Hey guys, pay no attention to the other thing happening in the NBA right now…trust me…not worth your time. Your Brooklyn Nets are just 17 days away from the NBA Draft! We’ve talked about almost every prospect Nets prospect on here except for one…Scott Richey of the News Gazette is here to help us take a look at him!

In this episode of The Brooklyn with Pooch & Collin, we touch on:

• Drafting for talent vs position
• Keaton Wagler’s fit with the Nets
• How he stacks up against Ament, Acuff, Mara, and Brown Jr.

You can also check out this episode on Apple Music or Spotify. Follow us on X, Instagram, and Tik Tok.

We also recently surpassed 1,000 subscribers on YouTube. Thank you to everyone who has supported us thus far!

• Bulls to face Leinster or Stormers in URC final after beating Glasgow Warriors in Murrayfield semi-final
• Bulls moved into narrow winning lead with converted Klopper score
• Papier and Grobbelaar with earlier tries for visitors
• Penalty try awarded to Warriors after two Steyn scores in first half

Reaction as Glasgow lose URC semi-final to Bulls at Murrayfield

FeltonX

What’s the difference between an offense centered around Brown and an offense centered around Tatum?

I’ll be the first to admit that I’m not the best X’s and O’s guy. Thankfully there are lots of great minds writing for this site. However, my feel for it is that Tatum is better at distributing the ball (including setting up the play, bending the defense, and taking advantage of what the defense gives him). The downside is that he is sometimes a little too deliberate, holding onto the ball instead of making decisive decisions. Brown is a bit more decisive but that can get him in trouble if he guesses wrong and while he’s improved as a distributor, he’s not as adept at it as Tatum is.

Some have defined it as Brown being a play-finisher while Tatum is more of a play-maker. That might sound dismissive, but you need both and they’ve obviously had success together. So why not feature both?

Hurdler17

Would it be worth it to use a TPE and picks for Dort at 18mil or Hartenstein at 28 million. OKC has to start paying JDub and Chet, and these bench guys have a team options and are paid way more than they would get in the open market probably.

From OKC’s perspective I could see Dort being a cap casualty, so he’ll be on the market. With that said, I don’t think he addresses the Celtics needs. Hartenstein would be exactly what we’re looking for, but I find it hard to believe that OKC will let him go. Especially after Chet’s most recent impression in the playoffs. Also, does OKC really need more picks? I guess they are good currency if they are in the future, but at some point you have to trade them or use them.

ArmenianCeltsFan123

Would you be open to trading Sam Hauser, a pick, and another player (maybe a sign and trade with Vucevic) in exchange for Myles Turner who would fit into our TPE? You’d be doing right by Hauser to send him back to his hometown and you’d open up some room for the younger core to get more rotation minutes. I also like the idea of a veteran, playoff-tested center who can spread the floor and is a decent rim protector. Of course this only works if Milwaukee is heading for a rebuild.

Mindful we’d be taking on some additional money in that deal but with some maneuvering I think you’d still be able to pull it off and stay below the luxury tax without breaking up the Jays or trading D White. Welcome your thoughts.

First of all, Turner fits right into the TPE, so you technically don’t have to include any other salaries going the other way. Of course, the Celtics would probably want to cut costs, so they might end up sending out Sam Hauser and/or other assets in a hypothetical trade.

I think the consensus on Turner is that his best days may be behind him. He has theoretical value as a stretch big that should be able to defend, but I don’t know if that’s the guy the Celtics need. He certainly isn’t going to solve the “attack the rim with layups and dunks” issue.

Good, creative thinking though. I might prefer someone like Nic Claxton if he’s available. Or preferably someone a little cheaper.

overseasfansince1984

I’ve posted this before and would appreciate your opinion. It seems to me that the era of dominant big wings is over in the modern NBA. Every contender is now built around a skilled guard and a shooting big, with wings relegated to being 3-and-D players. I don’t have a definitive answer to this question, but is it wise to double down on having two big wings as your best, and most expensive, two players, or should we consider following the new trend?

It is an interesting question. I would pose a question back: Is it more of a guards/bigs era, or is the shortage of elite big wings creating a situation where other positions have to step up? The Celtics won a title 2 years ago with two big wings. OKC’s title was based on a point guard and a very high quality wing (and an elite defense).

I still think that having elite wings is something that all 30 teams would prefer to have. The Celtics have 2 of them and we shouldn’t overlook that or overthink it. The next objective is to build the roster around them.

The more challenging thing (and not really part of your question) is how do you build a roster around two wings making close to $60M each? There’s the rub.

The Next Banner

The best thing that ever happened to the 29 teams chasing the Oklahoma City Thunder may have been the rise of the San Antonio Spurs.

That sounds great for San Antonio, but how does it help everyone else, especially the Boston Celtics?

I think of it like Final Jeopardy. If the leader has $20,000 while second place has $9,000 and third has $8,000, the game is essentially over. The leader can play conservatively because no one is close enough to force a difficult decision. But if second place has $15,000 instead of $9,000, the leader is suddenly forced to take risks. Those risks create opportunities for everyone else.

The NBA is obviously more complicated than a game show, but the principle is similar. My theory is that the Thunder and Spurs may push each other into making roster moves and strategic adjustments designed specifically to beat one another. In doing so, they could become more optimized for that matchup while becoming slightly less optimized against the rest of the league.

If that happens, the existence of a true rival could create opportunities for every other contender.

Thoughts?

Really creative question, thanks for this. I think I follow your logic. In short, by pushing OKC to “solve” the Wemby problem, they may expose weaknesses that non-Spurs teams can exploit. I’ll add that the Aprons and Tax Threshold will have a say in that process as well. The Celtics were forced to make strategic cuts and Boston is a big market. I can only imagine what kinds of financial decisions the Thunder need to make now. Granted, they have the picks to help make things happen and a great GM. So we’ll see.

It is, perhaps, a little easier in the East since you know that you’ll only have to face Wemby if you reach the Finals and (cue the cliche) “anything can happen in a 7 game series.”

All that said, these things evolve quickly. Just 11 months ago everyone assumed that OKC was the major puzzle to solve for the next 5 years. Now we’re on to the next thing. I tend to think that (ironically, given Brad’s comments) the key to solving the Wemby problem is elite outside shooting. But I guess we’ll see.

Katahdin

What are your thoughts on a trade with Detroit for Stewart? The Celtics need another center and toughness. Detroit needs shooting. Hauser plus picks with Stewart coming into the trade exception?

Great minds think alike. I’ve proposed the same (or a similar) deal in the past. I don’t remember if I wrote about it in an article or whatever, but it makes sense. Beef Stew is certainly a guy that puts pressure on the rim. The Pistons could use some more shooting. Both teams win? Same logic could apply to several bigs that could be on the market.

CelticsWest

What are realistic developmental targets in 26-27 for the students/grads of Celtics University? All of em: Neemi, Walsh, Baylor, Hugo, RHJ, Amari, Shulga, and even John Tonje.

Ok, let me put on my best fortune teller outfit and gaze into my crystal ball.

Queta: You can’t teach size, and Neemi has the dimensions of an old-school center with enough athleticism to play in the modern NBA. I’m done doubting him, he’s a legit starting center for a contender right now. I don’t think he’ll develop into an All Star, but then again he doesn’t need to.

Walsh: I worry about his offensive feel, but you can’t argue with his defensive impact. I’m sure he’s putting up thousands of 3 pointers a day in his offseason workouts. If he can master that skill, he could have a long career as a 3-and-D wing.

Baylor: Oh man, what’s Baylor’s upside? In his mind it is probably Michael Jordan. I would settle for Aaron Neesmith. Don’t read into that comparison too much, I was just trying to think of level-of-impact, not necessarily play-style. He’s probably a good enough Hauser replacement (less shooting % and more playmaking) if they decide to move on from Sam.

Hugo I refuse to put a ceiling on, if only because I have no idea what his upside is. He certainly trends more defensive, but he’s got some good feel for the offensive end as well. I think he has the talent to be a starting wing but in Boston he’ll likely be stuck behind the Jays for the foreseeable future and that’s ok.

The rest are all in the “roll of the dice” category. Any of them could be a rotational player next year with starter upside down the line. Any of them could be out of the league just as quickly. We’ll see. I think Harper is my favorite, but I’m also rooting for Amari because of his size.

357Dust

Who can they realistically get for DWhite? Tweaking around the edges isn’t good enough. AND if they are not breaking up the Jays then the most valued piece around the league has to be DWhite even with slippage – no one really wants to trade DWhite but they broke him with this Chuck a Three and by not allowing him to play the best version of himself they have diminished his impact.

The last 2 playoff exits should not be dismissed, ignored or just brushed aside. So the real question is what is the playstyle they want to move forward with. Are they on the same page? Is it we prefer dunks or is it chuck a three or finding 2 on 1’s and creating 2 on 1’s and seeking out 2 on 1’s – if we want to do this chuck a three thing – then go acquire more shooting and really commit to this. Otherwise cut the crap and play the right way – but the problem is Tatum prefers to play 30 feet from the basket which really doesn’t fit what Brown and White do best which is play in midrange or at the basket……so pick a lane and figure it out.

They cater to Tatum and they are a prisoner of his DNA and as long as this is who he is – we will have 2024 and that is about it. Toss in the new ownership group more concerned with the bottom line and taxes (mostly avoiding them that is) then it really will be hard to look like we did in 2024. Brad has his work cut out for him and anxious to see how this all unfolds.

This reads more like a statement than a question, but I’ll take the first question and start there. I think the Celtics could get a lot for Derrick White if they decided to trade him. I wrote about this earlier and submitted De’Aaron Fox as an option, though that might be less realistic with them in the Finals. White is basically a fringe-All Star level player, who’s worth is nearly impossible to measure with stats. We already lost Jrue Holiday and Al Horford, two critical glue type pieces to our title. I think the dropoff from losing White would be noticeable if not easily defined or measured.

With all that said, the team is going to need to make difficult decisions with the cap and tax and if they aren’t breaking up the Jays, the next biggest salary to look at is White’s. So nothing can be dismissed out of hand.

Mitchs Dad

Do we take statements of ownership and management at face value or do we read between the lines? In other words are the Celtics prepared to spend (if so, when?)

Actions always speak louder than words. We have yet to see the new ownership group have a chance to show their actions as Wyc and the previous group did. I tend to think that they’ll follow the same gamplan. If the team is good enough to contend, and there’s a reasonable pathway to that goal, I do think they’ll spend. But I wouldn’t expect them to go deep into the tax for marginal upgrades or questionable salaries.

If Brad can present them a plan that makes sense, I think they’d be willing. But time and actions will tell.

MPLBaller

I don’t understand why the Celtics have to avoid the repeater tax in the 2026-27 season, can’t they do that in the 2027-28 season. It seems to me, this would a be a wasted year under the premise of saving $$. They have a 27 million dollar TPE to use, tradable contracts in White, Hauser and any other the young players out side of Hugo. Plus they will need to pay Pritchard if the Celts want to keep him. Why not swing for the fences this year and worry about the 27 season to be under the cap.

Good question, and I’ll once again stress that I’m not a cap expert, but I do love reading and listening to Keith Smith, so I’ll give this a shot. Keep in mind that if the team wants to avoid the repeater tax, they have to be below the tax line in 3 out of 4 years. Since they were tax payers the previous 2 years, this past year is year one of that scenario. If they blow through the tax this year, then that would put a lot of pressure on the team to either contend immediately (not out of the question) or drop below the line for the following 2 years.

I think everyone assumes they’ll try to duck the tax based on their actions of the past year (dipping below the line with all the offseason and trade deadline moves). However, as stated above, if the team is convinced that they are ready to contend, I would imagine that they’ll at least be willing to entertain options to pay the tax going forward.

poindexterregan

There’s talk OKC might be looking to move Chet Holmgren. We need a bone-fide big, any interest here if we can’t get Giannis?

Chet didn’t exactly cover himself in glory in the Spurs series. Of course, playing against an alien can do that to you. That said, he’s still an elite level defensive big with upside on the offensive end. If he’s available, the price will be high. And speaking of price, keep in mind he’s set to be paid a lot on the extension that is set to kick in this summer, starting at $41M per year.

If he’s really available, he’s an interesting option to consider. I just wouldn’t hold my breath that he’s available at a reasonable price.

RyderRanger

There seems to be a glut of wings on the team. A good thing in some ways but not realistic for all to develop and fit. So who goes and who stays? I got the impression Brad REALLY likes Hugo, and at 20 years old I see them wanting to develop him for sure. But then you’ve got Walsh, Scheierman, Harper jr etc. If they keep 2 of them, which other guy sticks with Hugo? My guess is Scheierman, what is yours?

I think Scheierman seems to have the most well-rounded game, so I think he has a leg up. I’m not ruling out the other two though, especially when you factor in their ages. As I mentioned elsewhere, Walsh has a way to go on offense, but his defense makes him work keeping around. Decisions become harder on guys like that when they approach their next contract. At some point you have to either commit or give his spot to someone else with better upside. For that reason, I think Walsh is the most likely to be included in a trade if they need to make salaries work.

c’s the day

Are we too excited (and biased) about our young bench? Who truly projects to be a contributor, journeyman, or out of the league?

We covered some of this ground in some of the other questions above, but briefly I think Hugo can be a starter (or high level sub behind the Jays), Scheierman can be a contributor, Walsh and Harper have to show more if they want to be more than a journeyman. Garza has value as a 3rd string center, but shouldn’t be the first big off the bench (at least in the playoffs).

BirdStealsTheBall

I still believe in this team. We’ve got two elite wings in JB and JT. Tatum is going to come back this year better than ever. We’ve got an All NBA 1st team defensive player in D. White whose shooting is likely to return to the mean next year. We’ve got former sixth man of the year Pritchard and a whole bunch of young guys with huge upside. Queta is a solid back up center. We are one decent center away from being contenders. I have faith.

Preach on. At a minimum this team needs to address the center position, but we’ve known that for the past year. I think we also need some depth at point guard. We know that Brad wants to attack the basket more and I think that will require some roster management, but can also be a point of emphasis for the core of the team right now.

I think ultimately we overachieved a bit in the regular season and found out in the playoffs just how valuable guys like Jrue Holiday, Luke Kornet, and Al Horford were to the playoff success of this team. That’s not easy to replicate, in particular with a younger bench. However, our young wings will grow from this year’s experience and we’ll see how the rest of the roster fills out. It should be an interesting offseason and a fun season coming up.

Thanks for the questions everyone!

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Dylan Harper hasn’t looked like a rookie on the NBA Finals stage, and he certainly didn’t sound like one after the San Antonio Spurs fell behind 0-2 in the series against the New York Knicks.

After scoring 16 and 15 points in the first two games, Harper remained unfazed, telling reporters, “It's not the first to win two. We can’t really hang our heads on that.”

Now, with the series shifting to Madison Square Garden, the New Jersey native gets a homecoming of sorts. The Spurs enter Game 3 as 2-point underdogs, but my Spurs vs. Knicks predictions and NBA picks expect Harper to rise to the occasion in front of a familiar crowd.

Additionally, Douglas Farmer's got a trio of Spurs vs. Knicks props for Monday, June 8.

Spurs vs Knicks Game 3 prediction

Who will win Spurs vs Knicks Game 3?

Knicks: There were plenty of patches of orange and blue in San Antonio the past two games. You can only imagine just how nuts MSG is going to be for Game 3. New York continues to show its veteran composure in this series, playing its best in the crunch while watching the wheels come off the young Spurs.

The extra day off helps those aging legs recharge, including Jalen Brunson’s tender knee, and the Knicks will once again win the war when it comes to hustle points.

Spurs vs Knicks best bet:  Dylan Harper Over 12.5 points (-112)

Dylan Harper went from rookie to floor general in Game 2. He recorded his most minutes and his third-most FGAs of the playoffs – save for OT in Game 1 against OKC.

More importantly, he was the catalyst for the San Antonio Spurs’ late run, scoring nine of his 15 points in the fourth quarter by attacking the rim and drawing fouls. His mix of speed and strength is a handful for even the New York Knicks’ stingiest defenders.

Mitch Johnson is now trusting Harper in crunch time, and his Game 3 projections hover around 14 points, given a similar workload.

COVERS INTEL: Harper’s usage climbed from 17.9 in Game 1 of the NBA Finals to 20.8 in Game 2. He was second on the team behind only Victor Wembanyama when it came to usage and points percentage in graded clutch time (final five minutes).

Spurs vs Knicks Game 3 same-game parlay

The Knicks just won’t die. Or better yet, the Spurs don’t have the killer instinct to put them away. New York is locked in from the starters to the bench, fighting for every 50/50 ball and thriving under pressure.

San Antonio, on the other hand, sees its wheels wobble in the clutch, as evidenced by careless turnovers and poor offensive rebounding. 

New York is not dependent on Jalen Brunson to carry the team, as long as he’s there to hit those backbreakers. Madison Square Garden gives the Knicks a hefty home-court edge, and the bright lights of Broadway blind San Antonio’s youngsters.

Mikal Bridges was huge in the second half of Game 2. With the Spurs blitzing Brunson, Bridges’ mid-range stroke was the Spurs’ kryptonite. He was steady on 8-for-13 shooting and anchored a third-quarter surge with Brunson and Karl-Anthony Towns on the bench. 

His Game 3 models flirt with 15 points.

Spurs vs Knicks SGP

• Knicks moneyline
• Dylan Harper Over 12.5 points
• Mikal Bridges Over 13.5 points

Our "from downtown" SGP: Brunson Burner!

Bridges continues to pick up the scoring slack with Brunson under fire, but the Knicks’ point guard still does damage from outside.

The Over 2.5 triples has been my "white whale" prop in this series, as Brunson has had plenty of open looks from long range but can’t get past two makes.

Home cooking helps in Game 3. Towns had four dimes on seven potential assists in Game 2, and his ability to stretch the floor and pass over smaller defenders helps him repeat that feat in Game 3.

Spurs vs Knicks SGP

• Knicks moneyline
• Mikal Bridges Over 13.5 points
• Jalen Brunson Over 2.5 threes
• Karl-Anthony Towns Over 3.5 assists

Spurs vs Knicks betting trend to know

New York is 28-15 ATS as a home favorite on the year, including 5-2 ATS in the playoffs. The Knicks are 11-2 SU and 8-5 ATS as home chalk hosting Western Conference foes. Find more NBA betting trends for Spurs vs. Knicks.

Spurs vs Knicks odds for Game 3

• Spread: Spurs +2 | Knicks -2
• Moneyline: Spurs +110 | Knicks -130
• Over/Under: Over 215.5 | Under 215.5

How to watch Spurs vs Knicks Game 3

Spurs vs Knicks latest injuries

This article originally appeared on Covers.com, read the full article here and view our best betting sites or check out our top sportsbook promos.

There have been 80th NBA Finals to date, including the 2026 edition of the title series.

Only three times in history has a road team gotten them started by going up 2-0.

The Knicks are part of that group, and reading the golden pages of the Association about those two prior cases, it’s guaranteed they’ll end up winning the chip. Ooh-weeeee!

Mike Brown

On Mitchell Robinson’s late-game defense on Victor Wembanyama:

“Wemby is iconic. There is nobody like him. He can score from all three levels. He wants the ball. Two big possessions at the end of the game, we put Mitch on him. What I’m proud about more than anything else, Mitch defended him the right way. Wemby is iconic. If he makes a shot, he makes a shot. You’re not blocking his shot. You make him work, you lead with your chest. You show your hands and you embrace those details while trying to guard him and then box out. It started with Mitch and it ended with the other four guys boxing out. So just a heck of a job by Mitch guarding the most iconic player in the world on two possessions to possibly win the game. Phenomenal.”

On Robinson’s steadiness in those late-game moments:

“It’s just how he’s built, man. He doesn’t seem like he ever gets too high. Doesn’t seem like he ever gets too low. We play him for 30 seconds and pull him out. We play him for seven minutes and pull him out, and he’s the same all the time.”

On Robinson doing his job in crunch time:

“He just went and did his job. But that country music probably had something to do with it. I’m a huge fan of country music. So, I think when he listens to country music, he gets the chill vibes, because I know I do.”

On the feeling of the Knicks’ 13-game postseason run:

“It’s an amazing feeling,” coach Mike Brown said, “as a coach to know how mentally tough your team is no matter what the situation is in front of them.”

On the back-and-forth battle in Game 2:

“What a ballgame, a fantastic ballgame. They made a run, we made a run. They made another run, we made another run. Lots of back and forth. We could’ve folded a few times but our guys just kept fighting.”

On the Knicks’ resilience and the joy of coaching this group:

“It’s an amazing feeling as a coach to know how mentally tough your team is no matter what the situation is in front of them. To see them continue to fight and fight and fight and fight, no matter what the score is, no matter how much time is on the clock, it’s just a fantastic feeling. The NBA is tough. You don’t experience what I’m experiencing with this group a ton, and it is a freaking joy to be around.”

On adjusting his coaching approach to fit his players and situations:

“It’s supposed to be like it is. I came in with a great plan. Maybe the plan doesn’t work. Who adjusts, him or me? Me. I adjust. The adjustment’s not enough. Every once in a while, we’re not on the same page. We talk about it. I adjust again. It’s my job as a coach to fit whatever scheme we have on both sides of the floor to all of our players, and if you’re a great player, I’ve got to make a little bit more adjustments or I’ve got to give a little bit more than you do.”

On the team refusing to fold during San Antonio’s comeback attempt:

“We could have folded a few times. But our guys just kept fighting. They kept fighting. And the one thing I told them that you work on connectivity throughout the course of the year for moments like these. And no matter what run they went on, no matter what time of the game, our guys just kept uplifting one another, not just the guys on the floor but the guys on the bench. They just kept uplifting one another throughout the course of San Antonio’s runs.”

On the impact of Knicks fans taking over road arenas:

“It’s huge. During these games against good teams, especially on the road, you want to find places where you can get energy or a little boost of energy at any given time. To have the type of fans that we do that not only bring the energy in the city of New York, on the streets, at MSG, but to have them come and take over a town, take over a hotel, take over an arena and hear them chant ‘Let’s go Knicks!’ or Jalen shooting a free throw, ‘MVP!’, that gives you a boost that you know you have people here supporting you at a pretty high level.”

On Karl-Anthony Towns’ defensive tools and presence:

“KAT is smart. He’s got a good feel. He’s got better feet than what you think. He’s long and he’s strong. Those combinations bode well for a guy defensively. It’s just about embracing it and staying present while understanding the small details of what your job should be.”

Jalen Brunson

On grinding out a gritty Game 2 win:

“We had to do a good job of staying composed in those situations. It’s a credit to the character that this team has. Not being able to fold in situations like that is key to winning games like this. At this stage of the season, things aren’t going to be pretty. It’s going to be ugly. It’s going to be grinded out. It’s simple as that.”

On his late-game steal:

“I saw he wasn’t looking so I just tried to go get it.”

On the Knicks’ nightly resilience:

“That’s who my teammates are, night in and night out. They come and bring it.”

On Karl-Anthony Towns’ impact in the Finals:

“Throughout this run, obviously he’s been playing great [defensively]. I think KAT playing defense, knowing that we have his back, no matter what happens when he’s on the ball or off the ball, to be able to cover for each other, even when mistakes happen, it’s all about not pointing fingers, it’s all about coming together and figuring out what we got to do better the next possession. He’s been pretty phenomenal on both sides of the ball, the things he’s been able to do throughout this entire playoffs. But obviously, here now, he’s been great. But we need more.”

On keeping a 0-0 mindset despite the 2-0 lead:

“Every single day, we try to chip away, trying to be the best team we can be. I think our mindset was 0-0, not being up 1-0. Even with what the series is now, next game, mindset has to be 0-0 again. It’s just how it has to be. You can’t be comfortable, you can’t be satisfied with anything. You’ve just got to continue to push forward.”

On preparing for the Spurs’ next level in Game 3:

“Knowing them, there’s definitely another level. We’ve got to be prepared and ready to match it, be ready to play for 48 minutes and, no matter what goes on throughout a game, just having each other’s back, regardless of what’s going on – who’s on a run, who’s not, who’s up, who’s down. Just making sure that we’re playing together for 48 minutes is really important.”

Karl-Anthony Towns

On leaning on experience and execution to beat the neophyte Spurs:

“I have been on the other side where you’re a young team and you’re trying to do a lot to win the game. I think that, for us, we keep leaning on experience and we keep leaning on the word ‘execution’ and I think we did a good job when we needed to, executing, but we didn’t do as well as we wanted to. So, when we get back to New York, we’ll get back to work, we’ll get back to the gym and try to correct the mistakes we made tonight.”

On Mitchell Robinson’s final defensive stand:

“I feel like that last play was a culmination of the game, just downloading information as the game went on and Wemby throughout the game. On the last possession, I think it’s the best defense he’s played on him all day. There was no better time for him to do that. But Mitch is a hell of a defensive player and you expect him to make the best effort defensively. And it just speaks to his resiliency, too, going out here, playing with the injury and coming up with the biggest play of the game.”

On Mitchell Robinson’s uniqueness:

“He’s one of a kind. I don’t know if there’s maybe another Mitch Robinson in the league, I only think there’s only Mitchell Robinson. There’s only one of him. We’re honored and blessed to have him.”

On Brunson’s clutch reputation showing up once again in Game 2:

“For JB, you call it rough shooting nights, I see him hitting the free throw to give us the game. The last game, he hit some of the craziest shots I’ve seen to give us the game … I see Captain Clutch doing what he’s always been doing since I got here … No. 11 can’t be messed with.”

On praying to his mother before the final possession:

“I needed a stop. If you lose a parent…you just look for signs, and I’ll take any sign I could get, and I prayed to her strongly before that possession. A great player got a great shot, but it just didn’t go in. It’s great defense, but I take it as a sign my mom was there with me, so I appreciate her so much. When you go through something like that, other than losing a child, there’s nothing worse you can go through. It builds you up, and it strengthens you beyond measure. That’s why I’ve got Phillipians 4:13 on my neck. ‘I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me,’ but I was strengthened on April 13th, when I lost my mother. I’m just grateful to be in this position because I know a lot of friends of mine who are not here to see this moment. So, I’m doing this for them.”

On how the team leans on each other:

“Yeah, each other, this team leans on each other. I think that’s why we’ve gotten here. That’s why we had the success we had during the regular season, even when things weren’t going great because at the end of the day when things do get tough, and the trials and tribulations do present themselves, this team doesn’t disband. They don’t go away from each other. We lean into each other even more. We trust each other even more to get out of the rut. That’s what special teams do.”

On focusing only on winning:

“For me, I’m just happy to be finding ways to win. I’m just worried about the team result, which is winning. … This team leans on each other. I think that’s why we’ve gotten here. That’s why we had the success we had during the regular season, even when things weren’t going great because at the end of the day when things do get tough, and the trials and tribulations do present themselves, this team doesn’t disband. They don’t go away from each other. We lean into each other even more.”

On Knicks fans and the NYPD throughout this postseason run:

“It shows the love our fans have for us, and the passion that they have. I gotta give a shout, too, to the NYPD. All the men and women out there that are not only protecting people, but on the flipside as well. In my personal experience, who are huge fans of the Knicks and support the Knicks fans in their ability to show how much they love the Knicks and being as lenient as possible without causing chaos.”

Mikal Bridges

On maintaining a desperate 0-0 mindset heading into Games 3 and 4 at MSG:

“We’re going to fight until the end. [It’s] 0-0. Stay desperate at all times.”

On why he levels up in the postseason’s biggest stages:

“That desperation of trying to be the last team standing, I’m trying to do whatever it takes to help my team to win. Just trying to give it all I got.”

On handling a 2-0 series lead with experience after reaching the same point in 2021:

“Same situation, 2-0, just got to keep level-headed and keep playing desperate. Being here before, knowing how it was gonna be and how much effort you need to give at every single moment.”

On the team’s mental toughness and resilience in the Game 2 win:

“I think the mental — I think that’s what I feel, when we’re resilient, how mentally tough we are. Being up in the fourth by a good amount, and then they made a run and take the lead, and staying resilient, that’s all about the mental focus. We can all get caught up in the crowd and them making that run because they are a really good team, but we just weather the storm, stay together and found a way to win at the end.”

On the Knicks’ defense leading them to a Game 2 win:

“I think it started just defensively getting stops. I think that’s the biggest thing, us getting stops and getting out.”

On Towns’ standing up to physical playoff defense:

“He’s shown me personally — and obviously the team — but he’s shown me personally last year leading up to the playoffs, that first round against Detroit, I think a lot of their goals was trying to punk him. He didn’t let down. He showed that he can do it on both ends at all times. It’s just go time. It’s winning time. It’s that season. I’m trying to go out there and give it all I’ve got for this team, my teammates, the coaches, for the organization, fans.”

Josh Hart

On what the 2-0 lead really means:

“It’s 0-0 at this point, as far as we’re concerned. Being up 2-0 means, really, nothing. This team’s going to come out on, what, Monday with an unbelievable amount of energy and desperation and we’ve got to be better.”

On the Spurs’ physicality in Game 2:

“Obviously, for me, too much physicality.”

On his initial reaction to Game 2:

“That was a crazy game… it was an all-around team effort… we gotta be better in terms of execution, we’ll watch film and learn from that.”

Miles McBride

On what to expect from Madison Square Garden in Game 3:

“Hectic. I’m sure it’s going crazy right now. We heard New York here, down in San Antonio, so … I don’t even know what I’m expecting, honestly. It’s going to be great. I’m excited.”

On the Knicks’ defense being rooted in a team-wide effort:

“Everyone’s capable of playing at a high level defensively because it’s nothing but effort. For him to really lock-in and not just take on the challenge guarding Wemby but being up in the pick and roll, being able to go get rebounds, being able to guard in transition, those things are big.”

Mitchell Robinson

On his mindset ahead of the final play of the game and guarding Wembanyama at it:

“I knew we needed stops and I had picked up a few fouls on him. I think, what, three, like early on? So in my mind, I was just like, ‘Defend without fouling.’ So that was kind of like how it went. Just great contest, and just kind of how it went.”

On the feeling of the moment after the final miss:

“It was crazy. Just crazy.”

On reaching the Finals after eight years with the franchise:

“It was crazy. Been here for eight years, now here we are in the Finals. I can truly say I done seen it all. It’s wild.”

On his musical advice for his teammates:

“I love my country music. That’s all I listen to. Dealing with these guys, they don’t listen to it. So that’s why, you know, I got my headphones now. Maybe if they listened to it, they’ll understand, but they’re silly.”

On dealing with Hack-a-Mitch:

“It seems like they just want me off the court. So in my eyes, I feel like I’m a threat.”

OG Anunoby

On being part of a 13-game playoff win streak:

“It’s special. We have a great team, we’re very connected.”

Landry Shamet

On earning a tough Game 2 win:

“They make you work. They make you earn everything. We weathered their storm. We found a way.”

On the 13-game playoff win streak:

“We got Game 3 in Madison Square Garden, that’s what we’re worried about. All those other games are in the past.”

On staying even-keeled after giving up the lead late in Game 2:

“It’s a resilient group. Can’t react too high or low, especially on the road.”

On what to expect from Knicks fans at MSG:

“All bets are off. I don’t know. I keep telling myself I’m going to stop being surprised by Knicks fans and what they do and how they show up, so I’m sure it’ll be an unbelievable atmosphere.”

Jose Alvarado

On what Towns is bringing defensively:

“We’re gonna need him to do what he’s doing to win games. He’s doing an amazing job. He’s being a leader and stepping up and doing what we need him to do defensively.”

Mitch Johnson

On Wembanyama’s unacceptable shot volume in the first half of Game 2:

“We’ve had that discussion before and I understand the discourse around it. It’s a little bit of both, but I have to make sure that there’s environments that the ball finds him. I think he’s got to make sure that he can’t rely on that to get shots as well and there are times when I think when he was open on rolls and around the paint and his teammates have got to give him the ball. So I think it’s a combination of all that. But yeah, four shots in a half on this stage is not acceptable.”

On the Spurs’ confidence heading into Game 3:

“We don’t feel like we’ve played well or up to our standard, at least, in the last two games. New York’s played very well and they’re a part of that. We’re gonna go into Game 3 and if we play our brand of basketball, up to our standard, we’ll be just fine.”

On the need for making life tougher for Towns:

“I think he’s played two good games, we’ve still got to make it tougher on him. We’ve had some coverage breakdowns and just keep trying to make great players work for everything they get.”

Victor Wembanyama

On his Game 2 performance:

“I’m still very blurry, and that’s the whole problem. I need to have more poise, more control over the game. I’m not going to go through the whole possessions, but that’s the general image.”

On missing the potential game-winner:

“I liked the shot. I feel like in this moment, you need to shoot to score. In moments like this, it’s like results matter more than process.”

On gifting the Knicks Game 2 with a careless turnover:

“I threw that one away. I messed up. We didn’t play great as a team. We needed to win that game. This game was ours. But at this point, it’s done. Am I going to regret it? Yes, of course. Am I going to use that to fuel me and to fuel us next game? Absolutely.”

On still feeling high from the WCF win over the Thunder:

“Personally, I think I could’ve been better in recovering from the high of the conference finals, but here we are. We can’t change the past now. We’re already focused on Game 3.”

On facing Karl-Anthony Towns:

“What I think of it? It’s very different from previous series. It’s bringing us into difficult areas because they’re good players. He’s a good player. Yeah, I mean, we just need to figure it out, we need to keep working at it… We can do a little bit better; we can do better defensively.”

On his emotions after Game 2:

“Lots of emotions of every type. I mean, not every type, only the negative type.”

On the Spurs’ tendency to dig them into early holes:

“I think we need to put ourselves in better conditions. We’re digging ourselves a hole, that’s been a theme so far.”

Stephon Castle

On the late Wembanyama turnover:

“I was looking at him when he first got the rebound. I just started to take off to try to give him some space to dribble up the court. I didn’t see him throw it to me.”

On the difference between guarding Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Jalen Brunson:

“They’re very similar in ways. I think Shai is more of a threat to get all the way downhill, all the way to the basket. I think Jalen likes to use angles a lot more, uses probably a little bit more pump fakes than Shai. Mostly it’s angles, trying to get to his spots, not really trying to draw fouls as much, but trying to get to his mid-range and get to spots to where he likes.”

On switching and trusting teammates defensively:

“Obviously, yes, I want to stay on the ball, guard my matchup. At the end of the day, I have nothing but confidence with my teammates on that side of the floor. I don’t want to try and make up things on the spot. We’ve switched that ball screen with me on the ball all year. It’s been successful for us.”

De’Aaron Fox

On shadily fouling Jalen Brunson on a play-to-play basis:

“We’re just trying to make it difficult on him. I think we’ve done a good job in both games. He’s made big shots at the end of games. He’s a hell of a player.”

On Victor Wembanyama’s second-half adjustment:

“We came in and we’re like, ‘we need you to be aggressive.’ That is what it is. He came out in the second half and obviously, he was much better for us.”

On Wembanyama’s final shot:

“He makes that shot nine times out of ten, so I think we had a great possession.”

On guarding Karl-Anthony Towns:

“Obviously, having somebody like KAT is a difficult cover. That’s what everybody tries to do, is to pull Vic away from the basket.”

Julian Champagnie

On his trash talk with Jose Alvarado:

“Yeah, I think it’s just friendly banter, honestly and truly. Obviously, I’ve known Jose for a while. Yeah, he makes one, he talks. I make one, I talk. That’s just how New York is. That’s how it goes.”

On how New York playground basketball shaped him:

“Figuring out how you can play on those courts, definitely I feel like it translates into playing on the NBA court. Obviously the talent is different and stuff like that. But you take little tidbits, the trash talk, the physicality, perseverance and how to get through and actually win a game. You take those things with you throughout your whole career.”

Charles Barkley

On Karl-Anthony Towns’ Finals performance:

“The MVP of the Finals is gonna be Karl-Anthony Towns. That man earned his flowers.”

On Towns answering critics and haters:

“He’s been criticized in Minnesota. He’s been criticized in New York. The MVP of the Finals is going to be Karl-Anthony Towns. He has played two of the best games I’ve ever seen a big man play. He was great in Game 1. He was great in Game 2. That man earned his flowers.”

On Victor Wembanyama’s Game 2 performance:

“Wemby’s in shock right now. It’s probably been a long time since he got his ass kicked like this. But right now, big KAT is taking his ass to the woodshed.”

Shaquille O’Neal

On Towns’ all-around play in the series:

“He’s playing with pace. He’s playing smart. He’s playing inside. He’s outside. He’s controlling the offense with the pass sometimes. And listen, he is just playing unbelievable basketball right now. And I agree with you. If it ended today, he would definitely be the Most Valuable Player.”

SAN ANTONIO – New York ran up 2-0 in the 2026 NBA Finals on Friday. Shoved past the Spurs in Game 2 by a 105-104 score after Victor Wembanyama unleashed a too-strong 17-footer in the final seconds, the 22-year old center clanging an opportunity to tie the series.

On San Antonio’s previous defensive possession Wembanyama fouled Jalen Brunson, and Brunson’s 84 percent free throw percentage, Brunson split a pair for the game’s deciding points. During San Antonio’s previous offensive possession, the 2024 Rookie of the Year (Wemby) threw the ball off the back of the 2025 Rookie of the Year (and Spurs teammate) Stephon Castle, Brunson gathering the loose ball ahead of that Wembanyama foul. It was an odd ending.

There is an odd-sounding word, it is gestalt, I learned it in 1996 when the NBA used its 50th anniversary season to spend an inordinate time celebrating the two-time Knick championship teams from the 1970s. Gestalt theory is an idea I return to about once a year and usually in June, when a team turns a corner, providing proof of something stronger that what’s listed in the lineup.

This year’s Knicks may not take the 2026 NBA title, there are still two wins left to grab before it turns official, but the Knicks have grown taller than all of themselves stacked together. This group improves with every outing and against competition which stiffens with each round. You’d need anti-inflammatories too, after battling these Knicks.

The development, the advancement from April through June and 13 consecutive playoff victories, would be unique among NBA champions. What is typical is the gestalt, the way we’re assured something larger than the image New York presents.

Nothing’s fazed them in Mike Brown’s first postseason with the Knicks. Be they down 2-1 to C.J. McCollum’s third team in 12 months, debated as favorites in the second round because Joel Embiid looked OK for four days, and then, well, Cleveland. There was no dramatic or even minor obstacle in the Cleveland series, analytically or otherwise.

San Antonio, once favored by many, isn’t fazed. Maybe a little tired, probably a more than a little impressed. Nobody doubted the talent on this Knicks team, individual or collected. What is astonishing is how well the talent on the New York Knicks performs when it works alongside one another. The elastic defense and deliberate offense, the absence of self, the dedication, devotion, the turning on the nighttime into the day.

That’s a Dire Straits song, and not an example of gestalt theory, but straits certainly indicating where the San Antonio Spurs while boarding the flight to New York. Five games to win four, three in NYC, they ain’t won a first yet.

San Antonio came close on Friday, reeling in Knick momentum long enough to eliminate the 14-point lead the visitors established with six minutes remaining in Game 2. De’Aaron Fox, Wembanyama and Dylan Harper combined to battle for buckets until the contest was tied, ten seconds left, Wemby with the ball and, uh oh, here comes infamy.

Threw it right off Stephon Castle’s back. Ball bounced to Brunson whom Wemby fouled, sending Jalen to the line for a game-winning free throw.

Stephon wasn’t looking while running up the court, I noticed this before Wemby let loose and said “heads up!” while standing at press row but there was no way Castle heard me. I’m sensitive to these things because I let a ball bounce off my back on the same spot in the court in an intramural basketball tournament in college, and I don’t think I will get over what happened to me before Game 3 on Monday and it happened 26 years ago. So I’m not sure how Stephon can blot his out in three days.

The Spurs will need other exhibits to shape up. The transition defense was strong but not strong enough, New York scored 19 points on the break, San Antonio’s worst mark of the postseason. New York’s offensive rebounding was bound to happen, but did it all have to happen in the second half? And when did San Antonio start missing dunks?

Meanwhile, Karl-Anthony Towns’ elbow torquing cleanly under each three-pointer is an absolute picture of actualized alignment and precision. Towns scored 17 in the first half. His dives from the Domantas Spot turned this series, it isn’t an adventure when KAT (21 points, 13 rebounds, four assists) puts the ball on the floor and against a team with Wemby on that floor.

The word “gestalt” entered my mind repeatedly in that second quarter, watching the Knick bust tail defensively, one movement anticipating another. We’ll hear a lot about the 1970 and 1973 championship Knicks over the next few days, and I’m glad the first guy who reminded me of them was the Knick fan with the inexpensive “HARLEM” tattoo up in the 200 section of the Spurs’ arena, weeping, well, no, crying while he walked with his buddy a few minutes after Game 2. “I’ve waited my whole life for this,” he told his friend, and I’m assuming this isn’t about visiting the Alamo on Saturday.

If it was about the Alamo, wow. What a weekend for him!

He’d removed himself from the upper concourse’s PG-rated pogo pit, Knick fans streaming and phoning home and popping jerseys together. It was a block party and I posted up inside a closed nachos stand, happy to watch one pleasant New Yorker after another thanking San Antonio fans for their grace and hospitality and congratulating the Spurs on its bright future, Knick fans going out of their way to throw trash in the appropriate receptacle, clearing room for the elderly, the infirm, the small children in Spurs uniforms squeaking by the sea of blue and orange.

The next time I saw nachos was in a gas station parking lot, in the hand of the single publicly inebriated Knick fan I saw among hundreds of publicly Knick fans during three nights in the heart of San Antonio.

Clinging to his nachos and teetering around the parking lot with the rest of us who decided the rideshare rate from the arena was too much and decided to walk to a more affordable spot. My Nacho Guy was in an Allan Houston uniform, beaming, 20 minutes after I’d walked by Allan Houston in a sweater, beaming.

While I gathered to call my wife to tell her how cheap I was, another Knick fan plopped down on the gas station stoop next to me, awaiting his rideshare, cordial and curious, noshing, asking me who I wrote for and what I thought about Game 2 while offering immediate analysis: Mikal Bridges and Jose Alvarado down the stretch of the third quarter with Towns and Brunson off the floor, San Antonio’s youth and inability to get to their spots, Wemby’s obvious fatigue, the growing capability of Mike Brown.

You know, pal, I was gonna write all that.

The young man was irrepressible, hopping in his rideshare Mercedes right next to a mother and kids cleaning out their van at a gas pump minutes past midnight on a Saturday morning. The gas station was so replete with polite Knick fans that the families selling shaved ice in the parking lot began courting them with Knick chants. Kids on their first Friday night off from school chased each other around the tire inflator/car vacuum machine, one of them in a DeMar DeRozan Spurs jersey likely as old as she is.

Every bus stop on Commerce St. featured a Knick couple waiting on that rideshare, completely unsure of what they just watched less than a mile away, less than an hour ago. San Antonio on a Friday night, streets filled with New Yorkers. It’s almost like it’s their world, and we just live in it.

The Knicksheld off the Spurs' fourth-quarter comeback attempt to win Game 2 of the NBA Finals on Friday in San Antonio. Here's how the NYC back pages reacted to the Knicks taking a 2-0 series lead...

The front page: HALFWAY TO HEAVEN

The back page: TEXAS PHEW STEP!

Knicks halfway to title after escaping Spurs' furious rally in fourth

Read more: https://t.co/xqwScooPSwpic.twitter.com/1e4WuTUNVy

— New York Post Sports (@nypostsports) June 6, 2026

Profile

Position: Point guard

Height: Six-foot-one

Weight: 180 pounds

Comparisons: Tyus Jones, Marquis Teague, Earl Watson

Raptors Comparisons: Fred VanVleet (not as good defensively), Jose Calderon (smaller and not as good of a passer)

Strengths

Perimeter-shooting

Anderson has a case for being the best shooter in the draft. That lone selling point should be enough for a Toronto Raptors team that finished 21st in three-point percentage (35.3 per cent) and 26th in makes (11.3) to consider Anderson with the 19th pick. Anderson finished his last season with the Texas Tech Red Raiders shooting 41.5 per cent on 7.9 three-point attempts. Only three players in the nation shot the ball better on more attempts. That includes teammate Donovan Atwell (45.8 per cent), junior Pryce Sandfort of Nebraska (41.6 per cent) and Samford’s Jadin Booth (43.6 per cent). Unlike Anderson, none of Atwell, Sandford or Booth are guaranteed to be selected in the 2026 NBA Draft. Anderson has one of the cleanest-looking jumpers in the NCAA. His range feels unlimited at times. Anderson quickly developed a reputation for showing a willingness to pull the trigger from anywhere.

Pick-and-roll maestro

The 6’2 guard played almost exclusively out of the pick-and-roll (PnR). While Anderson doesn’t possess an elite first-step, he’s already mastered how to change speeds and leverage his positioning to gain advantages with a screen-man. The NBA is a PnR heavy usage type of league, making Anderson an ideal plug-and-play option off the bench for several teams. Anderson also showcased an ability to hit shots off the dribble when defenders go under the screen and consistently traps defenders with a hostage dribble when they go over.

Areas for Improvement

Defence

Anderson measures out as one of the smaller players in the draft. He was listed at the NBA Combine as six-foot-one without shoes and 180 pounds. On tape, Anderson’s skinny frame and stature are expected to stand out next to NBA-level physiques. He also ranked in the bottom seventh percentile for hand-width.

For Anderson to carve out a spot in the league, he’ll need to prove that his offence is enough to overcome his potential defensive concerns. Opposing teams will hunt him down, especially in a playoff setting. How Anderson navigates through that will determine how long Raptors Head Coach Darko Rajakovic can keep him on the court.

What Anderson has going for him is that he played an astronomical 38.3 minutes per game (for non-college watchers, games are 40 minutes long) while only averaging 2.0 fouls. It’s even more impressive considering that he plays with an effort-level that pops on screen. Flanked by Scottie Barnes and Collin Murray-Boyles, Toronto might be the perfect fit for Anderson.

Playstyle

While Anderson ranked as an elite rim-finisher (74.2 per cent), he rarely got to the basket. That likely needs to change as defences run him off the three-point line or funnel him into the paint. Anderson understands who he is – someone who thrives on the perimeter – and that also explains his low free-throw attempts.

The pick-and-roll was Anderson’s bread-and-butter, and that makes sense considering how effective he was in that set. However, it also meant Anderson either didn’t get a chance to show off more of his isolation toolkit or that the Texas Tech coaching staff didn’t believe it existed. While the Raptors can’t expect to hit a home-run with the 19th pick, the chances of doing so exponentially increase if Anderson can consistently produce points when the offence is off-schedule.

Anderson was a dominant on-ball type of guard with the Red Raiders. He’ll need to get comfortable being more of an off-ball threat playing next to heavy-usage players like Barnes, Brandon Ingram and RJ Barrett.

Potential fits with Toronto

Obvious shooting upgrade

The Raptors need to surround Barnes with better shooters. Adding one of the prettiest jumpers in the draft helps. Schematically, it just makes sense to select someone like Anderson. There were multiple instances during the playoffs when the Cleveland Cavaliers forced a second or third pass to an open corner shooter (usually Jamal Shead) or a wing-three (often Barrett), and the Raptors failed to make them pay.

Possible Immanuel Quick trade?

Assuming the front-office admired Barrett’s playoff rising performance, the Raptors might consider moving Immanuel Quickley or Brandon Ingram (more the salary than the player) to create some roster construction flexibility.

If it’s the former, that would promote Shead to a starting gig, subsequently opening up a back-up guard spot. Shead overproduced as an emergency starter while pushing the Cavaliers to seven games. Theoretically, he could pass as a serviceable starter across 82 regular-season games.

Adding Anderson to help lead the bench – in tandem with a veteran addition through trade or free agency – would work, especially if it meant the team could upgrade elsewhere.

The M in MVP is reserved for only one Mom.

A man went viral after thanking Jalen Brunson’s mom for creating the Knicks star.

Joe Clements happened to be sitting near Sandra Brunson in the stands in San Antonio after Game 1 of the NBA Finals — so he used the moment to express his gratitude.

“Hey, Mrs. Brunson, Thank you so much for having that boy. He is the franchise changer. We love him,” Clements said in the video, which racked up 1.7 million views, and hundreds of comments from fans, calling her the “Queen of NYC.”

Sandra, whom Brunson called his “best friend 100 percent,” in a 2020 interview with WFAA, laughed and smiled at the superfan’s gushing.

Clements posted the video of her reaction to his Instagram page with the caption, “Every Knicks fan—scratch that—every basketball fan should thank this wonderful lady for bringing into the world the greatest Knick ever!!!! (We thank Rick too but he did the easy part).”

Knicks fans took to the comments section to also express their admiration for Sandra — who played volleyball at Temple University, which is how she met her husband, Knicks assistant coach, Rick, who was on the basketball team.

“She is actually The Queen of NYC and she deserves all the love and respect,” one gushed.

“That woman will be protected and cherished by Knicks fans everywhere,” another wrote.

“GOD BLESS THAT WOMAN AND HER HUSBAND, they raised a real star,” someone else added.

Others declared that Sandra, a native of Lakeview, NY, should be treated like royalty around the Big Apple.

“That lady should never pay for a meal in NYC,” one said.

“She [should] get a free pass everywhere in NYC. No questions asked,” another agreed.

Sandra is the co-founder and chief financial officer of Second Round Foundation, a New Jersey nonprofit that “plants seeds to create equity for young people through education, sport, and community,” according to its website.

Brunson has credited his mom for his grit and determination.

“She was the general. She held me accountable for everything I did. If I was putting my mind to something I couldn’t quit until it was done. She basically gave me that no-quit mentality,” he told WFAA.

He’s also thanked her for his talents on the court.

“Thank you for my athletic ability because without you I wouldn’t be able to jump as high as I do,” he added.

Richard Jefferson admits Cavs' Finals plan vs. Steph Curry was to ‘beat him up' originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area

It’s no secret that Warriors star Steph Curry has faced some of the most aggressive defenses teams can get away with over the course of his NBA career.

But its rare that one of those opponents says the quiet part out loud.

NBA on ESPN analyst Richard Jefferson, who faced Golden State in the 2016 and 2017 NBA Finals as a member of the Cavaliers, detailed Cleveland’s brutal game plan for Curry on Friday night’s broadcast. While discussing a hard foul on New York Knicks guard Jalen Brunson during Game 2 of the 2026 Finals, Jefferson recalled his job against Curry a decade ago.

“When we played Steph Curry in the Finals, our job was to beat him up like that,” Jefferson said in the first quarter. “And it wasn’t anything dirty, but if you’re going to foul him, foul him in a physical nature.”

Curry arguably receives the league’s worst whistle, so being on the receiving end of hard fouls is nothing new for him — because the only way he gets a foul call is if he’s being beat up, like Jefferson said.

But even then, fouls are hard to come by for the four-time NBA champion. Over the course of his 17-year NBA career, Curry has averaged 4.3 free-throw attempts per game. For comparison, Jefferson’s former teammate LeBron James has averaged 7.4 over the last 23 years.

While Jefferson and the Cavaliers “beat” Curry up on their way to a ring in 2016, the Warriors certainly got the last laugh over their four consecutive Finals matchups.

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There’s not much question that Victor Wembanyama is the future of the NBA, but at the end of the day, he’s also a skinny 22-year-old, and most young players have a lot to learn. Wembanyama, for all his freakish talent, is no exception to this.

He’s a brilliant talent, but he also made a devastating turnover down the stretch, then missed a last-second shot that would have still won the game.

As we’ve seen often during the playoffs, former Blue Devil Mason Plumlee got a DNP from the Spurs. And with New York on a 13-game playoff win streak, and the series shifting to NYC, the odds of him getting a ring in what may be his final season are dropping fast.

• ‘I Messed Up’: Spurs Comeback Turns Into Meltdown, Knicks Take 2-0 Lead Back to New York
• Knicks 105, Spurs 104: Four Takeaways After Wemby’s Late Mistake Dooms San Antonio in NBA Finals Game 2
• Knicks 105, Spurs 104: Four Takeaways After Wemby’s Late Mistake Dooms San Antonio in NBA Finals Game 2
• Knicks weather Spurs’ late push in Game 2 win, bring 2‑0 NBA Finals lead back to ‘hectic’ MSG
• Knicks 105, Spurs 104: Four Takeaways After Wemby’s Late Mistake Dooms San Antonio in NBA Finals Game 2
• Social media reacts to Knicks taking 2-0 lead: ‘Those final 30 seconds of Wemby were absolutely nasty’
• Knicks’ Karl-Anthony Towns dominates start of NBA Finals Game 2 — then disappears as Spurs nearly steal win
• Josh Hart surprisingly no-shows for Knicks in Game 2 of NBA Finals
• Knicks news: Wild Karl-Anthony Towns streak continues in cinematic Game 2 win over Spurs
• Spurs’ Victor Wembanyama gets real on last-second turnover vs. Knicks: ‘I messed up’

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The biggest question of the Lakers’ offseason, at least from a pure monetary standpoint, is how much money are they willing to pay Austin Reaves?

Not how the rest of the team’s internal organizational restructuring will pan out.

Not even whether LeBron James will return for a 24th NBA season, and whether he’ll play for the Lakers for a ninth season — a decision that will have significant league-wide ramifications.

Reports have stated that Reaves — an expected unrestricted free agent once he declines his $14.9 million player option — wants a maximum contract worth $239 million across five seasons ($47.8 million average annual salary) and is not willing to take a hometown discount.

If the Lakers aren’t willing to go that high, they must explain to Reaves the reasoning if it means building a title-winning roster around him and Luka Doncic.

By comparison, the maximum contract another team could pay Reaves is $178 million over four seasons ($44.5 million average annual salary).

The Lakers want Reaves back. As they should after he’s proved to be an All-Star — and borderline All-NBA — caliber player.

And Reaves wants to return to the only NBA he’s known for the first five seasons of his NBA career.

In this sense, the sides are on the same page.

Where they may differ is the Lakers wanting to pay Reaves the least amount of money to bring him back to the franchise, looking to maximize their financial flexibility and optionality. And Reaves’ representatives, understandably, will negotiate for the most amount of money Reaves, 28, can make as he enters the prime of his career with his best chance of what will likely be the largest contract of his career.

If Reaves, or his representatives, not only want but demand the max deal they can get from the Lakers, the franchise without hesitation should pay it.

At face value, a $239 million contract for a player who hasn’t made an All-Star or All-NBA team may be difficult to fathom.

But in the modern NBA, it’s in line with what players of Reaves’ caliber command on the open market.

Reaves’ maximum salary for 2026-27 of approximately $41.2 million would make him somewhere around the 36th- to 40th-highest-paid player in the league for next season.

That salary would be in the same ballpark of Thunder wing Jalen Williams ($41.2 million), Thunder big man Chet Holmgren and Magic forward Paolo Banchero, a tad above Nets forward Michael Porter Jr. ($40.8 million) and a little below Clippers guard Darius Garland ($42.2 million), Grizzlies guard Ja Morant and Pelicans forward Zion Williamson.

Reaves isn’t better than all of these players. But he’s better than a fair amount of them.

He ranked 30th in actual estimated plus-minus (EPM) for 2025-26 according to Dunks & Threes. And he was one of 20 players to average at least 23 points, five assists and four rebounds in 2025-26.

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And before the multiple calf injuries that slowed down his season, Reaves was averaging 27.8 points, 6.7 assists and 5.6 rebounds.

There’s also the Doncic factor, and the reality that Reaves has proved to be a good fit alongside the Lakers superstar.

The Lakers outscored opponents by an elite margin of nine points per 100 possessions in 2025-26 when Doncic and Reaves shared the floor, up from 7.7 points per 100 possessions in 2024-25. Doncic’s history with Jalen Brunson and Kyrie Irving when with the Mavericks showed that putting him alongside another talented perimeter creator is a formula proven to work.

And Reaves has shown he’s that caliber of player.

He isn’t a perfect player. He has to be more durable after playing a career-low 51 games in 2025-26, and having back-to-back playoff runs impacted by injuries. Max players aren’t judged by what they do during the regular season, but more so in the playoffs, where Reaves’ catch-and-shoot 3-point shooting has dipped three consecutive years.

But the Lakers can’t risk losing a player the caliber of Reaves for nothing. Especially not while they have Doncic, who’s in the prime of his career and ready to contend for championship now. Losing his co-star would be a backward step during a period the Lakers can’t afford to do so.

If Reaves and his representatives are willing to sign a contract with the Lakers for an annual salary that’s less than the maximum Reaves can receive, the franchise should consider that a gift. Especially after Reaves has been significantly underpaid for the last four seasons.

Yes, the significant pay raise for Reaves will make building a championship caliber roster around him and Doncic more challenging. But that’s the reality and challenge franchises sign up for when they have high-caliber players on their roster.

“[Reaves] started his journey here as a Laker and has made it very clear to us that he wants his journey to continue as a Laker,” Lakers president of basketball operations/general manager Rob Pelinka said after the season. “And we feel the same way. We want his odyssey to continue to unfold in the Purple and Gold. There’s rules and timing to all of that but I think both sides have made it abundantly clear that we want to work something out where he continues his prolific career here.”

And if the Lakers truly feel the way Pelinka says they do, they’ll pay Reaves — what he wants and what he’s worth. 

For a while now, I thought I was watching a very specific kind of story. An underdog with tenacity. A chosen one on the rise. An ascension. A coming-of-age. A fairy tale, maybe. The details were always a little hazy, but the protagonist was never in question. It was the Spurs. It just felt right. Every moment had meaning. Every setback only served the cause. The signs were everywhere if you knew how to read them. Our time had come. Our story was happening in real time, right in front of our eyes.

Somewhere in the third quarter, down fourteen, I started to wonder if I’d maybe wandered into the wrong theater.

I felt like I was drowning. Every Spurs possession was happening at warp speed. Shots went up quick and bounced out. Layups lipped out. Drives sputtered. The ball found its way into Knick hands before I could even process what was happening, and then suddenly everything was headed the other way.

These Knicks possessions, though. Those were like getting punched in slow motion. Just haymaker after haymaker and, sure, you could see every one coming but your arms were moving through molasses. There’s nothing to be done except to just sit there and take it. Then everything speeds up again and you’re dizzy from that last punch but, oops, another three just rattled out and the Knicks are headed back up the court again.

I was exhausted. I was dizzy. And I was starting to get the distinct impression that, in whatever version of this story I thought I was watching, this is not how it was supposed to go.

Much to my chagrin, I could not stop focusing on the Knicks fans in the crowd. They were making me insane. Not, like, a little annoyed. Insane. Seriously, every time a bunch of blue and orange hands went up after another bucket, it was like a galactic five-year-old found a bruise on my arm and just kept poking it. I felt like I was in my living room trying to grieve the demise of an old friend and a bunch of drunk guys were screaming BING BONG KNICKS IN FOUR BABY directly into my ear canal.

Get out of our house, you absolute ghouls.

I know. I know. It wasn’t really about them. Whatever. It’s just that it felt unfair in the specific way that life feels really unfair sometimes, when something wrong is happening right in front of you and there’s no one to appeal to and no rule being broken and it’s just happening. Why? Because.

But here’s the thing. I was so busy being mad at them for acting like they belonged there that I didn’t stop to consider why they were so sure they did.

Maybe they knew something I didn’t.

I turned the sound off with around 11 minutes left in the game. A tried and true tactic I’ve used for as long as I can remember when Sports has gotten a little too real for my taste. Something about the silence makes it seem more palatable. Like I can finally breathe and think for a second. Sometimes it’s just nice not to have to listen to Richard Jefferson anymore.

Wembanyama hit a three. That wasn’t going to fool me though. No sir. This whole game had been defined by the Spurs getting purchase on a cliff face before immediately tumbling back down a few feet and starting over. Castle got in for a pretty good dunk. Wemby blocked Hart. Their shots weren’t really falling anymore, but this wasn’t real. This was just the death rattle.

Harper with a bucket.

I’m telling you, watching this play out in silence was surreal. I obviously wasn’t going to turn the sound back on and mess with whatever favor I’d earned with the gods to inspire the run. Still, it was as if I was standing on the other side of the glass watching all of this happen to someone else. I wanted to scream or shout or bang on the window, but all I could do was stare. Mouth agape. Silently trying to will something into existence just by wanting it enough.

Our crowd was going nuts. The Knicks fans were, finally, mercifully, joining me in a silent vigil.

The score was tied. Three minutes left. Were they actually going to do this? They’d spent all night searching for answers and had they now, against all odds, finally found some? Victor took two steps, covered about a hundred feet of ground, and laid it in. The Spurs were winning. They were winning this game. Winning this series. Potentially never going to lose again.

Maybe this was our story after all. It’s wins all the way down, baby!

Wembanyama grabbing that board off the Brunson miss with 12 seconds left was the first time I actually let myself believe they were going to pull this off. The two best players on the court had just stared each other down, one on one, and Vic had prevailed. We were going to go back up, score, and dance off into the night. The story had been written. Our fate had been sealed. The stars were aligned.

Fate, it turns out, has a pretty funny sense of humor.

Before the game, Wembanyama was asked in French about this team’s habit of finding solutions only after running into problems. As usual, the frankness of his assessment kind of caught me off guard.

“We’re kind of like spoiled kids,” he said. “For some of us, it’s our first season and we’re already in the Finals. We don’t fully realize it yet. And to me, the team that appreciates the position we’re in the most will be the one that wins.”

Two games in, the Knicks look like they know exactly where they are.

How could they not? This is a franchise that has spent the better part of three decades being a punchline. Draft picks that didn’t pan out. Superstars that chose somewhere else. Stars that arrived and immediately got hurt. An owner who, at times, seemed to be actively working against his own team.

Last year, this group got within two wins of this exact moment and then Tyrese Haliburton and the Pacers ripped their hearts out.

Twenty-seven years of almost and now here they are, back in San Antonio. In the Finals. In our building. Their fans look deliriously happy and their players look like they’re on a mission from God. They all look like they’ve been waiting their whole lives for this moment.

Maybe this is the story we’ve really been watching all along.

It could be as simple as that.

Takeaways

• I’m willing to live in a world where I’m being too cynical about all this. The Spurs found something in that fourth quarter that looked real, and crazier things have happened. That said, down 0-2 heading to a Garden that is going to be absolutely feral is a lot. It’s not impossible. It’s just a lot. It’s….yeah, a lot.
• Victor looked absolutely gassed all game. Right up until he didn’t! Still, I feel like I’ve seen him miss a ton of shots he normally makes in this series and it’s for sure a little disconcerting. The biggest thing the fourth quarter showed is that this Spurs team is invincible when Wemby is looking invincible. When he’s not, well, they get pretty vincible all of a sudden. This is something that somehow continues to seem profound even though we’ve been learning it over and over again for about three years now.
• The Luke Kornet rebound off the missed Brunson free throw is an all-time moment that is going to be lost to history and I am furious about it. They put him in to do exactly one thing and he did it. He reached into a tangle of legs and limbs and came out with the basketball, somehow without stepping out of bounds. It was as stunning a play as his chase-down block in the OKC series. It deserved a better ending. Alas.
• Part of me thinks Fox should have taken that last shot. I can’t fully explain it. It just felt like that was going to be his moment. That’s why we brought him here. Everyone in the building knew Wemby was getting the ball, so why not shock the world? He had the shot, didn’t he? I’ll never know because I refuse to watch that sequence again, but in my heart I think he had it.
• Feels bad, y’all. Feels real bad right now.
• Spurs in 7.

WWL Post Game Press Conference

Have you ever actually walked into the wrong theater for a movie?

No, that seems borderline impossible. I did used to like, double dip at the theater all the time back in the day when there was nothing else really going on. It felt like once you’d given your ticket to the guy up front you really could just hang out back there in the bowels of a Regal Cinemas for days on end.

So you’d just watch multiple movies?

Sure, or just like, a double feature or something.

What was your best double feature?

My favorite one, for sure, was a combination of Mission Impossible 2 followed by Shanghai Noon. Cinema! I was a man of culture. I’ve never felt more artistically fulfilled.

You really don’t want to keep talking about that Spurs game do you?

I really don’t.

Once upon a time, we were desperate for story ideas. The COVID-19 pandemic had taken hold, there were no sports to watch, and everyone was trying to figure out how to fill the void. It was in the middle of that landscape that I began writing for Bright Side of the Sun. My first article was published only days before the entire NBA shut down.

As we navigated those strange times, I came up with an idea for an article. What if I took the game of Six Degrees of Separation with Kevin Bacon and applied it to an NBA player? Naturally, I chose Cedric Ceballos. Why? Because he exists in the middle of NBA history, which unlocks doors to the past and doors to the present. I also was a big Ceballos fan when he was a Sun, so why not?

Now, I fully understand that Cedric isn’t the true NBA equivalent. Somebody like Vince Carter or Jeff Green would probably be a better choice given the number of teams they played for and the sheer volume of teammates they accumulated throughout their careers. But this was a Suns site. I thought it would be fun. And fun it was.

Now here we are, six seasons later, and that article still sticks with me. Partly because it was fun. Partly because it was funny. Mostly because I enjoy the research. Clearly, I’m a nerd. I enjoy wandering down the endless tunnels that Basketball Reference provides, clicking from player to player and finding connections that I never knew existed.

So once again, we’re going to give this a shot. Six Degrees of Separation with Cedric Ceballos. As a reminder of the rules I established more than half a decade ago, here’s how this works. I will note that I removed some rules. It’s down to whether or not they played together or were traded for each other. Being coached by a similar person no longer counts:

Rule 1: Teammates

You can only count players who played together. Example: Yuta Tubuse played in 4 career NBA games, all for the Suns. I can use any Suns player he played with in those games, but I cannot use any of his opponents.

Rule 2: Transactions

Any player can be linked to another player via a transaction they shared. Example: Gani Lawal, who appeared in just 2 NBA minutes, was a future 2010 draft pick who was part of the Jared Dudley and Jason Richardson for Raja Bell, Boris Diaw, and Sean Singletary trade. Therefore, he is linked to those players.

Rule 3: You have 6 moves

That’s the name of the game. Six moves or fewer is a win. Do it in seven and don’t talk to me.

And of course, it wouldn’t be any fun if I were the one choosing which players to connect to Cedric Ceballos. That would be too easy. So I put out a call to arms, asking the Twitter community to provide me with some random dudes from NBA history.

It was a rocky start. I guess when you’re plugged into Suns’ Twitter, I should expect that everyone is going to try to find an obscure Suns player. Shannon Brown? Too easy. Negele Knight? Obscure, sure, but a teammate of Ceballos in Phoenix. They played 140 games with each other!

Some of the names were familiar. Some of them sent me down rabbit holes I never expected to travel. A few had me staring at Basketball Reference pages, wondering how on earth I was going to connect the dots. Which is exactly the point. Half the fun of this exercise is seeing where the journey takes you. The destination matters, sure. But the path to get there is where things get interesting.

So with a fresh list of random NBA names in hand, it’s time to see how many degrees of separation stand between them and Cedric Ceballos.

Marcus Banks to Cedric Ceballos

All right, let’s start easy. After all, it’s two members of the Phoenix Suns, right?

The easiest way to attack this is to look at the roster from Marcus Banks’s rookie season and Cedric Ceballos’s final season. The two never overlapped in the NBA, so that felt like the logical starting point.

Banks entered the league after being selected 13th overall in the 2003 NBA Draft out of the University of Nevada, Las Vegas. His rights, along with those of Kendrick Perkins, were traded to the Boston Celtics in exchange for Troy Bell and Dahntay Jones. As a result, Banks spent his rookie season in Boston, appearing in 81 games off the bench for a Celtics team that finished 36-46.

As for Ceballos, his final season came in 2000-01 with the Miami Heat. It’s always fun to go back and look at some of the names on those old rosters. Bruce Bowen was in his fourth NBA season. A.C. Green was there. So were Eddie House, Eddie Jones, Anthony Mason, and, of course, Dan Majerle.

But none of those names is the key. The connector is Ricky Davis.

Davis was in his second NBA season during that final year of Ceballos’s career. Originally selected 21st overall by the Charlotte Hornets in 1998, he landed in Miami two years later and shared the court with Ceballos during that final campaign. The following season, Davis was traded to the Cleveland Cavaliers, where he spent two seasons before being dealt to the Celtics in December of 2003.

And there it is.

Step 1: Marcus Banks to Ricky Davis

Both Marcus Banks and Ricky Davis spent 2.5 seasons together with the Boston Celtics. Interestingly enough, both were traded to the Minnesota Timberwolves in January of 2006.

For Davis, Banks was a significant teammate. The two appeared in 213 games together, which ranks as the second-most games Ricky Davis played alongside any teammate during his NBA career. The same is true in reverse. Of all the players Banks shared the court with throughout his career, Davis ranks second in total games played together.

Step 2: Ricky Davis to Cedric Ceballos

As noted above, Davis spent part of the 2000-01 season with the Miami Heat, which was the final NBA season for Cedric Ceballos. The overlap was brief. Very brief. Davis and Ceballos appeared in only four games together. Fortunately, four games are still four games, and according to the highly scientific rules established for this exercise more than half a decade ago, that absolutely counts.

Which means we’ve successfully connected Marcus Banks to Cedric Ceballos in just two degrees of separation.

Luigi Datome to Cedric Ceballos

All right, here’s one that’s a little more difficult. Because I had absolutely no idea who Luigi Datome was. So well played, Bruce. Well played.

What I learned is that Datome was a 6’8” small forward who didn’t play his first NBA game until 2013, joining the Detroit Pistons at age 26. Over his two-year NBA career, he appeared in a grand total of 55 games, 37 with Detroit.

Then came the trade. When the Isaiah Thomas deal sent Thomas from the Phoenix Suns to the Boston Celtics, Datome was included as part of the package heading to Boston in a three-team deal. Ah, that’s why Bruce picked him. Because Bruce is a Boston guy.

So naturally, the next step is diving into that 2014-15 Celtics roster to see if we can find a path. And right away, one name jumps off the page. Gerald Wallace. Wallace was in his 13th NBA season at the time, and the moment I saw his name, I knew I had my starting point.

Now the question becomes where that path leads next.

Step 1: Luigi Datome to Gerald Wallace

I could have gone in a few different directions here.

There were other names on that roster. Other players who bounced around the league and would have made for an easy connection. Jeff Green was on that Celtics team, and Jeff Green is basically the holy grail for this exercise. The man has played 18 seasons for 11 different franchises. But where’s the fun in that?

Instead, I went with Gerald Wallace. Wallace entered the league in 2001 after being selected 25th overall by the Sacramento Kings. His stint in Sacramento isn’t what interests me, however. It’s the one that began in 2004-05 with the Charlotte Bobcats.

Step 2: Gerald Wallace to Eddie House

Ah, the Bobcats. Remember that team? Remember that logo? Those uniforms? It’s been more than 20 years since the Bobcats existed, and thank goodness for that. If you weren’t around back then, you missed some truly questionable fashion choices and some equally questionable basketball.

But who else was on that 2004-05 Charlotte roster? Our old friend Eddie House. Most Suns fans remember House for his electric 2005-06 season in Phoenix, when he finished 13th in Sixth Man of the Year voting and routinely came off the bench throwing gasoline on the fire. When Eddie got hot, the entire arena knew it.

As I mentioned earlier in this article, however, Eddie House and Cedric Ceballos already have a connection.

Step 3: Eddie House to Cedric Ceballos

That’s right. We return once again to Cedric’s final season in the NBA. The 2000-01 season happened to be the rookie campaign for Eddie House. After being selected 37th overall out of Arizona State University in the 2000 NBA Draft by the Miami Heat, House landed on the same roster that featured Cedric Ceballos during the final stop of Ced’s NBA career.

And just like that, we’ve connected Gigi Datome to Cedric Ceballos in three degrees of separation. Not bad for a guy I had never heard of 20 minutes ago.

Neal Walk to Cedric Ceballos

Okay, I like this one. It still lives in the Suns’ universe, but we’re going way back. All the way back to a player the Phoenix Suns selected in the 1969 NBA Draft. Neal Walk.

Walk, a center out of the University of Florida, was essentially the consolation prize. He’s the player Phoenix ended up with after calling heads in the coin flip that ultimately gave the Milwaukee Bucks the right to draft Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, who at the time was still known as Lew Alcindor. But hey, he had a magnificent beard.

Walk spent 4.5 seasons with the Suns, averaging 14.7 points and 8.9 rebounds per game. He was a solid player. A productive player. It’s also safe to say Phoenix lost that coin flip. After all, Lew Alcindor became Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, and there’s a strong argument that he’s the third greatest player in NBA history.

Walk remained with the Suns until 1974, when he was traded, along with a second-round pick, to the New Orleans Jazz for three players and a first-round pick. That pick eventually changed hands and was used by the Buffalo Braves to select Adrian Dantley out of the University of Notre Dame. Another Hall of Famer. Because apparently this story wasn’t finished torturing Suns fans.

But there’s my starting point. Walk spent only one season with the Jazz, appearing in 34 games. And during that lone season, he shared the court with E. C. Coleman. That’s where the trail begins.

Step 1: Neal Walk to E.C. Coleman

E.C. Coleman was a power forward out of Houston Baptist University who was selected in the third round of the 1973 NBA Draft by the Houston Rockets. Yes, there used to be more than two rounds, even though the league was smaller. He was a Rocket for a couple of years, but when the New Orleans Jazz entered the NBA in 1974, they selected Coleman in the expansion draft.

It turned out to be a solid pick. Coleman spent three seasons with the Jazz and eventually earned All-Defensive First Team honors in 1976-77. The season that interests us, however, is 1974-75. That Jazz team was rough. They opened the year with an 11-game losing streak and started the season 3-34 before finally putting together a two-game winning streak. They ultimately finished 23-59, but it was during that season that Coleman and Neal Walk shared the court.

Coleman eventually entered free agency and signed with the Golden State Warriors in 1977. After being waived in 1978, he returned to Houston and played 6 games for the Rockets. Six games that, for most people, wouldn’t matter. For this exercise, those six games are everything.

Step 2: E.C. Coleman to Moses Malone

During those six games in Houston, Coleman played alongside Moses Malone. Not a bad teammate to stumble across.

It was Malone’s third NBA season after beginning his professional career in the ABA, and 1978-79 became a landmark year for him. He appeared in all 82 games, averaging 24.8 points and 17.6 rebounds per contest. The accolades piled up. All Star. All NBA First Team. All Defensive Second Team. And most importantly, MVP.

Malone remained with Houston for three more seasons, winning another MVP award in 1982 before being traded to the Philadelphia 76ers for Caldwell Jones and a 1983 first-round pick. And once he arrived in Philadelphia, the next connection practically made itself.

Step 3: Moses Malone to Julius Erving

The 1982-83 season brought together Moses Malone and Julius Erving, better known as Dr. J. Talk about a duo. Malone won MVP that season. Dr. J finished fifth in MVP voting. Both earned All-NBA First Team honors as the 76ers rolled through the league.

Erving had begun his professional career in the ABA and entered the NBA in 1976 at age 26. He would spend 11 seasons in the NBA and eventually become one of the most influential and celebrated players in basketball history.

At this point, the next connection feels almost inevitable. We’re talking about the Philadelphia 76ers in the mid 1980s. That means we’re talking about Sir Charles.

Step 4: Julius Erving to Charles Barkley

Charles Barkley, drafted 5th overall in the 1985 Draft, and Julius Erving appeared in 226 games together. The pair went 130-66 during the regular season, although postseason success proved harder to find. They went 16-14 in the playoffs during their shared time in Philadelphia.

Of course, the Eastern Conference wasn’t exactly welcoming. This was the era of Larry Bird and the Boston Celtics.The era of Isiah Thomas and the Detroit Pistons. The beginning of the era of Michael Jordan and the Chicago Bulls. There were heavyweights everywhere.

Philadelphia captured its championship in 1983 before Barkley arrived, and despite all of Charles’s greatness, he never got another crack at a title with the 76ers. That opportunity would come later when he moved out west to the Valley of the Sun.

Step 5: Charles Barkley to Cedric Ceballos

And now we’ve arrived at the destination. A journey spanning decades, from Neal Walk’s era in the early late 60s to 1992, when Charles Barkley arrived in Phoenix, and Cedric Ceballos was entering his third NBA season out of California State University, Fullerton.

Ced was a star on the rise. Honestly, I’ll go to my grave believing that if he had been healthy during that NBA Finals run, Barkley might have a championship ring and Suns fans might feel a little differently about the franchise’s history. Instead, we’re left wondering what could have been.

What we do know is that Barkley and Ceballos appeared in 131 games together. And with that, Neal Walk is connected to Cedric Ceballos in five degrees of separation.

That’s enough for this session, isn’t it? We got a little history lesson. We exercised parts of our basketball brains that probably haven’t been used in quite some time. And along the way, we managed to connect a handful of seemingly random players to Cedric Ceballos.

That’s the beauty of this exercise. It sends you wandering through decades of NBA history, stumbling across forgotten franchises, forgotten players, strange trades, and connections that you never would have considered otherwise. And honestly, I enjoy every minute of it.

So who knows? Maybe I’ll continue accepting the challenges thrown my way and keep this experiment going as the summer rolls on. There are certainly enough random names out there to keep me occupied. For now, though, I think these three examples prove the point. No matter how obscure the player, no matter how far back in NBA history you go, no matter how impossible the challenge initially appears. You can connect just about anyone who has ever played in the NBA to Cedric Ceballos.

And if you can’t?

Well, then I probably haven’t spent enough time on Basketball Reference yet.

He’s a Knicks-tradamus.

A Long Islander went viral this week for predicting the Knicks’ NBA Finals run in his 2020 high school yearbook.

Evan Pfeufer of Kings Park shared a photo Thursday of his quote in Smithtown High School West’s yearbook, “Knicks in 6. 2026 NBA Finals” — and it racked up more than 5 million views in one day.

The now-23-year-old told The Post how he decided on the very specific prediction.

“It’s so simple. Knicks in six 2026 rhymes so incredibly well,” he said.

The Knicks superfan recalled his parents’ disappointment when he showed them the book six years ago.

“It was so funny, my parents were like, ‘Evan, why?’ Why would you do this?'” he said.

Now, they are reconsidering, and likening their son to a modern-day Nostradamus.

“My dad is questioning if I’m a human or not,” he said.

Pfeufer, whose impressive high school resume included serving as an officer in the Business Honor Society, purposely chose not to include any of his accomplishments on his yearbook page in order for his Knicks quote to stand out.

“They gave us an option, and I said, ‘No, I just want this,'” he recalled.

“Hand over Bible, I purposely didn’t put my honor societies and all the stuff I got because I was like, ‘What if this actually happens? Everybody else has this long a– quote with all their achievements, and me, I would get it right.'”

As it started looking like his 2020 prediction could actually come to fruition, he texted his childhood friend a photo of the yearbook page

“And I was like, ‘Imagine if this happens,'” he said.

He then posted it on his private Snapchat page and his friends encouraged him to share it on a larger platform, so he submitted it to the sports Instagram account Overtime, which boasts 10.4 million followers, and it “instantly” went viral.

Pfeufer, who graduated from Adelphi University and now works as a sales rep, is hoping the post grabs the attention of the Knicks.

“My friend said, ‘If the Knicks don’t get you to one of the games or something, I would be livid,'” he said.

“I don’t expect anything, I’m just a guy with a prediction, but it would be pretty cool.”