Griffins

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

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

ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski announces sudden retirement

Today, the NBA and FIBA announced 80 of the top high-school-age prospects from across Africa who will participate in the 19th edition of Basketball Without Borders (BWB) Africa, which will be held July 28-31 at the American International School of Johannesburg (AISJ) in South Africa.
BWB Africa 2023 will bring together 80 boys and girls from more than 25 African countries &ndash; including 19 NBA Academy Africa and NBA Academy Women&rsquo;s Camp Africa 2022 prospects &ndash; to learn directly from current and former NBA, WNBA and FIBA players, legends and coaches and compete alongside their peers from across the continent.&nbsp;
The campers will be coached by two-time NBA All-Star Bam Adebayo (Miami Heat; U.S.; ties to Nigeria), 2022 NBA All-Star Darius Garland (Cleveland Cavaliers; U.S.), 2022 NBA champion Jonathan Kuminga (Golden State Warriors; Democratic Republic of the Congo) and Jalen Suggs (Orlando Magic; U.S.).
Five current and former NBA head coaches will also serve as BWB Africa 2023 coaches: Cavaliers head coach J.B. Bickerstaff; two-time NBA Coach of the Year, Nigeria Men&rsquo;s National Team head coach and Sacramento Kings head coach Mike Brown; 2018 NBA Coach of the Year Dwane Casey (most recently with the Detroit Pistons); Los Angeles Lakers head coach Darvin Ham; and veteran NBA coach Dave Joerger (most recently with the Philadelphia 76ers).
Several former NBA and WNBA players will also serve as BWB Africa 2023 coaches, including 2015 FIBA AfroBasket champion Olumide Oyedeji (Nigeria), 2011 NBA champion Ian Mahinmi (France; ties Benin), former NBA player and Basketball Africa League Head of League Operations Ruben Boumtje-Boumtje (Cameroon), former NBA player Tacko Fall (Senegal), 2003 WNBA champion Astou Ndiaye (Senegal), two-time WNBA champion Taj McWilliams-Franklin, four-time WNBA champion Sheryl Swoopes and Mozambique basketball legend Clarisse Machanguana.&nbsp;
Toronto Raptors Vice-Chairman, Team President and Alternate NBA Governor Masai Ujiri; New Orleans Pelicans Executive Vice President of Basketball Operations David Griffin; and Portland Trail Blazers Assistant General Manager Mike Schmitz will serve as camp directors, while David Crewe and Frank Adams (Phoenix Suns) will serve as the camp&rsquo;s athletic trainers.
The players and coaches will lead the campers through a variety of activities, including movement efficiency drills, offensive and defensive skill stations, three-point contests, 5-on-5 games, and life skills and leadership development sessions.&nbsp;&nbsp;A ceremony on the final day of the camp will award the Kim Bohuny Camp MVP, the Patrick Baumann Sportsmanship Award, the B.J. Johnson Most Improved Player Award, the Three-Point Champion and the Defensive MVP to the boys and girls who distinguish themselves on the court and as leaders.
As part of the camp, NBA players and coaches will also participate in several community outreach initiatives around Johannesburg, including a hospital visit and a Her Time to Play seminar for the female campers on July 28, and a court unveiling in the Alexandra Township on Saturday, July 29.&nbsp; In addition, BWB Africa 2023 coaches will lead a development clinic for local coaches at AISJ on July 30.&nbsp;&nbsp;
Also on July 29, select&nbsp;NBA players&nbsp;will visit the NBA Store at Sandton City Mall in Johannesburg and engage with fans.
BWB Africa 2023 will be supported by Nike, a global partner of BWB since 2002, which will outfit participants with Nike apparel and footwear, and Gatorade, which will keep players and coaches hydrated throughout the camp.
BWB has reached more than 4,100 participants from 136 countries and territories since 2001, with 112 former campers advancing to the NBA or WNBA.&nbsp; The NBA and FIBA have staged 70 BWB camps in 47 cities across 32 countries on six continents.
The following is a complete list of players participating in the 19th&nbsp;BWB Africa camp (rosters subject to change):
&nbsp;
<table style="width: 447px;" width="447">
<tbody>
<tr>
<td style="width: 403px;" colspan="2">
GIRLS
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="width: 191px;">
Name
</td>
<td style="width: 212px;">
Country
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="width: 191px;">
Ines Bellahmer
</td>
<td style="width: 212px;">
Algeria
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="width: 191px;">
Filomena Luis
</td>
<td style="width: 212px;">
Angola
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="width: 191px;">
Guigma Sadia
</td>
<td style="width: 212px;">
Burkina Faso
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="width: 191px;">
Gisele Kipo*
</td>
<td style="width: 212px;">
Cameroon
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="width: 191px;">
Hannah Dibadjou
</td>
<td style="width: 212px;">
Cameroon
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="width: 191px;">
Salma Khedr*
</td>
<td style="width: 212px;">
Egypt
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="width: 191px;">
Leila El Sanadily
</td>
<td style="width: 212px;">
Egypt
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="width: 191px;">
Aisha Hassan
</td>
<td style="width: 212px;">
Egypt
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="width: 191px;">
Lucie Mounganga
</td>
<td style="width: 212px;">
Gabon
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="width: 191px;">
Fatoumata Sylla
</td>
<td style="width: 212px;">
Guinea
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="width: 191px;">
Roseline Ooko
</td>
<td style="width: 212px;">
Kenya
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="width: 191px;">
Harena Randriamasimanana
</td>
<td style="width: 212px;">
Madagascar
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="width: 191px;">
Fitahiana Ratsimason
</td>
<td style="width: 212px;">
Madagascar
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="width: 191px;">
Joanie Rakotonanahary
</td>
<td style="width: 212px;">
Madagascar
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="width: 191px;">
Fatoumata Samake*
</td>
<td style="width: 212px;">
Mali
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="width: 191px;">
Oumou Soumare
</td>
<td style="width: 212px;">
Mali
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="width: 191px;">
Aya El Kallali*
</td>
<td style="width: 212px;">
Morocco
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="width: 191px;">
Albertina Matsinhe*
</td>
<td style="width: 212px;">
Mozambique
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="width: 191px;">
Bata Lurdes*
</td>
<td style="width: 212px;">
Mozambique
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="width: 191px;">
Shanaya Matusse*
</td>
<td style="width: 212px;">
Mozambique
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="width: 191px;">
Joy Biribebe
</td>
<td style="width: 212px;">
Nigeria
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="width: 191px;">
Benitha Ngarambe
</td>
<td style="width: 212px;">
Rwanda
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="width: 191px;">
Jane Dusabe
</td>
<td style="width: 212px;">
Rwanda
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="width: 191px;">
Fatou Sima
</td>
<td style="width: 212px;">
Senegal
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="width: 191px;">
Marie Diouf
</td>
<td style="width: 212px;">
Senegal
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="width: 191px;">
Ndickou Matar Diop*
</td>
<td style="width: 212px;">
Senegal
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="width: 191px;">
Tacko Sy
</td>
<td style="width: 212px;">
Senegal
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="width: 191px;">
Sheriffa Rahman
</td>
<td style="width: 212px;">
Sierra Leone
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="width: 191px;">
Onnetse Molokwame
</td>
<td style="width: 212px;">
South Africa
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="width: 191px;">
Luhle Ndaba
</td>
<td style="width: 212px;">
South Africa
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="width: 191px;">
Reneilwe Motebele
</td>
<td style="width: 212px;">
South Africa
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="width: 191px;">
Susan Peter
</td>
<td style="width: 212px;">
South Sudan
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="width: 191px;">
Asunta Ring
</td>
<td style="width: 212px;">
South Sudan
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="width: 191px;">
Nawasa Lazaro
</td>
<td style="width: 212px;">
Tanzania
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="width: 191px;">
Ibouanga Moussounda
</td>
<td style="width: 212px;">
Togo
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="width: 191px;">
Arwa Ghorbel*
</td>
<td style="width: 212px;">
Tunisia
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="width: 191px;">
Eya Nasri
</td>
<td style="width: 212px;">
Tunisia
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="width: 191px;">
Afef Bengoula
</td>
<td style="width: 212px;">
Tunisia
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="width: 191px;">
Christine Namyalo
</td>
<td style="width: 212px;">
Uganda
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="width: 191px;">
Immaculate Adongpiny
</td>
<td style="width: 212px;">
Uganda
</td>
</tr>
</tbody>
</table>
*Participated in NBA Academy Women&rsquo;s Camp Africa 2022
&nbsp;
<table width="447">
<tbody>
<tr>
<td style="width: 418.75px;" colspan="2" width="447">
BOYS
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="width: 197.167px;" width="208">
Name
</td>
<td style="width: 221.583px;" width="239">
Country
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="width: 197.167px;" width="208">
Aginaldo Neto*
</td>
<td style="width: 221.583px;" width="239">
Angola
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="width: 197.167px;" width="208">
Manuel Camboma*
</td>
<td style="width: 221.583px;" width="239">
Angola
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="width: 197.167px;" width="208">
Inacio Anatoli Da Silva
</td>
<td style="width: 221.583px;" width="239">
Angola
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="width: 197.167px;" width="208">
Claudino Capangaa
</td>
<td style="width: 221.583px;" width="239">
Angola
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="width: 197.167px;" width="208">
Sansao Wika
</td>
<td style="width: 221.583px;" width="239">
Angola
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="width: 197.167px;" width="208">
Philippe Ntungicimpaye
</td>
<td style="width: 221.583px;" width="239">
Burundi
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="width: 197.167px;" width="208">
Arnold Eyadi Kenfack
</td>
<td style="width: 221.583px;" width="239">
Cameroon
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="width: 197.167px;" width="208">
Hermann Bel Gassina
</td>
<td style="width: 221.583px;" width="239">
Cameroon
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="width: 197.167px;" width="208">
Chris Naguidebe
</td>
<td style="width: 221.583px;" width="239">
Central African Republic
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="width: 197.167px;" width="208">
Tahir Doungous*
</td>
<td style="width: 221.583px;" width="239">
Chad
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="width: 197.167px;" width="208">
Zie Cheikh Conde
</td>
<td style="width: 221.583px;" width="239">
C&ocirc;te d&rsquo;Ivoire
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="width: 197.167px;" width="208">
Tarek Khairy
</td>
<td style="width: 221.583px;" width="239">
Egypt
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="width: 197.167px;" width="208">
Ahmed Nedale
</td>
<td style="width: 221.583px;" width="239">
Egypt
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="width: 197.167px;" width="208">
Karim El Gizawi
</td>
<td style="width: 221.583px;" width="239">
Egypt
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="width: 197.167px;" width="208">
Courage Agbekpornu
</td>
<td style="width: 221.583px;" width="239">
Ghana
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="width: 197.167px;" width="208">
Kiggundu Austin Omondi
</td>
<td style="width: 221.583px;" width="239">
Kenya
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="width: 197.167px;" width="208">
Chouhaybou Keita
</td>
<td style="width: 221.583px;" width="239">
Mali
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="width: 197.167px;" width="208">
Mahamadou Konate
</td>
<td style="width: 221.583px;" width="239">
Mali
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="width: 197.167px;" width="208">
Hamza Bechchar
</td>
<td style="width: 221.583px;" width="239">
Morocco
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="width: 197.167px;" width="208">
Bolaji Oderinlo
</td>
<td style="width: 221.583px;" width="239">
Nigeria
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="width: 197.167px;" width="208">
Sultan Baruwa
</td>
<td style="width: 221.583px;" width="239">
Nigeria
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="width: 197.167px;" width="208">
Ibrahim Dan-Mutum
</td>
<td style="width: 221.583px;" width="239">
Nigeria
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="width: 197.167px;" width="208">
Jonah Precious
</td>
<td style="width: 221.583px;" width="239">
Nigeria
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="width: 197.167px;" width="208">
Ezekiel Obe*
</td>
<td style="width: 221.583px;" width="239">
Nigeria
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="width: 197.167px;" width="208">
Andre Bonazebi
</td>
<td style="width: 221.583px;" width="239">
Republic of Congo
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="width: 197.167px;" width="208">
Jude Fred Nkouka Silaho
</td>
<td style="width: 221.583px;" width="239">
Republic of Congo
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="width: 197.167px;" width="208">
Khadim Mboup*
</td>
<td style="width: 221.583px;" width="239">
Senegal
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="width: 197.167px;" width="208">
Assane Mandian*
</td>
<td style="width: 221.583px;" width="239">
Senegal
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="width: 197.167px;" width="208">
Yakhya Diop*
</td>
<td style="width: 221.583px;" width="239">
Senegal
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="width: 197.167px;" width="208">
Amar Diop*
</td>
<td style="width: 221.583px;" width="239">
Senegal
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="width: 197.167px;" width="208">
Mouhamed Camara
</td>
<td style="width: 221.583px;" width="239">
Senegal
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="width: 197.167px;" width="208">
Siyanda Radebe
</td>
<td style="width: 221.583px;" width="239">
South Africa
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="width: 197.167px;" width="208">
Gilchrist Storm
</td>
<td style="width: 221.583px;" width="239">
South Africa
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="width: 197.167px;" width="208">
Khaman Maluach*
</td>
<td style="width: 221.583px;" width="239">
South Sudan
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="width: 197.167px;" width="208">
Moses Marial Mandiria
</td>
<td style="width: 221.583px;" width="239">
South Sudan
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="width: 197.167px;" width="208">
Bol Wieu Mou Thet
</td>
<td style="width: 221.583px;" width="239">
South Sudan
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="width: 197.167px;" width="208">
Lual Deng Lual Aguek
</td>
<td style="width: 221.583px;" width="239">
South Sudan
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="width: 197.167px;" width="208">
Rayen Rouissi
</td>
<td style="width: 221.583px;" width="239">
Tunisia
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="width: 197.167px;" width="208">
Amen Hammi
</td>
<td style="width: 221.583px;" width="239">
Tunisia
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="width: 197.167px;" width="208">
Liberty Fusire*
</td>
<td style="width: 221.583px;" width="239">
Zimbabwe
</td>
</tr>
</tbody>
</table>
*NBA Academy Africa prospect

Bam Adebayo, Darius Garland, Jonathan Kuminga and Jalen Suggs will coach 80 top high-school-age prospects from across Africa.

Adebayo, Garland, Kuminga, Suggs to coach prospects at BWB Africa 2023

LeBron James is on the verge of eclipsing Kareem Abdul-Jabbar's all-time NBA scoring mark of 38,387 career points. At his current 29.3 point-per-game season average, James is nine games away from breaking a record that, for a long time, seemed close to untouchable.
James' transcendant greatness forces us to reevaluate what constitutes an "unbreakable" record. So what are some other examples across sports?
Starting with other basketball records, Abdul-Jabbar still boasts the NBA's all-time mark for made field goals with 15,837. James, despite his historic scoring, currently sits a whopping 1,882 made baskets behind Abdul-Jabbar. Even the Father Time doubters can't expect James to get there before he retires.
The career rebounding leaders are Wilt Chamberlain (23,924) and Bill Russell (21,620). No other player has ever reached 18,000 boards. Barring a drastic change to the game, it's safe to say those two marks will stand the test of time. Chamberlain's 100-point game, along with <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/basketball-news-what-are-the-most-unbreakable-individual-records-in-nba-history-lebron-james-wilt-chamberlain" target="_blank" rel="noopener">several other single-game and season-highs</a>, also seem untouchable.
Pete Maravich holds the NCAA record for most career points (3,667); he averaged over 40 points per game and set the bar in just three seasons. Antoine Davis of Detroit-Mercy is currently second and giving his best shot, but even at 3,274 points, he's well behind as he nears the end of a five-year college career.
<div class="mceNonEditable"><spike>&nbsp;</spike></div>
And Pistol Pete doesn't even come close to Pearl Moore, who holds the women's college all-time scoring mark with 4,061 career points &mdash; the vast majority coming during her time at Francis Marion University between 1976 and 1979. Here's why <a href="https://fivethirtyeight.com/features/pearl-moore-didnt-need-a-3-point-line-to-dominate/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Moore isn't shown on NCAA leaderboards.</a>
Lastly, while Abdul-Jabbar (and soon James) rest atop the NBA's scoring list, we simply cannot forget about Oscar Schmidt. The Brazilian legend is believed to be the leading basketball scorer of all-time across professional competition with a whopping 49,737 points. Go learn about Schmidt if you haven't yet.
Now let's switch gears and highlight other sports.
Even after the NFL's 21st-century passing surge, no receiver has come within 5,000 yards of Jerry Rice's 22,895-yard total. The San Fancisco 49ers legend holds several league records, but this one in particular feels unreachable.
Cal Ripken Jr.'s games-played streak (2,632 games) is one of Major League Baseball's most iconic records, spanning over 16 seasons. Modern sports science knows the value of rest during a long baseball season, so this record&nbsp;should&nbsp;stay forever. Another streak built to last: Joe DiMaggio's 56-game hitting streak in 1941.
On the other side of the plate, Nolan Ryan's 5,714 strikeouts dwarf any other pitcher and lead second-place Randy Johnson by 900 K's. Cy Young's whopping 749 complete games, like Ripken's appearance streak, is also immortalized with help from today's game. Young's dominance at the turn of the 20th century came at a time when pitchers breezed through complete games. That won't happen anymore &mdash; the active leader is Adam Wainwright with just 28.
Any hockey record associated with Wayne Gretzky is probably unbreakable &mdash; as Shoresy says, "Don't nickel-and-dime the Great One!" &mdash; but his hallowed 2,857 career points might be the most outrageous career tally in all of sports. Gretzky would still&nbsp;be the all-time points leader even if he never scored a goal thanks to his 1,963 assists. However, like with LeBron, the hockey world is on watch for Alex Ovechkin to overtake Gretzky's 894 career goals. Ovechkin, age 37, is 84 goals away.
<div class="mceNonEditable"><spike>&nbsp;</spike></div>
Motorsports can add an unbreakable record of its own. Richard Petty, driver of the famed No. 43, has 200 NASCAR wins to his credit, which is nearly double any other driver (David Pearson has 105). He dominated in an era during the 1960s and 1970s with uneven parity and a jam-packed schedule, so it's also illogical to think we'll see someone match his 10 consecutive victories in 1967.
Soccer has existed for so long and in so many places that all sorts of renowned records are scattered across the world. But two legends continue to be on top. Pele's 92 hat tricks are by far the most by a male player; Christiano Ronaldo is a distant second with 60.&nbsp;
Canadian legend Christine Sinclair has the most recorded international goals in soccer history by any man or woman. She surpassed the United States' Abby Wambach in 2020 and is still charging ahead, with 190 to her current total across over 20 years of international competition.
Michael Phelps is the most dominant Olympic athlete ever. His 28 gold medals are the most by any athlete by far &mdash; including 23 golds, the only person to ever eclipse double-digit gold medals. Additionally, Simone Biles' 19 world gold medals, including the Olympics and other competitions, more than double the next-closest gymnast.&nbsp;
Finally, we reach several records that seem impossible to break, unless the same record-setting athlete tops themselves. Katie Ledecky is the picture of pushing limits in the pool, setting so many fastest times that a tweet like this feels like the fairest way to sum up her stardom:
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15:37.99?!?<a href="https://twitter.com/katieledecky?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@katieledecky</a> just clocked the 14th-fastest swim in HISTORY, and now owns 18 of the top-20 times ever recorded in the event 😲<a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/TYRProSeries?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#TYRProSeries</a> <a href="https://t.co/v8VO3VVrbt">pic.twitter.com/v8VO3VVrbt</a>
&mdash; USA Swimming (@USASwimming) <a href="https://twitter.com/USASwimming/status/1614416917984595969?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 15, 2023</a></blockquote>
And you can debate the validity of the sport all you want, but what Joey Chestnut has done in the world of competitive eating feels inhuman. He holds 55 records involving 55 food disciplines, including the 76 hot dogs eaten in 10 minutes during the 2021 Nathan's Famous Fourth of July Hot Dog Eating Contest. He has not relinquished the hot-dog-eating crown since 2007.
Will LeBron James' final point tally reign like these records? It's too early to say, but by holding the honor, the King joins some of the pillars of American and international sports.

Ethan Fuller looks at some of the most untouchable records in sports, including marks held by Wayne Gretzky and Jerry Rice.

What are the most unbreakable individual records in sports history?

Everyone enters NBA Summer League with something to prove.
For rookies, it's their first opportunity to show they belong at the highest level of professional basketball. To veterans, it's a chance to assert themselves, showcase their development and prove that they deserve a roster or increased minutes in the rotation.
Even in the relative nonchalance of the Las Vegas heat, for some young talents, the next 11 days will take on extra significance. For 10 in particular, this is a pivotal offseason for their pro career, and a standout Summer League could put them on a much-needed course correction.
I did not list any rookies here; it's their first shot in the league, so it's a bit unfair to stamp such high stakes on their inaugural action. Everyone on this list has at least a year of NBA experience under their belt, and one has been around the league for close to a decade. Beyond the top prospects, here are some players you should keep an eye on as they make their cases during Summer League.
Bruno Caboclo, Utah Jazz
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Justin Robinson finds Bruno Caboclo for the slam! 📺: ESPN2 <a href="https://t.co/VaFH9MTUNw">pic.twitter.com/VaFH9MTUNw</a>
&mdash; NBA (@NBA) <a href="https://twitter.com/NBA/status/1544860272367632384?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">July 7, 2022</a></blockquote>

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Caboclo is one of the most experienced players on this summer's rosters. The No. 20 overall pick in the 2014 NBA Draft, Caboclo is remarkably still just 26 years old, but spent seven seasons with six teams in the NBA before suiting up for Sao Paulo FC in Brazil last year.&nbsp;
This is probably one of Caboclo's last shots at sticking in the league. He has averaged double-digit minutes per game just once in seven years, when he put up 8.3 points and 4.6 rebounds across 23.5 minutes per game with the Memphis Grizzlies in 2018-19. He's far from the intriguing, raw prospect he was when entering the Association, so if Caboclo is going to earn a roster spot, even on a G League team, he has to show out.
Several other prospects enter Summer League in a similar situation. DJ Wilson (Raptors) and Chandler Hutchinson (Hawks) were first-round picks in the 2017 and 2018 NBA Drafts, respectively. They played 10 NBA games combined in 2021-22.&nbsp;
Usman Garuba, Houston Rockets
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Love this sequence from Usman Garuba. Does a brilliant job of switching onto Carsen Edwards, moves over to swat the ball loose from the ball-handler, and then pushes it up the floor in transition. <a href="https://t.co/WDfKs6cdG6">pic.twitter.com/WDfKs6cdG6</a>
&mdash; Dakota Schmidt (@Dakota_Schmidt) <a href="https://twitter.com/Dakota_Schmidt/status/1490729110334808070?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 7, 2022</a></blockquote>

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Jalen Green backed up his No. 2 overall draft slot with a stellar finish to last season, landing on the All-Rookie First Team. Alperen Sengun dazzled fans with his passing and put up 11.7 points, 7.0 rebounds and 2.7 assists per game after the All-Star break. Josh Christopher battled typical rookie inconsistencies, but closed out his year with three games of 20-plus points in his last seven contests.
Houston's fourth 2021 first-round pick, however, went relatively unnoticed. Usman Garuba appeared just 24 times and averaged 10 minutes per game. He was billed as a versatile defender who could pair with Sengun, but injuries slowed his progression, though he flashed promise in limited G League action.
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Sometimes, rebuilds move too quickly for player development to keep up. Houston drafted Jabari Smith Jr. with the third overall pick and Tari Eason at No. 17. Both figure to occupy one, if not two, forward spots, with Kenyon Martin Jr. and Jae'Sean Tate firmly in the mix as well. Garuba must demonstrate a stable offensive floor to balance his stellar defensive tools. I'll be interested to see how he's used in Las Vegas as a smaller center.
RJ Hampton, Orlando Magic
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Yeah , I asked to play. Nothing like getting reps and rhythm during the summer against competition and connecting with our new rooks 🤟🏽
&mdash; RJ (@RjHampton14) <a href="https://twitter.com/RjHampton14/status/1542161234493165568?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">June 29, 2022</a></blockquote>

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Markelle Fultz, Cole Anthony and Jalen Suggs have graduated from Summer League play. Hampton is the lone young Magic guard returning to the roster. Orlando acquired the high-flying playmaker in March 2021, but he hasn't synced up with his backcourt mates quite yet, and playing time will only grow more scarce as the core improves.
The 21-year-old has just struggled to score efficienctly at any level. Despite his athleticism and power, Hampton made just 52.5% of his attempts at the rim last season and finished with a 48.1% True Shooting percentage.
In a featured role with this Magic summer group, he needs to display some takeover playmaking ability and consistent shotmaking. Hampton seems to be embracing the extra reps, which offer a promising chance for him to ball out with No. 1 pick Paolo Banchero.
Killian Hayes, Detroit Pistons
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Killian Hayes Is looking good 👀 Via 🎥 <a href="https://twitter.com/DetroitXay?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@DetroitXay</a> <a href="https://t.co/xv97YJKAdl">pic.twitter.com/xv97YJKAdl</a>
&mdash; Pistons Talk (@Pistons__Talk) <a href="https://twitter.com/Pistons__Talk/status/1541958241147658241?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">June 29, 2022</a></blockquote>

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Our Nekias Duncan highlighted <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/views-from-the-bottom-young-players-to-keep-an-eye-on" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Hayes' solid end to the 2021-22 season</a>. Though the overall stats might not show it, the former No. 7 pick did take meaningful strides as an off-ball player next to Cade Cunningham and a downhill driver when he had opportunities. Duncan also called Hayes "one of the most underrated guard defenders in the sport already."
That didn't stop Detroit from selecting Jaden Ivey to be Cade Cunningham's backcourt partner. Hayes is still very much part of a talented Pistons core, but his long-term projection with the franchise is murky right now. A standout effort in Vegas could solidify his standing, not only in the rotation, but also in the eyes of other teams around the league.
Kai Jones, Charlotte Hornets
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Kai Jones taking fight for the nasty dunk <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/AllFly?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#AllFly</a> <a href="https://t.co/rrhOfVjnrj">pic.twitter.com/rrhOfVjnrj</a>
&mdash; Ballislife.com (@Ballislife) <a href="https://twitter.com/Ballislife/status/1424516813417811970?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">August 8, 2021</a></blockquote>

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Most expected Jones to be more of a developmental draft pick when Charlotte selected him No. 19 overall last year. He played just 63 total minutes with the Hornets and appeared in eight games for the G League affiliate Greensboro Swarm. Then, the Hornets went back to the NBA Draft for frontcourt help, selecting Mark Williams at No. 15 overall a few weeks ago.
What does this mean for Jones? Summer League head coach Jordan Surenkamp said more time at the four might be a possibility:
"Yeah, I still think that's up in the air. I think it kind of depends on what we're looking at from an organization standpoint in terms of rotations and things like that," <a href="https://www.si.com/nba/hornets/news/quick-hits-early-impressions-of-rookies-role-for-kai-jones-balancing-sl-minutes-more" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Surenkamp said.</a> "But like I said, he's been very willing to play at that position so far just as much as he has been at the five, which is more of what he's done in this league up to this point. In terms of how many minutes and how often, those are still things that are up in the air. Those are conversations that we'll have before Friday."
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I'm admittedly a skeptic toward this type of role shift for Jones. But Summer League is an excellent laboratory for him and the Hornets to try out the fit.
Aleksej Pokusevski, Oklahoma City Thunder
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And y'all expect me to quit Poku lol TUH <a href="https://t.co/2vRTHbLWrO">pic.twitter.com/2vRTHbLWrO</a>
&mdash; Nekias (Nuh-KY-us) Duncan (@NekiasNBA) <a href="https://twitter.com/NekiasNBA/status/1544496249994465280?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">July 6, 2022</a></blockquote>

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One of the most unique players in the entire NBA enters his third season with the Thunder. But this will actually be Pokusevski's first NBA Summer League experience after OKC decided not to have him join the team last year (and there was no competition in 2020).&nbsp;
Pokusevski has his staunch advocates and critics on either side after another up-and-down season in 2021-22. But he was much better after the All-Star break, averaging 12.4 points, 7.2 rebounds and 4.3 assists across 19 games. Poku still has a ways to go in his individual development, and the Thunder have shown a willingness to be patient as the seven-foot wing progresses. A strong summer showing against less experienced competition would help justify the franchise's belief in him.
Paul Reed, Philadelphia 76ers
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Paul Reed dropped 20 PTS and snatched 15 boards in Game 1 of the Salt Lake City Summer League for the <a href="https://twitter.com/sixers?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@sixers</a>! 20 PTS | 15 REB | 4 STL <a href="https://t.co/NlAd1vxQSr">pic.twitter.com/NlAd1vxQSr</a>
&mdash; NBA (@NBA) <a href="https://twitter.com/NBA/status/1544495884829954048?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">July 6, 2022</a></blockquote>

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Big-man depth behind Joel Embiid and Tobias Harris was one of the more pressing concerns for the 76ers in the postseason, and the franchise has done nothing in the offseason to bolster their bigs so far. For now, the responsibility falls on Reed and/or Charles Bassey to take the mantle as a backup.&nbsp;
At 6-foot-9 and 210 pounds, Reed has a bit more in his tool kit offensively then Bassey and really battles hard on the glass. This is an atmosphere where he can physically dominate. Reed already posted 20 points and 15 rebounds in a Salt Lake City Summer League showing against the Grizzlies.&nbsp;
Xavier Tillman, Memphis Grizzlies
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Xavier Tillman &amp; Ziaire Williams combined for 31 points to lead the <a href="https://twitter.com/memgrizz?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@memgrizz</a> to the <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/NBASummer?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#NBASummer</a> win!<a href="https://twitter.com/therealZiaire?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@therealZiaire</a>: 15 PTS, 8 AST, 2 STL<a href="https://twitter.com/Rookiedunker?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@Rookiedunker</a>: 16 PTS, 4 AST <a href="https://t.co/rD5YnPb63N">pic.twitter.com/rD5YnPb63N</a>
&mdash; NBA (@NBA) <a href="https://twitter.com/NBA/status/1544497186821619713?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">July 6, 2022</a></blockquote>

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The No. 35 pick from the 2020 NBA Draft logged a really solid rookie season with Memphis, but saw his playing time and efficiency scale back in 2021-22. Tillman struggled to finish at the basket and lost the flashes of three-point promise that appeared in his first year. With Brandon Clarke surging back as a notable piece, Jaren Jackson Jr. healthy and Steven Adams locked in at center, Tillman only had scraps of big-man minutes left over.
However, he's still a notable Grizzlies prospect. Tillman is the type of multifaceted big defender that today's game craves, and he can rebound and pass well for his position. Like Reed, Tillman has the chance to impose his will inside against younger, leaner Summer League players, and he can state his case for more playing time to the team.
Brandon Williams, Portland Trail Blazers
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Brandon Williams has been lighting it up for the <a href="https://twitter.com/trailblazers?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@trailblazers</a>! He dropped a career-high 27 points in his first career start last night - his second consecutive 20+ point game. 💪 <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/GLeagueAlum?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#GLeagueAlum</a> <a href="https://t.co/WYteuaeBWm">pic.twitter.com/WYteuaeBWm</a>
&mdash; NBA G League (@nbagleague) <a href="https://twitter.com/nbagleague/status/1501331791558414340?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">March 8, 2022</a></blockquote>

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Lost in the Trail Blazers' aimless second half was the emergence of Williams, an undrafted rookie guard whom Portland locked up on a two-way contract in February. He had played just two NBA games before the All-Star break, but averaged 13.7 points, 4.2 assists and 3.3 rebounds per game in 22 contests afterwards. Nekias Duncan even <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/views-from-the-bottom-young-players-to-keep-an-eye-on" target="_blank" rel="noopener">highlighted him in that same piece</a> for his pick-and-roll passing promise.
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Was Williams' opportunity solely because Portland was marred with injuries and well out of the playoff picture? Or does he have a real chance at a rotation spot this season? It's admittedly tough to envision with Damian Lillard getting healthy, Anfernee Simons secured on a lucrative extension and Keon Johnson on the rise. But there's no better case for Williams to assert his talent than at Summer League.
James Wiseman, Golden State Warriors
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Here is the full update from Jama Mahlalela on James Wiseman and Jonathan Kuminga. Said Wiseman probably won&rsquo;t play on Friday, &ldquo;but I&rsquo;d definitely imagine in the next few (summer league) games we&rsquo;ll see him.&rdquo; <a href="https://t.co/FxLFQJ71Bn">pic.twitter.com/FxLFQJ71Bn</a>
&mdash; Anthony Slater (@anthonyVslater) <a href="https://twitter.com/anthonyVslater/status/1544806078507954176?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">July 6, 2022</a></blockquote>

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Warriors Summer League coach Jama Mahlalela said that he expects Wiseman to participate in Vegas at some point. It's been a long road of recovery for the 2020 No. 2 overall draft pick, who missed all of last season while rehabbing a torn meniscus. Wiseman's absence has fueled a chorus of critics to question his place with the defending champions.
Obviously, there's only so much Wiseman can do here as he continues to focus on his body. NBA training camp and the actual season far surpass any importance Summer League can provide. But if Wiseman does make appearances over the next two weeks, he'll assuredly be one of the summer's most-discussed players.

James Wiseman, Kai Jones and Killian Hayes are among the players who could use a standout Summer League showing in Las Vegas.

10 NBA veterans with a bit more to prove at Las Vegas Summer League

During the NBA Finals, it's easy to be so invested in the task at hand that we forget all of the history and events leading up to this moment. Sure, the Finals are the pinnacle of the season, a resting place in basketball lore, and an ultimate decider in legacy. But it always strikes me how much weight we put on these seven games.
For instance, the Boston Celtics put together an incredible defensive performance last night in Game 4... and it just didn&rsquo;t matter to an extent because Stephen Curry had an all-time performance, putting up 43 points in a Herculean effort to equalize the series. Boston&rsquo;s offense floundered late as the Warriors constricted driving lanes and walled off the glass, a substantial improvement from the previous game.
While we can try and take away as much as possible philosophically from this game, I want to appreciate it instead. The journey to get here, 20-plus games deep into the postseason, months after an October start to the season. There are certainly things that we can take away from the series, but how we got here feels much more indicative and worth noting to me.
There are a million lenses we can search through. Al Horford was winning his second of back-to-back national titles at the University of Florida in 2007 and now he&rsquo;s participating in his first NBA Finals at age-36. There was a time early in Steph Curry&rsquo;s NBA career when there were viable questions about his longevity in the league given countless injuries. &ldquo;Andrew Wiggins revitalized his career,&rdquo; is doing a bit much for me (he wasn&rsquo;t a bust!), but he&rsquo;s legitimately improved as an all-around player and become a vital part of Golden State&rsquo;s core.
The other day when watching Game 3, I kept thinking to myself, &ldquo;Look at Jaylen Brown, man.&rdquo;&nbsp;
Brown is averaging 22.3 points per game in the Finals on 54.5% True Shooting, which is impressive considering how good the defense has been through four games. He&rsquo;s been Boston&rsquo;s most consistent offensive outlet throughout the playoffs.
Of course, box scores don&rsquo;t capture everything. Brown&rsquo;s decision-making can be head-scratching. His defense waxes and wanes, particularly off the ball. But, man, going back and rewinding to see who Brown was prior to entering the league is fascinating and awe-inspiring. Before he was the No. 3 overall pick in the 2016 NBA Draft, he was the No. 3 overall recruit in the 2015 high-school class (according to RSCI), which paints the picture that he&rsquo;s always been this guy.
Not so fast!
Brown shot 48.2% on twos at Cal and 54.4% on twos during the 2021-22 regular season. He's shooting 37.9% from deep on 8.8 threes per 100 possessions during the playoffs compared to 29.4% on 6.4 three-point attempts per 100 in college. He's shot 75% at the line over the past three NBA seasons compared to 65.8% his first three years, in line with his 65.4% at Cal. Perhaps the best descriptor: Brown shot 30.2% on 116 far twos during his one-and-done season, according to Barttorvik, a massive contrast from the 46% he shot on long twos in the NBA this season, per Cleaning the Glass.
Going back through Brown's tape at Cal, it's worth noting how he's left open when he's behind the arc. His hestiancy as a shooter stands out as well.
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It was jarring watching this game back and remembering how different Brown was defended then compared to now. He has become a vastly different player.
His shot was all over the place. He didn't have much versatility in it. The touch from anywhere on the floor felt uncertain and indicative of a player who would struggle to find a consistent form of a jumper in the league.
Mike Schmitz of DraftExpress and ESPN put it best back in 2016.
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Timing his release differently shot-to-shot whether he's pulling up off the bounce under pressure or shooting catch and shoot jumpers in space, Brown's mechanics are not particularly reliable at this stage. He casually fades away on some attempts unnecessarily, sometimes holding the ball longer than others at the top of his shot. - Source:&nbsp;<a href="http://www.draftexpress.com/profile/Jaylen-Brown-72912/">http://www.draftexpress.com/profile/Jaylen-Brown-72912/</a>&nbsp;&copy;DraftExpress
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Just look at how different these two shots are.
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In the first shot, he's bringing the ball across his body whereas on the second shot, he's still dipping but going straight up. There's less of a sideways sway or fade in his shot as well. The base is stronger and he seems much more compact.
Compact is a wonderful way to describe Jaylen's growth in general. He's tightened up so many aspects of his game in order to get the most out of it.
You can see shades of the same powerful strides, the outside mechanical dribbles, but notice how high up he was on drives.
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Jaylen has always had an incredible first step, but his handle at the time really limited his ability to get the most out of it. Getting to the paint wasn't a problem, as he was such an overwhelming athlete, but stringing together his handle and drives into actual finishes in the paint was a struggle. He felt a bit disjointed with his body capable of moving much faster than his handle would let him go, sort of like someone who just bought a stick-shift Camaro, but they've never driven stick before.
His finishes felt rushed almost, moving on two different planes. Watch this. It's actually a pretty solid display of handle and maneuverability in tight space &mdash; his biggest area of concern outside of his jumper at Cal. However, it's super choppy. He feels sped up.
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His pacing and tempo have improved astronomically since then. He can certainly fall into tunnel vision as a scorer, but it's without the level of erraticism that existed at Cal. Every game, there are a multitude of looks that bring out a "no, no, no, NO, YES?!" type of reaction from me. He has Neo-controlling-the-Matrix type stretches as a shotmaker where you could put an army of 8-foot tall Mr. Smiths in front of him and he'd still hit his shots.
Now, watch this drive from last night.
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Brown's ability to take like-sized wings off the dribble and generate an advantage is miles better than could be envisioned at the time.
Most importantly, and perhaps my favorite attribute that Jaylen has greatly improved, is his ability to adjust to and finish through contact. He hangs in the air endlessly, something he benefits from considering that he still has that slight hold at the top of his shot. He rises over any and everyone in the mid-range and at the rim and his strength, particularly in his core, allows him to really pop.
His implementation of Euros and greatly expanded craft as a finisher take the cake. This stunt at the nail causes a turnover or halted possession at Cal. Not today!&nbsp;
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A late-clock isolation on a Defensive Player of the Year candidate, driving into nail help from a borderline All-Defensive-Team guard, and then getting into a nasty self-created shot from eight feet that rattles the rim and slides in. I'm not sure any play could better embody the type of player Brown is at this point.&nbsp;
Jaylen Brown's improvements are staggering when you compare his current skillset to his pre-NBA self. I don't want to get hasty and say he's got one of the greatest development tracks of all-time, but it doesn't feel far off! So often we see a player with physical tools and size and the bones of a potential scoring game. Brown's remarkable strides shouldn't be used as a measuring stick for others, but they should be admired. He has drastically improved and we just don't see this type of outlier success regularly.
Brown's play has been substantial for the Celtics, and will be for the remainder of the series as Boston looks to win their first championship in over a decade. A retrospective look as to how far he's come as a player provides an even greater appreciation for what he's doing today.

Jaylen Brown has arguably been Boston's most consistent offensive outlet, which is all the more incredible considering how he got here.

Appreciating how far Jaylen Brown has come

Izaiah Brockington couldn&rsquo;t help but lick his chops.&nbsp;
On Dec. 9, 2021, highly-touted 2022 NBA Draft prospect Keegan Murray and his Iowa Hawkeyes were traveling to Ames for an in-state rivalry game. The 6-foot-8, 225-pound forward was leading the nation in scoring with an average of just under 24 points per game (on a scorching 59.3% clip from the field), and the Hawkeyes were averaging over 90 points per contest at that point.
Through rigorous film study, Brockington observed Murray&rsquo;s favorite spots on the court, where he liked to catch the ball and how he got his buckets. And from the tip, the 6-foot-4, 200-pound guard followed through. He denied post-entry to Murray time and time again, helped the helper and put pressure on the Hawkeyes on the perimeter.
By the end of the night, Brockington outscored and outrebounded Murray while holding him to the worst game of his season by far (9 points on 4-of-17 from the field), while simultaneously delivering the game's most efficient performance with 29 points, 10 rebounds, 2 assists and 2 steals.
&ldquo;I feel like that was definitely one of my best games of the season. I really came into that game wanting to shut him down,&rdquo; Brockington told BasketballNews.com in a phone interview. &ldquo;I went out there and really tried to take away his strengths and mainly speed him up. I feel like he was really good when he was allowed to play at his pace and when guys were giving him space to work and see what was going on on the floor. So, I really came into that game wanting to lock him down on defense. And then, the 29 points, that was a bonus really.&rdquo;
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Unlike Murray, who&rsquo;s projected to be a lottery pick in most mock drafts (including <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/draft/2022-nba-mock-draft/players/keegan-murray" target="_blank" rel="noopener">No. 6 overall</a> in <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/draft" target="_blank" rel="noopener">BasketballNews.com&rsquo;s latest</a>), you surprisingly won&rsquo;t find Brockington&rsquo;s name anywhere on those big boards. And no, you won&rsquo;t find him partaking in this week&rsquo;s NBA Draft Combine nor the G League Elite Camp. Considering his size at the guard position coupled with his ability to rebound, make <a href="https://twitter.com/SynergySST/status/1507061353076383744?s=20&amp;t=bJGYe1FEeuLkx9hLdfQYuQ" target="_blank" rel="noopener">high-difficulty shots</a> and, most importantly, defend at a high level, it&rsquo;s a head-scratcher.
Take into account that Brockington spearheaded a 22-win Iowa State program that won just two games the season before, an NCAA-record turnaround, and it just seems like a downright mistake. So, he&rsquo;ll just have to prove that he stands out and find other ways to turn heads &mdash; just like he did last December.
&ldquo;I feel like my work ethic allows me to catch guys that a lot of people deem 'better' or would rank higher [than me]," Brockington said. "I feel like I have the intangibles that other people don't. I have athleticism, and I have the dog mentality &mdash; somebody who just loves to compete and loves to win and isn't gonna let somebody just walk all over them.
&ldquo;I love to compete. I attribute it to being from Philly. We just never back down from a challenge. The intangibles, I feel like, set me apart. And then, with my work ethic, all of these things that people say I don't have, I'm working every day and I'm ready to show everybody that I do [have them].&rdquo;
Having just worked out for the Atlanta Hawks, Brockington&rsquo;s list of interested teams is growing. According to sources, the Toronto Raptors, Phoenix Suns, Los Angeles Clippers, New Orleans Pelicans, Los Angeles Lakers, Indiana Pacers, Sacramento Kings, Utah Jazz and Brooklyn Nets are lined up next &mdash; and he has five other teams who asked to schedule workouts at Tandem&rsquo;s Pro Day on Friday.
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Brockington&rsquo;s lone season at Iowa State went down as the best of his college career, and he considers it the most fun he had playing basketball at the collegiate level because the roster was brand-new and had something to prove.
As a senior, he averaged 16.9 points and 6.8 rebounds per game, was named to the All-Big 12 First Team and earned the 2021-22 midseason John Wooden award. Boasting the Cyclones&rsquo; highest usage rate (27.5%), he took on the most responsibility he had to that point and ran with the opportunity.
Defensively, Brockington attributes much of his success (93.2 Defensive Rating) to the players he had to guard along the way. Starting in the Big 12, a conference he refers to as &ldquo;ridiculous&rdquo; in regards to talent, match-ups against Kansas standout Ochai Agbaji and Baylor&rsquo;s Jeremy Sochan and James Akinjo helped iron sharpen iron. The nights were intense and featured high-level basketball.
This past season, Brockington was adept at cutting off catch-and-drives (0.47 points per possession, per InStat) and defending pick-and-roll ball-handlers (0.54 PPP). It&rsquo;s something that he believes carried over his time at Penn State, where he spent two seasons prior to transferring.
&ldquo;We were really big on defense, so it was really about angles over there. And then, going to Iowa State, Coach TJ [Otzelberger] and our whole defensive scheme was non-stop pressure and to get guys to go into our help,&rdquo; Brockington said. &ldquo;But I feel like... you can push guys to your help, but it's better to be able to guard somebody and not need the help. I feel like, yeah, I definitely would try to cut guys off so that it's not forcing us to rotate and create long closeouts. Little things like that just help you stay more compact on defense and just stay more locked on your man.
&ldquo;So at Iowa State, we would drill things like [pick-and-roll defense] &mdash; getting over screens, being able to communicate and getting over and under, and just sticking on the ball-handler, making it tough for them. But, I also feel like I can thrive in an all-switching situation because I have strength and I have explosiveness. I feel like when I get caught down in the post, I can front or just make it tough for bigger guys to get easy position. I feel like I can thrive in either system, for sure."
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The Work Gonna Show🖤✍🏾&hellip;<a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/iPromise?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#iPromise</a>🙏🏾 <a href="https://t.co/K23fSy995m">pic.twitter.com/K23fSy995m</a>
&mdash; Izaiah Brockington (@TheOnlyiZB) <a href="https://twitter.com/TheOnlyiZB/status/1527033907014684682?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 18, 2022</a></blockquote>

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During his two years with the Nittany Lions, he took on different roles and began to blossom under Pat Chambers. Again, there was plenty of talent to face-off against in the Big Ten, such as current Chicago Bulls guard Ayo Dosunmu at Illinois, San Antonio Spurs forward Joe Wieskamp at Iowa, Indiana Pacers guard Duane Washington and future NBA Draft pick Johnny Davis at Wisconsin. Stylistically, Brockington believes the Big Ten&rsquo;s physicality helped prepare him too.&nbsp;
At Penn State, Brockington reconnected with his longtime friend Lamar Stevens. The now-Cleveland Cavaliers forward performed night-in and night-out for the team, showing Brockington the consistency and hard work it takes to be successful. Stevens has been in his ear throughout the pre-draft process, sharing what needs to be done and how to stick in the league. Brockington appreciates the support and encouragement, and he's taking every bit of that advice.
(Brockington&rsquo;s collegiate basketball odyssey actually began at St. Bonaventure, the first of three schools he&rsquo;d attend. Playing for Mark Schmidt for one year, he and the Bonnies had a solid season led by seniors Jaylen Adams and Matt Mobley. Brockington ultimately transferred to Penn State to be closer to home and ended up sitting out a season, by rule, before suiting up).
As far as translatable skills go at the next level, Brockington states that his defense and rebounding top the list, along with his athleticism and ability to get downhill.&nbsp;
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In addition, Brockington takes pride in being well-versed in any kind of role. At St. Bonaventure and early on at Penn State, he did a bit of everything &mdash; serving as a spot-up shooter, a slasher, a rebounding specialist and a sixth man. He even played spot minutes off the bench at one point.
At Iowa State, he was a go-to guy, a star player and a leader for the first time in his college career, so opposing defenses threw everything but the kitchen sink at him.
&ldquo;Against certain teams &mdash; Texas comes to mind specifically &mdash; [they were], like, face-guarding me. [Texas] Tech would have a guy pressure and they would have dudes sit in gaps and essentially try to force me off of the ball. Seeing double-teams and all of that was new," Brockington said with a laugh. "It was just crazy being guarded like that in college 'cause I'd never had to deal with things like that before. I feel like those things really pushed me to be able to adapt and really try to just make smart decisions."
On the offensive end, Brockington has an appetite for the mid-range. The sly southpaw is able to get to his spots quickly off the ball and fire away with his leaping lefty jumper, and he likes to attack off the catch (with fireworks often following). Though he admits that is the area where he&rsquo;s most comfortable at the moment, Brockington understands the importance of being a three-level scorer.
&ldquo;I've been working on really being a combo guard &mdash; a guy that can use pick-and-rolls and make reads and just really making the right decision every time, a lot of basketball IQ things,&rdquo; Brockington said. &ldquo;And then, just knocking down threes... I've been working a ton and I'm looking to show everybody that I can knock down threes off the kick-out and off the pick-and-roll and off the dribble. I've been working extremely hard on that, and it's been going great.
&ldquo;I mean, [the mid-range] is an underappreciated part of the game. But a lot of analytics guys will tell you that it's inefficient, and that's probably true for most guys. That's just not the case with me. I feel like when I take mid-rangers, I create enough space horizontally and vertically to be able to get a clean look off.&rdquo;
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Despite spending five years in college, Brockington is only 22 years old because he graduated from high school early. Possessing that much experience at his age, he considers it an advantage. At the same time, Brockington says age doesn&rsquo;t have to do with his ability to play the game, pick up new information and improve as a player.
&ldquo;My experience in college has really taught me about consistency and taught me what hard work can do, and it's really about the preparation leading into everything,&rdquo; Brockington said. &ldquo;Games are won way before that time comes. Games are won in the offseason. Games are won in the film room. Games are won in pregame shootaround. So those are things I'll always have with me.&nbsp;
&ldquo;It hasn't been a typical college journey, but one thing that's remained the same is everywhere I go, I put my head down and work. I went out there, I produced and I was out there trying to win."
For Brockington, growing up in Philadelphia, he&rsquo;d always attend his father Antoine&rsquo;s rec-league games and hear stories about him. Antoine was a hell of a pro in his own right, achieving tremendous success overseas after an impressive career at Coppin State, where he won the 1997-98 MEAC Player of the Year award &mdash; and Izaiah looked up to him proudly.
Now, as the pre-draft process begins, it&rsquo;s Izaiah Brockington&rsquo;s time to carve his own path and make him proud.
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Spencer Davies speaks with Izaiah Brockington about his breakout season at Iowa State, unique path and next-level aspirations.

Izaiah Brockington hopes his unique journey culminates in NBA success

When Ish Wainright first walked into the practice facility in Scottsdale, Arizona, Phoenix Suns head coach Monty Williams had no idea who he was.
Signed on a two-way contract by Phoenix this season, Wainright&rsquo;s path to the biggest stage is an awe-inspiring one. After playing for the Baylor Bears throughout his collegiate career, Wainright went overseas and did well for himself in Germany. He did enough to catch the eye of NBA teams, and suited up for the Toronto Raptors in the Las Vegas summer league and preseason. Eventually, though, it led to the Suns taking notice and bringing him aboard a special organization in the Valley.
Four days ago, Wainright&rsquo;s NBA dream was officially realized, as the Suns converted his two-way deal into a standard contract &mdash; a move that makes him eligible for Phoenix's postseason roster. Wainright took the spot of Frank Kaminsky, who was released as he continues to nurse a stress reaction in his knee.
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All along the way, Wainright&rsquo;s infectious personality and tireless work ethic have left their mark within the Suns&rsquo; organization. A restricted free agent after this season, Wainright could now be Phoenix&rsquo;s newest version of the Cameron Payne success story from a few years ago.
Within a short period of time, Wainright has gained the trust of Williams and the Suns&rsquo; coaching staff. In a pinch, Wainright can play multiple roles for Phoenix. Whether it be as a small-ball 5 or a burly forward who can space the floor, the Suns&rsquo; 27-year-old rookie has already found his niche. The job for Wainright is simple within the Suns&rsquo; already well-flowing two-way operation: defend at a high level, move the ball around and hit the open-shot opportunities.
A well-known gym rat in the Suns&rsquo; training facility, Phoenix&rsquo;s player development staff have helped Wainright quickly become a knockdown three-point shooter from the most important spot on the floor. Converting an impressive 42.9% on corner threes, Wainright is now a player teams can&rsquo;t sag off of. If anything, Wainright&rsquo;s added development makes him a piece that could easily see the floor for Phoenix in the postseason. For example, with Wainright&rsquo;s shooting and frame, he could be a reserve secondary option for a potential Finals rematch against the Milwaukee Bucks.
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NBA career-high 20 PTS, 8 REBS and 4 AST for Phoenix Suns rookie and Uganda National Team star Ish Wainright against the Clippers last night. Knocked down 4-of-8 threes, put pressure on the rim, active defensively (3 STL). Incredible success story and an even better person. <a href="https://t.co/cme5sx5KE8">pic.twitter.com/cme5sx5KE8</a>
&mdash; Mike Schmitz (@Mike_Schmitz) <a href="https://twitter.com/Mike_Schmitz/status/1512099222421532673?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">April 7, 2022</a></blockquote>

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Wainright and his head coach are both in agreement on his role, which has a complete buy-in all levels. If anything, Wainright is the latest shining example of the Suns&rsquo; system mining another rotation gem.
&ldquo;I think the thing that I&rsquo;m seeing with him, he&rsquo;s not bringing the ball down. When he catches it in the shot pocket, he keeps it there and it&rsquo;s all legs and follow through as before I think it would&rsquo;ve been a wind up to a shot. And he&rsquo;s worked on it,&rdquo; Williams said of Wainright&rsquo;s shooting development.
&ldquo;Coach [Steve] Scalzi spends every day, every minute with Ish working on all of that stuff. But in our economy, the corner three is probably where he&rsquo;s going to get his shot when he does get in. So, he&rsquo;s got to be efficient from that spot.&rdquo;
Wainright relayed similar thoughts to Williams. It doesn&rsquo;t bother Wainright that he doesn&rsquo;t get many shot opportunities or minutes because he&rsquo;s a complete team player. Loved in a tight-knit locker room already, it speaks volumes to Wainright&rsquo;s character.
On the doorstep of making another dream into reality, Wainright knows his moment is about to be realized &mdash; signed to a regular NBA contract.
Now, on a playoff roster who's the favorite to win the NBA Finals, the Baylor alum has found a potential long-term home on the highest level of basketball.
&ldquo;My mom actually heard the conversation at my door. I heard her before I could react to anything. I heard her scream, but just having an organization and team believe in you, trusting you it means the world,&rdquo; Wainright said of learning his contract had been converted to the main roster.
&ldquo;The journey that I&rsquo;ve taken to get to this point, it means a lot. I&rsquo;m in a daze still, to be honest with you. It probably won&rsquo;t kick in until Sunday when I&rsquo;m looking at my jersey like, &lsquo;Woah.&rsquo; I&rsquo;ve dreamed about playing in the playoffs, the Finals, winning a championship. Dreamed about playing in the NBA, especially for one of the greatest teams in Suns history and also the No. 1 team in the world. It means a lot.&rdquo;
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Ish Wainright is the latest success story from the ever-growing list in Phoenix. Now, Wainright's NBA dream is becoming a reality.

Ish Wainright is the latest Suns player development success story

SAITAMA, Japan (AP) &mdash; Luka Doncic&rsquo;s first Olympics have not been perfect, despite what the basketball standings say. He was defeated. Once. By the rules.
Doncic was looking for tickets to go watch men&rsquo;s tennis when Novak Djokovic was playing in the men&rsquo;s semifinals. Ordinarily, the world&rsquo;s top athletes have no problem getting into other Olympic events when their schedules allow. But at the Tokyo Games, amid a pandemic, there are very strict policies about what athletes can do and where they can go. As such, Doncic&rsquo;s plea for tickets went unfulfilled.
He settled for watching &ldquo;everything on TV,&rdquo; Doncic said.
Another marquee event is coming up Tuesday, that being the men&rsquo;s basketball quarterfinals at the Tokyo Games. Doncic won&rsquo;t have tickets to those, but won&rsquo;t need them, either. He&rsquo;ll be on the court when Slovenia takes on Germany for a berth in the medal round, a step that would put his basketball-crazed homeland even more on the sport&rsquo;s map and potentially send his stock soaring even higher.
&ldquo;We have, obviously, the best player in the world,&rdquo; Slovenia coach Aleksander Sekulic said.
Doncic is certainly in the conversation about being the world&rsquo;s best. As far as being the best player in the Tokyo Games, there&rsquo;s no argument.
Through the group stage, Doncic led the Olympic men&rsquo;s field in scoring at 28.3 points per game, 6.0 points ahead of Japan&rsquo;s Rui Hachimura. He&rsquo;s second in rebounding at 10.7 per game, behind only Slovenian teammate Mike Tobey&rsquo;s 13 per contest. And he&rsquo;s third in assists at 7.0 per game; Tomas Satoransky of the Czech Republic averaged 8.7, Spain&rsquo;s Ricky Rubio is averaging 7.3.
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No men&rsquo;s player has ever finished an Olympics averaging Doncic&rsquo;s current numbers. And nobody has averaged 28.3 points in an Olympics since Brazil&rsquo;s Oscar Schmidt &mdash; the Olympic standard for just about every men&rsquo;s scoring mark &mdash; averaged 42.3 per game at Seoul in 1988.
&ldquo;We&rsquo;re making history for our country,&rdquo; Doncic said.
His impact is all over the court.
Nobody in this men&rsquo;s tournament has drawn more fouls, by a wide margin, than Doncic. He&rsquo;s also tied for the Olympic lead in blocked shots, is shooting a ridiculous 75% on 2-pointers, is one of five players in the Olympics with at least 10 makes so far on 3-pointers.&nbsp;<a class="" href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/luka-doncic-dazzles-with-48-points-for-slovenia-in-olympic-debut-vs-argentina" target="_blank" rel="noopener">He had a 48-point Olympic debut,</a>&nbsp;tying him for the second-highest scoring game in Olympic history, and&nbsp;<a class="" href="https://apnews.com/article/2020-tokyo-olympics-sports-spain-slovenia-spain-olympic-team-f1d1076d62e86449f8c46bb03e4b7ce3" target="_blank" rel="noopener">was one assist shy on Sunday against Spain</a>&nbsp;from posting what would have been the third triple-double ever at a games.
&ldquo;He is the best player in the world, including the NBA,&rdquo; Argentina coach Sergio Hernandez said. &ldquo;If there was any doubt in my mind, it is there no more.&rdquo;
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For as good as Doncic is with the Dallas Mavericks, he&rsquo;s been impossible to beat in his nation&rsquo;s colors.
Slovenia&rsquo;s senior team is 16-0 with Doncic in the lineup. He was a teenager on the team that captured the European championship in 2017 behind Goran Dragic&rsquo;s MVP performance, a win that remains, for now anyway, the top achievement in Slovenia&rsquo;s basketball history. Dragic insisted &mdash; not predicted &mdash; when that tournament was over that Doncic would be an NBA &ldquo;superstar.&rdquo;
&ldquo;They could win this,&rdquo; Dragic said earlier in these Olympics, watching from his Slovenia home.
Doncic is why.
Slovenia surrounded Doncic for these Olympics, and the six-team qualifier it had to win last month just to get to Tokyo, with plenty of shooters who space the floor for his game and a big man like Tobey &mdash; who played at Virginia &mdash; to provide the inside help needed. The formula has worked all summer; Slovenia is 7-0 with an average winning margin of 26.4 points per game.
A win over Germany on Tuesday, and they&rsquo;re in the medal round in their debut Olympics.
&ldquo;Playing with him is just amazing,&rdquo; Tobey said. &ldquo;He&rsquo;s so talented. At this type of basketball, maybe every type of basketball, he&rsquo;s the best in the world. I don&rsquo;t know what he does. You try not to be in awe too much.&rdquo;
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The U.S. came to Tokyo with 12 NBA players, a past MVP and NBA Finals MVP in Kevin Durant, seven players who have played for an NBA title, five of them who have actually won championships. Top to bottom, the talent the Americans have overshadows every team, Slovenia included.
But Doncic grew up playing the international style, obviously. He knows how the game is called. He knows the nuances. He&rsquo;s used to playing with a ball that differs from the feel and bounce of the NBA ball. For him, the transition between playing for Dallas and playing for his country has been seamless. Not every NBA standout in Tokyo can say the same.
&ldquo;Luka Doncic is one of the best four or five players in the world right now,&rdquo;&nbsp;<a class="" href="https://apnews.com/article/2020-tokyo-olympics-slovenia-japan-basketball-518f71485c91c54ec6fb2a61c6205474" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Japan coach Julio Lamas said.</a>&nbsp;&ldquo;But he plays very comfortably in FIBA with the spacing and the rules. Some other NBA players feel uncomfortable sometimes in FIBA. He don&rsquo;t. He is excellent in all the game situations.&rdquo;
Doncic wants no part of the best-player conversation. He won&rsquo;t even discuss an offseason of change with the Mavericks &mdash; Jason Kidd taking over for Rick Carlisle as coach, changes in the front office, changes to the roster &mdash; until the Olympics are over. He&rsquo;s locked in solely on playing for gold, nothing else.
Besides, he doesn&rsquo;t need to rave about his own play. Everyone else already is doing that for him.
&ldquo;I&rsquo;m happy that I can witness and play with him,&rdquo; said Slovenia guard Zoran Dragic, Goran Dragic&rsquo;s brother. &ldquo;He&rsquo;s such an awesome guy and it&rsquo;s so easy to play with him, because he&rsquo;s just an unbelievable person and basketball player. Yeah, we can be all happy that he&rsquo;s Slovenian.&rdquo;
</div>

Luka Doncic has been outstanding in his first Olympics. "He is the best player in the world, including the NBA," said a rival head coach.

Luka Doncic's Olympic debut earns praise: 'He's the best in the world'

After leading his home country of Slovenia to a no-doubt 118-100 victory, the world will not soon forget Luka Doncic&rsquo;s Olympic debut against Argentina.
In his first game as an Olympian, Doncic put himself in second place in the Games' history all-time with 48 points. Only Oscar Schmidt (55 points, 1998) has scored more on the stage.
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Luka Doncic is the best player on the planet debate a wall <a href="https://t.co/77ao7k84f3">pic.twitter.com/77ao7k84f3</a>
&mdash; Slightly Biased 🇸🇮 (@BiasedSlightly) <a href="https://twitter.com/BiasedSlightly/status/1419529323300769796?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">July 26, 2021</a></blockquote>

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Luka went 18-for-29 from the field on the night, knocking down 6-of-14 triples.
The Dallas Mavericks superstar exploded for 31 of those 48 points in the first half, dazzling with his step back threes and tactical drives. In addition, he made a number of ridiculous passes (5 assists), crashed the boards (11 rebounds) and had active hands on defense (3 blocks).&nbsp;
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Luka Doncic is showing off at the <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Tokyo2020?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#Tokyo2020</a> Olympics 🤯<a href="https://t.co/J5xkHwpoM1">pic.twitter.com/J5xkHwpoM1</a>
&mdash; Dionysis Aravantinos (@AravantinosDA) <a href="https://twitter.com/AravantinosDA/status/1419539857987325952?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">July 26, 2021</a></blockquote>

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Known for having a bit of a hot temper, Doncic also picked up a technical foul when he didn&rsquo;t get a foul call inside; it was largely irrelevant, however, as the Slovenians had as much as a 30-point cushion due to Luka&rsquo;s incredible first half. They never looked back.
Instead of doing it in the heart of Texas, Doncic put on a show overseas in Saitama, Japan, and led Slovenia to its first win on the Olympic stage.

Luka Doncic scored 48 points, the second-highest tally in Olympic basketball history in his debut in the Games.

Luka Doncic dazzles with 48 points for Slovenia in Olympic debut

There are many "what-if" scenarios throughout NBA history. It's always fun to discuss these hypotheticals that could've had an enormous impact on the NBA landscape. In order to discuss some of the best "what ifs" throughout NBA history, we asked our BasketballNews.com writers the following question:
What is your favorite "what-if" scenario in NBA history?&nbsp;
Alex Kennedy: The first thing that pops into my head is, &ldquo;What if the Thunder&rsquo;s Big Three of Kevin Durant, Russell Westbrook and James Harden had stayed together?&rdquo; How many championships would they have won? Would KD have remained in Oklahoma City? Sure, Westbrook and Harden may not have become the MVP-caliber players we know today, but that group definitely would&rsquo;ve been fun to watch in their collective prime. However, since that&rsquo;s one of the most obvious NBA-related what-ifs, I also want to bring up a lesser-known scenario. Entering the 2012 NBA Draft, the New Orleans Pelicans (who were the Hornets at the time) had the No. 1 pick and the No. 10 pick. Anthony Davis at No. 1 was a no-brainer, but they had a decision to make at No. 10. According to a source in New Orleans&rsquo; front office, the team&rsquo;s top option throughout the process was a guard from Weber State: Damian Lillard. Initially, due to his age and mid-major school, Lillard was being projected as a late-lottery pick, so he was a realistic target. The Pelicans loved the idea of landing their big man of the future and point guard of the future. They had zeroed in on Lillard, but once he shot lights out at the NBA Combine and started dominating pre-draft workouts, his stock started soaring. He eventually climbed all the way up to No. 6, where the Portland Trail Blazers selected him. New Orleans settled for a different scoring guard instead: Austin Rivers. In 2014, Lillard confirmed to <a href="https://www.nola.com/sports/pelicans/article_705225d3-c9e0-525e-bde0-92505557c7a7.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">NOLA.com</a> that he initially thought he&rsquo;d end up in New Orleans: "I knew they had the 10th pick in that draft. That was within the range I could have gone in. In my head, it was like, 'They're going to draft AD and I could be the point guard.' Me and him talked... That was definitely what I was thinking could happen at that time." If this happened, does AD stay in New Orleans long-term? Are they a perennial contender? We&rsquo;ll never know, but it&rsquo;s fun to imagine that incredible one-two punch.
Nekias Duncan: If the prompt was &ldquo;biggest,&rdquo; I&rsquo;d be inclined to bring up the health of one Tracy McGrady because it&rsquo;s a shame that he could never completely put it together. But that&rsquo;s depressing. I&rsquo;ll stick with McGrady, though: what if Doc Rivers doesn&rsquo;t botch the Tim Duncan meeting in 2000 &mdash; or schedules it at a different time, whatever &mdash; and we get a McGrady-Duncan-Grant Hill trio in Orlando? Having McGrady and Hill dazzle in the open floor while Duncan brings it home in the half-court seems like a formula for success.
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Moke Hamilton: Probably gotta go with Kyrie Irving&rsquo;s game-winning three-pointer over Steph Curry in Game 7 of the 2016 NBA Finals. Had he missed, the 73-win Warriors&rsquo; legacy would&rsquo;ve been completely different and LeBron James may have never left Cleveland. Could he leave without winning a title after writing the &ldquo;I&rsquo;m Coming Home&rdquo; piece in Sports Illustrated? If Kyrie still ended up leaving &mdash; and it stands to reason he would&rsquo;ve &mdash; could LeBron have been trapped in Cleveland? Hell, had the Warriors won that series, would Kevin Durant still have signed there? What if he stayed in Oklahoma City? I mean&hellip; there was so much fallout from that shot, so it&rsquo;s an easy answer for me, all things considered.
Spencer Davies: This may sound a little biased (and it probably is because this is the last season that I was a diehard fan), but I always think about the end of Game 7 between the Cleveland Cavaliers and Golden State Warriors in 2016. It was exciting as is, with the infamous sequence: The Block by LeBron James on Andre Iguodala, The Shot by Kyrie Irving over Stephen Curry and The Stop by Kevin Love against Curry to secure the Cavs&rsquo; first championship. But what if the basketball gods would&rsquo;ve allowed a fourth part of that chain of events: The Dunk. Or if you really want to describe it honestly, The Poster. As the Cavs were up 92-89 with 18.7 seconds left in the game, Irving received the inbound pass and took it up the right side of the court. He drew a defender and left the lane wide open for a diagonally-cutting LeBron, who rose up with the most purpose we&rsquo;d seen since his first stint with Cleveland. The moment was tailor-made for the history books, as Draymond Green attempted to contest LeBron&rsquo;s slam way too late and came within inches of being on the receiving end of an eternal highlight reel. Instead, LeBron took it inside with so much force that it ricocheted off the iron, and he ended up actually hurting his own wrist as a result. Had that dunk actually happened, it would&rsquo;ve been one of the best punctuations on a championship victory in NBA Finals history in an already unprecedented 3-1 series comeback. Somewhere in an alternate universe or different timeline, LeBron&rsquo;s title-winning exclamation point exists.
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Ethan Fuller: Quiz your friends with this one: Who is believed to be the all-time leading scorer in pro basketball history? It&rsquo;s Oscar Schmidt, who racked up over 49,000 points between his Brazilian national team and club careers &mdash; but never played in the NBA. Schmidt is the all-time leading Olympic scorer with 1,093 points, and once scored 46 to help Brazil beat the United States in the 1987 Pan-American games. He was a 6-foot-8 forward and three-point marksman who averaged a ridiculous 42.0 points per game in the 1988 Olympics. Would he have been able to make the successful transition to the NBA? We&rsquo;ll never know, but it&rsquo;s worth shouting out one of basketball&rsquo;s underrated legends.
Check out some of our other NBA Roundtables including:&nbsp;
<a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/roundtable-which-former-player-would-fit-perfectly-in-todays-nba" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Which player from a previous era would fit perfectly in today's NBA?</a>
<a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/roundtable-who-is-the-most-untouchable-player-in-the-nba" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Who is currently the most untouchable player in the NBA?</a>
<a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/roundtable-which-nba-team-has-the-best-young-core" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Which NBA team has the best young core?</a>
<a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/roundtable-which-nba-contract-is-the-biggest-bargain" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Which NBA contract is the biggest bargain?</a>

What are the most interesting "what-ifs" in NBA history? BasketballNews.com's writers share their thoughts.

Roundtable: What is your favorite 'what-if' scenario in NBA history?

Paul Pierce, Jalen Rose, Jay Williams, Adrian Wojnarowski and Maria Taylor gave Alex Kennedy an inside look at ESPN's "NBA Countdown."

Behind the scenes of NBA Countdown: Woj's role, preparation, COVID's impact

In a year filled with uncertainty, one thing is clear: USC&rsquo;s Evan Mobley is a virtual lock to be a top-five pick in the 2021 NBA Draft. In 29 regular-season games, Mobley averaged 16.8 points, 8.6 rebounds, 2.2 assists and 3.0 blocks per game, while leading the Trojans to a 22-7 record and a No. 24 ranking in the country. Comparisons have been made likening him to star players like Anthony Davis, Chris Bosh and LaMarcus Aldridge. Mike Schmitz, a friend and NBA draft analyst for ESPN, has even referred to Mobley as &ldquo;unicorn-like." There is certainly a lot of hype surrounding Mobley, and for good reason.&nbsp;
At 7-foot with a 7-foot-5 wingspan, Mobley possesses fluid athleticism and mobility to go with a high-level skill set. He handles, passes and shoots the ball extremely well for a player his size. His upside on the offensive end of the floor is very high. However, I&rsquo;d like to highlight one part of his game that might not always get the attention it deserves: his impact on the defensive end.
It doesn&rsquo;t take a rocket scientist or Red Auerbach to see that Mobley was blessed by the basketball gods with the physical tools to be an effective shot blocker. Although Mobley's length and athleticism will allow him to be an effective rim protector at the NBA level right away, it would be greatly underselling his defensive prowess if we labeled him as just a rim protector. Sure, he rejects a ton of shots at the rim and that&rsquo;s great -- but his versatility as a defender and ability to block and alter shots away from the rim are equally, if not more, impressive.&nbsp;
In most cases, when a 7-footer gets switched onto a smaller, quicker perimeter player or has to help in pick-and-roll actions, there are typically opportunities for the offense to attack the vulnerable big man. Be that as it may, that&rsquo;s not the case with Mobley at all. Ironically, the joke is usually on the offensive player, as Mobley&rsquo;s footspeed allows him to stay in front, and his length and timing allow him to make plays. Mobley also has an uncanny ability to cover an incredible amount of ground as a team defender when rotating to closeout, which creates even more opportunities for him to disrupt or swat shots.
Evan Mobley&rsquo;s defensive abilities are just one layer of his game that make him such a unique talent, a valuable commodity and &ldquo;unicorn-like." Mobley and the Trojans, a No. 6 seed in the West Region of the NCAA Tournament, are set to play on Friday versus the winner of the play-in game between Wichita State and Drake. In the meantime, enjoy this video of Mobley blocking shots all over the court:
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Matt Babcock analyzes future top-five NBA Draft pick Evan Mobley and the element of his game that goes overlooked.

Welcome to the Evan Mobley block party

I&rsquo;ve never had basketball taken away from me.
I was eating well, playing good, feeling confident and having fun again.
Things were going really well. I remember Coach Ryan Schmidt signaling to either Jermel Kennedy or somebody to run a play to get the ball in my hands because I had just scored, and we wanted to run a specific play for me, so they handed the ball off to me and I went to accelerate and advance the dribble like I do every day.&nbsp;
And I fell.&nbsp;
My initial thought was that I slipped on a sticker. On the court they have those decals and sometimes they get slippery if they get wet or aren&rsquo;t put on properly. I had slipped on one four or five plays earlier, so I thought I had just slipped again.
Usually when I turn the ball over, I go after it. But my body couldn't even move to go after the ball this time. That&rsquo;s when I knew something was wrong. My teammate, Briante Weber told me that he heard a pop. Coach Ryan was turning away like he didn&rsquo;t even want to look. I looked at my teammates&rsquo; faces and they were all looking back in disgust. I thought, &ldquo;Oh no, is it something gruesome like what happened to my friend, Tyler Ennis?&rdquo; But it wasn&rsquo;t that, thankfully.&nbsp;
It didn&rsquo;t even hurt, because when you tear your Achilles, all of the nerve endings are just kind of&hellip;finished.&nbsp;
But inside, I knew something was wrong. I couldn&rsquo;t get up, and I just started crying on the court.&nbsp;
I thought about how hard I had worked to stay in shape throughout the pandemic, and about having the opportunity to play basketball again in the Canadian Elite Basketball League after a situation with the 905 where I wasn&rsquo;t playing a lot. We had just got Coach Ryan his first win as a head coach and we were on our way to securing a playoff spot, but I couldn&rsquo;t even finish the game. It was like I had let my teammates down.&nbsp;
How could I get hurt? It&rsquo;s not even a contact injury. I was in better shape than I was with the 905! This all went through my mind while I was lying on the court and my foot was just kind of&hellip;dangling there.&nbsp;
I was home in Canada, but none of this was familiar. I had to go to the hospital alone, talk to doctors alone, and tread all of these new waters alone while trying not to drown.&nbsp;
I&rsquo;m fortunate that I was playing under my long-term mentor, and, for lack of a better word, rock, in Jermaine Anderson (the general manager of my CEBL team). He was able to get everything together for my insurance, get me second opinions, and get me the best treatment and doctors possible, because that almost wasn&rsquo;t the case.&nbsp;
Initially, I was in St. Catharines General Hospital and I was going to go do surgery the next day with someone there. But the doctor at St. Catharines was making jokes and making me really uncomfortable, saying stuff like, &ldquo;Is Kevin Durant your favorite player? I guess you guys have more in common now!&rdquo; I don&rsquo;t know if that was just his method, to use humor during a tough time, but like, my guy, this is not the time. It was only a day after, I hadn&rsquo;t even gotten through all of my text messages and phone calls from people. I was still in mental survival mode, thinking, &ldquo;This can&rsquo;t be real.&rdquo; The doctor came back in and told me, &ldquo;We can do the surgery, but tonight I have a gallbladder surgery to do, then another surgery to do, and then I&rsquo;ll do yours.&rdquo; I called Jermaine, and we were both like, &ldquo;Nah, we can&rsquo;t do the surgery here.&rdquo;
Jermaine came through, like he always does, and hooked me up with Dr. Desai, and he&rsquo;s a huge basketball fanatic. He actually saw Kevin Durant when KD tore his Achilles against the Raptors. It made me feel more comfortable to see somebody who actually specializes in orthopaedic procedures, and who works with basketball players on a regular basis.&nbsp;
But again, I was alone.
This was at the height of COVID, and it killed my mom and the rest of my family to not be able to be in the waiting room or anywhere close to the hospital. They had to wait outside, and I had to go in for surgery by myself. I was by myself when I woke up after the surgery and saw my foot in a cast for the first time. I was by myself when I had to face the reality that I was going to have to rebuild my body and pause my career.&nbsp;
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My mom, my brother and I live by this family mantra, &lsquo;the 72-hour rule.&rdquo; When something negative happens, you can sulk about it for two-to-three days, but then after that third day, you have to snap out of it. So I took notes. I wrote down all of the things I was going to do, and then aligned it with the protocols that the doctor gave me and just made sure I kept my mind out of a negative space. I want to stay positive when it comes to attacking this rehab process.
And it&rsquo;s been a good process.
I&rsquo;m in Canada, so my surgery and post-op care was free, but they don&rsquo;t cover the cost of my lengthy rehab. But I have insurance through Team Canada, which covers some of my expenses (with the rest paid out-of-pocket).&nbsp;
I work with the Team Canada guys and their physical therapist Jason Meehan, who I see once a week. Four-to-five times a week, I do weights and stuff with Dr. Thomas Lam, who is someone I&rsquo;ve worked with since I was 13 years old. Dr. Lam works with my Team Canada teammate, Dwight Powell, who also tore his Achilles in January with the Dallas Mavericks. This is a strange coincidence, but it&rsquo;s one that I needed, to have somebody that is going through the exact same process that can coach me and be like, &ldquo;Hey, this is what you&rsquo;re going to experience. You&rsquo;re going to have good days and bad days...&rdquo; That was good for me. That made me really optimistic.&nbsp;
Dwight is a great person and he is a hard worker. That&rsquo;s something no injury can ever take away from him. He also plays for Mark Cuban, so he has access to all of the best resources. Even in the NBA bubble, there was talk that he looked so good that he could probably play, but the team just wanted to be cautious.
I was playing in the G League, living check to check. It&rsquo;s already hard to stay committed in the G League, where our per diem is $100 for a two-day road trip and our salaries are $30,000 before taxes. I thought about Dwight&rsquo;s injury, and I thought about my injury, and how if I just had a little bit more money (or an NBA organization footing the bill), I could have access to better resources too.&nbsp;
Fortunately, I did have a lot from a support standpoint.
The team I was playing for, the Hamilton Honey Badgers, features a number of people who I got to know during my time with the Raptors 905. Jermaine Anderson went from a player-development coach on the 905 to GM of the Honey Badgers. Coach Ryan was one of the main assistant coaches that I was really close with throughout my tenure with the 905.&nbsp;
Many people from the 905 reached out including their GM Chad Sanders, the new president Courtney Charles and the former president John Wiggins. Jama Mahlalela (who used to be the 905&rsquo;s head coach) hit me up as well. They offered words of support and told me that they were keeping me in their prayers. One of the 905&rsquo;s therapists, Graeme Campbell, was already there in the CEBL bubble because he was working with Coach Charles Kissi and the Guelph Nighthawks.&nbsp;
Everyone offered me so much. Rayhan Malik, our athletic trainer with the 905, was like, &ldquo;Let&rsquo;s see what the insurance is like, but if you want to work with me and work with Graeme, we can definitely help take care of you.&rdquo;
I couldn&rsquo;t work with the Raptors&rsquo; people because they were still in the bubble, so they were trying to figure that out and it wouldn&rsquo;t have been an option for me. John, Chad and Jama all brought up the idea of the 905 signing me as a practice player for the upcoming season. You don&rsquo;t get paid for that, and I would have had to travel to the arena by myself and they wouldn&rsquo;t provide housing, but the goal would have been to give me the opportunity to be around basketball, to be around the team, maybe even help coach some of the new guys, and at least get access to working out with Arsalan Jamil and Ryan Schmidt, and then get treatment there around the clock. But because of COVID-19 and what they&rsquo;re going to do with the G League season, and then with the Raptors moving to Tampa and the 905 possibly moving too, it wouldn&rsquo;t make sense for them to have to fly me out and house me if I&rsquo;m not going to get the opportunity to play with them.
And then they had a coaching change.&nbsp;
I haven&rsquo;t heard from the 905 since they hired Coach Patrick Mutombo and Brittni Donaldson, and Jama is on Nick Nurse&rsquo;s staff now, so he has other things to worry about. I don&rsquo;t know where I stand with them in terms of being a practice player or not. But regardless, I&rsquo;m still thankful that they reached out, thankful that they wanted to help out, and thankful for the two years that I spent there.&nbsp;
I&rsquo;ve been carrying it well, doing everything I can to get back out there, but this stuff is still heavy, man.
Even Employment Insurance is a grey area, because my job as a G League player doesn&rsquo;t really exist right now, and I can&rsquo;t find other work because I&rsquo;m still injured.&nbsp;
These are the kind of things that NBA guys, NBA fans, and just basketball fans in general don&rsquo;t really understand, or even think about.&nbsp;
And I can&rsquo;t blame them for that. I can&rsquo;t blame anybody for this situation since it was entirely out of anyone&rsquo;s control.&nbsp;
I&rsquo;m blessed, so blessed, to be in an organization that has offered all they could in terms of support. But at the end of the day, I&rsquo;m not in a situation where I&rsquo;m making millions of dollars or receiving all of the same perks as an NBA player.&nbsp;
Don&rsquo;t get me wrong. I love my job. I get to play the game I love, and I get paid to do it. Not many people can say that.&nbsp;
And it&rsquo;s not all about money.&nbsp;
It&rsquo;s just life, when I think about it.&nbsp;
The richer people always have access to better healthcare than the people who don&rsquo;t.
Growing up, people always talk about managing your money properly and getting your degree because you could get hurt. You hear those things and you take it in, but you don&rsquo;t really process it. Then, it happened to me. I&rsquo;m glad I got my degree. What if I had left school early and never went to the NBA? Then I&rsquo;m overseas and this happened to me. At least I have my degree to fall back on.
The window for undrafted players and G League players is so small. You can do everything right and still have your dream disappear before it even begins.&nbsp;
I&rsquo;m lucky to have so many people in the basketball community that care about me and want to see me get back on my feet.
It&rsquo;s been a hard road, but I&rsquo;m luckier than most.&nbsp;

Former Raptors 905 guard Duane Notice details his recovery from a torn Achilles without having NBA resources at his disposal.