The '65-game rule' is part of the NBA's Player Participation Policy, introduced in the 2023-2024 season, that requires players to participate in a minimum number of games in order to be eligible for awards and other honours.
It aims to discourage franchises from 'load managing' athletes, which is where teams rest star players to avoid injury and to keep them in contention for the playoffs.
At the time it was introduced, the NBA stated that the policy means teams must "refrain from any long-term 'shutdowns' in which a star player stops playing games" and also "ensure that star players are available for all national television and NBA In-Season Tournament games".
If teams break the policy they could face fines, unless they can provide proof players are being rested for injury or personal reasons - but the rule will still affect player eligibility for awards and team selections.
A regular season in the NBA consists of 82 games, and to be eligible for awards such as Most Valuable Player (MVP) or the All-NBA teams, players must compete in at least 65 of them.
How does this affect Nikola Jovic?
Nikola Jovic is a three-time season MVP winner [Getty Images]
Nikola Jokic, a three-time season MVP winner, has been a standout performer for the Denver Nuggets this season, currently leading the NBA in rebounds and assists and averaging 30 points per game.
On 25 December 2025, during a fixture against the Minnesota Timberwolves, he became the first player in NBA history to hit at least 55 points, 15 rebounds and 15 assists, in a triple-double beating a record set by Steph Curry.
He also had scored 21 points and provided eight assists before suffering a knee injury in the Nuggets' 147-123 defeat to Miami Heat - an injury which now puts his chances of a fourth season MVP in doubt.
Initial results from a medical scan show that Jovic is expected to miss at least four weeks of play, working out at around 16 games - which would leave his eligibility to be considered for the MVP award and All-NBA teams marginal, as players can only miss 17 games to be included.
However, there is a chance that when his knee is re-examined, the extent of the injury is worse than initially diagnosed. If this is the case, Jovic may not meet the threshold of games played for selection and will miss out on the honours.
What has the reaction to the rule been?
Basketball journalist Grant Afseth told BBC Sport "a firm limit feels too rigid," when it comes to missed games.
"That's why you have [award] voters in the first place — to apply context and judgment.
"Availability should absolutely matter, but it shouldn't erase everything else.
"If someone is clearly the most impactful player over the games they did play and just falls short of a set number, voters should be trusted to decide whether that impact was enough to win an award."
Many basketball fans have used social media to expres their frustration at the rule and the impact it is having on players.
Several sports media outlets have also called for the rule to be scrapped, and former professional Kenyon Martin has also said it should be abolished as it is impacting player's "legacies".
But some NBA professionals have previously expressed support for the rule, with Denver Nuggets coach Michael Malone saying in 2023 that it's a "way to get the best players playing."
"We want people to tune into their TVs and watch," Malone said.
This article is the latest from BBC Sport's Ask Me Anything team.
The Warriors appear to be doing their due diligence in their potential search for an upgrade at one position of need.
It’s unclear which position(s) Golden State will look to upgrade before the NBA’s Feb. 5 trade deadline, but with just over four weeks remaining, one position the Warriors have been connected to repeatedly is center. Specifically, Mavericks big man Anthony Davis, who Dallas reportedly called Golden State about, and who the Warriors haven’t completely closed the door on pursuing.
ESPN’s Anthony Slater reported in one of the outlet’s recent joint columns with other insiders, citing sources, that Golden State has “sniffed around” the center trade market as it continues to get inconsistent play from new veteran big man Al Horford this season.
“Biggest need: Al Horford, the Warriors’ biggest offseason addition, has generated a tiny bit of rhythm after two months marked by injury and ineffectiveness,” Slater wrote. “If the surge continues, they could feel less inclined to enter the center market, but league sources said they have sniffed around.”
It’s unclear what other centers the Warriors could pursue in potential upgrades, but Golden State for years has valued centers who can shoot and stretch the floor, which both Horford and second-year big man Quinten Post can do.
One obvious trade piece the Warriors have in a potential deal for a center — or another position — is young forward Jonathan Kuminga, who can be traded as soon as January 15 and appears likely to be dealt after falling completely out of coach Steve Kerr’s rotations.
Unsurprisingly, Golden State reportedly has discussed trades involving Kuminga with numerous teams already, but as Slater reports, the Warriors are unwilling to take on negative-value contracts in a potential deal if they extend past this season.
“As expected, they’ve had exploratory conversations with several teams about Jonathan Kuminga, but they’ve expressed an unwillingness to take on contracts that extend beyond this season if they view them as negative value deals, sources said,” Slater added. “That’s been an impediment dating back to the summer, when they declined interest in Malik Monk from Sacramento in sign-and-trade talks for Kuminga.”
There still is time before the deadline for the Warriors to decide which direction they want to go in, but it appears they already are exploring the possibility of adding to a position of need.
INGLEWOOD, Calif. — It was a night when Stephen Curry was ice cold for much of the game (he started 2-of-13 from 3) and then watched the final minute from the bench after fouling out. Steve Kerr wasn't even on the bench at the end — he was ejected in the fourth quarter after going at an official after a missed call.
Meanwhile, Kawhi Leonard was Kawhi Leonard, finishing with 24 points and 12 boards, just making plays when his team needed them.
Leonard plus a big night from No. 50 pick last June and two-way player Kobe Sanders — 20 points starting in place of James Harden, who was out with a shoulder issue — and the Clippers led comfortably much of the night, then hung on for a 103-102 win at home.
That's seven wins in its last eight for Los Angeles.
"It's our defense," is what Nicolas Batum said has been different with the Clippers recently, after a slow start to the season. "Like, besides the last game against the Celtics, been pretty good the last two weeks."
Kerr ejected
Postgame, the Warriors sent assistant coach Terry Sotts in to speak with the media, and he opened by saying, "I'm up here because I'm saving Steve some money."
Monday night was as hot as Kerr has been in a game in a long, long time. His ejection came after a couple of calls he did not like. The first was a Stephen Curry circus shot that was waived off as a foul on the floor.
This Steph shot was INSANE, despite it being waived off.
However, what really set Kerr off came on the next Warriors possession, when the officials missed an obvious goaltending call on John Collins (the shot clearly had gone off the backboard first, and it wasn't close). Kerr was hot and had to be held back by Stotts and his other assistants, and the entire situation is much funnier if you have it narrated by Snoop Dogg (who was part of the Peacock broadcast crew for this game).
The Clippers were the better team and in control of this game through most of it. All night long, the Clippers would double Jimmy Butler or Stephen Curry, the Warriors moved the ball and found the open man… and then clanked the shot. Golden State was 5-of-27 (18.5%) from 3 through three quarters.
The Clippers were in control and up seven with 1:48 left when Curry finally got hot and hit back-to-back 3-pointers to make it a one-point game.
That gave the Warriors a chance, even though Curry fouled out just after knocking those down. This is why the Warriors have Jimmy Butler and he has proven many times he comes up in the clutch — he got a decent look at the game-winner and just missed it.
"Jimmy ends up having the ball. I know he's been in this situation for a couple of times his career," said Batum, who was the primary defender on Butler at the end. "So, I knew I had to step up and try to make a stop. He had a good look... That was a good stop and a good win for us."
Curry finished with 27 points but on 9-of-23 shooting, while Butler had 24. The Warriors got good production from their bench, with Gary Payton II scoring 14, while Gus Santos didn't play until the start of the fourth quarter, then he played the entire frame, scored six and was a key part of the Warriors' comeback.
In addition to big nights from Leonard and Sanders, the Clippers got 18 points and three blocks from John Collins, plus 16 points from Kris Dunn.
Detroit – the current No. 1 seed in the Eastern Conference – was down two starters and playing the second game of a back-to-back, but led the visiting Knicks by double-digits for most of the game.
New York has now lost four straight – its longest losing streak since Dec. 2022.
Are they a competent team in the middle of a rough stretch of the schedule? Oklahoma City lost to Charlotte by 27 points at home on Monday; the defending champs are 6-6 in their last 12 games.
Good teams hit rough patches in an 82-game schedule. That could be the case for the Knicks. Or they could be showing the fatal flaws – bad point of attack/perimeter defense – of a team that will fail to meet expectations.
Dolan said earlier in the day in an interview on WFAN’s The Carton Show that anything less than an NBA Finals appearance will be a disappointment.
“We want to get to The Finals, and we should win The Finals,” Dolan told Craig Carton and his co-host, Chris McMonigle. “This is sports…anything can happen in sports. But getting to the Finals, we absolutely gotta do. Winning the Finals, we should win.”
The Knicks haven’t looked like a Finals team lately. They’ve trailed by at least 19 points in the third quarter of their last three losses. The poor stretch coincides with an injury to Josh Hart. The Knicks are 2-4 since Hart suffered an ankle injury. Fortunately, Hart is on the verge of returning from that injury. The Knicks could have both Hart and Landry Shamet back by the end of the week. Maybe both of those players can help stop the Knicks’ slide.
Dolan said in the WFAN interview that he doesn’t expect New York to make a significant trade at the deadline.
“We love our team right now. They have chemistry; they all like each other. I’ve never seen a locker room more copacetic. There’s a lot of energy in there,” Dolan said. “I don’t – (team president) Leon (Rose) could always overrule me – but I don’t see us making a big change. Because we don’t have – we’ve got to keep building up this group. This group can win a championship. I believe that.”
Dolan was answering a question from the hosts about the Knicks and Giannis Antetokounmpo. He said he wasn’t aware of any trade talks between the Knicks and Bucks in the offseason. Later in the interview, he reiterated that he didn’t see the Knicks making any big changes before the Feb. 5 trade deadline.
“That’s what I think our plan is, yes … I talk to Leon every day and look, nothing is impossible; I won’t rule anything out, but who do you want to lose (in a trade)?” Dolan said. “You don’t get something without giving something. Who do you want to lose?”
Jan 12, 2025; New York, New York, USA; New York Knicks head coach Tom Thibodeau talks to guard Josh Hart (3) during the second quarter against the Milwaukee Bucks at Madison Square Garden. / Brad Penner-Imagn Images
The owner was also asked about the decision to fire head coach Tom Thibodeau in the offseason and hire Mike Brown to replace him.
“The team is really built on the shoulders of Tom Thibodeau. He built that core," Dolan said. "We went as far as we did last year, so you really have to take your hat off to Tom and the job that he did. But we did come to the conclusion that we had an idea of how we wanted to organize the team – actually, it goes for both teams – and that meant we needed to evolve, actually, beyond the old traditional coaching formulas.
"We tried to work that with Tom, it wasn’t really his thing."
It was suggested to Dolan that Thibodeau didn’t use his bench players often enough.
“No, that’s some of it. But it’s much more about style of leadership, collaboration versus (working alone),” Dolan said. “… because of the way, particularly basketball, but also hockey too – the way the sport’s evolving, how much more complicated it is – we’re very, very big on development in both clubs.
“Because you can’t – it’s not like the old days where you can get Reggie Jackson and this guy and this guy and put together a team. It’s almost impossible to do that in the NBA. You have to home-grow some of your talent,” he added. “That also builds up trade currency, etcetera. But it’s a development thing. And that’s a team of people. There’s literally 20 people who are specifically dedicated to developing the players, to getting their skill level up, develop the strategy on the court.
“And that’s important for the development of a franchise. Tom liked development, but he didn’t really…”
Dolan didn’t finish his thought here, but he seemed to be saying Thibodeau’s approach with player development didn’t align with the organization.
At other times in the interview, Dolan was complimentary of Thibodeau, who led the Knicks to the playoffs in four of his five seasons and coached them to their first conference final in 25 years.
“I won’t say you can’t win a title with Tom Thibodeau. I don’t necessarily know that’s true. It’s just that, if you want to build a long-term, competitive (team)... you need somebody who is much more of a collaborator than Tom was," he said. "But still, Tom is still a great coach. He should coach again in the NBA. If I had a franchise that I was just starting with, etc., he would be a gold mine to get. And he was like that for us.
"When we first started, and he first came in, he brought discipline, he brought strategy… he brought us all that way. But we really felt like we needed to make a change to go the rest of the way.”
Did the Knicks make the right call with Thibodeau and Brown? The Knicks had a better record at this point in the season last year under Thibodeau. But Brown has played the bench more often, something Dolan thinks will pay dividends in the postseason.
“Look how far we got with our group last year, and then take a look at who was playing and who wasn’t playing and then we had injuries,” the owner said. “We’re going into this season, into the second half of the season, Josh is still out and Landry is coming back soon. We’ve got depth, and if we stay healthy, we’ll go into the playoffs in much better condition than we went into the playoffs last year.”
Dolan has owned the Knicks for nearly 30 years. Most years of the first two decades of his ownership were filled with disappointment and dysfunction. Rose and Thibodeau helped change all of that.
“As an owner, you have to be patient. When I get impatient, is when we veer off the plan, reach for the shiny thing. And think we can win a championship or build a championship team in one fell swoop,” he said. “I’ve been at this now for almost 30 years, and I can tell you that it does happen once in a while, but I don’t think that’s how we’re going to win.”
Dolan was also asked if he enjoys being an owner.
“Let me tell you something about ownership. Ownership is not an achievement. If you own something – you have a beautiful car – you own it, that’s not an achievement. If you built it, OK, then when you drive it around, you can feel like you have an achievement. I always want to try and achieve something,” he said.
If the owner and his top executives were right about Thibodeau, they will all be celebrating a great achievement this June. If not, the decision to jettison Thibodeau and hire Brown will be second-guessed by a fan base desperate for a championship.
The Suns were down seven with five minutes to go in the game, but went on a 10-0 run that gave them the lead with 2:12 left, and a chance. The game was tied, but Booker's shot with 5.1 on the clock missed, opening the door for Durant and the Rockets.
Booker had 12 of his 26 points in the fourth quarter.
Durant finished with 26 points, while Amen Thompson and Jabari Smith Jr. each scored 17. The Rockets have won 5-of-6.
It wasn't all good news for the Rockets, coach Ime Udoka said Alperen Sengun suffered a sprained right ankle and will be re-evaluated in 10-14 days.
The Knicks got their teeth kicked in throughout a 121-90 loss to the Detroit Pistons to extend their losing streak to four games.
Here are the takeaways...
-- New York's lack of defense as of late persisted out of the gate against the top seed in the East, who entered the contest averaging 118.8 points per game, 11th-best in the league. Sure, Cade Cunningham made some shots (14 points on 6-for-9 shooting in the first half), but it wasn't just Cunningham as the rest of the Pistons got involved early and often as well, shooting 63 percent from the field and 55 percent from deep as a team in the first 24 minutes.
-- Detroit's bench, led by players like Jaden Ivey and Daniss Jenkins, scored 22 points in the first half as they were helped out by Cunningham's excellent court vision and passing ability, which gave him seven assists at halftime. By contrast, the Knicks as a team had just nine assists at the break.
-- Regardless, New York shot the ball well in the first, going 54 percent from the field and 57 percent from downtown. A lot of that production came from Jalen Brunson, who had 17 points on 8-of-13 from the floor. The point guard actually scored eight of his team's first 11 points, though the Knicks were down for the majority of that run.
Still, possessing the ball so often led to three turnovers before the break by Brunson, and he was a minus-6 on the court entering the second half.
-- Like the Pistons, though, the Knicks got some key contributions off their bench, most notably from Miles McBride, who had eight points, two rebounds and two assists in the first half while going 2-for-2 from three. The sharpshooter made three more threes in the second half to go 5-for-6 and finished with 17 points. He's been on fire from beyond the arc lately, making 46 of his last 84 three-point attempts (55 percent).
-- Going up against the best shot-blocking team in the league (6.3 blocks per game entering play), New York was blocked six times in the first half and after keeping it close in the first quarter (down 30-29), the Knicks slipped further and further behind in the second quarter and entered halftime down 64-54.
-- New York's shooting plummeted out of the break, putting up just 15 points in the third quarter. Eight of those points came from Brunson, while the rest of the starters contributed next to nothing. Most disappointing was Karl-Anthony Towns, who needs to step up on both ends of the floor with Josh Hart still out with a sprained ankle.
Instead, KAT finished with six points, one rebound and six turnovers. He took four shots and just two from inside the arc despite being the tallest player on the court. In fact, Detroit completely overmatched the Knicks on the glass, outrebounding them 44 to 30, even though no Piston had more than nine. Only Mitchell Robinson finished with double-digit rebounds, securing 10 boards in 25 minutes.
-- After such a disheartening third quarter by New York and no change in the fourth, head coach Mike Brown had seen enough and waved the white flag by emptying his bench with half a quarter left to play.
-- The Knicks led only once in this game, the first lead of the night after OG Anunoby made one of two free throws to give them a 1-0 lead. 13 seconds later, Duncan Robinson hit a three (and the free throw after getting fouled) and Detroit was off and running.
-- The Pistons finished with 11 blocks and 12 steals, turning over New York 20 times.
Game MVP: Cade Cunningham
Cunningham was clearly the best player on the court and finished with a double-double (game-high 29 points, 13 assists).
Here are some of the latest trade rumors from around the league, with most of the buzz being about an All-Star point guard in Atlanta.
Trae Young
The writing was on the wall when Atlanta didn't reach a contract extension with Trae Young last summer, but his exit from the ATL looks like it will come sooner rather than later.
Young's agents — Aaron Mintz, Drew Morrison and Austin Brown — are working with the Hawks to find a trade for the four-time All-Star before the Feb. 5 deadline, a deal that works for everyone, reports Shams Charania of ESPN.
Young has missed the last four games with a quad contusion and, while nothing is set in stone (it usually takes time to put a trade together), it is possible we have seen the last of Young in a Hawks uniform.
Atlanta started testing the trade waters last summer but ramped up efforts when Young was injured this season and the team went 13-9 without him. They then dropped the next four games when he returned (they are 2-8 in the games Young has played this season). The team's play while he was out showed a road map to the next evolution of this team, one without Young dominating the ball.
The challenge is that there is not much of a market for the 27-year-old former All-Star, league sources told NBC Sports. Ask yourself this: What serious playoff team would be better making a big trade for Young? Good luck finding one.
While Young an offense unto himself — a season ago, when largely healthy (he played in 76 games), he averaged 24.2 points and 11.6 assists a game — his lack of defense, size (listed as 6'2" but that feels generous), injury concerns, the fact he's not popular with other players in general, and that he has a $49 million player option for next season all combine to give teams pause. Fair or not, Young's reputation is that he's good, but not someone a franchise can build a contender around, which means teams don't want to pay him big dollars.
What team is interested?
Wizards eyeing Trae Young
The Washington Wizards might be his landing spot, reports Marc Stein of The Stein Line.
The Wizards have emerged as a legitimate potential trade destination for Atlanta's Trae Young, @TheSteinLine has learned, in a deal construction centered around CJ McCollum's expiring contract.
Why would Washington do this? It's a short-term play for a franchise that is seeking some level of relevance (and, in CJ McCollum, they don't give up a player who is part of their future). Young paired with a young core of Alex Sarr, Tre Johnson, Kyshawn George, Bilal Coulibaly and whoever they draft in June is at least interesting, should have a lot of firepower, and would give fans in Washington an entertaining product to watch. That kind of "let's prioritize making the postseason soon" thinking has long been rumored to come from Washington's ownership.
This doesn't have to be a long-term play by the Wizards, although you can be sure Young's agents are looking to get him to a team willing extend and pay him big money. We'll see if that's Washington or somewhere else.
In other trade news...
Lakers looking for two-way wing
That the Lakers are trying to reshape their roster to better fit around Luka Doncic, and that they need 3&D wings to do that, are not exactly state secrets.
Which is why the Lakers have been linked to every wing available at the trade deadline. As Marc Stein put it at The Stein Line: "The Lakers continue to scour the trade market in hopes of acquiring a two-way wing with size."
The problem is that 29 other teams are looking for players like that as well, and the supply of those players is limited. Ideally, the Lakers would like to get Herb Jones out of New Orleans (reportedly not available), Andrew Wiggins out of Miami, or even Dillon Brooks out of Phoenix (no way that last one is happening, Suns owner Matt Ishbia already shot it down).
Even if those players become available, the Lakers may not have enough to get a deal done. That means Los Angeles may end up trying to land Keon Ellis from Sacramento or Ayo Dosunmu from Chicago, good young players with potential to fill that role.
The Lakers know what they need to do, but actually doing it is not so easy.
Mavericks not liking return for Davis
If you've been a regular reader of our trade rumors updates, this is not news to you, but here is another source echoing the same idea:
The market for Anthony Davis is limited and teams are not willing to give up much — especially the picks and young players the Mavericks are seeking — in any trade. Here is what Mavericks writer Christian Clark wrote at The Athletic.
Dallas' predicament is that dealing Davis isn't likely to bring back a combination of expiring money, young talent and draft capital needed to reorient around No. 1 pick Cooper Flagg. Davis' age (he turns 33 in March), injury history and desire for a lucrative contract extension this summer have teams wary about surrendering too much to get him, based on conversations The Athletic had with three different NBA executives.
Chatter about an Anthony Davis trade continues to focus on the Atlanta Hawks, which has the big salaries to match Davis' deal as well as picks that would entice the Mavs. However, if Atlanta is going to move on from Trae Young, is Davis a good fit (the Mavericks have made it clear they don't want Young)? Also, league sources told NBC Sports they doubted Atlanta would give up the kind of pick package that Dallas would seek.
For his part, Anthony Davis would like to remain in Dallas and sign an extension with the Mavericks, reports ESPN’s Tim MacMahon. Of course, Davis would also have preferred to stay in Los Angeles playing next to LeBron James, but that's not the world we live in.
Don’t expect Adebayo trade
We live in a world where what was once thought impossible now happens with impunity. Combine that with the pressures of the NBA trade deadline and wild rumors start. In that vein…
No, the Miami Heat are not going to trade Bam Adebayo.
Don't even start, because Miami isn't. It would take something extraordinary for them to even consider it, and then they still likely would say no. Don't just take my word for it, here is what Zach Lowe of The Ringer said on his podcast.
"He is the standard-bearer, he is the culture-bearer. I don't think there's one part of them that wants to do it... Other teams I know have for sure asked about Bam and have been told 'Hell no' and the wild card you also have to consider as they sniff around at Giannis and other star players, all of those star players want to play with Bam."
The Sixers fell back to earth Monday night at Xfinity Mobile Arena.
They had their three-game winning streak snapped with a 125-124 overtime loss to the Nuggets.
Joel Embiid goaltended a Bruce Brown layup with 5.3 seconds left in overtime. Tyrese Maxey missed a game-winning floater attempt just before the final buzzer.
Embiid had 32 points and 10 rebounds. Maxey posted 28 points‚ 6 rebounds and 6 assists.
The Nuggets were heavily shorthanded. Nikola Jokic‚ Jamal Murray and Aaron Gordon were among the many players out for Denver.
Sixers head coach Nick Nurse said he expects Kelly Oubre Jr. (left knee LCL sprain) and Trendon Watford (left knee adductor strain) to be cleared to return “any day now.” The two did full-court 3-on-3 scrimmaging after the Sixers’ morning shootaround.
The 19-15 Sixers will host the Wizards on Wednesday. Here are observations on their loss to the Nuggets:
Slow start in return to Philly
The Sixers were not sharp out of the gates in their first game back home after a five-game road trip.
With three-pointers from Jalen Pickett and Spencer Jones‚ Denver went up 11-2. The Sixers’ offense was sloppy and the team missed its first six threes.
Embiid’s size was still a serious challenge for the Nuggets without their usual top centers. The Sixers had little trouble feeding him against Denver’s zone and he scored 11 points on 5-for-7 shooting in the first quarter.
A Maxey three late in the first gave the Sixers a 26-24 edge. The Maxey-Embiid pair had 19 of the Sixers’ 26 first-quarter points.
Much of that stemmed from a steep drop-off scoring-wise for VJ Edgecombe‚ who began 0 for 5 from the floor and was scoreless until he knocked down a jumper with 6:52 left in the third quarter. Edgecombe missed a couple of driving layups through contact and was off on open three-point tries.
On the other end‚ the Nuggets’ offense was three-point-centric. Pickett sunk four in the first half (7 in the game) on his way to a career-high 29 points. Denver continued to pose real problems for the Sixers despite its major manpower disadvantage. Quentin Grimes’ corner jumper with 0.9 seconds left in the second quarter tied the game at 58-all.
Talent not everything
Even with his scoreless first half‚ Edgecombe still contributed in a bunch of areas‚ as he typically does. The rookie ended up with 17 points‚ 9 assists and 8 rebounds.
He helped the Sixers take a lead as large as nine points late in the third quarter. Maxey also had his foot on the gas and the talent disparity between the teams grew clearer.
However‚ talent isn’t everything.
The Sixers had a poor start to the fourth quarter with Embiid out. Grimes fouled Hunter Tyson on a four-point play that put the Nuggets up 104-100.
The Sixers’ situation looked bleak when Adem Bona fouled Brown on a corner three attempt and Brown made it 120-115 at the foul line. They weren’t out of it yet‚ though. Edgecombe canned a clutch three and Maxey hit a game-tying layup.
OT was chaotic. Ultimately‚ the Sixers couldn’t execute quite well enough and paid for their rough start.
Losing by one point in a game where your coach was ejected after a blatant missed call that should have been two points for the Warriors off a goaltending call gives them every reason to be as incredulously irate as Steve Kerr was with the referees.
Emotions aside, a much larger problem couldn’t be more obvious after the Warriors’ 103-102 loss to the Los Angeles Clippers on Monday night at Intuit Dome.
The Warriors finally flipped the script on their opponent and won the turnover battle seven to 20. They swiped a season-high 18 steals, which is their most in more than four years. They scored 27 points off turnovers while giving away just seven, and their seven turnovers also were a season best.
A loss still followed them back to the visitor’s locker room and onto their short flight back home. Why? Because the team with the greatest shooter of all time can’t shoot.
No team is going to win shooting 38 percent overall (35 of 92) with a 24.4 3-point percentage (10 of 41).
Steph Curry, to his standards, didn’t have the best shooting game. He went 9 of 23 from the field (39.1 percent) and 4 of 15 from 3-point range (26.7 percent), also making all five of his free throws. But his 27 points led all scorers from both teams, and the only reason the Warriors had a chance at the end was because of Curry’s back-to-back threes in the final minute and a half to bring them within one point before he fouled out at the 42.7-second mark for the first time since Dec. 17, 2021.
Even on an off night, Curry still was the only Warrior to make multiple threes. The Warriors lead the NBA in threes per game, but that’s because he’s responsible for 30 percent of them. Accuracy and shot making has been a serious problem for the Warriors this season and must be atop the priority list now that the Feb. 5 NBA trade deadline is less than a month away.
“I thought we played well. We couldn’t hit shots,” Draymond Green told reporters in LA. “We missed a lot of shots. Lot of shots that we normally make, or can make, we missed. But we took care of the ball. We defended without fouling. I thought we did a lot of good things.
“We forced turnovers, we just didn’t capitalize enough. In a game where you force 20 turnovers and have seven turnovers, we should probably have 130, 140 [points]. It’s unfortunate.”
Green responded admirably one game after his latest ejection. As he put his body on the line and kept staying in the game, Green tied his season-high of 12 assists and did so with just one turnover, helping make him a game-high plus-15 in 32 minutes.
He also was one of many Warriors who couldn’t get the ball to go through the net. The Clippers were begging him to shoot, with the Warriors veteran accepting their invitations and leaving without any party favors. Green missed all six of his threes and converted two layups. That’s about how it went for any Warriors outside of Curry and Jimmy Butler.
Those two combined for 51 points, exactly half of the team’s total. The rest of the starting five – Green, Moses Moody and Quinten Post – totaled 15 points on 17.6-percent shooting (5 of 17) and went 1 of 11 beyond the arc. Gary Payton II was the lone Warrior outside of Curry and Butler to score in double figures, finishing with 14 points off the bench on 7-of-10 shooting, making three dunks, two layups and one floater.
Ironically, the hottest shooter of the night was a rookie on a two-way contract the Warriors could have snagged in the second round of last June’s draft. Kobe Sanders scored a career-high 20 points and was more dynamic than any of the Warriors’ young players still trying to prove themselves. The San Diego native made nine of his 16 shot attempts as he showcased the skill that got him drafted in the first place.
Sanders worked out for the Warriors at Chase Center prior to the draft and would have been available for them if they didn’t trade back from 41 to take Alex Toohey two picks after the Clippers added Sanders at No. 50 overall. Toohey didn’t play a single game for the Warriors, or their G League affiliate this season and was waived by Golden State on Dec. 8.
All five Clippers starters scored in double figures. The Warriors attempted 15 more shots than the Clippers but made two fewer than them, too. For more than eight minutes of a 13-point third quarter, the Warriors didn’t make a single shot.
They now rank 27th in field-goal percentage (45.2 percent), 15th in 3-point percentage (36 percent) and 20th in offensive rating (113.6). Starting Jan. 15, Jonathan Kuminga becomes trade eligible. The trade deadline is exactly three weeks later.
Several areas of need stick out. The Warriors still are too small, and an extra ball-handler wouldn’t hurt. Consistently and confidently knowing somebody else outside of Curry and Butler will put points on the scoreboard and be a threat from 3-point distance somehow remains the biggest problem at the start of 2026.
Warriors coach Steve Kerr unleashed on officials early in the fourth quarter of Golden State’s 103-102 loss to the Clippers on Monday at Intuit Dome, when the referees missed a goaltending call on Los Angeles.
An absolutely irate Steve Kerr was ejected after refs missed a goaltending call on the Clippers 😳 pic.twitter.com/9UIqaEvTPv
Kerr received double technical fouls during the tirade and was ejected, but after the game, crew chief Brian Forte admitted referees did indeed miss the call in an interview with Pool Reporter Tomer Azarly of ClutchPoints.
Forte detailed what led to Kerr’s ejection and why the uncalled goaltending wasn’t reviewed by officials.
AZARLY: What did Steve Kerr say to warrant the first and then the second technical fouls that led to his ejection?
FORTE: For the first technical foul, Coach Kerr aggressively approached the official while shouting profanities. After the first technical was called, he continued shouting profanities while being held back by his assistant coach. And led to the second technical foul.
AZARLY: It appeared as though an uncalled goaltending is what led to Kerr’s frustrations. Was that correctly uncalled and could that play have been whistled in order to trigger a review?
FORTE: The shot by [Gary]Payton hit the backboard prior to being touched by Collins. It should have been ruled a goaltending violation. The only way it could have been reviewed was if it was called on the floor and the Clippers challenged the call, because it did not occur in the last two minutes of the game.
AZARLY: Only in the last two minutes is where you can trigger the automatic review?
FORTE: That is correct.
Forte also explained why Steph Curry not given continuation on his made floater a few plays before the goaltending in the fourth quarter.
“Curry was grabbed around the hip by [John] Collins prior to the gather,” Forte told Azarly. “And this was correctly ruled a non-shooting foul.”
The officiating proved consequential in a game that came down to the final seconds, with the Warriors losing by just one point.
Marshawn Lynch used to show up for press conferences so he wouldn’t get fined, and Warriors assistant Terry Stotts handled Monday’s postgame media availability to save coach Steve Kerr from a potential fine.
Stotts took the podium after a livid Kerr was ejected in the fourth quarter of the Warriors’ 103-102 loss to the LA Clippers at Intuit Dome.
“I’m up here because I’m saving Steve some money,” Stotts told reporters after the game. “So, that’s the only reason I’m here.”
"T'm up here because I'm saving Steve some money."
Kerr was tossed from Monday’s game just over four minutes into the fourth quarter after arguing a missed goaltending call by the officiating crew.
Gary Payton II’s shot clearly hit the backboard before John Collins swatted it away, but the refs missed it, costing the Warriors two points, which proved to be pivotal in the outcome of the game.
But before the missed goaltending call, the Warriors were upset when a Steph Curry bucket was waved off because continuation wasn’t awarded following a Collins foul.
So, the blood was boiling for Kerr and the Warriors.
“What particularly?” Stotts said when asked what set Kerr off. “I think it’s that goaltending call that was missed. Well, there’s probably some other things, but that was the last straw, probably. I don’t want to speak for Steve.”
In real time, the Warriors were convinced the refs missed the call.
“I didn’t see a replay, but it sure seemed obvious at the time that it was a goaltend,” Stotts said.
Stotts said the Warriors didn’t receive an explanation from the officiating crew on what happened on the missed goaltending call.
But crew chief Brian Forte spoke to ClutchPoints’ Tomer Azarly for the Pool Report and explained why Kerr was ejected.
“For the first technical foul, Coach Kerr aggressively approached the official while shouting profanities,” Forte said. “After the first technical was called, he continued shouting profanities while being held back by his assistant coach. And led to the second technical foul.”
While teams usually have to wait until the NBA’s Last Two Minute Report is released the next day for the league to own up to missed calls, Forte admitted his crew got Monday’s call wrong.
“The shot by [Gary] Payton hit the backboard prior to being touched by Collins,” Forte said. “It should have been ruled a goaltending violation. The only way it could have been reviewed was if it was called on the floor and the Clippers challenged the call, because it did not occur in the last two minutes of the game.”
Despite the Warriors appearing to lose their cool in the fourth quarter, they made a late push and almost pulled out a remarkable win. Jimmy Butler’s fadeaway in the final seconds fell short, dropping Golden State to 19-18.
“There’s always going to be some frustration in a close game,” Stotts said. “The game, there’s going to be an ebb and flow of the game, but I thought for the most part, we kept our composure. You look at the stat sheet, we did a lot of good things. You look at how many turnovers we forced, we played our asses off. So I don’t know if frustration is the right word. When you’re not making some shots … I don’t think any frustration affected our game, let’s put it that way.”
Kerr, ejected for the first time this season, has earned four technical fouls in 37 games this year. It was the fifth disqualification of his coaching career.
The Warriors spent most of Monday evening chasing the Los Angeles Clippers up and down the Intuit Dome floor, almost catching up despite coach Steve Kerr being ejected, Stephen Curry fouling out and a missed call by the officiating crew.
Golden State’s 38-percent shooting from the field, including a season-low 24.4 percent from beyond the arc, was the primary factor in a 103-102 loss to a Clippers squad playing without star guard James Harden.
The Warriors had 15 more field-goal attempts than LA, but only three players scored in double figures, led by 27 points from Stephen Curry. Jimmy Butler III finished with 24 and Gary Payton II delivered 14 off the bench.
The Warriors trailed by as much as 14 before pulling within one with 32.6 seconds remaining. Butler’s fadeaway over Nic Batum missed everything and the buzzer sounded.
This was Golden State’s eighth consecutive loss to the Clippers in LA, dating back to Nov. 28, 2021, when the game was at Crypto.com Arena.
Here are three observations from Golden State’s last road game until Jan. 22 at Dallas:
Stingy rims in Inglewood
When the Warriors boarded their flight Sunday afternoon, they evidently packed so lightly that upon arrival their baggage was devoid of their shooting touch.
The Warriors in the first quarter shot 28 percent from the field, including 16.7 percent from distance. It didn’t get much better over the next 36 minutes.
The starting lineup was 20 of 54 from the field, including 6 of 30 from deep. Curry was 9 of 23 from the field, including 4 of 15 from deep, before fouling out with 42.7 seconds left. Draymond Green was 1 of 7, 0 of 6. Moses Moody was 1 of 5, 0 of 3. Al Horford was 1 of 8, 1 of 5.
Golden State’s errant shooting bottomed out in the third quarter, with 13 points on 3-of-24 shooting, including 0 of 9 beyond the arc.
A Butler layup pulled the Warriors within four with 8:05 remaining in the third, but they failed the get a field goal for the rest of the quarter. That allowed LA to take a 12-point lead (76-64) into the fourth quarter.
Kerr ejected over missed call
One game after Green lost his temper after a missed call and was ejected, Kerr followed the same script. The coach was tossed with 7:57 remaining in the fourth quarter after officials missed an obvious goaltending call that went against the Warriors.
Payton drove in for a layup that was blocked byClippers forward John Collins after it caromed off the backboard. Any shot that’s tampered with after hitting the backboard is automatic goaltending.
Not a whistle was blown, so Kerr blew his top. He bounced off the bench yelling and gesturing at officials and was assessed with one technical foul and then another by crew chief Brian Forte. There was barely enough time to blink between the two calls. As Collins made two free throws, Curry and Payton made a futile appeal to Forte. Though the team’s response to Green’s ejection was to rally to victory, there was no such comeback on this occasion.
An absolutely irate Steve Kerr was ejected after refs missed a goaltending call on the Clippers 😳 pic.twitter.com/9UIqaEvTPv
The Warriors could do no more than lament the two points lost on the missed call.
The rare joy of turnovers
In most of Golden State’s games this season, the word “turnovers” has been printed across the foreheads of the entire roster. Giveaways have cost the Warriors several games and have become the most consistent bane of their collective existence.
In the first half against LA, the Warriors wiped off the ink and rubbed it onto the faces of the Clippers.
Outshot by an appreciable margin and outrebounded by a substantial margin, the Warriors went into intermission trailing by only four (55-51) because of their ability to force turnovers and LA’s inability to take care of the basketball.
More than one-third of the 51 points Golden State scored in the first 24 minutes came off turnovers, as the Clippers donated 18 points off 12 turnovers.
The final tally was Golden State committing only seven turnovers and posting a seldom seen decisive advantage (27-7) in points off the giveaways.
It was enough to keep the Warriors in position to win a game they otherwise they might have been blown out.
It takes a lot for Steve Kerr to lose his cool with an officiating crew, and on Monday night, the Warriors coach was set off by a missed goaltending call early in the fourth quarter.
Just over four minutes into the fourth quarter of the Warriors’ game against the LA Clippers at Intuit Dome, Gary Payton II’s layup attempt clearly hit the backboard before John Collins swatted it away.
The refs blew the call and a livid Kerr jumped up and down on the sideline as the Clippers moved the ball down the court. When a foul was called on the Warriors, Kerr went ballistic on the refs.
An absolutely irate Steve Kerr was ejected after refs missed a goaltending call on the Clippers 😳 pic.twitter.com/9UIqaEvTPv
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The Warriors defeated the Utah Jazz 123-114 on Saturday. Stephen Curry scored 31 points, including six three-pointers. The two-time MVP is averaging 30.2 points per game over his last 10 games played.
The Clippers fell 146-115 to the Boston Celtics on Saturday, ending their six-game win streak. The loss marked the most points allowed by the Clippers (146) and the worst margin of defeat (31) this season.
Kawhi Leonard finished with 22 points. The two-time NBA Champion and Finals MVP is averaging 36.6 points, 7.7 rebounds, 3.9 assists, 2.7 steals, and 1.4 blocks over the last seven games.
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Raphielle Johnson