As everyone already knew before the game, the Knicks beat the Nets.

New York 15, Brooklyn 0. Sheesh…

Here’s the latest from the only people that play meaningful basketball in New York’s five boroughs.

Mike Brown

On the Knicks’ bench performance against Brooklyn:

“Our bench was fantastic. I thought Landry came off and gave us a big lift on both ends of the floor. Jordan as well. And then Tyler — I thought Tyler’s minutes were tremendous. He did a fantastic job running the team, getting us some easy looks, and then he was solid defensively.”

On searching for a lineup combination to stop Brooklyn’s momentum:

“When we went into a little funk was at the beginning of the second. Us not scoring gave [Brooklyn] a little hope because they were able to shrink that lead and tie it up, even take the lead. When you give a young team confidence, now it’s hard to turn the water off … So I just started searching at that point and went to Tyler, went to Landry, tried JC, and then we found a group that caught a little groove and helped us take the lead back and create separation.”

On Jordan Clarkson accepting a reduced role and being an exceptional teammate:

“You have a veteran that’s been there, done that. and he’s willing to accept the role that most guys wouldn’t accept – even guys younger that haven’t proved as much as he’s proven in this league. And he’s willing to accept it. So, in my opinion, if he’s willing to accept it, which is what he did last year, and still try to uplift everybody, connect everybody while he’s going through what he’s going through, then everybody else should. That’s that’s the ultimate team player, I will say this about JC. I’ve been around some good teammates. He’s got to be the best. He is the definition of ultimate pro.”

On Clarkson’s place in the rotation:

“A lot of (his minutes) are based on the feel.”

On Mikal Bridges’ early-season struggles and what he needs to do to regain his form:

“Yeah, he’s just got to keep playing. Everybody goes through those ups and downs throughout the course of the season, and obviously, it’s the beginning of the season right now, so he’s got to find his way. Not just with him but with everybody, when you’re in a funk you gotta find one or two things to hold your hat on. Mikal is one of the best runners in the NBA.

“In both directions – offensively and defensively. So he’s just got to try to hang his hat on that as well as his cutting and trying to do the other little things – rebounding and driving and touching the paint and spraying it. Then this shot will come eventually.”

On his confidence that Bridges will eventually rediscover his shooting touch:

“It’s a matter of time in my opinion, before Mikal gets going.”

On not penalizing players, including Alavarado, for missing games because of injuries:

“I try not to take a guy out [of his rotation spot] due to injury and the reality is Jose got hurt.”

On his conversation with Jose Alvarado and Tyler Kolek about the backup point guard rotation:

“Jose got hurt, and Tyler gave us some good minutes. But at the end of the day, I sat them both down and I told them, ‘Hey, Jose, you’re our backup because you ended the season as our backup.’

“Both you guys helped us win last year. Jose in the finals, and Tyler in the Cup final. Both you guys got to be ready because a change can happen anytime.”

On Karl-Anthony Towns’ increased playmaking responsibilities and turnovers:

“KAT’s touches are going up, but his turnovers have gone up. KAT is a load making plays with the basketball. He’s just gotta finish the play. And not get it deflected or turn it over.”

On the Knicks attempting too many risky passes and Towns’ offensive fouls:

“Obviously, they have to do better [with the turnovers] and we talked about it. We will continue to talk about it. We’ve tried to make the home run pass. That’s happened a few times. And obviously some turnovers from KAT are offensive fouls. He’s got to be better in that area. But for the most part, we have to keep trying to hit singles as opposed to triples and home runs.”

On preferring dead-ball turnovers to mistakes that lead to fast breaks:

“Obviously, you don’t want your opponent to have the opportunity to get out on the break, so if it’s a situation where we have a chance to get back or the ball is dead, I’d prefer that. We’ve had some turnovers, like [with] Philly in the first half, it felt like we paid the price for it. So to try to just control that a little better at times will help us. But we’d rather have our defense set up than not.”

Karl-Anthony Towns

On making better use of his increased touches and playmaking responsibilities:

“I just care about wins. So I gotta do better, making sure with that time [holding onto the ball] and translating it to more wins.”

Mikal Bridges

On the need for keeping the Knicks’ offense moving:

“I think we just all gotta be together, figure it out. Things just can’t get stagnant, and just gotta keep moving.”

Josh Hart

On Jordan Clarkson accepting a smaller role to help the Knicks win:

“I think it shows his character more than anything else. He’s someone that if he was on a different team, he could play 20, 25 minutes every night. He could score double digits. He could be that spark, that microwave off the bench. And he’s here. He was willing to sacrifice and take a smaller role, be a part of something bigger than himself. So it shows its character.

“It shows his professionalism. To be able to go out and do those things. And when he’s not doing it, he’s out there coaching, not on the court, he’s coaching guys up, talking to them, letting them know what he sees. So he’s the ultimate professional. He’s someone that you want on your team. And whenever he’s given an opportunity, he’ll go out and play well.”

On the Knicks finally increasing their pace in the fourth quarter against Brooklyn:

“We finally played fast, got stops. We’ve been playing very slow, very stagnant. We finally got out, we ran and we got good looks.”

On why the Knicks’ strong fourth quarter against Brooklyn did not erase their earlier problems:

“No. No, the issues are still there. That [fourth quarter] doesn’t erase the problem or erase the issue. So you gotta figure that out and get better.”

On the Knicks’ offensive struggles persisting despite their victory over the Nets:

“The issues are still there. I think defensively, we were solid. I think this year, for the most part, our defense has been pretty good. Obviously there have been some lapses. … But our offense has to get in a better flow, and that’s kind of what’s holding us back right now. So a win doesn’t erase the problem or erase the issues. We got to figure those out and get better.”

On the contributions of the Knicks’ reserves against Brooklyn:

“We talked about [Clarkson] earlier, Landry (Shamet), I mean, he had big threes. That third quarter kept us in it. Jose (Alvarado) played well. Ty (Kolek) played well. [Andre Drummond], I think he had to win like nine rebounds, ten rebounds in, like, 11 or 12 minutes. It shows you the depth that we have, that it could be anybody’s night on any given night.”

Tyler Kolek

On Mike Brown’s confidence in him and his willingness to use different players:

“I think it shows his (Brown’s) confidence in me. I think he has confidence in every game on the roster. As he’s shown, he’ll throw any guy in at any time, to do the spark.”

Landry Shamet

On Mike Brown’s willingness to confront the Knicks’ problems directly:

“We have to be real with ourselves, and Mike’s great with that, assessing things in film, calls it as it is. Our group’s great with that. We all understand that by no means — we’re not taking this as any potential fool’s gold. Like I said, the whole goal right now is to continue to get better, and we want to do that. So that’s the thought process.”

On his early experiences playing against Jordan Clarkson:

“When I was younger, my only thought of him was that he was really hard to guard and it felt like he always went at me. I used to hate it. He’d score and talk a little s—.”

On Clarkson’s team-first attitude and willingness to accept substitutions:

“Knowing him now, knowing who he is, it’s not crazy. The guy just wants to win. He wants to do whatever he can for this group, his teammates. He’ll play a stint out there for two minutes and get subbed out. A lot of guys in the NBA, the reality is, if they get subbed, they’re pissed. The whole thing. He never has any of those moments.”

OG Anunoby

On the physical toll of the Knicks’ championship run:

“We definitely played until June last season and I think everyone still feels it.”

Jordan Clarkson

On choosing No. 00:

“When I got to Utah, I was trying to think of a number. The only player I remembered as a kid who played for the Jazz (whose number wasn’t retired) was Greg Ostertag. So, when I got to New York, I kept it.”

LOS ANGELES — Luka Dončić earned a standing ovation from the Los Angeles Lakers fans before going on to beat the Miami Heat 138-117 at Crypto.com Arena on Monday, Nov. 2.

Dončić has beocme the early favorite for regular season MVP as the NBA’s leader in scoring average (38.3) and 3-pointers made per game (5.9).

The Slovenian point guard is known for his offensive prowess and his ability to score. It’s also what makes the Lakers a threat in the Western Conference.

He finished with 42 points, 13 assists and seven rebounds against the Heat on Nov. 2.

More: Heat defense under scrutiny after Lakers rout

Lakers coch JJ Redick praised Dončić’s offensive dominance on several occasions in recent weeks, referring to him as a "showman" and a "supernova" while also comparing his rhythm on the court to a theatrical stage.

"He's just making tough shots; averaging 38 points is not easy in this league," Miami Heat center Bam Adebayo said. "He's making tough shots and you just tip your hat off to him."

The two-time scoring champion is averaging 29.3 points per game for his career, which places him third all-time behind Michael Jordan and Wilt Chamberlain. Both players averaged 30.1 ppg for their respective careers.

Are Lakers too dependent on Luka Dončić’s offense?

Dončić has propelled the Lakers to a fast start this season, and his play on Monday was no different. He scored 16 points as Los Angeles led Miami 37-30 in the first quarter.

Dončić is averaging 15 points in the opening quarter, and has scored at least 13 in all but one game this season.

When the six-time All-NBA player is hot, so are the Lakers.

The Lakers have outscored opponents by 113 points when Dončić is on the court during the seven games he's played this season, according to StatMuse.

When Dončić isn't on the floor, things can get tricky for Redick.

Los Angeles’ bench nearly blew a 16-point lead with 1:43 left in the fourth quarter on Sunday against the Toronto Raptors.

The Raptors cut the Lakers’ lead to make it a five-point game. Toronto scored 11 points in 40 seconds and forced Redick to put Dončić and Austin Reaves back into the game and help secure the victory.

On Monday, Dončić and the Lakers produced 111 points, the team’s highest-scoring point total through three quarters this season. This time, the Lakers left very little room for mistakes and refused to give up the lead in the final frame.

Dončić’s ability to score isn’t the only benefit of having him on the court.

Even if Dončić had a low-scoring night, he will always remain a threat that will keep defenses focused on him. It does free up his teammates for opportunities, who can also benefit from his playmaking and his ability to draw a double team.

That was the case Monday, as the Heat applied double-team looks on Dončić.

"I think at the beginning of the season we didn’t execute well with the double team, but today I think we improved a lot," Dončić said. "Everybody was in the right spots, so it's not just me. 

"It’s everybody, just to be in the right spot and being aggressive and shooting with confidence."

Lakers forward Ziaire Williams has been able to benefit from some of the open looks that come with sharing the floor with Dončić.

"Very easy looks," Williams said. "Way easier than they've been in the past. They're sending two (players) to Luka and two at (Reaves) every time."

Williams finished with nine points.

Can Austin Reaves carry offense with Dončić?

Reaves has proven he can be a high-efficiency volume scorer, but he is less likely to thrive without Dončić on the court.

If Dončić were unavailable, opposing game plans would focus on Reaves and he would be challenged by teams' toughest defenders.

Beyond Reaves (23.1 ppg), the Lakers would have to rely on center Walker Kessler (14.3) as a third-scoring option.

Williams (11.3) and Collin Sexton (10.3) could also be options, but neither would be able to guarantee similar production to Dončić on a nightly basis.

Dončić remains the Lakers' best option.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Luka Dončić's offense is carrying Lakers. Is LA too dependent on its 'showman'?

The Atlanta Hawks continued their mini road-trip on Monday night, picking up a 108-104 victory against the Indiana Pacers. Nickeil Alexander-Walker scored 34 points, tying a career-best nine three-pointers in the process. Lu Dort added 14 points for Atlanta. For the Pacers, Jay Huff led with 22 points with Quenton Jackson adding 20 points.

The big story of this game could only be the injuries/absences. The following players were either injured or rested last night for the Pacers (who were on the second night of a back-to-back): Tyrese Haliburton, Paskal Siakam, Ivica Zubac, Aaron Nesmith, Andrew Nembhard, Obi Toppin, Kelly Oubre, and TJ McConnell, to name but a few, leaving the Pacers with just six available bodies.

NBA dot com’s summary of this game paints quite a picture when it comes to the Pacers absences and who was available:

“The players who sat out have a combined salary of about $193 million, while those on the court make about $15 million.”

For the Hawks, Jalen Johnson was sidelined in this game after the ankle tweak in New Orleans, while Jock Landale also missed out. In Johnson’s place, Lu Dort would start. Kingston Flemings was also absent due to a one game league suspension following an elbow in New Orleans.

If one is to be realistic about the situation that presented itself for Atlanta last night, it’s hard to conceive any situation where the Hawks should have work excessively hard or be in any position where this game is realistic doubt. But that’s exactly where the Hawks found themselves when it came to clutch time.

At several points in this game the Hawks established secure double-digit leads — 14 points, 15 points — in the second and third quarters. And in both instances, the Pacers pegged them back. A lack of size inside meant that when the Pacers found Huff, they also found a recipe that worked inside and led to consecutive baskets which wiped the lead in the second quarter for a spell.

In the third quarter, the Hawks shot 28% from the field, and then went on a nearly four minute field goal drought in the fourth quarter down the stretch, with Onyeka Okongwu’s hook fortunate to drop to give the Hawks a secure four-point lead with 10 seconds remaining.

With a second left and a good contest, it was pretty desperate stuff for the Hawks but they finally got their much needed field goal, and the Pacers’ juice finally ran out.

This Okongwu basket was also a rare example of the Hawks getting a basket in the paint, scoring just 26 points in the paint, only 10 of which came in the second half.

The Hawks found success early shooting the three, and fell flat shooting inside the arc, and decided the strategy was to just hoist threes where possible as players such as Alexander-Walker (nine threes), Corey Kispert (four threes in the first half) and Lu Dort (4-of-6 from three) found fortune outside. In the end, the Hawks shot 23-of-51 from three, and it’s the only reason they won this game. Atlanta shot 45% from three and 38% from the field.

Hawks head coach Quin Snyder praised the quality of the win despite acknowledging the Hawks were not at their best at the rim while missing players themselves

“It’s a really good win,” said Snyder postgame. “We knew we were going to be in a dogfight kind of game. Huff gives him size and rim protection. We weren’t very good at the rim, and they made plays. We got a 10/12-point lead at one point, that’s when you hopefully have a chance to break the game open and we were never able to do that. At this point in the year, the way every team is kind of growing, hopefully, the Pacers can get healthy. That’s really hard. We had a little bit of that tonight with not having Jalen, Jock, and Kingston. We missed a lot of layups, and some of that was because we were playing against a team who had size. Good to get out of here with a win, all wins are good. These are the type of games, close games, that help you get better.”

I couldn’t disagree more with the general sentiment here that this was a ‘good win’. While all wins ultimately add to the Hawks’ record, so from that point of view they’re ‘equal’ in that they all add a ‘+1,’ not all victories are equal in how they’re made, and not all victories are ‘good.’

For example, how would you compare the recent victory against the Cleveland Cavaliers with this victory? Or the absolute drumming of Charlotte earlier in the season? Yes, they all added one win to the Hawks’ record, but the perception around them and how the Hawks performed are completely different.

Adding to that, while the loss of Johnson, Flemings, and Landale in this game are note worthy, Snyder has no leg to stand on by mentioning that the Hawks missed these players while Indiana was missing all who they were missing.

With respect to the ‘Super 6’ as they were dubbed by the Indiana broadcast (and there’s lots of good things to say about those six players), the Hawks — even without those three players — have so much more quality on paper of those who were available that this should never have been a close game. Not to mention depth; the Hawks ran out — almost on purpose, it felt — a deeper rotation than normal. Some of that accounts for injuries/absences, so there were minutes for Asa Newell and Zuby Ejiofor in the front-court, but the likes of Kispert and RayJ Dennis also got real rotation minutes.

Just to add further insult to the embarrassment of riches that were in Atlanta’s favor, five of those six Pacers players played real rotation minutes against Brooklyn on Sunday, and were tasked with playing — in most cases — 40-plus minutes with little time to rest.

The Pacers deserve a lot of credit for how close they brought this game, because they had absolutely no right to be anywhere close to winning this game. Everything that was stacked against them should have resulted in a double-digit loss at the bare minimum.

But plays from Huff on both ends of the floor, energy from Kobe Brown coming off the bench, the tenacity of Braden Smith (who I thought was excellent) kept the Pacers close enough at times to make a run and keep the Hawks within striking distance of a run, which they made multiple runs to get back into the game.

From the Hawks’ perspective, it was clearly not working at the rim so they dialled in from the perimeter. Against New Orleans, the three-point shooting was deplorable, but was excellent last night and was Atlanta’s saving grace. So, in that regard, that’s a positive the Hawks can build on that they can bounce back from an extremely cold performance to an extremely high volume performance, led by Alexander-Walker’s nine threes leading to 34 points on 12-of-25 shooting and 9-of-15 from three:

Postgame, Snyder praised Alexander-Walker’s ability to defend while also continuing to hit shots, also crediting the role of CJ McCollum in Alexander-Walker’s performance.

“The thing about Nickeil is he’s still playing on the defensive end too,” said Snyder postgame. “He seems to make plays on both ends of the floor. He’s playing with so much confidence. I thought CJ did a really good job of finding him late. I liked the shots that CJ was getting too, you just have certain nights that the ball won’t cooperate. Nickeil hit big shots for us, it seemed like, the whole game.”

With Johnson and Flemings out — in addition to Alexander-Walker’s hot hand — McCollum took more of a playmaking role in this game, dishing out 12 assists in total and the first time McCollum has registered 10 or more assists in a game in over three years.

While McCollum finished 4-of-17 from the field, his contributions in the playmaking department do help make up for the volume of misses.

Elsewhere across the roster, Lu Dort put in a fine performance in the starting lineup, shooting 5-of-10 from the field and 4-of-6 from three. Dort hit what I thought was a huge three in the third quarter to stop the bleeding and prevent Indiana from getting too close:

This was, arguably, one of the most important swings in the game. Had Huff hit that three, the Pacers would have cut the lead down to two points. Dort’s three really punished that miss, taking the lead up to eight points and buying the Hawks some immediate relief. If there was a spot when the Hawks sorely needed a good night shooting the three from Dort, this was the one and he delivered.

While everyone will forget the nature of this victory soon enough, the overarching takeaway, again, is that the Hawks were easily beaten inside the paint (conceding 54 points). This is Snyder’s biggest concern from this game, spotting the trend that has occurred in several games now (but not before doubling down on his belief that this was a good win).

“Every win is a good one, and people say that because it’s true,” said Snyder. “Tonight was one of those nights. I thought when they did make the late run, we didn’t get rattled. We didn’t do everything right. The Pacers made some plays. We had a stretch where we put them on the foul line and that makes it hard because we can’t get any force offensively, or thrust. didn’t get any offensive thrust. The paint is something that we’ve got to shore up one way or the other. That’s probably the biggest thing for us right now defensively is just not doing a better job protecting the paint because it’s going to be real difficult to win when teams score on the paint like these guys did, and some other teams have too.”

The Hawks (4-4) are back in action on Wednesday for the first of two meetings against the Washington Wizards (4-3), the first of which wraps up their three game road-trip.

Until next time!

The high school class of 2020 produced one of the most hyped collections of top-ranked prospects in recent memory. Jalen Green, Terrence Clarke, and Josh Christopher were household names from early in their teenage years for mixtape compilations that drew comparisons to Kobe Bryant and other star scorers. Jalen Suggs was a two-sport stud who bypassed an Ohio State football scholarship because he was better at basketball. Scottie Barnes and Evan Mobley were portable, long-limbed defensive prodigies, and Cade Cunningham shot up to the top of the class after a stirring EYBL run that had him looking like American Luka Doncic.

Yaxel Lendeborg was also in the class of 2020, but while his peers were gracing the cover of SLAM and winning international gold medals, he had yet to play organized basketball. Lendeborg’s grades weren’t good enough to get on the court back in his hometown of Pennsauken, New Jersey, and he was more interested in playing video games than applying himself to anything that would better his future. It’s possible his enormous talent would have slipped through the cracks entirely if not for a junior college on the other side of the country taking a chance on him with its last scholarship in a Covid-shortened season following an impressive weekend at an exposure camp for Dominican players.

Nearly six years later, Lendeborg already looks like something close to an NBA star as a 24-year-old rookie with the Golden State Warriors. His winding journey from Arizona Western College to UAB to Michigan to now playing alongside Stephen Curry has no real analog, but it still offers some valuable insight into how prospect evaluation is changing in a rapidly evolving landscape for young players. Lendeborg is an exception to just about every rule in the sport, but his ascent is no accident, and it could inform similar success stories in the coming years for teams looking hard enough.

What Lendeborg is doing to open this season is nothing short of amazing. He’s averaging 22.3 points, 7.3 rebounds, and 3.7 assists on pristine 64.5% true shooting through his first seven games. His 37-point explosion against the Los Angeles Clippers on Sunday showed the full extent of his skill set. When he was guarded by the skinnier Derrick Jones Jr., Lendeborg wielded body blows in the paint for easy scoring chances. When Brook Lopez tried to corral him in drop coverage off a pick-and-roll, Lendeborg calmly drained a pull-up three-pointer. He showed impressive body control when attacking downhill, and relentless aggression in punishing a small guard in Darius Garland on switches. With a like-sized defender in Kobe Sanders on him, he ripped mid-range shots like a seasoned pro.

No rookie should be capable of this type of immediate excellence. Then again, Lendeborg is anything but a typical rookie.

The Warriors drafted Lendeborg at No. 11 overall this year, but even they weren’t fully convinced he was the player they needed. Golden State reportedly coveted Brayden Burries, who went one pick ahead of them to the Milwaukee Bucks, and they were prepared to select him over Lendeborg. Yaxel’s own college coach passed on him for one of his Michigan teammates when the Dallas Mavericks chose Morez Johnson at No. 9 overall days after hiring Dusty May.

It was easy to see the track record of older first round draft picks and immediately write off Lendeborg as a low-ceiling prospect. I never bought that argument. When I ranked Yaxel at No. 5 overall on my final draft board, I wrote “I typically balk at the idea that older prospects are more ‘NBA ready’ than younger ones who reach the league sooner, but it feels true in Yaxel’s case.” In reality, he was never that difficult of an evaluation if you could get past his age.

What sold me on Lendeborg was that he was improving in the exact ways you want someone his age to improve, albeit at a lower level than the NBA. When he entered UAB from junior college, he was mostly a rebounding big who provided value by generating extra possessions and protecting the paint. In his second season at UAB, he started to show off his playmaking chops, showing that he could run offense with the ball in his hands by using his own scoring gravity to set up his teammates. He also doubled his three-point makes from the previous season. As his offense was starting to develop, Lendeborg was named AAC Defensive Player of the Year while mostly playing center.

Lendeborg was good enough to get drafted in the first round in 2025 out of UAB. After testing the process at the combine, though, he decided to take a massive NIL bag from Michigan as the top-rated player in the transfer portal. As I was covering the Wolverines during March Madness, I asked Yaxel what he heard from NBA scouts that convinced him to go back to college. His answer showed the self-awareness required to go from good to great on your own timeline.

“(The NBA) wanted to see a lot more three-pointers and a lot more versatility in my defense,” Lendeborg told SB Nation. “I tried to be more of three, because in the NBA, I’m not gonna be the superstar. I’m gonna be playing next to somebody like Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, and he doesn’t need me to score for him. He needs me to get stops. I just tried to figure out my role and do whatever I can do to get there.”

Michigan’s unique team-building strategy forced Lendeborg into the exact role NBA evaluators wanted to see him in. May started three nominal college centers next to each other who were each good enough to have a team built around them on their own. Lendeborg’s malleability was the biggest reason it all worked. Forced out to the perimeter full-time for the first time in his brief career, Yaxel showed he could shoot threes with volume, defend away from the paint, and grease the offense with connective passing all without losing his physicality at both ends.

Lendeborg proved he was willing to sacrifice for team success, and he never needed to put up the biggest numbers to answer the NBA’s questions. Here was a player with the size to play NBA center after measuring at 6’8.5 without shoes, 235 pounds with a 7’4 wingspan who already showed he could play alongside other bigs while contributing to winning at a high level. He could do the role player stuff of rebounding, setting screens, spacing the floor, and moving the ball as a passer, and he still had an extra gear as an isolation scorer who could leverage his size into more efficient chances. All the while, he kept getting more confident and more accurate as an outside shooter.

The scary thing about Lendeborg is his most impressive flashes haven’t translated to sustainable success … yet. Through seven games, he’s only making 25% of his pull-up threes on 3.4 attempts per game. If those start falling even at a clip in the low 30s, there’s no real cap on his ceiling.

So many young forwards get drafted high in the NBA just because they have the frame, athleticism, and pedigree the league looks for. In the best case scenarios, these players will develop as passers and shooters without losing their physicality in their age-21, age-22, and age-23 seasons. This is exactly what Lendeborg did first at UAB and then at Michigan, and his development curve is made even more impressive by his late start in the sport.

His progression as a player is even more satisfying when juxtaposed against another former Warriors lottery pick who graduated high school in 2020: Jonathan Kuminga. Kuminga was never asked to play a winning role with physicality early in his career when evaluators saw a potential star scorer. He never developed the ball skills or shooting that Lendeborg is showing now. Yaxel’s progression shouldn’t have been discounted just because it happened in college, not the NBA. In every other way, he was giving scouts everything they wanted.

The two best players in college basketball last year were Yaxel and Cameron Boozer, and no one else was close to him. This is what made Boozer the obvious No. 1 overall pick in my eyes: he was the only player in the country close to Lendeborg’s level, and he did it while being five years younger than him. While there’s plenty of season left to go, it’s no surprise that Lendeborg and Boozer have been the two best rookies to start this season.

Lendeborg checked every box for a role player, and in the NBA, the best role players are truly more valuable than many who get blessed as stars. Yaxel is a premium example of that. The NIL is going to keep good players in school longer before, and don’t be surprised if some of the top prospects in the next draft are also multi-year college veterans, if not 24-year-old rookies. It’s easy to say progress isn’t linear when watching young basketball players, but it’s harder to act like it when the chips are on the table. Lendeborg was always running his own race. Right now, he’s showing he can still finish first even with a late start.

SAN FRANCISCO – The Golden State Warriors' biggest concern has been the center position. Charles Bassey showed on Monday, Nov. 2 that he could be a solution for the Warriors with his 'next man up' mentality.

After losing Kristaps Porzingis, the Warriors have had to pivot with different lineups. Amid their five-game winning streak, they've thrown a few small ball lineups out with Draymond Green as the center.

But when Green was ejected from the Warriors' 116-113 win against the Phoenix Suns on Monday, Bassey stepped up and impacted the game with his high-energy and efficiency around the rim, just days after his 26th birthday.

Bassey finished the game with a career-high 19 points and shot 7-of-10 on field goals. He had 8 rebounds and finished with a plus-minus of +10.

"Next man mentality, to be honest. We knew we could get a win," Bassey said. "We started to the game slow. 
We got to get better at doing that, you know, last couple games we started slow. We just gotta get rid of doing that. There was a mentality, we felt we could win. Like I said, next man, up, just go in and do your job. That's why I think every player on this team has confidence doing that and as long as you're on this team, you know, like I said, coach Steve (Kerr) gives you all that confidence."

The Warriors got off to a 31-19 deficit after the first quarter. Golden State came out shooting 33% on field goals and went 2-of-15 on 3-point attempts in the first quarter. However, Bassey's hustle stood out to everyone, especially his teammates.

"Bass like... I'm sure he didn't think he was going to play 23 minutes and he was ready for it," Warriors guard Stephen Curry, who scored a game-high 34 points, said about Bassey. "So those are the patterns of what a good team does when night after night, no matter what the combination is you're finding production up and down the bench, and you love it."

"Everybody feeds off the energy when a guy comes in like that with what Bass did tonight, changed the game," Curry added. "Everybody notices. It lifts everybody's spirits and keeps momentum on our side, so it was great."

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Brandin Podziemski scored 20 points in the win and had high praise for Bassey.

"I thought Charles was great," Podziemski said. "Super efficient, gave us a lob threat, gave us a defensive presence when Dray was out."

Warriors head coach Steve Kerr raved about Bassey after the Warriors' win. One of the things that stood out was the chemistry between Bassey and rookie forward Yaxel Lendeborg.

"Bass was great. What a big night for him," Kerr said. "The rebounding, the scoring. He and Yaxel have a really good connection. The pick and roll game. He gives him a lob threat and Yaxel sees the floor so well and he's so big that he finds him when he's behind the defense."

Bassey feeds off of playmakers like that. His efficiency around the rim makes teammates trust that he'll complete the play. Lendeborg finished the game with 16 points and five assists, four of them went to Bassey for a layup or dunk.

"Since training camp, I'm telling you, man, every time," Bassey said on his continuity with Lendeborg. "We talk about our game, every time. After we played on Sunday, he tells me, you are wide open. When he sees the pass he makes the right play. I love playing with him and I think the coaches, they figured that out too. I mean, everybody knew that."

They have a connection they've established as they've learned each other's game. When Bassey gives Lendeborg a look, he knows whether to set a ghost screen or clear the lane so he can get downhill.

Bassey can be reliable energy guy for the Warriors. A workhorse who provides an offensive spark through his efficiency and an anchor on defense. If comparing to Warriors teams of old, think Festus Ezeli, Kevon Looney, Andrew Bogut or Zaza Pachulia. He's going to scrap, claw and fight for possessions.

Bassey plays physical and the Suns didn't appreciate it. Further pushing and shoving ensued with Bassey after Green's ejection. Suns guard Jalen Green drove to the basket and got tied up with Bassey before Suns players came to Green's aide, including forward Miles Bridges, who was assessed a technical.

"Being physical doesn't mean you have to scuffle with guys, that doesn't mean you're tough" Bassey told USA TODAY Sports.

"Being physical is playing hard every possession, going out there, fighting for rebounds, and doing what I'm doing," he added. "Just being physical, you know, challenging every shot, and going out there you know, two or three guys trying to box me out, me on the offensive end. And that's being physical, still getting the rebound. 
But I mean, what they're doing is so fake… That's a fake toughness."

Bassey, Nigerian-born, is no newcomer in the league. He was drafted with the 53rd overall pick of the 2021 NBA Draft by the Philadelphia 76ers out of Western Kentucky. He then bounced around the league, spending time in the G-League, including the Santa Cruz Warriors.

Bassey signed a one-year contract with the Warriors in July. He's looking to make the most of it.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Warriors' Charles Bassey plays big role in win over Phoenix

LOS ANGELES – Off to the side, beyond the end of the bench, Heat players Bam Adebayo and Davion Mitchell were standing on the baseline, talking with their hands on their hips.

The sober looks on their faces, however, gave the impression that it was something else. It looked like more of a debrief. As in: how did it get like this?

Just to their right, one seat from the end of the bench, sat Giannis Antetokounmpo, who draped a towel over his shoulders. He was staring blankly ahead, his head resting on his hand.

Once again, an opposing team had bombarded the Miami Heat. This time, it was Luka Dončić and the Los Angeles Lakers on Monday, Nov. 2 in a 138-117 torching. Miami jumped out to a 4-0 lead in the opening minutes. It was the last time the Heat would be ahead.

And as these remade Heat seek to build a contender around Antetokounmpo and Adebayo, it’s not the offense or perimeter shooting that has become the problem. It is – surprisingly – the team’s defense. All of which raises a question, and a significant one, even this early in the season.

Is this a fatal flaw that will prevent Miami from making the playoffs?

Realistically, it’s far too early for such sweeping pronouncements. The lack of cohesion, however, is significant enough to be a serious concern.

“We’re not playing hard enough,” Antetokounmpo told reporters after the game. “We’ve got to play hard, have some pride. Individual pride, first of all, and then we’ve got to keep one another accountable and trust one another defensively. Right now we don’t trust one another. We’re not giving that extra effort.

“Effort, individual pride and trust. We’ve got to have those three things.”

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The Heat have a collection of stellar individual defenders. Adebayo is an elite stopper, a six-time All-Defensive selection and a player who can guard any position. Antetokounmpo is six years removed from his Defensive Player of the Year award but remains a force in the paint. Mitchell, the starting point guard, has the nickname “Off Night” because convention goes that when he’s guarding a prominent offensive player, said player will have an off night. Andrew Wiggins is a defensive-minded wing with plenty of length.

Yet, the sum has not been greater than the parts, and it shows.

“A lot of times I feel like when fatigue sets in, we stop communicating, and that’s when mistakes happen,” Adebayo said. “That’s when bad habits set in. The lack of effort is there. We’ve got to figure it out.”

The Lakers made eight of their first nine shots. They dropped 79 points in the first half. Entering the night, NBA teams had been averaging 113.7 points per game; Los Angeles had already reached 111 by the end of the third quarter.

Dončić flamed the Heat to the tune of 42 points and fellow guard Austin Reaves dropped 27.

And after the Lakers converted on 19-of-43 (44.2%) attempts from beyond the arc, no team in the NBA is allowing more made 3-pointers per game (17.3) than the Heat. Making matters worse, Miami also ranks second-to-last in opposing 3-point percentage at 41%; by comparison, the last-place team, the Suns, are giving up 3s at a 41.1% clip.

It’s not just perimeter defense, either. Time after time Monday night, Lakers players blew past Heat defenders on closeouts, as L.A. outscored Miami in the paint by a margin of 60-40.

To a certain extent, this lack of trust does make some sense. The Heat traded four players to land Antetokounmpo and the group is still figuring out how to play together. So, in practical terms, what does this lack of trust actually look like on the floor?

“Like, when a guy beats you off the dribble, sometimes you don’t close out all the way to Luka, and that is because you don’t feel like somebody has your back,” Antetokounmpo said. “So then you give him air space to hit a stepback 3 or pull up for a 3. Same thing with Austin Reaves: you have to close out all the way, knowing that somebody has your back in the paint.

“Sometimes, when you don’t feel that trust, you kind of hesitate and you go half way. You don’t put yourself out there. That’s the trust I’m talking about; you’ve got to do your job. I got to do my job. When they shot goes up, I’ve got to box out and get the rebound. They’ve got to trust that I’m going to get them the possession. That’s the kind of trust that I’m talking about.”

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The Heat still have Erik Spoelstra roaming the sidelines. He’s a basketball lifer who is widely considered to be the best active coach in the NBA, a coach who does not shy away from in-season adjustments. After the game, he expressed optimism that his group would figure it out, though he acknowledged it would take time.

Losses like these, in their own way, help by showing Miami what it cannot afford to do. Lessons can come from victories, too. The paradox about trust is that, in a sense, you have to let go of individual insecurities for a greater good. You have to yield. That is, of course, easier said than done.

“If you don’t want to play defense as a team, you can’t do it by yourself,” Mitchell said after the game. “It’s not surprising. We’ve got to have a better sense of urgency. We’ve got to be intentional about our situation and our game plan, and we’ve got to stick to it.”

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Heat defense under scrutiny after Lakers rout

Steph Curry pinpoints Warriors players key to team's five-game winning streak originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area

The Warriors did not win five consecutive games at any point last season. Eight games into the 2026-27 NBA season, Golden State has done just that, rattling off five straight after an 0-3 start.

As always, Steph Curry has been the Warriors’ lifeline. The two-time MVP is averaging 30 points per game, second in the NBA to Los Angeles Lakers superstar Luka Dončić, on an absurd 68.2-percent true shooting.

Golden State’s struggles in recent memory have largely come from Curry’s supporting cast failing to make an impact, especially after Jimmy Butler tore his right ACL in January, but the Warriors’ youth has been instrumental to the team’s success through the first few weeks of the season.

After Golden State’s comeback 116-113 win over the Phoenix Suns on Monday night, Curry recognized the players he believes have changed the Warriors’ dynamic.

“I mean, [Yaxel Lendeborg], [Brandin Podziemski] taking another step forward, [Brandon William]’s been great for us off the bench, giving us something different that we haven’t had in a while,” Curry said. “I think we had some individual production that’s been pretty cool, and some standout guys have made their presence felt night after night.”

Despite a rough shooting night, Lendeborg continued his phenomenal rookie campaign, finishing with 16 points, five rebounds and five assists, while Podziemski added 20 points of his own.

Williams was sidelined with a quadriceps injury, but has put up double-digit points in four of his seven outings, operating as Golden State’s first real spark plug off the bench since Jordan Poole.

Veteran Draymond Green was ejected with two technical fouls, and opened the door for center Charles Bassey to make an impact with 19 points and eight rebounds.

Curry also harped on the team’s readiness before the games as reasons for the improvement.

“I think collectively, I’m sure Steve [Kerr] would say for him and his staff, we’re probably a little bit more prepared on the details of what we’re trying to do, and not just take it for granted that you can play like the Warriors of old, and just expect good things to happen,” Curry said. “So the idea of what we talked about going into the year, keep the bones of what we do, how we play, what me and Draymond can do out there, but then the next level of detail to help the younger guys find their way. But we do have some talent that’s been fun to watch.”

Curry and the Warriors hope to extend their win streak when they go up against formidable opponents in the Houston Rockets and San Antonio Spurs later this week.

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January 28, 2023, was a day when Yuta Watanabe scored 9 points, Joe Harris was playing basketball and Nic Claxton still felt like a somewhat promising prospect. It was a day when Julius Randle, RJ Barrett and Immanuel Quickley were still donning the orange and blue Knicks jersey, Jericho Sims practiced for the dunk contest before the game and Evan Fournier, for some incomprehensible reason, got a DNP.

The day also marked the last time the Brooklyn Nets beat the New York Knickerbockers.

Obviously, a lot of things have happened between the game almost four years ago and today. Kyrie Irving’s career path has considerably flattened since falsely inspiring the 27 fans of his former team, and the Knicks have changed almost their entire roster (luckily not the guy wearing number 11) and now have a shiny little ring to show for it. It’s hard to put the distance between the two franchises into words, but if you needed a reminder of it, last night’s game was a good illustration.

Sloppy Knicks still too much for naughty Nets

For long stretches, New York did not really deserve to win this game. They settled for three after three, sleepwalked through one pick and roll after another and were constantly late to the orange leather ball. They didn’t think it was necessary to feature Karl-Anthony Towns against a team that had no answer for him in the past; they didn’t think the opponent was dangerous enough to punish the experiments with their own lineup. And you know what? It all didn’t matter because the New York Knicks are a good basketball team and the Nets are not.

What they are, though, is a scrappy young bunch (actually the youngest there is in the league) with some decent players and an inspiring coach, a team that is hellbent on trying to get the most out of their limited resources—be it on the court or later at the trade deadline. For three quarters, that was plenty enough to give the Knicks some headaches, as Brooklyn actually led the contest going into the fourth quarter. But then the New York bench happened.

Just like a few nights ago in Chicago, Mike Brown found the right mix of guys from the pine, and Tyler Kolek, Landry Shamet and Jordan Clarkson completely turned around a game that never felt like it was in danger yet still needed to be taken care of late. The bench boys did that and then some. Even Andre Drummond got into the mix and played some smart, efficient basketball while in there. For all the might New York’s starting lineup supposedly has, you could argue that they would have to answer a bunch of uncomfortable questions if it weren’t for their reserves early in the year.

No matter who you take, they all have shown the ability to completely change the dynamic of a game in an instant, which truly is one of the most important qualities a reserve has to possess. The Knicks’ offense is flowing visibly faster with Tyler Kolek at the point right now, Landry Shamet’s motor seems to be running longer and more reliably than Haile Gebrselassie ever did, and Clarkson is playing every game like an Olympic berth for the Philippines is on the line.

Bockers bench is brave and brilliant again

Now, make no mistake about it: they all need serious talent next to them to actually thrive, but that, in the end, is the epitome of a team—a group of individuals that all bring different strengths to the table. For the early part of the season, most of the Knicks’ reserves, more often than not, have held up their part of the equation and reminded us all that depth was a key component in New York’s championship run last year. The same can be said for the uncanny ability to have someone else step up on any given night.

The bench was also a big reason why TomRogerAstro’s seemingly simple headline from the Postgame Thread rang true. The Knicks have been a bit up and mostly down with their three-point shooting so far this season, and it was a welcome sight to see them find their range, especially late in the game. Brooklyn had no answer once the shots fell, the crowd got ignited and the already pretty solid defense completely locked in to secure the victory.

One Knick who is still waiting for things to turn around, though, is Mikal Bridges. Once again, he only “played” 16 minutes, in which he actually drove all the way to the rim once. If anything can tell you that he feels a little desperate right now, it should be that he actually did not settle for a midrange shot but tried to finish inside. That’s what 30 strong minutes from Landry Shamet time and again can do to you. It’s not a controversy yet; we’ve been there before. But as more and more people stream about it, this can get pretty dicey soon.

If games against the Nets will ever get dicey again, you ask? Well, they might, but not without a lot of things happening. And don’t worry, we haven’t heard about the Knicks giving Evan Fournier a call recently.

I want to believe.

The Wizards entered last night’s game at the Orlando Magic ranked 10th in defensive rating (points allowed per 100 possessions). They then put the Magic into a figurative chokehold — limiting Orlando to 28.2% three-point shooting, 94 points in the game, and just nine points in a stifling third quarter.

It’s the second consecutive game that the Wizards opponent scored less than 100 points. Washington managed that feat just three times all of last season. And the Wizards did it without Alex Sarr (out with a sore knee) and Justin Champagnie (broken foot).

The Wizards’ record is now 4-3. The last time they had a winning record this deep in the season was 2021-22.

Comparisons with last season are for illustrative purpose only, by the way. Washington was trying to lose last year. This is a different squad with a different purpose, and it shows. And it’s fun to watch.

Against the Magic, Kyshawn George was excellent on both end all night. He took good shots except when the only shots were tough ones — and he shot well. He defended, rebounded, set up teammates while avoiding turnovers and fouls. He finished with 22 points, 4 rebounds, 5 assists, a steal, a block and a turnover. That’s a helluva good game.

Anthony Davis dominated inside, scoring 27 points and grabbing 9 rebounds and 3 steals. He did get a bit sloppy at times, which showed in his five turnovers. Still, another strong game from the team’s best player.

In what might well be a sign, I thought AJ Dybantsa had a relatively rough outing. A few times in the second half, he had some trouble finishing through contact and managing against Orlando’s physicality. He shot just 7-17 from the floor. And yet, he finished with 21 points, 5 rebounds, 2 assists, and 3 steals. His PPA was 148, and the team was +10 in his minutes. Reminder: this is a 19-year-old rookie.

Bilal Coulibaly was disruptive on defense. Bub Carrington gave the team 19 productive minutes. Trae Young was kinda meh for him, and he still generated 9 assists and grifted free throws.

So why am I still at “want to believe” status? One big reason is the likelihood that they’re benefitting from opponent shooting luck. One of the lessons of statistical analysis is that defenses don’t have much effect on opponent three-point shooting. The fact that Washington’s opponents are shooting below 30% on threes is great. But over a small sample, it’s probably just luck. When opponent shooting regresses to the mean, so will Washington’s defense.

Probably.

I say “probably” because they’re doing a lot right on that end. Their effort is NBA level, which is something the franchise hasn’t had in a few years. They swarm, they pressure, they scrap, they chase and deflect and challenge shots. I see that and appreciate it while the analyst part of my brain keeps saying, “Tap the brakes. It’s not that hard to look good when opponents are shooting 28% from three-point range.”

From the Notebook

• The Magic targeted Young and had success, even on a bad offensive night. Young’s defensive effort is as good as it’s ever been across his entire career. My sense from watching him this season is that his (relative) defensive strength is as a help defender or jumping passing lanes. His point-of-attack defense is weak and will be a target as the Wizards play more meaningful games.
• I’m not sold on Dybantsa’s three-point shooting stroke. There’s something about his arms and the location of the ball as he’s shooting that’s not sitting right with me. It’s something like the ball spending too much time at eye level and a flat trajectory.
• The Wizards are huge and have a couple of elite athletes — Dybantsa and Coulibaly.
• Despite being tall, mobile, and athletic, Deandre Ayton has very little presence as a rim protector. In the second quarter, I jotted a note that Orlando guard Jase Richardson had found his ideal victims — Young at the point of attack and Ayton in the paint.
• Once again, Washington’s first offensive play was for Dybantsa. They set screens for him, and got him the ball on the move, which helped him drive to the room. He missed through contact that probably should have been called a foul.
• Once again, Young’s ability to threaten defenses with his passing set himself up for an open layup.
• Head coach Brian Keefe used essentially a nine-man rotation. Sarr and Champagnie were out with injuries, but Khris Middleton got a DNP-CD, and Will Riley played just four minutes.

Four Factors

Below are the four factors that decide wins and losses in basketball — shooting (efg), rebounding (offensive rebounds), ball handling (turnovers), fouling (free throws made).

The four factors are measured by:

• eFG% (effective field goal percentage, which accounts for the three-point shot)
• OREB% (offensive rebound percentage)
• TOV% (turnover percentage — turnovers divided by possessions)
• FTM/FGA (free throws made divided by field goal attempts)

Stats & Metrics

PPA is my overall production metric, which credits players for things they do that help a team win (scoring, rebounding, playmaking, defending) and dings them for things that hurt (missed shots, turnovers, bad defense, fouls).

PPA is a per possession metric designed for larger data sets. In small sample sizes, the numbers can get weird. In PPA, 100 is average, higher is better and replacement level is 45. For a single game, replacement level isn’t much use, and I reiterate the caution about small samples sometimes producing weird results.

POSS is the number of possessions each player was on the floor in this game.

ORTG = offensive rating, which is points produced per individual possessions x 100. League average so far this season is listed in the Four Factors table above. Points produced is not the same as points scored. It includes the value of assists and offensive rebounds, as well as sharing credit when receiving an assist.

USG = offensive usage rate. Average is 20%. Median last season was 17.7%.

ORTG and USG are versions of stats created by former Wizards assistant coach Dean Oliver and modified by me. ORTG is an efficiency measure that accounts for the value of shooting, offensive rebounds, assists and turnovers. USG includes shooting from the floor and free throw line, offensive rebounds, assists and turnovers.

+PTS = “Plus Points” is a measure of the points gained or lost by each player based on their efficiency in this game compared to league average efficiency on the same number of possessions. A player with an offensive rating (points produced per possession x 100) of 100 who uses 20 possessions would produce 20 points. If the league average efficiency is 115, the league — on average — would produced 23.0 points in the same 20 possessions. So, the player in this hypothetical would have a +PTS score of -3.0.

Players are sorted by total production in the game.

With Paul George sitting out the second night of a back-to-back and Boston playing their fifth game in eight nights, the Celtics snapped their five-game winning streak and lost to the Rockets 109-93. It was a demoralizing loss to a very good team, made only worse because of who was on the opposing team.

Why the Celtics lost

It’s bittersweet to say, but it’s all about Marcus Smart.

The former Celtic was everywhere on the floor. His stat line doesn’t tell the story. He was 2-for-10 from the field; Alperen Segun paced all scorers with 26 on 12-of-15 shooting. He was just a +5 off the bench with the Rockets starters doing much of the damage in the game. With the ninth stingiest defense backing up the league’s most efficient offense, the 6-1 Rockets have few weaknesses to take advantage of now that they have Fred Van Vleet and Smart at the point.

However, Boston was in this game. After Smart checked into the game at the 4:35 mark of the third quarter, the Celtics whittled down the lead to four. And then Smart happened.

During one stretch to start the fourth quarter, he was called for two consecutive dead ball defensive fouls that he followed up with back-to-back threes — the epitome of The Marcus Smart Experience that we know all so well. By the time he checked out midway through the final frame, Houston was up 100-82.

Since his departure in 2023, he’s bounced around from four different teams, including a stint with Lakers last season. However, hooking up with Ime Udoka in Houston seems to be the right fit. For more insight to the former Celtics reunion with the Rockets, check out The Athletic’s Will Guillory’s profile on Smart and Udoka. Here’s a snippet:

“There are some guys who have that defensive mentality, but it’s rare to have a guy who comes into the game and impacts it the way he does on that side of the ball,” Udoka said. “You saw it with Dillon, you saw it with Pat (Beverley). There are certain guys you have to prepare for because of what they do defensively. He’s one of them.”

“(Udoka’s) mentality matched mine,” Smart added. “He allowed me to be me without any persecution.”

For the Celtics, they have several candidates that have filled in for Smart’s Tommy Point contributions. Walsh’s on-ball defense made him a starter earlier in the year. Scheierman chips in with the occasional hustle play or heady pass. Gonzalez often has the flair for the dramatic. But nobody has yet to solely take the mantle away from Marcus since his departure.

Numbers game: 28.6%

Last season, the Celtics were 7-11 when they shot under 30% from behind the arc. Before last night, they had endured a miserable game against the Nets in an overtime thriller and Sunday’s brickfest over the Magic, but hitting just 12-of-42 in Houston just wasn’t enough against an elite Rockets team.

Tatum made just one of his 7 triples. Pritchard and Hauser missed all five of their attempts each. The only bright spot was Garza’s 4-for-7 clip.

Maybe it was a lack of legs in the second night of a back-to-back or missing Paul George’s catch-and-shoot prowess on the wing, but stinkers like this are going to happen every sixth game or so. As long as they’re figuring out other ways to win, it shouldn’t be too big of an issue.

Must C’s

Once a Celtic, always a Celtic. Love and trust, Smarty.

Who said what

“To be honest, I gotta figure it out soon. I don’t know.” — Mitchell Robinson on his impact on the offensive boards

After missing the previous game against the Magic, Robinson was replaced by Neemias Queta in the starting lineup. Soon after coming off the bench, he jammed his thumb and went to the locker room for a brief stint in the second quarter. He did make both of his looks from the field, but his one offensive board on the night was just his fifth in three games. That was supposed to be his calling card.

Head coach Joe Mazzulla said after the loss that Robinson’s decreased impact is partly because they have him playmaking by setting screens further away from the rim, but after leading the league last season with 7.7 offensive rebounds per 36 minutes, it’s been a disappointing start for the Celtics’ key free agent signing of the summer.

Just a reminder that today is Election Day and to stress the importance of voting, the league has cleared the calendar with no games scheduled for tonight. If you need help finding you ballot and polling station, the NBA is encouraging fans to Get In The Game and make your voice heard.

The team will return home to TD Garden to host the Milwaukee Bucks on Wednesday at 7:30 pm EST before heading back out on the road for four games in Charlotte, Milwaukee, Philadelphia, and Toronto. It continues a road-heavy stretch in November where the team will be away from Boston for twelve out of 16 contests.

Late in last night’s Spurs game, frustrations began to get the better of the Utah Jazz. Lauri Markkanen was the team’s only player in double figures. Everyone else seemed to be struggling through the drubbing the Spurs handed them on the way to a 119-97 victory.

With just over nine minutes left in regulation, Utah’s Brice Sensabaugh and Harrison Barnes got tangled. When they broke free, Barnes found himself sliding across the floor. In what quickly went viral, Barnes stared down Sensabaugh. The moment was played back in slow motion while the play was reviewed for a Flagrant 1.

There were already over as hundred and forty thousand views in the little over an hour since the incident took place.

Sensabaugh was eventually assessed the Flagrant 1.

Welcome to the Thread. Join in the conversation, start your own discussion, and share your thoughts. This is the Spurs community, your Spurs community. Thanks for being here.

Our community guidelines apply which should remind everyone to be cool, avoid personal attacks, not to troll and to watch the language.

You watch the Suns, and you feel like Bob Wiley following the guidance of Dr. Leo Marvin. Baby steps. Baby steps. If this team is going to get better, they have to start taking baby steps. And on Monday night against the Golden State Warriors, it felt like some of those steps were finally being taken.

After all, the Suns got off to their best start of the season, building a 17-point lead in the first half. It was easily the most impressive opening stretch we’ve seen from this team thus far. But as we’ve learned through the early portion of the season, Phoenix still has plenty of work to do. Nothing comes easy for this group. Everything has to be earned.

If they want to earn another victory this season, they’re going to have to clean up multiple aspects of their game. One thing we’ve been waiting to see is whether this team can actually close out a basketball game. On Monday night, that question remained unanswered. They simply couldn’t close.

Down one point with two minutes remaining, Devin Booker missed a wide-open 12-footer. On the next possession, Booker turned the ball over. The possession after that? A turnover by Jalen Green. And then, to complete the sequence, Booker was called for an offensive foul.

Was it a flop? Probably. When you have no room for error, it ultimately doesn’t matter. What does matter is execution, and that continues to evade this team, particularly when it matters most. They’ve yet to put together a complete game, and every time it feels like they’re ready to take a full stride forward, they stumble.

So we’re left with baby steps.

Those baby steps were certainly present on Monday night. At times, the defense looked locked in. At times, the offensive sets were functioning the way they’re supposed to. There were stretches when you could see what this team is trying to become. But in the NBA, when you have a roster that feels like it’s fighting against itself because of how poorly it’s constructed, when you can’t consistently rebound the basketball or prevent opposing teams from generating extra possessions seemingly at will, baby steps might be all you’re capable of taking.

Perhaps that’s the most frustrating part of watching this team right now. You can see the progress, recognize the improvements, and appreciate the effort, but none of it matters much when the same mistakes continue costing you games. The Suns are learning how to compete, yet they haven’t figured out how to win. And while Dr. Marvin might applaud the baby steps, the NBA standings certainly won’t. At some point, Phoenix has to learn how to walk.

Bright Side Baller Standings

Collin Gillespie’s double-double off the bench, where he went for 16 points and 10 assists, earned him his first Bright Side Baller of the season. 52% of the vote went his way, with Miles Bridges (38%) and Dillon Brooks (5%) getting some love as well.

Bright Side Baller Nominees

Game 5 against the Warriors. Here are your nominees:

Miles Bridges
21 points (7-of-14, 3-of-5 3PT), 6 rebounds, 3 assists, 4 steals, 1 block, 1 turnover, +1 +/-

Devin Booker
26 points (8-of-18, 2-of-4 3PT), 3 rebounds, 5 assists, 2 turnovers, -18 +/-

Dillon Brooks
18 points (5-of-8, 2-of-2 3PT), 8 rebounds, 4 assists, 4 turnovers, -13 +/-

Jalen Green
11 points (5-of-14, 0-of-4 3PT), 8 rebounds, 8 assists, 2 steals, 2 blocks, 4 turnovers, +4 +/-

Oso Ighodaro
14 points (6-of-6, 0-of-0 3PT), 2 rebounds, 2 assists, 1 block, 3 turnovers, -4 +/-

Luke Kennard
6 points (2-of-6, 2-of-6 3PT), 2 rebounds, 1 assist, 0 turnovers, +15 +/-

It’s Election Day in the United States. Before you hit the polls, drop a vote in here as well!

Joe Lacob claims Yaxel Lendeborg's development has changed Warriors' outlook originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area

Yaxel Lendeborg has exceeded just about everyone’s expectations. Including his own.

Does that change the Warriors’ outlook on the 2026-27 NBA season? Golden State owner Joe Lacob certainly believes so.

“I do,” Lacob told 95.7 The Game’s “Steiny & Guru” on Monday when asked if Lendeborg’s immediate breakout has changed the team’s outlook on the season. “Look, we’ve made our mistakes. Everyone makes mistakes, and we didn’t get the draft exactly right, or maybe we didn’t get the development right on a couple other higher draft choices in the past. Fine, criticize us for that, but the draft is hard guys.

“It is hard, and not everybody gets it. Some teams never get it right, and we got this one right. I was 100 percent sold that this was the guy we wanted in the draft, we were, not just me, and there were some other really good players in this draft. The only question was ‘Would he get to No. 11?’ And I was confident, actually that he would, because the NBA, I’ve been doing this a long time now, the NBA GMs just love their 18- and 19-year-olds. We’ve all been guilty of looking at ‘There’s great upside to some of these guys,’ but this guy seemed like a champion, ready to play.”

In eight games this season, Lendeborg is averaging 21.5 points, seven rebounds and 3.9 assists per game on 50-percent shooting from the field and 40 percent from 3-point range.

Not only has the rookie been an important piece to coach Steve Kerr’s rotations, but he is Golden State’s No. 2 scorer behind superstar Steph Curry. Lendeborg is putting up All-Star-caliber numbers early in his first NBA season for a team that is without its second scorer in Jimmy Butler, who still is working his way back from a torn ACL sustained last season and won’t return until midseason.

When he does return, the Warriors could have a very formidable Big Three with Curry, Lendeborg and Butler.

“The amazing thing is, everything we thought he could be, he’s come in and kind of exceeded that,” Lacob added. “I think Steve has stated that. He’s surprised Steve for sure. He doesn’t have any weaknesses is what I would say.”

Of course, it still is very early in the season, and Lendeborg almost certainly will experience plenty of highs and lows throughout the 82-game campaign. But the early returns on their first-round pick have Lacob and the Warriors very encouraged, and seemingly believing the team’s ceiling might be higher than they initially thought it was.

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Nothing sucks the vibes out of the room quite like a loss to the winless Sacramento Kings on your home court. The Dallas Mavericks’ (4-3) first win streak of the season is no more after Monday’s 115-100 loss to the Kings (1-6) at American Airlines Center.

Kyrie Irving sat out under the “injury management” heading, which means rest, which means the coaching staff likely thought they could get the win without the man who scored a game-high 35 points in 35 minutes in Friday’s 116-111 win over the Houston Rockets.

Twas not so. The Mavericks have zero other players on the roster who can do what Irving does for this team. Dribble the basketball, for one. Anyway, we move.

Here’s what Mavs head coach Dusty May, center Daniel Gafford and backup guard Walter Clayton Jr. had to say in the postgame press conference about the ugly loss that saw the Mavericks shoot just 7-of-33 (21.2%) from 3-point range.

Dusty May

Opening statement

I want to credit Sacramento — that they were the more determined team tonight, the more prepared team and they came in and earned it. I want to give a lot of credit to their bench, those guys, their backups. Three wings, made a combined 12 threes for 36 points. So on nights like that, you’ve got to find ways to overcome your lack of shooting, and them shooting well, and we just weren’t able to do that tonight.

What led to the team being out of rhythm all night?

A number of things. I thought once they got going, they were physical on the screens. We didn’t put much pressure on the paint or the rim, and we were on our heels.

What did Sacramento do to contribute to Cooper Flagg’s offensive struggles?

They loaded the paint, and there’s a cadence to it where he’s fanning out early, and we miss our first eight threes, and we thought several of them were good looks. And at that point, it fuels their fire to get to him even more in the paint, and they’re collapsing on him. They’re running second guy, third guy at him. I don’t think our spacing, our relocations, were great as a whole, and we just didn’t find any rhythm together.

Flagg grabbed his shoulder late in the fourth quarter — did that have anything to do with it?

I didn’t see that.

On the team shooting 7-of-33 from 3-point range:

Yeah, that’s basketball. When you take [Walter Clayton Jr.] out of it, who made four of those seven, we were three for 28. And so it’s tough to win basketball games like that. You have to have a lot of different areas, the steals, turnovers, getting to the line, which I thought we did a nice job getting to the line. You have to overcome that deficit in so many other areas, and we just weren’t able to do it.

On using the film from this loss to find something and capitalize on it for future games:

Win or a loss, we’re going to look back at our process and just see, did we prepare the right way? Did we have the right game plan? What would we do differently next time? We’ll have several learning experiences from this game. We do have a young team, and when it’s not going well, we just kept stressing that everything’s going poorly for us. But let’s just find a way to hang around and get it till the end. But their shot-making prevented us from doing that. Those guys, they found great connection, especially in the fourth quarter, and found some match-ups, and I thought they played unselfish basketball.

What did you see from the retooled starting five featuring Caleb Martin in the first half and Clayton in the second half?

I thought Caleb did a good job defensively. He made a shot. I don’t think the lineup combinations offhand are the reason that they won tonight. We didn’t do much well across the board, coaching, playing in any way. We just felt like he had a really good game last outing. His defense has been really, really sound for us.

On being without Kyrie Irving in the lineup:

He does so much for us, and making big shots, and calming us down. We haven’t been able to answer runs very well. That’s one area that he does. One of your guys is out, and another one just has an off night. You’ve got to have some other guys step up and making shots as part of that. They just didn’t drop tonight.

On Max Christie’s 3-point shooting to start the year:

He’s put in a lot of work. He deserves to have success. He had a great summer, and there’s ebbs and flows and ups and downs in any season. We always just stress that water is going to find its level, and just keep moving forward with whether things are going well or poorly. Just keep preparing the right way, and keep believing and having faith, and your time will come. So it’s an 82-game season. We’re confident that water is going to find its level on our shooters.

On Christie’s hip injury that kept him out of the second half — did you see it? Do you have any updates?

No, I just saw that he was hobbling a little bit. They just said we’ll evaluate him tomorrow, typically the night of, it’s tough to have a clear evaluation, but we’ll re-evaluate in the next couple days.

Three Sacramento guards scores 20 or more — what did they do to hurt you guys?

They spread us out, and they made tough shots. Those guys are good players. I thought LaVine was very sound. Obviously, Acuff is dynamic. I thought they picked their spots well, but Monk, every time we made a run, he came in with a step-back three, dagger after dagger. It wasn’t as if they didn’t make plays. Those guys went at us, and they made plays.

Daniel Gafford

How would you describe how the game went?

Shots weren’t falling, and it kind of got in our head, honestly. I think that was one of the main things. They played harder than us throughout the whole game.

How much did the team miss Irving?

We definitely missed his impact, 100%. He has a lot of gravity when he’s on the floor, and he makes everyone’s jobs a little bit easier. Whenever he’s not on the floor, everybody knows it’s the next man up. Everybody has to take that next step and find ways to just make an impact with our star players on the floor.

Have you noticed anything missing from the team’s preparation coming into this loss?

Not necessarily. I feel like just the energy was a little low. I feel like we started off good. Throughout the course of the game, we were having plays here and there where it’s like our energy wasn’t into it. P.J. said it a lot in locker room. We played their record tonight, 100%. They came in with the mindset to just, it doesn’t matter their record, they came in and they played like pros tonight.

How do you make sure low energy doesn’t continue to be an issue?

I mean, we let this hurt [until] midnight, and we focus on the next one. Keep it pushing. We got a big game coming up in two days. Playing a good Spurs team — can’t really dwell on this too much. We know the things that we need to do to get better. And I feel like our response to this one is going to dictate how this season is going to go for us, for sure.

Did the Kings play hungry after coming into the game without a win?

Yeah, we can’t let the record fool us at the end of the day. 0-6, they’re coming in with a fire lit up under their tail. So it’s like we have to be ready for anything. And that’s exactly, I feel like we kind of, you know, there was times where shots didn’t fall. Like we kind of let go of the rope in those situations. So it’s just, we just have to stick with it. Communication could have been better from probably me in certain areas, communicating to the guys that were feeling like, you know, shots weren’t falling. So it’s like, what else can I do? But, you know, talking to the guys when that stuff happens, it’s just ways we can find ways to keep making impacts for the game. If your shot’s not falling, we can get a stop on defense. Come down. You can make a layup or something. So it’s just, we just have to get over that slump. You know, I have the same thing. You know, a shot doesn’t fall for me. I mess up on a play when it comes to the offensive side, defensive side, and sometimes we get it in our own head. But self-doubt is one of the most contagious things when it comes to any team in the league. You know, one shot doesn’t fall. One guy has his head down, the next shot doesn’t fall, another guy does it. So it’s just like we have to find ways to get past that. And I feel like we’re going to, you know, we’ve responded the right way time and time again when it comes to games that we’ve lost. So I feel like we’re going to be okay.

How confident are you that [Flagg] bounces back on Wednesday against the Spurs?

I got all the confidence in the world. You know, I was trying to make sure I talked to him. Pretty much any guys, you know, throughout majority of the game, because I know they’ll do the same for me. You know, trying to build confidence and just speaking life into people. That’s one of the things that will help us down the stretch of the games that we have. You know, there’ll be games where shots don’t fall, but at the end of the day, we still got to play defense, too. So it’s like they get a rebound, get back in transition, you may get a blocked shot, you may make a play to where it doesn’t show up on the stat sheet. And that’s making an impact for the game. Now, that should let you know, you know what I’m saying? It’s not the end of the world. You know, we have possessions further and further into the game. So we just got to keep playing.

What did Sacramento do to make it tough on [inaudible]?

I feel like, you know, the main thing the coach has said is they were comfortable. You know, we didn’t really make them do the things that we wanted them to do. They got the shots that they wanted. They were crashing the glass crazy. They kind of, you know, hit us in the mouth coming out in the second quarter and making us turn the ball over, honestly.

What do you think of Morez Johnson’s growth so far this season (13 points in 17 minutes)?

I feel like he’s developing into the player he wants to be. 100%. You know, he works every day. And as much as, you know, he has to, of course, pay attention to certain things when it comes to, I guess, his health. If I’m not mistaken, you know, he’s obviously really paying attention to details of what he can do to be successful in this league. You know, short roll, being a guy, you know, a threat on the offensive glass, defensive glass, and it’s been a threat defensively in general. So, you know, I’m proud of him. Sky’s the limit for him. He’s going to have a good career in this league.

With the team playing another up-and-coming 19-year-old in Darius Acuff, what do you think of the young talent in the NBA right now?

Man, I feel like they’re getting younger every year, you know. I feel like some of these days we’re going to have a 16-year-old in the league. So it’s just like, you know, props to everyone that’s around these younger guys because, you know, it’s like they have their head on their shoulders the right way, you know. And that’s no disrespect to any other generation when it comes to just coming into this league. But these guys are coming in hot. And it’s like, you know, they have the mentality of just going out and just making the best of their minutes. If they don’t make the best of those minutes, they find ways to make an impact on the floor, whether they’re on the sideline or not.

What has Clayton brought to the team so far?

I mean, from what I’ve seen, I’ve been a fan of Walter’s game ever since he was at Florida. And just seeing the things that he’s done in a couple of games that he’s actually had, you know, good stints. You know, he’s a good shooter. He attacks the basket. He facilitates. He communicates with us. He finds ways to, you know, show how he’s a true point guard. So it’s just, you know, sky’s the limit, like I said with Morez, sky’s a little bit for him too, because he’s just steady building. He’s producing and he’s progressing like how he wants to. And he got, you know, a great guard in his ear — Kyrie Irving — giving him, I’m pretty sure, tips and pointers on just how to be good in his game.

What did you see from the Sacramento backcourt that made them so productive?

Like I said, just they were comfortable. You know, they were getting pretty much whatever they wanted. They were getting downhill. You know, they were getting — our guards were getting killed on some of the screens. So some of the communication kind of fell on our shoulders, like the big shoulders, trying to get them over those screens. But they were just comfortable all in all. You know, they got whatever they wanted. They took the shots that they wanted. They got the matchups that they wanted. They put everybody in the action that they seemed to where they could go score on them.

What is Flagg’s reaction in the locker room when he has a down game like this?

I never really pay attention to the reaction because I know he’s going to bounce back. So I just, whenever it comes to just the conversation throughout the locker room, I always say our response is going to dictate how we feel the next day or just like the next game. So it’s more of just me. I try to, like I say, speak life into people. So whenever it comes to where I see anybody has their head down or, you know, one of the main things he said was [unclear]. I’m sorry for how I played tonight. It’s not on him. You know, this is a team game. So when I didn’t night out, if one person has a bad game or two people have a bad game, I mean, that’s still on the team because we played defense at the end of the day too. So it’s like, it’s not just on one person at the end of the day.

Walter Clayton Jr.

What do you want Mavericks fans to know about your game and what you offer?

Just I’m willing to adapt to kind of whatever the team needs me to be or whatever night it is, you know, whether that’s with the ball in my hands or without the ball in my hands. So just trying to be a team player to whatever the team needs to win games.

What are you learning from Irving?

Just a lot. Just from a day-to-day standpoint: how he takes care of himself, how he works, and then the mental aspect too. You know, I think he’s been giving me — he doesn’t want to throw everything at me at one time. So he’s just been giving me little bits and pieces, you know, day by day. So it’s definitely great having him and I’ve been learning a lot.

What did you see out there that helped you score 20 points in 24 minutes?

Just shots. You know, I think whenever we got paint touches and we was kicking the ball out, it was getting great shots. You know, for me, they fell tonight.

How did the team miss the opportunity for a win against a previously winless team?

Yeah, for sure. I think, just to be honest, I think they were more hungry than us tonight. You know, I think we kind of played to that record when we played up. It’s our abilities. It’s our abilities. Lost the rebounding battle. They beat us on a lot of 50-50s. They beat us a lot of 50-50. So I think, you know, we just got to come out with more energy.

On turning around the offensive struggles quickly:

I mean, we got good shots tonight. I don’t think we got bad ones. Like I said, whenever we got in the paint, we kicked out. We got great shots. It’s 82 games. Sometimes they just don’t fall. So I think tonight was one of those nights.

On his fit with the team:

I said it before in another interview. We just got a bunch of unselfish guys, man. It could be anybody’s night at any point in time. So we just got a bunch of unselfish guys, and you know, they’ve been finding me.

On his initial impressions of Dusty May:

Man, Dusty’s great. I think he cares about us, more like even like just being a person. So I think that’s big, going out there playing for a coach that cares about you as a person. And he’s just obviously a great basketball man, great dude. And he’s been just, adapting to this as well as his first year in the league. So he’s been great. I think. It’s only going to get better.

On Irving being a kind of coach on the floor:

Yeah, for sure. Just seeing the game — there might be a point where he feels like I could have rejected a screen. He’ll just get in my ear, let me know about that. And then the main thing really is just don’t get down on myself. Whenever something bad happens, move on to the next play. He’s big on next-play mentality. So that’s something he’s been preaching to me a lot.

How did the Kings “mix it up” on Flagg?

Yeah, for sure. I think they was just kind of timing his dribble whenever he was getting down there to the paint, playing him for his middy. Obviously, they was going under on the screens. … And obviously, it’s 82 games, like I said, man. Cooper’s going to be good. He’s going to bounce back next game. He’s going to. He’s been great for us, and he’s going to continue to be.

The Boston Celtics already had their hands full on Monday night. No Paul George. No reprieve on the second night of a back-to-back on the road. Then came Marcus Smart.

Former beloved friend of the program, Smart embraced his new Houston Rockets uniform. Like a gray wolf circling wounded prey, he watched his former team struggle through a miserable 38.6 percent shooting performance before sinking his teeth in at every opportunity. Whenever the Celtics tried to put out the fire, Smart poured kerosene on it, leading Houston to a 109-93 victory and bringing Boston’s Eastern Conference-best five-game winning streak to an end.

“He woke up everybody’s ass,” Rockets teammate Alperen Şengün told Ryan Hollins postgame.

It didn’t take long for Smart to make his presence felt.

After noticing Jayson Tatum expressing his frustration with referee Matt Kallio with 3:11 left until halftime, Smart immediately fled Houston’s bench and instigated, urging the official to issue Tatum a technical foul. He was all laughs, while Tatum — considerably less amused by the antics — remained visibly frustrated as he stared Smart down for a brief second and walked back to Boston’s bench.

Smart was still all smiles, as he put his arm around Mike Conley and began plotting his scheme.

In the third quarter, Smart got Tatum again. He drew a charge on Tatum, handing him his fourth personal foul. Seconds later, Tatum was whistled for a second straight offensive foul, bringing his total to five and forcing Celtics coach Joe Mazzulla to remove him with 1:39 remaining in the frame. Tatum, visibly frustrated once again, made another unhappy trip to Boston’s sideline.

Payton Pritchard also fell for Smart’s bait, earning a third-quarter offensive foul himself. Smart did his signature Shawn Michaels-inspired kip-up to get back on his feet.

By then, it was official. Smart’s plan was in full effect.

Much like the menace who wore No. 36 for nine seasons in Boston, Smart reminded the Celtics why it’s great to play alongside him and a pain in the ass to compete against him. He went scoreless in the first half and missed his first seven shots before finally making Boston pay.

Rockets head coach Ime Udoka kept Smart on the floor to begin the fourth quarter, and the 13th-year veteran rewarded that decision with two timely shots.

Smart drained back-to-back 3-pointers, extending Houston’s lead to 90-79 with over eight minutes remaining. He raised both middle fingers in celebration, later claiming the gesture was directed at a select few seated on Boston’s bench.

“Just a lot of pent-up, I guess you can call it emotions,” Smart told reporters. “Plus, certain guys on the (Boston) bench was talking. Didn’t know who. I just heard them say something, so I let them hear it back.”

Smart finished with eight points, four rebounds, four assists, and two steals in over 19 minutes.

“You always wanna do good against your former team,” Smart added, “and show them that you still can go out there and do what you do, right? So it definitely felt good. Energy was there. They know what I can do, and I reminded them again tonight.”

The energy Tatum once benefited from having alongside him had finally come back to haunt him. Smart’s swagger was contagious, and everyone in Houston fed off it.

The Rockets shot 40 percent from three and 54.4 percent overall, having their way with Boston.

Meanwhile, the Celtics couldn’t get anything to go.

Boston’s top outside-shooting threats — Pritchard, Derrick White, Sam Hauser, and Baylor Scheierman — combined to go 4-for-21 from beyond the arc. Luka Garza, coming off the bench to play over 17 minutes, was the Celtics’ leader in 3-point makes (four), although that contribution was largely overshadowed by the rest of the team’s shooting woes.

They were a hair better from three (29 percent) than they were 24 hours earlier (27 percent) against the Orlando Magic on Sunday night.

Tatum went 1-for-7 from distance and 5-for-16 overall, finishing the night with 19 points and a season-high five turnovers in Houston.

It’s difficult enough to play two games in two nights, especially on the road, but Tatum believes the Celtics didn’t do themselves many favors either throughout the game.

“Everybody plays back-to-backs,” Tatum told reporters, per NBC Sports Boston. “We’re not the only team that’s gotta travel and play a back-to-back. Are they tough? Yeah. But a lot of us been doing this for a long time. There were moments where we cut it to six or seven (points) and couldn’t get a rebound, and they hit a three. It’s moments like that where we gotta dig deeper a little bit.”

It’s been three years since the Celtics traded Smart, originally sending him to the Memphis Grizzlies. In the years since, the 32-year-old has struggled to make his former team pay, whether because of his on-court performance or availability. But Monday night in Houston, Smart finally got his get-back, and Boston felt it.