Charlotte Bobcats

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

NBA Central Division Preview: Burning questions, rotation projections

We may be entering uncharted waters regarding the James Harden situation in Philadelphia.&nbsp;
The 10-time All-Star spoke at an Adidas media event in China earlier today and had some choice words about 76ers president Daryl Morey.
&ldquo;Daryl Morey is a liar and I will never be a part of an organization that he&rsquo;s a part of," Harden said. "Let me say that again: Daryl Morey is a liar and I will never be a part of an organization that he&rsquo;s a part of again."
This comes in response to <a href="https://www.espn.com/nba/story/_/id/38180876/76ers-ending-trade-talks-james-harden-sources-say" target="_blank" rel="noopener">ESPN&rsquo;s Adrian Wojnarowski's report</a> on Saturday that the Sixers were <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/report-sixers-ending-trade-talks-involving-james-harden" target="_blank" rel="noopener">taking Harden off the trade market</a> and expecting Harden to show up for training camp.&nbsp;
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-theme="dark">
James Harden: &ldquo;Daryl Morey is a liar and I will never be part of an organization that he&rsquo;s a part of. Let me say that again: Daryl Morey is a liar and I will never be part of an organization that he&rsquo;s a part of again.&rdquo; 😳 <a href="https://t.co/r2Gv07wAH7">pic.twitter.com/r2Gv07wAH7</a>
&mdash; Alex Kennedy (@AlexKennedyNBA) <a href="https://twitter.com/AlexKennedyNBA/status/1691039621776379904?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">August 14, 2023</a></blockquote>

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

The root of Harden&rsquo;s displeasure with Morey and the front office comes from the team&rsquo;s unwillingness to offer him a long-term maximum-level contract extension, according to Wojnarowski.&nbsp;
The Sixers had preliminary conversations with the Los Angeles Clippers, Harden&rsquo;s desired destination, but no deal came close to materializing. This was partially due to the Clippers' unwillingness to part ways with Terance Mann as well as Morey's insistence in getting a star-level return for a player of Harden&rsquo;s caliber.
Despite being reportedly taken off the trade market, Harden&rsquo;s desire to play elsewhere has not changed, and he still does not plan to report to training camp, according to <a href="https://theathletic.com/4771337/2023/08/12/james-harden-sixers-trade/?access_token=126038&amp;redirected=1" target="_blank" rel="noopener">The Athletic&rsquo;s Sam Amick</a>. Given his recent comments, one would certainly not expect Harden to change his mind anytime soon.
Harden has already shown his ability to &ldquo;stir the pot&rdquo; when it comes to forcing his way to a new destination. In 2020, Harden requested a trade from the Houston Rockets and when they didn't deal him prior to the start of the season, he responded by showing up late and out-of-shape to training camp and making disparaging comments toward his teammates once the season started. These actions ultimately led to the Rockets dealing the star guard to Brooklyn, where he asked out again just a year later.
However, Harden&rsquo;s request out of Philadelphia differs for two main reasons: his contract and Morey.&nbsp;
In June, he unexpectedly accepted his $35.6 million player option for the 2023-24 season and, in turn, asked to be sent elsewhere. Under this contract agreement, Harden is set to become an unrestricted free agent next summer. If the star guard is adamant about not playing again for the Sixers, he may face some challenges in holding out of training camp.
As relayed by <a href="https://twitter.com/BobbyMarks42/status/1691064721825513474" target="_blank" rel="noopener">ESPN&rsquo;s front office insider Bobby Marks</a>, the NBA&rsquo;s Collective Bargaining Agreement has specific guidelines for players withholding their services in the final year of their contract.
&ldquo;Withholding services: A player who withholds playing services called for by a Player Contract for more than thirty (30) days after the start of the last season covered by his Player Contract shall be deemed not to have &lsquo;complet[ed] his Player Contract by rendering the playing services called for thereunder,&rdquo; Marks <a href="https://twitter.com/BobbyMarks42/status/1691064721825513474" target="_blank" rel="noopener">conveyed</a> on Twitter. &ldquo;Accordingly, such a player shall not be a Veteran Free Agent and shall not be entitled to negotiate or sign a Player Contract with any other professional basketball team unless and until the Team for which the player last played expressly agreed otherwise.&rdquo;
In simpler terms, if Harden chooses to hold out for more than 30 days into the regular season, he will no longer be able to hit free agency next summer because he would not have completed the terms of his contract (unless the Sixers let him). Not to mention, the star guard would incur a significant amount of fines if he has a lengthy holdout. To my knowledge, this clause has never needed to be applied in NBA history to this point.
Harden may have no choice but to show up for training camp due to these restrictions. But would the Sixers even want him at camp if he is going to be a nuisance, much like he was in Houston back in 2020? Just two years ago, Philadelphia had to deal with the Ben Simmons situation, where he created a toxic atmosphere that led to the organization sending him home until his trade request was met later that season.&nbsp;
However, the reason Simmons&rsquo; trade request lasted all the way through the 2021-22 trade deadline is because Morey insisted on a star-level return for the young three-time All-Star. The trade just so happened to reunite him with his old colleague from his days in Houston: James Harden.
Morey and Harden&rsquo;s relationship dates back to when Houston acquired Harden from the Oklahoma City Thunder in the summer of 2012. The two were able to reach two Conference Finals during their run together and were presumed to have a good working relationship. Morey even acquiesced to Harden&rsquo;s request to trade for his former OKC teammate Russell Westbrook, a move that did not prove to be successful.
When Harden was brought to Philadelphia, he worked with Morey to sign a team-friendly contract during the summer of 2022 to leave room for the team to sign valuable pieces like PJ Tucker and Danuel House. As part of this deal, it has been suggested that the team gave Harden a &ldquo;wink-wink&rdquo; deal on a new long-term contract that would&rsquo;ve been extended this past offseason (which might explain Harden's comment).
Given the lack of any talks on a long-term deal, the relationship has since soured to the point of Harden directly calling Morey a liar. But that shouldn&rsquo;t stop Morey and the Sixers from trying to bring Harden back into the fold.&nbsp;
The only solution for Philly if they wish to compete for a championship in 2023-24 is bringing Harden back. The trade market has made clear that a Harden return package would not meet either of the Sixers' desired outcomes of keeping them in title contention or keeping cap flexibility for next summer. If they let Harden hold out, triggering the Withholding Services Clause or even allowing him reach free agency next summer, they would relinquish much of their cap flexibility that they hope to have next offseason.
We would be remiss if we didn&rsquo;t mention the other domino in the City of Brotherly Love: Joel Embiid. If the 76ers pull the trigger on a Harden deal, they may have to waste a prime year for Embiid, which will only stretch his patience to win a title in Philadelphia thinner. Remember, earlier this offseason, Embiid <a href="https://twitter.com/ajtorres1230/status/1680762456082202624?s=20" target="_blank" rel="noopener">said</a>: "I just want to win a championship, whatever it takes. I don't know where that's going to be, whether that's in Philly or anywhere else, I just want to have a chance to accomplish that."
Lastly, anytime a player bashes a front-office member in a very public way, the league office should take notice. Expect them to monitor this situation closely to see if there were any possible under-the-table discussions, promises or agreements that violated league rules, similar to <a href="https://ftw.usatoday.com/2014/01/nba-joe-smith-illegal-contract-timberwolves" target="_blank" rel="noopener">a situation that occurred in the early 2000s with the Minnesota Timberwolves and Joe Smith</a>. If the NBA discovers there was any kind of agreement on a future long-term deal between Harden and the Sixers prior to him signing his team-friendly deal in 2021, then Philadelphia could face serious punishment.
Overall, this situation has become an absolute mess. Both sides have some form of leverage over the other, and neither seems to be in the &ldquo;right.&rdquo; The NBA seemingly never sleeps, and it seems as though we will have to keep an eye on what Harden or the 76ers' next moves might be.&nbsp;

Blake Stern examines a specific clause in the NBA's CBA and how it may throw a wrench in James Harden's plan to holdout.

Examining what the CBA says about James Harden's plan to holdout

Heading into the weekend, I figured I'd followed the same script as the other two award pieces. Fill out and&nbsp; complete my (fake) ballot, sprinkle in some extra details or stray thoughts to account for questions that may pop up, then go about my business.
I dropped my "final rough draft" on Friday's episode of <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/podcasts/the-dunker-spot" target="_blank" rel="noopener">The Dunker Spot</a>, though I gave myself a weekend's worth of wiggle room to make any last-second changes. In typical fashion, I watched, researched and ultimately thought myself into a headache. The result of that is this piece: A separate article detailing where and how I landed on the 2022-23 NBA Most Valuable Player, with a follow-up article coming to reveal the rest of my (fake) ballot.
Throughout MVP discourse, many people &mdash; voters or people like me who wish they could vote &mdash; have made it a point to mention how tough it is. To highlight how the top three &mdash; Nikola Jokic, Joel Embiid and Giannis Antetokounmpo &mdash; are all worthy candidates to win, and that we shouldn't be all that upset by who wins. There's truth to that.
(You, savvy reader and/or listener, can also tell when someone is genuinely perplexed vs. when they're throwing in that platitude in an effort to avoid smoke for his/her opinion. We can be real here.)
I landed in the former camp. To refresh your memory, this is where I landed at the <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/2022-23-nba-award-picks-mvp-dpoy-rookie-sixth-man-most-improved-all-league-defensive-teams-volume-2" target="_blank" rel="noopener">beginning of March</a>:
Previous order (through Mar.1): 
<ol>
<li>Nikola Jokic (Previously No. 3)</li>
<li>Giannis Antetokounmpo (Previously No. 2)</li>
<li>Joel Embiid (Previously Honorable Mention, Record)</li>
<li>Jayson Tatum (Previously No. 1)</li>
<li>Luka Doncic (Previously No. 5)</li>
</ol>
This is where I am right now on April 11 with the regular season over:
<ol>
<li>Joel Embiid (Previously No. 3) </li>
<li>Giannis Antetokounmpo (Previously No. 2)</li>
<li>Nikola Jokic (Previously No. 1)</li>
<li>Jayson Tatum (Previously No. 4)</li>
<li>Domantas Sabonis (Previously Honorable Mention, Not As Good As Luka Doncic)</li>
</ol>
<div class="mceNonEditable"><spike>&nbsp;</spike></div>
With all due respect to Tatum and Sabonis, there isn't much to discuss with their placements.
Tatum was a two-way ironman for a team that flirted with the best record in the NBA. At full tilt, the Boston Celtics may very well be the best team in the league. Tatum became the first Celtic to average over 30 points per game for a season &mdash; a mind-blowing stat considering their history. Career-high averages in rebounds (8.8) and assists (4.6) are also nice. If you'd like to use Tatum's availability (and overall malleability) to argue for him to be higher, you can; it just wouldn't be my&nbsp;case.&nbsp;
Sabonis was the best player on the Western Conference's most (surprisingly) consistent team, acting as the hub of the NBA's most dangerous offense. He became just the fourth player in NBA history to average at least 19 points, 12 rebounds and 7 assists in a season; add in his 61.5% clip from the field (63.9% on twos, 37.3% on a low volume of threes), and the list shrinks to him and Wilt Chamberlain.&nbsp;
The battle for MVP ultimately became a three-man race in 2023 &mdash; if you recall, Tatum was my MVP <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/2022-23-nba-early-season-award-picks-mvp-dpoy-rookie-sixth-man-most-improved-all-league-defensive-teams" target="_blank" rel="noopener">in my first check-in</a> from mid-December &mdash; between Embiid, Giannis and Jokic.
There's more to discuss with Jokic, who nearly became the first center in NBA history to average a triple-double. Even that sells his season short; Jokic just logged the most efficient season in NBA history among players to average at least 20 points.
If Jokic and the Denver Nuggets hadn't, by their standards, sputtered to the finish line, he likely would've maintained the lead he had in my second check-in and gotten my fictitious vote. That he was already having a (much) worse defensive season than Embiid and Giannis and managed to go backwards over this recent stretch &mdash; particularly the <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/how-concerned-should-we-be-about-the-denver-nuggets" target="_blank" rel="noopener">middle portion of March</a> &mdash; made it tough for me in a race this close.
There was even a quieter dip in Jokic's production offensively, though he was still absurd overall.
<ul>
<li>Dec. 14 through Feb. 28 (32 games): 25.2 points on 71.2% True Shooting, 10.7 assists (3.7 turnovers)</li>
<li>From March 1 onward (14 games): 24.0 points on 69.6% True Shooting, 9.1 assists (3.6 turnovers)</li>
</ul>
That being said, it was a ridiculous season from Jokic. He was still the best offensive player in the league for me. The Nuggets showcased, on multiple occasions, that they didn't quite know how to function without him. Even with the recent "slippage," he paced the league in many advanced metrics. A worthy choice, just ultimately not my choice.
<div class="mceNonEditable"><spike>&nbsp;</spike></div>
From here, let's talk about Embiid vs Giannis for a bit. Here are a handful of Embiid's stat lines since the beginning of March:
<ul>
<li>52-13-6 (plus 2 blocks) in a win vs. the Celtics</li>
<li>46-9-8-2-1 in a loss vs. the Warriors</li>
<li>36-18 (plus 4 blocks) in a win vs. the Cavaliers</li>
<li>31-6-10 in a win vs. the Bucks</li>
<li>39-7-4-1-3 in a win vs. the Timberwolves</li>
</ul>
This ignores the 37 and 16 against Chicago; the 42-on-16-shots affair against the Pacers; the 38-14-5 he slapped up against the Hornets. Of the 18 games Embiid played during this stretch, he scored 30 or more 12 times and the Philadelphia 76ers went 12-6 in those contests. He fell below 20 points once &mdash; 12-7-7 in 16 first-half minutes against the Bulls before sitting the second half of that blowout for precautionary reasons. There's a rule about assuming, but it'd be fair to project him putting up a nutty stat line in that game had he played the second half.
There just hasn't been a consistent answer for this guy all year. Crowding the paint only does so much when he's willing to shoot over you &mdash; and do so at a high clip. Doubling can only do so much when he's grown as a passer &mdash; the Sixers scored at an elite rate on possessions that Embiid passed out of a post-double team (1.17 PPP) or isolation double (1.14 PPP), per Second Spectrum &mdash; and can <a href="https://www.theringer.com/nba/2023/3/31/23664110/joel-embiid-76ers-mvp-race" target="_blank" rel="noopener">brow-beat them</a> when necessary.&nbsp;
He's taken over half of his shots from mid-range this season and drilled them at a 49% clip. He drew 104 fouls in the mid-range area, per Cleaning The Glass; do you know how hard it is to have Embiid's shot profile and manage to get fouled as often as he does? It's insane stuff and speaks to the guard-like ability he has in this range.&nbsp;
<div style="width: 100%; height: 0px; position: relative; padding-bottom: 56.250%;"><iframe style="width: 100%; height: 100%; position: absolute; left: 0px; top: 0px; overflow: hidden;" src="https://streamable.com/e/kymug6" width="100%" height="325" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen" data-mce-fragment="1"></iframe></div>
The defense has waxed and waned over the closing stretch, but the Sixers ended the year with a 94.5 half-court defensive rating with Embiid on the floor, per Cleaning The Glass; that's equivalent to the second-best half-court D in the NBA, and is a mark that shouldn't be that high considering Philly's overall roster construction.
Even "Lax Embiid" can goad opponents into pull-ups &mdash; though that's something worth keeping an eye on as the postseason hits. Engaged Embiid &mdash; the guy that can blow stuff up at the level of the screen and still strut back to challenge shots at the rim &mdash; is, and has been, a world-ender.
<div style="width: 100%; height: 0px; position: relative; padding-bottom: 56.250%;"><iframe style="width: 100%; height: 100%; position: absolute; left: 0px; top: 0px; overflow: hidden;" src="https://streamable.com/e/cot2l0" width="100%" height="325" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen" data-mce-fragment="1"></iframe></div>
The TLDR summary: Embiid had a heavy load to carry on both ends of the floor, <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/nba-news-feature-philadelphia-76ers-sixers-joel-embiid-mvp-race-james-harden-tyrese-maxey" target="_blank" rel="noopener">dominated offensively and anchored a high-level defense while flashing an even higher level when fully locked in</a>. Having a 65% win rate in his games helped; the advanced metrics also paint him in a favorable light.
<div class="mceNonEditable"><spike>&nbsp;</spike></div>
Of course, we can't lose sight of the work Giannis did in a less-than-ideal context at the beginning of the year. He was without his best pick-and-roll partner in Khris Middleton and didn't always have Jrue Holiday by his side. It's not a coincidence that, once those two were in the lineup with Giannis more consistently, the Milwaukee Bucks (and Giannis) took off.
Giannis remained a battering ram at the rim, drawing shooting fouls on a career-best 24.6% of his shot attempts this year, per Cleaning The Glass. His mark of 12.3 free throw attempts per game led the NBA. Giannis' downhill passing also remained a legitimate weapon; his rate of kick-out passes rose to career-high levels (17.1 per 100 possessions), while his turnover rate on total passes (1.57%) was his lowest in three seasons, per Second Spectrum.
<div style="width: 100%; height: 0px; position: relative; padding-bottom: 56.250%;"><iframe style="width: 100%; height: 100%; position: absolute; left: 0px; top: 0px; overflow: hidden;" src="https://streamable.com/e/gu65qp" width="100%" height="325" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen" data-mce-fragment="1"></iframe></div>
There was an obvious gap between Embiid and Giannis in points (33.1 vs. 31.1) and a larger one in efficiency (Embiid's 65.5% TS vs. Giannis' 60.7% TS). Again, it's hard to overstate the difference in shooting ability that the two displayed. Embiid was a monster from mid-range compared to Giannis' clip (31.8%), knocked down a higher percentage of threes (33.0% vs. 27.5%) and shot much better from the line (85.7% vs. 64.5%).
Milwaukee faithful would likely point to the context for the two, particularly what Giannis dealt with at the beginning of the year sans Middleton &mdash; and at times, with no Holiday. There's some credence to that.&nbsp;
How's this for a did-you-know: The Sixers logged a paltry 111.4 offensive rating in 333 minutes with Embiid on the floor without James Harden and Tyrese Maxey; the Bucks were slightly better &mdash; a 113.8 offensive rating in nearly double the sample (643 minutes) &mdash; with Giannis on the floor without Holiday and Middleton.
The scoring breakdown in those minutes:
<ul>
<li>Giannis: 608 points (34.0 points per 36 minutes), 57.7% on twos, 26.2% on threes, 60.3% TS</li>
<li>Embiid: 302 points (32.6 per 36), 51.4% on twos, 22.2% on threes, 58.4% TS</li>
</ul>
The playmaking still leans towards Giannis:
<ul>
<li>Giannis: 145 assists (8.1 per 36), 94 turnovers (5.3 per 36)</li>
<li>Embiid: 63 assists (6.8 per 36), 44 turnovers (4.8 per 36)</li>
</ul>
If you only filter for the minutes the two played with and without their primary ball-handler &mdash; <a href="https://www.pbpstats.com/wowy-combos/nba?TeamId=1610612755&amp;Season=2022-23&amp;SeasonType=Regular%2BSeason&amp;PlayerIds=203954,201935" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Harden for Embiid</a>, <a href="https://www.pbpstats.com/wowy-combos/nba?TeamId=1610612749&amp;Season=2022-23&amp;SeasonType=Regular%2BSeason&amp;PlayerIds=203507,201950" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Holiday for Giannis</a> &mdash; some fun stuff is revealed, namely:
<ul>
<li>The Bucks' offense burned a little brighter with Giannis and Holiday (123.9 ORTG) compared to the Sixers pairing (123.2 ORTG).</li>
<li>The Sixers still operated at a top-10 rate when Embiid played without Harden (117.8, would rank No. 7); the same could not be said for Giannis without Holiday (113.0, would rank No. 26).</li>
</ul>
Zooming out, the defense is where things got tight for me.
Full disclosure: On Friday's pod, I listed Embiid as my choice. By Sunday morning, I was ready to flip to Giannis. And that was before Bleacher Report's Chris Haynes <a href="https://twitter.com/ChrisBHaynes/status/1645111264623095808?s=20" target="_blank" rel="noopener">dropped his exclusive sit-down interview</a> with the 2021 NBA champion, surprisingly (and honestly, refreshingly) dipping into his, "Let's not get carried away, I still do this" bag. The Sixers tailing off defensively over the past couple of weeks really opened the door.
Giannis has been elite this year, an omnipresent deterrent lurking around the weak side. When challenged at the rim, opponents haven't had much success; they converted just 55.4% of their shots at the rim against Giannis, <a href="https://www.nba.com/stats/players/defensive-impact?CF=GP*GE*49:DEF_RIM_FGA*GE*4&amp;dir=A&amp;sort=DEF_RIM_FG_PCT" target="_blank" rel="noopener">which ranks 10th among 51 players</a> to defend at least four shots per contest.
But of that 51-player group, Giannis ranked 40th in shots defended per game. Embiid was third and Jokic was fourth; that obviously speaks to how willing teams were to attack the latter, but the discrepancy is at least kinda funny when considering the scheme differences between the two.&nbsp;
Embiid ranked 12th in contested shots per game (10.3). Giannis ranked 44th (6.6); his teammate, Brook Lopez, was first (17.5) by a comically large margin.
<div class="mceNonEditable"><spike>&nbsp;</spike></div>
That led me down the Giannis-at-the-5 rabbit hole, which revealed that the Bucks were a middling defense (114.2 DRTG, would rank 13th) with Giannis on the floor without Lopez, per Cleaning The Glass. When you also&nbsp;remove Bobby Portis from the equation, however, that drops to a would-be-league-leading 104.5 DRTG in nearly 850 possessions.
There were other searches I did that I won't bore you with, such as Giannis without Holiday and Lopez (116.7 DRTG in 1,034 possessions) compared to Embiid without De'Anthony Melton and PJ Tucker (111.8 DRTG in 561 possessions).
(It's worth noting that such a query left the Jevon Carter minutes on the table for Giannis, as it did the pre-trade Matisse Thybulle minutes for Embiid.)
Ultimately, the fundamental question became this: Do you value Giannis being better in a secondary rim-protecting role than Embiid with his primary responsibilities, or do you give Embiid the edge for having to carry more responsibility on that end?
You're more than welcome to disagree, but I landed on the responsibility angle.
Embiid getting this&nbsp;team to a top-10 finish defensively was impressive. Having the offensive year he had, on the shot diet he lived on, was also wildly impressive. Only Stephen Curry and 22 games of 1982-83 Adrian Dantley have posted more efficient 30-point seasons than Embiid, and the Sixers big man averaged more points than both of them.
I geniunely don't think you could go wrong with any of these three. Jokic's team performed better with him on the floor than Giannis or Embiid; Giannis paced both guys in wins and win percentage in addition to his excellence.
The combination of production, efficiency, winning and responsibility gave Embiid the narrow win for me.

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

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

WASHINGTON (AP) &mdash; The Milwaukee Bucks were eliminated last season in a Game 7 on the road.
One more victory, and they won&rsquo;t have to worry about that.
Giannis Antetokounmpo had 28 points, 11 rebounds and 10 assists, and Jrue Holiday nearly added a triple-double of his own as the Bucks took another step toward wrapping up the NBA&rsquo;s best record with a 140-128 victory over the Washington Wizards on Tuesday night.
Holiday finished with 26 points, 10 assists and nine rebounds, and Bobby Portis added 19 points and 20 rebounds for Milwaukee.
The Bucks (57-22) moved to three games ahead of Boston with three to play, although the Celtics &mdash; who beat Milwaukee in that seven-game series last year &mdash; have the head-to-head tiebreaker. Boston lost a 103-101 thriller at Philadelphia on Tuesday, with ex-Buck P.J. Tucker hitting big 3-pointers down the stretch as Milwaukee players watched in their locker room.
After that game ended, Antetokounmpo downplayed the importance of home court just a little, noting that the Bucks were the No. 3 seed in the Eastern Conference when they won it all two years ago.
&ldquo;At the end of the day, Boston is a beast, Philly is a beast, Cleveland is a beast, New York is a beast,&rdquo; Antetokounmpo said.
Kendrick Nunn scored 24 points for the Wizards, who are out of playoff contention and played without Bradley Beal (left knee), Kristaps Porzingis (illness) and Kyle Kuzma (right ankle). Washington kept it close until late in the second quarter, when Milwaukee closed the half on a 13-5 run to lead 75-62.
It wasn&rsquo;t close after that, with the Bucks leading by as many as 24 points. Milwaukee wasn&rsquo;t at full strength either. Khris Middleton (right knee) missed the game, which was the first half of a back-to-back for the Bucks. Grayson Allen was also out after leaving Sunday&rsquo;s game against Philadelphia with a sprained right ankle.
Pat Connaughton played only 5:40 because of what coach Mike Budenholzer said was a twisted right ankle. Budenholzer was hopeful it&rsquo;s not too serious.
HIGHLIGHT
On a night when defense was in short supply, Antetokounmpo made an incredible chase-down block on Nunn in the fourth quarter with his team up 15 &mdash; although Corey Kispert followed up with a layup for the Wizards.
&ldquo;His competitive fire, his competitive spirit, it&rsquo;s the best,&rdquo; Budenholzer said. &ldquo;A lot of guys I think don&rsquo;t go get that. Not his physical ability to go get it, but just the competitiveness and the willingness to try. He&rsquo;s very special that way.&rdquo;
Antetokounmpo nearly had his triple-double after three quarters but needed one more assist.
LOTTERY ODDS
Washington (34-45) is now in a three-way tie for 11th place in the Eastern Conference with Orlando and Indiana.
TIP-INS
Bucks: Jevon Carter (left foot) did not play. ... Portis has 23 double-doubles off the bench this season, the most in the league. ... Antetokounmpo had eight turnovers. ... Jae Crowder scored 19 points. ... Milwaukee shot 23 of 42 from 3-point range.
Wizards: In addition to the Beal-Porzingis-Kuzma trio, Washington was also missing Monte Morris (right ankle), Delon Wright (illness) and Deni Avdija (left elbow). Jordan Goodwin, Johnny Davis and Anthony Gill, who had combined for 10 starts all season, were all in the starting lineup. ... Davis, a first-round draft pick last year, scored a career-high 20 points. ... Gafford picked up four fouls in the first half.
UP NEXT
Bucks: Host Chicago on Wednesday night.
Wizards: At Atlanta on Wednesday night.

The Bucks (57-22) moved to three games ahead of Boston with three games to play.

Antetokounmpo’s triple-double lifts Bucks over Wizards

The Portland Trail Blazers, Charlotte Hornets and Philadelphia 76ers have made a 3-way deal with defense specialist Matisse Thybulle headed to the Blazers says <a href="https://twitter.com/ChrisBHaynes/status/1623737180664524803" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Chris Haynes of Bleacher Report</a>. The Hornets are shipping Jalen McDaniels to the 76ers wihle the Hornets getting multiple second-round picks.&nbsp;
Svi Mykhailiuk, who the Blazers acquired in the Josh Hart trade with the Knicks, will go to the Hornets as part of the deal.&nbsp;
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-theme="dark">
Here&rsquo;s the Philly/Charlotte/Portland breakdown No whiteboard! PHL &ndash; trades Thybulle, 2023 more favorable of ATL, CHA &amp; BRK and receive JMcDaniels, 2029 POR 2nd &amp; 2024 NYK 2nd POR &ndash; trades two 2nds (2027 more favorable of NOP/POR, 2029 POR) and receive Thybulle
&mdash; Bobby Marks (@BobbyMarks42) <a href="https://twitter.com/BobbyMarks42/status/1623744237043843075?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 9, 2023</a></blockquote>

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

The Blazers, Hornets, and 76ers are making a 3-way deal with Matisse Thybulle going to Portland.

Blazers, Hornets, 76ers 3-way trade; Thybulle to Portland

STARKVILLE, Miss. (AP) &mdash; Zia Cooke scored 16 points and Aliyah Boston added 12 to help No. 1 South Carolina remain unbeaten with a 58-51 win over Mississippi State on Sunday.
The Gamecocks were held to a season-low point total but were able to find a way. Boston added 15 rebounds in the win.
South Carolina (16-0, 3-0 SEC) had a massive advantage at the free throw line where the Gamecocks were 14 of 24 while MSU was 2 of 5. The Gamecocks also dominated the boards with a 53-35 edge including 22 offensive rebounds.
Jerkaila Jordan led the way for the Bulldogs (12-5, 1-3) with 13 points and five rebounds. Jessika Carter had 11 points and nine rebounds.
NO. 2 STANFORD 60, CALIFORNIA 56
BERKELEY, Calif. (AP) &mdash; Haley Jones scored the go-ahead layup with 1:17 to play, Cameron Brink had 25 points, 17 rebounds and three blocked shots as NBA pal Stephen Curry watched courtside, outdueling Leilani McIntosh down the stretch as Stanford held off California.
Jones wound up with 12 points and 11 rebounds as the Cardinal (16-1, 4-0 Pac-12) ran their winning streak to 11 games.
McIntosh finished with 19 points for the Golden Bears (10-5, 1-3).
Stanford won its 38th straight game against Pac-12 teams including the past two conference titles and postseason.
NO. 3 OHIO STATE 87, ILLINOIS 81
COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) &mdash; Taylor Mikesell scored a game-high 31 points as Ohio State erased a halftime deficit and avoided an upset.
Mikesell shot 50% from the field and Cotie McMahon added 22 points for Ohio State (17-0, 6-0 Big Ten). Taylor Thierry had 12 points and swiped four steals.
Kendall Bostic notched her sixth double-double of the season behind 27 points and 15 rebounds. Genesis Bryant finished with 20 points, Makira Cook had 12 and Brynn Shoup-Hill tallied 10 for Illinois (14-3, 4-2).
NO. 22 NORTH CAROLINA 60, NO. 4 NOTRE DAME 50
CHAPEL HILL, N.C. (AP) &mdash; First-year guard Paulina Paris scored 11 of her season-high 16 points in the fourth quarter to help North Carolina push past Notre Dame.
Deja Kelly added 14 points for the Tar Heels (10-5, 1-3 Atlantic Coast Conference), who snapped a four-game skid that had drained some of their early season buzz.
Olivia Miles had 15 points and seven rebounds to lead Notre Dame (12-2, 3-1), which had entered Sunday as one of two unbeaten teams in ACC play.
NO. 6 INDIANA 72, NORTHWESTERN 50
EVANSTON, Ill. (AP) &mdash; Mackenzie Holmes scored 24 points and grabbed 13 rebounds and Indiana beat Northwestern.
Grace Berger finished with 16 points and five assists for the Hoosiers (14-1, 4-1).
The Wildcats got a boost off the bench as Jasmine McWilliams added eight points on 3-for-3 shooting in the third. McWilliams and Sydney Wood led Northwestern (6-9, 0-5 Big Ten) with 10 points each in their seventh loss in nine games.
NO. 7 LSU 67, KENTUCKY 48
LEXINGTON, Ky. (AP) &mdash; Flau&rsquo;jae Johnson scored 26 points, including eight during a 12-0, second-quarter run to break the game open, Angel Reese also scored 26 and LSU earned its best start in school history.
Reese had 13 rebounds for her nation&rsquo;s-best 16th double-double. The Tigers (16-0, 4-0 Southeastern Conference) outshot Kentucky just 40%-35% but dominated nearly every other statistical category including rebounding (45-23).
Maddie Scherr had 22 points for Kentucky (8-8, 0-4), which dropped its fourth in a row and lost its second game this season in Rupp Arena, home of the men&rsquo;s basketball team.
MIAMI 77, NO. 9 VIRGINIA TECH 66
CORAL GABLES, Fla. (AP) &mdash; Jasmyn Roberts scored a career-best 23 points, Haley Cavinder added 19 and Miami held off Virginia Tech.
Roberts was 8 for 12 from the field, 5 of 7 from 3-point range for the Hurricanes (10-6, 3-2 Atlantic Coast Conference), who won their third straight game. Cavinder was 6 for 12 from the field, and Miami shot 54%.
Elizabeth Kitley scored 20 for Virginia Tech (13-3, 3-3), which had beat Miami five consecutive times. Georgia Amoore added 13 for the Hokies.
NO. 10 NC STATE 87, VIRGINIA 62
RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) &mdash; Jada Boyd scored 13 points and No. 10 North Carolina State snapped a two-game home losing skid.
Camille Hobby and Mimi Collins both had 12 points, and Diamond Johnson and River Baldwin added 10 points apiece for the Wolfpack (13-3, 3-2). Jakia Brown-Turner and Madison Hayes each finished with nine.
Camryn Taylor scored 16 points, Taylor Valladay had 13 and Sam Brunelle 12 for Virginia (13-3, 2-3), which dropped a game to a top-10 team for the second time in four days after losing Thursday at No. 9 Virginia Tech.
NO. 17 OKLAHOMA 82, NO. 11 IOWA STATE 79
NORMAN, Okla. (AP) &mdash; Ana Llanusa scored 23 points, Skylar Vann hit the final go-ahead basket, and Oklahoma defeated Iowa State in a matchup of the Big 12&prime;s top two offenses.
In a game with 25 lead changes, Oklahoma struck last.
Vann finished with 13 points and eight rebounds for Oklahoma (12-2, 2-1 Big 12). Nevaeh Tot also scored 13 points, and Taylor Robertson finished with 10.
Ashley Joens finished with 27 points and nine rebounds. She made 12-of-13 free throws. Lexi Donarski scored 20 and Nyamer Diew 14 for the Cyclones (10-3, 2-1).
NO. 12 UCLA 61, SOUTHERN CAL 60
LOS ANGELES (AP) &mdash; Freshman Londynn Jones scored 13 of her career-high 22 points in the second half and UCLA used a big fourth-quarter run to beat Southern California.
Emily Bessoir hit 3 of 5 from 3-point range and finished with 11 points for UCLA (13-2, 2-1 Pac-12). Charisma Osborne scored six of her nine points in the fourth quarter.
Rayah Marshall had 15 points, eight rebounds and three blocks for Southern Cal (11-4, 1-3) and Kayla Williams also scored 15 points. Okako Adika added 11 points and Destiny Littlejohn 10.
NO. 15 ARIZONA 79, NO. 18 OREGON 71
TUSCON, Ariz. (AP) &mdash; Madison Conner scored 16 second-half points to lead five Arizona players in double figures and the Wildcats beat Oregon.
Shaina Pellington had 14 points, six rebounds and six assists, Jade Loville scored 13 points and Esmery Martinez 11 for Arizona (14-2, 4-1 Pac-12). Kate Reese had 10 points.
Grace VanSlooten led Oregon (12-4, 3-2) with 18 points. Te-Hina Paopao and Endyia Rogers scored 17 apiece, Chance Gray added 10 and Phillipina Kyei had six points and 10 rebounds. The 6-foot-8 Kyei has grabbed at least 10 rebounds in eight consecutive games.
NO. 24 ST. JOHN&rsquo;S 71, XAVIER 52
NEW YORK (AP) &mdash; Jayla Everett scored a season-high 26 points and St. John&rsquo;s bounced back after its first loss of the season.
Jillian Archer had 16 points and 13 rebounds for the Red Storm (14-1, 5-1 Big East Conference).
Mackayla Scarlett had 18 points for the Musketeers (7-9, 0-7), who have lost six straight as well as 15 straight to St. John&rsquo;s.
NO. 25 CREIGHTON 68, MARQUETTE 42
OMAHA, Neb. (AP) &mdash; Lauren Jensen scored 19 points and Creighton defeated Marquette after holding the Golden Eagles to 14 points in the first half.
Chloe Marotta scored 20 points for Marquette and Jordan King added 13. Only four players scored for the Golden Eagles (10-6, 3-4 Big East).
Jensen made 9 of 14 shots and added three rebounds and five assists. Morgan Maly had 10 points and seven rebounds, and Emma Ronsiek scored 10 for the Bluejays (10-5, 4-3) who had lost four of their last five games.

A recap of Sunday's women's college basketball slate features the top-ranked Gamecocks in a battle with the Bulldogs.

No. 1 South Carolina battles back to beat Mississippi State

On the latest episode of The Rex Chapman Show with Josh Hopkins, the guys are joined by the legendary Mike Krzyzewski a.k.a. Coach K.
During the show, Coach K revisits his incredible tenure at Duke and watching the team play under Jon Scheyer now, the Redeem Team, his coaching philosophy and much more. Watch the full episode below:
<iframe title="YouTube video player" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/RFCYar9Q5Vs" width="100%" height="325" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>
Time Stamps
5:30 - Should Christian Laettner have been ejected in 1992?
7:00 - After a storied career, what is Coach K up to these days? What's life after coaching like for him? There's still plenty of basketball.
9:15 - Is it difficult watching Duke basketball from a different capacity? Are there any regrets after leaving the bench, and now watching Jon Scheyer take over as head coach?
11:30 - What did Coach K see in Scheyer in his playing days at Duke that made him the perfect archetype to be a great coach?
18:30 - Where did Coach K gain his unparalleled work ethic? He goes back to his childhood and what he learned at West Point, and discusses what he continues to use to this day.
22:30 - At West Point, it wasn't just learning from Coach Bobby Knight on the basketball court, but there were so many facets of leadership and life skills he learned at the academy.
24:00 - Coach K's philosophy to "be worthy of winning"&nbsp;
28:00 - On the recruiting trail, Coach K always made it a point of emphasis to understand what a player's relationship was with their mother, and you could learn even more if they had an older sister.
31:30 - With the success Coach K has had, especially in the NCAA Tournament, he describes how several of his teams may have been worthy of a national championship, but may have fallen short because the one thing you can't fast-track is experience.
42:00 - Where coaching USA Basketball ranks among the accomplishments of Coach K's career. To him, there's no greater honor than representing your country on the world stage.
45:30 - What was so special about The Redeem Team of 2008 under the leadership of Kobe Bryant? It was about winning a gold medal, but more so about winning the respect of their country.
48:00 - Kobe Bryant approached Coach K in 2008 and asked to guard the best player on the opposing team: "Most people don't dream of moments."
52:00 - Coach K says Rex Chapman was one of the players Coach K always wanted to coach because he had a spirit and passion for the game.
54:00 - Coach K recalls "The Shot" and gives the guys his view of those final seconds in that incredible victory over the Kentucky Wildcats. It was at that moment he recognized he had to say something to the team he had just beaten.
59:00 - What Coach K's expectations are for Kentucky this season, and how hard it must be for John Calipari to have to go out and win every game for the fans.

On The Rex Chapman Show, the iconic "Coach K" Mike Krzyzewski discusses the Blue Devils, his philosophies and much more.

Legendary 'Coach K' Mike Krzyzewski talks Duke, USA Basketball, more

PARADISE ISLAND, Bahamas (AP) &mdash; Bobby Pettiford Jr. made a twisting reverse layup off a loose rebound with 0.2 seconds left in overtime to give No. 3 Kansas a 69-68 win over Wisconsin in a Battle 4 Atlantis semifinal on Thursday.
Pettiford&rsquo;s layup marked his only points of the game, capping a thriller that saw Wisconsin rally from 15 down early in the second half.
Jalen Wilson scored 29 points and had 14 rebounds for the reigning national champion Jayhawks (6-0), and Kevin McCullar Jr. had 18 points and nine rebounds &mdash; and a 3 to force overtime.
Tyler Wahl led the Badgers (4-1) with 23 points and 10 rebounds. Most of his points came after half in what was at times a one-man comeback, including a spinning drive against a falling Wilson for a layup and a 68-67 lead with 21 seconds left.
Kansas will take on No. 22 Tennessee in the tournament title game on Friday.
NO. 1 NORTH CAROLINA 89, PORTLAND 81
PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) &mdash; Pete Nance scored 28 points, Caleb Love added 23 and North Carolina survived an unexpected test from Portland in the opening round of the Phil Knight Invitational.
The Tar Heels (5-0) needed a late 14-3 run to finally pull away from one of the tournament&rsquo;s host schools. Love carried them in the first half with 16 points and reached the 1,000-point mark in his career, becoming the 80th North Carolina player to reach that mark.&nbsp;
Nance picked up the slack after halftime with 20 points and matched his career high in scoring set last season when he was playing for Northwestern.
Moses Wood led Portland (4-3) with 21 points.
The Tar Heels will face Iowa State in a semifinal game Friday. Portland will play Villanova in a consolation game.
NO. 8 DUKE 54, OREGON STATE 51
PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) &mdash; Kyle Filipowski had 19 points and 14 rebounds as Duke held off a challenge from Oregon State in the opening game of the Phil Knight Legacy tournament.
Ryan Young added 11 points and 15 rebounds off the bench and was the only other Blue Devils (5-1) player to score in double figures.
Jordan Pope led the Beavers (3-2) with 14 points, five rebounds, two assists and two steals. Dexter Akanno hit two 3-pointers and scored 11 points.
The Blue Devils will face Xavier in a PKL semifinal on Friday, while the Beavers will take on Florida.
NO. 6 GONZAGA 102, PORTLAND STATE 78
PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) &mdash; Malachi Smith led six players in double figures with a season-high 23 points and No. 6 Gonzaga used a big first half to beat Portland State in the opening round of the Phil Knight Legacy tournament.
The Bulldogs (4-1) led by 27 in the first half, led 55-31 at halftime and withstood a sloppy second half.
Drew Timme scored 18 points and the only shot he missed was a dunk attempt midway through the second half. Rasir Bolton had 14 points and a career-high eight assists, while Julian Strawther, Anton Watson and Hunter Sallis all finished with 10. Gonzaga shot 60% for the game.
Jorell Saterfield led Portland State (2-3) with 21 points.
Gonzaga will face No. 24 Purdue in the semifinals Friday.
NO. 18 ALABAMA 81, NO. 12 MICHIGAN STATE 70
PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) &mdash; Freshman Brandon Miller scored 17 of his 24 points in the first half and Alabama pulled away to beat Michigan State in the opening round of the Phil Knight Invitational.
After a rather light schedule for the first couple of weeks, Alabama (5-0) passed its first test of the season against the short-handed Spartans (3-2).
Tyson Walker led Michigan State with 21 points and A.J. Hoggard added 18.
Alabama will face No. 20 UConn in the semifinals Friday. Michigan State will play face Oregon in&nbsp;
NO. 20 UCONN 83, OREGON 59
PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) &mdash; Tristen Newton scored 23 points, leading UConn to a win over Oregon at the Phil Knight Legacy tournament.
Jordan Hawkins scored 18 points, Adama Sanogo added 12 and Joey Calcaterra came off the bench to score 11 for the unbeaten Huskies (6-0).
Kel&rsquo;el Ware led the Ducks (2-3) with 18 points and nine rebounds off the bench. N&rsquo;faly Dante contributed 15 points.
NO. 22 TENNESSEE 73, SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA 66, OT
PARADISE ISLAND, Bahamas (AP) &mdash; Julian Phillips scored a season-high 25 points to help Tennessee hold off Southern California in overtime at the Battle 4 Atlantis.
The first-year forward made 7 of 13 shots and 10 of 12 free throws to go with eight rebounds for the Volunteers (4-1), with four of those free throws coming in overtime.
Santiago Vescovi overcame a rough shooting game to hit the go-ahead 3-pointer with 1:45 left in the extra period, while Zakai Zeigler went 4 for 4 at the line in the final 23.7 seconds left of overtime to seal the win.
Boogie Ellis scored 21 points in his second big output in as many days to lead the Trojans (4-2).
The Vols advanced to Friday&rsquo;s championship game to face No. 3 Kansas, which edged Wisconsin in overtime.
NO. 24 PURDUE 80, WEST VIRGINIA 68
PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) &mdash; Zach Edey had 24 points and 12 rebounds to lead Purdue past West Virginia in the opening round of the Phil Knight Legacy tournament.
Mason Gillis added 14 points for the Boilermakers (4-0), and Brandon Newman came off the bench to score eight points.
Erik Stevenson scored 17 points as the Mountaineers (3-1) lost for the first time this season. Joe Toussaint added 16 points off the bench.
The Boilermakers will face the No. 6 Gonzaga on Friday in the semifinals.

A recap of the standout games on Thanksgiving Thursday was highlighted by a thriller in the Bahamas.

Pettiford’s last-second layup saves No. 3 Kansas in Bahamas

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 fifth installment, Mat goes in-depth on one of the most versatile defenders of all-time: Andrei Kirilenko. He explains what made him different from other off-ball rovers who came before him, with insights from his former coaches, teammates and more.
<iframe src="https://playlist.megaphone.fm?e=BNI2912655981" width="100%" height="200" frameborder="0" scrolling="no"></iframe>
No player in this series has garnered more anticipation than Andrei Kirilenko. A quick survey of the internet yields countless articles and <a href="https://youtu.be/XGkSph7VDrU" target="_blank" rel="noopener">YouTube videos</a> that are all centered around the same premise:
Kirilenko would be a perfect fit in today&rsquo;s era.
Did Kirilenko serve as the prototype for the modern-day defender? During his prime, was he a revolutionary and a superstar?&nbsp;
Let's find out.
WHAT MADE KIRILENKO SPECIAL?
In baseball, a "five-tool player" is bestowed this label if they display excellence in five categories: hitting for average, hitting for power, fielding, speed and throwing.
Similarly, Kirilenko excelled in five different defensive disciplines.
<img src="https://cdn.basketballnews.com/images/story/body/kirilenko-five-tool-defender.jpg" alt="Visual Created by Mark Cheung" width="487" height="520" />
Tool No. 1: Man Defense
&ldquo;His technique was fundamentally instinctive,&rdquo; said Gordon Chiesa, Kirilenko&rsquo;s former coach in Utah.
Kirilenko touted great length, reflexes and an active &lsquo;tap-dancing&rsquo; stance (see clips below) that enabled him to keep the ball in his line of sight at all times.&nbsp;
On top of that, he mastered the &lsquo;flick-hand technique,&rsquo; which aims to force ball-handlers to dribble East to West rather than North to South (since it's harder to get in the paint when you can&rsquo;t move forward).
"[Your] defensive hand is on the ball side, and [you're] flicking [your] hand up towards the ball &ndash; without losing [your] balance &ndash; to make their dribble lateral, so that it's more protective [rather than] more downhill," Chiesa explained to Basketball News.
<div style="width: 100%; height: 0px; position: relative; padding-bottom: 56.250%;"><iframe style="width: 100%; height: 100%; position: absolute;" src="https://streamable.com/e/6n1fvd" width="100%" height="325" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen" data-mce-fragment="1"></iframe></div>
Tool No. 2: Versatility&nbsp;
While Kirilenko&rsquo;s primary assignments were forwards, he was capable of guarding shiftier speedsters and gargantuan bruisers as well.
&ldquo;You could literally put him on just about anyone,&rdquo; recalled Michael Ruffin, Kirilenko&rsquo;s former teammate who is now an assistant coach with the Phoenix Suns. "[He] had the speed, quickness, length to keep up with guards&hellip; on the perimeter. That&rsquo;s who he would end up guarding a lot [of the time].&rdquo;
Kirilenko even developed antidotes to deploy when going up against the more powerful, low-post big men of the time.
&ldquo;Even on the post with a bigger, banging guy&hellip; he could make it difficult for them to get the ball deep by fronting them,&rdquo; said Charlotte Hornets assistant Tyrone Corbin, who coached Kirilenko in Utah. "What he would do is put the work in early [in the post] to make the catch a little further out, so they wouldn&rsquo;t catch it so deep in the paint.&rdquo;
And if the big man somehow managed to receive the entry pass?
&ldquo;He would go after the ball and keep them off balance that way,&rdquo; Corbin explained.
<div style="width: 100%; height: 0px; position: relative; padding-bottom: 56.250%;"><iframe style="width: 100%; height: 100%; position: absolute;" src="https://streamable.com/e/te8fgm" width="100%" height="325" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen" data-mce-fragment="1"></iframe></div>
Tool No. 3: Off-Ball Disruptor
&ldquo;The thing I remember about him most is that he [was] a defensive playmaker,&rdquo; Chiesa said.
Each season from 2001 to 2011, Kirilenko finished in the 96th percentile or higher in Cerebro Sports&rsquo; Defensive Statistical Impact metric (which measures defensive playmaking).&nbsp;
&ldquo;What made Kirilenko brilliant, I call it early eyes,&rdquo; Chiesa explained. &ldquo;He could read plays before [they] happened&hellip; and he was able to be cat-quick and jump in the passing lanes to steal the ball, block a shot or pickpocket somebody.&rdquo;
Among other things, Kirilenko was adept at doubling down from the perimeter &ndash; the concept of rotating over from the perimeter to double a player on the low block (which was particularly important during that era considering the high volume of post-ups).
&ldquo;People never understood how long he really was,&rdquo; Corbin said. &ldquo;He could be at the <a href="https://medium.com/the-basketball-dictionary/the-basketball-dictionary-5c3835e9fe58#:~:text=Nail%3A%20The%20spot%20in%20the,the%20middle%20at%20all%20costs." target="_blank" rel="noopener">nail</a>/elbow, and a guy could get the ball in the post and turn to dribble or make a move, and he&rsquo;s on top of them knocking the ball out.&rdquo;
<div style="width: 100%; height: 0px; position: relative; padding-bottom: 56.250%;"><iframe style="width: 100%; height: 100%; position: absolute;" src="https://streamable.com/e/o4oe70" width="100%" height="325" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen" data-mce-fragment="1"></iframe></div>
Tool No. 4: Motor
Legendary Jazz coach Jerry Sloan was known for stressing the importance of conditioning in all his practices.
&ldquo;That&rsquo;s one of the biggest sticklers with Coach Sloan: you had to be in great shape,&rdquo; Corbin emphasized. &ldquo;Most of the things that we did every day involved some kind of drill [with] conditioning as part of the drill.&rdquo;
Upon reflecting on his experiences, Ruffin agreed with Corbin&rsquo;s assessment.
&ldquo;The philosophy of the team&hellip; was that every time you stepped on the court, you go hard,&rdquo; Ruffin said.
Kirilenko did not deviate from this mission statement. During his iconic run in the 2003-04 NBA season (more on that in a bit), he finished in the 94th percentile in minutes played. And he spent every second of those nearly 2,900 minutes stalking the terrain at a frenetic pace.
<div style="width: 100%; height: 0px; position: relative; padding-bottom: 56.250%;"><iframe style="width: 100%; height: 100%; position: absolute;" src="https://streamable.com/e/gcrihq" width="100%" height="325" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen" data-mce-fragment="1"></iframe></div>
Tool No. 5: Shot-Blocking
Kirilenko was a human eraser of the highest order, and his acumen as a shot-blocker is what separated him from the likes of Shawn Marion &ndash; the other multi-faceted forward of that time.
During his career, Kirilenko posted a whopping seven seasons with a block percentage of 4% or higher. Marion, on the other hand, never surpassed 3%.&nbsp;
With his condor arms, impeccable timing and recovery speed, Kirilenko was terrific at swatting away attempts.
&ldquo;Super timing. Super, super timing," Corbin said. "And his ability to recover &ndash; to get from point A to point B &ndash; especially off the ball when he could be on the weakside. A guy could drive thinking he was open; [Kirilenko] would get from where he was to the ball quickly before the guy could alter his shot or see him coming.
&ldquo;As good as he was on the ball, he was better coming off the ball because guys couldn&rsquo;t see where he was coming from.&rdquo;
<div style="width: 100%; height: 0px; position: relative; padding-bottom: 56.250%;"><iframe style="width: 100%; height: 100%; position: absolute;" src="https://streamable.com/e/jeiv1u" width="100%" height="325" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen" data-mce-fragment="1"></iframe></div>
ON-COURT PRODUCTION
Prior to the 2003-04 NBA season, ESPN writer Frank Hughes <a href="https://www.deseret.com/2003/10/5/19788279/little-expected-of-jazz" target="_blank" rel="noopener">predicted</a> that the Utah Jazz would lose more games than any team in NBA history.&nbsp;
Not only did Utah outperform these not-so-lofty expectations, they came within one game of the playoffs in the loaded Western Conference.&nbsp;
So, what happened?
&ldquo;When things like that usually happen, you look back, and you&rsquo;re like, &lsquo;Oh, we missed on three or four of those players. They were way better than we thought,'&rdquo; said David Locke, who has been the radio voice of the Jazz for 13 years.
&ldquo;I don&rsquo;t think that exists on [the Jazz&rsquo;s] roster. I think the only one we missed on was a 22-year-old Andrei Kirilenko [who] was just a way better player and more important than people realized.&rdquo;
<div class="mceNonEditable"><spike>&nbsp;</spike></div>
Advanced data helps us understand Kirilenko's impact that season. Basketball Reference&rsquo;s Box Plus-Minus paints Kirilenko as a <a href="https://www.basketball-reference.com/leagues/NBA_2004_advanced.html#advanced_stats::bpm">top-three player</a> in the league that year, with the next-best Jazz player ranking 75th. While top-three may be unlikely, he was pretty darn close.
In 2003-04, Utah's defense was 2.2 points stingier per 100 possessions with their Swiss-army-knife defender on the floor (which ranked in the 72nd percentile, per Cleaning the Glass).&nbsp;
What&rsquo;s more, AK-47's value extended beyond his defense. He also boasted a progressive offensive game &ndash; one that improved Utah&rsquo;s attack by 9.5 points per 100 possessions (ranking in the 97th percentile, per Cleaning the Glass).&nbsp;
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-theme="dark">
Along with being a revolutionary defender, Kirilenko had an incredibly modern (and underrated) offensive game. He was a decisive passer, an eager cutter, a fearless driver, and a FT drawing machine. He would have been the perfect player in today's read-and-react react game. <a href="https://t.co/dvEZTxxWDJ">pic.twitter.com/dvEZTxxWDJ</a>
&mdash; Mat Issa (@matissa15) <a href="https://twitter.com/matissa15/status/1562527132013604865?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">August 24, 2022</a></blockquote>

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

Put those two outputs together, and the Jazz had a +11.8 efficiency differential per 100 possessions when Kirilenko was on the court. That year, the only other All-Stars to achieve that mark were Kevin Garnett (the 2003-04 MVP), Shaquille O&rsquo;Neal, Jason Kidd and Brad Miller.&nbsp;
(Note: On the <a href="https://open.spotify.com/episode/260tNesWxrhH93RDQP06pS?si=79381e7876574e8f" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Blazing the Trail podcast</a>, historian Cody Houdek and I broke down where Kirilenko ranked in the league that season, and we ultimately landed on him falling somewhere in the 8-12 range).
BLAZING THE TRAIL
Chiesa&rsquo;s Jazz spent the late 1990s being vanquished by a team that rostered a player in Kirilenko&rsquo;s likeness: Scottie Pippen.
&ldquo;Defensively, [Pippen] was a defensive playmaker who could guard all five positions, and that was Kirilenko,&rdquo; Chiesa compared.&nbsp;
Despite their similarities, Pippen&rsquo;s approach was more <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N9vFHYVXtRk" target="_blank" rel="noopener">on-ball orientated</a> (juxtaposed with Kirilenko&rsquo;s primarily off-ball style). A more perfect progenitor for this inspector-gadget model exists by way of 1970s stalwart Bobby Jones.&nbsp;
&ldquo;Absolutely,&rdquo; Chiesa exclaimed when asked about the two forwards' similarities.&nbsp;&ldquo;Just like Kirilenko &ndash; 6-foot-9, [220] pounds, gangly, high hips, [could] run the floor, defensive playmaker...&rdquo;&nbsp;
Like Kirilenko, the Secretary of Defense touted the illustrious <a href="https://streamable.com/3ynktv" target="_blank" rel="noopener">five defensive tools</a> and, as a result, left a significant mark on that end of the floor &ndash; quarterbacking five top-5 defenses during his 10-year tenure in the NBA.
Both defensive roamers by nature, Kirilenko was able to become arguably more impactful than his predecessor thanks to the abolition of illegal defense rules in 2001. Before this rule change, zone defense was banned, and if teams/players wanted to execute these exotic coverages, they had to do so covertly, which greatly mitigated the value of off-ball roamers such as Jones.
<div class="mceNonEditable"><spike>&nbsp;</spike></div>
IMPACT ON TODAY'S GAME
In the era of pace and space, the logical defensive counter to this increased surface area is to obtain personnel who can cover this space efficiently.&nbsp;
As alluded to in the previous section, rule changes enabled Kirilenko to operate unrestricted in a manner his forefathers never could. And this confluence of events, combined with his unique physical tools and instincts, made him the prototype for the space-ball defender.
Today, the NBA landscape is littered with players who resemble Kirilenko's robust defensive palate. Nearly every prominent defender in the Association has shades of Kirilenko&rsquo;s design in their own game.&nbsp;
For instance, All-Defensive First Team forward Mikal Bridges shares Kirilenko&rsquo;s length and motor.&nbsp;
&ldquo;I think that [Kirilenko] is actually a lot like Mikal,&rdquo; said Ruffin, who coaches Bridges on the Suns. &ldquo;They are both extremely long, they move really well [when] negotiating screens, both have good motors, and they both take pride in defending.&rdquo;
As for reigning Defensive Player of the Year Marcus Smart, Ruffin said that he inherited Kirilenko&rsquo;s versatility. Like Kirilenko, Smart regularly faces off against defenders far larger than him in stature, and he holds them off using the same <a href="https://streamable.com/5x6n4y" target="_blank" rel="noopener">fronting techniques</a> Corbin alluded to earlier.&nbsp;
Draymond Green, arguably the best defender of his generation, may share the most similarities with Kirilenko &mdash; possessing all five of his fancy utensils. And similar to how Kirilenko surpassed Jones, Green one-upped AK-47 by adding a rim-deterrence component to his game.&nbsp;
The best paint protectors deter opponents from taking shots in the restricted area entirely, and Green is no exception. This past season, opponent rim frequency decreased by 5.4% when he was on the court (which ranked in the 99th percentile, per Cleaning the Glass). Unfortunately, Kirilenko's presence didn&rsquo;t have the same effect, as the opponent's rim frequency <a href="https://cleaningtheglass.com/stats/player/2029/onoff#tab-opp_shooting_freq" target="_blank" rel="noopener">oftentimes</a> increased when he was on the floor.
Thanks to the movement initiated by Kirilenko (and capitalized on by Green), every team is looking for the next torchbearer to the space-ball-defender lineage.
<div class="mceNonEditable"><spike>&nbsp;</spike></div>
In fact, Utah may have just stumbled upon its second iteration of the archetype in recently acquired Jarred Vanderbilt. When asked about their parallels, Chiesa pulled out his notes from when the Jazz and Timberwolves faced off on December 31, 2021, and read them aloud:
&ldquo;Lengthy frame, long arms, pretzel legs&hellip; wily defensive ball-retriever, glides in from perimeter to block shots, active back-tipper into transition, early-eyes anticipator, in and out of the passing lanes, steal maker&hellip; around the ball consistently.&rdquo;
Sound familiar?
Meanwhile, in Toronto, the Raptors believe they hold the key to the next link in the five-tool chain in reigning Rookie of the Year Scottie Barnes.&nbsp;
&ldquo;I think Scottie is overall a better talent [than Kirilenko]," Raptors assistant coach Adrian Griffin told Basketball News. &ldquo;I&rsquo;m not taking anything away from Kirilenko&hellip; but I think there is something special about Scottie.&rdquo;
Seeing the direction the league is going, it makes sense why people always ponder how Kirilenko would fare in today&rsquo;s game.&nbsp;
But don&rsquo;t let his status as a revolutionary fool you; he was a damn good player during his time too.&nbsp;
<img src="https://cdn.basketballnews.com/images/story/body/img_5197.jpg" alt="" width="562" height="562" />
Check back next week for Part VI of Blazing the Trail, which focuses on Shawn Kemp, the aerial artist.&nbsp;
<a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/nba-blazing-the-trail-reggie-miller-the-moving-target-indiana-pacers-rik-smits-dan-burke-michael-jordan-joe-dumars-golden-state-warriors-chris-mullin-steph-curry-klay-thompson">Click here to read Part IV: Reggie Miller, the moving target</a>
<a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/nba-blazing-the-trail-shane-battier-the-databall-defender-memphis-grizzlies-houston-rockets-miami-heat-daryl-morey-david-fizdale-detroit-pistons-draymond-green" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Click here to read Part III: Shane Battier, the data-ball defender</a>
<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>

Andrei Kirilenko was a five-tool defender who was ahead of his time. Mat Issa looks back on AK-47's career and impact on today's NBA.

Blazing the Trail: Andrei Kirilenko, the five-tool defender

The 2023 NBA playoffs are more than nine months away, and one thing is already clear.
There will be chaos.
The Minnesota Timberwolves grabbed a megaphone and announced that to the world when they traded multiple players and several first-round picks &mdash; one of them in 2029, which means that youngster is currently 12 and probably can&rsquo;t dunk yet &mdash; <a href="https://apnews.com/article/minnesota-timberwolves-utah-jazz-nba-sports-26b3c07948dc5cd6e28b8f7da887517f">to the Utah Jazz for Rudy Gobert.</a>
And with that, Minnesota is officially added to a list of legit Western Conference title contenders. There are solid arguments that can be made for no fewer than seven teams right now when debating who&rsquo;ll represent the West in this coming season&rsquo;s NBA Finals: defending champion Golden State, along with Phoenix, Dallas, the Los Angeles Clippers, Memphis, Denver and Minnesota are all on that list.
Remember, at least three of those teams won&rsquo;t get past the first round next spring. At least three.
But give the Timberwolves credit for what they did, because this is the way of the NBA world now. Organizations are either all-in or all-out.
Some team is about to send another massive package of players and picks to Brooklyn for Kevin Durant, unless the Nets somehow <a href="https://apnews.com/article/brooklyn-nets-nba-sports-basketball-kevin-durant-da572379d0eabc5025a2106344695f6f">change his mind about wanting to be traded elsewhere.</a> And that team &mdash; doesn&rsquo;t matter which one &mdash; will instantly see its title hopes soar even higher by adding perhaps the most unguardable player in the game today. Durant is owed nearly $200 million for the next four years, is about to enter his 15th season (not including one missed for injury), will turn 34 this fall and teams are still lining up to bet it all to get him in their uniform.
&ldquo;The ones who were locked in that gym with me know what it is, they know what I&rsquo;m about,&rdquo; <a href="https://twitter.com/KDTrey5/status/1543220271921840128?s=20&amp;t=-2imCXyePn9bkHHvYQHFdQ">Durant tweeted on Saturday,</a> his first public comment since requesting a trade from the Nets. &ldquo;If u haven&rsquo;t been in there with me, ask around.&rdquo;
Cryptic in some ways, clear in others. Durant wants more rings. In other words, somebody better go all-in.
That&rsquo;s what it takes.
Golden State spent somewhere around $340 million this past season on a championship-winning roster, about half of it in salary and the other half in luxury tax. Sure, the Warriors are deep-pocketed. But such is the price of doing business right now, especially in an NBA coming off a year where a record $8.9 billion in basketball related income was generated.
And the Timberwolves are the latest team to embrace that reality.
Gobert is owed $170 million over the next four seasons. Karl-Anthony Towns is owed $295 million over the next six seasons, <a href="https://apnews.com/article/minnesota-timberwolves-covid-nba-sports-health-e166af0d243b55ff4b581f7ba5f5d5fe">after guaranteeing most of that in an extension</a> that was struck a few hours before the Gobert trade happened. Anthony Edwards, a star in the making, is on pace for a massive rookie extension next summer. Minnesota, a team that hasn&rsquo;t won a playoff series since 2004, is swinging for the fences. New owner Alex Rodriguez, he of the 696 career home runs, must be proud.
Someone is going to get Durant. <a href="https://apnews.com/article/brooklyn-nets-nba-sports-kyrie-irving-f07bead702771069df05809872a7ae85">It&rsquo;s not reckless to think that Kyrie Irving</a> could want a trade now as well, and if the Nets move Durant, they may as well move Irving instead of losing him for nothing next summer. Imagine Irving reuniting with LeBron James, this time with the Los Angeles Lakers, trying to recreate what they did in 2016 when Cleveland got to celebrate a title. If Irving goes there, add the Lakers to that list of legit West contenders, too.
New Orleans will have things to say about the playoff chase. So should Portland, assuming Damian Lillard is Damian Lillard again, and there&rsquo;s no reason to think that won&rsquo;t be the case. And who knows what Utah will be without Gobert, especially with speculation now surrounding whether the Jazz will choose to turn their roster remodeling into a complete teardown and trade Donovan Mitchell as well.
Keep in mind, moves are happening in the East, too.
Eastern Conference champion <a href="https://apnews.com/article/boston-celtics-indiana-pacers-nba-sports-00faa7bcb81773778bd2ccff8b817a3b">Boston significantly upgraded its depth by landing Malcolm Brogdon</a> &mdash; another example of big spending, with $67.5 million and three years left on his deal &mdash; and Danilo Gallinari.
Miami, the No. 1 seed in the East playoffs this past season, is known to be in the Durant sweepstakes and Pat Riley is always, always, always looking for more stars. It wasn&rsquo;t a free-agent move, but Atlanta believes it got better by trading for Dejounte Murray to play alongside Trae Young. <a href="https://apnews.com/article/philadelphia-76ers-nba-sports-basketball-pj-tucker-0ff7c77b197b64f251c9cc08c816596a">James Harden delivered his most significant assist as a 76er</a> by opting out and giving Philadelphia the freedom to go get P.J. Tucker; Harden is now expected to sign a new deal in Philly, and that cements them as another contender. Milwaukee spent to keep Bobby Portis, meaning most of the title-winning-core around Giannis Antetokounmpo remains intact.
Signings can&rsquo;t even happen for a few more days. Training camps won't start until late September. The season doesn&rsquo;t start until mid-October. And then it&rsquo;s six more months until playoffs.
That&rsquo;s when the big, bold and best moves of this summer might pay off.

There are a handful of NBA teams around the league who have made bold, giant moves to get closer to a championship.

Analysis: NBA teams going all-in, and that's what it takes

BasketballNews.com's Senior NBA Draft Analyst Matt Babcock presents a series that will peel back the curtain from his time as a sports agent, giving a glimpse at some of his personal experiences working in the sports agency business for over a decade.
In the sixth entry of his series, Babcock shares how his background of growing up in an NBA family influenced him to pursue a career as a sports agent and how he got started with Jeff Schwartz, Sam Goldfeder and Excel Sports Management to embark on what turned out to be a wild and crazy roller coaster of a career.
I grew up in and around the NBA, having multiple family members who've had successful careers as NBA executives. My family's success has provided me with many benefits and unique opportunities, and I'm certainly thankful. Still, it has also led me to have an inherent burning desire to create a name and identity for myself within the basketball world &mdash; separate from my family.
Despite a childhood that gave me full access to the behind-the-scenes of the NBA &mdash; including team planes, locker rooms and draft war rooms &mdash; I wanted more. Being "Dave Babcock's son" or "Pete and Rob's nephew" has never been enough for me. I spent the first part of my life putting an unhealthy amount of pressure on myself to succeed as a basketball player. Subsequently, my playing career was my No. 1 priority. I developed into a respectable high school player, but didn't even come close to accomplishing my overall goals. After I finished playing, I shifted my focus to working in basketball. My burning desire to succeed didn't go away; it grew significantly.&nbsp;
In early 2007, I was 22 years old and not even a year removed from the University of Arizona and my unavailing playing career. I had already completed a summer internship at powerhouse sports agency Wasserman Media Group, where I assisted in training their NBA draft prospects. I also had a brief assistant coaching gig with the professional basketball team Virtus Bologna in Bologna, Italy. Although I always thought my career path would be in coaching or scouting, I left my job in Italy to meet with Jeff Schwartz and Sam Goldfeder of Excel Sports Management to pursue a career as a sports agent. I thought, "This is how I can pave my own way."
I stepped off the plane in Los Angeles, California and jumped into a cab. I told the driver, "101 Santa Monica Boulevard, please. I have a job interview." Pulling up to the fancy, high-rise office building in the heart of West L.A., I called Sam Goldfeder, and he told me to come up. Sam had become a mentor to me, as I had lived at his mother-in-law's guest house in Beverly Hills the previous summer during my internship, and he had also arranged a job in Italy for me. He was pushing Jeff to hire me so they could groom me to be an agent. However, there were no promises I'd get the job. So I took a risk by leaving my job in Italy.
I walked into the office building and made my way to the elevator. The building was filled with prestigious law firms, financial groups and other professional businesses. There were seemingly high-powered "suits" running all around. Excel, now based in New York City, represented star NBA players, including Jason Kidd, Paul Pierce, Lamar Odom, Al Jefferson and Tyson Chandler, to name a few. It was a powerful sports agency.
<div class="mceNonEditable"><spike>&nbsp;</spike></div>
Although I probably should have been nervous, with it being a massive opportunity for me, I wasn't. I was young, confident and fearless &mdash; a situation where "ignorance is bliss" applied, perhaps. I got off the elevator and entered Excel's office, where Sam waited for me. The office space was impressive, yet refreshingly casual and comfortable despite the stuffiness of the building's lobby. Sam introduced me to Duane Cooper, a former NBA player who had a role with the company assisting with recruiting new clients. I then met Jayme Messler, the head of marketing, followed by Heidi, Jeff's assistant. Sam and I sat in his office for a short time and chatted while Jeff finished a phone call.&nbsp;
After a few minutes, Jeff walked into Sam's office. He was a nice-looking, polished professional with an intense presence. Jeff briefly asked about my background, but then cut to the chase and shifted his focus by drilling me about my intention to be a sports agent and my commitment to pursuing that career path. He also explained, and pretty much warned me, that being a sports agent was challenging and not for everyone. I told him I was sure that I wanted to be an agent and that I thought I would be successful, having a good understanding of the inner workings of the NBA due to the exposure my family had given me and that my network should serve me well in that industry. I assured him that I lived and breathed basketball and the NBA.
He then questioned my ability to handle the pressure that would come with that career path. I explained my experience as a former athlete had prepared me. Ultimately, he asked if I had considered going to law school. I explained that I felt prepared to begin a full-time career in basketball. My answers to his questions seemed well-received, as both Jeff and Sam subtly nodded their heads with apparent approval. Jeff told me it wasn't the best timing to add someone to their staff, but he would talk to Sam to discuss options. Before I knew it, Jeff shook my hand, thanked me for coming and walked out of the room. Sam followed him and asked me to wait there for a few minutes. When Sam came back into his office, he said he thought our meeting went well, and he was optimistic. He said, "I think this is going to work." I hopped into another cab and headed back to LAX Airport to catch a flight to Milwaukee, where my parents lived.
Once I got to my parent's house, I was waiting to hear from Sam. I probably should have looked for other jobs instead of putting all of my eggs in one basket. However, I knew that I wanted to work for Excel. So I waited, and then I waited some more. The more time passed, the more antsy and impatient I became. Eventually, I called Sam to check-in.
He told me that he thought something would happen, but he was still trying to push the idea through with Jeff. So I continued to wait for what felt like many more weeks. I was going crazy, as I was so bored and anxious to start my career. I spent a lot of time at the gym lifting weights, binge-watched the entire series of the TV show "Lost" with my mom and pretty much just twiddled my thumbs waiting for the call.
Finally, Sam called. He said, "Alright, we're good to go. I'll book you a flight. You start Monday."
And that's how "My Past Life as a Sports Agent" really began.
<a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/my-past-life-as-a-sports-agent-ciao-means-hello-and-goodbye" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Read the last entry of this series</a>: "My past life as a sports agent: Ciao means hello and goodbye" 
Editor's Note: This article was originally published on <a href="https://www.babcockhoops.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">BabcockHoops.com</a>.
<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. Order online now!

Matt Babcock shares how his background of growing up in an NBA family influenced him to pursue a career as a sports agent.

My past life as a sports agent: The real beginning

Nekias Duncan thoroughly grades every NBA trade from 2022 Deadline Week.

Grading every move from 2022 NBA trade deadline week

Tommy Beer is back with his latest version of BasketballNews.com's NBA Power Rankings. To read last week's version, <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/suns-eclipse-warriors-for-the-top-spot-in-nba-power-rankings" target="_blank" rel="noopener">click here</a>.
Golden State leapfrogs Phoenix to once again ascend to the top of the BasketballNews.com Power Rankings, while the Memphis Grizzlies continue to creep their way into the league's upper echelon this season. &nbsp;
1. Golden State Warriors (27-6) ⬆️ Last Week: 2
The Warriors beat the Suns on Saturday in a much-anticipated Christmas Day showdown despite playing without Andrew Wiggins, Damion Lee and Jordan Poole, who were all in health and safety protocols. As expected, Steph Curry led the way, knocking down five three-pointers en route to a game-high 33 points; however, it was Otto Porter Jr. who surprisingly sealed the deal for the Dubs, scoring 7 of his 19 points in the closing minutes.&nbsp;
2. Phoenix Suns (26-7) ⬇️ Last Week: 1
After falling to the Warriors on Christmas, the Suns were tripped up by the Grizzlies on Monday night as well. It's the first time Phoenix has lost consecutive contests since the season's first week. The Suns will look to get back on track Wednesday when they host the Thunder.
3. Brooklyn Nets (23-9) &harr;️ Last Week: 3
Reports of James Harden being "washed" may have been a bit premature. After racking up 36 points, 10 rebounds and 10 assists in a win over the Lakers on Christmas, Harden was back it Monday vs. Clippers, finishing with 39 points and a season-best 15 assists. Harden's final assist on Monday was the 6,000th of his career. He is just the 10th player in league history to tally 20,000 career points, 5,000 rebounds and 6,000 assists. After sweeping their two-game Los Angeles road swing, the Nets are an NBA-best 13-3 on the road this season.&nbsp;
4. Utah Jazz (24-9) &harr;️ Last Week: 4
The Jazz were missing Donovan Mitchell (lower back strain) but continued to roll along Monday night, securing their fourth straight victory by beating the Spurs. Mitchell tweaked his back during Saturday's win over the Mavericks and is expected to miss at least one more game.
5. Milwaukee Bucks (22-13) ⬆️ Last Week: 6
The Bucks are finally starting to get healthy, which is bad news for the rest of the Eastern Conference. Giannis Antetokounmpo made his return to action in the Bucks' victory over the Boston Celtics on Christmas Day, suiting up for the first time since entering the health and safety protocols on Dec. 12. Giannis was joined by Bobby Portis, who had missed the previous four games due to COVID, and Donte DiVincenzo, who hadn't played since injuring his left foot during the 2021 playoffs.
6. Chicago Bulls (21-10) ⬆️ Last Week: 7
After a brief slump earlier this month, Nikola Vucevic is once again beasting for the Bulls, who have won four in a row. Vooch tallied a combined total of 40 points, 32 rebounds, 9 assists, 6 blocks and 6 made three-pointers in a back-to-back set against the Indiana Pacers and Atlanta Hawks on Sunday and Monday.&nbsp;
7. Cleveland Cavaliers (20-13)&nbsp;⬇️ Last Week: 5
While many pundits and fans league-wide continue to wait for the Cavs to come crashing back down to earth, Cleveland <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/from-lovable-underdog-to-unforgiving-bully-how-the-cavs-got-here" target="_blank" rel="noopener">keeps on winning</a> (and often dominates in the process). Over the last month, the Cavs lead the NBA in Defensive Rating (they are the only team in the league allowing fewer than 100 points per 100 possessions during this stretch). Cleveland also leads the league in Net Rating (+15.8) over the past month. Remarkably, each of the Cavaliers' last 11 wins has been by double digits.
8. ​​Memphis Grizzlies (21-14) ⬆️ Last Week: 9
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-theme="dark">
Ja Morant drives, hangs, switches hands and gets it to on his way down, FOR THE <a href="https://twitter.com/memgrizz?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@memgrizz</a> WIN! <a href="https://t.co/GnTl4RbAEJ">pic.twitter.com/GnTl4RbAEJ</a>
&mdash; NBA (@NBA) <a href="https://twitter.com/NBA/status/1475686020079407104?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 28, 2021</a></blockquote>

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

Ja Morant made a contested layup with 0.5 seconds left in the fourth quarter to give the Grizzlies an impressive 114-113 victory over the Suns on Monday night. Morant's backcourt mate, Desmond Bane, remained red-hot (as <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/dissecting-desmond-bane-role-memphis-grizzlies-offense" target="_blank" rel="noopener">profiled by our Jackson Frank</a> over the weekend), scoring a career-high 32 points. Over his last seven games, Bane is averaging 21.9 points, 4.1 rebounds and 4.0 made treys while shooting over 50% from the floor and behind the arc.
9. Miami Heat (21-13) ⬇️ Last Week: 8
With rosters around the league decimated by COVID, depth has become a crucial asset. On Sunday, the Heat needed important contributions from a handful of role players to pull out a victory over Orlando, and they got just that. Caleb Martin tied for the team-high with 17 points off the bench; Omer Yurtseven scored 16 points and grabbed 15 boards in his first start, while Gabe Vincent and Max Strus chipped in 13 points apiece.&nbsp;
10. Philadelphia 76ers (17-16) &harr;️ Last Week: 10
The Sixers had lost 4 of 5 entering Sunday's matchup with the Wizards, but Joel Embiid (36 points and 13 rebounds) put Philly on his back to carry his squad to a much-needed victory, pushing the team back over .500. Philadelphia has a chance to secure back-to-back wins on Tuesday when it takes on the injury-depleted Raptors, who are fresh off a 45-point drubbing in Cleveland.
11. Denver Nuggets (16-16) &harr;️ Last Week: 11
The Joker is running wild. Over the Nuggets' last two games, Jokic has racked a ridiculous 55 points, 43 rebounds and 13 assists. He is the first player to tally at least 25 points, 20 rebounds and 5 assists in back-to-back games since Charles Barkley in 1988. Jokic is the first player ever with 25/20/5 and a three-pointer in consecutive contests.&nbsp;
12. Charlotte Hornets (18-17) ⬆️ Last Week: 14
The Hornets won their second straight game Monday by beating the Houston Rockets. Terry Rozier knocked down seven three-pointers on his way to a game-high 27 points vs. Houston. Mason Plumlee also provided a significant lift, registering a season-high 15 points to go along with 9 rebounds, 3 assists, 3 blocks and 2 steals in Monday's 123-99 win.
13. Los Angeles Clippers (17-17)&nbsp;⬇️ Last Week: 12
Paul George complained of soreness in his right elbow last week, and soon after underwent an MRI, which revealed a ligament tear. The Clippers, who have lost 5 of their previous 6, announced PG-13 would miss 3-4 weeks before being re-evaluated. However, ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski ominously reported that the Clips will "see if rest can get him on a pathway to recovery, but he's gonna be out certainly a significant period of time and there's no real sense of when, or if, he'll be back this year." Yikes.&nbsp;
<div class="mceNonEditable"><spike>&nbsp;</spike></div>
14. Dallas Mavericks (16-17) ⬆️ Last Week: 18
In addition to franchise cornerstone Luka Doncic, the Mavs were forced to play without Tim Hardaway Jr., Maxi Kleber, Reggie Bullock and Trey Burke on Monday, but still whooped the Portland Trail Blazers. Kristaps Porzingis led the way for Dallas, knocking down 12 of 21 field goal attempts and three treys en route to a season-high 34 points, along with 9 rebounds, 5 assists, 2 steals, 2 blocks and no turnovers.&nbsp;
15. Washington Wizards (17-16) ⬆️ Last Week: 16
The Wizards travel to Miami on Tuesday night but afterward return home for a four-game homestand. Then after a quick two-game road swing in early January, Washington will play eight straight games in D.C. All told, the Wiz will play 12 of their next 14 at home, which is a golden opportunity to make a push up the standings. However, it was announced that Montrezl Harrell entered the league's health and safety protocols on Tuesday. Harrell is the seventh Wizard in protocols.
16. Los Angeles Lakers (16-18) ⬇️ Last Week: 13
LeBron James is averaging 35.0 points, 9.8 rebounds, 5.3 assists, 1.8 steals and 1.3 blocks, while shooting over 58% from the floor and 80% from the free-throw stripe over the Lakers' last four games, but L.A. has lost each one. With Anthony Davis (knee) still weeks away from returning to action, it will be fascinating to see if the Lakers' front office seriously considers shaking up their roster by trading away Russell Westbrook.
17. Minnesota Timberwolves (16-17) ⬇️ Last Week: 15
Despite playing without their top three scorers (Karl-Anthony Towns, Anthony Edwards and D'Angelo Russell), the Wolves found a way to beat the Celtics on Monday night. Nathan Knight tallied 20 points and 11 rebounds, while Jaylen Nowell scored a game-high 29 points for Minny. Greg Monroe signed a hardship contract over the weekend and <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/greg-monroe-and-the-brief-case-for-us-to-see-more-nba-veterans-this-season" target="_blank" rel="noopener">chipped in 13/9/6 off the bench</a>. After the game, he admitted he wasn't overly familiar with his teammates. "Not gonna lie, Jaylen Nowell played awesome tonight, but I had no idea who that was," Monroe said.
18. Toronto Raptors (14-16) ⬆️ Last Week: 19
The Raptors have eight players in the health and safety protocols, including Fred VanVleet and Scottie Barnes, and only had eight players active for Sunday night's game vs. Cleveland. It showed, as the Raps were blown out by by the Cavs, 144-95. Fortunately, Toronto plays 7 out of their next 8 games at home, which could allow them to right the ship. And luckily, Pascal Siakam and Gary Trent Jr. have been cleared to return off the COVID list.
19. New York Knicks (15-18) ⬆️ Last Week: 22
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-theme="dark">
Quentin Grimes has a beautiful jump shot. Good work here, <a href="https://twitter.com/nyknicks?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@nyknicks</a>. <a href="https://t.co/KNAA5vLsjK">pic.twitter.com/KNAA5vLsjK</a>
&mdash; SLAM (@SLAMonline) <a href="https://twitter.com/SLAMonline/status/1475542501914300420?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 27, 2021</a></blockquote>

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

Quentin Grimes is slowly but surely making a case for consistent, extended minutes in the Knicks' rotation. After 27 points in his first start before entering COVID protocols, Grimes chipped in 15 in his return to action in Saturday's victory over Atlanta. Grimes is shooting 45.5% from three-point territory this season, which leads all rookies. In fact, among rooks that have made at least 20 three-pointers this season, Grimes is the only one shooting above 37% from behind the arc.
20. Boston Celtics (16-18)&nbsp;⬇️ Last Week: 17
On Monday, Celtics fans got some good news as both Grant Williams and Al Horford cleared COVID protocols. However, Boston faithful was also walloped with some bad news, as fans learned Jayson Tatum was forced to enter the league's health and safety protocols. It is worth noting that Tatum contracted COVID last season as well, and revealed he had to use an inhaler to help his breathing before games for months due to the lingering effects of the virus.
21. Atlanta Hawks (15-18) ⬇️ Last Week: 20
The Hawks welcomed Trae Young back to the lineup on Monday, and he scored 29 points, but it wasn't enough to beat the Bulls. However, Cam Reddish provided another encouraging effort in the loss to Chicago, as he hit a career-high eight three-pointers and finished with 33 points. Since being inserted into Atlanta's starting lineup, Reddish is averaging 23.8 points, 3.8 rebounds and 3.8 made treys while shooting over 44% from downtown and 87.5% from the charity stripe.
22. San Antonio Spurs (14-19) ⬆️ Last Week: 25
The Spurs had their season-high three-game winning streak snapped Monday night by the Jazz, 110-104. Coming into the contest, San Antonio had scored at least 110 points in 10 straight games (their longest such streak since March of 1984). The Spurs rank seventh in Offensive Rating on the season, averaging 110.6 points per 100 possessions.
23. Indiana Pacers (14-20) ⬇️ Last Week: 21
The Pacers have been inconsistent all season, but Caris LeVert has finally found his groove. Over the Pacers' last four games, LeVert is averaging 24.8 points, 4.8 rebounds, 7.0 assists, 2.0 treys and 1.5 steals.&nbsp;
24. Portland Trail Blazers (13-20)&nbsp;⬇️ Last Week: 23
Playing at home and matched up against a shorthanded Mavs team, the Blazers were three-point favorites on Monday night but ended up losing by 15. The Blazers' defense was atrocious, as they allowed 132 points while Dallas shot above 57% from the floor. According to StatMuse, no team has scored that many points and shot that well in Portland since 1987. Portland has lost 12 of their last 15 games.&nbsp;
<div class="mceNonEditable"><spike>&nbsp;</spike></div>
25. Sacramento Kings (13-21) ⬇️ Last Week: 24
Kings interim head coach Alvin Gentry did not mince words after his team's embarrassing 25-point loss to the Grizzlies at home on Sunday. "It's the most disappointed I've been in 34 years in the NBA, I can honestly say that," Gentry told reporters. "That performance was absolutely ridiculous. We didn't play hard, we didn't compete. We didn't guard the ball, we didn't guard screen-and-rolls. We didn't follow the game plan. No competitiveness whatsoever. They basically toyed with us. I'm totally disappointed and everybody in this building should be disappointed." Tell us how ya really feel, coach. &nbsp;
26. Oklahoma City Thunder (12-20) &harr;️ Last Week: 26
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander was <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/gilgeousalexander-walker-named-players-of-the-week-for-dec-2026" target="_blank" rel="noopener">named the Western Conference Player of the Week</a> on Monday after leading OKC to a 3-1 record last week. SGA averaged 27.5 points, 7.0 dimes, 6.3 boards and 1.3 blocks in those four games.&nbsp;
27. New Orleans Pelicans (12-22) ⬆️ Last Week: 28
Brandon Ingram had been posting incredibly impressive stats before being ruled out Sunday's game against the Thunder due to left Achilles soreness. Ingram, who is listed as doubtful for Tuesday's game vs. the Cavs, has averaged 27.7 points, 6.0 rebounds, 5.9 assists, 1.8 treys and 1.2 steals over his previous 10 appearances.&nbsp;
28. Houston Rockets (10-24) ⬇️ Last Week: 27
It's been a wild, roller-coaster ride of a season for the Rockets. After losing 15 in a row over the first month of the season, Houston bounced back by somehow winning seven straight games. However, since that unexpected win streak, the Rox are just 2-8 and have lost each of their last four.&nbsp;
29. Orlando Magic (7-27) ⬆️ Last Week: 30
The Magic have won just 7 of their first 34 games this season, tying the franchise mark for their worst record at this point in a season. How hard has Orlando been hit by COVID and injuries this season, you ask? Hassani Gravett, an undrafted 25-year-old rookie out of Pensacola State, has averaged 25 minutes per game for the Magic over the past two weeks.&nbsp;
30. Detroit Pistons (5-27) ⬇️ Last Week: 29
The Pistons have five players in COVID protocols, including Cade Cunningham, and are missing injured bigs Jerami Grant and Kelly Olynyk. Detroit, which has had 12 different starting lineups this season, has lost 17 of its last 18 contests. They host the Knicks on Wednesday night. &nbsp;

Tommy Beer checks in with an installment of BasketballNews.com's NBA Power Rankings.

NBA Power Rankings: Bulls are hot, Warriors reclaim top spot from Suns

MILWAUKEE (AP) &mdash; Giannis Antetokounmpo and the Milwaukee Bucks didn't let the celebration of the franchise's first NBA championship in half a century distract them as they opened their title defense.
In his first game since scoring 50 points in a <a href="https://apnews.com/article/sports-nba-milwaukee-bucks-phoenix-suns-64e76fe1b9f0851dbcf46ad66d90d6de">title-clinching Game 6 NBA Finals victory</a> over the Phoenix Suns, Antetokounmpo had 32 points, 14 rebounds and seven assists to lead the Bucks to a 127-104 victory over the Brooklyn Nets on Tuesday night.
&ldquo;If you&rsquo;ve watched the NBA for a long time, this is not an easy night for the team that&rsquo;s set to receive their rings and have the banner,&rdquo; Bucks coach Mike Budenholzer said. &ldquo;I&rsquo;m very pleased. We&rsquo;ve been talking about the focus in training camp, the focus in practice. The guys have been good.&rdquo;
Khris Middleton and Pat Connaughton each added 20 points to help the Bucks withstand the loss of Jrue Holiday, who sat out the second half with a bruised right heel after scoring 12 points. Budenholzer said MRI results on Holiday were encouraging.
Kevin Durant led the Nets with 32 points and 11 rebounds. Patty Mills scored 21 points and shot 7 of 7 from 3-point range. James Harden added 20 points.
"We weren't very good,&rdquo; Brooklyn coach Steve Nash said. &ldquo;If you're not playing at a high level against the champs, you're not going to win.&rdquo;
The Nets were missing star guard Kyrie Irving, <a href="https://apnews.com/article/kyrie-irving-covid-vaccine-nets-dcd6d5c6d027934cf763dc167610ce58">who isn&rsquo;t with the team due to his refusal to get a COVID-19 vaccine.</a>
A New York mandate requires professional athletes on local teams to be vaccinated to practice or play in public venues. Rather than using Irving exclusively in road games, the Nets decided he wouldn&rsquo;t play or practice with them at all until he could be a full participant.
After receiving their rings and raising a banner to celebrate their first NBA championship since 1971, the Bucks defeated the team that nearly eliminated them in the second round of the playoffs.
Milwaukee rallied from a 2-0 deficit and <a href="https://apnews.com/article/brooklyn-nets-milwaukee-bucks-nba-sports-7c1e79825d167e686b9c132c0c8634e0"> won Game 7 at Brooklyn in overtime </a> after Durant&rsquo;s foot barely crept across the 3-point arc in the final seconds of regulation, turning a potential series-winning 3-pointer into a game-tying 2-point basket.
The Bucks went on a 21-4 run in the first quarter to extend a 10-8 advantage to 31-12. They got the lead back up to 19 again in the second quarter and were ahead 66-59 at halftime. The lead never dropped below seven the rest of the way.
Milwaukee outrebounded Brooklyn 54-44 and took 21 more shots than the Nets.
&ldquo;We were climbing uphill all game,&rdquo; Durant said.
Milwaukee got 15 points from Jordan Nwora and 10 from Grayson Allen.
FANCY RINGS
<a href="https://twitter.com/Bucks/status/1450598672018944012">Milwaukee's championship rings </a> include the messages &ldquo;Fear The Deer&rdquo; and &ldquo;Bucks In 6.&rdquo; The latter slogan has served as a rallying cry among fans ever since former Bucks guard Brandon Jennings used those words while incorrectly predicting the outcome of Milwaukee's 2013 first-round series with the eventual NBA champion Miami Heat.
Jennings and former Bucks guard Michael Redd were both in the crowd.
The rings, designed by Jason of Beverly Hills, have 360 diamonds on the top to represent the Bucks' total wins under current ownership. There are 16 emerald-shape diamonds on each side, symbolizing their 16 playoff wins last season and their 16 division titles in franchise history.
&ldquo;My first thought as soon as it was handed to me is this is the biggest ring I've ever seen in life, and there's a lot of diamonds in it,&rdquo; Nwora said.
Herb Kohl, the 86-year-old former U.S. senator who owned the Bucks from 1985-2014, also got a ring and received a standing ovation when he was announced.

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

TIP-INS
Nets: Mills had a brilliant Brooklyn debut after spending the last 10 seasons in San Antonio, but the Nets didn't get much else from their bench. Brooklyn's other reserves combined for just four points.
Bucks: Milwaukee was missing guard Donte DiVincenzo (ankle) and forwards Bobby Portis (hamstring) and Semi Ojeleye (calf). Budenholzer didn&rsquo;t have an estimate on when any of the three might make their season debut but said that Portis and Ojeleye will play before DiVincenzo, who tore a ligament in his left ankle during last season&rsquo;s playoffs.
UP NEXT
Nets: At Philadelphia on Friday.
Bucks: At Miami on Thursday.
___
More AP NBA: https://apnews.com/hub/NBA and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports

The Milwaukee Bucks received their championship rings and raised their banner before routing the Nets 127-104 in the opener.

Bucks begin title defense with 127-104 victory over Nets

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

Payton Pritchard arrived at the NBA Summer League in Las Vegas looking to take advantage of the opportunity to show he deserves major minutes this upcoming season with the Boston Celtics.
Mission accomplished.
The second-year point guard was one of the biggest stars in Las Vegas before leaving the team due to a prior family engagement. He averaged 20.3 points, 8.7 assists and 5.7 rebounds in three games while helping the unbeaten Celtics reach Tuesday night&rsquo;s championship game against the Sacramento Kings (4-0).
That&rsquo;s good news for Boston, which parted ways with Kemba Walker this offseason. Pritchard may be in line for a more prominent role in Boston&rsquo;s backcourt that includes Marcus Smart at point guard.
Pritchard shot 57.7% from 3-point range and his 1.38 points per possession ranks first among all Summer League players. He also protected the basketball well, averaging 1.3 turnovers per game
And while he won&rsquo;t play in the title game, Pritchard gave the the Celtics with something to think about before leaving.
&ldquo;That is what separates good point guards from great ones &mdash; the ability to make people around you better and get people shots and just being able to control the game,&rdquo; said Pritchard, who averaged 7.7 points and 1.8 assists last year in 66 games for the Celtics. &ldquo;That is what I&rsquo;m trying to become and I&rsquo;m going to keep working on that.&rdquo;
<div class="mceNonEditable"><spike>&nbsp;</spike></div>
The Kings reached the championship game behind a balanced scoring attack and a consistently strong defense ignited by first-round draft pick Davion Mitchell. His numbers are eye-popping, but there&rsquo;s no denying what he brings on defense.
Mitchell earned the nickname &ldquo;Off Night&rdquo; while helping Baylor to an NCAA national championship last season &mdash; as in, whoever he&rsquo;s guarding is going to have an off night.
&ldquo;That&rsquo;s his bread and butter, the way he attacks the game, the way he defends it,&rdquo; said Kings Summer League head coach Bobby Jackson. &ldquo;He&rsquo;s a really, really great on-ball defender. He has to get better off the ball and we&rsquo;ve talked about it. But he sets the tone at the top of the key offensively and defensively for us.&rdquo;
Here are some of the other Summer League standouts:
&mdash; Cam Thomas, Nets: Thomas is leading the NBA Summer League in scoring, averaging 27 points per game while probably making some NBA general managers wish they hadn&rsquo;t passed on drafting him. The 27th overall pick in 2021 had a 31-point night that included a game-winning 3-pointer in sudden death double overtime Thursday followed by a 36-point performance Sunday. The LSU product is shooting 36% from 3-point range.
&mdash; Cade Cunningham, Pistons: The No. 1 overall pick in the NBA draft hasn&rsquo;t disappointed, averaging 18.7 points and 5.7 rebounds per game. There are surely some Detroit fans who&rsquo;d like to see him with the ball in hands more often than what they&rsquo;ve seen this summer given his passing ability. But he&rsquo;ll needed to cut down on his turnovers (4 per game) moving forward.
<div class="mceNonEditable"><spike>&nbsp;</spike></div>
&mdash; Paul Reed, 76ers: The 76ers already have an All-Star center in Joel Embiid, but G League MVP Paul Reed could bring some quality depth to Philly. Check out Reed&rsquo;s numbers in an overtime loss Sunday night to the Timberwolves: 27 points, 20 rebounds, four assists, four steals and four blocks. Reed is averaging 17.5 points, 12.5 rebounds and 2.5 blocks per game in Las Vegas.
&mdash;Immanuel Quickley, Knicks: Like Pritchard, Quickly is another second-year point guard who appears to have taken a major step forward in his game, averaging 21.8 points and eight assists per game. He&rsquo;s only shooting 25% from 3-point range, but the 2020 first-round draft pick has shown promise that he could really begin to emerge in his second season.
&mdash; Rockets Rookies: The Houston Rockets had three picks in the first round, including Jalen Green at No. 2 overall. Green played well in three game appearances averaging 20.3 points per game while shooting 52.6% from 3-point range and 92.9% from the free throw line. But the Rockets have also gotten a big boost from 6-foot-9 center Alperen Sengun, who is averaging 15 points, 11 rebounds and three blocks.
&mdash; Desmond Bane, Grizzlies: The second-year guard has quietly had a productive summer and is third in the league in scoring at 24 points per game while shooting an eye-catching 69.2% from beyond the arc. He could be a nice complement to point guard Ja Morant this season.

Here's a look at some prospects who have stood out during NBA Summer League action in Las Vegas recently.

Payton Pritchard, Davion Mitchell among NBA Summer League standouts

It&rsquo;s no secret that the Toronto Raptors have cultivated quite the culture of improvement and development over the last half-decade. What may not be common knowledge is how this commitment to development and steady growth has extended beyond project players and a highly-touted G League system to their coaching staff, too.
Nick Nurse himself embodies this transformation.
The three-year head coach began with five years of assistant coaching duties under former leader Dwane Casey. Nurse&rsquo;s unusual journey to the big leagues &mdash; from working the international circuit and through multiple G League associations, to serving as shooting coach for the Raptors while he was working toward a doctorate in sports leadership and philosophy &mdash; has shown us the upward trajectory the coach has been on over the years.
<div class="mceNonEditable"><spike>&nbsp;</spike></div>
Chris Finch&rsquo;s brief stint on the team during their 2020-2021 Tampa Bay relocation ended mid-season when the Minnesota Timberwolves offered him a head coaching position. The offensive guru has had a similar evolution as Nurse, with both their careers mirroring one another and featuring multiple run-ins in the British Basketball League. Known for his ability to maximize big men with his history alongside players like Nikola Jokic and DeMarcus Cousins, Toronto fans were excited to see how Finch would aid Pascal Siakam in his new role as lead offensive creator for the team.
The Timberwolves acquiring Finch for a young Karl-Anthony Towns on the cusp of his prime was a simple decision, but it&rsquo;s reasonable to assume that even a half-season alongside a championship head coach such as Nurse &mdash; one who is constantly praised for his innovation within the modern NBA &mdash; would pique interest across the league as teams looked to revamp their approaches. Nurse has embraced the &ldquo;mad scientist&rdquo; stereotype time and time again. Unafraid to fail and unafraid to see what sticks, we&rsquo;ve seen the influence his schemes have had on coaching styles across the league's other 29 teams. The resurgence of zone defenses within the last couple of years and the usage of the box-and-1 are just a couple of examples of ideas he&rsquo;s helped normalize and popularize in the modern game. Offensively, normalizing double-point guard backcourts and matchup-dependent, double-center frontcourts are features in two-way play that no longer confuse viewers today.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;
Another recent beneficiary of Nurse&rsquo;s tutelage is former Raptors assistant Nate Bjorkgren. Hired by the Indiana Pacers after the firing of Nate McMillan, Bjorkgren&rsquo;s rapid ascent (and descent) over the course of a single, volatile season as head honcho is an example of how close proximity to Nurse may guarantee access, but not success. The optics were only worsened by McMillian&rsquo;s awe-inspiring run with the Atlanta Hawks and their Eastern Conference Finals appearance. In a single-year, head coach McMillan reinvigorated a young squad led by a boyish Trae Young who has established himself as a major player in the conference after a host of iconic postseason performances this year. Indiana, on the other hand, has dealt with numerous disruptions due to trades, injuries and a lack of chemistry. It all culminated into leaked stories of workplace unhappiness, accusations of micromanagement and his eventual firing. None of the characteristics that made Bjorgren a staple of Toronto&rsquo;s front bench had a chance to peek through &mdash; traits like an emphasis on transitional defense, three-point attempts and inventive out-of-bound plays.&nbsp;&nbsp;
This all leads up to the Warriors&rsquo; landing Jama Mahlalela in addition to Kenny Atkinson on July 8, just a couple of weeks ago. Mahlalela has been a figure of the Raptors&rsquo; &ldquo;We the North&rdquo; years, personifying the very culture the organization has become known for. SB Nation&rsquo;s Raptors Rapture contributor and Locked On host Sean Woodley <a href="https://www.raptorshq.com/2021/7/8/22568286/long-time-raptors-assistant-jama-mahlalela-hired-by-warriors-assistant-toronto" target="_blank" rel="noopener">wrote the following</a> of Mahlalela&rsquo;s departure: &ldquo;[T]his assistant loss does sting a little more than usual, though. Mahlalela got his start with the Raptors in the mid-aughts in the team&rsquo;s community development department, and worked his way up the ladder to become an assistant coach in 2013-14.&rdquo;
According to sources, Mahlalela has already gone to work in San Francisco. Both Atkinson and Mahlalela have deep roots in culture-building and player growth (think of those fun Nets teams Atkinson helped cultivate), so their integration into a Golden State team looking to unlock a high potential talent like James Wiseman makes plenty of sense.
<div class="mceNonEditable"><spike>&nbsp;</spike></div>
Although the losses likely do sting for the Raptors&rsquo; staff and fans alike, Nurse and the team&rsquo;s front office must relish their ability to nurture skill and get players and other team employees their deserved pay and promotion. The willingness to take a chance on those who haven&rsquo;t gone through traditional avenues en route to their entry into the NBA signals a confidence in their program few teams exhibit.
It&rsquo;ll be exciting to see who the next undrafted wonder or international coaching savant is next on the docket for Masai Ujiri, Bobby Webster and company.

The Toronto Raptors get credit for developing players, but many of the team's coaching staff found greener pastures in the NBA, as well.

A timeline of the Raptors’ coaching losses under Nick Nurse

Etan Thomas spoke with Al Harrington about Sha'Carri Richardson's suspension, marijuana in pro sports, his cannabis company and more.

Q&A: Al Harrington on Sha’Carri Richardson, cannabis company, more

Think about how much things in the NBA have changed in the past week. Last Monday was Memorial Day, and the following teams were still alive: the Los Angeles Lakers, New York Knicks, Boston Celtics, Dallas Mavericks, Portland Trail Blazers, Washington Wizards and Memphis Grizzlies.
Danny Ainge, Steve Clifford and Terry Stotts still had jobs, LeBron James and Anthony Davis still had die-hard believers, many folks considered Trae Young a flash in the pan, James Harden had what we thought was a healthy hamstring and Luka Doncic was arguably the one player who could single-handedly lead his team into the second round.
Well, here we are one Monday later with a whole bunch of stuff changed.&nbsp;
<div class="mceNonEditable"><spike>&nbsp;</spike></div>
We are down to eight teams in the NBA playoffs, Young is now a villain in Philadelphia as well as New York, Kawhi Leonard is Mr. Postseason Dangerous again, Nikola Jokic is about to go up against Deandre Ayton in what could be the biggest postseason positional mismatch we are going to see, and the Utah Jazz and Clippers are about to ignite a debate on whether taking a combined 100 three-pointers in a single game (or something close to that) is what the NBA in 2021 has become.
We are still a month away from the start of the NBA Finals, and the Olympics are drawing nearer with a whole bunch of nations still hoping to qualify&hellip; if the Japanese do not bail on the event. Japan has one of the lowest vaccination rates in the world, and reporters who are going to cover the Olympics are learning that they will be banned from public transportation in Tokyo.&nbsp;
Yes, 2021 remains exceedingly complicated, and every day or night that we turn on NBA playoff games, we are reminded that the league remains stuck in COVID-avoidance mode despite the pandemic drawing to a close in the United States. The coaches have lost the masks, but the players on the bench, the fans in the stands, the actors in the Heineken commercials, the cardboard cutout fans at Staples Center and the sideline reporters being 18 feet away (instead of six feet away) all serve as a reminder that some people remain mentally stuck in March 2020.
Progress on that front is glacial despite a dearth of positive COVID tests around the NBA. &nbsp; So we enter the week with the Brooklyn Nets holding a 1-0 lead on the Milwaukee Bucks despite losing James Harden after he re-aggravated his hamstring injury in the first minute of Game 1. Now, we have to start wondering whether we have seen the last of him for this season, and if so, midseason signee Mike James &mdash; who left CSKA Moscow in the Euroleague midseason &mdash; is going to become suddenly relevant.
Joel Embiid did not look 100% healthy as he played through a partially torn right meniscus on Sunday at home against the Hawks, who nearly blew the game in the final minute of the fourth quarter as they struggled to get the ball past halfcourt. Nate McMillan will likely be drilling the Hawks on breaking the press at practice today.
Chris Paul and Devin Booker will be back on the national radar tonight as the Suns open at home against the Nuggets, and two players that will become especially relevant for the second straight postseason will be Jae Crowder, who spent last season with the Heat, and Michael Porter Jr., who spent most of the 2019-2020 season recovering from a second back surgery.&nbsp;
Role players tend to have a bigger role in the postseason than folks previously expected, which serves as a reminder that Rajon Rondo is still around and still carries the "Playoff Rondo" nickname. If Patrick Beverly remains sidelined, that removes a terrific defender against Paul, and we shall see if Reggie Jackson, Rondo or someone else can fluster CP3 into one or two extra turnovers per night.
The Clippers-Jazz series figures to be an epic three-point shootout. Los Angeles led the NBA in three-point percentage at an astounding 41.1%, while the Jazz shot 38.9% but made 1,205 threes over the 72-game regular season. That was third-most in NBA history. Their average of 16.7 threes per contest was an NBA record, and they were the only team to hit 10-plus threes in every game in a single season.&nbsp;
In Sunday&rsquo;s games, the Hawks made 20 of 47 three-pointers while the Sixers were 10-for-29, and Philadelphia missed 11 free throws to Atlanta&rsquo;s one. Yes, sometimes it just comes down to the little things like shooting free throws.
Giannis Antetokounmpo is shooting 58.3% from the foul line and just 14.3% from three-point range. Giannis, Brook Lopez, Khris Middleton and Bobby Portis give Milwaukee a major size advantage against Brooklyn, but the Nets can burn fouls and send these guys to the line if they are going to continue to get jittery from 15 feet away.
<img src="https://cdn.basketballnews.com/images/story/body/usatsi_16212044_lg.jpg" alt="" width="738" height="492" />
Brooklyn is shooting 91.1% on free throws to Milwaukee&rsquo;s 72.2%, and in the other East series, the Hawks are at 85.5% on foul shots through six playoff games compared to Philly&rsquo;s 70.1% &ndash; the worst average among the 16 teams that made the postseason. The Bucks have been the NBA&rsquo;s best offensive rebounding team in the postseason, but those extra possessions are not translating into converted three-pointers. The Bucks are at 30.7% from behind the arc. Only the dearly departed Lakers (29.9%) and Wizards (28.9%) have shot worse from long range.
Last year&rsquo;s finalists, the Heat and the Lakers, are off starting their summers. In hindsight, the Heat probably never should have traded Kelly Olynyk for Victor Oladipo, and the Lakers were victimized by injuries to Davis and James more so than anything else &ndash; although if Rob Pelinka had to do it all over again, he probably would have found a way to get Kyle Lowry from the Raptors in what was a surprisingly busy trade deadline. They did get Andre Drummond, but he is Exhibit A in how a one-trick pony with a monster contract can become more of an albatross than an asset. The front offices in Detroit and Cleveland already learned this the hard way.
The Nets are learning that Blake Griffin still has some game left, but the LaMarcus Aldridge signing netted them nothing, and it may turn out that the signings of James from CSKA Moscow and Alize Johnson from the G-League may have huge implications. The Pacers and Raptors both had Johnson, who is an energy and rebounding machine. They both let him walk. Props to Sean Marks for recognizing his talent, and we may see more of him if the Bucks&rsquo; size advantage needs to be neutralized by someone other than DeAndre Jordan (DNP-CD in Game 1) or Nicolas Claxton.
Marks signed James after he had a falling out with his coach at CSKA Moscow, and after getting 30 minutes of playing time in Game 1, it will be interesting to see whether Nash makes James the de facto replacement point guard for Harden or gives that role to Kyrie Irving instead.
The Bucks are dealing with postseason adversity for the first time this spring after sweeping Miami in the first round, and they are going to need better three-point shooting from someone &mdash; Lopez, Bryn Forbes, Middleton or P.J. Tucker &mdash; if they hope to keep up with what Brooklyn is capable of offensively.&nbsp;
Who would have guessed that losing Donte DiVincenzo to a torn ankle ligament would be such a big factor. Milwaukee had George Hill a year ago for moments such as this, but Hill is with Philly now and went 0-for-2 in 11 inconsequential minutes on Sunday as the folks in Philly learned firsthand that Trae Young is as strong of a villain as he is as a scorer. Are the Sixers really the better top-to-bottom team? Or has the national audience been sleeping on the Hawks since they were kept off national television for most of the NBA season?
We have a whole bunch of basketball still in front of us as the second round kicks into high gear this week, and let&rsquo;s not forget that teams that sometimes look dead can come back like Lazarus. The Nuggets did it last season in becoming the first team ever to recover from a pair of 3-1 deficits, and the Clippers did it against the Mavs after losing Game 1 and Game 2 at home and falling behind 30-11 in the first seven minutes of Game 3 at Dallas.&nbsp;
Leonard, Paul George and Playoff Rondo are now 0-0 against the Jazz, and the Nuggets have the same series score against the Suns. Mike Conley is dealing with a hamstring issue that may or may not be worse than Harden&rsquo;s, and if it keeps him out, Jordan Clarkson is going to have his hands full. For Denver, we shall have to wait and see who gets the assignment on Booker, who dropped 47 on the Lakers (with 11 defensive rebounds) in the clincher. The Suns, though, were just 1-2 against the Nuggets in the regular season, while the Jazz were 2-1 vs. the Clippers.
<div class="mceNonEditable"><spike>&nbsp;</spike></div>
Should be an interesting week. And month, because the draft lottery is just a couple weeks away.
Here&rsquo;s hoping that it is, because many of the familiar faces we have grown accustomed to seeing at this stage of the postseason are either finished or injured.&nbsp;
Trae, the stage is yours if you have another bow in you. Kawhi, we have not forgotten what you did for the Raptors two years ago. Kyrie, we are as mesmerized by you as we are perplexed by you. Ben and Joel, y&rsquo;all have a bit of a playoff meltdown history that Doc Rivers needs to get you past. Giannis: Make a free throw. Joker: Your job is to put a finals MVP trophy next to the regular season MVP trophy you will be getting soon. CP3: How&rsquo;s that shoulder, old man?
Good luck to everyone, and may the drama this June be a launching pad for what we are going to see in the Finals next month and in the Olympics in late July and August.

In the NBA Playoffs, one week can change everything. There are tons of questions that will be answered as the second round begins.