On the surface, the Sixers have some elite pieces that make them competitive in any given game. But the roster has some serious holes and there are a pair of cumbersome contracts that restrict the team’s flexibility.
So as Bob Myers, the architect of the Golden State Warriors’ four most recent NBA titles, conducts a search for Morey’s replacement, there are clear steps that need to be taken to return Philadelphia to the top of the East. Frankly, many of those steps require undoing some of the mistakes Morey made.
Joel Embiid and Paul George are expensive
The largest problems are the contracts of center Joel Embiid and forward Paul George.
Embiid’s three-year, $192.9 million extension, signed in September 2024, kicks in at the start of the new league year. It carries a player option for 2028-29 and essentially pays Embiid, who will be 35 by the time the deal expires, an average of $62.6 million each season.
That’s just the going rate for a former Most Valuable Player and seven-time All-Star. The issue is that Embiid, as hard as he might have worked on his body and health, simply has not been available; over the last three seasons, Embiid has played just 96 of a possible 246 games, or 39%.
When Embiid is healthy and on the floor, he continues to be a matchup nightmare with his strength, shooting and ability to get to the line. But it’s difficult for a team to maximize its roster when so much of the salary cap is devoted to a player who misses as much time as Embiid.
It gets worse with George. He just turned 36 and is under contract for next season, with a $56.6 million player option for 2027-28. And although George had a decent stretch in the postseason, it’s simply too rich a deal for a player with that level of production.
The best course of action would be for the next president of basketball operations to try to offload one of those contracts, with George being the most favorable to move; despite his health issues and lack of consistent availability, Embiid is simply a more proven difference maker.
Focus on depth and development
Then there’s the issue of depth. Coach Nick Nurse shrunk his rotation down to eight men, and part of it was out of necessity. Some of Morey’s moves — trading second-year guard Jared McCain to the Thunder for three second-round picks; cutting Julian Champagnie to make room for Mac McClung; cutting Isaiah Joe to clear a spot for Dwayne Dedmon — robbed Philadelphia of young (read: cheaper) players who can fill out a roster and contribute.
This postseason, McCain and Joe are playing key reserve roles for Oklahoma City and Champagnie has been a steady starter for the Spurs.
The McCain move is particularly painful, as he had flashed promise in his rookie year before injury derailed his season. Would McCain, Joe and Champagnie won the Sixers the series against the Knicks? That’s extremely unlikely, but developing incumbent players and getting them to produce is the sign of a healthy organization. Put another way: the next president of basketball ops needs to restock the bench.
Tyrese Maxey, VJ Edgecombe are valuable building blocks
It’s not all bad news. Guard Tyrese Maxey, a two-time All-Star, is one of the game’s premier shooters and scorers. Rookie VJ Edgecombe has all the makings of a stellar two-guard.
The 76ers, however, should try to find a point guard to facilitate offense for Maxey, who struggled against New York when the Knicks were able to blitz him when he had the ball in his hands. Allowing Maxey to play off the ball more should open up his game, and the offense, overall.
The 76ers are in that wasteland in the middle of the East, the purgatory of being good but obviously not good enough. The positive is that they have a path forward.
Now all they have to do is hire the right person to lead the franchise.
BURBANK, CALIFORNIA - FEBRUARY 12, 2026: Boston Celtic Jaylen Brown appears on "The Jennifer Hudson Show" airing May 13, 2026 in Burbank, California. (Photo by Chris Haston/WBTV via Getty Images). Check your local listings for times. | Getty Images
With the offseason hitting Celtics fans much earlier than usual, there’s been a lot of discourse about the team outside of basketball. In particular, Jaylen Brown has been getting more attention than usual. His name has popped up in trade rumors, and fans and analysts alike have been holding a magnifying glass to every comment and action he’s taken since the season ended.
This year, JB was looked at as the definitive number one option for Boston given Jayson Tatum’s absence while recovering from his torn Achilles. At the same time, Jaylen made himself more available to the public than ever before, live-streaming on Twitch throughout the season so he had an extra way to connect with fans and express himself. It was a decision that was likely made with the intention of having a more liberating experience, allowing JB to speak directly to his fans about what was on his mind, but the NBA world has only used it to tear him down so far.
Just a day after being eliminated from the playoffs, Jaylen went on a stream and took a moment to reflect on the season: “Man, this group is a special group. I’m so proud of this group, and the way we played… I’m so proud, and it was the favorite year of my basketball career. One, streaming with you guys, chat, was awesome. Like being able to talk to y’all was like therapy… Just being able to get on here, give y’all the perspective – ‘cause you know these narratives be going left and right – just to hear it from the horse’s mouth. But then also, just being able to be a part of a group that through the uncertainty came to fight, and came to compete, and came and went to war. I’ll take a team like that any day.”
The clip started to spread later that night and into the next morning. If you’d believe it, nobody was happy with what Jaylen said. Now if you’re looking at that full quote and wondering what people were mad about, I was in the same boat.
The issue that people took from it was that he called it his favorite season.
In their eyes, Jaylen was taking a shot at his co-superstar, Jayson Tatum. JB’s very explicit words got twisted into a supposedly implicit insinuation that it was his favorite season since he didn’t have to share the floor with JT, and that he finally got to be a number one option. If reading that made you roll your eyes, same.
People were also mad that Jaylen seemed “too happy” after an early playoff exit. They said he hopped on the stream too soon after the loss, and was not nearly mad or sad enough about it.
These narratives were given even more life when they were amplified by the likes of Stephen A. Smith, Nick Wright, and even popular Celtics fan accounts on Twitter. To make matters worse, Tracy McGrady, one of Jaylen’s friends and mentors, said that he heard from Brown that JB wasn’t happy with Celtics ownership, a comment that McGrady didn’t walk back until days later.
Cue the annual trade rumors.
Just a day after T-Mac’s initial comments, Brad Stevens gave his exit interview for the team, and addressed the comments directly. He emphasized that he’s been in communication with Brown throughout the season, and that JB has never come to him with any grievances, both parties seeing eye-to-eye.
Later that day, Jaylen went back to Twitch for another livestream. He did so to take all of these stories head on. First, he apologized to Brad Stevens and the Celtics organization, saying that Brad never should have had to address McGrady’s comments in the first place. He re-iterated that he loves Boston, has no issues with how things have been handled, and would “spend the next 10 years in Boston” if it were up to him.
Jaylen also addressed his comments about it being his favorite season: “I got to see it from a day-in, day-out basis where the expectations for this team was to fail. The expectations for this team was to be nothing, and for us to give in and to quit, and this team did the exact opposite. We fought every single day. We fought for everything. I got to see Jayson Tatum come back from an injury – mentally overcome what that takes… this is a part of the reason why it was my favorite year. You got to see all of these guys – all of my teammates grow. I got to see them overcome adversity as a group.”
Jaylen Brown explained why this season was his favorite, listing the growth of his teammates as reasons why, including Jayson Tatum:
“I got to see Jayson come back from an injury, mentally overcome what that takes.”
The first statement should have been clear enough for those who took the time to listen to it. The second should have removed all doubt. “Should” doesn’t always end up being reality, though.
Narratives sell in the sports world. It seems like these days, some fans find more entertainment in the drama than they do in the actual games. Sports media tends to lean into that, and amplify it for the sake of clicks and ratings.
Unfortunately, I have to give Stephen A. Smith a little more of that attention he craves here. He made comments about JB’s streaming, and his doubling down on the “favorite season” comments, saying that “[Jaylen] needs to be quiet… unless you’re trying to get traded.”
Maybe I’m taking it too far, but to me, it reads the exact same as “shut up and dribble,” which is rich coming from someone whose only success in the sports world comes from commenting on the success, or lack thereof, of the people in a profession which he wasn’t cut out for. Smith makes his money doing the same thing that he’s telling JB not to do, and he lives to control the narratives, something which Jaylen is trying to do for himself.
I found it incredibly unnecessary, hypocritical, and tone deaf.
JB wasn’t a fan either, quote-tweeting the clip with a simple message: “I’ll ‘be quiet’/stop streaming if you ‘be quiet’ and retire let’s give the people what they want”.
I’ll “be quiet” / stop streaming if you “be quiet” and retire let’s give the people what they want https://t.co/uRiHDyvIHo
Jaylen also shared a clip from Carmelo Anthony’s podcast where Melo was commenting on Brown’s streaming situation. In it, Anthony had this to say: “Why give a press conference to a company when I’m my own IP? I can go do my own press conference… Streaming is a new press conference. Right? Nobody wanna sit in a room no more and answer on five, six, seven reporters. They wanna get to the nitty-gritty of it and face it face-to-face with your followers and the people who’s actually watching. ‘Cause they’re the ones who’s really gonna ask the real questions. So, I get my message to you, then I get my message to everybody else.”
Melo hit the nail on the head. A lot of Jaylen’s message since he came into the league has been about embracing and achieving personal autonomy. He has always wanted to be in control of his own messaging, as well as his own destiny, which is part of why he created his own shoe brand instead of signing with one of the big dogs in the sneaker industry. Melo’s message was one of personal empowerment, which is likely why it resonated with JB.
Athletes have never had more power than they do in today’s day and age. There are a multitude of platforms that give them a voice they didn’t have in years past. Jaylen is far from the only one to take advantage of that.
Fans eat up looks into the players’ personal lives with documentaries like Netflix’s “Starting Five”, a show that followed the lives of five different NBA players in each of its two seasons. Tatum was part of the first season, while Brown was part of the second. Why are we okay with a Netflix director telling the players’ stories, but not the players themselves?
I would understand it more if the players were sharing disparaging comments, or otherwise sharing outwardly controversial or reckless statements when they were taking matters into their own hands, but why are we creating problems out of nothing? We shouldn’t be critical of players for using their voice to tell their own stories. They’re human too. We may just see them as basketball players, but they have lives well beyond the court. It’s not up to us to tell them what they should do with their free time, how they should react to a loss, how they should respond, when they can respond, or what they’re allowed to talk about.
Everyone will have their opinions. I think me telling fans not to comment on things like this would be incredibly hypocritical. All I ask is that if you plan on leaving those comments, try not to read too much into everything. Take a step back and look at these guys beyond the lens of them being athletes, and look at them as people, too.
Masai Ujiri poses with Mavericks governor Patrick Dumont during his introductory press conference. <br>Photograph: LM Otero/AP
On its face, the fit between Masai Ujiri and the Dallas Mavericks is perfect. “It’s almost like a match made in heaven,” Ujiri said after being introduced as the franchise’s president of basketball operations and alternate governor last week. “Every single one of us in this world is chosen for something special, and we just have to find it,” he added. “And I found basketball.”
Since he became the first African to run a major sports franchise in the United States as the general manager of the Denver Nuggets in 2010, Ujiri has accomplished everything. After winning Executive of the Year with the Nuggets in 2013, he moved to Toronto and inherited a Raptors franchise unsure of itself. The Raptors were the only NBA team outside the US – one centered in a city that hadn’t won anything since 1993 – and Ujiri had to convince Raptors fans to believe in themselves. He built one of the deepest and most international teams in the NBA after hitting on numerous draft picks and finally swapping franchise cornerstone DeMar DeRozan for pending free agent Kawhi Leonard in 2018.
Less than a year later, the Raptors were champions for the first time in their history, and the culture of Canadian sports was changed. Mavericks fans are hoping Ujiri can perform a similar transformation in Dallas.
Fifteen months after trading cherished superstar Luka Dončić to the Los Angeles Lakers in one of the most unpopular deals in sports history, the Mavericks are ready to move on. The team lucked into the No 1 pick in the 2025 draft and selected this season’s Rookie of the Year winner, Cooper Flagg, but they still finished well short of the playoffs.
“There’s a healing process,” Ujiri said about Mavericks fans’ grief in the post-Dončić era. “Luka is a future Hall of Famer, and that’s the past. In Africa, we say when kings go, kings come. The king went, and we have a little prince here [in Flagg] that we’re going to turn into a king.”
Few talent evaluators are better equipped than Ujiri to surround Flagg with the pieces he needs to be successful. The Mavericks have the ninth, 30th and 48th pick in this year’s draft to try to hit on an OG Anunoby or Pascal Siakam, who both helped to win the Raptors their title after being drafted by Ujiri. Few team builders have a better track record of taking a hopeless organization from the bottom of the NBA to the top, building a championship contender capable of taking down juggernauts; and nobody is better suited than Ujiri to pull the Mavericks out of the deep financial and cultural hole they dug for themselves in the wake of the Dončić trade.
So, why does Ujiri in Dallas feel so wrong?
As much as Ujiri has helped change basketball over the last two decades, he has never allowed the sport to define him. In 2003, while working as an unpaid NBA team scout, Ujiri co-founded the non-profit Giants of Africa, which supplies thousands of young boys and girls throughout the continent with basketball camps and 100 community courts. “Sport doesn’t just unite people,” Ujiri has said. “It breaks down barriers, builds hope and transforms entire communities.”
Ujiri’s humanitarian efforts have been well recognized. He has charmed presidents and prime ministers while being named an Officer of the Order of Canada. Under Ujiri, the Raptors were at the forefront of many social issues, from female empowerment to anti-racism, famously branding the team bus with “Black Lives Matter” after police killed George Floyd in May 2020. In an opinion piece for the Globe and Mailthat same year, Ujiri wrote: “We all came into this world the same way – as humans. No one is born to be racist and none of us sees colour at first. I believe there are far more good people than bad people, but sometimes the good must do more than simply be good. They must overwhelm the bad.”
It’s safe to say the people signing Ujiri’s new cheques may not be as interested in social justice. In 2023, the Mavericks’ majority owner, Miriam Adelson, wrote an op-ed claiming that pro-Palestinian and Black Lives Matter activists are “not our critics. They are our enemies … And, as such, they should be dead to us.”
Adelson has been called the most dangerous owner in professional sports. The widow of casino magnate Sheldon Adelson, she has amassed her fortune primarily from owning the Las Vegas Sands casino and resort company. In late 2023, Miriam Adelson purchased majority ownership of the Dallas Mavericks from Mark Cuban for $3.5bn – a drop in the ocean for the fifth richest woman in America, whose wealth is estimated to be around $35bn.
Adelson is also a Donald Trump mega-donor, the most generous of any sports team owner by some margin. (No individuals donated more money to Trump’s campaign efforts in 2020. In 2024, Adelson gave more than $100m to Trump.) She is also involved in politics outside the US. Adelson helped Benjamin Netanyahu secure the most right-wing government in Israel’s history, although the relationship has since soured, before influencing Trump’s Middle East policy. She and Sheldon were influential in the United States moving its embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem in 2018, the same year Trump awarded her with the Presidential Medal of Freedom. Trump and Netanyahu have gone on to cause havoc across the Middle East: Israel’s military actions in Gaza have been widely described as genocide, while the US has started a war with Iran that has killed hundreds of people.
Ujiri has always been outspoken, albeit with completely different politics from Adelson. In 2018, after Trump referred to Haiti and some African nations as “shithole countries”, Ujiri criticized the US president. “We have to inspire people and give them a sense of hope,” he said. “We need to bring people along, not ridicule and tear them down. This cannot be the message that we accept from the leader of the free world.” He later added that if the Raptors won a championship, “I think we’ll be fine with [only visiting Canadian prime minister Justin] Trudeau.”
In Toronto, Ujiri was shielded by former Raptors governor Larry Tanenbaum, a staunch liberal. Plus, there was a border separating Canada and the United States, who still had a good relationship at the time. Now that he is in a state as red as Texas – in charge of a team as prominent as the Mavericks – there is little protection, even if the team’s fanbase skews Democrat. At the same time, there’s a huge platform for someone as ambitious and politically outspoken as Ujiri to discuss important issues. One has to wonder if he will decide to. After all, other members of the Mavericks have gone quiet after moving to Dallas.
Kyrie Irving was once a walking headline. While his views were often far more dismal than Ujiri’s – he promoted an antisemitic film and very publicly refused to take the Covid-19 vaccine – he was once adamant that speaking out on issues important to him was more pressing than his NBA career.
“Basketball is just not the most important thing to me right now … All my people are still in bondage all across the world, and there’s a lot of dehumanization going on … It’s not just in Palestine, not just in Israel. It’s all over the world, and I feel it,” he said in 2021. But ever since he was traded from Brooklyn to Dallas in 2023, Irving has gone largely quiet – although he has recently shown his support for Palestine – while he works for a woman who is a staunch supporter of Israel.
“Kyrie Irving, even as he focuses on basketball, has liked lots of tweets in support of ending genocide in Gaza. And Mark Cuban has also long been on the record as a huge anti-Trump critic,” Pablo Torre said in a podcast episode dedicated to Adelson. “But ever since Cuban sold Adelson the team … Everybody that I’ve mentioned has pretty much all shut up and dribbled, mainstreaming the image of Miriam Adelson and partying with her courtside, laundering her extremism to the world.”
That’s not to say Ujiri will do the same, and Irving’s actions are proof that Adelson has not outlawed subtle shows of support for causes she does not agree with. Ujiri has the opportunity to make the world a better place from inside the Mavericks, standing on his morals by using his new and improved platform to change the organization – and perhaps the US – for the better. History, of course, is against him. That never stopped Ujiri before.
Victor Wembanyama became the third-youngest player in NBA history to record 25 points, 15 rebounds, and five assists in a post-season game [Getty Images]
Victor Wembanyama starred as the San Antonio Spurs moved to within one win of a Western Conference final against the Oklahoma City Thunder by taking a 3-2 lead against the Minnesota Timberwolves.
Wembanyama scored 27 points - including 18 in the first quarter - to lead the Spurs to a 126-97 victory in game five of the best-of-seven series.
His display came after the 22-year-old was ejected for the first time in his NBA career in the previous game for elbowing an opponent, although he did not receive a suspension.
Victory in game six for the Spurs in Minneapolis on Friday would set up a showdown with the Thunder - the reigning NBA champions - who completed a 4-0 sweep of the Los Angeles Lakers.
On whether he was anxious about returning for game five, Wembanyama said: "Very, very much. I mean, I was fresh, feeling good. But honestly, it's hard to tell if it was just getting fired up.
"Obviously, I'm going to be excited with butterflies, you know. So excitement is not something abnormal."
Asked about Wembanyama, Spurs coach Mitch Johnson said: "The one word I'd like to use [is] just mature.
"There's a lot that's happened in the last 48 hours, in the last game, and I think how that young man came out tonight and played in a variety of ways, in a variety of situations, was extremely mature."
The Spurs allowed an 18-point second-quarter lead to slip as Minnesota levelled the game at 61-61 four minutes into the third quarter.
But San Antonio rallied again, scoring 30 of the next 42 points to take a 91-73 lead into the final quarter - and extended that advantage even further.
LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA - MAY 11: Rui Hachimura #28 of the Los Angeles Lakers speaks to the media during a press conference after Game Four of the Second Round of the NBA Western Conference Playoffs against the Oklahoma City Thunder at Crypto.com Arena on May 11, 2026 in Los Angeles, California. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Allen Berezovsky/Getty Images) | Getty Images
Throughout the majority of the Lakers’ red hot March, Rui Hachimura was coming off the bench as a key reserve. Two months later, with the season on the line, he was having one of the best games of his career while trying to save the Lakers from elimination.
No one did more for his stock this postseason than Rui. After a regular season with mixed results and changing roles, Rui stepped up after the injuries to Luka Dončić and Austin Reaves and delivered in a big way.
Across the team’s 10 playoff games, Rui averaged 17.5 points per game on 54.9% shooting overall and an absurd 56.9% shooting from the 3-point line. He shot above 50% from three in every game as well, a truly impressive feat.
It all couldn’t have come at a better time for him as he’s set for unrestricted free agency this offseason. After his strong postseason, he’s set for a big payday, and it sounds like the Lakers could be the ones that offer it up.
On Tuesday, Dan Woike of The Athletic wrote a lengthy piece with plenty of great reporting on the present and future of the Lakers. Included in that was a tidbit on Rui and how most expect him to return to LA this summer.
Hachimura could be a priority for the Lakers. The 28-year-old is widely believed to want to stay with the Lakers. He shot 44.3 percent from 3-point range this season and is well-liked inside the locker room.
Rui has definitely found a home in LA after an underwhelming start to his career in Washington. His transformation from a high-volume midrange shooter to a high-efficiency laser from range has been remarkable. It speaks both to the work he’s done on his game as well as the level of comfort he has with the franchise, which President of Basketball Operations Rob Pelinka pointed out during his exit interview on Tuesday.
“From the time I traded for him when he came from the Wizards, Rui has gotten incredibly comfortable here,” Pelinka said. “Comfortable with the coaches and the front office and our systems and what I’ve seen in that, once Rui gets to a point of trust and comfort, then he grows exponentially with his production on the court.
“That’s what I’ve noticed most about him is just there’s a trust factor and comfort level that allows him to be the highest version of himself. That’s really important to keep those pieces.”
It surely sounds like someone who plans on retaining Rui this summer.
The question when it comes to free agents will always be the price point. But if Rui wants to be in LA and the Lakers want to keep him, you’d have to imagine they can iron out a deal that works for both sides.
SAN ANTONIO, TEXAS - MAY 12: Keldon Johnson #3 of the San Antonio Spurs reacts behind Anthony Edwards #5 of the Minnesota Timberwolves during the first quarter in Game Five of the Second Round of the NBA Western Conference Playoffs at Frost Bank Center on May 12, 2026 in San Antonio, Texas. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Alex Slitz/Getty Images) | Getty Images
The Minnesota Timberwolves entered Game 5 in San Antonio with a chance to retake control of their Western Conference Semifinals series. A win would have snatched back home-court advantage, put the Spurs on the brink of elimination, and set up a Friday night closeout opportunity at Target Center.
Unfortunately, none of that happened.
Instead, Minnesota walked out of Frost Bank Center as the victim of another massive road blowout, their second such collapse in San Antonio in this series. And now the Wolves find themselves staring at the edge of the cliff. Not near it. Not wandering vaguely in its direction. Standing right on it.
We all knew Game 5 mattered. This was the hinge game. The winner would take control of the series. The loser would spend the next 72 hours trying to convince themselves that everything is fine while very clearly knowing the opposite. For Minnesota, the frustrating part is that this wasn’t a game where they simply got steamrolled from the opening tip and never found a pulse. They had chances. They had openings. They had moments where the door cracked open just enough for hope to creep in.
Then the Spurs slammed it shut. Every single time.
Quarter 1
The night started about as poorly as it could have for Minnesota, mostly because Wembanyama came out looking like a man who had spent the past two days brooding about his Game 4 ejection. He scored 18 points in the first quarter, putting his stamp on the game immediately and reminding everyone that the Flagrant 2 did not remove him from the series permanently.
At one point, the Wolves trailed by 13, but then Wembanyama went to the bench, and Minnesota actually found a rhythm. The Wolves rallied, cut the deficit to four, and for the first time all night it felt like maybe they had weathered the initial storm. That became the theme of the evening: San Antonio would build a lead, Minnesota would claw back, and then, just as the Wolves seemed ready to steady themselves, the Spurs would punch them back down the stairs.
Quarter 2
The second quarter began with Minnesota trailing by only four, which felt like a small victory considering Wembanyama had just dropped 18 in the opening frame. There was a world where the Wolves took that survival act, turned it into momentum, and started dragging the game into the kind of mud fight that has served them well throughout these playoffs.
That world lasted about two minutes.
The Spurs quickly pushed the lead back to 12, and although Minnesota largely held serve for the rest of the quarter, the offense never really solved anything. Their saving grace was that they did a better job on Wembanyama, holding him to only three points in the period. Unfortunately, it didn’t matter nearly enough because San Antonio’s defense had Minnesota stuck in neutral as the Wolves mustered only 17 points. The ball movement wasn’t sharp. The Wolves were not getting enough easy looks, and when they did get chances, they weren’t consistently turning them into points.
By halftime, Wembanyama had 21 points. The Wolves had zero players in double figures. Ayo Dosunmu led Minnesota with nine points, while Anthony Edwards and Naz Reid each had eight. That is not the box score of a team in control of a massive playoff game. That is the box score of a team searching for someone, anyone, to grab the wheel.
Quarter 3
The Wolves began the second half down 59-47. A 12-point hole on the road in a pivotal playoff game is not ideal, but it is not insurmountable. There was still a chance for the Wolves to make the kind of second-half push that changes the tone of a series. And when the third quarter opened, it briefly looked like they might actually do it.
Minnesota came out of halftime with real force, ripping off a 14-2 run and tying the game at 61-61. Suddenly Frost Bank Center got tight, the Spurs looked a little rattled, and the Wolves appeared poised to take control. With the game tied, Edwards had a chance to give Minnesota its first lead since the opening minutes.
His shot rimmed out.
And it was all downhill from there.
Everything began to unravel. San Antonio answered with an 11-2 run, and the Wolves gave back everything they had just spent all that energy earning. Jaden McDaniels picked up his fourth foul during that stretch, sending him to the bench, and Minnesota’s defense cratered almost immediately. The Wolves tied the game and forced the Spurs to feel pressure, but just moments later, they were watching that pressure boomerang right back into their own chest.
The rest of the third quarter was a disaster. After opening the half on that 14-2 run, Minnesota was outscored 30-12 the rest of the way. That kind of swing is how playoff games turn into crime scenes. It was fueled by all the stuff that has killed the Wolves in this series when things have gone sideways: poor defense, sloppy turnovers, careless possessions, San Antonio transition buckets, and far too many second-chance opportunities where Minnesota simply could not secure the ball and end the possession.
The Wolves had done the work to climb out of a hole, then immediately handed the shovel back to the other guy.
Quarter 4
In the final frame, Minnesota quickly found itself down 93-73.
Still, because this team apparently enjoys putting its fans through emotional turbulence, the Wolves teased one more comeback. They opened the fourth on an 8-0 run, cutting the deficit to 12 with 9:30 remaining. For a brief moment, you could feel the old familiar hope trying to crawl back into the room. Maybe they had one more miracle. Maybe the Spurs would tighten up. Maybe Edwards would catch fire. Maybe the Wolves would find the same late-game magic that saved them in Game 4.
It was only a tease.
The dam broke from there. Minnesota drowned in turnovers, San Antonio turned those mistakes into transition chances, and the Wolves completely lost the ability to keep the Spurs from plowing through them. Every time Minnesota tried to build something, San Antonio had an answer. Every time the Wolves clawed back, they slipped. Every time there was a chance to change the game, they failed to seize it.
And that’s the frustrating part of Game 5. It wasn’t just that the Wolves lost. It was that they were repeatedly handed moments where the game could have shifted, and they could not hold on to the rope.
Now their season is dangling by a thread.
Game 6 is Friday night at Target Center, and the Wolves face elimination. That alone should change the temperature of everything. The luxury of “next game” is gone. The margin for error has been burned. The runway is officially down to one game at a time.
Win at home, and the Wolves earn the right to return to San Antonio for Game 7, where they would have to conquer a building that has been an absolute house of horrors in Games 2 and 5. Lose, and the 2025-26 Timberwolves season is over.
That is the mountain in front of them. And standing on top of it is Wembanyama, swatting away everything in sight.
The Wolves have roughly 72 hours to find answers. They need to figure out how to survive Wembanyama’s opening punches without immediately falling behind. They need to find an offense that doesn’t vanish for full quarters. They need Edwards, Randle, McDaniels, Naz, Ayo, Rudy, everyone, to be sharper, tougher, and more connected than they were in Game 5. They need to rebound with desperation. They need to defend without collapsing. They need to stop feeding San Antonio transition chances with sloppy turnovers. They need to remember the team that stormed back in Game 4 and not the one that let go of the rope in San Antonio.
Because that’s what Game 5 was.
A tug of war.
Minnesota pulled itself back into the fight more than once. Cut 13 to four. Cut 12 to a tie. Cut 20 to 12. Each time, the opportunity was there. Each time, the Wolves had a chance to dig in and pull.
Each time, they let go.
Now there are no more chances to let go.
Friday night, they either grip the rope with everything they have, or the season slips away.
Up Next
The Timberwolves will look to keep their season alive on Friday night for Game 6 of this Timberwolves-Spurs series. It is back to another late-night tipoff as the game begins at 8:30 PM CT. Fans can watch the game on Amazon Prime Video.
CHICAGO, IL - MAY 12: AJ Dybantsa shoots the ball during the 2026 NBA Draft Combine on May 12, 2026 at Wintrust Arena in Chicago, Illinois. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2026 NBAE (Photo by Jeff Haynes/NBAE via Getty Images) | NBAE via Getty Images
It’s been a big day for the top prospects in the NBA draft, and there were some surprising results for the prospects the Utah Jazz will be looking at in the Draft. Here are some of the most important highlights.
AJ Dybantsa
A lot of eyes were on Dybantsa as he came into the draft combine to see what his measurements would be. Those measurements looked great, and so the focus would turn to how well he did in the drills and stations. The biggest wow factor came with his vertical.
That 42” vertical is fantastic! There’s a lot of debate right now between Dybantsa and Peterson, and this type of athleticism is the type of thing that could give the edge to Dybantsa at #1. Dybantsa’s shooting wasn’t as impressive as others, but with his mix of size and athleticism, it’s easy to see just how high his ceiling is.
Darryn Peterson
The debate between Peterson and Dybantsa is going to be fun, and the Wizards may not make a decision until Adam Silver walks to the podium. The argument for Darryn Peterson will be his elite skill level. Peterson had solid drill numbers and vertical, though not eye-popping. But what really shone was his elite scoring ability. Peterson’s spot-up shooting drill showcased just how effortless it is for him to score.
Darryn Peterson went 19-25 in the spot-up shooting drill, one shy of Bennett Stirtz’s top spot. Such an effortlessly elite shooter: pic.twitter.com/z28TGnEiwF
Peterson is likely going to be elite in his workouts, but you can tell a lot from a guy who almost looks bored knocking down threes. There’s a chance that Peterson could be the scoring champion in the league and do it pretty easily.
Cam Boozer
One thing that has always been clear about Cam Boozer is the high level of basketball he plays. He’s basically good at everything, and that showed today. He shot the ball at the same level as Darryn Peterson in his spot-up drill, for example.
Cam Boozer shot 19/25 in the 3PT spot up drill, ranking him 3rd among all prospects.
He also had good measureables and moved well. He likely solidified himself as the third pick, and we’ll see if what he did may have swayed either the Jazz or the Wizards.
Caleb Wilson
Caleb Wilson had solid production during the combine, but it wasn’t at a level that makes me think he might make a surprise appearance in the top-3. His vertical was a very good 39.5 inches. Really good, but not as good as the 42 inches from AJ Dybantsa.
Caleb Wilson had an unofficial max vertical leap of 39.5 in., 5th-best among prospects so far. Rare bounce for a player his size (6’10”). pic.twitter.com/iMpWMW5apf
What might really sway GMs about Wilson is his personality and interviews. He has real confidence and a chip on his shoulder to win games. That all showed up at North Carolina with his elite defensive ability.
Caleb Wilson on what he will bring to a team.
“I will change your franchise, your culture, your program, your city. I did that at North Carolina.” pic.twitter.com/euEFcN0nMo
Wilson is the type of guy who can be a 1st-team all-defense guy. His measurements didn’t do anything to dissuade that idea.
It was a good day for the top prospects in this upcoming draft. If anything, it just made things more difficult for GMs who are still deciding what they want to do.
There was a before Jason Collins, when gay male athletes felt no choice but to hide their true selves and young men searching for someone like them in professional male sports thought they were alone.
And, thankfully, there is an after.
The number of male athletes who played major professional sports after coming out is still dishearteningly small, but it is no longer zero. No one will have to bear the colossal burden of being the very first openly gay man in any of the major professional leagues because Collins was courageous enough to do it.
That is his legacy. That is his gift to every athlete who comes after him.
“Jason changed lives through his courage, authenticity, and commitment to helping others feel seen,” tennis great Billie Jean King, the first prominent female professional athlete to come out, said in a statement on social media.
“His legacy extends far beyond basketball. He helped move sports and society forward with strength.”
Of course there were gay men in the NBA – and the NFL and Major League Baseball and the NHL – before Collins came out in April 2013. But none felt safe enough to share their true self with the world while they were still playing.
Trash talk and insults have always been a mother tongue in sports, and for far too long, homophobic slurs were one of the main dialects in male locker rooms. Whether it was spoken or just implied, the message to closeted players was that coming out risked upsetting that delicate balance. A player brave enough to tell the world his truth might alienate his teammates, fracture the chemistry of a team.
And if that happened on one team, the door to the rest of the league would slam shut. A player could lose his livelihood and the sport he loved just for wanting to be his authentic self.
So people stayed quiet. Some until their careers ended. Some for their entire lives.
But Collins was brave enough to want more, for himself, for other LGBTQ people, for our whole society.
Collins breaks barrier
“I wish I wasn't the kid in the classroom raising his hand and saying, 'I'm different.' If I had my way, someone else would have already done this. Nobody has, which is why I'm raising my hand,” Collins wrote in the first-person essay for Sports Illustrated announcing he was gay.
“… It takes an enormous amount of energy to guard such a big secret. I've endured years of misery and gone to enormous lengths to live a lie. I was certain that my world would fall apart if anyone knew,” Collins wrote. “And yet when I acknowledged my sexuality I felt whole for the first time. I still had the same sense of humor, I still had the same mannerisms and my friends still had my back.”
Collins was a free agent when he came out, and it would take nearly a year before a team signed him. He finally joined the Brooklyn Nets on a 10-day contract in February 2014, then wound up spending the rest of the season with them.
He played in 22 games, and the Nets didn’t implode and their locker room didn’t come apart. Brooklyn reached the Eastern Conference semifinals before losing to the two-time defending NBA champion Miami Heat. No shame in that.
Game changed when Collins came out
Collins retired that fall, but the game had forever shifted. He’d shattered the stereotypes of gay men and destroyed the idea that there was no room in the major professional sports for a gay man.
“He helped make the NBA, WNBA and larger sports community more inclusive and welcoming for future generations,” NBA commissioner Adam Silver said in a statement.
Homophobia still exists in sports, male sports especially. There are still athletes reluctant to come out while they're playing for fear it will jeopardize their careers.
But Collins showed gay men that they didn't have to hide, that major men's professional sports were more ready to welcome them than they expected. He made it so that "never" could no longer be a barrier.
"Openness may not completely disarm prejudice," Collins wrote in 2013, "but it's a good place to start."
Follow USA TODAY Sports columnist Nancy Armour on social media @nrarmour.
SAN ANTONIO, TX - MAY 12: Victor Wembanyama #1 and De'Aaron Fox #4 of the San Antonio Spurs high five during the game against the Minnesota Timberwolves during Round Two Game Five of the 2026 NBA Playoffs on May 12, 2026 at the Frost Bank Center in San Antonio, Texas. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2026 NBAE (Photos by Michael Gonzales/NBAE via Getty Images) | NBAE via Getty Images
The noise inside Frost Bank Center started long before tipoff. Fans arrived anxious, restless and desperate to see how the San Antonio Spurs would respond after letting Game 4 slip away in Minneapolis. There had been frustration over Victor Wembanyama’s ejection. Questions about composure. Questions about whether the young Spurs were ready for the weight of a playoff series that suddenly felt even again.
By the end of Tuesday night, those doubts had been drowned out by cheers.
The Spurs didn’t just beat the Minnesota Timberwolves in Game 5. They squeezed the life out of them. Behind a dominant performance from Wembanyama and one of their sharpest defensive efforts of the postseason, San Antonio rolled to a commanding 126-97 win to take a 3-2 lead in the Western Conference semifinals.
From the opening minutes, the Spurs played with the urgency of a team determined to erase the memory of Game 4. Every loose ball mattered, every defensive possession carried force, and Minnesota quickly discovered there would be no easy baskets.
“We played with the appropriate fear, discipline, execution, physicality, poise,” Spurs Head Coach Mitch Johnson said. “And I thought we had it from an array of people tonight and it was really good to see.”
Wembanyama set the tone immediately, patrolling the paint like a one-man wrecking crew. The 7-foot-4 star altered shots even when he didn’t block them, swallowed rebounds in traffic and punished the Timberwolves offensively whenever they sent smaller defenders at him.
By halftime, the building was alive. The Spurs were flying in transition, the defense was swarming and Minnesota looked rattled.
Wembanyama finished with 27 points, 17 rebounds, five assists and three blocks, but the numbers hardly captured the control he had over the game. Every Minnesota mistake seemed to start with his presence somewhere nearby. And this time, he stayed on the floor to finish the job.
“I think the one word I like to use is mature,” Johnson said of his young star. “I think there was a lot that’s happened in the last 48 hours. And I think how that young man came out tonight and played in a variety of ways in a variety situations…was extremely mature.”
The Timberwolves made one brief push in the third quarter, cutting into the deficit just enough to create tension in the arena. For a moment, memories of missed opportunities and collapsing leads resurfaced.
Then San Antonio answered.
De’Aaron Fox pushed the tempo after a steal and found Stephon Castle for an easy finish. Moments later, Keldon Johnson exploded to the rim before delivering the defensive highlight of the night: soaring to reject Rudy Gobert at the basket and sending the crowd into a frenzy.
That sequence broke Minnesota.
The Spurs followed with another scoring burst, and suddenly the game no longer felt competitive. San Antonio’s lead ballooned past 20 as the Timberwolves’ offense unraveled possession by possession.
Fox, playing through an ankle issue, added 18 points and controlled the pace whenever the Spurs needed stability. Johnson scored 21 points off the bench with his usual blend of emotion and physicality, while Castle continued to play far beyond his years with 17 points in another poised playoff performance.
Minnesota never found answers.
Anthony Edwards scored 20 points, but San Antonio crowded him relentlessly, forcing difficult looks and cutting off driving lanes before he could fully take over. The Timberwolves struggled to create clean offense all night as frustration mounted with every empty possession.
By the fourth quarter, the only drama left was how loud the arena would become with each Spurs basket.
Fans rose to their feet early, sensing what this win meant. Not just a series lead or a bounce-back performance. It was proof that this young Spurs team could absorb pressure, respond to adversity and reestablish its identity when the stakes climbed highest.
Now, San Antonio heads back to Minneapolis one win away from the Western Conference Finals.
And after Tuesday night, the momentum feels firmly back in silver and black.
Game notes
Keldon Johnson delivered the performance that won him 6th Man of the Year, posting 21 points and showing up when his team needed him the most.
Shoutout to the fans at the Frost Bank Center. They will need every bit of that and more when the Oklahoma City Thunder come to town.
Fueled by his ejection in Game 4, he came out and set the tone from the opening tip, scoring 16 of the Spurs' first 21 points as they raced out to a 21-9 lead.
However, the real difference in this series is depth.
There were multiple points when the Timberwolves would make a run, and each time, a different Spurs player would step up and make plays to take control again. At one point it was Stephon Castle. At another it was Keldon Johnson. Another time it was Dylan Harper.
The rook was too big for the vet on this board and Dylan Harper then got the layup to go.
"We played with the appropriate fear, discipline, execution, physicality, poise," Spurs coach Mitch Johnson said. "And I thought we had it from an array of people tonight and it was really good to see."
The Timberwolves only get that kind of boost from Anthony Edwards, but nobody else is stepping up when they need it most.
The result was the Spurs pulling away in the fourth quarter for a comfortable 126-97 win, giving them a 3-2 lead and just one more win away from the Western Conference Finals.
Game 6 is Friday night in Minnesota.
Wembanyama led the way for San Antonio with 27 points, 17 rebounds and three blocks on the night.
More than the stats, it was the tone he set. The Spurs were the more physical team on the night and dominated the paint — San Antonio won the points-in-the-paint battle 68-36.The Timberwolves shot just 47.4% in the paint on the night.
San Antonio got 21 points from Johnson off the bench, while De'Aaron Fox added 18 points and Castle 17. As a team, the Spurs shot 52.8% on the night and got downhill into the paint at will.
Edwards led the Timberwolves with 20 points, while Julius Randle had another unimpressive game this series with 17 points but on 17 shot attempts, plus 10 rebounds. Jaden McDaniels also scored 17 for Minnesota but spent much of the night in foul trouble.
How San Antonio's depth showed was in its response to even the slightest adversity. Minnesota would make runs, like when it cut the San Antonio lead to four, 34-30, at the end of the first quarter. Then the Spurs would respond, as they did with an 11-3 run to start the second quarter. By halftime, it was the Spurs by a dozen, 59-47.
Minnesota opens third quarter on a 14-2 run to tie the game — and they did it with Wembanyama on the court. Then the Spurs responded with an 11-2 run of their own, fueled by Johnson's energy and six points from Castle.
It was like that all night, the young Spurs felt comfortable and made plays. And now they are one win away from the Western Conference Finals and a date with Oklahoma City.
CHICAGO, IL - MAY 11: Koa Peat shoots the ball during the 2026 NBA Draft Combine on May 11, 2026 at Wintrust Arena in Chicago, Illinois. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2026 NBAE (Photo by Melissa Tamez/NBAE via Getty Images) | NBAE via Getty Images
The NBA Draft Combine got underway Monday in Chicago, where Arizona’s Tobe Awaka, Jaden Bradley, Brayden Burries and Koa Peat performed measurements and drills in front of NBA decision makers.
Burries and Peat are both projected first-round picks, while some mock drafts have Bradley going late second round. Awaka is one of the players participating at the combine looking to make a good final impression, even if his draft prospects are marginal at best.
The combine, which runs all week, provides players with an opportunity to meet with NBA front offices face-to-face in addition to participating in obligatory tests and drills. Bradley is the only Arizona player to compete in 5 on 5 scrimmages, which run Wednesday and Thursday.
For Arizona fans, the major point of interest heading into this week was how Peat would measure up and perform in shooting drills. Suffice to say, Peat didn’t turn many heads with his shooting.
Peat was one of the worst shooters in Monday’s session, making 6 of 25 three-pointers and going 6 of 25 in the spot-up shooting drill. As ESPN’s Jeff Borzello wrote, “Peat’s shot looked dramatically different from what it did while he was at Arizona, with a slower motion and much lower release point. He didn’t look entirely comfortable with it Monday.”
Peat’s poor shooting display shouldn’t come as a surprise to Arizona fans who watched him struggle from the field throughout the season. Whether it’s enough of a concern for NBA GMs to the point where Peat feels he’d be better off returning for a sophomore year is another question.
Here is how Peat and the other Arizona players fared at the combine’s first days. The story will be updated with Bradley’s drill results. Credit to Kevin Thomas of PHNX for drill results of Peat, Awaka and Burries.
SAN ANTONIO — Victor Wembanyama atoned for his first career ejection with another huge performance, finishing with 27 points, 17 rebounds and three blocks as the San Antonio Spurs beat the Minnesota Timberwolves 126-97 on Tuesday night to take a 3-2 lead in their second-round series.
At 22 years old, Wembanyama is the third-youngest player in NBA history to post that stat line in a playoff game, trailing only Magic Johnson (20) and Luka Doncic (21).
“I was fresh, feeling good,” Wembanyama said. “Honestly, it’s hard to tell. It was just Game 5. Obviously, I’m going to be excited (and) to have butterflies. So, excitement is not something abnormal at this point in the playoffs.”
Victor Wembanyama, who scored 29 points, goes up for a layup during the Spurs’ 126-97 Game 5 win over the Timberwolves on May 12, 2026 in Minneapolis. AP
Keldon Johnson had 21 points, De’Aaron Fox added 18 and Stephon Castle had 17 as San Antonio moved a game away from the Western Conference finals. The Spurs can advance to face Oklahoma City with a victory in Game 6 on Friday in Minneapolis.
Anthony Edwards, who was limited to eight points in the first half, finished with 20 points for Minnesota. Julius Randle and Jaden McDaniels added 17 points apiece.
Wembanyama returned after being ejected early in the second quarter of Minnesota’s 114-109 victory Sunday during Game 4 in Minneapolis. Wembanyama received a Flagrant 2 foul after elbowing Naz Reid in the throat.
Both teams continued to hammer each other, with Reid receiving a technical foul for pushing Wembanyama in the back on a Minnesota free throw with 2:24 left in the first half.
“I felt like, to start the game, we knew it was going to be physical,” Castle said. “So, just making that a point of emphasis and trying to keep them off the offensive glass. I feel like we started the game off well and that’s where our runs came from. But obviously they’re a good team. They’re going to go on their own run. So, just try not to hang our head when that does happen and be able to respond and spark another run for ourselves.”
Anthony Edwards goes up for a layup during the Timberwolves’ Game 5 loss to the Spurs. NBAE via Getty Images
The foul by Reid fired up Wembanyama, not that he needed any additional motivation.
Wembanyama was 6 for 8 from the field and 2 for 3 on 3-pointers in scoring 18 points in the opening quarter.
“I think it’s super important for us the way we start the game, because it sets the tone,” Wembanyama said, “Now the challenge is to do it for 48 minutes.”
Victor Wembanyama (1), who had 17 boards, reaches for a rebound during the Spurs’ Game 5 win over the Timberwolves. Scott Wachter-Imagn Images
The Timberwolves opened the third quarter on a 14-2 run to tie the game at 61 after trailing by 18 points in the first half. Minnesota tipped away three attempted alley-oop passes to Wembanyama before they reached the 7-foot-4 post.
The Spurs recaptured a double-digit lead in the third spurred by Johnson’s block on Rudy Gobert’s attempted dunk followed by his short jumper after bodying Edwards under the rim.
“We went away from what was working,” Timberwolves coach Chris Finch said. “Our defense just cratered. We gave up 30 points, I think, in the last six minutes of the third quarter. A lot of it was just ball contain, ball contain stuff.”
San Antonio held its opponent under 100 points for the fifth time in 10 games this postseason.
“I thought we did a good job of having resistance early in the clock,” Spurs coach Mitch Johnson said. “They’ve shown as the series has gone on, they’ve tried to play faster at times and they’re tough when they get downhill. I think when we’ve had better starting spots, more connectivity at the start of possessions, I think it’s really helped us be on a string and be organized and connected defensively.”
May 12, 2026; San Antonio, Texas, USA; San Antonio Spurs forward Victor Wembanyama (1) reacts after scoring a three point basket during the first half of game five of the second round of the 2026 NBA Playoffs against the Minnesota Timberwolves at Frost Bank Center. Mandatory Credit: Scott Wachter-Imagn Images | Scott Wachter-Imagn Images
Three down and one more to go until the Western Conference Finals.
Victor Wembanyama made amends for getting ejected two nights earlier with his rampage in the pivotal fifth game of the series against Minnesota. The team’s 3-point shooting also helped them race out to an early lead and control of the boards assisted in keeping it.
The Timberwolves didn’t roll over for as long as they could, but their half-court offense was derailed and an inability to score on second chances never let them take control from the Spurs.
Observations
Efficiency is not the gold standard in the playoffs because defenses are at a much higher level than the regular season and referees are allowing more contact. Still, Randle has been awful in major part due to San Antonio‘s pressure and half of his baskets came in garbage time. The sagging off gets his head, and he still tries to take highly contested shots. After this game, he’s now made 26 shots against 18 turnovers in this series.
The Spurs had an answer for Minnesota’s big runs because their offense had more layers and they were mentally tougher. On top of that, Stephon Castle and Dylan Harper deserve credit for being critical in the takeover going into the fourth.
The Wolves didn’t get the memo that you don’t bait great players. They tried to get physical, and even tried bush league tactics with Wemby, and that played right into his hands because he took it out on the rim, and his massive tentacles were the main reason the Wolves were ineffective in the lane.
Naz Reid told the press before the game that the Timberwolves wanted the Spurs at full strength. That resulted in the Spurs outscoring them by 32 in the lane.
The Timberwolves’ three-big lineup usually features Jaden McDaniels with one ball handler, which limits playmaking, but the defense is sharp. This lineup is supposed to be a big advantage, and was one that Reid mentioned before the game, but it was getting run off the floor in the third quarter without McDaniels.
Anthony Edwards has been the leading scorer in this series (24.5 before Game 5), shooting decently in the lane, yet has been a marksman from outside. The Spurs held him this time to a good game, not a great one. He’s been the only one who has been consistently able to bend San Antonio‘s defense, yet their team looks ordinary when he’s not going wild.
The Spurs’ eyes light up whenever Mike Conley is in the game because he can’t guard like he used to. Coach Chris Finch doesn’t have someone like Spurs associate head coach Sean Sweeney in his ear to tell him to play one of his younger, more athletic players (Jaylen Clark).
There’s an old saying about coach Dean Smith being the only person who could shut down Michael Jordan, and some of that may be true to a degree for Mitch Johnson. Wembanyama had 18 points through 12 minutes in the second quarter before taking a brief rest when keeping him on the floor could’ve sent the Wolves deep into the depths of Tartarus earlier. In fairness to Luke Kornet, he was sharp in this spurt.
Teams that win Game 5 after being tied 2-2 advance 81.5 percent of the time.
OG Anunoby’s absence due to a right hamstring strain in Games 3 and 4 of the second round meant Miles McBride moved to the starting lineup, opening up his minutes for someone off the bench. After being buried in the rotation, Landry Shamet was the beneficiary.
He played 37 minutes between the two games and scored 27 points.
Landry Shamet slams home a dunk past Tyrese Maxey during the Knicks’ Game 3 win over the 76ers. AP
“Landry hadn’t played a drop all playoffs,” coach Mike Brown said. “I think the first game [of the first round], he was in the rotation and then the second game a little bit, then he was out. That’s six, seven games that he hadn’t seen significant minutes on the court. … He was huge on both ends of the floor.”
With Anunoby expected to return for Game 1 of the conference finals, it is likely those minutes will again disappear.
McBride will move back to his bench role. He, Mitchell Robinson, Jordan Clarkson and Jose Alvarado have consistently been Brown’s primary bench pieces. Shamet was originally above Alvarado in the pecking order, but Brown flipped that because he wanted to have a more natural point guard on the floor when Brunson is on the bench.
It is unlikely that Brown will expand to a 10-man rotation to include Shamet.
Brown has proven that he is not afraid to shake up his rotation at any given moment. With everyone healthy, it’s hard to see how Shamet finds his way on the court.
Mark Cuban, the Mavericks owner when Jalen Brunson began his career with the franchise, was critical of one of Brunson’s recent endorsement deals.
“Time to tell your agent to get you deals with the good guys,” Cuban posted to X while tagging Brunson. “CAA did you wrong.”
Cuban included a link to Brunson’s advertisement with Evernorth Health Services. Cuban notably owns Mark Cuban Cost Plus Drug Company, which offers low-cost generic drugs and attempts to disrupt major pharmaceutical companies.
Karl-Anthony Towns, an avid card collector, revealed that he was outbid for a one-of-one Randy Orton WrestleMania 41 patch autograph. The winning bid came in at $42,100 on eBay.
“This has us SICK,” Towns wrote on his Instagram account “bigbodegascards,” which is dedicated to his card collecting. “Thought it was ours for the taking, until a last-minute NUCLEAR bid snuck in! Who has this card now!? We have to know!”
James and the Lakers were eliminated from the 2026 NBA playoffs in the Western conference semifinals by the defending champion Oklahoma City Thunder, four games to none. Immediately following the game, James provided some insight to reporters regarding the decision on his next chapter.
The short answer: nobody knows, not even James himself.
"I don't know. It's obviously still fresh from losing, you know, I don't know. I mean, I don't know what the future holds for me," James said on May 11 after the Lakers were swept by the Thunder. "Obviously, as it stands right now, tonight, I got a lot of time. I'll sit back, like I think I said last year, after we lost, I think to Minnesota there, go back and recalibrate with my family and talk with them and spend some time with them, and then when the time comes, obviously, you guys will know what I decide to do."
James is a four-time NBA champion and Finals MVP who has broken a number of NBA records — most seasons played (23), most games played (1,622), most career points scored in the regular season (43,440) and playoffs (8,521), most All-Star appearances (22), among many others.
His longest consecutive stint with one team has come with the Lakers, having finished his eighth season in Los Angeles. He arrived in LA as a free agent in 2018. His goal was to bring the Lakers back to relevancy, he told reporters.
Since James became a Laker, they have been among the league's better teams, winning an NBA championship in 2020 with another conference finals appearance in 2023. They've made the playoffs in all but two seasons.
During the 2025-26 season, James took on a role he's never played in his life: the third option behind the Lakers' backcourt of Luka Doncic and Austin Reaves.
James proved that he could be dominant in any position he was placed in. He still averaged 20.9 points, 6.1 rebounds, and 7.2 assists per game in 60 games, while shooting 51.5% from the field.
James still had his moments to be the No. 1 option, none more than when both Reaves and Doncic went down with late-season injuries. James led the Lakers to a first-round upset against the Houston Rockets in the 2026 NBA playoffs.
Looking back at the ups and downs of the 2026 season, James said he will take time to decide what's best for his future. One of the contingencies is whether he still is in love with the preparation process and the steps it takes for him to perform at a high level of sustained greatness.
"I don't know. I think for me, it's about the process," James told reporters after their playoff elimination. "If I can commit to still being in love with the process, of showing (up) to the arena 5½ hours before a game to start preparing for a game. You know, giving everything I got, diving for loose balls, and, you know, doing everything that it takes to go out and play."
He added: "Showing up to practice, 11:00 practice. I'm here at 8:00, preparing my body, preparing my mind, preparing to practice, to put the work in. So I think for me, I've always been in love with the process, and not the aftermath of, like, we won that game, or won a championship. Like, I've always enjoyed the process and not more than outcome, so then that will be a big factor."
One of the things impacting James' future plans is his family. James called them a "big factor."
"I'll then also, you know, have a conversation with my 12-year-old daughter, you know, that's a big factor," James said. "And my 19-year-old son is entering his second year at Arizona, you know? And my wife as well, they're (a) huge factor in any decision I've made. So they'll be a big part of it as well."
