Category: NBA

The Knicks are signing free agent forward Dalton Knecht to a two-way deal.

To make room on the roster for Knecht, New York is waiving Kevin McCullar Jr., reports SNY NBA Insider Ian Begley. 

Knecht, 25, was waived by the Los Angeles Lakers before the season.

The 17th overall pick in the 2024 NBA Draft, Knecht appeared in 54 games with the Lakers last season, averaging 4.2 points on 45.5 percent shooting (34.2 percent from three) with 1.4 rebounds in 10.2 minutes per game.

Knecht saw much more time in his rookie campaign, with 78 appearances (16 starts) as he averaged 9.1 points on 46.1 percent from the floor (37.6 percent from three on 4.4 attempts) with 2.8 rebounds in 19.2 minutes per game. 

New York's other two-way players are Tyler Nickel and Jaden Akins.  

Before I get started, I know I gotta drop the health disclaimers

The Golden State Warriors walked into Crypto.com Arena on Wednesday without their starting small forward, their starting center, their starting shooting guard, and the backup behind him. Jimmy Butler is still rehabbing the ACL, Kristaps Porzingis is out with an injury that none of my buddies can explain, Brandin Podziemski’s back flared up, and Moses Moody is months away after patellar tendon repair. Steph Curry even played on a sprained right ankle.

But there was still plenty to glean from that opening game, and that 127-105 final provides some clues about what the Lakers are capable of. For most of the last decade, they were the franchise standing outside GSW’s party, pressing their face against the glass. Wednesday night felt like the first time they looked back through it at the Dubs, with a vengeance.

The big man Walker Kessler kicked in the door in his first game with the Lake Show, going 12-for-12 from the field for 26 points and nine rebounds in his Lakers debut. The only Laker with a cleaner night was Wilt Chamberlain going 14-for-14 in 1969. The highlight to take away from him last night was Luka lobbing it up and Kessler slamming it home with the Warriors spending the rest of the night watching the sequel and the director’s cut.

“Milk Chamberlain of the Snowtime Lakers” – Shaq

26 POINTS
100% SHOOTING
10 DUNKS
9 REBOUNDS pic.twitter.com/gVmFhe38yShttps://t.co/4XY7XPrsD9

— Ballislife.com (@Ballislife) October 22, 2026

Every time a Lakers guard turned the corner, the Warriors had to choose between stopping the ball and staying home on the big man. With Porzingis in street clothes there was no seven-footer back there to make that choice easier. Too often they got caught in between, and Kessler spent the night catching lobs like Randy Moss.

Then there’s Luka Doncic giving Yaxel Lendeborg a taste of professional basketball, combining shotmaking and foulbaiting to a degree that drove the rookie mad. Luka finished with 28 points, eight rebounds and seven assists, was a plus-31 in 29 minutes. When a star player gets to eat popcorn for the final minutes of opening night, you got whooped.

It’d be a shame not to mention the impact from Luka’s backcourt mate Austin Reaves, who put up 23 points and six assists and went 10-for-10 from the line on just 11 field goal attempts. That’s what happens when a defense gets stretched two ways at once. The Warriors were sending help at Luka, Kessler’s rolls dragged the back line into the paint, and Reaves kept attacking with somebody’s hip half a step late. Reaves is the reason you can’t load up on Luka, and Kessler is the reason you can’t load up on Reaves.

NEW-LOOK LAKERS BIG 3 TONIGHT:

Luka Doncic:
28 POINTS – 8 REBOUNDS – 7 ASSISTS

Walker Kessler:
26 POINTS – 9 REBOUNDS – 100% FG (!!)

Austin Reaves:
23 POINTS – 4 REBOUNDS – 6 ASSISTS

WHAT’S STOPPING THEM FROM WINNING THE WEST? 🔥🔥🔥 pic.twitter.com/PWL4VzJBg3

— Polymarket Hoops (@PolymarketHoops) October 22, 2026

The Lakers shot 57% percent and held Golden State to 8-of-36 from three. Steph scored 23 on a bad ankle, but the Lakers’s double-digit margin ballooned after three quarters, and the rest was waste management time. This was a statement game from a reimagined Lakers squad built around that aforementioned Big 3. For most of the GSW dynasty, the Lakers were the team the Warriors used as target practice. And although L.A. won the 2020 bubble title, GSW’s 2022 ring made it feel like a footnote. Yes, LeBron and AD bounced Golden State in the 2023 second round, but Denver swept them right after, and that era never climbed back to the top.

Now LeBron is in Philadelphia, and what L.A. built in his place looks younger and meaner. Luka is 27, Reaves is in his prime, and Kessler is the anchor they never had around Luka. And they’re rising right as Steph and Draymond stare at the back nine of their careers. Round two comes October 30 in an NBA Cup game, and I already know Lendeborg has that date circled. I just hope Steve Kerr has somebody circling Walker Kessler.

Two diehard Knicks fans have gone viral for reportedly naming their newborn after the team’s unforgettable championship run.

Yvonne Gonzalez-Bradford and Vance Bradford welcomed their first son, “Knickson Fyve Bradford,” on Aug. 8 after New York’s historic NBA Finals victory over the San Antonio Spurs this summer, the couple told Today this week.

The idea for the name came after the Bradfords opened the windows of their Long Island City high-rise apartment and heard elated revelers chanting “Knicks in five!”– after the team clinched their first title in 53 years, the outlet reported.

The next day, Bradford recalled his wife looking at him and asking, “What if we give our son a name for a champion? What about Knickson?”

Gonzalez-Bradford, who was 7 months pregnant at the time, later suggested Fyve as Knickson’s middle name.

“Five is also an indivisible number. So he’s our indivisible champion,” the mom said. “You can hear him cooing in the background right now.”

Bradford’s late mother, Sydell Johnson, was the scorekeeper for the team during their last championship in 1973. She passed away unexpectedly last year, making Knickson’s arrival all the more significant for the family.

“I’m like, ‘Oh my gosh, Ma, you went up there and you sent us one,’” he said. “She sent down a Knicks championship!”

The little champion has since gone viral on Instagram, racking up hundreds of thousands of views and a repost from Spike Lee of pictures of him swaddled in Knicks gear with a plush basketball by his side.

“If he turns out to be a Celtics fan or a Sixers fan, again he’s still Knickson Bradford, who is in the boardroom,” the dad said.

“We wanted to have a very strong and firm name that would lead to a cool life. Knickson Fyve is definitely our motto. Knickson Fyve forever!”

The Phoenix Suns don’t look like a team on the rise. Mat Ishbia has repeatedly told us this team is ascending, but the Suns’ recent disaster against Portland suggests otherwise. 

For starters, we are going to have some very uncomfortable conversations about Devin Booker this season if we see more performances like we saw on Wednesday. A -43 in the box score with no 3-point attempts from the best player on your team, who consistently struggled to create separation and did not look confident shooting the ball at all, is a losing formula for the Suns this season. The Booker decline over the last few seasons is hard to ignore, even though we have all done our best (myself included) to convince ourselves that it was mostly external factors. 

Next up, we turn our attention to Dillon Brooks, Collin Gillespie, and Miles Bridges, three talented players who are obviously flawed and will likely not substantially improve for the rest of their careers. Brooks had a career year last season and may score a ton of points this year, but at what cost? He is not going to transform himself into a high-level playmaker or rebounding machine overnight. As for Bridges, the defensive lapses and fine rebounding stats were enough in Charlotte, but to expect any improvement from him as a shooter or defensive pest seven years into his NBA career seems to be wishful thinking at best. Gillespie is what he is at this point too: a lethal 3-point shooter and great backup point guard or capable starter. But it is unlikely he will become an elite player maker or an efficient three-level scorer for the rest of his career. 

Are all of these good players who need more than a handful of preseason games to build continuity? Yes. Absolutely. I expect them to look much better playing together in December, but none are guys that any self-respecting NBA hoops fan would categorize as “ascending players.”

Now, let us look at the young guys… are Ryan Dunn and Rasheer Fleming ever going to be more than impactful defensive players off the bench? Dunn refuses to shoot 3s, and Rasheer Fleming shot a wide-open corner 3 off the top of the backboard against the Trailblazers. Meanwhile, Toumani Camara was lethal from the 3-point line and an unbelievably effective defender to twist the knife even deeper. If you expect either Dunn or Fleming to become starting-level 3-and-D prototypes, you assume that they’ll magically be blessed by the basketball gods and turn into Royce O’Neale-level snipers in a season or two. Which is more unlikely to happen since they have not shown much growth so far in their first few seasons in the NBA offensively.

Then there is Oso Ighodaro, a perfect backup big man in the NBA, with a high IQ and motor. He is perfectly functional as a defender and connector, but that is what he is. Ighodaro is likely a mostly finished product unless he becomes a capable 3-point shooter or elite finisher at the rim.

Koa Peat is definitely the wild card in this group because we have not seen enough from him yet to have any clue who he can be in the NBA. However, that shot gets more broken with every shot, and it’s hard to survive in the NBA if you look at how broken that shot is when shooting the ball. 

Now to the guys who could be characterized as “ascending.” 

The Suns’ two most likely players to ascend into something more than average NBA players are Jalen Green and Khaman Maluach. While there have been flashes of brilliance from both players, they also have gaping holes in their games that may prove to be their undoing. 

As explosive and talented as Green is, his processing and vision are what hold him back. Against Portland, after coming off a screen and getting downhill against a Portland big, Green throws the ball back through his legs right into the trailing Portland defender for the easiest steal of the night. It was a play so out of the ordinary for an NBA player that it stuck with me for the rest of the night and is just one example of how far away he is from being a great player.

For Maluach, he has the size and the effort to be a great big in the NBA, but his inability to cleanly grab rebounds, run dribble handoffs, and locate his man on defense right now are giant red flags. The best argument I can come up with for his ascension is that he has not played enough basketball yet in his life, leaving him the most room to grow. But the Suns cannot afford to wait many more years for him to be ready; by the time he is ready, Booker, Brooks, and Bridges (who will likely sign an extension with the Suns, yay!) are going to be well past their primes. 

Now this is clearly an overreaction one game into the regular season. But it is important to point out that while this team can be a really good basketball team this season, it is not an ascending team. The best players on this team are in their primes or past them. There are young players ascending into fine players, but who on the team outside of Booker has a chance to make an All-Star team in the future, given the trajectory they are on right now? 

It is probably between Green and Maluach, but that is if everything goes right for them in their development over the next few seasons. 

The Suns are an incrementally improving team; they are not an ascending team. And while the Suns are capable of being a mediocre to good team the next couple of seasons, the ceiling is not the roof for this team.

The wait is finally over! The Cleveland Cavaliers are playing basketball that counts again as they open their season against LeBron James and the newly configured Philadelphia 76ers.

Share your thoughts as the game unfolds. If you aren’t a member of the community, sign up so you can talk to your fellow Cavalier fans and make your voice heard!

It was hard to know what the Nets plan was when general manager Sean Marks used four of the team’s five first-round picks on guards in the 2025 draft. 

One game into the second season of that group hasn’t provided any clarity. 

Among the disappointments in Wednesday night’s ugly loss to the mediocre Hornets was the fact that none of those five players stood out in a positive way. 

In fact, only two of them — Egor Dëmin (selected eighth overall by the Nets) and Nolan Traore (19th) — even got on the court while Drake Powell (22nd), Ben Saraf (26th) and Danny Wolf (27th) didn’t play. 

So though there were positive signs against Charlotte from this past year’s first-round pick, Mikel Brown Jr., on Wednesday, the reward for tanking in 2024-25 has hardly paid off under head coach Jordi Fernández. 

And this year, unlike the previous two seasons, the Nets are not at all trying to tank. 

The roster is still a work in progress at best, with veterans such as Julius Randle — in his first year in Brooklyn — and Michael Porter Jr. mixed with unproven young players. 

For the Nets to find any sustained success this season, they’ll need marked improvement from at least some of the five players picked over a year ago. 

But on Wednesday at Barclays Center, only Randle and Porter managed to score in double digits while Dëmin went just 2-for-10 from the floor and Traore missed all four of his field-goal attempts. 

One of the concerns surrounding Dëmin when he left BYU after one season at just 19 was his struggles from 3-point range. 

He put some of those issues to rest as a rookie when he hit 38.5 percent of his 3-pointers, but he was 0-for-5 from long range Wednesday. 

He also had just two assists and three turnovers, and Traore finished with no assists and turned the ball over twice. 

“I’m confident that, especially these two kids, we’re going to have no problem with their playmaking, their scoring and their willingness to get better every day,” Fernández said. 

Dëmin said after the game he was aware of his subpar play. 

“I’m not very happy with how I ended up playing the game,’’ Dëmin said. “I started with two [made] buckets but then kind of just got slower from a standpoint of my intensity, and I’ve definitely got to bring the energy, higher energy.’’ 

And more production would help as well. 

He finished with just four points and four rebounds in 27 minutes as a starter, and Traore had three points in 16 minutes off the bench, as the Nets hope his added muscle this season will lead to him finishing more at the basket. 

“I think their intentions were great and can clean up a lot of different things, turnovers, setup, calling plays, all those things,’’ Fernández said. “But we’ll watch film with them, and we’ll make them better… One day you don’t make them, another day they go in, and you’ve just got to stay ready for the next game.” 

A string of six straight games against teams expected to be Eastern Conference contenders begins Saturday in Cleveland, so the learning curve will be steep, and if the Nets’ young players don’t respond, it could be another long season in Brooklyn. 

— Additional reporting by Brian Lewis 

Luka Doncic didn’t want to get too carried away.

To imply, or even acknowledge, that any aspect of an NBA game against an opponent is effortless could be viewed as disrespectful.

Or just not a genuine reflection of reality.

But watching how the Lakers carved up the Warriors’ helpless defense en route to a 127-105 season-opening victory on Wednesday night at Crypto.com Arena, it was hard not to think about how easy the offense came.

It wasn’t just reflected in the team’s scoring total. 

Or the ultra-efficient shooting percentage (56.8%).

Or the fact the team’s “Big 3” of Doncic (28 points), Walker Kessler (26) and Austin Reaves (23) all scored at least 20 points.

It was reflected in the ease in which the Lakers created high-quality scoring opportunities.

“Even if it looks easy, it’s not easy, for sure,” Doncic said. “But that’s just the first game. Our ceiling is even higher.”

The final sentence from Doncic should be a scary thought for the rest of the league. 

One of the guiding lights when the Lakers reconstrutred their roster around Doncic, Reaves and Kessler during the offseason was providing coach JJ Redick with a plethora of players who could dribble, pass and shoot. 

Players who would not only capitalize on the advantages created by Doncic and Reaves, but also maintain or create new ones within the same possession.

That was on full display against the Warriors, who allowed the Lakers to score over half (66) of their points inside of the paint. 

Factor in the Lakers’ free throw shooting (24 of 27), and it was evident that the Warriors couldn’t slow down the blender that was the Lakers’ offense.

It’s how the Lakers shot 61.7% from the field in the first three quarters before garbage time.

The Lakers, who went 11 of 28 on 3-pointers, want to be a higher-volume 3-point shooting team compared to the previous two seasons under Redick. 

But they didn’t need to be on Wednesday night because of the quality of looks they created inside of the arc. 

“Oh man, it’s beautiful,” Ziaire Williams said. “Sometimes just sitting in the corner, just watching ‘like damn, they just make it look so easy.’ It’s pretty impressive, man. Luka and AR, they’re great playmakers. Walk has a good feel around the rim. It’s a perfect setup, honestly. [There’ll] be a lot more of that to come.”

The list of caveats that can be applied to the season-opening win is almost as long as the number of shots the Lakers made against their in-state rival.

Yes, it was just the first game of the season, and previous years showed you can’t take too much away from a season-opener. 

Yes, Kessler won’t have dominant offensive performances that have him listed alongside former Lakers great big men Wilt Chamberlain and Shaquille O’Neal on a nightly basis. 

Yes, the Warriors were not only already a smaller team to begin with, but they were also short-handed.

Not every Lakers game will look like Wednesday night. 

They can’t.

But the fact the Lakers found that groove as early and quickly as they did is an encouraging sign for what this version of the group can be.

And a reminder of why they shouldn’t be dismissed when it comes to the discussions about the best teams in the West.

Superstar guard Luka Dončić was busy during the Los Angeles Lakers’ opening night win over the Golden State Warriors on Wednesday night.

But the most viral moment of Dončić’s night came after the game ended, when he was interviewed by ESPN’s Malika Andrews.

These two were all smiles and joking together throughout the interview, and an edited clip of the interview has amassed over six million views on X since it was posted on Wednesday night.

Andrews appears to be proud of how the interview played out. On Thursday morning, she posted a clip of her conversation with Dončić to her Instagram story, where she asked him whether him saying, “This is the start of something new” was a reference to the iconic “High School Musical” song.

“A little bit, for sure,” Dončić, who is a known “High School Musical” fan, responded.

Andrews, who is married to fellow ESPN writer Dave McMenamin, is one of the league’s most respected journalists, and has already cultivated a solid relationship with the Lakers superstar.

Lakers fans are definitely feeling like this is a new era for their team with LeBron James no longer around.

And it got off to a great start for Dončić and his teammates on Wednesday.

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It didn’t take Golden State Warriors rookie Yaxel Lendeborg long to become polarizing.

The 24-year-old got into a trash talking match with Los Angeles Lakers superstar Luka Dončić during last night’s game, which caused the rookie to lose “all respect” for Dončić.

Many people gained respect for Lendeborg for his willingness to verbally spar with one of the league’s best players in his first NBA game.

Among these is Stephen A. Smith, who backed Lendeborg’s actions during Thursday’s “First Take” episode.

“I don’t agree with what Lendeborg said, because Luka Dončić does not suck. I mean, he’s a superstar in this game. So, in that regard, no, I don’t agree with him. But I do agree with him going after Luka the way that he did, competing the way that he competed,” Smith said.

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Smith then praised praised Lendeborg as a player before adding, “Here’s why I’m supportive in what Yaxel is saying: He’s saying, ‘If you’re so great, stop whining to the officials. Just go out there, and if you’re gonna bust my a**, bust my a**. But stop whining to the officials looking to them for help.’

“I was really, really ticked off when that referee gave Yaxel Lendeborg that technical foul in the second quarter… I’m calling out the NBA. NBA gotta stop that nonsense! Let them talk!” he continued.

It sounds like Lendeborg earned Smith’s respect.

Regardless of where fans side on this, the next time Golden State and Los Angeles square off (which is on October 30) just became must-see TV.

Observations after Sixers erase 29-point deficit, earn incredible comeback win in home opener originally appeared on NBC Sports Philadelphia

Safe to say the Sixers have had less memorable home openers.

With new stars LeBron James and Jaylen Brown in town and the fans expecting something special, the Sixers fell into a giant hole Thursday night at Xfinity Mobile Arena.

They then hauled themselves out of it and delivered, earning a stunning comeback win over the Cavaliers by a 114-106 score.

Tyrese Maxey had 32 points and six assists.

Joel Embiid added 24 points. Brown posted 21, James 17.

Donovan Mitchell scored 32 points for Cleveland.

The sidelined Sixers were Dean Wade (left ankle sprain), Dominick Barlow (lower back stress reaction), Anfernee Simons (right Achilles tendon tear) and Tacko Fall (left quadriceps strain). 

The 2-0 Sixers will play a home back-to-back over the weekend, facing the Bucks on Saturday and the Pistons on Sunday. Here are observations on their incredible victory over the Cavs:

Brutal start across the board 

The home fans brought high volume from the opening tip-off. They booed every James Harden touch and cheered all things involving the Sixers’ new No. 23. 

James scored the Sixers’ first points of the evening with a catch-and-shoot three-pointer. He had another highlight when he dished to VJ Edgecombe for a backdoor layup. 

The Sixers’ start was otherwise full of negative plays. They paid on several occasions for trying to force passes into tight or non-existent windows. The team committed six turnovers in the first six minutes and James had half of them. 

Missed jumpers were also responsible for many of the Sixers’ empty possessions. As was the case Tuesday in their opening-night win over the Knicks, they struggled early from long range, starting 2 for 13  beyond the arc. 

The Sixers’ complete lack of free points did not help their cause. Remarkably, a team with so much physical power and talent attempted zero free throws until the 6:43 mark of the second quarter. The Sixers’ self-inflicted miscues were frequent and they could hardly find anything easy or positive. 

Mitchell drilled a buzzer-beating three to give Cleveland a 35-18 lead after 12 minutes. 

Defensive drop-off in first half 

The Sixers hit double-digit turnovers by the first minute of the second quarter. The Cavs scored the game’s first 17 points off of turnovers and the Sixers’ deficit climbed as high as 29 points in the second. 

The Sixers maintained the same nine-man rotation, using Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, Anfernee Simons, Adem Bona and Jabari Walker off the bench. Everyone was ineffective in the first half. Bona’s first stint included a giveaway when Mario Hezonja ripped the ball away on an attempted dribble handoff, leading to a fast-break slam. The Sixers were outscored by 10 points in Bona’s 14 minutes.

In the first half, both the Sixers’ starters and bench defended at a far worse level than they had in New York.

The Cavs didn’t face great resistance on the ball and the Sixers’ rotations were often a step slow. Cleveland’s stars enjoyed tons of comfortable shots. Mitchell poured in 22 points over the first two quarters on 7-for-9 shooting. 

Switch flipped  

The Sixers flipped a switch in dramatic, crowd-thrilling fashion.

They made a 16-0 run that began late in the second quarter and ended early in the third. Edgecombe, James and Embiid all converted layups. The Sixers were not in a settling mood on offense and much more forceful on both ends of the floor.

Their defense was focused and aggressive. All of a sudden, it was the Cavs committing a flood of costly turnovers.

Brown got a fast-break layup following an Edgecombe steal. Maxey knifed through Cleveland’s defense for another lay-in and nailed a three-ball that prompted the free-falling Cavs to call timeout. Outside of any schematic complexities, the Sixers appeared extremely difficult to stop whenever they attacked in transition.

The Sixers cut their deficit down to 84-82 on a Maxey layup. Simons and Maxey missed go-ahead three-point tries soon after. 

Finally, the Cavs regained a bit of stability. Hezonja’s turnaround jumper on Cleveland’s final possession of the third quarter put his team up 90-82. 

The Sixers were relentless, though. They eventually broke all the way through, grabbing a 96-95 lead when Embiid canned a mid-range jumper.

The Cavs’ downward tumble continued. Brown went at Sam Merrill and feasted in isolation, scoring three straight buckets to push the Sixers’ advantage to 102-95.

There were no more twists in the tale.

In the big picture, the Sixers will aim to be a consistent team with reliable core elements by the time the playoffs roll around. In the present, it’s evident the Sixers’ top gear is tremendous and they’re not a team you should count out of games when all the stars are available. 

The Warriors entered the NBA season shorthanded with both Jimmy Butler and Moses Moody sidelined for the first few months because of injuries. They were dealt another blow with Kristaps Porzingis’ indefinite absence because of a private health issue.

That has made things increasingly difficult for a Warriors team that’s trying to ensure that the 38-year-old Steph Curry can play meaningful basketball in the twilight of his career.

The Warriors have begun to explore trade options for Porzingis, according to ESPN. The Warriors released a statement saying they wouldn’t comment on the report, adding that they are “not anticipating Kristaps being around the team in the immediate future.”

Porzingis signed a two-year, $40 million extension with the Warriors in June, but only $3 million in the second season is guaranteed.

It’s a complicated and nuanced situation that has left the Warriors in a tough spot.

“It’s a hard one for all reasons, him personally first and foremost, but as a team knowing you have an idea of who you are coming into a season,” Curry said after the Warriors’ 127-105 loss to the Lakers in their season opener on Wednesday. “We always said availability was a big factor for our team with the guys we already had out.

“So it’s no secret that that spot is an important one for us, especially with his skillset, It’s hard to talk about him without keeping the humanity of it in mind. But it is a tough one to figure out for the now, for the future. Again, we had a good look at what we were supposed to be as a team. We have to overcome that, obviously, but we would love to have him here.”

Porzingis, a 7-foot-2 center, played in 15 games last season, averaging 16.1 points, 5.3 rebounds, 2.3 assists and 1.1 blocked shots.

His absence has made it so that Draymond Green has to play center more than he anticipated, something that puts a heavy load on the 6-foot-6, 36-year-old who’s the defensive heartbeat of that team.

“Yeah definitely, but shit happens,” Green said when asked about the situation.

“You go out there and play,” Green added. “If a guy is injured, you don’t sit in the locker room, like. ‘Oh man, i want you —.’ You go play.”

That is exactly what the Warriors will do on Friday night in their home opener against the Grizzlies.

During Wednesday’s game between the Los Angeles Lakers and Golden State Warriors, things grew chippy when Luka Dončić and Warriors rookie Yaxel Lendeborg engaged in some verbal sparring as Dončić gave Lendeborg an early Welcome To The League moment.

Last season, Dončić and then-Brooklyn Nets wing Ziaire Williams got a little heated while Los Angeles hosted the Nets inside Crypto.com Arena. Now a teammate of Dončić’s, Williams is much happier to watch the Slovenian superstar conduct trash talk with both of them wearing the same colors.

“Oh man, it’s cool. It’s a lot better when you’re on his side than the other side for sure,” Williams told reporters following the 127-105 win over Golden State. “The rookie, he was talking a lot of smack too, so I mean shout out to him for not backing down. Luka definitely had the better day, but I mean, at least he didn’t back away from the challenge so shout out to him. But I mean, Luka, in my opinion, is the best player in the world and it’s going to be like that on a daily basis with him.”

A Lancaster, California native, Williams earned a starting nod in his Lakers debut Wednesday. He tallied nine points on 4-of-7 shooting (1-of-2 beyond the arc), four assists (two turnovers), three rebounds and one steal. Los Angeles outscored the Warriors by 12 points during his 24 minutes.

Dončić has built a pretty lengthy history of trash-talk foes throughout his eight-year career and like Williams before him, Lendeborg is just another on the ledger. Unlike Williams, though, I don’t think he’ll be joining forces with Dončić in the near future. And these teams will face each other three more times during the regular season, so it’ll be interesting to see whether this story adds another chapter or if Wednesday’s theatrics will be its entirety.

Among the comfortable victory, his own performance and getting to witness Dončić dish out smack talk rather than be on the receiving end of it, Wednesday night was a nice one for Williams. He’ll hope to replicate the winning ways and positive outing Friday when the Los Angeles Clippers come to town (from Inglewood).

You can follow Jackson on Twitter at @jackfrank_jjf.

Game Info

When: Friday, October 23rd at 7:00 p.m. ET

How to watch: Monumental Sports Network, League Pass

Where: Capital One Arena, Washington, DC

Injury Report

Raptors: Nate Bittle – Out (Foot)

Wizards: AJ Dybansta – Out (Ankle), Jamir Watkins – Out (Knee), Tristan Vukcevic – Out (Hip)

Pregame notes

After winning the season opener, the Wizards take on the Toronto Raptors. Toronto comes in with a victory of their own as they throttled Chicago Bulls by 43 points to open up the season.

The Raptors have made some changes to their roster, but none more heralded than the acquisition of Kawhi Leonard, who previously won a NBA Championship and NBA Finals MVP in his one season with Toronto back in 2019.

There are big things expected for the Raptors coming off a playoff appearance last season. This team is looking to make some noise as an Eastern Conference contender, which is why the addition of Leonard was so critical for their aspirations to ascend.

This game certainly would be a statement game for the Washington Wizards, who are looking to climb up into the Eastern Conference upper tier as well. After struggling for three quarters on Wednesday, the Wizards were able to finally put the Milwaukee Bucks away after a strong 4th quarter performance on both ends of the floor. Despite their struggle behind the arc, shooting only 21 percent from 3, the Wizards were able to pull off the opening win on the strength of 70 points in the paint and getting to the free throw line (41 attempts).

This will look like the formula for much of the season as the Wizards have a decisive size advantage on most nights, but in order for their team to compete with teams like Toronto they must clean up their defense and shoot from 3 at a much better clip. These are the two areas to pay attention to in this one.

Can Wizards pull of another win without their #1 draft pick, AJ Dybansta? Can the Wizards show the league that they can compete with the playoff teams in the East? The Raptors will be a great barometer to see how far this team is already in the season.

It was an unforgettable moment on Tuesday night in New York when the Knicks raised a championship banner to the rafters at Madison Square Garden for the first time in over half a century, and the members of last year’s title-winning team received their championship rings.

It was unforgettable for everyone involved in the franchise's first championship since 1973. Well, except for Mitchell Robinson.

The former Knick, who signed with the Boston Celtics this offseason, admitted on Thursday that he wasn’t watching.

“I didn’t watch it,” he said, adding that he was “still stuck” in his head from the Celtics game earlier in the day as Boston began its season by letting a 22-point second-half lead slip away in a 121-113 loss to the Detroit Pistons.

“I am proud of those guys; obviously, I was a part of it,” Robinson said of his former comrades. “I just didn’t really wanna watch it.”

New York, of course, went on to experience a similar fate, starting off the title defense with a 106-100 defeat to the Philadelphia 76ers.

A few days later, Robinson indicated that his focus remains on his new team as he shrugged off any talk about facing his former teammates this Friday in Boston. 

"It doesn't matter that I'm playing my former team; it’s more so just trying to bounce back from what happened two nights ago,” he said, referencing the season-opening defeat.

“It's basketball; it's a business,” Robinson continued. “Got to play the team just like you play any other team."

Karl-Anthony Towns said it was "bittersweet" to see Robinson join the Celtics.

"You love Mitch, we've done so many historical things together here. To not see him in a Knicks jersey anymore... for all of us. We're a family unit," Towns said.

"It's gonna be amazing to see our brother, to be able to hug him, to be able to show him some love, and to, obviously, compete," he continued.

Earlier in the day, Josh Hart said he was "looking forward" to seeing Robinson.

"They cross match a lot, so I'm sure he'll be guarding me, so can't wait to shoot in that..." he said before stopping himself. "When I make a couple, I'm gonna let him know."

Asked specifically about facing Jalen Brunson coming down the lane, Robinson shrugged and said he is “just here to play basketball.”

“Same thing I’ll do with any other team, same thing I’ll do with them. It’s just all about basketball,” he said. 

Robinson started and played 18 minutes in the Celtics' first game, scoring four points (2-for-2 from the floor, 0-for-2 from the line) with just three rebounds (one offensive), two blocks, a steal, an assist, and two turnovers to finish a minus-8.

“I use it as fuel, kinda have to,” Robinson said about getting past a rough night. “Last game we got demolished. As a big, can’t let that happen. I gotta take that on the chin and learn from it, watch the film, and get better, and just focus on the next one.”

"It's bittersweet. You love Mitch - we've done so many historical things together here. To not see him in a Knicks jersey anymore...we're a family unit. To not be able to have him with us on this journey after that amazing journey we went through is bittersweet. But it's going to be amazing to be able to see our brother, hug him, show him some love and compete playing basketball like we love to do. We made each other better. He brought the best out of me, and I feel that I was able to bring the best out of him. Mitch was a big part of this team winning a championship and probably has the most important offensive rebound in Knicks history." Karl-Anthony Towns on facing Mitchell Robinson and the Celtics tomorrow night:

— SNY Knicks (@sny_knicks) October 22, 2026

The National Basketball Referees Association (NBRA), the official union of NBA officials, responded to the controversial traveling no-call by Minnesota Timberwolves guard LaMelo Ball, indicating that it should have been ruled as an infraction.

“For everyone asking, ‘how is this legal?’ It’s not!” the NBRA posted Thursday, Oct. 22 from its social media account. “He gathers with his right foot on the floor and would be permitted two steps by rule (left-right). He takes four steps after gathering the ball and travels.”

The play occurred with 8:19 left in the second quarter of Minnesota’s game against the Miami Heat. With the game tied at 39, Ball slipped past a screen toward the right side of the floor. Ball picked up his dribble and then took a gather step by shuffling to his right. The issue is that Ball then took four lateral steps before beginning his shooting motion. He would go on to lace the 3-pointer, one of his five successful conversions on the night.

For everyone asking, “how is this legal?” It’s not! He gathers with his right foot on the floor and would be permitted two steps by rule (left-right). He takes four steps after gathering the ball and travels. https://t.co/dSitGeRNSD

— NBA Referees (@OfficialNBARefs) October 22, 2026

The Timberwolves won the game, 131-106, spoiling the Heat debut of Giannis Antetokounmpo.

When reached for comment on the no-call, the NBA referred USA TODAY Sports to the statement issued by the NBRA.

This was the latest controversial traveling no-call early in the 2026-27 season. On opening night Tuesday, Oct. 20, Oklahoma City Thunder guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander shuffled his pivot foot on a converted field goal, drawing a number of critical comments from fans and viewers on social media.

During the preseason, Boston Celtics guard Hugo González was on his way to an uncontested layup on a fast break when he collected the ball at the 3-point line and then took five steps before laying it in. That play was also not called for a travel.

The NBA and its officiating staff review every play during the season and assess the enforcement of its rules, so they may opt to take a closer look should they deem it a larger issue. At this point, however, the gather step and travels have not risen to that level.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: NBA Referees Association weighs in on LaMelo Ball's traveling no-call