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Kings

A list of 12 of the top talents in modern NBA history to have never appeared in an All-Star Game.

The 12 best modern-history players to never make an NBA All-Star team

Springfield, Massachusetts has been offering glimpses into the future of basketball since James Naismith put some peach baskets on a YMCA wall in 1891. Every MLK weekend, the town gives us another in the form of the HoopHall Classic, where dozens of the best high-school players in the country descend on Blake Arena.
The HoopHall Classic is also one of three high-school showcases this season that was given the green light for NBA scouts to attend. It's a prime opportunity for the elite talents to separate themselves from the pack &mdash; or for less heralded names to put themselves on the map.
I checked into the arena at noon and spent 11 hours inside, sticking around until the penultimate contest. These standouts, among many others, caught my eye:
Boys &mdash; IMG Academy (FL) 61, Newton (GA) 52
Khani Rooths, IMG Academy &mdash;&nbsp;A 2024 wing, Rooths' impact on IMG's win far outshone his box score (11 points, 9 rebounds, 6 assists). The 6-foot-6 wing kept the ball moving with some savvy passing versatility, making the right skip reads and interior decisions. He went 2-for-3 beyond the arc and seemed more comfortable spotting up and passing from a standstill versus attacking off the dribble.
Rooths also defended Newton star Stephon Castle for large portions of the game and made the 5-star guard's life pretty challenging. He can slide with relative success and deal with physicality without fouling. Rooths, a 4-star guard who is uncommitted, fits in all sorts of contexts and is a player who can thrive with today's direction of basketball.
Marcus Whitlock, Newton &mdash;&nbsp;Whitlock was one of the early head-turners of the weekend. He's a 6-foot-2 guard who plays with relentless confidence. The senior only made 4-of-12 threes but looked poised shooting off movement and spot-up attempts, finishing with 22 points.
He's not a half-court creator, but Whitlock did get chances to run and finish at the rim in transition. He also dove for loose balls on defense and wound up with three steals. Whitlock isn't ranked by most sites and hasn't chosen a school yet, so this effort might have put him on some college radars.
Girls &mdash; Sierra Canyon (CA) 67, Sidwell Friends (DC) 55
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The legend of Juju Watkins at Sierra Canyon continues to grow, as well. She missed a big stretch of the first half after tweaking her ankle, went down for a few moments again late on, and still put up 29/14/5/3/3 in 26 mins. Her physicality never wavered either. Generational. <a href="https://t.co/VGuq1TuqcT">https://t.co/VGuq1TuqcT</a> <a href="https://t.co/wVUIgv0fHd">pic.twitter.com/wVUIgv0fHd</a>
&mdash; Wilko (@wilkomcv) <a href="https://twitter.com/wilkomcv/status/1614365704995868673?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 14, 2023</a></blockquote>

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Juju Watkins, Sierra Canyon &mdash; The No. 1 senior in the country had the performance of the day. Watkins missed time twice with injuries to both ankles, but you wouldn't notice from her final stat line: 29 points, 14 rebounds, 5 assists, 3 blocks and 3 steals. (She said postgame that she's feeling alright).
Watkins relished the chance to beat another nationally-ranked opponent and the challenge of matching up against 6-foot-1 junior Kendall Dudley.
"It's definitely an adjustment playing against other players my size, learning how and when to get to my spots," Watkins told Basketball News in her postgame presser. "I just had to make that adjustment mentally, but when I made it, it was easier."
Though Watkins battled for rebounds and showed off limitless range, she also demonstrated a unique blend of speeds and gears, often warping time around her defenders and finishing with a teardrop floater. That's one of the young star's newest weapons.
"I worked on it a lot this summer &mdash; just learning how to change pace better and get my defender on their heels. I've been working on that a lot, and I went out there and showed it today," Watkins said.
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Mackenly Randolph, Sierra Canyon &mdash;&nbsp;The 5-star junior finished with 22 points and 14 rebounds and was critical in helping Sierra Canyon close out a 67-55 win. Randolph dominated on the glass against a physically imposing Sidwell Friends squad; it's no surprise that her dad is Zach Randolph. She also slashed through the lane for some impressive interior buckets.&nbsp;
Kendall Dudley, Sidwell Friends &mdash;&nbsp;Dudley is the No. 13 player in ESPN's 2024 rankings and she showed off the versatility that earned her the billing. The 5-star talent was cool and collected driving the basketball and kicking out. She can play physically at 6-foot-1, but doesn't need to, and her comfort off the bounce was apparent. She also led the defensive attack and did about as well guarding Watkins as her team could ask.
Dudley hasn't chosen a college yet and should be one of the most highly-anticipated commits in the coming year. She finished with 15 points, 10 rebounds and 3 steals in the loss.
Boys &mdash; Long Island Lutheran (NY) 64, Oak Hill Academy (VA) 56
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FLOOR GENERAL 👏 Jayden Reid always in control as LuHi beats Oak Hill 64-56 <a href="https://twitter.com/LuHiBasketball?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@LuHiBasketball</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/jaydenreid0?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@jaydenreid0</a> <a href="https://t.co/PzVFy12thm">pic.twitter.com/PzVFy12thm</a>
&mdash; NIBC (@NIBCOfficial) <a href="https://twitter.com/NIBCOfficial/status/1614391132728836097?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 14, 2023</a></blockquote>

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Jayden Reid, Long Island Lutheran &mdash;&nbsp;A 5-foot-10 playmaker who shined is going to land on this list all day. Reid, a 3-star senior point guard, showed total command of the offense with wraparound dimes and pocket passes in the pick-and-roll. He knocked down a pair of threes and finished off one fast break with an impressive double-clutch layup. The guard play from both squads was really excellent, but Reid stood out with 16 points, 7 assists and 4 steals.
Kaden Magwood, Oak Hill &mdash; Magwood caught fire off the bench, going for 22 points on 9-of-13 shooting. He made both of his threes and finished <a href="https://twitter.com/NIBCOfficial/status/1614385220500725760" target="_blank" rel="noopener">a stunning layup on the fast break</a> to help keep Oak Hill in the game. Magwood is only a sophomore and not in the early class frontrunners yet; I expect that to change pretty soon. He plays with a ton of fight for a guard listed at 6-foot-2 and 160 pounds.
Boys &mdash; Montverde Academy (FL) 85, La Lumiere (IN) 63
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Cooper Flagg is that guy 😎 (No. 2 ESPN 25) put on a show in Montverde&rsquo;s 85-63 win over La Lu <a href="https://twitter.com/MVABasketball?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@MVABasketball</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/CooperFlagg?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@CooperFlagg</a> <a href="https://t.co/VGOxQpkMy7">pic.twitter.com/VGOxQpkMy7</a>
&mdash; NIBC (@NIBCOfficial) <a href="https://twitter.com/NIBCOfficial/status/1614417408323723265?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 15, 2023</a></blockquote>

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Cooper Flagg, Montverde &mdash;&nbsp;It's remarkable how polished Flagg plays despite being just a sophomore and in his first year with one of the most successful programs in the country. Flagg had 21 points in 25 minutes on 8-for-10 shooting (3-4 3PT). The shots came in all types: cutting via baseline out-of-bounds plays, spacing the floor in the corner and initiating the attack himself.&nbsp;
Then you add the defense, which included five steals and a few ticky-tack fouls that could have been blocks. Flagg is aware and active on both sides of the ball, and it's easy for him to string productive plays together regardless of whether he's getting buckets.&nbsp;
Flagg certainly matched the hype as one of the top players in the 2025 class. After leaving his hometown Nokomis High in Maine and transferring all the way to Florida, he's fit right in with the Eagles. He said approximately 100 friends and family made the four-hour drive down to western Massachusetts.
"I think it's kind of similar to my team back in Maine. We all trust each other. I think that's helped to elevate me too, is playing at the highest level and having a team [where] everybody trusts each other," Flagg said after his performance. "We know that every night it's gonna be someone else [stepping up]."
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KJ Evans, Montverde &mdash;&nbsp;The Oregon-bound senior quietly worked his way to 19 points, 8 rebounds and 4 assists, but punctuated his effort with a powerful putback slam. Evans found most of his success around the basket and demonstrated syngergy with Flagg and other playmakers when cutting. The 5-star forward thrived in his role as Montverde tore apart La Lumiere with its decisive passing.
Boys &mdash; Centennial (CA) 66, Camden (NJ) 62
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Off the screen. A little head fake frees up Jared McCain for a deep 3ball. It&rsquo;s his fifth 3 of the night. Corona Centennial leads Camden (NJ) 50-45 after three quarters. <a href="https://t.co/me3L1dEpYo">pic.twitter.com/me3L1dEpYo</a>
&mdash; Tarek Fattal (@Tarek_Fattal) <a href="https://twitter.com/Tarek_Fattal/status/1614435225085304838?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 15, 2023</a></blockquote>

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DJ Wagner, Camden &mdash;&nbsp;It is all-but impossible to stop Wagner at this level when he bombards the basket. The 5-star senior slithered his way through space and sliced open double-teams with jump-stop attacks, finishing with 27 points. Though he struggled to shoot it from outside, his craft and touch around the rim are superb, and his functional strength is light-years from when I first got the chance to watch him at HoopHall as a freshman.&nbsp;
Wagner will team up with fellow 5-star classmate Aaron Bradshaw (15 points, 8 rebounds) at Kentucky, and he's excited to keep the momentum rolling with his 7-foot teammate.
"It's great. We've been playing together for a long time now," Wagner told reporters postgame. "Off the court, that's like my brother, so it's just fun to be able to go to the next level and play on the same floor with him in college."
Jared McCain, Centennial &mdash;&nbsp;McCain was money as a shooter and finished with 27 points, including six made threes. Centennial used him off of creative screening actions and as a spot-up threat, but the Duke commit also pulled up for a couple of self-created makes. He added an impressive driving layup and a fadeaway make from the free-throw line. A 4-star guard, McCain brought a really positive energy to Centennial's win with his confidence.
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Boys &mdash; Christopher Columbus (FL) 74, San Ysidro (CA) 67
Cameron Boozer, Christopher Columbus &mdash;&nbsp;Boozer was the second top sophomore to look far beyond his years on Saturday. The son of Carlos Boozer, Cameron finished with an effortless 33 points, 15 rebounds, 5 assists, 3 steals and 2 blocks &mdash; and still showed displeasure with his squad's defense &mdash; as Christopher Columbus led wire-to-wire. His twin brother Cayden, a guard, also had 14 points, 7 rebounds and 7 assists.
Boozer is listed at 6-foot-9, 215 pounds online. He seems even more physically imposing in person. Yet he's not a bowling ball; Boozer calmly settled into three-pointers (3-for-5) and comitted just one foul while still battling around the basket.&nbsp;
"When I was younger, I got in foul trouble a lot swiping down," Boozer told Basketball News in his postgame scrum. "It's something I've learned: just stay vertical and contest guys so it's kind of tough to finish over me &mdash; using my size and my length to my advantage."
Boozer mentioned in the scrum that his favorite player is Anthony Davis, and he admires the Brow's full arsenal of two-way weapons.
"I feel like he can do it all," Boozer said. "He can rebound, he can pass, he can shoot it, he finishes well... When he's healthy, he's one of the best players in the league."

Ethan Fuller shares his scouting report from Saturday's action at the HoopHall Classic.

HoopHall Highlights: Top performances from Saturday's action

Over the last two seasons, Harrison Barnes has seen his name surface in the rumor mill several times. Most recently, the Sacramento Kings reportedly considered dealing Barnes to the Atlanta Hawks in exchange for John Collins.
Entering his 11th NBA season, Barnes joked that he's following ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski and The Athletic's Shams Charania to keep tabs on his uncertain future.
&ldquo;You know how the NBA is,&rdquo; Barnes said, according to <a href="https://www.sacbee.com/sports/nba/sacramento-kings/article266690806.html#storylink=cpy" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Jason Anderson of The Sacramento Bee</a>. &ldquo;I check Woj. I check Shams. They&rsquo;ve still got me here, so as far as I&rsquo;m concerned, this is where I&rsquo;m supposed to be and I&rsquo;m going to give it my best effort.&rdquo;
The 30-year-old is no stranger to being traded; the Dallas Mavericks dealt him to Sacramento back in 2019 for Justin Jackson and Zach Randolph. Barnes understands it comes with the territory as an NBA player.
&ldquo;That&rsquo;s just part of the business,&rdquo; Barnes <a href="https://www.sacbee.com/sports/nba/sacramento-kings/article266690806.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">said</a>. &ldquo;I don&rsquo;t really pay too much attention to that. The biggest thing is just getting ready for opening night. That&rsquo;s my focus. The guys on this court, the coaching staff, us building that trust now so when things get going and adversity hits, you have a base of relationships that you draw on.&rdquo;
Last season, Barnes averaged 16.4 points, 5.6 rebounds, 2.4 assists and 1.8 threes, while shooting 46.9% from the field, 39.4% from three-point range and 82.6% from the free-throw line.
He has started every game since joining the Kings, and new head coach Mike Brown recently told reporters that he'll remain in the starting lineup.

Harrison Barnes has seen his name surface in the rumor mill recently. He opened up about his uncertain future with the Kings.

Harrison Barnes discusses trade rumors, uncertain future with Kings

The Washington Wizards are planning to hire James Posey as an assistant coach on Wes Unseld Jr.&rsquo;s staff, sources confirm to Basketball News.
Posey will return to the NBA sidelines for the first time since 2019, when he ended a six-season tenure with the Cleveland Cavaliers as an assistant coach. In Cleveland, Posey worked closely with head coach Tyronn Lue and played a pivotal role in the Cavs&rsquo; four-straight Finals appearances, including the team&rsquo;s championship run in 2016.
Last season, Posey served as an assistant coach under Tina Thompson with the University of Virginia women&rsquo;s basketball program. He also coached NBA Draft prospects at the Tampa Bay Pro Combine over the last two years, going undefeated in back-to-back years.
Prior to coaching, Posey played 12 seasons in the NBA and won two championships as a player &ndash; with the Miami Heat in 2006 and Boston Celtics in 2008.&nbsp;
In addition to the Heat and Celtics, Posey had stints with the Denver Nuggets, Houston Rockets, Memphis Grizzlies, New Orleans Hornets and Indiana Pacers. Over the course of his career, he averaged 8.6 points, 4.7 rebounds, 1.2 threes and 1.1 steals across 864 games.
In recent years, Posey has also had success in the media space, becoming a <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/news/authors/james-posey">podcast host and columnist with Basketball News</a>. His podcast (<a href="https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-posecast-hosted-by-james-posey/id1529937541">"The Posecast"</a>) features great conversations with notable guests such as Ray Allen, Clyde Drexler, David West, Antoine Walker, Zach Randolph, Chamique Holdsclaw, Charles Oakley, Bonzi Wells and more.

The Washington Wizards are hiring James Posey as an assistant coach on Wes Unseld Jr.’s staff, sources confirm to Basketball News.

Washington Wizards hire James Posey as assistant coach

In the 2020 Summer Olympics, which took place in 2021 due to COVID, France matched up with Team USA in the men&rsquo;s basketball gold-medal game for the third time.
The first gold-medal meeting between the two nations took place was in 1948, with France <a href="https://www.usab.com/history/national-team-mens/games-of-the-xivth-olympiad-1948.aspx" target="_blank" rel="noopener">losing 65-21 in that final</a>.
Despite having been historically good since then, it took another 52 years for the Frenchmen to return to that stage for a second time; unfortunately, Team USA awaited again. The game was much closer in 2000 than in 1948, but the Americans &mdash; led by Vince Carter, Kevin Garnett, Alonzo Mourning and Ray Allen among others &mdash; outlasted Antoine Rigaudeau, Laurent Sciarra, Frederic Weis and France, 85-75.
(No, that wasn&rsquo;t the game Carter <a href="https://youtu.be/WihbbVEmppI" target="_blank" rel="noopener">dunked on Weis</a>; that was earlier in The Games.)
And in last year&rsquo;s gold-medal game, in the countries' third meeting on that stage, France <a href="https://www.espn.com/mens-olympics-basketball/boxscore/_/gameId/401347899" target="_blank" rel="noopener">got even closer</a>.
France's best Olympic team ever was defeated by the Americans, 87-82. Team USA started Damian Lillard, Jrue Holiday, Devin Booker, Kevin Durant and Bam Adebayo, answering the French quintet of Nando De Colo, Evan Fournier, Nicolas Batum, Guerschon Yabusele and Rudy Gobert.
Contributions from the U.S. bench came from Jayson Tatum, Zach LaVine, Draymond Green and Khris Middleton, while Timoth&eacute; Luwawu-Cabarrot, Frank Ntikilina, Thomas Heurtel and Moustapha Fall were key components of France's second unit. The Frenchmen trailed by as little as 3 points with just eight seconds remaining before Durant iced the game with two free throws.
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Now imagine that game with Joel Embiid... playing for France.
The 28-year-old NBA MVP candidate, who was born and raised in Cameroon and has never played for his home national team (despite <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/things-to-monitor-as-the-next-fiba-world-cups-next-qualifying-window-arrives">coming close in 2017</a>), is reportedly <a href="https://www.si.com/nba/2022/05/02/joel-embiid-could-change-nationality-play-french-national-team-report">eyeing an opportunity to suit up for France</a>.
Embiid has family in France, and is <a href="https://rmcsport.bfmtv.com/basket/basket-joel-embiid-superstar-de-nba-se-rapproche-de-l-equipe-de-france_AV-202205020664.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">considering changing his nationality</a> in order to play for the Frenchmen in the 2024 Olympic Games, where they&rsquo;d enter as one of the favorites to challenge Team USA again for the gold. According to French basketball general manager Boris Diaw, Embiid is <a href="https://actucameroun.com/2022/05/03/boris-diaw-manager-general-de-lequipe-de-france-confirme-les-demarches-entamees-par-joel-embiid-pour-jouer-avec-les-bleus-en-vue-des-jo-2024/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">taking the necessary steps</a>.
(Looks like we won't ever see the Embiid-Pascal Siakam tandem for Cameroon, unfortunately.)
In FIBA, each team is allowed one naturalized player on its roster. Current and recent instances of this include American-born players to suit up for different countries, such as Javonte Green (Montenegro), Matt Costello (Ivory Coast), Anthony Randolph (Slovenia) and Andray Blatche (Philippines). Non-American examples include Congolese center Serge Ibaka playing for Spain, Cuban native Ismael Romero playing for Puerto Rico and French-born Aaron Cel playing for Poland. Another famous occasion where this occurred saw Hakeem Olajuwon playing with Team USA in the 1990s.
Regarding American-born WNBA players, known examples include Bria Hartley representing France, Becky Hammon representing Russia and Leilani Mitchell representing Australia. Non-American examples in the women&rsquo;s game include Bahamian Jonquel Jones playing for Bosnia and Herzegovina and Senegal native Astou Ndour playing for Spain.
Now, it may be long before we see Embiid actually playing for France if this process gets finalized, or less than we think if he decides not to wait for the Olympics.
The next major European basketball tournament is EuroBasket 2022, <a href="https://www.fiba.basketball/eurobasket/2022">which will run from Sept. 1-18 later this year</a> across Italy, Germany, Georgia and the Czech Republic. France will be one of 24 teams competing, but seeing Embiid there would be surprising.
The 2023 FIBA World Cup, which France is <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/where-things-stand-after-the-second-window-of-fiba-world-cup-qualifiers">currently attempting to qualify for</a>, will take place from Aug. 25 through Sept. 10, 2023. Qualifying for the World Cup will run through next February before the final pool of 32 teams gets decided.
And the 2024 Summer Olympics, assuming we avoid another global pandemic, is expected to actually run that summer. The host of the Games? France, who will automatically qualify for the tournament <a href="https://www.fiba.basketball/pr-n34-brazils-national-teams-granted-automatic-places-at-2016-olympic-basketball-tournament" target="_blank" rel="noopener">by rule</a>. Embiid will be 30 years old by the next Olympics.
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Since Embiid is reportedly targeting the 2024 Games, let&rsquo;s look at some players who might be his teammates.
The oldest players from the silver-medal-winning squad last summer were De Colo and Batum, who&rsquo;ll be 37 and 35 by the 2024 Games, so expect many of the same players to run it back if possible. One name that could join the fray is Boston Celtics second-round pick Juhann Begarin, who is just 19 years old and was the No. 45 overall selection last summer. Isma&euml;l Kamagate and Hugo Besson, both of whom are 21, are in the 2022 NBA Draft pool; the same goes for 18-year-old Ousmane Dieng, who is quickly rising up draft boards. There's also plenty of hype surrounding fellow 18-year-old, ASVEL star and 7-foot-2 sensation Victor Wembanyama &mdash; a lock to be a high draft pick in 2023.
<a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/draft">BasketballNews.com Sr. NBA Draft Analyst Matt Babcock</a> has Dieng going No. 21 overall, Kamagate at No. 40 and Besson at No. 51.
But really, there&rsquo;s one question we need to answer, and it has to do with a three-time Defensive Player of the Year already on the roster who holds down the 5 position. Could an Embiid and Gobert frontcourt lead France over Team USA?
If you haven&rsquo;t realized, the American pool of bigs is slighter than you think.
Many of the best centers in the NBA aren&rsquo;t American and don&rsquo;t represent America internationally. Examples include Embiid, Gobert, Nikola Jokić (Serbia), Karl-Anthony Towns (Dominican Republic), Nikola Vučević (Montenegro), Kristaps Porziņģis (Latvia), Clint Capela (Switzerland) and Jonas Valančiūnas (Lithuania).
The best centers that have represented Team USA, and/or have Team USA eligibility, have been Adebayo, Green, Jarrett Allen and JaVale McGee. Deandre Ayton (Bahamas) is a player to watch <a href="https://www.azcentral.com/story/sports/nba/suns/2021/06/22/suns-big-deandre-ayton-ideal-team-usa-2024-summer-olympics-paris/5307682001/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">who could represent Team USA in the future</a>, along with younger bigs like Evan Mobley and Chet Holmgren.
Assuming health, so the 2024 American team could start either Adebayo, Ayton or Allen, if not 2 of the 3. Team USA is generally harder to guess in advance, but your starting lineup could look like some combination of Ja Morant, Anthony Edwards, Booker, Tatum and Adebayo. Maybe, to match size, Ayton gets in there instead of Edwards.
Maybe a Trae Young, LaMelo Ball, Bradley Beal, Jaylen Brown and Donovan Mitchell sneak into the backcourt instead. Maybe someone we&rsquo;re not projecting to make another huge leap does &mdash; like Jordan Poole, Tyler Herro or Tyrese Maxey &mdash; or maybe Jaden Ivey or Jabari Smith are more ready than we think by 2024. Even so, you&rsquo;d throw, at best, Adebayo, Ayton, Allen, and Mobley at the Embiid-Gobert combo, and that tandem could be backed up by Dieng, Yabusele, and Vincent Poirier for France.
It&rsquo;s a lot to project, no doubt, but giving <a href="https://www.fiba.basketball/rankingmen" target="_blank" rel="noopener">the No. 4 team in the world</a> a top-four player in the world could be what it takes for someone to snatch the gold medal away from Team USA in the Olympics for the first time since 2004.
But a lot can happen in two years, so we'll table this... for now.&nbsp;
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Bryan Fonseca looks at the potential of Joel Embiid joining France in international competition.

We’re not talking enough about Joel Embiid possibly playing for France

Ja Morant scored 47 points to match his postseason high and carry the Memphis Grizzlies into a tie in the Western Conference semifinals with a 106-101 victory over the Golden State Warriors on Tuesday night.
Morant scored the last 15 points for Memphis, starting with 4:16 left. He drove and turned around a defender before hitting a 7-foot jumper with 1:42 left to put Memphis ahead to stay at 100-99. He added four free throws and a 9-footer finishing with 18 in the fourth quarter.
The NBA&rsquo;s Most Improved Player, who also had 47 in Game 2 against Utah last year, became only the third player in league history to have multiple 45-point games in the postseason before turning 23. The other two? LeBron James and Kobe Bryant.
Ziaire Williams hit four 3s and finished with 14 points off the bench. Jaren Jackson Jr. scored 12 points before fouling out for the third time in eight games this postseason. Brandon Clarke added 10 points.
Now the youngest team to reach the semifinal round in the last 25 years heads to San Francisco for Game 3 on Saturday night knowing the series will return to Memphis for Game 5.&nbsp;
Stephen Curry finished with 27 points on 3-of-11 shooting outside the arc. Jordan Poole added 20 off the bench but was 1 of 6 from 3. Andrew Wiggins had 16, going 1 of 7 from 3. Klay Thompson finished with 12 points and was 2 of 12 from 3. The Warriors shot just 7 of 38 from 3-point range.
The Warriors, in the semifinals for the seventh time in 10 years, had their chances. Trailing 104-101, Curry passed to Green, who tossed it to Thompson, who traveled with 17 seconds left. Morant hit two free throws for the final margin.
The Grizzlies are coming off the franchise&rsquo;s first series win in seven years. But a team that was the NBA&rsquo;s second-youngest squad during the regular season is trying to take Memphis past the second round, something this franchise has done only once back in 2013.
It didn&rsquo;t get easier when Dillon Brooks, averaging 15 points this postseason and whose job was defending Curry, was ejected with 9:08 left in the first quarter after a hard foul on Warriors guard Gary Payton II. Payton went to the locker room for X-rays on his left elbow. He didn&rsquo;t return.
Green, ejected from Game 1 for his own Flagrant 2, went down a couple minutes after Brooks&rsquo; ejection. He went to the locker room, flashing the middle digit on each hand at the fans. He returned for the second quarter after getting stitches for a cut at his right eye that was nearly swollen shut by halftime.
Memphis scored the first eight points of the game and led 33-25 after the hectic first quarter with Morant scoring 14, Jackson 10. Curry had 11 for Golden State with Brooks in the locker room. The second quarter got a bit sloppy at times with the Warriors going 2 of 11 outside the arc with five turnovers.
The Grizzlies led 56-51 at halftime with Morant scoring the final four points of the second for Memphis, giving him 23.
Curry and Poole fueled a big third quarter in Game 1 combining for 23 points. This time, Curry scored four points and Poole had six, but Golden State finished the third on a 13-3 run to tie it up at 77. Morant was hit in the face in the final seconds and went to the bench saying he couldn&rsquo;t see out of his left eye.
Golden State took its first lead of the game within the opening minute of the fourth on a layup by Poole, and the Warriors led by as much as 81-77. Memphis answered with a 9-2 run capped by back-to-back 3s from Williams, who missed the last two playoff games with a sore right knee.
TIP-INS
Warriors: Now are 39-34 in Game 2s and 18-9 since the 2015 playoffs. ... Thompson needed only one 3 to reach 400 for his career in the playoffs. He knocked that down with 7:16 left in the first quarter. ... They outrebounded Memphis matching their postseason high for a second straight game at 52-47.
Grizzlies: Morant snapped a streak of six straight double-doubles that made him the youngest in 30 years with that long a streak in one postseason. ... Jackson tied Zach Randolph for third on the franchise&rsquo;s career blocks list in the postseason with his 24th a minute into the third quarter. ... They shot 14 of 45 from 3.
IN THE CROWD
Michigan State coach Tom Izzo was at the game with three former Spartans in this game, including Warriors forward Draymond Green. Izzo posed for a photo before the game with Xavier Tillman Sr. and Jackson.&nbsp;

Ja Morant scored 47 points to match his postseason high and carry the Grizzlies into a tie in the West semifinals with a 106-101 victory.

Morant scores 47 points, Grizzlies tie Warriors at one apiece

Ja Morant scored on a layup with a second left, and the Memphis Grizzlies rallied from 11 points down in the fourth quarter to edge the Minnesota Timberwolves 111-109 on Tuesday night and grab a 3-2 lead in their first-round Western Conference series.
Morant, named the NBA&rsquo;s most improved player on Monday, struggled mightily much of the game. But he turned it on in the fourth quarter, scoring 18 points &mdash; including 9 of 10 at the free-throw line.
Morant came from the low post as the Grizzlies inbounded the ball with 3.7 seconds left and lost Anthony Edwards at the top of the key. That left him an open lane into the paint that he&rsquo;s so rarely had in this series, beating Jarred Vanderbilt with his left hand on an underhanded layup.
Morant finished with 30 and had 13 rebounds and nine assists. Desmond Bane added 25 points, and Brandon Clarke had 21 off the bench for Memphis, and Jaren Jackson Jr. added 12 before fouling out.
Karl-Anthony Towns led the Timberwolves with 28 points and 12 rebounds. Anthony Edwards had 22, and D'Angelo Russell added 12 and Taurean Prince 10.
Game 6 is Friday night in Minnesota.
The Timberwolves led 99-88 with 6:58 left after three free throws by Towns and Jackson fouling out for a second straight game. The Grizzlies responded with a 10-0 run to set up a thrilling finish to what had been an ugly game with plenty of poor shooting.
Edwards tied it up at 109 for Minnesota with a 3 with 3.7 seconds left. That set up Morant for the final drive to the basket for the game-winner.
Memphis coach Taylor Jenkins was fined $15,000 Monday for criticizing the officiating after Game 4, a 119-118 win by Minnesota. On Tuesday, his Grizzlies got to the free-throw line more than Minnesota &mdash; they just didn&rsquo;t shoot well once there, making 26 of 39 compared to Minnesota's 21 of 24.
The Grizzlies opened the game on a 13-2 run and looked liked the team that earned the highest seed in franchise history.
Then Jackson got his second foul on Patrick Beverley&rsquo;s 3 and went to the bench. The Timberwolves, the NBA&rsquo;s best 3-point shooting team in the regular season, started knocking down shots, going 7 of 11 outside the arc and leading 31-28 at the end of the first quarter.
The second quarter was a different story, with Minnesota hitting only 1 of 9 outside the arc and leading 55-53 at halftime.
Minnesota outscored Memphis 30-21 in the third, but <a href="https://twitter.com/memgrizz/status/1519128062952189952">Morant capped the quarter with a windmill dunk that helped give the Grizzlies some much-needed energy. </a>
TIP-INS
Timberwolves: Russell came in 17 of 55 overall and 9 of 24 from beyond the arc in this series. He knocked down his first two shots Tuesday, a pair of back-to-back 3s, and finished 2 of 4 from 3 and 4 of 10 from the floor. ... Beverley had their first four-point play in the postseason at 8:14 of the first quarter.
Grizzlies: Bane got a technical in the second quarter for shoving Timberwolves coach Chris Finch. Bane also opened the game with his 20th 3-point in this series. ... Ziaire Williams played four minutes and did not finish the game with a sore right knee.
IN THE CROWD
Pau Gasol and Zach Randolph were former Grizzlies in attendance along with NBA Commissioner Adam Silver. Kentucky coach John Calipari sat near the Timberwolves' bench. Alex Rodriguez, a Minnesota co-owner, also was in attendance, and <a href="https://twitter.com/memgrizz/status/1519103401333866497">Usher was on hand</a> as well <a href="https://twitter.com/NBA/status/1519109240065040384">sitting next to Morant's father Tee</a>.

Ja Morant scored on a layup with a second left, and the Grizzlies rallied from 11 points down in the fourth quarter to edge the Wolves.

Morant's last-second layup gives Grizzlies 3-2 series lead

This season hasn&rsquo;t gone as planned for the Portland Trail Blazers.
Entering the campaign, the Blazers were hoping to be one of the Western Conference&rsquo;s top teams. With new head coach Chauncey Billups and a veteran-laden roster, Portland hoped to continue their eight-year playoff streak and go on a deep run in the postseason. To get an idea of how Portland was perceived last summer, recall that Larry Nance Jr. asked his hometown Cleveland Cavaliers to trade him to the Blazers because he wanted to join a contender.
Now, at 27-48, Portland has the 12th-best record in the West. The Blazers currently sport the NBA's 25th-ranked offense (scoring 106.3 points per 100 possessions) and 29th-ranked defense (allowing 113.3 points per 100 possessions). And after trading away vets such as <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/after-a-crazy-season-cj-mccollum-is-thriving-with-pelicans" target="_blank" rel="noopener">CJ McCollum</a>, Norman Powell, Robert Covington, Tony Snell and Nance, Portland seems headed for the NBA draft lottery for the first time since 2013.
Throughout this disappointing season, there has been an undeniable bright spot for the Blazers: Anfernee Simons. The 22-year-old took the next step in his development and proved that he was ready to take on an increased role. His emergence is a big reason why Portland&rsquo;s front office felt comfortable trading away McCollum and Powell prior to the deadline.
Simons averaged 22.0 points, 5.5 assists, 4.1 threes and 2.8 rebounds in 30 games as a starter, while shooting 45.2% from the field, 41.5% from three and 87.1% from the free-throw line. This offseason, Simons is poised to hit restricted free agency and get a lucrative payday.
During his first three seasons in the NBA, Simons had just five games with 20 or more points. This season, he did it 19 times despite only playing 57 games. (He&rsquo;s been ruled out for the remainder of the season due to patellar tendinopathy in his left knee).
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-theme="dark">
Anfernee Simons🔥 🐜 In the win vs Trae &amp; the Hawks 43 Points (career-high) 13/21 Shooting 9 Threes (ties career-high) 7 Assists <a href="https://t.co/Wt5uiLzO7J">pic.twitter.com/Wt5uiLzO7J</a>
&mdash; Ballislife.com (@Ballislife) <a href="https://twitter.com/Ballislife/status/1478240059140841473?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 4, 2022</a></blockquote>

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

On Jan. 3, he had a 43-point, 9-three, 7-assist performance to defeat the Atlanta Hawks. Last month, he helped the Blazers upset the Milwaukee Bucks and Memphis Grizzlies in back-to-back road games, finishing with 31 points and 6 assists in both contests. Portland was 7-1 when Simons scored at least 29 points this season.
&ldquo;They believe in me. They think I'm a great player and I can help them win,&rdquo; Simons <a href="https://marcstein.substack.com/p/a-conversation-with-anfernee-simons?token=eyJ1c2VyX2lkIjoxNjI2MjQ1LCJwb3N0X2lkIjo1MDI2MzY0NiwiXyI6IkZsWjNwIiwiaWF0IjoxNjQ4NTcyMDMyLCJleHAiOjE2NDg1NzU2MzIsImlzcyI6InB1Yi0zOTIyMDUiLCJzdWIiOiJwb3N0LXJlYWN0aW9uIn0.dZ6HuN__uKrHVFj7kSlYaP1sSa_nUd8qqOfXCIcfVsc" target="_blank" rel="noopener">told Marc Stein</a>. &ldquo;It's crazy how stuff moves pretty fast in the NBA &mdash; just being prepared when my opportunity was presented and taking full advantage of that. And I think I've been doing that. I gained the organization's trust. For them to make these moves just shows that they believe in me and want me to succeed.&rdquo;
Simons&rsquo; huge strides have him being mentioned as a potential candidate for the Most Improved Player award. If he wins, he would become the fourth Blazer to win Most Improved, joining CJ McCollum (2015-16), Zach Randolph (2003-04) and Kevin Duckworth (1987-88). LaMarcus Aldridge finished as the MIP runner-up twice (in 2007-08 and 2010-11), but he came up short to Hedo Turkoglu and Kevin Love, respectively.&nbsp;
&ldquo;I think I put myself in a good position to at least be nominated for it &mdash; to at least be in talks for being Most Improved,&rdquo; Simons <a href="https://marcstein.substack.com/p/a-conversation-with-anfernee-simons?token=eyJ1c2VyX2lkIjoxNjI2MjQ1LCJwb3N0X2lkIjo1MDI2MzY0NiwiXyI6IkZsWjNwIiwiaWF0IjoxNjQ4NTcyMDMyLCJleHAiOjE2NDg1NzU2MzIsImlzcyI6InB1Yi0zOTIyMDUiLCJzdWIiOiJwb3N0LXJlYWN0aW9uIn0.dZ6HuN__uKrHVFj7kSlYaP1sSa_nUd8qqOfXCIcfVsc" target="_blank" rel="noopener">told Stein</a>. &ldquo;But I can't control who picks who, so I'm just going to continue to work hard on trying to get better.&rdquo;
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Simons acknowledges that he still has plenty of work to do, and he knows what aspects of his game he wants to hone next.
&ldquo;[I] just want to continue to get better at playmaking &mdash; continue to see the floor better &mdash; and work on finishing around the rim and getting fouled,&rdquo; Simons <a href="https://marcstein.substack.com/p/a-conversation-with-anfernee-simons?token=eyJ1c2VyX2lkIjoxNjI2MjQ1LCJwb3N0X2lkIjo1MDI2MzY0NiwiXyI6IkZsWjNwIiwiaWF0IjoxNjQ4NTcyMDMyLCJleHAiOjE2NDg1NzU2MzIsImlzcyI6InB1Yi0zOTIyMDUiLCJzdWIiOiJwb3N0LXJlYWN0aW9uIn0.dZ6HuN__uKrHVFj7kSlYaP1sSa_nUd8qqOfXCIcfVsc" target="_blank" rel="noopener">told Stein</a>. &ldquo;A lot of the great players know different ways to draw fouls.&rdquo;
It&rsquo;ll be interesting to see how Coach Billups utilizes Simon and Damian Lillard together next season. This season, Simons didn&rsquo;t move into Portland&rsquo;s starting lineup until Lillard was sidelined due to an abdominal injury that required surgery. In the 27 games in which they both suited up, Simons came off of the bench and his role was limited, averaging 12.1 points, 2.4 rebounds and 2.0 assists. How will they fare when both players are in the starting lineup?
"I think we complement each other well&hellip; We're gonna be a hard backcourt to navigate and guard because we're both threats in the pick-and-roll, making plays and scoring the ball,&rdquo; Simons <a href="https://marcstein.substack.com/p/a-conversation-with-anfernee-simons?token=eyJ1c2VyX2lkIjoxNjI2MjQ1LCJwb3N0X2lkIjo1MDI2MzY0NiwiXyI6IkZsWjNwIiwiaWF0IjoxNjQ4NTcyMDMyLCJleHAiOjE2NDg1NzU2MzIsImlzcyI6InB1Yi0zOTIyMDUiLCJzdWIiOiJwb3N0LXJlYWN0aW9uIn0.dZ6HuN__uKrHVFj7kSlYaP1sSa_nUd8qqOfXCIcfVsc" target="_blank" rel="noopener">told Stein</a>. &ldquo;Teams are going to have to choose who they want to blitz.&rdquo;
Lillard is nearly a decade older than Simons and he has emerged as the young guard&rsquo;s mentor in recent years. Simons has learned a ton from watching Lillard &mdash; on and off the court. &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &ldquo;I've been watching him my whole career, so I've picked up on things he does. He's probably one of the most humble dudes I've ever met &mdash; especially with the success that he's had,&rdquo; Simons <a href="https://marcstein.substack.com/p/a-conversation-with-anfernee-simons?token=eyJ1c2VyX2lkIjoxNjI2MjQ1LCJwb3N0X2lkIjo1MDI2MzY0NiwiXyI6IkZsWjNwIiwiaWF0IjoxNjQ4NTcyMDMyLCJleHAiOjE2NDg1NzU2MzIsImlzcyI6InB1Yi0zOTIyMDUiLCJzdWIiOiJwb3N0LXJlYWN0aW9uIn0.dZ6HuN__uKrHVFj7kSlYaP1sSa_nUd8qqOfXCIcfVsc" target="_blank" rel="noopener">told Stein</a>. &ldquo;He walks around like he's a normal person. Each and every day he's always giving people confidence and encouraging people. Just to see that firsthand and see how he works and what he puts into being who he is, it's amazing to see. He's my vet. He's been helping me my whole career and I'm very grateful to have him as a teammate.&rdquo;
While Blazers fans would love to forget this frustrating season, at least some good came out of this campaign, with Simons beginning his ascent to stardom and putting the league on notice.
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Anfernee Simons has been an undeniable bright spot for the Portland Trail Blazers this season.

Blazers' Anfernee Simons seems poised for stardom

MEMPHIS, Tenn. (AP) &mdash; De&rsquo;Anthony Melton had 24 points, Desmond Bane added 20 and the Memphis Grizzlies continued to win in the absence of scoring leader Ja Morant, beating the Milwaukee Bucks 127-102 on Saturday night.
Dillon Brooks scored 19 points and Jaren Jackson Jr. had 16 and two blocks to help Memphis win its fourth straight and eighth in the last nine games. Melton was 8 of 11 from the field, going 6 of 9 from 3-point range.
&ldquo;I&rsquo;m just trying to go out there and hoop,&rdquo; Melton said. &ldquo;Have fun with it. Play with confidence and do what the team needs me to do.&rdquo;
Giannis Antetokounmpo led the Bucks with 30 points, 11 rebounds and four blocks, scoring 18 points in the third quarter when Milwaukee tried to make a run. Khris Middleton added 16 points. The defending champion Bucks lost for only the third time in the last 13 games.
Milwaukee dropped into a tie for third with Boston in the Eastern Conference, a half-game behind Philadelphia and Miami.
Antetokounmpo was listed as questionable before the game with a sore right knee, but after going through pregame warmups was deemed ready to play. Meanwhile, the Grizzlies continued to play without Morant who is nursing a sore right knee and is not expected to return until near the end of the regular season.
&ldquo;They just do a lot of things that are about winning basketball,&rdquo; Bucks coach Mike Budenholzer said, adding: "Credit to their players, to (Memphis coach Taylor Jenkins), the coaching staff. They just keep playing no matter who&rsquo;s in.&rdquo;
The Bucks had trouble connecting on their first-half shots and were under 30% overall near the midway point of the second quarter. Antetokounmpo was 3 of 11 in the first half, part of Milwaukee&rsquo;s 32% shooting.
Bane and Melton had 12 apiece as Memphis led 59-46 at the break.
Antetokounmpo came out with much more aggression in the second half making his way to the basket and helping Milwaukee chip into the Memphis lead. But near the three-minute mark, Melton connected on a trio of 3-pointers to take the Grizzlies lead to 22.
Memphis led 98-79 entering the fourth.
&ldquo;It felt like (Antetokounmpo) tried to will us back into the game,&rdquo; Budenholzer said. &ldquo;It felt like we had some momentum for some small stretches there in the third quarter, where I felt like we might get back in it.
&ldquo;But we weren&rsquo;t able to sustain it.&rdquo;
For the Grizzlies, they continue to win with Morant on the shelf. They are now 17-2 with their leading scorer not playing. Jenkins credits the success to a balanced team.
&ldquo;We&rsquo;re just sticking with our identity,&rdquo; Jenkins said. &ldquo;It doesn&rsquo;t matter if you&rsquo;re a starter, bench, mixed lineups. Whatever we do, we do to the best of our abilities.&rdquo;
MELTON&rsquo;S SHOOTING:
Melton has connected on 26 of 44 3-pointers in the last six game &ndash; a 59% clip. As for the secret to his recent success, Melton said his family is in town. He said they &ldquo;instill confidence in me.&rdquo;
&ldquo;Even if I do go out there and play soft or something like that, I&rsquo;ve got to go home and hear that from them,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;I&rsquo;m just trying to go out there, play hard, play my game and keep them off my back a little bit.&rdquo;
TIP-INS:
Bucks: Jrue Holiday, who had led the team in scoring the last two games and was averaging 23 points in the last five, sat out with left ankle soreness. &hellip; Middleton passed Vin Baker for 11th place on the Bucks&rsquo; career rebounding list. Baker had 3,080. &hellip;Saw an end to their four-game winning streak in Memphis. &hellip; Bobby Portis Jr. had a season-high eight offensive rebounds.
Grizzlies: Memphis has a seven-game home winning streak. &hellip; Steven Adams grabbed his third offensive rebound in the second half to set a new single-season franchise record. He passed Zach Randolph who had 330 offensive boards in 2009-10. &hellip; Tyus Jones finished with 13 points and 10 assists.
UP NEXT:
Bucks: At Philadelphia on Tuesday night.
Grizzlies: Host Golden State on Monday night.

De’Anthony Melton had 24 points, Desmond Bane added 20 and the Memphis Grizzlies beat the Milwaukee Bucks 127-102.

Melton, Bane lead Morant-less Grizzlies past Bucks, 127-102

In case you&rsquo;ve been overly consumed by the NBA, college basketball, or the WNBA off-season, now would be a great time to remind y&rsquo;all that the 2023 FIBA World Cup qualifiers are going on.
And in case you didn&rsquo;t know, the host countries for the 2023 World Cup are Japan, Indonesia and the Philippines &mdash; more on that later.
The last World Cup was right before the 2019-20 season, but feels so long ago because this whole COVID thing hadn&rsquo;t yet clapped us up. If you remember, the 2020 Olympics took place in 2021 &mdash; as in, last year. Yeah, I know, the international stuff can get confusing, but I&rsquo;m here to help you. Trust me.
Now, perhaps quietly to some, international play quickly resumed this past November with the first window of 2023 World Cup qualifying, which we&rsquo;ll recap shortly.
You have four sets of qualifying regions: Africa, Americas, Asia/Oceania, and Europe. There are six windows played over a 15-month span (starting from this past November), where the competing squads normally would participate in two games per window. COVID had other ideas &mdash; more on that later.
Currently, each region has groups of four, and the top three in each group will advance to round two following the June/July window. This current round of qualifying is between Nov. 20-30, Feb. 21-March 1, and June 27-July 5, after which we&rsquo;ll enter round two. Round two also occurs over three windows: August 22-30, Nov. 7-15, and Feb. 20-28, then those who will have qualified will enter group drawing next March, and we&rsquo;ll see them compete between August 25-September 10 &mdash; the World Cup.
Now, let&rsquo;s lay out all the things you should probably know and, if you see a number in parenthesis next to a team that&rsquo;s listed, that&rsquo;s their current world ranking, <a href="https://www.fiba.basketball/rankingmen">according to FIBA</a>. So if you feel like your people are being misrepresented, leave me alone and take that up with them. (Unless &hellip; unless you mean, you know, actual greater good/societal misrepresentation, then &hellip; let&rsquo;s talk, because me, too.)
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African Region
2019 WC qualifiers: Angola, Cote d&rsquo;Ivoire, Nigeria, Senegal, Tunisia
As they did in 2019, Africa will get five of the final 32 World Cup spots. Though they&rsquo;re hoping for a better result, because none of them advanced past&nbsp;group play. The Groups are as follows:
<ul>
<li>Group A: Nigeria (22), Mali (72), Cape Verde (74), Uganda (78),</li>
<li>Group B: Tunisia (28), Cameroon (64), South Sudan (82), Rwanda (84)</li>
<li>Group C: Angola (31), Cote d&rsquo;Ivoire (40), Central African Rep. (75), Guinea (99)</li>
<li>Group D: Senegal (34), Egypt (59), Congo DR (81), Kenya (103)</li>
</ul>
First Window Summary: Africa has a slightly different format. Groups A and C each played three games from Nov. 26-28, the biggest perhaps being Cape Verde&rsquo;s 79-71 upset over Nigeria, which helped move their ranking from No. 100 to No. 74 in the world. Thus, Groups A and C will return in the summer window. Nigeria and Mali are 2-1 and lead Group A, and Cote d&rsquo;Ivoire went 3-0 in November, sitting atop Group C. Groups B and D begin qualifying on Feb. 25 at Dakar Arena in Senegal, which will be three straight days of games through the 27th.
Tunisia&rsquo;s To Lose?: Tunisia went 10-2 in their World Cup qualifying for the 2019 tournament, and is expected to have similar production in group play here. Tunisia won the 2021 AfroBasket this past September, led by tournament MVP Makrem Romdhane, and All-Tournament guard Omar Abada. There&rsquo;s <a href="https://www.fiba.basketball/basketballworldcup/2023/african-qualifiers/news/the-african-champions-are-ready-to-soar-in-dakar" target="_blank" rel="noopener">also a chance star center Salah Mejri suits up for Tunisia</a>. The 7-foot-2 former Dallas Maverick <a href="https://www.basketball-reference.com/international/teams/tunisia/2019.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">led Tunisia with 16.4 points, 10.4 rebounds, and 3.2 blocks per game</a> in their second ever World Cup appearance three years ago.
<iframe title="YouTube video player" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/Q_Zc8DMv5vc" width="100%" height="325" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>
The Biggest What If: Tunisia plays Cameroon on Feb. 25. Cameroon is one of the many wild cards worth keeping tabs on. They still haven&rsquo;t been able to piece together the dream frontcourt of Joel Embiid, Pascal Siakam and Luc Richard Mbah a Moute, who hasn&rsquo;t played since the NBA bubble. <a href="https://www.libertyballers.com/2017/2/7/14539418/joel-embiid-named-cameroon-preliminary-roster-fiba-afrobasket-2017-luc-mbah-a-moute" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Embiid came close in 2017</a>, but ultimately didn&rsquo;t play. Obviously, NBA players rarely can compete in these qualifying windows because of, well, them being in the NBA. But if Cameroon could do well enough and qualify, who knows if that&rsquo;ll be enough to lure Embiid and Siakam into international play.
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American Region
2019 WC qualifiers: Argentina (silver medalist), Brazil, Canada, Dominican Republic, Puerto Rico, USA, and Venezuela.
The Americas will, again, send seven to the World Cup late next year. The Americas have the standard format across the board, so this window will mark two games for each club. The groups are:
<ul>
<li>Group A: Argentina (7), Venezuela (17), Panama (50), Paraguay (77)</li>
<li>Group B: Brazil (15), Uruguay (41), Colombia (67), Chile (68)</li>
<li>Group C: Canada (18), Dominican Republic (20), U.S. Virgin Islands (54), Bahamas (62)</li>
<li>Group D: U.S.A. (1), Puerto Rico (19), Mexico (24), Cuba (65)</li>
</ul>
First Window Summary: Argentina, Venezuela, Brazil, Uruguay, Canada, Dominican Republic and Mexico are all 2-0. U.S.A. and Puerto Rico are the only 1-1 teams in the Americas, and will play each other on Tuesday in Washington D.C. Notably, for Team U.S.A., Jim Boylen coached the club in the November window, in which they held off Cuba 95-90, then lost to Mexico in Chihuahua City, 97-88. Although Cuba is 0-2, their star, Jaisel Rivero, is good enough to steal them a game. Rivero put 34 (13-18 shooting) with 9 rebounds and 3 threes on Team USA in their narrow loss. Rivero currently competes with Liga ACB and EuroCup&rsquo;s Valencia Basket in Spain, where he averages 11.1 points (second on team) and 4.9 rebounds (third on team) across all competitions.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-theme="dark">
21 points for <a href="https://twitter.com/isaiahthomas?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@isaiahthomas</a> last night, including 4 made threes, none bigger than this dagger. 👀 Team USA defeated Cuba 95-90 to start 2023 World Cup Qualifiers. They face Mexico tonight. 📹: <a href="https://t.co/nNQDfvcF82">https://t.co/nNQDfvcF82</a> (via FIBA) <a href="https://t.co/dhAUAUVHLy">pic.twitter.com/dhAUAUVHLy</a>
&mdash; Bryan Fonseca 🇵🇷 (@BryanFonsecaNY) <a href="https://twitter.com/BryanFonsecaNY/status/1465437069073858560?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 29, 2021</a>
<script src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js"></script>
</blockquote>
Uncle Iso Joe: Among <a href="https://www.fiba.basketball/basketballworldcup/2023/americas-qualifiers/game/0407/Mexico-USA#|tab=boxscore">the notables who suited up for Team USA in November</a> were Isaiah Thomas, Luke Kornet, Chasson Randle, Haywood Highsmith and Shaquille Harrison, among many other current and former NBA players. Seven-time All-Star and 40-year-old Joe Johnson, who famously was a Boston Celtic briefly earlier this season, is <a href="https://www.fiba.basketball/basketballworldcup/2023/americas-qualifiers/news/nba-experience-leads-revamped-united-states-roster-for-second-window-of-2023-fiba-world-cup-americas-qualifiers">confirmed to be suiting up with Team USA</a> in this February window. Brian Bowen II is the only player returning from the November window. Other Team U.S.A. members include current G Leaguers Jordan Bell, David Stockton, Langston Galloway and Justin Wright-Foreman, among others.
La Nueva Era de Baloncesto: Both Mexico and Puerto Rico announced new head coaches shortly before the November window. Mexico&rsquo;s led by long-time NBA assistant Kaleb Caneles, while Puerto Rico hired Nelson Colon, who is a three-time champion and Coach of the Year in Baloncesto Superior Nacional, Puerto Rico&rsquo;s top pro basketball league. Former long-time NBA guard Carlos Arroyo was also appointed the <a href="https://www.fiba.basketball/news/puerto-rico-appoints-carlos-arroyo-as-its-male-national-team-general-manager#:~:text=Americas-,Puerto%20Rico%20appoints%20Carlos%20Arroyo%20as%20its%20male%20National%20Team,of%20the%20men's%20national%20team.">Puerto Rican National Team&rsquo;s General Manager last June</a>.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-theme="dark">
Both Puerto Rico and Mexico starting this cycle with new coaches, too: <a href="https://t.co/PCDaPmNumy">https://t.co/PCDaPmNumy</a>
&mdash; Bryan Fonseca 🇵🇷 (@BryanFonsecaNY) <a href="https://twitter.com/BryanFonsecaNY/status/1465151054278967302?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 29, 2021</a></blockquote>

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Asia-Oceania Region
2019 WC qualifiers: Australia (finished fourth), China, Iran, Japan, Jordan, New Zealand, South Korea and the Philippines.
The hosts &ndash; Japan, the Philippines and Indonesia &ndash; typically automatically qualify for the World Cup. <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20171213161459/http:/www.philstar.com:8080/sports/2017/12/13/1767946/learning-2019-world-cup" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Indonesia&rsquo;s qualification is more provisional</a> due to their lack of international success. Japan and the Philippines are automatically in, but they&rsquo;re all scheduled to participate in World Cup qualifiers anyway.
In the 2019 World Cup, Asia/Oceania sent eight teams over, which they&rsquo;ll do again in 2023. Here are the groups:
<ul>
<li>Group A: New Zealand (27), South Korea (30), Philippines (33), India (80)</li>
<li>Group B: Australia (3), China (29), Japan (37), Chinese Taipei (66)</li>
<li>Group C: Jordan (39), Lebanon (55), Indonesia (91), Saudi Arabia (79)</li>
<li>Group D: Iran (23),&nbsp;Kazakhstan (70), Syria (85), Bahrain (104)</li>
</ul>
First Window Summary: Due to travel restrictions (COVID), <a href="https://www.fiba.basketball/basketballworldcup/2023/asian-qualifiers/news/update-to-the-fiba-basketball-world-cup-2023-asian-qualifiers" target="_blank" rel="noopener">several games had to be canceled</a>, so while the format was originally the same as the Americas, it came with some modifications. No one in Group A has played yet, so they&rsquo;ll each play four games to compensate, all of which will take place between Feb. 24 and Feb. 28. In Group B, only China and Japan were able to play, and China smacked them twice, 79-63, and 106-73. Australia and Chinese Taipei are each scheduled to play three times between Feb. 25 and Feb. 28. Japan will play twice in this window, once against each of them, and China will return for four games in the third window to end round one.
Medal Momentum: This will mark the first we see of Australia since finally winning their first medal at the 2020 Olympics (that were played in 2021). Australia had lost the bronze medal game in the 1988, 1996, 2000 and 2016 Olympics before finally medaling in their fifth attempt. In their history, they&rsquo;ve never had a better World Cup finish than in 2019, where they lost in &hellip; another bronze medal game. Perhaps Australia is really turning a corner now. &nbsp;
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-theme="dark">
🥉 HISTORY MADE 🥉 The Boomers have done it- Australia have secured their first ever men&rsquo;s basketball Olympic medal! The bronze is coming home! 💚💛<a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Tokyo2020?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#Tokyo2020</a> <a href="https://t.co/ngxiYRwHdk">pic.twitter.com/ngxiYRwHdk</a>
&mdash; Basketball Australia (@BasketballAus) <a href="https://twitter.com/BasketballAus/status/1423988352987013120?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">August 7, 2021</a>
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European Region&nbsp;
2019 WC qualifiers: Czech Republic, France (bronze medalist), Germany, Greece, Italy, Lithuania, Montenegro, Poland, Russia, Serbia, Spain (gold medalist), Turkey.
Europe is the largest region of basketball playing powers here, so their rules are slightly different. Instead of four groups, there are eight. As a result, they&rsquo;ll get 12 World Cup bids.
Here are the groups:
<ul>
<li>Group A: Serbia (6), Latvia (26), Belgium (36), Slovakia (63)</li>
<li>Group B: Greece (10), Turkey (16), Great Britain (44), Belarus (48)</li>
<li>Group C: Slovenia (4), Croatia (21), Finland (35), Sweden (51)</li>
<li>Group D: Germany (11), Poland (13), Israel (42), Estonia (49)</li>
<li>Group E: France (5), Montenegro (25), Hungary (43), Portugal (58)</li>
<li>Group F: Lithuania (8), Czech Republic (12), Bosnia (45), Bulgaria (53)</li>
<li>Group G: Spain (2), Ukraine (32), Georgia (38), North Macedonia (52)</li>
<li>Group H: Italy (9), Russia (14), Netherlands (47), Iceland (46)</li>
</ul>
First Window Summary: Everyone here was able to play two games in November. Your 2-0 teams are as follows: Belgium, Slovenia, Israel, France, Lithuania, Bosnia, Spain and Russia. Your 0-2 teams are Netherlands, North Macedonia, Bulgaria, Czech Republic, Portugal, Poland, Croatia and Slovakia. Czech Republic was a story from the 2019 World Cup. They shockingly punched above their weight and reached the quarterfinals. Czech Republic, led by Tom&aacute;&scaron; Satoransky, finished sixth, one spot above Team U.S.A. But, so far, they haven&rsquo;t won a game in 2023 qualifying. Czech Republic lost to Bosnia 97-90 and Lithuania 74-66. They should have a breakthrough against Bulgaria on the 24th, but it&rsquo;ll be difficult to set themselves up for a repeat of 2019, which was their first World Cup bid.
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The State of Spain: After winning the 2019 World Cup with an incredibly stacked team, including tournament MVP Ricky Rubio, captain Rudy Fern&aacute;ndez, Marc Gasol and Willy Hernang&oacute;mez, Spain was knocked out of the Olympic quarterfinals by the United States. Their Olympic team featured many of their same heavy-hitters, including even Pau Gasol, who retired in October and is now a member of the International Olympic Committee. Like the United States, many of the players you&rsquo;d expect to see on their World Cup roster <a href="https://www.fiba.basketball/basketballworldcup/2023/european-qualifiers/team/Spain#|tab=roster" target="_blank" rel="noopener">likely won&rsquo;t participate much until then</a>. Even so, expect them to continue reigning as one of the top teams in the world. We could talk about the age factor around this time next year, perhaps.
The Sleeping Giant: Slovenia famously jumped 12 spots after their debut Olympic performance, largely led by Luka Dončić, accompanied by standout pro teammates Mike Tobey, Zoran (Goran&rsquo;s brother) Dragić,&nbsp;and <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vlatko_%C4%8Can%C4%8Dar" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Vlatko Čančar</a>. Slovenia finished fourth, losing to Australia in the bronze medal game. They didn&rsquo;t qualify for the 2019 World Cup, but did win the 2017 EuroBasket, in which Goran won MVP and Luka, at 18 years old, was named to the All-Tournament team. (Anthony Randolph played for the Slovenian team, then. Who knew?!?) Dragić and Tobey are <a href="https://www.fiba.basketball/basketballworldcup/2023/european-qualifiers/team/Slovenia#|tab=roster" target="_blank" rel="noopener">listed on the roster for this window</a>. Look for them to continue raising hell in qualifiers, and if Dončić suits up, in the World Cup, too.
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For even more World Cup info and complete schedules, <a href="https://www.fiba.basketball/basketballworldcup/2023" target="_blank" rel="noopener">go here</a>.
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Bryan Fonseca gives an overview of the 2023 FIBA World Cup qualifiers.

Things to monitor as FIBA World Cup’s next qualifying window arrives

The construction of an NBA roster is a puzzle for each front office to put together, but at the end of each season, only one franchise ultimately finishes the puzzle successfully &mdash; only to start over again the following summer. Sure, some teams may feel they have all the pieces on the table and someone was injured or unavailable, but most teams find themselves looking for the missing puzzle piece that they just can't find in the heap of pieces available.
Every franchise also has their own approach to team building. The Lakers, for instance, rely on the draw of living in Los Angeles and the allure of past success and legendary predecessors. The Pelicans shipped off their stars in exchange for assets in hopes of building something special, while the Nets and Mavericks have mortgaged their futures in exchange for star players.&nbsp;
Then, there are teams like San Antonio, who has a system and culture in place that the front office has stuck with and followed for years. Their talent evaluation and drafting has been superb for the better part of two decades. Couple that with having one of the best basketball coaches of all-time, and you become relevant for a long, long time.&nbsp;
The small markets need to have a combination of exquisite team building and pure dumb luck with ping pong balls. Milwaukee correctly identified Giannis Antetokounmpo and put the proper pieces around him. Portland struck gold with Damian Lillard and CJ McCollum, just as Oklahoma City did with Russell Westbrook and Kevin Durant, but they struggled to fit all the pieces together.&nbsp;
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Enter the Memphis Grizzlies.&nbsp;
After the debacle that was selecting Hasheem Thabeet over guys like Stephen Curry and James Harden, the basketball gods smiled on the Grizz, allowing them to take Ja Morant with the No. 2 overall pick in the 2019 NBA Draft, despite having the eighth-best odds to secure that selection.&nbsp;
The year before that, Memphis was gifted Jaren Jackson Jr. as the Kings whiffed on Marvin Bagley over Luka Doncic and Trae Young. After seven-straight years in the playoffs, the Grizzlies parted ways with the Grit N' Grind era as Zach Randolph, Tony Allen, Marc Gasol and Mike Conley all moved on, ushering in Grizz: NextGen.
Very few teams can have a seven-year run of success, move on from the entire core responsible for the success, and be better than they ever were &mdash; all in just four seasons. The Suns just ended a 10-year playoff drought with last season's NBA Finals trip, while the Kings are still spiraling on a 15-year run of not making the playoffs.&nbsp;
Fortune has played a role. Who knows what this team would look like today if Morant had not fallen into the team's collective lap. However, fortune must be accompanied by a plan, and the plan in Memphis has been nothing short of remarkable.&nbsp;
Before this current front office took over, Memphis took a massive swing in free agency in an attempt to find that final puzzle piece, signing Chandler Parsons to a four-year, $100 million contract. Despite Parsons' knee issues, it was the risk Memphis general manager Chris Wallace felt he had to take, being the smallest market in the NBA and hardly an attractive free-agent destination.&nbsp;
New GM Zach Kleiman has taken a different approach. The front office has identified a type of player they want to be a part of this franchise, and they go out and get them. From Desmond Bane and Brandon Clarke to Xavier Tillman and Killian Tillie, the Grizzlies aren't interested in draft narratives about age and wingspan &mdash; rather, it's all about what kind of person and player is coming aboard.&nbsp;
From Morant down to the Memphis Hustle in the G League, the Grizzlies organization is deep. It could perhaps be the deepest team in the league, indicated by their 10-2 record when Morant was out due to injury this season.&nbsp;
They didn't trade seven first-round picks and pick swaps for a superstar. They didn't break the bank for a free agent. No, the Memphis Grizzlies drafted the right guys, snagged guys in trades (like De'Anthony Melton and Steven Adams), and signed Tyus Jones in free agency. They got their guys, they executed their plan. Now, for the plan to work, the players must do the same.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
welcome to the dark 🥷🏽
&mdash; Ja Morant (@JaMorant) <a href="https://twitter.com/JaMorant/status/1441494484861308929?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">September 24, 2021</a></blockquote>

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"Welcome to the Dark." That has been Morant's mantra all season. The dark was the offseason work he put in when no one was watching. But Ja also knows who is and isn't watching.&nbsp;
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If you know Ja, you know he read this and took it personally. Being ranked the 15th-best player <a href="https://www.espn.com/nba/insider/insider/story/_/id/31198084/nba-best-25-25-ranking-young-stars-future-potential" target="_blank" rel="noopener">under the age of 25</a> is not something he is likely to ignore. Morant takes the court on a nightly basis to prove that he is "a top-five point guard in the league," as he's said. He has left little doubt where he stands, and the 22-year-old has taken the league by storm.
But the dark didn't apply to just Ja. The Grizzlies have developed from within. Look at the statistical jump that key contributors have made from last season to now:&nbsp;
Ja Morant: 26.5 PPG (+7.4) 49.3% FG% (+4.4%) 34.4 3P% (+4.3%) 5.9 REB (+1.9)&nbsp;
Desmond Bane: 17.5 PPG (+8.3), 2.8 3PM (+1.1) 3.3 +/- (+3.1)
Jaren Jackson Jr.: 16.8 PPG (+2.4) 2.2 BLK (+.6) 3.7 +/- (+9.5)
These three players have come together to form the Grizzlies' new core for years to come. Jackson has already inked his rookie extension, with Morant due to sign his max deal this summer, followed by Bane's extension the following year.&nbsp;
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The improvement and massive leaps by these three is accompanied by Clarke's return to his rookie form, as well as the steadiness of Jones and Adams. Now, headed into this offseason, Memphis has created the ability to take a massive swing with a trade, all while Morant has made Memphis a potential free-agent destination.
Kleiman has been the middle man in some deals, such the Andre Iguodala acquisition and subsequent moves &mdash; he has also gained assets in trades involving players the front office doesn't view as long-term fits with the team. Memphis got Utah's 2022 first-round pick for Mike Conley and the Lakers' protected 2022 first-round pick, sending Jonas Valanciunas to New Orleans. With those assets, plus expiring deals and future expiring deals in Adams and Dillon Brooks, the Grizzlies have set themselves up with a slew of assets to find their final piece.&nbsp;
The <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/desmond-bane-cementing-himself-as-essential-part-of-nextgen-grizzlies" target="_blank" rel="noopener">development of Bane</a> eliminates the hunt for someone like Bradley Beal. The development of JJJ removed Memphis from a Domas Sabonis sweepstakes at the deadline. The development of Melton turns him into a trade asset. So whether it is trading the draft capital and few of the young, developed pieces for a star on the wing this offseason, or shopping the free-agent market in 2023, Memphis has done it their way, and so far it's working.&nbsp;
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Justin Lewis looks back on how Grizzlies general manager Zach Kleiman built the team's core and how it has developed over time.

Welcome to the Dark: The Memphis Grizzlies' development story

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

NBA Power Rankings: New Year's Resolutions for each team

The Memphis Grizzlies <a href="https://www.nba.com/grizzlies/news/memphis-grizzlies-announce-game-packs-for-2021-22-season-210901" target="_blank" rel="noopener">announced</a> that they will retire Zach Randolph&rsquo;s No. 50 jersey on Dec. 11 against the Houston Rockets and will retire Tony Allen&rsquo;s No. 9 jersey on Jan. 28 against the Utah Jazz.&nbsp;
Randolph and Allen were the architects of the Grizzlies' Grit-n-Grind era. The other core members, Mike Conley and Marc Gasol, will likely get jersey-retirement ceremonies of their own once their NBA careers come to an end.
These two players will be remebered forever in Memphis for not only turning around the team and vaulting the Grizzlies into contention, but also for making an everlasting effect on the local community and inspiring a whole generation of basketball fans in Memphis.
Over the course of his 17-year NBA career, Randolph averaged 16.6 points and 9.1 rebounds. After joining the Grizzlies in 2009-10, he became a two-time All-Star.&nbsp;
Allen played 14 seasons in the NBA, averaging 8.1 points, 3.5 rebounds and 1.4 steals over the course of his career and winning a championship in 2008. He was widely regarded as one of the NBA's best perimeter defenders, earning six All-Defensive Team selections (including three First Team nods).

The Memphis Grizzlies announced that they will retire Zach Randolph's No. 50 and Tony Allen's No. 9 this season.

Grizzlies to retire Zach Randolph's No. 50 and Tony Allen's No. 9

Donovan Mitchell scored 30 points, and the top-seeded Utah Jazz grabbed a 3-1 lead Monday night by holding off the Memphis Grizzlies 120-113.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-theme="dark">
Donovan Mitchell was scoring AND supplying in the <a href="https://twitter.com/utahjazz?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@utahjazz</a>'s Game 4 win 🕷️ 30 PTS (game-high) 8 AST 2 STL 49.4 FPTS (game-high) <a href="https://t.co/8bgAXy9jFj">pic.twitter.com/8bgAXy9jFj</a>
&mdash; NBA Fantasy (@NBAFantasy) <a href="https://twitter.com/NBAFantasy/status/1399581941066764289?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">June 1, 2021</a></blockquote>

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Now the team with the NBA's best record in the regular season can close out this first round, best-of-seven series Wednesday night in Game 5 in Salt Lake City.
All-Star Rudy Gobert scored 13 of his 17 points in the third quarter. Jordan Clarkson, the <a href="https://apnews.com/article/jordan-clarkson-utah-nba-sports-cb7cbe91a3bad6cc4f6de1ad70f25563">NBA&rsquo;s 6th man of the year winner</a>, scored 24. Bojan Bogdanovic added 13, Mike Conley had 11.
Ja Morant, who averaged 33.7 points through the first three games, scored 23 and had 12 assists for Memphis. Dillon Brooks and Jaren Jackson Jr. each added 21, De'Anthony Melton had all 15 of his points in the fourth quarter and Jonas Valanciunas finished with 14 points and 12 rebounds.
Memphis opened the fourth quarter on a 12-2 run, taking advantage as the Jazz missed their first nine shots from the floor. Melton hit 5 of 7 shots in the period &mdash; including a trio of 3s. His 3 with 5:30 left got the Grizzlies within 106-104.
Conley, with former Grizzlies teammates Zach Randolph and Tony Allen on hand, ended the Jazz' scoring drought with a 3. The Jazz went 3 of 16 in the fourth but 11 of 12 at the free throw line. Mitchell hit all six and finished 12 of 13 at the line.
Memphis had another raucous, loud crowd waving growl towels that proclaimed &ldquo;I&rsquo;m On My Grizzly&rdquo; quoting rapper J. Cole.
The Grizzlies had their best start to a game in this series, scoring the first four points and leading by as much as four. Better yet, Utah never led by more than five and was up only 34-31 after the first quarter.
Yet Memphis, the youngest team in this postseason, never led by more than four. Utah showed off its talent and experience answering each Grizzlies&rsquo; run.
The teams swapped the lead 11 times with seven ties in the first half. The Jazz used a 13-2 run to take their biggest lead at 59-50 on back-to-back 3s by Mitchell before Morant scored the final four of the half to trim Utah&rsquo;s lead to 59-54.
The Grizzlies got within 72-71 with 7:03 left in the third. Gobert&rsquo;s three-point play started a 13-2 spurt, and Utah led 100-87 after three.
TIP-INS
Jazz: Gobert missed the only shot he took in the first quarter, missed his second attempt in the second quarter and picked up his second foul at 9:50 left. He had just one point and two rebounds by halftime. ... Clarkson helped Utah finish with a 40-30 edge in bench scoring. ... They shot 17 of 34 (50%) on 3-pointers.
Grizzlies: Valanciunas started this game much better than Game 3 when he scored all 10 of his points in the third quarter. This time, he had six points and two rebounds in nine minutes. ... Jackson&rsquo;s season-high was 20 points against Toronto on May 8 after missing most of the season recovering from knee surgery.
___
Follow Teresa M. Walker at https://twitter.com/TeresaMWalker
___
More AP NBA: https://apnews.com/hub/NBA and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports

Donovan Mitchell scored 30 points, and the top-seeded Jazz grabbed a 3-1 lead by holding off the Grizzlies 120-113.

Donovan Mitchell scores 30, Jazz beat Memphis 120-113 to go up 3-1

MEMPHIS, Tenn. (AP) — Dillon Brooks scored eight of his 24 points in the fourth quarter to help put Memphis ahead to stay and the Grizzlies eliminated the San Antonio Spurs 100-96 on Wednesday night in the first Western Conference play-in game. 
The Grizzlies will play the Golden State Warriors or the Los Angeles Lakers, who played later Wednesday night for the No. 7 seed, for the No. 8 seed Friday night and a first-round series starting Sunday against the top-seeded Utah Jazz. Memphis is trying to snap a skid of three straight seasons without a postseason berth.
Jonas Valanciunas had a season-high 23 rebounds and 23 points for Memphis. Ja Morant added 20 points and six assists. Jaren Jackson Jr. had 10 points. 
DeMar DeRozan and Rudy Gay each scored 20 points as the Spurs lost their fifth straight. Dejounte Murray had his fifth triple-double with 10 points, 13 rebounds and 11 assists. Keldon Johnson added 11 and Jacob Poeltl 10.
The Spurs last led 83-81 on Johnson's 3 with 6:55 left. Brooks started his scoring spurt with the Grizzlies trailing 80-79, and his driving 5-footer with 5:57 to go put Memphis ahead to stay at 85-83. 
Memphis pulled out all the stops possible in a pandemic in the biggest home game since the Grizzlies' last playoff appearance in 2017 against these very Spurs. 
Inside the FedExForum, capacity was doubled to 40% with a sellout of 7,019 fans, and a yellow towel proclaiming “NXT UP MEMPHIS” was on each seat. Rapper Al Kapone performed outside during halftime and was shown on the video board with fans joining in waving towels when he sang “Whoop That Trick.” 
In five playoff series between these teams, the Spurs swept three of the four San Antonio won. Memphis' only series victory came in 2011 as the then-No. 8 seed, the start of seven straight playoff seasons for the Grizzlies. 
Those players are long gone with Mike Conley now with the Jazz and Marc Gasol with the Lakers. 
On this night, the Grizzlies' next generation took over with a roster that was the second-youngest at the start of this season and Jackson, the No. 4 overall draft pick in 2018, along with Morant, the second overall draft pick in 2019 and reigning NBA Rookie of the Year.
The Grizzlies led 38-19 after the first quarter. Gay dunked late in the first quarter, starting the Spurs on a 22-3 run that pulled them within 41-39 of the Grizzlies. But Morant ended Memphis' cold spurt with a dunk, and Memphis led 56-49 at halftime.
The teams each scored 16 points in the third as this game turned into a battle. Memphis took a 72-65 lead into the fourth quarter. 
TIP-INS
Spurs: San Antonio finished 7-32 when trailing after three quarter. ... Murray had his fifth triple-double, <a href="https://twitter.com/ESPNStatsInfo/status/1395195473322037248">most for the Spurs since David Robinson</a> in 1993-94. ... DeRozan led the Spurs in scoring this season and in all but one of their final six games. But he was just 1 of 11 shooting in the first half and finished 5 of 21 from the floor. ... Poeltl tied his career-high with five blocks.
Grizzlies: Memphis improved to 35-11 when leading after three. ... Valanciunas had his 50th double-double this season during the second quarter. He also had his sixth career game with 20 or more points and 20 or more rebounds and fourth this season, most in the NBA. Only Zach Randolph has more in franchise history with 11. ... Kyle Anderson matched his career-high with four blocks. ... Grayson Allen returned after missing seven games with a left abdominal strain. 
UP NEXT
The Spurs go into the offseason with coach Gregg Popovich having more time to prepare for the Tokyo Olympics as head coach of the U.S. team. 
___
Follow Teresa M. Walker at https://twitter.com/TeresaMWalker
___
More AP NBA: https://apnews.com/hub/NBA and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports

The Memphis Grizzlies beat the San Antonio Spurs 100-96 to end the Spurs season and advance in the play-in tournament.

Grizzlies end Spurs' season in play-in game winning 100-96

ORLANDO, Fla. (AP) — Cole Anthony made a 3-pointer with 0.1 seconds remaining, giving him a career-best 26 points and the Orlando Magic a 112-111 victory over the Memphis Grizzlies on Saturday night.
Anthony, a rookie who hit a game-winning shot earlier in the season against Minnesota, drilled the high-arching shot over the outstretched arm of Memphis guard Kyle Anderson. 
Anthony added eight rebounds and six assists for the Magic, who ended their home losing streak at nine games. 
Memphis led by 20 points in the third quarter before Orlando's furious rally in the fourth. The Magic tied the game at 109 on a 3-pointer from Moritz Wagner with 1:16 to play. 
After the teams traded misses, Memphis got possession on a ball out of bounds following a lengthy possession. Dillon Brooks then went to work and hit a 17-foot jumper over the outstretched arm of Orlando’s Dwayne Bacon to give the Grizzlies a 111-109 lead with 7 seconds to play.
Brooks scored 23 points, while Ja Morant added 22 points and seven assists. Anderson had 21 points, but did not score in the fourth quarter. Jonas Valanciunas notched his 43rd double-double of the season for Memphis.
The teams were playing for a second consecutive night after the Grizzlies won 92-75 in Memphis in a game where both teams failed to reach even 40% shooting. 
Currently eighth in the Western Conference standings, the Grizzlies fell three games back of Portland and had their lead over San Antonio drop to a half-game. 
Valanciunas finished with 11 points and 16 rebounds. He has notched a double-double in 43 of 55 games (78.1%) and is on pace to break Zach Randolph’s franchise record from the 2010-11 season (double-doubles in 71.8% of the games).
Wagner had a season-high 24 points in just his third game with the Magic. Bacon scored 23, while R.J. Hampton scored 18 off the bench.
CLIFFORD STILL OUT
Magic coach Steve Clifford, who led Orlando to the playoffs each of the two previous seasons, missed his fifth straight game because of COVID-19protocols. Clifford first tested positive for the virus last week, then tested negative twice and then tested positive again. Clifford’s first positive test came in between his two vaccination shots and he’s yet to experience any of the symptoms usually associated with the virus.
“From everything he has told me, he’s feeling fine, has no symptoms, no temperature and his oxygen levels are good,” acting head coach Tyrone Corbin said. “He’s feeling great and looking forward to coming back.” 
TIP-INS
Grizzlies: Grayson Allen missed his second straight game with a hand injury. Memphis coach Taylor Jenkins said Allen is trending toward returning by Monday. … The Grizzlies recently started a season-closing stretch of 11 games in 17 nights. The final 10 opponents have a .408 winning percentage prior to Saturday for the NBA’s second-easiest closing stretch. … A night after hitting just 3 of 12 shots, Morant made his first four shots.
Magic: The Orlando Magic Youth Foundation raised more than $150,000 at a charity golf tournament to benefit at-risk children in Central Florida. The money raised this week pushed OMYF’s total donated over the last 30 years to $26 million. … The Magic were once again without five players, including forward Chuma Okeke for a second straight game with a sprained ankle. …
UP NEXT
Grizzlies: Host New York on Monday night.
Magic: Play at Detroit on Monday night.

Cole Anthony's buzzer-beater gave him a career-best 26 points and the Magic a 112-111 victory over the Grizzlies on Saturday night.

Anthony's 3-pointer gives Magic 112-111 win over Grizzlies

NEW YORK (AP) &mdash; Kevin Durant shook off 18 months of rust in a matter of minutes.
Durant looked good as new against his old team, Kyrie Irving was even better and the Brooklyn Nets emphatically kicked off the Steve Nash era with a 125-99 victory over the Golden State Warriors on Tuesday night in the NBA's season opener.
Durant finished with 22 points in 25 minutes of his first official game since rupturing his Achilles tendon while playing for Golden State in Game 5 of the 2019 NBA Finals. It's a new start for Durant, but he did the same things he's been doing for years.
&ldquo;I tried not to make too big a deal out of this whole thing and realize I&rsquo;ve been playing this game since I was 8 years old, so just got to revert back to what I know,&rdquo; Durant said.
Irving led Brooklyn with 26 points and Caris LeVert scored 20 as the Nets led by as many as 38, pouring on the points the way the Phoenix Suns did when Nash was their point guard, or more recently Golden State did when Durant was their All-Star forward.
The Nets made the playoffs last season but now are expected to contend for the Eastern Conference title after finally getting Durant and Irving on the court together. They used the first game of the shortened, 72-game season to prove they might be worth the hype.
&ldquo;I think our goals are a lot higher this year and we just want to be able to come in and dominate and do that consistently,&rdquo; Irving said.
Stephen Curry had 20 points and 10 assists for the Warriors, a depleted team that looks nothing like the powerhouse that won two titles in Durant's three seasons there.
Durant left shortly after having surgery following his injury and was expected to sit out the entire 2019-20 season even before it was suspended in March because of the coronavirus pandemic. Teammates who have worked out with him said the four-time scoring champion was back in top form and Durant quickly backed up their boasts in a mostly empty Barclays Center.
He made his first three shots, one a 3-pointer and another while being fouled, and was in double figures in fewer than five minutes. He did everything but keep up with Irving, who made three 3-pointers and had 17 points in 9 1/2 minutes of the opening quarter, when the Nets led by as many as 21.
Irving, himself coming back from injury after playing just 20 games last season because of shoulder problems, had Brooklyn&rsquo;s last two baskets of the first half, including a deep 3-pointer with 4.1 seconds left that made it 63-45.
Warriors coach Steve Kerr said he was happy for Durant but upset with what he saw from his team, trying to bounce back after winning a league-low 15 games last season.
&ldquo;Both Kevin and Kyrie just kind of had their way in the first half," he said. "So the lack of physicality and competition were the most disappointing things.&rdquo;
Durant then scored 10 more in Brooklyn's 36-point third quarter, ending his night for good late in the period.
No. 2 pick James Wiseman started at center despite his limited preparation and had 19 points and six rebounds. But the Warriors, playing without Draymond Green because of a sore right foot, need to find more shooting around Curry with Klay Thompson set to miss a second straight season.
Andrew Wiggins was 4 for 16 for his 13 points and Kelly Oubre Jr. was 3 for 14.
TIP-INS
Warriors: Kerr said Green planned an individual workout Tuesday and would hopefully do some group work Wednesday when they remained in New York to practice. ... Wiseman, at 19 years, 266 days, became the third-youngest Golden State player to start a game behind Andris Biedrins (18, 352) and Anthony Randolph (19, 179). ... The Warriors signed Juan Toscano-Anderson, who started six games for them last season, to a two-way contract.
Nets: The Nets snapped a seven-game losing streak in season openers. They are 1-0 for the first time since Nov. 3, 2012, their first game at Barclays Center after moving from New Jersey. ... Brooklyn re-signed G Chris Chiozza to a two-way contract Tuesday. He played in 18 games for the Nets last season. ... The Nets honored the essential workers who have helped New York fight the coronavirus, raising a banner on one end of Barclays Center.
TRAVELING FOR THE HOLIDAYS
Golden State is starting the season on a four-game Eastern road trip, including a Christmas game at Milwaukee. It&rsquo;s the first time the Warriors began in the Eastern time zone since 1975.
UP NEXT
Warriors: Visit Milwaukee on Friday.
Nets: Visit Boston on Friday in what will be Irving's first regular-season game there since leaving the Celtics.
___
More AP NBA: https://apnews.com/NBA and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports
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The Brooklyn Nets routed the Warriors in the NBA's season opener.

Nets blitz Warriors in NBA season opener

I&rsquo;m not sure if I could play in today&rsquo;s NBA.&nbsp;
When I watch NBA games now and see some of the calls -- and some of the non-calls that these guys complain about -- I&rsquo;m blown away. I always tell people, &ldquo;I never could&rsquo;ve played in this generation.&rdquo; I didn&rsquo;t know how to flop or how to not play defense. I never backed down from anyone and I played hard defense on every possession of every game.&nbsp;
I probably would&rsquo;ve adapted to the shooting and stuff, but as far as my style of play, this is who I am. I&rsquo;m not compromising that for nobody. People always told me that I was in the wrong generation, that I would've fit right in if I played in the &lsquo;80s or &lsquo;90s.&nbsp;
When I first got the league, I had to learn how to concede two points to my opponent (like if I picked up an early foul or was in foul trouble). I had a hard time with that; that was something I had to learn. Now, a lot of these guys don&rsquo;t seem to care very much on the defensive end. They see a certain guy coming toward the basket and they move out of the way.&nbsp;Now, refs will call a flagrant foul for something that would&rsquo;ve just been a foul 10-15 years ago. If I played in today&rsquo;s NBA, I would probably lead the league in ejections!
I witnessed this shift during the last three years of my NBA career. During my two seasons with the New York Knicks and my cup of coffee with the Milwaukee Bucks, there were a few instances where I committed (what I thought were) hard fouls, but they would walk over to the scorer&rsquo;s table and announce that it was a Flagrant 1. After that happened a few times, I remember thinking, &ldquo;Where did this come from?! Things are changing.&rdquo;&nbsp;
As my career was coming to an end, that&rsquo;s when they started emphasizing a scorer&rsquo;s &ldquo;freedom of movement&rdquo; and implementing those rules. Honestly, I understand it (to a certain degree) because you want the game to be free-flowing and you don&rsquo;t want it too gunked up. But physicality is a part of the game too.
There&rsquo;s more flopping nowadays than physical play. At times, it&rsquo;s tough to watch. These are really good players -- they have better skill sets than we did -- but they resort to trying to get a call. Every time these guys drive, they&rsquo;re looking for a call. If they get hit a certain way, they&rsquo;re looking for a flagrant. They want every play to be reviewed. When there&rsquo;s a hard foul, these guys act like they just got shot (when, in reality, the defender tapped their lip). The league has allowed it. They wanted more flow, more offense (which I get), but you shouldn&rsquo;t compromise every aspect of the game for that. Being physical should be allowed, especially in the post. That&rsquo;s part of the game.
I had to play physical in order to succeed in the NBA. Remember, I was very undersized for my position. I was playing at 6-foot-9 and 225-to-230 pounds throughout my whole career. Most guys I played against were taller than me and damn near everybody weighed more than me, so I had to beat them up. I didn&rsquo;t have a choice. I had to meet Tim Duncan early at the free-throw line and be physical, forcing him to the spots where I wanted him to go. Same thing with Kevin Garnett, Elton Brand, David West and all of the bigs that I faced. Getting switched out, I guarded Shaquille O&rsquo;Neal on the block. I don&rsquo;t stand a chance in hell against Shaq unless I&rsquo;m physical!
<img src="https://basketballnews-media.s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/images/story/body/k3_lg.jpg" alt="" width="778" height="AUTO" />
I saw what David West <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/nba-rumors-david-west-andrea-bargnani-chris-bosh-blow-current-league-out-water-toronto-raptors-ryan-hollins-big-men">said recently</a> about how Andrea Bargnani would be dominant in today&rsquo;s NBA, and I totally agree. We used to beat the sh*t out of Bargnani and he wanted no part of it. In today&rsquo;s NBA, he&rsquo;d be fine. Nobody could get physical with him, so he&rsquo;d be a superstar these days. In today&rsquo;s NBA, Bargnani would be Joel Embiid.&nbsp;
A lot of Europeans are having success in today&rsquo;s NBA as stretch-4s and stretch-5s, but the reason many of those players didn&rsquo;t succeed before is because the game was too physical for them (aside from Dirk Nowitzki, who had no problem banging and getting physical for 20 years). When I was playing, you&rsquo;d see these guys with great skill sets, but they wouldn&rsquo;t succeed because they wanted no part of the physicality. They'd struggle in the NBA and go back home and star in the overseas leagues that weren&rsquo;t as physical.
I understand that it&rsquo;s important for the game to evolve. But I think there&rsquo;s a way for the game to evolve without compromising so much. Maybe I&rsquo;m naive, but I still think there&rsquo;s room for dominant traditional bigs in today&rsquo;s NBA. I know that shooting is important, but I think both things can be true.&nbsp;If another Shaquille O&rsquo;Neal showed up today with that same ability to dominate the block, are you telling me that there&rsquo;s no place for that player in today&rsquo;s NBA? That&rsquo;s really hard for me to believe. I think in the future, we&rsquo;ll see the league shift back to using big men more -- those bigs will just have a jump shot in their arsenal, too.
In today&rsquo;s NBA, there are no enforcers. You can&rsquo;t be an enforcer these days; the league won&rsquo;t allow it. You&rsquo;ll just get ejected. Also, there aren&rsquo;t really hard fouls anymore and nobody is fighting, so you don&rsquo;t need an enforcer to run in and stand up for your guys. The NBA&rsquo;s evolution made the enforcer go extinct. They simply aren&rsquo;t needed.&nbsp;
Today&rsquo;s players don&rsquo;t want to fight. They bark and get face-to-face, but they&rsquo;re all just hoping that someone comes over to break it up. I see a whole lot of guys acting tough and getting face-to-face, but never throwing any punches. A lot of these dudes have never been in a fight. They&rsquo;ve been in the spotlight since they were a kid and not many people are going to pick a fight with a dude their size. These guys don&rsquo;t want to fight because they can&rsquo;t fight. They don&rsquo;t know what they&rsquo;re doing (and they sure as hell don&rsquo;t want their first fight to be on national TV). Also, so many of today&rsquo;s players are friends, so they aren&rsquo;t about to beat each other up.
There are a few guys who seem like they can actually fight and who want the smoke. James Johnson is a maniac and he&rsquo;s a black belt! He&rsquo;s out there looking for a reason to fight! I was watching him play one time and he got into it with someone; the guy pushed him. I&rsquo;m sitting there thinking, &ldquo;Man, that&rsquo;s the wrong guy to mess with! Leave that boy alone!&rdquo; The Morris twins are the same way -- they&rsquo;re from Philly, they&rsquo;re ignorant and they&rsquo;re always looking for problems. They want a reason to fight!
I played against guys who were physical and who really wanted the smoke. Derrick Coleman didn&rsquo;t take sh*t from nobody. I faced guys like Zach Randolph, David West, Antonio Davis, Dale Davis and Kurt Thomas. They didn&rsquo;t back down and I had a lot of respect for those guys.&nbsp;
You can&rsquo;t turn a porch dog into a guard dog, and there are a lot of poodles in the NBA right now.&nbsp;
There were some guys like that back when I played, too. Kevin Garnett was a porch puppy -- a miniature chihuahua in a Dobermann&rsquo;s body. I told him to his face, &ldquo;You&rsquo;re a porch puppy. All you do is bark.&rdquo; He never wanted smoke from me. I told him straight up, &ldquo;You better take your ass back to your huddle before I get mad.&rdquo; Dahntay Jones heard it; you can ask him.
<img src="https://basketballnews-media.s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/images/story/body/kg_lg.jpg" alt="" width="782" height="AUTO" />
My approach to fighting was this: I&rsquo;m not going to start something, but I&rsquo;ll definitely finish it. It&rsquo;s just like my approach to alley-oops. If you just let me be, we won&rsquo;t have a problem. But don&rsquo;t take it there because I&rsquo;ll finish it. Your mad don&rsquo;t equal my mad.&nbsp;
I would tell people on the court, &ldquo;Don&rsquo;t get disrespectful." Here&rsquo;s the difference between you and me -- I don&rsquo;t mind getting suspended. Been there, done that. If you get out of line and start being disrespectful, I&rsquo;m gonna be on your ass. There were plenty of times where I pointed at a guy and told the ref, &ldquo;If he says or does one more thing, I&rsquo;m going to lose it.&rdquo; And they&rsquo;d say, &ldquo;Who, Kenyon?&rdquo; And I&rsquo;d point to the dude. And they&rsquo;d say, &ldquo;Okay, we&rsquo;ll watch him. But just let us handle it. Please.&rdquo; They knew that I was reasonable and there to hoop, but they also knew that I had no problem taking it there. 
If we&rsquo;re just playing basketball and getting physical, that's fine. When I was on the Clippers, we faced Zach Randolph and the Grizzlies in the playoffs and it was very physical, but there was mutual respect and no bad blood after each game. But if someone is being disrespectful, at the drop of a dime, I&rsquo;ll slap the sh*t out of them. Then, I&rsquo;ll deal with the three- or four-game suspension, whatever the consequence is. Years from now, I&rsquo;ll forget about those three games I missed due to suspension, but you&rsquo;re going to remember the time Kenyon Martin slapped the sh*t out of you.&nbsp;
I don&rsquo;t tolerate disrespect. And I&rsquo;m kinda fu**ing crazy.
I&rsquo;m not a big talker. I&rsquo;m not here for the lip boxing. But if someone walks up on me and I feel threatened, I&rsquo;m going to punch. Bottom line. Simple as that. If you&rsquo;re going to disrespect me and piss me off, you better not be within arm&rsquo;s reach because I&rsquo;ll start swinging. Here&rsquo;s the beauty of it: Once everyone knew that I was down to fight and didn&rsquo;t take any sh*t, I didn&rsquo;t have to fight anyone. The threat alone was enough to stop people from trying to start sh*t with me. And I would warn them too. If I am warning you, take heed. It&rsquo;s just like a rattlesnake. If you see a rattlesnake rattling, go the other way! The rattle is your warning to get out of there. If I warn you, go the other way, bruh. Because I&rsquo;m willing to take things left.
I haven&rsquo;t won every fight that I&rsquo;ve been in. I&rsquo;m not going to lie and say that I have. But unlike a lot of basketball players: I&rsquo;m always willing to go there. A lot of these dudes ain&rsquo;t.&nbsp;
Now don&rsquo;t get it twisted, I don&rsquo;t want the NBA to be a wrestling match. I played in the BIG3 and they tried to implement rules to encourage a physical style of play, but they went too far with it. Dudes were basically tackling each other. It felt like we were wrestling at times. Al Harrington was on my team and nobody could stop him, so they just tackled him. I think there&rsquo;s a happy medium between the BIG3&rsquo;s extremely physical style of play and the NBA&rsquo;s soft style of play.
Unfortunately, I think the game is only going to get softer and less physical going forward because the next generation -- the up-and-coming players -- are watching the league now and seeing this style of play and how the games are called, so they&rsquo;ll learn from that and adjust accordingly.&nbsp;
I&rsquo;m just glad this shift didn&rsquo;t happen during my playing days. I was looked at as a defender, a tough guy, an enforcer type, so who knows how my career goes if I&rsquo;m playing in this era.
<img src="https://basketballnews-media.s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/images/story/body/km_lg.png" alt="" width="800" height="AUTO" />
Kenyon Martin is launching a new podcast called <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/podcasts/kenyon-martin-podcast" target="_blank" rel="noopener">"Neat &amp; Unfiltered"</a>&nbsp;on the <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/podcasts" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Basketball News Podcast Network</a>! This is a weekly podcast that drops every Friday. The first episode drops on 11/27. Kenyon will talk hoops and be joined by high-profile guests such as athletes and entertainers. You can listen on <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/podcasts/kenyon-martin-podcast" target="_blank" rel="noopener">BasketballNews.com</a>, <a href="https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/neat-unfiltered-with-kenyon-martin/id1541073998" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Apple Podcasts</a>, <a href="https://open.spotify.com/show/2QPqI56BKEnTJKiH6VyLhX?si=z9eEsUyHQ42hlWgKfl6E9Q" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Spotify</a>&nbsp;or wherever you listen to podcasts.

Kenyon Martin writes about the NBA's shift away from physical play, which has basically caused enforcers to go extinct.