Category: NBA

The Boston Celtics traveled to New York to play the Knickerbockers for their 79th game of the season. Boston needed just a single win to secure a second place birth in the Eastern Conference playoffs. In a classic regular season contest, both team’s had runs and chances to close it out, but it was the Knicks who prevailed downt he stretch, 112-106.

Prior to the tip, Jaylen Brown was ruled out of the clash with left Achilles tendinitis. The starting five for Boston would be Derrick White, Sam Hauser, Neemias Queta, Jordan Walsh, and Jayson Tatum. Jayson Tatum would return to the scene of his traumatic knee injury last season. For the Knicks, they started OG Anunoby, Karl-Anthony Towns, Josh Hart, Mikal Bridges, and Jalen Brunson.

Mikal Bridges hit the game’s first three shots as the Knicks jumped out to a quick 7-0 lead. Tatum scored Boston’s first two points of the game with a steal at half court and a layup. Tatum spun on Josh Hart and was fouled driving to the cup on another layup. Jordan Walsh got the nod ahead of Baylor Scheierman, who filled in for Jayson Tatum for much of the year; he hit his first three-pointer from the corner, game tied at 7.

Both teams traded buckets before Queta scored inside off a Tatum lob, with the C’s up 13-11 with 6 minutes to go in the quarter. Tatum had the ball in his hands for most of the first quarter and was picking apart the Knicks’ D. Derrick White had a pull-up jumper for his first two of the game. Payton Pritchard entered the game for Tatum and immediately hit his first shot, Boston up by 6 points, 19-13.

The Knicks were having a rough shooting start; they were just 5 of 13 to start the game and just 1 of 7 from downtown. Pritchard was having an early impact; his three quick buckets gave him the confidence to start talking trash at center court, presumably in the direction of Spike Lee. Pritchard drained a triple as the shot clock expired in the first quarter.

The Knicks rallied to start the second quarter with some good minutes from bench players Mitchell Robinson, Landry Shamet, and Jordan Clarkson. They took the lead back 31-35 with nine minutes to play in the first half. Boston was just 0-4 to start the third; Pritchard finally broke the drought with a back-cut score.

Boston countered the Knicks with a nice 7-0 run, Sam Hauser draining a triple to make it all square at 40 apiece. Both teams slogged it out to finish the half, a very even contest. Brunson was the driving force for the Knicks with 16 first-half points; OG Anunoby had 10 points for the home team. For Boston, Tatum was filling the stat sheet; he had 10 points, 9 boards, and 4 assists. Payton Pritchard was the team’s leading scorer at halftime, with 15 points on 7-12 shooting. It would finish New York with 52 points and Boston with 51 points at the half.

New York was white hot to start the third; they reeled off 4 straight three-pointers as Boston was struggling to stay with the open shooters. Joe Mazzulla burned a timeout at the 9-minute mark, the Knicks starting to pull away from Boston 57-66. NY got the lead out to 13 points, Mazzulla needing to call another timeout, as KAT was starting to attack the bucket and Boston’s D was starting to fall apart.

Boston finally got going in the third, with Tatum and Pritchard fueling the C’s to a 10-0 run. Vooch got in on the act, hitting his first three-pointer of the game. Baylor Sheierman had a dagger triple on the break, Tatum finding him with a deft pass out wide on the left wing, Boston down just 4 points with 3 minutes to go in the third, 72-76.

A Nikola Vucevic triple got it back to just one point; a play later, Pritchard laced his 21st point of the game with a triple, Boston up by 2 points, 78-76. Both teams once again traded buckets after going on mini runs, setting up the game for a big fourth quarter, with Boston by just 2 points, 83-81.

Baylor Scheierman was showing out in the Big Apple 🍎; he hit his fourth triple of the game to start the fourth quarter on a relocation triple. Tatum returned to the game, replacing DWhite. Boston’s bench was outstanding in this game; they had 43 points compared to the Knicks’ 18. Tatum had 6 straight points for the road team, Boston up 92-87 with a ton of time to go.

A Josh Hart corner triple cut Boston’s lead back to 2 points; it was very rowdy at MSG. New York was leading the battle in the paint with KAT and Robinson; they had 38 points to Boston’s 28 points.

Scheierman laced another triple for Boston, KAT hit back with one of his own, the lead see-sawing, Knicks up by 1 point, 98-99. Baylor’s fifth three-pointer of the night had the New York crowd stunned, both team’s throwing hay makers.

Turnovers started to hurt the C’s for Boston late, but Baylor Scheierman was still hawt, he nailed yet another three-pointer to give Boston the lead back. Scheierman had 24 points from Boston bench but it was a one point game with the Knicks ahead and a minute and a half to go.

Derrick White rimmed out a triple with a minute to go in the game he struggled all game with just one made field goal, Josh Hart converted his to make it a 5 point game, 104-109 New York. Nikola Vucevic converted on a offensive rebound to cut it to 3 points. Josh Hart hit his fifth three-pointer to seal it. Boston drop a heart breaker with their All-NBA player Jaylen Brown watching on.

Boston will next play the NOLA Pelicans tomorrow at home at 7:30pm EST.

In what felt like a playoff atmosphere, the Knicks held on to a 112-106 win over the Celtics on Thursday night at MSG.

Josh Hart scored 15 of his 26 points in the fourth quarter to lead New York to a big win against their conference rivals. With the win, the Knicks remain within reach of the Celtics for the No. 2 seed in the Eastern Conference.

The Knicks (52-28) have surpassed the win total from last season with two games to go.

Here are the takeaways...

-The Knicks' plan to start was to attack in transition, with Mikal Bridges scoring the first seven points of the game. The Celtics responded with a 9-0 run to tie the game with good defense and offensive rebounding. Boston would build a seven-point lead midway through the first frame thanks to outhustling the Knicks and getting every 50-50 ball, but New York would make their run. 

The first quarter ended with Payton Pritchard and Jalen Brunson trading threes in the final minute as the Celtics led 29-26 at the end of one.

Pritchard was the catalyst for the Celtics' offense in the first. He put up 11 points in six minutes off the bench to lead the team. The Knicks were shooting just 34 percent when Boston had their biggest lead, but bounced back and finished the frame with 45 percent shooting. Brunson led the team with 10 points.

-The Knicks got out to a 7-0 run to start the second (10-0 run from the end of the first) to retake the lead. Both offenses will settle down, as they traded leads throughout the quarter. Karl-Anthony Towns wouldn't get his first points until midway through the second, but it wouldn't be his last. The two-man game between him and Brunson was effective and helped give the Knicks a five-point lead in the waning minutes, but a late surge by the Celtics helped them to trail by just one at halftime.

Pritchard (15) and Tatum (10) led the Celtics as they outrebounded the Knicks 29-25 after two quarters. Brunson (16) and OG Anunoby (10) led the Knicks in scoring. 

-The Knicks built up a nine-point lead in the opening minutes of the third because of the three-point shot. That lead would balloon to 13 as Towns started to take over the game with his rebounding and drives to the basket. The Celtics responded after a timeout halfway through the third with a 10-0 run as their threes began to fall. That run extended to 19-4 as they retook the lead with two minutes remaining. Boston took that momentum to end the third with an 83-81 lead.

-The Celtics would get out to a seven-point lead early in the fourth as the Knicks could not get a stop. The Knicks made a run of their own to cut the deficit to two points with seven minutes remaining. Both teams traded buckets with New York taking advantage of Boston's turnovers to hold a 106-104 lead with 1:26 remaining in the game.

Hart hit two threes in the final minute to help the Knicks pull out the win.

-Hart finished with 26 points on 10-for-15 shooting (5 of 7 from three). Towns posted 16 points and 12 rebounds while Brunson had 25 points and 10 assists.

-The Celtics were without Jaylen Brown, and Tatum returned to MSG for the first time since tearing his Achilles in the playoffs last year. Tatum finished with a team-high 24 points on 7 of 22 shooting, 13 rebounds and eight assists. Pritchard scored 23 points in 35 minutes off the bench. Baylor Scheierman helped keep the Celtics in the game in the fourth with his three-point shooting. He finished with a season-high 20 points and went 6 of 7 from downtown.

Game MVP: Josh Hart

Hart's scoring in the second half, and especially in the fourth, pushed the Knicks over the top. His defense on Tatum also helped finish up the win.

Highlights

Mikal Bridges off to a hot start with 7 points midway through Q1! pic.twitter.com/0q858PYSZN

— Knicks Videos (@sny_knicks) April 9, 2026

What's next

The Knicks will play the second of a back-to-back, going up against the Raptors on Friday night. Tip is set for 7:35 p.m.

I arrived at the corner of Atlantic and Flatbush a bit earlier than usual this afternoon. With 15 minutes to spare before doors opened up, I sat down outside Fini Pizza and inhaled a pepperoni slice. I felt a clam breeze as the sun shined down on me through the oculus. I heard birds chirping even as The Strokes hummed through my ear buds.

And for a brief moment, I forgot all about “tanking” despite being a mere 10 feet from its epicenter this week.

Like we did on Sunday and Tuesday, we’ll call tonight’s game what it was. Jordi Fernández is right each time he insists that all minutes at the NBA level matter, but the only concrete, tangible thing to be gained tonight were better odds to land a top pick in the upcoming draft lottery. The Nets came into tonight with only a half game cushion between them and the threshold for top odds at the number one overall pick this summer. The visiting Indiana Pacers sat two games ahead.

Both teams knew what was at stake, despite whatever rhetoric they’ve used to describe their rotations over the past few weeks.

This time, Brooklyn sat Nolan Traoré (rest), Josh Minott (left ankle soreness), Terance Mann (right patella tendinosis), Noah Clowney (left ankle injury management), Ziaire Williams (left foot tenosynovitis/bursitis), and Nic Claxton. They joined the expected crew of Danny Wolf (ankle), Michael Porter Jr. (hamstring), Day’Ron Sharpe (thumb), and Dëmin (foot), leaving Brooklyn with eight inactives.

The Pacers sat Pascal Siakam, Aaron Nesmith , Andrew Nembhard, T.J. McConnell, Ivica Zubac, Johnny Furphy, Kobe Brown, Ben Sheppard, and of course, Tyrese Haliburton.

Yeah, they even sat their head coach, in a sense. Rick Carlisle missed tonight’s game and will miss the next to attend a school event for his daughter.

But tonight was also the home finale, and Fan Appreciation Night. For as much flack as this Brooklyn crowd gets for the hospitality it extends to visiting teams, seated fans for teams like this, at this point, in this kind of a season, are difficult to come by. Even if they were tourists simply looking to experience our city’s game at a discount, casuals hoping to score a Steph Curry or Luka Doncic autograph, or true team supporters, they were here, and deserve a nod for that.

“Yeah, I mean the loyalty and the support has been amazing, especially going into a season that we didn’t win a lot of games, but all our guys worked and played hard, got better, and to feel the support for what we’re trying to do and the plan we have is pretty special,” Fernández said pregame. “So, I appreciate them showing up, and the way we play is because we feel that support.”

Indeed, you’d like to see Brooklyn give them a show even with the understudies taking center stage.

If only it were that simple.

The Nets dipped deeper into their organizational rotation tonight than they have all season. Even though Jalen Wilson and Drake Powell have been part of the regular rotation at times this year, they came off the bench. Ben Saraf started alongside Tyson Etienne, Malachi Smith, E.J. Liddell, and Tre Scott. The Pacers took a similar approach, bringing Obi Toppin and Jay Huff off the bench.

Brooklyn lost the first quarter 31-14, shooting just 5-21 from the field. The Nets once more played without a true center tonight, and it showed. Brooklyn lost on the glass 21-12 in the opening frame, where Indiana also outscored them in the paint 20-6. Another quarter of play only ballooned those ratios. The Pacers went into the break up 65-37, up 46-20 in the paint, and 38-19 on the boards.

At that point, Obi Toppin was our only scorer with double digit points, putting up 14 on 5-7 shooting. Neither Chaney Johnson nor Ochai Agbaji, the only guys who might’ve had a chance to stop the bleeding inside, played any minutes this evening.

Nevertheless. Brooklyn opened up the third with 12-0 start in paint scoring. Rather than getting some taller reinforcements, the Nets simply started driving more often on an Indiana defense that either stopped caring in the second half or Brooklyn simply didn’t challenge enough in the first.

If not ability, driving confidence has to be improving for Ben Saraf lately pic.twitter.com/MYPFUApmzI

— Collin Helwig (@collinhelwig) April 10, 2026

“He does a great job of getting into the paint with the ball, and that’s very important, because he draws a lot of attention” Fernández said of Saraf. “Now, he’s getting comfortable with making better decisions, whether it’s to score or to find shooters. He ended up with six assists and two turnovers, which is elite, and that’s a night that we didn’t make any shots. Just imagine if we make a couple.”

Also, Toppin and Huff weren’t in the game for that stretch, which saw the Nets slightly cut into the lead with an extended 18-11 run. Tank commanders might’ve started sweating had Toppin and Huff not come back in, but they did around halfway through the third, and once again started BBQ-chickening Brooklyn inside. The Pacers still ended up winning the period and put their lead back at 26 entering the fourth. After Brooklyn’s 12-0 start to the third in paint scoring, Indiana only lost the period there by 24-20 margin.

WHAT A PLAY 🤯

Obi Toppin goes behind-the-back for Quenton Jackson who pounds it down. pic.twitter.com/XFazUNKD0a

— Indiana Pacers (@Pacers) April 10, 2026

The Nets couldn’t conjure up another fake comeback after that. There are few things more disheartening for a team to go through than a possession where you drive, force a collapse, put the defense in a blender, kick for an open three, and then clank it off the side iron, and the Nets had about four of those in the final period’s first five minutes. They ended up posting .385/.211 splits for the game, which won’t get it done, even against a fellow basement dweller.

“I thought the effort and the purpose was there,” Fernández said. “We took the right shots. They just didn’t go in.”

So, both teams quietly strolled to the finish line down the stretch of the fourth. Amidst it all, E.J. Liddell waltzed into a career night where he led the Nets with 26 points and 10 rebounds while shooting 10-16 from the field. Ben Saraf followed with a 19/6/5 game. Tyson Etienne added 14 points, four assists, and four rebounds while shooting 3-7 from deep in the loss.

Once more, even if the on-court Nets weren’t after that, it’s what they should’ve been, with respect to the franchise’s long term outlook.

And in terms of leaving a better, final impression on the fans? It’s not like we don’t all have TVs and there aren’t two more games left.

Bottom line: The Nets remain in third place in the race to the bottom, a game behind of the Pacers, a game ahead of the Jazz. Meanwhile, the Wizards lost to the Bulls and clinched the worst record this season.

Final: Indiana Pacers 123, Brooklyn Nets 94

Sean Marks Speaks

As part of YES Network’s season-ending interviews with players, coaches and staff, Sean Marks sat down for a brief interview on the upcoming Draft Lottery, which is a month from Friday. The Nets GM laid out the importance of the lottery pick…

Brooklyn Nets GM Sean Marks speaks on the 2026 NBA Draft lottery. #Netsworldpic.twitter.com/dRUm7cZcjV

— NetsKingdom 👑🗽 (@NetsKingdomAJ) April 10, 2026

Marks made an interesting comment when talking about this year’s team and its youth. He noted that not only was the 2025-26 roster the youngest in the NBA this year. They were also the youngest NBA team in 20 years. He noted that next year’s squad will also be young, but not as young at this one.

Milestone Watch

• E.J. Liddell had his first career double-double tonight against Indiana with 26 points and a career-high 10 rebounds. He has scored 15+ points in three straight games from 4/5-9 after his previous career best was 10 points on 3/14/26 at PHI.
• Liddell also became the first Net with 25+ PTS and 10+ REB in an NBA game after playing in the G League that season. It was his third straight game with a career high in points after logging 15 vs WAS (4/5) and 21 vs MIL (4/7).
  

Injury Update

Nic Claxton gave his exit interview for the season pregame tonight. He came out with his right pinky finger in splint. He mentioned that he doesn’t expect (or want) to have surgery on it.

“No, I don’t think so,” he said when asked if he’d go under the knife. “Give it some time to rest. I think it’ll heal up. Not trying to have any procedures.”

Claxton also said that he recently had an MRI on the finger and intends to take “proper precautions.” We’ll have more on his exit interview later on.

Next Up

The Nets will complete their final back-to-back of the season, flying to Milwaukee for a penultimate game vs the Bucks. Like on Tuesday, expect the household names to sit this one out. It’ll tipoff at 8:00 p.m.

• Boxscore: Indiana Pacers 123, Brooklyn Nets 94 – NBA
• Game Highlights: Indiana Pacers 123, Brooklyn Nets 94 (Video) – NBA
• Jordi Fernandez PostGame Comments (Video) – YES Network
• Jalen Wilson PostGame Comments (Video) – YES Network
• Nic Claxton Interview, part I (Video) – Sarah Kustok – YES Network
• Nic Claxton Interview, part II (Video) – Sarah Kustok – YES Network
• Nic Claxton Interview, part III (Video) – Ryan Ruocco – YES Network
• Post-Game Show (Video) – Frank Isola & Chris Shearn – YES Network
• Pacers get double-digit scoring from 7 players in a 123-94 win over the Nets – AP
• Nets help tanking cause with loss to Pacers — but defeats have taken toll on Nic Claxton – Brian Lewis – New York Post
• NBA’s looming lottery changes will likely have incidental repercussions ($) – Brian Lewis – New York Post
• Pacers rout Nets to close Barclays schedule, Brooklyn stays third in lottery race ($) – C.J. Holmes – New York Daily News

NEW YORK (AP) — Obi Toppin had 26 points and nine rebounds and seven Indiana players scored in double figures as the Pacers snapped a three-game skid with a 123-94 win over the Brooklyn Nets on Thursday night.

The Pacers (19-61) won for the fifth time in 27 games. Indiana was without head coach Rick Carlisle, who missed the first of two games to attend his daughter’s spring formal. Lloyd Pierce handled the coaching duties.

Micah Potter had 18 points and 14 rebounds, Ethan Thompson added 15 points and Jarace Walker and Jay Huff each added 14. Jalen Slawson and Quenton Jackson finished with 12 points apiece.

E.J. Liddell led the Nets (20-59) with 26 points and 10 rebounds. Ben Saraf scored 19 point and Tyson Etienne added 14 for Brooklyn, which shot 37 for 96 (37%) from the field and had its two-game winning streak halted.

The Pacers raced to a 31-14 lead in the first quarter, led 63-37 at half and carried a 26-point (98-72) advantage into the fourth quarter.

Up next

Pacers: At the Philadelphia 76ers on Friday.

Nets: At the Milwaukee Bucks on Friday.

___

AP NBA: https://apnews.com/hub/nba

The Washington Wizards did not take any chances with their lottery odds heading into their back-to-back games against the Chicago Bulls. The D.C. crew lost again on Thursday in a 119-108 contest at Capital One Arena.

The game started out like Tuesday’s blowout affair against the same Bulls. The visitors went ahead by 19-6 in the opening four minutes and looked like they were ready to run away with the contest. But the Wizards battled back, with Bub Carrington hitting a pair of threes to keep Washington within 32-24 after the opening period.

The Wizards used a balanced scoring attack in the second quarter to get back into the contest. Sharife Cooper went on a personal 7-0 run to give Washington its first taste of the lead, 44-43, with 4:04 left in the half.

Sharife in his bag with this bucket 💼 pic.twitter.com/zE1ec3TI2k

— Washington Wizards (@WashWizards) April 10, 2026

Washington trailed 52-51 at the break. Carrington and Leaky Black led the way, each scoring 9 points.

The Wizards stayed in striking distance for most of the third quarter. However, the game’s complexion changed when Juju Reese got called for a flagrant foul after inadvertently elbowing 5-foot-7 Yuki Kawamura. The flagrant penalty plus a pair of live-ball turnovers resulted in an 8-0 Bulls run to close the third.

Washington trailed 87-74 entering the fourth quarter. The Wiz never chopped the lead smaller than 9 points, dropping their 8th straight contest.

Will Riley was the team’s leading scorer with 23 points to go along with seven assists, three steals, and three blocks. But the Illinois alum struggled with his shot for most of the game, tidying up his field goal shooting a bit with garbage time buckets. He went 1-of-9 from beyond the arc.

Juju Reese had another monster double-double with 17 points and 16 rebounds, feasting on the glass against a Bulls team that lost its only viable big man, Guerschon Yabusele, to a shoulder injury during the game.

With a Washington loss and an Indiana Pacers win over the Brooklyn Nets on Thursday, the Wizards have a two-game cushion for the No. 1 spot in the tank rankings.

The Wizards next take on the Miami Heat on Friday in the team’s penultimate game of the season.

Kentucky Basketball will not land Dink Pate, who made his commitment to Providence on Thursday after spending the last three seasons in the NBA G League.

Pate, who recently turned 20 years old, will leave the professional ranks to play college basketball. The 6-foot-7 point guard first made headlines in 2023 when he joined the NBA G League Ignite, becoming the youngest professional basketball player in United States history.

During the 2023–24 season with Ignite, Pate played under former Kentucky assistant coach Jason Hart, who is now at SMU. Once that move happened, many thought that could be it for the Wildcats’ chances with Pate. While Mark Pope did recently hold a Zoom call with Pate, Providence was able to win out in the end.

This season, Pate has played for the Westchester Knicks in the G League, where he has averaged over 15 points per game while shooting 41.3% from the field and 37.7% from 3-point range. The versatile guard also averaged over five rebounds and nearly four assists per contest, showcasing his ability to impact the game in multiple ways.

Before joining Westchester, Pate spent time with both the G League Ignite and the Mexico City Capitanes, giving him professional experience against older and more seasoned competition.

Despite playing professionally, Pate is expected to be eligible to play in college because he has never signed an NBA contract or appeared in an NBA game. With NCAA athletes now allowed to earn money through NIL opportunities, the league is treating G League similarly to overseas professional experience, which should make his path to eligibility much smoother.

With his size, experience, and playmaking ability, Pate could have given Kentucky a dynamic and experienced guard heading into the upcoming season.

Alas, Pope and Co. are left to look elsewhere for Kentucky’s rebuilding backcourt.

BREAKING: Westchester Knicks guard Dink Pate has committed to Providence, his agent Sam Permut of @RocNationSports told ESPN. G-League star turned down two-way and 10-day opportunities to maintain eligibility. Former top-30 recruit is averaging 16.0 PPG this season. pic.twitter.com/SNLnJV8zRH

— Jeff Borzello (@jeffborzello) April 10, 2026

The Utah Jazz season is nearing an incredibly important lottery, and Jazz fans will be watching the lottery balls closely. But whether the Jazz jump in the lottery or not, the Jazz have had some rookies and prospects make an impact during the current rebuild. Utah can’t likely keep all of them, and so that’s what inspires the latest Utah Jazz Reacts Survey. If you had to choose one of these prospects below, who would you pick? These four have been among the most prominent prospects to play during the rebuild, and I wanted to see who you think is the most important to keep on the Jazz?

Welcome to SB Nation Reacts, a survey of fans across the NBA. Throughout the year we ask questions of the most plugged-in Jazz fans and fans across the country. Sign up here to participate in the weekly emailed surveys.

Of course, Utah is throwing every good luck charm they have into acquiring a top 3 selection in this year’s draft. AJ Dybantsa would be a match made in heaven. Darryn Peterson has the best fit. Cameron Boozer follows in Papa Carlos’ footsteps. Utah is also perfectly fine standing pat at 4, if it means not converting their pick to the Galactic Presti-pire. Caleb Wilson could have risen into the top 3 if he had been able to participate in the March Madness Tournament.

But what if Utah drops into the unorthodox spot where they — inevitably — drop down one or two tiers and out of the superstar conversation?

Be wary, Darius Acuff Jr. and Kingston Flemings lurk in these parts. It’s a tricky part to be in, considering Utah is not in dire need for another point guard after Keyonte George’s breakout, and Isaiah Collier headlining as the lead backup guard. Of course, the Jazz could look to prioritize fit here and select one of Nate Ament or Brayden Burries.

I introduce Keaton Wagler to the corporate office. All things considered, Wagler would be the ’best fit’ guard in the pool with a 6’6” frame who plays the brain of a veteran and the range of a flamethrower. This feels like the missing piece of Danny Ainge’s art gallery.

NBA Draft Profile: Keaton Wagler

Bio: 6 ft, 6 in | 185 lbs | 19 yrs old | Illinois University

2025-26 regular season stats: 17.9 PPG, 5.1 RPG, 4.2 APG STL, 44.5% FG, 39.7% 3PT

Accolades: Jerry West Shooting Guard of the Year, Second-Team All-American, Big Ten Freshman of the Year, NCAA Tournament South Region Most Outstanding Player

NBA Comparison: D’Angelo Russell, more polished Jeremy Lamb

Mastery

Wagler is arguably the most polished pick-and-roll operator in this class. His 12.4% turnover rate is elite for a high-usage freshman. He manipulates defenders with bendy, herky-jerky movements, often putting his opponent in a blender just by changing his face.

He isn’t a stopper on the defensive end yet, but his 1.7 BLK% and 1.3 STL% show active hands and high-level positioning. At 6’6”, he’s not a target that teams can easily hunt. A solid creator, Wagler doesn’t turn the ball over often and can create shots for his teammates as a decent level.

His primary calling card is a flamethrower of a jump shot; he’s a dynamic threat who can knock cow. triples off screens or deep pull-ups from well beyond the NBA line. He’s the kind of high-IQ player who always seems to make the right pass, acting like the glue that keeps an offense from getting stagnant. His shot diet is extremely healthy — no trips to the doctor’s office for you, sir.

Another positive sign for his offensive resume is his solid 81% rate at the charity stripe. Players who both generate and convert free throws tend to translate well as NBA scorers, applying the right amount of pressure on defenses.

Illinois uses him to crash boards, and responds with solid rebounding numbers for a guard. He’s a grab-and-go rebounder who immediately initiates transition, which would fit perfectly in the third-fastest pace team in the league. That speaks to his competitiveness and willingness to impact the game beyond scoring.

Margin

His biggest flaw is his lack of athleticism, which really shows on defense. Wagler struggles to slip screens and once beaten, fails to recover and consistently has to play behind his opponents. He’s underwhelming defensively, considering his 7’0” wingspan.

Currently, his finishes rely on angles and timing rather than elevation. It works for him fine at the collegiate level, but it won’t slide against NBA-level rim protectors. Some of those attempts will likely get stuffed if he doesn’t adjust his approach. Defenders at higher levels will quickly recognize his tendency to attack with his left hand, and start shading him in that direction. Wagler needs to depend on countering his flaws or equal comfort attacking right, because opponents will have a much easier assignment to contain him.

His ball-handling is servicable, but he needs to work on tightening his handle, especially when pressured by defenders or navigating crowded areas of the floor. Working on that would help him become a more consistent creator and allow him to operate more comfortably in pick-and-roll situations.

Wagler is ‘Crafty’ with a capital C, but he isn’t ‘Fast’ with a capital F. He lacks a lightning-quick first step, meaning he has to work twice as hard to create separation. If he can’t get defenders off-balance with his hesitations and pump fakes, he may struggle to create his own shot consistently at the pro level.

Mandate

When I project Wagler at the NBA level, I see a player who has a clear scoring foundation but still needs to round out the rest of his game — similar to how Keyonte had to rebuild his offensive character after his first couple of years in the league. The shooting alone gives him value, but he won’t be a primary offensive initiator as of now.

The Jazz could be comfortable fitting him into a secondary creator or complementary scoring role, where he can space the floor, attack closeouts, and make simple reads within the offense. If he imrpvoes his handle and becomes more balanced attacking the basket, there’s a realistic pathway for him to develop into a reliable NBA rotation guard.

Lineups with Keyonte George, providing downhill aggression, and Wagler, providing surgical distribution and spacing, would give Utah some of the tallest and most versatile young backcourts in the league. If the Jazz want to double down on their positionless length identity, Wagler is the connective tissue.

But in the meantime, we’re all hoping the Jazz front office goes palooza in reaction to Utah receiving their first franchise #1 pick.

The Dallas Mavericks (25-55) head back to the Lone Star state Friday night to face off against their division rivals, the San Antonio Spurs (61-19). It’s the last road game of the last road trip of the season, and it’s one that might have some real sway as far as the offseason goes. At the time of writing, Dallas finds themselves in a dead heat with the Memphis Grizzlies for the sixth best lottery odds, and only one game behind the New Orleans Pelicans. The outcome of these last couple matchups may make the difference between a Mikel Brown Jr. and an AJ Dybantsa.

The Spurs enter Friday evening without much of a concern. They’ve won four of their last five, 13 of their last 15, and they’ve mathematically locked themselves into the two-seed – most likely setting them up for a easy first-round matchup against the Los Angeles Clippers or the Phoenix Suns. Victor Wembanyama did recently suffer a left rib contusion against the Philadelphia 76ers, causing him to miss the last couple outings; however, it’s expected that he’ll suit up either against Dallas Friday night or the Denver Nuggets on Sunday, clearing the way for his first career postseason appearance.

The Mavericks, meanwhile, are about as far afield as you can get from meaningful postseason basketball. They put up a pretty decent showing against the Luka Dončić-less, Austin Reaves-less Los Angeles Lakers last Sunday, but then collapsed back to the norm against the Clippers Tuesday night and the Suns on Wednesday. There’s a subtle poetry to the fact that Dallas’ last two losses are San Antonio’s two most likely first-round matchups – almost like the basketball gods are reminding us just how far this team is from contending.

Here are three storylines to follow as the Mavericks play their last road game of the season against the San Antonio Spurs.

---

Mavericks role players making their case

Now that we’re arriving at the end of the regular season, it’s time to start making some decisions regarding the future of this roster. Dallas’ role players certainly know this – and they’re making their last-ditch attempts to leave an impression on the front office. C-teamer John Poulakidas has been an interesting watch in this depleted Mavericks squad, most notably putting up 23 against the Suns on Wednesday. Moussa Cissé and Marvin Bagley III also continue to make their case, with the latter of the two scoring a combined 41 over the last two outings.

On the flip side, things have looked rougher for Khris Middleton recently, and AJ Johnson’s first real outing wasn’t especially inspiring. As pointed out by Mavs Moneyball’s Joe Friedman, Johnson went a brutal 1-11 from the field against the Suns, with many of those possessions stalling out what little offensive flow the Mavericks could generate. Whether Johnson is a part of Dallas’ future remains to be seen; as far as the 2025-2026 season goes, he and the others only have a couple more in-game opportunities to show what they’ve got.

---

Young superstars leading the way

If there’s one thing that Dallas and San Antonio has in common right now, it’s that they’ve pushed all their chips in on their young superstars. For the Mavericks, this hasn’t quite paid dividends yet. Cooper Flagg has been absolutely transcendent, yes, filling just about every role imaginable while also posting some mind-boggling scoring figures (51 against the Orlando Magic and 45 against the Lakers, most recently). But his efforts haven’t quite translated to wins this season – most likely, this will require some very intentional work over the next couple years to fill roster gaps and develop a team that effectively complements his skillset.

San Antonio, on the other hand, is actively bearing the fruit of this exact kind of hard work. At the beginning of the season, I wrote that Victor Wembanyama’s Spurs hadn’t yet developed into the offensive powerhouse everyone was expecting. Well, I stand corrected. At the time of writing, San Antonio holds an 119.4 offensive rating for the 2025-2026 regular season, as well as a 111.1 defensive rating to boot. They’re one of the best teams in the league at both ends of the floor, due in large part to the contributions of early-career players like Stephon Castle, Devin Vassell, and Julian Champagnie. And, of course, Victor Wembanyama is leading the way, averaging around 25/11/3 and gluing the entire Spurs system together.

---

Dallas’ struggles down I-35

Just like the good ol’ days! It’s not much of a shock that Dallas has a bad record against the Spurs this season, given that the Mavericks have been more or less rebuilding from the ground up after the Anthony Davis trade. But it is worth noting how pronounced the disparity is. As of right now, Dallas has played San Antonio three times in the 2025-26 NBA regular season. San Antonio has taken the victory all three times, with final scores of 125-92, 135-123, and 138-125. In other words, Dallas hasn’t even gotten close – and there’s probably not much hope of changing that going into Friday night.

Maybe some day, we’ll see a return to the Mavericks-Spurs rivalry of old, with Cooper Flagg leading Dallas to a postseason victory on the way to a Finals run. For now, though, those dreams are a long way off, and we still have a lottery to think about in the meantime. 

---

The road ahead

After Friday night’s game, Dallas returns home for the final game of the season, facing off against a very shorthanded Chicago Bulls.

---

How to watch

The San Antonio Spurs host the Dallas Mavericks on Friday, April 10 at 7:00 PM CT. The game will be streamed live on MavsTV, and will also be broadcast on KFAA. As usual, fans can also tune in at 97.1FM KEGL (English) or at 99.1FM KFZO (Español).

With their win over the Dallas Mavericks on Wednesday night, the Phoenix Suns grabbed hold of something that feels official when you say it out loud. The seventh seed. Because yeah, they “secured” it. In theory. In the clean, sanitized version the league office pushes out. In reality, all they did was earn the right to host a high-stakes coin flip inside the NBA Play-In Tournament, which lives somewhere between competition and content inventory.

You can feel the fingerprints of Adam Silver all over it. Rolled out in 2021, polished up, packaged nice, and sold as opportunity, drama, and meaningful basketball. And maybe it is, if you squint hard enough and ignore the part where an 82-game grind now funnels into a night where one bad shooting stretch, one tweaked ankle, one whistle that feels a little off, and everything you built starts to wobble.

This year it comes with a new corporate tag hanging off it, courtesy of SoFi, because of course it does. Every inch of this thing is monetized, every moment stretched and dressed up so it can be sold, replayed, clipped, sponsored, and pushed. It is less about rewarding a season and more about creating another product to slide into the league’s portfolio, something shiny that executives can point to while counting the revenue streams stacking up behind it.

And look, I understand the machine. This is how it works. Take something pure, run it through the grinder, and present it back to us like it is an upgrade. Tell us it is good for the game. Tell us it adds excitement. Tell us it gives more teams a chance. Meanwhile, the teams that actually handled their business for six months are now staring at a scenario where one weird night can rewrite everything. That is where the frustration lives. You fight through the season, the travel, the injuries, the weird Tuesday nights in February that nobody remembers, all to land in a spot that used to mean something concrete. Now it means you get to host a game that decides whether your work holds weight or gets tossed into the same pile as everyone else who hovered around mediocrity.

So yeah, the Suns won. They put themselves in position. There is value in that, there always is. But this thing they are walking into — this shiny, sponsor-stamped, chaos-driven mini-tournament — is not a reward. It is a gamble dressed up like progress. And everyone is supposed to clap for it.

Rant over, I guess. Classify me as no fun, but I’m simply not a fan of possibly losing out on a postseason opportunity to a team that finished under .500. Handle your business is the answer, I know. Like most Adam Silver-based pointless tournaments, I can’t find myself excited for their sheer existence. Everything is a damn tournament now in the NBA. I wonder if each morning at the NBA’s corporate offices there is a tournament for who gets to take a shit in the bathroom first. Why? “Because it’s fun.” I just hope the guy who made the poor decision to slam some Taco Bell last night after one too many margs wins that tournament, for all of their sakes.

All of that being said, it is time for a quick history lesson on the seven seed. Because if you are going to live in this space, you might as well understand the room you are standing in.

Start here. In the first five seasons of the NBA Play-In Tournament, the seventh seed has always made the playoffs. Every single time. That is a 100% advancement rate into the first round. Their overall mark hosting the first Play-In game sits at 8-of-10 for teams slotted in that spot. The only stumbles came in 2023, when the Hawks beat the Heat, and in 2024, when the Pelicans dropped their opener to the Lakers. The Heat then advanced after downing the Bulls, and the Pelicans recovered to beat the Sacramento Kings.

That is the landscape sitting in front of the Phoenix Suns. The path is there. The numbers say it is there, and the door has opened every time for teams in this position. And still, you can feel that little voice creeping in, the one that says “do not be the one that breaks the pattern”. Because the scenario is simple. Lose twice, both games at home, and the season ends. You sit there as the seven seed in name, and nowhere to be found in the postseason. That possibility exists. It is real and it lingers whether you want to acknowledge it or not.

History also reminds you that this spot is not a dead end. It can be a runway. In 2023, those same Los Angeles Lakers came through the Play-In, handled the Memphis Grizzlies in six games, then took out the Golden State Warriors in six more before running into the Denver Nuggets in the Western Conference Finals. That Nuggets group lost four games total on their way to a title; two of those came against a Suns team powered by Devin Booker and Kevin Durant.

Zoom out and bring it back to franchise history. The Suns have lived the seven-seed life twice. In 1996, they went 41-41, earned seven the old-fashioned way, and ran into the San Antonio Spurs in the First Round. A 3-to-1 series loss that ended things quickly. The following season they landed at seven again at 40-42, this time facing the Seattle SuperSonics, and pushed it to five games before falling 3-to-2.

So this is the space. A spot that has produced opportunity, a spot that has carried risk, a spot that asks you to handle your business for 48 minutes and then do it again if needed. The numbers lean your way. The history gives you a blueprint. Now you have to go live it.

The opponent is still floating out there. The Clippers and the Trail Blazers are battling for the right to walk into this thing as the eight seed, and as it stands now, the numbers lean heavily one way. According to Basketball Reference’s playoff probabilities, the Clippers sit at a 77.6% chance to land that spot, while Portland lingers at 22.4%. One more meeting between them is still on the schedule.

We should have clarity soon. Tuesday, April 14, the Phoenix Suns will host at the Mortgage Matchup Center, and the stakes are clean and simple: win and move on to face the San Antonio Spurs.

Protect home court. Handle Tuesday. Close the door before anything weird has a chance to creep in, before the tension builds, before the fan base starts pacing and fills the arena with anxiety. Because no one around here needs that kind of energy.

Then again, this is Arizona sports. You already know how this story likes to behave.

Houston Rockets vs Philadelphia 76ers

April 9, 2026

Location: Toyota Center – Houston, TX

TV: Space City Home Network,

Radio:KBME Sports Talk 790 / KLTN 102.9 (en español)

Online: Rockets App, SCHN+

Time: 7:00pm CST

Probable Starting Lineups

Rockets: Amen Thompson, Reed Sheppard, Kevin Durant, Jabari Smith Jr., Alperen Sengun

76ers: VJ Edgecombe, Kelly Oubre Jr., Tyrese Maxey, Paul George, Andre Drummond

A spot in the Lakers’ new courtside seating section isn’t going to come cheap.

While the chairs don’t yet have an official, public price tag, a team source told The California Post on Thursday they will cost 78 percent of what the normal courtside row goes for.

Typically, those tickets for playoff matchups run anywhere from $20,000 to $40,000 apiece, meaning the new spots will be somewhere in the area $15,000-$30,000 each.

The Lakers announced their latest revenue stream plans on Thursday morning, revealing the section for Los Angeles’ upcoming postseason matchups at Crypto.com Arena will be a second courtside row called “Courtside Reserve.”

The team promised the chairs will come with “premium hospitality, including in-seat food and beverage service, VIP club access and a seamless, elevated experience from the moment guests enter the arena.”

The Lakers urged those interested in purchasing the seats to fill out an online “Courtside Reserve Seats Interest Form.”

While no doubt pricey, the area has been coveted by Lakers fans for decades. Celebrities like Leonardo DiCaprio, Denzel Washington, Will Ferrell, Justin Bieber, Kevin Hart and, of course, Jack Nicholson have become mainstays in the spots.

The Lakers’ first playoff opponent is not yet known, and it’s unclear if Luka Doncic or Austin Reaves will be available for any of the games.

Nonetheless, fans with desires of seeing the Purple and Gold from just feet away better have some deep pockets.

---

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

Tonight the Knicks (51*-28) host the Celtics (54-25) at Madison Square Garden. It’s an Eastern Conference showdown that could be a playoff-preview. Our heroes lead the season series 2-1.

As of this writing, Boston’s injury report lists four starters, and there’s a chance that Joe Mazzulla will rest them, given that a win is not necessary to secure the second-seed. However, the last time Jayson Tatum saw the Knicks, he left the court with a ruptured Achilles tendon. Perhaps the visitors will rally ‘round the tater and treat this as revenge game?

Game time is 7:30 p.m. EST on MSG and Amazon Prime. This is your game thread. This is CelticsBlog. Please don’t post large photos, GIFs, or links to illegal streams in the thread. Enjoy yourselves. And go Knickerbockers!

* Should be one more, but NBA Cup victories prefer to live in the shadows.

Why no Steph Curry vs. LeBron James in 2025-26 season is a loss for everybody originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area

SAN FRANCISCO – Two legends of the game were supposed to close out Chase Center on Thursday night in the Warriors’ final home game of the 2025-26 NBA regular season. A playoff game here is far from a guarantee. 

Whenever the Warriors and Los Angeles Lakers play each other, it’s less about the teams and more so about enjoying Steph Curry and LeBron James sharing the same court. Unfortunately for both players, for both teams and for both fan bases, that didn’t happen this season — not even once in the four games these two teams played against each other. 

That in itself is a loss for the entire league and the game of basketball as a whole, not knowing how many more of these games we’re going to get, if any at all.

Health comes first for the Warriors, knowing they’re locked into the No. 10 seed and a date in the NBA play-in tournament. Managing Curry’s runner’s knee that held him out for more than two months is priority No. 1. So on the first night of a back-to-back, Curry was one of eight Warriors ruled out against James and the Lakers in an eventual 119-103 loss.

James said after the game that he and Curry talked about it, and didn’t realize they hadn’t played against each other until the day of the game. Maybe Thursday was James’ last game at Chase Center. Maybe he won’t be wearing Lakers colors after this season. Maybe he’ll be hanging it up for good, or maybe the worst kept secret in the NBA of the Warriors’ wandering eyes can take him from LA to San Francisco. 

“We never know. We don’t what the future holds, and we don’t know if we’ll get the opportunity to play against each other,” James said. “It’s always a pleasure and it’s always an honor just to be in his presence, to be on the floor with him like we have in the past.”  

There still was plenty of love between Curry and James before tipoff. Curry came into the arena wearing a pair of Nike LeBron 10 IDs from 2013 as part of his sneaker free agency. James was all smiles when he caught a glimpse of Curry’s kicks before the game. 

Steph threw it back with his Nike LeBron 10 IDs tonight 🤝 pic.twitter.com/p13n92UeQS

— Warriors on NBCS (@NBCSWarriors) April 10, 2026

“He got those things from the vault,” James said. “For real, for real. I remember him wearing those. … I’m not sure if he had an extra pair or if those were the actual ones, but he went to the vault for those.”

Shoes were the closest thing between them, and their only connection for the duration of the season.

The Warriors and Lakers played each other in the regular-season opener. Curry scored 23 points, and James missed the game because of sciatica. The two teams then played each other twice during Curry’s absence from runner’s knee, with James recording a 20-point, 10-assist double-double the first game and 22 points and nine assists the second.

In what was the last chance for these two to play each other this season, barring a playoff surprise, Curry watched from the sidelines as James defied Father Time against the Warriors’ JV squad, again flirting with a triple-double and finishing with 26 points, eight rebounds and 11 assists.

Now that the season series for the Warriors and Lakers is over, the NBA went an entire season without fans watching Curry and James battle for basketball supremacy for the first time in six years. 

“They’ve been the faces of the league for a long, long time and it’s been fun to watch as a fan,” Lakers coach JJ Redick said during his pregame press conference. “It’s been fun to be a part of it the last couple of years.”

Adam Silver’s NBA has been run by two players whose first names are even more recognizable than their last: Steph and LeBron. This is their league, their era. But for how much longer is the real question. 

The first full season Silver took over for David Stern as the league’s commissioner was the first year Curry and James played each other in the NBA Finals, starting a stretch of four straight campaigns of them meeting on the grand stage to crown a champion.

Respect has been earned and admired by Curry and James. An all-time rivalry comes with the territory of greatness. 

“I think rivalries in general are defined by playoff matchups,” Warriors coach Steve Kerr said. “That’s kind of the history of the way we look at Wilt [Chamberlain] vs. Bill Russell, Bird-Magic. I think they had three Finals confrontations. What would some of the other ones be? I don’t know. Steph and LeBron has to be up there.” 

If playoff matchups define rivalries, Curry and James fit the criteria. And Curry has the upper hand, beating James in three of the four Finals they’ve faced one another, as well as winning 17 of the 28 playoff games between them. James has him beat in the regular season, with 14 wins on his side and 13 for Curry. 

For the past 12 seasons, Kerr has coached Curry’s Warriors and competed against James on the Lakers and Cleveland Cavaliers. He has had the opportunity to be part of one of basketball’s great modern rivalries, and was the man on the sidelines as they came together on Team USA two summers ago at the 2024 Paris Summer Olympics. 

As well as anybody from a leadership standpoint, Kerr has seen the full scope of their greatness. He gets it, he respects it and he’ll always appreciate it. 

“It’s just the love for the game,” Kerr said. “The love for the competition, the process, the work. I think all great players share an obsession with the game itself. It’s a love for the game. It’s an obsession with getting better, with competing. All the guys who I have either played with or coached, you can just see – I mean, it means everything to them. 

“When you combine that with incredible talent, which both guys have – Steph has the greatest hand eye coordination of anybody on earth, and LeBron is probably the greatest athlete, physical specimen, that I’ve ever seen. You get those qualities combined and this is the result. There’s a reason they’re both still going. They love it, and they’re obsessed with it.” 

LeBron is 41 and will be an unrestricted free agent after the season. Steph is 38 and has one more year on his current contract. The ball, as it always has been, is in their court. 

While the Warriors’ home finale was a loss on the scoreboard and even bigger L for basketball, the two faces that have defined a generation of greatness have given the NBA too many wins to count, and one can’t fathom the memories ever being replicated.

Download and follow the Dubs Talk Podcast

The San Antonio Spurs were without Victor Wembanyama and Stephon Castle, and still controlled the game in the 112-101 win over the Portland Trail Blazers. They got contributions up and down the roster to fill in for two of their stars. The Spurs’ bench outscored Portland’s 48-10.

Keldon Johnson and Carter Bryant were brilliant off the bench in the win and earned some of the top player grades for the Spurs. As a quick reminder, these grades are based on each player’s on-court performance, going beyond just the stat sheet. A “B” grade represents the average performance for an individual. If a player logs fewer than 5 minutes or plays only in garbage time, their grade will be incomplete.

De’Aaron Fox

34 minutes, 25 points, 5 rebounds, 7 assists, 3 steals, 4 turnovers, 3 fouls, 10-for-20 shooting, 3-for-6 threes, -3

Fox kicked things off and closed them out for the Spurs. He scored 10 of his 25 points in the first four minutes of the game. He was a pest on the perimeter and scored easy buckets in transition to keep the Spurs in the game against Portland early. When it looked like the Blazers might make a comeback in the fourth quarter, Fox hit a clutch three to extend the lead to 9. The team never looked back from there.

This is the type of performance Fox has given all season when Wembanyama sits. He takes over the offense in stretches and is the team’s steadying hand late in the game. Some rough turnovers hold this back from being an A-performance, but it was just the pick-me-up Fox needed before heading into the playoffs.

Grade: B+

Dylan Harper

33 minutes, 13 points, 6 rebounds, 4 assists, 2 steals, 2 blocks, 4 turnovers, 2 fouls, 6-for-14 shooting, 1-for-2 threes, +6

This may have been Harper’s most impactful defensive game this season. He was all over the court, walling off drives, grabbing steals, and blocking a couple of shots. He contested with the Blazers’ guards all night and made it tough for them to get into a real rhythm. It was the kind of game you’d expect more from Stephon Castle, who missed the game with a knee injury.

Harper continued to play well offensively by getting two feet into the paint, although he didn’t finish as often against Portland. He did, however, make one of the more impressive step-back threes I’ve seen from him this year.

Grade: B+

Julian Champagnie

27 minutes, 2 points, 4 rebounds, 3 assists, 2 blocks, 1 foul, 1-for-6 shooting, 0-for-3 threes, +6

What Champagnie didn’t do offensively, he made up for defensively. It was a cold shooting night for Champagnie, whose only basket came on a fast-break dunk. He was impactful defensively, though. Champagnie was just solid on that end against the Blazers’ tough wings. His box score won’t make anyone look twice, but it felt like the Spurs played better when he was on the floor.

Grade: B-

Luke Kornet

26 minutes, 10 points, 5 rebounds, 6 assists, 2 steals, 1 block, 1 foul, 5-for-6 shooting, +5

It’s fair to say that Kornet owns the Trail Blazers. After scoring 20+ in his last game against them, he was a huge difference maker on Wednesday. His paint defense was among the best of the season, as he broke up lobs and contested drivers at the rim. He may have only gotten 5 rebounds, but he impacted the boards by tipping the ball back to the perimeter for his teammates to save the possession.

It wasn’t a Wembanyama-level defensive performance, but there is no way the Spurs win this game without Cool Hand Luke holding it down inside.

Grade:A

Devin Vassell

31 minutes, 14 points, 8 rebounds, 1 assist, 2 steals, 1 turnover, 2 fouls, 5-for-13 shooting, 2-for-7 threes, +/- 0

It wasn’t quite the offensive explosion that we have gotten accustomed to in games without Wembanyama, but Vassell was solid against Portland. He hit some difficult shots, including a tough mid-range jumper over the top of Donovan Clingan. Defensively, he chipped in with a few steals.

Grade: B

Harrison Barnes

27 minutes, 9 points, 2 rebounds, 2 assists, 1 steal, 3 turnovers, 2 fouls, 2-for-4 shooting, 0-for-2 threes, +13

Barnes has been quiet recently. He was a part of the Spurs’ small-ball lineup that crushed the Blazers, which is why his +/- numbers look so good (more on that later). San Antonio needs him to hit shots in the playoffs if he is going to play major minutes.

Grade: B

Keldon Johnson

29 minutes, 20 points, 8 rebounds, 1 assist, 2 steals, 1 block, 2 turnovers, 1 foul, 8-for-15 shooting, 0-for-3 threes, +13

Johnson was EVERYWHERE on Wednesday. In what could have been his best performance of the year, KJ got to the basket at will, dove after loose balls, and kept possessions alive with offensive rebounding. It was a great reminder of why he is currently the betting favorite (-900) to win Sixth Man of the Year on FanDuel.

I thought it was funny that Johnson seemed to go especially at his former teammates, Sidy Cissoko and Blake Wesley. When they were guarding him, KJ got straight to the rim and scored.

Grade: A

Carter Bryant

25 minutes, 17 points, 5 rebounds, 4 assists, 1 steal, 1 foul, 6-for-9 shooting, 5-for-6 threes, 1 turnover, 3 fouls, +6

Bryant scored a career-high 17 points in his best game of the season. He was confident on both ends, hitting threes and holding his position against bigger offensive players on defense. You could see something click with him around the second quarter of this game. He started to be more physical on screens and in the paint, and he took wide-open shots without hesitation. If this is a glimpse into who Bryant can be for years to come, the Spurs may have gotten a steal with the 14th overall pick.

Grade: A

Jordan McLaughlin

9 minutes, 2 points, 2 rebounds, 0-for-1 shooting, +9

McLaughlin is just solid. He came in and did his job for 9 minutes, playing pesky perimeter defense, taking care of the ball, and playing within the flow of the offense. He’s about all the Spurs could ask for in a fourth guard.

Grade: B

Monday’s Inactives: Victor Wembanyama, Stephon Castle, Harrison Ingram, David Jones-Garcia, Emanuel Miller