Category: NBA

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What can we expect from Celtics without Tatum in Game 5 vs. Knicks? originally appeared on NBC Sports Boston

Jayson Tatum’s Achilles injury could have a huge impact on the future of the Boston Celtics, but they aren’t eliminated from the 2025 NBA playoffs just yet.

The Celtics trail 3-1 in their Eastern Conference semifinals series against the New York Knicks after losing 121-113 in Monday night’s Game 4 at Madison Square Garden. Tatum suffered his injury late in the fourth quarter of that defeat.

The loss of Tatum can’t be overstated. He is the team’s best player and one of the league’s top-five players overall. The superstar forward leads the Celtics with 28.1 points, 11.5 rebounds, 5.4 assists and 2.1 steals per game in the playoffs.

Overcoming a 3-1 deficit with Tatum would have been a difficult challenge. Doing it without him is an enormous obstacle.

But the Celtics do have a lot of talent and playoff experience. So, what can we expect from Boston without Tatum in Game 5 at TD Garden on Wednesday night?

The Celtics are 16-3 (1-0 in playoffs) over the last two seasons without Tatum, but 11 of those 19 games were against teams that didn’t make the playoffs, including a couple late regular season matchups last month versus the Wizards, Hornets and Trail Blazers.

In those 18 regular season games that Tatum has missed since the start of the 2023-24 campaign, Jaylen Brown leads the Celtics with 26.8 points per game. Brown played in 13 of those 18 games Tatum missed.

Brown is obviously the player who needs to step up the most with Tatum out.

The reigning Finals MVP is more than capable of scoring 30-plus points in a playoff game. In fact, he did it in Game 2 of the first round with 36 points, 10 rebounds and five assists in a win over the Orlando Magic that Tatum missed due to a wrist injury. Brown has 14 30-point playoff games in his career.

White is another player who has to provide more scoring in Tatum’s absence. He shot pretty well in Game 4, going 6-for-11 from 3-point range and finishing with 23 points.

Holiday has to be more aggressive offensively, too. He has scored only 12 points in the last two games combined, and he’s shooting 4-for-14 on 3-pointers in the series.

Pritchard deserves to see a larger role with Tatum out of the lineup. The Sixth Man of the Year Award winner played just 20 minutes in Game 4 after scoring 23 points in 35 minutes during Boston’s Game 3 win. The C’s need his outside shooting and tenacity at both ends of the floor. He also pushes the pace as well as any player on the roster.

Porzingis making an impact would be a massive lift for Boston. He has struggled to be effective in the playoffs as he deals with the effects of an illness he battled in the regular season. The 7-foot-3 center has scored 20 points in the four games against the Knicks combined. He has only played more than 20 minutes in one of those matchups. Can Porzingis give the Celtics 12-15 points and good interior defense in Game 5?

🔊 Celtics Talk POSTGAME POD: C’s season pushed to the BRINK after losing Game 4, Jayson Tatum to injury | Listen & Subscribe | Watch on YouTube

The best way for the Celtics to survive without Tatum might be to keep letting it fly from beyond the arc.

The C’s are fully capable of getting hot from 3-point range, but outside of going 20-for-40 in Game 3, they have largely struggled on these shots against the Knicks. Boston is shooting just 33.5 percent on 3-pointers in the series.

The Celtics have built a lead of at least 14 points in every game this series. They have a lot of talent on their roster, even without Tatum. Two of the last three games are at TD Garden, including a potential Game 7.

Yes, beating the Knicks three straight times without Tatum is going to be extraordinarily tough. And the Knicks, to their credit, have played fantastic in the fourth quarters of this series. But to totally count out the Celtics would be foolish.

Tatum has ruptured Achilles in worst-case scenario for Celtics star originally appeared on NBC Sports Boston

The Boston Celtics were bracing for bad news Monday night, and they got it Tuesday.

Jayson Tatum has a ruptured right Achilles tendon, the team announced Tuesday afternoon. Tatum underwent “successful” surgery Tuesday after undergoing an MRI earlier in the day in New York and is “expected to make a full recovery,” per the Celtics.

Boston didn’t give a timetable for Tatum’s return, but it’s very likely the injury causes him to miss most if not all of the 2025-26 season; according to ESPN’s Stephania Bell, NBA athletes average about 10 months of recovery time after suffering a ruptured Achilles tendon.

The Celtics star suffered the injury with 2:58 remaining in the fourth quarter of Boston’s Game 4 loss to the New York Knicks at Madison Square Garden when he dove for a loose ball. Tatum fell awkwardly without making contact with Knicks wing OG Anunoby and had to be carried off the court before being transported through the halls of MSG in a wheelchair.

“The fact that he had to be carried off — he’s the type of guy that gets right up,” Celtics head coach Joe Mazzulla said after the game. “… It’s tough to watch a guy like him get carried off like that.”

Tatum’s injury is devastating in the short term for a Boston team that trails the Knicks 3-1 in their second-round series and will need to win three games in a row without its star player to avoid an early playoff exit.

The All-Star forward was brilliant in Game 4 prior to his injury — he became the first player in NBA history to record at least 42 points, seven made 3-pointers, eight rebounds, four assists, four steals and two blocks in a playoff game — and his absence likely is a death knell to Boston’s playoff hopes.

But the bigger concern is in the long term, as the Celtics are deep in the luxury tax and already were facing some difficult roster decisions this offseason prior to Tatum’s injury. The Celtics already have committed to $228 million in contracts for next season, and if they want to avoid stiff penalties for being in the second apron of the luxury tax, they’ll need to shake up their core.

Now that Tatum is expected to miss a large part of the 2025-26 campaign, it’s possible that shake-up takes a different form, as president of basketball operations Brad Stevens and new majority owner Bill Chisholm try to chart a new path forward.

Boston will aim to keep its season alive Wednesday in Game 5 at TD Garden. Tip-off is set for 7 p.m. ET, with NBC Sports Boston’s coverage beginning at 6 p.m. ET with Celtics Pregame Live.

Jayson Tatum has ruptured Achilles in worst-case scenario for Celtics star originally appeared on NBC Sports Philadelphia

The Boston Celtics were bracing for bad news Monday night, and they got it Tuesday.

Jayson Tatum has a ruptured right Achilles tendon, the team announced Tuesday afternoon. Tatum underwent “successful” surgery Tuesday after undergoing an MRI earlier in the day in New York and is “expected to make a full recovery,” per the Celtics.

Boston didn’t give a timetable for Tatum’s return, but it’s very likely the injury causes him to miss most if not all of the 2025-26 season; according to ESPN’s Stephania Bell, NBA athletes average about 10 months of recovery time after suffering a ruptured Achilles tendon.

The Celtics star suffered the injury with 2:58 remaining in the fourth quarter of Boston’s Game 4 loss to the New York Knicks at Madison Square Garden when he dove for a loose ball. Tatum fell awkwardly without making contact with Knicks wing OG Anunoby and had to be carried off the court before being transported through the halls of MSG in a wheelchair.

“The fact that he had to be carried off — he’s the type of guy that gets right up,” Celtics head coach Joe Mazzulla said after the game. “… It’s tough to watch a guy like him get carried off like that.”

Tatum’s injury is devastating in the short term for a Boston team that trails the Knicks 3-1 in their second-round series and will need to win three games in a row without its star player to avoid an early playoff exit.

The All-Star forward was brilliant in Game 4 prior to his injury — he became the first player in NBA history to record at least 42 points, seven made 3-pointers, eight rebounds, four assists, four steals and two blocks in a playoff game — and his absence likely is a death knell to Boston’s playoff hopes.

But the bigger concern is in the long term, as the Celtics are deep in the luxury tax and already were facing some difficult roster decisions this offseason prior to Tatum’s injury. The Celtics already have committed to $228 million in contracts for next season, and if they want to avoid stiff penalties for being in the second apron of the luxury tax, they’ll need to shake up their core.

Now that Tatum is expected to miss a large part of the 2025-26 campaign, it’s possible that shake-up takes a different form, as president of basketball operations Brad Stevens and new majority owner Bill Chisholm try to chart a new path forward.

Boston will aim to keep its season alive Wednesday in Game 5 at TD Garden with tip-off is set for 7 p.m. ET.

Steph officially ruled out of Warriors' Game 5 vs. Timberwolves originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area

Dub Nation didn’t receive the news they wanted to hear ahead of the Warriors’ Game 5 matchup against the Timberwolves on Wednesday in Minnesota, as star point guard Steph Curry will remain sidelined with a hamstring injury.

Golden State officially listed Curry as out for the team’s win-or-go-home game against Minnesota on Tuesday’s 6:30 p.m. ET NBA injury report — the fourth consecutive game Curry will miss after sustaining a Grade 1 hamstring strain in Game 1 of the Western Conference semifinals on May 6.

Curry is set to be re-evaluated Wednesday, and the Warriors, down three games to one in the series, desperately need him back if they manage to defeat the Timberwolves in Game 5 at Target Center. After Golden State’s 117-110 loss in Game 4 on Monday night at Chase Center, coach Steve Kerr offered a vague answer on Curry’s potential return Wednesday when asked if the two-time NBA MVP would be permitted to play if he felt like he could go.

“When are we giving the update?” Kerr asked, looking at Warriors PR personnel. “Wednesday, we’ll have an update.”

Draymond Green appeared to advise his longtime teammate not to return before he’s ready shortly after Kerr’s answer during his own postgame press conference.

“Nah, we’re not going to Superman this thing. If he’s in a place where he can play, I’m sure he will,” Green told reporters. 

“Him and Rick [Celebrini] and everyone else will figure that out, but we don’t need Superman. You got to play the long game, so, if he can, we know he will. But there’s no pressure. We got to find a way to win whether he plays or not.” 

While Curry won’t be on the floor in Game 5 — bad news for Golden State’s struggling offense — there still is hope he could return for Game 6, should the Warriors make it that far.

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NBA mock draft roundup: What will Sixers do with No. 3 pick?  originally appeared on NBC Sports Philadelphia

The Sixers avoided the disappointment of losing their 2025 first-round pick entirely and ended up at No. 3 in Monday night’s NBA draft lottery.

So, now what? 

Here’s a roundup of post-lottery mock drafts: 

The Athletic’s Sam Vecenie

Ace Bailey, Rutgers 

Vecenie:“I expect the Sixers to look into scenarios that involve moving this selection, especially now that they’ve moved up without getting inside the top-two picks. …Bailey’s range starts at No. 3 now that the Sixers officially have the pick. They certainly could use a bigger wing to pair with Paul George. However, Bailey’s range extends a bit further down than this into even the middle portion of the lottery. …” 

ESPN’s Jonathan Givony and Jeremy Woo

Ace Bailey, Rutgers 

Woo: “Bailey has been more polarizing for scouts than a typical top-five pick, displaying flashes of scoring upside at Rutgers while still at an early stage of his development in other key areas. Lottery teams are eager to get a feel for him in the pre-draft process, including interviews, to understand how far away he is from contributing positively on an NBA floor.

“Wings with Bailey’s combination of size, physical skill and shooting prowess are rare. That coveted archetype has kept his stock largely steady despite his inconsistencies as a decision-maker, ball handler and defender. Some teams are concerned with the risk attached in those areas, but his scoring talent has tantalizing appeal for front offices in search of star power.” 

To the point on Bailey’s size: He measured at 6-foot-7 and 1/2 inches without shoes and 203 pounds at the NBA draft combine. Bailey’s skilled at squeezing off and making difficult jumpers, but he presumably won’t be able to shoot over anyone he wants in the NBA. 

The Ringer’s J. Kyle Mann

Ace Bailey, Rutgers 

Mann: “I’ve had Tre Johnson earmarked for Philly for a while because he could be a great plug-and-play fit, but Bailey does a lot of similar things (albeit not quite as efficiently in the movement shooting from 3), while also having more size and defensive upside. Bailey doesn’t have to become a superstar to make an impact in the NBA. His something-from-nothing shotmaking, even without taking a single dribble, will be a helpful option when possessions go south. And once some easy offense comes into his life after he trudged through possessions at Rutgers, it’s highly possible that his strengths will pop even more than they did in college. 

“There will be more hands on the cook line in Philly to throw easy buckets his way, and lord knows he’s hungry for them. Add in some glimpses of big-time help defense, and it’s clear that he can fit into what the Sixers are doing in the short term as his more fantastic, long-term possibilities threaten to materialize.”

Yahoo Sports’ Kevin O’Connor

Ace Bailey, Rutgers 

O’Connor: “Drafting Bailey would raise serious questions about the direction of the franchise. On one hand, he is a ridiculous shot-making machine, capable of splashing contested jumpers from every spot on the floor and with the swagger of a throwback bucket-getter. At his size, he fits next to Tyrese Maxey and Jared McCain in the years to come.

“But can the Sixers afford to wait when the clock is ticking on the Joel Embiid era? Bailey’s shooting consistency, plus his raw edges as a shot creator and defender, need sanding down to turn him into a full-on star. It would not be a shocker if the Sixers look to trade down (or out) with a team badly hoping to land Bailey.” 

At 18 years old, Bailey is clearly not close to a finished product. He was productive and impressive in his one college season — 17.6 points, 7.2 rebounds, 1.3 assists and 1.3 blocks per game — but Rutgers went 15-17 even with two marquee prospects in Bailey and Dylan Harper. We’ll see just how much better Bailey can get and how quickly he develops. 

Bleacher Report’s Jonathan Wasserman

VJ Edgecombe, Baylor 

Wasserman: “Every team’s tier behind (Cooper) Flagg and Harper will include VJ Edgecombe. Front offices that value his 100th percentile explosiveness, shotmaking and defensive quickness could slot him at No. 3, particularly if they question Ace Bailey’s handle and tunnel vision, Tre Johnson’s lack of rim pressure and Jeremiah Fears’ shooting.

“The draft process should only help illuminate his incredible athletic ability and improving shooting stroke.” 

USA Today’s Bryan Kalbrosky

VJ Edgecombe, Baylor 

Kalbrosky: “The Big 12 Freshman of the Year joined Flagg as the only first-year collegiate players with at least 30 dunks and 3-pointers recorded, per Bart Torvik. 

“For a team to draft Edgecombe this high, they will hope that his jumper eventually becomes more consistent once he has found his groove in the NBA.” 

Victor Oladipo is a popular, natural comparison for Edgecombe, who enjoys using his speed and big-time leaping ability on defense. 

Edgecombe averaged 15.0 points, 5.6 rebounds, 3.2 assists and 2.1 steals for Baylor. He measured at 6-foot-4 without shoes and 193 pounds. 

SB Nation’s Ricky O’Donnell

Kon Knueppel, Duke

O’Donnell: “Knueppel didn’t seem like an obvious one-and-done at first blush with limited length and explosiveness for an NBA wing, but his toughness, shooting, and secondary creation skills started building his top-10 hype from the moment he entered Duke. Knueppel is the type of perimeter player who fills in all the cracks in a lineup construction. 

“He’s arguably the best shooting bet in this class after canning 40.6 percent of his threes on 207 attempts and 91.4 percent of his free throws. Knueppel can also run pick-and-roll in a pinch, and proved he can throw a killer lob to the roll man during his season with (Khaman) Maluach.” 

Could the Sixers draft a Duke shooter two years in a row after going with McCain at No. 16 last year? Like McCain, Knueppel’s jumper is pure and he’s got savvy counters to tight defense. 

Portland Trail Blazers will be sold by Paul Allen's estate, team says originally appeared on NBC Sports Philadelphia

Paul Allen’s estate announced Tuesday that it has begun the process of selling the Portland Trail Blazers.

The sale of the team is “consistent with Allen’s directive to eventually sell his sports holdings and direct all estate proceeds to philanthropy,” the Trail Blazers said in a statement.

Allen, the billionaire co-founder of Microsoft, died in 2018 at age 65 from complications of non-Hodgkin lymphoma. Since then, his sister, Jody Allen, has served as chair of the Trail Blazers and the NFL’s Seattle Seahawks and trustee of the Paul G. Allen Trust.

The estate said it has hired the New York investment firm Allen & Company and the law firm Hogan Lovells to lead the sales process, “which is estimated to continue into the 2025-26 basketball season.”

The team noted in its announcement that the NBA Board of Governors must ratify any final purchase agreement.

In addition to the Trail Blazers and Seahawks, Allen was a co-owner of Major League Soccer’s Seattle Sounders. The statement said the announcement does not impact the Seahawks or the estate’s 25% interest in the Sounders. Neither of those teams is for sale.

Allen bought the Trail Blazers in 1988, telling the The Associated Press at the time that “for a true fan of the game, this is a dream come true.”

There has been widespread speculation surrounding the future ownership of both the Seahawks and Trail Blazers since his death. A

llen stipulated in his will the eventual sale of both teams, with the proceeds given to philanthropic endeavors.

Jody Allen reportedly rebuffed an offer to buy the Trail Blazers from Nike co-founder Phil Knight for more than $2 billion in 2022. At that time, there were no ongoing discussions about the sale of the teams, she said in a rare statement.

“A time will come when that changes given Paul’s plans to dedicate the vast majority of his wealth to philanthropy, but estates of this size and complexity can take 10 to 20 years to wind down,” she said. “There is no pre-ordained timeline by which the teams must be sold.”

CNBC earlier this year valued the Trail Blazers at $3.65 billion. In March, the Boston Celtics sold for $6.1 billion.

The Trail Blazers finished 36-46 this season and missed out on the playoffs for the fourth straight year. They have the 11th pick in the next month’s NBA draft, as was decided in Monday night’s draft lottery.

Report: Jameer Nelson taking another step up in Sixers' front office  originally appeared on NBC Sports Philadelphia

Jameer Nelson is taking another step up in the Sixers’ organization.

The Sixers are promoting Nelson to assistant general manager, ESPN’s Shams Charania reported Tuesday.

A native of Chester, Pennsylvania, Nelson was an all-time great player at St. Joseph’s and had a 14-year NBA career. 

He’s been in the Sixers’ front office since October of 2020, when the team hired him as both a scout and Delaware Blue Coats assistant general manager. Nelson became Delaware’s GM in 2023. 

In an interview last April, Nelson told NBC Sports Philadelphia that Sixers GM Elton Brand helped him decide on his post-playing path and “played a huge role in my growth and my front office experience.”

While Nelson’s on-the-floor knowledge is obviously quite useful, he’s adjusted his outlook on player development and team building. 

“You definitely have to look through a different lens,” he said. “Getting deeper and understanding that not everybody’s going to be a superstar, so what attributes do they have that could help the Sixers or Blue Coats? And individually, is this person an NBA player? … I think early on I was getting to my conclusion a little too quick. And look, I’m the first to raise my hand and say I need help. 

“I think the group has been really good for me, just with picking brains and understanding how other people think. It’s totally different from being a player, because (that’s) like, ‘Can he shoot, can he dribble, can he pass? Put him in positions so he can help the team.’ But you also have to look at things from a broader perspective when you’re in the front office. There’s contracts involved, there’s the salary cap, and there’s roster spots.”

Nelson and the Sixers’ front office will be poring over prospects ahead of the NBA draft on June 25. The Sixers learned Monday night that they own the No. 3 overall pick along with No. 35. 

Williams states Steph-less Warriors are ‘outmanned' vs. T-wolves originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area

Lou Williams believes the Warriors, without Steph Curry, will be unable to stop the Minnesota Timberwolves from winning their Western Conference semifinal series.

The former NBA player explained why Golden State cannot currently compete against Minnesota’s deep roster.

“They’re a different basketball team without Steph Curry on the floor,” Williams told Michelle Beadle and Chandler Parsons Tuesday on FDTV’s “Run It Back.” “You can see it. They’re doing everything in their power to compete with this Minnesota Timberwolves team; they just don’t have enough. It’s not for lack of effort. It’s not for lack of anything; they’re just outmanned.

“I think Minnesota is playing at a high level right now. Julius Randle is giving them everything that they deserve.”

Lou Williams says one of the 3-1 series will have a comeback, but it won't be the Warriors-Timberwolves 😬

"They're a different basketball team without Steph Curry…they're outmanned."@MichelleDBeadle | @TeamLou23 | @ChandlerParsonspic.twitter.com/Hgm6XWbLBy

— Run It Back (@RunItBackFDTV) May 13, 2025

This stark difference was on full display during the third quarter of Game 4, where the Timberwolves savaged the Warriors, outscoring them 39-17. With Jimmy Butler ineffective for most of the game, Golden State lacked a consistent scoring threat to match Minnesota’s duo of Anthony Edwards and Randle.

Given the nature of Curry’s Grade 1 hamstring strain, it’s unlikely that he will be able to return for a must-win Game 5. Even then, asking the 37-year-old to return from injury and shoulder the scoring for three straight games is too much even for one of the greatest shooters in NBA history.

The rest of Golden State’s lineup has been far too inconsistent beyond Jonathan Kuminga. Without another serious scoring threat, the Warriors have been unable to keep pace now that the Timberwolves have regained their strong shooting form.

The Warriors look like a team running on fumes after a tough play-in game against the Memphis Grizzlies and a draining seven-game series against the Houston Rockets. Unless someone else can get hot and start scoring, Minnesota is poised to walk away victorious in Game 5 on Wednesday at Target Center.

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Dallas is ground zero for one of America’s most historic conspiracy theories. Just half a mile from the grassy knoll where John F Kennedy was assassinated on 22 November 1963, sits the American Airlines Center – the newest site of Dallas conspiracy lore.

While this year’s NBA draft lottery took place in Chicago on Monday night, the heart of the drama haunts Dallas. Mavericks general manager Nico Harrison’s career lives to see another day after his team improbably beat 1.8% odds to land the No 1 pick in this year’s draft – which they will almost certainly use to pick Duke phenom Cooper Flagg, one of the most talented college players in years. The 6ft 9in wing will presumably usher in the first full season of Dallas’s post-Luka Dončić era. Mavs fans almost have to laugh, or maybe raise a very suspicious eyebrow. With the NBA’s four worst teams (Washington Wizards, Charlotte Hornets, Utah Jazz, and New Orleans Pelicans) all taking a nosedive in the lottery, the storyline is tailor-made for a grand conspiracy theory.

Related: The Luka Dončić-Anthony Davis trade is shocking, franchise-altering and bizarre

The Mavs’ decision in February to trade away Dončić garnered widespread conjecture around the franchise’s owners, the Adelson family, tanking the team to eventually move them to their home base of Las Vegas, where they could add an NBA team to their casino empire. There were also theories around the NBA’s disappointing ratings and what a prodigy like Dončić could do in Los Angeles. Those theories were only amplified by the poor return the Mavericks got in return for Dončić, already widely considered a future Hall of Famer. Online speculation quickly connected Harrison, NBA commissioner Adam Silver and Lakers GM Rob Pelinka in a shadowy quid pro quo: send Dončić to one of the NBA marquee franchises, the Lakers, where he would play alongside the league’s biggest name, LeBron James, and Harrison would be rewarded with the No 1 pick. It’s a tale fit for any great sports conspiracy.

In the real world, Mavs fans have had a hell of a year. They watched their team, which had reached the NBA finals less than a year before, blown apart by their general manager as Dončić, a beloved superstar who had no desire to leave the city, was shown the door. And on the way out, Harrison and the organization disparaged Dončić’s name, weight, commitment and tenure at every turn. Injuries broke apart any hope the fanbase had of reclamation this season, which ended with a disappointing play-in tournament exit. Now, they have a chance at a silver lining, and more importantly, a new chapter in the dismal story Harrison had started to write for the franchise.

There’s a chance the Mavericks could trade the pick, perhaps as the centerpiece in a deal for two-time MVP Giannis Antetokounmpo, who is reportedly open to leaving the Milwaukee Bucks. But Dallas fans need the healing only a homegrown star can provide. Drafting Flagg would give Mavericks fans someone with them from the beginning of his career to rally behind, with the same kind of seismic potential Dončić once brought. Trading the pick for another star, in yet another attempt to manufacture a contender through trades, wouldn’t mend the wound left by Harrison’s unraveling of the Dirk Nowitzki-to-Dončić handoff – one that symbolized more than two decades of Mavs continuity. Flagg offers a clean slate, one that finally anchors the present and future after Harrison mortgaged most of the team’s draft capital in the Dončić era.

Mavs fans never deserved Harrison’s mismanagement. The lottery win was a near-impossible stroke of luck. Before Monday night, Mavericks fans braced for a bleak future. Anthony Davis, the return centerpiece for Dončić, has struggled with injuries since arriving. Kyrie Irving is expected to miss the first half of next season recovering from an ACL tear at age 33.

Harrison has been public enemy number one since trading Dončić to the rival Lakers in February. Chants calling for his firing have erupted across Dallas, from college basketball games and concerts to Medieval Times. He avoided his usual seat at the Mavs’ arena. He delayed holding a press conference until forced by Mavericks governor Patrick Dumont. The coffee shop where Harrison and Pelinka first discussed a Dončić trade has marked the infamous table with “Luka was traded here” on a laminated strip. But on lottery night, Harrison was seen leaping with joy when Dallas secured the first pick. Rumors were already swirling that Dumont wanted to bring in a seasoned executive to assist him on basketball decisions. It’s safe to say winning the lottery has saved his job although the blame doesn’t stop with him. He was hired by Mark Cuban, retained by Miriam Adelson, and empowered by Dumont.

Now Harrison and the Mavs have an unexpected chance to rebuild trust with their fans. The Mavericks have historically built through the draft, from Mark Aguirre and Rolando Blackman in 1981 to Jason Kidd, Dirk Nowitzki, Jalen Brunson, and Dončić. Harrison may be too steeped in his own arrogance to see that. His many tone-deaf comments on the Dončić trade revealed a staggering lack of understanding of the fanbase that pays his checks.

Winning the draft lottery at such odds takes either a miracle or a grand conspiracy. Knowing what to do with the gift you’ve been given should be a no-brainer. We have a little over a month to find out what kind of leader Harrison chooses to be.