Category: NBA

It’s clearly been an exciting start overall to the 2026-27 season for the Sixers, but we got our first taste of a loss for this team on Sunday. On the second night of a back-to-back, with Joel Embiid out and a host of injuries to the backup center rotation, the Sixers lost to the Pistons, 106-93.

The Sixers shot just 7-of-25 from three, made only 14 of their 23 free throw attempts, Jaylen Brown struggled (as did most of the team) and shot 5-of-20, and they gave up 15 offensive rebounds. From the lacking center rotation in Embiid’s absence to the rebounding issues, it was a look at where the Sixers could use some improvement.

On Wednesday, after getting an extra day of rest, the Sixers will be on the road with a chance to bounce back against the 2-2 Pacers.

Having Embiid back on Wednesday is huge. The already thin center depth was obvious against Detroit, and that was even with Jalen Duren out. The rest of the Sixers’ injured bigs are still included on the injury report, though. Dominick Barlow, Tacko Fall and Jabari Walker all remain out.

The Pacers are banged up themselves. Johnny Furphy (ACL surgery), T.J. McConnell (right hamstring strain), Ben Sheppard (left meniscus tear), and Ivica Zubac (left ankle sprain) are all out. Zubac’s absence in particular will make life far easier for the Sixers’ smaller lineups. Andrew Nembhard (neck soreness) and newly returned star Tyrese Haliburton (left hamstring soreness) are both questionable. Obi Toppin (left hand sprain) is probable.

While the Sixers’ frontcourt remains shorthanded, we’ve seen a fair dose of LeBron at the 5. Which, despite not being something he or the team want to rely on using too much, has been effective in spells. The physicality, IQ, still versatile defense when he’s locked in, and offensive skill that needs no introduction makes LeBron a unique smaller option.

Apart from getting healthier at center, rebounding has to improve, too. As Nick Nurse emphasized after Sunday’s loss, it’s not just about one position: it’s a team effort.

“All five guys got to rebound. I just look at the numbers there and the defensive rebounding, just across the board, no matter position, just aren’t good enough,” Nurse said to reporters after the game. “So, everybody’s got to chip in with a few more.”

Let’s see if they can take advantage of Zubac being out and up their rebounding on Wednesday.

The Pacers aren’t off to a bad start this year. They haven’t faced tough opponents yet and are coming off a 110-102 loss to the Bucks on Monday, but did at least take care of business with wins against the Pelicans and Nets.

First and foremost, as a basketball fan, it’s a joy to see Haliburton back. After missing all last season with an Achilles injury, he’s here to lead the Pacers again.

Considering it’s been 486 days since he last played a game, Haliburton looks like he’s barely missed a beat. He’s already putting up 21.8 points, 9.5 assists to only 2.3 turnovers, 4.5 rebounds and 1.3 steals per game with an excellent true shooting percentage of 63.4. He started with a bang, dropping 23 points and 12 assists and delivering in the clutch to win Indiana’s season opener.

Maxey and VJ Edgecombe have both been playing impressive defense to open the season, and have well and truly played their part in the Sixers’ ranking fifth in defensive rating so far. Watching how they handle Haliburton (if he plays) on the ball, keep his drives in check, ideally reduce his breathing room to fire passes all over the floor, and contest his creation at the three-point line will be the key matchup to follow in this contest.

We’ll also get to watch former Sixer Kelly Oubre Jr. go up against Philly again for the first time since leaving. After doing so much for the Sixers with his high motor, rangy defense and athletic scoring, he’s stepped straight into a solid role with the Pacers, including two starts. He just hasn’t hit his usual stride on offense yet, averaging 7.5 points on only 38.7/18.8/50.0 shooting splits through his first four games in 22.5 minutes a night.

The next big matchup for the Sixers to handle in order to fully take control in this game is Pascal Siakam. With his range, speed and ability as a driver, he’ll be a good physical test for LeBron and Dean Wade. With how well the Sixers’ forwards have played defensively so far, though, and how spry Embiid has looked protecting the paint, that bodes well for them containing Siakam and ideally providing sharp interior rotations and rim protection to Haliburton, Siakam and Oubre in check enough downhill.

Apart from having Embiid’s scoring back, his size and defense will be a welcome presence against the Pacers’ bigs, led by 7-foot-1 starting center Jay Huff. Huff is a weak rebounder (averaging just 6.7 per 36 minutes for his career) which helps the Sixers, but he still can’t be overlooked as a rim protector and finisher with his size and 7-foot-5 wingspan.

Overall, there should be some fun matchups in this one, especially between LeBron vs. Siakam, and the Sixers’ guards against Haliburton, if he can play. If Philly can pair that with better rebounding and center play thanks to Embiid’s return, and ideally some hotter three-point shooting (they’re missing plenty of open looks so far, ranking 22nd as a team at 31.7 percent from three), this is a contest they should be winning. It’s a good opportunity to bounce back before heading into a tougher matchup in Friday’s rematch against the Knicks.

Game Details

When: Sunday, October 28, 7:00 pm ET
Where: Gainbridge Fieldhouse, Indianapolis, IN
Watch: NBCSP/PCK-PHI, ESPN
Radio: 97.5 The Fanatic
Follow: @LibertyBallers

For the Toronto Raptors and Orlando Magic, this was supposed to be their first real test.

While the Raptors previously finished fifth in the Eastern Conference standings and the Magic were stuck in play-in purgatory, only one game separated the franchises. Despite pundits refusing to give them a fighter’s chance in the first round of the playoffs, both Toronto and Orlando punched back, as fighters do.

Nearly six months after taking their respective post-season opponents the distance, they’re ready to once again scrap and claw for their place in the Eastern Conference.

Unfortunately, before the sound of the round one bell, both teams are already dinged up. The Magic are without Paolo Banchero (ankle sprain) for four to six weeks and Jalen Suggs (bone bruise) for at least two weeks.

Here’s what you need to know ahead of the Raptors vs. Magic on Wednesday.

Much ado about everything

The Raptors are without Kawhi Leonard. For those outside of the Toronto (and Canadian) basketball world, it may seem like the streets are on fire. The 35-year-old superstar is expected to miss a period of weeks due to swelling in his left knee, according to ESPN’s Shams Charania. In the team’s Oct. 27 update, it was mentioned that Leonard would be reevaluated in one week.

The longest stretch Leonard missed during his 2018-19 stint in Toronto was four consecutive games. Leonard also dealt with swelling in the other knee when he missed the first 34 games of the 2024-25 season with the Los Angeles Clippers.

Regardless of what happens, one thing is certain: there will be stretches without Leonard. This year’s iteration of the Raptors, like the 2019 champions, will be defined by how they perform without Leonard. It’s been widely noted that Toronto went 17-5 without Leonard in 2019, but what doesn’t go noticed enough is that the team (either strategically or by happenstance) hedged their chances against specific opponents.

Ten of the Raptors’ victories without The Klaw came against Eastern Conference opponents. That’s always a good measurement of where a team stands as playoff brackets begin to form. However, of those ten wins, nine of them came against non-playoff teams. This is important to note after the unfortunate misfire in their first game without Leonard against the Timberwolves on Oct. 25. While Toronto finished a sparkling 7-0 against the Western Conference (including three wins against playoff teams), how the Raptors fare against teams vying for the same playoff spots will obviously carry more weight.

Wins are wins and teams should take them no matter how they come, especially when playing without one of the best players in the world. The Raptors five losses without Leonard all came against Eastern Conference playoff teams, but that’s to be expected. To tip the scales back the other way, they took care of business against lineups that a team with an injured Leonard is expected to beat:

• Wizards (32-50)
• Bulls (22-60)
• Hawks (29-53)
• Pacers (48-34) – Playoff team
• Hawks (29-53)
• Wizards – (32-50)
• Heat – (39-43)
• Knicks (17-65)
• Knicks (17-65)
• Bulls (22-60)

Toronto also finished the calendar year (2018) 7-2 without Leonard. This likely helped the front office decide whether to go for it at the trade deadline.

Leonard transforms good teams into contenders, and good teams should defeat a Magic squad without two of their best players.

All together on three: One, two, three—exhale!

And to respond to the question of Real Clydes Wear Plaid in the Postgame Thread with the amazing wisdom of one OG Anunoby: Uh, it feels pretty cool. The first win for your New York Knicks as defending champions, that is. But even if Fat Joe didn’t have to keep sweatin’ through the latter stages of this particular game, it sure took a while to really feel comfortable.

When Mikal Bridges’ halfcourt prayer to end the first quarter didn’t draw any iron, nothing felt cool. Paul Reed had just finished his shooting motion from hell on the other end and scored Detroit’s 38th point with a triple, putting the Pistons up by 13 on their orange and blue counterparts. An eternal optimist might have seen the Knicks returning to their winning ways at that point since they had actually given up 40 in the final frame to Orlando on Sunday. Baby steps and all in the right direction, I guess.

Seriously, though, the Knicks were hanging on by a thread to start the second quarter, especially since they couldn’t buy a basket for the first two minutes of the period. Fortunately, Detroit didn’t manage to capitalize even though they had numerous open threes during that stretch. If they had made a shot or two here and blown the lead up close to 20? Let’s not think about it, especially since the actual reality that followed was so much nicer.

Karl-Anthony Towns leads the way for Knicks

For the first time this season, it felt like the Knicks really found a consistent rhythm on both ends of the court. It started with the defense that completely shut down any idea the Pistons had of scoring points, limiting the bad shooting boys from the Motor City to a 3-for-21 clip in the quarter. The offense took a little longer, but opportunism reigned supreme here. Karl-Anthony Towns and Andre Drummond had some nice putbacks, the Knicks finally hit some threes, and Jalen Brunson drew a bunch of fouls after almost looking like Jordan Clarkson in a Utah blowout early on.

The real fun started after halftime. Supposedly, Mike Brown challenged Karl-Anthony Towns in the locker room, reminding him that a scrappy, hard-working soul named “Bball Paul” shouldn’t be a match for him. “Got it, coach,” said the newlywed, and then went to work on the entire Pistons team. 27 and 20 is serious business; we can even give him a pass for the 7 (turnovers) and 5 (fouls) this time around. It speaks to the growth of Towns that he responded to extremely physical play with some haymakers of his own. I’ll let you decide if he or the hero called Bballman looked more composed in the end. Just kidding, Paulie!

Apparently, it wasn’t only KAT, though, who took the coach’s words to heart. The entire team came out firing after the intermission. The pace was good, the Bockers got out running, and they really defended the high pick-and-roll better—shoutout to Mikal Bridges here. In the first, Pistons star Cade Cunningham spent more time in the Knicks’ paint than anywhere else on the court, but New York put an end to that. They themselves moved the ball inside, swung it back out, and all of a sudden everything looked easy.

Knicks find themselves again versus Detroit

Open shots lead to open minds; play looked free, inspired. Brunson woke up; KAT was downright dominant on both ends of the court, and OG, Mikal, and Hart were flying around. The reserves also did their part after looking very reserved against the Magic. Landry Shamet couldn’t buy a basket at the rim yet cashed in on 3 of 5 from downtown. More importantly, though, he brought relentless energy fighting over screens and throwing his body around like he doesn’t need it anymore. Andre Drummond was good Andre Drummond again, didn’t try to channel his inner Hakeem Olajuwon, and made his gigantic presence felt inside on both ends. Even “Pee Wee” Kolek got in on the act a few times.

Let’s ignore the sloppy finish to the fourth that made a laugher a little less funny or JB Bickerstaff bickering about physicality for the sake of the good vibes. The New York Knicks are back, baby, and it feels tremendous even if they were never really gone. Deep in our hearts, we all knew they had this very type of performance in them and that if they are playing at their best, not many teams in the NBA can hang with them. That doesn’t mean that they can or should punt the entire regular season—far from it. They can’t sleepwalk through the year and just show up for the final act. There’d be a good chance they would’ve forgotten their lines by then. In the end, you still have to win some games—and quite a few of them. Tuesday night was a good start.

A really cool start, actually.

Yesterday morning, the bombshell dropped that Kawhi Leonard would be missing his first stint of games this season, with twin reports coming directly from the Raptors, and ESPN’s Shams Charania.

Charania posted this morning that Leonard would not be playing for “a period of weeks due to swelling in his left knee” despite “no structural damage.” The Raptors, almost simultaneously, released notice that reevaluation of Leonard would take place within a week, but that there was “no acute injury,” rather, just swelling.

Leonard swiftly came out with his own statement, posting on socials about the circumstances, thanking Raptors fans for their support and committing to a speedy return.

First of all, seeing Kawhi sign his messages as “Whi” is very cool, and is a nickname for himself that is certainly overshadowed by his “Klaw” monicker. But, more importantly, Leonard being this active on social media on his personal accounts is a new development that has arisen since he began the process of rejoining the Raptors earlier this year.

There seems to be an effort at transparency from both Leonard and the organization, that especially from the latter, is particularly appreciated. Much has been said about Kawhi’s famous aloofness appearing diminished as his second stint on the Raps begins, and this statement today, addressing fans directly in tandem with Raptors reports, is a breath of fresh air from the superstar.

In Leonard’s absence, there are signs of what the Raptors might look like. RJ Barrett predicted more time with the ball in his hands, suggesting that his role as an offensive creator will become even more important with Leonard out. Barrett produces a great deal of gravity on his downhill drives, which would perfectly compliment the return of an outside shooter like Ja’Kobe Walter to the starting lineup.

Walter was fantastic in his first outing as a starter, scoring 22 points and nabbing two steals in a loss against Minnesota, and it will be likely that Walter settles into this role for the upcoming stint of games. While Collin Murray-Boyles has contributed in a more public manner to the Raptors’ success over the past two years, starting him at small forward in place of Leonard would tank the Raptors’ spacing further, on a team that already struggles with range.

Whether or not the Raptors are able to rally in Leonard’s absence will be a prime indicator of how well the rest of the season will go, with Leonard all but certain to have other instances where his at-times shaky availability will force the team to run modified units. The next few games against the shorthanded Orlando Magic will be a prime opportunity for the Raptors to field modified lineups and see what might work against a team that is also operating without its primary offensive piece.

Leonard will hopefully be back soon enough that any experimentation comes in the form of a temporary patch rather than a long-term fix, but with his public approach to handling his load management, it seems that fans will be well informed about any decisions that arise.

Former Blue Devil and current Chief Basketball Officer for Duke Basketball Jayson Tatum has had an interesting time of it lately.

Boston shockingly traded Jaylen Brown to the Philadelphia 76ers, a move that some people seem to hold Tatum responsible for.

And when he recently spoke out on this, saying that he had no role in the trade, that he was “just as much caught off guard as the rest of the world,” and that “I don’t have any animosity or beef or ill will towards him,” Brown had a few things to say about it.

First, he posted a blue cap, suggesting that Tatum was not telling the truth. Then he said this: “We’ve accomplished some great things. He’s a hell of a basketball player. He’s got a great PR team. There’s no beef but it might be a little lamb chops and some gravy. He should stay ready at all times.”

“That’s what it is. No beef. It should never, ever be that. It’s just basketball. We both blessed. But it might be a little lamb chop. We’ll be alright.”

Whatever the truth is, it’s bound to be a distraction. However, it didn’t matter much Tuesday night.

Boston was down to Brooklyn 124-123 with 2.3 seconds left. Derrick White got the ball into Tatum, who spun to his right. Three Nets had a reasonable chance of stopping him: former Louisville star Mikel Brown, Noah Clowney, and Keon Ellis. He shook them all off, though Ellis made a valiant attempt to get back into the play.

But he was too late: Tatum got a shot off as Ellis tried to catch him from behind. He didn’t get there late by much, but he did get there too late, and Tatum’s shot became the game-winner.

Pretty nice outcome for the guy who is now the undisputed face of his team.

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The NBA season is young – we’re one week into it, and no team has played five games yet – yet injuries have already made a massive impact.

The names are significant, from Timberwolves star Anthony Edwards, to Thunder star Jalen Williams, to Magic forward Paolo Banchero, these issues are certain to impact the immediate futures of their teams. And those are just a few of them.

But after one week of action, there are already significant risers and fallers from the power rankings once training camps opened. And no team has plummeted more than the Miami Heat, who made the massive offseason splash to acquire Giannis Antetokounmpo but who have yet to win a game.

Here are the Week 1 USA TODAY Sports NBA power rankings:

The San Antonio Spurs were shooting just 31.2% from the three-point line before their game against the Sacramento Kings. That percentage will increase after the Spurs shot 17-for-37 from three in a dominant 130-103 win over the Kings.

The Spurs were led by their sharpshooting wing, Julian Champagnie, who had 26 points, hitting 8 of his 13 threes.

Champagnie hit all eight of his threes in the first half. The Kings continued to leave him wide open even after he hit a few easy shots. This play happened because the Kings’ zone defense broke down after Stephon Castle was able to occupy the middle of the court. Champagnie was wide open for a weak-side three-pointer.

Once Champagnie got going, he started to hit some high-difficulty shots. This one was particularly impressive, as he faded into the corner and hit the shot over Domantas Sabonis.

Champagnie’s shooting has been prolific with the Spurs. He tied his own franchise record for most three-pointers made in a half.

The Spurs also got quite a few good looks at the rim. Victor Wembanyama had 29 points on 14-of-21 shooting from the field. Most of those makes were dunks, and a lot of those slams came off lobs. The Spurs went to Wembanyama in the pick-and-roll early and often to get him easy dunks.

It was fairly obvious from the start of the game that the Kings were not defensively up to the task. They just lose the 7-foot-5 guy here as two defenders chase Castle on the drive, leading to an easy dunk for Wembanyama.

Wembanyama didn’t just do it on lobs. He had several drives to the rim that led to dunks, like this pump fake and Statue of Liberty slam in the first quarter.

Wembanyama was active on the glass, grabbing ten rebounds, three of them offensive. This buzzer-beating tip-in gave the Spurs 80 first-half points.

Devin Vassell got in on the scoring fun, too. He had 14 points and hit four of his seven three-pointers. His shots came within the flow of the offense, like this kick-ahead three-pointer in transition.

The Kings were constantly sending two defenders at the ball, leaving players wide-open all over the floor. It’s probably why the Spurs were able to shoot 54% from the field in the win.

Perhaps the most impressive highlight of the night came from the “unc” himself, Harrison Barnes, who put Alex Karaban on a poster.

The Spurs will have another chance to scorch the nets and send home vicious dunks on Wednesday against the Utah Jazz.

The Milwaukee Bucks will look to put together their first win streak of the year as they host the Houston Rockets tonight. The Bucks notched their first win of the Taylor Jenkins era on Monday against bitter rivals, the Indiana Pacers, 110-102, and beyond that win, the Bucks continued to show promising signs of growth. Tyler Herro continues to look comfortable as the lead guard, while Kel’el Ware has settled more into his role. The Bucks will aim to keep growing and finding ways to compete as the red-hot Houston Rockets come to town.

The Task Ahead

The Houston Rockets haven’t lost yet this season; they are 4-0 and playing like they took all the off-season criticism personally after getting blown out in the playoffs. Kevin Durant leads the team in scoring at 23.5 PPG on 47% shooting from deep, while Alperen Sengun leads the team in rebounds (8.9) and assists (6.2), though the Rockets are expected to rest Sengun with back soreness. With Steven Adams also still sidelined, the Rockets will likely start Clint Capela at the five.

The Rockets will lean on their defence to make up for Sengun’s absence, turning primarily to Amen Thompson, who averages 1.5 steals per contest. Despite being a top-10 team in points allowed per 100 possessions so far (108.8, 9th on Cleaning the Glass), the Rockets are an okay team at best when defending at the rim, in the mid-range, and most 3s taken (except in the corner, where they defend fairly well). Therefore, the Bucks will need to push the pace and beat the Rockets at their own game: getting rebounds and scoring second-chance points. If the Bucks can impose their will in the paint without Sengun or Adams, they have a chance to stay in the game and steal it at the end.

Injury Report

Bucks:

• Clean injury report.

Rockets:

• Alperen Sengun: out (back)
• Steven Adams: out (calf)
• Marcus Smart: questionable (forearm)

Player to Watch

After extending with the Rockets over the summer, Tari Eason has gotten off to a fast start this season. Eason is currently at over 60% in true shooting, and while the sample size is small, it suggests he’s getting in the right spots and taking high-quality shots. The five-year pro has also been one of Houston’s best paint defenders this season, so expect him to get serious minutes trying to contain the Bucks’ front court (especially with Sengun and Adams sidelined). This will be a good test for Kel’el Ware, in particular, to see if he can continue building on the positive progress of the last two games.

Projected Starters

Game Details

Who: Milwaukee Bucks (1-3) vs. Houston (4-0).

When: 7:00 p.m. CDT.

Where: Fiserv Forum—Milwaukee, WI.

Watch: MY24.

Listen: Check local listings.

Prescient Prediction

Nate Ament has been ramping up, showing real tenacity against the Pacers. Look for Ament to post his first double-digit scoring line of the season, with 12 points off the bench.

As Rui Hachimura walked into Crypto.com Arena on Friday night for a basketball game for the first time in five months, many familiar faces and sights awaited him.  

There was Hachimura on the Lakers’ home court, joking around with franchise superstar Luka Dončić while both were going through their pregame warmups. 

There was the 6-foot-8 forward embracing star guard Austin Reaves and greeting multiple Lakers assistant coaches as he walked around the court.

There was the former Gonzaga Bulldog receiving a positive ovation from the fans after being introduced in the starting lineup, with a tribute video showing on the Jumbotron midway through the first quarter. 

There was the 2019 first-round pick, whom the Lakers acquired from the Wizards in January 2023, acting like he was going to walk into the Lakers’ locker room before reminding the security guard that it shouldn’t be happening anymore.

“That was funny because … the security guard, he didn’t even realize that,” Hachimura told the California Post.

Hachimura added: “I was like, ‘Hey, you gotta stop me.’”

If it were up to Hachimura, those familiar sights and feelings would still be part of his routine with the Lakers.

But after 3 ½ seasons with the franchise, Hachimura was on the other side of what used to be called “The Hallway Rivalry” — and what The Post’s Melissa Rohlin has now dubbed the “Freeway Snore.”

And he’ll be reminded of the change again when the Lakers visit the Intuit Dome on Wednesday, though he won’t play due to quad soreness sidelining him for the matchup.

Hachimura is no longer a Laker after signing a two-year, $28 million contract with the Clippers in July.

He was one of the several players who left the franchise over the summer as part of the roster reconstruction around Dončić and Reaves, which included acquiring Walker Kessler and eight other players. 

“It was tough,” Hachimura told The Post about his free agency. “That’s my second free agency. Of course I was trying to get the extension from [the Lakers]. It didn’t work out, but it is what it is. We have to move on at some point.”

The Lakers were interested in retaining Hachimura. And he would’ve liked to return to the franchise.

“That was the point,” he responded to The Post when asked whether he wanted to stay with the Lakers.

But that didn’t come to fruition.

“It’s my agent and those guys who [were] in the talks,” Hachimura told The Post. “I don’t know what the [talks were], but I’m happy that I’m here.”

The Lakers made a slew of additions within the first few days of free agency: The Kessler acquisition opened the floodgates for the initial signings of Quentin Grimes (four years, $60 million, Sandro Mamukelashvili (four years, $52 million) and Collin Sexton (two years, $19 million).

But to make those additions with their $50 million-plus in cap space, the Lakers had to relinquish the cap holds for most of their free agents, including Hachimura, making it unlikely they’d return to the franchise. 

Hachimura said he didn’t know whether the Lakers offered him a new contract during the summer after the three-year, $51 million deal he signed with the franchise during the 2023 offseason expired in late June.  

“It’s on them,” he responded to The Post when asked what led to his departure from the Lakers. “It wasn’t me. It was them.”

Hachimura reiterated the reporting from the summer that he and the Clippers had reached an agreement during the early stages of free agency.

A potential sign-and-trade between the Lakers and Clippers was pursued by Hachimura’s camp, which would’ve led Hachimura signing a longer contract with his new team, but the Lakers didn’t participate and Hachimura signed with the Clippers outright.  

“It was already done,” he told The Post. “I just didn’t do it right away.”

Hachimura is still held in high regard by his former teammates. 

“He’s one of my favorite teammates I’ve ever had,” Reaves said. “I made a joke the other day that I didn’t know if he spoke English for the first two weeks. We sat by each other on the plane his first year and I would say ‘hey’ to him. He kind of just looked at me and [nodded].  

“And then after that I couldn’t get him to shut up. Always in a good mood, happy to be here, puts the work in, and it’s just good to see him be happy and successful and enjoying his life.”

Los Angeles, and the Lakers specifically, is where he developed into “an unbelievable shooter,” according to Lakers coach JJ Redick.

He shot 41.5% from beyond the arc in his 3 ½ seasons with the Lakers, including 50.7% in the playoffs.

His 51.6% career 3-point shooting accuracy in the postseason is an NBA record. 

“Rui in terms of just his offensive packaging and becoming one of the best shooters in the NBA, we got him at a good point in his career,” Redick added. “Just one of my favorite players I’ve ever been around in the NBA and one of my favorite players I’ve ever coached. And it’s because of just the consistency of joy and personality that he brings every day.” 

Redick credited Lakers assistant coach Beau Levesque for helping Hachimura develop his “laser mentality.”

“Beau is my guy,” Hachimura told The Post. “Since he got there, he was the guy [who] helped me elevate my game.”

Hachimura hopes to continue to elevate his game with the Clippers.

He’s no longer playing off star players such as Anthony Davis, LeBron James, Dončić and Reaves.

He’s a more significant part of the Clippers’ offense, which is reflected in him taking a career-high 12.7 field-goal attempts entering Wednesday after averaging a career-low 8.8 shots last season. 

“I miss them, it was a good time — was a great time with them,” Hachimura told The Post about his time with the Lakers. “I can still continue my career in LA, too, so I’m happy [about] that.”

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One Possession: Jayson Tatum is giving the game what it needs originally appeared on NBC Sports Boston

Most will focus on the game-winning mid-range jumper that Jayson Tatum delivered at the final buzzer of Boston’s gritty-but-not-always-pretty 125-124 overtime win over the Brooklyn Nets on Tuesday night at TD Garden.

But we think it was what he did over the previous 42 minutes, 19 seconds of floor time that might have been even more noteworthy.

With the Celtics operating on the second night of a back-to-back for the first time this season, it was fair to wonder just how much Tatum, still working his way back to full health after the Achilles surgery 18 months ago, might play. But instead of treading cautiously, Tatum logged six more minutes than any other Boston player (and that was 36-year-old Paul George racking up an impressive 36 minutes of his own).

Tatum piled up a team-high 88 touches and delivered 56 total passes but didn’t commit a single turnover in his floor time for a Boston team that has struggled with ball security through the early portion of the season. Tatum handed out eight assists leading to a game-high 17 assist points, meaning his fingerprints were on 45.6 percent of Boston’s 125-point output.

And, if we’re being honest, the dime he threw Derrick White for an and-1 dunk in the final moments of the fourth quarter *probably* should have been enough to salt away the win. The Celtics did everything they could to allow the Nets to generate overtime and nearly steal the victory, but Tatum’s late-game heroics ensured Boston emerged with the win.

Through four games, Tatum is tied for fifth in the NBA in assist points created (83). Only Trae Young (101), Tyrese Haliburton (90), Jalen Johnson (88), and Luka Doncic (85) have created more scoring for teammates.

What’s more, Tatum ranks ninth in potential assists (56) and is tied for fifth in total assists with Cade Cunningham (32 apiece).

Typically, all the attention Tatum draws leads to multiple 3-point makes from wide open teammates on the perimeter. On Tuesday night, seven of Tatum’s eight assists led to 2-point baskets and showcased his vision.

Yes, Nets rookie Mikel Brown lost White on the key sequence late in the fourth quarter, but Tatum delivered the ball through traffic to a spot leading White to the rim, which was key in allowing him to finish before Noah Clowney fouled White on the play.

Tatum is simply giving the game what it needs. After limited free throw attempts through Boston’s first three games, Tatum generated an NBA-best 22 free-throw attempts on Tuesday night (connecting on 18 of them).

But the attention that opponents commit to him is going to repeatedly create opportunities for teammates. It’s on Boston players to knock down shots when Tatum generates those open shots for them.

And that big fist pump that Tatum delivered after assisting on White’s fourth-quarter layup shows his own appreciation for making the right play. The Celtics need Tatum to continue to give the game what it needs.

CLEVELAND — It takes a certain level of confidence to proudly proclaim to a room full of Cleveland media members that you’ll unashamedly be rooting for the Pittsburgh Steelers this weekend. Then again, nothing about what Meleek Thomas does on and off the court lacks confidence.

The Cleveland Cavaliers have had a frustrating start to their season. They’ve simultaneously shown how dangerous they can be by building large leads against the Philadelphia 76ers and Brooklyn Nets, but have also demonstrated they’re far from a finished product by losing one of those games and nearly blowing the other.

The Cavs found themselves on the back foot on Monday night against the Minnesota Timberwolves — arguably the hottest team in basketball. The Timberwolves were the aggressors in the first few minutes, and the Cavs couldn’t make enough shots to stem the tide.

Instead of turning to a more veteran presence in Craig Porter Jr., head coach Kenny Atkinson went with Thomas midway through the opening frame for his first NBA minutes. The Pittsburgh native didn’t know that he was getting into the rotation beforehand, but he was prepared for the moment. And it was exactly what the Cavs needed.

“We didn’t have energy, we’re flat, we’re playing the wrong way, we weren’t doing the right things. For him to be the spark in his first game of the year is not normal,” Donovan Mitchell said. “That speaks to his confidence, his concentration, attention to detail.”

Thomas looked like an established veteran in his career debut. He didn’t hesitate when the ball swung to him on the perimeter. If there was an opening, he was going to take it without hesitation. He was decisive in his cuts to the basket both on and off the ball. This allowed him to put up 16 points on 6-of-10 shooting, which included knocking down two big threes in the third quarter to help the Cavs retake the lead.

“He was a big part of why we ended up getting this win,” Mitchell said.

Both Thomas and Atkinson have talked about him needing to focus on the defensive end in the lead-up to the season. Whether or not he would get rotation minutes relied on that.

This has caused Thomas to focus his energy on and off the court on getting better defensively any way that he can — even if that means reaching out to an established veteran like Mitchell.

“He texts me all the time saying, ‘All right, what about this clip?’” Mitchell said. “He says, ‘Why’d you rotate here? Why did I do this? Should I do this?’ This morning, he was working on shows. Like, what rookies are working on shows?”

This desire to improve has led to Mitchell taking Thomas under his wing.

“I think Donovan has taken a special liking to Meleek,” Atkinson said before the season. “He almost feels like, ‘I have to build that relationship, build that trust,’ and then coach them up.

“Player development coaches get way too much credit. It’s having really good, smart vets that elevate guys. We do our little part, and I think we try to put them in the right places. It’s really the coaching from your best players that elevates younger players.”

There are some parallels between Mitchell and Thomas’s games — particularly early in Mitchell’s career. Both are score-first two guards, who weren’t expected to make a huge impact on their teams as rookies. Mitchell wasn’t a fixture in the starting lineup at the start of his career with the Utah Jazz, but proved early on that he was destined to be a star.

We don’t know what the future holds for Thomas. What we can say now is that Mitchell seems invested in Thomas’s growth. And that means something to the rookie.

“For them to take me under their wing and give me all of the game and just constantly help me, constantly stay in my ear, it just goes to show that they see the potential that I see in myself,” Thomas said. “It means the world to me.”

From the outside, a rookie second-round pick coming in and making an immediate impact in their career debut would’ve been surprising. Yet, no one on the Cavs was, especially not Thomas. He carries himself like someone who’s been there before and expects to be a mainstay on this stage.

“Confidence really don’t come from nobody else,” Thomas said. “It’s either you got it, or you don’t. You got heart, you got dog in you, or you don’t. And I got everything that I need. It’s just a matter of time before it’s shown.”

On the second night of a back-to-back, the Celtics were 38-15 under head coach Joe Mazzulla. And thanks to Jayson Tatum’s game winner in overtime to beat the Nets 125-124, that’s now 39 wins. Mazzulla would later say after the game that when the team hits the film room tomorrow, they’ll treat it as a loss after another turnover-plagued game with multiple mental mistakes. But hey, you can’t win-lose them all.

Why the Celtics won

Not unlike Monday night’s Bulls, the 0-3 Nets are also a rebuilding team trying to define themselves. After selecting four first round draft picks in 2025 and another this summer, nearly half of their roster are rookies and sophomores.

Brooklyn does however have two capable scorers in Julius Randle and Michael Porter Jr. Before the game, Joe Mazzulla spoke with NBC Sports Boston’s Drew Carter about Brooklyn’s vets. “Their off-ball movement is huge,” Mazzulla said. “Porter is one of the best reading body position, whether it’s back cuts, whether it’s creating separation coming off screens and dribble handoffs. We’ve had our difficulties guarding him over the last couple of years. Obviously, Randle’s ability to get to the free throw line.”

Mazzulla’s scouting report couldn’t have been more prophetic, particularly concerning MPJ. The former champion was 4-for-7 from behind the arc, curling off down screens and coming off of dribble hand offs. It didn’t matter who was guarding him. He finished with a team-high 27 points hitting half of his dozen triples.

Fortunately for the Celtics, they got hot from three, too. After making just 2-of-16 and falling behind by five points in the first half, they caught fire in the third quarter. Five consecutive makes from Sam Hauser, Baylor Scheierman, and Tatum gave Boston the lead heading into the final frame.

In the end, they shot well under their league-leading efficiency from 3 (42.4%) by making just eleven of their 41 attempts, but when they needed it most, they dialed up their calling card to put them over the top.

Numbers game: 22

That’s how many free throw attempts Jayson Tatum had in the overtime win. That’s the highest total of trips (22) and makes (18) of his career.

Love them or hate them, FTs are the mark of the NBA elite because on a night where he was mortal from the field (10-of-20 and 2-of-7 from 3), those points from the charity stripe padded a 40-ball. He also had eight assists and zero turnovers with maybe his biggest dime below.

Must C’s

In a win like last night’s, let’s allow for two plays of the game courtesy of Jayson Tatum.

In what should have ultimately been the game winner, Tatum hit Derrick White on a back cut for an and-1 dunk.

That should have sealed the game in regulation, but some missed free throws — including one from Tatum and two from Mitchell Robinson — pushed the game to OT.

That just set the stage for this:

Tatum to White. White to Tatum.

After playing 42 minutes — the most he’s played in the regular season since returning from his Achilles tear — Tatum put the cherry on top of another near triple-double. If his PR team is trying to make an MVP case, this was Exhibit 1.

Who said what

“Throughout the game, I thought he was playing the right way. I thought he trusted both ends of the floor. He was patient. He was getting downhill. Some of the shots he missed, I thought they were great shots. Defensively, he was active getting rebounds.

I thought he gave the game exactly what it needed and stayed present in the moment and you got to see his greatness.” — Joe Mazzulla on Jayson Tatum

After raising their record to 3-1, the Celtics are now in a four-way tie atop the Eastern Conference with the Pistons, Hornets, and 76ers. They’ll next host the Bulls again on Friday in the first contest of the NBA Cup before heading out on the road for another back-to-back in Orlando and Houston starting on Sunday.

The Hawks are 2-2. It’s a slightly disappointing turn of events after dismantling the Charlotte Hornets to a franchise-best game margin two games in.

The hope is that the Houston Rockets turn out to be a great team this season to make the recent sweep at their hands look less dispiriting in time.

But there are still 78 games left to go even if not. It’s way too early to press the alarm button.

It’s also difficult draw any real conclusions for this Hawks team, but I’ll try anyway from a statistical point of view. Let’s touch on a few points of emphasis I noticed four games in.

Pace and three-point rate check-in

What kind of team are the Atlanta Hawks, really?

Well, some things are hard to tease out with such a small sample size of the season. However, pace and three-point rate are two things that stabilize quite early on from year-to-year.

The Hawks pace over the past two seasons has been juiced by their high turnover rates on defense, giving them plenty opportunities to score in transition. As of the end of play Tuesday, their defensive turnover rate (TOV%) is 17.9, good for second in the association. Or in other words, out of every 100 defensive possessions, they are forcing around 18 turnovers.

This has led them to being a top 10 team in pace (102.5 possessions per 48 minutes) so far this season — wholly unsurprising considering their quick-paced teams of late.

A lot of this is driven by the Great Barrier Thief, Dyson Daniels, who has 14 steals (!) in four games which leads the NBA. He’s also leading the NBA in total deflections (26) and deflections per game (6.5). Those opportunities quite often lead to Alexander-Walker flaring to the wing for open threes or Jalen Johnson run out dunks.

As for the three-point rate, the Hawks are putting up 44.6% of their field goal attempts from behind the arc, slightly up from last season’s 42.9% rate. Both marks had them 11th in the NBA respectively.

The offense is built to move the ball and seek high value shots like catch-and-shoot threes — but oddly those attempts aren’t coming from the corner to this point. The Hawks have the 27th corner three-point rate with 18.3% of threes from that location — the most efficient three-point area due to its slightly shorter distance.

That might help explain their poor shooting so far this season, hitting just 33.1% long range of total attempts, down from their top five finish in 2025-26 (37.1%).

But in reality, this is likely noise and a touch of bad luck. Three-point shooting is one of the last major metrics to statistically stabilize, so there’s no reason to worry yet (including with respect to the center pairing discussed below).

Dyson Daniels, still indispensable — on both ends of the floor

We know Quin Snyder likes to spread the ball handling duties on offense in the post-Trae Young pivot they made over roughly the past calendar year.

A big key to this is getting the other guards to screen and cut off the ball. It helps to have good perimeter size and physicality at all the backcourt spots when possible, and one guy above all accentuates this aim.

Dyson Daniels is an all-world defender, and his tape over the past four games looks just as good as it did during his runner-up finish in the 2024-25 Defensive Player of the Year campaign.

But let’s talk about the other side of the floor for a bit.

Daniels is often a lightning rod for discussion, largely over his inability to stretch the floor despite (ostensibly) being a guard. But he’s among the best guards in the entire NBA at screening and cutting, often getting the ball around the free throw line giving him the option to shoot his patented floater or kick to corner shooters.

I call him a false center on offense because his role resembles that of your standard pick-and-roll big man, just in a 6’7” package. The threat of a pass out of the short roll is usually all he needs to get his flip floater shot over defenders.

Also, he’s dished out 14 assists this season against just three turnovers — efficient but notably playing less on the ball with Aaron Wiggins and Kingston Flemings joining the fold.

In this manner, he’s incredibly valuable to threatening the rim and giving a bit more space to shooters like a traditional above-the-rim center would be. Just like last season, the offense is better with him on the floor than off (albeit a drop from around seven to two points per 100 possessions from last season to this one).

So while it sure would be nice for him to hit more than one three in four games, the offense is far from reliant on it.

The shooting centers need to keep shooting

Related to Dyson Daniels’ shooting woes, with the Hawks running the inverted offense where Daniels is screening and cutting, it’s important to get floor spacing from the other positions.

The two centers (Onyeka Okongwu and Jock Landale) spacing the floor is rather key to allow these actions to flourish.

However, through four games, Okongwu and Landale are a combined 4-for-28 (14%) from three — including a 1-for-15 (8%) mark across the two-game Rockets sweep.

I don’t have a lot to add for this one other than the shooters need to keep shooting. It’s as simple as that. Turning down open threes will just junk of the Hawks offense even more.

Okongwu and Landale are fairly limited in other areas, including defensive rebounding (see below), so their value as a stretch center is paramount to let Daniels play his funky offensive game.

Shots will fall. Okongwu shot 38% from three last year, including hitting the most threes by a Hawks center in franchise history. Landale shot 38% from there last season as well.

There’s no reason to change boats midstream.

The Hawks might have a defensive rebounding problem

There was a possession in the Saturday home game against the Rockets when the Hawks had three chances to secure a defensive rebound. They failed all three times, giving Houston points on their fourth shot of the possession.

I mean, they let 6’2” Reed Sheppard outwork them. Not a good scene.

Through four games, the Hawks are securing 68.3% of available defensive rebounds — a mark good for just 27th in the NBA.

Some of it was going against an elite rebounding team twice in the Rockets. But they’ve also had to downsize a bit in the wake of the Mouhamed Gueye injury. 6’4” Luguentz Dort has been a primary backup at power forward when Jalen Johnson sits.

Dort is a very solid rebounder for his size, but that’s a huge caveat. Okongwu gets heat for his size as well as a starting center, but again he’s a solid rebounder regardless of size — although not elite.

Okongwu had a healthy 20.3% defensive rebound rate last season (8.7 defensive rebounds per 100 possessions). The team has been slightly better at pulling down defensive rebounds when Okongwu was on the floor the last two seasons. In that aspect, he pairs well with elite defensive rebounder Jalen Johnson.

This is something of a worrying trend for the early reversal of fortunes this season, unlike poor three-point shooting that will certainly come around in time.

The team needs a bit of time to incorporate Dort and reincorporate Landale into their collective glass crashing pursuit. The effort can be a bit better after some film review. But it’s possible that there’s a personnel issue at play.

If this continues, there may be a growing fan push for a center upgrade towards the trade deadline.

After Houston’s win over the Atlanta Hawks, we finally got a long-awaited update on Steven Adams’s availability. In the post-game press conference, Ime Udoka said: “Marcus is day-to-day, game-to-game. We’re hoping to have him back, possibly next game. Steven will be out for at least a week or two.“

This means that Adams would return sometime between the Celtics game on November 2 and the Nuggets game on November 9.

This raises an interesting question: Can the Rockets trust Steven Adams to be a reliable piece of the rotation? This is the third season he’s missed time with injury, but for more, check out James’s piece here.

If you want my opinion on the matter, I feel that it is complicated. Houston should not be relying so heavily on a 33-year-old Steven Adams in the first place, and it was Rafael Stone’s job to acquire another backup center during last year’s trade deadline or offseason if he can’t trust Clint Capela to play a similar role. But then again, the NBA is not NBA 2 K; you can’t just throw a trade together, snap your fingers, and have it work. There are logistics to the matter that are unfathomable to the average fan from a contract perspective.

Additonally, I love Steven Adams and have enjoyed having him on the team, but my desires don’t exactly matter when the purpose of the NBA is to win a title, which is likely a good thing because a team of “guys Holly likes” would likely consist of players such as Adams, Gerald Green, and Victor Oladipo.

To try and conclude my jumble of emotions and thoughts, my opinion on the Adams injury is that it is unfortunate for both the team and for Adams himself, as being injured SUCKS!

Houston will be back in action next versus the Milwaukee Bucks, but in the meantime, let me know what you think about the Adams injury, and as always, be sure to check back at The Dream Shake for all things Rockets news.

On Monday night, the Dallas Mavericks played the Miami Heat, and recorded a 113-109 victory over the winless Heat.

Cooper Flagg showed signs of growth in this game. He racked up a tremendous stat line, with 29 points, 6 rebounds, 11 assists, 5 steals, and 3 blocks.

For a guy who is now reportedly 6-10 1/2, Flagg, who is still 19, moves with incredible guard-like skills. He’s disruptive defensively, and he can dominate on that end, as he showed against Miami.

He’s also able to dominate on the offensive end, and for a guy who’s pushing 6-11, his agility is pretty amazing. In some ways, he reminds us of Toni Kukoc, who rose to greatness with the Jordan-era Bulls, but he’s got a meaner streak than Kukoc had.

Anyway, check out these highlights from Monday night’s game, and remember where he was at Duke. He was a real force with the Blue Devils, but Flagg has gone way beyond what he was then.

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