Pilots

There are few certainties in life.
Death. Taxes. And Dorian Finney-Smith corner threes.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-theme="dark">
Death, taxes&hellip;and a Dorian Finney-Smith corner three. <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Mavs?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#Mavs</a> <a href="https://t.co/meTTIRgc18">pic.twitter.com/meTTIRgc18</a>
&mdash; Dorothy J. Gentry (@DorothyJGentry) <a href="https://twitter.com/DorothyJGentry/status/1501718770460602369?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">March 10, 2022</a></blockquote>

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

When Finney-Smith entered the league six years ago, the Dallas Mavericks wing was told that the corner three is the easiest shot in the NBA and that he&rsquo;d &ldquo;make a lot of money" if he could knock it down consistently. &nbsp; &ldquo;I was already playing into the corner my rookie year, and once I realized how many corner threes I was going to get, I just worked on it,&rdquo; Finney-Smith told BasketballNews.com in a one-on-one conversation.
He laughs, as if he's just now realizing that it has become his trademark shot. Then, he shouts out the former teammate who helped his corner three become so deadly.
&ldquo;Wesley Matthews was a good vet for me. He was always telling me that I needed to get that (corner three) shot down pat if I wanted to be on the court," Finney-Smith said. "And I did!"
He would spend the next few years focused, head down, determined to prove he belonged in the league. He developed into a reliable shooter and perfected the corner three, just as Matthews advised.
This season, Finney-Smith shot 46.1% on corner threes &mdash; a huge improvement from his rookie year, when he shot just 26.3% from that spot. During the 2022 NBA Playoffs, he's been even better, knocking down 52.5% of his corner threes.
&ldquo;I had the confidence that I could shoot. I shot the ball well in college, it just ain&rsquo;t translated the first couple of years in the NBA,&rdquo; Finney-Smith said.
He knew there was only one way to get his shot back: stay in the gym and work.
&ldquo;Repetition builds confidence," Finney-Smith explained. "Also, I think my teammates seeing how hard I worked, it also built confidence in them. The ones who have been here with me throughout this journey &mdash; like Maxi [Kleber], Dwight [Powell], Luka [Doncic] &mdash; I think they see the work I put in and that also gives them confidence to give the ball to me in late-game situations.
&ldquo;Guys see the work you put in; they can tell if you've been in the gym or if you been BSing, and I built confidence with those guys, especially Luka, to pass me the ball in those clutch situations. They have trust in me, even when I miss it.&rdquo;
<div class="mceNonEditable"><spike>&nbsp;</spike></div>
Finney-Smith also earned the trust of Dallas' front office. After playing his best basketball and helping the Mavs win a lot of games (in the regular season and now in the playoffs), Finney-Smith is getting the recognition he deserves. The undrafted baller from Portsmouth, Virginia, was also rewarded with the biggest payday of his career.
In early February &mdash; six years after signing a non-guaranteed contract with the Mavs &mdash; Doe-Doe (as he is affectionately called) signed a four-year contract extension worth a reported $55 million. After earning $4,000,000 this season, he'll reportedly be paid $12,402,000 next year.
He has played his way into a starting role and into the hearts of MFFL&rsquo;s, becoming one of the fan favorites. Finney-Smith has established himself as an integral piece of the Mavs' future after averaging a career-high 11.0 points along with 4.7 rebounds, 2.2 threes, 1.9 assists and 1.1 steals (while shooting 47.1% from the field and 39.5% from three-point range).
During the postseason, he has elevated his game to a higher level. In Game 4 of the Western Conference Semifinals against the Phoenix Suns, Finney-Smith finished with a playoff-career-best 24 points (on 8-12 shooting from three) and 8 rebounds. He became just the third player in Dallas' franchise history to make at least 8 three-pointers in game, joining Maxi Kleber (8 threes against the Utah Jazz on April 18, 2022) and Jason Terry (9 threes against the Los Angeles Lakers on May 8, 2011 &mdash; exactly 11 years to the day).
On Tuesday night, with the Mavs down 0-3 to the Golden State Warriors in the Western Conference Finals, he helped lead Dallas to victory with 23 points, 6 rebounds, 4 threes and 2 assists while shooting 69.2% from the field and 57.1% from three.
<div class="mceNonEditable"><spike>&nbsp;</spike></div>
The underrated 3-and-D specialist opened up to BasketballNews.com about this Mavs team, his happy place, his experience going undrafted, what talent he wishes he had and much more.&nbsp;
In your own words, how did the Mavs get here &mdash; to the Western Conference Finals?
Dorian Finney-Smith: "Just by staying together. Early in the year, we weren&rsquo;t shooting the ball as well as we wanted to. I feel like we just stuck with it. We didn&rsquo;t blame nobody else; we looked inward and we took accountability as a team. And shout out to the coaches: J-Kidd, he did a good job of making us hold each other accountable. All those close games that we were in the last couple of years, I feel like this year we made that step &mdash; finishing the game the right way."
After going undrafted, what allowed you to keep going mentally? And who's been in your corner?
Finney-Smith: "I have a big family. [The answer is] them. My kid&rsquo;s mom (Jasmine).
"I always felt like when I first made the team, I just wanted to get on the court. And once I got on the court, I just wanted to make sure I showed everyone I belonged. Once I started playing on the regular, I just always wanted my presence to be felt, even if I was making or missing shots."
<img style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" src="https://cdn.basketballnews.com/images/story/body/dffs1_lg.png" alt="" width="430" height="374" />
Did you ever think that playing in the NBA wasn&rsquo;t going to happen for you? Did you ever get down on yourself?
Finney-Smith: "Nah. Nah. Hell nah. I never got down. I was a little mad I didn't get what I wanted on my first deal. I played a whole lot, then I started&hellip; just me being&hellip; At times, it was a little frustrating just because I&rsquo;m human."
Who are you closest to on the team?&nbsp;
Finney-Smith: "Trey Burke, Reggie [Bullock]. Actually, we all pretty much hang out together. We are a close-knit team; even Luka comes and kicks it with us. This is probably the closest Mavs team I've been on. When I first got here, I had an older team: Devin Harris, JJ [Barea], Dirk [Nowitzki]."
What is your idea of perfect happiness?
Finney-Smith: "Quiet. Or with the kids playing around. When I am not on the court, I am quiet."
What living person do you admire most?
Finney-Smith: "My mom because of her resiliency, and how she never let what she was going through show."
What talent would you most like to have?
Finney-Smith: "I wish I could sing. If I could sing, I probably&hellip; woo&hellip; I would sing all the time. I would sing myself out of trouble. (laughs)"
If you could change one thing about yourself, what would it be?&nbsp;
Finney-Smith: "I don&rsquo;t know. God gave me everything I got for a reason, so nothing."
What drives you? What&rsquo;s your motivation?
Finney-Smith: "I would say fear of failure. Coming from where I came from, a small city, I always grew up around a whole bunch of 'I used to be' or 'what I could have done' stuff like that, so I am just trying to make the most of my opportunity because I know a lot of people may never get this opportunity or the chance to even get this opportunity."
Who is your favorite WNBA team and player?
Finney-Smith: "The (Dallas) Wings. Elizabeth Williams (of the Washington Mystics) is my favorite player. She is from Virgina; we both came out together in high school. She&rsquo;s a Virginia girl."
Who or what is the greatest love(s) of your life?
Finney-Smith: "My kids or my mom."
If you died and could come back as anything or anyone, what would it be and why?
Finney-Smith: "A lion. 'Lion King' is my favorite movie, and I love lions."
If you enjoyed this piece, be sure to <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/reggie-bullock" target="_blank" rel="noopener">check out Dorothy J. Gentry's exclusive interview with Dallas Mavericks wing Reggie Bullock</a> as well.
<div class="mceNonEditable"><spike>&nbsp;</spike></div>
<div class="css-1dbjc4n r-1habvwh r-eqz5dr r-11rk87y r-1dye5f7 r-m611by r-13qz1uu">
<div class="css-1dbjc4n r-eqz5dr r-glunga r-13qz1uu">
<div class="css-1dbjc4n r-13qz1uu">
<div class="css-1dbjc4n r-eqz5dr r-glunga r-13qz1uu">
<div>
Looking to go to the hottest concerts, sports, theater &amp; family shows near you? Get 100% guaranteed tickets to more than 125,000 live events from TicketSmarter, the official ticket marketplace of BasketballNews.com.&nbsp;<a href="https://www.ticketsmarter.com/?utm_source=basketballnewscom&amp;utm_medium=tsaff&amp;utm_campaign=referral" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Order online now</a>!
</div>
</div>
</div>
</div>
</div>

Dorian Finney-Smith opens up about his breakout season, the Dallas Mavericks' playoff run, going undrafted, his happy place and more.

Dorian Finney-Smith Q&A: 'This is the closest Mavs team I've been on'

Khris Middleton might not have been available for the Eastern Conference finals even if the Milwaukee Bucks had made it that far.
The three-time All-Star missed the Bucks&rsquo; last 10 games after <a href="https://apnews.com/article/chicago-bulls-milwaukee-bucks-nba-sports-46750c79bbe5ebbd7da9e84e81d3ef86">spraining the medial collateral ligament </a> in his left knee in Game 2 of a first-round series with the Chicago Bulls. Middleton sat out Milwaukee&rsquo;s entire second-round series with the Boston Celtics, who beat the Bucks in seven games and <a href="https://apnews.com/article/boston-celtics-miami-heat-nba-travel-sports-8108c54a1fcb1c58866b81eb87c05489">open the conference finals Tuesday in Miami.</a>
&ldquo;I don&rsquo;t know if I would have been ready for tomorrow,&rdquo; Middleton said Monday. &ldquo;I don&rsquo;t know if I would have been ready if it went to Game 7. It was almost a day-by-day thing, just waking up and seeing how I felt, seeing if there&rsquo;s swelling in there, and there&rsquo;s a point where you have to make sure the ligament&rsquo;s completely healed.&rdquo;
Middleton&rsquo;s absence was an unfortunate turn of events for the Bucks, who benefited from injuries to other teams during their <a href="https://apnews.com/article/sports-nba-milwaukee-bucks-phoenix-suns-64e76fe1b9f0851dbcf46ad66d90d6de"> title run last season.</a> The Bucks won a <a href="https://apnews.com/article/brooklyn-nets-milwaukee-bucks-nba-sports-7c1e79825d167e686b9c132c0c8634e0">seven-game East semifinal</a> with the Brooklyn Nets after injuries knocked out James Harden for most of the first four games and Kyrie Irving for the last three games.
<a href="https://apnews.com/article/wi-state-wire-atlanta-hawks-ga-state-wire-milwaukee-bucks-nba-14c850e27838fabcb2129f254d1cf745">The Bucks did lose Giannis Antetokounmpo to a knee injury </a> for two games in the East finals, but he returned <a href="https://apnews.com/article/sports-nba-basketball-milwaukee-bucks-atlanta-hawks-477d3e4a0a7cf768cf2ab47ce24a5aa7">to become MVP of the NBA Finals.</a>
&ldquo;It just wasn&rsquo;t our time,&rdquo; forward Bobby Portis said. &ldquo;All teams that go through a playoff stretch have luck along the way. We had our luck last year in some series that we went through with teams that went through some injuries.&rdquo;
Boston was missing forward/center Robert Williams the last four games due to a bone bruise in his right knee, but that only underscored the Celtics&rsquo; superior depth.
Williams was replaced in the starting lineup by Grant Williams, who scored a career-high 27 points and tied a Game 7 record Sunday by sinking seven 3-pointers in the <a href="https://apnews.com/article/milwaukee-bucks-miami-heat-boston-celtics-nba-travel-7d6fd7328f8ecf8df8dfb59001a9ce22"> Celtics&rsquo; series-clinching 109-81 victory.</a> None of the Bucks&rsquo; role players stepped up in a similar manner.
That forced the Bucks to depend even more on Antetokounmpo and Jrue Holiday.
Antetokounmpo was the first player to have 200 points, 100 rebounds and 50 assists in a playoff series. Holiday, who attempted more than 21 shots in a game just twice during the regular season, averaged 22 shots per game in the Celtics series.
&ldquo;If we had Khris, not that I&rsquo;m trying to make excuses, but maybe a different story,&rdquo; Antetokounmpo said after Sunday&rsquo;s game. &ldquo;But we gave everything we had. Guys came together. We realize, &lsquo;Hey, we&rsquo;ve got to get better. We&rsquo;ve got to get better as a team. We&rsquo;ve got to want it more. We&rsquo;ve got to work on our games.&rsquo; &ldquo;
They also must improve their playoff 3-point shooting.
Milwaukee ranked fourth in the league in 3-pointers per game (14.1) and fifth in 3-point percentage (36.6%) during the regular season. The Bucks made 38% of their 3-point attempts in their first-round series.
That all changed in the second round as the Celtics made nearly twice as many 3-pointers as the Bucks. Milwaukee went 57 of 204 (27.9%) from beyond the arc while Boston was 110 of 292 (37.6%).
The Bucks&rsquo; challenge is finding the right guys to complement the trio of Antetokounmpo, Middleton and Holiday.
Milwaukee&rsquo;s depth took a hit with the <a href="https://apnews.com/article/nba-sports-lifestyle-milwaukee-bucks-houston-cfdf9c93a937a10201923495443db394">offseason departure of P.J. Tucker, </a> now with Miami. The Bucks&rsquo; top offseason addition was Grayson Allen, who played well in the regular season and in a first-round playoff series against Chicago. But after going 3 of 6 on 3-point attempts against Boston in Game 1, Allen went 2 of 18 the next six games.
&ldquo;In Game 1, I got three good open ones and knocked them down,&rdquo; Allen said. &ldquo;It felt like (Games) 2-7, the easy catch-and-shoot, spot-ups were very few and very hard to come by.&rdquo;
At the trade deadline, <a href="https://apnews.com/article/milwaukee-bucks-los-angeles-clippers-sacramento-kings-nba-sports-5afdea183f8000fd6c8c972baf968f7c"> the Bucks sent Donte DiVincenzo to Sacramento as part of a four-team deal that brought them Serge Ibaka, </a> who fell out of the rotation by April. Portis and Pat Connaughton have player options for next season and could opt for free agency.
The Bucks still should continue competing for titles as long as their top three guys remain healthy, though age offers cause for concern.
The 27-year-old Antetokounmpo was one of the younger players in the Bucks&rsquo; rotation this season. Holiday turns 32 next month and Middleton turns 31 this summer. Brook Lopez is 34, Wesley Matthews 35 and George Hill 36.
This playoff exit should add motivation.
&ldquo;Hopefully, this moment, instead of thinking that we lost something, we can gain and learn in order for us to put ourselves in position to win another championship,&rdquo; Antetokounmpo said.

Khris Middleton might not have been available for the Eastern Conference finals even if the Bucks had made it that far.

Middleton might have remained out even if Bucks had advanced

Who are the notable prospects to keep an eye on during the 2022 NCAA Tournament? Here's a complete guide with scouting reports.

NBA Draft guide to March Madness: Notable prospects to watch

MILWAUKEE (AP) &mdash; Giannis Antetokounmpo returned from the NBA&rsquo;s healthy and safety protocols to score 36 points on Saturday, but Wesley Matthews stole the spotlight when he knocked down a 3-pointer with 30.3 seconds left to give the Milwaukee Bucks their first lead en route to a 117-113 win over the Boston Celtics.
Seeing his first action since Dec. 12, Antetokounmpo played 30 minutes and connected on 13 of 23 shots while shooting 10 for 15 from the free-throw line. Milwaukee also got center Bobby Portis and guard Donte DiVincenzo back from COVID-19 protocols in time for the televised Christmas showdown.
Boston had just eight players available after putting Dennis Schroder in the protocols earlier Saturday, but took control behind Jaylen Brown, who scored 14 of his 25 points in the opening quarter. Jayson Tatum also scored 25 for Boston, which led by as many as 19 and went into halftime with a 35-22 advantage.
Milwaukee trimmed the deficit to one when Middleton knocked down a 3 with 3:39 left in the third. But the Celtics answered with five straight and opened the fourth with a 8-0 run, including six from Parker, who converted a three-point play to make it 102-90 with 10:15 to play.
<div class="Component-dfp-0-2-136">&nbsp;</div>
Portis&rsquo; put-back with 8 minutes left was the start of the Bucks&rsquo; charge, tying the game at 111 when Antetokounmpo scored and drew a foul with 1:26 left. He missed the free throw and Brown made a pair on the other end to put Boston back in front.
But Matthews buried his 3 for a 114-113 lead, and the Bucks held on.
Portis finished with 16 points, while DiVincenzo, who hadn&rsquo;t played since suffering a left foot injury in the playoffs last season, got his first and only points on a 3-pointer late in the third quarter.
TIP-INS
To help fill out their depleted roster, the Celtics signed Al-Farouq Aminu and Norvel Pelle to 10-day contracts Saturday morning. ... The Bucks are 5-3 all-time on Christmas Day, including a 3-0 mark in Milwaukee. The Celtics fell to 15-20 all-time in Christmas Day games.
UP NEXT
Celtics: At Minnesota on Monday.
Bucks: At Orlando on Tuesday.
___
More AP NBA:&nbsp;<a class="" href="https://apnews.com/hub/nba">https://apnews.com/hub/nba</a>&nbsp;and&nbsp;<a class="" href="https://twitter.com/AP_Sports" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">https://twitter.com/AP_Sports</a>

Antetokounmpo finished with 36 points and 12 rebounds in the victory.

Bucks rally late in Giannis Antetokounmpo’s return for 117-113 win

This offseason, the New York Knicks&rsquo; biggest move during free agency happened to involve a player who was already on their roster. The Knicks signed Julius Randle to a four-year extension worth $117 million, which seems like a potential bargain since Randle could&rsquo;ve hit unrestricted free agency next summer and earned more than $200 million.
Following his breakout 2020-21 campaign, the 26-year-old wanted to make a long-term commitment to New York. Now, in <a href="https://sny.tv/articles/knicks-julius-randle-q-a-title-rj-barrett-mitchell-robinson-2021">an interview with Ian Begley of SNY</a>, Randle explained why he ultimately decided to sign the extension.
Randle cited his trust in head coach Tom Thibodeau and executives Leon Rose, William Wesley and Scott Perry, and he stressed that his primary goal is to lead the Knicks to a championship before his new contract is up after the 2025-26 season.
&ldquo;Obviously, it's a process. Everything is a process. We&rsquo;ve been building this from the ground up,&rdquo; Randle said. &ldquo;But for me, personally, [winning a title in New York] is the expectation. That&rsquo;s what I want to happen within that time frame. There&rsquo;s a lot of things, factors that go into that. So obviously, you&rsquo;ve got to weigh that stuff in. But as far as myself, I know Thibs is thinking [that as well]; it&rsquo;s just win at all costs. For me personally, that's just how I prepare myself. I prepare myself to compete at the highest level of our game.&nbsp;
&ldquo;Like I said, there&rsquo;s a lot of factors [that go into winning a title]. But I trust Leon, I trust Thibs, Wes, our coaches, Scott &ndash; all these guys, I trust. That was part of my process in thinking of signing the extension and that&rsquo;s my goal &ndash; that&rsquo;s our goal as a team... We want to be able to say that we won a championship here in New York. I don&rsquo;t think there&rsquo;s any better feeling than that.&rdquo;
The Knicks were projected to be one of the worst teams in the NBA entering last season, with an over/under of just 21.5 wins. Instead, New York managed to go 41-31. Behind one of the best defenses in the league (which allowed just 105.7 points per 100 possessions), they earned the fourth seed in the Eastern Conference. While they were eliminated in the first round by the Atlanta Hawks, the Knicks showed that they were ready to compete at a high level now.&nbsp;
Randle was a major reason for New York&rsquo;s turnaround, averaging career-highs in points (24.1), rebounds (10.2), assists (6.0), three-pointers (2.3), steals (0.9), three-point percentage (41.1%) and free throw percentage (81.1%). He earned the NBA&rsquo;s Most Improved Player Award, All-NBA Second Team honors and an All-Star selection.&nbsp;
<div class="mceNonEditable"><spike>&nbsp;</spike></div>
While Randle is proud of last year&rsquo;s 41-season and the solid foundation that New York has built, he&rsquo;s focused on making sure that the team takes another step forward.
&ldquo;We established the culture that we wanted and established who we were as a team,&rdquo; Randle said. &ldquo;We have to continue to get better as individuals and that will translate to us as a team. The expectation, I can't really tell you yet. We haven&rsquo;t even had our first practice, so I can&rsquo;t really tell you. But I can tell you who we are as a team, and what we stand for, and what&rsquo;s expected of each individual: that&rsquo;s to work your ass off every day and to play defense.
&ldquo;Obviously, Thibs is going to make sure that we&rsquo;re going to play defense. There's certain things as a team [that we know about] who we are and what we need to do night in, night out to give ourselves the best possible chance to win. We know what those things are. Everything else, we&rsquo;ve just got to keep improving on and getting better.&rdquo;
Two players who could help the Knicks take another leap are R.J. Barrett and Mitchell Robinson. Randle praised both players&rsquo; work ethic and how they&rsquo;ve looked this offseason.
&ldquo;RJ&rsquo;s going to be a really good player. What is he, 21? I don&rsquo;t know how old he is. He&rsquo;s young as hell,&rdquo; Randle said with a laugh. &ldquo;He&rsquo;s a really good player, and I can relate as far as what he&rsquo;s done, and what I&rsquo;ve seen from him so far in this offseason is he just keeps improving. That&rsquo;s really what it&rsquo;s about. You can tell the guys who really love the game and really dedicate themselves to their craft and he&rsquo;s one of them. He&rsquo;s going to keep improving. I think he&rsquo;s going to have another big year and make a jump. And I&rsquo;m excited, not only for him as an individual but for what he&rsquo;s going to bring to our team. Because at the end of the day, that&rsquo;s what it&rsquo;s about. Our team success. And he&rsquo;s going to look great because of that.
&ldquo;Mitch looks good, man. Mitch is brolic; he&rsquo;s big. You can tell that he took the weight room seriously. So Mitch looks good, and he&rsquo;s one of those pieces that people don&rsquo;t even really know that we had last year because he missed so much time. So he&rsquo;s going to be a huge factor for us coming into this year, for sure.&rdquo;
During the upcoming season, the Knicks will have 22 nationally televised games (after having just six last year), so all eyes will be on Randle and New York to see if they can build on last season&rsquo;s success.

Julius Randle talked about why he signed an extension with the Knicks, expectations for this season, New York's culture and more.

Julius Randle explains why he signed four-year extension with Knicks

Horrific on offense. Terrific on defense. So the New York Knicks are halfway there, but what we learned about them in the first round is that they are a long, long way from being a legitimate contender in the Eastern Conference.
To say the Knicks surrendered meekly would be a misstatement, because they were as physical in Game 5 as they were throughout the entire first round. But it was telling that when they made their last final burst early in the fourth quarter, Immanuel Quickley and Obi Toppin were leading the charge while Julius Randle was watching from the bench.
This was the first year of the Leon Rose/Tom Thibodeau era, and it will go down as a success simply because of the fact that the Knicks made the postseason for the first time in eight years and actually won a playoff game. Madison Square Garden came back to life with unbridled passion following a 14-month virtual lockdown in New York that decimated the city&rsquo;s economy, and the Knicks were by far the most talked about team in the metropolitan area for a full week, Brooklyn&rsquo;s disassembly of Boston notwithstanding.
<div class="mceNonEditable"><spike>&nbsp;</spike></div>
But the offseason has arrived on this particular Thursday, and a team that the Knicks swept in the regular season &ndash; the Atlanta Hawks &ndash; is advancing to play the Philadelphia 76ers in what could be a more competitive matchup than many would anticipate if Joel Embiid remains injured and Ben Simmons remains a liability at the free-throw line.
The blame for New York&rsquo;s failure must be placed squarely on the broad shoulders of the NBA's Most Improved Player Award winner, Randle, who shot 8-for-21 (38.1 percent) Wednesday night in what turned out to be his most proficient game of the series. He was 6-for-23 in Game 1, 5-for-16 in Game 2, 2-for-15 in Game 3 and 7-for-19 in Game 4.&nbsp;
After averaging 6.0 assists in the regular season, that number dropped to 4.0 in the playoffs. In addition, he did not block one single shot.
Some soul searching is in order for the Knicks today, and in the weeks ahead. It would be easy for them to blame the absence of Mitchell Robinson at center and the slow development of Toppin in his first year, but that is somewhat disingenuous. Robinson is not exactly the second coming of Embiid (whose team also won without him last night), and Toppin was kept on a short leash, as was Quickley, because Thibodeau treats rookies differently and gets a pass on it because that is just how he rolls.
But coaches must evolve, and Thibs has not. He remains a basketball lifer whose players are extremely loyal and dedicated and actually follow his game plans, which is a credit to his effectiveness as a coach. He got the most out of Taj Gibson and midseason acquisition Derrick Rose, who were known commodities in his mind because of their shared histories.&nbsp;
<img style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" src="https://cdn.basketballnews.com/images/story/body/usatsi_16088851_lg.jpg" alt="" />
Thibodeau also stuck with Elfrid Payton as the starter when Payton was clearly a lost cause, and he never established a consistent secondary-scorer role for Alec Burks in the playoffs despite the fact that Burks was clearly stoked for this opportunity. Some of that is on Burks, too, because after a 27-point Game 1, he shot 5-for-19 from three-point range. Rose was their best three-point shooter at 47.1%, but he made only eight of them all series.
RJ Barrett was okay, but okay is not what you expect from the No. 3 pick in the draft after showing such discernible improvement in the reglar season. The Knicks shot just 39.8% overall in the series, second-last to Miami (who got swept by Milwaukee) by fourth-tenths of a percentage point.&nbsp;
The Knicks had more personal fouls (99) than assists (93), and their talent pool was vastly inferior to Atlanta&rsquo;s. Randle, an All-Star, had eight turnovers and three assists in Game 5. For the series, he had 23 turnovers, and the Knicks brain trust now must question whether he is still worth the four-year, $106 million extension offer he was expecting to receive. A better idea may be picking up Randle&rsquo;s $19.8 team option and making him earn those bigger bucks. The last thing the Knicks need is dead money on their cap. They still have that with Joakim Noah.
&ldquo;I thought Atlanta added some good pieces to compliment Trae [Young] and I think that helped them,&rdquo; Thibodeau said when asked about the Knicks&rsquo; personnel priorities last offseason.
New York is desperate for shooting and size.
<div class="mceNonEditable"><spike>&nbsp;</spike></div>
Rose, Burks, Payton, Gibson, Nerlens Noel, Reggie Bullock and Frank Ntilikina (team option via a qualifying offer) will all be free agents. Depending on who they choose to keep and who they choose to let leave, the Knicks will have somewhere in the area of $40 million in salary cap space to spend in a free agency pool that will include guards Lonzo Ball (restricted), Kyle Lowry, Mike Conley, Spencer Dinwiddie (payer option), Bruce Brown (restricted), Devonte' Graham (restricted), J.J. Redick, Kelly Oubre Jr., T.J. McConnell, Alex Caruso, Kendrick Nunn (restricted), Bryn Forbes (player option), Chris Paul (player option), DeMar DeRozan, Patty Mills, Gary Trent Jr., Raul Neto and Ish Smith.
The two best unrestricted free agents among big men are Richaun Holmes of Sacramento and Kelly Olynyk of Houston, who likely played himself into a massive contract after getting dealt to the Rockets in the Victor Oladipo deal and averaging 19.0 points and 8.4 rebounds per game in 27 games.
So Leon Rose, William Wesley, Scott Perry and Thibs will have options. If they can make the right free agent pickups, and if Thibs loosens the reins on Quickley and Toppin, next year can be better. Knicks fans were happy with the fourth-place finish and the lone postseason victory, but they are not thrilled. New York had the perfect first round matchup, or so it seemed, yet the franchise is now dormant again until draft night, when they will select at Nos. 19, 21, 32 and 58.
By this time a year from now, we shall know whether they made the proper next steps or regressed to their norm. For now, there is no hiding the fact that although this was a better season, it was still a disappointment.
Once again for Knicks fans, it is time to look to next season for hope instead of this season.

Chris Sheridan dissects the Knicks' season coming to an end and points out what needs to change in the summer and going forward.

Autopsy on Knicks: Offense desperately needed, and Thibs has to change

Chris Paul had 18 points and nine assists, Devin Booker and Jae Crowder added 17 points apiece and the Phoenix Suns evened their first-round series with a 100-92 victory over the Los Angeles Lakers in Game 4 on Sunday.
Deandre Ayton had 14 points and 17 rebounds for the second-seeded Suns, who took advantage of Anthony Davis' absence from the second half with a groin injury to reclaim home-court advantage in the series after two straight losses.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-theme="dark">
CP3 and Ayton SHINE as the <a href="https://twitter.com/Suns?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@Suns</a> even the series ☀️ Paul: 18 PTS, 9 AST, 3 STL, 44.1 FPTS Ayton: 14 PTS, 17 REB, 2 STL, 43.4 FPTS <a href="https://t.co/YS7yRPTa7D">pic.twitter.com/YS7yRPTa7D</a>
&mdash; NBA Fantasy (@NBAFantasy) <a href="https://twitter.com/NBAFantasy/status/1399124703369961472?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 30, 2021</a></blockquote>

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

LeBron James had 25 points and 12 rebounds for the Lakers, who fell too far behind in the third quarter while Davis was being evaluated in the locker room. Before a last-minute surge, Los Angeles struggled in the absence of starters Davis and Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, who injured his knee in Game 3.
Game 5 is Tuesday night in Phoenix.
Davis scored six points on 2-for-9 shooting in the first half, then didn&rsquo;t return after halftime. The superstar big man scored 34 points in each of the Lakers&rsquo; two victories in the series, but he hyperextended his leg in Game 3 and appeared to aggravate his accumulated injury woes in the second quarter of Game 4, falling awkwardly and grabbing his leg after a layup attempt defended by Crowder.
Aside from the latest setback for Davis, who missed 30 games in the regular season, the Suns sharply improved their effort against the defending NBA champions and showed solid poise. Phoenix collectively has little experience in the postseason, but Paul excelled again on the big stage in his first playoff run with his new team.
Paul, largely a non-factor in Game 3, ignored his injured shoulder and contributed 12 points and all his assists in the second half. Phoenix dominated the third quarter and hung on for the franchise's first road playoff victory in over 11 years.
The Suns made a 32-15 run starting shortly before halftime and encompassing the whole third, during which they held the Lakers to 15 points on 3-for-16 shooting.
The Suns led by 18 with less than nine minutes to play, but James led a 19-8 run and trimmed the lead to 95-88 with 2:40 left. Phoenix hung on when Paul hung in the air to steal a pass with 1:59 to play before Crowder hit an uncontested 3-pointer in front of the Suns' bench with 1:23 left to seal it.
Booker, responding to the first postseason pressure of his six-year NBA career, also played with improved focus after getting kicked out of Game 3 in the final minute of a sub-par performance for the high-scoring guard.
Phoenix led 54-50 at halftime with 15 points from Booker. The Suns seized control shortly before the break, starting a 24-6 run that spanned halftime.
TIP-INS
Suns: After skipping practice Saturday to rest, Paul went through a pregame workout and was pronounced healthy to play. ... Mikal Bridges and Crowder hit three 3-pointers apiece to lead the team.
Lakers: Davis played despite hyperextending his left knee in Game 3. ... Caldwell-Pope's unavailability was a game-time decision after a pregame workout. ... Los Angeles hasn't won back-to-back home playoff games since 2012.
REPLACING KCP
Wesley Matthews took Caldwell-Pope&rsquo;s starting spot. Both teams missed plenty of open perimeter shots early, but Caldwell-Pope&rsquo;s absence boosted the Lakers&rsquo; 3-point game early: After hitting just nine combined 3-pointers in the first halves of the first three games, Los Angeles hit nine in the first half of Game 4 alone with two apiece from Matthews and Ben McLemore, who got playing time mostly because of Caldwell-Pope&rsquo;s absence.
The Lakers hit just four more 3-pointers in the second half, however. Matthews and McLemore didn't score again after their early burst.
ROAD WARRIORS
The Suns' last road playoff victory was in San Antonio on May 9, 2010, when Steve Nash and Amar'e Stoudemire completed a four-game sweep of the Spurs in the second round before falling to the soon-to-be repeat champion Lakers in the Western Conference finals.
___
More AP NBA: https://apnews.com/hub/NBA and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports

Chris Paul had 18 points and nine assists, Devin Booker and Jae Crowder added 17 points apiece and the Suns evened their first-round series with a victory over the Lakers.

CP3, Suns beat Lakers 100-92, even series after Anthony Davis hurt

NEW YORK (AP) — Dennis Schroder helped send a Lakers team missing LeBron James and Anthony Davis off to a sizzling start.
And after Schroder was thrown out along with Kyrie Irving in the third quarter, the defending champions really turned it on.
Andre Drummond had 20 points and 11 rebounds, Schroder scored 19 points before he and Irving were ejected and the Lakers beat the Brooklyn Nets 126-101 on Saturday night.
“Today we were out here competing, making shots and, yeah, that’s the best win of the year I would say,” Schroder said.
A nationally televised matchup already missing plenty of star power lost even more when <a href="https://twitter.com/espn/status/1381066557317505028?s=20">Irving started jawing with Schroder</a> and neither player stopped quickly enough for the officials.
The Lakers had led most of the way and were ahead 66-62 when Irving fouled Schroder with 9:41 left in the third. Los Angeles blew it open soon <a href="https://apnews.com/article/nba-new-york-los-angeles-lakers-lebron-james-brooklyn-nets-feb697624a392cd4977aaba49bb67baf">after the ejections</a> with a 15-2 burst to open an 88-71 lead.
A potential NBA Finals preview had a preseason feel with so many top names unavailable. James (right ankle sprain) and Davis (right calf strain) remain out for the Lakers, while James Harden is sidelined with a strained right hamstring for the Nets.
The Lakers handled being short-handed much better, putting eight players in double figures. Ben McLemore, in his second game with Los Angeles, scored 17.
“I learned a lot from today’s game, that we have a lot of guys in this locker room that are very tough,” Drummond said. “Despite who’s on the other side of the court, they’re going to come out and play.”
Kevin Durant scored 22 points in his second game back following a 23-game absence with his own hamstring injury. Irving added 18, but the Nets had their nine-game home winning streak snapped. 
Besides James and Davis, who were sitting on the bench, the Lakers were also without Kyle Kuzma (left calf strain), Marc Gasol (left hamstring tightness) and Wesley Matthews (right Achilles tendon tightness).
“I thought they were the aggressor, they were more physical, they hit first and we didn’t match their physicality and competitive fire, and that’s what you get,” Nets coach Steve Nash said. “A team missing a bunch of guys and guys get an opportunity and their eyes light up and they come out and play harder than us, play more physical than us. 
"And it’s a great lesson for us.”
The Lakers have fallen to fifth in the Western Conference during James’ 11-game absence, while the Nets entered play leading the East. Both teams have upgraded from the buyout market in hopes of deep playoff runs, with the Lakers adding Drummond and Brooklyn signing LaMarcus Aldridge and Blake Griffin. 
The defending champions' defense sure looked playoff ready, holding the NBA's highest-scoring team 18 points below its season average. And they showed off some postseason physicality, with Markieff Morris getting a flagrant foul in the first half for elbowing Irving.
The Lakers also had their offense rolling early, starting 7 for 8 to build an 18-7 lead. Schroder made his first six shots for 16 points.
“They hit us in the mouth early and then we were fighting uphill all game,” Durant said.
The Nets bounced back by shooting 63% in the second quarter, cutting it to 61-58 at halftime.
TIP-INS
Lakers: Coach Frank Vogel said the Lakers had been hoping Kuzma would return for the game, but the medical team wanted to hold him out another game. The hope is he will play Monday at New York. ... Davis shot around before the game.
Nets: Nash said the plan was for G Spencer Dinwiddie, away from the Nets rehabbing a torn ACL, to rejoin his teammates when he was further along with the process, though he didn't know if that would be before the playoffs. ... The Nets last won 10 in a row at home as part of franchise-record streak of 15 straight from Feb. 3 to April 4, 2014. 
MORE MINUTES
Vogel said Gasol's hamstring problem started after he had to play extended minutes against Toronto on Wednesday after Montrezl Harrell was ejected after 2 1/2 minutes. Kuzma had also been carrying a heavier load lately with James and Davis out.
“We feel like those guys have been given minutes that they can reasonably play, but we’ve had a couple of flareups,” Vogel said. “It’s part of asking guys to play bigger roles than they’re used to.” 
UP NEXT
Lakers: Visit the New York Knicks on Monday.
Nets: Visit Minnesota on Monday.
—
More AP NBA: https://apnews.com/NBA and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports

Andre Drummond had 20 points and 11 rebounds, as the Los Angeles Lakers beat the Brooklyn Nets, 126-101, on Saturday night.

Lakers pull away after ejections, rout Nets 126-101

Nekias Duncan previews the Central Division's five teams (the Bulls, Cavs, Pistons, Pacers and Bucks) ahead of the 2020-21 NBA season.

Wesley