Category: NBA

The Celtics did not shoot the ball well but that did not prevent them from blowing out the Phoenix Suns on Tuesday night in a 97-81 win that was headlined by their defense, 22 offensive rebounds and a really big Derrick White game for their 3rd straight win of the road trip.

Jaylen Brown joined Jayson Tatum on the injury report, so the Celtics started Derrick White, Ron Harper Jr., Baylor Scheierman, Sam Hauser and Neemias Queta. The Suns had a lengthy injury report: Devin Booker, Dillon Brooks, Jordan Goodwin, Haywood Highsmith and Cole Anthony; they started Collin Gillespie, Jalen Green, Royce O’Neale, Ryan Dunn and Mark Williams.

It was a very slow start from three for the Celtics as they started 2/10 from beyond the arc and a 10-0 Phoenix run put the Suns up 15-10. Ron Harper Jr. had 3 rebounds but started the game 1/6 from the field.

Joe Mazulla made mass substitutions at the first time out putting Payton Pricthard, Nikola Vucevic, Jordan Walsh and Hugo Gonzalez in with Sam Hauser.

Not a very good quarter for the Celtics: they got 9 offensive rebounds but shot just 9/28 from the field and 3/15 from three. They trailed the Suns, 26-21. Derrick White led the team with 5 points while Nikola Vucevic had 4 points off of the bench.

The Celtics struggled to get their offense going in the first half, but then a Derrick White three and Neemias Queta dunk lead to a Suns timeout. Phoenix still led 41-37 but the Celtics needed some life on offense and those baskets were signs that it was possible.

The Celtics led the Suns at the end of the half, 50-46. It was not a pretty offensive half for Boston: 50 points on 38% from the field and 25% from three but their offensive rebounds and defense got the job done through 24 minutes. Derrick White led the team with 18 points while Neemias Queta had 10 points and 5 rebounds.

The Celtics took it to the Suns in the third quarter. Sam Hauser got going from three, hitting 3 threes in the period and scoring 13 points. Baylor Scheierman had 6 rebounds and was a +19 in the quarter. However, it was the Celtics defense that dominated the quarter. Boston outscored the Suns 30-11 in the 3rd, as Phoenix shot 18% from the field and 11% from three — dominant stuff from Boston’s defense. Sure, Phoenix missed some good looks, but Boston was dominant on the defensive end. The Celtics also out rebounded the Suns 21-6 in the quarter.

It was a Ron Harper Jr. block that was the play off the quarter, however.

GET THAT 🤬 OUTTA HERE pic.twitter.com/xQHVL5Q0Ae

— Boston Celtics (@celtics) February 25, 2026

The Celtics led 80-57 at the end of three quarters. Derrick White led the team with 18 points while Hauser had 16 and Neemias Queta had 14.

The 4th quarter saw a different start as the Suns fought back into the game scoring the first 7 points of the period and forcing Mazzulla to call a timeout not even 2 minutes in.

Boston was able to regain control of the game, thanks to a pair if Derrick White baskets and big three pointers from Harper Jr. and Baylor Scheierman. An 8-2 run put the Celts back up 22 points.

Scheierman had a double-double in the game with 11 points and 11 rebounds.

It was a dominant 2nd half from the Celtics as they blew out the Suns.

Derrick White was unbelievable in the game with 22 points, 8 rebounds and 8 assists. Meanwhile, Neemias Queta finished with 14 points and 13 rebounds. The Celtics won, 97-81.

Boston shot 40% from the field and 28% from three while the Suns shot 37% from the field and 33% from three. The Celtics next game is Wednesday night at 10 EST in Denver against the Nuggets.

The Cleveland Cavaliers beat the New York Knicks 109-94. Let’s see who won and lost the night.

WINNER – Packing the Paint

Have you heard the term “open for a reason”? Well, after tonight, Josh Hart is certainly familiar.

The Cavs approached this game with a straightforward defensive game plan. Jarrett Allen matched up with Hart and chose to pack the paint rather than honor him as a three-point shooter. The results benefited Cleveland as they were able to crowd New York’s drives, while Hart only managed to shoot 2-8 from downtown.

Cleveland deployed a similar tactic whenever Jose Alverado was in the game. Alverado shot 1-4.

At times, I thought the Cavs were maybe being too lax about covering Hart. Surely he’s a good enough shooter to warrant some sort of closeout. But the Cavs bet against him tonight, and Hart wasn’t able to make them regret it.

Having more bodies in the paint is self-explanatory, especially against a Knicks team that has previously crushed Cleveland on the glass. Being able to stay home minimizes the damage that can be done through offensive rebounds. It also relieves pressure to scramble on the perimeter and forces the opponent into taking lower-quality shots.

Of course, it all becomes easier when your opponent is missing shots. New York finished the night shooting 10-37 (27%) from downtown overall.

LOSER – The James Harden Whistle

So… what’s going on?

Harden is historically known for having one of the best whistles the game has ever seen. Has that good fortune with the officials been canceled out by playing for a small-market team such as the Cavs?

Harden attempted zero free throws tonight for just the fifth time since 2021. It wasn’t for a lack of trying.

There was a point in this game where Harden got slammed on a drive to the basket. When he got back to his feet, Harden gave the officials a look of pure bilwederment and betrayal. This type of stuff hasn’t happened before.

Harden’s free-throw rate has plummeted since joining the Cavs. Part of that, I assume, is because he hasn’t been attempting field goals at nearly the same volume. He’s instead been playing the role of playmaker as he gets initiated with his new team.

But at a certain point… You begin to wonder.

WINNER – The Backcourt

Listen, it’s not always going to be perfect. The Cavs’ starting backcourt didn’t score efficiently or post an assist-to-turnover rate that will make you blush. But, they got the job done — and that means something when considering what this team looked like three months ago.

A big reason why Cleveland acquired James Harden was his availability. For all the great things that Darius Garland brought to the floor, his issue recently has simply been being on the floor. That’s why even an 8-18 shooting night from Harden can still feel like a massive win. Because even when things aren’t going exactly to plan — Harden can elevate the offense through his playmaking and… well, availability.

Pair that with Mitchell, who also had a tough shooting night (5-18) but made timely shots. The two guards combined for 43 points and kept relentless pressure on New York’s defense to contain them. That pressure creates gravity, and that gravity makes it so that other players, such as Jarrett Allen, can find the gaps and attack.

Sometimes, high volume is better than no volume. Efficiency is great, but it can also be overrated. The Cavs guards did what they needed to tonight.

With an injury report more impressive than their starting five, the Warriors couldn’t overcome a sloppy start to their road trip against the lowly Pelicans. 

The Warriors threw the ball just about everywhere — off their shoes, into opponents’ hands, out of bounds, off every inch of iron — except the bottom of the net in a 113-109 loss to the second-worst team in the Western Conference. 

Without Steph Curry, Jimmy Butler, Al Horford or Kristaps Porzingis, Golden State fell behind 31-19 by the end of the first quarter and didn’t hold a lead until midway through the third. 

“With the injuries we have, we have to play well to win. I don’t think we played well tonight,” said coach Steve Kerr, whose team committed 21 turnovers leading to 18 points.

It was almost the second consecutive game Golden State’s reserves completed a second-half comeback after they used a 33-18 fourth quarter to beat Nikola Jokic and the Nuggets on Sunday.

“The game was right there for us,” Kerr said. “We just couldn’t execute well enough.”

They fell behind by as many as 14 points and scored their third-fewest points in any half this season (trailing 46-39 at intermission) before a split-action assist from Draymond Green to Brandin Podziemski gave them their first lead, 61-59, midway through the third quarter. 

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Green, who missed Golden State’s 129-118 win over Denver on Sunday, returned and helped set up a fair share of open shots, but the Warriors failed to convert many of them. 

Golden State came back to take an 86-85 lead with 7:39 to go, but the Pelicans answered with a 15-3 run following a failed coach’s challenge by Steve Kerr that would have overturned a basket by Zion Williamson that instead turned into a three-point play. 

Williamson led the Pelicans with 26 points — 10 in the fourth quarter. 

What it means 

The Warriors fell to 11-17 on the road with another game in Memphis looming Wednesday. Golden State is the only team among the top eight in the Western Conference with a losing record away from home (next-worst: Suns, 14-14). 

Turning point 

As soon as the Warriors’ charter flight left San Francisco, apparently. 

Whatever momentum the team’s reserves built with their come-from-behind win over one of the West’s top teams was absent from the opening tip inside the Smoothie King Center on Tuesday. 

“We did not execute very well offensively,” Kerr said. “Spacing was bad. Transition we had probably three potential lay-ups in the first half. We didn’t cut, we didn’t run to the rim. We didn’t get to the corners. We just looked a little disjointed. I thought their pressure early took us out of some stuff.”

They missed 16 of their first 21 shots from the field (23.8%) and didn’t get to the foul line until New Orleans was called for a three-second violation with 46 seconds left in the quarter. 

MVP 

Jonathan Kuminga | The best basketball played by anyone associated with the Warriors on Tuesday night wasn’t anyone in uniform in New Orleans. Jonathan Kuminga made an electric debut with the Hawks against the Wizards, scoring 27 points in 24 minutes on 9-of-12 shooting.

Stat of the game 

21-for-95 (22.1%) | Despite the Warriors’ struggles offensively, the game never got away from them. On the other end of the floor, the Pelicans were having just as much trouble scoring the basketball. 

New Orleans made only 10 of its 40 shots from beyond the perimeter, but the Warriors were even worse, converting 11 of 45 attempts (23.3%). 

Up next 

The Warriors head to Memphis, where they will play the second half of their 11th back-to-back of the season. They are 5-5 in the second game of back-to-backs this season, falling to 6-5 in the first half with their loss to the Pelicans. 

Already without Curry (knee), Butler (knee) and Porzingis (illness), Golden State is also expected to be without De’Anthony Melton (knee), who has yet to be medically cleared to play games on consecutive days. Horford (toe) sat in New Orleans with the expectation of playing against the Grizzlies after scoring 22 points with six 3-pointers in their win against Denver. 

The Phoenix Suns started the evening promising, jumping out to a 26-21 lead after the opening quarter. It looked like just maybe this group was starting to figure it out… until it was clear they weren’t. Boston dominated in the second half, and the Suns’ offensive struggles continued.

They have now scored just 158 points combined in their last two games.

The Suns have now scored just 158 points combined in their last two games.

That is 79.0 points per game.

— Zona (@AZSportsZone) February 25, 2026

The third quarter was unacceptable. Phoenix mustered just 11 points and was outscored by 19 in that quarter, which dug them a hole too deep to get out of. They went on a 14-0 run to make it somewhat competitive late in the game, but Boston applied another knockout punch to create distance and unleash the third string.

We could sit here and talk about injuries, but Boston is dealing with a couple of their own. No Jaylen Brown or Jayson Tatum, yet the Celtics were a well-oiled machine. Phoenix will need to figure this out quickly because none of Devin Booker, Dillon Brooks, or Jordan Goodwin is coming to save the day anytime soon.

Some credit is due to Boston, but the Suns just didn’t do anything well tonight.

Game Flow

First Half

The game started with each team trading threes: one from Derrick White and then a corner hit from Jalen Green. Sam Hauser drained a

Boston jumped ahead to a 10-5 advantage, getting easy looks early from deep and from crashing the glass. Phoenix went on a 7-0 run to take a 12-10 lead.

Phoenix’s offense picked up a bit as Jalen Green and Collin Gillespie started to get in a rhythm. Even Ryan Dunn got in on the scoring action!

7 early points for Ryan Dunn 👀 pic.twitter.com/clYeNKsGpw

— PHNX Suns (@PHNX_Suns) February 25, 2026

The defense followed suit. After allowing 10 points in the opening 3 minutes, they held Boston to just 11 points the rest of the quarter.

Phoenix led 26-21 after the opening quarter. Jalen Green and Ryan Dunn led the way with 7 points each.

We got some early Rasheer Fleming minutes! He didn’t do much in his first stint, but he was playing aggressive point-of-attack defense. Oso continued to show his ability to be feisty and mix it up a bit, which is a welcome sight for Suns fans.

DENIED BY OSO 👋 pic.twitter.com/azL9f8BCiH

— Phoenix Suns (@Suns) February 25, 2026

The tempo was in favor of Phoenix for the first six minutes or so, but Boston went on a 7-0 run to cut the Suns’ lead down to four, 41-37, leading to a Jordan Ott timeout.

Boston stormed back to take a 44-41 lead after a Derrick White triple extended their run to 14-0. The offense fell flat. Grayson Allen hit three free throws after a failed challenge attempt by Joe Mazulla to even the game back up at 44.

My goodness Collin 🫢🫢 pic.twitter.com/lRt6zcMebs

— Phoenix Suns (@Suns) February 25, 2026

Boston finished strong to take a 50-44 lead into the half, led by 18 points from Derrick White. Royce O’Neale, Grayson Allen, and Jalen Green all had 9 points to pace the Suns in the opening 24 minutes.

Second Half

The Suns opened up the third quarter a bit flat, carrying over from the end of the 2nd quarter. Boston’s suffocating defense seemed to squeeze the life out of them and built their lead back up to 11, their largest at the time.

Boston’s defense continued to stifle the shorthanded Suns, and Sam Hauser got hot, propelling the Celtics’ lead to 19. It quickly turned into another one of those nights. There wasn’t a lot to highlight in the 3rd quarter unless you are a Celtics fan.

Boston won the third quarter 30 to 11 to take an 80-57 lead into the 4th. Yes, 11 points were scored in total by the Suns in the third. Eleven.

End of the third.@match_mortgage | #SunsUppic.twitter.com/SKnqgOK0Nz

— Phoenix Suns (@Suns) February 25, 2026

Phoenix opened the 4th on a 9-0 run, showing a bit of life after a disastrous third to cut the lead down to 14. It was a 14-0 run dating back to the end of the third.

Derrick White and company decided to turn it up a notch as soon as it became a game again, and they were able to take a convincing lead and slam the door shut on the Suns.

Then we had garbage time… the rookies got some run. And that was all she wrote.

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Up Next

The Suns will host the Los Angeles Lakers on Thursday night at the Morg.

For Lon Rosen, becoming the Lakers’ president of business operations is a full-circle moment.

Rosen started his career with the Lakers as an intern while in college before becoming a front office executive in the 1980s, eventually becoming an agent and business executive – including being the Dodgers’ executive vice president and chief marketing officer since 2012.

“Being able to sort of return to really where I started, it’s a really exciting thing for me,” Rosen told a handful of beat reporters on Tuesday night. “And I like the challenge, and I’m really looking forward to it. There’s really great people working with me, which is what makes things enjoyable.”

Rosen added: “For me, it’s a challenge. It’s something new, but it is sort of like returning home. But because I still have my connection with the Dodgers, it’s a fun thing.”

“I’ve spoken to others that do this type of work. Luckily there’s a great team that works here at the Lakers that I’ve met for the last two days. And I have a really great team that works for the Dodgers and we all just fit together,” he added.

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In a wide-ranging conversation, Rosen addressed a variety of topics.

He confirmed the plan for president of basketball operations/general manager Rob Pelinka to continue to lead the franchise’s basketball operations, along with input from special advisers Andrew Friedman and Farhan Zaidi,

Pelinka told reporters earlier in the month he and franchise governor Jeanie Buss will lead front office expansion.

“Rob’s empowered to do what he does,” Rosen said. “And he’s talked about it and I can talk about it; Andrew Friedman and Farhan Zaidi, they have involvement helping Rob a bit. It gives you a deeper bench, and I think Rob appreciates that. And it is unique. But they have a skill set that they can transfer some of it here. And that’s really how we look at it. 

“I have a really good relationship with Rob. I’ve known Rob Pelinka from when he was representing Kobe [Bryant]. I met him many many years ago.” 

Friedman, Zaidi and Rosen are among the Dodgers connections added to the legendary NBA franchise since Mark Walter, who’s also the majority owner of the Dodgers, bought majority ownership of the team from the Buss family in the fall. 

Lakers icon Magic Johnson won’t rejoin the franchise in an official role. Johnson was the team’s president of basketball operations from February 2017-April 2019 before he abruptly resigned. 

“He’s always gonna have some type of involvement with all the teams, but he is not gonna have day-to-day involvement,”  Rosen said. “It’s gonna be no different since he left the Lakers. Obviously he’s a huge fan of the Lakers, but he’s not gonna be, ‘Hey Rob go sign this player. Do that.’ He’ll always be involved with all the teams that he’s involved in, but no, he’s not gonna have day-to-day involvement at all. He is a super Laker fan and he’ll continue to be a super Laker fan. It’s not bad to have that.”

Rosen also had a message for fans after the recent increased season ticket prices for next season – which included a 3% “admin fee”.

“We hope they renew,” Rosen said. “And obviously it reflects on what the market is now and the demand for tickets. You can look at how tickets sell and what the prices are. You look at the primary and secondary market and you can see where their demand is.”

Rosen said he’ll spend a “majority” of his time working for the Lakers, but will still provide “some services” to the Dodgders. 

“We’re gonna look at best practices for both teams,” Rosen said. “I haven’t gotten into the weeds of how the Lakers operate, but I have a sense of how they operate and they operate very well. There’s things that we do at the Dodgers that we do really really well. 

“Both organizations are gonna learn from each other. I don’t know where it’s all gonna fall. People say, the Dodgers are, the, this gold standard. And you know what, we do a really nice job there. And the job here is, I’ve been to a lot of games here. I know their business model is very successful, so I just gotta make sure I don’t mess it up.”

ATLANTA (AP) — Atlanta Hawks forward Jalen Johnson left the game against the Washington Wizards with a left hip flexor injury Tuesday night.

Johnson was injured in the first quarter and ruled out after being evaluated by the training staff.

“There was enough there not to send him back in the game,” coach Quin Snyder said.

Johnson, who earned his first All-Star Game berth this season, will be re-evaluated before the Hawks face the Wizards again Thursday to complete back-to-back games in Atlanta. It’s not known if he will miss any additional playing time.

Johnson finished with five points, three rebounds and two steals in about 5 1/2 minutes against the Wizards. He came into the night averaging 23.4 points, 10.8 rebounds and 8.1 assists.

His absence cleared the way for Jonathan Kuminga to score a season-high 27 points in his Hawks debut. He was acquired from Golden State at the trade deadline.

The Hawks beat the Wizards 119-98.

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

CLEVELAND — Brick by brick, the Knicks were dismantled by the Cavs.

An atrocious shooting night ended Tuesday with a 109-94 loss for the Knicks, who folded easily to their fellow Finals contender and left Rocket Arena tied for third in the East.

The third quarter was the breaking point. Or better yet, the bricking point. It was horrendous.

The Knicks managed just 11 points in those 12 nasty minutes, shooting a combined (shield your eyes, children) 3-for-24 overall, 1-for-12 from beyond the arc and 4-for-8 from the foul line.

It was their lowest-scoring quarter of the season and looked the part.

“No matter what we did, we either turned the ball over or we had a tough shot,” coach Mike Brown said after arriving late to his postgame news conference. “So we made some play calls tonight. But we didn’t generate anything from the calls that we made.”

So they entered the fourth quarter down 18 and couldn’t recover, not against a stout Cavaliers defense and without the help of competent shooting. Brown finally waved the white flag with 2:42 remaining, emptying his bench and sending the starters on a walk of shame.

Mikal Bridges, Josh Hart, Jalen Brunson, Landry Shamet and OG Anunoby combined to miss 42 of their 61 attempts. Bridges was aggressively misfiring at 6-for-17 on the evening. Brunson was worse at 6-for-19.

Karl-Anthony Towns was perfect but only took five shots, with four of those in the first quarter. It furthered KAT’s head-scratching trend of alternating strong performances with disappearing acts. Anunoby (five points, 2-for-9 from the field) has struggled since returning from a toe injury.

Brown’s attempt to give an opportunity to Jeremy Sochan was also a miscalculation, with the newcomer appearing utterly lost in his two first-half minutes. Mohamed Diawara got the call in the second half and also tossed up bricks.

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“We just didn’t play well enough,” Hart said. “We didn’t execute offensively.”

It was an all-around dud. The Cavs responded with a balanced but not especially potent attack. They shot just 42.5 percent as a team, but it didn’t matter against the Brickerbockers. Mitchell Robinson, who has owned the Cavs frontcourt since the 2023 playoffs, was the lone positive for the Knicks with 15 rebounds, including eight offensive.

The Knicks (36-22) are now even with the Cavs (36-22) and two games behind the No. 2 Celtics, who beat the Suns on Tuesday night.

But the Cavs are surging. They revamped at the trade deadline, acquiring James Harden for the talented but habitually unavailable Darius Garland. They also brought in bench pieces Dennis Schroder and Keon Ellis.

It’s all been positive for Cleveland, which has won 13 of 15 after Tuesday’s blowout. Kenny Atkinson just missed out on guiding Harden in Brooklyn before he was unceremoniously dumped by GM Sean Marks and owner Joe Tsai. Now he’s excited for the chance in Cleveland.

“His composure, calmness,” Atkinson said of Harden, who scored 20 points Tuesday. “He’s just got a command of the game. That settles everybody down. It’s huge. He knows where the ball’s got to go. He knows the end-of-game stuff. Sharp, sharp player.”

The Knicks understood the difficulties of defending Harden and Donovan Mitchell, perhaps the best offensive backcourt in the NBA.

But defending wasn’t the problem Tuesday for the Knicks. It was the bricklaying.

“Ugly game,” Brown said.

The New Orleans Pelicans stepped in front of their home crowd at 17-42, a team so bad they make late-stage tank commanders nervous. And the Golden State Warriors, because this is who they are a lotta nights without their firepower, made it close down the stretch but ultimately faltered.

Final score: 113-109 Pelicans. Here’s the crime scene: the Warriors got outscored 31-19 in the first quarter and spent the next three quarters playing catch-up basketball against a team vying for a high draft pick in the lottery . Golden State won the second quarter, won the third, won the fourth but alas, still lost the game. Missing their stars Stephen Curry, Jimmy Butler, and Kristaps Porzingis doesn’t seem to be like a good enough reason to lose this game considering they just knocked off the Nuggets Sunday with similar injury woes.

They almost did bail themselves out, which marks the resilience this team has possessed all season with or without their stars.

Pelicans escape with a 113-109 win over the Warriors in a game that wasn't exactly the prettiest. But Dejounte Murray finishes with 13 points and 3 assists in his return. Zion Williamson had 26 points and 6 rebounds.

Pels are 4-2 over their last 6 games.

— Will Guillory (@WillGuillory) February 25, 2026

De’Anthony Melton was the best player on the floor for the Dubs, dropping 28 points on 8-of-21 shooting while going 9-of-11 from the free throw line, keeping Golden State’s pulse going when it had no business still beating. Moses Moody added 24 on 7-of-13 with a +13 that screamed “this man is figuring it out”. Brandin Podziemski hauled down 15 rebounds — 5 offensive — looking like the second coming of Westbrook. And Draymond Green orchestrated 6 assists with his usual controlled chaos. These guys fought. Credit where it’s due.

But the team shot 11-of-45 from three, which cost them on a night when their feisty opponents only made 10 threes of their own. If the Dubs knock down their usual clip beyond the arc tonight they probably pull away pretty easily.

On the other hand the Pelicans forced enough turnovers (all 20 of them) to the tune of being gifted 18 points off of Golden State’s mistakes. That’s how you get a lottery team jump started in their home arena.

Zion Williamson scored 26 on 11-of-21 shooting while the Warriors defense wrestled against his physicality Saddiq Bey added 18. Jordan Poole, playing against his former team with something to prove, dropped 12-6-3 off the bench. Of course he did.

Any given night in the nba. Warriors beat the nuggets the other night, and turn around and lose to the pelicans tonight. These are NBA players at the end of the day, yall gotta start realizing that.#Nba

— @SportsJunky (@SportsJunky94) February 25, 2026

The Warriors lose in New Orleans tonight. Doomed by 31-19 first quarter. They're 11-17 on the road. Three games back of the Suns for the #7 seed, two up on the Blazers for the #8 spot.

They play in Memphis tomorrow night. De'Anthony Melton (28 pts tonight) expected to rest.

— Anthony Slater (@anthonyVslater) February 25, 2026

This is a team that’s 30-28, scratching for playoff positioning, as they await the return of at least a couple of their best players. One broken quarter against one of the league’s worst teams decided everything tonight. Tough.

2025-26 Sixers Bell Ringer standings:
Tyrese Maxey – 21
Joel Embiid – 9
VJ Edgecombe – 8
Paul George – 6
Dominick Barlow – 2
Andre Drummond – 2
Jared McCain :’( – 2
Kelly Oubre Jr. – 2
MarJon Beauchamp – 1
Adem Bona – 1
Justin Edwards – 1
Quentin Grimes – 1
Trendon Watford – 1
15th roster spot – 1

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We won’t be planning a parade for a win against an Indiana Pacers team with a starting five worth of talent on the sidelines, but it sure was nice to see the Philadelphia 76ers just suit up and handle their business. The Sixers jumped out in front with a scorching hot second quarter that saw them rack up 45 points in the frame. They avoided the usual third quarter bugaboo, actually extending the lead coming out of halftime, and were able to limit everyone’s minutes as they mostly coasted in the fourth quarter of the 135-114 win. It was a blistering offensive performance, as their 57.6 percent shooting from the floor was the team’s best mark in two years (h/t Erin Grugan). Philadelphia has now won two straight games as they’ll head back home to face Miami on Thursday. Let’s talk Bell Ringer first.

Tyrese Maxey: 32 points, 9 rebounds, 8 assists, 2 steals, 1 block, 2 turnovers

Maxey was on a clear triple-double pace on the evening before getting to take the rare fourth quarter off. It’ll pay off later in the week that Tyrese got to keep a little extra tread on the tires. Tonight, he was dynamite offensively, and not because he had some terrific outside shooting night (just 2-of-8 from three). Instead, it was Tyrese’s ability to carve into the paint and weave his way in and around and under defenders, finishing with a bunch of dazzling lay-ins and creative passes to teammates, and drawing fouls. His body control and shooting touch while sprinting faster than everyone else on the court is simply marvelous. Maxey also had a play where he backed the defender down repeatedly and then canned a turnaround jumper, years of putting in the work in the weight room on display. A more competitive game and we’re likely looking at a 40-point triple-double from Tyrese, just an outstanding evening.

Maxey to Embiid. Dime. pic.twitter.com/4aX33cY1aI

— Liberty Ballers (@Liberty_Ballers) February 25, 2026

Joel Embiid: 27 points, 6 rebounds, 5 assists, 1 block, 4 turnover

After missing the past five games, Joel made his return to action and looked like he hadn’t missed a beat. Offensively, the gravity he creates for others is night and day from when he’s unavailable. Embiid had a couple nice assists where the double team came and he found Kelly Oubre Jr and Trendon Watford open for buckets. Joel knocked down a couple jumpers himself, but a lot of his work tonight actually came as a roll man, adeptly finishing through some traffic around the hoop. Defensively, Embiid looked in fine form, spryly getting around the court to rotate and challenge shots. Overall, it was about as good as we could have hoped to see from the big man in his return, who can sometimes tend to fall on the sluggish side after a layoff.

Welcome back, big fella! Embiid finds Oubre for the trey pic.twitter.com/GK1SNesiyt

— Liberty Ballers (@Liberty_Ballers) February 25, 2026

VJ Edgecombe: 23 points, 7 rebounds, 4 assists, 2 steals, 1 turnover

With Embiid back and Tyrese cooking, Edgecombe was able to have a highly efficient night, shooting 9-of-13 from the field. He wasn’t some wallflower though, attacking across all three levels. VJ nailed a couple spot-up threes, had a handful of hard drives at the hoop to finish through contact, and also showed off that advanced middie game with a pull-up and a fadeaway jumper. Really, everything just looked smooth and unforced for him tonight; he picked his spots and otherwise filled in all the gaps doing the little things elsewhere. It was the ideal “play off the stars” kind of game from the rookie.

This kid is ridiculous pic.twitter.com/CqZgznoFbV

— Liberty Ballers (@Liberty_Ballers) February 25, 2026

“You can’t curate your circumstances,” said Mark Daigneault before the Oklahoma City Thunder played the Toronto Raptors on Tuesday night, and that stuck with me. It’s true in every aspect of life, as he went on to mention, but seems especially true in sports. Especially true in basketball, and even more so in the final months of the season. You can build a great roster, create great plays, have great team chemistry — but so much of that goes out the door in the final stretch of the season.

You can’t pick and choose what players will be available to you by the time March rolls around. Sometimes, the players you have are dealing with minutes restrictions or lingering injury issues (see: Jakob Poeltl). The schedule doesn’t stop for you, though. You need to adapt to it.

Now, when you’re dealing with the circumstances at hand, and your opponent is as well, but theirs are worse (see: SGA still out), then maybe you should take advantage of that. The Raptors did not tonight.

Toronto’s performance against OKC is a huge reason why I am of the belief that people overreact when this team loses. I know that sounds weird, but listen (read?). This current iteration of the Toronto Raptors isn’t built to win a championship — I’ve said this before. They are having a good growth year, sure. RJ Barrett said exactly that after the game tonight, to think back to where they were last season at this time. How much better they are, but also hhow mucht hey still have to learn.

He’s right, and games like this are proving what this roster is lacking. Poeltl, of course, is a big hole in this roster as his injury is managed, and he doesn’t play both games on back-to-backs. They also lack the offensive punch needed to compete with the best NBA teams.

Once a team like OKC shuts down the Raptors’ best offensive player (Ingram), there isn’t much Toronto can do to recover. Scottie Barnes, of course, helps. Other than that, the Raptors’ offence tonight lacked the accuracy needed to overcome the Thunder. OKC’s defence was too suffocating, the Raptors weren’t shooting well enough, and they weren’t defending with 100% intensity 100% of the time. That’s important when playing the reigning champions.

What was great about their performance, though, was the urgency they played with in the fourth quarter. Too little too late? Maybe. Better than just rolling over, though. Barrett even compared it to how they lost to the Pistons a few weeks ago — that tonight they at least put up a fight. What you can’t do after coming back like that is let OKC go on a 9-0 run, though. Lesson learned.

The other bit of news, as we head into the second night of a back-to-back tomorrow, is that Scottie Barnes tweaked his quad in the final minutes of tonight’s game. The team says he has a quad contusion and is questionable for tomorrow’s game against San Antonio.

The Milwaukee Bucks got back in the win column after a disappointing loss in their last game, beating the Miami Heat 128-117. Kevin Porter Jr. led all scorers with 32 points, seven rebounds, and seven assists. Ryan Rollins and Bobby Portis also chipped in 21 each. Norman Powell scored 26 for the Heat. 

NBA.com Box Score

Game Recap

There was no denying that Kyle Kuzma struggled on Sunday, scoring just three points. He quickly put that behind him to open things up tonight, scoring nine of the Bucks’ first 11 in a back-and-forth opening six minutes. While Kuzma was powering the Bucks’ offense, the Heat’s All-Star guard Norman Powell was cooking for them; he scored six straight points to put Miami up three in the later stages. The Heat clung to a two-point advantage until Porter drilled a triple with 13 seconds left. The bucket put Milwaukee up by one after the first 12 minutes, 30-29. 

Both teams’ benches went band-for-band in the first few minutes of the second, until the Bucks created a cushion after a 6-2 run, prompting an Erik Spoelstra timeout. Ousmane Dieng scored his first home points as a member of the Bucks, nailing a three to give the home team a double-digit edge. However, Miami’s shooters then caught fire, converting four straight from beyond the arc before Andrew Wiggins scored in transition to tie the game, capping a 14-2 run. The game remained deadlocked until Cam Thomas completed a three-point play and then drilled a step-back jumper with one second left; Thomas’ five-point burst gave the Bucks a 63-58 lead at the break. 

The Heat threw the first punch out of the locker room, going on a 7-0 run to regain the lead. A couple of Bucks who were held scoreless in the first half, AJ Green and Myles Turner, helped them respond in kind; Green’s first three of the night capped an 8-2 run to put Milwaukee back in front. Things remained tight between the two squads, but Miami regained the edge and held it for the rest of the quarter. A Bobby Portis floater with 46 seconds left cut the Heat lead down to 93-89 going into the fourth.

Miami was making shots from distance to open the final frame, drilling a pair to grab their largest lead of the night at nine. Milwaukee battled back, as Green, Portis, and Dieng converted three straight from long range, flipping the game back in the home team’s favor. KPJ then came up clutch with the biggest shot of the night, swishing an and-one fall-away triple to put the Bucks up two. The four-point play sparked a 10-0 run for Milwaukee, which was more than enough. The Bucks’ defense held the Heat without a field goal for a whopping 6:34! 

Stat That Stood Out.

The Bucks needed a closer in this game, and KPJ answered the call. 10 of his 13 fourth-quarter points came in the final 5:35 of the game.

During a 20-minute interview with the media Tuesday, new Lakers president of business operations Lon Rosen said Magic Johnson won’t be involved in any “day–to-day” involvement with the team and that hopes season-ticket holders will “renew” them despite the enormous increase for next season.

Rosen, who has been an executive vice president and chief marketing officer with the Dodgers since 2012 when Mark Walter and Guggenheim Baseball Management purchased the club, took over the Lakers job after Tim Harris resigned from that role.

Rosen, who is back with the Lakers after Walter purchased the team for a $10-billion valuation, was asked about Johnson’s role with the Lakers and how he would be involved with Rob Pelinka, the team’s president of basketball operations and general manager.

Johnson was president of basketball operations for the Lakers from Feb. 21, 2017 until April 9, 2019, when he abruptly resigned.

Read more:Lakers are trying to unlock the greatness in Deandre Ayton

“Earvin's involved with all types of things. He owns football teams, baseball teams, soccer teams, insurance companies, a lot of things. He's always gonna have some type of involvement with all the teams, but he is not gonna have a day-to-day involvement (with the Lakers),” Rosen said. “It's gonna be no different since he left the Lakers. Obviously he's a huge fan of the Lakers, but he's not gonna be, 'Hey Rob go sign this player. Do that.' He'll always be involved with all the teams that he's involved in, but no, he's not gonna have day-to-day involvement at all. He is a super Laker fan and he'll continue to be a super Laker fan. It's not bad to have that. You see the involvement he had the other day when Pat (Riley) was here (to have his statue unveiled) and he'll always be involved that way.”

Rosen was asked about ticket prices increasing for the 2026-27 season.

There have been reports from Lakers fans that gave an example of their tickets in the 300-level increasing to over 45% from $6,192 to $9,035.

One fan said his increase was about 15% and another 3% fee if the tickets were not paid for upfront.

“We hope they renew. And obviously it reflects on what the market is now and the demand for tickets,” Rosen said. “You can look at how tickets sell and what the prices are. You look at primary and secondary market and you can see where their demand is.”

Pelinka told the media after the trade deadline that he’ll work with Walter and Jeanie Buss, who is still the board of governor for the Lakers, when it comes time to make basketball decisions this summer.

Both Andrew Friedman, the president of baseball operations for the Dodgers, and Farhan Zaidi, a special advisor with the Dodgers, will be advisors for the Lakers and Pelinka. Zaidi was seen at the Lakers’ practice facility Monday.

“Rob's empowered to do what he does,” Rosen said. “And he's talked about it and I can talk about it. Andrew Friedman and Farhan Zaidi, they have involvement helping Rob a bit. It gives you a deeper bench, and I think Rob appreciates that. And it is unique. But they have a skill set that they can transfer some of it here. And that's really how we look at it. Look, I have a really good relationship with Rob. I've known Rob Pelinka from when he was representing Kobe (Bryant). I met him many many years ago."

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This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.

The Knicks (37*-22) won two difficult games before they entered Rocket Arena to face the Cavaliers (37-22). In both wins—against the Rockets and the Bulls—there were the customary lulls we’ve come to expect from New York. Tonight, they topped that by going full lull, playing listless hoops from start to finish. They shot horribly from deep (10-of-37), scored a season-low 11 points in the third quarter, and took the L, 109-94.

That finish makes the Cavs 20-6 in their last 26 games and ties them with New York for third place. It also concluded the regular season series between these two, which the Knicks won 2-1.

Cleveland ruled the opening quarter, staying in front for nearly the full 12. Donovan Mitchell (23 PTS) set the tone with buckets, steals, and dishes, while Evan Mobley (12 PTS, 7 RBS) drained an early three and Jarrett Allen (19 PTS, 10 RBS) cleaned the glass. Through the first frame, the Ohio Players shot 54% from the field, buried 5-of-11 threes, and doled out 10 assists on 14 made baskets. They committed just four turnovers while capitalizing on New York’s six giveaways.

In the quarter, the Knicks shot 50% from the field but poorly from deep. Josh Hart (10 PTS) provided some energy, distributing to Mikal Bridges (18 PTS, 6-of-17 FG) and Karl-Anthony Towns (14 PTS, 7 RBS, 5 FGA!) before hitting his own three to cut the deficit to two. Inside they had success with three blocked shots (OG Anunoby, Towns, Bridges) and buckets around the rim, but they were a step slow against Cleveland’s length and quick transitions. Mitchell’s steal-and-layup plus dimes to his teammates—including late threes from Dean Wade (11 PTS)—helped the Cavs close the frame up 35-26.

The Nova connection 🤝

Josh Hart ➡️ Jalen Brunson 🔥
pic.twitter.com/Ez3LYhptKx

— Knicks Nation (@KnicksNationCP) February 25, 2026

Wade hit a triple early in the second quarter to go ahead by a dozen, and the Cavs benefited from even more Knicks turnovers. In fact, their 12 turnovers were the most New York committed in a first-half this season. Quite an achievement!

Mitchell Robinson (11 PTS, 15 RPBS, 2 BLK, 19 MIN) came in and pulled boards out of Allen’s grasp. Mitch singlehandedly kept New York within reach with rebounds, a putback, and an alley-oop from Jose Alvarado, while Towns added a putback and later a three. For Cleveland, Mitchell and Allen continued to chip in buckets and Dennis Schröder was a nuisance on defense.

Mitchell Robinson dominates the offensive glass 💪 pic.twitter.com/Rn0Qbjbb86

— Knicks Videos (@sny_knicks) February 25, 2026

When Jalen Brunson (20 PTS, 6-of-19 FG) returned after a breather, he steadied the offense with a drive and a late pull-up three. The Knicks went on a 10-2 run late in the deep end of the quarter to cut the deficit to one. From there, Cleveland outscored them by five. Bridges hit a floater in the final seconds, but the home team still carried a 60–54 lead into halftime.

Through the half, Cavs outshot New York from deep (35% to 27%), grabbed seven offensive rebounds to the Knicks’ three, and turned 12 New York turnovers into 11 points. New York shot 51% overall, owned the paint 32-26, and blocked six shots to Cleveland’s three, but their blunders kept them on the outside looking in. Mitchell led all first-half scorers with 15, while Brunson had 13 for the good guys.

Jose Alvarado on this jump ball 😅

It was worth a try 🤷‍♂️pic.twitter.com/mZknW3ReoK

— ClutchPoints (@ClutchPoints) February 25, 2026

After intermission, this game got sloppier than my kid’s bedroom. James Harden (20 PTS) opened the third quarter with a step-back jumper, Mitchell forced a Towns turnover, and Allen converted a putback. The Knicks failed to do anything well—Bridges missed twice, Towns committed another turnover, etc.—before Brunson set up OG Anunoby for a three. When Harden swished from deep, the deficit was 11 again and Coach Brown needed a timeout.

New York continued to throw rocks from deep, making 5-of-21 after two and half quarters. They continued to turn the ball over, too, which explains why they couldn’t get the differential to low-single digits. With four minutes left, and down by 14, Brown tried a lineup of Brunson, Alvarado, Landry Shamet, Mohamed Diawara, and Robinson. Same results. To close the period, Brown dusted off Jordan Clarkson. Nada,otra vez. New York scored their fewest points in a quarter (11), and went into the fourth trailing 83-65.

Dennis Schroder dime to Donovan Mitchell —

Too smooth. 🥶

pic.twitter.com/L8PD4w4m3J

— Hoop Central (@TheHoopCentral) February 25, 2026

Weirdly, OG Anunoby logged 34 minutes, took nine shots, and finished with five pints. He must have worn his invisibility cloak, because I barely saw him on the court.

In Q4, the misery continued, and the hole reached 19 points until Alvarado (5 PTS, 1 STL, 1 BLK) hit from the corner. In need of energy, Jose seemed most likely to bring some pep. On another possession, GTA snaked into the paint and kicked out to Josh Hart, who hit another (finally) three-pointer. Unfortunately for them, they couldn’t gain ground because they couldn’t stop Mitchell at the other end.

Bridges missed another layup, Mobley put back a Mitchell miss, and a befuddled Brown called for time. The clock still had seven-and-a-half minutes on it, but the Knicks had done nothing yet to convince us that a rally was possible. A few minutes later, when Brunson missed off the glass on a drive, it became abundantly clear that Cleveland had secretly put a transparent lid on the visitors’ rim—there was no other logical explanation for how badly New York had shot. Unless they were drugged . . . or had lyme disease . . . or ate pizza in Utah.

The deficit reached 20, the reserves came on, and this turkey was finally, mercifully cooked.

Up Next

New York travels to Milwaukee to face the Bucks on Friday. Safe travels, Knickerbockers.

Box Score

* Should be one more. Let’s gather to protest outside the NBA’s offices.

The Lakers began their front office transformation under Mark Walter with the hiring of Lon Rosen, replacing Tim Harris as President of Business Operations. While his role has no on-court impact, it does represent the changes that are coming.

However, don’t expect Rob Pelinka to be one of those changes.

Rosen spoke to reporters before Tuesday’s game against the Magic and confirmed that Pelinka would remain in his role as President of Basketball Operations.

In a conversation with reporters, new Lakers president of business operations Lon Rosen says the plan is for Rob Pelinka, with input from Andrew Friedman and Farhan Zaidi, will continue to handle basketball operations. Pelinka told reporters the plan is to have an expanded front…

— Dan Woike (@DanWoikeSports) February 25, 2026

Andrew Friedman and Farhan Zaidi’s continued involvement with the Lakers’ front office is interesting. On one hand, it appears the Dodgers and Lakers could be operating under one umbrella moving forward with Rosen going from one franchise to the other.

However, if you want to be more cynical, it could also be a matter Friedman and Zaidi overseeing how the front office is operating and whether Pelinka should be the one in charge moving forward. There definitely is some overall observing and evaluating to report back to Walter. Those two are not just trusted executives under Walter but also have had success as well.

This also doesn’t mean that there won’t be more people hired around him. Almost assuredly, there will be more voices in the front office, which can only be a good thing. It’ll be a big change for the Lakers, who have operated with a small circle under Pelinka.

The other interesting aspect from Rosen was that Magic Johnson will not have a role in the front office. Depending on the tweet you saw, though, it came across very differently.

New Lakers president of business operations Lon Rosen told reporters this evening that Rob Pelinka will remain as the team’s president of basketball operations and while Earvin “Magic” Johnson will surely be around the franchise, no official title is planned for him with LAL

— Dave McMenamin (@mcten) February 25, 2026

Magic Johnson will hold no official day-to-day position, but he’ll continue to be around the Lakers as always. He hosted the on-court ceremony for Pat Riley on Sunday.

— Dan Woike (@DanWoikeSports) February 25, 2026

How you feel about this depends on your faith in Rosen, Walter and the new front office. Given their track record of success with the Dodgers, I’ll give them the benefit of the doubt and say that Magic will continue to have the “role” he has now, which is being around the team for events but nothing else.

Some skepticism is both natural and fair. This current Lakers front office has given no reason to be confident. But Walter and Friedman and Zaidi have had success, so it might be time for a cautious amount of trust.

You can follow Jacob on Twitter at @JacobRude or on Bluesky at @jacobrude.bsky.social.

The Cleveland Cavaliers took down the New York Knicks 109-94.

All grades are based on our usual expectations for each player.

Donovan Mitchell

20 points, 4 assists, 5 rebounds, 3 steals, 3 turnovers

Mitchell didn’t score the ball efficiently, but he looked much more comfortable against the Knicks than he did in OKC. Not having Lu Dort attached to you goes a long way. This was a quality offensive performance from Mitchell, carried on his ability to get to the free throw line 13 times.

Grade: B+

James Harden

20 points, 4 assists, 2 rebounds, 3 turnovers

We’ve seen a few classic Harden-blemishes show themselves over his last two games. Iffy point-of-attack defense, 3 turnovers, and an 8-18 shooting night.

However, the box score looks worse than it felt. Harden took quality shots, kept Cleveland’s offense grooving, and probably should have finished with more assists than he had.

Also, Harden should have been rewarded with a few more free throws in this one. I don’t know why he isn’t getting the same calls he has been receiving for the previous decade.

Grade: B

Jarrett Allen

19 points, 10 rebounds, 1 assist, 1 steal, 1 block

Allen was more involved tonight than he was in OKC. The Cavaliers had an easier time penetrating New York’s defense, and that inherently benefits Allen. He did a great job scoring at the rim, and outside of a few conceded rebounds, Allen held his own as Cleveland’s defensive anchor.

Grade: A-

Evan Mobley

12 points, 7 rebounds, 1 assist

Mobley is clearly still working his way back from his calf injury and searching for his place among the Cavaliers’ newest additions. He felt disjoined in this one, never really fitting in with what the team was doing on offense. It wasn’t until the fourth quarter that Mobley flashed some of the on-ball creation we’ve been wanting to see. He’s always seemed to enjoy the Karl-Anthony Towns matchup.

Grade: C+

Jaylon Tyson

12 points, 8 rebounds, 2 assists, 1 steal, 1 block

Kenny Atkinson said before the game that Tyson will have to “earn” his minutes moving forward. His first half stint tonight included three personal fouls in 12 minutes. The second half was much better, and the fourth quarter was a strength. His efforts on the glass helped Cleveland win the rebounding battle before garbage time.

Still, Tyson is currently navigating his way through a weird stretch. It will be interesting to watch moving forward.

Grade: B+

Keon Ellis

4 points, 1 assist

This seems like it should be a good matchup for Ellis. He played an important role defensively, but he wasn’t overly effective in stuffing the stat sheet tonight. That’s bound to happen now and again.

Grade: B+

Dennis Schroder

3 points, 5 assists, 1 rebound, 2 steals

Schroder is meshing nicely with Cleveland’s bench. He’s done a fine job running the offense as a backup point guard and threw some sneaky passes tonight. I thought his shot selection was mostly fine, but I will have to ding him half a grade for 1-6 shooting.

Grade: B–

Sam Merrill

0 points, 1 rebound, 1 assist

We’ve seen some erratic shooting performances from Merrill recently. He’s either going full inferno or coming up empty on everything. Either way, he still brings off-ball gravity and defensive grit that keep him in the rotation. Merrill shot 0-4 from deep tonight but was a plus-13.

Grade: D+

Dean Wade

11 points, 8 rebounds, 3 assists, 3 steals

Wade remained in the starting lineup as Cleveland looked to match New York’s size on the wings. He smoked his first layup attempt, but then drilled three consecutive three-pointers to help the Cavs build an early lead.

Grade: A+