Author: NBA Basketball News, Scores, Standings, Rumors, Fantasy Games

The NBA has narrowed down their list of anti-tanking measures to three options.

I think that, unfortunately, this list is too short, and it leaves too many good ideas off the table. Below are some of the ideas that didn’t make the cut…

The Wheel

Proposed by Mike Zarren, the wheel assigns draft picks without regard to record. Instead, the rank order of the picks changes from year to year.

Pros: There’s no point in tanking anymore.

Cons: It will take 32 years to figure out if it works.

The Drop-Dead Date

The lottery seeding is fixed at a certain arbitrary point in time—the All-Star break is often suggested—after this point, further losses don’t improve your odds of getting a top pick.

Pros: It doesn’t matter if you lose games after the drop-dead date.

Cons: It doesn’t matter if you win games after the drop-dead date either.

The Lottery Tournament

Teams will compete to get the most favorable odds in the lottery in a tournament—or the draft order will be fixed by the results of the tournament.

Pros: There’s more basketball to watch and, importantly for the league these days, more basketball to bet on. After expansion, there will be as many teams in the lottery tournament as in the postseason, and this way even players on bad teams can get the chance to play an extended schedule with even more chances to get hurt. Oh wait.

Cons: Does anyone want to see Sacramento hang a banner when they win the lottery tournament?

The Really Complicated Rule System

Under this system, the two-year record of a team is taken into consideration, and a floor will be set, such that no team that wins less than 25 games gets credit for a greater number of losses, and this will be used to determine the odds for a drawing that will assign the first four spots in the draft. The 22 teams in the league with the worst cumulative two-year records will be entered in the drawing.

Pros: It’s complicated!

Cons: The league is actually considering this one.

The Pig in a Poke

The league doesn’t reveal the lottery selection method until the end of the season. Odds could be weighted to favor really bad teams, or they could be even across the board. This takes away a lot of the incentive behind planning to be bad.

Pros: I kind of like this idea.

Cons: Nobody else seems to.

The Big Tumbler Full of Envelopes

A bit of a throwback to the good old days when lottery odds were even across the board, and the drawing was done with plenty of spectacle, instead of taking place in a locked room.

Pros: It’s a great way to get Patrick Ewing, if you’re the Knicks.

Cons: It’s a great way to not get Patrick Ewing, if you’re not the Knicks.

The Trial By Combat

This option would consist of a physical competition that would probably, but not necessarily, be relatively safe. Say an arm-wrestling contest. Teams would nominate a different champion every year who would compete on their behalf. The catch is that the champion has to be employed in a responsible position in the front office, and not with some hokey title like “Assistant General Manager in charge of Arm Wrestling.”

Pros: Who wouldn’t want to watch this?

Cons: I’m not really seeing any

The Hunger Games

It’s sort of like Trial By Combat, but this time the champions for each team are drawn by lot from the team’s fanbase. Of course, fans could also volunteer as tribute, Katniss style, but regardless, the actual competition would be suitably rigorous. Different contests would include “Sitting quietly at the bar while the game is on, after having had a few drinks,” “Ignoring Nick Wright,” “Watching a movie with your significant other while the game is on,” and other feats of endurance designed to test every fan’s stamina.

Pros: Who wouldn’t want to represent the Boston Celtics and bring home the top draft pick?

Cons: The movies and books weren’t that great.

The Softball League

Who doesn’t like corporate sponsored softball leagues? Well, why not have one every summer to set the order for the following season’s draft? Sure, this seems like a variation of the two previous options, but it deserves special mention because this would be an actual slow-pitch league, not just a tournament. The only ringers teams could bring in would be guys from the team roster. So maybe save a fourteenth or fifteenth spot for a real slugger?

Pros: Joe Mazzulla coaching a softball team.

Cons: I didn’t come up with this idea, Bill Sy did.

The Fantasy Basketball League

This league would run concurrently with the regular season. GMs from various teams would draft for a fantasy league at the start of each season. Importantly, they can draft players from any team in the league. Maximum chaos will occur when a team GM drafts a player that’s truly hated by that team’s fanbase. Can you imagine what would happen if Brad Stevens drafted Lebron James?

Pros: Knowing that SGA’s grifting is good for your draft position.

Cons: Feeling good about that grifting.

The Ouija Board

Pretty much what the name suggests. Designated league representatives would consult a Ouija board to determine the draft order.

Pros: It’s completely impartial

Cons: Or is it?

The Vote

Each team would vote on which team should get the top pick. The catch, obviously, is that no team can vote for itself. Teams can’t trade votes, or agree to support each other in different years.

Pros: Complete and utter chaos

Cons: None—except for the chaos.

The Roulette Wheel

The league might as well go all-in on gambling and set the draft order this way as well. I mean, it’s already called a lottery… But why not just put team reps around a roulette wheel and whoever’s luckiest over the course of, oh, say, an hour, gets the top pick.

Pros: It’s gambling, so it’s got to be good

Cons: What if all this gambling isn’t good?

The Carnival Midway

When the draft rolls around, the players eligible for it are awarded as prizes for winning various games on a carnival midway. Want Keaton Wagler? You’d best be prepared to peg five tin ducks with a suspiciously inaccurate BB gun.

Pros: This rectifies the longstanding shortage of cotton candy and funnel cake at the NBA draft

Cons: The Kings might get mixed up and end up drafting an oversized teddy bear by mistake.

The High School Essay Contest

General managers from each team would be required to submit an essay to the league saying why they should get the top pick that year. The team with the best essay would get the top pick.

Pros: It’s better than the current system, which is “my team deserves the top pick because we are terrible.”

Cons: There’s a risk that some GMs are illiterate.

6 key questions left for Sixers, from seeding to starters  originally appeared on NBC Sports Philadelphia

As of Friday morning, heading into a back-to-back vs. the Timberwolves and Pistons, the Sixers have six regular-season games to go and sit sixth in the Eastern Conference standings.

Let’s look at six key questions for the team with postseason looming:

Can Sixers avoid the play-in?

The odds of the Sixers staying in the top-six and steering clear of the play-in tournament feel like a coin flip.

They trail the fifth-seeded Hawks by 1.5 games and also lost the regular-season series to Atlanta, so rising would be unlikely. That’s especially true because the Sixers have the NBA’s fourth-hardest remaining strength of schedule, according to Tankathon.

The Raptors and Sixers both currently sit at 42-34. The teams split their regular-season series, but the Sixers hold the tiebreaker over Toronto because of their superior record against other teams in the Atlantic division. The Sixers are 9-7, the Raptors 4-10. 

The other teams in play-in spots are the Hornets, Magic and Heat. The Sixers lead Charlotte by 1.5 games, Orlando by two games and Miami by 2.5 games. 

Basketball Reference’s playoff probabilities report says the Sixers have a 41.9 percent of finishing in the top-six. 

Who’s going to start in the postseason? 

Kelly Oubre Jr. has come off the bench in the three games he’s played since returning from a left elbow sprain. Does Sixers head coach Nick Nurse anticipate eventually sliding Oubre back into his starting five? 

“I don’t know about that,” Nurse said Wednesday night before the Sixers’ road win over the Wizards. “I envision probably having some changes here and there going down the stretch. He’s probably going to be involved in that, but he might not be the only one.”

After opening the season on a two-way contract, Dominick Barlow has wound up starting 58 games so far. Nurse has had plenty of valid reasons to like him as a starter. 

“He’s played really well,” Nurse said. “Not always, but a lot of times he’s been a factor on the offensive glass. He’s always a factor on the defensive end. He’s continued to grow in his switch-ability. We can play some different coverages with him; he can switch out on to most guys and do a lot of good work there for us.

“And then obviously, most of the time it was just a numbers game. There were always one, two, three, four guys out and he ends up kind of being there, and he earned it as well. 

“Now that everybody’s back, I thought Kelly probably needed a game or two rhythm-wise. And then again, (Barlow) reminded of us how good he is paired along Joel (Embiid). So there’s lots of stuff going on there to look at and evaluate.”

Barlow’s teammates are very aware that his impact often doesn’t come through shotmaking.

“He knows his role, man,” Tyrese Maxey said. “He’s a star in his role. … He does all the dirty work for us. He guards who he needs to guard, he rebounds — offensive rebounds, defensive rebounds. He’s a connector and he does a really good job of just being who he is. We need him.”

Can Sixers sustain contender-caliber defense?

The Sixers rank 18th in the NBA in defensive rating.

Both on paper and on the floor, they’ve appeared capable of better. One suggestion of a higher defensive ceiling: The Sixers’ defensive rating in fourth quarters is third in the NBA behind only the Knicks and Thunder. Their stellar defensive rating of 98.0 in clutch situations is the best in the league.

Glimpses of greatness won’t be good enough in the playoffs, though. 

“Especially when you’re talking about competing for a championship, we’ve got to be a better defensive team,” Paul George said.

George’s play post-suspension is a reason for optimism on the defensive end. His scoring’s attracted the most attention — 28.0 points per game over his last four, including a 39-point performance against the Wizards — but the 35-year-old forward has looked excellent physically on both sides of the ball. 

“The games were coming fast and my body just wasn’t responding quickly enough,” George said Wednesday. “So I knew. It was a hard decision: Do I keep playing? I knew my body just needed a little time to heal without so much pounding and wear and tear. 

“I knew that the 25-game suspension, I was going to use it wisely, stay in shape, stay sharp, stay working. … I knew that this was kind of a blessing in disguise with the time off that I needed to get ready.”

How costly could rebounding woes be? 

The Sixers’ third-quarter troubles have been well-documented. They still have the NBA’s worst net rating in third quarters this season at minus-13.1.

Defensive rebounding has been a problem across all quarters for three years in a row. The Sixers are on track for another bottom-five season in defensive rebounding rate, per Cleaning the Glass. Last time the team was in the playoffs, the Sixers were decisively worse than the Knicks on the boards during their first-round series loss. 

In Nurse’s eyes, some of the rebounding struggles are fixable. 

“The first thing is our defensive rebounding needs to be better more consistently,” he said. “Again, it seems to get pretty good the last 18 minutes of the game, but it’s not very good in stretches. A lot of those come from a high volume of threes. I don’t think we’ve been great at running down long, loose-ball types of rebounds and that definitely needs an improvement. I think we’ve got the speed and athleticism to run those down. A lot of those long shot, long rebounds I think are the majority of them. 

“And then I would like to improve our side of it. We’d like to be a good crash team. We have been at times this year, but it’s not been as good recently as it was (earlier) in the year, so we’d like to get that back, up that a little bit and get our own share of put-backs and kick-out threes off of offensive rebounds.”

Will Maxey’s progress as floor general make a big difference?

By the numbers alone, Maxey’s only taken a modest step forward this season as a passer. His 0.95 assist-to-usage ratio would be a new career high, according to Cleaning the Glass. He had a 0.88 assist-to-usage ratio last year. 

The stats might undersell Maxey’s progress running the team a tad. He’s stumbled here and there in clutch moments — every star guard does — but Maxey’s certainly appeared more comfortable dictating the Sixers’ offense. Nurse almost never minds when he veers from a scripted play or invents something on his own. 

Much of that confidence stems from Maxey refusing to let himself fade from games. Even when Embiid is dominating or George is on fire, the Sixers need Maxey eager to attack. Compared to past postseasons, Maxey will have a greater sense for all the nuances of being a lead guard.

“I think we’ve got him to an aggressive state of mind,” Nurse said. “I think he’s got that where it needs to be. … I just see him where he’s tweaking plays a little bit that maybe we were calling for him and he puts someone else in there. Again, just to get VJ (Edgecombe) going, to get Kelly a bucket, to get Paul one. I think that’s growth for him for sure.”

Joel Embiid 

No formal question here because the truth remains that asking whether Embiid will play on a given night sometimes leads down strange paths. The Sixers’ Friday morning injury report listed Embiid as doubtful against Minnesota because of the illness that caused him to miss Wednesday’s win.

It is clear that Embiid always wants to play and has generally looked like an All-Star again this season when available. 

He’s dealt with an absurd amount of health misfortune in past postseasons. Stringing together some strong games before the playoffs would be nice for Embiid, but the Sixers will be happy with any route that involves him being (and staying) healthy in the postseason. The team is obviously much better when Embiid takes most of the center minutes as opposed to the alternative world of Adem Bona, Andre Drummond and small-ball options. 

North Carolina needed a basketball coach, and it set its sights on one in the Final Four.

Its top target had a good job. A darn good one, and one newspaper columnist felt adamant Roy Williams wouldn’t leave Kansas, even if his alma mater tried to call him home to Carolina. Williams already turned down UNC once before, a few years previously.

No way Roy’s going to Carolina.

So read the headline of Joe Posnanski’s column in the Kansas City Star on April 2, 2003. Two weeks later, Posnanski wrote another column about how he got it all wrong. He trusted a coach to have loyalty. Whoops, rookie mistake.

If we’ve learned one thing in the more than two decades since then, it’s to never say never when it comes to these situations, and that a coach’s loyalty is the underdog when matched up against his ego.

Now here we are at another Final Four, and UNC’s hiring, and it’s déjà vu, with stay-or-go questions hovering over the coaches of the two favored teams in Indianapolis.

Tommy Lloyd fuels speculation about UNC job

This time, nobody’s writing there’s “no way” Tommy Lloyd would leave Arizona for UNC. That doesn’t mean Lloyd will definitely bolt, but even he’s not saying he won’t. Lloyd himself fed into speculation he’s a prime option for UNC when he said, “Arizona’s going to have another good coach after me, I promise you.” And, when will Arizona need to hire its next coach? Will that be next week? Next year? Ten years from now?

No telling. At least, Lloyd’s not telling, other than to say he’s “present in the moment” and that neither he nor his players are distracted by UNC speculation.

He’s probably right about his players, anyway.

Arizona’s Brayden Burries, Koa Peat and Motiejus Krivas are projected first-round NBA Draft picks. Wildcats point guard Jaden Bradley is a senior. They’re out the door after this Final Four, regardless of Lloyd’s decision. A fifth starter, Ivan Kharchenkov, might return for another college season, but thanks to the transfer portal, he could follow his coach if Lloyd decided to leave. No stress. No fuss. No distraction.

Twenty-three years ago, KU star Wayne Simien expressed open frustration when Williams jilted the Jayhawks for North Carolina. Now, athletes better understand it’s not personal, it’s just business, because players field interest from other high-paying suitors, too, and face business decisions of their own.

Is Dusty May more of a 'Michigan man' than Bill Frieder?

While we’re on the subject of déjà vu, here’s Michigan with a team that can win it all, but will coach Dusty May prove himself a “Michigan man” or a renegade?

If UNC would like to have Lloyd, then it should love to have May. He’s now a veteran of Final Fours, having led Florida Atlantic there in 2023.

Toppmeyer: Dusty May so good, you almost forget Sherrone Moore — now, UNC needs him

Perhaps, Michigan can breathe slightly easier than Arizona's administration, because at least May isn’t talking about how great Michigan’s next coach is going to be.

Even if May wouldn’t leave Michigan for UNC, the Tar Heels could cause a domino effect that results in May leaving Michigan. Just as the Wolverines lost John Beilein to the Cleveland Cavaliers, May has the goods of a future NBA coach. And if UNC hires Billy Donovan, well, then the Chicago Bulls will need a coach, won’t they?

Michigan knows what it’s like for a coach to spurn it. When Bill Frieder accepted the Arizona State job ahead of the 1989 NCAA Tournament, Bo Schembechler promptly booted Frieder and promoted Steve Fisher, explaining his decision with the now-famous line that, “A Michigan man is going to coach Michigan.”

The lesson Frieder provided: If you’re leaving for another job, maybe don’t tell anyone until the NCAA Tournament is finished.

Worked out great for Michigan. Fisher led the Wolverines to a national championship.

Never mind a Michigan man. The Wolverines would do well to keep their Indiana man. May got his start as a student manager under Bob Knight, but Frieder proved a coach’s alma mater doesn’t mean everything to everyone, even if Mama lured Williams home in 2003.

“I was a Tar Heel born. When I die, I'll be a Tar Heel dead,” Williams said after he took the UNC job.

In between, he became a turncoat at Kansas.

We learned then that when North Carolina wants to hire a Final Four coach, it’s naïve to think, “no way.”

Blake Toppmeyer is a columnist for the USA TODAY Network. Email him at BToppmeyer@gannett.com and follow him on X @btoppmeyer.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Tommy Lloyd, Dusty May would be great for UNC — if they pull a Roy Williams

ULAANBAATAR, Mongolia (AP) — Olympic gold medalist Lin Yu-ting won her quarterfinal bout at the Asian boxing championships on Friday in her first event since World Boxing said she passed a gene test to confirm her gender.

Taiwan’s first Olympic boxing champion beat Thananya Somnuek of Thailand 5-0 in the first round in the 60-kilogram lightweight division earlier this week.

She backed that up Friday with another 5-0 win over Ayaka Taguchi of Japan, the top-seeded woman in the division. Lin won every round on all five judges’ scorecards, securing a perfect score of 10 in each round.

The 30-year-old Lin had not competed internationally since winning the women’s 57-kg featherweight title at the Paris Olympics in August 2024.

World Boxing took over as the sport’s Olympic-level governing body last year, and it implemented a sex eligibility policy in August requiring all fighters to take a one-time genetic test designed to identify the presence of a Y chromosome.

World Boxing didn't confirm Lin's eligibility until March 19.

It was not clear whether Lin will have to undergo further gene testing if she wants to compete again at the Olympics. The International Olympic Committee announced last week new rules banning transgender athletes and a mandatory gene test once in an athlete’s career.

Lin and Imane Khelif of Algeria won gold medals at Paris amid international scrutiny and misconceptions over both boxers’ sex. While both met the eligibility rules followed at the time by the IOC, which ran the Paris tournament, the two fighters’ success sparked a politically charged debate over those standards.

Lin is expected to fight in the Asian tournament semifinals on Monday.

___

AP boxing: https://apnews.com/boxing

Luka Doncic injures left hamstring in Lakers' blowout loss to Thunder originally appeared on NBC Sports Philadelphia

Los Angeles Lakers guard Luka Doncic injured his left hamstring on Thursday night and coach JJ Redick said the league’s scoring leader will have an MRI on Friday.

Redick said Doncic had an issue with the hamstring in the first half of the 139-97 loss to the Oklahoma City Thunder and was tended to at the break.

“We checked him out, he got work done, he was cleared,” Redick said.

Doncic returned to action briefly. On his final play of the game, he spun before trying to go up for a shot against Oklahoma City’s Jalen Williams. There was no contact before Doncic stopped, then lay down on the floor while wincing in pain. He left the game for good with 7:39 remaining in the third quarter.

“Those things happen,” Redick said.

Williams, an All-Star in 2025, has missed 27 games this season because of a right hamstring strain. He felt badly for Doncic.

“It’s very, like, spooky in a way to see it happen to him, and I’m the one guarding him,” Williams said.

Williams could have stolen the ball after Doncic let it go, but he chose not to take advantage of the situation.

“I tried to let it go out of bounds and give them time to figure it out,” Williams said. “That injury sucks. So I wish him a speedy recovery. Hope it’s not anything serious.”

Doncic had scored at least 40 points in five of his previous seven games. He was held to 12 on 3-for-10 shooting against Oklahoma City’s relentless defense.

The Lakers trailed 90-58 when Doncic was hurt, so the injury made a bad night worse.

“I mean, it’s something you never want to see as a teammate,” Lakers forward Jake LaRavia said. “So especially in a game like this, it was tough to see him go down. All the prayers for him … but yeah, you never want to see that.”

Lakers guard Austin Reaves hurt his back during the game, but continued to play. He sat out the fourth quarter with the game out of reach.

“He was in a weird position, stretching for a basketball, loose ball,” Redick said. “And he just felt something intercostal, somewhere in his back, in between the ribs. He was able to play through it … we’ll see how he feels tomorrow.”

The Lakers will host a rematch with the Thunder on April 7.

Luka Doncic injures left hamstring in Lakers' blowout loss to Thunder originally appeared on NBC Sports Boston

Los Angeles Lakers guard Luka Doncic injured his left hamstring on Thursday night and coach JJ Redick said the league’s scoring leader will have an MRI on Friday.

Redick said Doncic had an issue with the hamstring in the first half of the 139-97 loss to the Oklahoma City Thunder and was tended to at the break.

“We checked him out, he got work done, he was cleared,” Redick said.

Doncic returned to action briefly. On his final play of the game, he spun before trying to go up for a shot against Oklahoma City’s Jalen Williams. There was no contact before Doncic stopped, then lay down on the floor while wincing in pain. He left the game for good with 7:39 remaining in the third quarter.

“Those things happen,” Redick said.

Williams, an All-Star in 2025, has missed 27 games this season because of a right hamstring strain. He felt badly for Doncic.

“It’s very, like, spooky in a way to see it happen to him, and I’m the one guarding him,” Williams said.

Williams could have stolen the ball after Doncic let it go, but he chose not to take advantage of the situation.

“I tried to let it go out of bounds and give them time to figure it out,” Williams said. “That injury sucks. So I wish him a speedy recovery. Hope it’s not anything serious.”

Doncic had scored at least 40 points in five of his previous seven games. He was held to 12 on 3-for-10 shooting against Oklahoma City’s relentless defense.

The Lakers trailed 90-58 when Doncic was hurt, so the injury made a bad night worse.

“I mean, it’s something you never want to see as a teammate,” Lakers forward Jake LaRavia said. “So especially in a game like this, it was tough to see him go down. All the prayers for him … but yeah, you never want to see that.”

Lakers guard Austin Reaves hurt his back during the game, but continued to play. He sat out the fourth quarter with the game out of reach.

“He was in a weird position, stretching for a basketball, loose ball,” Redick said. “And he just felt something intercostal, somewhere in his back, in between the ribs. He was able to play through it … we’ll see how he feels tomorrow.”

The Lakers will host a rematch with the Thunder on April 7.

Five 2026 NBA Draft prospects Warriors should watch this weekend in Final Four originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area

When Steve Kerr rolled up to the Sweet 16 at SAP Center in San Jose to see his Arizona Wildcats play the Arkansas Razorbacks, the Warriors coach later admitted he naturally had a scout’s eye observing his school’s blowout win. 

“Just a little bit. Mike was there, that’s obviously his job,” Kerr said the next day, referencing Warriors general manager Mike Dunleavy also being in attendance. “But yeah, when I watch college games, I always try to envision what a guy would look like on an NBA court.” 

Kerr can keep enjoying Arizona’s success, and keep envisioning what their top prospects would look like in the NBA, specifically in a Warriors jersey. Arizona, Michigan, Illinois and UConn represent this year’s Final Four, with both games being played Saturday to determine which teams will square off in the national championship. 

Several prospects are looking to showcase their skills on the biggest stage. The Warriors currently are slotted into the No. 11 pick in the 2026 NBA Draft ahead of the lottery on May 10. As the regular season winds down and the offseason starts becoming a main priority, here are five prospects from the Final Four the Warriors should be watching with a late lottery pick, choosing just outside of the top 14 or moving up from the ping-pong balls bouncing in their favor.

Yaxel Lendeborg, Michigan, F

The biggest knock against Lendeborg would be a big positive for the Warriors and help him fall in their laps. He’s an older prospect who’s already 23 years old and will be 24 before he ever plays an NBA game. To put that into perspective, Moses Moody is in his fifth NBA season and is just four months older than Lendeborg. 

Most lottery picks need seasoning and ample time to develop. That’s a problem the Warriors have run into in the past and can avoid with Lendeborg being a pro-ready prospect. Lendeborg spent three years in junior college, two at UAB — where he twice led the American Athletic Conference in rebounds and ranked in the top five nationally both years — and capped his college career by collecting every award imaginable at Michigan. 

Lendeborg can do a bit of everything, averaging 15.2 points, 7.0 rebounds and 3.3 assists per game in a season when he’s shooting a career-best 37.2 percent from 3-point range. He’s shooting from deep more than ever and has plenty of defensive accolades to his name. Standing 6-foot-9 with a massive 7-foot-4 wingspan, Lendeborg has the versatility and feel for the game that can make him an immediate fit on the Warriors. 

Hard to overstate Yaxel Lendeborg’s impact in an absolute shellacking of Tennessee.

27 points, 7 rebounds, 4 assists, 2 blocks, 1 steal, 0 turnovers in a 30+ point Elite Eight win.

Imposes his will on both ends while playing within his means, bringing competitive fire, and… https://t.co/2qqtXpcOrqpic.twitter.com/J9075GSVUB

— Jon Chepkevich (@JonChep) March 29, 2026

Braylon Mullins, UConn, SG

Making one of the most remarkable clutch shots ever in the history of a storied school isn’t why the Warriors should have their eyes on Mullins. But it doesn’t hurt. 

Mullins’ game-winning 3-pointer to beat Duke and propel his team into the Final Four wasn’t a heave from 40 feet. It was shot confidently, fluidly and in motion. Luck might have been sprinkled in for the moment, though Mullins’ shot profile is awfully intriguing. So is his confidence in taking the shot when he had missed all four of his 3-point attempts previously against Duke in the Elite Eight. 

OH MY GOODNESS 😱

UCONN LEADSSSS UNBELIEVABLE #MarchMadnesspic.twitter.com/IPX2JWiw0b

— NCAA March Madness (@MarchMadnessMBB) March 29, 2026

He passes the eye test, and it’s easy to see how Mullins would fit the Warriors’ as an off-ball shooting threat. Mullins, who turns 20 years old on April 18, is 6-foot-6 and can let it fly for someone shooting just 32.8 percent beyond the arc. That number doesn’t tell the full story. 

From Dec. 1 through Feb. 25, Mullins had a 39.4 3-point percentage on 6.5 attempts per game in 21 total games. In his last nine games, however, Mullins has made just 19 percent of his threes. Trust the former more than the latter when it comes to Mullins’ ability to be a shooting weapon at the next level. 

Brayden Burries, G, Arizona

Without it being an official job interview of sorts, Burries certainly made a strong first impression in front of Kerr. The freshman combo guard led Kerr’s alma mater to the Elite Eight with a team-high 23 points on efficient shooting. Burries went 7 of 11 from the field, including 2 of 4 from 3-point range, and was 7 of 8 on free throws. 

He’s been great throughout March Madness, averaging 17.8 points while going 22 of 38 overall (57.9 percent) and 13 of 19 on threes (68.4 percent). Burries also is averaging 6.3 rebounds, with at least five rebounds in Arizona’s four tournament games so far. 

Brayden Burries was impressive in Arizona's Sweet 16 win over Arkansas.

Burries finished with 23 points on 7-11 shooting in the blowout win. pic.twitter.com/HySOwxcP8g

— B/R Hoops (@brhoops) March 27, 2026

Burries is very strong at 6-foot-4 and 205 pounds. In his one year at Arizona, Burries has shown how he can impact the game on both sides. This season, he has led the team in both points per game (16.1) and steals per game (1.5), and also ranks third in assists per game (2.5), fourth in rebounds per game (4.9) and third in 3-point percentage (40.2 percent). 

Koa Peat, PF, Arizona

Highlighting two prospects from Kerr’s school was an obvious decision. Peat’s possible fit on the Warriors and in the NBA isn’t as much of a sure thing. 

Like Burries, Peat impressed in front of Kerr. Peat scored 21 points on 8-of-11 shooting. All eight made shots were inside the arc, as were all 11 of his total shot attempts. There’s a forcefield around the 3-point line for Peat. He has taken 361 shots this season, and 19 have been threes.

Peat is strong and has good size at 6-foot-8 and 235 pounds. He’s a fluid athlete but not super explosive. There’s a lot to like about Peat, but his limitations could see him slide. 

Keaton Wagler, G, Illinois

Wagler puts @IlliniMBB back out front 😮‍💨#MarchMadnesspic.twitter.com/64kqcQ5x7d

— NCAA March Madness (@MarchMadnessMBB) March 28, 2026

Of these five prospects, Wagler seems the least likely to slide down to the Warriors if they’re picking at No. 10, 11 or even lower. Is he someone the Warriors would consider if they jump into the top four? Probably not, but maybe, just maybe. 

There’s just a lot to like about Wagler if you value feel for the game being clear as day. Wagler is a 6-foot-6 combo guard who doesn’t throw down dunks and isn’t an elite athlete. Watching him should answer any of those concerns. Wagler is averaging 17.9 points, 5.0 rebounds and 4.3 assists per game with a 40.7 3-point percentage. 

Where Wagler winds up in the draft will be one of the more interesting storylines. It would take some good luck for him to still be on the board for the Warriors. Teams will be mixed on his upside, and Golden State should be a team that easily sees the vision, though Wagler could require some patience as he physically develops. 

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No Wemby, no problem. The Spurs won their third game in four nights and 11th straight Thursday night in an up and down game against the Clippers, keeping the #1 seed within reach while giving the Alien a night off.

It was a high-scoring game from the tip. Kawhi continued his magnificent season and scored a handful of baskets from all over the court. John Collins got in the action too, using his athleticism to drive and finish around the rim without having to worry about Wemby. Still, Luke Kornet was his usual reliable self, providing solid rim protection on the back line.

Offensively, the Spurs capitalized on lazy defensive efforts from the home team. San Antonio had two uncontested transition baskets early, swinging the momentum their way. They then caught fire from deep, making four in quick succession to build a double-digit lead. De’Aaron Fox, in particular, got on a heater, hitting a handful of mid-ranges and getting to the rim at will. That run coincided with the Clippers going ice cold, and it didn’t help that Darius Garland had to go to the locker room after taking a rough fall. Overall, the Spurs led 68-44 heading into halftime, showing no signs of fatigue or of Wemby’s absence.

LA showed signs of life early in the third. Kawhi regained his rhythm and made back-to-back buckets, forcing Mitch Johnson to call a timeout. The Spurs began trapping him soon after, but the Clippers started generating efficient offense even with the ball out of his hands. In a turn of events, LA capitalized on a number of sloppy Spurs possessions in a quick 3-minute stretch, going on a 14-5 run to cut the lead down to 12. Bennedict Mathurin led the charge, hitting a circus shot and helping force turnovers to bring his team back in the game. Following another sloppy Spurs possession, the Clippers made it just a 9-point game before both teams traded wild possessions that resulted in no basket scored for the remainder of the quarter.

LA’s momentum carried over to start the fourth. San Antonio continued to fumble the ball, resulting in the Clippers cutting the lead down to just seven. Fortunately, a technical call against LA helped the Spurs regain control, and a few key baskets from Stephon Castle put the good guys back up by double digits. The Clippers seemed to deflate afterwards, and a few more buckets from Dylan Harper and Keldon Johnson sealed the game for the visiting side. With minutes left in the fourth, Ty Lue finally waved the white flag and brought in his reserves, prompting Mitch Johnson to do the same. The Spurs walked away with a 118-99 victory, but the scoreline doesn’t do justice to the crazy back-and-forth game.

Game notes

• Fox had a really unusual game. 18 of his 22 points came in the first half, and he only made one bucket in both the third and fourth quarters. This wasn’t due to his shot abandoning him, either: Fox only took 13 field goals and made 9, so both he and the Spurs chose to rely on other players who were more in rhythm.
• Harper ended his night with 19 points, 2 rebounds, and 5 assists on 8-12 shooting and 2-3 from deep. He did all that in 25 minutes, and I can not be any higher on the kid. I think he’s already a starting-calibre guard and could be the second-best player on the team as soon as next season, and I’ve never been more comfortable with the ball being in the hands of a rookie guard ever.
• The diciest part of the game was during a 3-minute stretch in the middle of the third quarter, when the Spurs kept on losing the ball. Even in the moment, I wondered why Mitch didn’t call a timeout to regroup the guys, and I’m still confused about it after. Maybe he had faith that they’d figure it out? He was finally forced to call one but it was almost too little too late, and the team was definitely tempting fate during that brief stretch.

Play of the game

Harper shot over 50% from three in March and is now hitting half-court heaves. Is he the next Steph Curry?

DYLAN BEATS THE BUZZER FROM HALF COURT 🚨🤯 pic.twitter.com/5T8ISsli6D

— San Antonio Spurs – x (@spurs) April 3, 2026

Next game: @ Nuggets on Saturday

The Spurs will look to make it a lucky dozen when they face a rising Nuggets team on Saturday.

The biggest gut punch from Thursday’s loss to the Thunder was Luka Dončić‘s hamstring strain, but he wasn’t the only star with a visible injury in the game.

Prior to Luka going down, Austin Reaves was the one who made a trip to the locker room. Reaves was holding his back for much of the first quarter before checking out and getting checked.

While he did return, he was still holding his back at times during the rest of the game, though it never seemed to slow him down. After the game, head coach JJ Redick provided an explanation of how the injury occurred.

“He was in a weird position stretching for a basketball, loose ball,” Redick said. “He just felt like like intercostal, somewhere in his back in between the ribs. He was able to play through it and battled back. We’ll see how he feels tomorrow.”

Austin said he got treatment at halftime that allowed him to play in the second half. He also said that he felt better postgame, too.

“I went back to get a rebound, overextended a little bit and felt something,” Reaves said. “I feel decent now. We’ll see.”

The extra day off between games for the Lakers could be beneficial for Reaves. While it seems unlikely Luka’s injury will be measured in days, this one feels like that extra day could be beneficial.

The Lakers won’t play again until Sunday in Dallas. Having an extra day to rehab and get treatment could be the difference in him playing or not. The fact that he was able to play after the injury and play well, relatively speaking, is also encouraging for him being available against the Mavs.

It goes without saying that, with Luka sidelined, Austin’s availability will be even more crucial. He has flourished when Luka has been out this year, so there’s at least some room for optimism there. But only if he’s healthy.

In just about every way, Thursday’s loss was a gut punch. At least with Reaves’ injury, there’s a silver lining of hope that he won’t also be missing time.

You can follow Jacob on Twitter at @JacobRude or on Bluesky at @jacobrude.bsky.social.

The Oklahoma City Thunder condemned the Los Angeles Lakers to one of the heaviest defeats in their history - one made more painful by an injury to star Luka Doncic.

Reigning NBA champions Thunder claimed a commanding 139-96 victory, helped by 28 points from Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, as they improved their league-best record to 61-16.

The Lakers have only been beaten by a greater margin on six occasions, with this 43-point loss just six points short of their worst margin of defeat against the Dallas Mavericks in 2017.

It was a first defeat in five for the Lakers, who must now wait to learn the severity of Doncic's left hamstring injury after the Slovenian appeared emotional as he exited the court during the third quarter.

Doncic, who had scored 40 or more points in each of his previous three games and five of his past seven, will have an MRI scan on Friday, Lakers coach JJ Redick confirmed.

The Lakers had won 13 of their previous 14 games as they seek to hold on to the third seeding in the Western Conference, behind Thunder and the San Antonio Spurs, before the play-offs begin on 18 April.

Gilgeous-Alexander, the reigning Most Valuable Player, finished with 28 points, seven rebounds and seven assists, while Isaiah Joe added 20 points for the Thunder.

Austin Reaves led the Lakers with 15 points despite struggling with back pain, and LeBron James added 13 in 26 minutes.

Thunder's 139 points were the most conceded by the Lakers this season and the 43-point defeat was the team's heaviest since a 44-point loss to Philadelphia in November 2023.

The Cleveland Cavaliers overcame a heavy turnover game to win on the road against the Golden State Warriors.

All grades are based on our usual expectations for each player.

Donovan Mitchell

25 points, 6 assists, 3 rebounds, 2 steals, 1 block, 5 turnovers

This was a weird game from Mitchell. He attempted some truly audacious shots in the first half, including the one below.

No bc how did that go in?@spidadmitchell | #LetEmKnowpic.twitter.com/FaueaKQ4Sy

— Cleveland Cavaliers (@cavs) April 3, 2026

Yet, as much as I want to bemoan the quality of attempts like this, I can’t deny that Mitchell was scoring efficiently. I can’t say I love the process. But for tonight, I’ll live with the results.

Turnovers were an issue for Mitchell. Though each unforced error seemed to fuel his frustrations and make him more engaged defensively. As I said, this was a contradictory game.

Grade: B-

James Harden

19 points, 5 assists, 2 rebounds, 4 turnovers

Harden’s defense has been as bad as advertised. It’s not fun watching him get backdoor cuts for easy layups. It is, however, fun to watch him throw lobs. The duality of man.

The Cavs closed this game behind two plays from Harden. First, he drew a double team and dished to Max Strus for a huge three-pointer. Then, he danced one-on-one for a tough floater in the lane to extend the lead to six with 21 seconds remaining. That will help your grade.

Grade: B

Evan Mobley

12 points, 10 rebounds, 5 assists, 1 steal

Mobley has historically struggled against Kristaps Porzingis. With this in mind, he certainly handled that individual matchup better than in the past. Mobley didn’t appear as bothered by KP’s length and was able to help contain him on the other end.

Zooming out, Mobley lost this matchup in the non-Porzingis minutes. That was his opportunity to make his presence felt. Instead, Mobley lacked the aggression he had in March. Let’s hope he finds that again soon.

Grade: C+

Jarrett Allen

16 points, 13 rebounds, 1 steal

Allen is still clearly working through some pain in his knee. He hasn’t been as explosive with the ball. Though, he’s still converting most of his looks at the rim and playing a key role as Cleveland’s defensive anchor.

Gotta hit more than half of your free throws, Fro. He shot 6-12 from the line tonight.

Grade: B+

Sam Merrill

13 points, 2 rebounds, 1 assist, 2 steals

We’ve seen a few games like this from Sam recently. He couldn’t find his rhythm from downtown, but he made up for it by getting downhill and creating plays off his gravity. Still, we’d like to see Sam get free for a big scoring night. He’s not out there to pass the ball.

Grade: C–

Max Strus

24 points, 2 assists, 5 rebounds

The Cavs lose this game without Strus Point, blank, period.

It wasn’t just his pair of triples in the clutch, but also his activity away from the ball. Strus helped the Cavs secure numerous rebounds with timely box outs — and he even forced a tough turnover on the Warriors by pressuring the ball on a defensive board.

Grade: A+

Keon Ellis

4 points, 3 rebounds, 2 assists, 1 steal

I’m sobering up to the Ellis experience on defense. He isn’t as sound a defender as the blocks and steals would make you think. His game has some rough edges in terms of suppressing shot attempts and making the correct rotations.

That said, he’s given me the exact opposite impression on offense. Ellis has broken out of a box and become more than a traditional catch-and-shoot player. I’ve enjoyed watching him cut to the basket and play from the middle of the floor. He had two nice dunks tonight off of cuts.

Grade: D

Dennis Schroder

12 points, 6 assists, 2 rebounds, 1 steal, 2 turnovers

Schroder nearly threw this game off the rails in the fourth quarter with a flagrant foul followed by a tech for complaining to the officials. Yes, he was being grabbed — but that was a bad time to get on the referee’s bad side.

He saves his grade by scoring efficiently tonight. Schroder shot 4-7 from the floor and 3-3 from the free throw line. That’s a big boost in a game where the Cavs struggled to score consistently.

Grade: B-

Thomas Bryant

3 points, 3 rebounds

The last few games haven’t been kind to Bryant. His impact is slipping as the season goes on. This wasn’t his best effort.

Grade: D

INGLEWOOD, Calif. (AP) — De'Aaron Fox scored 22 points on 9-of-13 shooting, and the San Antonio Spurs beat the Los Angeles Clippers 118-99 on Thursday night without Victor Wembanyama in the lineup to win their 11th in a row.

Wembanyama was rested on the second night of a back-to-back. He had 41 points and 18 rebounds in a 127-113 win at the Golden State Warriors on Wednesday.

The Spurs had six players in double figures, including Stephon Castle with 20 points and Dylan Harper with 19 off the bench.

San Antonio kept alive its hopes of catching Oklahoma City for the top spot in the West. The Spurs improved to 27-2 since Feb. 1 and 11-5 when Wembanyama doesn't play.

Kawhi Leonard scored 24 points to lead the Clippers with his 53rd consecutive game of 20 or more points. Bennedict Mathurin added 18 points off the bench and John Collins had 15. The loss dropped them to the ninth spot for the play-in tournament with their second straight loss after winning five in a row. Portland moved into eighth after a 118-106 win.

The Spurs led by 26 points in the first half. They shot 72% from the floor early in the second quarter, opening with an 11-2 run and hitting 20 of their first 28 shots.

The Clippers rallied in the third when they outscored the Spurs 34-19. Mathurin had 10 points and Leonard eight as the Clippers closed with a 14-4 run to trail 87-78 going into the fourth.

But the Spurs quickly regained the momentum. Castle scored eight of their 10 points in extending the lead to 99-84.

Up next

Spurs: Visit Denver on Saturday in final road game of regular season.

Clippers: Visit Sacramento on Sunday.

___

AP NBA: https://apnews.com/nba

The Cleveland Cavaliers pulled out a win against the Golden State Warriors. Let’s go over today’s winners and losers.

WINNER AND LOSER – Defense

On one hand, the Cavs played to their strengths by packing the paint and daring Golden State to shoot from downtown. The math worked in Cleveland’s favor as the Warriors shot just 12-44 from downtown. That’s a win for the Cavs.

Nonetheless, am I greedy for thinking the Cavs’ defense could have been even better? They blew a handful of possessions by simply falling asleep at the wheel.

Let’s take a look at a few examples.

This first clip is a prime example of ball watching. If any of Cleveland’s guards made an active effort to attack the glass, they might have secured this defensive stop.

What are the guards doing on the boards here? pic.twitter.com/bdKTMrsfqK

— RealCavsFans.com (@realcavsfans) April 3, 2026

Next, we see the Cavs… just completely ignore Gary Payton II in the corner.

lol pic.twitter.com/TJ3Sg8IoBX

— RealCavsFans.com (@realcavsfans) April 3, 2026

Don’t get me wrong, I understand why you’d leave a non-shooting threat open. But, is it really smart to not even make the Dubs work for it? I’m not sure it’s wise to leave anyone this available on an inbounds play. Payton misses the shot, but my point remains.

Finally, here’s a clip of James Harden being backdoor cut for a layup. This happened a handful of times tonight.

Cavs timeout and an unhappy Kenny Atkinson. pic.twitter.com/74JkjSYUKR

— RealCavsFans.com (@realcavsfans) April 3, 2026

The Cavs didn’t need to have razor-sharp focus to beat the Warriors in April. But they will need to be more dialed in later this month. This was another missed opportunity to build healthier habits defensively — even if the result was a win.

(Honorable WINNER mention for RealCavsFans. Thanks for the clips.)

LOSER – Turnovers

Unforced errors were the name of the game. The Cavs let a few mental lapses stop them from having a truly dominant night on defense. The same can be said for their sputtering offense.

Cleveland had double-digit turnovers going into halftime. But it wasn’t just the frequency at which they turned it over; it was how they threw the ball away.

There’s nothing more damaging than carelessly throwing the ball to your opponent. Granting the enemy a full head of steam going the other way with a numbers advantage is how you lose control of games. The Cavs flirted with this outcome throughout the first half, dangerously giving the Warriors plenty of opportunities to score in transition.

Golden State outscored the Cavs 23-8 in points off turnovers. A 15-point swing in one category is big in a game that came down to the wire.

The Dubs deserve some credit. Draymond Green, in particular, did a fantastic job guarding the pick-and-roll and was responsible for blowing up numerous actions. The Cavs’ ball-handlers had a difficult time getting comfortable against a pesky Warriors backcourt, too.

Things eventually normalized as Cleveland regained control in the second half. Still, it was a bit frustrating to see the Cavs spin their wheels for minutes at a time. This offense is too potent to get stuck in the mud. A single Cavalanche would have made this game feel much more digestible.

LOSER – That near collapse

The Cavs picked up a flagrant foul and two technicals in a span of 30 seconds. Toss in a few turnovers, and I can only describe this moment with one gif:

pic.twitter.com/XT82M9Jr8G

— Tony Pesta (@Tony_Pesta) April 3, 2026

Thankfully, things didn’t go as badly as they could have. The Cavs pulled themselves back together just in time for a great finish.

WINNER – Max Strus

This was shaping up to be a bummer of a game. Turnovers and defensive errors were going to result in a frustrating loss.

Then Max Strus happened.

Strus poured on 24 points on 6-10 three-point shooting, multiple coming in the crunch time of the fourth quarter. His off-ball activity made it so the Cavs always had a release valve — and his pairing with James Harden is seamless. Any time the Warriors overloaded on Harden, Strus made them pay.

On defense, he ramped up the intensity by being aggressive on box-outs and getting into his opponent’s chest. All of the tone-setting things you’d expect from a winner like Max.

“Big Shot Max,” said Kenny Atkinson after the game. “It’s just certain guys whose DNA is made, make or miss, it’s either a big shot or a big offensive rebound. That’s why, now that I know him better, it’s like we need him at the end of the game.”

The Cavs know what they have in Strus. That’s why he’s already back in the starting lineup and playing 28 minutes just a few games after returning from injury. This is a guy who can help you win on the margins, as he did tonight.

Stephon Castle’s heady leadership and playmaking, interspersed with highlight plays from De’Aaron Fox, Keldon Johnson, and Dylan Harper, turbocharged a decisive 21-5 ambush in the fourth quarter to thwart a Clippers comeback. Without the services of MVP and DPOY candidate Victor Wembanyama, San Antonio (59-18) weathered a good first half by Kawhi Leonard to hold the rest of the Clippers to a total of 31 points, and clinched their fifth winningest regular season – tied with the 2004-2005 edition.

San Antonio’s Fox (22 points, 8 rebounds, and 5 assists) saw to it that Wembanyama would not be missed tonight in the road win. Stephon Castle (20 points, 5 assists, and 4 rebounds), Devin Vassell (14 points and 10 rebounds[!]), and Julian Champagnie (13 points, 8 rebounds, and 4 assists) ensured perimeter domination, while Harper (19 points and 5 assists) and Johnson (13 points and 6 rebounds) excelled yet again off the bench. The only pockmark on an otherwise excellent effort for the Spurs was giving up a handful of careless turnovers, by their standards, which resulted in over a dozen LA points at the other end.

Leonard (24 points, 6 rebounds, and 5 assists), as he has since the James Harden trade, single-handedly kept the Clippers in the game for most of the first three quarters. John Collins (15 points and 6 rebounds) and Darius Garland (11 points) supplied secondary offense, while Benedict Mathurin (18 points and 6 rebounds) came on strong in the second half.

A brisk and evenly-played first quarter featured San Antonio’s Castle and Vassell scoring fluidly while the Clippers’ Leonard built quickly on his first make to amass 11 early points. The referees allowed a good amount of physical contact as a handful of no-calls occurred for both sides. Harper and Fox carried the production later in the period to help San Antonio catch and surpass LA, and Harrison Barnes 100% rewarded Fox’s kickout with a quarter-ending three to make it 33-25.

San Antonio continued its recent trend of building 20-point leads through Fox’s supreme quickness and their defense locking down any Clippers attempts around the paint. The Spurs assisted on most of their second period baskets, and after a soaring tip finish from Carter Bryant, led by 22. More importantly, San Antonio was able to keep Leonard from going further off. Harper’s desperation heave put the Spurs up 24.

San Antonio was stung by an older foe than the Clippers – the third quarter bug – as Leonard kickstarted an LA run to slice the large lead in half. LA put forth a far tougher defensive effort to halt the Spurs’ momentum. Coach Johnson ran out an undersized lineup late in the frame featuring Harrison Barnes at the 5, and a Leonard Miller lay-up brought the Clippers concerningly within 12. Mathurin’s and-1 shaved the deficit to single digits. Two pairs of Kornet free throws spanning the third and fourth periods – amidst a sea of Spurs’ missed outside shots – prevented further calamity from happening and they were fortunate to go to the fourth up nine.

Observations

• ‘Stop Hacking Me!’ Sequence of the Game: After drawing a foul on Kris Dunn late in the third period, Harper backed Dunn down deep into the paint and toss a feather over his head and earned an and-1 to make it 83-64.
• Unofficially, this might be the best all-time Spurs roster ever at shooting from all points straightaway from the basket… Castle, Fox, Harper, Wembanyama…
• In the event of a first-round match-up with the Clippers, the best on-ball defenders for Leonard: 1) Castle, 2) Champagnie, and 3) Bryant and Barnes (12 fouls baby!).
• Castle keeps on getting unfairly hacked in the act of shooting, but denied free throw attempts that would typically go to more seasoned wingmen like Kyrie Irving or Steph Curry.
• Fun with numbers: Halftime score last night against GSW 70-49 / Score with 10:00 left in the third against LAC 70-49.
• OKC 127 Lakers 82 *statementgame
• Sequence of the Game #1: Early in the second period, Fox lived up to his nickname and ‘swipa’-ed it from an unsuspecting Dunn to get himself a transition slam.
• Sequence of the Game #2: Partway through the second quarter, ‘Beautiful Ball’ ensued one possession after Vassesll swished a catch-and-shoot three. The ball ping-ponged in a triangle formation from Castle (left wing) to Kornet (center) to Vassell (straightaway) for a triple.
• Sequence of the Game #3: Take it away Jacob Tobey: “Dylan Harper puts it up… AND HE PUT IT DOWN AT THE HALFTIME BUZZER! THE YOUNG KID CAN DO ANYTHING!” Harper’s 41-foot buzzer beater caused Wembanyama to put his hands over his head incredulously.

Game Rundown

From the tip, Lopez swished a Pop-a-shot from 16 feet and followed it with another from the baseline. Castle patiently ran the Chris Paul high-pick-and-roll perfectly for a jumper, and fed Kornet for a Passenger 57 lob. Leonard’s first two midrange jumpers kept LA right at San Antonio’s heels; Castle went right back at him to do a Kawhi-like fadeaway. The Clippers followed Leonard’s lead to grab a 3-point advantage. Harper was at his slithery best as he willed his way to the rim and guided balls funkily into teammate’s hands. Fox’s kickout to Barnes for a wing triple helped the Spurs exit the quarter up eight.

Harper guided Lopez deep into the paint and hit a smooth stepback jumper, and Champagnie followed with a triple. Then Fox’s steal and score off Dunn and subsequent floater over the same guy ended a 9-0 run to start the second. Lopez’s awkward flailing tip started the scoring again for LA. Kornet stoutly defended the interior in those opening four minutes. San Antonio glided past the 50 point mark with over seven minutes left. The Spurs defended so well that Leonard tried to bait the officials into a call on Fox by throwing his arms out Harden-style (no call!). The Spurs soared into the half ahead 68-44.

Leonard continued his stellar shooting – outscoring the Spurs 8-5 to the start the third. Champagnie impressively muscled home a banker and followed it with a putback to keep the lead safely in double digits. San Antonio threw a few traps at Leonard to force it out of his hands. Johnson drew Lopez’s fourth foul halfway through the frame, and then bullied his way deep in the paint to score over both Lopez and Leonard. From there the well went completely dry for the Spurs, and the Clippers pieced together an impressive 34-19 third quarter.

---

For the Clippers fan’s perspective, please visit Clips Nation.

San Antonio takes on Nikola Jokic and the Denver Nuggets Saturday afternoon at 2:00 PM CDT on Amazon Prime Video.

Instead of talking solely about tonight’s opponent the Utah Jazz, I’m going to use this opportunity to talk about the teams in the lottery and discuss which team would win if the NBA rigged it and had their way.

We’ll go in reverse order of standings from the day this is written (April 2).

13. Miami Heat: I think the NBA would love to give a top 4 pick to Heat. It’s a big market and they’re kind of stuck right now. They’ve got some good pieces and adding Cam Boozer or AJ Dybansta (Darryn Peterson is not a “Heat Culture” guy) would make them quite the marquee team going into next season in the East. Still, their odds are too low and it would be too obvious if Adam Silver gave Pat Riley a top pick. Could they jump into the top 4? Maybe.

12. Portland Trail Blazers: Look, this is a good team. However, they’re still missing a superstar (apologies to Deni Avdija). Damian Lillard is coming back next year and that’s the story. And they’ve already tried the “Give the Blazers a top point guard and let Dame mentor him” thing and it didn’t work. I will say that giving them the top pick could allow the franchise to move on from the Chauncey Billups saga and get that player on television often since the Blazers could be considered contenders to finish in the top 6 in the West next season with a big addition in the draft.

11. Golden State Warriors: I think the Warriors will make the playoffs so they won’t have a shot here, but if they did, this is a tasty one for the league. They gave them a shot at LaMelo Ball and they took James Wiseman isntead, so they’ve failed at this before like the Blazers. But Steph, Jimmy, Draymond, and Boozer? Scary.

10. Milwaukee Bucks: If the Bucks win, we’ll know that Giannis is getting traded soon. This could be the NBA’s “Please trade him to a contender and we’ll give you the lottery” move. Milwaukee doesn’t own it’s own picks until like 2040 so this is their best chance for a while.

9. Chicago Bulls: Remember when the Bulls were 6-0 and actually looked like a good team? Yeah. Putting another star in Chicago would have the league drooling, but the Bulls have proven their ineptitude over and over since the Derrick Rose days.

8. Memphis Grizzlies: The Grizzlies also own Orlando’s pick at 14 if that turns into anything. The Grizzlies are clearly in rebuild mode after trading away Desmond Bane and Jaren Jackson Jr. Both netted great returns and the Grizz have a chance to really good in five years. The top pick could kickstart that window. Dybansta or Peterson here would be great, but would suck as a fun of a Southwest Division team. I think they move into the top 4. This team and fanbase need something because the relocation whispers are going to get louder if they don’t show glimpses quickly.

7. Atlanta Hawks (via New Orleans Pelicans): The Hawks are good, and they have their franchise player in Jalen Johnson. They won the lottery recently and Risacher has been okay but averaged under 20 minutes a night in March. Does the league want to reward a team that just tried to pull of “Magic City Night?” I think not.

6. Dallas Mavericks: If the Mavs win the lottery again, we’ll know that Nico Harrison had assurances that they would when he traded Luka Doncic. Remember the “Now you see the vision” comments after they won the lottery last year? And suddenly, that trade would look slightly better (still awful, but less so). Pairing Duke boys Boozer and Cooper Flagg would be terrifying for a decade. Dybansta and Flagg would also be scary since it would give them two initiators and ball-handlers. It would also solve Dallas’s immediate need for a point guard, but so would Kingston Flemings, Darius Acuff Jr., or Keaton Wagler.

5. Utah Jazz: The league does not want to see the Jazz get the top pick this year after their blatant tank job. This would be the NBA’s worst nightmare and next season we would see teams at the bottom go even harder than Utah did this year. It would set a terrible precedent. No chance.

4. Sacramento Kings: Speaking of fanbases that deserve some hope, the Kings had one magic season after two decades of futility just to lose to the Warriors. The “Light the Beam” stuff was fun, but the Kings have proven that they’ll probably just surround their top pick with current members of the Chicago Bulls. Cam Boozer and Josh Giddey, anyone?

3. Indiana Pacers: Now we’re getting somewhere. The Pacers are already ready to be contenders next season with Tyrese Haliburton’s return. Team him and Pascal Siakam with Boozer or Peterson? That’s a contender in the East. But the Pacers were also fined for unethical tanking like the Jazz, so I think the league wouldn’t mind them slotting somewhere in the 3-6 range (and getting a really good player in this loaded draft).

2. Brooklyn Nets: I was tempted to write the Nets off after they drafted five players in the first round last year and none have produced. Egor Demin has shown flashes, but their best rookie in terms of analytics has been Malachi Smith, who has played nine games and wasn’t drafted and is on his second 10-day contract. Still, it’s tantalizing to put the top pick in New York and get some buzz back in the Big Apple’s lesser team.

And finally, at 1. Washington Wizards. The Wiz are bad, BUT there are some fun ideas to go with giving them the top pick. Alex Sarr is a good NBA player, and Kyshawn George has shown signs of being good. Next year, they’ll add Anthony Davis and a full year of Trae Young. They could draft any of the potential top picks and have clear minutes for them on day 1. Dybansta is probably the flashiest addition, but Peterson works here too in certain situations.

This a draft unlike several others recently where there’s been one star at the top and then some question marks afterwards. In this draft, there’s a clear top 3, then there’s a solid 3 or 4 after that that could be really good. So half of these teams are going to get a player with a lot of upside to excite their fanbases, but I think if the league is rigging this, it goes like this:

1. Dallas (if it was already agreed upon)
2. Washington
3. Milwaukee
4. Golden State
5. Brooklyn

Obivously, that’s not a draft order but you get it.

Tip-off

7pm CT

How To Watch

Space City Home Network

Injury Report

Rockets

Steven Adams: OUT

Fred VanVleet: OUT

Jazz

Keyonte George: GTD

Lauri Markkanen: OUT

Jusuf Nurkic: OUT

Isaish Collier: GTD

Elijah Harkless: GTD

The Line (as of this post)

N/A

Check here for updates

Looking ahead because we can

Sunday night on the road against the Golden State Warriors