Lumberjacks

The seven-time NBA champion Golden State Warriors have been awarded a WNBA expansion team, it was announced today by WNBA Commissioner Cathy Engelbert.
The team will begin play in the 2025 season, making it the first new franchise to join the league since 2008.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;
The new team will be owned and operated by Warriors co-executive chairman and CEO Joe Lacob and co-executive chairman Peter Guber, and will play home games at Chase Center in San Francisco.
Additionally, Golden State&rsquo;s Oakland Facility, which served as the Warriors&rsquo; practice facility and front office from 1997-2019, will be the WNBA team&rsquo;s headquarters, housing a world-class practice facility and the team&rsquo;s front office staff.
&ldquo;We are thrilled about expanding to the Bay Area and bringing the WNBA to a region with passionate basketball fans and a strong history of supporting women&rsquo;s basketball,&rdquo; said Engelbert. &ldquo;Joe Lacob, Peter Guber and their leadership team know how to build and operate a world-class organization, as witnessed by the immense success the Warriors&rsquo; franchise has enjoyed from both a business and basketball perspective over the last decade. Their interest in joining the WNBA family is yet another sign of the league&rsquo;s growth potential.&rdquo;&nbsp;
The Warriors become the sixth NBA franchise to have a WNBA team, joining the Indiana Pacers (Indiana Fever), Minnesota Timberwolves (Minnesota Lynx), Brooklyn Nets (New York Liberty,) Phoenix Suns (Phoenix Mercury) and Washington Wizards (Washington Mystics).
&ldquo;The Bay Area is the perfect market for a WNBA team, and we are thrilled this opportunity has finally come to fruition,&rdquo; said Lacob. &ldquo;We have been interested in a WNBA franchise for several years, due in part to the rich history of women&rsquo;s basketball in the Bay Area, and believe now is the ideal time to execute that vision and build upon the legacy. The WNBA continues to solidify itself as the preeminent women&rsquo;s professional basketball league, and we look forward to supporting the best women&rsquo;s basketball players in the world and our team starting in 2025.&rdquo;
The 2023 WNBA regular season delivered record-breaking viewership, attendance and digital engagement as the league continues its business transformation. The offseason featured the most-viewed WNBA Draft since 2004, followed by a sold-out preseason game in Toronto, the most-watched regular season in 21 years and a digital transformation centered on the WNBA App and WNBA.com.
Other highlights this year included the addition of CarMax as a WNBA Changemaker and ION as a broadcast partner.
Other news from around the web: <a href="https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/other/dress-to-impress-why-barbie-and-ken-are-the-hottest-couples-costume-this-halloween/ar-AA1iaTEh" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Barbie and Ken are the hottest couples costume this Halloween</a>

The seven-time NBA champion Golden State Warriors have been awarded a WNBA expansion team, the WNBA announced today.

Bay Area, Golden State Warriors awarded WNBA expansion team

DENVER (AP) &mdash; Everything from the history books to the way they&rsquo;ve played through most of the postseason suggests the Denver Nuggets are on the verge of capturing their first NBA title in 47 years in the league.
The goal now for Denver is to not let up against the Miami Heat on Monday in what will be the first title-clinching opportunity in franchise history.
&ldquo;My biggest concern going into any close-out game is human nature and fighting against that,&rdquo; coach Michael Malone said Sunday after practice. &ldquo;Most teams, when you&rsquo;re up 3-1, they come up for air.&rdquo;
Malone&rsquo;s mission to keep the Nuggets thinking about hoops, not that trophy, could be helped by the fact that Miami&rsquo;s only win in this series came a week ago in Denver. Also, the Heat have won seven road games during the postseason and are 2-0 when they&rsquo;ve faced elimination &mdash; against Chicago in the play-in tournament and at Boston in Game 7 of the conference finals.
When the teams left Denver a week ago, the series was tied at 1 and Malone was grilling the Nuggets over effort after a 111-108 loss. Now that it&rsquo;s 3-1, after two double-digit wins in Miami, it&rsquo;s clear Nikola Jokic and Co., received the message.
On Sunday, the coach tapped into his own team&rsquo;s recent history &mdash; the Nuggets overcame 3-1 deficits twice to win two series in the bubble in 2020 &mdash; to emphasize that this series isn&rsquo;t over yet.
&ldquo;We&rsquo;ve been down 3-1. We&rsquo;ve come back and won. We know anything is possible,&rdquo; Malone said.
Nobody needed to convince the Heat of that.
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Coach Erik Spoelstra called his team &ldquo;a very stubborn and defiant group.&rdquo; And when asked about the confidence the Heat players had in each other, even after putting themselves in what has historically been a near-impossible situation, Jimmy Butler said: &ldquo;At an all-time high.&rdquo;
Only one of 36 teams that have fallen behind 3-1 in the history of the finals has come back to hoist the Larry O&rsquo;Brien Trophy. That was the 2016 Cavaliers, led by LeBron James, who trailed Golden State 3-1 before running off three straight, including the finale in Oakland in a game that goes down as one of the best in finals history.
The 1993 Suns and 1998 Jazz were down 3-1 and both managed to win Game 5 in Chicago. In both instances, Michael Jordan and the Bulls wrapped up the series in Game 6s on the road.
Among the few hints revealed about Xs and Os during these day-before news conferences was the effectiveness of Denver&rsquo;s improving D around the 3-point line. Malone tore into his team after Miami made 17 3-pointers in Game 2, many of them unguarded after the Heat exploited confusion in the Nuggets&rsquo; switching defense.
Miami made 11 3s in&nbsp;<a class="paragraph-link" href="https://apnews.com/article/nba-finals-2023-heat-nuggets-f15a5273ea2e05117142ee65953284c2">Game 3</a>&nbsp;(when the Nuggets got triple-doubles from both Jokic and Jamal Murray) then only eight in&nbsp;<a class="paragraph-link" href="https://apnews.com/article/nba-finals-2023-heat-nuggets-b0f83f7baccd425dbf8aba440e3e210c">Game 4</a>&nbsp;(when Aaron Gordon showed off the team&rsquo;s depth by leading the team with 27 points).
&ldquo;You have to have an aggressive mindset to be an effective defensive team,&rdquo; Malone said. &ldquo;But if you don&rsquo;t have communication and discipline to go along with that, I think you&rsquo;re going to be missing some really key components.&rdquo;
Spoelstra said Denver&rsquo;s shift in defense &mdash; having players fight through picks instead of switching on the perimeter &mdash; did, in fact, make a difference. Still, he insisted, it&rsquo;s nothing Miami hasn&rsquo;t seen a hundred times by now.
&ldquo;That&rsquo;s what the deal is,&rdquo; Spoelstra said. &ldquo;They are trying to take away certain things. We are trying to get to certain things. (It&rsquo;s about) how can you get to it and how can you get to it on your terms.&rdquo;
Spoelstra offered no clues regarding the recurring mystery in this series &mdash; whether 20-point-a-game scorer Tyler Herro might be returning from a broken hand.
&ldquo;No new update,&rdquo; Spoelstra said. &ldquo;He&rsquo;s doing another contact workout today. I probably won&rsquo;t have anything for you tomorrow morning.&rdquo;
Even with all their focus on unfinished business on the court, the Nuggets front office spent the weekend looking toward the future. ESPN reported&nbsp;<a class="paragraph-link" href="https://www.espn.com/nba/story/_/id/37826075/sources-nuggets-get-package-picks-deal-thunder" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">an under-the-radar trade</a>&nbsp;involving draft picks, in which Denver gave up a protected 2029 first-rounder in exchange for one of Oklahoma City&rsquo;s first-rounders in 2024.
It was a subtle acknowledgment that the Nuggets, with Jokic, Murray, Gordon and Michael Porter Jr., all signed to big contracts, are looking at adding affordable talent sooner rather than later in an effort to keep their current championship window open.
Never in their history &mdash; which dates back to the founding of the ABA in 1967, then their move to the NBA nine years after that &mdash; has anyone on the Nuggets been caught thinking about multiple titles, let alone one.
&ldquo;It&rsquo;s just nice to see us be a big family and understand what it takes to win,&rdquo; Murray said. &ldquo;But yeah, it&rsquo;s been a journey, a lot of fun. We have got more work to do.&rdquo;
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The Denver Nuggets are on the verge of capturing their first NBA title in 47 years in the league. They just need to win one more game.

One win away from first title, Nuggets try to avoid letdown

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) &mdash; Bob Myers is departing as president and general manager of the Golden State Warriors after building a championship team that captured four titles in an eight-year span and reached five straight NBA Finals from 2015-19.
One of the most successful GMs over the past decade in any sport, Myers&rsquo; contract was set to expire in late June and there has been speculation for months about his future, given the sides had yet to reach agreement on an extension or a new deal. A team spokesman confirmed the departure Tuesday.
The 48-year-old Myers grew up in suburban Danville, played basketball at UCLA and learned key skills on the other side of the business when he became an agent before switching careers and emerging as a top NBA executive with a personable nature who regularly attended practices to chat with players, coach Steve Kerr and his assistants.
Kerr has loved working alongside Myers in a collaborative way, something that can be unusual in professional sports between the front office and head coach. Kerr said the week after the season ended that decisions about whether to keep the roster together weren&rsquo;t his to make.
&ldquo;Ultimately it&rsquo;s not my job; it&rsquo;s really more Bob&rsquo;s job to construct the roster, but the great thing about Bob and the way we&rsquo;ve operated here is that we&rsquo;ve always collaborated, so there will definitely be a lot of collaboration this summer on putting together the best possible roster for next year,&rdquo; Kerr said.
Myers has been known to talk to players during games, rare for a GM to do. That included working to calm down fiery forward Draymond Green at times.
He has long supported Green through his mistakes, technical fouls and suspensions. In 2016, Green was suspended for a crucial Game 5 loss to LeBron James and the Cavaliers in the NBA Finals after accumulating too many flagrant fouls in the playoffs that season. The Warriors wound up losing in seven games. Myers sat with Green next door to Oracle Arena at the Oakland Coliseum for that game Green missed.
Spurs coach Gregg Popovich in March credited good friend Kerr and Myers for their commitment to acquiring players who want to be team-first and not just focus on individual success.
&ldquo;He&rsquo;s a purist in the sense that he wants all five players to play together, and that&rsquo;s at both ends of the floor, understanding how it works, how the rotations work, and he&rsquo;s been fantastic in being consistent in that regard,&rdquo; Popovich said of Kerr. &ldquo;And he and Bob have been bringing guys in that can understand that. Every player can&rsquo;t play that game, they just can&rsquo;t do it. But they&rsquo;ve brought in guys that understand it and that will play their roles for the sake of winning, and winning big.&rdquo;
It was Myers who only a couple of months later signed eventual two-time NBA Finals MVP Kevin Durant, who played for Golden State from 2016-19 and helped the Warriors win repeat championships in 2017 and &rsquo;18.
Myers was promoted to GM in 2012 and constructed the roster that won the 2015 championship for the franchise&rsquo;s first title in 40 years.

Bob Myers is leaving the Golden State Warriors after building a championship team that captured four titles in an eight-year span.

Bob Myers departing as Warriors president, GM after 4 NBA titles

Golden State Warriors guard Stephen Curry has been named the 2022-23 Kareem Abdul-Jabbar Social Justice Champion, the NBA announced today.
Curry was selected from a group of <a href="https://www.nba.com/news/2023-kareem-abdul-jabbar-finalists-revealed" target="_blank" rel="noopener" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.nba.com/news/2023-kareem-abdul-jabbar-finalists-revealed&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1684950559417000&amp;usg=AOvVaw0yR7wPqL_AlyY9Kx217W6h">five finalists</a>&nbsp;for his dedication to pursuing social justice and advancing Abdul-Jabbar&rsquo;s life mission to engage, empower and drive equality for individuals and groups who have been historically marginalized or systemically disadvantaged.
Curry prioritizes uplifting communities by fostering equity and creating access to opportunity. As a co-chair of former First Lady Michelle Obama&rsquo;s &ldquo;When We All Vote&rdquo; initiative, Curry uses his platform to drive voter registration, education and turnout, most recently during the 2022 election season. His role encouraged millions of new voters to participate in the political process and make their voices heard through civic engagement. As part of his ongoing voting-related efforts, Curry participated in the National Basketball Social Justice Coalition&rsquo;s &ldquo;Freedom to Vote&rdquo; <a href="https://twitter.com/representus/status/1470182428547244034?s=20" target="_blank" rel="noopener" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://twitter.com/representus/status/1470182428547244034?s%3D20&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1684950559417000&amp;usg=AOvVaw2xr1diKYJYDyNGBlgPRMQb">social-media campaign</a>&nbsp;to help advocate for the passage of the&nbsp;Freedom to Vote Act in the U.S. Senate. Curry is also committed to raising awareness around issues of community safety, utilizing the Warriors&rsquo; 2023 White House visit to engage directly with President Biden and participate in a White House press briefing with head coach Steve Kerr to publicly address the matter.
Much of Curry&rsquo;s work also focuses on supporting underrepresented groups and reducing barriers to opportunity. In 2022, he graduated from Davidson College and wrote his final thesis on gender equity in sports, an issue that anchors his progressive and innovative ventures across the consumer, entertainment and non-profit spaces. Through UNDERRATED, Curry&rsquo;s lifestyle brand that empowers underrated and underrepresented individuals by opening doors for often-overlooked student-athletes, he creates equity, access and opportunity for basketball and golf athletes around the world to be seen by college recruiters, sports agents and other industry leaders. UNDERRATED has also enabled female athletes to access the same opportunities as their male counterparts, provided scholarships for athletes and offered personal development programming for young people. Among these efforts, Curry committed $6 million in funding to the men&rsquo;s and women&rsquo;s golf team at Howard University, which hadn&rsquo;t been active for 50 years.
Unanimous Media, Curry&rsquo;s multimedia company rooted in the mission to inspire audiences through authentic storytelling, is dedicated to collaborating with underrepresented filmmakers, creators and writers across the entertainment industry.
Through Eat. Learn. Play., Curry&rsquo;s nonprofit co-founded with his wife Ayesha, Curry works to ensure every child in Oakland has access to nutritious food they need to be healthy and thrive, resources to foster a love for learning and reading, and safe places with equitable opportunities to play. With a mission to address and overcome the systemic socio-economic barriers facing underserved communities, Eat. Learn. Play. and its partners continue making a positive impact in the lives of children and families in need. Over the last year, Eat. Learn. Play. has provided over two million meals and 500,000 books to Oakland students, funded over 1,500 teacher-led classroom literacy projects, remodeled four new playspaces complete with multi-sport courts, playgrounds, gardens and murals, and more.
Curry has selected University of San Francisco Institute for Nonviolence and Social Justice, which investigates, illuminates, and advances the theory and practice of transformational nonviolence to confront and overcome injustice and systemic violence and contribute to the just resolution of communal conflict, to receive a $100,000 contribution from the NBA on his behalf.&nbsp;
&ldquo;I&rsquo;m passionate about the work of the University of San Francisco Institute for Nonviolence and Social Justice and its commitment to overcoming injustice and systemic violence through peace,&rdquo; said Curry.&nbsp; &ldquo;As an athlete, I consistently leverage my platform to amplify advocacy and address the pervasive issue of systemic racism. I firmly believe that we must be vocal both on social media and in real life, taking tangible actions to effect real change in our society and for generations to come. Together, with the organization's co-founder and director, Dr. Clarence B. Jones, we have initiated meaningful conversations around social justice with the school's student body, doubled the charity&rsquo;s donations through my foundation Eat. Learn. Play.'s gift matching initiatives, and continued building on its mission in my personal and professional life by holding people accountable and promoting the principles of justice, fairness and equality today, tomorrow and in the future.&rdquo;
The four other finalists &ndash; Memphis Grizzlies forward-center Jaren Jackson Jr., San Antonio Spurs guard Tre Jones, Phoenix Suns guard Chris Paul and Boston Celtics forward Grant Williams &ndash; will each receive $25,000 donations from the NBA to the following social justice organizations of their choosing: VisionC (Williams), The Girls Opportunity Alliance/The Obama Foundation (Jackson), Children's Bereavement Center of South Texas (Jones) and the Social Change Fund United (Paul).
The winner of the Kareem Abdul-Jabbar Social Justice Champion award was determined by a selection committee comprised of Abdul-Jabbar and notable social justice leaders Director of The Institute for Diversity and Ethics in Sport Dr. Richard Lapchick, National Urban League President and CEO Marc Morial, UnidosUS President and CEO Janet Murgu&iacute;a, Rise Founder and CEO Amanda Nguyen and NBA Deputy Commissioner and Chief Operating Officer Mark Tatum. This year&rsquo;s youth representative and Jr. NBA Court of Leaders member was Leah Harmon.&nbsp;

Golden State Warriors guard Stephen Curry has been named the 2022-23 Kareem Abdul-Jabbar Social Justice Champion.

Stephen Curry named Kareem Abdul-Jabbar Social Justice Champion

Golden State Warriors guard Stephen Curry has won the 2022-23 J. Walter Kennedy Citizenship Award, as voted on by the Professional Basketball Writers Association.
Named after the NBA&rsquo;s second commissioner, the honor is presented annually by the PBWA to a player, coach or athletic trainer who shows outstanding service and dedication to the community.
Curry, a four-time NBA champion and two-time MVP, was one of four finalists for the 2022-23 award, along with Los Angeles Lakers center Wenyen Gabriel, Los Angeles Clippers forward Paul George and Boston Celtics forward Grant Williams.
The finalists were chosen by a committee of PBWA members from nominees submitted by NBA teams.&nbsp; The winner was determined by a vote of the entire PBWA, which is composed of more than 200 writers and editors who cover the NBA regularly for newspapers, magazines and online news outlets.
&ldquo;Few athletes have as great a reach or as powerful a platform as Steph Curry, and he has used it to the fullest to benefit others,&rdquo; said PBWA President Howard Beck. &ldquo;The members of the Professional Basketball Writers Association salute him and the other nominees for their exemplary work.&rdquo;
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-theme="dark">
Stephen Curry has won the Professional Basketball Writers Association's 2023 J. Walter Kennedy Citizenship Award, for his inspiring work in the community.<a href="https://twitter.com/StephenCurry30?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@StephenCurry30</a>'s efforts include promoting youth literacy, fitness and nutrition, and fostering gender equity in sports. <a href="https://t.co/SuXnUcxPBB">pic.twitter.com/SuXnUcxPBB</a>
&mdash; The PBWA (@ProHoopsWriters) <a href="https://twitter.com/ProHoopsWriters/status/1659256844387328007?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 18, 2023</a></blockquote>

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A 14-year veteran and member of the NBA&rsquo;s 75th&nbsp;Anniversary Team, Curry is being honored for his work promoting youth literacy, fitness and nutrition, as well as his commitment to fostering gender equity in sports.
The Stephen &amp; Ayesha Curry&rsquo;s Eat. Learn. Play. Foundation has helped thousands of children in Oakland, Calif., building playgrounds across the city, promoting literacy and distributing meals and produce.&nbsp; The foundation hosted more than 1,000 children from various community organizations at an Oakland Athletics game last summer, in an event that promoted movement, exercise and literacy.&nbsp; In December, the foundation hosted more than 500 Oakland families as part of the 10th annual Christmas with the Currys. The foundation, which provides weekly meals throughout the city, also recently unveiled a new schoolyard at Global Family Elementary.
While visiting the White House to celebrate the Warriors&rsquo; 2022 championship, Curry used his platform to speak on the importance of equality in sports, another cause that he has championed both individually and through his corporate partnerships. The Underrated Tour, a collaboration between Curry and Under Armour, provides a showcase for high school golfers from traditionally overlooked communities.
Curry always makes time for fans and community groups over the course of the season. In March, he met in Oklahoma City with the Wichita West girls basketball team &ndash; which had to forfeit its season due to lack of players yet continued to practice every day &ndash; to call attention to and honor its persistence in the face of adversity.
Curry, 35, averaged 29.4 points, 6.1 rebounds and 6.3 assists in 56 games this season, making both the All-Star Game and the All-NBA Team for the ninth time.

Stephen Curry has won the 2022-23 J. Walter Kennedy Citizenship award for his outstanding service and dedication to the community.

Curry wins  J. Walter Kennedy Citizenship award for work in community

OAKLAND, Calif. (AP) &mdash; In an empty gym on a small campus deserted for spring break, one of the NBA&rsquo;s top future prospects receives shooting guidance from coaches on Stephen Curry&rsquo;s training team.
Scoot Henderson goes through some of the same drills as the Golden State superstar himself &mdash; one-footed free throws, catch-and-shoots from around the perimeter, two dribbles between the legs then let it fly from the top of the 3-point arc.
On the other end of the court in the Laney College arena is Henderson&rsquo;s younger sister, Moochie, who has committed to play guard for Georgia State.
The Hendersons, teenagers and the youngest of seven children, are receiving a one-of-a-kind opportunity partnering with Curry&rsquo;s company, SC30 Inc., to gain support and guidance as the family develops its brand &mdash; on and off the court.
&ldquo;Just getting this early training and early knowledge from Steph mentoring me and the people around him, it&rsquo;s a blessing,&rdquo; Scoot Henderson said. &ldquo;Me just turning 19, just getting that knowledge early, it&rsquo;s really cool.&rdquo;
Curry is helping Henderson build his business model and will offer his resources to the rising star and his family as the point guard makes the transition to the next level. He finished his high school coursework more than 1 1/2 years early to play two seasons for the G League Ignite and has established himself as a projected top-three draft pick.
Curry&rsquo;s involvement includes opening his network to connect Henderson with shooting coaches, the two-time MVP&rsquo;s strength and conditioning team and others leading up to the NBA draft next month.
They spent some time getting to know each other in late March, when Scoot and Moochie went through a training session with Curry&rsquo;s coaches for a morning at Laney College.
What appeals to Curry beyond Henderson&rsquo;s talent, which makes him one of the most athletic point guards in the 2023 class, is the commitment to community he has demonstrated at home in Marietta, Georgia.
&ldquo;They&rsquo;ve developed a perspective on the blessings from the game of basketball and the doors that it&rsquo;s opened and the platform that you&rsquo;re given. The resources you have access to can all lead to a sense of purpose outside of just putting the ball in the basket,&rdquo; said Curry, whose&nbsp;<a class="paragraph-link" href="https://apnews.com/article/nba-playoffs-2023-warriors-lakers-lebron-curry-470bae4da1526ce6b86be6b1bfb1b442">Warriors were eliminated Friday by the Lakers in Game 6 of the Western Conference semifinals</a>. &ldquo;They&rsquo;re obviously wise beyond their years on that front and understanding that you can do both.&rdquo;
Henderson is grateful he can lean on Curry, whose off-court work with children and aiding the less fortunate includes his Eat. Learn. Play. Foundation focused on fighting childhood hunger, supporting education and providing safe places for kids to be active.
Five years ago, Henderson&rsquo;s parents, Chris and Crystal, opened a&nbsp;<a class="paragraph-link" href="https://www.nextplay360.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">gym called Next Play 360</a>&nbsp;near their home to offer an inclusive space with an emphasis on academics, athletics, leadership and community outreach.
Henderson himself has helped plan holiday gift and food drives &mdash; aiding 75 families last year with the next goal being 360 families, then 3,600 and eventually 36,000 &mdash; among other projects, and he hopes to keep doing more.
The Hendersons partner with schools in Cobb County to identify those in need.
&ldquo;Helping my community strive, that was always the vision,&rdquo; Henderson said. &ldquo;If I was going up, my family was going up with me. That was the vision for all my siblings.&rdquo;
Moochie is also benefiting from having access to Curry&rsquo;s team of experts, acknowledging, &ldquo;Being a 17-year-old coming out here and getting this experience is really important.&rdquo;
The Hendersons realize how fortunate they are to be getting a head start thanks to Curry&rsquo;s resources.
&ldquo;It&rsquo;s almost unreal, actually, Steph Curry is probably my favorite player in the world,&rdquo; said Chris, who has coached Moochie&rsquo;s teams teams for years. &ldquo;They benefit from it but I benefit, too. It&rsquo;s a blessing for my kids just to be a part of it.&rdquo;
They got connected through some of Curry&rsquo;s longtime colleagues who thought the two might make great partners given their shared commitment to balancing basketball and philanthropy.
&ldquo;To be a support system for that and how that&rsquo;s going to evolve over time, that&rsquo;s the exciting part and it reinvigorates another energy to what we&rsquo;re doing because you understand &mdash; I&rsquo;m the old guy &mdash; the next generation is about that life as well,&rdquo; Curry said.

Stephen Curry and his company, SC30 Inc., are providing support and guidance to top NBA prospect Scoot Henderson and his family.

Steph Curry offers support, resources to top NBA prospect Scoot Henderson

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) &mdash; Stephen Curry had 35 points and 11 assists, and the Golden State Warriors beat the Toronto Raptors 129-117 on Friday night.
The high-scoring affair was close until the Warriors pulled away with a 31-point fourth quarter, securing a sweep in the season series.
&ldquo;It feels like we took better care of the ball tonight,&rdquo; Golden State coach Steve Kerr said. &ldquo;When Steph plays like that, the whole game opens up. The whole floor opens up.&rdquo;
Klay Thompson added 29 points, knocking down six 3-pointers despite beginning the night 0 for 5 from beyond the arc. Though Thompson played in the Warriors&rsquo; 126-110 victory in Toronto on Dec. 18, the game Friday was his first time facing the Raptors at home since he tore his ACL in his left knee in the deciding Game 6 of the 2019 NBA Finals won by Toronto in Oakland.
Kevon Looney returned to the starting lineup and had 12 points and eight boards as six Warriors players scored in double figures.
The Warriors have won consecutive home games after dropping four straight at the Chase Center.
&ldquo;We&rsquo;ve been teetering on either side of .500 for a very long time. I&rsquo;m kind of sick of it at this point,&rdquo; Curry said. &ldquo;(We&rsquo;ve) got to figure out how to keep moving in the right direction and stack wins no matter how we can get &rsquo;em.&rdquo;
Golden State&rsquo;s bench outscored Toronto&rsquo;s 39-26, highlighted by 15 points from Jonathan Kuminga. The 20-year-old missed his first three shots from deep before making four straight 3s in the final three minutes of the third quarter, giving the Warriors a 98-94 lead they did not relinquish.
&ldquo;He just showed another element to his game that some might have doubted,&rdquo; Thompson said. &ldquo;To get on the hot streak he did was very impressive, and for that man, the sky&rsquo;s the limit for his talent.&rdquo;
Donte DiVincenzo had a career-high 11 assists and the Warriors outscored the Raptors by 24 points in his 33 minutes off the bench.
&ldquo;We knew what we were coming up against, and we&rsquo;ve had fairly good success guarding and executing, and tonight we just didn&rsquo;t do it,&rdquo; Toronto coach Nick Nurse said. &ldquo;We missed a lot of communication, we just got beat physically.&rdquo;
Fred VanVleet had 28 points and 10 assists for the Raptors, who began their season-high, seven-game road trip 1-1. Scottie Barnes had 24 points and Pascal Siakam had 21, while Gary Trent Jr. added 17.
Precious Achiuwa contributed 17 points and 11 rebounds off the bench.
CURRY FINED
Curry was fined $25,000 by the NBA on Friday for throwing his mouthpiece into the stands in a moment of frustration during the Warriors&rsquo; 122-120 win over the Grizzlies on Wednesday. Curry was whistled for his fifth technical foul of the season and subsequently ejected from the game.
TIP-INS
Raptors: Achiuwa&rsquo;s double-double was his third in his last four games. ... Entering Friday, Toronto ranked second in the league in opponent turnovers &mdash; forcing 16.8 per game &mdash; but only induced 12 Golden State turnovers. ... The Raptors have gone 2-7 in the first game of back-to-backs and 3-5 in the second game this season after posting winning records in both categories in 2021-22.
Warriors: F Andrew Wiggins missed his second straight game with a non-COVID illness. ... Golden State logged a season-high 40 assists. ... G Jordan Poole scored a career-high 43 points on Dec. 18 vs. Toronto but was held to just nine on 4-of-8 shooting Friday. ... Curry received his ninth All-Star nod Thursday and is the only player in franchise history with nine starts in the league showcase.

Stephen Curry had 35 points and 11 assists, and the Golden State Warriors beat the Toronto Raptors 129-117.

Curry’s 35 points send Warriors past Raptors, 129-117

WASHINGTON (AP) &mdash; President Joe Biden celebrated the NBA champion Golden State Warriors at the White House on Tuesday as he expressed concern for Californians who have suffered through waves of destructive weather.
&ldquo;We&rsquo;re all closely monitoring the storms, the floods, the landslides all across California, and our heart is with all of the families of the communities that are hurting,&rdquo; he said.
Biden visited the state Thursday and has approved disaster assistance.
The Warriors have won four championships in eight years, but they didn&rsquo;t visit the White House while Donald Trump was president. He made a show of publicly disinviting them after Stephen Curry, the team&rsquo;s star, said he wasn&rsquo;t interested in going.
&ldquo;The Golden State Warriors are always welcome in this White House,&rdquo; Biden said. He also honored Curry as &ldquo;one of the great sportsmen of our time.&rdquo;
He said the Warriors&rsquo; &ldquo;reflect America&rdquo; with their style of play, showcasing &ldquo;constant motion, with individual freedom and personality that comes together as one team, a team that plays with joy, with drive to be their best.&rdquo;
The Warriors beat the Boston Celtics in a six-game championship series last year, a victory that came after a difficult stretch for the team.
Although they won the championship in 2015, 2017 and 2018, their dreams of a dynasty fell apart when key players were injured. The Warriors fell to the bottom of the league.
&ldquo;The last couple of years were pretty tough,&rdquo; Biden said. &ldquo;Critics wondered if this team was gone for good as a championship team.&rdquo;
Biden has faced his share of doubters over the years, and he joked, &ldquo;Fellas, I know what it feels like.&rdquo;
Vice President Kamala Harris, a California native and longtime Warriors fan, spoke first at Tuesday&rsquo;s ceremony.
&ldquo;As a very proud daughter of Oakland, California, it gives me immense personal pride as the vice president of the United States to say, Dub Nation is in the house,&rdquo; she said.
Harris said she has a custom Warriors jersey that she keeps by her treadmill at home, calling it &ldquo;a symbol of grit, determination and teamwork.&rdquo;
Along with Biden, Harris got a new jersey from Curry on Tuesday. It had the number 1 &mdash; for No. 1 fan, she remarked &mdash; and Biden got one with 46, since he&rsquo;s the 46th president.
Curry said he hopes to see it &ldquo;on the wall of the Oval Office&rdquo;
&ldquo;Hopefully we can come back and check if it&rsquo;s up there,&rdquo; he said.
Curry and coach Steve Kerr stopped by the White House briefing room before the ceremony.
Curry thanked the administration for its work to bring home Brittney Griner, the women&rsquo;s basketball star who had been jailed in Russia on drug charges. He called her a &ldquo;big part of our basketball family.&rdquo;
&ldquo;It means a lot to know that she&rsquo;s here and home safe with her family,&rdquo; Curry said.
Kerr said he participated in a roundtable on gun violence with White House officials and two of his players, Moses Moody and Klay Thompson.
&ldquo;We learned a lot about what this administration is doing to help create a safer environment in our country,&rdquo; Kerr said.
Biden signed gun legislation last year, but he&rsquo;s pledged to keep working toward tighter restrictions, including an assault weapons ban.&nbsp;

“The Golden State Warriors are always welcome in this White House,” Biden said.

Biden welcomes the Warriors, pledges support for California

Basketball News highlights the reporting, analysis and podcasts that defined a year of basketball in 2022.

Best of Basketball News: Spotlighting our top content from 2022

Over the next week, more than 200 high-school basketball teams and prep programs will travel to Las Vegas to compete in the 2022 Tarkanian Classic. The prep schools will compete from Dec. 16-18, while the high-school teams will play from Dec. 19-22.&nbsp;
Bishop Gorman High School will serve as the event's headquarters, but games will also be played at other local high-school gyms. Every game will be live-streamed on BallerTV.com.
The Tarkanian Classic is NBA-certified, meaning NBA executives and scouts can attend the games and evaluate players in-person. This is one of just three high-school-basketball events that the NBA certified this year, and most of the league has already requested credentials for their talent evaluators.
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23 NBA teams so far have requested credentials for 70+ team scouts for upcoming <a href="https://twitter.com/TarkClassic?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@TarkClassic</a> This year's Tark is 1 of only 3 HS regular season events that are NBA certified this season - permitting NBA teams to send their scouts <a href="https://twitter.com/FrankieBur?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@FrankieBur</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/DraftExpress?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@DraftExpress</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/RonMFlores?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@RonMFlores</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/krystenpeek?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@krystenpeek</a>
&mdash; Dinos Trigonis (@Trigonis30) <a href="https://twitter.com/Trigonis30/status/1602528535872212992?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 13, 2022</a></blockquote>

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For over a decade, the Tarkanian Classic has featured top high-school teams and players. In recent years, top prospects such as Deandre Ayton, LaMelo Ball, Evan Mobley, Lonzo Ball, Jonathan Kuminga, Onyeka Okongwu, Marvin Bagley III and Jaden McDaniels have competed in the Las Vegas tournament.&nbsp;
This year, the event will feature 136 high-school teams from across the nation including host Bishop Gorman (NV), Liberty (NV), Mater Dei (Santa Ana CA), Oakridge (FL), Bishop O'Connell (VA), Rainier Beach (WA), Prestonwood Christian (TX), St. Augustine (CA), Calvary Christian (FL), St. Bernard (CA), Faith Family (TX), St. Raymond (NY), St. Ignatius (OH), West Ranch (CA), Douglass (TN), Durango (NV), Putnam City West (OK), St. Mary's (AZ), Rancho Christian (CA), JSerra (CA), Buchtel (OH), Coronado (NV), Bishop O'Dowd (CA), Crossroads (CA), Sheldon (CA), Kell (GA), Redondo Union (CA), Santa Margarita (CA), Coeur d'Alene (ID), Crean Lutheran (CA), Desert Pines (NV), Alta (UT), Mater Lakes (FL), Clovis West (CA), Monterey Trail (CA), Foothill (NV), Wilson (SC), Constitution (PA), Birmingham (CA), St.Paul (CA), Oakland (CA), Cypress Bay (FL), Bingham (UT), Miami Country Day (FL), Houston Christian (TX), Brentwoood (CA), Hillcrest (CA), Peninsula Catholic (VA), Sandra Day O'Connor (AZ), Valor Christian (CO), Arbor View (NV), San Gabriel Academy (CA), Valley (NV), Coral Glades (FL), Buckeye (AZ), Mother Teresa (Canada), Canyon Springs (NV), Jones (FL), Cheyenne (NV), Layton (UT), Spring Valley (NV), Roosevelt (CA) and Centennial (AZ).&nbsp;
There are also more than 60 prep programs participating including Prolific Prep (CA), SoCal Academy (CA), Dream City Christian National (AZ), Accelerated Prep (CO), Central Pointe Christian (FL), Dynamic Prep (TX), Bella Vista (AZ), NBA Academy I, II &amp; III, SCA Post-Grad (CA), Real Salt Lake (UT), Veritas Prep (CA),&nbsp; Skyline Prep (AZ) and Colorado Prep (CO).&nbsp;

Over the next week, more than 200 high-school teams and prep programs will travel to Vegas to compete in the Tarkanian Classic.

NBA-certified Tarkanian Classic set for this weekend in Las Vegas

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) &mdash; Rookie Andrew Nembhard scored a season-high 31 points and added 13 assists and eight rebounds to lead the undermanned Indiana Pacers to a 112-104 victory over the Golden State Warriors on Monday night.
A second-round draft pick, Nembhard made a key 3-pointer with 4:26 to go and another jumper less than two minutes later. Indiana played without starting point guard Tyrese Haliburton for a second straight game as he nurses soreness in his left groin.
Klay Thompson scored 28 points and made eight 3-pointers on the six-year anniversary of his 60-point masterpiece against the Pacers.
Thompson finished 9 of 23, but Stephen Curry was held to 12 points on 3-for-17 shooting. Jordan Poole scored 23 starting in place of Andrew Wiggins as he sat out with tightness of the adductor muscle in his right leg.
Nembhard hit five 3s while Buddy Hield added 17 points, nine rebounds and five assists as Indiana snapped a three-game losing streak with just its second win in six games.
Golden State had its 10-game home winning streak snapped.
Curry went 1 of 7 in the first half, missing all four of his 3-point tries and was 2 for 10 from deep overall. Curry finally connected from long range with 5:13 left in the third after missing his first five.
The Pacers, missing six players with injuries or illness, jumped out to a 22-12 lead as Golden State started 5 for 17.
Thompson knocked down three straight 3-pointers &mdash; all from the right wing &mdash; to tie the game at 42 at the 4:51 mark of the second quarter before a Pacers timeout. Thompson also dished out an assist on Jonathan Kuminga&rsquo;s layup before his trio of 3s and nearly had another when Kuminga was fouled and made both free throws to cap a 20-2 run 3:40 before halftime.
60-POINT MEMORIES
Thompson scored 60 against Indiana over three quarters on Dec. 5, 2016. On Monday, he passed Jason Kidd (1,988) for 13th place on the NBA&rsquo;s career 3-pointers list and now has 1,990.
&ldquo;I remember people being mad at me for not keeping him out there on the floor so that he could try to get 70, but we had a big lead and at the end of the third it was clear cut we were going to win the game,&rdquo; Warriors coach Steve Kerr said. &ldquo;It was an easy decision. I just remember, we&rsquo;ve seen Klay get hot a lot over the years, but there&rsquo;s a few games that stand out and that&rsquo;s one of them.&rdquo;
TIP-INS
Pacers: Indiana matched the Warriors in rebounding with 47 and led 34-21 after the opening quarter. ... The Pacers also were without Myles Turner (sore right hamstring), James Johnson (sprained right elbow), T.J. McConnell (non-COVID illness), Chris Duarte (left ankle sprain) and Daniel Theis (right knee surgery).
Warriors: Kuminga fouled out in the final minute. ... The Warriors have lost four straight at home to Indiana since a 112-89 win March 21, 2019, at old Oracle Arena in Oakland. ... Golden State dropped to 11-2 at home and the 10-game unbeaten run was the best for the team on its home floor since 11 in a row from Oct. 30-Dec. 3, 2021.
UP NEXT
Pacers: At Minnesota on Wednesday night to conclude a seven-game trip over 12 days that is the team&rsquo;s longest in 37 years.
Warriors: At Utah on Wednesday night having won two straight and six of seven vs. the Jazz.

Andrew Nembhard scored a season-high 31 points and added 13 assists and eight rebounds to lead the undermanned Pacers.

Rookie Nembhard has 31, leads Pacers past Warriors, 112-104

Spencer Davies details Jamal Cain's climb from Pontiac, Michigan to the NBA level through the lens of longtime friend Mychal Covington.

Outwork everybody: Two-way Heat rookie Jamal Cain catches you sleeping

MEMPHIS, Tenn. (AP) &mdash; Duncan Robinson scored 29 points to lead the Miami Heat to a 111-108 victory over the Memphis Grizzlies on Friday night.
Robinson shot 7 for 11 from the field, including 5 for 7 on 3-pointers. Jamal Cain, an undrafted rookie who played his last college season at Oakland University, scored 19 points, and Nikola Jovic &mdash; the 27th overall pick in the draft &mdash; scored 13 points as the Heat played the game with their reserves.
Dillon Brooks led Memphis with 18 points, while Ja Morant and Desmond Bane each scored 17 with four assists.
The Heat, playing on the road for the second night of a back-to-back, sat their starters, including Jimmy Butler, Kyle Lowry and Bam Adebayo.
Meanwhile, Memphis was at full strength, except for forward Jaren Jackson Jr., who is out for a couple of more months recovering from a stress fracture in his right foot.
While the Grizzlies played their regular starters, there were some reserves who took the night off, tightening the rotation. Bane played 28 minutes, while Morant and Brooks logged 26 minutes each.
The Heat took their lead with a rally spanning the second and third quarters and held on at the end when both teams had bench players in the game. Memphis missed a pair of 3-point attempts to tie the game in the closing 10 seconds
CELTICS 112, HORNETS 103
In Greensboro, North Carolina, Jaylen Brown scored 19 points, Derrick White finished with 18 points and six assists to lead Boston.
Justin Jackson added 16 for the Celtics, and Payton Pritchard scored 15. Noah Vonleh had 14 points and 13 rebounds.
LaMelo Ball had 23 points and nine assists to lead the Hornets, and Kelly Oubre Jr. scored 18 points on 7-for-14 shooting. Terry Rozier added 14 points as Charlotte remained winless in three preseason games.
The Celtics sat some of their starters, including Jayson Tatum, Al Horford and Marcus Smart. However, Blake Griffin &mdash; signed this week &mdash; finished with seven points and nine rebounds in 16 minutes in his Celtics debut.
MAGIC 110, MAVERICKS 105
Top draft pick Paolo Banchero scored 19 points and Terrence Ross added 16 to led visiting Orlando.
Banchero, the 6-foot-10 forward out of Duke, shot 6 for 13 from the field and had five rebounds. Mo Bamba had 13 points and seven rebounds for the Magic.
Christian Wood scored 23 points on 8-for-12 shooting. Luka Doncic had 16 points in 18 minutes, making 6 of 8 shots from the field, and also had five assists.
KNICKS 131, PACERS 114
Obi Toppin scored 24 points on 10-for-14 shooting to lead host New York.
Toppin was 4 for 7 on 3-pointers as the Knicks improved to 2-0 in the preseason. RJ Barrett scored 18 points, while Jalen Brunson and Immanuel Quickley finished with 17 points each.
Tyrese Haliburton led the Pacers with 20 points. Bennedict Mathurin, the sixth overall pick in last summer&rsquo;s draft, had 19 points and Buddy Hield added 13 points.
BULLS 131, NUGGETS 113
DeMar DeRozan scored 22 points on 9-for-15 shooting to lead host Chicago.
Coby White and Javonte Green added 15 points each for the Bulls, while Nikola Vucevic finished with 14 points and seven rebounds.
Bones Hyland had 24 points for Denver, while Michael Porter Jr. scored 20 points. Aaron Gordon added 14 points.
ROCKETS 116, RAPTORS 100
Tari Eason, the seventh overall pick in last summer&rsquo;s draft out of LSU, had 24 points and eight rebounds to lead host Houston.
Jalen Green added 23 points for the Rockets, while Kevin Porter Jr. had 15.
Pascal Siakam scored 18 points for the Raptors. O.G. Anunoby scored 13 points, but missed all five of his 3-point attempts. Dalano Banton had 14 points. Gary Trent Jr., Precious Achiuwa and Chris Boucer each scored 10 points in the game.
PELICANS 107, PISTONS 101
Jose Alvarado scored 28 points and Zion Williamson added 13 for host New Orleans.
Naji Marshall had 14 points on 5-for-12 shooting, including just 3 for 12 on free throws for the Hornets. Alvarado shot 12 for 18 from the field.
Saddiq Bey led the Pistons with 23 points, while Isaiah Steward and Jaden Ivey finished with 14 apiece.

Duncan Robinson scored 29 points to lead the Heat to a 111-108 victory over the Grizzlies on Friday night.

Duncan Robinson scores 29 as Heat beat Grizzlies 111-108

NEW YORK (AP) &mdash; Bam Adebayo scored 17 points and undrafted rookie Jamal Cain added 15 points and 11 rebounds as the Miami Heat defeated the Brooklyn Nets 109-80 on Thursday night.
Kevin Durant led Brooklyn with 22 points on 8 of 12 shooting in 26 minutes. Ben Simmons had four points and 10 rebounds for the Nets.
Miami star Jimmy Butler played for the first time in the preseason, scoring two points in the first half and then sitting in the second half. Tyler Herro and Victor Oladipo didn&rsquo;t play for the Heat.
The Nets were minus Joe Harris, who was resting an ankle that left him out most of last season, and Kyrie Irving, who had the night off after the birth of his child. Seven Heat players scored in double figures.
Kyle Lowry had 15 points and Dru Smith, Duncan Robinson and Jamaree Bouyea each added 12 for Miami. Cain signed with the Heat in July after playing for Marquette and Oakland University.
Cam Thomas scored 13 points and Markieff Morris 10 for the Nets.
Through the first half, the teams tried various combinations, mixing the starters with some key bench players. Both sides seemed to stretch their stars for some extra minutes in the shortened NBA preseason.
Durant played 19 minutes in the first half and scored 18 points, making six of seven shots. Simmons and backcourt mate Royce O&rsquo;Neale each played 18 minutes.
MAGIC 102, SPURS 99
Paolo Banchero, the overall No. 1 pick in the June draft, had nine points and five rebounds as Orlando beat San Antonio.
Wendell Carter Jr. had 20 points and 10 rebounds for the Magic. He shot 8 of 13 as most of the Orlando starters played between 20 and 23 minutes. Franz Wagner had 12 points and Moritz Wagner scored 10.
Doug McDermott led the Spurs with 14 points, and Keita Bates-Diop added 12.. Devin Vassell and Tre Jones scored 11 points each.
THUNDER 131, ADELAIDE 36ERs 98
Tre Mann scored 26 points, including hitting 8 of 10 on 3s, as Oklahoma City beat a team from the Australian National Basketball League.
Lindy Waters III scored 23 points and Eugene Omoruyi added 19 points for the Thunder.
Craig Randall II, who had 35 points in the 36ers' 134-124 win over the Phoenix Suns earlier in the week, led Adelaide with 27 points. Robert Franks scored 20 points and Antonius Cleveland had 19 points.
Adelaide used torrid 3-point shooting, hitting 56% from beyond the arc, to defeat the Suns in the opening game of their preseason tour. But the accuracy was not the same against Oklahoma City as the 36ers went 11 of 36 from distance.

Bam Adebayo scored 17 points and undrafted rookie Jamal Cain added 15 points and 11 rebounds as the Heat beat the Nets 109-80.

Adebayo, Cain lead Heat over Durant, Simmons and Nets

Is the NBA ready to add an expansion team? Evan Sidery explores what kind of team you could build in a present-day expansion draft.

NBA Expansion Mock Draft: What would a new expansion team look like?

Welcome to Basketball News' 10-part mini-series, Blazing the Trail, where Mat Issa breaks down the most revolutionary players of the 1990s and 2000s. Throughout this series, we'll examine how these players changed basketball and pioneered their respective skills.
In this third installment, Mat goes in-depth on two-time All-NBA Defensive Team selection Shane Battier and his role as a next-generation defender on the "Moreyball" Houston Rockets. It features insights from his former coach in Miami, David Fizdale, his high school coach, Kurt Keener, and Battier himself.&nbsp;
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"One of these pieces doesn&rsquo;t fit."
A statement commonly elicited from viewing the <a href="https://twitter.com/matissa15/status/1546891748433084420?s=20&amp;t=Adu5q3cY1tX3H88KopKNig" target="_blank" rel="noopener">list of players</a> featured in our "Blazing the Trail" series.&nbsp;
"Shane Battier was a fine defender. But revolutionary? I&rsquo;m not sure someone who only made two All-Defensive Teams can be considered revolutionary."
Even after New York Times writer Michael Lewis famously dubbed him the "<a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2009/02/15/magazine/15Battier-t.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">No-Stats All-Star</a>" in Feb. 2009, outside observers have failed to accurately appraise Battier's unique value.
But what if Lewis' moniker for Battier wasn&rsquo;t just a clever name? What if the captain of data impacted the game in a way we couldn&rsquo;t measure at the time? And what if, through his courtship with Daryl Morey, Battier became the most groundbreaking trailblazer of them all?
Let's find out.
What Made Battier Special&nbsp;
On offense, Battier was the quintessential role player. He could shoot, maintain spacing and make quick decisions, and he hardly ever committed turnovers &mdash; the perfect piece to pair with elite scorers and creators. But that&rsquo;s not why we&rsquo;re discussing him.
Battier made his bones on the defensive end.&nbsp;
There, he possessed an unorthodox toolkit for a player of his archetype. He was a &ldquo;3-and-D&rdquo; wing without picking players' pockets too often. From 2006 to 2011, his steal rate never eclipsed the 50th percentile, per Cleaning the Glass.
However, Battier did create positive events through his weak-side shot-blocking and timely charge-drawing. And he also refrained from causing negative sequences by avoiding fouls (remember, preventing free throws &mdash; the most efficient shot in the game &mdash; is an immensely valuable skill).
&ldquo;He was always on time when the <a href="https://medium.com/thebasketballactiondictionary/low-man-f3db4d20f4ea">low-man</a> was required,&rdquo; said David Fizdale, Battier&rsquo;s former coach in Miami and now-associate general manager for the Utah Jazz.
&ldquo;Whether it was to take a charge, steal/deflect a pass, discourage [a driver], trap the box &mdash; he was going to be there every single time. He was the king of the charge.&rdquo;&nbsp;
Battier's game was basketball minutiae, predicated on the intricate subtleties that make or break a possession. He fronted goliaths in the post, swiped at the ball when it was still low to bypass challenging shots vertically and utilized the hand-in-the-face contest to hinder his adversaries' efficiency even further.
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With that said, he didn&rsquo;t reach his full innovator form until he crossed paths with a data wizard in July 2006 &mdash; then-Houston Rockets assistant general manager Daryl Morey, who assumed full-GM duties the following season in May 2007.
&ldquo;The Rockets were the first team in basketball to adopt a data-centric philosophy,&rdquo; Battier explained to Basketball News. &ldquo;Daryl had a thesis that [he] wanted to run his entire organization based on what the data says.
&ldquo;I was their first major acquisition when Daryl became the general manager because the algorithms they used identified me as a player that provided outsourced value at a very reasonable price,&rdquo; recalled Battier, who was acquired by the Rockets just months after Morey's hiring.
(In exchange for Battier, the Memphis Grizzlies received Stromile Swift and Rudy Gay)
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Like <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/nba-blazing-the-trail-steve-nash-phoenix-suns-mike-dantoni-raja-bell-steph-curry-all-time-great-point-guard" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Steve Nash</a>, Battier&rsquo;s approach made him the perfect test subject for his mentor&rsquo;s dissertation.
&ldquo;He was just curious about how everything worked,&rdquo; said Kurt Keener, Battier's high-school coach at Detroit Country Day in Oakland County, Michigan. &ldquo;In basketball, he was curious about, 'If I do X, Y, and Z, can I improve in ways that make a big difference?'"
&ldquo;When I got there, I was very curious about how they thought about data,&rdquo; Battier said of the Rockets. &ldquo;And I really became enamored with it. This is like having the answers to the test before taking the test.&rdquo;
In Houston, Battier &mdash; a player accustomed to surface-level scouting reports that were commonplace at the time &mdash; was exposed to more nuanced, data-driven preparatory materials.
&ldquo;Before analytics, [the scouting report] would read, &lsquo;Kobe Bryant: Great first step, capable three-point shooter, will attack the rim, fadeaway shot in the post and a great competitor.' It&rsquo;s like, yeah, thanks. I don&rsquo;t need a scouting report to know that Kobe is a great competitor,&rdquo; Battier laughed. &ldquo;It was completely qualitative. With the quantitative report that the Rockets produced for me, I knew who exactly a player was down to the percentile.
&ldquo;Instead of saying, 'Kobe Bryant has a great right hand,' I knew that Bryant drives right 65% of the time, and when he does, it&rsquo;s basically a 62% shot. When he goes left, he only goes there 35% of the time, and it&rsquo;s a 42% shot.&rdquo;
Here are a couple of illustrations of that data in practice:
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On-Court Production
These insightful scouting-report nuggets became dangerous weapons in the capable hands of Battier. Similar to "Revis Island" &mdash; a desolate wasteland that star wide receivers were banished to <a href="https://bleacherreport.com/articles/379511-where-is-revis-island" target="_blank" rel="noopener">when they faced the New York Jets in the late-2000s</a> &mdash; Battier&rsquo;s stomping grounds became a torturous venue for the superstars who occupied his position.
From 2006 to 2009, every All-Star small forward/shooting guard who played primarily on-ball saw a sizable dip in efficiency when matched up against Battier (with the lone exception being Josh Howard):
<img style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" src="https://cdn.basketballnews.com/images/story/body/battier-chart.jpg" alt="" width="550" height="520" />
Visual Created by Daniel Bratulić
&ldquo;The secret for all these volume scorers: the places those guys absolutely crushed you were at the rim and the free throw line,&rdquo; Battier revealed.
&ldquo;As long as I did two things &mdash; kept them out of transition and didn&rsquo;t foul them &mdash; I could live with any other shot those guys would take. Where a lot of people go wrong is they get caught up in the results. I don&rsquo;t care about results. I just care about the process.&rdquo;
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-theme="dark">
With Volume 3 of Blazing the Trail coming out tomorrow over <a href="https://twitter.com/basketbllnews?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@basketbllnews</a>, I figured I'd do a thread of some of my favorite Battier plays from some of the games I watched. These clips are mostly from his 07-08 matchups against DEN, ATL, CLE, and NJN. <a href="https://t.co/HTDCmeEVEH">pic.twitter.com/HTDCmeEVEH</a>
&mdash; Mat Issa (@matissa15) <a href="https://twitter.com/matissa15/status/1554950928184365057?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">August 3, 2022</a></blockquote>

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Battier&rsquo;s process consisted of seducing his opponents into a high volume of mid-range shots. From 2006 to 2008, the Rockets surrendered the highest frequency of mid-range jumpers in the league (per Cleaning the Glass).
&ldquo;The mid-range jump shot is actually a really hard shot to hit,&rdquo; Battier said. &ldquo;It&rsquo;s like a sub-50% shot; a good mid-range jump shooter, like 45%. That&rsquo;s not great. You&rsquo;re not going to win a ball game by making that shot a ton.&rdquo;
And although he didn&rsquo;t emphasize the results, the ones his methods yielded were fruitful. Going back to the &ldquo;No-Stats All-Star&rdquo; designation we alluded to earlier, it felt like an All-Star-caliber performer was occupying the court whenever Battier graced the hardwood.
From 2004 to 2009, Battier's teams finished top-five in Defensive Rating (both in Memphis and Houston). And there&rsquo;s reason to believe he was the driving force behind those machines, despite being a non-big man (centers typically have the largest footprint on defense because of their ability to protect the paint).
In 2005-06, the Grizzlies finished second in the league in DRTG. When Battier was traded to Houston the following season, they plummeted to dead-last, despite returning all their coaches and best defenders (except Lorenzen Wright).
Meanwhile, after finishing nearly three points below the league average on defense in 2005-06, the Rockets improved to almost six points below the league average in 2006-07 when Battier arrived.
(Note: The more points below average the better when it comes to defense. For context, the Boston Celtics and Golden State Warriors were only five points below the league average this season, per Basketball-Reference.)
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What&rsquo;s more, in 2007-08 &mdash; when the Rockets&rsquo; primary rim protector Yao Ming missed the final 26 games of the season with a foot injury &mdash; Houston's DRTG remained the same, so you can&rsquo;t chalk up Battier's success to great backline help.
Fizdale agreed with the sentiment that Battier&rsquo;s data-driven style made him his team&rsquo;s most important defender, and enabled him to contribute at an All-Star level.
&ldquo;Back then, when you&rsquo;re looking at All-Stars, [people] just looked at Shane as a pest. But for the guys that were on his team, he was an All-Star," Fizdale said. "For us, we saw him as an All-Star."
Weaving the Thread
Keener speculates that Battier's selflessness may have developed from hearing tales of the great egalitarian himself, Magic Johnson.
During practice, Battier's high-school coach would tell fables of Magic from his days in East Lansing at Michigan State University. They were stories about how, during scrimmages, Johnson would intentionally select his least talented teammates to prove that great teamwork could usurp deficiencies in other areas. These narratives had a substantial effect on Battier.
&ldquo;With Shane, he didn&rsquo;t have the flair of Magic, but he understood the importance of getting your teammates involved,&rdquo; Keener reminisced. &ldquo;[Like Magic,] Shane was tremendous at making sure the other guys on his team were successful.&rdquo;
A Michigan native, Battier also credits his precious Detroit Pistons for playing a role in his formative years.
&ldquo;For me, the Pistons were the ultimate team. My dad grew up in a blue-collar job. If you live in Michigan, you understand the importance of the assembly line and teamwork,&rdquo; Battier reminisced.&nbsp;&ldquo;For me, it wasn&rsquo;t about what I did. It was about what did we do. Being from Detroit impacted how I thought about sports and basketball, and was the hallmark of my entire career.&rdquo;&nbsp;
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Coincidentally, the Pistons team he&rsquo;s referencing once famously concocted their own <a href="https://youtu.be/NLv2F33snCE" target="_blank" rel="noopener">carefully curated</a> strategy for <a href="https://twitter.com/matissa15/status/1554554706483101696?s=20&amp;t=ghbmH8N4W0CTQAwSSSfovg" target="_blank" rel="noopener">decreasing the potency</a> of a prolific superstar. That set of instructions is known as "The Jordan Rules.&rdquo;
Due to in-depth game plans he leaned on with regularity, Battier had a leg up on his idols. But while teams like the Pistons only resorted to these tactics in dire situations, Battier prepared for every game like it was the postseason.
&ldquo;The cool part about Shane is he gets into those layers in the regular season,&rdquo; Fizdale explained. &ldquo;It&rsquo;s tough to play teams on a one-day prep&hellip; but when you have a guy like Shane Battier, he prepares every game like it's a playoff game.&rdquo;
Impact on Today&rsquo;s Game
&ldquo;Draymond [Green] is probably the ultimate example of modern-day Shane Battier,&rdquo; Fizdale said.&nbsp;"They both could guard everyone, could switch on everyone, could guard post-ups, could guard guards. They were [both] most likely the smartest person on the court most nights.&rdquo;
&ldquo;I love watching Draymond. Draymond is great," Battier agreed. "He sees the defense and plays two or three passes ahead, which I always thought I could do.&rdquo;
Battier will be the first to point to Green&rsquo;s superior passing and paint protection as major distinctions between their games. However, the two bear a resemblance to one another in that they are both <a href="https://www.landofbasketball.com/player_comparison/shane_battier_vs_draymond_green.htm" target="_blank" rel="noopener">career 8-point-per-game scorers</a> whose impact often can't be quantified by traditional box scores.
PJ Tucker is another obvious descendant. Tucker is an elite man defender who shares Battier&rsquo;s process-over-results philosophy (see: Tucker's defense on Kevin Durant in the 2021 playoffs). Also, both players suited up for the Rockets and Heat.
Battier even sees a bit of himself in the human defensive vortex that is Matisse Thybulle: &ldquo;Defensively, his instincts are amazing, and when he figures out his shot, he&rsquo;s going to be a handful.&rdquo;
Putting one-to-one comparisons aside, Battier&rsquo;s true legacy is that there&rsquo;s a little bit of him buried inside of most modern NBA players.
&ldquo;Today, every team has an analytics department. Every team is looking for a player who jumps off the charts analytically,&rdquo; Fizdale said.
<div class="mceNonEditable"><spike>&nbsp;</spike></div>
The "Moreyball" movement that Battier helped pioneer in Houston has become common practice in today&rsquo;s ever-changing NBA landscape. Hell, even the 2022 NBA Finals were determined by a quantitatively-informed decision on the part of the Warriors.&nbsp;
After the Celtics scored <a href="https://theanalyst.com/na/2022/06/nba-finals-golden-state-warriors-boston-celtics-points-in-the-paint/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">52 points in the paint</a> in Game 3, Golden State regained control of the series in part by borrowing one of Battier&rsquo;s old tricks for defending Bryant.
As Battier did with Bryant, the Warriors realized that Jaylen Brown and Jayson Tatum were less effective when driving to their left, so they <a href="https://streamable.com/qpu89i" target="_blank" rel="noopener">forced the tandem to do just that</a>.&nbsp;
For reference, here are Tatum&rsquo;s numbers for the regular season and postseason driving from his left and his right (and <a href="https://docs.google.com/document/d/13Ig3U3hGeeXcdJSrYSs4_pIzIjMQPSN95p8R0M9yYs0/edit?usp=sharing" target="_blank" rel="noopener">here are Brown&rsquo;s</a>):
<img src="https://basketballnews-media.s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/images/story/body/tatum-right.gif" alt="" width="550" height="349" />
<img src="https://basketballnews-media.s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/images/story/body/tatum-left.gif" alt="" width="550" height="349" />
Data Provided by InStat
Even this level of tendency awareness was mincemeat for Battier. He knew not only which direction to push you, but how many dribbles to make you take in the process.&nbsp;
Regardless, the point remains the same: Battier influenced not only the way the game is played, but also its preparation &mdash; a feat that few players in NBA history have ever attained.
It looks like the piece fits, after all.
<img style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" src="https://cdn.basketballnews.com/images/story/body/battiertree_720.jpg" alt="" width="550" height="550" />
Tune in for Part IV of Blazing the Trail on Aug. 17, which focuses on Reggie Miller &mdash; the moving target.
<a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/nba-blazing-the-trail-rashard-lewis-all-star-stretch-four-orlando-magic-stan-van-gundy-dwight-howard-hedo-turkoglu" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Click here to read Part II: "Rashard Lewis, the All-Star stretch 4."</a>
<a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/nba-blazing-the-trail-steve-nash-phoenix-suns-mike-dantoni-raja-bell-steph-curry-all-time-great-point-guard" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Click here to read Part I: "Steve Nash, the magician who danced in the paint."</a>

In his "Blazing the Trail" series, Mat Issa focuses on two-time All-NBA defender Shane Battier and his role as a next-gen defender.

Blazing the Trail: Shane Battier, the data-ball defender

ATLANTA (July 27, 2022) - Overtime Elite announced the signing of two elite prospects today - point guard ZZ Clark and small forward Tyler Bey. Keeping the momentum of OTE Signing Week, both players bring dynamic skills and athleticism to the league as it prepares for its second season of elite basketball. Clark and Bey join other highly-coveted prospects including Naas Cunningham, Trey Parker, Kanaan Carlyle, Jahki Howard and Bryson Tiller as OTE&rsquo;s newest signees. Both players signed a scholarship option preserving their NCAA basketball eligibility.
With season two on the horizon, Clark and Bey will compete against some of the best teenage basketball players including Ausar and Amen Thompson, Jazian Gortman, and Alexandre Sarr. Building on the success of OTE&rsquo;s historic first season, Clark and Bey&rsquo;s games will be showcased for millions of fans this season across social media channels and YouTube.
Clark is a 6&rsquo;2&rdquo; point guard from Brentwood, Tennessee. He committed to Illinois after a standout sophomore season at Windermere Prep in Orlando, Florida. The strong, explosive guard averaged 11.6 points, 6.6 rebounds, 4.7 assists and 1.3 steals leading his team to a 20-8 record before losing in the FHSAA Class 3A regional semifinals to the eventual state champions during his sophomore season. He played AAU for The Skill Factory this summer. His brother, Skyy Clark, will be a freshman at Illinois this fall.
&ldquo;If you&rsquo;ve seen ZZ play, you know he&rsquo;s an electric playmaker in the open court,&rdquo; said Tim Fuller, OTE Vice President of Recruiting and Player Personnel. &nbsp;&ldquo;His unparalleled discipline makes him a true floor general, and the competition in our program is going to help maximize his potential to be a lockdown defender.
&ldquo;ZZ is joining a group of elite ball handlers at OTE and I&rsquo;m excited to see him thrive in our league,&rdquo; said Kevin Ollie, OTE Head Coach and Director of Player Development. &ldquo;He&rsquo;ll be pushed daily to be the best playmaker, and I&rsquo;m looking forward to seeing his confidence on the court translate into competition.&rdquo;
Bey is a 6&rsquo;8&rdquo; small forward from Newark, New Jersey. Last year, he played at Fairfax High School in Los Angeles, California and helped lead them to a city championship. Being from New Jersey, he&rsquo;s played for the NY Rens with former OTE, and current San Antonio Spurs player Dominick Barlow and new OTE signee Naas Cunningham before playing for the Oakland Soldiers this summer. &nbsp;Long, athletic and capable of hitting shots from deep, he has three and d potential at the next level and has seen his recruitment take off this summer. Bey plays hard and is very active on the offensive glass.
&ldquo;The striking thing about Tyler is his tremendous size and skill for his position,&rdquo; said Tim Fuller, OTE Vice President of Recruiting and Player Personnel. &ldquo;His activity on the glass makes him a valuable rebounder who will bring a scrappy energy and unmatched work ethic, and his consistency will add skill and depth to our league.&rdquo;&nbsp;
&ldquo;The first thing I noticed about Tyler is his size and his potential for development,&rdquo; said Kevin Ollie, OTE Head Coach and Director of Player Development. &ldquo;He&rsquo;s committed to the work and has seen the benefits of our OTE resources through his relationship with Dominick Barlow. I&rsquo;m excited to see him follow in Dom&rsquo;s footsteps and take advantage of all the development opportunities in our league.&rdquo;
Every contracted OTE player is offered a six-figure salary, with a guaranteed minimum salary of at least $100,000 per year, plus bonuses and shares of equity in Overtime. In addition, players will participate in revenue from use of their name, image and likeness, including through sales of custom jerseys, trading cards, video games and NFTs. Starting this season, players have the option to choose a scholarship or salary option.&nbsp;
ABOUT OTE
Overtime Elite (OTE) is a professional basketball league featuring top 17-20-year-old domestic and international players. There are three teams in the league, and games are played primarily at the OTE Arena in Atlanta. OTE, owned and operated by Overtime, brings fans as close as possible to the action through broad digital distribution on accounts that have millions of followers.&nbsp;
While playing in the league, players receive innovative, cutting-edge education and training to prepare them for college and professional basketball. OTE's three founding sponsors are State Farm, Gatorade and Meta Quest.

Both ZZ Clark and Tyler Bey add elevated talent to an already top-tier class ahead of OTE's second season.

ZZ Clark and Tyler Bey Sign with Overtime Elite for Season 2

Damian Lillard's new contract with the Trail Blazers is a point of pride for the six-time All Star who has spent his entire career in Portland.
&ldquo;I don&rsquo;t think that you earn something like this just by going out there and scoring a bunch of points," he said. "Something that&rsquo;s missing in our league is character, and the fight and the passion and pride about, you know, not just the name on the back, but the name on the front, and how you impact the people that you come in contact with."
Lillard agreed to a two-year extension through the 2026-27 season. A person with knowledge of the negotiations said the deal is worth $225 million.
Lillard formally signed the extension with his son on his lap and his grandmother watching by phone from Oakland. He spoke at a news conference Saturday evening at the NBA's summer league in Las Vegas.
Lillard will make about $59 million in 2025-26, then about $63 million the next year, said the person who spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity Friday because the extension has not been announced.
He&rsquo;ll make about $137 million over the next three seasons, before the extension begins.
&ldquo;There are two kinds of teams: teams that are looking for superstars and teams that are looking for one. We&rsquo;re lucky enough to have one,&rdquo; Blazers coach Chauncey Billups said. &ldquo;One who wants to be here.&rdquo;
Lillard was limited to 29 games this past season because of a core injury that required surgery. The Blazers finished 27-55, their worst record since 2005-06.
While Lillard was sidelined, the team cleaned house, pulling off a number of trades before the February deadline &mdash; including sending backcourt teammate CJ McCollum to New Orleans &mdash; that got the Blazers under the luxury tax and freed up cap space.
The Blazers then made a series of offseason moves to build around Lillard. Portland acquired Jerami Grant from the Detroit Pistons and signed free agent Gary Payton II, who was key to Golden State's championship run.
Lillard played with Grant on the gold medal-winning U.S. team at last year&rsquo;s Tokyo Olympics. Grant averaged 19.2 points in 47 games last season with the Pistons.
Lillard said he believes the team is headed in the right direction.
&ldquo;I&rsquo;m as anxious as I&rsquo;ve ever been to get out there and make something happen," he said. "I&rsquo;m in a great space mentally and physically. I&rsquo;m gonna come into this season comfortable and ready to do me, and do me at the highest level.&rdquo;
Lillard, who turns 32 on July 15, said that in addition to healing his body over the past several months, he also got a mental break that he believes will make his a better player going forward.
&ldquo;In my entire career, I haven&rsquo;t been injured. I&rsquo;ve had one injury that put me out, and that was when I was in college and I broke my foot. And that was the last time that I got to step away,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;I didn&rsquo;t recreate myself, I just charged back up and I came back and I was better than I had ever been.&rdquo;
He has averaged 24.6 points in his career. He was selected as a member of the league&rsquo;s top 75 players as part of the NBA&rsquo;s 75th anniversary celebration this past season.

Damian Lillard signed a two-year extension with the Blazers, and he's excited about the franchise's offseason moves.

After extension, Damian Lillard looks forward to re-tooled Blazers

Keep track of where the top 2022 undrafted free agents are headed after draft night.

2022 NBA UDFA Tracker: Latest news on undrafted free agents

Andrew Wiggins has endured years of criticism throughout the NBA world. Fans, social-media users and media pundits like Nick Wright of "First Thing's First" have all took turns bashing Wiggins, almost in an attempt to send him into the depths of NBA obscurity for the rest of his days.
On Feb. 6, 2020, the Golden State Warriors sent D&rsquo;Angelo Russell, along with Jacob Evans III and Omari Spellman, to Minnesota in exchange for Wiggins as well as a first-round pick (Jonathan Kuminga) and second-round pick (New York's Miles McBride) in the 2021 NBA Draft.
After the move, Wright publicly aired his opinion that Golden State made a mistake trading for Wiggins.&nbsp;
&ldquo;Andrew Wiggins is a bad basketball player,&rdquo; Wright said. &ldquo;He&rsquo;s owed $95 million over the next three years, starting next year. It&rsquo;s unspeakable the Warriors did this... It&rsquo;s over for them now. We will never see Steph in another NBA Finals again. Ever.&rdquo;
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-theme="dark">
"Andrew Wiggins is a bad basketball player. He's owed $95M over the next 3 years, starting next year. It's unspeakable the Warriors did this. ... It's over for them now. We will never see Steph in another NBA Finals again. Ever." &mdash; <a href="https://twitter.com/getnickwright?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@getnickwright</a><a href="https://t.co/zTv0yR33Aq">pic.twitter.com/zTv0yR33Aq</a>&lt;
&mdash; FOX Sports (@FOXSports) <a href="https://twitter.com/FOXSports/status/1225824328203276288?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 7, 2020</a></blockquote>
But it wasn't just him. Plenty of media pundits have had to eat their words and recant their statements and give apologies as Wright has had to almost daily since the NBA Finals began.
Selected as the No. 1 overall pick in 2014, much of the criticism has come from the fact that Wiggins didn&rsquo;t immediately become a superstar. They criticized his shot selection, his intensity (or lack thereof) on the court and his defense. Most of all, they criticized the fact that Wiggins didn&rsquo;t lead the Timberwolves to the promised land.&nbsp;
There were actually some who even suggested that Minnesota cut Wiggins from the team and eat the rest of his rookie contract because, in their &ldquo;expert&rdquo; opinion, the Wolves would&rsquo;ve been better off without him. The term &ldquo;bust&rdquo; began to float around, as it so often does.
Andrew Wiggins publicly admitted that, as much as he hoped to ignore it, he heard the constant criticism.
&ldquo;You hear it &mdash; on social media, when you turn on the TV and watch sports &mdash; you always see certain stuff; certain people say certain things,&rdquo; said Wiggins, noting he did his best to remain positive and tune out the noise, according to <a href="https://bleacherreport.com/articles/2864501-is-andrew-wiggins-20-for-real" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Yaron Weitzman of Bleacher Report</a>. &ldquo;It never really got to me to the point where, you know, it messed up my lifestyle, my life. I love myself more than anyone loves me.&rdquo;
Wiggins expressed that there had in fact been times when the criticism got the best of him.
&ldquo;I&rsquo;d go through a slump, and then you can&rsquo;t help but hear it,'&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;You always want to shut the people up that doubt you.&rdquo;
But those days are far behind him now, as Wiggins has proven &mdash; especially in these NBA Finals &mdash; that he is indeed one of the best two-way players currently in the NBA.
<div class="mceNonEditable"><spike>&nbsp;</spike></div>
I caught up with Golden State Warriors legend Mitch Richmond to give his assessment of the player that Andrew Wiggins has grown into.
(Mitch was a part of Golden State&rsquo;s high-scoring trio dubbed "Run TMC," which consisted of Tim Hardaway and Chris Mullin. Each member of the trio was among the top-11 best scorers of the 1990-91 NBA season. Mullin finished eighth in scoring with 25.7 points per game, Richmond 10th with 23.9 points per game, and Hardaway finished 11th with 22.9 points per game. Combined, Run TMC averaged 72.5 points per game as the league's highest-scoring trio.)
<img style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" src="https://cdn.basketballnews.com/images/story/body/mitchritchmondpic_690w.png" alt="" width="750" height="375" />
Etan Thomas: How impressed have you been with Andrew Wiggins especially after all the criticism he received early in his career?
Mitch Richmond: "When you&rsquo;re a young player, and you&rsquo;re really a guy that&rsquo;s kind of passive instead of the expected boisterous and big personality guys people are used to seeing, you have to go to the right team and be with the right type of players. Andrew Wiggins is now in the perfect situation, surrounded with the right type of guys who can blend with his personality.
"He has two guys in front of him in Steph [Curry] and Klay [Thompson] who are aggressive on the offensive end, and he has the ability to go about his business by getting rebounds, playing defense, shooting the open shot. And he is doing that very well. When you had him as the main scorer and the main guy, that&rsquo;s where he struggled a little bit because he wasn&rsquo;t that boisterous or that eager to talk and get his guys involved and just be the vocal leader. And add Draymond Green, who has such a big personality and is allowed to shoulder that burden so Andrew Wiggins can be himself without trying to be somebody he&rsquo;s not."
Etan: You mentioned Draymond Green, and a while ago I saw in an interview where he was talking to reporters and taking up for Andrew Wiggins on the subject of his past criticisms. He was saying that a lot of times, when a player is put in a situation where the team doesn&rsquo;t flourish or get to the promised land so to speak, the player is blamed, but not so much the organization. Do you think some of that occurred with Wiggins?&nbsp;
Richmond: "Most definitely. Sometimes, you have pretty good pieces as far as players, but everyone is not on the same page and not made to be on the same page by the organization. There is so much mismanagement of talent that goes on in the NBA. A winning team is often a reflection of a well-run organization. Many teams say they want to win, but they don&rsquo;t do what is necessary for their players to actually flourish, (and) they don&rsquo;t put together a system that will be successful. They don&rsquo;t run their organization correctly.
"Golden State has done a great job of putting the right pieces together, and creating a winning culture. I&rsquo;m down there all the time, going to the games, to practices; I see how the organization operates. They&rsquo;ve done a great job of creating a winning culture, and not all teams do that."
<div class="mceNonEditable"><spike>&nbsp;</spike></div>
Etan: Very true. You know I love when players make their critics eat their words and have to backtrack things they&rsquo;ve said the way Wiggins has. I love that. And watching him in these Finals, the Warriors don&rsquo;t win without him. Yeah, Steph has been phenomenal and had the 43-point night in Game 4. I wrote an article about Steph&rsquo;s phenomenal play and <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/nick-van-exel-rod-strickland-steve-francis-on-steph-currys-greatness" target="_blank" rel="noopener">interviewed Nick Van Exel, Rod Strickland and Steve Francis to all weigh in on his overall greatness</a>.
But the Warriors don&rsquo;t win this series without Andrew Wiggins. The monster rebounds he had in Boston in Game 4 (from the guard spot), and especially Game 5 when Steph was off. Wiggins stepped right up. They don&rsquo;t win without him. So to see how far he has come from the constant barrage of criticism to now, the fact that you can make a case for him being the Finals MVP is really amazing to see.
Richmond: "Yeah, he has been steady and crucial the entire series. Everyone had judgement early, even me, but now he is in the right situation for him, and people really discount how much the right situation can dictate the success of a player in the NBA. Wiggins has been the backbone of the team. That&rsquo;s a fact. All of the attention isn&rsquo;t on him. You mentioned Steph being off in Game 5, but really, the entire Boston defense was geared toward him, and they did a great job of making sure he didn&rsquo;t explode for 43 or possibly 50 the very next game.
"So other players like Wiggins had the opportunity to be freed up, and he took advantage of that opportunity. But even without that, like I said, he has been stellar all season. Let's be clear: Steph Curry is the MVP. But yes, there can definitely be a very strong case to be made that Wiggins could be the Finals MVP, at least up until this point."
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-theme="dark">
"I'm just trying to do every little thing to win." &mdash;Andrew Wiggins after his career performance in Game 5 <a href="https://t.co/kOf7ShN3Jp">pic.twitter.com/kOf7ShN3Jp</a>
&mdash; ESPN (@espn) <a href="https://twitter.com/espn/status/1536555093352251392?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">June 14, 2022</a></blockquote>

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

Etan: Let me ask you if you remember this. I&rsquo;mma take you back a little bit. I had first gotten traded to the Washington Wizards my rookie year in 2000 from Dallas, when half the team was traded for Juwan Howard, but I got there late because I had the surgery. And when I got there, it was during one of the last games and you were in the training room in the whirlpool.
You said to me: Young fella I&rsquo;ve watched you play at Syracuse, love how you play, you&rsquo;re gonna have a great career in the league, but let me offer you a piece of advice. Block out all the noise. Whether it&rsquo;s from the media, fans, your friends, family, other players, from wherever &mdash; just block it all out, stay focused, have tunnel vision and you&rsquo;ll be fine. You probably don&rsquo;t remember that, but that was some of the best advice I ever got in the league.&nbsp;
Richmond: "I do remember that, we were with the Wizards and the outside noise was tremendous. One thing I learned a long time ago in this sport: You have to have tunnel vision. You have to play the game with headphones on where nobody is entering or affecting your mental space. You wanna be clear and focused. It&rsquo;s easy to get distracted if you don&rsquo;t take on that type of mentality. When you came to the Wizards, we were losing, getting booed, the fans were tough. It makes me feel good that you remembered that because that was a long time ago (laughing). We gotta be going back 20-something years ago."
Etan: (Laughing) Yeah, we&rsquo;re getting up there. But it was such great advice, and going back to Andrew Wiggins, that&rsquo;s what he had to do &mdash; block out all the noise. I read an old article where he was talking about how it did in fact bother him hearing the criticism, but how couldn&rsquo;t it? I mean, Nick Wright literally called him a horrible player and said the Warriors wouldn&rsquo;t win because they traded for him.
(I hate that the media has become this hot takes, shock-jock show. And when one person like Nick Wright says something like that, other media jump on board like what he said was the Gospel. Then, you have social media who also runs with it.)
But Wiggins' success now is a great example of what you told me, how you have to block out the noise and stay focused, and you will be able to prove people wrong. That&rsquo;s why I reached out to you for this interview because Andrew Wiggins did exactly what you told me two decades ago.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-theme="dark">
Coming off 26 PTS and 13 REB in Game 5, run through Andrew Wiggins' best plays on both ends from the <a href="https://twitter.com/warriors?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@warriors</a> postseason run thus far! <a href="https://t.co/RUHyEaGH1z">pic.twitter.com/RUHyEaGH1z</a>
&mdash; NBA (@NBA) <a href="https://twitter.com/NBA/status/1536861043317669888?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">June 15, 2022</a></blockquote>

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

Richmond: "Yeah, and in this day and age, it&rsquo;s even more difficult than when we played because of the advent of social media, and everyone has an opinion that they have the power to express through Twitter or Instagram or whatnot. And there are a million Nick Wrights, like you said, because that type of commentating is popular, and it wasn&rsquo;t like that when we were playing. You have 25 shows every morning after a game who are all doing the same thing on every channel.
"The perfect example of blocking out all the noise is Kawhi Leonard. He blocks out everything. He doesn&rsquo;t listen or look at any of that stuff. A lot of young players who came up in this social-media-buzz era, this is all they know. A million people telling you that you suck after you have a bad game. That&rsquo;s not how we came up.
Etan: Not at all. I&rsquo;m glad they didn&rsquo;t have social media back in the day when we played.
Richmond: "Oh, me too. But I always tell young players, while this is the norm in your era, it&rsquo;s not the best for everyone. Some of y&rsquo;all need to turn all that off and hire someone to manage your social media &mdash; because I understand marketing-wise the positives of it, but you don&rsquo;t look at it at all. And don&rsquo;t listen to the talking heads either. Just keep that tunnel vision like a horse with blinders on, and keep pushing."
Etan: I agree 100%. So, last question. How proud are you of the Warriors and what they have accomplished this year?
Richmond: "You gotta tip your hat to them. They have been so exciting to watch since Klay and Curry touched down in Oakland. In our day and age, we always heard, 'You live by the three, you die by the three.' And we never would&rsquo;ve thought that a team that shot this many threes would have chance to win a championship."
Etan: Thus, the reason Charles Barkley hates the Warriors so much. (Laughing)
Richmond: (Laughing) "And he&rsquo;s never going to let that go either, but it&rsquo;s here. They are winning by the three. They&rsquo;ve dispelled that notion. But when you have the best shooters in the game &mdash; and that&rsquo;s what they do best is shoot threes &mdash; they&rsquo;ve created new basketball reality, whether anyone likes it or not. But I&rsquo;m extremely proud of them. I know the Bay Area is proud of them.
"We had some great fans, even back when we played there, and me and Tim and Chris were Run TMC &mdash; the Oakland fans were always wonderful. Even when the team is struggling, they are there supporting the team with all the positive energy they can possibly give. So it&rsquo;s great to see the fans be rewarded as well. You have to take your hat off to the whole Bay Area, you have to take your hat of to the organization and to the team. They have showed you how you properly run an organization, support the players, allow them to be individuals &mdash; not what you want them to be, but who they are and support them in what they do best, bringing it back to Wiggins, and that&rsquo;s why they are having the success they are having."
<img style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" src="https://cdn.basketballnews.com/images/story/body/violalogo1_690w.png" alt="" width="742" height="371" />
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Etan Thomas chats with Mitch Ritchmond about Andrew Wiggins breaking out with the Warriors and his impact on the NBA Finals.