LeBron James didn’t become the NBA’s all-time scorer without missing a few shots along the way.
But the Los Angeles Lakers star’s botched slam dunk in a playoff loss to the Denver Nuggets on Thursday was especially memorable.
James received the ball all alone on a breakaway and appeared to swoop in for a majestic jam. Only he bobbled the ball out of bounds instead.
And that came just moments after he blew an easy layup.
The Lakers lost 108-103 to trail 2 games to 0 in the Western Conference Finals. And it’s never good when one of the highlights is a lowlight from their star.
“I’ve never seen LeBron James miss a wide open dunk and multiple wide open layups in a Playoff game,” Lakers great Magic Johnson wrote on Twitter.
Other observers on Twitter had some fun dunking on James for his epic slam fail.
MIAMI (AP) — New York guards Jalen Brunson and Quentin Grimes played an entire elimination game with no rest, just to extend their season.
And Miami’s Jimmy Butler — even after being on the losing end of that effort — tipped his cap out of respect.
At this time of year, whatever it takes. It’s why Brunson and Grimes are playing 48 minutes, why Butler is playing through ankle soreness, why Golden State’s Stephen Curry is taking more shots per game — by a significant margin — than he ever has in a playoff run, and why the Los Angeles Lakers’ Anthony Davis will likely play through whatever is ailing him after he had to leave early Wednesday night.
For two teams, Game 6 on Friday night is win-or-go-home; for two others, it could be win-and-move-on to the conference finals. The Heat play host to New York, the Lakers play host to Golden State, both home clubs have 3-2 series leads and both visiting clubs staved off elimination with wins on Wednesday in their respective Game 5s.
“Every moment is its own challenge and its own game and its own opportunity to see what you’re made of,” Lakers forward LeBron James said. “Friday is another opportunity for us to see who we are and see what we’re made of and to go out there with, I guess, the grit and the fight that we’ve had since we came together after the All-Star break.”
The Warriors have won a road game in 28 consecutive playoff series, an NBA record. They have to get to 29 with a win Friday, or their reign as champions will end. Curry is taking 23.6 shots per game in the playoffs, about three more per game than he ever has in a postseason run, and who knows how many he’ll need to try to give Golden State its best chance on Friday.
“The guys will always have belief,” Warriors coach Steve Kerr said. “That’s just who they are.”
Miami coach Erik Spoelstra has raved about the level of competition in the Heat-Knicks series, and expects more of the same in Game 6. The Heat wasted a close-out chance in Game 5 at New York, but have a chance at home Friday to finish the series and get to the East finals for the third time in four years.
“I’m never surprised with anything come playoff basketball time,” Butler said. “Your best is needed. All 48 minutes, if more if you’re going into overtime. If ‘Spo’ tells me to play 48 minutes, I will be suited and booted and ready to do that and we’ll win.”
KNICKS AT HEAT
Heat lead 3-2. Game 6, 7:30 p.m. EDT, Friday, ESPN.
— NEED TO KNOW: The Heat missed 30 3-pointers, got outrebounded 50-34, were outscored 59-30 over an 18-minute stretch of Game 5 — and still only lost to the Knicks by nine. That all means there are many ways for Miami to improve in Game 6, though the Heat know that New York will be incredibly desperate again in an effort to stave off elimination.
— KEEP AN EYE ON: New York’s depth. In Game 5, Brunson and Grimes were the first teammates to play 48 minutes in a non-overtime playoff game since 2005, when Washington had Gilbert Arenas and Larry Hughes do it — also against Miami. Butler played 43 minutes for Miami in Game 5.
— INJURY WATCH: None of the main characters are 100% and most probably aren’t anywhere near 100%. Brunson (38 points in 48 minutes) was incredible in Game 5; Butler (19 points, seven rebounds, nine assists, four steals and two blocks) has been gutting it out through his bad ankle, and they’ll both be the go-to options Friday night.
— PRESSURE IS ON: Miami. The Knicks did their job; they extended the series and know they have the luxury of Game 7 in Madison Square Garden. New York hasn’t had a Game 7 at home since 1995 and Miami doesn’t want to see that streak end here.
WARRIORS AT LAKERS
Lakers lead 3-2. Game 6, 10 p.m. EDT, Friday, ESPN.
— NEED TO KNOW: The Lakers have won eight straight games in their downtown arena, including six since the end of the regular season. They’ve only lost one home game in nearly two months. On the other hand, the Warriors have never played a postseason series in Stephen Curry’s career without winning at least one road game, and this is their final chance to keep the streak alive.
— KEEP AN EYE ON: Anthony Davis missed the second half of the fourth quarter after a blow to the head from Kevon Looney, who also elbowed Sacramento’s Domantas Sabonis in the face during the first round. Any absence or even a limitation for the Lakers’ star big man would fundamentally change this series, which Davis has heavily influenced with his defense.
— INJURY WATCH: If Davis can’t play or is limited, the Lakers will be forced to go small more often, as they did late in Game 5. A three-guard Lakers lineup with LeBron James as the de facto center would likely be an advantage to Golden State, which has more experience in small ball. The Warriors also have Curry, the best guard in the series.
— PRESSURE IS ON: Los Angeles. Nobody wants to play the defending champs in a Game 7 on their home floor, so James and his teammates must dig down deep and attempt to close out the series at home. Davis’ absence might make that nearly impossible, but the Lakers have built up enough teamwork and cohesion since the trade deadline to give them a chance.
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AP Basketball Writer Brian Mahoney in New York and AP Sports Writer Greg Beacham in Los Angeles contributed to this report.
Los Angeles Lakers superfan Jack Nicholson was watching at courtside for the first time in nearly two years Friday night when his team hosted the Memphis Grizzlies in Game 6 of their first-round playoff series.
The 86-year-old Nicholson hadn’t been in his usual seats in the Lakers’ downtown arena since last season’s opening game in October 2021, but the three-time Academy Award-winning actor returned to his famed spot near the opposing bench with his son.
Nicholson was a fixture in the last half-century of Lakers history, cheering on the team through several eras of success after getting his season tickets in 1970. He was the most prominent face in the Lakers’ gallery of celebrity fans, his sunglasses and famous grin ever-present at courtside — and occasionally on the court if he was particularly displeased by an official’s call.
Nicholson cheered while the Showtime Lakers racked up championships and captured Hollywood’s imagination, and he remained an avid fan while they won five more titles in the Kobe Bryant era. He famously adjusted his shooting schedules and personal meetings to keep himself free to catch every big Lakers game.
Nicholson rarely attended games after fans returned to the Lakers’ building following the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, but the chance to watch the Lakers attempt to win a playoff series at home for the first time since 2013 was irresistible to their No. 1 fan.
The NBA will get what it wanted — drama to end the regular season.
All 30 teams will play their 82nd game of the season on Sunday, with four matchups — New Orleans at Minnesota, Utah at the Los Angeles Lakers, Golden State at Portland and the Los Angeles Clippers at Phoenix — set to decide how the Western Conference playoff and play-in bracket will look.
There are 16 possible seeding scenarios, based on the outcomes of those four games. And they’ll all be starting at 3:30 p.m. Eastern, with no games scheduled to play later, meaning it’s possible that the final shot of the regular season might be the one that fills out the bracket.
For the defending NBA champion Warriors and the Clippers, the math is easy: Win Sunday, and they’re in the playoffs and about to get a week off to get ready for Round 1 matchups against either Sacramento or Phoenix. Lose Sunday, and the play-in tournament — which starts Tuesday — might be the daunting consolation prize.
“It’s the only thing that we can control,” Golden State coach Steve Kerr said. “There’s other games that can factor in, but it doesn’t matter to us as long as we win. That’s a great position to be in and we’ve got to go do something about it.”
This much of the West is settled: Denver is the No. 1 seed, Memphis is No. 2, Sacramento is No. 3, Phoenix is No. 4, and Oklahoma City will be No. 10 for the play-in tournament.
The rest goes down to the wire.
The Clippers could be fifth, sixth or seventh. The Warriors could be fifth, sixth, seventh or eighth. The Lakers could be sixth, seventh or eighth. The Timberwolves could be seventh, eighth or ninth — and the Pelicans, somehow, have all the bases covered. New Orleans could be No. 5, No. 6, No. 7, No. 8 or No. 9 in the West when the final whistle blows on Sunday.
“We’ve got one more game to handle our business,” Pelicans coach Willie Green told his team Friday night.
There are some very simple possibilities Sunday:
— The loser of the New Orleans-Minnesota game will be the No. 9 seed and hosting Oklahoma City in an elimination game on Wednesday.
— The Clippers are the No. 5 seed with a win and will face the Suns in Round 1, after also seeing them in Sunday’s finale.
— New Orleans gets the No. 5 seed if it wins, combined with wins by Phoenix and Portland.
— The Lakers will be the No. 8 seed and on the road for a play-in game Tuesday if they lose to Utah. They would be No. 6 or No. 7 with a win, except if the Pelicans, Warriors and Suns all also win. That scenario would leave the Lakers No. 8.
— There is a chance for a Clippers-Lakers play-in game to happen on Tuesday night. New Orleans and Phoenix would both have to win as part of the formula, and then there would have to be Lakers-Warriors, Jazz-Warriors or Jazz-Blazers wins as well.
— The Warriors are the No. 5 seed (facing Phoenix) or the No. 6 seed (facing Sacramento in a matchup of teams separated by about 90 miles) with a win. If the Warriors and Clippers both win, Golden State is No. 6. Otherwise, a Warriors win clinches the No. 5 seed.
“Whatever team we play, I think we’ll be ready for,” Warriors guard Donte DiVincenzo said.
EAST BRACKET
The Eastern Conference bracket is set, regardless of Sunday’s outcomes. No. 1 Milwaukee, No. 2 Boston, No. 3 Philadelphia, No. 4 Cleveland, No. 5 New York and No. 6 Brooklyn have playoff berths locked. No. 7 Miami will face No. 8 Atlanta in a play-in game Tuesday, No. 9 Toronto plays No. 10 Chicago in an elimination game Wednesday, and the Heat-Hawks loser faces the Raptors-Bulls winner on Friday.
The Heat-Hawks winner will play Boston in Round 1. The winner of the Friday game will play Milwaukee in Round 1.
SCORING RACE
Philadelphia’s Joel Embiid will be the scoring champion for a second consecutive year, averaging 33.1 points per game. His closest pursuers — Dallas’ Luka Doncic (32.4) and Portland’s Damian Lillard (32.2) — are done for the season, and Embiid won’t play Sunday in a meaningless finale for Philadelphia.
Doncic and Lillard both did something this season that only one other player had pulled off in the last 59 seasons combined.
Before this season, only two players had ever averaged at least 32 points per game and not won the scoring crown. Allen Iverson (33.0) was second to the Los Angeles Lakers’ Kobe Bryant (35.4) in 2005-06, and Elgin Baylor (who averaged 34.0 points in 1962-63, 38.3 in 1961-62 and 34.8 in 1960-61) was the other player on that list.
Baylor lost the scoring race in all three of those seasons to Wilt Chamberlain.
In front of cheering fans at L.A.’s Crypto.com Arena, the Los Angeles Lakers star secured his place in the record books during the third quarter of Tuesday’s game against the Oklahoma City Thunder. James set the record with a fadeaway jumper with 10.9 seconds left in the third quarter.
James outstretched his arms, threw both hands in the air, then smiled. Abdul-Jabbar rose from his seat and clapped. The game was stopped as some members of James’ family, including his mother, wife and children, took the floor for a ceremony recognizing the moment.
LeBron James of the Los Angeles Lakers reacts after scoring to pass Kareem Abdul-Jabbar to become the NBA’s all-time leading scorer, surpassing Abdul-Jabbar’s career total of 38,387 points against the Oklahoma City Thunder at Crypto.com Arena on Feb. 7, 2023, in Los Angeles, California.
Getty Images
NBA Commissioner Adam Silver and Abdul-Jabbar came out to mid-court to honor a clearly emotional James.
“LeBron, you are the NBA’s all-time scoring leader, congratulations,” Silver said.
James then took the microphone to say “thank you to the Laker faithful. You are one of a kind.”
He then asked the crowd to give a standing ovation to Abdul-Jabbar.
“To be able to be in the presence of such a legend as great as Kareem, it’s very humbling,” James said. “Please give a standing ovation to the Captain, please.”
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar stands on court with LeBron James #6 of the Los Angeles Lakers after James passed Abdul-Jabbar to become the NBA’s all-time leading scorer, surpassing Abdul-Jabbar’s career total of 38,387 points against the Oklahoma City Thunder at Crypto.com Arena on Feb. 7, 2023, in Los Angeles, California.
Getty Images
James’ record-breaking night was bittersweet, with the Lakers falling to the Thunder 133-130. James finished the game with 38 points, his career regular-season total now at 38,390 points.
James, at age 38, is now in sole possession of the coveted record —long considered one of the NBA’s unattainable— leaving Lakers icon Abdul-Jabbar and Utah Jazz legend Karl Malone in second and third, respectively, on the all-time scoring list. Abdul-Jabbar became the league’s leading scorer in 1984, and his 38,387 career points had stood as the record since 1989.
Los Angeles Lakers forward LeBron James attempts a shot against the Oklahoma City Thunder at Crypto.com Arena on Feb. 7, 2023, in Los Angeles.
Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times via Getty Images
James, an Akron, Ohio native, scored his first NBA points on October 29, 2003, when he made a jump shot against the Sacramento Kings as a member of the Cleveland Cavaliers, the team that drafted him. Since then, he has averaged 27 points per game throughout his 20 seasons in the NBA, according to Basketball Reference, despite not labeling himself as a prototypical scorer.
Last month, he became the only player other than Abdul-Jabbar to score over 38,000 points. However, James still trails Abdul-Jabbar, who, rather surprisingly, had only one three-pointer in his career.
In an interview with CBS News, Memphis Grizzlies forward Danny Green, a former teammate of James, called the 6-foot-9 James a “unicorn” who can beat you in many ways offensively.
“He’s like a freight train coming at you,” he said ahead of James’ historic moment. “And knows how to use his body and coordinate. It’s damn near impossible to guard, especially when he jumps 40 inches in the air.”
Last week, James jumped to fourth on the all-time assists leaders list. Green said his passing abilities make it difficult to contain him on the court.
“He’s gonna burn you in many different ways other than scoring because he’s capable of doing that,” Green added. “I think it makes it easier for him to score and harder to guard.”
Ticket prices to see James had soared to more than $69,000 for Tuesday’s game against the Thunder, and a pair of tickets surpassed $106,000 for Thursday’s game against the Milwaukee Bucks, according to VividSeats.
Green told CBS News he doesn’t believe anyone else will break James’ record –just like he didn’t think anyone would beat Abdul-Jabbar’s.
“You have to see somebody else play 20 years again at a high level, which I don’t think we’ll see,” he said. “With the contracts that we have, guys are gonna retire –they don’t need to play 20 years anymore.”
In October, James reflected on the possibility of breaking the scoring record before the start of the season.
“To sit here and to know that I’m on the verge of breaking probably the most sought-after record in the NBA, things that people said would probably never be done, I think it’s just super humbling for myself,” James said at Lakers Media Day.
Last year, Abdul-Jabbar told ESPN that if James were to break the record, he would be “very happy for him.”
“The game always improves when records like that are broken, so LeBron should enjoy his achievement,” he said. “He’s worked very hard to get this far. And for him, he’ll get to wait and see who might be lucky enough to break his record, if that’s gonna happen. It’s always about passing it on to the next guy in line.”
James told ESPN in January that he would like to play until his eldest son, Bronny Jr., makes it to the league, which means the scoring record could be much higher when he hangs up his sneakers. Bronny Jr. would be eligible to be drafted in the 2024-2025 season under the current collective bargaining agreement, ESPN reported.
Since entering the league in 2003, James has become one of the NBA’s biggest stars, collecting four championship rings in the process. He has played with the Lakers, the Miami Heat and had two separate stints with the Cleveland Cavaliers. Whenever he retires, James will leave behind a Hall of Fame resume and be widely revered as one of the best players to ever step onto an NBA court.
SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — With star teammate Stephen Curry sidelined, Klay Thompson kept shooting and took care of the offensive load the Golden State Warriors were missing without their reigning NBA Finals MVP.
Thompson scored 42 points with a season-high 12 3-pointers, Jordan Poole added 21 points and career-best 12 assists starting in Curry’s place, and the Warriors beat the Oklahoma City Thunder 141-114 on Monday night.
“It was a beautiful game to watch him play,” Draymond Green said of Thompson.
“… We needed it. It’s been a while since we had a blowout win. It’s good to get this one, especially first game with Steph out. It was good to start off on this foot and try to create some momentum.”
Thompson sat down for the night to a roaring ovation with 4:41 left to finish 15 for 22 from the floor and 12 of 16 on 3s. Thompson now has eight games with 10 or more 3-pointers, second in NBA history behind Splash Brother Curry’s 22.
“This is a confidence booster for sure to play without him, but to see the performance of the team, amazing individual performances we got,” coach Steve Kerr said. “It was a feel-good game for a lot of people and that just really fuels everybody. Hopefully we can keep that going.”
Andrew Wiggins scored 18 points in Golden State’s first game since losing Curry to a left leg injury late in the third quarter of Saturday’s win against Dallas — and the Warriors went 26 of 50 from deep without the league’s career 3-point leader.
They also didn’t let down late as has been a concern and frustration recently for Kerr.
“That was fun, that was probably the most fun I’ve had watching our team all year,” Kerr said.
Thompson had 27 points at halftime, going 10 of 14 from the floor and 7 for 9 on 3-pointers as the Warriors led 60-53. Poole dished out five assists in the opening quarter, then helped Golden State start the third on a 19-7 burst to pull away for their eighth straight win in the series.
“I thought Jordan was magnificent, one of the best games I’ve ever seen him play. He just was so under control,” Kerr said.
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander scored 20 points, Aaron Wiggins added 19 and Tre Mann had 18 off the bench for the Thunder. Josh Giddey contributed 15 points, eight assists and seven rebounds as Oklahoma City struggled in the opener of a road back-to-back coming off a franchise-record 153 points in Saturday’s home win over Houston.
TIP-INS
Thunder: G Lu Dort sat out again after he missed Saturday’s game with a strained right hamstring. … The Thunder were outrebounded 45-36. … Oklahoma City dropped to 9-17 on the road, 3-10 vs. the West. The Thunder have lost four in a row on the Warriors’ home floor.
Warriors: Poole had his first double-double of the season and third of his career. … Golden State is 7-5 without Curry, who was previously sidelined Dec. 16-Jan. 7 with a shoulder injury. “We’ve already been through a stretch without Steph and handled it pretty well, so we’re confident we can do that again,” Kerr said.
ROLLINS SURGERY
Warriors rookie guard Ryan Rollins is set to have surgery Wednesday for a broken pinkie toe in his right foot and he will likely miss the rest of the season.
Golden State acquired the draft rights to Rollins from the Hawks, who selected him 44th overall in the second round.
He played in 12 games for the Warriors and 19 for the G League Santa Cruz team, where he averaged 19.5 points, 3.7 rebounds and 3.7 assists in 25.6 minutes.
With LeBron James expected to break the NBA’s all-time scoring record this week, fans eager to watch the Los Angeles Laker star vault into sports history in person will have to lay out big bucks.
Lower-level seats for Tuesday’s game in Los Angeles at Crypto.com Arena against the Oklahoma City Thunder start at $1,634 a piece, according to Vivid Seats. Floor seats from Ticketmaster are going for between $415 and $1,000. The average ticket price for a Lakers game has jumped 211% since the season started, Vivid Seats told CBS MoneyWatch.
A couple factors are driving up prices, said Patrick Rishe, a sports business professor at Washington University in St. Louis. First, James is likely to break the record on the Lakers’ home floor, and to add to the drama the player he is set to surpass is none other than fellow Laker legend Kareem Abdul-Jabbar.
Second, Southern California is home to many high-income individuals who can afford a thousand-dollar ticket, which is also pushing up demand, Rishe said. “People want to say they were there,” he said. “People just enjoy being present when they see history, especially when you’re talking about a record you’ll likely never going to see occur again in our lifetime.”
James’ march toward history has captivated fans across sports. The last time someone broke an NBA record was in December 2021, when Golden State Warrior Stephen Curry became the all-time leader in three-pointers made.
James must score at least 36 points to beat Jabbar’s league record of 38,387, set in 1989. Jabbar is expected to be in attendance when James eclipses his record, according to CBSSports.com.
As with any live event, Lakers tickets this week are pricier the closer seats get to the action. Two tickets behind the hoops for Tuesday’s game are priced on Vivid Seats at $69,162 each, while another pair of tickets nine rows back are $42,845.
Steve Inman, a social media manager, already has a seat to to Tuesday’s game despite living on the opposite side of the country. The Fort Lauderdale, Florida, resident said he will attend with his uncle, who is a Lakers’ season ticket holder.
“I don’t believe anyone is ever going to break his record,” Inman, 30, told CBS MoneyWatch of James’ exploits. “For the rest of our lives, he’s going to have this record. I’ll be able to witness this and share it with my family, my future kids and their kids forever.”
If James doesn’t break the record Tuesday, his next opportunity will come on February 9 when the Lakers host the Milwaukee Bucks. Prices for those tickets have shot up from $474 in October to $2,595 on Tuesday, a 447% increase, according to Vivid Seats.
“Fans think LeBron is unlikely to score 36 points against the Thunder and is more likely to break the record against the Bucks,” the company told CBS MoneyWatch.
Khristopher J. Brooks is a reporter for CBS MoneyWatch covering business, consumer and financial stories that range from economic inequality and housing issues to bankruptcies and the business of sports.
LeBron James moved 36 points away from breaking the NBA career scoring record in the Los Angeles Lakers’ 131-126 loss to New Orleans on Saturday night that ended the Pelicans’ losing streak at 10 games.
James had 27 points to go with nine rebounds and six assists as he continued to close in on Kareem Abdul-Jabbar’s record total of 38,387 points.
James’ scoring average this season is 30.0 points per game. At his current rate, it would take James two more games to become the NBA’s scoring leader. Assuming he does not miss any games in the interim, he would be on pace to break the record Thursday night at home against Milwaukee. The Lakers host the Oklahoma City Thunder on Tuesday.
LeBron James of the Los Angeles Lakers dunks against the New Orleans Pelicans during the second half at the Smoothie King Center on Feb. 4, 2023, in New Orleans, Louisiana.
Getty Images
Meanwhile, Brandon Ingram scored 35 points for the Pelicans. CJ McCollum had 23 points, highlighted by a late 3 to help New Orleans close out the final 3:14 on a 9-5 run that kept the Lakers at bay.
Anthony Davis had 34 points and 14 rebounds for the Lakers. They led by 12 when James’ finger role made it 84-72 in the third quarter.
The Pelicans chipped away and closed the period with five quick points on McCollum’s transition floater and Jose Alvarado’s 3 after he caught a deflected inbound pass.
That sequence cut the Lakers’ advantage to 106-103, and New Orleans surged into the lead when Trey Murphy hit back-to-back 3s, the second from 27 feet, to make it 114-108.
The game remained tight after that but the Pelicans didn’t allow Los Angeles to regain the lead.
TIP-INS:
Lakers: Went 2-3 during their five-game road trip that concluded in New Orleans and came in 12-16 on the road overall. … Westbrook played after being listed as questionable with an illness earlier in the day. … Davis was playing in his third straight game and for the fifth time in six games since missing 20 games with a right foot injury. He reached 20 points for the 26th time in 30 games played this season and 30 points for the 11th time.
Pelicans: Larry Nance Jr. had 10 points and nine rebounds. … Have given up at least 70 first-half points in two straight. … After McCollum made the Pelicans’ first 3-point attempt of the game, New Orleans missed 11 straight from deep before Nance hit one in the final half-minute of the first half. … Shot 52% (52 of 100) for the game and finishing at 9 of 30 from deep.
WARM WELCOME:
Fans cheered for James during introductions and often cheered when he scored, particularly after his end-to-end transition dunk in the third quarter. In the fourth, when James tried to save a ball from going out of bounds and fell across the first couple rows of spectators, fans patted him on the back supportively as he lay across them and helped him up.
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LeBron James was left hunched on the court in frustration after referees missed a foul on his attempted game-winning layup, and the Los Angeles Lakers succumbed to a 125-121 overtime loss against the Boston Celtics.
With the game tied at 105 and less than three seconds on the clock, James drove in for a layup and was hit on the arm by Jayson Tatum, but the referees didn’t call a foul leading to overtime.
James hopped around the court, his head in his hands in complete disbelief, while Patrick Beverley got a camera from a photographer to show the ref a picture of the missed call and received a technical foul in return.
James had poured in a game-high 41 points, leaving him 117 points away from breaking Kareem Abdul-Jabbar’s scoring record, as well as nine rebounds and eight assists but was furious afterwards.
“I don’t understand,” he told reporters after the game. “I don’t understand what we are doing and I watch basketball every single day. I watch these games every single day and I don’t see it happening to anyone else. It’s just weird.”
The Lakers’ fury was magnified by a series of previous calls which they have seen as poor officiating during close defeats to the Dallas Mavericks and the Philadelphia 76ers.
“We got cheated tonight,” Lakers power forward Anthony Davis said afterwards. “It’s a blatant foul… It’s unacceptable to be honest. The refs were bad tonight.”
Meanwhile, Jaylen Brown added 11 points in overtime for the Celtics to help secure victory and snap their three-game losing streak. His 37 points in the game also included a three-pointer to tie it up with 4.1 seconds left of regulation time. Tatum contributed 30 points, 11 rebounds and four assists.
The 2022-23 season tips off with a doubleheader. First up, the Philadelphia 76ers take on the Boston Celtics in an early clash of Eastern Conference contenders. The Celtics are the defending conference champs, while the Sixers are looking to end a Finals drought that has lasted more than two decades.
Out West, the defending champion Golden State Warriors will receive their rings after winning their fourth title in the past eight seasons. Looking to spoil the celebration will be the Los Angeles Lakers and LeBron James, who begins the season needing 1,326 points to pass Kareem Abdul-Jabbar as the NBA’s career scoring leader.
We’ll have complete coverage from Boston and San Francisco with highlights, takeaways and the moments that matter all night long.
Through three quarters, Al Horford is plus-12 in 18 minutes played even though he’s only 1-for-4 from the field for 3 points. I don’t think it’s a passive effect. Horford has made his impact on this game with defense. While Marcus Smart was the NBA’s Defensive Player of the Year last season, it was Horford (third in NBA) and Robert Williams III (11th) who had the highest Defensive Real Plus Minus (DRPM) scores on the team.
The Celtics’ defense is built inside-out, and with Williams sidelined, Horford is necessary at defensive anchor. When Horford was called for his second foul on a Harden 3-pointer in the first quarter, it touched off a 9-0 run for the previously cold 76ers. Early in the second quarter, with Horford back in the game, the Celtics went on an 8-0 run to re-take the lead.
— Andre Snellings
Celtics running wild on break
Through three quarters, the Celtics hold a commanding 22-2 edge in fast break points. Boston has made an effort to get out and run at every opportunity, and has taken full advantage of James Harden’s spotty effort in transition defense to strike early and often in this game.
Especially while Robert Williams III is out, Boston is going to have to use its speed and quickness to make up for its lack of size. The Celtics have done so tonight, and that’s why they enter the fourth quarter with a 10-point lead.
Jayson Tatum’s 66th career 30-point game passes Paul Pierce for the most by a Celtics player prior to turning 25 in franchise history. pic.twitter.com/0LuYElghfF
During a break in action early in the third quarter, the Celtics showed the late Bill Russell’s wife, Jeannine Russell, on the jumbotron here inside TD Garden.
The fans then broke into a spontaneous standing ovation, one that brought Russell to tears as she acknowledged the crowd.
It took only 19 seconds for the second half to get interesting.
Boston’s Marcus Smart gets tangled up with Philly’s Joel Embiid, who hooked his arm and drew a foul. Smart tried to grab Embiid’s leg, and Embiid fell to the ground. Jaylen Brown then came over and got in Embiid’s face.
Eventually, after a long review led by crew chief and veteran official James Capers, the only penalties assessed on the play were to Smart — both a personal and technical foul.
Still, safe to say that there is no love lost between these two teams, and a potential seven-game playoff series down the road between them would be must-see TV.
— Tim Bontemps
Joel Embiid causing first-half problems for Boston
Well, that was awfully fun.
The Celtics and 76ers are tied at 63 at halftime, following a rollicking opening 24 minutes that saw both teams make big runs, stars on both teams show out and interesting subplots from a minutiae standpoint on both sides.
James Harden had 22 points, three rebounds and four assists, but his biggest highlight came in the form of a horrendous sequence that saw him both shake reigning NBA Defensive Player of the Year Marcus Smart (only to give a good long shimmy) and airball the subsequent 3-pointer. Harden then allowed Jayson Tatum to coast by him for a layup on the following possession, and Embiid then committed his third foul at the other end.
Embiid went 3-for-7 from the field, but his immense presence inside caused problems for Boston. Speaking of Celtics bigs, Noah Vonleh played the fourth most minutes on the team, behind only Tatum, Jaylen Brown and Smart. And, not surprisingly, it was Tatum and Brown leading the way for Boston, as the dynamic forward tandem for the Celtics combined for 34 points on 12-for-23 shooting.
What a wild sequence: James Harden absolutely shakes Marcus Smart, does a shimmy, then airballs a 3, followed by Jayson Tatum going right by him for a layup at the other end and Joel Embiid picking up his third foul.
In the second quarter, Malcolm Brogdon has given Celtics fans a glimpse of what he can provide this team — and what the Celtics lacked in last year’s playoffs.
Brogdon has scored six quick points and picked up a nifty assist to Noah Vonleh inside, flashing the kind of scoring punch and creation off the bench that Boston never had during its run to the 2022 NBA Finals. For all of the understandable focus on Stephen Curry‘s heroics in that series, Boston lost because its offense couldn’t get it done against Golden State’s defense. Having another proven player like Brogdon off the bench is not only something that could benefit the Celtics during what they hope is a deep playoff run next spring, but it’s a role that could make Brogdon a favorite to win this year’s NBA Sixth Man of the Year award.
— Tim Bontemps
Strong first quarter for Harden a good sign
Philadelphia’s James Harden has 16 points at the end of the first quarter. He has already drawn three 3-point shooting fouls, including a completed four-point play, and also became the first player in the NBA to shoot the free throw for the new take-foul rule at the 6:13 mark of the first quarter.
Harden was counted out by many after an uncharacteristically poor set of performances following his trade to the 76ers last season. I always anticipated he was injured more than washed up as he has been dealing with the remnants of his soft tissue injuries. His performance so far Tuesday falls in line with my preseason expectations that Harden is poised for a big season.
One of the interesting subplots of the 76ers‘ preseason was who would get the backup center minutes behind superstar Joel Embiid, with both veteran Montrezl Harrell and emerging youngster Paul Reed both getting shots at it.
Tuesday night, it was Harrell who got the call midway through the first quarter, as he slid into a familiar partnership from the opening years of his career, running pick-and-rolls with James Harden.
This was what was anticipated when Harrell was signed, with he and Harden expected to run pick-and-rolls against backup units. But Reed got enough playing time during the preseason over Harrell to at least make it a question of which one would play, and 76ers coach Doc Rivers said on multiple occasions both players would get their chances.
The way this game played out also answered another question: how Rivers will deploy his rotation. At least in the short-term, it looks like Harden is going to get his chances to eat offensively, while emerging star guard Tyrese Maxey will partner with Embiid.
— Tim Bontemps
Vonleh’s minutes speaks to Celtics’ situation
With Robert Williams III sidelined for the next few months, it’s going to take some creative work from the Celtics to navigate life without one of the best defensive big men in the NBA.
And, in the first five minutes of the 2022-23 NBA season, we have seen the Celtics begin to do just that. First came the decision to start Derrick White, opting to go with a small lineup with Jaylen Brown and Jayson Tatum at the two forward spots as opposed to opting to play a bigger option alongside Al Horford.
Part of the reason why interim coach Joe Mazzulla, in his first game on the sidelines for the Celtics, has gone with that lineup throughout the preseason, came along when the first player off the bench for the Celtics in Tuesday night’s game against the 76ers was journeyman big man Noah Vonleh.
Vonleh, the ninth pick in the 2014 draft, is playing for his eighth team in eight NBA seasons, after spending all of last season playing for the Shanghai Sharks of the Chinese Basketball Association. While he had a strong training camp, the fact Vonleh is playing early minutes for the Celtics is both a sign of how little frontcourt depth Boston has, as well as at least a partial indictment of the chances that former All-Star big man Blake Griffin is going to make any kind of meaningful impact on Boston’s roster moving forward.
Jayson Tatum was ready for the 2022-23 season to begin. He scored 7 of the Celtics’ first 9 points, including this 3-pointer from the corner. Tatum’s career high for a season-opener is 30 points, on Dec. 23, 2021 against the Bucks.
Before tip-off tonight the @celtics honored Bill Russell with a poem titled “SESTINA” written and performed by Porsha Olayiwola 💚 pic.twitter.com/xAn4DuQx0j
While the Warriors were the last team standing last season, the Lakers failed to even make the postseason for the second time in four years with LeBron James on the roster. James enters this season not only trying to return to the playoffs, but looking to break the NBA’s all-time points record. He’ll once again partner with Anthony Davis and Russell Westbrook, the latter of whom spent the entire offseason in trade rumors and came off the bench in his final preseason appearance — something he hasn’t done in a regular-season game since his rookie season.
James Wiseman nervous before NBA return
Warriors big man James Wiseman — who hasn’t played a regular-season game since April 10, 2021 — told ESPN before Tuesday’s game that he was excited for ring night, but also had butterflies. When asked if it was for ring night or because it was the first season-opener he would be playing in since his rookie year in 2020, Wiseman said it was a little bit of both.
To calm his nerves, he said he was planning on turning some music on and hopping in the steam room.
We think of the Warriors winning four rings in the Steph Curry era, but the franchise has leaned into their total titles in new signage around the Chase Center. Golden State now has seven — one more than all those chips the Chicago Bulls collected with Michael Jordan.
JTA will get his ring, but Walker won’t be watching
Juan Toscano-Anderson says he purchased floor seats for the first time in his life so his mom could see his ring ceremony tonight. I asked him how much: “Too much.” A little more prying: “Five figures.” And figures to be a priceless moment for his family. pic.twitter.com/XtaWGDjrYN
Lonnie Walker doesn’t plan on taking in the Warriors’ ring ceremony as a spectator. He will be a little preoccupied with prepping to guard the 2022 Finals MVP pic.twitter.com/nLL6F7SSLF
INDIANAPOLIS, IN – APRIL 03: Buddy Hield #24 of the Indiana Pacers is seen during the game against … [+] the Detroit Pistons at Gainbridge Fieldhouse on April 3, 2022 in Indianapolis, Indiana. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Michael Hickey/Getty Images)
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Russell Westbrook and two first-round draft picks for Myles Turner and Buddy Hield.
The above deal has been rumored for months, with the Lakers seemingly unwilling to include both their remaining tradeable draft selections in 2027 and 2029, and Indiana refusing to relinquish that caliber of talent, and taking on the contract of Westbrook, for anything less.
The mexican standoff is likely to spill into the regular season until someone caves. But with the emergence of Victor Wembanyama as arguably the most hyped draft pick over the past two decades, an interesting subplot has entered the narrative.
The ghost of the Anthony Davis trade
When the Lakers traded for Anthony Davis in 2019, they gave up the farm. Virtually all their draft capital went to the New Orleans Pelicans, along with Brandon Ingram who developed into an All-Star in the Big Easy.
In that package was a 2023 swap option, that gives the Pelicans the right to swap first-round picks. The swap is entirely unprotected, meaning the Lakers could – in theory – win the NBA Draft Lottery, and thus the right to select Wembanyama, only for the Pelicans to exercise that right, swoop in, and pick off the generational talent with the Lakers forced to watch.
Some might point to the Lakers having a certain player on the roster by the name of LeBron James, and argue that with him around, it’s impossible for the franchise to ever be that bad to be in contention for the first overall pick.
That logic is, however, highly flawed. The Lakers conveyed their 2022 first-rounder to the Pelicans, which ended up being the eight overall selection, as a result of a 33-win season. Even if they finish at the same spot this season, the lottery is still a lottery, meaning they could potentially win it.
If Davis has another injury-riddled season, and they don’t find a solution to the Westbrook conundrum, it won’t really matter if they have a soon-to-be 38-year-old James.
The level of control the Lakers do have is pulling the trigger on the Indiana trade, and thus drastically improving their chances of making it to the playoffs. That way, they could avoid forking over a lottery selection to the Pelicans.
The logic of going all-in
It’s understandable if the Lakers look at that trade as a lost cause, and wish to not let it dictate future moves. However, that would be dangerous.
If the Lakers do end up winning the lottery, and thus be forced to send the rights to Wembanyama to the Pelicans, consider for a moment the change in power dynamic in the NBA.
The Pelicans, with Wembanyama, Zion Williamson, Ingram, CJ McCollum, Herb Jones, Trey Murphy, Dyson Daniels, and whoever they can get for Jonas Valanciunas will likely enter Wembanyama’s rookie season as a legitimate championship candidate, and quickly turn into the championship favorites by the next season, which is a status that could last for a decade.
Not only would the Lakers themselves, who are still trying to win, have no chance of beating that Pelicans team; they’d have built a powerhouse within their own conference that would have instant dynasty upside.
What incentive would James or Davis have to stay in that conference, knowing they stand a better chance of getting back to the Finals by joining a team in the East?
Granted, this is long-term, worst-case thinking. But given the flattened lottery odds, the worst three teams stand just a 14% chance to win the lottery. The ten worst teams all stand at least a 3% chance of winning the lottery. So this isn’t inconceivable.
There would be an incredible ripple effect should the above scenario play out, one that would essentially remove the Lakers, and most other Western Conference team, from serious contention for a long time.
As such, it would actually be in the best interest of the Lakers themselves to be proactive, and not block their future path towards the Finals. That means caving, and forking over the two selections to Indiana.
Heck, it might even be in the best interest of most Western Conference teams to further help the Lakers avoid the Wembanyama scenario, as to not help them build a generational team in New Orleans that would compete against them for the next decade. That is how absurd a situation this could become.
As for the Pelicans, they’re just biding their time and hoping the Lakers implode once again. General manager David Griffin would want for nothing more than the Lakers to insist upon their stubbornness, and for this to drag out for as long as possible, solely for the Lakers to dig themselves as deep a hole as they can, before they wake up and realize what they stand to benefit by making that Pacers trader sooner than later.
Here we go: The top 10 in our 2022-2023 League Pass Rankings! We revealed Nos. 30-11 on Tuesday, and you can read about the rankings formula there.
10. DALLAS MAVERICKS (35)
Look at this soul-snatcher:
That is the smile of someone who knows he has you. The Mavs’ offense is one-dimensional — Luka Doncic walks ball up, runs two-man game — but that dimension contains multitudes. The typical spread pick-and-roll pairs ball handler and rim-runner; Doncic can do that with any of Dallas’ bigs. He can make all the passes blindfolded.
Doncic’s size and comfort in the middle of the paint — the dead zone for some ball handlers — open up endless possibilities. He’s at his most predatory dragging smaller defenders into pick-and-rolls. Switch, and he mashes them in the post with smirking cruelty. (He took sadistic pleasure brutalizing Patrick Beverley in the 2021 playoffs.) Send help, and he picks you apart.
Even against like-sized defenders and traditional coverages, Doncic is a three-steps-ahead genius burrowing inside. His high-arching step-back is borderline unblockable, and he has hit 50% from floater range over the past two seasons — and a LeBron James-esque 73% at the rim last season.
The threat of those shots unlocks Doncic’s generational passing. He understands how every up-fake, pivot, and half-spin freaks help defenders into thinking they should swarm — and which passes any slight rotation might expose. Last season, he even started throwing straight backward overhead passes to pick-and-pop bigs. Maxi Kleber and Christian Wood must be ready at all times.
This is my favorite piece of Mavs art in ages:
The navy sings against the new white-washed floor.
The Lakers ranked No. 2 last season, but the idea of them — How will Russell Westbrook fit? — turned out to be way more interesting than the experience.
The Lakers played fast, but they were boring — unorganized, dispirited, lacking any cohesive identity. LeBron James remains the ultimate chessmaster, but there’s little reason to suspect the overall product will be much different. (Darvin Ham said this week he’s considering starting Anthony Davis at center, and leaning there would boost L.A.’s watchability. You can’t play Westbrook, LeBron, Anthony Davis, and a traditional center — even one with decent range like Thomas Bryant or Damian Jones. Don’t sleep on Jones’ passing!)
They scored this high only because of their art — including the league’s prettiest court — and the comedy category. Are Beverley and Westbrook really friends? Like, really? Or will latent tension boil over? Comedy can become pathos, and we reached that point with Westbrook last season when the Sacramento Kings’ blared “Cold as Ice!” on every bonked jumper and layup.
Will James engage pout mode once he breaks the scoring record if the Lakers are toast? James achieved peak eye-rolling sulkiness ahead of the 2018 trade deadline, when he realized the Cavs were dead barring a roster shake-up. It was bizarrely enthralling.
Thumbs up to these white throwbacks — replicas of the jerseys the team wore in their first-ever game, per league officials. They even have faux belt loops! Powder blue is always welcome.
The Wolves ranked first in pace and second in scoring efficiency after Jan. 1 last season. They have one blockbuster young star in Anthony Edwards, fast becoming a three-level scorer as his confidence soars on pull-ups and step-backs.
Edwards wants to dunk people into oblivion — the bigger, the better. He flies at the rim as if he thinks he can dunk through humans — that they will disintegrate beneath him.
One of the league’s keenest offensive tinkerers — Chris Finch — must figure out how to mesh Karl-Anthony Towns and Rudy Gobert in an unusual double-center look that has to work given the Wolves traded everything short of the old Metrodome baggie for Gobert.
Finch will get creative on defense, too. On some nights, the Wolves might flip-flop matchups — slotting Towns onto centers, and stashing Gobert elsewhere so he can act as roving shot-blocker. We might see glimpses of last season’s blitzing defense as a surprise adjustment.
Kyle Anderson weaponizes his slowness; defenders stumble ahead of his elongated moves, allowing Slow-Mo to saunter through creases. He snatches some of the league’s cleanest live-dribble steals. Jaden McDaniels still seems like a blank canvas, and looms as Minnesota’s swing factor. Jaylen Nowell jacks and struts with a gunslinger’s bravado. How will D’Angelo Russell — on an expiring contract — respond if Finch yanks him for Jordan McLaughlin in crunch time again?
The Wolves relegated their gaudy neon green to the trimmings on this pristine new jersey:
Standing ovation for the fangs extending down off the “M” and “V.”
PSST: Towns’ averages in 11 postseason games: 19 points, 12 rebounds, 2 assists, 3.5 turnovers (gag!), and many, many silly fouls. He has three single-digit scoring games, plus a dud in last season’s play-in. It’s time.
Giannis Antetokounmpo is one-of-one. He evolves each season — more floaters, more screening in the pick-and-roll, snappier passing. He supplies highlights both preposterous and of the most visceral basketball violence. Antetokounmpo rising from underneath the rim, off two feet, and cramming on someone’s head is perhaps the rudest act in the sport.
I loved his recent speech about the importance of will over skill. It was once fashionable to compare Antetokounmpo and Ben Simmons — enormous, turbocharged ball handlers with rickety strokes. What might Simmons accomplish if the Philadelphia 76ers surrounded him with shooters — as the Bucks have done for Antetokounmpo?
Even five years ago, before Antetokounmpo cracked the top five in MVP voting, the comparison failed the smell test. Antetokounmpo was bigger, faster, longer — better. Most of all, he was tougher. While Simmons’ struggles at the line turned into something of a phobia, Antetokounmpo kept coming — kept drawing contact, kept risking failure, kept improving. That’s will.
The Bucks are a fast-break machine — Four Steps or Less — but their half-court offense finished dead last in points per possession in the playoffs. Even with Khris Middleton out, that raised alarms internally. I suspect the Bucks will spend the regular season honing anti-switch devices on offense and experimenting with new looks on defense — including snuffing 3s after spending years living with above-the-break triples.
Who emerges as trustworthy playoff guys among George Hill, Jevon Carter, Joe Ingles, Jordan Nwora, and Serge Ibaka? If the answer is “no one,” the Bucks could face critical depth issues. How much Antetokounmpo at center will we see?
Once every few games, an opposing player annoys Jrue Holiday — and draws out Holiday’s playoff-level defense as punishment. What a nightmare.
Marques Johnson was a five-time All-Star, nailed a supporting role in “White Men Can’t Jump,” and is now one of the best analysts in any sport. Not fair.
Boston’s stars offer different stylistic ingredients, but they don’t always synthesize on offense. The defense … holy hell. They are huge, mean, smart — a switching forcefield. (Marcus Smart and Blake Griffin have to wager on who takes the most charges, right?)
They are also strategically quirky. The Celtics clicked into place when they shifted their center — Robert Williams III — onto nonthreatening wings, unleashing him as a free safety.
Time Lord didn’t just reject shots. He obliterated them. He spiked some before they even left shooters’ hands — before they really became shots at all. Others, he smashed against the backboard with such force you almost expected them to become impaled in the glass. From mid-January on, Boston allowed 105.4 points per 100 possessions — four points stingier than the league’s No. 2 defense.
The Celtics became one of the greatest defenses of all time, even as smart opponents began exploring counters to Boston’s scheme — running Williams around off-ball screens, using more false actions. Expect more of that cat-and-mouse game now that opponents have had an offseason to study.
Boston found its flow on offense too. Jayson Tatum, Jaylen Brown, and Smart cooperated in more two-man actions — forcing switches Tatum and Brown could exploit. Tatum’s liquid grace and Brown’s straight-line power make for a perfect contrast. Derrick White added Spursian quick decision-making. (Update: He should be part of the Griffin-Smart charge-taking wager too!)
The Celtics’ green uniforms are maybe the best in sports, and they improved their historic court by removing the chunky white circle from underneath the leprechaun:
The tribute to Bill Russell is understated and noble.
Grant Williams never shuts up. Mike Gorman and Brian Scalabrine are tremendous. Boston is under championship pressure, with a coach — Joe Mazzulla — thrust into the spotlight under bad circumstances. What is Mazzulla about? How do the players respond?
5. NEW ORLEANS PELICANS (37)
You have to be good and watchable to rise here; the algorithm sees 50-win upside.
I don’t care if these guys shoot a single 3-pointer. I just want to see Zion Williamson pinballing to the rim, bodies flying everywhere after making even glancing contact with this linebacker phenom. He gets from arc to rim faster than a camera flash, out of every action: pick-and-rolls as screener or ball handler; post-ups in which he plows through victims like shorter Shaquille O’Neal, or spins around them like wider James Worthy; end-to-end rampages you almost feel through your screen. (The Pelicans with Williamson have played at ludicrous speed.)
The roster isn’t really built for it, but please, Willie Green, give us some Williamson at center!
Forget second jumps. Williamson has the league’s quickest third and fourth jumps. Pity the fools who box out Williamson and Jonas Valanciunas. Reserve them extra time in the cold tub, maybe the hospital.
CJ McCollum might put a defender on his butt at any moment. He connects complex dribbles — hesitation, crossover, pull-back — with unusual fluidity, and cans all variety of floaters with either hand. Brandon Ingram’s midrange arsenal is simpler, but almost as effective.
Larry Nance Jr. is all flare screens and twirling handoffs, and he’ll play tons of crunch-time center. Herbert Jones’ arms actually typed this column from New Orleans; instead of shooting 3s, should he just reach all the way from the arc and plop the ball in?
Jose Alvarado’s crouching, hide-and-seek backcourt steals are incredible theater. He’ll have ball handlers looking over their shoulders even when he’s not in the game. He is Keyser Soze.
The Pelicans are due some fresh art. The bench overflows with interesting players. Here’s hoping Dyson Daniels earns run.
4. DENVER NUGGETS (38)
Nikola Jokic might be the most inventive passer in basketball history, and is for sure No. 1 all time among bigs. He dares passes everyone else is scared to try — slips to cutters where the passing window is no bigger than the basketball itself.
Jokic imagines passes no one else sees — and then makes them. As he’s gotten in better shape, he’s added occasional dunks and tornado baseline spins.
The regular season is about finding the right balance of defensive schemes for Jokic. This is perhaps the biggest season in Nuggets history; they need everything in place for the playoffs.
Jokic has his pick-and-roll mind-meld partner back in Jamal Murray. Murray’s role in their two-man devastation has long been underrated. He’s an ace pull-up shooter with a knack for slick pocket passes that lead Jokic into open space.
They have the league’s prettiest and most varied give-and-go partnership. We see the classic — Murray bolting away from handoffs, and Jokic lofting him buttery goodness:
But they also turn routine pick-and-rolls into give-and-gos within that tricky midpaint area:
That is a mini masterpiece. In terms of both shot selection and process, Denver is a nice antidote to 3s-and-dunks spread-pick-and-roll hegemony. Murray’s Blue Arrow celebration is cool.
Michael Porter Jr. is perhaps the X factor of the season. Will he accept third-banana status? Kentavious Caldwell-Pope locks the starting five into place. Bruce Brown does the same for the bench, and gives Denver crunch-time lineup flexibility. Once every 10 games and out of absolutely nowhere, Jeff Green posterizes someone.
Are you worried about Denver’s bench offense? Bones Hyland isn’t.
3. MEMPHIS GRIZZLIES (39)
Ja Morant is the new League Pass superstar. He is a hellacious rim-attacker, cocking it back and hammering pain onto larger humans; he jumped over and through Malik Beasley for the highlight of last season.
Morant’s sneering swagger set the tone for the team from day one. There is nothing fake about the Grizzlies’ puffed-chest arrogance. They do not conceive of themselves as the little guy challenging Goliaths. Trash-talking LeBron James is not, for them, unearned pluck. They believe they are Goliath, now.
Morant could chase points, dominate the ball, hunt the spectacular. Instead, he brings teammates with him — empowers them, uses the attention he draws to create shots for them. Morant is a whip-smart cutter, willing to cut as a decoy (or to catch lobs above the square). He slows down in transition, knowing trailers come open in his wake.
Memphis defends with ferocity — Dillon Brooks going chest to chest with all comers, everyone swiping at the ball. The Grizz forced heaps of turnovers, and blazed at the league’s second-fastest pace. Do not look away from the Memphis alley-oop machine.
Desmond Bane has borderline Ray Allen-level precision in his jumper. Remember when Steven Adams carried Tony Bradley — 6-10, 250 pounds — away from an altercation as if he were about to take Bradley to Suplex City? What a legend.
The young guys will get chances filling in for Jaren Jackson Jr. and departed veterans. I give it two games before an opposing announcer expresses shock at John Konchar’s leaping ability
Can you spot the subtle upgrade from last season’s court …
… to their new one?
They eliminated that silver-blue racing stripe along the baseline that always confused me.
2. GOLDEN STATE WARRIORS (40)
The Warriors came so close to reclaiming their No. 1 perch, with Draymond Green providing a new, unfortunate reason to tune in to Golden State’s basketball symphony.
Green’s punch might have been one hot-tempered man going through personal issues losing control, and slugging his trash-talking foil. It became more because we saw it, yes, but also because of the deeply human and almost literary arcs one could project onto it.
Green, in the final year of his contract, might be aging out of the dynasty he helped build. Jordan Poole, on the verge of his first massive deal, is a keystone in extending that dynasty beyond Green’s NBA lifespan. A decade ago, when this all started, Green was the low draft pick who roared — trash-talking his elders, challenging them, refusing to show deference. That is how Poole relates to Green now.
To win a title, there can be no fissures. There will be lingering tension over what happened last week. How will it manifest? How long will it last?
The potential basketball tragedy of all this — of contract realities and personality conflicts intruding upon this Bay Area basketball idyll — is that Green, Klay Thompson, and Stephen Curry should finish their careers together as Warriors. That is how it’s supposed to be. What they share is why we follow sports — an understanding of one another’s tendencies, strengths, and weaknesses so deep, they barely have to talk on the court. Every simple action between them contains a dozen counters, and they choose them in the moment, in sync, in step, always connected.
It is a bond of winks and nods that cannot form unless you share tens of thousands of reps at the highest level. And it is, still, beautiful to watch.
Andre Iguodala is part of their fabric too, and he gets another chance at a proper swan song. The army of lottery picks is in position to seize roles. Whether they are ready will go a long way to determining Golden State’s repeat chances. Jonathan Kuminga is at eye level with the rim before you even realize what’s happening.
Golden State is a top-five art team. Curry, Green, and Thompson will wear captain “Cs” on throwback jerseys — rare in the NBA.
These new alternates are nice:
The Warriors deal in bright yellow and blue. This clean navy look is a pleasing change, even it is eerily similar to the University of California, Berkeley color scheme. I like how the shorts echo the team’s bridge-wiring motif.
1. BROOKLYN NETS (41)
I considered invoking the Ian Eagle Corollary, which dates to the Joe Johnson “It’s not that bad here!” era and allows me to reduce the Nets score if the light-hearted categories — art, comedy — lift them higher than they deserve. I opted against it, and so the Nets three-peat as League Pass champions — which has really worked out for them in the Kevin Durant–Kyrie Irving era.
This team could be gone in 30 games — boring, bad, an entire era demolished. Irving could find new reasons to be the basketball player who doesn’t play basketball. Ben Simmons could melt — flinching at the threat of contact, wilting under Hack-a-Ben, holding a prolonged missed free throw contest with Nic Claxton. (Claxton is 6-of-25 from the line in the postseason.) All that could push Kevin Durant to renew his allegedly dormant trade request, at which point the Barclays Center may as well collapse into a sinkhole.
That’s the severe downside. The more likely downside is the Nets are run-of-the-mill good — a playoff team, but not strong enough to lift the stench of self-inflicted misery.
The journey to either of those bad places is disaster-movie riveting. Simmons hasn’t played a real game in 16 months; there is justified interest in every move he makes. Even that functional downside scenario features plenty of Irving and Durant, two flashbulb attractions.
Whatever your feelings about Irving, he is a show — a Maravichian dribbling magician with a bottomless bag of soft floaters and twisting layups. His lefty runner takes your breath away. Two seasons ago, when the Nets were quasi-functional, Irving was the one who got them running in transition.
Durant is one of the dozen greatest players ever, and perhaps the most well-rounded offensive force the game has ever seen. He is elite at literally every subsection of offense. He can assume any role, at any time. Even when Durant is raining pull-up fire, it might not be the classical beauty of his gangly game that draws you in. What really hits you in the gut — what mesmerizes — is the sheer invincibility of it, the way Durant exercises total dominion over everything from every place on the floor.
And that’s the upside. The soul-sapping melodrama can make you forget: This might work. They might be happy. They could be redeemed. They might be unstoppable on offense, Simmons tapping into his inner Draymond Green with endless shooting around him. They will take risks and innovate to survive on defense, and there is night-to-night joy in watching a team sink its teeth into that challenge.
The broadcast is as good as it gets, and the art is solid — including this alternate court, first revealed here, that matches the ABA-era stars-and-stripes uniforms the Nets are bringing back:
The differently colored painted areas — one blue, one red — are a gamble, but they work here.
Basketball: Los Angeles Lakers Russell Westbrook (0) in action vs Chicago Bulls at Staples Center. … [+] Los Angeles, CA 11/15/2021 CREDIT: John W. McDonough (Photo by John W. McDonough/Sports Illustrated via Getty Images) (Set Number: X163867 TK1)
Sports Illustrated via Getty Images
With the hype around 2023 NBA Draft prospect Victor Wembanyama reaching almost unreasonable levels, teams around the association are gearing up for what could be the tanking of our lifetimes post the trade deadline.
That, in fairness, makes sense. Wembanyama is the most intriguing prospect since LeBron James and projects as a clear-cut franchise superstar, health permitting.
An interesting subplot to the inevitable tanking will be that of the trade market. In order to be as bad as possible, teams will need to sell off quality pieces, especially their veterans, which means competitive teams could find themselves in a buyer’s market.
Below are three teams that should all be aggressive on the trade market later in the season, in order to upgrade their roster.
Chicago Bulls
The Bulls are clearly trying to win, having signed former All-Stars Andre Drummond and Goran Dragić to contracts over the summer, adding them to the established core of veterans, led by Zach LaVine, DeMar DeRozan, and Nikola Vučević.
What the Bulls also have in their possession, somewhat interestingly, is a fair chunk of young players. Patrick Williams, Coby White, Ayo Dosunmu, and Dalen Terry are all on cost-controlled deals for this season.
Williams has yet to break out as the team had hoped for, but does still offer a strong 6’8, 225 frame with two-way upside. Dosunmu proved to be a young starting caliber guard, who like Williams has two-way upside, but unlike Williams is closer to realizing it.
Terry is untested, but an energetic spark plug who does a little bit of everything, and could find himself in a rotation not long from now due to his size (6’7 with a 7’1 wingspan), and positional flexibility that allows him to play three positions.
For rebuilding teams, moving out veterans for young players should be attractive, especially as youth is rarely tied to winning. Last year, Harrison Barnes was an often rumored name for the Bulls prior to the deadline, and he could resurface in trade talks if the Kings are dead in the water in the middle of the season.
It’s also not inconceivable that the Detroit Pistons spend half the year building up the trade value of Bojan Bogdanović, only to flip him later for another young piece, in which case the Bulls could make for an attractive destination.
There are options for the Bulls on the trade market, as long as they’re willing to go all-in. Given that they gave up most of their future draft picks for Vučević and DeRozan, logic dictates they should at least be willing to explore.
Los Angeles Lakers
While Russell Westbrook is rumored on a daily basis to find himself in another uniform, it might behoove the Lakers to hang onto the point guard until the midway point of the season, and letting teams get desperate for a proper tank commander.
Right now, teams are demanding the Lakers relinquish two first-round selections for them to take on Westbrook’s contract, but that price could get pushed down if a team like the Spurs are finding themselves slightly too good near the trade deadline.
Acquiring Westbrook at this stage of his career, and letting him do whatever he wants on the floor, is not going to improve any roster. He’ll put up a lot of numbers, but do so inefficiently, while piling up turnovers.
The Lakers, who are in drastic need of quality depth around James and Anthony Davis, would likely settle for a group of role players, as long as they needn’t relinquish draft capital.
One team the Lakers should keep an eye on are the New York Knicks, who could go either way during their season. They have a talented roster, but the individual pieces have yet to work collectively. Would the Lakers be interested in swinging a deal centered around Westbrook and Julius Randle?
Perhaps the Lakers could also give Gordon Hayward and Terry Rozier a strong look in Charlotte, as they could be looking to get substantially worse in the coming months.
Regardless, the Lakers may have a more attractive trade piece on their hands in Westbrook than most assume, and it’s all due to Wembanyama.
Miami Heat
As I wrote about recently, the Heat need to do something. They stood path during the summer when everyone around them got better, and their roster is still screaming for a talent injection.
The challenge for Miami is that they have very little to offer in any deal. Tyler Herro, due to his contract extension, now has Poison Pill status which makes him difficult to trade, and the mid-tier contracts they do have, in Duncan Robinson, Victor Oladipo, and Caleb Martin simply aren’t going to fetch a ton.
This might force them to explore what they can get for rookie forward Nikola Jović and their 2023 first-round selection, should they be willing to fork over those two assets.
(Miami owes their 2025 first-rounder to Oklahoma City, and are thus not able to attach their 2024 or 2026 selections.)
Of course, giving up Jović is no small thing as the 6’10 forward has vast all-around upside, not to mention a knack for putting the ball in the basket. It’s almost ironic that he fits what Miami needs, only years from now.
The Heat could be looking at similar players as the Bulls, given they also have a positional need at the power forward position. Both Bogdanović and Barnes would instantly improve Miami’s offense, and provide them with some much needed punch in the playoffs.
Victor Wembanyama has been the talk of the NBA for the last few days. Now, even LeBron James is impressed by him.
A 7-foot-4 center and projected No. 1 overall pick in the NBA draft, Wembanyama scored 37 points Tuesday night against the G League Ignite and Scoot Henderson, the projected No. 2 pick. Wembanyama plays for the French pro team Metropolitan 92.
“Everybody has been labeling this unicorn thing,” James said. “Everybody has been a unicorn for the last two years, but he’s more like an alien. I’ve never seen — no one has ever seen anyone as tall as he is, but as fluid and as graceful as he is out on the floor.
“… His ability to put the ball on the floor, shoot step-back jumpers out of the post, step-back 3s, catch-and-shoot 3s, block shots … He’s for sure a generational talent.”
For his part, Wembanyama describes himself in other terms.
“I’ve always been trying to be original,” he told the Associated Press. “Unique, that’s the word. “My goal is to be like something you’ve never seen.”
The hype train for Wembanyama is off and running. ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski and Jonathan Givony reported that there is no plan to shut down Wembanyama ahead of June’s draft. That likely won’t slow down the comparisons.
“He’s a 7-foot-4 Durant who blocks shots — and he’s not even close to what he’s going to be,” one NBA GM told Wojnarowski and Givony. “He will be the most hyped player since LeBron.”
