Category: NBA

The Cleveland Cavaliers will look to extend their winning streak to 17 games against the Washington Wizards. The last time the Wizards defeated the Cavs, Kevin Pangos started at point guard, and Kevin Love put up 24 points. 2021 was a while ago.

This Wizards team will look a little different than the ones that the Cavs have consistently beaten over the last five years. This new-look version seems to have modeled itself after the Cavs, with their new two-big frontcourt that features Anthony Davis and Alex Sarr. They also have a small guard in Trae Young who serves as the team’s offensive engine.

This game will also feature the NBA debut of number one overall pick AJ Dybantsa. He missed Washington’s first four games with an ankle injury.

This is a much better Wizards team than the one that the Cavs last faced back in April. Washington could make a push for the playoffs in a loaded Eastern Conference. The Cavs will need to play decently well to come out with a win.

Who: Cleveland Cavaliers (2-1) vs. Washington Wizards (2-2)

Where: Rocket Arena – Cleveland, OH

When: Wednesday, Oct. 28 at 7 PM

TV: DAZN, NBA League Pass

Point spread: Cavs -9.5

Cavs injury report: Nae’Qwan Tomlin – OUT (back), Khalifa Diop – OUT (left knee), Ernest Udeh Jr. – OUT (G League)

Wizards injury report: Justin Champagnie – OUT (ankle), Tristan Vukcevic – OUT (hip), Jamir Watkins – OUT (knee)

Cavs expectedstarting lineup: James Harden, Donovan Mitchell, Peyton Watson, Evan Mobley, Jarrett Allen

Wizards expected starting lineup: Trae Young, Kyshawn George, AJ Dybantsa, Anthony Davis, Alex Sarr

Cavs jersey:Wine Icon Edition uniform

Previous matchup: The Cavs have won 16 straight over the Wizards. Cleveland last won on April 12, 130-117, in the regular-season finale.

Here’s a look at both teams’ regular-season impact stats via Cleaning the Glass.

	Offensive Rating	Defensive Rating	Net Rating
Cavs	110.2 (18th)	110.8 (13th)	-0.6 (15th)
Wizards	111.5 (14th)	112.3 (18th)	-0.7 (16th)

The Sixers’ backup big man plans went up in smoke when Ariel Hukporti suffered a torn Achilles tendon in their preseason opener. They’re only $1.8 million below their first-apron hard cap, which means they can’t even sign anyone to a minimum contract other than an undrafted free agent for now. That has them stuck in a holding pattern until December at the earliest.

Sixers president Mike Gansey isn’t just sitting on his hands until then, though. On Tuesday, Jake Fischer of The Stein Line reported that the Sixers have applied for a Disabled Player Exception for Hukporti.

Amid the NBA’s string of early-season injuries, the Philadelphia 76ers have applied for a disabled player exception, per source, in respect of Ariel Hukporti’s torn Achilles.

— Jake Fischer (@JakeLFischer) October 27, 2026

If/when that gets granted, the DPE will be for $1.7 million (50 percent of his salary this year). That might sound relatively inconsequential—and it is for the time being—but it could be sneaky useful to the Sixers later in the year.

Once the regular season begins, rest-of-season veteran-minimum contracts begin to prorate downward on a daily basis. They’re dropping by roughly $14,000 per day this season, which is why the Sixers will have enough space under the hard cap to sign someone to a vet-min deal by early December.

But if Gansey’s front office works like that of his predecessor, Daryl Morey, the Sixers may aim to preserve their optionality through the trade deadline. By that point, rest-of-season vet-min deals will be less than $1 million.

As long as their main stars stay ambulatory until then, the Sixers should be in prime position to scoop up ring-chasers either at the trade deadline or on the free-agent/buyout markets. They’ll be vying with other title hopefuls for those players’ services, though, which means they may need to differentiate themselves somehow.

If the Sixers aim to fill their final open roster spot with a big man, they can use the allure of playing time to their advantage. After all, Joel Embiid is unlikely to suit up for a single back-to-back this year, and the Sixers have four of them in March alone. However, that alone might not be enough to outbid other teams, some of whom still have portions of their respective mid-level exceptions available.

That’s where the Hukporti DPE could come in handy. The Sixers have just enough space under the first apron to use the full DPE and stay under the hard cap, provided they don’t make any other roster changes. That would allow them to offer someone up to $1.7 million on a rest-of-season deal instead of less than $1 million.

That might not sound like a huge difference, but if a player is choosing between multiple minimum contracts, every little bit could help. And since LeBron James already called dibs on the Fanatics helicopter, the Sixers will have to find other ways to entice potential signees later in the season.

Unless otherwise noted, all stats via NBA.com, PBPStats, Cleaning the Glass or Basketball Reference. All salary information via Spotrac and salary-cap information via RealGM.

Follow Bryan on Bluesky.

Teammates admit to sometimes getting lulled into ball-watching when Luka Doncic and Austin Reaves are at the controls of the Lakers’ offense. The highest scoring duo in the NBA is just that dynamic. But during a 136-129 loss to the Portland Trail Blazers on Tuesday reinforced that even one of the best offensive backcourts in the league can‘t totally compensate for a championship-winning defense.

“We’ve been relying on our offense a lot,” center Walker Kessler said after the Lakers lost their first game of the season. “And we have a very, very good offense and a lot of great scorers. But that’s not gonna be the only thing that gets us to win a championship here.”

The Lakers (3-1) entered Tuesday’s game with the top scoring offense in the NBA. After Tuesday’s game featuring a matchup of the NBA’s two best offenses, they dropped to 22nd in defensive rating.

Portland guard Damian Lillard shook off uncharacteristically poor free-throw shooting to finish with 21 points and a dagger three-pointer to put the Trail Blazers up by six with 43 seconds left. Portland (3-0) had four players score at least 21 points, led by 23 each from Deni Avdija and Ja Morant. Doncic poured in 41 points with nine assists and Reaves had 26 points with seven assists, four rebounds and no turnovers.

Read more:Lakers suffer first loss of season at hands of Trail Blazers

Lakers coach JJ Redick, still mindful that the season is less than a week old, considered the defensive struggles a learning lesson for coaches and players. He noted breakdowns that could be solved with better adherence to the game plan and understanding of the opposing team’s personnel.

“I don’t think there was any adjustment thing that was to be made,” Reaves said. “I think it was more so us not doing what we were supposed to. Game plan discipline wasn’t great. We got to talk more on the defensive end and just be sharper in our base coverages.”

Rebounding problems have been a nagging issue since preseason. Redick had the team do three different box-out drills during a training camp after the Lakers were outrebounded by 21 during the first four preseason games.

The Lakers almost kept pace on the boards Tuesday — only getting outrebounded 38-31 — and gave up seven offensive rebounds compared to the 15.3 offensive rebounds the Lakers gave up during the first three games. But the boards were still costly. The Trail Blazers had four offensive rebounds during the fourth quarter, which led to five of their 10 second-chance points for the game.

Plan B at center

Kevon Looney, the only full-time center on the Lakers’ roster behind Kessler, played only five minutes and one second Tuesday. He committed two fouls during the cameo appearance and the Lakers’ six-point lead at the end of the first quarter turned into a two-point deficit by the time Looney subbed out.

The brief shift was still the most Looney has played since 14 minutes and 38 seconds in the season opener when he had six points and five rebounds in a rout of the Golden State Warriors. The 30-year-old Looney doesn’t offer close to the same rim protection and lob threat the Lakers covet in Kessler, but they were hoping the three-time NBA champion could rely on his experience to hold down the position.

“I think his screening,” Redick said Sunday of what he liked about Looney’s minutes during the first two games of the season. “He’s played four-on-three basketball for most of his career, so he’ll end up helping us in the pocket, with his decision-making, his offensive rebounding. I think he’s doing a good job of running, he’s just got to clean up a few things up.”

The Lakers tried Sandro Mamukelashvili at center in some lineups without Kessler on Tuesday. The 6-foot-9 power forward who has experience playing the five during his career had 17 points, four rebounds and two assists against the Trail Blazers.

“I’m trying to help [us] win, first and foremost,” Mamukelashvili said of his objective while filling in at center. “Make sure I rebound, I box out, just be physical, help defensively. And offensively, stretch the floor.”

The Georgian forward made three of four three-point shots and six-of-nine from the floor.

Flip flops

One day after being retroactively fined for flopping on a play against Utah, forward Ziaire Williams was whistled for the violation again during the fourth quarter Tuesday.

Avdija drove on Williams with 3:38 remaining in the fourth quarter and bumped his left shoulder and arm into Williams’ body. Williams stumbled backward and circled both arms backward as Avdija kicked the ball out to Lillard for a three-pointer. Lillard nailed the shot from the wing and tacked on a technical free throw when play was stopped when Williams was called for flopping.

Williams’ violation was one of three called Tuesday by the crew led by Scott Foster. Portland’s Toumani Camara and Morant were also whistled for flops, and all of the calls came in the fourth quarter of a tight game that saw 52 personal fouls called resulting in 71 free throws.

NBA officials have placed a larger emphasis on flopping this season, along with limiting use of off-arm force against defenders, reckless closeouts and time wasting on free throws. Flops are characterized by “exaggerated and theatrical” movements in an attempt to get a call, according to the NBA. Redick said he didn’t believe Williams’ movements rose to that level against Utah.

Read more:Lakers newsletter: Why Collin Sexton's 'insanity' works

With 4:44 left in the fourth quarter against Utah and the Lakers trailing by one, the Jazz’s Keyonte George switched onto Williams. George drove on Williams and was called for a push-off foul as Williams stumbled backward. It was only until the next day that Williams was fined $2,000 for a flop.

“That’s just the way his body naturally moves,” Redick said.

Williams said Tuesday he had not received feedback about the call he thought was a good defensive play on his part.

“I’ll pay my fine,” Williams said before Tuesday’s game, “and if I got to flop again to get a win, then that’s what I’ll do.”

The Lakers turned the ball over on the next possession, but pieced together an 8-1 run during the fourth quarter to pull away for a thrilling nine-point win after trailing by 18 during the second quarter.

Sign up for our weekly newsletter on all things Lakers.

This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.

Game 5 of the 2019 NBA Finals. Kevin Durant, then of the Golden State Warriors, ruptures his Achilles tendon.

Have you ever ruptured your Achilles tendon? I couldn’t identify my Achilles tendon without AI assistance, but that could be a me problem.

It was clear that something bad had happened. The rabid Toronto Raptors fans, with their focus on a first franchise NBA championship, cheered.

They cheered like Romans in the Colosseum watching a man wrestle a lion, or maybe ancient Greeks watching Achilles himself at the Stadium of Delphi (historical accuracy potentially sacrificed for continuity). Their insatiable appetite for victory superseded any shred of collective empathy. It was deeply uncomfortable:

And it was human.

It exposed an uncomfortable truth. At a guttural level, we care more about our favorite sports team than we do about a stranger’s Achilles tendon. Sure, we’d rather nobody’s Achilles was torn, but given the choice, you’d have to be pretty naïve to think there’s anything unique about Raptors fans outside of the country they live in.

As Houston Rockets fans, we should try (even in vain) to avoid the same pitfalls. Fans at a live game, digesting information in real time, don’t have the luxury of pausing for thought. Still, that 2019 crowd reaction surely says something about how we might feel, even deep inside, when an opponent is disadvantaged by injury.

Which, finally, brings us to the Oklahoma City Thunder’s Jalen Williams and Cason Wallace.

Rockets’ championship window may have just opened

Side note: I don’t love the Spurs this season.

OK, fine – I don’t love the Spurs in any season. But this year, objectively, they appear to be in a weird spot.

They’re running a three-guard lineup. Theoretically, that’s supposed to mean sacrificing size for the benefits of speed and a spaced-out floor. The Spurs are getting the speed, but the space is hard to come by. Not one of Stephon Castle, Dylan Harper, or De’Aaron Fox is a particularly feared three-point shooter.

They’re not even compensating at the four. Sure, Victor Wembanyama is, as the French say, grand, but Devin Vassell, the team’s starting four, is a three, and may be a two before he’s a four. The point?

The Rockets can beat this team.

They can beat a Thunder team without Williams and Wallace, both of whom could miss the entire season. Chet Holmgren is banged up too.

The Rockets may well be, with everyone at full strength, the third-best team in the NBA. They are at least in that conversation. So, if the Thunder (and, in a different way, the Spurs) are compromised, there is a window

The Spurs can fix their problems, but it won’t be easy. The obvious trade candidate is Fox, and his contract is dreadful. They erred in acquiring him in the first place, creating an unnecessary logjam (which, for the myriad of Rafael Stone haters, is a testament to how important patience can be in general management). If the trade deadline passes and they look largely the same, this could be the Rockets’ year:

But what does that mean?

Rockets must be smart on the trade market

Success is a convergence of ability and timing.

The Rockets may have a real chance here, but the trade market, at this moment, is best classified as dry.

This summer’s NBA offseason was firm evidence that we’re on a crash course towards the singularity. It was crazy. All the best players who were supposed to move, moved.

Who would the Rockets even pursue?

Kyrie Irving? Puh-shah. Hurrumph. He’s shooting 32.0% from deep so far. He’s averaging 3.7 assists and 2.7 turnovers per game. It’s early, but he’s functionally not Fred VanVleet, and VanVleet’s functionality is pivotal to the Rockets’ game plan. Pass.

Ty Jerome? Perhaps. As of this writing, he’s probably been the best player in the NBA in 2026-27. That won’t hold, but it’s possible that the Grizzlies will be looking for multiple firsts at the deadline. That’s a price worth paying if it’ll put the Rockets over the top. Still, it’s fair to say that chemistry has been a big part of their success, and adding any player of such significance has the potential to disrupt that chemistry.

It doesn’t have to be an all-in push. A more reliable backup big man could be a viable option. A combo big like Jalen Smith would add a new dynamic, or just a Steven Adams / Clint Capela upgrade (in terms of durability in Adams’ case) could work too. Yves Missi, anyone? Is Moussa Diabate too ambitious?

Alternatively, doing nothing might (once again) be the right decision. If the Rockets looked poised to make a title run at the deadline, why fix what isn’t broken?

There are other teams to consider, although the bulk of this piece was written before Anthony Edwards’ injury. The Timberwolves looked like, well, a team with one of the most talented backcourts assembled in league history before he went down.

It should be noted that the Portland Trail Blazers currently have the best Net Rating in the NBA (16.9). That feels like a small sample quirk, but who can say? In the East, the aforementioned Raptors looked strong before Kawhi Leonard’s injury (my God, the pattern). The Knicks will get back on track, and the Pistons are still good.

So, nothing is guaranteed, but the Thunder’s sudden influx of serious injuries meaningfully improves the Rockets’ 2026-27 NBA title window. We should wish Williams and Wallace all the best in their recovery process:

Even if, deep down, our feelings are a bit more complicated.

The Knicks will not go 0-82. After a surprisingly ugly 0-3 start to the season, the defending champions came away with an emphatic 14-point win against a short-handed Pistons that gave them fits all last season. But less than 24 hours later, the Knicks have a chance to start their first win streak of the season. And they’ll attempt to do so in what should be the easiest game of the season.

Lost in the talk surrounding the Knicks’ slow start has been the fact that the start to their road to a repeat has been filled with some really tough tests. The new-look 76ers have four All-Star players, the revamped Celtics look dangerous once again, and the Magic, despite being without Paolo Banchero, have always put up good fights against the Knicks. But tonight, New York finally gets to go up against a team that doesn’t enter the season with aspirations of a deep postseason run.

The 1-3 Bulls enter Wednesday night with a league-worst minus-18.3 net rating. While they did beat the Bucks, another very bad team, two of their three losses have been by 35+ points. It’s been ugly. Rookie forward Caleb Wilson has given Chicago fans something to cheer for, though. He’s averaging 18.5PPG on 41.9% shooting from the field despite going just 5-for-28 from three so far. Other than that, though, it’s been rather bleak.

The offense is close to nonexistent. Normal Powell is the only other Bull to average more than 14PPG. They have multiple rotation players shooting under 40% from the field. And their defense is arguably worse, giving up over 130 points in three of their four games. They are a young team lacking any real star power outside of the aforementioned Wilson. They lack a real identity. And overall, they just look like a team that will remain one of the worst in the league for the entirety of the season, if not longer.

Luckily, the same cannot be said about the Knicks. While their start left a lot to be desired, the Knicks have shown signs of turning the corner. Jalen Brunson has still struggled from the floor. Karl-Anthony Towns still has silly fouls. Miles McBride’s role and minutes seem to be in flux. And you never really know what you’ll get from the Andre Drummond minutes. But as we all know, there’s a really good basketball team in there somewhere. While they’ve yet to put together 48 full minutes of high-quality two-way basketball, the tide seems to be turning.

Towns has been an unstoppable force when on the court. Anunoby has found new ways to contribute offensively, including getting to the free-throw line more and being a bit more of a playmaker. Mikal Bridges and Landry Shamet finally woke up last night. And when the Knicks get the good Drummond, he looks good, and sometimes even great.

The offense still looks a bit wonky at times, but they’ve for the most part just been missing shots they usually make. The quality of looks they are generating has been solid. And defensively, we’ve seen plenty of glimpses of the defense we saw from them last postseason.

Josh Hart has spent much of the early portions of the season very active on that end of the floor. Bridges played Cade Cunningham much more physically after the first quarter last night. And as a team, their activity level has been solid, albeit not being consistent.

The Knicks should win this game. And they should do so easily. It’s difficult to predict which version of the Knicks we’ll get. Will Brunson regain his touch? What kind of game will Bridges have? Can Towns continue to be the dominant force he’s been? Is Anunoby’s shot going to come back? Are the Knicks ready to fully turn the corner? We don’t know. And truthfully, with all due respect to the Knicks, it shouldn’t matter. The Knicks have way more talent and, even on their worst nights, should have enough to beat the Bulls on the second night of a back-to-back. Hopefully, though, they can not only come away with a win but do so in dominant fashion. Don’t play with your food, take care of business, get your guys back on track, and let the bench get extended minutes.

Game Details

Who: New York Knicks (1-3) at Chicago Bulls (1-3)
Date: Wednesday, October 28, 2026
Time: 8 PM ET
Place: United Center, Chicago, IL
TV: MSG
Follow: @ptknicksblog and bsky

I had already typed “Celtics win” into my notes when Mikel Brown Jr. made me a liar.

Mitchell Robinson had missed two free throws with four seconds left and Boston ahead by three. Fans had already begun filing toward the exits. Across press row, laptop screens flipped from live notes to the opening paragraphs of stories explaining how the Celtics had survived the second night of their first back-to-back.

I closed mine. Rookie mistake.

Brown Jr. caught the inbound pass, took one dribble and buried a three with 0.2 seconds left. Everybody who had already reached the concourse was about to experience the most confusing elevator ride of their lives.

I reopened the document.

“Not a Celtics win yet,” I added, while privately wondering whether I had caused all of this by getting ahead of myself.

This was supposed to be my first ordinary night covering the Celtics.

Last year, my first three games with a credential spoiled me beyond repair. I saw Jayson Tatum return from a torn Achilles on the same night Cooper Flagg played his first NBA game in Boston. Then came Games 5 and 7 against Philadelphia, playoff nights that carried a nervous current from the empty arena before the game through the final buzzer and beyond.

Tuesday was different. It was Game 4 of 82 against a winless Brooklyn team on the second night of a back-to-back in late October.

I had wondered what covering the Celtics would look like without the obvious stakes. What fills the hours before tip when nobody is returning from a devastating injury and the season isn’t hanging in the balance? Does the Garden still feel magical when it’s just another game?

The answer arrived five quarters later.

The Celtics beat the Nets 125-124 in overtime on a Tatum buzzer-beater.

So much for that experiment.

Before the Garden becomes the Garden

There are two versions of TD Garden on game day.

The first belongs to employees, players, media members and a handful of children who are trying really hard not to freak out while Jayson Tatum shoots jumpers 15 feet away from them.

The second begins when the lights go down and more than 19,000 people who spent the day living entirely separate lives suddenly agree on one very simple thing: they want the Celtics to win.

If overtime gives them five extra minutes to want it? Even better.

Getting to be part of the first version still feels wildly unbelievable to me.

On Tuesday night, I picked up my media credential without an issue, which was an encouraging start. Then I left my backpack on while walking through the metal detector. My credential wouldn’t scan at the next checkpoint. After an employee helped me through, I entered an elevator and missed my floor because I was too busy trying to look like someone who knew where he was going.

I had started hot. The backpack, scanner and elevator cooled me off quickly. The elevator continued toward the balcony. I got off when it felt socially acceptable, then hurried back downstairs.

Only after getting down to the court did I allow myself to breathe and look around.

Mike Conley was greeting his children near the court, performing a different handshake with each of them. Sam Hauser picked up his son and held him in front of Derrick White as if a toddler might help provide the resistance Brooklyn would be looking for later that night.

White shot over him anyway.

Luka Garza’s father sat courtside saying hello to players coming and going. Josh Minott caught up with former Celtics teammates before the game, carrying the unmistakable energy of someone visiting coworkers after changing jobs. Everyone looked genuinely happy to see him. Nobody asked him to cover a shift.

I also met Ben Vallis and Jake Issenberg from First to the Floor, who had traveled from Australia to watch the Celtics up close and in person. Before the game, the three of us somehow ended up discussing the American dap, a social interaction with roughly 35 possible endings and no agreed-upon rules.

Well. We’re here tonight.

Warmup evaluation: PG the most impressive. Smoothest man alive. pic.twitter.com/NoKs5TIqj3

— Jake Issenberg (@jakeissenberg) October 27, 2026

Ben and Jake explained that Australia’s version is more standardized. In the United States, some people go palm-first, cupping your hand and looking for that clean pop. Others lead with their fingers, which begins a brief dance where both sets of fingers creep toward each other and attempt to bridge into Part 2. Then there are the people who clasp your hand and pull you in for a hug without warning. How are you supposed to know who wants what?!

I know this seems like a random anecdote, but please remember this. It will matter later.

Twelve minutes before tip, the Garden remained strangely empty, perhaps a product of it being an ordinary night. A child held up a sign reading “MY FIRST CELTICS GAME” just before the lights went down. A few more minutes passed and the building started filling in around her.

I thought about all the times I had been the person waiting for that moment from the other side. For most of my life, the Garden began when I reached my seat. I never considered the hours before it, when the players are shooting in near silence and the people who make the whole production work are quietly getting everything into place.

On this ordinary Tuesday, I could watch the Garden become itself.

Pregame, Mazzulla said escaping Chicago healthy and keeping everyone at 27 minutes or fewer gave him flexibility. González’s first-quarter minutes Monday didn’t guarantee him the same opportunity Tuesday.

“There’s no first-quarter limitations, so to speak,” Mazzulla said. “It could look completely different today.”

It did.

At times, the Celtics looked like a team playing for the second consecutive night. Their reads were late, shots caught the front rim and Brooklyn kept making difficult baskets.

Nolan Traore scored nine first-quarter points, prompting a quick apology from the Celtics writer who had asked before the game who he was (it wasn’t Ben or Jake). Mazzulla searched for energy, giving early opportunities to González, Scheierman and Garza. A brief confrontation involving Robinson woke the crowd up more than Boston’s offense had.

Brooklyn led 61-56 at halftime. The Celtics had shot 2-for-16 from three, committed 10 turnovers and allowed 30 points in the paint.

The back-to-back had given Mazzulla information. Now Boston had to do something with it.

Give the game what it needs

Mazzulla has talked often about giving the game what it needs. It can sound philosophical until you watch a team spend an entire half trying to solve a very practical problem.

Sometimes the game needs shooting. Sometimes it needs size. Sometimes it needs somebody to dive onto the floor before everyone else decides they should do the same.

On Tuesday, Boston needed several things at once.

The first was Tatum getting downhill.

His outside shot wasn’t carrying the offense, so he stopped asking it to. Instead, he kept attacking, drawing contact and putting Brooklyn’s defense under pressure. The free-throw line became Boston’s most reliable source of offense.

Tatum finished with a career-high 18 made free throws on 22 attempts, part of a 40-point night that never felt as simple as the number suggests.

“He was just giving the game exactly what it needed,” Mazzulla said. “He stayed in the present moment, and we got to see his greatness.”

Being present has become important to Tatum. Before tearing his Achilles, he believed the championship Celtics had a long runway together. The injury changed that.

“I never took the game for granted,” Tatum said. “Maybe I took tomorrow for granted.”

On Tuesday, he accepted what the game offered. His jumper came and went, but Brooklyn couldn’t keep him away from the rim, so he kept returning there.

The Celtics also needed effort from somewhere other than their best player.

Hauser helped change the temperature. He threw himself onto the floor to save a possession, then hit one of Boston’s eight third-quarter threes. Tatum gave the Celtics their first lead, and another Hauser three sent them into the fourth ahead 86-82. The crowd had been waiting for a reason to join the game, and a few floor burns gave it one.

After shooting 2-16 from three in the first half, the Celtics came alive in the third quarter

8-15 from deep in the third to go along with infectious hustle

TD Garden is bumping as the C’s carry an 86-82 lead into the fourth pic.twitter.com/P4DFRe8fpR

— SleeperCeltics (@SleeperCeltics) October 28, 2026

This was the answer to one of my questions coming into the night.

A playoff crowd arrives prepared. It carries the stakes through the doors. A Tuesday crowd sometimes needs the game to introduce itself first.

Once it did, the Garden sounded familiar.

Mazzulla had also been waiting to see how his team would respond to its first prolonged stretch of lousy basketball.

“That’s kind of the first time this year where we weren’t playing well,” he said. “I wanted to see how we stick together. I wanted to see how we connect with each other, how we adapt to that.”

Mazzulla said before the game that everyone needed to remain ready because the group could change from one night to the next. Hauser and Garza made that point for him.

Garza’s most important stint began with 6:40 left in the third and Boston trailing by seven. He remained on the floor as the Celtics closed the quarter on a 16-5 run, then returned with 3:02 left in overtime. His two points and four rebounds were modest, but Boston outscored Brooklyn by 17 during his minutes. On a night when Mazzulla promised the rotation could change, Garza gave him a reason to keep coming back.

Huge momentum-swinger right here.

Tatum drills the three, Garza draws the charge, and TD Garden goes nuts. pic.twitter.com/tMApXZubeC

— Taylor Snow (@taylorcsnow) October 28, 2026

Boston survived the non-Tatum minutes, which mattered because he eventually played 42:20 on the second night of a back-to-back. Mazzulla said the staff plans for nights like this by building rest into the rotation and trusting everyone else to protect it.

For Tatum, the workload represented something more.

“I worked really, really, really, really hard to come back a certain type of player,” he said. “To be reliable like I was before I got injured.”

He briefly left in the fourth after feeling a stinger, realized he was fine and returned. Last spring, Tatum admitted, something like that might have occupied his thoughts. Now he can cut, drive and change direction without constantly monitoring his body.

“Something in my mind clicks,” he said. “Like, ‘Oh, that feeling is really starting to feel like pre-injury.’”

He gets excited about those moments whether the shot goes in or not. Brooklyn gave him plenty of opportunities to test that progress.

Meanwhile, Michael Porter Jr. played like somebody had spent every available 2K attribute point on shooting. He finished with 27 points and 12 rebounds, punishing Boston whenever it gave him room. Julius Randle added 24 points. The Nets never seemed interested in fulfilling their assigned role as the tired team’s cooperative second-night opponent.

Mazzulla continued adjusting. Queta replaced Robinson, fouled out and forced Robinson back into the game. Tatum briefly went to the bench before returning. White cut through Brooklyn’s defense for an and-one dunk that shook the building.

Boston appeared to have survived everything when Robinson went to the line late in regulation.

Ben, Jake and I began moving toward the elevator. From where we stood, the game was over. Robinson only needed to make one free throw, or Boston needed to defend one possession with almost no time remaining.

He missed both.

Brown Jr. tied the game.

The elevator would have to wait.

The night that refused to end

Overtime had a strange energy.

A noticeable portion of the crowd had already left, convinced of the same thing I had been confident enough to type into my notes. The building sounded thinner, but the people who remained seemed to understand that they had some extra work to do. There were fewer voices, and each one was trying to cover for somebody already planning which bar to hit downtown.

The Celtics had fewer options, too. Queta was gone. Robinson looked exhausted. Mazzulla returned to Garza, trusting the player who had spent the night running, rebounding and volunteering his body for all the unpleasant assignments.

The game could have ended several more times.

With 6.1 seconds left and Brooklyn ahead by one, Brown Jr. missed at the rim and the ball went out of bounds off the Nets. The initial ruling gave Boston possession and a chance to win the game.

Brooklyn challenged. The review found a loose-ball foul on Garza, giving the Nets the ball back beneath their own basket. At that point, Brooklyn didn’t need another shot. The Nets could inbound the ball, wait for Boston to foul and potentially make two free throws. The Celtics would likely be left trying to force a second overtime with a three.

Instead, Brown Jr. caught the inbound pass and attempted a contested layup over George.

He missed.

The same rookie who had extended the game at the end of regulation had just given Boston another chance to end it. George secured the rebound, and Mazzulla called timeout with 2.3 seconds remaining.

It seemed there would be no second overtime. Boston’s next shot would either win the game or send everyone home wondering why a Tuesday night against Brooklyn had hurt this much.

There are moments when analysis becomes a slightly ridiculous pursuit. Everybody knows where the ball is going. The coaches know, the defense knows and the thousands of people standing around the court know.

The interesting part is everything that still has to happen after that.

Brooklyn knew where the ball was going. The plan was to keep Noah Clowney, its bigger defender, attached to Tatum and avoid switching. Brown Jr. switched anyway.

Tatum created separation from the rookie, took two quick dribbles to his left and rose from 17 feet as Keon Ellis came over to contest. For an instant, the entire night hung there.

Then the shot fell.

JAYSON TATUM GAME-WINNER 🚨

TATUM CALLS GAME VS. NETS. OMGGGG 🤯 pic.twitter.com/7OrT7gAGke

— NBA on ESPN (@ESPNNBA) October 28, 2026

The Garden erupted. Ben, Jake and I exchanged three consecutive daps without a single thumb-related incident. I was in too much of a euphoric state to confirm whether our technique was perfect or not, but under the circumstances, it didn’t really matter.

Tatum’s teammates mobbed him near the baseline. He had hit plenty of game-winners before, but this was his first since tearing his Achilles.

“It was a hell of a feeling,” Tatum said. “Just kind of getting back to doing things that I used to do before I was injured, sharing that with my teammates on the court, seeing how excited they were for me.”

Tatum finished with 40 points and eight assists. He carried the offense through its ugliest stretches, trusted teammates while they searched for their footing and ended the game himself when there was no time left for anything more complicated.

In short, he gave the game what it needed.

So did Hauser when the Celtics needed someone to throw himself onto the floor. Garza did it when the rotation required another big man. Scheierman did it by doing Baylor things. George did it while Tatum rested.

The crowd eventually did it, too.

The other side of the rope

I had arrived hoping to understand the ordinary work of an NBA season.

The media side has its own rhythm. Get through the entrance. Find the correct elevator. Watch warmups. Write down anything that might matter. Delete half of it. Try to understand the other half before somebody hits a three with 0.2 seconds left and ruins the story you thought you were writing.

For most of my life, I wondered what it would feel like to be down there. To report on the Celtics instead of simply cheering for them. To sit on the other side of the rope and try to bring readers closer to everything happening beyond it.

The funny part is that the other side doesn’t make the game feel smaller or more clinical. If anything, proximity keeps revealing more reasons to care.

You notice the handshake Conley shares with one of his children. You see Tatum pause his own special night to help a teammate do better on the next play. You hear the building slowly realize it has wandered into a great game.

Then you stay late enough to watch Tatum win it.

Mazzulla said the experience was valuable because it showed the Celtics who they are and what they still need to work on. That’s probably the healthiest way to view Game 4 of 82. Boston shouldn’t have needed overtime to beat Brooklyn. They missed too many shots, surrendered too many offensive rebounds and mishandled a situation that should have ended the game in regulation.

Joe Mazzulla said the Celtics still have to stuff to get better at after the OT win:

“In film tomorrow, we just have to treat it like a loss. You can't treat it like a win.” pic.twitter.com/7eJlxgEvKe

— Daniel Donabedian (@danield1214) October 28, 2026

They also stayed connected when very little was working. Those truths can share the same night. Mazzulla certainly intends to make the Celtics sit through both of them when they watch the film.

Maybe my mistake was separating games into the important ones and the ordinary ones before they happened.

Tatum said his injury made him wonder whether he once took tomorrow for granted. Tuesday began as one of those tomorrows. Game 4. A winless opponent. The second night of a back-to-back in October. Five quarters later, he was standing near the baseline while his teammates celebrated a shot he once spent months wondering whether his body would allow him to make again.

On the train home, I looked down and realized I was still wearing my credential. I had made it through the wrong elevator, two missed Robinson free throws, a surprise overtime and my first ordinary regular-season assignment.

The credential probably could have gone back into my bag at that point.

I left it on a little longer.

It’s clearly been an exciting start overall to the 2026-27 season for the Sixers, but we got our first taste of a loss for this team on Sunday. On the second night of a back-to-back, with Joel Embiid out and a host of injuries to the backup center rotation, the Sixers lost to the Pistons, 106-93.

The Sixers shot just 7-of-25 from three, made only 14 of their 23 free throw attempts, Jaylen Brown struggled (as did most of the team) and shot 5-of-20, and they gave up 15 offensive rebounds. From the lacking center rotation in Embiid’s absence to the rebounding issues, it was a look at where the Sixers could use some improvement.

On Wednesday, after getting an extra day of rest, the Sixers will be on the road with a chance to bounce back against the 2-2 Pacers.

Having Embiid back on Wednesday is huge. The already thin center depth was obvious against Detroit, and that was even with Jalen Duren out. The rest of the Sixers’ injured bigs are still included on the injury report, though. Dominick Barlow, Tacko Fall and Jabari Walker all remain out.

The Pacers are banged up themselves. Johnny Furphy (ACL surgery), T.J. McConnell (right hamstring strain), Ben Sheppard (left meniscus tear), and Ivica Zubac (left ankle sprain) are all out. Zubac’s absence in particular will make life far easier for the Sixers’ smaller lineups. Andrew Nembhard (neck soreness) and newly returned star Tyrese Haliburton (left hamstring soreness) are both questionable. Obi Toppin (left hand sprain) is probable.

While the Sixers’ frontcourt remains shorthanded, we’ve seen a fair dose of LeBron at the 5. Which, despite not being something he or the team want to rely on using too much, has been effective in spells. The physicality, IQ, still versatile defense when he’s locked in, and offensive skill that needs no introduction makes LeBron a unique smaller option.

The King doing it on both ends pic.twitter.com/dZUi3WnXFq

— Liberty Ballers (@Liberty_Ballers) October 26, 2026

Apart from getting healthier at center, rebounding has to improve, too. As Nick Nurse emphasized after Sunday’s loss, it’s not just about one position: it’s a team effort.

“All five guys got to rebound. I just look at the numbers there and the defensive rebounding, just across the board, no matter position, just aren’t good enough,” Nurse said to reporters after the game. “So, everybody’s got to chip in with a few more.”

Let’s see if they can take advantage of Zubac being out and up their rebounding on Wednesday.

The Pacers aren’t off to a bad start this year. They haven’t faced tough opponents yet and are coming off a 110-102 loss to the Bucks on Monday, but did at least take care of business with wins against the Pelicans and Nets.

First and foremost, as a basketball fan, it’s a joy to see Haliburton back. After missing all last season with an Achilles injury, he’s here to lead the Pacers again.

Haliburton was emotional after dropping 23 PTS and 12 AST in his return 🥺

Glad to have you back, Hali 🙌 pic.twitter.com/dwW7OGr8kx

— ESPN (@espn) October 22, 2026

Considering it’s been 486 days since he last played a game, Haliburton looks like he’s barely missed a beat. He’s already putting up 21.8 points, 9.5 assists to only 2.3 turnovers, 4.5 rebounds and 1.3 steals per game with an excellent true shooting percentage of 63.4. He started with a bang, dropping 23 points and 12 assists and delivering in the clutch to win Indiana’s season opener.

Maxey and VJ Edgecombe have both been playing impressive defense to open the season, and have well and truly played their part in the Sixers’ ranking fifth in defensive rating so far. Watching how they handle Haliburton (if he plays) on the ball, keep his drives in check, ideally reduce his breathing room to fire passes all over the floor, and contest his creation at the three-point line will be the key matchup to follow in this contest.

We’ll also get to watch former Sixer Kelly Oubre Jr. go up against Philly again for the first time since leaving. After doing so much for the Sixers with his high motor, rangy defense and athletic scoring, he’s stepped straight into a solid role with the Pacers, including two starts. He just hasn’t hit his usual stride on offense yet, averaging 7.5 points on only 38.7/18.8/50.0 shooting splits through his first four games in 22.5 minutes a night.

The next big matchup for the Sixers to handle in order to fully take control in this game is Pascal Siakam. With his range, speed and ability as a driver, he’ll be a good physical test for LeBron and Dean Wade. With how well the Sixers’ forwards have played defensively so far, though, and how spry Embiid has looked protecting the paint, that bodes well for them containing Siakam and ideally providing sharp interior rotations and rim protection to Haliburton, Siakam and Oubre in check enough downhill.

Apart from having Embiid’s scoring back, his size and defense will be a welcome presence against the Pacers’ bigs, led by 7-foot-1 starting center Jay Huff. Huff is a weak rebounder (averaging just 6.7 per 36 minutes for his career) which helps the Sixers, but he still can’t be overlooked as a rim protector and finisher with his size and 7-foot-5 wingspan.

Overall, there should be some fun matchups in this one, especially between LeBron vs. Siakam, and the Sixers’ guards against Haliburton, if he can play. If Philly can pair that with better rebounding and center play thanks to Embiid’s return, and ideally some hotter three-point shooting (they’re missing plenty of open looks so far, ranking 22nd as a team at 31.7 percent from three), this is a contest they should be winning. It’s a good opportunity to bounce back before heading into a tougher matchup in Friday’s rematch against the Knicks.

Game Details

When: Sunday, October 28, 7:00 pm ET
Where: Gainbridge Fieldhouse, Indianapolis, IN
Watch: NBCSP/PCK-PHI, ESPN
Radio: 97.5 The Fanatic
Follow: @LibertyBallers

For the Toronto Raptors and Orlando Magic, this was supposed to be their first real test.

While the Raptors previously finished fifth in the Eastern Conference standings and the Magic were stuck in play-in purgatory, only one game separated the franchises. Despite pundits refusing to give them a fighter’s chance in the first round of the playoffs, both Toronto and Orlando punched back, as fighters do.

Nearly six months after taking their respective post-season opponents the distance, they’re ready to once again scrap and claw for their place in the Eastern Conference.

Unfortunately, before the sound of the round one bell, both teams are already dinged up. The Magic are without Paolo Banchero (ankle sprain) for four to six weeks and Jalen Suggs (bone bruise) for at least two weeks.

Here’s what you need to know ahead of the Raptors vs. Magic on Wednesday.

Much ado about everything

The Raptors are without Kawhi Leonard. For those outside of the Toronto (and Canadian) basketball world, it may seem like the streets are on fire. The 35-year-old superstar is expected to miss a period of weeks due to swelling in his left knee, according to ESPN’s Shams Charania. In the team’s Oct. 27 update, it was mentioned that Leonard would be reevaluated in one week.

The longest stretch Leonard missed during his 2018-19 stint in Toronto was four consecutive games. Leonard also dealt with swelling in the other knee when he missed the first 34 games of the 2024-25 season with the Los Angeles Clippers.

Regardless of what happens, one thing is certain: there will be stretches without Leonard. This year’s iteration of the Raptors, like the 2019 champions, will be defined by how they perform without Leonard. It’s been widely noted that Toronto went 17-5 without Leonard in 2019, but what doesn’t go noticed enough is that the team (either strategically or by happenstance) hedged their chances against specific opponents.

Ten of the Raptors’ victories without The Klaw came against Eastern Conference opponents. That’s always a good measurement of where a team stands as playoff brackets begin to form. However, of those ten wins, nine of them came against non-playoff teams. This is important to note after the unfortunate misfire in their first game without Leonard against the Timberwolves on Oct. 25. While Toronto finished a sparkling 7-0 against the Western Conference (including three wins against playoff teams), how the Raptors fare against teams vying for the same playoff spots will obviously carry more weight.

Wins are wins and teams should take them no matter how they come, especially when playing without one of the best players in the world. The Raptors five losses without Leonard all came against Eastern Conference playoff teams, but that’s to be expected. To tip the scales back the other way, they took care of business against lineups that a team with an injured Leonard is expected to beat:

• Wizards (32-50)
• Bulls (22-60)
• Hawks (29-53)
• Pacers (48-34) – Playoff team
• Hawks (29-53)
• Wizards – (32-50)
• Heat – (39-43)
• Knicks (17-65)
• Knicks (17-65)
• Bulls (22-60)

Toronto also finished the calendar year (2018) 7-2 without Leonard. This likely helped the front office decide whether to go for it at the trade deadline.

Leonard transforms good teams into contenders, and good teams should defeat a Magic squad without two of their best players.

All together on three: One, two, three—exhale!

And to respond to the question of Real Clydes Wear Plaid in the Postgame Thread with the amazing wisdom of one OG Anunoby: Uh, it feels pretty cool. The first win for your New York Knicks as defending champions, that is. But even if Fat Joe didn’t have to keep sweatin’ through the latter stages of this particular game, it sure took a while to really feel comfortable.

When Mikal Bridges’ halfcourt prayer to end the first quarter didn’t draw any iron, nothing felt cool. Paul Reed had just finished his shooting motion from hell on the other end and scored Detroit’s 38th point with a triple, putting the Pistons up by 13 on their orange and blue counterparts. An eternal optimist might have seen the Knicks returning to their winning ways at that point since they had actually given up 40 in the final frame to Orlando on Sunday. Baby steps and all in the right direction, I guess.

Seriously, though, the Knicks were hanging on by a thread to start the second quarter, especially since they couldn’t buy a basket for the first two minutes of the period. Fortunately, Detroit didn’t manage to capitalize even though they had numerous open threes during that stretch. If they had made a shot or two here and blown the lead up close to 20? Let’s not think about it, especially since the actual reality that followed was so much nicer.

Karl-Anthony Towns leads the way for Knicks

For the first time this season, it felt like the Knicks really found a consistent rhythm on both ends of the court. It started with the defense that completely shut down any idea the Pistons had of scoring points, limiting the bad shooting boys from the Motor City to a 3-for-21 clip in the quarter. The offense took a little longer, but opportunism reigned supreme here. Karl-Anthony Towns and Andre Drummond had some nice putbacks, the Knicks finally hit some threes, and Jalen Brunson drew a bunch of fouls after almost looking like Jordan Clarkson in a Utah blowout early on.

Mike Brown said he challenged Karl-Anthony Towns after halftime

"I just told him the truth. 'KAT, [Paul Reed] is killing us on the glass and when he gets a rebound he's putting it back. If he gets on the perimeter, guard him. And he did those things" pic.twitter.com/IpGB5ESpdT

— SNY Knicks (@sny_knicks) October 28, 2026

The real fun started after halftime. Supposedly, Mike Brown challenged Karl-Anthony Towns in the locker room, reminding him that a scrappy, hard-working soul named “Bball Paul” shouldn’t be a match for him. “Got it, coach,” said the newlywed, and then went to work on the entire Pistons team. 27 and 20 is serious business; we can even give him a pass for the 7 (turnovers) and 5 (fouls) this time around. It speaks to the growth of Towns that he responded to extremely physical play with some haymakers of his own. I’ll let you decide if he or the hero called Bballman looked more composed in the end. Just kidding, Paulie!

Josh Hart playfully squaring up with Jarrett Jack 😂 pic.twitter.com/kl8HEtdQGo

— Knicks Fan TV 🏀🎥📺🏁 (@KnicksFanTv) October 28, 2026

Apparently, it wasn’t only KAT, though, who took the coach’s words to heart. The entire team came out firing after the intermission. The pace was good, the Bockers got out running, and they really defended the high pick-and-roll better—shoutout to Mikal Bridges here. In the first, Pistons star Cade Cunningham spent more time in the Knicks’ paint than anywhere else on the court, but New York put an end to that. They themselves moved the ball inside, swung it back out, and all of a sudden everything looked easy.

Knicks find themselves again versus Detroit

Open shots lead to open minds; play looked free, inspired. Brunson woke up; KAT was downright dominant on both ends of the court, and OG, Mikal, and Hart were flying around. The reserves also did their part after looking very reserved against the Magic. Landry Shamet couldn’t buy a basket at the rim yet cashed in on 3 of 5 from downtown. More importantly, though, he brought relentless energy fighting over screens and throwing his body around like he doesn’t need it anymore. Andre Drummond was good Andre Drummond again, didn’t try to channel his inner Hakeem Olajuwon, and made his gigantic presence felt inside on both ends. Even “Pee Wee” Kolek got in on the act a few times.

Let’s ignore the sloppy finish to the fourth that made a laugher a little less funny or JB Bickerstaff bickering about physicality for the sake of the good vibes. The New York Knicks are back, baby, and it feels tremendous even if they were never really gone. Deep in our hearts, we all knew they had this very type of performance in them and that if they are playing at their best, not many teams in the NBA can hang with them. That doesn’t mean that they can or should punt the entire regular season—far from it. They can’t sleepwalk through the year and just show up for the final act. There’d be a good chance they would’ve forgotten their lines by then. In the end, you still have to win some games—and quite a few of them. Tuesday night was a good start.

A really cool start, actually.

Yesterday morning, the bombshell dropped that Kawhi Leonard would be missing his first stint of games this season, with twin reports coming directly from the Raptors, and ESPN’s Shams Charania.

Charania posted this morning that Leonard would not be playing for “a period of weeks due to swelling in his left knee” despite “no structural damage.” The Raptors, almost simultaneously, released notice that reevaluation of Leonard would take place within a week, but that there was “no acute injury,” rather, just swelling.

Leonard swiftly came out with his own statement, posting on socials about the circumstances, thanking Raptors fans for their support and committing to a speedy return.

pic.twitter.com/uYFtR3BZAo

— Kawhi Leonard (@Way2Whi) October 27, 2026

First of all, seeing Kawhi sign his messages as “Whi” is very cool, and is a nickname for himself that is certainly overshadowed by his “Klaw” monicker. But, more importantly, Leonard being this active on social media on his personal accounts is a new development that has arisen since he began the process of rejoining the Raptors earlier this year.

There seems to be an effort at transparency from both Leonard and the organization, that especially from the latter, is particularly appreciated. Much has been said about Kawhi’s famous aloofness appearing diminished as his second stint on the Raps begins, and this statement today, addressing fans directly in tandem with Raptors reports, is a breath of fresh air from the superstar.

In Leonard’s absence, there are signs of what the Raptors might look like. RJ Barrett predicted more time with the ball in his hands, suggesting that his role as an offensive creator will become even more important with Leonard out. Barrett produces a great deal of gravity on his downhill drives, which would perfectly compliment the return of an outside shooter like Ja’Kobe Walter to the starting lineup.

Walter was fantastic in his first outing as a starter, scoring 22 points and nabbing two steals in a loss against Minnesota, and it will be likely that Walter settles into this role for the upcoming stint of games. While Collin Murray-Boyles has contributed in a more public manner to the Raptors’ success over the past two years, starting him at small forward in place of Leonard would tank the Raptors’ spacing further, on a team that already struggles with range.

Whether or not the Raptors are able to rally in Leonard’s absence will be a prime indicator of how well the rest of the season will go, with Leonard all but certain to have other instances where his at-times shaky availability will force the team to run modified units. The next few games against the shorthanded Orlando Magic will be a prime opportunity for the Raptors to field modified lineups and see what might work against a team that is also operating without its primary offensive piece.

Leonard will hopefully be back soon enough that any experimentation comes in the form of a temporary patch rather than a long-term fix, but with his public approach to handling his load management, it seems that fans will be well informed about any decisions that arise.

Former Blue Devil and current Chief Basketball Officer for Duke Basketball Jayson Tatum has had an interesting time of it lately.

Boston shockingly traded Jaylen Brown to the Philadelphia 76ers, a move that some people seem to hold Tatum responsible for.

And when he recently spoke out on this, saying that he had no role in the trade, that he was “just as much caught off guard as the rest of the world,” and that “I don’t have any animosity or beef or ill will towards him,” Brown had a few things to say about it.

First, he posted a blue cap, suggesting that Tatum was not telling the truth. Then he said this: “We’ve accomplished some great things. He’s a hell of a basketball player. He’s got a great PR team. There’s no beef but it might be a little lamb chops and some gravy. He should stay ready at all times.”

“That’s what it is. No beef. It should never, ever be that. It’s just basketball. We both blessed. But it might be a little lamb chop. We’ll be alright.”

Whatever the truth is, it’s bound to be a distraction. However, it didn’t matter much Tuesday night.

Boston was down to Brooklyn 124-123 with 2.3 seconds left. Derrick White got the ball into Tatum, who spun to his right. Three Nets had a reasonable chance of stopping him: former Louisville star Mikel Brown, Noah Clowney, and Keon Ellis. He shook them all off, though Ellis made a valiant attempt to get back into the play.

But he was too late: Tatum got a shot off as Ellis tried to catch him from behind. He didn’t get there late by much, but he did get there too late, and Tatum’s shot became the game-winner.

Pretty nice outcome for the guy who is now the undisputed face of his team.

Go to the DBR Boards to find Blue Healer Auctions || Drop us a line

Go to the DBR Boards to find Blue Healer Auctions || Drop us a line

The NBA season is young – we’re one week into it, and no team has played five games yet – yet injuries have already made a massive impact.

The names are significant, from Timberwolves star Anthony Edwards, to Thunder star Jalen Williams, to Magic forward Paolo Banchero, these issues are certain to impact the immediate futures of their teams. And those are just a few of them.

But after one week of action, there are already significant risers and fallers from the power rankings once training camps opened. And no team has plummeted more than the Miami Heat, who made the massive offseason splash to acquire Giannis Antetokounmpo but who have yet to win a game.

Here are the Week 1 USA TODAY Sports NBA power rankings:

NBA Week 1 power rankings: Nos. 30-21

30. Sacramento Kings, 0-4 (-1)

They’re oddly constructed, and, even though they have the game’s top rebounder (Domantas Sabonis; 16.5 per game), they rank 24th in that statistic. In fact, Sabonis has collected a staggering 39.8% of Sacramento’s 166 total boards.

29. Brooklyn Nets, 0-4 (-1)

Their loss Tuesday night against the Celtics proved how young and inexperienced this team is. All rookie Mikel Brown Jr. needed to do when he got the ball with 6.1 seconds left in overtime, with Brooklyn up one, was dribble it out, get fouled and go to the line. Instead he tried a contested layup, missed and Jayson Tatum hit the game winner on the other end.

28. New Orleans Pelicans, 0-3 (-1)

The Pelicans, unsurprisingly, lead the NBA in points in the paint per game (60.7). Also unsurprisingly, they’re tied for 28th in catch and shoot points per game (23.3).

27. Chicago Bulls, 1-3 (-7)

The Bulls entered the season with some intrigue, but new coach Tiago Splitter hasn’t gotten this group to gel, as Chicago ranks dead last in net rating (-18.3), field goal percentage (40.6%), 3-point shooting (23.8%) and second-to-last in assist-to-turnover ratio (1.13).

26. Milwaukee Bucks, 1-3 (+4)

Milwaukee has gotten decent early returns from the Heat package for Giannis Antetokounmpo, and any time the Bucks can beat their hated rivals, the Pacers, it’s a positive.

25. Los Angeles Clippers, 1-2 (—)

They haven’t been efficient, ranking last in the league in turnovers (23.3 per game) by a wide margin.

24. Utah Jazz, 1-3 (-6)

Not only has Utah disappointed with its new-look roster, but now Jaren Jackson and Lauri Markkanen, two front court pillars, are both contending with injuries.

23. Phoenix Suns, 1-2 (-6)

Starting with an embarrassing opener in which Phoenix fell into a 21-0 hole, it hasn’t been the best beginning for Phoenix. Making matters worse, they’re dead last in the NBA in defensive rating, allowing 124.5 points per 100 possessions.

22. Golden State Warriors, 1-3 (-1)

Yaxel Lendeborg has been a solid addition, and leads all rookies in points (21.8 per game) and ranks second in rebounds (9.3). Still, Golden State’s defense is a liability.

21. Miami Heat, 0-4 (-13)

This looks very much like a team that still hasn’t figured out how to play together, but some serious flaws have emerged: defensive effort has been lacking and if perimeter shots don’t fall, spacing collapses and teams can crowd the paint to clog up driving lanes for Giannis Antetokounmpo.

NBA Week 1 power rankings: Nos. 20-11

20.  Orlando Magic, 1-2 (-4)

The injury bug, again, has come for the Magic, who now face extended time without Paolo Banchero and Jalen Suggs. A nice win over the Knicks without Banchero, though, shows Orlando can still be feisty in his absence.

19. Washington Wizards, 2-2 (+5)

Trae Young leads the NBA in assists (11.0 per game) and Anthony Davis has been solid, but No. 1 overall rookie AJ Dybantsa (ankle) is yet to make his debut. It will be interesting to see how he changes things.

18. Dallas Mavericks, 2-2 (+5)

Cooper Flagg was spectacular in a come-from-behind win at Miami, and rookie coach Dusty May has this group playing competitive hoops, ranking fourth in effective field goal percentage (56.7%).

17. Charlotte Hornets, 3-1 (+5)

The Hornets haven’t had the most cohesive offense – they rank dead last in assists (21.5 per game) and are tied for 28th in field goal percentage (41.4%) – but Kon Knueppel (hamstring) is yet to play this season.

16. Memphis Grizzlies, 4-0 (+10)

A surprise undefeated, Ty Jerome has been an offensive powerhouse with 29.8 points per game. Rookie No. 3 overall forward Cameron Boozer is averaging a double-double. Their competition, though, hasn’t been all that stiff, so a larger sample size is necessary to judge this young squad. Solid rebounding metrics, though, are a positive sign.

15. Atlanta Hawks, 2-2 (—)

As they have under coach Quinn Snyder, the Hawks are once again prioritizing assists, leading the NBA with 31.5 per game. And though he doesn’t get the national recognition, Jalen Johnson (21.5 points per, 9.8 rebounds and 8.3 assists) is the offensive engine that makes it all work.

14. Indiana Pacers, 2-2 (—)

Indiana really missed Tyrese Haliburton, who ranks second in the NBA in assists (9.5 per game), but losses to the Mavericks and Bucks show that it may take some time for this offense to return to form from two seasons ago, especially as the Pacers incorporate Ivica Zubac into the system.

13. Toronto Raptors, 2-1 (-1)

Kawhi Leonard is banged up once again and will miss time, but the revelation has been RJ Barrett, who is leading the team with 21.0 points per game at a red hot 51% shooting clip.

12. Denver Nuggets, 1-2 (-3)

Could things be fraying in Denver? Three-time Most Valuable Player and all-world star Nikola Jokić was not only booed at home, but he also criticized the fans doing so.

11. Cleveland Cavaliers, 2-1 (—)

Peyton Watson has infused a solid defensive presence, even early on, averaging 2.0 steals and 2.0 blocks per game. In fact, Cleveland – not the Spurs – leads the NBA in blocks per game, with 8.7.

NBA Week 1 power rankings: Top 10

10. Portland Trail Blazers, 3-0 (+9)

The surprise of the first week, rookie coach Micah Nori has this group playing clean, efficient basketball. The addition of Ja Morant looks like it was an excellent low-risk, high-reward maneuver, and Portland’s offense is rolling, leading the league in several key categories.

9. New York Knicks, 1-3 (-7)

The Knicks desperately needed a win like they had Tuesday over the Pistons; entering the night, New York had ranked 29th in offensive rating (103.4).

8. Boston Celtics, 3-1 (+2)

There has been plenty of good – Boston entered Tuesday night as the best 3-point shooting team, at a blistering 42.4% – and the Celtics are still incorporating some new faces, so they should only get better from here on out.

7. Los Angeles Lakers, 3-1 (—)

Luka Dončić is once again leading the NBA in scoring (with 36.0 points per game) and could be on the path toward strong Most Valuable Player consideration. Walker Kessler has been a tremendous pairing with Dončić, and Los Angeles should figure to be one of the league’s top offenses, if healthy.

6. San Antonio Spurs, 2-2 (-1)

A slow start with losses to the Thunder and Rockets hurt San Antonio, but Victor Wembanyama has bounced back to lead the Spurs to convincing wins over the Mavericks and Kings.

5. Minnesota Timberwolves, 3-1 (—)

The Timberwolves were looking like they had found a winning formula with the Anthony Edwards and LaMelo Ball pairing. Now with Edwards out up to two months, Ball and backup Ayo Dosunmu will have to produce more offense. It’s a shame, because Minnesota looked like a legitimate title contender.

4. Philadelphia 76ers, 3-1 (—)

So far, so good. The 76ers are incorporating a new system with new stars, but the results have been promising. And Tyrese Maxey is fully coming into his own as the star of this team.

3. Houston Rockets, 4-0 (+3)

Fred VanVleet has stabilized the point guard position, and that has helped create easier offense for center Alperen Şengün (24.5 points per game) and forward Amen Thompson (17.0).

2. Detroit Pistons, 3-1 (+11)

They had been playing the role of giant slayers, taking down the Celtics, Heat and 76ers to start the season, but the toughest schedule to open the season eventually claimed Detroit Tuesday night when their comeback attempt against the Knicks fell short. Either way, Detroit, once again, looks like a player in the East.

1. Oklahoma City Thunder, 4-0 (—)

The loss of Jalen Williams, Cason Wallace and the score of other injuries loom large, but the Thunder are the deepest team in the NBA, and they have plenty of experience finding ways to fill in for injured talent.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: NBA power rankings: Injuries shake up league, winless Miami Heat plummet

As Rui Hachimura walked into Crypto.com Arena on Friday night for a basketball game for the first time in five months, many familiar faces and sights awaited him.  

There was Hachimura on the Lakers’ home court, joking around with franchise superstar Luka Dončić while both were going through their pregame warmups. 

There was the 6-foot-8 forward embracing star guard Austin Reaves and greeting multiple Lakers assistant coaches as he walked around the court.

There was the former Gonzaga Bulldog receiving a positive ovation from the fans after being introduced in the starting lineup, with a tribute video showing on the Jumbotron midway through the first quarter. 

There was the 2019 first-round pick, whom the Lakers acquired from the Wizards in January 2023, acting like he was going to walk into the Lakers’ locker room before reminding the security guard that it shouldn’t be happening anymore.

“That was funny because … the security guard, he didn’t even realize that,” Hachimura told the California Post.

Hachimura added: “I was like, ‘Hey, you gotta stop me.’”

If it were up to Hachimura, those familiar sights and feelings would still be part of his routine with the Lakers.

But after 3 ½ seasons with the franchise, Hachimura was on the other side of what used to be called “The Hallway Rivalry” — and what The Post’s Melissa Rohlin has now dubbed the “Freeway Snore.”

And he’ll be reminded of the change again when the Lakers visit the Intuit Dome on Wednesday, though he won’t play due to quad soreness sidelining him for the matchup.

Hachimura is no longer a Laker after signing a two-year, $28 million contract with the Clippers in July.

He was one of the several players who left the franchise over the summer as part of the roster reconstruction around Dončić and Reaves, which included acquiring Walker Kessler and eight other players. 

“It was tough,” Hachimura told The Post about his free agency. “That’s my second free agency. Of course I was trying to get the extension from [the Lakers]. It didn’t work out, but it is what it is. We have to move on at some point.”

The Lakers were interested in retaining Hachimura. And he would’ve liked to return to the franchise.

“That was the point,” he responded to The Post when asked whether he wanted to stay with the Lakers.

But that didn’t come to fruition.

“It’s my agent and those guys who [were] in the talks,” Hachimura told The Post. “I don’t know what the [talks were], but I’m happy that I’m here.”

The Lakers made a slew of additions within the first few days of free agency: The Kessler acquisition opened the floodgates for the initial signings of Quentin Grimes (four years, $60 million, Sandro Mamukelashvili (four years, $52 million) and Collin Sexton (two years, $19 million).

But to make those additions with their $50 million-plus in cap space, the Lakers had to relinquish the cap holds for most of their free agents, including Hachimura, making it unlikely they’d return to the franchise. 

Hachimura said he didn’t know whether the Lakers offered him a new contract during the summer after the three-year, $51 million deal he signed with the franchise during the 2023 offseason expired in late June.  

“It’s on them,” he responded to The Post when asked what led to his departure from the Lakers. “It wasn’t me. It was them.”

Hachimura reiterated the reporting from the summer that he and the Clippers had reached an agreement during the early stages of free agency.

A potential sign-and-trade between the Lakers and Clippers was pursued by Hachimura’s camp, which would’ve led Hachimura signing a longer contract with his new team, but the Lakers didn’t participate and Hachimura signed with the Clippers outright.  

“It was already done,” he told The Post. “I just didn’t do it right away.”

Hachimura is still held in high regard by his former teammates. 

“He’s one of my favorite teammates I’ve ever had,” Reaves said. “I made a joke the other day that I didn’t know if he spoke English for the first two weeks. We sat by each other on the plane his first year and I would say ‘hey’ to him. He kind of just looked at me and [nodded].  

“And then after that I couldn’t get him to shut up. Always in a good mood, happy to be here, puts the work in, and it’s just good to see him be happy and successful and enjoying his life.”

Los Angeles, and the Lakers specifically, is where he developed into “an unbelievable shooter,” according to Lakers coach JJ Redick.

He shot 41.5% from beyond the arc in his 3 ½ seasons with the Lakers, including 50.7% in the playoffs.

His 51.6% career 3-point shooting accuracy in the postseason is an NBA record. 

“Rui in terms of just his offensive packaging and becoming one of the best shooters in the NBA, we got him at a good point in his career,” Redick added. “Just one of my favorite players I’ve ever been around in the NBA and one of my favorite players I’ve ever coached. And it’s because of just the consistency of joy and personality that he brings every day.” 

Redick credited Lakers assistant coach Beau Levesque for helping Hachimura develop his “laser mentality.”

“Beau is my guy,” Hachimura told The Post. “Since he got there, he was the guy [who] helped me elevate my game.”

Hachimura hopes to continue to elevate his game with the Clippers.

He’s no longer playing off star players such as Anthony Davis, LeBron James, Dončić and Reaves.

He’s a more significant part of the Clippers’ offense, which is reflected in him taking a career-high 12.7 field-goal attempts entering Wednesday after averaging a career-low 8.8 shots last season. 

“I miss them, it was a good time — was a great time with them,” Hachimura told The Post about his time with the Lakers. “I can still continue my career in LA, too, so I’m happy [about] that.”

---

Download The California Post App, follow us on social, and subscribe to our newsletters