https://cdn.basketballnews.com/images/nba-logos/det.png

Pistons

Changes are coming in Minnesota.
Fresh off a 46-36 campaign and competitive first-round exit, the Timberwolves have already gone swinging. There's a new sheriff in town, with former <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/nuggets-tim-connelly-to-become-wolves-president-of-basketball-ops" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Denver Nuggets president Tim Connelly joining the team</a> in a similar role. The price was huge: a five-year deal worth north of $40 million and&nbsp; &mdash; and! &mdash; equity in the organization, per The Athletic. It's a monstrous deal with the potential for more &mdash; a deal, as my Dunker Spot co-host <a href="https://twitter.com/stevejones20" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Steve Jones Jr.</a> described on <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/podcasts/the-dunker-spot" target="_blank" rel="noopener">our latest episode</a>, that the Nuggets weren't likely to match.
There's obvious intrigue in Connelly's move to Minnesota, namely him leaving a successful division rival that currently rosters a back-to-back MVP in Nikola Jokic to do so. But the interest for me has come with the reporting around the move. Take this passage from The Athletic's <a href="https://theathletic.com/3320881/2022/05/18/timberwolves-tim-connelly-president-basketball-ops/?source=emp_shared_article" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Jon Krawczynski and Shams Charania</a> as negotiations were heating up between the two sides.
<blockquote>
Leaving the two-time MVP for upstart Minnesota would be a bold move. But the Timberwolves do have a pair of building blocks in Karl-Anthony Towns and Anthony Edwards, promising young talent in Jaden McDaniels and Jarred Vanderbilt, a coach who is revered throughout the organization and an ownership group that appears to be motivated to invest in the organization.
</blockquote>
Hmm... notice anyone missing? Also, the "ownership group that appears to be motivated to invest" portion could be seen as subtle shade toward the organization that was on track to lose Masai Ujiri (killing it in Toronto since 2014) and Connelly due to being outbid.&nbsp;
And how about this one, from Krawczynski and Charania again, after the <a href="https://theathletic.com/3326241/2022/05/23/tim-connelly-wolves/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">deal was done</a>?&nbsp;
<blockquote>
There are reasons beyond financial for him to be optimistic about the situation in Minnesota. Connelly will be taking over a team with two stars in Towns and Edwards, promising young players in Jaden McDaniels and Vanderbilt and a top-notch coach in Chris Finch, who spent one season working with Connelly in Denver as an assistant on Malone&rsquo;s staff. D&rsquo;Angelo Russell had a strong season before struggling in the playoffs and Patrick Beverley asserted himself as a tough, veteran leader for a young group.
</blockquote>
Ah,&nbsp;there's&nbsp;the name. But you see why my brow is raised, right? Towns and Edwards represent the core. McDaniels and Vanderbilt are the young pieces dubbed to grow alongside them. The 26 year-old Russell &mdash; one of Towns' best friends making north of $30 million this season &mdash; went from not being mentioned at all in the lead-up piece, to essentially getting a throw-in line with Beverley in the update five days later.
Oh, it doesn't help that Jordan McLaughlin was closing out playoff games while a healthy Russell watched in Round 1. Add in the fact that Russell's future has <a href="https://nba.nbcsports.com/2022/05/03/report-timberwolves-will-attempt-to-trade-dangelo-russell-this-offseason/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">already been questioned</a>, and I think it's fair to assume what the big&nbsp;roster&nbsp;swing for the Wolves will be.&nbsp;
Any team acquiring him will be on the hook for over $31 million next season, though that's the only&nbsp;year left on Russell's deal.&nbsp;
<div class="mceNonEditable"><spike>&nbsp;</spike></div>
WHAT RUSSELL BRINGS
Russell remains a smooth operator. He's a proactive passer, one who's able to see and&nbsp;fire into a gap before most players know what's happening. You'll see it with his transition hit-aheads, as well as some of the reads he'll make in pick-and-roll.
And about pick-and-roll: Not many players blend pull-up shooting and high-level passing like Russell does. You can't afford to duck under against him, or drop your big back too far. He will absolutely waltz into jumpers. Once he gets hot, you're forced to press up &mdash; and that opens up even more passing windows for him.
<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/ciwtjh" width="100%" height="325" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen" data-mce-fragment="1"></iframe></div>
Russell was one of 31 players to receive at least 1,500 on-ball picks this season, per Second Spectrum. Russell-led ball screens were good for nearly 1.03 points per possession (PPP), a top-10ish mark in NBA among high volume ball-handlers.
You can thank the jumper for that &mdash; Russell converted 37% of the pull-up threes he attempted out of pick-and-roll, per InStat tracking. For comparison, that put him in line with high volume pull-up artists like Stephen Curry (38.9%) and Trae Young (37.0%).
(Also: Shout out to Darius Garland for bombing away at a 42.5% clip. That guy's getting paid.)&nbsp;
LIMITATIONS
Russell is what I'd describe as a two-level scorer. He's comfortable firing from deep, and he's able to snake and hunt shots around the elbow area with the best of them. Rim pressure is... simply not his thing. Only 16% of Russell's shots came at the rim last season, a mark that ranks in the 16th percentile per Cleaning The Glass. (Not great!)
And as someone who rarely got to the rim, Russell didn't draw many shooting fouls either. The lack of "easy points" lends to a boom-or-bust nature in Russell's game. His pull-up jumper is a legit weapon, but things kinda crater for him if it isn't falling in a way that isn't helpful for your&nbsp;lead&nbsp;ball-handler.&nbsp;
I think a truth has become (more) clear &mdash; Russell needs to be paired with a ball-dominant rim threat to get the best out of him.
That was the intrigue around Edwards taking more of a lead role in the second half of the season. In theory, Edwards ability to touch the paint on any given possession would lead to easier catch-and-shoot &mdash; or catch-and-drive &mdash; opportunities for Russell. A team trading for Russell should have a similar infrastructure in place.
Defensively, Russell found his home as a middle linebacker. Most teams rely on their primary rim-protector to call out coverages and actions. For Minnesota, that responsibility was Russell's. It was an odd dynamic, but one that worked. He was often seen and&nbsp;heard barking out instructions while he zoned up behind the action.
<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/pjmqzl" width="100%" height="325" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen" data-mce-fragment="1"></iframe></div>
I remained worried about him in more conservative defensive schemes. Russell isn't the quickest laterally. And while he's improved a bit from his rookie season (I'd hope so!), screen navigation remains an issue for him overall.
With the Wolves, Russell was blessed with the opportunity to roam off-ball (his ideal role) while having the screen navigation issues limited due to his big hedging ball-screens with him. If Russell's dumped into a drop scheme, the onus flips back on him to stay attached to ball-handlers. That could be a tricky bet.
LANDING SPOTS
Due to Russell's contract and the context needed to unlock him on both ends, it's hard to imagine 20+ teams blowing up the phones in Minnesota. There are a few teams that:
1) Make theoretical sense for Russell's game
2) Have the contracts to at least get conversations started
The New York Knicks have been searching for a calming presence at point guard for ages; at the very least, a guy that can grease the wheels of an offense with pick-and-roll play. While an in-house option is staring them in the face &mdash; <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/explain-one-play-young-knicks-playing-chess" target="_blank" rel="noopener">I'm with you, Knick fans</a> &mdash; it wouldn't shock me to see the Knicks take a flier on a talent like Russell, especially if it doesn't cost a core piece.&nbsp;
The contracts of Alec Burks, Derrick Rose, and Nerlens Noel get you in the ballpark of Russell's number. The Knicks have the Mavericks' first rounder in 2023 &mdash; a likely low 20s pick &mdash; to toss in if the Wolves don't think that's enough.
In theory, you'd have Russell playing off the rim-battering of RJ Barrett and Julius Randle. Maybe you get a more unlocked Randle with someone that can thread the needle on tight-window passes more consistently.&nbsp;
The Wolves would be able to bolster their depth, adding some rim pressure (Rose), movement shooting (Burks) and a big that can do work in an aggressive scheme (Noel). The Knicks losing the latter would be buffered by the retention of Mitchell Robinson and the likely growth from Jericho Sims.
Quick question: Who's the best passer for the Los Angeles Clippers? Follow-up question: How many names did you list before naming an actual guard? The combined deals of Reggie Jackson and Luke Kennard get you in the door. I can hear arguments about that already being too much for L.A. I'd argue that Russell gives you more on the playmaking front, gives you more size in the backcourt and helps your defense without tapping into your wing depth. Again, there's at least a conversation to be had.
If you're looking to pair Russell with a ball-dominant rim threat, how about Luka Doncic and Dallas? At worst, Russell could serve as a buffer to Jalen Brunson signing elsewhere. Tim Hardaway Jr. and Dwight Powell would give the Wolves the movement shooting, plus big-man depth combination to bolster their supporting cast. I'd argue the Mavericks may have to throw in a pick, though they're a little light on that front.
Lastly, would you rather have Russell or Cole Anthony? Actually, don't answer that.
<div class="mceNonEditable"><spike>&nbsp;</spike></div>
Looking to go to the hottest concerts, sports, theater &amp; family shows near you? Get 100% guaranteed tickets to more than 125,000 live events from TicketSmarter, the official ticket marketplace of BasketballNews.com.&nbsp;<a href="https://www.ticketsmarter.com/?utm_source=basketballnewscom&amp;utm_medium=tsaff&amp;utm_campaign=referral" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Order online now</a>!

Nekias Duncan looks at potential landing spots for Wolves guard D'Angelo Russell this offseason.

Examining potential trade destinations for D'Angelo Russell

Ever since Artūras Karni&scaron;ovas and Marc Eversley took over the Bulls&rsquo; front office two years ago, Chicago has been one of the most aggressive teams in the NBA. Their fingerprints are all over this roster, with notable acquisitions such as DeMar DeRozan, Nikola Vucevic, Lonzo Ball and Alex Caruso.
These moves have translated to on-court success, as the Bulls posted their best winning percentage since the 2014-15 season and ended their four-year playoff drought. This year, Chicago was 46-36 &mdash; more wins than they had in the 2018-19 and 2019-20 seasons combined. (Zach LaVine and Coby White are the only remaining players from that 2019-20 squad).
The Bulls entered the playoffs as the sixth seed in the Eastern Conference while boasting the NBA's 11th-ranked offense (scoring 111.0 points per 100 possessions) and 23rd-ranked defense (allowing 111.1 points per 100 possessions).&nbsp;
While this season marked a step in the right direction, the Bulls&rsquo; first-round series against the Milwaukee Bucks showed that there&rsquo;s still plenty of work to be done. Despite Milwaukee losing their second-best player, Khris Middleton, to a sprained MCL in Game 2, the Bucks completed a gentleman's sweep against the Bulls. Chicago wasn&rsquo;t at full strength either, with Ball sidelined due to a knee injury and LaVine (COVID-19) and Caruso (concussion) each missing Game 5. Still, the reigning champions were a good litmus test.
Entering the offseason, where does Chicago go from here? Are big changes coming?
RE-SIGNING ZACH LAVINE
Entering this offseason, Chicago&rsquo;s top priority should be re-signing LaVine, who is set to hit unrestricted free agency. The 27-year-old has emerged as a perennial All-Star, earning a spot on the Eastern Conference squad in each of the last two seasons.&nbsp;
This year, LaVine averaged 24.4 points, 4.6 rebounds, 4.5 assists and 2.8 threes, while reducing his turnovers to 2.6 per game and shooting 47.6% from the field, 38.9% from three and 85.3% from the free-throw line.&nbsp;
LaVine will certainly expect a maximum contract from the Bulls, which would <a href="https://hoopshype.com/lists/bulls-offseason-preview-zach-lavines-free-agency-nikola-vucevic-extension-more/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">pay him</a> $212.3 million over five years. The most he could receive from another team is $157.4 million over four years. This is a relatively weak free-agent class, so it seems very likely that LaVine will get a max deal from some team.&nbsp;
The Bulls would be wise to re-sign their star shooting guard, as replacing his production would be difficult, and the team would certainly take a step back if LaVine signed elsewhere.
"I plan to enjoy free agency," LaVine said recently. &ldquo;We're going to have to experience A through Z without making any fast decisions. I think that's something me and [Rich Paul] are going to go through and experience."
LaVine was asked if the Bulls are the front-runners to sign him, but he wouldn&rsquo;t say.
"You guys have been a really, really soft spot in my heart," LaVine said to the Chicago media. "I have to do this as a business decision, as a man, to not just be viewed one way and be like, 'I'm automatically coming back,' or, 'I'm automatically leaving.'"
In multiple interviews, LaVine has reiterated that he wants to be paid what he feels he deserves.
"I just want my respect. I think that's the main thing," LaVine <a href="https://www.nbcsports.com/chicago/bulls/zach-lavine-prepares-olympic-quarterfinal-bulls-free-agency" target="_blank" rel="noopener">said</a> last August. "I outplayed my contract; I've been very loyal to Chicago, I like Chicago. I just want my respect."
FREE AGENCY
Aside from LaVine, the bulk of Chicago's core is under contract for the foreseeable future.&nbsp;
The Bulls have $103,181,950 in guaranteed salaries on the books for next season, spread across nine players: DeRozan, Vucevic, Lopez, Caruso, White, Patrick Williams, Javonte Green, Ayo Dosunmu and Marko Simonovic. Projections set next year&rsquo;s salary cap at $122 million and the luxury tax at $149 million.
Derrick Jones Jr.,Tristan Thompson and Matt Thomas will be unrestricted free agents. Tony Bradley has a player option worth $2,036,318, so he could opt out and test the market as well.
The team will have three restricted free agents (assuming Chicago extends a qualifying offer to each): Troy Brown Jr. ($7,228,448 QO), Tyler Cook ($1,576,305) and Malcolm Hill ($1,576,305).
Last year, the Bulls were very aggressive in free agency, making splashy moves left and right. Given their cap situation, it seems unlikely that Chicago will be able to go star hunting, but they&rsquo;ll likely try to improve their depth and add certain specialists. For example, Chicago could use a rim protector, as they averaged just 4.0 blocks per game (which ranked 27th in the NBA). Can they afford Mitchell Robinson? Could they throw an offer sheet at or sign-and-trade for a restricted free agent like Nic Claxton or Mo Bamba? Can they add a veteran like JaVale McGee or Hassan Whiteside?&nbsp;
In addition to a rim protector, it would make sense to add other defensive reinforcements as well (especially if Jones signs elsewhere). Caruso and Ball give Chicago a strong defensive backcourt, but they need some help if the Bulls want to improve their 23rd-ranked defensive rating (113.2). Some of the top defensive role players who are hitting the market include Bruce Brown, Gary Payton II and PJ Tucker. Lu Dort and Jae'Sean Tate each have a team option, but it seems unlikely that either will be available given their bargain contracts.
The Bulls will look to add a contributor or two using the non-taxpayer mid-level exception, which is worth $10,349,000. Last offseason, that is how Chicago was able to sign Caruso to a four-year, $37 million deal, which ended up being a terrific addition. Other players who signed for the non-taxpayer MLE last offseason include McGee (Phoenix Suns), Tucker (Miami Heat), Reggie Bullock (Dallas Mavericks) and Khem Birch (Toronto Raptors).
It will be interesting to see what the Bulls do in free agency. However, keep in mind that some of Chicago&rsquo;s biggest additions in recent years were acquired through trades.
<img style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" src="https://cdn.basketballnews.com/images/story/body/gobe_lg.jpg" alt="" width="685" height="400" />
TRADES
After watching the Bulls&rsquo; front office trade for Vucevic, DeRozan and Ball, fans are understandably thinking big when it comes to Chicago&rsquo;s trade targets entering the offseason.
Myles Turner has been mentioned as a possible target for the Bulls since he could solve their rim-protection issues, but the window on acquiring Turner may have slammed shut as a <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/despite-trade-talks-the-pacers-want-to-keep-myles-turner-longterm" target="_blank" rel="noopener">recent report</a> suggested that the Indiana Pacers are now expected to keep the 26-year-old long-term.
Another dominant shot-blocker who may become available is Rudy Gobert. The Utah Jazz just had another season end in disappointing fashion, and there has already been a <a href="https://twitter.com/realOCsports/status/1521141215411941376" target="_blank" rel="noopener">report</a> that the Jazz will be forced to choose between Gobert and Donovan Mitchell. If Utah opts to keep their young shooting guard, a three-time Defensive Player of the Year and five-time All-Defensive First-Team selection could suddenly be obtainable.
If that happens, the Bulls should at least reach out and start a conversation. Our Evan Sidery recently <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/examining-potential-trade-destinations-for-rudy-gobert" target="_blank" rel="noopener">broke down potential destinations for Gobert</a> and listed Chicago as the top landing spot. Here&rsquo;s what he wrote:
Imagine the possibilities for Chicago with Gobert patrolling the paint with Lonzo Ball and Alex Caruso hawking the perimeter. It&rsquo;s the perfect complement to offensive dynamos Zach LaVine and DeMar DeRozan. Chicago&rsquo;s new starting lineup of Ball, Caruso, LaVine, DeRozan and Gobert would seemingly have no holes in it from a two-way perspective. I absolutely love this idea for Chicago, and they should be blowing up the Jazz&rsquo;s phone this summer if it seems plausible.
Jazz receive: Nikola Vucevic, Patrick Williams, Coby White, draft compensation Bulls receive: Rudy Gobert
It remains to be seen if either side would do this, but it&rsquo;s an intriguing idea.
With that said, if the Bulls are committed to Vucevic and don&rsquo;t want to trade for a new big man, HoopsHype&rsquo;s Yossi Gozlan <a href="https://hoopshype.com/lists/bulls-offseason-preview-zach-lavines-free-agency-nikola-vucevic-extension-more/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">points out</a> that an extension for Vooch could make sense this offseason.
If that happens, perhaps Chicago just looks for a complementary shot-blocker who can play behind Vucevic like one of the free agents we mentioned above or more of a minor trade target such as New York&rsquo;s Nerlens Noel or Minnesota&rsquo;s Jarred Vanderbilt.
It&rsquo;s also worth noting that the Bulls have a $5,000,000 trade exception that expires on July 7, 2022, from their Daniel Theis deal.
DRAFT
The Bulls have the No. 18 pick in the 2022 NBA Draft. In BasketballNews.com's <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/draft" target="_blank" rel="noopener">2022 NBA Mock Draft</a>, our senior NBA Draft analyst Matt Babcock has Chicago selecting Ohio State forward <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/draft/2022-nba-mock-draft/players/ej-liddell" target="_blank" rel="noopener">EJ Liddell</a>.&nbsp;
The 6-foot-7, 21-year-old junior is a well-rounded, NBA-ready player who makes sense for a Bulls team that wants to win now. Last season, Liddell averaged 19.4 points, 7.9 rebounds, 2.5 assists, 2.6 blocks, 1.4 threes and 0.6 steals, while shooting 49.0% from the field, 37.4% from three and 76.5% from the free-throw line.
&ldquo;Although he is a bit undersized for the position, the Buckeyes often used Liddell as a 4 or 5 in their lineups,&rdquo; Babcock noted in his scouting breakdown. &ldquo;He is physical and versatile on both ends of the floor, scoring both inside and out. He appears more comfortable in the mid-range and paint, which works well for his college system but raises questions in regards to his translatability to the NBA. Liddell filled up the box score and played with great effort and toughness. He has certainly carved out a spot for himself in the 2022 NBA Draft.&rdquo;
<iframe title="YouTube video player" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/37mLYAneg7M" width="100%" height="325" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>
Other players who are projected to be available in that range are G League Ignite wing <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/draft/2022-nba-mock-draft/players/marjon-beauchamp" target="_blank" rel="noopener">MarJon Beauchamp</a>, Baylor forward <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/draft/2022-nba-mock-draft/players/kendall-brown" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Kendall Brown</a>, LSU forward <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/draft/2022-nba-mock-draft/players/tari-eason" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Tari Eason</a>, Notre Dame guard <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/draft/2022-nba-mock-draft/players/blake-wesley" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Blake Wesley</a>, G League Ignite guard <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/draft/2022-nba-mock-draft/players/jaden-hardy" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Jaden Hardy</a>, Serbian forward <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/draft/2022-nba-mock-draft/players/nikola-jovic" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Nikola Jovic</a> and Tennessee guard <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/draft/2022-nba-mock-draft/players/kennedy-chandler" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Kennedy Chandler</a>.&nbsp;
If the Bulls aren&rsquo;t interested in any of these prospects, or if Karni&scaron;ovas and Eversley continue to be aggressive on the trade market, Chicago could look to deal the No. 18 pick as part of a win-now move.
It&rsquo;s worth noting that Chicago must forfeit their next-available second-round pick after an NBA investigation revealed that they contacted Ball prior to the start of the NBA&rsquo;s free-agency period. As it stands, the Bulls&rsquo; next-available pick is the team&rsquo;s 2026 second-rounder, but Chicago can&rsquo;t acquire a second-round pick before then because they&rsquo;d have to forfeit it.
***
After a few rough years, the Bulls seem to be back on the right trajectory, and there&rsquo;s no question that this team has the talent to be a perennial playoff squad in the East. Winning 46 games despite trying to get so many new players acclimated is impressive, especially when you factor in the injuries to Ball, Caruso, Williams, etc.
Even if the Bulls bring back largely the same roster, they will benefit from that continuity and improved chemistry. However, given what we&rsquo;ve seen from this front office in recent years, don&rsquo;t be surprised if they look to wheel-and-deal in order to take the roster to the next level.

After winning 46 games and losing in the first round, where will the Bulls go from here? Alex Kennedy previews Chicago's summer.

2022 NBA offseason preview: What's next for the Chicago Bulls?

In spite of Luka Dončić only playing half of the series, the Utah Jazz have been eliminated by the Dallas Mavericks in the opening round of the NBA Playoffs, which can only mean it&rsquo;s time to blow them up!
Okay, not really... but maybe? Virtually everyone is expecting organizational changes given the team's recent underachievement in the playoffs stemming from successful regular seasons. This incarnation of the Jazz was established in 2017-18, behind then-rookie Donovan Mitchell&rsquo;s quick rise to stardom and Rudy Gobert&rsquo;s emergence as an annual Defensive Player of the Year candidate.
That season, Mitchell &mdash; filling the void left by Gordon Hayward &mdash; finished his first season as a 20-point-per-game scorer despite being picked No. 13 overall and averaging just over 14 points per game in his first 19 appearances. Gobert, even having played only 56 games, was awarded his first of now three DPOY awards.
In these five years, there have been as many playoff trips &mdash; three as the No. 5 seed (including this season), one as the No. 6 in the Orlando Bubble, and another as the top overall seed in the Western Conference last year.
<div class="mceNonEditable"><spike>&nbsp;</spike></div>
In 2017-18, the Jazz overachieved, taking down the Russell Westbrook-Paul George-Carmelo Anthony-led Oklahoma City Thunder in six games before losing to the No. 1 seed Houston Rockets in five contests.
In 2018-19, Utah lost to the Rockets again in five, this time in the first round, and Houston even led 3-0 with a +55 scoring margin before dropping Game 4.
In 2019-20, the Jazz squandered a 3-1 lead to the Denver Nuggets, losing Game 7 in the final seconds of the opening round.
Last season &mdash; despite the Los Angeles Clippers losing Kawhi Leonard to a torn ACL (that he&rsquo;s still not back from) &mdash; the Jazz <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CD2yBy-EqnU" target="_blank" rel="noopener">lost in six games to the Clippers</a> in the West semifinals, and Gobert was dunked on by both Terance Mann and social media in the ending.
And finally, this postseason &mdash; in a series with Dončić missing the first three games with a calf injury, in which Utah still trailed 2-1 upon his return &mdash; Utah lost on yet another last-second heartbreaker.&nbsp;
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-theme="dark">
THE PLAYOFF DROUGHT IS OVER. THE DALLAS MAVERICKS ADVANCE TO THE SECOND ROUND SINCE 2011!<a href="https://twitter.com/dallasmavs?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@dallasmavs</a> | 📺 BSSW | <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/dALLasIN?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#dALLasIN</a> | <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/NBAPlayoffs?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#NBAPlayoffs</a> <a href="https://t.co/VcWGAdSOL4">pic.twitter.com/VcWGAdSOL4</a>
&mdash; Bally Sports Southwest (@BallySportsSW) <a href="https://twitter.com/BallySportsSW/status/1519896562079518727?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">April 29, 2022</a></blockquote>

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

Given <a href="https://twitter.com/tribjazz/status/1482077811019902980">the sniping back-and-forth between Mitchell and Gobert</a>, the Jazz's inability to break through and how far behind they appear from the top teams in the West, this seems like the summer where sizeable moves will be coming.
Personally speaking, it feels like we&rsquo;re heading toward Mitchell requesting a trade and moving on, but either way, one of Mitchell or Gobert &mdash; perhaps both &mdash; may be on the move in the coming months. Our Evan Sidery <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/examining-potential-trade-destinations-for-rudy-gobert" target="_blank" rel="noopener">recently looked at five trade ideas involving Gobert</a>.
Today, let's look at where Mitchell could end up, <a href="https://fanspo.com/nba/trade-machine" target="_blank" rel="noopener">using this trade machine</a>.
Mitchell is due $30.3 million next year, $32.6 million in 2023-24, $34.9 million in 2024-25, and has a player option for $37 million in 2025-26. Keep that in mind as we embark on this journey together. (Why did I sound like Professor Oak there?)
New York Knicks
Mitchell&rsquo;s father, Donovan Sr., works with the New York Mets organization. The 25-year-old Mitchell himself is a native of Elmsford, New York. Naturally, with the New York Knicks, there will be Mitchell smoke until a deal (or something else) actually happens. Because Tommy Beer already <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/expect-the-knicks-to-make-a-real-run-at-donovan-mitchell-this-summer" target="_blank" rel="noopener">broke down the possibility of a Mitchell-to-New-York trade</a>, we won&rsquo;t stay here too long.
Regarding the Knicks&rsquo; actual proposal, the first look would be to RJ Barrett, who is extension eligible this summer, entering year four and making $10.9 million next year. The idea, for New York, should be to team Barrett and Mitchell together. If that&rsquo;s not possible, and the Mitchell deal were to have to get done, Barrett is your chief trade chip, along with first-round draft picks. The Knicks have all their own first-rounders as of this writing.
Usable salaries for the Knicks next year include Evan Fournier, who&rsquo;ll be at $18 million, Derrick Rose at $14.5 million, Alec Burks at $10 million, Nerlens Noel at $9.2 million and Kemba Walker at over $9.1 million. Rose, Burks and Noel all have team options for 2023-24, so they have ostensibly expiring deals. Walker&rsquo;s next season is his last under contract, and Fournier is signed through 2025, but that also includes a team option. Cam Reddish and Taj Gibson also enter the last year of their respective deals, at about $6 million and $5.1 million each, respectively.
The contract elephant in the room is Julius Randle&rsquo;s, which is a four-year, $117 million extension that begins next season at $26.1 million. It&rsquo;ll gradually increase until his player option for $32.4 million kicks in for 2025-26. The Knicks might try to move Randle instead, but what sense does that make for Utah? And if Utah isn&rsquo;t getting Barrett, would they want a package of the aforementioned veterans (say, Fournier and Burks), along with one or two of Immanuel Quickley, Quentin Grimes, or Miles McBride (who make between $1.6 and $2.3 million next year) and picks?
It&rsquo;ll be hard to do without Barrett, and maybe Randle gets involved in a three-team deal, but the Knicks have the picks, salaries and prospects to make it work, if that&rsquo;s the route the Jazz want to go.
Detroit Pistons
The Pistons seem like a team that could be a version of this past season&rsquo;s Cleveland Cavaliers &mdash; not in terms of play style or once being a top-four team in the Eastern Conference standings necessarily, but from the standpoint of being competitive a year sooner than we think and playing meaningful games down the stretch (like one or two in the Play-In Tournament).
Given that 20 of 30 NBA teams will have games beyond the regular season, the Pistons may (should) attempt to get one of those spots.
Last year&rsquo;s No. 1 overall pick Cade Cunningham is <a href="https://youtu.be/I9OLPXxgYWk" target="_blank" rel="noopener">someone you can build with</a>. Saddiq Bey should be a more efficient scorer with more experience and better teammates. Most of the rest is to be determined, but Detroit can start by using Jerami Grant&rsquo;s near $21 million expiring deal next summer.
What comes next depends on what stage the Jazz want to be closer to. If this is a rebuild, you can ask for a combination of Killian Hayes and Hamidou Diallo (both of whom make over $5 million next year), for example, and Hayes has a $7.4 million team option for 2023-24. If not, Kelly Olynyk has $12.8 million coming to him next year that&rsquo;s usable. Utah can in throw in, hypothetically, Royce O&rsquo;Neale&rsquo;s $9.3 million deal next year and get Olynyk anyway.
So the player framework can look something like:
<ul>
<li>Donovan Mitchell for Jerami Grant and Kelly Olynyk</li>
<li>Donovan Mitchell for Jerami Grant, Killian Hayes and Hamidou Diallo</li>
<li>Donovan Mitchell and Royce O&rsquo;Neale for Jerami Grant, Killian Hayes, Hamidou Diallo and Kelly Olynyk plus a sh*t ton of draft picks. The Pistons would be moving something like three first-rounders in the deal, and potentially multiple first-round pick swaps.</li>
</ul>
<div class="mceNonEditable"><spike>&nbsp;</spike></div>
Miami Heat
I brought this up during <a href="https://youtu.be/XBQwn0pOAa4" target="_blank" rel="noopener">BasketballNews.com's NBA Trade Deadline stream</a>.&nbsp;
The Heat didn&rsquo;t do it then, but it might still be on the table depending on how these playoffs go. The Heat might not offer the best return package because of their draft picks, but they did unlock additional firsts by moving KZ Okpala to Oklahoma City in February. And, for Miami, we&rsquo;re mainly talking about one package. But again, it depends on the results of this postseason.&nbsp;
Currently, the Heat are getting ready to face the Philadelphia 76ers in the Eastern Conference semifinals, a matchup they&rsquo;re favored to win (albeit narrowly). If they lose this particular series, or if they win and Tyler Herro continues to struggle in the playoffs, or even if Miami makes a deep run and Herro elevates from a slow start, he&rsquo;d be the primary chip in a Mitchell deal. Furthermore, the <a href="https://twitter.com/GregSylvander/status/1482101290964504580" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Heat are on Mitchell&rsquo;s shortlist</a>, according to Greg Sylvander of Five Reasons Sports.
The deal, as I mentioned on our stream, would include Herro &mdash; who is still on a rookie-scale contract ($5.7 million next year), but is extension-eligible this summer and wouldn&rsquo;t kick-in until 2023. Then comes Duncan Robinson, who&rsquo;ll enter the second year of a five-year, $90 million deal next season, which bookends with a near $20 million player option and rises to $16.9 million next season.
According to the trade machine, Omer Yurtseven&rsquo;s $1.7 million next season makes the math work, and would give Utah a Gobert backup who&rsquo;ll, if nothing else, get you 10 rebounds in 15 minutes on occasion. Would the Heat have to throw in at least one of Gabe Vincent, Max Strus or Haywood Highsmith (all of whom make between $1.7 and $1.8 million next year)? Perhaps. And from there, Miami has tradeable first-rounders in 2022, 2024 and 2026. So, in summation, it could look like this:
<ul>
<li>Donovan Mitchell for Tyler Herro, Duncan Robinson, Omer Yurtseven, one of Gabe Vincent/Max Strus/Haywood Highsmith, draft capital</li>
</ul>
But if Herro has a big playoff run moving forward, the Heat may instead opt to move Robinson in a separate, smaller deal for a worthy big man in their rotation, and mostly run it back otherwise.
Atlanta Hawks
Alright, now you saw what the Heat did to Trae Young in the first round. The Hawks clearly are not only poised to get Young some help, but make a 3-for-1-ish deal to consolidate some depth into a higher-end starter &mdash; or in the case of Mitchell, a fellow offensive starter. His teammate, Gobert, is probably the better fit, but one, I&rsquo;m not writing about Gobert (our Evan Sidery will handle that) and two, if Gobert is frustrated with Mitchell&rsquo;s defense...
But anyway, you gotta start somewhere. And for Atlanta, part of why the Heat neutralized Young is their malleability defensively, but also, the Hawks don&rsquo;t have another true star to account for on the perimeter. Mitchell would give Young a viable tag team partner offensively to spread the defensive focus. To do so, the Hawks could play this a few different ways.
<iframe title="YouTube video player" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/qjRmo0TbD20" width="100%" height="325" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>
The obvious trade chip is John Collins, and there could be questions about his fit next to Gobert, but it&rsquo;s not a bad place to start if you&rsquo;re moving someone of Mitchell&rsquo;s caliber. Collins will make $23.5 million next year, and between $25.3 and $26.6 million through 2025-26. Collins has had rumored friction with Young, though they&rsquo;ve downplayed it over the years. From there, if you use Collins in a possible deal, it gets interesting.&nbsp;
De&rsquo;Andre Hunter &mdash; who makes $9.8 million next year in the last season of a rookie deal and is extension-eligible this summer &mdash; seems logical for both the Jazz to want and the Hawks to keep. Hunter was Atlanta's best player against the Heat, and has been a quality two-way wing when healthy. Is a framework of Collins and Hunter for Mitchell straight up enough of a deal for both sides? Sheeeeeiiiiit, ask them, but it sounds good to me!
<ul>
<li>Donovan Mitchell for John Collins and De'Andre Hunter</li>
</ul>
No Collins? Okay. You&rsquo;re not moving Clint Capela&rsquo;s long-term deal for Utah in a Mitchell move, so that&rsquo;s out of the picture. Kevin Huerter would absolutely have to be part of this, and no, that&rsquo;s not a white Utah joke. Hu-why would you think that?&nbsp;
Huerter begins his $65 million extension next year, the first of four, banking $14.5 million in 2022-23. Hunter probably stays in the deal because Utah has to get something really good, and the Hawks simply can&rsquo;t extend everyone. Again, Atlanta should want to keep Hunter, but this is the price of doing business. But if you&rsquo;re throwing in Huerter instead of Collins (which does work on the trade machine since different rules apply in the offseason than in-season), you&rsquo;ll need multiple first round picks &mdash; of which the Hawks have all their own &mdash; so that could get done.
Could Utah also want Onyeka Okongwu? Sure, but he seems like Atlanta's 5-man of the future, and a separate deal moving off Capela might be more likely. So the second proposal could look like this:
<ul>
<li>Donovan Mitchell for De'Andre Hunter, Kevin Huerter, draft capital</li>
</ul>
Now, the Hawks would still need to figure some things out defensively, seeing as how they&rsquo;d be led by two 6-foot-1 scorers in the backcourt. They could just became the new Damian Lillard and CJ McCollum to some extent, but <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/a-salute-to-the-defiance-of-damian-lillard-and-cj-mccollum" target="_blank" rel="noopener">the Portland Trail Blazers are as much to blame for that &ldquo;not working,&rdquo;</a> and the Hawks can learn from those team-building mistakes.&nbsp;
<div class="mceNonEditable"><spike>&nbsp;</spike></div>
Looking to go to the hottest concerts, sports, theater &amp; family shows near you? Get 100% guaranteed tickets to more than 125,000 live events from TicketSmarter, the official ticket marketplace of BasketballNews.com.&nbsp;<a href="https://www.ticketsmarter.com/?utm_source=basketballnewscom&amp;utm_medium=tsaff&amp;utm_campaign=referral" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Order online now</a>!

Bryan Fonseca takes a look at four logical landing spots for Utah Jazz star guard Donovan Mitchell.

Examining potential trade desinations for Donovan Mitchell 

With the 2021-22 NBA regular season in the books, let's examine the numbers and hand out some hardware to the cream of the fantasy crop.
Fantasy MVP: Nikola Jokic, Denver Nuggets
In regards to the NBA's actual Most Valuable Player award, a strong case could be made for several players (<a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/nba-mvp-rankings-jokic-edging-out-embiid-antetokounmpo-chasing" target="_blank" rel="noopener">as I detailed two weeks ago</a>). However, in the fantasy-hoops universe, Nikola Jokic reigns supreme for the second-straight season. And it wasn't particularly close.
Not only was the Joker durable, appearing in 74 games, but he was remarkably efficient (shooting over 58% from the floor and 81% from the charity stripe). His all-around statistical production was mind-boggling, as he became the first player in NBA history to tally more than 2,000 points, 1,000 rebounds and 500 assists in the same season. As a cherry on top, Jokic saved some of his best work for the fantasy playoffs. Over his last five games, he averaged 37.8 points, 16.6 rebounds, 6.6 assists and 2.2 steals (joining Karl Malone as the second player in league history to record five-straight double-doubles with 35+ points in each game). Whether you played in a head-to-head or roto league, nobody was more valuable than Mr. Jokic.&nbsp;
Fantasy Rookie of the Year: Scottie Barnes, Toronto Raptors
Detroit's Cade Cunningham, Orlando's Franz Wagner and Cleveland's Evan Mobley all posted impressive numbers in their rookie campaigns, but Barnes wins this race by a nose. Scottie appeared in 74 out of 82 games and became the only rookie since Luka Doncic to average at least 15.0 points, 7.0 rebounds, 3.0 assists and a steal in their first season. Barnes is also the first rookie in Toronto's franchise history to record 1,000+ points, 500+ rebounds and 250+ assists. He finished the season ranked 66th overall in nine-category roto formats.&nbsp;
Most Improved Fantasy Player: Tyrese Maxey, Philadelphia 76ers
This is another award that could go to a bevy of deserving players (such as Darius Garland, Jordan Poole and Ja Morant); however, in my opinion, Maxey gets the nod. Due to the drama and uncertainty surrounding Ben Simmons coming into this season, some fantasy pundits pegged Maxey as a late-round sleeper, but nobody could have expected Maxey to step in and step up as he did.&nbsp;
As a rookie in 2020-21, ​​Maxey averaged a modest 8.0 points, 2.0 assists and 1.7 rebounds in 15 minutes a night while shooting just 30% from downtown, which resulted in him ranking 330th overall (behind players such as Edmond Sumner, John Konchar and Dean Wade) in nine-category fantasy leagues. Yet, as a starter out of the gates this season, Maxey averaged 17.5 points, 4.3 dimes, 3.2 boards and 1.8 treys, while converting 48.5% of his field goal attempts and 42.7% of his triple tries (including 48% from deep over the second half of the season). He finished the 2021-22 season ranked 35th overall in total fantasy value (ahead of fantasy stars such as Khris Middleton, Kristaps Porzingis and Domantas Sabonis). &nbsp;
Fantasy Coach of the Year: Chris Finch, Minnesota Timberwolves 
On Monday, the Minnesota Timberwolves announced that they signed Finch to a multi-year extension. And many fantasy GMs surely applauded the decision. The Timberwolves led the NBA in pace (101.47), which is the way into the hearts of fantasy folks. The Wolves also led the league in points per game (115.9) for the first time in franchise history, made three-pointers (1,211) and turnovers forced (1,339). Karl-Anthony Towns, Anthony Edwards, D'Angelo Russell and even Patrick Beverley benefited statistically from Minny's up-tempo offense.&nbsp;
<div class="mceNonEditable"><spike>&nbsp;</spike></div>
Defensive Player of the Year: Jaren Jackson Jr., Memphis Grizzlies
For those of us who invested in JJJ on draft day the last few years, he finally rewarded us with a monster campaign in 2021-22. Jackson was able to stay healthy (making 78 appearances), and not only did he lead the league in blocked shots per game (2.3), he also averaged just shy of one steal and six rebounds. Factor in his effectiveness and efficiency from behind the arc (he knocked down 128 triples), and it's easy to see why Jackson returned fourth-round fantasy value this season.&nbsp;
Biggest Bust: Tie between Russell Westbrook and Julius Randle
After Randle finished in the top-40 overall in 2020-21, Knicks fans and fantasy GMs who drafted him back in October were hoping the burly power forward would be able to replicate his shockingly impressive production. Yet, although his counting stats were solid, Randle's field goal percentage dropped from 45.6% down to 41.1%, his three-point percentage tumbled from over 41% all the way down to below 30.8% and his free throw percentage dipped from above 81% to 75.6%. Randle also tied his career-high in turnovers (3.4). Due to the poor shooting numbers, turnovers and lack of defensive stats, Randle ranked 127th overall (or just behind Bruce Brown in per-game value).&nbsp;
Westbrook also badly burned fantasy GMs in 2021-22. Russ racked up plenty of points, rebounds and assists (18/7/7) but didn't come close to matching the 22/12/11 he averaged with the Washington Wizards the year before. In addition, Westbrook's extraordinary inefficiency and high turnover rate ruined many a fantasy matchup for GMs who rostered Russ.
Pickup of the Year: Herb Jones, New Orleans Pelicans
Jones, the 35th overall pick in the 2021 NBA Draft, was a complete unknown to the vast majority of fantasy hoopers heading into the 2021-22 season. He went undrafted in even the deepest of leagues and went scoreless in just three minutes of action in the Pels' season opener. However, due to his defensive tenacity and efficient offense, Jones carved out a role in New Orleans and began being scooped up off of waiver wires nationwide. He had earned a spot in the starting lineup by late November and never relinquished it.
Jones finished the season averaging 9.5 points, 3.8 rebounds, 1.7 steals and 0.8 blocks. He led all rookies in total steals with 130 (50 more than Scottie Barnes, who ranked second) and was third in blocks. According to Basketball-Reference, he is the only rookie in New Orleans' franchise history to tally more than 125 steals and 50 blocks (and just the seventh rookie in NBA history to do so, joining Michael Jordan, Nerlens Noel, Ron Harper, Ben Simmons, Willie Anderson and David Robinson). Of those seven, Jones is the only one to commit 100 or fewer turnovers. Jones finished the season ranked 77th overall in nine-category formats.&nbsp;
<div class="mceNonEditable"><spike>&nbsp;</spike></div>
<div class="css-1dbjc4n r-1habvwh r-eqz5dr r-11rk87y r-1dye5f7 r-m611by r-13qz1uu">
<div class="css-1dbjc4n r-eqz5dr r-glunga r-13qz1uu">
<div class="css-1dbjc4n r-13qz1uu">
<div class="css-1dbjc4n r-eqz5dr r-glunga r-13qz1uu">
<div>
<div class="css-1dbjc4n r-1habvwh r-eqz5dr r-11rk87y r-1dye5f7 r-m611by r-13qz1uu">
<div class="css-1dbjc4n r-eqz5dr r-glunga r-13qz1uu">
<div class="css-1dbjc4n r-13qz1uu">
<div class="css-1dbjc4n r-eqz5dr r-glunga r-13qz1uu">
<div>
Looking to go to the hottest concerts, sports, theater &amp; family shows near you? Get 100% guaranteed tickets to more than 125,000 live events from TicketSmarter, the official ticket marketplace of BasketballNews.com.&nbsp;<a href="https://www.ticketsmarter.com/?utm_source=basketballnewscom&amp;utm_medium=tsaff&amp;utm_campaign=referral" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Order online now</a>!
</div>
</div>
</div>
</div>
</div>
</div>
</div>
</div>
</div>
</div>

With the 2021-22 NBA regular season in the books, Tommy Beer hands out some hardware to the cream of the fantasy crop.

2021-22 Fantasy Basketball Awards: MVP, ROY, Most Improved and more

For a third of the NBA, summer break comes early.&nbsp;
Though 10 teams didn't make the playoffs, it's not all doom and gloom. Several NBA bottom-feeders took tangible steps forward in their rebuilding efforts, while others &mdash; well, they're not supposed to be here.
Every franchise enters the offseason with summer plans. As teams get eliminated from the postseason, I'll be rounding up every team's offseason outlook and posing one question they must answer over the summer. You'll see each squad's 2022 NBA Draft chest, plus their potential free agents, along with the central question.&nbsp;
<div class="mceNonEditable"><spike>&nbsp;</spike></div>
Let's get started!
DETROIT PISTONS 
Draft assets: First-round pick (14.0% chance at No. 1), Second-round pick (via Brooklyn)
Potential free agents:&nbsp;Marvin Bagley III (restricted), Cory Joseph (player option), Hamidou Diallo (team option), Frank Jackson (team option), Luka Garza (team option), Carsen Edwards (team option), Rodney McGruder 
Central question: How do the Pistons build an offense around Cade Cunningham?
This was a pretty solid season for Detroit as far as rebuilding efforts go. Cade Cunningham emerged as a Rookie of the Year front-runner and two-way centerpiece who has fans ecstatic about his ceiling. The Pistons finished a solid 10-14 after the All-Star break, and have shown flashes of an improving defense. They did still finish with the 28th-ranked offense, per Cleaning the Glass, and one of the worst shooting rates in the NBA.
Cunningham had to carry a ridiculous offensive load in the latter stages of the season. Detroit has the power to change that in 2022-23, starting with its high draft pick. Maybe Jabari Smith's lights-out scoring means he's an ideal secondary option? Perhaps Paolo Banchero thrives as an additional creator, or maybe Chet Holmgren makes sense as a finisher and spot-up threat? The fun part about Cunningham is that his versatility creates so many pathways for the Pistons in the draft &mdash; whether or not the ping pong balls fall their way.
Detroit wields a cap hold of approximately $28 million on Bagley, and once that lifts (either via a new contract or letting him walk), the Pistons should have a solid chunk of cap space to add to the supporting cast.
HOUSTON ROCKETS
Draft assets: First-round pick (14.0% chance at No. 1), better of Brooklyn/Miami first-round picks
Potential free agents: John Wall (player option), Dennis Schroder, Bruno Fernando (restricted), Jae'Sean Tate (team option), Anthony Lamb (qualifying offer), Trevelin Queen (qualifying offer)
Central question: How patient is the front office willing to be?
Houston's 2021 draft strategy of "draft talent, figure out the fit later" appears to be working out. Jalen Green demonstrated an Anthony Edwards-esque leap post-All-Star break, Alperen Sengun is already one of the NBA's best passing bigs, and guys like Josh Christopher and KJ Martin routinely hinted at upside. Houston gets another prime shot at a franchise cornerstone this draft cycle. We're approaching Stage 2 of the strategy, though: figuring out how the pieces fit.&nbsp;
The Rockets were one of two NBA teams with bottom-five ratings on offense and defense. They led the league in rim frequency and were fourth in three-point frequency, but posted mediocre shooting clips. Houston evokes memories of the rebuilding Nets, who played a similarly extreme brand of ball for a few years as the team slowly reshaped into a fun playoff squad. Does the front office have the foresight to let head coach Stephen Silas work things out with his roster of young guns?&nbsp;
INDIANA PACERS
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-theme="dark">
How is there a &ldquo;rebuild&rdquo; to afraid of if it isn&rsquo;t a rebuild? <a href="https://t.co/0pDD7E6Mss">pic.twitter.com/0pDD7E6Mss</a>
&mdash; Caitlin Cooper (@C2_Cooper) <a href="https://twitter.com/C2_Cooper/status/1512127632758001664?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">April 7, 2022</a></blockquote>

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

Draft assets: First-round pick (10.5% chance at No. 1), First-round pick (if 15-30, via Cleveland), Second-round pick (via Houston), Second-round pick (via Phoenix)
Potential free agents: Ricky Rubio, T.J. Warren, Jalen Smith, Lance Stephenson, Nate Hinton (restricted), Oshae Brissett (team option)
Central question: How extreme is the incoming rebuild, and what veterans mesh with the future vision?
Notably unlisted among the potential free agents are Malcolm Brogdon, Myles Turner, Buddy Hield and T.J. McConnell. All range from solid starters to rotational complements, and 3 of the 4 (not Turner) will be 30 next season. The Pacers are clearly retooling, as evidenced by their trade-deadline fireworks and Tyrese Haliburton's subsequent high usage. They also have publicly flip-flopped regarding the direction of the team; see the above Tweet.
Indiana doesn't have the pure depth of talent to straddle the line. The Pacers can trade many of these talented players and build up a chest of draft picks and young pieces, or they can charge ahead, turn their picks into win-now players and hope Haliburton is ready for the playoff push. But a middle ground doesn't exist in an Eastern Conference where just about every team has solidified its direction.
LOS ANGELES LAKERS
Draft assets: None
Potential free agents: Russell Westbrook (player option), Kendrick Nunn (player option), Austin Reaves (team option), Stanley Johnson (team option), Carmelo Anthony, Avery Bradley, Wayne Ellington, Dwight Howard, Kent Bazemore, Malik Monk, D.J. Augustin, Wenyen Gabriel, Mason Jones (restricted)
Central question: What does team-building around two injury-prone superstars look like?
LeBron James <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/lebron-james-i-dont-have-a-cap-on-how-long-i-want-to-play" target="_blank" rel="noopener">turns 38 next season</a>, and has played 60-plus games just once in the past four seasons. Anthony Davis has now missed more than half the season in back-to-back years. Sure, the Lakers were a mess regardless of their stars' health, but going forward, is pursuing fits next to James and Davis even worthwhile if the two won't consistently be on the court?
With just three players under contract (the aforementioned stars, plus Talen Horton-Tucker), the Lakers enter another offseason of a roster overhaul. This time, I'd recommend almost entirely forgetting about James and Davis when building the squad and simply try to assemble units that make sense together.&nbsp;
NEW YORK KNICKS
Draft assets: First-round pick (2.5% chance at No. 1, could change based on Play-In results), Second-round pick via Boston and Charlotte (if 56-60)
Potential free agents: Mitchell Robinson, Ryan Arcidiacono 
Central question: What's going to happen with the veterans?
The top six moneymakers for the Knicks next season are all 27 or older, and I think many fans would say that out of the group, only Julius Randle should have started &mdash; and he seriously regressed this season. The young Knicks <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/explain-one-play-young-knicks-playing-chess" target="_blank" rel="noopener">clearly showed they're ready to take the mantle</a>.
So what happens with Randle, Evan Fournier, Derrick Rose, Alec Burks, Nerlens Noel and Kemba Walker? Is Tom Thibodeau prepared to reduce their (their meaning Burks specifically in this case) minutes and usage, will trades be coming, or will Madison Square Garden burn when Immanuel Quickley opens the season by playing 16 minutes off the bench? New York has drafted extremely well in recent seasons, but the ceiling of the young core is capped if these youngsters don't get a chance to prove themselves in meaningful situations.
<div class="mceNonEditable"><spike>&nbsp;</spike></div>
OKLAHOMA CITY THUNDER 
Draft assets: First-round pick (12.5% chance at No. 1), First-round pick via Clippers, First-round pick via Phoenix, Second-round pick
Potential free agents: Derrick Favors (player option), Mike Muscala (team option), Lu Dort (team option), Isaiah Roby (team option), Melvin Frazier (restricted)
Central question: What is the pathway in the frontcourt?
I've stanned Sam Presti's team-building strategy for years now, and I still think it's on track for a serious payoff. Josh Giddey slots in somewhere on your All-Rookie ballot, and draft classmates Tre Mann, Jeremiah Robinson-Earl and Aaron Wiggins flashed rotation-caliber play as well. It is simply a joy to watch a random young player have a breakout game on any given night, and OKC has already shown the <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/the-oklahoma-city-thunders-emerging-defensive-identity" target="_blank" rel="noopener">early stages of a prominent defense</a>.
Next up: Capitalize on a draft loaded with intruiging frontcourt players. Banchero, Holmgren and Smith are obviously the best of the best. But even if the Thunder slide in the lottery, they could pounce on an athletic shot-blocker like Jalen Duren, or use one of their later picks on a center like Mark Williams. I'm just spit-balling, but the point is that OKC has plenty of chances to find its big-man anchor and further flesh out its core.
ORLANDO MAGIC
Draft assets: First-round pick (14.0% chance at No. 1), Second-round pick, Second-round pick via Indiana
Potential free agents: Gary Harris, Robin Lopez, Bol Bol (restricted), Ignas Brazdeikis (restricted), Admiral Schofield (restricted)
Central question: How do the offensive pieces fit together?
Orlando quietly logged a 17th-ranked defense this season, and an 11th-ranked unit since Feb. 1. A dismal offense ultimately doomed the Magic, who were riddled with inconsistent shotmaking and poor team efficiency marks throughout the half-court. We don't need to sound any player alarms; it takes time for young guards in particular to grasp the responsibilities of running NBA offenses.&nbsp;
But what if I told you Orlando has wielded bottom-10 offensive ratings every season for the last decade?&nbsp;
Change can start in the draft, again with some of the top offensive forward options like Banchero or Smith. Adding another ball-dominant guard in Jaden Ivey might be overkill, but AJ Griffin and Bennedict Mathurin feel like good wing fits at first glance. Spotrac estimates the Magic could have up to $30 million in practical cap space, leaving plenty of room for veteran players to accentuate the young talent.
PORTLAND TRAIL BLAZERS
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-theme="dark">
THE D IN DREW STANDS FOR DUNK DO NOT GOOGLE THIS <a href="https://t.co/2AojdAskYV">pic.twitter.com/2AojdAskYV</a>
&mdash; Portland Trail Blazers (@trailblazers) <a href="https://twitter.com/trailblazers/status/1508636734900166659?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">March 29, 2022</a></blockquote>

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

Draft assets: First-round pick (9.0% chance at No. 1), First-round pick via New Orleans (if 5-14), Second-round pick, Second-round pick via Memphis
Potential free agents: Joe Ingles, Jusuf Nurkic, Ben McLemore, Anfernee Simons (restricted), CJ Elleby (restricted), Elijah Hughes (restricted), Keljin Blevins (restricted)
Central question: Is Portland actually trying to win "now" or win soon?
Some really great development happened for the Blazers during the "wash" portion of the season in the form of players like Trendon Watford, Keon Johnson and Drew Eubanks. Add them to Anfernee Simons, Nassir Little and the incomng draft picks, and Portland suddenly has... kind of a sneaky-deep prospect pool? There's real potential to mold this group into a rotation cast that gives Portland one of its deepest rosters in years.
That's why these <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/jerami-grant-trade-rumors-portland-is-still-the-frontrunner" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Jerami Grant trade rumors concern me</a>. Giving up a possible lottery pick to try and piece together a short-term playoff team risks too much and keeps the Trail Blazers in the limbo they have lounged in for several years. Understandably, the franchise wants to build a contender while Damian Lillard is invested and in his prime. With some patience, Portland can without sacrificing sustainibility.
SACRAMENTO KINGS
Draft assets: First-round pick (7.5% chance at No. 1), Second-round pick, Second-round pick (via Chicago)
Potential free agents: Jeremy Lamb, Josh Jackson, Damian Jones, Donte DiVincenzo (restricted), Neemias Queta (restricted), Trey Lyles (team option)
Central question: How does Sacramento turn into a competitive NBA defense?
The Kings have trotted out lackluster defenses for as long as I can remember. In fact, they haven't ranked above 20th in Defensive Rating since 2005-06 &mdash; notably, the last time they made the playoffs.
And that didn't change under interim head coach Alvin Gentry. (Gentry will not return as head coach next season, but is <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/shams-alvin-gentry-no-longer-interim-coach-of-the-kings" target="_blank" rel="noopener">in talks for a front-office role</a>, per ESPN.) However, the on-paper roster actually shines some hope. Davion Mitchell made highlight reels out of his "Off-Night" defense. Justin Holiday is a solid individual defender, as is Harrison Barnes, and even De'Aaron Fox has his sporadic moments.&nbsp;
Can Sacramento find a head coach who turns a group of intriguing players with defensive potential into even an average squad? What draft and free agency options exist? Of course, the Kings would like to end their NBA-leading playoff drought. That'll come with changing the culture on defense.
WASHINGTON WIZARDS
Draft assets: First-round pick (2.5% chance at No. 1, depends on Play-In results), Second-round pick (via Dallas)
Potential free agents: Bradley Beal (player option), Thomas Bryant, Raul Neto, Tomas Satoransky, Anthony Gill (restricted), Cassius Winston (restricted)
Central question: What style of guard play is a feasible best fit?
Okay, so obviously the biggest question mark surrounds Bradley Beal's free agency. But from a conceptual standpoint, Washington has tried and failed over the past few seasons to find Beal's best-fitting partner in crime. John Wall, Russell Westbrook and Spencer Dinwiddie were each supposed to provide the downhill juice Beal lacks. The Wizards either did this at serious expense of another skill area (Wall, Westbrook), or it just didn't translate their at-rim ability (Dinwiddie). All battled injuries as well.
"I think we need bigger guards," <a href="https://www.nbcsports.com/washington/wizards/bradley-beal-outlines-what-wizards-need-build-contender" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Beal said in March</a>. "We need more guys that can get in the paint for us, more ball-handlers, more guys that can really create and get two feet in the paint, but also who can knock down threes."
I mean, Beal's needs make total sense. The problem is that every other basketball team on Earth also wants this type of guard.
<div class="mceNonEditable"><spike>&nbsp;</spike></div>
Looking to go to the hottest concerts, sports, theater &amp; family shows near you? Get 100% guaranteed tickets to more than 125,000 live events from TicketSmarter, the official ticket marketplace of BasketballNews.com.&nbsp;<a href="https://www.ticketsmarter.com/?utm_source=basketballnewscom&amp;utm_medium=tsaff&amp;utm_campaign=referral" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Order online now</a>!

Ethan Fuller sets the offseason stage for each team that missed the NBA playoffs.

Summer plans for the NBA's 10 non-playoff teams

WASHINGTON (AP) &mdash; Obi Toppin scored a career-high 35 points, and the New York Knicks beat the Washington Wizards 114-92 on Friday night.
RJ Barrett scored 14 points for the Knicks before leaving the game with a sprained right knee. His early exit came on a night when a number of key players from both teams didn't play at all. Both teams are eliminated from playoff contention. New York (36-45) moved a game ahead of Washington (35-46) for 11th place in the Eastern Conference.
The Knicks allowed the game's first 10 points and shot just 2 of 9 from 3-point range in the first quarter, but they dominated after that. New York was 14 of 30 from long distance the rest of the way.
The Knicks took control when they outscored Washington 36-19 in the second quarter to lead 59-50 at halftime.
New York scored the final six points of the first half on a dunk and then a four-point play by Toppin. Then the Knicks scored the first 13 of the third quarter. Toppin capped the run with two more 3-pointers to make it 72-50.
Rui Hachimura led the Wizards with 21 points. Immanuel Quickley had 23 points and 10 assists for New York.
DID NOT PLAY
The Wizards have been without Bradley Beal (left wrist) for more than two months, and Kyle Kuzma (right knee) was out for a 12th straight game. Kristaps Porzingis (right knee) and Kentavious Caldwell-Pope (rest) did not play either.
Coach Wes Unseld Jr. said Kuzma, Porzingis and Caldwell-Pope will also miss the team's finale at Charlotte.
New York was without Julius Randle (right quadriceps tendon) for a fourth straight game. The Knicks have also been without Nerlens Noel (left foot), Cam Reddish (right shoulder), Derrick Rose (right ankle) and Kemba Walker. Quentin Grimes (right knee) and Mitchell Robinson (non-COVID illness) each missed a second straight game.
TIP-INS
Knicks: Toppin's previous career high was 20 points.
Wizards: Washington was blown out despite shooting 51% from the field. The Wizards had 22 turnovers, which led to 33 New York points.
UP NEXT
Knicks: Host Toronto on Sunday night.
Wizards: At Charlotte on Sunday.

Obi Toppin poured in a career-high 35 points in Friday's win over the Washington Wizards.

Toppin scores 35, Knicks rout Wizards 114-92

MEMPHIS, Tenn. (AP) &mdash; Ja Morant keyed a fourth-quarter rally by scoring 15 of his 37 points in the period to lead the Memphis Grizzlies to a 118-114 victory over the New York Knicks on Friday night.
Ziaire Williams and Jaren Jackson Jr. each finished with 13 points, with Jackson adding five blocks as part of a season-high 16 for Memphis, which won its second straight.
Julius Randle led the Knicks with 36 points, 12 rebounds and six assists, while RJ Barrett finished with 23 points. Alec Burks added with 18 points for New York, which had its three-game winning streak snapped.
In a game that featured plenty of lead changes and ties, the teams were still swapping advantages midway through the fourth. With Memphis trailing 106-105 with 3:54 left, Morant scored 10 straight points for Memphis to put the Grizzlies up 115-108 with less than a minute to play. The Grizzlies held on despite foul shooting issues at the end.
The Grizzlies, who defeated New York 120-108 at Madison Square Garden on Feb. 2, are trying to keep pace with Golden State for the second spot in the West. The win put Memphis up a half-game on the Warriors, who were idle Friday night.
New York, which had shooting troubles in the first half, immediately turned that around at the break by hitting nine of its first 12 shots in the second half. That contributed to a 14-1 run, erasing Memphis' advantage. The Knicks would eventually outscore the Grizzlies 40-26 in the period, carrying an 96-87 lead into the final frame.
<div class="mceNonEditable"><spike>&nbsp;</spike></div>
TIP-INS
Knicks: New York played without a number of players, including Nerlens Noel, Derrick Rose and Cam Reddish. Obi Toppin, who was listed as questionable earlier Friday, sat out his fifth straight game with a left hamstring strain. ... Barrett and Randle were a combined 10 of 27 in the first half.
Grizzlies: The win gave Memphis a sweep of the Knicks for first time since 2015-16 season. ..... G/F Dillon Brooks, who has missed the past 26 games with a left ankle sprain, appears close to returning. He has gone through some 5-on-5 sessions and should return &ldquo;sometime in this upcoming road trip,&rdquo; coach Taylor Jenkins said Friday.
UP NEXT
Knicks: Play at Brooklyn on Sunday.
Grizzlies: Open a four-game road trip in Oklahoma City on Sunday.

Ja Morant keyed a fourth-quarter rally by scoring 15 of his 37 points in the period to lead the Grizz to a 118-114 victory over the Knicks.

Morant scores 37 points, Grizzlies turn back Knicks 118-114

The Los Angeles Lakers, New York Knicks, and Toronto Raptors discussed a three-team trade at length Wednesday night into Thursday morning. The framework would send&nbsp;Cam Reddish&nbsp;and&nbsp;Alec Burks&nbsp;to the Lakers,&nbsp;Goran Dragic&nbsp;and draft pick compensation to the Knicks, and&nbsp;Talen Horton-Tucker&nbsp;and&nbsp;Nerlens Noel&nbsp;to the Raptors, league sources told HoopsHype.&nbsp;Kendrick Nunn&nbsp;was also mentioned as a potential addition to the trade talks, sources said.
Source: <a href="https://hoopshype.com/2022/02/10/nba-sources-lakers-knicks-raptors-trade-talen-horton-tucker-cam-reddish-goran-dragic/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Michael Scotto/HoopsHype</a>
ANALYSIS:&nbsp;This possible deal is notable on a few fronts. The Knicks just acquired Reddish from the Hawks, but the young wing has appeared in just five contests since being dealt. Horton-Tucker has been considered the most valuable available player the Lakers have to offer teams. Meanwhile in Toronto, Goran Dragic has played in just five games all season. He is on an expiring contract and making $19.4 million this season.

Cam Reddish, Talen Horton-Tucker and Goran Dragic were among the players noted in the deal.

Lakers, Knicks, Raptors have talked three-team trade

As yet another trade deadline approaches, the New York Knicks have found themselves in the familiar position of looking for a shot in the arm.
And yet again, it doesn&rsquo;t seem likely they&rsquo;ll get one.
At 24-31, New York enters play on Feb. 9 in 12th place in the Eastern Conference, good enough to be 2.5 games behind the Atlanta Hawks for the 10th seed. At this point, they can only aspire to get an opportunity to play themselves into the 2022 postseason.
There&rsquo;s still a lot of season left, but Leon Rose and his front office hasn&rsquo;t found an opportunity to dramatically reshape the roster, and those chances may have dried up with Tuesday trades that saw CJ McCollum and Tyrese Haliburton change addresses.
On Tuesday, McCollum saw his nine-year tenure as a member of the Portland Trail Blazers end when Portland dealt him to the New Orleans Pelicans in exchange for a package that ultimately yielded Josh Hart and draft compensation. And shortly thereafter, the Sacramento Kings surprisingly shipped Haliburton to the Indiana Pacers in exchange for a package headlined by Domantas Sabonis.
Obviously at different points in their careers, what McCollum and Haliburton each have in common is that they would&rsquo;ve upgraded Tom Thibodeau&rsquo;s backcourt and at least been a step in the direction toward helping the Knicks replicate last season&rsquo;s success. The Knicks were linked to both players, but now, New York must look elsewhere.
For the most part, the deals that happen are the ones that nobody hears about.&nbsp;
Sure, James Harden could end up in Philadelphia and all indications are that the Los Angeles Lakers would love to find a taker for Russell Westbrook, but other teams don&rsquo;t exactly seem to being ringing the phones off the hook at Penn Plaza. If they were, either McCollum or Sabonis &mdash; or perhaps both &mdash; could have landed in Manhattan.
Where the Knicks go from here remains to be seen.
Could Julius Randle be headed elsewhere?
Things changed quickly.
Last season, Julius Randle capably led the Knicks to the fourth seed, was named an All-Star for the first time in his career and won the NBA&rsquo;s Most Improved Player Award. Less than a year later, his story has been completely rewritten.
Perhaps mostly due to his poor play, Randle is the player on the team whose name has been called the most as it relates to trade rumors, and that&rsquo;s because &mdash; despite his struggles &mdash; his talent is undeniable. He would provide the Knicks the best opportunity to dramatically reshape their roster while dealing him would also offer RJ Barrett more opportunity to play with the ball in his hands.
According to SNY&rsquo;s Ian Begley, Randle <a href="https://www.sny.tv/articles/knicks-evan-fournier-trade-discussions" target="_blank" rel="noopener">has drawn interest</a> from several teams around the league, and the Sacramento Kings were believed to be among them. It stands to reason that the front office there coveted Sabonis more than Randle. Based on their play this season, it&rsquo;d be hard to argue.
Just one season removed from the first All-Star berth of his career, Randle&rsquo;s poor play and attitude have hurt his value, but he&rsquo;s still one of the team&rsquo;s two most talented players, at best. Trading him for a young point guard could make sense for the Knicks, but that ship may have sailed with Haliburton having been sent to Indiana.
The biggest impediment to a Randle deal for the Knicks would be the return. If a trade wasn&rsquo;t yielding a top flight prospect or an established player that would help New York remain in the playoff hunt, it would be difficult for the front office to divest Randle while his value is as low as it seems to be at the moment.
Making room for Cam Reddish
Thus far, the Cam Reddish era in New York has been more of a snooze fest than must see TV, and it&rsquo;s because Reddish has been used sparingly, to say the least.
One of the things that players who have played for Thibodeau has respected about him are the standards that he holds his players to and his equitable administration of his values.&nbsp;
In other words, it&rsquo;s very on brand of the coach to demand that Reddish play his way into the Knicks&rsquo; rotation rather than simply handing minutes to the youngster because other people have identified him as someone with promise.&nbsp;
Quentin Grimes and Immanuel Quickley have earned their minutes, while Alec Burks and Evan Fournier have been the best player on the floor in more than one appearance this season.
There are only so many minutes to go around, which is why there have been pretty persistent reports concerning the Knicks and their willingness to part with one or two of their veteran pieces; Fournier and Burks have both joined Kemba Walker as players who are <a href="https://sny.tv/articles/knicks-evan-fournier-trade-discussions">reportedly available</a>.
Trading away one of the veteran pieces for draft compensation could make sense for a New York team that wants to get Reddish more opportunity, but that might not make the team more competitive in the short-term.
Mitchell Robinson is opening some eyes
There&rsquo;s no denying what Mitchell Robinson has produced on the court as of late.&nbsp;
Over the past month, Robinson has recorded six double-doubles and is averaging 13.8 points, 10.8 rebounds and 1.7 blocks per game. He&rsquo;s heading for free agency this summer, and retaining his services is likely to be expensive.
Although the league has mostly gone away from &ldquo;traditional&rdquo; big men, Robinson is a capable defensive presence on the perimeter, and he has proven that, when healthy, he&rsquo;s able to impact games. That he can do so on the offensive end without having plays called for him is a plus. Any team in the league could use that skill set.
According to Marc Berman of <a href="https://nypost.com/2022/02/08/nba-trade-deadline-knicks-eyeing-kings-harrison-barnes/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">the New York Post,</a> the Detroit Pistons may have interest in Robinson, though Berman doesn&rsquo;t specify what the Pistons have that the Knicks would covet.
As it stands, the Knicks don&rsquo;t have the same kind of cap flexibility they had a year ago &mdash; they pretty much blew that last summer. Adding an expensive multi-year pact for Robinson would only make things worse, and if the team isn&rsquo;t sure that it&rsquo;s current core is who it wants to be married to for the next three or four years, Robinson could wind up with another address.
So&hellip; Where exactly are the Knicks going?
To say that the 2021-22 season has been a disappointment would be an understatement. The Eastern Conference has certainly gotten stronger around the Knicks, but after acquiring Kemba Walker and Evan Fournier last season, expectations were rather high for the team that captured the conference&rsquo;s fourth seed last year.
Acquiring Reddish and deploying Grimes and Quickley are things that a rebuilding team would do, but re-signing most of its core free agents isn&rsquo;t. The Knicks re-signed Randle to four-year, $104 million extension before they needed to, gave Fournier a four-year deal worth nearly $80 million and committed years and dollars to Alec Burks, Derrick Rose and Nerlens Noel. A team wouldn&rsquo;t do that unless they legitimately thought they had a chance to contend.
Teams that know they don&rsquo;t, from a management standpoint, look more like the Oklahoma City Thunder and the Houston Rockets. They divest every possible asset for draft compensation and use their salary cap space as currency to help teams rid themselves of onerous contracts.
That the Knicks have seemingly done an about face, and so quickly, is a blemish on the record of the front office. As the team reportedly dangles its veteran players in an attempt to find playing time for younger ones, on some level, represents failure.
At this point, it&rsquo;s difficult to know exactly what the Knicks are doing. And that&rsquo;s not a good thing.
Looking to go to the hottest concerts, sports, theater &amp; family shows near you? Get 100% guaranteed tickets to more than 125,000 live events from TicketSmarter, the official ticket marketplace of BasketballNews.com.&nbsp;<a href="https://www.ticketsmarter.com/?utm_source=basketballnewscom&amp;utm_medium=tsaff&amp;utm_campaign=referral" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Order online now</a>!

Moke Hamilton visits the Knicks' situation heading into the NBA trade deadline and whether or not it's fixable.

This may end up being another inconsequential trade deadline for Knicks

TORONTO (AP) &mdash; Fred VanVleet scored 19 of his season-high 35 points in the third quarter, Pascal Siakam had 20 points and 14 rebounds, and the Toronto Raptors extended their home winning streak against the Knicks to 11 games by beating a depleted New York team 120-105 on Sunday.
OG Anunoby scored 14 points, Scottie Barnes had 13 and Chris Boucher 12 as the Raptors won back-to-back games for the first time since home wins over New York and Sacramento on Dec. 10 and 13.
&ldquo;I thought we were pretty locked in for most of the game,&rdquo; VanVleet said.
Barnes returned after missing Friday&rsquo;s win over the Clippers because of a sore right knee. He sat out the previous two games while in the health and safety protocols.
<div class="Component-hubPeekEmbed-0-2-140 HubPeek noBorderBottom-0-2-142 compressedEmbed-0-2-143">
<div class="hubPeekContainerWide-0-2-145" data-key="feed-card-hub-peak">
<div class="title-0-2-146">&nbsp;</div>
</div>
</div>
&ldquo;I felt pretty good out there,&rdquo; Barnes said. &ldquo;I really had my wind. I wasn&rsquo;t so tired.&rdquo;
Toronto, which had 10 players in the protocols for a Dec. 26 loss at Cleveland, had its eight most-used players available for the first time all season.
&ldquo;This is kind of where you want to be,&rdquo; VanVleet said. &ldquo;We&rsquo;ve just got to continue to get better individually and collectively. I think we&rsquo;ll be a tough team to beat if we can keep growing towards the end of the year.&rdquo;
VanVleet shot 11 for 17 and made a season-high seven of his 13 attempts from 3-point range. He went 6 for 6 at the free throw line and finished with five rebounds and five assists.
&ldquo;It makes us tough to guard when he&rsquo;s coming down, hitting in transition, coming off screens,&rdquo; Raptors coach Nick Nurse said.
Evan Fournier scored 20 points and RJ Barrett and Obi Toppin each had 19 for the Knicks, who lost their second straight after winning the previous three.
&ldquo;Overall, I thought some guys stepped up and played good but you&rsquo;re short-handed, your margin for error is small, and we didn&rsquo;t get it done,&rdquo; Knicks coach Tom Thibodeau said.
Fournier returned after missing Friday&lsquo;s loss to Oklahoma City because of a sore right ankle, but the Knicks were without starters Julius Randle and Mitchell Robinson, who joined Nerlens Noel, Jericho Sims, and Wayne Selden in health and safety protocols.
Another starter, guard Kemba Walker, sat for the second straight game because of a sore left knee.
&ldquo;We have three starters down,&rdquo; Fournier said. &ldquo;That&rsquo;s a lot.&rdquo;
Toppin&rsquo;s point total equaled his career high. He also had 19 against Toronto on Dec. 10.
&ldquo;It means something,&rdquo; Toppin said of matching the milestone, &ldquo;but obviously the loss sucks. We&rsquo;re just going to learn from this game and get better.&rdquo;
After scoring a season-low 80 points Friday, New York topped 100 for the first time in four games.
The Raptors played before a mostly empty arena for the second straight game after Ontario&rsquo;s provincial government reduced capacity limits to a maximum of 1,000 people in an attempt to control the spread of COVID-19. No tickets were sold, and only friends and family were allowed entry.
Toronto led 56-45 at halftime and used a 40-point third to take a 96-74 lead to the fourth.
SHARP SHOOTING
The Raptors shot 15 for 22 in the third. That was one fewer made baskets than the Knicks had in the first half. VanVleet had six made baskets in the quarter, while the Knicks had seven.
SHORT STINT
Rookie G Miles McBride started for the Knicks but was subbed out after five minutes and didn&rsquo;t return until the fourth quarter. Alec Burks started the second half.
&ldquo;Just the way the game was going, I felt we probably needed a little more offense to try to get things going,&rdquo; Thibodeau said.
TIP-INS
Knicks: Associate head coach Johnnie Bryant and assistant coaches Kenny Payne and Daisuke Yoshimoto were absent after entering the health and safety protocols. &ldquo;Everyone has added responsibility right now,&rdquo; Thibodeau said. &hellip; Play eight of their next 10 at home.
Raptors: Siakam finished with seven assists but had six turnovers. &hellip; F Isaac Bonga exited health and safety protocols but was not available (conditioning). &hellip; Outrebounded New York 44-30.
UP NEXT
Knicks: Host Indiana on Tuesday.
Raptors: Host San Antonio on Tuesday.
___
More AP NBA:&nbsp;<a class="" href="https://apnews.com/hub/NBA">https://apnews.com/hub/NBA</a>&nbsp;and&nbsp;<a class="" href="https://twitter.com/AP_Sports" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">https://twitter.com/AP_Sports</a>

Fred VanVleet scored 19 of his season-high 35 points in the third quarter.

Fred VanVleet scores season-high 35, Raptors rout Knicks 120-105

Julius Randle has entered the NBA's health and safety protocols.
Source: <a href="https://twitter.com/ShamsCharania/status/1476611825076740103?s=20">Shams Charania/The Athletic</a>
ANALYSIS:&nbsp;Randle is one of few Knicks that had not already entered the health and safety protocols in recent weeks, and joins Nerlens Noel in the protocols.
Randle has only missed three games as a Knick, and zero up until now this season.
&nbsp;

Julius Randle has entered the NBA's health and safety protocols.

Julius Randle enters health and safety protocols

NEW YORK (AP) &mdash; Kemba Walker couldn&rsquo;t have envisioned this Christmas.
Less than two weeks ago, his coach wouldn&rsquo;t even call his name.
On Saturday, his hometown fans were chanting it.
Walker became the seventh NBA player with a triple-double on Christmas, and the New York Knicks beat the depleted Atlanta Hawks 101-87 for their first win on the holiday in a decade.
<div class="Component-dfp-0-2-136">
<div class="Component-adTitle-0-2-29">&ldquo;It was amazing,&rdquo; Walker said. &ldquo;Those are moments that you dream about. It&rsquo;s kind of hard to put it into words, to be honest.&rdquo;</div>
</div>
Julius Randle had 25 points and 12 rebounds for the Knicks in a matchup of teams that met in the first round of last season&rsquo;s playoffs. But the Hawks were missing Trae Young among nine players in the NBA&rsquo;s health and safety protocols, so it wasn&rsquo;t much of a rematch of Atlanta&rsquo;s five-game victory.
Walker finished with 10 points, 12 assists and 10 rebounds. The 6-foot guard raced around the floor trying desperately for his 10th rebound for much of the second half, finally getting it in the fourth quarter when Mitchell Robinson&rsquo;s block came to him.
It was the first triple-double on Christmas since Golden State&rsquo;s Draymond Green in 2017, continuing Walker&rsquo;s strong stretch since going from a nine-game stint out of the rotation to back in the starting lineup when the Knicks were short-handed.
He said he couldn&rsquo;t have foreseen things turning so quickly.
&ldquo;This is not how we pictured it,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;I ain&rsquo;t complaining, either.&rdquo;
Fans in the sold-out crowd chanted &ldquo;Kemba Walker! Kemba Walker!&rdquo; for the New York native, who scored 44 points in a loss to Washington on Thursday.
&ldquo;As a teammate, as a brother, I&rsquo;m happy for him that he&rsquo;s able to come out and be who he is,&rdquo; Randle said. &ldquo;I&rsquo;m sure when he signed to come here this is kind of what he envisioned, playing the type of basketball that he&rsquo;s playing right now.&rdquo;
Evan Fournier and Quentin Grimes each scored 15 points for the Knicks, who snapped a six-game Christmas skid. They are 23-31 in their league-high 54 appearances, but hadn&rsquo;t won one since 2011.
<div class="Component-dfp-0-2-136">
<div class="Component-placeholderWrapper-0-2-32">
<div id="div-gpt-ad_site_article_midarticle2" class="DFPSlot Component-ad-0-2-28" data-key="ad-placeholder" data-google-query-id="CMPY4p-JgPUCFcMLiAkdFOQFXA">
<div id="google_ads_iframe_15786418/APNews/site/article/midarticle2_0__container__">John Collins and Delon Wright each scored 20 points for the Hawks, who were playing on Christmas for the first time since 1989. They had their six-game road winning streak snapped.</div>
</div>
</div>
</div>
Young starred in his first playoff series last spring against New York, ignoring profane taunts by Knicks fans and getting the last word when he bowed to them near the close of Atlanta&rsquo;s clinching Game 5 victory.
But he couldn&rsquo;t clear protocols in time for a coveted spot on the calendar, and playing short-handed caught up with the Hawks. Coach Nate McMillan said some players even asked to be subbed out of the game, which he said never happens.
&ldquo;It wasn&rsquo;t a lack of energy,&rdquo; McMillan said. &ldquo;I think our guys are tired. They&rsquo;ve been logging a lot of minutes.&rdquo;
The Knicks made their first seven shots and raced to a 19-3 lead on Randle&rsquo;s 3-pointer with 7:48 left in the first quarter.
They blew it open in the third quarter, and consecutive 3-pointers by Grimes and Taj Gibson to open the fourth gave New York its biggest lead at 87-66. From there the only drama was whether Walker would get one more rebound.
The Hawks&rsquo; injury report took three tweets from the team&rsquo;s official account to list, and besides Young featured key players such as Kevin Huerter, Lou Williams and Danilo Gallinari. Clint Capela returned from protocols and had six points and nine rebounds.
Meanwhile, the Knicks are getting healthier. RJ Barrett returned to the starting lineup and Grimes made his first appearance since setting a Knicks rookie record with seven 3-pointers and scoring 27 points against Milwaukee on Dec. 12. He was then placed into protocols and missed the last five games.
TIP-INS
Hawks: Signed guards Anthony &ldquo;Cat&rdquo; Barber and Malik Ellison, both playing this season for the College Park Skyhawks, Atlanta&rsquo;s NBA G League affiliate, to 10-day contracts. Ellison is the son of former No. 1 draft pick Pervis Ellison.
Knicks: Hall of Famer Bernard King, who set the Christmas record of 60 points playing for the Knicks in 1984, was at the game. ... The Knicks are down to just Nerlens Noel, Miles McBride and Jericho Sims in protocols. Immanuel Quickley and Kevin Knox II have been cleared but need to regain their conditioning before playing.
CHRISTMAS TRIPLE-DOUBLES
Besides Walker and Green, the other players with Christmas triple-doubles are Russell Westbrook, LeBron James, Oscar Robertson, Billy Cunningham and John Havlicek. Robertson did it four times.
HOLIDAY HOOPS HISTORY
The Hawks fell to 9-12 on Christmas. They are 2-1 against the Knicks, with both victories coming when they were based in St. Louis.
UP NEXT
Hawks: Host Chicago on Monday.
Knicks: Visit Minnesota on Tuesday to begin a four-game road trip.
___
More AP NBA:&nbsp;<a class="" href="https://apnews.com/hub/nba">https://apnews.com/hub/nba</a>&nbsp;and&nbsp;<a class="" href="https://twitter.com/AP_Sports" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">https://twitter.com/AP_Sports</a>

Walker posted 10 points, 10 rebounds and 12 assists in the victory.

Kemba Walker’s triple-double leads Knicks over Hawks, 101-87

In the final four games of the 2021 NBA Finals, Giannis Antetokounmpo realized that if Deandre Ayton couldn&rsquo;t stop him, it was game over for the Phoenix Suns. The Finals MVP led the Bucks to four wins in a row and they clinched their first championship in 50 years thanks to Antetokounmpo's interior dominance.
How different would the Finals have turned out if the Suns had a player like JaVale McGee who could provide spot minutes in those situations? After Phoenix lost Dario Saric with a torn ACL in Game 1, the Suns' lack of big-man depth was exposed.
After another strong performance by the Suns&rsquo; newest backup center on Friday night against the Boston Celtics &mdash; 21 points, 15 rebounds, 2 blocks in 26 minutes &mdash; McGee had the same thought postgame.
&ldquo;If I would&rsquo;ve gotten traded here instead of Denver, we probably would&rsquo;ve won,&rdquo; McGee said after the Suns&rsquo; 111-90 win on Friday where he started in place of Ayton (non-COVID illness).
The Suns needed to find a replacement for Saric, who will likely be out for the entirety of the 2021-22 season. In free agency, McGee was the most obvious fit for multiple reasons. Not only was he cheaper than other options like Nerlens Noel, the three-time NBA champion excels in the role that Phoenix consistently deploys.
Throughout McGee&rsquo;s career, he&rsquo;s been an excellent finisher in pick-and-roll situations, consistently grading in the plus-90th percentile as a roll man. In Phoenix, McGee would be spoon-fed the easiest scoring opportunities of his career from future Hall-of-Fame point guard Chris Paul.&nbsp;
So far, it's looking like Suns GM James Jones found a massive bargain in McGee. He is averaging 10.5 points, 7.3 rebounds and 1.6 blocks per game while only logging 15.9 minutes per game. Thanks to his simplified role catching lobs from Paul, McGee is shooting a career-best 65.7% from the field in his 13th season.
When you extrapolate McGee&rsquo;s stats per-36 minutes and per-100 possessions, it's clear just how perfect of a fit he is for the Suns:
Per-36: 23.7 points, 16.5 rebounds, 2.0 blocks
Per-100 Possessions: 31.5 points, 21.9 rebounds, 2.6 blocks
Incredibly enough, only two bigs this season are averaging at least 30 points and 20 rebounds per 100 possessions: Nikola Jokic and McGee.
Before landing in the Valley, McGee&rsquo;s career was topsy-turvy rollercoaster ride. After playing an integral role on championship teams like the Golden State Warriors and Los Angeles Lakers, McGee was logging DNP-CDs in last year's playoffs with the Nuggets.
Now, he&rsquo;s stepping up when called upon and leading one of the best teams in the NBA to blowout victories. Suns head coach Monty Williams continues to be blown away by McGee.
&ldquo;I thought him not even knowing that he was going to start today, to be able to play with that kind of energy [was impressive]. Defensively too, I thought he was a presence in the paint, distracting shots," Williams said of McGee. "And he&rsquo;s so stinking long, when you see a guy in the paint like that, it can deter you from trying to attack. But that kind of production, when you don&rsquo;t even know you&rsquo;re going to play that many minutes, says a lot about his approach to the game, his teammates. trusting him.
"We needed it. We&rsquo;re down five rotation guys. And then the defense tonight, and it was anchored by him and our guards, Mikal (Bridges)... But to your point, JaVale was the catalyst tonight. His pressure on the rim on both ends of the floor really helped our team.&rdquo;
<div class="mceNonEditable"><spike>&nbsp;</spike></div>
After another impressive performance, McGee deflected attention away from his individual accolades and focused more on how easily he was set up by his teammates, a regular occurrence within Williams&rsquo; &ldquo;0.5&rdquo; offensive system.
&ldquo;If anything it&rsquo;s my teammates putting me in the right places and coaching staff running the right plays,&rdquo; McGee said. &ldquo;It&rsquo;s just a lot of things for this team that work for the center position, if you&rsquo;re doing it the right way. I pride myself on being extremely efficient with the minutes they give me, so I just feel like this season, I&rsquo;m definitely trying to get my efficiency level to the highest possible point.&rdquo;
When the Suns enter into the playoffs for the second consecutive season after missing the big dance for 11 years in a row, McGee&rsquo;s championship pedigree and production within his role will be integral to the Suns as they attempt to return to the NBA Finals.
McGee saw from afar how locked in the Suns were as they tried to achieve the NBA's ultimate goal. What attracted him to the Valley was the opportunity to help them win their first championship in franchise history. With the way McGee is playing, his $5 million salary is a massive bargain considering the veteran leadership, championship experience and efficient, two-way production he provides.
&ldquo;I definitely bring championship experience. I&rsquo;ve been there and won it. I&rsquo;m undefeated in the Finals," McGee said. "It&rsquo;s just a challenge through the whole season to stay locked in, and I try to bring that energy every game, every practice. Every day they see me, I try to bring that great energy to the guys. Some guys have a bad history of being a cancer to a team, or they didn&rsquo;t play well this game or they didn&rsquo;t play a lot this game and that&rsquo;ll change their whole mood; I&rsquo;m not that guy. I&rsquo;m the same way. If you ask any of my teammates, any of the coaching staff of any team I played for, [they'll tell you that] too.&rdquo;

JaVale McGee continues to show why he's a perfect fit for the Phoenix Suns on and off the floor.

JaVale McGee provides much-needed championship experience for Suns

R.J. Barrett made a career-high seven 3-pointers and scored 32 points, and the New York Knicks snapped a three-game skid, beating the San Antonio Spurs 121-109 on Tuesday night.
&ldquo;Things may not be going well and, all of a sudden, you take a charge, get to a loose ball, you get a tip from behind, you get a block,&rdquo; Knicks coach Tom Thibodeau said. &ldquo;That could ignite you and all of a sudden you get an easy score, a couple of easy buckets and now you find your rhythm and things change quickly in this league. They can go from being terrible to being great real fast and vice versa. You&rsquo;ve just got to keep going.&rdquo;
Alec Burks scored 18 points, Immanuel Quickley added 16 points and Julius Randle had 15 for the Knicks, who won at San Antonio for the first time since Jan. 2, 2014.
&ldquo;Heck yeah, we needed that,&rdquo; New York center Mitchell Robinson said. &ldquo;We needed that win bad. We&rsquo;re desperate right now.&rdquo;
Derrick White had a season-high 26 points along with six rebounds and seven assists for the Spurs, who have dropped two straight after a season-long three-game winning streak. Dejounte Murray added 15 points, seven rebounds and seven assists.
&ldquo;That first game, being a back-to-back, after a road trip, we knew that would be tough energy-wise,&rdquo; San Antonio coach Gregg Popovich said. &ldquo;But I thought we competed our (butt) off. Guys gave their effort. I was really happy with that.&rdquo;
The Knicks were 18 for 38 on 3-pointers, with Barrett going 7 for 8.
Barrett said he's feeling &ldquo;a lot better&rdquo; after suffering from a stomach bug for two weeks.
&ldquo;It was annoying, but I tried to do my job to the best of my ability no matter what,&rdquo; Barrett said.
Barrett, who finished 11 of 20 from the field overall, made two 3s during a 10-2 run that gave New York a 13-point lead midway through the third quarter. The Spurs briefly got within nine points in the fourth but couldn&rsquo;t trim the lead any further.
&ldquo;I think the defense was really, really focused on Julius,&rdquo; Barrett said. &ldquo;They were doubling on him every time he had the ball and we just moved it. We moved it and I was able to knock them down.&rdquo;
New York took advantage of the Spurs&rsquo; smaller lineups, out-rebounding the Spurs 56-49 and enjoying a 21-8 advantage in second-chance points.
San Antonio got even smaller when starting forward Keldon Johnson exited early in the third quarter with a sprained right ankle. Johnson was injured with 1:21 left in the first half after stepping on Poeltl&rsquo;s foot. He started the second half but appeared to be in some pain before heading to the locker room.
Popovich said X-rays on Johnson's ankle were negative.
A CHANGE
Thibodeau started Nerlens Noel at center instead of Robinson, who had started all 20 games he had played previously this season.
&ldquo;We feel really strongly about both guys,&rdquo; Thibodeau said. &ldquo;We just wanted a different look. Those guys are interchangeable, just go as hard as you can for as long as you can and then the next guy comes in and does the same thing.&rdquo;
Robinson had 11 points and 14 rebounds in 22 minutes. Noel had two points and nine rebounds in 26 minutes.
Robinson endured a scare when he injured his back with 56.4 seconds left in the third quarter after an awkward landing. He went flying after his legs were clipped when Spurs center Drew Eubanks dived for a loose ball.
Robinson stayed in the game but said he was in pain afterward. He walked gingerly into and out of the interview room.
&ldquo;The ground ain&rsquo;t never lost,&rdquo; Robinson said.
TIP-INS
Knicks: New York had lost seven straight at San Antonio. Carmelo Anthony and Iman Shumpert each had 27 points to lead the Knicks in their previous win. ... New York is 7-4 on the road but entered having lost three of four away from home.
Spurs: G Devin Vassell missed his third straight game with a bruised right quadriceps. ... The Spurs entered Monday having played the fewest games of any NBA team. That will change quickly as the Spurs play five games in seven days. ... San Antonio is 4-7 at home and has not had a winning record at AT&amp;T Center since winning its season opener.
UP NEXT
Knicks: At Indiana on Wednesday.
Spurs: Host Denver on Thursday.

R.J. Barrett made a career-high seven 3-pointers and scored 32 points, and the Knicks snapped a three-game skid.

Barrett makes 7 threes, Knicks beat Spurs to snap 3-game skid

With the New York Knicks down double-digits late in the third quarter, their reserves entered the game and led a spirited comeback. Stop me if you've heard this one before...
Yes, a familiar script played out once again Friday night in Charlotte. And, once again, the movie ended with the Knicks on the losing side.&nbsp;
After the Hornets surged to a 12-point lead in the third quarter against a hapless Knicks starting unit that has been unable to get on the same page, the bench mob propelled New York back. The team eventually took a two-point lead halfway through the fourth, courtesy of a thunderous windmill dunk from high-flying sophomore Obi Toppin. However, Julius Randle replaced Toppin 90 seconds later, and the Knicks would be outscored 13-3 over the final five minutes of regulation.&nbsp;
The Knicks left Charlotte and limped home to New York having lost five of their last seven games. After jumping out of the gates with a 5-1 record, the 'Bockers now find themselves just a game over .500.
Many of the same problems that have plagued the Knicks during their recent swoon reared their ugly heads on Friday night.&nbsp;
Once again, despite a hot start and a great game from Kemba Walker &mdash; who scored 26 points &mdash; each member of the Knicks starting five posted a negative plus/minus, while the plus/minus of New York's reserves were all positive.&nbsp;
And, again, the Knicks were severely outplayed in the third quarter, as the Hornets poured in 34 points on 14-of-25 (26%) shooting over those 12 minutes.
Remarkably, over the Knicks' past four contests, they have been outscored 123-77 in the third quarter. That's a preposterous 46-point differential. &nbsp;
<div class="mceNonEditable"><spike>&nbsp;</spike></div>
Of course, much of the poor production can be directly attributed to the starters' struggles. As <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/knicks-starters-sink-new-york-fail-to-protect-home-court-again" target="_blank" rel="noopener">detailed earlier this week</a>, Walker, Randle, Evan Fournier, RJ Barrett and Mitchell Robinson have the worst cumulative plus/minus among all five-man units in the NBA. After another poor showing in Charlotte, this group is being outscored by 16.7 points per 100 possessions, according to <a href="https://cleaningtheglass.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Cleaning the Glass</a>. That's the worst of any qualifying lineup in the league.&nbsp;
In sharp contrast, the bench unit of Derrick Rose, Immanuel Quickley, Taj Gibson, Alec Burks and Toppin is outscoring opponents by a prodigious 27.6 points per 100 possessions.
While Rose continues to play at an extremely high level each night and Toppin brings his unique splash of athleticism and energy, IQ's confidence has surged recently (he's made 10 of his last 20 three-point attempts). &nbsp;
Conversely, Barrett is mired in a nasty slump. Over the Knicks past four games, Barrett is averaging 8.0 points while shooting just 26% from the floor, 16% from downtown and 60% from the charity stripe. He also has more turnovers (9) than assists (6). And for a player that talked earlier this season about establishing himself as an All-NBA defender, Barrett has had several lapses on the defensive end, and doesn't seem to be playing with the same tenacity. Offensively, he's been hesitant to attack the tin, having gone to the free-throw line a total of only five times in four games.&nbsp;
This is a concern because Barrett is at his best when he's playing downhill and getting to the line. In the games in which Barrett has attempted more than five free throws this season, he averages 26.0 points on 58% shooting. Conversely, when RJ has attempted fewer than five free throws, he averages 11.2 points on 33% shooting.
Barrett has not been listed on the injury report, but it wouldn't surprise me if we found out that he is currently dealing with a physical ailment. His body language has been off of late.&nbsp;
Randle has also struggled recently. Over the Knicks' last three losses, Randle is averaging 15.0 points, 6.7 rebounds and 3.0 turnovers while shooting below 37% from the field, below 30% from behind the arc and below 55% from the FT line.&nbsp;
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-theme="dark">
<a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/HoopIdea?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#HoopIdea</a> Knicks spot their opponents 15 points if the other team agrees to play just the 2nd and 4th quarters
&mdash; Tommy Beer (@TommyBeer) <a href="https://twitter.com/TommyBeer/status/1459343333558468613?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 13, 2021</a></blockquote>

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

Thursday after practice, Evan Fournier was asked about coach Tom Thibodeau's angry comments following the team's loss to Milwaukee.
"I mean, sh**, I would be [angry], too. We don't need Tom to get mad at us," Fournier said. "We know we did not play well last game. We're all veterans. We all know what we're capable of doing, and it doesn't feel good when we don't play well."
On opening night, Fournier poured in 32 points and knocked down six triples. Over New York's last four games combined, Fournier has scored a total of 33 points and made four treys. Surprisingly, he hasn't logged a single minute in the fourth quarter in four of New York's last five contests. This is not what Leon Rose and company had in mind when they inked him to a 4-year, $78 million deal over the summer.&nbsp;
Zooming back out to look at the big picture, it's important to note we are only 11 games into an 82-game marathon. Each team played 72 contests last season; the Knicks still have 71 remaining on the schedule over the next five months. And, during the 2020-21 campaign, New York was three games under .500 (5-8) through the first three weeks of the season.&nbsp;
On the flip side of the coin, the reality is the Eastern Conference is much improved and uber-competitive. Last season's conference finalists, the Bucks and Hawks, are currently a combined 10-16. For this reason, next week takes on added importance for New York.&nbsp;
The Knicks play only three times over the next eight days. Each of the three contests is at home, and all are winnable. New York hosts the Pacers (5-8) at Madison Square Garden on Monday, the Magic (3-9) on Wednesday and the Rockets (1-11) on Saturday.&nbsp;
Thibs will be able to get a few quality practices, and this stretch gives the team a much-needed opportunity to reset and re-establish their identity.
Considering what lies ahead, it's almost imperative that the Knicks take care of business next week. Immediately following this three-game stretch, things could get ugly. Next Sunday, they travel to Chicago to play the up-and-coming Bulls on the second night of a back-to-back. The Knicks then play six games against some of the league's top teams (Lakers, Suns, Hawks, Nets, Bulls and Nuggets), before embarking on a three-game road trip, only to return home to host the Bucks and Warriors in the second week of December.&nbsp;
Knicks Notes:
- Speaking with reporters after the game, Thibodeau said Derrick Rose got "nicked up" in Friday's loss but that Rose was cleared to go back in the game late in the fourth quarter. Thibs didn't provide any specifics as to the nature of the injury, but it appeared Rose tweaked his ankle before checking out of the game in the fourth quarter. It's almost impossible to overstate Rose's importance to the Knicks this season, as he's been arguably the team's most consistent and most valuable player thus far. Remarkably, the Knicks have outscored their opponents by 110 points in the 295 minutes Rose has played this season.&nbsp;
- Robinson exited Friday's game in the first half to have his left ankle taped, but returned to the contest. Mitch Rob is shooting a league-leading 82.9% from the floor this season. Nerlens Noel has missed each of the past two games due to a right knee sprain.&nbsp;
- The Knicks committed 19 turnovers vs. the Hornets on Friday, which led to 17 points for Charlotte. "There's no surprise into why you win or why you lose, to me, it's your defense," Thibodeau said. "Initially, the defense was good and the rebounding was good, then the problem became our turnovers."
- <a href="https://www.nba.com/stats/teams/opponent-shots-closest-defender/?Season=2021-22&amp;SeasonType=Regular%20Season&amp;CloseDefDistRange=6%2B%20Feet%20-%20Wide%20Open&amp;sort=FG3M&amp;dir=1" target="_blank" rel="noopener">According to NBA tracking data</a>, the Knicks allowed 23 wide-open three-point attempts vs. Charlotte (the Hornets only converted seven). On the season, New York is allowing 22.5 wide-open three-point attempts per game, the most in the NBA.&nbsp;
- Hornets point guard LaMelo Ball <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/lamelo-ball-leads-game-in-rebounds-steals-and-assists" target="_blank" rel="noopener">grabbed 17 rebounds, dished out 9 assists and racked 5 five steals Friday night</a>. That's as many assists and steals as the entire Knicks starting five, and more three rebounds than Randle and Robinson combined.

Tommy Beer details the Knicks' recent stretch of struggles with the starting five and the opportunity ahead to right the ship.

Knicks must take advantage of important three-game home stand

After rolling out my<a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/ranking-the-top-150-nba-players-for-fantasy-basketball-in-2021-22" target="_blank" rel="noopener"> Top-150 NBA Fantasy overall rankings</a> last week, I have broken down each position into tiers.
It is important to state that these rankings are based on a nine-category roto format (points, assists, rebounds, steals, blocks, three-pointers, field goal percentage, free-throw percentage and turnovers). Also, please note position eligibility is based on Yahoo&rsquo;s fantasy settings and, as a result, many players qualify at multiple positions.
Guards
The two biggest question marks among all guards reside in Philadelphia and Brooklyn. Ben Simmons has (awkwardly) returned to Sixers, but it is still unclear whether Big Ben plans to "merely report to the team or truly rejoin the team," <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/ben-simmons-arrives-in-philly-takes-covid19-test" target="_blank" rel="noopener">according to Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN</a>. Thus, Simmons is arguably the biggest boom-or-bust fantasy pick in the NBA this season.
Irving, on the other hand, is <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/itll-be-difficult-for-kyrie-and-the-nets-to-come-back-from-this" target="_blank" rel="noopener">persona non grata in the borough of Brooklyn</a>. Although Kyrie is eligible to participate in the Nets' away games, Brooklyn general manager Sean Marks said Tuesday that Irving will not be allowed to play or practice with the team at all until he gets vaccinated. &ldquo;He has a choice to make, and he made his choice,&rdquo; Marks <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/nets-say-kyrie-irving-cant-play-or-practice-with-team-while-unvaccinated" target="_blank" rel="noopener">told reporters Tuesday</a>. &ldquo;And my job here is to make what we deem is the best choices for the organization moving ahead and as a whole.&rdquo; There is certainly still a chance Irving gets his jab and is cleared to play, but it&rsquo;s too much of a risk to roll the dice until late in the draft, in my opinion.
Tier 1: James Harden PG, SG (BKN)&nbsp; Luka Doncic PG, SG (DAL) Stephen Curry PG, SG (GSW) Damian Lillard PG (POR)
Tier 2: Bradley Beal SG, SF (WAS) Trae Young PG (ATL) Jimmy Butler SF, PF, SG (MIA) LeBron James PG, SG, SF, PF (LAL)
Tier 3: Fred VanVleet PG, SG (TOR) Shai Gilgeous-Alexander PG, SG (OKC)
Tier 4: Jrue Holiday PG, SG (MIL) Chris Paul PG (PHO) &nbsp; Zach LaVine SG, SF (CHI) Donovan Mitchell PG, SG (UTAH)
Tier 5: Khris Middleton SF, PF, SG (MIL) Jaylen Brown SG, SF (BOS) De'Aaron Fox PG (SAC)&nbsp; Devin Booker SG, SF, PG (PHO)
Tier 6: LaMelo Ball PG, SG (CHA) CJ McCollum PG, SG (POR) Russell Westbrook PG (LAL) Kevin Porter Jr. SG, SF, PG (HOU)&nbsp; Dejounte Murray PG, SG (SAS) Malcolm Brogdon PG, SG (IND)&nbsp; Terry Rozier PG, SG (CHA)
Tier 7: Mikal Bridges SG, SF (PHO) Lonzo Ball PG, SG (CHI) Gordon Hayward SG, SF (CHA) Ja Morant PG (MEM) Bogdan Bogdanovic SF, PF, SG (ATL) Darius Garland PG, SG (CLE) Anthony Edwards SG, SF (MIN) DeMar DeRozan SF, PF, SG (CHI) Kyle Lowry PG (MIA) Tyrese Haliburton PG, SG (SAC) Derrick White PG, SG (SAS)
Tier 8: Mike Conley PG (UTAH) Jalen Suggs PG, SG (ORL) Spencer Dinwiddie PG, SG (WAS) Cade Cunningham PG, SG (DET) Ben Simmons PG (PHI) Caris LeVert SG, SF (IND) D&rsquo;Angelo Russell PG, SG (MIN) Collin Sexton PG, SG (CLE) Marcus Smart PG, SG (BOS) Jordan Poole PG, SG (GSW)&nbsp;
Tier 9: Andrew Wiggins SG, SF (GSW)&nbsp; Nickeil Alexander-Walker SG, SF, PG (NOP) Devonte&rsquo; Graham PG, SG (NOP) Evan Fournier SG, SF (NYK) Buddy Hield SG, SF (SAC) Norman Powell SG, SF (POR) Kemba Walker PG (NYK) RJ Barrett SG, SF (NYK) Reggie Jackson PG, SG (LAC) Dennis Schroder PG (BOS) Jordan Clarkson PG, SG (UTAH) Joe Ingles SG, SF, PF (UTAH) Joe Harris SG, SF (BKN)&nbsp; Malik Beasley PG, SG, SF (MIN) Kyrie Irving PG, SG (BKN)&nbsp;
Tier 10:&nbsp; De&rsquo;Anthony Melton PG, SG (MEM) Jalen Green SG (HOU) Klay Thompson SG, SF (GSW) Dillon Brooks SG, SF (MEM) Matisse Thybulle SG, SF (PHI) T.J. McConnell PG, SG (IND) Derrick Rose PG, SG (NYK) Tim Hardaway Jr. SG, SF (DAL) Kelly Oubre Jr. SG, SF, PF (CHA) Eric Bledsoe PG, SG (LAC) Kevin Huerter SG, SF (ATL) Josh Giddey PG, SG, SF (OKC) Tyrese Maxey PG, SG (PHI)
Forwards
Looking for a potential sleeper at forward? I&rsquo;d suggest highlighting Pascal Siakam or Evan Mobley on your cheat sheet.&nbsp;
After a phenomenal 2019-20 campaign, in which he was named to the All-NBA Second Team, Siakam failed to live up to expectations last season; his scoring average, three-point makes and effective field goal percentage all decreased. In addition, Pascal is still working his way back from surgery on a torn labrum, which has forced his ADP (Average Draft Position) to plummet. However, earlier this week, Toronto Raptors head coach Nick Nurse said his star forward has been &ldquo;going 100%&rdquo; without contact for about 4-6 weeks, and could return later this month.&nbsp;
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-theme="dark">
Evan Mobley is going to be a special defender in the NBA. GMs believe that Mobley will be the best player from his draft class in five years 👀 (🎥 <a href="https://twitter.com/Mike_Schmitz?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@Mike_Schmitz</a>) <a href="https://t.co/iPiaabn2Gu">pic.twitter.com/iPiaabn2Gu</a>
&mdash; NBA Central (@TheNBACentral) <a href="https://twitter.com/TheNBACentral/status/1446161049753882629?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 7, 2021</a></blockquote>

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

Mobley&rsquo;s stock is soaring after impressive performances and extended usage for the Cleveland Cavaliers in the preseason (he&rsquo;s leading his team in playing time, logging 28.4 minutes per game). Mr. Mobley is probably worth the gamble, as his upside is emarkably enticing.&nbsp;
Tier 1: Nikola Jokic PF, C (DEN)
Tier 2: Jayson Tatum SF, PF (BOS) Giannis Antetokounmpo PF, C (MIL) Kevin Durant SF, PF (BKN) Joel Embiid PF, C (PHI) Anthony Davis PF, C (LAL)&nbsp; Bradley Beal SG, SF (WAS) Paul George SF, PF, SG (LAC)
Tier 3: Jimmy Butler SF, PF, SG (MIA) LeBron James PG, SG, SF, PF (LAL) Domantas Sabonis PF, C (IND) Bam Adebayo PF, C (MIA) Michael Porter Jr. SF, PF (DEN Zach LaVine SG, SF (CHI)
Tier 4: Khris Middleton SF, PF, SG (MIL) Jaylen Brown SG, SF (BOS) Julius Randle PF, C (NYK) Devin Booker SG, SF, PG (PHO) Myles Turner PF, C (IND) OG Anunoby SF, PF (TOR)&nbsp; Tobias Harris SF, PF (PHI)
Tier 5: Richaun Holmes PF, C (SAC) Brandon Ingram SF, PF (NOP) Christian Wood PF, C (HOU) Kristaps Porzingis PF, C (DAL) John Collins PF, C (ATL) Kevin Porter Jr. SG, SF, PG (HOU)&nbsp; Zion Williamson PF (NOP)
Tier 6: Pascal Siakam PF, C (TOR) Mikal Bridges SG, SF (PHO) Jaren Jackson Jr. PF, C (MEM) Chris Boucher PF, C (TOR) Gordon Hayward SG, SF (CHA) Bogdan Bogdanovic SF, PF, SG (ATL) Anthony Edwards SG, SF (MIN) DeMar DeRozan SF, PF, SG (CHI) Robert Williams III C, PF (BOS)
Tier 7: Draymond Green PF, C (GSW) Jerami Grant SF, PF (DET) Caris LeVert SG, SF (IND) Robert Covington PF, C, SF (POR) Miles Bridges SF, PF (CHA) Kelly Olynyk PF, C (DET) Buddy Hield SG, SF (SAC)&nbsp; Isaiah Stewart PF, C (DET) Andrew Wiggins SG, SF (GSW)&nbsp;
Tier 8: Nickeil Alexander-Walker SG, SF, PG (NOP) Evan Fournier SG, SF (NYK) P.J. Washington PF, C (CHA) Norman Powell SG, SF (POR) Kyle Anderson SF, PF (MEM) Jonathan Isaac SF, PF (ORL) Evan Mobley C, PF (CLE) Larry Nance Jr. PF, C (POR) Harrison Barnes SF, PF (SAC) Mason Plumlee PF, C (CHA) Bobby Portis Jr. PF, C (MIL) De&rsquo;Andre Hunter SF, PF (ATL) Daniel Gafford C, PF (WAS)
Tier 9: Thaddeus Young PF, C, SF (SAS) Joe Ingles SG, SF, PF (UTAH) Lauri Markkanen PF, C (CLE) Joe Harris SG, SF (BKN)&nbsp; Keldon Johnson SF, PF (SAS) Malik Beasley PG, SG, SF (MIN) T.J. Warren SF, PF (IND) Jae'Sean Tate SF, PF (HOU) Daniel Theis PF, C (HOU) Brandon Clarke PF, C (MEM) Saddiq Bey SF (DET)\ Klay Thompson SG, SF (GSW) Derrick Favors C, PF (OKC) Al Horford PF, C (BOS)
Tier 10: Kyle Kuzma SF, PF (WAS) Matisse Thybulle SG, SF (PHI) Nicolas Batum SF, PF, SG (LAC) Derrick Rose PG, SG (NYK) Marcus Morris Sr. PF, C, SF (LAC) Dillon Brooks SG, SF (MEM) Alperen Sengun PF, C (HOU) Tim Hardaway Jr. SG, SF (DAL) Montrezl Harrell PF, C (WAS) Kelly Oubre Jr. SG, SF, PF (CHA) Nerlens Noel PF, C (NYK)&nbsp; Isaiah Roby C, PF (OKC) Kevin Huerter SG, SF (ATL) Khem Birch PF, C (TOR) Aaron Gordon SF, PF (DEN)
Centers
Centers take on added importance in fantasy hoops due to the scarcity. That&rsquo;s part of the reason why Jokic is viewed as the near-unanimous top overall selection in drafts this year.&nbsp;
<div class="mceNonEditable"><spike>&nbsp;</spike></div>
Last season, Jokic authored a season for the ages. Not only did he score a career-high 26.4 points and rip down 10.8 rebounds per game, but he also dished out an average of 8.3 dimes each night, joining Russell Westbrook and Oscar Robertson as the only players in NBA history to average at least 25 points, 10 boards and 8 assists over a season. Incredibly, Jokic tallied a total of 599 assists in 2020-21, which was the third-most in the entire league. Wilt Chamberlain, who led the NBA with 8.6 APG in 1967-68, is the only center to post a higher assist-average over a full season. As a fantasy cherry on top, the Joker proved incredibly durable, appearing in every game last season.
Tier 1: Nikola Jokic PF, C (DEN)
Tier 2: Karl-Anthony Towns C (MIN)
Tier 3: Giannis Antetokounmpo PF, C&nbsp; Joel Embiid PF, C (PHI) Anthony Davis PF, C (LAL)
Tier 4: Nikola Vucevic C (CHI) Domantas Sabonis PF, C (IND) Bam Adebayo PF, C (MIA) Rudy Gobert C (UTAH)
Tier 5: Myles Turner PF, C (IND) Clint Capela C (ATL) Julius Randle PF, C (NYK) Richaun Holmes PF, C (SAC) Deandre Ayton C (PHO) Christian Wood PF, C (HOU)&nbsp; Kristaps Porzingis PF, C (DAL) John Collins PF, C (ATL)
Tier 6: Jaren Jackson Jr. PF, C (MEM) Jusuf Nurkic C (POR) Pascal Siakam PF, C (TOR) Chris Boucher PF, C (TOR)&nbsp; Robert Williams III C, PF (BOS) Jonas Valanciunas C (NOP) Draymond Green PF, C (GSW) Robert Covington PF, C, SF (POR) Jarrett Allen C (CLE) Kelly Olynyk PF, C (DET) Isaiah Stewart PF, C (DET)
Tier 7: P.J. Washington PF, C (CHA) Evan Mobley C, PF (CLE) Mitchell Robinson C (NYK) Larry Nance Jr. PF, C (POR) Jakob Poeltl C (SAS) Wendell Carter Jr. C (ORL) Brook Lopez C (MIL) Mason Plumlee PF, C (CHA) Bobby Portis Jr. PF, C (MIL)
Tier 8: Daniel Gafford C, PF (WAS) Thaddeus Young PF, C, SF (SAS) Lauri Markkanen PF, C (CLE) Daniel Theis PF, C (HOU) Brandon Clarke PF, C (MEM) Ivica Zubac C (LAC) Derrick Favors C, PF (OKC) Al Horford PF, C (BOS)
Tier 9: Marcus Morris Sr. PF, C, SF (LAC) Mo Bamba C (ORL) Montrezl Harrell PF, C (WAS) Thomas Bryant C (WAS) Nerlens Noel PF, C (NYK)&nbsp; Alperen Sengun PF, C (HOU)&nbsp;
Tier 10: Khem Birch PF, C (TOR) Isaiah Roby C, PF (OKC) Andre Drummond C (PHI)&nbsp; Steven Adams C (MEM) Serge Ibaka PF, C (LAC)&nbsp; James Wiseman C (GSW) Naz Reid C (MIN) Marvin Bagley III PF, C (SAC) LaMarcus Aldridge PF, C (BKN) Nicolas Claxton PF, C (BKN) Kevin Love PF, C (CLE) Hassan Whiteside PF, C (UTAH)

Tommy Beer divides the top NBA fantasy guards, forwards and centers into 10 tiers each based on their value.

2021-22 NBA Fantasy Basketball Rankings: 10 tiers for each position

With the start of the season just three weeks away, here is my ranking of the top 150 players for the 2021-22 campaign.
It is imperative to note that this list is based on nine-category roto scoring formats (points, assists, rebounds, steals, blocks, three-pointers, field goal percentage, free-throw percentage and turnovers) .&nbsp;
I've added comments to a handful of players to help explain the rationale behind some of their rankings.&nbsp;
So without further ado, let's get to it.
1. Nikola Jokic PF, C (DEN) 2. James Harden PG, SG (BKN): The Beard was the top-ranked fantasy player in back-to-back seasons in 2018-19 and 2019-20. He's healthy and ready to rock in Brooklyn. 3. Luka Doncic PG, SG (DAL) 4. Stephen Curry PG, SG (GSW) 5. Karl-Anthony Towns C (MIN) 6. Damian Lillard PG (POR): Dame is one of only two players in NBA history to record at least 1,500 points and 400 assists in each of their first nine seasons; Oscar Robertson is the other. 7. Jayson Tatum SF, PF (BOS) 8. Giannis Antetokounmpo PF, C (MIL): There have been some mildly concerning signs regarding Giannis' left knee since the start of training camp. (The reigning NBA Finals MVP <a href="https://twitter.com/Bucks/status/1445846786657112074?s=20" target="_blank" rel="noopener">assures us he's alright</a>.) He should be ready for opening night, but I fully expect the Bucks to rest their franchise cornerstone early and often to reduce wear-and-tear on the knee.&nbsp; 9. Kevin Durant SF, PF (BKN) 10. Joel Embiid PF, C (PHI) 11. Bradley Beal SG, SF (WAS) 12. Paul George SF, PF, SG (LAC) 13. Anthony Davis PF, C (LAL): AD finished both the 2018-19 and 2019-20 season ranked second overall in nine-category fantasy formats. Yes, the injury issues are certainly a concern, but he's a steal in the second round due to his unmatched ceiling.&nbsp; 14. Nikola Vucevic C (CHI) 15. Trae Young PG (ATL) 16. Jimmy Butler SF, PF, SG (MIA) 17. LeBron James PG, SG, SF, PF (LAL) 18. Fred VanVleet PG, SG (TOR): Last season, VanVleet joined Harden and Curry as just the third player in NBA history to average more than 6 assists, 4 rebounds, 3 made triples and 1.5 steals per game. 19. Domantas Sabonis PF, C (IND) 20. Bam Adebayo PF, C (MIA) 21. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander PG, SG (OKC): The Oklahoma City Thunder's max-man is primed for a breakout campaign. 22. Rudy Gobert C (UTAH) 23. Michael Porter Jr. SF, PF (DEN): MPJ shot over 40% from downtown in each of his first two seasons (42.2% and 44.5%). The only other active players to do that in each of their first two NBA campaigns (min. 100 three-point attempts) are the Splash Brothers: Curry and Klay Thompson. 24. Jrue Holiday PG, SG (MIL) 25. Chris Paul PG (PHO) &nbsp; 26. Zach LaVine SG, SF (CHI) 27. Donovan Mitchell PG, SG (UTAH): In the 19 games he appeared in after the All-Star Break, Mitchell averaged 29.6 points per contest. The only player with a higher post-ASB scoring average was Curry. 28. Tobias Harris SF, PF (PHI) 29. Khris Middleton SF, PF, SG (MIL) 30. Jaylen Brown SG, SF (BOS) 31. Myles Turner PF, C (IND) 32. De'Aaron Fox PG (SAC): Over a <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/nba-can-deaaron-fox-save-the-sacramento-kings-postseason-play-in-tournament-playoff-hopes" target="_blank" rel="noopener">12-game stretch late last season</a>, Fox averaged 30.6 points (on 53.4% shooting), 6.7 dimes and 4.2 boards. If he can improve his offensive efficiency and cut down on his turnovers, Fox has a chance to establish himself as a fantasy stud. 33. Clint Capela C (ATL) 34. Julius Randle PF, C (NYK) 35. Devin Booker SG, SF, PG (PHO) 36. OG Anunoby SF, PF (TOR): In 2020-21, OG finished the year ranked 35th overall in nine-category leagues (one spot behind LeBron James). 37. Richaun Holmes PF, C (SAC) 38. Brandon Ingram SF, PF (NOP) 39. Deandre Ayton C (PHO) 40. Christian Wood PF, C (HOU)&nbsp; 41. LaMelo Ball PG, SG (CHA): I'm not nearly as high on LaMelo as the rest of the industry seems to be. He exceeded expectations as a rookie, but I'm worried about his effective field goal percentage (eFG%) dropping and his turnover rate increasing. 42. CJ McCollum PG, SG (POR) 43. Zion Williamson PF (NOP): Zion underwent surgery to repair a fracture in his right foot early in the offseason. The team "hopes" he'll return by the start of the regular season, but this is a problematic injury for the high-flying big man. ​​44. Russell Westbrook PG (LAL) 45. Kristaps Porzingis PF, C (DAL): If KP plays even 65+ games, he's a steal in the fifth round. 46. Dejounte Murray PG, SG (SAS) 47. Malcolm Brogdon PG, SG (IND)&nbsp; 48. Terry Rozier PG, SG (CHA) 49. John Collins PF, C (ATL) 50. Kevin Porter Jr. SG, SF, PG (HOU): KPJ is gonna get buckets and dimes (he averaged 17.2 PPG and 6.3 APG over the final two months of the 2020-21 season); my only concerns are his high turnover rate and poor percentages.&nbsp;
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-theme="dark">
25 PTS for <a href="https://twitter.com/Kevinporterjr?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@Kevinporterjr</a> power the <a href="https://twitter.com/HoustonRockets?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@HoustonRockets</a>! <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/NBAPreseason?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#NBAPreseason</a> <a href="https://t.co/iDXezFBiBi">pic.twitter.com/iDXezFBiBi</a>
&mdash; NBA (@NBA) <a href="https://twitter.com/NBA/status/1445590596987482121?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 6, 2021</a></blockquote>

<script src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js"></script>
51. Mikal Bridges SG, SF (PHO) 52. Jaren Jackson Jr. PF, C (MEM): Jackson is one of two active players averaging at least 1.5 blocks and 1.5 three-pointers per game for his career. The issue has been <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/nba-gms-believe-jaren-jackson-jr-is-poised-for-a-breakout-year" target="_blank" rel="noopener">staying on the floor</a>, as injuries have limited JJJ to a total of just 126 games in three seasons. 53. Lonzo Ball PG, SG (CHI) 54. Gordon Hayward SG, SF (CHA) 55. Ja Morant PG (MEM): The upside is tantalizing, but Morant was the only player in the NBA last season to attempt more than 15 shots per game and shoot below 45% from the floor, below 75% from the FT and below 31% from downtown. 56. Jusuf Nurkic C (POR) 57. Bogdan Bogdanovic SF, PF, SG (ATL) 58. Darius Garland PG, SG (CLE) 59. Chris Boucher PF, C (TOR): Boucher finished last season ranked 40th overall in nine-category formats despite logging just 24.2 minutes a night. However, he just had surgery on his dislocated left middle finger and is expected to miss a "minimum" of 3-to-4 weeks.&nbsp; 60. Anthony Edwards SG, SF (MIN) 61. DeMar DeRozan SF, PF, SG (CHI) 62. Kyle Lowry PG (MIA) 63. Pascal Siakam PF, C (TOR): Once fully healthy, I think Siakam will bounce back in a big way and inherit plenty of scoring opportunities with Kyle Lowry no longer in the picture. Still, Siakam had shoulder surgery in June and will likely miss at least the start of the season. 64. Robert Williams III C, PF (BOS) 65. Tyrese Haliburton PG, SG (SAC): He finished last season ranked 65th overall in nine-category fantasy formats, and I think he has a chance to crack the top-50 this year.&nbsp; 66. Derrick White PG, SG (SAS) 67. Jonas Valanciunas C (NOP) 68. Kyrie Irving PG, SG (BKN): Kyrie could end up missing every Nets home game <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/kevin-durant-im-envisioning-kyrie-being-a-part-of-our-team" target="_blank" rel="noopener">if he refuses to get vaccinated</a>. So many unknowns are swirling around him right now. I'll pass.&nbsp; 69. Draymond Green PF, C (GSW) 70. Mike Conley PG (UTAH) 71. Jalen Suggs PG, SG (ORL): My pick for Rookie of the Year. Suggs can do it all and should see all the minutes he can handle for a rebuilding Orlando Magic squad.&nbsp; 72. Spencer Dinwiddie PG, SG (WAS) 73. Cade Cunningham PG, SG (DET) 74. Caris LeVert SG, SF (IND) 75. Jerami Grant SF, PF (DET) 76. D&rsquo;Angelo Russell PG, SG (MIN) 77. Collin Sexton PG, SG (CLE): Last season, Sexton became the second-youngest player in NBA history (behind only KD) to average more than 24 points per game while shooting above 47% from the floor and 37% from downtown. 78. Robert Covington PF, C, SF (POR) 79. Jarrett Allen C (CLE) 80. Miles Bridges SF, PF (CHA): Over his final 15 games last season, Bridges averaged 21.0 points, 6.9 rebounds, 3.1 assists, 1.1 blocks and 3.1 made three-pointers. He did so while shooting over 50% from the floor, 42% from downtown and 84% from the charity stripe. 81. Marcus Smart PG, SG (BOS) 82. Kelly Olynyk PF, C (DET): Kelly-O averaged a whopping 19.0, 8.4 rebounds, 4.1 assists, 1.8 treys and 1.4 steals in the 27 games he played in Houston last season. The Pistons signed him to a big contract in August, hoping he can come close to replicating those numbers. 83. Isaiah Stewart PF, C (DET) 84. Kemba Walker PG (NYK) 85. Andrew Wiggins SG, SF (GSW): Now that he's vaccinated, we know he'll be <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/andrew-wiggins-has-been-vaccinated-will-be-eligible-for-all-games" target="_blank" rel="noopener">cleared to play</a> in all Golden State Warriors home games this season.&nbsp; 86. Devonte&rsquo; Graham PG, SG (NOP) 87. Evan Fournier SG, SF (NYK) 88. P.J. Washington PF, C (CHA) 89. Buddy Hield SG, SF (SAC): Dating back to the start of the 2018-19 campaign, Buddy has knocked down more triples (831) than any other player in the NBA (Harden, Lillard and Curry rank second, third and fourth, respectively). 90. Nickeil Alexander-Walker SG, SF, PG (NOP) 91. NOPman Powell SG, SF (POR) 92. Kyle Anderson SF, PF (MEM) 93. Mitchell Robinson C (NYK): In 2018-19, Mitch Rob led all rookies in blocks (2.4) and field goal percentage (69.4%). As a sophomore in 2019-20, he made 74.2% of all field goals he attempted, setting the all-time NBA record for the highest single-season field goal percentage ever, passing Wilt Chamberlain. <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/its-been-three-years-and-mitchell-robinson-still-has-a-lot-to-prove" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Can he stay healthy</a> in 2020-21? 94. Larry Nance Jr. PF, C (POR) 95. RJ Barrett SG, SF (NYK) 96. Jakob Poeltl C (SAS) 97. Ben Simmons PG (PHI): Impossible to try and figure out this Simmons situation going forward. I'm not willing to roll the dice until the value starts getting ridiculous. 98. Jonathan Isaac SF, PF (ORL) 99. Wendell Carter Jr. C (ORL) 100. Reggie Jackson PG, SG (LAC) 101. Brook Lopez C (MIL) 102. Harrison Barnes SF, PF (SAC) 103. Mason Plumlee PF, C (CHA) 104. Bobby Portis Jr. PF, C (MIL) 105. De&rsquo;Andre Hunter SF, PF (ATL) 106. Dennis Schroder PG (BOS) 107. Malik Beasley PG, SG, SF (MIN): Beasley has appeared in just 51 games for the Wolves since being acquired at the trade deadline in 2020, but has averaged 19.9 points, 4.6 boards, 2.4 dimes and a whopping 3.5 made treys. A great late-round value pick if he can stay on the court.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-theme="dark">
Malik Beasley 29 points in 32 minutes last night... averaging 20/5 on the season... time to starting giving him his flowers as a top young talent in the NBA <a href="https://t.co/wz7XnezAzf">pic.twitter.com/wz7XnezAzf</a>
&mdash; Ben Stinar (@BenStinar) <a href="https://twitter.com/BenStinar/status/1357329089997209602?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 4, 2021</a></blockquote>

<script src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js"></script>
108. Thaddeus Young PF, C, SF (SAS) 109. Jordan Clarkson PG, SG (UTAH) 110. Joe Ingles SG, SF, PF (UTAH): He's not the sexiest pick, but Ingles will help in nearly every fantasy category and doesn't hurt you in any way. 111. Lauri Markkanen PF, C (CLE): The Cleveland Cavaliers have excess depth up front, but coach J.B. Bickerstaff has been raving about Markkanen during camp. He was a forgotten man in Chicago last season, but the dude is a 7-footer who can stretch the floor, is still just 24 years of age and averaged 18.7 points and 9.0 rebounds during his age-21 season. 112. Daniel Gafford C, PF (WAS) 113. Joe Harris SG, SF (BKN)&nbsp; 114. Keldon Johnson SF, PF (SAS) 115. T.J. Warren SF, PF (IND): Yes, Warren's injury history is undoubtedly concerning &mdash;&nbsp; and he is currently still recovering from a stress fracture in his foot &mdash; but this is a guy who <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/a-100-million-payday-awaits-tj-warren-if-he-continues-to-silence-the-critics" target="_blank" rel="noopener">finished inside the top-50</a> overall back in 2019-20.&nbsp; 116. Jae'Sean Tate SF, PF (HOU) 117. De&rsquo;Anthony Melton PG, SG (MEM) 118. Daniel Theis PF, C (HOU): Theis ranked inside the top-100 overall when he logged starter minutes for the Boston Celtics in 2019-20. He could see 25 or more minutes a night for a Houston team that has little depth up front. Don't sleep. 119. Jalen Green SG (HOU) 120. Brandon Clarke PF, C (MEM) 121. Jordan Poole PG, SG (GSW): In the seven games Poole started last season, he averaged 21.4 points, 3.6 rebounds, 2.7 assists and 2.8 made treys. With Klay still sidelined, Poole is expected to start early on this season. (And he's already off to a fast start, having <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/breakingnews/raptors-finally-return-to-toronto-as-lowry-begins-in-miami" target="_blank" rel="noopener">dropped 30 points</a> in Golden State's preseason opener.) 122. Saddiq Bey SF (DET) 123. Klay Thompson SG, SF (GSW): I'm concerned that the Warriors will limit Klay's minutes and rest him often, even after he is cleared to return to game action (whenever that is). The Dubs have to think long-term, as Thompson still has three years and $120-plus million left in his contract. 124. Ivica Zubac C (LAC) 125. Derrick Favors C, PF (OKC) 126. Al Horford PF, C (BOS) 127. Kyle Kuzma SF, PF (WAS) 128. Dillon Brooks SG, SF (MEM) 129. Matisse Thybulle SG, SF (PHI) 130. T.J. McConnell PG, SG (IND): McConnell led the NBA in steal percentage last season at 3.4% and shot 55.9% from the floor. He was one of just eight players to record an assist rate above 34% and a True Shooting percentage above 58% (the other seven members of this elite club were Lillard, Chris Paul, Jimmy Butler, LeBron James, Luka Doncic, Trae Young and Jokic.) 131. Evan Mobley C, PF (CLE) 132. Nicolas Batum SF, PF, SG (LAC) 133. &nbsp;Derrick Rose PG, SG (NYK) 134. Marcus Morris Sr. PF, C, SF (LAC): Mook will see an increased share of the offensive pie with Kawhi Leonard sidelined for the first half of the season (and possibly more). 135. Mo Bamba C (ORL): This is a make-or-break season for Bamba. The Magic will give their former lottery pick every opportunity to earn playing time. If he plays significant minutes, he'll supply blocks and treys. (Bamba has looked sharp early on in the preseason.) 136. Tim Hardaway Jr. SG, SF (DAL) 137. Montrezl Harrell PF, C (WAS) 138. Kelly Oubre Jr. SG, SF, PF (CHA) 139. Thomas Bryant C (WAS) 140. Nerlens Noel PF, C (NYK)&nbsp; 141. Alperen Sengun PF, C (HOU): Sengun looked fantastic in Vegas, averaging 14.5 points, 10.8 rebounds, 2.8 dimes, 1.3 steals and 3.0 blocks in 25 minutes a night during summer league action. He'll have a chance to stuff the stat sheet for a Rockets team looking to play its youngsters.&nbsp; 142. Eric Bledsoe PG, SG (LAC) 143. Khem Birch PF, C (TOR) 144. Isaiah Roby C, PF (OKC) 145. Kevin Huerter SG, SF (ATL) 146. Tyrese Maxey PG, SG (PHI): Maxey will be one of the <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/tyrese-maxey-centered-on-getting-1-better-every-day-for-76ers" target="_blank" rel="noopener">primary beneficiaries</a> of Simmons' eventual departure from Philly. 147. Aaron Gordon SF, PF (DEN) 148. Andre Drummond C (PHI): If you draft Embiid early, you probably want to handcuff him with Drummond later on. 149. Steven Adams C (MEM) 150. Josh Giddey PG, SG, SF (OKC): Giddey started the Thunder's preseason opener and looked good, tallying 18 points (8-of-12 FGs), 7 rebounds, 3 assists and two triples. Considering his talent, the No. 6 overall pick is worth a late-round dart throw.&nbsp;
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-theme="dark">
⭐ 18 points (8-12 in the field inc. 2-4 from range) ⭐ 7 rebounds ⭐ 3 assists Josh Giddey looked at 🏠 at NBA level! FULL HIGHLIGHTS ⬇️ <a href="https://t.co/Sw7U4nEjdT">pic.twitter.com/Sw7U4nEjdT</a>
&mdash; ESPN Australia &amp; NZ (@ESPNAusNZ) <a href="https://twitter.com/ESPNAusNZ/status/1445211953421557767?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 5, 2021</a></blockquote>

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

Tommy Beer lists his best 150 fantasy basketball players available for the 2021-22 NBA season.

Ranking the top-150 NBA players for fantasy basketball in 2021-22

Basketball has evolved into a truly global sport, and the NBA pulls talent from all over the world. That&rsquo;s great for the overall quality of play, but it means that there is more competition for NBA roster spots, which are harder than ever to earn.
With Media Day in the rearview mirror and training camp underway, competition to make the final cut is heating up. Teams enter camp with as many as 20 players, but must trim the roster down to 15 by opening day (excluding the pair of two-way contracts allowed in addition for players who can move between the G League and NBA rosters).
While every team has important decisions to make, it&rsquo;s not as if every roster spot is up for grabs. On the contrary, most spots are taken by players who are signed to guaranteed contracts. It&rsquo;s the players on training-camp deals who have the most to prove this time of year; sometimes, it can be the occasional (and unlucky) guaranteed player who has underachieved so badly that his team is considering paying him to play elsewhere.&nbsp;
The last guy on the bench rarely has a great impact on his team&rsquo;s success, but it can happen &ndash; and it surely impacts the individual players. Considering the ramifications of these decisions, let&rsquo;s examine the three most interesting roster situations in the Eastern Conference.&nbsp;
Brooklyn Nets
The Nets are intriguing because &ndash; while it might look as if they don&rsquo;t need much from the end of their bench on paper &ndash; their situation is more complicated than it appears. Depending on where Kyrie Irving ultimately lands with his decision to get the COVID vaccine or not, he could miss all of his home games (and games against the Knicks at Madison Square Garden). In total, Irving could miss as many as 43 regular-season games if he stands firm on being unvaccinated. And while there is more than enough star power in Brooklyn to get by, removing a key player from the rotation for half of the season puts more pressure on a team&rsquo;s depth.
So what exactly will Brooklyn look to address with its final roster spot? The team's backcourt is in relatively good shape thanks to a combination of James Harden, Patty Mills, Jevon Carter and rookie Cam Thomas, but there are other needs to address. The Nets' frontcourt could use a youth infusion, and there&rsquo;s a limit on swingmen beyond Joe Harris and Bruce Brown. After cutting Jahlil Okafor last month, Brooklyn's decision should come down to DeAndre&rsquo; Bembry or Sekou Doumbouya. No disrespect to Bembry, but Doumbouya is a 6-foot-8 <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/detroit-pistons-moving-on-from-sekou-doumbouya-is-a-headscratcher" target="_blank" rel="noopener">former first-round pick who is 20 years old</a>. He fills multiple needs, and his youth gives the added benefit that if he works out, he could be part of the team&rsquo;s future.&nbsp;
Prediction: Sekou Doumbouya makes the cut.
New York Knicks&nbsp;
The Knicks are in an interesting spot. They just cut Luca Vildoza, who signed a four-year, non-guaranteed contract with the team at the end of the 2020-21 season. He was seen as someone who would make the team as recently as June, but things happen fast in the NBA. Considering New York will start the season without its presumptive starting center, Mitchell Robinson, the Knicks might want to add another big man. Nerlens Noel is more than qualified to hold down the fort, and Taj Gibson is a valuable, albeit slightly undersized backup, but does New York want to kick off the season without any other options? What if one of those two suffers another injury?
<div class="mceNonEditable"><spike>&nbsp;</spike></div>
The Knicks have two rookies on their training camp roster who could fill that need in Jericho Sims and Aamir Simms. The former is a freakish athlete, similar in nature to Robinson, who is an above-average defender and rim-runner. Conversely, Simms possesses <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/aamir-simms-eager-to-exhibit-a-side-of-his-game-we-havent-seen-at-the-next-level" target="_blank" rel="noopener">a more polished offensive game</a>, but he lacks the burst and leaping ability of Sims. There&rsquo;s also Dwayne Bacon and Wayne Selden, who are actively competing for the team&rsquo;s final roster spot. Bacon looked good with Orlando last season, and I expect him to make the cut. The Knicks do have a two-way contract remaining, so maybe they'll use that on one of the Sim(m)s, while keeping Bacon on the main roster.&nbsp;
Prediction: Dwayne Bacon makes the cut.
Toronto Raptors
The Raptors are also in an interesting position, but more so because they have multiple spots to fill. Toronto has 12 guaranteed contracts, and both two-way deals are spoken for. That means Toronto can keep three of the following six players: Isaac Bonga, Sam Dekker, Freddie Gillespie, Reggie Perry, Ishmail Wainright and Yuta Watanabe. Gillespie and Watanabe are known commodities north of the border, having played with the Raptors last season, and Dekker is a former first-round pick with plenty of NBA experience. All but Perry have partial guarantees for 2021-22, but a partial guarantee will not secure you a spot in the NBA.
Bonga and Perry are both 6-foot-8 and 21 years old. Perry has just one year of NBA experience, whereas Bonga has three &ndash; but neither has made their mark yet. Beyond Goran Dragic, Fred VanVleet has the most experience of all Raptors with five professional seasons. With that in mind, expect Dekker &ndash; who has four years of NBA experience &ndash; to make the cut. Additionally, the Raptors will probably stick with the guys they know, meaning that Gillespie and Watanabe are likely to be in Toronto for the 2021-22 season, too.
Prediction: Sam Dekker, Freddie Gillespie and Yuta Watanabe all make the cut.
NBA roster decisions aren&rsquo;t entirely fair. Sometimes, players are cut because of an injury or other circumstance-related issues. But it really is just a business (rarely personal), and front offices do what they feel is in their best interest.
And at the end of the day, that&rsquo;s about as objective as it gets.&nbsp;

Drew Maresca examines the three most interesting final roster spot situations in the East.

3 roster-spot battles to watch for in the Eastern Conference

Every season, a few teams undershoot expectations. Whether due to injuries, poor planning or an influx of talent in their division or conference, it&rsquo;s always inevitable.
This season will be no different.
Team building is hard work. After countless hours of scouting, reviewing film, practice and deal-making, health and circumstance play just as much of a role as anything &mdash; and have negatively impacted all three teams of the teams cited below.&nbsp;
In some cases, the 2021-22 season will be a minor hiccup. But for others, it could mark the end of an era, and could derail an otherwise successful rebuilding &ldquo;process&rdquo; (wink, wink). Considering that these situations usually blindside us, let&rsquo;s try to get out ahead of them this season. With that in mind, let&rsquo;s identity three teams who I think will regress from 2020-21.
Los Angeles Clippers (47-25) 
Previous Season: Pacific Division, 2nd; Western Conference, 4th; Eliminated in the Western Conference Finals
Of all three teams mentioned here, the Clippers are the most obvious. Why? Because Kawhi Leonard suffered a partially torn ACL last postseason. He had surgery on July 12, and he&rsquo;ll miss a good portion of the 2021-22 season, if not all of it. Leonard, who is always in contention for MVP (when healthy), averaged 24.8 points, 6.5 rebounds and 5.2 assists per game last year. That&rsquo;s a lot of production to make up for... and frankly, the Clippers are unlikely to make up for all of it.
The Clippers' offseason didn&rsquo;t really help matters either. Signing Justise Winslow was a low-risk, high-reward move, but he won&rsquo;t come close to replacing Leonard&rsquo;s output. They brought in Eric Bledsoe via trade. The deal cost them Patrick Beverley, Rajon Rondo and Daniel Oturu. In total, that transaction was about cutting costs, not adding talent. And yes, the Clippers cut down their luxury tax payment and secured an $8 million trade exception, but they&rsquo;re still looking down the barrel of the luxury tax this season, and next. So how much did they really accomplish?
More importantly, Beverly and Leonard were instrumental it terms of establishing an identity. But maybe this is more strategic than is seems. The Clippers may have just punted on 2021-22 in hopes of a better season in 2022-23. But regardless as to what their desires are, the Clippers will not be overly successful this season, at least relative to recent outcomes.&nbsp;
2021-22 Prediction: Pacific Division, 4th; Western Conference, 8th; First-round elimination.
Philadelphia 76ers (49-23) 
Previous Season: Atlantic Division, 1st; Eastern Conference, 1st; eliminated in the Eastern Conference Semifinals
The <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/philadelphia-76ers-trade-seems-certain-but-we-havent-heard-last-of-ben-simmons" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Ben Simmons saga</a> will hurt Philadelphia. And it will hurt badly. Simmons was easily the 76ers' second-most important player. He was a DPOY candidate last season who averaged 14.3 points, 7.2 rebound and 6.9 assists per game. He might not be an ideal fit alongside Joel Embiid, but he&rsquo;s an uber-talented player who&rsquo;s been receiving seriously unfair treatment since the 2021 postseason.&nbsp;
But partially as a result of <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/ben-simmons-deserves-criticism-but-not-to-be-thrown-under-the-bus-by-philadelphia-76ers" target="_blank" rel="noopener">comments from head coach Doc Rivers and Embiid</a> following their Game 7 loss to the Atlanta Hawks in the Eastern Conference semifinals, Simmons <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/ben-simmons-intends-to-never-play-another-game-for-76ers" target="_blank" rel="noopener">refuses to take part in any activities with the 76ers</a> moving forward. And given the drama surrounding Simmons and the team, Philadelphia is unlikely to receive fair value in return; rumors have already begun to circulate about Minnesota&rsquo;s desire to wait out the Sixers on their trade demands, which currently include four future first-round picks and an All-Star.
<img style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" src="https://cdn.basketballnews.com/images/story/body/usatsi_16266055_lg.jpg" alt="" width="650" height="433" />
So, Philadelphia will have only one of its stars to start the season, and it&rsquo;s a bad season to be down a star. The Milwaukee Bucks are the defending champions, the Brooklyn Nets will be healthier than they were last season, the Miami Heat will be significantly better than they were last season and the Atlanta Hawks, Boston Celtics, Charlotte Hornets, Indiana Pacers and New York Knicks are all still formidable.&nbsp;
To summarize, the Eastern Conference hasn&rsquo;t been this good in some time. Despite all the talented teams around them, this season could have been among the Sixers' best seasons ever. Now, they&rsquo;re far more likely to struggle to separate themselves from the pack and incredibly unlikely to remain among the East's elites.&nbsp;
2021-22 Prediction: Atlantic Division, 3rd; Eastern Conference, 5th; First-round elimination.
New York Knicks (41-31) 
Previous Season: Atlantic Division, 3rd; Eastern Conference, 4th; Eliminated in the first-round of the Eastern Conference Playoffs
The Knicks exceeded expectations in 2020-21. Actually, they crushed expectations. And after a slow start in free agency, the Knicks ended up improving. The thing is, the Eastern Conference is going to be brutal for teams in the middle. As mentioned above, there is considerably more talent out East than there was last year, and the Knicks didn&rsquo;t keep pace.
The Knicks won 57% of their games last season. They&rsquo;ll bring a more talented roster into the 2021-22 season, and they&rsquo;ll win a lesser percentage of games. So is this pure regression? No. But it&rsquo;s going to look a lot like it.
But the thing about 2021-22 is that it was never the end game for New York. The Knicks were always taking on a longer rebuild. They re-signed Julius Randle, Alec Burks, Nerlens Noel and Derrick Rose, in addition to <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/for-a-change-a-successful-free-agency-period-propels-knicks-forward-" target="_blank" rel="noopener">signing Evan Fournier and Kemba Walker</a>. And that&rsquo;s all supporting a young core of RJ Barrett, Immanuel Quickley, Mitchell Robinson and Obi Toppin. It&rsquo;s actually shocking that we&rsquo;re having this discussion about the Knicks this soon.
Big picture: New York is still well-positioned to strike if a star becomes disenchanted with his current situation, but the team is also fairly well-equipped to make a go of it with its current roster. This year could be good, but next season could be even better. And while fans might get a little impatient, the front office understands the long-term vision. So, while the Knicks are likely to falter this season, that&rsquo;s okay.
2021-22 Prediction: Atlantic Division, 4th; Eastern Conference, 8th; First-round elimination.&nbsp;
Regardless as to where teams are in their development, no one likes regression. All clubs will put a positive spin on their respective struggles, but only some of the narratives will be accurate.
But if you really want to know what teams think of their futures, look closely at how they respond to their respective challenges instead of the words they say in public.

Drew Maresca evaluates three teams in the league that are bound to take a step back after successful seasons last year.

3 contending teams that will regress in the 2021-22 NBA season

Nerlens Noel has filed a massive lawsuit against Klutch Sports agent Rich Paul, as broken by Darren Heitner of <a href="http://sportsagentblog.com/2021/08/24/nerlens-noel-blasts-nba-agent-rich-paul-in-new-lawsuit/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Sports Agent Blog.</a>
According to the article, Noel alleges that Paul misled and neglected him when he was a client of Klutch Sports. Before even developing an official partnership, Paul told Noel in 2017 &mdash; at a Ben Simmons birthday party, no less &mdash; that Noel "was a 100 million dollar man," which led to Noel not only leaving then-agent Happy Walters and signing with Paul, but also turning down a 4-year, $70 million offer from the Dallas Mavericks to accept a qualifying offer. When Noel battled injuries the following season, his perceived value cratered. But according to the accusations, Paul never tried to redeem his client.
&ldquo;During the free agent season which began on July 1, 2018, and after Noel&rsquo;s one-year contract with Dallas expired, neither Paul nor anyone at Klutch Sports presented any real proposals to Noel in terms of strategies or ideas on how Noel might secure a long-term contract or even a significant contract for the following season,&rdquo; states the allegations. &ldquo;Indeed, as the 2018 NBA free agent season began, no real offers or deals were presented to Noel on the first day of free agency.&rdquo;
In more detail, Noel alleges that multiple teams, including the Philadelphia 76ers, Houston Rockets and Los Angeles Clippers, all reached out to Paul with interest in discussing contract opportunities. They never made contact, and from 2018-2020, Noel signed short-term deals worth $5 million or less with the Oklahoma City Thunder and New York Knicks.&nbsp;
Heitner also writes, "Noel finally terminated his relationship with Paul and Klutch Sports in December 2020 and says that the final straw was Noel learning that Paul 'had a history of mismanaging and ignoring other clients and costing them significant money.' He believed that Paul and Klutch Sports were only focused on serving their marquee clients, and did not have the capacity to serve Noel as well as players such as Norris Cole or Shabazz Muhammad."
It is unclear what will become of the case at this time. Paul is one of the highest-profile agents in sports, representing clients such as LeBron James, Anthony Davis, Trae Young and Ben Simmons.

Noel alleges that Paul seriously neglected him as a client during their relationship.