Category: NBA

Editor’s note: Burries and Turner were tied at the last possible moment we could schedule the next article, so we flipped a coin and landed on Burries at six.

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It’s time to look at Brayden Burries, the Bucks’ new rookie prospect who has created some serious buzz with fans after his scintillating Summer League performance. Burries is a 6’4” combo guard with NBA-ready size at 205 pounds. He is well-rounded and checks the box as an athlete, but he may not excel in any one area besides his motor. Burries has shown he’s a good decision-maker, with consistent highs and limited lows (though young players will always have hiccups).

Burries averaged 23.5 PPG, 4.5 RPG, 4.3 APG, and 2.0 steals during his Summer League campaign (along with just 0.3 turnovers). He controlled the game with a veteran’s basketball IQ. All of this creates serious expectations not only from Bucks fans, but from fans league-wide. If we look at the roster and Milwaukee’s current guard rotation, it is a logjam for minutes, but Burries’ skill set lets him slot in next to anyone and make an impact, whether as a primary ball handler or in an off-ball role. He’s even shown himself to be able to impact defensively and get on the boards, along with an ability to score at every level with a variety of moves. You can see him complementing most players on this team, which will make it even easier to find him minutes.

Burries was a key piece for the Arizona Wildcats in a very successful year as they pushed deep into March, falling in the Final Four. He has shown he is a winning player who can be at the centre of a winning culture, and the hope is that it will transfer to the NBA. We are looking at a player with all the skills to succeed immediately at the next level, impact at both ends of the floor, and make serious contributions to a winning team—that’s what separates him from many other rookies.

All of this comes together to create league-wide excitement about what Burries can be for the Bucks and shows he can make a serious impact on a winning team.

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Now we’re really getting down to business. Who’s up at five?

Kobe Bryant’s No. 8 is headed back to the auction block, and this one comes stitched with a remarkable piece of Lakers history.

The Realest is auctioning a signed, game-worn Bryant jersey from the 2003-04 season — the only No. 8 Bryant jersey to reach the market featuring an NBA Finals patch — with expectations that it could command several million dollars.

And this wasn’t some jersey that spent most nights hanging in a locker.

Bryant wore it across at least 17 documented games as the Lakers went a staggering 16-1, including 8-0 in the playoffs. It was on his back for all three Western Conference series-clinching victories during Los Angeles’ march to the 2004 NBA Finals.

The jersey also survived some vintage Kobe nights: his season-high 45 points against the Warriors, the circus shot against the Rockets and a 42-point masterpiece against the Spurs in Game 4 of the Western Conference semifinals.

The season carries another layer of mythology. It was during 2003-04 that Bryant created his “Black Mamba” persona, while making his final playoff run alongside Shaquille O’Neal.

Originally auctioned by the Lakers on Bryant’s jersey retirement night in 2017, the jersey hasn’t been publicly offered since.

It will debut at ComplexCon in Los Angeles on Oct. 3-4 before traveling through Asia. The auction closes Nov. 8 — an appropriate finish for one of the rarest pieces from Bryant’s No. 8 era.

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How Steve Kerr and the coaching staff are ‘reimagining' the Warriors' system originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area

The Warriors have been winners during Steve Kerr’s entire tenure as head coach. But after missing the playoffs in two of the past three seasons, the nine-time NBA champion is shaking up the system.

“I think we need to reimagine our way of operating, both on and off the court,” Kerr told NBC Sports Bay Area’s Kerith Burke on “Dubs Talk.” “I think you know we’ve had a formula here that has been wildly successful. Some of those values we have to get back to. I think we’ve got to tighten the ship a little bit, but I think we also have to change some things on the court.

“The game has changed quite a bit. It’s gotten faster, it’s gotten more spread out. I think how we practice and how we teach the players, film sessions, walkthroughs, detail. We’re undergoing some major changes in that regard, and that’s my message to the team on Day 1.”

Beyond a shift in coaching and mindset, Kerr preached cleaning up the margins. Golden State was sloppy with the basketball last season, ranking No. 28 in turnovers per game, a number that starts with the veterans.

Although Kerr allowed his leaders Steph Curry and Draymond Green to be loose with the ball in years past, he emphasized cutting down on their giveaways. While the turnovers were a consistent issue, the Warriors ranked middle of the pack in offensive rebounds with 11.4 per game, a mark Kerr clearly wants to build off of.

“It’s going to feel different,” Kerr said. “It’s going to look different. And what I’m hoping is that attention to detail and the spacing and the cutting that we’re implementing will clear up some of the pictures for our players and help us reduce our turnovers, get more offensive rebounds, and win the game in the margins. Because frankly, last year, we didn’t do that and we have to do so.”

Improvements in either category could boost the Warriors’ record in close contests. Golden State ranked 23^rd in clutch-time win percentage last year, going 17-22 (43.6 percent) in 39 such games.

The coaching staff clearly envisions a new philosophy, from the film room to concepts in practice, and those changes seem to be necessary if the Warriors are to bounce back from a disappointing 2025-26 NBA season.

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Back in May, I asked if the end of the tanking era would usher in minutes for Justin Champagnie. My thinking on Champagnie hasn’t changed, but my answer has. Which is to say, I still think Champagnie is an average NBA player, and that if the Wizards hold an open competition for forward minutes, he might just take minutes from more ballyhooed teammates.

But while the Brian Keefe and Will Dawkins say they’re excited about the internal competition at training camp, I suspect it’s going to be managed competition. Meaning, they already know who they want to get the bulk of the minutes, and the real competition will be about who starts vs. comes off the bench, and who gets 28 minutes and who gets 20.

Even with the team trying to win games this season, my guess is that Champagnie will be the odd man out — in part because the team cannot lose sight of their long-term goal of contending for a championship in the next few years rather than striving to make the playoffs.

With any luck, several of the Wizards youth — the guys they want to play ahead of Champagnie — will actually be better this season. It’s certainly possible that Bilal Coulibaly and Kyshawn George will be better, more productive players this season. Same for AJ Dybantsa. Barring injury, there’s zero chance Champagnie will take minutes from Anthony Davis, Alex Sarr, or DeAndre Ayton.

My guess is that after playing 1,300+ minutes each of the past two seasons, Champagnie will have a “break glass in case of emergency” role, at least to start the season. And I wouldn’t be shocked to see him end up in a trade package during the year. For me at least, it’d be fun to see him land with a team that could actually use what he does well.

That’s because what he does well is reasonably valuable. Specifically, he scores efficiently despite meh shooting from deep (just 31.9% last season), competes on the boards and defends. He shot over 60% on twos each of the past two seasons, and he avoids turnovers.

He gives up some size, and he doesn’t do anything great, which is why he went undrafted, and the Wizards would prefer to play his younger, bigger, more skilled, and more athletic teammates — even if they’re not better this season.

This is the final stop in this year’s annual Statistical Doppelganger Machine series. As mentioned previously, the machine runs a player season (in this case Champagnie from last season) through an algorithm that compares that player’s statistical production to every other player season since 1977-78 and then tells me which were “most similar.” The algorithm uses 14 different bits of information, including the usual stats, age, and playing time. While position is not a factor, players tend to generate comps from a similar position.

To the comps…

I interrupt before getting started to note that as is sometimes the case, Champagnie’s top comp for his 2025-26 season is himself from the 2024-25 season. By my reckoning, Champagnie was actually slightly better in 2024-25 than 2025-26 (114 PPA to 105), but the category by category production was pretty consistent. This is interesting — consecutive seasons totaling more than 2,600 minutes with average-plus production. If I was in the front office of another team, and I needed a rotational forward, I’d be trying to pry Champagnie from the Wizards on the cheap.

To the comps, part two:

1. Patrick Patterson | 2013-14 | Sacramento Kings and Toronto Raptors | Age: 24 — Patterson was a talented forward who had an array of injury problems. He played for five teams over nine seasons, even defying the “oft-injured” label a few times — 82 games at 28 years old, 81 at 25, 79 at 26. His best full season was probably 2014-15 — a 122 PPA in 81 games mostly off the bench.
2. Jake Layman | 2018-19 | Portland Trail Blazers | Age: 24 — I have only vague memories of Layman, and for good reason. He didn’t play a ton or for long — six seasons with Portland and Minnesota. This was his best season (95 PPA over 71 games and 1,327 minutes), his health and production declined, and he was finished at 27.
3. Omari Spellman | 2019-20 | Golden State Warriors | Age: 22 — This was Spellman’s second and final NBA season. He wasn’t bad — 83 PPA as a rookie with the Atlanta Hawks, and a 90 with the Warriors in this comp season. Even with low minutes (805 as a rookie and 886 in year two), that’s usually a profile that builds towards a bigger role. Instead, the Hawks dumped him to the Warriors, the Warriors lumped him into the mega deal that landed Andrew Wiggins and D’Angelo Russell, the Minnesota Timberwolves dumped him to the New York Knicks, and the Knicks waived him. Spellman’s built a good career playing overseas ever since.
4. Dorell Wright | 2009-10 | Miami Heat | Age: 24 — This was the start of the best stretch of Wright’s career. He posted a 97 PPA in this comp season, followed by a 118 (playing all 82 games) for Golden State, a 138 PPA the next season, and then a 113 with Philadelphia at age 27. His production declined from there.
5. Santi Aldama | 2022-23 | Memphis Grizzlies | Age: 22 — This comp is super interesting to me. I’ve liked Aldama as a player and thought his reputation was accelerating past his reality. Through five seasons, I have him with three that rated average or better with a peak PPA of 111 in 2024-25. He has another almost average year (97 PPA at age 23). While I suspect few would agree, there’s a case to be made that Champagnie is at least as productive as Aldama, if not better.

The honorable mentions are a mix of useful role players — several of whom fit a “tough-as-nails” mold like Champagnie seems to. The list includes: Kelenna Azubuike, Jae Crowder, Tari Eason (age 21), and Caleb Martin. No one who’s going to transform a franchise, but useful players in the right role on a good team.

My hope for Champagnie is that he gets a chance somewhere. I don’t think it’ll be in Washington, but perhaps he can be part of a trade that will net the Wizards something they need while getting him minutes with a team that can use him.

The GQ Hype article that spotlights Spurs guards Stephon Castle and Dylan Harper has left some fans wondering if Harper will be comfortable coming off the bench this season. In the article, Harper comments that he is going to be this season’s Sixth Man of the Year. Castle immediately tells Harper he will not. When pressed by interviewer Cam Wolf on whether he thinks he will even be coming off the bench, Harper replies,

“What’s the political answer here? I’m going to do whatever the team needs me to do, man. If that’s come off the bench….That’s crazy. F*ck no. I ain’t coming off no bench.”

Castle goads Harper adding,

“Bro, all you got to know is you going to be in the starting lineup. Be ready to hoop.”

Wolf goes on to say “Later in the conversation, Harper walks the Sixth Man thing back: “’ was lying,”‘he says. ‘I had a smile on my face.’

At Spurs Media Day on Monday, News 4 San Antonio Sports Director Don Harris asked Harper about the comment. The twenty-year-old guard continued to roll back the comments shared in the article.

Much has been made about Dylan Harper telling GQ that he's not coming off the bench. He told me, that was tongue in cheek. Here's Harper and Fox on who starts at point. pic.twitter.com/hGRVkiYdYv

— Don Harris (@DonHarris4) September 29, 2026

“Definitely some sarcasm into it, on the second part. But I feel I’ve showed that I’ve improved, that whatever the team needs me to do time and time again I feel like I’ve done it. So I mean, if it’s coming off the bench having to play that role, I’m totally fine with doing it because I did it last year.”

Harris then asked De’Aaron Fox how he as a two-time All-Star, max player can start while Harper needs more minutes to grow. Harris asked, “So what would you do if you were the head coach?” Of course, Fox responded responsibly stating, “I’m not the coach, it’s not my decision,” adding “We know we’re all going to play together. Obviously, we all don’t know what that’s going to look like, but we’re all talented…it makes us better as a team being able to share the floor together.”

Fox obviously has some years, some wisdom, and some experience at being asked tough questions. He handles the pressure extremely well, especially considering his struggles in the post season and the pundits shouting “trade him” in the offseason.

From the entire GQ article, it is clear that Castle and Harper have a tight friendship and rile each other up in a challenging and friendly way. But this is not the first time Harper has made comments (or been accused of making comments). His age and experience aside, it comes down to personality. Is he the type of player that will put his team first, or will his ego require more than a Spurs team designed on the ethic of players being “over themself” can provide?

For one, the idea of players being over themselves was generated by Pop. As Head Coach Mitch Johnson continues to make this team his own and step out of the shadow of the greatest NBA coach of all time, a dynamic in personalities may shirt.

Already we have seen how Victor Wembanyama differs from Tim Duncan, who differed from David Robinson. Each has paved their own way and shaped the team through their talent and personality.

In the same way, Castle and Harper are vastly different that Manu Ginobili and Tony Parker. There is a more vocalized ego in their swagger, something older Spurs fans have not seen yet.

The key to the success will be making it work for everybody involved — from the players to the coaching staff, through the front office and back to the families and significant others involved.

We all know the influence family can have on a player. Look no further than Kawhi Leonard and “Uncle Dennis” to see how some egos are groomed from the outside to ruin what is going on within the franchise.

That’s not to say Dylan Harper is getting bad advise or being bolstered in a way damaging to his career, but he does come from a family of successful players and coaches. Hopefully those voices are preaching patience, experience, and the opportunity for multiple championships.

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It wasn’t a lot of fun for Duke to play against Ty Jerome when he was at Virginia, but that guy was a winner. He understood Tony Bennett’s system perfectly and led his team brilliantly.

As it has turned out, he’s become valuable in the NBA too. He’s expected to start for the Memphis Grizzlies, where he’s now a teammate of a former Duke star and current NBA rookie, Cameron Boozer.

Here’s what Jerome says about Boozer, after working with the star rookie throughout the preseason: “I think Boozer has got to be one of the most mature 19-year-olds I’ve seen. On the court, off the court, feel for the game. His ability to shoot, pass, and dribble at that height is super impressive. I think he’s just going to impact winning.”

You think? That’s all he’s ever done. There’s no reason to think that’ll stop now.

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Warriors' Steve Kerr was ‘shocked' by Steph Curry's eye condition revelation originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area

Steve Kerr had noticed something about Warriors’ star Steph Curry for years. He just never knew what it actually was.

Curry recently told “People Magazine” he was diagnosed with keratoconus, a rare and progressive eye condition, back in 2018 — disclosing it with a joke about his eventual memoir title. Speaking with NBC Sports Bay Area’s Kerith Burke, Kerr was asked to react to the revelation and to Curry’s own line about the diagnosis.

“He said it would be ‘The Whole Time I Couldn’t See,'” Burke relayed to Kerr, asking what he made of Curry’s accomplishments as the greatest 3-point shooter in NBA history knowing he had been dealing with blurry vision.

“It’s funny, because over the years, I’ve seen him at times kind of squinting — either back at me in the huddle or on the court — and nobody ever came and told me, ‘Yeah, he’s got this eye condition,'” Kerr said. “I don’t think anybody really knew. So yeah, I was shocked when that story came out. But imagine how good he’d be if he could see straight.”

The numbers make Kerr’s shock understandable. It was actually former general manager Bob Myers, not Kerr, who first noticed Curry’s squinting on television broadcasts and urged him to get examined during the 2018-19 NBA season.

At the time of his diagnosis, Curry was already a two-time champion in the middle of a stretch where he averaged nearly 27 points per game on close to 50-percent shooting and 43 percent from three — performing at an MVP level while relying almost entirely on muscle memory to compensate for a condition that was actively distorting his vision.

Seven seasons removed from his diagnosis and treatment, Curry has been remarkably consistent, shooting 92.3 percent from the free-throw line and 40.3 percent from three since. He now manages the condition with biannual checkups and has worn corrective contacts throughout that stretch — meaning the version of Curry Warriors fans have watched break record after record was never actually seeing the court the way everyone assumed he was.

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BOSTON — Jayson Tatum spent part of his Media Day press conference on Monday recounting how much he learned from Paul George on his basketball journey. He saw George thriving with a similar build, so he pulled from George’s style and emulated his mannerisms. As he looked back on those childhood memories, he looked up and saw George (wearing the No. 13 he acquired in a trade from Ron Harper Jr.) awaiting his own interview. They embraced as George approached the podium.

“As you get older in this league, it’s a weird cycle where you come in as a young guy and you throw on this shield to go against your idols,” George said. “You carry this ultra-competitive spirit, and then when you get older and you become the veteran and the older guy, I feel more and more guys have appreciated what I’ve done in my game, that have taken a liking to my game, the more I’ve leaned into that, helping them become better versions of what I am. That’s been the case with JT, Brandon Miller … whatever I can do to help them.”

George enters his 17th NBA season focused on helping Tatum, while at times pulling from his newfound health to produce at the level he had prior to the string of injuries he dealt with in recent years. The Celtics also know he and free agent addition Mike Conley Jr. will prove invaluable as mentors for the team’s ascending talent. While many of them grew up, George battled with LeBron James in back-to-back Eastern Conference Finals with the Pacers, triumphantly returned from a gruesome broken leg and sported one of basketball’s signature shoes.

Alongside Kevin Durant, James and Kobe Bryant, George represented the superstar Tatum aspired to becoming. And he wasn’t the only one. When the Celtics acquired George in July, Jordan Walsh immediately attempted to contact George and work out. They did so several times, and Walsh already learned several moves and tips from the veteran that he plans to utilize this season while attempting to become more of a threat offensively.

“We all, us younger guys, grew up watching these guys play,” Walsh said. “It was funny, the other day I was talking about how LeBron got drafted the year I was born, and I got to play against him, which was crazy. So having moments like that where it’s like, somebody you watched growing up, who was a legend in the game and now you gotta change your lens and look at them as an opponent. It’s a special thing. It’s a gift, but it’s also something that comes with a little more respect and humility to go out there and compete against them.”

Walsh said Brown also took time to mentor younger players and given his age, Tatum and Brown served as inspirations for him as much as the oldest remaining players in the league. Tatum bridged that gap by inviting players, including Walsh, to work out in Los Angeles during the summer and begin the process of getting to know each other’s games. They golfed, went out to dinner and held workouts with many of the Celtics’ players, who joined the workouts when they could. Those continued late in the summer into September in Auerbach Center.

Payton Pritchard gravitated toward Conley, who chose Boston out of a desire to play for one of the league’s most historic franchises before his career ends. They bonded over their love for golf, with Conley beating Pritchard 2-1 during their LA matchups, and talked about ways Pritchard could learn from the veteran entering his 20th year. Conley, older than his head coach Mazzulla, believes he still has more left to contribute on the floor, and stressed that the Celtics can follow he and George’s urgency to win their first championship late in their career. Ultimately, his greatest contributions could come off the court. Pritchard plans to pick his brain constantly.

“It’s just about giving them more and more to their plate every day I can,” Conley said earlier this month. “If there’s something I see, I’m not quiet about it. I’m just gonna say, hey, do this next time or look at this option, how many options do you got out of that? Me and Payton work a lot one-on-one with our workouts before practice or before five-on-five we play on a hoop or whatever. We’re talking the game all the time, ‘I shoot a floater, you should shoot a mid-range shot,’ … I’m excited to get my hands on different opportunities and give my brain to as many of those guys that are willing to listen and willing to learn from any input I have.”

I know you’re tired of reading about Amen Thompson’s jump shot.

The Houston Rockets aren’t immune to the usual offseason fare. Everyone’s stronger, everyone’s got the right mindset, and most importantly, everyone has improved their jump shot.

Until the season starts and it becomes apparent that some players have regressed. How is that possible? They spent all summer posting video footage of themselves beating non-NBA players in empty gym drills!

Cynicism aside, there’s reason to be optimistic about the Rockets. Many of their key players are young, so improvement is expected. Just don’t go into 2026-27 expecting Thompson to morph into a knockdown three-point shooter.

What is a reasonable expectation for the youngster?

Rockets’ Thompson can improve his shot

The Gold Standard for a wing improving his jumper is Kawhi Leonard, but actually, Leonard’s shot was never broken at the NBA level. He shot 37.6% from three as a rookie, and rarely (if ever) dipped below league average.

Of course, he worked with Chip Engelland before his rookie year.

In college, Leonard shot 25.0% from three-point range. So, that’s at least a bit of Engelland proof of concept that’s directly applicable to Thompson.

Skeptics will point out that Leonard is an outlier case, and they will be 100.0% correct. It’s rare for such a poor shooter to make such an improvement.

But it does happen.

How about LeBron James? He shot 29.0% from deep as a rookie (granted, this was what most NBA historians know as the Yao Ming Era), and didn’t start consistently shooting around league average until his 9th NBA season (age 27).

Need a less GOAT-ish example? Tobias Harris hit 26.1% of his rookie season threes and wasn’t very good until his sixth year (age 25).

Here’s where Thompson is a weird case. At 21, he was an older rookie. So he’s heading into age 24 season, and it’ll be his fourth year.

The (very limited set of) data here doesn’t know what to do with that. James and Harris both took longer to find their stroke, but if age is the more relevant variable, Thompson is close to where Harris was. He’s also worked with Engelland, but most who’ve found success with him started earlier, whether in college or their first couple of NBA seasons.

So, long and short, this has been an exercise in futility. It’s unknowable. Some will also point out that Thompson’s jumper will be perhaps Engelland’s greatest challenge yet.

The reality is that Thompson is likely to never be a “good” shooter. The objective is to get him to a place where a wide-open three is a good shot for the Rockets’ offense. Here’s a (not very) fun fact: Thompson shot 21.6% from deep last year. When he was designated as wide open by NBA.com? Yup:

21.6%.

That’s the same number. This suggests that the vast majority of Thompson’s threes were wide open. That’s likely to hold in 2026-27, but if he could get that number up to around 27-28%, it would be indicative of real improvement and a reason for optimism:

Although unfortunately, not reason enough to stop writing about it.

Warriors training camp takeaways: Steve Kerr unveils team's new 5-Out offense originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area

LAIE, Hawaii – Warriors coach Steve Kerr described the first day of training for the 2026-27 NBA season on the campus of BYU-Hawaii as “good,” “spirited,” and “competitive.” 

The focus was installing new concepts defensively and offensively, naturally bringing a bit of chaos. After an early media day Monday morning, the Warriors flew to Hawaii and had a later practice Tuesday. While they did go live on Day 1, it was hardly an intense scrimmage. 

“It was controlled for all the live stuff,” Kerr said. “It was up and back maybe three times max. So it was controlled. We were trying to work on our transition defense, halfcourt execution.” 

Did anything specifically stand out to Kerr? 

“Nope,” he said. “Just a good, solid practice.” 

Yet there still was plenty to talk about. Here are three takeaways from the first day of Warriors training camp, which featured comments from Kerr, Al Horford and Steph Curry. 

5-Out offense 

The Warriors aren’t operating from a blank slate. This is Kerr’s 13th season as the team’s head coach. It’s Year 18 for Curry, and Year 15 for Green – all being in Golden State for both players. All three also appear rejuvenated in getting back to the drawing board. 

Tuesday’s practice was the first step in Kerr implementing a new offense. A major emphasis of his is having more of a 5-Out offense. Unfortunately for the Warriors, they already hit a bump in the road of their goal.

Kristaps Porziņģis’ ability to stretch the floor as a 3-point threat and be difference maker out of the post at 7-foot-2 is ideal in what Kerr wants to accomplish. The problem is, Porziņģis is nowhere near Warriors training camp. He did not travel to Hawaii, is out indefinitely to what the Warriors are calling a “health issue,” and Kerr is characterizing him as day-to-day once they come home from training camp. 

So, the Warriors are adjusting but not pivoting off their new philosophy. The goal is to get out on the perimeter and find actions that put pressure on the defense and give the Warriors as much of an advantage as possible in as many possessions as possible. 

The impetus in the Warriors’ shift is clear: The league has been changing and the Warriors can’t keep playing catch-up as a team that has missed the playoffs in four of the last seven seasons. 

“The evolution of the game, as it changes, if you don’t change with it, you’re going to fall behind,” Kerr said. “The league is filled with really smart people, coaches, analytics departments, young players who are as skilled as ever and you have to keep up with what’s happening. I think for the longest time, we played with two bigs, kind of played off the elbows. We didn’t play the five-out style that has kind of taken over the league, so over the last year or so, we’ve been, I would say, kind of leaning that way. 

“And this year, we’re really trying to hammer it home and create a system and a set of circumstances where our guys can make easier decisions.” 

As always, the Warriors’ offense goes as Curry goes. He has to be on board and in sync with Kerr’s adjustments. How does he view a five-out offense? 

“There’s a couple ways to think about it,” Curry said. “It’s a copycat league kind of mentality where a lot of teams that are trying to do it with different personnel, a lot more shooting bigs as threats that can make 5-Out become more of a problem. 

“But I think the biggest part for us is trying to make sure spots are interchangeable. So, no matter where you are on the court, you have options, and we’re all on the same page. We’ll see that a little bit more early in possessions, but I think it’s just a good way to get organized early in transition so that you have options and everybody’s a threat on the floor.” 

Center Rotation 

Next in line behind Porziņģis on the Warriors’ depth chart of centers is who he won a championship with in 2024 as a member of the Boston Celtics. Al Horford is back for his second season in a Warriors jersey, and the team will remain cautious in how to maximize his minutes and who he fits best next to. 

Ideally, Horford wouldn’t be the Warriors’ starting center. Kerr would like to play him 18 to 20 minutes after the 40-year-old averaged 21.5 minutes per game last season. In a perfect world, he would come off the bench, be a key part of the second unit and still be able to close certain games. 

But the unknown of Porziņģis’ availability could change the equation for Horford. If so, he and Draymond Green will have to be much better together this season. 

“I think Al’s great next to anybody, honestly,” Kerr said. “I think one of the things that we’re trying to do with the changes that we’re making are to give us more spacing for cutting angles, which would hopefully help a combination like Draymond and Al.” 

Green and Horford are two of the smartest players in the NBA. They’re great passing big men whose defense can change the outcome of games. Horford, who had a 36.1 3-point percentage last season, is a better shooter than Green, and the hope is a 5-Out offense can allow both of their best offensive qualities to shine. 

That isn’t how it went last season when the two shared the court. Horford and Green produced a minus-13.8 net rating together in their first year as teammates, including a lowly 99.3 offensive rating. Horford is confident they can succeed as a tandem, and knows there are areas he’d like to see improve. 

“I like the fact that him and I defensively, we seem to kind of feed off each other out there pretty well, and then on offense he’s such a smart player,” Horford said. “He’s always looking to make the right play, first of all, and a lot of the times I end up benefiting because I’m going to be open in certain spaces on the floor. So, it’s just being prepared to shoot the ball when he delivers. And then for me this year too, it’s just continuing to get familiar with him, with his passing and how he’s thinking. 

“I feel like he’s always two, three steps ahead with plays and everything. So, just really making sure that I’m trying to be in sync with him as quick as I can.”

Behind Porziņģis and Horford are Charles Bassey and Graham Ike. Neither are considered stretch big men. Their lack of being a threat from long distance doesn’t change any of the tweaks the Warriors are bringing in. 

And, Kerr isn’t shunning them for taking an open shot – at least until it’s time to nix that experiment. 

“I’m happy with open threes for both Ike and Bassey,” Kerr said. “Now, over time, you have to prove that it’s worth it. But both guys have worked hard on that, and I want them shooting those threes in camp and we’ll see where it goes.” 

Bassey did shoot 40.5 percent on 2.2 3-point attempts per game in the G League for the Santa Cruz Warriors last season, and though Graham Ike’s 34.8 3-point percentage in college on low volume doesn’t hint at a future threat from long distance, his 79.6 free throw percentage over his last three years is a strong indicator of good touch and the possibility of extending his range. 

Steph + Draymond Forever

The strongest statement Kerr made all day was regarding Green and his role on the Warriors. Let’s get one thing clear and out of the way: He isn’t coming out of the starting lineup. 

“The number one thing for me is that I’m going to keep Draymond and Steph together as much as possible,” Kerr said. “Those guys are still top of the league when it comes to offensive rating when they’re together. But like every season, we have new additions. We’re going to find the combinations that make the most sense for us beyond the Steph-Draymond level.” 

Even in an injury-filled season for Curry and a frustrating campaign for Green, the two continued to be the Warriors’ peanut butter and jelly. Numbers don’t lie, and the advanced stats saw Curry and Green put up a 117.7 offensive rating in 889 minutes together. Kerr isn’t splitting up those kinds of results, especially as Jimmy Butler rehabs a torn ACL. 

In so many ways they’re the opposite. In so many other ways, their chemistry is up there with the all-time greats. 

“Well, the plan is to play him with Steph,” Kerr said to a follow-up question. “So, if I bring Draymond off the bench, I’m also bringing Steph off the bench. I’m not comfortable telling Mike Dunleavy or Joe Lacob that I’m going to bring the two of them off the bench. Safe to say, they’ll both be starting. 

“I want to put those guys together, because all the tape work we did last year, all the analytics, they all show that when those two guys are together, they are still at the top of the league. And where the league has changed, it’s spacing. With what we did last year, what we learned from last year, yeah, there will be combinations that we’re going to find that we’re going to lean into when those guys are on the bench, and then the question becomes when one of them’s out, then what are we looking at? Those are all the things coaches have to figure out.” 

There will be changes seen and felt to start off the Warriors’ season. Curry and Green aren’t one of them.

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Why De'Anthony Melton's first healthy Warriors training camp is boon for team originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area

SAN FRANCISCO – In the weeks before Klay Thompson departed in July 2024, the Warriors were lining up potential replacements. None existed, so they opted for a tag-team approach, bringing in Buddy Hield and De’Anthony Melton.

Hield would deliver 3-point shooting a half-tier below Thompson, while Melton would bring the stellar perimeter defense offered by prime Klay. Results were mixed.

Hield was traded in February. Melton remains, but his two seasons with the Warriors have been spotty due to health issues that have limited his availability – beginning with NBA training camp.

That will change this season. For the first time in three years, Melton is coming off a summer not dedicated to recovery and rehabilitation. The 6-foot-3 guard spent the past two summers mending his back (2024) and strengthening his knee after ACL surgery (2025).

The summer of ’26 provided time for Melton to focus on his overall game, allowing much better odds of giving the Warriors the two-way contributor they visualized two years ago. His surgically repaired left knee feels “well,” he said this week, so there are no limitations.

“It’s a little different,” Melton said of his summer regimen. “But I think every year and every summer, I used to kind of go through not necessarily a rehab stage, but a time where you work on managing your body and making sure you’re reaching tip-top shape once the season rolls around. For me it was just more so just maintaining and getting strengthened in certain areas.”

A fully healthy Melton – he expects to play both sides of back-to-back sets – might be ready to join Stephen Curry to form potentially the strongest Golden State backcourt since Thompson.

“I’m excited for De’Anthony,” Warriors coach Steve Kerr told NBC Sports Bay Area in a recent conversation. “Last year, he had he had a great first two-thirds of the year. He was fantastic. And then, without Steph and Jimmy (Butler), we really had to rely too heavily on Melt and some of the other guys.”

After missing six weeks last season, Melton was activated Dec. 4 and spent his first 24 games coming off the bench with mixed results. His defense was solid, but his shooting was erratic even while scoring in double digits 15 times. After Curry was sidelined on Jan. 30, Melton’s efficiency nosedived. Over the rest of the season, he shot 39.1 percent from the field, including 28.9 percent from deep while playing through a sprained right thumb.

In addition, Melton too often dribbled into trouble, leading to the highest turnover rate of his eight-year NBA career. Clearly feeling an increased burden without Curry and Butler, Melton lapsed into numerous “hero ball” moments.

“With Steph out, I think Melt was trying to take on too much responsibility,” Kerr said.

Melton doesn’t disagree.

“I think going through those times, I was just trying to figure out the best ways for my team to kind of win honestly, to be in the best position,” Melton said this week. “Some of the instances where I had to stay aggressive, and at the same time the coaching staff was telling me to stay aggressive and try to create advantages.”

Finding the right partner to start alongside Curry in the backcourt is one of the vital elements to the Warriors having a chance for success this season. One option is Brandin Podziemski, hardly a conventional shooting guard. The other is Melton, who has Curry’s endorsement.

“He’s just versatile,” Curry said last season. “Defensively, he can guard on the ball, point of attack. He plays passing lanes. He’s just smart. Quick on his feet and has a crazy wingspan where he can be a pest out there.

“And then offensively, he’s a solid knock-down shooter. Can catch and shoot, but he’s one of the few that has a pace to him where when he puts the ball on the floor, he can create something. He’s a prototypical starting 2 guard and he’s played on good teams, so he knows what that level looks like. I’m happy that he’s healthy and able to do it for us.”

Melton, 28, might be healthier now than he was after that Jan. 7 win over the Milwaukee Bucks. The next step would be proving he can stay healthy through his first full Golden State training camp and maybe impressing the coaching staff enough to earn a starting role.

“Just to be able to start (camp) from the jump is definitely refreshing for me,” Melton said. “Just to get off to the year at a good start is important.”

On a training-camp roster with more questions than answers, Melton wants to be a staple. He’ll never be a five-time NBA All-Star like Thompson, but he has the goods to make things at least a little easier for Curry.

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Rui Hachimura moved on from the Lakers, and he’s hoping his fans do, too.

On his official Instagram account @blacksamurai, a clip of Hachimura gifting a Clippers jersey to a fan was posted. The fan originally was wearing Hachimura’s No. 28 Lakers jersey, but the forward asked the boy to swap it for a new Clippers jersey instead.

“This one looks way cooler,” Hachimura said of the Clippers’ threads. “Everyone, please go buy the Clippers jersey.”

Rui Hachimura gifts a young fan a Clippers jersey to replace his Lakers one pic.twitter.com/mo0pT5N5qm

— Farbod Esnaashari (@Farbod_E) September 29, 2026

Hachimura signed a two-year, $28 million deal with the Clippers in July. He spent parts of four seasons with the Lakers and averaged 11.5 points and 3.3 rebounds per game. He shot 51.4% overall and 44.3% from 3-point range in 2025-26.

Hachimura joins the crosstown rivals at a dark time in the franchise’s history.

The Clippers were stripped of five first-round picks, fined $30 million, and owner Steve Ballmer and president of basketball operations Lawrence Frank face suspensions. It’s a trying time for an organization that has never quite stepped out of the Lakers’ shadow.

The 2026-27 campaign will be a key opportunity for the organization to win fans back after the summer’s biggest scandal.

Interim president of basketball operations Trent Redden issued an apology from the team at Clippers media day Monday.

“Our fans deserve to hear from us before this, and for that we’re sorry,” Redden said Monday. “We’ve been listening to the thoughts, the concerns and feeling the emotions of our fan base. They mean everything to us. … We hope to fulfill our promises to them, to build their trust and move forward through this time.

“This franchise often has done its best work with its back against the wall … We hope to represent our fans the same way we always have in dark times, by coming out fighting.”

The Clippers are attempting to retain their fan base, but it appears Hachimura is hoping to add Lakers fans to the group ahead of his inaugural season with the team.

Dub Nation, the Golden State Warriors went 0-2 against the Philadelphia 76ers last season. That Philly team had a young, springy energy through Tyrese Maxey and the rookie V.J. Edgecombe. Those two dudes were a two-headed monster that took turns giving the Warriors fits. Steph Curry missed both contests, and former MVP Joel Embiid played in only one, but regardless it was clear that Philly was a force to be reckoned with.

This year? They have suddenly morphed into the modern-day Monstarz, with the additions of LeBron James and Jaylen Brown. Damn.

Philly pried the Finals MVP out of Boston in July. A few weeks later, King James decided the last chapter of his career would happen right back in the conference where he spent most of it. The Eastern Conference was his house for a decade and a half, and he ran it like a landlord who changes the locks whenever he feels like it. LeBron spent two stints in Cleveland and four years in Miami pushing that whole conference around, and he made eight straight Finals out of the East while he was at it. He was already in the greatest-of-all-time conversation before he ever put on a Lakers jersey in 2018.

The biggest knock on him for 20 years has been that he runs off to build superteams. So what does he do at 41? He walks into what might be the deepest roster he’s ever had, which is saying something for a guy who played on some damn good Cleveland, Miami, and L.A. rosters.

Look at who he’s sharing the floor with! Maxey is an All-Star and Edgecombe is coming for everybody’s lunch. Embiid is a premier center when his body cooperates, and now Brown is there too, simmering with motivation after being dumped by the Celtics.

LeBron: Top 10 player of all time
Embiid: MVP-caliber player
Maxey: 28ppg last season
Brown: 29ppg last season, champ, F-MVP

The worst of the starting five is a Edgecomb, who averaged 16/6/4 as a rookie last season.

Is this not one of the super-est teams of all time? https://t.co/E2Wehq6yu4

— Jim Park🏀🌌 (@Sheridanblog) September 28, 2026

LeBron is the headline, but I keep coming back to Brown, because none of this happens without that trade. Warriors fans know Brown well from the 2022 Finals, when he gave Golden State fits in a series the Dubs won in six. He spent his entire career on the other side of that rivalry, and now he’s wearing their colors. Josh Grieb at Liberty Ballers put it in wrestling terms, which might be the only language that fits:

The excitement around James joining the Sixers and his first day at the team’s practice facility nearly overshadowed the first major domino that brought him here in the first place. While it wasn’t Jaylen Brown’s first time talking to the Philadelphia media, it was also his first time wearing a Sixers uniform. Frankly, it was weird to see a guy who spent the first 10 years of his career terrorizing the Sixers as a member of the Boston Celtics put on the other team’s jersey.

It didn’t feel any more real when VJ Edgecombe crashed his press conference, prompting Brown to jokingly tell him to get his ass out of there like they had been teammates for years. I think I finally understand how people felt when Hulk Hogan joined the nWo.

Lebron describing his teammates and his role with the 76ers:

Embiid: Beast
Jaylen: Motivated
Maxey: Lightning
VJ: Star
His role: Swiss Army knife pic.twitter.com/D9wHTjbpzK

— Oh No He Didn't (@ohnohedidnt24) September 28, 2026

So here’s LeBron at 41, and the Atlantic Division rivalries are already lined up waiting for him. Boston is the obvious one: a bitter rivalry just got a defector, and Brown gets to hear what the Garden sounds like when it boos him. The Knicks are the defending champs after winning their first title in over 50 years, and if LeBron is the guy who ends that title defense, he goes straight to the top of New York’s villain list. I’d bet he’d love every second of it. Toronto has Kawhi Leonard now, so we get Bron and Kawhi again more than a decade after their back-to-back Spurs-Heat Finals. Brooklyn is a rest night.

And through all of this, Philadelphia is still waiting on its first championship since 1983.

For the Warriors, the best part of this summer happened when LeBron left the West. That’s one less obstacle in the Western bracket, and the Dubs remember exactly what that obstacle looked like when the Lakers knocked them out in the 2023 conference semis. Now Steph is on the other coast, LeBron is a guy he sees twice a year, and there’s only one way that turns into a series.

That way would be a Finals. Steph and LeBron met in four straight of them from 2015 to 2018, and nobody thought we’d get a fifth.

But we’ve seen plenty of superteams look great on paper and never come together, whether because of chemistry or injuries. ESPN’s Sixers preview hit this nail on the head:

Embiid’s health will be monitored, as it has been the past few years. So will James’, as he’s averaged an admirable 67 games the past three years as he plays well into his 40s. Much regular-season weight will be placed on a new acquisition in Brown, a second-year emerging star in Edgecombe and a franchise mainstay in Maxey.

Will there be enough continuity through the first six months to cash in during the playoffs? Recent history says it takes a couple of years for talent to coalesce, but do the 76ers have that kind of time with James and Embiid? James’ personal history says by Year 2, his teams are ready to win titles. It seems, though, that the 76ers are loaded up for this June, not next June.

“The East is bully ball.” 🔥

After eight seasons out West, LeBron James breaks down the challenge ahead as he returns to the East with Philadelphia in search of his 10th Eastern Conference crown! pic.twitter.com/8fQSHaiz2B

— NBA TV (@NBATV) September 28, 2026

Circle Philly on the calendar, Dub Nation. It’s two games in the regular season, and maybe, just maybe, a preview of one last Steph-LeBron series.

When the Nets added Moritz Wagner, they didn’t get a needed shot-blocker.

But they did get a veteran backup to Day’Ron Sharpe. And a different look from any center they’ve had in years.

And maybe, just maybe, an ace recruiter for their next star.

Wagner — signed away from the Magic, and younger brother Franz — isn’t going to replace the departed Nic Claxton’s rim protection. He can’t.

But he’s going to be a defensive disruptor, playing a style under Jordi Fernández that may fit his skills better than Orlando’s — which relied on elite athleticism and rebounding — ever did.

“I’ll be honest with you, I love this. I want to be disruptive. I want to be active on the ball,” Wagner, 29, said. “I don’t think it’s a secret — I’ve been in the league eight years — I’m not a shot-blocker. I contest shots and I give it my all, but I’m not Anthony Davis. I’m not going to beat people up on the rim.

“So I like to be aggressive early, and I want to be disruptive and be able to make people speed up and take charges and stuff like that. So I’m actually extremely excited about that stuff because it plays a little more towards my strength. [Fernández] is super aggressive at the ball screen and stuff like that. We have all these quick guards, they’ll help you to eat up space. So it’s been super fun so far.”

It’s easy for Wagner to enjoy his time with rebuilding Brooklyn now, before the losses start. But while he’ll miss his brother, whose tenure in Orlando is going to be watched carefully all season,Wagner will be a fit both schematically and culturally.

The Nets struggled defensively even before dealing Claxton. Now they’re even more bereft of rim protection. But Fernández wants to play up at the level and be more aggressive further upcourt to force turnovers, unlike Orlando, which defended the rim and dominated the glass.

The Nets inked Wagner to a two-year, $19 million deal this summer understanding that he’s not going to be a shot-blocker, but a shotmaker, and a vocal defender.

For his part, Fernández doesn’t anticipate changing schemes but leaning even further into what the Nets do.

“No, the reality is we have an identity defensively and we’re going to stick with what we believe works. … Then the more you grow, the more you can expand your coverages,” Fernández said. “So we’re going to be an aggressive team on both ends of the floor.”

Wagner should also feel comfortable living in New York.

He’s already been doing it.

“I’ve always loved New York. I love that I get an opportunity to play here, and at a point where this organization is trying to make the next steps to win. I’m excited to be here,” Wagner said.

“I’ve spent a lot of time in New York. This is somewhat of a home to me in America just because it reminds me a lot of where I’m from. Brooklyn is as close as it gets in the U.S. to Berlin. So I’m not necessarily new here. … I take the subway all the time. I love the subway. It’s so convenient, cheap when you go into Manhattan. So yeah, I’ve actually lived here for quite some time. So yeah, I love Brooklyn. I love New York.”

His younger brother seemingly does as well. But just how much?

The elephant in the room is whether one Wagner could help recruit the other.

To date, the whole of the ill-fitting Franz Wagner-Paolo Banchero duo has been less than the sum of its parts. If Magic GM Jeff Weltman decides to break them up, the Nets could try to get the brothers back together.

Franz spoke Monday about missing his older brother already, never having played an NBA game without him as a teammate.

“It’s a work in progress. He spent three weeks down here in Orlando, it’s definitely been a little weird being alone at the house, to work [out] alone and stuff like that. Obviously it’s bittersweet,” Franz said. “I love playing with my brother, we shared a lot of cool memories here in Orlando together.”

The Knicks had a special visitor Tuesday.

NBA legend Rajon Rondo was a guest at the first official practice of the season.

Jalen Brunson, now a championship-winning point guard, has recently built a relationship with the two-time champion point guard and potential Hall of Famer.

“I got to talk to him, got to really get to know him this summer,” Brunson said. “I definitely watched him. He was just so creative and someone who was innovative in the way they play basketball.

“Definitely an icon when I was younger. So it was really cool to get to know him and his family.”

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New Knicks center Andre Drummond was on the other side of the team’s rivalry with the 76ers the past two years.

He remembers vividly just how much Knicks fans took over the Philadelphia arena during the second round, when the Knicks swept the 76ers.

“It was crazy,” Drummond said Tuesday. “It felt like an away game the whole series. They came down and took over the entire arena.

“Crazy seeing some of the fans from [Philadelphia] even wearing Knicks jerseys, too, so the Knicks fanbase is just far and wide. It doesn’t matter where you are in the world. It’s the basketball Mecca, so they did what they were supposed to do.”

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Two of the biggest moves this offseason were LeBron James signing with the 76ers and Giannis Antetokounmpo being traded to the Heat.

Both praised the Knicks — and specifically, Brunson — at their respective Media Days on Monday.

“I really do appreciate it and I respect the hell out of them,” Brunson said. “It’s honestly really cool, and it’s a sign of respect. To hear that from those guys, I really do appreciate it. It’s just like a lot of things — when you hear praise, when you hear negativity, it has to go through one ear and out the other. You gotta continue to be the best version of yourself or people are gonna pass you. I really do appreciate it, it shows where I’ve grown, but still got a lot of work to do.”