Lakers forward Jarred Vanderbilt, left, battles Clippers guard Cam Christie for a rebound during the first half Wednesday. Vanderbilt collected seven rebounds off the bench. (Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Times)
By the time Collin Sexton arrived at the Lakers’ practice facility Wednesday morning, just hours after a nearly three-hour slugfest against the Portland Trail Blazers, Jarred Vanderbilt was already deep into a morning workout. The Lakers were beginning a grueling five-game, seven-day stretch, but Vanderbilt was on the practice court in a full sweat at full speed.
It’s no surprise to Sexton that Vanderbilt approached his long-awaited regular-season debut the same way Wednesday against the Clippers.
“He’s always going to be ready for whenever his name is called,” Sexton said. “But that just shows a true professional.”
Vanderbilt starred in his bench role in his delayed season debut Wednesday in the Lakers’ 103-87 win over the Clippers at Intuit Dome. The offensive numbers are unremarkable: no points, one shot, one assist and a turnover. The impact was undeniable. The Lakers outscored the Clippers (1-3) by 22 points in his 21 minutes and two seconds he was on the court.
Vanderbilt, who had seven rebounds, was one of three Lakers bench players to have a plus-minus of plus-21 or better Wednesday, along with Sexton (plus-23) and Sandro Mamukelashvili (plus-21).
“The second unit, we have to come in and pick up where the starters left off,” said Sexton, who had 21 points, including 11 during the third quarter. “That’s the biggest thing. We got to come in and impact the game right away. We can’t come in and ease into it.”
Vanderbilt’s energy helped the Lakers (4-1) win the rebounding battle for the first time this season. He didn’t waste any time after he subbed in with 3:26 remaining in the first quarter. On his first possession in the game, Vanderbilt repeatedly tipped a loose ball up in the air to keep it alive long enough for Austin Reaves to grab an offensive rebound.
The 6-foot-8 forward did not appear in the Lakers’ first four games. He has been on the fringes of the Lakers rotation in part because his three-point shot is not reliable enough to offset his consistent defensive tenacity and energy. But with the Lakers struggling to find a backup center behind Walker Kessler, Lakers coach JJ Redick said Vanderbilt could get an opportunity to play out of position.
Redick said he had previously had conversations with Vanderbilt about ensuring he would be in a position to succeed. Redick views Vanderbilt more as a wing or a forward than a center, where he occasionally played during 2025 after the Lakers traded for Luka Doncic and were shorthanded in the frontcourt. But with Kevon Looney being the only other full-time center behind Kessler this season, there could be moments when Vanderbilt plays the five by necessity, Redick acknowledged Wednesday.
When Kessler wasn’t on the court Wednesday, Redick said the duo of Vanderbilt and the 6-foot-9 Mamukelashvili was “the best pairing in terms of having another big out there that can space and shoot and play-make.” Mamukelashvili had 13 points, eight rebounds, three assists and two steals in 30 minutes.
Looney, who was minus-eight in five minutes on the court against the Trail Blazers on Tuesday, did not play Wednesday. The three-time NBA champion offers a completely different skill set than Kessler at the position, and only one week into the season, Redick said the staff is still figuring out how Looney best fits into the team’s scheme.
“You’re trying to figure out who you are as a group [at the beginning of the season],” Redick said. “You’re also, like, for a team with a lot of new guys, you’re trying to figure out what they are. You follow players for years. You can watch them play, and you got to figure out where they fit and how you can, again, put them in a position to succeed. So that’s still a work in progress with all regards.”
The Lakers looked to bolster their depth at center by signing 7-foot center Lawson Lovering to a two-way contract Wednesday and waiving forward AK Okereke. Lovering was with Memphis’ G League affiliate, where he averaged 7.7 points, 7.1 rebounds and 1.3 blocks in 30 games last season. He was undrafted out of Utah, where he finished his collegiate career that started at Colorado.
MILWAUKEE, WISCONSIN - OCTOBER 05: Kevin Porter Jr. #7 of the Milwaukee Bucks looks on against the Minnesota Timberwolves during the preseason NBA game at Fiserv Forum on October 05, 2026 in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Patrick McDermott/Getty Images) | Getty Images
Welcome to another edition of Heard ‘em Say, where we share the Milwaukee Bucks news that matters to you—all in one convenient place! On this week’s agenda: what could have been instead of waiving Kevin Porter Jr., a roundup of the Wisconsin Herd’s roster, an update on Malik Beasley’s sports gambling charges, and Nate Ament reps the Brewers. Oh, and was Jaylen Brown pushing to become a Buck?
Nuggets offered picks for KPJ?
As you’re well aware, the Bucks waived Kevin Porter Jr. just before the 4:00 p.m. CT deadline for NBA teams to finalise their rosters ahead of the regular season starting. The news was a shock, at least to some (Editor’s note: more on that to come), particular given how well Porter performed when healthy last season. As it turns out, the Bucks didn’t have to lose him for nothing. In fact, according to Jake Fischer’s report in The People’s Insider, they could’ve received draft picks in exchange for the 26-year-old. Of course, there’s a caveat:
The Stein Line has learned that the Nuggets showed a willingness to package two future second-rounders and a second-round pick swap along with Zeke Nnaji’s very available contract in a bid to bring Kevin Porter Jr. to the Rocky Mountains. Yet I’m told that the Bucks ultimately walked away from the Porter-to-Denver discussions as well — and then waived Porter Jr. — because they could not stomach the idea of swallowing Nnaji’s $7.5 million salary for the 2027-28 season.
Fischer also reported that five salary cap specialists from rival teams “said they would have made the move if they were in Milwaukee’s shoes” but also that “All five capologists say they could understand why the Bucks ultimately chose not to surrender $7.5 million of their theoretical flexibility entering the 2027-28 campaign.” All this considered—not to mention the additional opportunities Porter’s absence has afforded Kasparas Jakučionis—do you agree with Jon Horst’s decision?
Speaking of Porter, via the Clutch Scoopspodcast, ClutchPoints’ Brett Siegel speculated that while a return to the NBA isn’t out of the cards, Porter may even head back to Europe:
Halfway through the year, there’s going to be teams needing point guards and needing more backcourt depth. They’ll look at Kevin Porter Jr. as an option. But I would just keep an eye on him as also being an option for international teams overseas in Europe. And I expect him to gain interest there. We’ll see what he ultimately decides, whether he wants to give up on the NBA and go overseas or if he’s going to wait for some of these pro-rated deals after the trade deadline.
As we know, Porter has more than enough talent for NBA basketball, and if it weren’t for all his injuries last year he could very well be the Bucks’ starting point guard right now. So, let’s hope he gets another shot somewhere.
All the best, Scoot.
Wisconsin Herd roster roundup
After making their pick in the G League Draft last Saturday, the Wisconsin Herd have officially finalized their 15-man training camp roster. The roster is led by two-way players Kam Jones, Pete Nance, and Cormac Ryan.
Despite trading a 2026 first-rounder to the Capital City Go-Go (the Wizards’ G League affiliate), the Herd still walked away with a player after the draft. The Herd selected Brody Fox, a former The Citadel forward coming off a one-year stint in Estonia, with the 49th pick.
Some of the Herd’s most recognizable players parted ways with Wisconsin earlier this year. Mark Sears (19.1 ppg) signed an Exhibit-10 deal with Portland, while Wisconsin traded Stephen Thompson (17.4 ppg) to the Iowa Wolves, and Johnny Davis (15.6 ppg) signed with a Turkish team. The Herd went 10-26 last year, good for last in the Eastern Conference, but coach Schuyler Rimmer and the Herd are hoping to improve going into 2027.
The full roster is as follows:
Ty Berry (guard, Kauhajoki Karhu)
Johni Broome (forward, Philadelphia 76ers/Delaware Blue Coats)
Jeremiah Burke (forward, Denver University)
John Butler Jr. (forward, Wisconsin Herd)
Brody Fox (forward, Latvijas Universitate)
Marcus Garrett (guard, Greensboro Swarm)
Terrence Hargrove Jr. (forward, Grand Rapids Gold)
Kam Jones (guard, Indiana Pacers/Noblesville Boom)
Cameron Martin (forward, Wisconsin Herd)
Pete Nance (forward, Milwaukee Bucks/Wisconsin Herd)
Manny Obaseki (guard, Westchester Knicks)
Cameron Parker (guard, Rip City Remix)
Cormac Ryan (guard, Milwaukee Bucks/Wisconsin Herd)
Kalifa Sakho (forward, Houston University)
Jake Stephens (forward, KK Split)
Malik Beasley in talks over possible guilty plea
In June 2025, news broke that former Bucks guard Malik Beasley was under investigation for betting on NBA games. This June, Beasley wasindicted on sports gambling charges, allegedly committing those crimes while with the team. Now, it appears Beasley is pleading guilty, as reported by Mike Vorkunov from The Athletic:
Beasley was indicted this summer for his role in an alleged scheme that bet on his performance while he was with the Milwaukee Bucks during the 2023-24 season. Beasley is accused of manipulating his play so that bettors could win their wagers on him. Beasley initially pleaded not guilty, but court records Friday night said that he intends to change his plea.
Steve Haney, a lawyer for Beasley, said Beasley has not yet decided to plead guilty, but is in talks with prosecutors with the US Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of New York. He is expected to make a final decision early next week.
In fact, there’s no doubt about it:
Former NBA player Malik Beasley will enter a guilty plea on Dec. 9 with the Department of Justice over his role in bribery and betting scheme on his NBA play, his attorney Steve Haney tells ESPN.
Jaylen Brown may or may not have pushed to be traded to Milwaukee
According to Brian Scalabrine, at one point this offseason, Jaylen Brown pushed to be traded to the Milwaukee Bucks:
“My understanding is that Jaylen Brown went to the organization and had a list of demands, and it was like, ‘You either do this, or you trade me.’ And he was rooting to get traded to Milwaukee, including calling some teammates about, ‘Hey, man, what do you think of Milwaukee? We should go there.'”
Then again, according to the same Brian Scalabrine, that actually didn’t happen:
Drew Carter and Brian Scalabrine taking about Scal’s comments on the radio today https://t.co/Ldad81lQHO
For as good as Brown is, I’m good with how this all played out. What about you?
Nate Ament & the “Brew Crew”
Finally, just in case you missed it, Nate Ament is embracing all things Milwaukee—even with his shoes:
Bucks rookie Nate Ament is debuting his “Brew Crew” Reebok Engine A 26 PE today — as the Milwaukee Brewers begin the World Series.
The 1-of-1 PE features his player logo on the tongue and a classic navy / yellow Brewers colorway. https://t.co/xGRnvCu5BX
ATLANTA, GEORGIA - OCTOBER 28: Giannis Antetokounmpo #7 of the Miami Heat is defended by Dyson Daniels #5 and Onyeka Okongwu #17 of the Atlanta Hawks during the second quarter at State Farm Arena on October 28, 2026 in Atlanta, Georgia. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images) | Getty Images
The Atlanta Hawks dropped a third consecutive game as they fell to fellow Southeast Division rivals Miami Heat 129-117 on Wednesday evening at State Farm Arena. Nickeil Alexander-Walker scored 23 points, while rookie Kingston Flemings also scored so far career-best of 23 points. For the Heat, Giannis Antetokounmpo and Bam Adebayo scored 24 points apiece with Antetokounmpo adding 18 rebounds.
Having lost two games against the Houston Rockets, the Hawks returned to State Farm Arena to face a familiar foe: a Heat side looking for their first victory of the season. Initially, it was a close affair between the two sides, but the Heat began to edge away as the first quarter came to close and established a double-digit lead as the paint points began to mount.
In the second quarter, the Hawks made a run to bring the margin down as low as three points before the Heat re-established themselves and their double-digit lead; a half-court heave from Nikola Jovic at the halftime buzzer putting the Heat up by 13 points. The third quarter saw the Hawks, again, trying to mount a comeback before another Miami run stretched their lead to a game-high 18 points before settling at 15 heading into the final frame.
The Hawks mounted a run in the fourth quarter, and with seven minutes remaining the lead had been trimmed to four points — plenty of time to take the lead and see the game through with the home-crowd very much onside. However, Miami responded, and restored their 10-point lead and edge away to secure their first win of the season.
Postgame, Hawks head coach Quin Snyder acknowledged that the Heat were just better last night, while also commenting on the Hawks not moving the ball as they should have, affecting their offense.
“Credit the way they played, they, they beat us,” said Snyder. “They were aggressive on the glass, they did a lot of things and there were times when we responded, but we’ve got to be better. We’ve got to move the ball better, particularly when the team’s aggressive on us on the ball. We have willing passers, but we have to pass. It’s about when you pass, and our ability to get off the ball quicker and get more movement I think will help us offensively. When we’re not connected on the offensive end, it really impacts our team.”
The Hawks made multiple runs in this game to cut the lead to single digits but could not sustain it.
“Just a little too late, energy-wise,” said Nickeil Alexander-Walker. “We’re showing that we can compete. I think throughout the game, we have to do a better job of consistently competing. There’s times where our compete level drops, and that’s what it was tonight.”
I think the Hawks lost this game for three reasons: they got absolutely killed in the paint/at the rim, the Hawks committed a lot of turnovers that could have been avoided, and Atlanta missed too many bunnies at the rim.
The main issue last night defensively was defending at the rim: the Heat made 21 baskets at the rim and scored 70 points in the paint. Onyeka Okongwu certainly had his work cut out for him with both Giannis and Adebayo attacking the rim, or Miami operating Adebayo in the high-post, bringing Okongwu away from the rim and leaving the rim largely unprotected…and then there were instances where Okongwu or Jock Landale were close to the rim and it didn’t matter.
This lack of rim protection in this game was seen in the early stages, as Andrew Wiggins drives to the rim and scores before the defense can rotate to attempt a block:
After a turnover from Kingston Flemings, the Heat come the other way, and from the corner, Pelle Larsson is able to drive by Aaron Wiggins and score at the rim without a challenge:
Here, Adebayo throws an entry pass to Giannis, who has Landale at his back, and with the only size the Hawks have at even having a remote chance of slowing him down, Giannis is able to flip the shot home, plus the foul:
After a wide miss by Adebayo on the jumper, there is absolutely no size and no chance the Hawks can prevent Giannis claiming the offensive rebound and scoring at the rim:
After the drive from Klay Thompson draws Okongwu, Giannis receives the dump-off at the dunker’s spot, and with Okongwu now behind the play, Giannis can dunk at the rim for another basket at the rim:
After Dyson Daniels does a good job contesting the much larger Adebayo at the rim, he — and the rest of the Hawks — are powerless to fight against the second effort of Adebayo, who claims and rises in a crowd to score at the rim:
This time in a rare pick-and-roll scenario, Antetokounmpo gets a head of steam, and when he does it’s just one of those things that’s very difficult to stop even with sufficient rim protection:
It’s a tough matchup for the Hawks when there’s an old-school tandem of a dominant power forward/center combo, and the Hawks just don’t have the size to combat this dual-headed threat.
“Obviously Giannis and the question before about Bam breaking the rebounding record for the Heat, so, he’s out there and then Giannis is out there too and Portis is physical and they have size across their front line,” said Snyder. “We can’t accept that those aren’t plays and balls that we can come up with. There’s just another level there, and at times we found it. But there are things, that throughout the possession when you have breakdowns, it becomes difficult to rebound because you’re in a rotation situation.”
It was undoubtedly the key to the game, but with the way the Hawks are set up I’m not sure what more could have been done to prevent it. Sure, perhaps Okongwu could have gotten back to the rim quicker on some drives to try and contest, but there’s no guarantee that would have changed the outcome on those baskets and, overall, those instances were far fewer than the Heat just inherently having a size advantage possession after possession.
Individually, the Hawks did not enjoy many strong offensive performances, in particular Jalen Johnson did not enjoy a positive game scoring the ball, scoring just 12 points on 4-of-12 shooting. Snyder believed the Heat trapping as they did impacted the Hawks and their ability to move the ball as they normally would.
“The impact that Jalen has in the game in transition and his unselfishness, his willingness to pass the ball, playing without the ball is something that our, our whole team, the more we embrace that, the more difficult we are to defend, and that’s everybody,” began Snyder on Johnson’s difficult game. “Tonight, they were trapping us in lots of actions, so those reads really dictate that you need to throw the ball ahead and just move it and see how you break the defense down. That’s one of the biggest things for us is to have the ball change sides. When we’re playing actions, that allows them to double, and when they do, we’ve got to take advantage of that. That’s something we need to do a better job.”
Johnson was still able to rack up 11 assists, and the Hawks 35 assists but it was the 15 turnovers which were costly for the Hawks. Not so much because Miami punished them for it (only scoring 13 points off of turnovers) but they were largely avoidable turnovers which prevented the Hawks themselves attempting shots.
The story from the Hawks’ side from a player perspective was that of Kingston Flemings, who scored 23 points on 9-of-12 shooting from the field and 3-of-5 from three:
“Just staying aggressive,” said Flemings of his night. “We got a lot of rebounds, and we were pushing in transition, that’s when we’re best. So, just trying to get rebounds, push and just playing the flow of the offense.”
Flemings also got the nod to close out the game in place of CJ McCollum down the stretch, running with the Hawks’ crunch time lineup. When asked about this decision after the game, Snyder explained the reasoning for it and how McCollum has supported Flemings.
“Kingston did a terrific job,” said Snyder of Flemings. “I think this is part of the process for him. This is a long runway, as I’ve said and it’s not about any one player, it’s really not. Tonight, Kingston gave us a lift. He was pushing the ball and made some good things happen. We talked about it as the coaching staff, (and) CJ knows how we feel about him, he’s crucial to us being who we want to be. Kingston had been in the game long enough that it felt like throwing CJ in a tough situation, putting him in cold at that point. As I said, CJ’s all about the team and the team winning and that’s an aberration. But I think CJ more than anyone understands with his professionalism and his career, but our whole team, that’s part of having depth on any given night. Hopefully you have guys that can lift their level, and tonight was Kingston. It’s been other guys as well. That’s how we can be a good team by having that depth and versatility and guys getting behind one another. You saw that tonight. Nobody’s more supportive of Kingston than CJ.”
Flemings echoed this sentiment and described how McCollum has been helping him in his rookie season so far.
“I mean, otherworldly, to be honest,” said Flemings when asked about the importance of McCollum’s veteran presence. “Him and Nickeil, I work out with them almost every single day, taking bits and pieces. For CJ to be playing this long at this high of a level, it’s not easy to do. You don’t even see a lot of players doing it. But just CJ, the things he’s done, he’s in my ear all the time. Every timeout when he’s on the bench, just telling me what he sees, offense, defense, helping me in those ways. Just invaluable having players like him on the team. I’m grateful for it.”
“I just work with him every day, so, seeing his mindset, seeing his aggression, the way he competed tonight was amazing,” added Nickeil Alexander-Walker of Flemings. “He provided energy, came in aggressive, played to his strengths, got the team within striking distance in multiple ways. His force and everything was amazing.”
In some of those plays from his highlights above, what continues to be really impressive is Flemings’ decision-making. He could spring into a three or a jumpshot, but turns it down and drives inside, where he can either kick it out or rise into a more open jumpshot. It would be easy to take the three in front of him but takes maturity to recognize that there is a better shot available to him; his patience has been impressive to watch.
“The game is still super fast,” said Flemings postgame. “I think it’s definitely slowing down for me. It’s just being aggressive. I see a lot of the plays throughout the court, nothing really changed. It’s just when the defense knows I’m going to pass, my passes aren’t going to be there. So, the coaches talk to me about that, everyone’s talking about that. Putting the ball on the rim, I’m going to continue to do that. Just put the ball up, make some shots, and you play like that, it makes the defense second guess. So, doing that, just constantly trying to gain confidence throughout.”
Other Hawks who had a good game include Dyson Daniels, he was so disruptive defensively last night — three steals doesn’t fully reflect how active he was last night. Alexander-Walker scored 23 points on 8-of-18 from the field and 5-of-9 from three, while CJ McCollum was active in the first quarter and made some tough baskets en route to 13 points. Despite Johnson shooting 4-of-12, Lu Dort shooting 3-of-11, and Aaron Wiggins shooting 4-of-11, I thought the offense wasn’t really the issue (barring those turnovers); the Hawks just had no answer to Miami’s size — the roster is just fundamentally built in a way that does not jive well with the way Atlanta’s roster is built.
The Hawks have now lost three straight games, but this doesn’t require overreaction. Two of those are against the Rockets, and they’re just a step above the Hawks from a talent perspective: that’s going to be a very good team if health endures.
This loss last night I think is just a clash of styles that doesn’t suit Atlanta; the Heat’s front court was just too big and powerful for the Hawks to handle last night. Future matchups will be interesting to see how the Hawks go about teams like this with two prolific bigs.
The Hawks (2-3) are back in action tonight at State Farm Arena to take on the Cleveland Cavaliers (3-1), who were in action last night in a win against the Wizards in Cleveland.
MIAMI, FL - OCTOBER 26: Zaccharie Risacher #10 of the Dallas Mavericks drives to the basket during the game against the Miami Heat on October 26, 2026 at Kaseya Center in Miami, Florida. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this Photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2026 NBAE (Photo by Joe Murphy/NBAE via Getty Images) | NBAE via Getty Images
On most teams, you find that one player. Especially for young players, there’s always someone who’s too quick for their own legs, too rushed, too out of control. It’s usually because their body is both quicker and more athletic than their brain realizes, and it can take a while for it to catch up.
When I was a u16 player, we had one of those players. Too quick for her own legs, she would beat her defender, but throw the ball up, clanking it off the rim and then continue out of bounds, unable to stop. It was funny at times, but less useful in games. On the other side of the floor, however, she was a menace. Constantly getting a hand on passes on defense, throwing herself into rebounds.
As crazy as it sounds, that reminds me of someone. Someone on the Dallas Mavericks, whose game has been looking too rushed. But then during the last few games, things seemed to improve. Zaccharie Risacher.
Isaac Harris of the LockedOn Mavs podcast saw the same thing, and – luckily for me – asked Mavs coach Dusty May about it.
“With Zacch, he’s done everything we’ve asked him to do. And sometimes, we want to see you more before we constrain you, or before we want you to do this or that. We want to evaluate you to see, because sometimes guys can do more than they’ve needed to in the past, because of their situation. After Houston, we painted a really clear picture of what we needed him to do. And he’s been very, very receptive.”
I asked Dusty May about the game slowing down for Zaccharie Risacher & here’s his answer
And the coaching behind what they did to help Risacher slow down, especially his shot, is worth paying attention to if you’re into the technical (and mental) part of what goes into making a good basketball player and shooter:
“(Today) he was really close to having as good of a stat line as his impact on the game,” May said after the Miami Heat win earlier this week. “His shots didn’t look rushed, it looked like he was playing with a much – we call it quiet eye – with a much quieter eye.”
I saw a number of people questioning the term after this quote, asking if this was real and if May just made it up. But the concept of “the quiet eye” is in fact a very real thing, it even has its own Wikipedia page.
When we talk about the quiet eye in basketball, we refer to the extended moment a good, usually elite player and shooter, stares at the rim – or space in the middle of the net – before shooting.
An elite shooter locks eyes, if it had them, with the rim before getting a shot up. The more pressure, the longer the stare. It allows the shooter to focus, as well as visualize, where the shot will fall and how it’s going to look, the millisecond before you shoot. The better the shooter, the longer this moment is when the pressure is high.
The quiet eye was one of my specialties as a player. I was a great shooter for a while there, and every time I was on a heater, I would see exactly where the ball fell just before I would shoot. It felt like prophecy, but it was more like visualization. And it works.
We see examples of this with the best shooters in the league every day. When (brace yourselves, Mavs fans) Tim Hardaway Jr. is on a heater, he does this very well. Klay Thompson, of course, and Steph Curry. Bogdan Bogdanovic is another great example. And I’ve seen new Mav Tarik Biberovic do it in Fenerbahçe. Watch his stare at the rim from when he takes the first dribble:
What we have seen from Risacher recently, and what we will see even more going forward if he manages to incorporate this, is a much better three-point percentage. He has the mechanics down. The quiet eye could help him get the needed focus and get his numbers up fast.
“Zacch is finding himself now,” Dusty May said. “He’s still so young. We really value and appreciate those plays. However many missed shots he had, he had twice as many loose balls, blocks, steals and rebounds and the ones that don’t show up.”
Here’s a good example of what May mentions, this is just one play that stood out, where Risacher blocks a shot in a valuable possession for Miami with five minutes left, leading to a chance to secure important points on the other end for Dallas.
THE BLOCK ➡️ THE AND-1
Risacher with the rejection, and Flagg with the basket plus the foul on NBA TV! 💪 pic.twitter.com/am5WQZhMih
Risacher is doing everything right. After the Miami game, he topped the leaderboard in stocks (steals and rebounds) with 16, an incredible number. Followed by Cooper Flagg (15) and Daniel Gafford (14), the Mavs players are really standing out early.
Here’s another one of Risacher affecting the game directly with hustling and rebounding against the Oklahoma City Thunder Wednesday, cleaning up the possession after a missed shot.
The Mavs coaching staff has been able to make this team play not only hard – as has been the strategy previously – but also smart.
“I thought tonight he painted a masterpiece” Dusty May said after the OKC win. “He’s impacting every single possession… (Sasser and Risacher) are lighting a fire under us, and it’s been fun.”
And it’s paying off, the whole team looks to have great chemistry, which May also mentioned:
“Just to see how connected our group is. They’re so much for each other, it’s fun,” the Dallas Mavericks head coach said.
“He makes us 15, 20 points better when he’s being active and getting steals and playing his defense,” Cooper Flagg said after the Miami game. “I have no doubt that his shots are gonna start to fall.”
And the following game against Oklahoma, they did. Risacher made two out of three from beyond the arc, looking in control and maybe even utilizing that quiet eye, from the looks of it.
And after Wednesday’s win over the Thunder, May revealed that the coaches see Risacher as something out of this world sometimes.
“(Risacher) never gets tired. One of the assistant coaches, Coach Fodor, said he’s a cyborg. He comes out of a game playing five minutes that hard and he’s not breathing (hard), he’s just sitting there, you can’t even tell that he’s been playing…He’s kinda reinventing himself, where even though he’s not shooting nearly as well as he always has, he’s found a lot of value in other parts of the game.”
The same day, the Dallas Mavericks announced that they had exercised their fourth-year team option on Zaccharie Risacher for the 2027-28 season.
He’s reinventing himself with the guidance of good coaching in Dallas. And he has proved himself very important to winning for this team already. Zaccharie Risacher is in a good place.
CLEVELAND, OH - OCTOBER 28: AJ Dybantsa #4 of the Washington Wizards handles the ball during the game against the Cleveland Cavaliers on October 28, 2026 at Rocket Arena in Cleveland, Ohio. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and/or using this Photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2026 NBAE (Photo by Brian Kolin/NBAE via Getty Images) | NBAE via Getty Images
Washington Wizards rookie AJ Dybantsa made an immediate impact in his NBA debut, scoring 19 points against the Cleveland Cavaliers (3-1) after missing the first four games of the season with a sprained ankle that he suffered in preseason.
The No. 1 overall pick earned a spot in the starting lineup alongside Trae Young, Anthony Davis, Alex Sarr and Kyshawn George as Washington (2-3) shifted fourth-year wing Bilal Coulibaly to come off the bench for the first time this season.
Playing on a minutes restriction due to his injury, Dybantsa wasted little time making his presence felt. After Washington won the opening tip, it took Dybantsa just 16 seconds to attack the rim and draw a shooting foul on Cavaliers center Jarrett Allen to send the rookie to the charity stripe.
The BYU product knocked down both free throws for the first two points of his NBA career.
In his first six-minute stint as a pro, Dybantsa scored nine points on 3-for-3 shooting in the first quarter. He caught a half-court lob from Young, connected on his first career 3-pointer and recorded an assist to Sarr for a corner three in an impressive opening stretch.
AJ Dybantsa's FIRST BUCKET IN HIS NBA DEBUT was a lob from Trae 🔥
He exited the first quarter helping Washington take a 22-16 lead, and turned heads with a dazzling step through floater finish, past James Harden and over the seven-footer — Allen.
Despite the minutes restriction, Dybantsa played the final 8 minutes and 18 seconds of the fourth quarter, with Washington trailing 102-99. He connected on a mid-range jumper and a dunk as Washington — which led by 16 at one point — tried to re-take its lead in the final quarter.
The rookie finished with 19 points on 8-for-12 shooting from the field, adding two rebounds and two assists in 27 minutes.
But, despite Dybantsa’s strong debut, Cleveland took control late in the game to secure the 121-111 victory over Washington — handing the Wizards their second consecutive loss of the season.
Dybantsa’s 19-point performance marked the highest-scoring debut by a Wizards rookie since Tom Gugliotta scored 20 points against the Charlotte Hornets on Nov. 2, 1992.
Although Washington couldn’t come away with a win, Dybantsa’s efficient scoring and early contributions offered an encouraging glimpse of what the franchise’s top pick could bring as he begins his NBA career. He will be back in action for his home crowd debut at Capital One Arena against the Charlotte Hornets on Friday night at 7 p.m. ET.
Charlotte beat Washington 110-103 on Monday night in North Carolina – while Dybantsa was sidelined.
The Warriors won their second straight game, defeating the Minnesota Timberwolves 119-114 in a close final quarter, as Golden State rookie Yaxel Lendeborg continued his early season success.
But it was star Steph Curry that put on a show, scoring 44 points on six 3-pointers and still showing that he is critical to Golden State’s core. Lendeborg spoke to reporters after the game and expressed his amazement at Curry’s performance, while acknowledging that it motivated him to do his part for the team.
“I think I need somebody to cuss me out, like Draymond [Green] did today, because I’m just watching, like, man, this guy is good as hell,” Lendeborg said. “I caught myself shaking my head, like ‘wow,’ a couple times. But once he got out of the game, it’s like, this is my opportunity to help him out, help his great [game] be worth a lot. But I was amazed today for sure.”
Curry scored 19 points in the second quarter in about nine minutes, putting Golden State ahead by a considerable amount going into the second half. But it was the second half that really turned heads, with Curry scoring 21 points and going 16 for 16 at the free throw line for the night.
Lendeborg, who was one of only three Warriors, including Curry, to score in double figures, had seven turnovers, but Curry’s big game made those turnovers less important to the outcome of the game.
The Warriors are severely shorthanded to start the season, with Jimmy Butler, Moses Moody and Kristaps Porziņģis all sidelined with injuries. Butler and Moody are not expected back until the start of the next calendar year, making Lendeborg’s presence even more important. The rookie is averaging 22.6 points, 9.2 rebounds and 4.0 assists through the first five games, proving that he and Curry form a strong duo.
Golden State gets a night off on Thursday before beginning their NBA Cup campaign on Friday night against the Los Angeles Lakers at home. Lendeborg scored 12 points in a 127-105 loss to the Lakers on opening night, and is hoping to improve on that performance and lead the team to a win over their rivals this time around.
MILWAUKEE, WISCONSIN - OCTOBER 28: Fred VanVleet #5 of the Houston Rockets dribbles the ball against Ryan Rollins #13 of the Milwaukee Bucks in the first quarter at Fiserv Forum on October 28, 2026 in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Patrick McDermott/Getty Images) | Getty Images
Well, in a game that was bound to happen eventually, the Milwaukee Bucks got trounced 132-100 by the Houston Rockets. Point blank, the Bucks looked like a team in the first year of a rebuild, while the Rockets looked like a team with its eyes firmly set on the title. Their defence was like a boa constrictor, slowly choking the Bucks until they had no life left. Tough one; Milwaukee will process it and quickly move on to the next thing, as they will have a lot to do this season. Read our full summary of the game here.
Man, after a few games where it felt like Rollins was getting back to himself, he turns in this stinker. It does feel like Rollins lost some confidence in himself. Did y’all see him pass out of that fast break layup attempt? I will say that 1) Rollins was able to create at a decent level, and 2) the Rockets might just be the worst team to play when you’re trying to find a rhythm.
Yet again, Herro stands up as the only true shining light. The Rockets were able to shut down Herro’s passing game (though others would have needed to make shots for him to register assists), but he still got his on elite efficiency. Yeah, Houston’s bigger wings definitely picked on Herro, but I thought he competed made them take tough shots most of the time.
After a blip against Indy, Jaquez was right back to the level he’d been playing at. Jaquez was one of the only Bucks who had any modicum of success getting downhill or making spot-up threes. I also thought JJJ was solid guarding the bigger Rockets wings.
Just a bit of a nothing game from Kuzma. Somewhat predictably, he wasn’t able to generate good shots against that defence, and also wasn’t able to punish from the perimeter.
Well, Turner’s stat line shows his defensive impact is on the rise, at least. I thought he set solid screens, which allowed for some great pick-and-pop looks from three, but they all rimmed out. Those shots were the right ones to take, but man, at some point the big fella has to get his three-ball going; currently shooting a daftly 18.2%.
One of Ware’s next steps is to be able to match it against physically dominant teams like the Rockets. Ware looked outmatched at nearly every point he was on the floor, and the Rockets made him look small. On the positive side, I thought Ware’s shot selection was solid.
I mean, Jakucionis got places on the court better than I thought he’d be able to, which allowed him to draw multiple defenders and kick out to open teammates. The passing was encouraging for sure, but it was tough for KJ to get much offence going (like most of the youngins).
I thought Burries did some really positive things in his minutes. He played solid on-ball defence on Reed Sheppard and showcased his offensive creation more in a low-stakes setting. Had a nice pull-up jumper on Oscar Tshiebwe and got himself to the charity stripe twice. It’s great experience.
Green did his job in this one; not much more to say. One note: his passing out of the pick-and-roll has definitely improved. Had a great rep coming off the horns action, forcing the nail help to tag the rolling Sims, and then zipping it over to the open Ament at the top of the key for three. Had a very similar play against Indiana.
The stat sheet won’t show it, but I thought Ament’s impact on the game was quite positive, mostly because of his defence, which I’m definitely keeping tabs on. He had a crazy block meeting Jabari Smith Jr. at the summit and did a genuinely good job guarding Kevin Durant. On the other hand, Ament’s off-ball defence is lagging; he got mixed up on a few switches against Houston’s “77” action (double screen in the middle of the floor), and Reed Sheppard got open on the perimeter because of that. I’m not going to overindex on Ament’s shooting efficiency because of the inexperienced lineups deployed from the middle of the third quarter onward; someone had to shoot, and against that defence, most were low-quality attempts.
Grade: B-
Ousmane Dieng
13 minutes, 4 points, 2/5 FG, 0/1 3P, -8
Dieng had a nice drive to split the defence and finish at the rim, but I don’t see him impacting in many other areas of the game right now.
Grade: C-
Taylor Jenkins
I’m not sure Jenkins could have done much more to affect the result in this one. On the broadcast, he seemed invested in the game the whole time, which was good to see. Also, I appreciated that Jenkins didn’t bother putting the starters back in after the game was lost by the middle of the third, and instead let the young guys “run wild” for a bit. That at least gave me a reason to keep watching.
Grade: C
Limited minutes: Jericho Sims, Gary Trent Jr., Bogoljub Markovic
DNP-CD: Caris LeVert,
Inactive: Kam Jones, Cormac Ryan, Pete Nance
What We Learnt
Look, I don’t want to get ahead of myself here because it is early, but Nate Ament is showing some good signs as a wing defender. It says a lot that, at this point, I don’t even think Ament knows what he’s doing defensively, yet he’s consistently forced high-calibre wings to take tough shots. Jaylen Brown, Pascal Siakam, and now Kevin Durant (his idol). Seriously, it feels like as long as Ament keeps his hands out and stays in front, he can use his length to make dudes work hard just to get the ball over him, let alone make the shot. Let’s just say I’m intrigued. Now, this isn’t to say Ament doesn’t have a lot of work to do on other elements of defence—screen navigation and point-of-attack containment being some—but his one-on-one wing defence has looked way ahead of schedule.
Bonus Bucks Bits
The Bucks didn’t shoot their first free throw off a shooting foul until the third quarter—that’s how good this Rockets defence is.
Jenkins had Nate Ament guarding at centre for a few minutes late in the third quarter before Jericho Sims came in.
Gary Trent Jr. finally got his first minutes of the season and, well, let’s just say he was eager to register his first points too (which he did in the dying seconds). OK, NBA, time to end the investigation now.
Bogoljub Markovic registered his first points last night. Congrats!
Milwaukee actually scored at a solid rate in the third quarter but couldn’t defend; they dropped 34 but gave up 38. This contrasts sharply with the first two quarters, when the Bucks scored just 21 and 14 points, respectively.
I often ignore defensive shot tracking stats because they get noisy, but the eye test confirms them sometimes.
Nate Ament allowing a low field goal percentage is not noise. That guy blocks out the sun with his closeouts. Just forced a KD miss.
For three glorious games, the Lakers looked like they had discovered the secret to winning basketball in 2026: score so many points on offense that nobody notices you can’t stop anybody on defense.
Through their first three games of the NBA season, Luka Doncic was putting up MVP numbers. Austin Reaves was playing like an All-Star and the perfect No. 2 scoring option alongside Doncic. Walker Kessler looked like the trade of the century, catching alley-oops, protecting the rim and putting up numbers at center the Lakers haven’t seen since Wilt Chamberlain and Shaquille O’Neal.
Damian Lillard (0) of the Portland Trail Blazers shoots a 3-point basket during a game against the Los Angeles Lakers at Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles, Tuesday, Oct. 27, 2026. NBAE via Getty Images
The Lakers still can’t defend the perimeter, and no amount of offensive fireworks can hide that fact forever.
Portland shot a ridiculous 59% from the field, buried 18 of 36 3-pointers and scored at least 32 points in every quarter. The Blazers didn’t just exploit the Lakers’ defense, they made them look like traffic cones on the court during a shootaround.
“We got broken down a lot,” Lakers coach JJ Redick admitted afterward. “The game-plan discipline, KYP [Know Your Personnel] discipline wasn’t where it needs to be.”
Ja Morant repeatedly sliced through Los Angeles’ perimeter defenders, forcing help rotations that left shooters open. Deni Avdija scored at will, including behind the arc for 23 points. Jrue Holiday added 22. Damian Lillard reminded everyone in attendance at Crypto.com Arena that “Dame Time” is still alive and well, delivering dagger after dagger in the fourth quarter, including the game-clinching basket with 43 seconds remaining.
Portland Trail Blazers forward Deni Avdija (8) reacts after scoring a three-pointer during the second half of an NBA basketball game against the Los Angeles Lakers, Wednesday, Oct. 28, 2026, in Los Angeles. AP Photo/Caroline Brehman
Frankly, the Lakers had no answers for the Trail Blazers’ offense.
And that should concern Redick considerably more than his team’s first loss.
Through four games, Los Angeles averaged 128.2 points, second in the NBA, with an offensive rating of 126.8. But its defensive rating of 118.8 ranks 23rd.
Those numbers tell the story of a team capable of winning 50 games while possessing the same defensive vulnerability that could send them home early in the playoffs for the fourth straight year.
Ja Morant #1 and Damian Lillard #0 of the Portland Trail Blazers celebrate a Lillard three pointer during a 136-129 Blazers win over the Los Angeles Lakers at Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles on Tuesday, Oct. 27, 2026. Getty Images
Make no mistake, these Lakers are going to win plenty of basketball games this season. Assuming reasonable health, another 50-win season and a top-four seed in the Western Conference is entirely realistic.
But there’s a drastic difference between being an entertaining team throughout the season and being an actual threat to compete for a championship.
Doncic scored 41 points against Portland, following his spectacular 52-point performance in Utah. Reaves contributed 26. Yet the Lakers still lost because their opponents were getting whatever shots they wanted.
“We had a lot of blown assignments. It was everybody, it wasn’t just one person,” Reaves said. “I made some bad defensive mistakes. You could go around the room. So, [we] gotta be better.”
You cannot ask Doncic to score 40 every night just to compensate for teammates who cannot stay in front of their assignments.
Last season, Redick did his best with the roster he had by increasing energy and effort and switching to a zone defense at various points during the year. Honestly, it was amazing the Lakers won their first-round matchup in the playoffs with the Rockets considering their defensive inefficiencies and being without Doncic and Reaves.
This season, the problem isn’t effort alone. It’s once again about personnel.
Austin Reaves (15) of the Los Angeles Lakers and Ja Morant (1) of the Portland Trail Blazers smile during a game at Crypto.Com Arena in Los Angeles, Tuesday, Oct. 27, 2026. NBAE via Getty Images
The Lakers lack sufficient lateral quickness along the perimeter. When opposing guards penetrate, defenders collapse, rotations become scrambled and shooters find themselves with enough daylight to start a vegetable garden.
The 7-footer has been outstanding, but he’s being asked to protect the rim, contest drives, cover defensive breakdowns and somehow recover quickly enough to secure rebounds.
Even the best defensive centers cannot be in two places on the court simultaneously.
“We were breaking down and giving up corner 3s, pull-to-break 3s,” Kessler said. “I pride myself on being the leader on the defense, and I didn’t perform tonight.”
And the Lakers have another problem when it comes to Kessler: Who replaces him when he comes out of the game for a much-needed rest?
Kevon Looney has struggled to provide dependable minutes, leaving Los Angeles dangerously thin behind Kessler. For a center with an injury history, carrying this much defensive responsibility over 82 games is asking for trouble.
Rob Pelinka should already be exploring the trade market for a legitimate backup center rather than waiting until Kessler’s workload becomes a medical concern.
Redick deserves credit for experimenting with defensive schemes, including zone looks last season, but coaching adjustments cannot manufacture foot speed.
First-round pick Cameron Carr, once healthy, possesses the youth, athleticism and defensive potential that this roster desperately needs.
The Baylor product won’t magically solve everything, but he deserves an opportunity to demonstrate whether he can defend NBA guards without requiring three teammates to rescue him.
The Lakers don’t need another scorer. They need somebody who takes pride in preventing one.
Redick said it best after Tuesday’s loss.
“If we score 129 points at home, we should be able to get enough stops to win.”
He’s right. Los Angeles can score with anybody in the NBA. The question is whether it can stop anybody when it matters most.
Download The California Post App, follow us on social, and subscribe to our newsletters
The Phoenix Suns are last in the NBA in defensive rating early in the 2026-27 season, and their offense over three games has not been anything to celebrate either.
You can point the finger at a lot of different people as to why this season has started slowly, and that there are too many fatal flaws on this roster to overcome. Devin Booker, Brian Gregory, Mat Ishbia, and injuries at center all share some level of blame, but it is Miles Bridges who sits at -17.0 in net rating this season, only trailing Booker with a -17.7 net rating on the Suns.
When Bridges was brought in this offseason, the hope was for him to be a 6’8” version of Jordan Goodwin in the starting lineup. A guy who plays with an elite motor, defends and rebounds at an elite level, and is capable of knocking down open threes. That has not materialized early on defense at all, while the rebounding has been fine at 6.3 per game, but not where it needs to be for this Suns team to win. The entire team shares the blame for their inability to rebound and defend on the defensive end this season, but Bridges’ athleticism was supposed to give that group a boost, and instead, it’s dragged them down to the bottom.
Because of the injuries to Oso Ighodaro and Mark Williams, Bridges has been called upon to be a small-ball center, which has not gone smoothly for anyone, especially Bridges.
‘Offensively, it has gone as poorly as anyone could have imagined so far for the Suns this season, with no Suns starter shooting above 33% from three. Bridges is the worst shooter on the Suns right now; he is taking 6.7 long-distance attempts (second on the team) and connecting on only 20% of them. Many of those attempts are late into the shot clock, heaves that have even less of a chance at going in. The hope for Bridges this season was that he could at least make teams pay when opposing teams left him wide open, but that has backfired.
It would be easy for us as a Suns community to declare this trade a catastrophic failure. We gave up Royce O’Neale and Grayson Allen, plus an unprotected first-round pick, for someone playing this poorly. And if this trend continues from Bridges, Mat Ishbia and Brian Gregory’s management of this roster has to be examined under the microscope because it has Bradley Beal levels of stink to it right now.
But before I make any certain claims about this trade, we should give the Suns more time. Bridges is one of three new rotation players on this roster, and he missed a significant portion of the preseason with an ankle sprain. It has only been three games, and a week of good shooting and better defense from Bridges will turn his season around in a hurry. He is a better player, or at least has been a better player than what he has shown so far, but the level of patience for him to figure things out is dwindling fast because of the price the Suns paid to get him, on top of the off-the-floor issues he has to overcome to be accepted by Suns fans.
The nonnegotiable for Bridges to win Suns fans over and help the team win is that he has to play with incredible effort. He has to be the spark plug for the starting unit as the guy who creates extra possessions for the Suns and sets the tone with toughness and physicality. If he brings that consistently, the Suns can work through the rest of their mess and survive if he fills that role this starting unit desperately needs. On top of the motivation to win games, Bridges is also playing for a contract extension this season and is in prove-it mode on a new team, so there are no excuses for not getting his best effort on a nightly basis.
However, if Bridges and the Suns’ play does not improve before the calendar turns to December, then this season, which is quickly spiraling out of control, is only going to get messier, and Bridges’ time in the Valley will be extremely short. That would be another F on Mat Ishbia’s report card during his short time as owner of the Phoenix Suns.
CHICAGO, ILLINOIS - OCTOBER 28: Jordan Clarkson #00 of the New York Knicks celebrates a three point basket against the Chicago Bulls during the second half at the United Center on October 28, 2026 in Chicago, Illinois. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Jessie Alcheh/Getty Images) | Getty Images
It was always going to be that way, just like Ewings_Finger_Roll joked in the Postgame Thread. There seemed to be nothing the New York Knicks could have done in last night’s road game against the lowly Chicago Bulls that would have made many in their fanbase jump out of their wonderful plushy seats from which they watched a championship just half a year ago. But man, Jordan Clarkson and his friends surely tried nonetheless.
To make things a little interesting, the reigning champs went by the playbook of last year’s early-season game at Chicago on October 31, 2025, even if that Cup contest wasn’t on the second night of a back-to-back like this one. They still sleepwalked through it against a young, inexperienced outfit of bull calves which bears no resemblance to the mighty teams of the Windy City’s past—let me know if that sounds familiar. Then, in the end, your Knickerbockers made a furious comeback only to have it fall short just before the finish line.
When Norman Powell put Chicago up by 19 midway through the third quarter, that looked like it would be a good bet to happen again. I’m sure you could have found a parlay or something with one of the many bloodthirsty gambling companies that populate our sports world these days. But as is so often the case, that money would have been gone.
Knicks play around and still win
Would it have been nice if the Knicks hadn’t played with their food so much but rather gulped it down immediately, just like my young Labrador does with anything edible (and not edible) that gets within a mile of his jaws? I’d guess so. Letting a young and, in parts, actually talented team like the Bulls gain confidence is a dangerous proposition. It can quickly turn a game into a mess that it just shouldn’t be, not even on the second night of a back-to-back. It can get players benched, too, as Mikal Bridges can confirm after getting just 13 minutes in this one. But while there are plenty of gripes to be had about how the first two and a half quarters went this time around, nobody can argue with the final result.
Josh Hart interrupts Benny The Bull’s dark magic ritual and squares up on him pic.twitter.com/kqNfLt93Jo
In large part, we can thank the Knicks reserves for that, especially Jordan Clarkson, Landry Shamet and Tyler Kolek. They all took turns scoring, defending, passing and fighting; their energy, especially on the offensive end, was palpable. With better and, most notably, quicker ball movement initiated by Kolek (9 assists) came more and more open opportunities from downtown, and the Knicks capitalized (48 percent from three). What a game like this means for Kolek going forward is hard to say, especially once Jose Alvarado comes back from his injury. But even with a more than crowded backcourt, there is probably always room for classy, heads-up point guard play.
Jalen Brunson’s wrist looked pretty solid
It’s not really how Jalen Brunson interprets his role at the one, but we’ll take the alternative for now. The captain was his vintage self in his former home state, going for 38 big points in a game where his team needed each one of them. Fourteen of those came in the fourth quarter, when there was nothing the Bulls could do to stop the reigning Finals MVP. Word on the street is that Norman Powell is still looking for his ankles around the United Center; considering how he is an old buddy of OG Anunoby from their Toronto days, we surely wish him the best.
The most welcome sign from Brunson’s game was that he finally had his three-pointer going (6 of 10 from beyond the arc). Wrist surgeries can be a tricky thing for shooters, and quite a few people were at least slightly concerned when Brunson started the season ice cold from the floor. Worry no more, my friends: our captain is still our captain, and the wrist looked fine. Just like the Knicks did in the end when they pulled out a game that easily could have been one of those dreaded schedule losses that we’ve luckily grown accustomed to over the last few years.
I mention “luckily” because you basically can only have these types of losses when you are a good team. When people expect you to win, when they expect you to walk over the bottom feeders of the Association. There’s a temptation to chalk these games up as business as usual no matter the result, especially if you’ve partied up and down the Canyon of Heroes in June. But winning them more often than not points to a certain quality a team possesses. And witnessing that never gets boring, does it?
INGLEWOOD, CA — Darius Garland and the Los Angeles Clippers continue to struggle with turnovers to start the season.
The turnovers happened early and often for the Clippers, who fell to 1-3 on the season after losing to the Lakers on Wednesday, Oct. 28.
Isaiah Jackson won the tip-off against Lakers center Walker Kessler to start the game, but Garland was caught off guard and didn't recover the ball as he was still tying his hair while the ball rolled out of bounds.
Garland was responsible for five of the team's 24 turnovers on Wednesday. Rookie Keaton Wagler was one of four players to have three turnovers.
Coach Tyronn Lue expressed the importance of his team taking care of the ball before the game, but that didn’t come to fruition.
The Lakers managed to capitalize on these turnovers and scored 31 points. The Clippers are also the first team since 2002 to have recorded three consecutive games with 24+ turnovers.
The Lakers managed to produce a 17-0 scoring run in the second quarter and outscored the Clippers 26-6 on fastbreak points, but Lue directed that result to the turnovers.
“I wouldn’t say fastbreak, I'd say turnovers that led to easy 3-on-1s or 1-on-0,” Lue said. “As far as transition, I don't think we did a bad job with that; I think our transition hurt us when we turn the ball over because nobody can get back when that happens.”
With Luka Dončić out, the Clippers managed to limit the Lakers' best available scoring option, Austin Reaves, with their defense.
Reaves was 6-of-16 from the field and finished with 16 points and six rebounds while turning the ball over eight times.
"I think over the four games defensively we've done a lot of good things and we are causing turnovers, but we are just giving it back,” Clippers guard Kris Dunn said. “If we can execute when we do cause turnovers or when we are in the half-court offense and execute, we give ourselves more than a great chance to win these ball games. ... If we can cut down the turnovers, what could the record look like?"
When do Clippers play next?
The Clippers can snap their three-game losing streak with a road win against the Minnesota Timberwolves on Friday, Oct. 30.
Lendeborg was a bright spot for Golden State against the Minnesota Timberwolves on Wednesday night, scoring 26 points and being one of only three Warriors players to score in double figures. But he did commit seven turnovers, and speaking with reporters after the game, he did not mince words when assessing his performance.
Ya el Lendeborg on his seven turnovers: “I played hella soft today. Draymond told me that as well.”
He said Draymond instructed him to drive through their chest later in game
“I played hella soft today,” Lendeborg said. “Draymond told me as well, but seeing it from everybody else’s perspective, I know I was playing super soft. I gave in to all the fake pressure that they were applying, all the grabbing and all the pulling.
“I was playing a little timid, and I wasn’t decisive in any of my moves. So that’s where I would say five of my turnovers came from. The other two are just stupid on my part, and I’m going to know next time I watch film on it. Next time I’m going to just attack it and forget the play.”
Lendeborg is playing well through five games this season, averaging over 22 points and nine rebounds, and has been a seamless fit for Golden State. But the adjustment to the NBA is not easy, and forming a close bond with Draymond Green, Lendeborg has taken the opportunity to learn from him. After one of his turnovers, Green offered the rookie advice that he made sure to apply.
“It was right after the play where I lost it out of bounds next to our bench, and he told me, ‘Next time you get it, drive through somebody’s f—king chest,’” Lendeborg shared. “And I was like ‘OK, I got you.’ So, I got the ball, they gave me a little backswing and I just ran down there. If they stop me at the rim, they do if not, then I score. So that worked out. Then coach Kerr gave me another opportunity with a little keep play. I drove through [Jonathan] Kuminga’s chest, just tried to be a little more physical …”
The Warriors entered this season with several questions, while dealing with injuries to key players such as Jimmy Butler, Moses Moody and Kristaps Porziņģis. But Lendeborg’s success early in the year has allowed the team to get by being short-handed and provides optimism for the future.
Steph Curry is nearing the twilight of his career, and if Lendeborg keeps playing at a high level, the franchise might have its next cornerstone player to build around.
MIAMI, FL - OCTOBER 26: Zaccharie Risacher #10 of the Dallas Mavericks drives to the basket during the game against the Miami Heat on October 26, 2026 at Kaseya Center in Miami, Florida. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this Photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2026 NBAE (Photo by Joe Murphy/NBAE via Getty Images) | NBAE via Getty Images
Just four games into the Zaccharie Risacher Experience, the Dallas Mavericks seem to be having a good time.
A good enough time that the team announced on Wednesday, before the team’s 120-96 win over the Oklahoma City Thunder, that they would pick up the fourth-year team option on Risacher’s rookie deal. After the announcement, Dallas is on the hook for just over $17.4 million for Risacher next year, or just over nine percent of the salary cap. His $13.8 million this season accounts for just over 8.3 percent of the cap.
The deadline to extend Risacher at that number was Friday.
It’s just your standard rookie scale fourth-year extension, but it shows that the Mavericks have confidence that Risacher is worth developing. He’s in his third year in the NBA, so he may feel like more of a finished product than he really is, but it’s important to remember that he’s still just 21 years old. It’s certainly possible that a huge leap in production is in the cards for the Frenchman picked No. 1 overall in the 2024 NBA Draft by the Atlanta Hawks.
The offensive production entering Wednesday’s game was hit-or-miss through the first four games of Risacher’s tenure with the Mavs, but his defensive presence has been undeniable. He averaged eight points, six rebounds, two steals and two blocked shots per game in the small sample to begin the year. His career averages entering this season were 11.1 points and 3.8 boards per game.
“It’s his motor and his conditioning,” Mavericks head coach Dusty May said in his pregame comments before the matchup against the Thunder, when asked what makes Risacher a good fit alongside Cooper Flagg. “The guy never gets tired. He’s a cyborg. … As his intensity and motor [have] improved, his defensive rebounding — the extra possessions he gives us just by getting a fingertip on the ball. Obviously, the weak-side blocks — there’s a residual effect of those. So he’s kind of reinventing himself where, even though he’s not shooting nearly as well as he always has, he’s found a lot of value in other parts of the game.”
There's the once a game Risacher play that makes me laugh out loud with joy
It’s true. His shooting splits have been abysmal to start the season. Risacher shot just over 30% from the field and just 17.6% from 3-point range in the team’s first four games, but he’s still found ways to affect winning. He’s been a cumulative plus-26 through the first five games of the season. On Wednesday, he had his best offensive outing in his brief tenure with Dallas, finishing with 13 points on 5-of-6 shooting (2-of-3 from 3-point land) and six rebounds in 29 minutes in the win over OKC.
Risacher was acquired by the Mavericks alongside a top-55 protected 2027 second-round draft pick from the Hawks in a three-team trade that sent Ryan Nembhard to Atlanta and a Mavericks-owned 2027 second-round pick to the Thunder. He was an All-Rookie First-Teamer for the 2024-25 season.
Here’s what Risacher had to say about the rookie-scale extension following the Mavericks’ win over Oklahoma City:
“I was super happy, super — great news. Just, I’m feeling grateful to be in this organization, this environment, with those people — I’m talking about front office, teammates — everybody’s been great, and everybody wants to win, and everybody does the right thing to make sure we get into this position — win games and compete. And I feel like, as a young player, that’s the best position I can get in, and I’m grateful to be able to be in that environment for two years, at least. I’m just super grateful.”
On Tuesday, Julian Champagnie came into the Spurs game against the Sacramento Kings and dropped eight three-pointers in thirteen minutes, tying his own franchise record. He dropped eight in the first half against the New York Knicks on New Year’s Eve last year, then came back in the second half and hit three more.
Through my Spurs-colored glasses, Champagnie looks to be one of the best in the league. But this Venn Diagram I found through StatMuse lays it out clearly.
Of current NBA players, Champagnie is one of seven players who tally 3+ made three-pointers per game while shooting at 45% or better. Here’s the kicker — Julian isn’t succeeding solely on offense, he is also one of twenty-two players who are recording three or more “stocks” per game. “Stocks” is a portmanteau for steals and blocks. In other words, Champagnie is killing it on both ends of the court.
His shooting benefits from the attention given to Victor Wembanyama. At any time, Wemby is being doubled, leaving an open man. Champagnie is often that lone man, and he has found that he can hit from anywhere beyond the arc. When he gets hot…watch out.
Defensively speaking, Julian is sneaky, quick, and agile. His athleticism allows him to get to pull boards, often times against larger opponents. He is the 3-and-D guy that the Spurs needed to expose weaknesses in opposition.
When you put the three-point shooting prowess in the diagram with the stocks, Champagnie is in a category all his own. A one-man wolf pack, if you will.
Spurs are off Thursday and Friday after two sets of back-to-backs involving travel. They play on Halloween against the Minnesota Timberwolves. Unfortunately, the T-wolves are without Anthony Edwards for the next couple of months as he tends to his right knee. It is an unfortunate turn for Minnesota who just brought in LaMelo Ball to partner with Edwards. There have been a rash of early season injuries plaguing the league.
Light your Spurs candles to ward off the mischief acquainted with the holiday.
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.
For the first time this season, the Washington Wizards are below .500. At halftime, it looked like the Wizards were ready to cruise home with their third win in five games. They scored 42 points in a first quarter scoring binge, and 69 at the midway point — including posting a 50-12 advantage in the paint, and a 10-point lead.
They managed just 42 points the rest of the way, and lost to the Cleveland Cavaliers, 121-111.
Back from a preseason ankle injury, Wizards rookie AJ Dybantsa made his career debut, scoring 19 points on 12 shots in 27 minutes.
AJ Dybantsa dunks in his first NBA game. | Getty Images
Washington ran a play for Dybantsa on the game’s opening possession. He started in the corner, and popped to the top off screens by Trae Young and Anthony Davis. Young then came up from the corner to set a ghost screen on James Harden. Harden and Watson appeared to miscommunicate — Harden expected a switch while Watson stayed with Young — and Dybantsa attacked the opening with an elite burst. And then tried to dunk on Evan Mobley and Jarrett Allen. Allen got whistled for the foul, and Dybantsa’s first points as a pro came from the free throw line.
Dybanta’s first NBA assist came a few minutes later. He drove and got all the way to the rim, which occupied three defenders — his own man, and two help bigs. He made the kickout to Alex Sarr, who knocked down the corner three.
Okay, one more fanboy rave. At 8:56 of the first quarter, Dybantsa outran the entire Cleveland roster to the offensive end, and Young threw him a lob from the half court line for a highlight reel slam. You’ll see that one in Wizards highlights the rest of the season.
Unfortunately, the good feels of the first half dissolved as the more talented, experienced, and battle-tested Cavaliers asserted their will. It didn’t help that Washington’s veteran leaders were struggling as much as anyone. Ideally, Young and Davis will make plays when the youngsters are rattled or overwhelmed. In this one, they seemed mostly overwhelmed, as well.
From the Notebook
In the early going at least, Washington’s length was bothering the Cavaliers. Cleveland bigs kept trying to make internal passes rather than going up for shots, only for long-limbed Washington defenders to deflect the ball and force turnovers. This was not something that held up for the full 48 minutes.
In the first quarter, I liked one defensive sequence. Cleveland ran a pick-and-roll for Harden, who seemed primed to attack the Wizards big. Dybantsa freed himself from the screen and sprinted back onto Harden, which allowed Davis to drop back to his man. Harden ended up missing a turnaround fadeaway over a Dybantsa contest.
I mentioned the Wizards outscored Cleveland 50-12 in the paint during the first half. In the second half, the Cavaliers turned the tables, outscoring Washington 34-16 inside.
At one point in the first half, I noted that Washington’s offensive looked better. Over multiple possessions, they flowed from action to action — pick-and-roll on one side, moving the ball to the weakside where there’d been a down screen simultaneous to the primary action, which then led to another pick and roll with a down screen on the first side and a baseline cut. The better process didn’t hold up, but better — even for a stretch — is better.
Harden is an atrocious defender. Prime example: the Wizards got a Dybantsa lob dunk on a sideline out of bounds play. I thought maybe it had been a clever play design (Brian Keefe and the coaching staff has a number of them), so I rewound the action. And…Dybantsa got free on a half-assed back pick because Harden just wasn’t paying attention.
Brad Daugherty in the Cleveland broadcast booth is a treat. He pairs good analysis and insight with a voice that sounds like a cross between WWE and NASCAR. With John Michael on play-by-play, the Cleveland production sounds like a 1980s broadcast of an Atlantic Coast Conference game.
If Young has the ball and a teammate comes open, he will make the pass.
Defensive highlight of the game came around 1:17 of the third quarter when Bilal Coulibaly levitated for a sensational block at the rim in transition. Wow athleticism.
Among the defensive lowlights was Deandre Ayton’s pick-and-roll defense early in the fourth quarter. He backpedaled, got his feet tangled, and gave up a lob dunk he should have been able to contest.
I’m not quite sure
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)
FOUR FACTORS
WIZARDS
CAVALIERS
LGAVG
eFG%
57.8%
54.9%
53.2%
OREB%
13.5%
40.5%
27.8%
TOV%
10.5%
13.6%
14.1%
FTM/FGA
0.181
0.231
0.223
PACE
96
101.1
ORTG
116
127
112.9
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.
