Category: Basketball

Last summer, the Golden State Warriors had the most noteworthy restricted free agency standoff with Jonathan Kuminga. This year, the Dubs appear to be done with their offseason roster moves, but the Detroit Pistons and restricted free agent Jalen Duren remain in a staring contest of their own.

In a previous era of the NBA, the Warriors would be in position to offer Duren the $40 million per year deal he’s looking for while sending Kristaps Porzingis, Moses Moody, Brandin Podziemski (or Yaxel Lendeboorg), and future picks to the Pistons in a sign-and-trade. However, the new CBA hard caps teams that complete a deal sign-and-trade at the first apron, making it impossible for the Dubs to pull off a sign-and-trade without essentially forcing the Dubs to trade Jimmy Butler.

Instead, Golden State is in position to play a longer game with Duren. Golden State is among the few teams in position to create max salary cap space next offseason alongside a chance to play with another bonafide star. While Duren has most consistently been tied to the Sacramento Kings, an opportunity to get max money without joining an organization most known for incompetence.

While the idea of a “max” deal for Duren may scare Dub Nation, it’s important to contextualize it. Since Duren has only been in the NBA for four years, the estimated maximum first-year salary the Warriors could offer him next offseason is around $43 million. A significant number for sure, but significantly less than the largest salaries in the league. The Warriors need another All-Star to return to contention. Maybe Jimmy Butler can be that in his return from an ACL injury, but that seems unlikely at his age. With Curry, Butler, and Draymond Green all closer to 40 than 30, adding an All-Star like Duren who will not turn 25 until 2028 could genuinely change the franchise’s trajectory.

The Pistons have reportedly offered Duren a five-year, $190 million deal while he is eyeing something north of $200 million, which is understandable. If he is quite confident another team will offer him a max contract worth $187.05 million over four years next summer, he could accept the qualifying offer and end up effectively netting a five-year, $196.7 million deal across two contracts.

Of course, that comes with significant risk if he has a down year or suffers an injury. That said, there is still some upside for Duren since he has already made an All-NBA team and qualifies for the “super max.” If Duren accepts the qualifying offer and takes another step forward next season, he could be in position to leverage the Pistons into a significantly larger deal.

The odds seem highest that the Pistons and Duren will eventually come to an agreement. It’s simply a massive risk to pass on nearly $200 million guaranteed. However, Duren is still only 22 and averaged roughly 20 points and 11 rebounds per game on a 60-win team last season. He has already earned an All-Star and All-NBA Third Team selection. Players like Dennis Schröder, Nerleans Noel, and Jonathan Kuminga are the common examples of players who overplayed their hand in restricted free agent negotiations, but none of them had achieved close to what Duren has at this point in their careers.

The Atlanta Hawks announced on Monday that former Tar Heel Henri Veesaar tore his right ACL during a workout on Sept. 15 and will miss the entire NBA season.

The 22-year-old Estonian was an all-ACC performer for Carolina last season, averaging 17 points, 8.7 rebounds, 2.1 assists and 1.2 blocks while shooting 42.6% from 3-point range. He declared for the draft despite having one more year of college eligibility and was generally projected to be taken late in the first round. However, he slid all the way to #52 overall, where the Los Angeles Clippers selected him before trading him to the Hawks.

It’s a tough break for a player who was a lot of fun to watch in his only season in Chapel Hill, and it further confirms he made the right decision by leaving college early. With the NCAA no longer granting medical hardship waivers, a torn ACL wiping out Veesaar’s final college season likely would have led to him going undrafted and having to fight for a two-way contract–a far cry from the four-year, $9.3 million deal he landed with the Hawks.

Veesaar is set to undergo surgery in October. Here’s hoping he recovers quickly and comes back better than ever.

After the Golden State Warriors decided to sign undrafted free agent big man Graham Ike to fill the final two-way spot on the squad, news shortly followed of Dubs second-round pick Lajae Jones opting to start his post-college career internationally. Jones has agreed to a one-year deal with Pallacanestro Trieste of Lega Basket Serie A (the most prestigious basketball league in Italy). The Warriors will retain Jones’ rights.

It’s clear from the press release and surrounding reporting that Jones decision to head abroad was made in tandem with the Warriors, who clearly thought Ike was a better fit for the team this season. Pallacanestro Trieste has some notable ties to Golden State. Jones will now be teammates with former Warriors rotation player Juan Toscano-Anderson.

“His selection in June’s NBA draft is proof of his hard work, dedication and immense basketball potential,” Trieste general manager Michael Arcieri said in a press release attached to the signing. “His decision to proudly wear the Trieste jersey and continue his basketball dream and development with us is proof of the great trust he has in our team, our staff, our fans and the potential of a truly special 2026-27 season. Our collaboration throughout the season with the Golden State Warriors’ staff regarding Lajae’s development represents an incredibly exciting opportunity for our staff and organization.”

The Warriors clearly still believe Jones can be a helpful contributor for the team long-term. It’s worth noting that wing Malevy Leons is already on a two-way deal, but will not be two-way eligible next season. It seems reasonable to believe Golden State’s front office is optimistic that Jones can develop more abroad and replace Leons’ two-way spot next year. It’s also worth noting the Dubs still could trade the rights to Jones in a trade.

In the immediate aftermath of winning a championship, there’s utter jubilation. Once that initial high wears off after the ceremony and you start truly grasping what you just witnessed, the human mind naturally goes in a completely different direction.

You begin to think of those who were proven wrong.

Athletes always say after they win it all, “They didn’t believe in us,” or “What’re they gonna say now?” They feed off slander. Any time in life that you or something you care about gets disrespected, you long for the day that person has to eat crow and face the music. It’s just human nature.

For the basketball world, after the final buzzer sounded on June 13, that vitriol was directed towards one person.

Becky Hammon.

After a few months to really ponder things, my tone has shifted toward Becky, even if only slightly.

In that clip, Hammon expresses her opinion, which is based on the last 35 years of NBA basketball. Only one team has won a championship with a small guard as their best player since the Bad Boys Pistons from 1989-90, and even then there’s an exception because almost all of their identity came from smashmouth defense that had nothing to do with I.T.

You can’t win if your best player is small. The one exception was Steph Curry, who changed the game of basketball forever with the 3-point revolution. Unless you have a generational talent, an outlier with impact so drastic that you have to provide additional context for his cultural impact, your best player cannot be a small guard if you want to win a championship.

She was right about her overall premise. She was just wrong about the one person she singled out.

There are loads of small guards that Becky could’ve singled out. Ja Morant, Donovan Mitchell, Damian Lillard, Kyrie Irving, prime Russell Westbrook, Trae Young, De’Aaron Fox, etc. All of these guys were No. 1 options at or before the time of her remarks in December 2023. She has never, on record, talked about any of them as guys who can’t win.

Her problem was that she singled out Jalen Brunson. The odds were in her favor that she would never have to answer for her misdeeds, but her desire to ride the “Knicks for Clicks” wave was her undoing. Of all the typical, ball-dominant, non-winners in the world she could’ve ragged on, she decided to choose the only one who would ever be able to prove her wrong.

What Brunson did isn’t a blueprint. It isn’t a fluke. It wasn’t asterisk-worthy. It was a definitive statement that he belongs in the same conversation as Curry as an outlier, as a player who stands amongst giants and doesn’t back down, as a player whose playstyle allows him to overcome the true reality of smaller guards being at a disadvantage in the modern NBA.

For the last few years, we’ve heard the same phrase, “Who’ll be the next Jalen Brunson?” The answer is nobody will be, because if it were that easy to be Jalen Brunson, it wouldn’t be as utterly shocking to the NBA landscape as his lifting the Larry O’Brien Trophy turned out to be.

It’s a story that honestly goes a helluva lot deeper than even I can chronicle.

They say that the son of a role player is more likely to be the star than the son of a superstar, and that personifies the Brunson’s to a T. Role players know what held them back from stardom and can pass down to their sons what it means to not always be the best player on the court.

We saw the countless stories of Rick Brunson having a young Jalen work hard to master his craft, not take shortcuts, and do everything he can to overcome not always being blessed with the genetic makeup of a can’t-miss superstar.

You see it all throughout his career: how he had to constantly prove people wrong to get to the next level. He had to continue to work and change his game to prevent stagnation. He never accepted being shoehorned into a role. His work ethic is 1-of-1 and something that defines his path to where he is today.

The best example I can find of him evolving his own game to help him reach the next level is his floater evolution. Did you know that, back at Villanova, Brunson never shot floaters? Something that he’s currently the best at in basketball used to be totally alien to him.

Why did a young Brunson, who was still shorter than everyone else and should’ve had this in his toolbag as soon as possible, not attempt many? It was apparently a Villanova edict. Jay Wright did not want his guards to attempt floaters. For six consecutive years, the perennially contending Wildcats were dead last in floater attempts, something that was personal for Wright.

He wanted his players to finish off two feet. It was drilled into them in every practice from the moment they stepped on campus.

Watching Brunson’s college highlights, you can see the footwork that makes him who he is today. It reminds us that it usually takes a village to raise a warrior, as Brunson learned his impeccable footwork by developing in an incredible system for multiple years, while later adding the floater to take advantage of time and space. He was able to do both once he was given the freedom to.

When he did start attempting more floaters towards the end of his tenure in Dallas, you saw flashes of what he would become in New York. He was just hidden in a system that revolved around Luka Doncic. You saw what he could be when he was out, especially against the Jazz in the 2022 playoffs.

It was really a perfect storm when he came to New York. He got to return to a place he cared so deeply about, playing for the father who pushed him to be great, in a support system with many lifelong friends and family around the team; he got the ability to be ball-dominant, and he got to unleash the love child of the footwork he meticulously developed in college and the elite touch and jumper he got from grinding for more playing time in Dallas, all while doing the one thing he has done his whole life: prove everyone wrong.

Maybe we should’ve seen this all coming.

There’s also one aspect that I’ve neglected to mention that has nothing to do with his basketball ability, which he has in spades.

There’s an old-school form of leadership that Brunson possesses, one that you don’t see almost anywhere else that doesn’t have a grizzled, Udonis Haslem-esque veteran. Despite never winning an NBA championship or even coming close, he carried himself like one.

A perk of growing up as the son of an NBA player is that you will learn what to do and what not to do. Rick was certainly not infallible, and the mistakes he made growing up shaped Jalen into the non-problematic star he is today.

You look around the league, and you see divas. You see people who clap back on Twitter burners when they’re being slandered; you see people take thinly veiled shots at teammates through the media; you see players be hostile towards fans and the press; you see them get in trouble with the law in one of a million different ways. Distractions, controversy, and immaturity. All of that can consume you, especially in a media market like New York.

That doesn’t happen with the Knicks, and it starts with their captain and leader. They got to this point by playing like a team of brothers who all have each other’s backs, and it’s how they’ve managed to pick each other up after every early deficit and punch in the mouth they receive. No matter how bad it gets, they don’t point fingers.

It’s why I cannot stand people saying, “Well, if *insert point guard* had a supporting cast like that, they’d win too,” Kyrie Irving is someone who’s been used as a point of comparison with Brunson all season, with heated debates ongoing about who’s better.

It’s Brunson. Full stop. Irving was embarrassing every time he had to lead a team.

Don’t give me the crap that he didn’t get to lead a team like Brunson’s. Sure, the Baby Jays from 2017-19 weren’t an ideal situation, but it was one he could’ve embraced and turned into something beautiful if he gave it time. Hell, they were an ECF-caliber team despite Gordon Hayward’s leg being sideways and two of their starters not being old enough to drink. Instead, he was a diva and gave up on trying to be “the guy,” and settled for being a sidekick to KD and eventually James Harden in Brooklyn.

So to sum this all up, here’s something to leave you with.

Becky Hammon was right. Small guards almost never win titles as the top option. You do need a “1A dude”.

But she picked the wrong guy to single out, because history will remember Brunson as the exception to the rule, one that defied every odd and left the NBA world wondering how he did it.

It takes a big man to admit when they are wrong about something. Hand up, I was wrong about the Cleveland Cavaliers after the James Harden trade of last year. Now, in fairness to me, the Cavs drew perhaps the softest possible playoff draw that they could. But even then, a very flawed Raptors team took them the distance, and Jalen Duren couldn’t stop vomiting all over himself for long enough to help Cade Cunningham and the Pistons take advantage of their opportunity.

So alas, the Cavs made the East Finals and proceeded to be dump trucked by the Knicks. It is surely progress from the results sense, as the Cavs hadn’t made an East Finals since the LeBron days of the late 2010’s. But, it never felt like they were serious about contending for anything. This year marks a real fork in the road moment for basically everyone in the Cavaliers organization. There is real pressure to win big, or else the winds of change will begin blowing in full force.

Cleveland Cavaliers: Over/Under 48.5 wins (-105/-120)

Last season: 52-30, lost in four games to the Knicks in the East Finals

Key additions: Peyton Watson (via Denver), Meleek Thomas (NBA Draft), Mario Hezonja (Euro League)

Key losses: Max Strus (Clippers), Dean Wade (Sixers), Dennis Schroeder (Hornets)

The Cavs have their proverbial chips in the middle of the table. They have doubled and tripled down on this roster, as they extended James Harden this offseason and refused to listen on calls for Evan Mobley and Jarrett Allen. Peyton Watson comes in from Denver after his contract dispute, and they are banking on him taking the leap and fulfilling the flashes of promise that he has shown.

To be blunt about it, I think the Cavs are extremely volatile in both the positive and negative connotations. There are worlds where everything fits, this team wins mid-to-upper 50’s regular season games and is exactly what they think they can be. But at the same time, this thing could really go off the rails. I worry about the lack of shooting across the roster. All of their guys have been given so many chances in the playoffs, just to always come up short. And to top it all off, I don’t believe that Kenny Atkinson is a coach that can get any team to the mountaintop, let alone one with this many potential hurdles.

Prediction: Under 48.5 wins (-120)

Welcome to our Lakers Season Preview Series! For the next several weeks, we’ll be writing columns every weekday breaking down the biggest questions we have about every player the Lakers added this offseason. Today, we look at Walker Kessler.

Heading into the summer, the top item on the Lakers’ to-do list was to find the big man of the future.

Multiple attempts at make-do options left the team wanting more by season’s end. Patchwork solutions for a position so vital with Luka Dončić on the roster would no longer suffice, so the Lakers had to make their move.

After some deliberation or bluffing — or a mix of both — Walker Kessler was the center the team pulled the trigger on, paying a premium for a big man with still lots of questions surrounding him.

It was a bet on what Kessler could become, both alongside Luka and in a bigger role. It’s a bet the Lakers can’t afford to be wrong about either. No player on the roster has more pressure on them to perform this season than Kessler. A haul of draft picks sent out and a big new contract with his signature puts him squarely in the spotlight and at the center, figuratively and literally, of the Lakers’ future.

What is his best-case scenario?

It turns out the franchise focused entirely on losing games in recent seasons wasn’t the best place for young players to thrive.

Given freedom and direction while being empowered by the franchise, Kessler blossoms. While he isn’t a high-flying lob-catcher, his crushing screens and finishing around the rim are more than enough to make him a positive offensive force.

But his biggest value will come on the defensive end where he anchors a team that has sorely needed one. In the post-Anthony Davis era, the Lakers have cycled through many bigs, none of which could protect the rim.

Kessler comes in and provides head coach JJ Redick with a solution on that end of the floor, which gives the Lakers a margin for error that hasn’t existed defensively for most of the last two seasons. Gone are the need for switch-heavy or zone defenses, as Kessler can defend the interior and, nearly equally important, help finish possessions with rebounds.

The two aspects of his game that few question are his ability defensively and his rebounding. Those are two areas the Lakers struggled last season and are welcome additions this year.

Add it all up, and Kessler’s performance not only establishes him as the team’s center of the future, it also solidifies the Lakers as a contender on the rise.

What is his worst-case scenario?

Given a bigger role with bigger expectations, Kessler isn’t able to meet the moment.

Offensively, his inability to be an above-the-rim finisher and his overall lack of athleticism mean he never quite clicks with Luka in the pick-and-roll. Akin to Deandre Ayton last season, while there are moments of success, the chemistry never really clicks between the two, which is paramount for the future of the franchise.

Defensively, it’s all a bit too much for Kessler. Tasked with leading a defense of a contending team, Kessler is unable to be the anchor the team needs. Instead of elevating players around him on that end, he still needs talent around him to make an impact.

Overall, it all feels like he’s been put in a role that’s too big. Making the jump from one of the worst teams in the league to the spotlight of playing in LA will challenge any player and Kessler is no different.

The threat of injury could factor into any player’s worst-case scenario, but it’s something that already has slowed Kessler in the past.

Obviously, his 2025-26 season was cut short after just five games due to an injury. He played 58 games in the 2024-25 season due to some late-season injuries/tanking. It’s enough of a track record that no one would be surprised if it popped up again this season, even if it would still be disappointing.

What is his most likely role on the team?

Assuming health, it feels like there’s a decent floor from Kessler this season, particularly defensively. He should be able to stabilize the Lakers on that end, letting them be more aggressive and rely less on gimmicky defense like zones or heavy switching.

Offensively, Luka can make just about any center look viable. Kessler will need to build that chemistry not just with him, but with Austin Reaves. Much of his potential impact depends on that and if it comes, he also has a relatively high floor because he can finish what will be easy buckets around the rim.

Bringing in Kessler was a gamble, but the Lakers had a long time to calculate it. They chose him over Jalen Duren this summer, so the team clearly sees something in him.

If they’re right, it catapults them into the future. If they’re wrong…let’s just hope they’re right.

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

If this offseason for the Detroit Pistons was a plane ride, you’d call it an eventful one.

There has been turbulence, with the front office missing out on players they thought could fit the team’s present and future. They’ve also moved on from two players who were foundational pieces of their identity in Tobias Harris and Isaiah Stewart.

Above all, they still haven’t been able to land the plane on a Jalen Duren contract that satisfies both sides.

At this rate, the stalemate could last into the season.

As the vibes continue to feel off in some ways, Detroit is now less than a month away from opening the NBA season against Boston at Little Caesars Arena. And while the Pistons have not gotten everything they wanted this offseason, Trajan Langdon and the front office are still doing their part to preserve a brighter future.

As the staring contest with Duren’s camp continued, Langdon did not waste any more time locking up another foundational piece. Detroit agreed to a five-year, $155 million rookie-scale extension with Ausar Thompson, securing his place alongside Cade Cunningham for the foreseeable future.

I’m sure the preference would have been to have Duren’s situation resolved first. Instead, Detroit moved forward without him.

And honestly, that’s refreshing.

Detroit still has leverage

So, do the Pistons still have leverage in the negotiations?

Yes.

Duren is a restricted free agent, meaning Detroit retains the ability to match an offer sheet from another team. He can also accept a $9.6 million qualifying offer that would make him an unrestricted free agent next summer. That deadline is Oct. 1.

After averaging 19.5 points and 10.5 rebounds and earning Third Team All-NBA honors at just 22 years old, Duren became eligible for a five-year maximum extension with Detroit worth a projected $287 million.

But the market has not materialized around that number.

Detroit’s reported offer yesterday is in the neighborhood of $200 million over five years, still well below Duren’s maximum eligibility. And with teams operating under increasingly restrictive cap situations, there has not been an obvious market willing to meet the number Duren is seeking.

The Pistons are essentially betting on their evaluation of Duren rather than reacting to the pressure of losing him.

Langdon won’t budge

That, more than anything, is what gives me optimism about Detroit’s future.

Former front offices might have looked at Duren’s age, production and All-NBA selection and simply given him the money to make sure the situation disappeared before training camp.

Langdon hasn’t done that.

Detroit clearly wants Duren back – but they also appear unwilling to let the desire to keep him dictate the rest of their roster construction.

That’s important when you consider where this franchise is right now. Cunningham is entering his prime if not in it. Thompson is now under contract through the 2031-32 season. The Pistons have already started reshaping the roster around their young stars, and their biggest challenge is figuring out how to maximize the years in which Cunningham is playing at an elite level.

That requires discipline.

Paying Duren whatever he wants simply because he’s already here would remove some of that flexibility.

Business is business

Does the situation sting in the short term for everyone involved?

I’m sure it does.

The Pistons would love to have Duren back in the building, especially with a roster that has undergone significant turnover this offseason. They want him to continue building chemistry with Cunningham, Thompson and the rest of the young core.

And from Duren’s vantage point, it is easy to understand why the situation feels frustrating. He just put together the best season of his career, made his first All-Star team and earned Third Team All-NBA honors at 22 years old. From his perspective, those accomplishments provide a strong case for being paid accordingly.

At the same time, Detroit has to separate what Duren accomplished last season from what it believes he will become over the next five years.

That’s where the real disagreement lies.

The price of the max

Duren is eligible for a five-year deal worth up to a projected $287 million, a number that would require Detroit to make a massive investment in his development. There is certainly a world where that becomes the right decision. He is only 22 and has improved every season. His rebounding and finishing around the rim are already major strengths, and his offensive development has given Detroit reason to believe there is more there.

But paying the full maximum also means making a significant bet on his ability to become one of the league’s premier big men over the life of that contract.

That’s a different question than whether Duren is a good player – he’s already proven that.

The question is whether he will become good enough (particularly in the playoffs) to justify occupying that much of Detroit’s future salary structure.

And that’s exactly the question Langdon should be asking.

A stalemate with a purpose

So we’ll see how this ends.

There is still plenty of time for the two sides to find common ground, and Detroit has many reasons to want Duren back. But the longer the stalemate lasts, the more realistic the qualifying-offer route becomes. Duren would then bet on himself for one season before entering unrestricted free agency next summer.

That would be an uncomfortable outcome for everyone.

But it would also be a sign that Detroit is operating differently than it did during the lean years.

The Pistons aren’t simply trying to keep everyone happy anymore, they’re trying to build a sustainable contender around Cade Cunningham, and that means making difficult decisions about where every dollar goes.

Duren may ultimately be a major part of that future, but if Langdon believes the right number is lower than Duren’s camp does, he’s showing a willingness to wait rather than blink first.

For a franchise that has spent years making short-term decisions, that might be the most encouraging development of the entire offseason.

It did not take long for LeBron James to make his imprint on the Sixers’ roster construction. The last player Philadelphia signed to a standard contract this offseason was 13-year veteran and two-time NBA champion Kentavious Caldwell-Pope.

Most known for his stops with the Los Angeles Lakers and Denver Nuggets, KCP made his name as a prototypical 3-and-D wing that’s become so sought after in today’s game. The last two seasons haven’t been very kind to him. As the league’s backup plan to signing Paul George in the 2024 offseason, Caldwell-Pope landed with the Orlando Magic on a three-year, $66 million deal.

After one underwhelming season there, he was used as salary to acquire Desmond Bane from the Memphis Grizzlies. Last season in Memphis was one of the worst of his career. He averaged 8.4 points per game, his lowest since his rookie season. It had been 10 years since he shot as poorly as his 41% field goal percentage and 31% from three on 3.4 attempts per game. The Grizzlies bought out the final year of his contract, allowing him to sign with the Sixers for the veteran’s minimum.

It’s fair to note that Caldwell-Pope had surgery on his right pinky, ending his season in February. The procedure was to “address the misalignment of the finger.” We’ve become painfully aware around these parts of how a pinky injury can affect a player’s jumper.

So how much should the Sixers expect from a guy who’s washed out of his last two teams, signing on to chase one last ring? If the Sixers are getting the version of Caldwell-Pope that was in Orlando and Memphis, the answer is not very much. Caldwell-Pope’s minutes will of course come at the 2 or 3 position on the wing. That could mean he’s competing with Anfernee Simons, depending on how Nick Nurse shuffles his guards, as well as Justin Edwards and potentially Dean Wade.

Edwards has been a flat out better shooter than Caldwell-Pope his last two seasons. KCP’s reputation as a defender is far greater than anything Edwards has accomplished on that end so far, but he’s been less effective on that end as well as time catches up to him.

The hope for Caldwell-Pope having a bounce back season is simple: he’s been a substantially better player when sharing the floor with LeBron James or Nikola Jokic, and he’ll be teammates again with James this season.

The best stretch of KCP’s career spanned from 2018-19, when LeBron joined the Lakers, to 2023-24, his final season with the Nuggets. In those six seasons, even with a miscellaneous year on the Wizards sandwiched in between, he averaged 10.8 points, 2.7 rebounds, 1.9 assists and 1.1 steals per game. He shot 44% from the field and 39% from three on 4.5 attempts per game. He shot over 40% from three in three of those seasons after only shooting over 35% from three once before that.

The hack to unlocking Caldwell-Pope as a shooter is having one of the best passers of all time on your team. Luckily, the Sixers have already gone out and cleared that hurdle. Much like LeBron, Caldwell-Pope’s best years may be well behind him, but that doesn’t mean he can’t be of help.

At this point in his career, he should start the season far down the depth chart. Ideally, Edwards is ahead of him to start the year. If Caldwell-Pope is more of a regular in the rotation, it won’t be a disaster by any means. The weak points for this bench are at guard and potentially at center. The wings are going to be asked to take on a lot defensively, especially when and if they’re sharing the court with James.

If Caldwell-Pope is bringing competence to that end of the floor, it could make him someone Nurse depends on in that spot. Regardless of how the depth chart shakes out, he should get plenty of opportunity. Nurse is the type of coach that prefers veteran experience, and he is definitely going to do so with this roster’s aspirations.

Several rotational decisions warrant extensive conversations. For the Washington Wizards, starting point guard isn’t one of them.

In June, the Wizards signed Trae Young to a four-year, $212 million contract extension to serve as their starting PG for the 2026-27 season and beyond. He’s the team’s best distributor since Russell Westbrook. And they paid him like it.

Who backs Young up is the real question.

Will head coach Brian Keefe side with more traditional point guards like Bub Carrington or Tre Mann? Could Kyshawn George or Will Riley play a point-forward role?

Below, we examine the point guard position, with statistics and analysis of each option Keefe must weigh as training camp approaches.

The starter

As mentioned above, Young is the clear choice here. And for good reason.

The 28-year-old is a four-time NBA All-Star who’s just one season removed from averaging a league-best 11.6 assists per game. His career 9.8 assists per game ranks third all-time behind John Stockton (10.5) and Magic Johnson (11.2). That’s pretty good company.

An MCL sprain, a quad contusion and back irritation held Young to just five games after a January trade sent him to Washington for Corey Kispert and CJ McCollum. He averaged 15.2 points and 6.2 assists while shooting 59.5% from the field and 42.9% from 3-point range.

The Wizards’ 109.7 offensive rating ranked 29th last season. In just five games with Young, that figure rose to 114.3, tied for 16th best in the league.

Players like Bilal Coulibaly, a career 31% 3-point shooter, saw a spike in their efficiency thanks to the gravity and court vision Young brings. Coulibaly shot 41.4% (12-29) from 3-point range during that stretch.

Washington’s offense will run through Young, whose on-ball percentage peaked at 51.9% in 2021 and hadn’t dipped below 45% until last season. Furthermore, Young had a stretch from 2020-2025 in which he created more than 47 points per game, a figure that each year ranked in the 96th percentile or better among guards.

While the 6-foot-2 guard possesses elite PG tools, his defense was a primary reason Atlanta shopped him to the highest bidder. The stats tell the story.

Atlanta went from one of the league’s worst defenses (122.0 defensive rating) to a top-10 unit (112.9 defensive rating) after Young’s departure. Apart from contract concerns, the Hawks ran out of patience on the defensive end.

Washington believes surrounding Young with size and impactful individual defenders can mitigate his past defensive struggles. A frontcourt of Alex Sarr and Anthony Davis alongside perimeter defenders like Coulibaly and Kyshawn George is a good start.

Who backs up Young?

Carrington vs. Mann

This is where the conversation gets interesting because, on a roster filled with depth, Keefe must decide if development trumps winning.

A traditional battle centers around Carrington and Mann — two combo guards who’ve each played their fair share of NBA point guard.

Carrington, Washington’s No. 14 selection in the 2024 draft, was named the team’s opening-night starter before early struggles brought him to the bench just five games in. His inability to get two feet in the paint and break down defenses led to high turnover numbers (2.5 per game as a starter) and an inefficient Wizards offense.

But it wasn’t all bad for Carrington, who shot an impressive 40.8% from three on five attempts per contest. He also averaged nearly 11 points and five assists, which is a solid offensive season for a 20-year-old guard.

While Carrington’s court vision and decision-making require improvement, defense remains his greatest flaw. The Pitt product’s 125.7 defensive rating ranked dead last among qualified players last season, as did his -746 plus-minus rating.

Those numbers are inflated due to Washington’s rebuilding philosophy and Carrington once again playing in all 82 games. But his defense certainly needs to improve if he’s tabbed as the team’s backup PG.

Mann isn’t much different than his counterpart. If anything, his numbers indicate he’s a less efficient version of Carrington whose 32.3% clip on threes, 39% rate on twos and 1.6-to-1.0 assist-to-turnover ratio are those of a rather poor offensive player.

A point-forward in D.C.?

Forwards, now more than ever, are capable point guards.

Think LeBron James, Ben Simmons, Luka Doncic and other 6-foot-7 and taller forwards who, over the last decade, have headlined a shift in who qualifies as a point guard.

George (6-foot-8) and Riley (6-foot-9) fit into this realm. And each has proven worthy of minutes at the position.

Tasked with heavy on-ball minutes last season, George produced 4.5 assists and created 25 points per game. His ability to see over opposing defenses helped him navigate screens and find open shooters or rollers for easy buckets.

Riley showcased similar skills across the final 30 games of last season and two 2026 Las Vegas Summer League contests. Considering the Wizards’ battle for minutes, allowing George or Riley to run the second unit might be Keefe’s best option to get his nine or 10 best players on the floor every night.

If Young, Coulibaly, AJ Dybantsa, Davis and Sarr are the team’s starters, and Tre Johnson, Justin Champagnie and Deandre Ayton come off the bench, that leaves two potential openings between George, Riley, Carrington and Mann.

Does Washington fill those spots with the most deserving players, even if it means using a point-guard-by-committee approach during the non-Young minutes? Or do they task a more experienced guard to handle those responsibilities?

The decision rests with Keefe, with the season less than a month away.

Nicolas Batum announced his retirement from the NBA after 18 seasons on Monday, Sept. 21.

In a nearly 10-minute-long video posted to his Instagram account, the 37-year-old wing walked into Gym Even in Pont-l'Évêque, France – the same one where he started playing basketball exactly 35 years ago to the day on Sept. 21, 1991, when he was two-and a half years old, by his account. This time, Batum brought his son, Ayden, with him.

"You don't want me to retire?" Batum asked Ayden as they sat on the wooden bleachers.

"No," Ayden replied.

"Should I keep playing basketball?"

"Yes."

"No," Batum said with a sense of finality. "It's over."

21/09/1991
21/09/2026 pic.twitter.com/0IXH9Rs6wV

— Nicolas Batum (@nicolas88batum) September 21, 2026

The Frenchman's stat sheet won't make anyone's eyes pop. He was never an All-Star, let alone a star. But Batum had an undeniable respect from his peers in every locker room he stepped foot in.

He spaced the floor well with his shooting ability and his tendency to get the ball to his teammates and on the defensive side of the ball, Batum's 6-7 frame and 7-1 wingspan gave him the versatility to defend multiple positions. He was a crucial role player in his early years with a Portland Trail Blazers squad that made the playoffs in six of his seven seasons. Batum was traded to the Charlotte Hornets in 2015, where he spent the next five years before signing with the Los Angeles Clippers in December 2020 on the minimum.

That's where Batum spent the remaining six years of his career – well, five and some change. He was briefly traded to the Philadelphia 76ers five games into the 2023-24 season as part of the James Harden trade and returned to L.A. the following summer on a two-year, $9.6 million deal.

Every day, we’ll take a closer look at another member of the 2026-27 Phoenix Suns, examining what they bring to the roster and what their role could mean for the season ahead as we count down to training camp and the preseason.

Luke Kennard

Shooting Guard, 6’4”, 190 lbs., 30 years old, 9 years of experience

Luke Kennard signed with Phoenix this summer and brings one immediate specialty: elite shooting. Phoenix lost two of its best (and most reliable) shooters in Grayson Allen and Royce O’Neale in the Miles Bridges trade. So, adding a sniper from deep like Kennard had to be a priority for this front office.

The smooth-shooting lefty brings a quick release and high basketball IQ to the mix. Phoenix could desperately need his floor spacing, with some of the concerns about who will reliably spread the floor in their projected starting lineup.

Kennard figures to slot into the second unit alongside Collin Gillespie and Jordan Goodwin as a dynamic three-man group that all bring different attributes to the table.

Last Season

Kennard appeared in 78 games for the Lakers last season. He led the NBA in three-point shooting percentage at an eye-popping 47.8%.

The Duke product played his role to a T. He doesn’t force it if it’s not there – he is wired to make the correct basketball play over anything. Which sometimes can frustrate you if he’s on your team, because sometimes you WANT him to force it.

He is one of the best movement shooters over the past half-decade and counting. (the strikethrough text was intentional)

Lakers fans will always remember Kennard for his Game 1 performanceagainst the Rockets when he put up 27 points on 5-for-5 shooting from three and 9-13 overall from the field.

He has ice in his veins, as some might recall this clutch game-winner he hit against the Magic in March to keep the Lakers’ win streak going at the time. He joins Jalen Green in the club of knocking down game-winning threes against Orlando… how about that?

Contract and Roster Context

Kennard is set to potentially spend two seasons in the Valley after inking a two-year, $13 million deal with Phoenix in late June.

Full details: 2-year, $12,431,200 contract, all guaranteed, with an average annual salary of $6,215,600.

In 2026-27, Kennard will earn a base salary of $6,064,000, while carrying a cap hit of $6,064,000 and a dead cap value of $6,064,000, per Spotrac.

He does carry a player option after this season, so he can hit the open market if he desires.

What He Brings

Let’s get this out of the way now. Luke Kennard is more than just a shooter.

His ability to make quick reads, cut, relocate, handle the ball, and move without it are some of his most underrated qualities. He is a high-IQ, plug-and-play guard who knows his role and doesn’t often play outside of it.

He doesn’t have the same downhill attack and athleticism as Grasyon Allen, for example, but he will shed some of the misconceptions about his game just as Grasyon did during his time here, to a lesser extent. He is great at attacking closeouts and can slice and dice in the midrange or drop in a little floater. Defenses respect his range and close out hard on him, and he has those counters mastered by now.

A Luke Kennard three (47.8%) was more accurate than an Oso Ighodaro free-throw (45.7%) last season. I repeat. A Luke Kennard three had a higher chance of going in than Oso shooting from the charity stripe. That statistic blew my mind a little.

Phoenix needs Luke Kennard to bring the same elite shooting he has brought everywhere he’s gone. He can shoot with the best of them; we all know that. He led the NBA in 3PT% a season ago at an astounding 47.8% clip.

What Needs to Improve

Phoenix will likely ask him not to be as shy as he has been in other stops on his per-game attempts from deep. He has only attempted more than 6 threes per game.

Last season, he only attempted 3.1 threes per game. I get it being in his DNA to not force it, but he needs to let it fly far more often this season in Phoenix. I am hoping he can double that and get back to the per-game numbers he had in Memphis.

And of course, we move on to the primary concern for Kennard, his defense. He is not someone they signed to defend, but it would be remiss not to mention that he can often be the “pigeon” in others’ game plan of who to single out and attack. As long as he competes and makes the right defensive rotations (team defense + help), then he should be passable enough, which is all you can ask for.

Prediction

I expect Kennard to play a similar role to what he did for the Lakers a season ago, and what he’s done for most of his career. He figures to slot in for about 18-22 minutes per night and provide quality minutes and give opponents fits alongside Collin Gillespie in the backcourt. Kennard will have the occasional flamethrower game that carries you to a win.

There will be some matchups he may not be a perfect fit for in Ott’s rotation, but more often than not, he will be a reliable rotation piece, and you know exactly what you’re going to get from him.

He will also get run with the starting unit or at least some sort of combination of bench and starters for floor spacing purposes.

Stat Prediction: 77 Games, 9.1 PPG, 2.2 RPG, 2.2 APG, 52/44/89 shooting

Final Word

A successful season for Luke Kennard is a continuation of doing what he’s done throughout his career. If he provides another elite shooting season and ticks up the volume a bit, then we’re talking.

I look forward to watching the lefty quick release. Kennard will be needed this season with the lack of shooting in the starting five. Give him the green light, Jordan Ott.

Training camp is here, and the Minnesota Timberwolves have reported. The starting lineup looks to be locked up with Anthony Edwards, LaMelo Ball, Rudy Gobert, Jaden McDaniels, and Jonathan Kuminga.

Level of play, injuries, and selective rest will shift that lineup as the season goes on, but those starters are more vital than ever. In past seasons, Coach Chris Finch has been near dogmatic about sticking with his rotation and playing sparingly with players on the far end of it. With 14 players rostered and 3 players signed to two-way contracts, there are over 6,000 potential combinations for Finch and the coaching staff to play with.

(Side note: how many players on two-way contracts would be considered two-way players, as in productive on both sides of the ball?)

With that in mind, I wanted to play with some lineups that, while unlikely, we could potentially see.

The Jaden Show

• Jaden McDaniels
• Isaiah Evans (Donte DiVincenzo if/when he comes back)
• Ayo Dosunmu
• Trey Lyles
• Rudy Gobert

The Vision: I want to see Jaden run the show. In this lineup, McDaniels is the primary dude in half-court sets with some additional ball-handling from Ayo as needed. I see him getting the action going, driving off a Rudy pick to the hoop for a pull-up middy or finding Rudy with a lob or a bounce pass. If the defense collapses, the ball springs out to Evans, Ayo, or Lyles on the wings for an open three.

Some Data: McDaniels USG% has risen each of the past three seasons from 15.7% in 2024, to 16.4% in 2025 and finishing last season with 18.5%. His points per game have increased roughly 40% in that time, and his assists per game have nearly doubled from 1.4 to 2.7 per contest.

In his “They’re All Bad Defenders” two-game stretch against the Denver Nuggets, we got a glimpse of what he can do with a small uptick in touches.

• ​Game 4: 19.1% 12 points, 8 rebounds, 3 assists
• Game 4: 26.1% 13 points, 3 rebounds, 1 assist
• ​Game 5: 26.3% 32 points, 10 rebounds, 3 assists

Reality of the Situation: So long as Jaden shares his court time with either Ant or LaMelo, the ball will not be in his hands as much. For this lineup, or any lineup where Jaden is the straw that stirs the drink, an injury or foul trouble will be the triggering event. The only other reason I could see Finch turn to on-ball Jaden is if he looks across the court at the opponent and sees nothing but bad defenders.

Track Meet

• Bones Hyland
• Ayo Dosunmu
• Anthony Edwards
• TJ Shannon
• Jaden McDaniels

The Vision:

But really though, that lineup is full of speedy dudes looking to get to the rim. There isn’t much size. Defensive rebounds would be hard-won, but if any semblance of a fast break sparks… Boom goes the dynamite.

Some Data: In their pre-draft workouts:

• Bones Hyland ran a 3.15 3/4 Court Sprint (baseline-to-opposite-free-throw-line sprint) and was the fastest guard at the 2021 combine in the lane agility drill.
• Edwards ran a 2.75-second 3/4 Court Sprint. Per Jon Krawczynski of The Athletic, “The team didn’t believe the stopwatch and made him do it twice more; he followed it up with times of 2.75 and 2.80 seconds.“
• TJ Shannon ran a 3.06 seconds 3/4 Court Sprint. (Top time in the 2023 combine class)
• Ayo Dosunmu ran a 3.23 seconds 3/4 Court Sprint.
• Jaden McDaniels did not post a 3/4 Court Sprint in any public workouts (someone on this unit needs to defend the point of attack)

Reality of the Situation: The only way this lineup sees the floor is if the Wolves bring back a Dunks After Dark showcase during pre-season.

Lob City 2.0: Lobo City

• LaMelo Ball
• TJ Shannon
• Jaden McDaniels
• Jonathan Kuminga
• Joan Beringer

The Vision: The freedom of movement rules were made to allow for the Steph Currys of the world (there are very few of these) to run literal circles in the half-court. Desperate defenders chased after him or asked, while breathing out mist like in some horror film, “Where’s Steph?” Curry would then appear, the ball suddenly in his hands and out in the same instant, splashing through the net.

This era has largely seen players ground-bound, hunting for shots on the perimeter. In this lineup, LaMelo Ball would look to the heavens to find a squadron of Wolves ready for pinpoint passes to cascade down on defenders unable to prevent the sudden liftoff.

Some Data: I have none. I just have NBA.com’s Advanced Stats/LaMelo Ball/Assists and then scrolling the feed for alley oops.

Let me tell you, every single one of them had my imagination running wild. I just superimposed the faces of Shannon, McDaniels, Kuminga, or Beringer over Brandon Miller, Moussa Diabate, and LaMelo’s other former teammates.

I dreamt of them snatching the ball from the air in one motion and yamming it through the cylinder the next as the Target Center collective leapt to their feet in euphoric wonder.

Reality of the Situation: Maybe this lineup can get some burn. All five players figure to be in Finch’s top eight. A lineup like this could get burn in the second half for a few minutes of a Wolves blowout victory. Just after the opponent has sent in the garbage-time lineup but before Finch matches with his own.

Ant Highway

• Bones Hyland (Donte if/when he returns)
• Anthony Edwards
• Ayo Dosunmu
• Trey Lyles
• Rudy Gobert

The Vision: Ant with a familiar pick-and-roll partner and shooters. Make the simple read: if doubled, get to the rack or kick out for a catch-and-shoot three if not. This is Finch letting Ant play heliocentric Luka Dončić or James Harden ball.

I don’t want the Wolves to go to a look like this often. It is not fun to watch, but I do concede that on many a night in the regular season, this is a winning formula.

SomeData: There is no easily available (free) tracking data on the frequency with which a player sees a double team. All we have is the eye test and our memory of Ant crossing half-court and suddenly having double vision. With reliable release valves like Bones/Donte, Ayo, and Lyles, and a center who waits for the body to hit on the pick before rolling, Ant’s life gets a lot easier.

Reality of the Situation: If LaMelo has any extended period of injury, then this lineup, or one very much like it, will see some run. Edwards is one of the most lethal scorers in the league, and his combination of burst and outside shooting creates difficulties for the best defenders. Forcing the opponent to weigh the risk of leaving a shooter open to help on Ant is just the analysis paralysis he needs to make them pay.

Blow Out Brigade

• Bones Hyland
• Isaiah Evans
• Jaylen Clark
• Trey Lyles
• Rocco Zikarsky

The Vision: Hopefully this lineup gets a lot of fourth-quarter burn after the Wolves have built a sizable lead. There is enough manic energy here to power the greater Twin Cities metro. Every player has at least one thing they do well in theory. Every player knows they have to prove something to stick in the league.

Some Data: You want data on this? I’m as much a Wolves sicko as the next but even that is beyond the mid-January, has not gone outside except to shovel in the bleak morning or bitter night, pale.

Let’s just hope that if the Wolves use this lineup, it is with victory cigars and not a recipe game (though I’ve got plenty of these that could be celebratory in nature)

Reality of the Situation: If the Wolves really show up this season and put away the teams they view as lesser, a lineup like this could see some burn.

So Canis: What lineups, strange or otherwise, do you want to see this season?

Kasparas Jakučionis—still just 20 years old—arrives in the Cream City via the Giannis trade as a young, intriguing guard prospect. Jakučionis is a 6’5” second-year guard who averaged 6.2 PPG, 2.6 RPG, and 2.6 APG in just under 18 minutes per contest for Miami. Except for his three-point percentage (42%), most of his stats don’t jump off the page. That said, in games where KJ played over 25 minutes, he averaged 12.5 PPG and 4.5 APG. I hope that the (presumed) increase in usage and minutes with Milwaukee will allow him to flourish.

We saw Jakučionis debut for the Lithuanian senior national team before Summer League; he looked great, with 16 points, eight assists, and five rebounds. Jakučionis dominated in the pick-and-roll and showed some great potential as a lead guard. However, he struggled in Vegas, having major issues controlling the ball and getting quality looks at the rim.

Still, I think the Bucks have found something in Jakučionis; he has a solid baseline and a high ceiling. Unfortunately, considering the logjam at the guard positions, I don’t think we’ll see as much of him as we should early on. Hopefully he gets into the 15-20 minute range each game, and that can grow throughout the season as he proves his worth. There will be plenty of opportunities as the roster changes throughout the season, and if Jakučionis proves himself as a spark off the bench and a good point guard option, his role should expand from there.

Overall, I don’t see KJ playing a major role in Milwaukee immediately; young guys need time to grow and learn. I reckon we’ll see some of his best games in matchups where the main guards are out. We also need to be prepared for the highs and lows, and even the high moments won’t necessarily translate into immediate success and wins, but they are a key part of building for the future.

With Jakučionis now gone, who’s next?