwe" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Oscar Tshiebwe, Kentucky</a> MIN: 29 | PTS: 17 | REB: 20 | AST: 1 | STL: 1 | BLK: 2 | FG: 8-14 | 3PT: 0-0 | FT: 1-1 | TO: 2
My uncle, Rob Babcock, a former longtime front office executive in the NBA, used to say &ldquo;playing hard is a skill and it&rsquo;s not discussed enough.&rdquo; Oscar Tshiebwe has his limitations, but he plays so hard. At 6-foot-9 and a rock solid 255 pounds, Tshiebwe is so physical and has &ldquo;the pedal to the metal&rdquo; at all times. He was undoubtedly the bright spot for the Kentucky team versus Duke, scoring 17 points and grabbing an incredible 20 rebounds. Actually, he secured 20 rebounds in their second game versus Robert Morris too.
Tshiebwe likely won&rsquo;t be for everyone in the NBA, as bruisers without an ability to stretch the floor are not nearly as valuable as they once were, however, I think Tshiebwe finds a way to stick.
We currently have Tshiebwe at No. 50 in our 2022 NBA Draft Big Board.
<a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/draft/2022-big-board/players/mark-williams" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Mark Williams, Duke</a> MIN: 18 | PTS: 5 | REB: 6 | AST: 0 | STL: 2 | BLK: 3 | FG: 2-3 | 3PT: 0-0 | FT: 1-2 | TO: 0
At 7-foot tall with a 7-foot-7 wingspan, Mark Williams is big and long. There will be a place for him in the league as a rim-protector, rebounder and finisher around the rim. I&rsquo;m still not overly confident as to what his draft range will ultimately look like, but he&rsquo;s a prospect certainly worth tracking.
<a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/draft/2022-big-board/players/aj-griffin" target="_blank" rel="noopener">AJ Griffin, Duke</a> MIN: 11 | PTS: 2 | REB: 2 | AST: 0 | FG: 1-3 | 3PT: 0-1 | FT: 0-0 | TO: 0
Former 5-star recruit AJ Griffin didn&rsquo;t get a chance to do much in his college debut. He just recently returned from a minor injury and I think he's just getting in the swing of things. He wasn't able to show much, but what I did see, I liked. At 6-foot-6 and a sturdy 222 pounds, Griffin looks to have the tools to be a a very good NBA player. I am certainly excited to keep watching him as his upside is very high.
<a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/draft/2022-big-board/players/daimion-collins" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Daimion Collins, Kentucky</a> MIN: 2 | PTS: 0 | REB: 0 | AST: 0 | FG: 0-0 | 3PT: 0-0 | FT: 0-0 | TO: 0
I&rsquo;m sure this was not how Daimion Collins envisioned his college career starting. But although he didn't get much of a chance to play in the season opener, he did have a breakout game this past Friday vs. Robert Morris. He scored 14 points and blocked 4 shots in that contest. He has a lot of room for growth, but considering his length and athleticism, Collins&rsquo; upside is very high.
Latitude Longitude Classic &mdash; Phoenix, Arizona
Following the double-header, I made a cross-country flight out to Phoenix, Arizona to watch some top high-school talent. In doing so, I was able to get another look at top prospects in the Class of 2022: Dior Johnson (committed to Oregon), Adem Bona (committed to UCLA), MJ Rice (committed to Kansas), Chance Westry (committed to Auburn) and Dylan Andrews (committed to UCLA). I was also able to see top prospects in the class of 2023: Baye Fall, Mookie Cook, Kylan Boswell and Assane Diop.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-theme="dark">
I&rsquo;m in Phoenix, Arizona, tonight to see top-rated big man Baye Fall of <a href="https://twitter.com/DenverPrep?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@DenverPrep</a> as they face <a href="https://twitter.com/PhhPrep?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@PhhPrep</a> in the Latitude Longitude Classic. Fall, a 6&rsquo;11&rdquo; center, is currently a consensus top-6 player in the class of 2023. <a href="https://t.co/ebum3SEOxh">pic.twitter.com/ebum3SEOxh</a>
&mdash; Matt Babcock (@MattBabcock11) <a href="https://twitter.com/MattBabcock11/status/1458973833449259010?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 12, 2021</a></blockquote>

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

As an NBA Draft Analyst, for me to be able to get opportunities to see likely future NBA prospects while they&rsquo;re in high school, is invaluable to my evaluation process. Of course, players at that stage are far from finished products, but it is great to be able to start the evaluation process early. I&rsquo;m not going to provide detailed breakdowns on these players today, but don&rsquo;t be surprised if you start hearing these names more and more. There is a lot of talent coming up!
All in all, my first big trip of the season was a fruitful one. Needless to say, I&rsquo;ve started the season off with a bang, but I have no intentions of slowing down anytime soon. I have another big trip set to begin Thursday, when I head to Florida for a number of college games, and they'll be loaded with NBA talent.
Next week's preview: Jabari Smith, Patrick Baldwin, Matthew Cleveland and more.

Matt Babcock details his observations from NCAA opening night at the State Farm Champions Classic in New York.

Babcock's Takeaways: Paolo Banchero, Ochai Agbaji, Trevor Keels, more

David Aldridge joins Etan Thomas and David Zirin on The Collision to discuss how Malice at the Palace was mishandled by the media.

David Aldridge: The media failed to tell full Malice at The Palace story

Hi, hello, and welcome to yet another edition of Roaming The Baseline! This will be a weekly endeavor where I point out some things that caught my eye: a hot or cold streak from a player, a developmental flash, a well-run play, a funny tweet, who knows? There will be film -- it&rsquo;s me, so of course there will be film -- but this will also be a bit looser. It&rsquo;s an extension of my Twitter feed, if you will.&nbsp;
With that said, let&rsquo;s roam the baseline.
RUSSELL WESTBROOK KEEPS ON FLYIN'
There's always a "but..." with Russell Westbrook.
He can get to the rim whenever he wants! But the free throws...
He can make any pass in the book! But the turnovers...
He can hound dudes as an on-ball defender! But when he's off-ball...
Even the triple-doubles -- his teams have won roughly 75% of their games in which they occur -- draw some casternation. How contested were those rebounds? How friendly was the scorekeeper for those assists? How many shots did he take?
As someone who has been on both sides of the fence -- I appreciate his rim pressure and passing chops, not so much a fan of the decision-making and defense on a per-possession basis -- even I find the discourse around him exhausting.
My favorite part of the Westbrook Experience may be the rebounding, but on the offensive end. He's technically tied with Bruce Brown atop the guard list for offensive rebounds (1.7) this season, though calling Brown a guard may be a stretch due to his role.
At any rate, Westbrook's penchant for timely clean-ups are uniquely him. Beating the odds may be underselling the ridiculousness of his adventures.&nbsp;
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That's Westbrook high-pointing a ball with two Pacers in the vicinity, then flinging a dart to Alex Len before touching the floor. That, uh, is not an easy play to make! And somehow, that wasn't even the most impressive board Westbrook snagged.
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Following a Bradley Beal pull-up jumper, there are three Pacers -- all taller than Westbrook -- who have better rebound positioning. Westbrook is able to slither inside of Kelan Martin, dislodge the ball from Martin and Domantas Sabonis, then beat Doug McDermott to the ball. He then caps off that feat by dishing the rock to a cutting Rui Hachimura for an open flush.
Westbrook finished with four offensive rebounds (19 total) in that game, the seventh instance of Westbrook having at least four offensive rebounds in a game this season.&nbsp;
Regardless of how you feel about the man, these things remain true:
1) Westbrook is one of the best guards in NBA history, and will be a first-ballot Hall-of-Famer.
2) That man brings it. Every single night. Even when the result isn't great, it's hard not to respect the process.
3) He is the primary reason that the Wizards would be incredibly annoying to play against during the play-in and playoffs.
IS ANDREW WIGGINS... UNDERRATED?
Let's start with a wonky stat query, shall we?
Wiggins is averaging 18.6 points while shooting 37.7% from deep (5.2 attempts), and also blocking a shot (1.0) per night. The only two players <a href="https://www.nba.com/stats/players/traditional/?sort=FG3_PCT&amp;dir=-1&amp;CF=FG3A*GE*5:PTS*GE*18:BLK*GE*1&amp;Season=2020-21&amp;SeasonType=Regular%20Season" target="_blank" rel="noopener">matching or besting those marks</a> are Kevin Durant and Karl-Anthony Towns.
That means next-to-nothing from a big picture perspective -- Wiggins is no KD or KAT. It's only to point out that it isn't easy to find that combination of scoring, three-point shooting proficiency, and event creation defensively.&nbsp;
But dig into Wiggins' season a bit, and you should come away... mildly impressed. He isn't just flying down the court and operating as a play-finisher alongside Steph Curry. He grades out well in self-created actions, per Synergy: post-ups (51st percentile), pick-and-rolls (71st percentile), and isolation (83rd percentile).
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After an outlier bad start as a finisher, Wiggins is converting a career-high 70.7% of his shots <a href="https://www.basketball-reference.com/players/w/wiggian01.html#shooting" target="_blank" rel="noopener">inside of three feet</a>. It's a shame that's coming with a career-low free throw rate (.226), but hey. Baby steps.
More surprisingly, Wiggins has seemingly graduated from the good-when-he-cares class on defense. The Warriors have trusted him with a variety of tough assignments thorughout the season. Not only has he held his own, he's flat-out shut the water off sometimes.
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Who the heck had this on the Bingo! card before the year?
A fun stat to round things out: the Curry-Wiggins-Draymond Green trio without Kelly Oubre on the floor has a <a href="https://www.pbpstats.com/wowy-combos/nba?TeamId=1610612744&amp;Season=2020-21&amp;SeasonType=Regular%2BSeason&amp;PlayerIds=203952,1626162,201939,203110" target="_blank" rel="noopener">plus-11.9 net rating</a> in 631 minutes.&nbsp;
WES MATTHEWS, FILLING IN THE GAPS
It's no secret that the Lakers have been injury-ravaged this season, with notable absences from their two superstars. It feels like we've had a microsope on their role players -- sometimes unfairly -- because of how their level of importance has fluctuated. Talen Horton-Tucker shouldn't be the only credible ball-handler the Lakers have available. Heck, I just wrote about Marc Gasol's playing time <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/marc-gasol-should-get-more-minutes-los-angeles-lakers" target="_blank" rel="noopener">a week ago</a>.
If we're tossing out hat-tips for recent play, I'd like to nominate Wes Matthews. His per-game numbers won't pop for you -- 7.3 points in 25.3 minutes over the last four games -- but he's doing what's needed.&nbsp;
He's knocking down threes at a high clip; the Lakers will take 37% on five attempts from him. Defensively, he's taken on an assortment of tough matchups recently: CJ McCollum, Chris Paul, and RJ Barrett (boy was he <a href="https://twitter.com/NekiasNBA/status/1392349962785153028?s=20" target="_blank" rel="noopener">put in a tough spot</a> at the end of that game) are just a few.&nbsp;
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The Lakers have been [checks notes] over 17 points per 100 possessions better with Matthews on the floor over the past four games. That number 1) isn't entirely on him and 2) seems unsustainable, but it's at least a testament to Matthews providing plus-value on both ends.
THINGS THAT MAKE YOU GO "HMMMM"
<ul>
<li>All-NBA is tough. There are a lot of great players in the league. Injuries/COVID will make those discussions even tougher. But, like, where is the Trae Young buzz for an All-NBA team? He's 15th in scoring (25.6) and second in assists (9.5). He's the&nbsp;creator for a team with home-court advantage, and the Hawks have been 8.5 points per 100 possessions better <a href="https://www.nba.com/stats/vs/advanced/#!?TeamID=1610612737&amp;VsPlayerID=1629027&amp;Season=2020-21&amp;SeasonType=Regular%20Season" target="_blank" rel="noopener">with Young on the floor</a>. I encourage you to look at the same stat for <a href="https://www.nba.com/stats/vs/advanced/#!?TeamID=1610612742&amp;VsPlayerID=1629029&amp;Season=2020-21&amp;SeasonType=Regular%20Season" target="_blank" rel="noopener">a guy in Dallas</a>, just for funsies.</li>
<li>Keep an eye on Evan Fournier, now that Jaylen Brown is done for the season with a wrist injury. He's averaging 21.3 points (59/59/75 shooting split) in the four games since Brown went out.</li>
<li>Uhhhh, Kelly Olynyk is #not #slowing #down. He's putting up 18.9 points (56/38/85 shooting split), 8.6 rebounds, 3.7 assists since the All-Star break. Pick-and-pops, herky-jerky post-ups, fake handoffs. I keep waiting for his usual regression and it... just hasn't happened. His free agency should be fun.</li>
<li>Jaxson Hayes' last three games: 19 and 8 with 3 blocks, 18 and 8 with 6 blocks, and then 13 points against Memphis on Monday... and he went 3-of-3 from deep. #2KWasRight.</li>
<li>Speaking of former lottery bigs we don't quite know what to think of: Marvin Bagley is averaging 17 and 8 in May. The pathway to being a high-level play finisher, on the interior anyway, is still there.</li>
</ul>
PLAYS I LIKED
The Butler Did It
It's always a good time when the Heat 1) run some screening action for Duncan Robinson or 2) clear a corner. It's especially fun when they do both.
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An Iverson cut brings Robinson from one side of the floor to another. But from there, the Heat pivot.&nbsp;
Jimmy Butler darts from the left corner to the right block, giving off the illusion of a post-up clear-out. With Marcus Smart top-locking him (a heavy theme from this game), Butler uses Smart's positioning against him, back-cutting him and getting a lob from Goran Dragic in the process.
One might say it was a Smart play from Butler.
Masterful Misdirection
This is freaking hilarious.
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The play initially caught my eye because I was like, "Hmmm, is this a 'Floppy' look? Teams are still doing that?" I like the set up regardless; Kevin Huerter, Bogdan Bogdanovic, and John Collins form this weird triangle and it immediately throws the Wizards for a loop.
Westbrook calls out a switch early; clearly some wires get crossed because of it. Bogdanovic flies through the escape hatch beofre relocating to the left wing. Hachimura starts chasing Bogdanovic for... some... reason. That leaves Westbrook caught between Huerter and Collins, and they win that 2-on-1 pretty easily.
Fun stuff. Confusing stuff. Creative stuff. Effective stuff.
Bringing Down the House
Seems a bit mundane, but I wanted to give a quick shout to the budding chemistry between Tyrese Maxey and Dwight Howard off the bench.
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We get a variation of HORNS Flare to kick things off; Anthony Tolliver (still alive!) ghosts a screen for Maxey before relocating to the right wing. The action then flows into a pick-and-roll between Maxey and Howard.
With George Hill stashed in the left corner -- he's shooting 46% from there over the past three seasons, per InStat -- TJ McConnell can't tag Howard on the roll in good conscious. Maxey does a phenomenal job of driving deep enough to engage Goga Bitadze, then flips a lob over his head for the easy slam.
THE READING LIST
There is plenty of high-level basketball content out here if you know where to look. I wouldn&rsquo;t be where I am as a writer without reading a ton of Zach Lowe or Chris Herring or Caitlin Cooper or Mirin Fader or, well, you get the point.&nbsp;
Anyway, here are some -- not all, but some! -- of the stories I&rsquo;ve read this week that I think you should check out. Their Twitter handles will be linked under their names, so click and follow if you don&rsquo;t already.
<a href="https://twitter.com/ariivory">Arielle Chambers</a> on the <a href="https://twitter.com/SInow/status/1391860599555039235?s=20" target="_blank" rel="noopener">25 greatest moments</a> in WNBA history.
<a href="https://twitter.com/DorothyJGentry">Dorothy Gentry</a> with <a href="https://twitter.com/DorothyJGentry/status/1392119386585042946?s=20" target="_blank" rel="noopener">a fantastic feature</a> on WNBA legend Cynthia Cooper.
<a href="https://twitter.com/mellentuck">Matt Ellentuck</a> gives you a guide to help <a href="https://twitter.com/mellentuck/status/1392146591436390402?s=20">pick your favorite WNBA team</a> (if you don't have one already.)
<a href="https://twitter.com/juscarts" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Justin Carter</a> gave his <a href="https://twitter.com/juscarts/status/1392493429108744194?s=20" target="_blank" rel="noopener">WNBA preseason power rankings</a>. It would appear the Sky is the limit.
<a href="https://twitter.com/MirinFader">Mirin Fader</a> came through with the goods on <a href="https://twitter.com/MirinFader/status/1392476775356108800?s=20" target="_blank" rel="noopener">WNBA superstar Breanna Stewart</a>.&nbsp;

In Nekias Duncan's weekly notebook, he shares things that have caught his eye. He breaks down players, teams, plays and stats.

Roaming the Baseline: Russell Westbrook, Andrew Wiggins, Wes Matthews

Free agent G Kelan Martin has agreed to a two-year deal with the Indiana Pacers, agent Mike Lindeman tells ESPN.
Source: <a style="color: #ffffff;" href="https://twitter.com/wojespn/status/1331721285991354374" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN (Twitter)</a>
ANALYSIS: Kelan Martin spent his rookie campaign with the Timberwolves and appeared in just 31 games averaging 6.4 points and 3.1 rebounds. The 25-year-old guard out of Butler will join the Pacers on a two-year deal and will try to work his way into the Pacers rotation under first year coach Nate Bjorkgren.
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Kelan Martin agrees to two-year deal with Pacers.