Category: NBA

Nearly 300 kids showed up Saturday to watch Dillon Brooks set up layup drills at the Arizona Athletic Grounds in Mesa.

This wasn’t a random appearance or a half-hearted community obligation. Suns veteran Dillon Brooks rolled straight from a media availability into on-court work with kids who came because they believe in what he’s building in Phoenix, and look up to him.

One of the instructors nailed it. With Brooks involved, “it just brings more people out.” That’s what star credibility does in a market. Kids show up. Parents pay attention. The Suns organization gets community penetration without forcing it.

READ: Suns’ Dillon Brooks says youth camp focuses on mental wellness, hoops

This matters because Brooks just signed a three-year, $73 million extension that locks him in Phoenix through 2029-30. That contract is a statement that Phoenix is investing in Brooks long-term, and this camp is a glimpse of proof that he is returning the favor.

Brooks is one of the most misunderstood players in the league, with the narrative centered on who he is on the court. As a person, you hear nothing but great things from every organization he’s been a part of.

Brooks recently returned from China, where he trained kung fu and worked with UFC fighters because, of course, he did.

This is a man committed to attacking his physical and mental ceiling. But what he emphasized at the camp tells you his real priority: mental wellness alongside basketball fundamentals. He talked directly about teaching kids early that their mental game controls everything, then connecting that to nutrition, body care, and stretch routines.

There are plenty of young Suns fans who look up to Devin Booker and Dillon Brooks in this community, so it’s always great to see players get involved and make a difference. More of this stuff as the headliners, please!

I wonder if he did his patented pre-game staredown at the camp. Will investigate more on this matter.

As the Knicks look to repeat for a championship, the club has a good chance at having three All-Stars during the 2026-27 season. 

Jalen Brunson andKarl-Anthony Townsare the two obvious names, with both players having made the All-Star team each of the last three seasons. Looking to join them this season is OG Anunoby. 

Entering his 10th NBA season, Anunoby has proven to be one of the more valuable players in the NBA, but he has very little to show for it when it comes to awards -- with Anunoby having only two NBA All-Defensive team appearances for his career accomplishments.

Anunoby was phenomenal during New York’s championship run, with the 6-foot-7 forward averaging 20.1 points throughout the playoffs. In the NBA Finals against the San Antonio Spurs, Anunoby rose to the occasion, becoming a franchise legend. 

Anunoby’s tip-in that essentially won the Knicks Game 4 is one of the biggest plays in league history. That moment makes it easy to forget his game-saving block of Spurs guard De’Aaron Fox the play before. The two moments were a microcosm of the Knicks' "demon," as Josh Hart calls him. Anunoby can impact the game on both sides of the floor, and is one of the best defenders in the NBA -- both in one-on-one situations and help scenarios.

During the Finals, Anunoby was arguably New York’s most important contributor. In five games, he was second in scoring (21.2 points) and converted 16 of 32 threes. The playoff performance highlighted Anunoby’s value to the Knicks. With that added attention, there will be more awareness of how much Anunoby contributes to New York’s success going into this season. 

Non-traditional star

There are a few factors that have worked against Anunoby. He’s never been one to post eye-popping numbers. Anunoby averaged a career-high 18.0 points during the 2025-26 season, but he’s not known as a high-scoring contributor, averaging a combined 16.7 points over the last six seasons with the Knicks and Toronto Raptors. Anunoby is also not a traditional scorer since he’s not attacking off the dribble much. Of the forward’s shot attempts in the postseason, 40.9 percent came without a dribble, per NBA Stats.

Another reason is the Knicks have never had a dominant regular season. Most teams that have produced more than two All-Stars in a season in the modern era have posted dominant records.

New York has won at least 50 games all of the last three seasons, but all three campaigns were in the low-50s. Even the 53-29 mark from the championship season was low for the traditional standard of a title winner. If New York can be a top-three seed and play at a 55-plus win pace, that would help Anunoby’s case.

Luck will also be a factor, since injuries could have an impact either as a positive or a negative. Meanwhile, Anunoby’s role could level up this season after the Knicks discovered alternative styles of play in the postseason. Towns was unlocked as a playmaker, averaging 4.9 assists during the playoffs.

Anunoby’s ability to cut to the basket or spot up from the corner three makes him likely to benefit from more ball movement and have extra scoring opportunities. Also, Brunson is recovering from offseason wrist surgery. While he might not miss games, New York could manage the captain’s minutes throughout the season with an eye toward another playoff run. That might open up more shot attempts across the roster.

If the Knicks have a top record and Anunoby continues his steady production, there’s a very good chance at him earning a well-deserved spot on the All-Star team.

Danilo Gallinari has sent Kawhi Leonard a bill for his career detour.

The total: $50 million.

The proposed recipient: charity.

The supporting evidence is considerably less tidy.

Speaking on the “A Cresta Alta” podcast, Gallinari blamed Leonard for ending his Clippers tenure in 2019, when Los Angeles included him in the blockbuster trade that brought Paul George from Oklahoma City.

“He changed the trajectory of my career,” Gallinari said. “He should pay all $50 million, not just $700,000.”

The $700,000 refers to the fine Leonard received after the NBA determined that salary-cap rules had been violated through arrangements involving the Clippers. The franchise received a record $30 million fine, lost five first-round selections and watched owner Steve Ballmer receive a one-year suspension.

Gallinari’s attempt to connect that scandal to his own exit is stranger still. The cap case centered partly on a $28 million Aspiration endorsement agreement under which Leonard reportedly performed no promotional work—an arrangement made years after Gallinari had been traded.

Whatever the no-show scheme says about Leonard and the Clippers, it did not cost Gallinari his roster spot. Turning a later salary-cap violation into restitution for an earlier personnel decision requires combining two controversies that have little to do with each other.

This seems to be Gallinari’s preferred punishment for a player he believes wielded enough power to redirect his life. Leonard wanted another star before joining the Clippers, prompting the front office to acquire George in a mammoth package that also included Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, five first-round picks and two swaps.

There is something understandable beneath Gallinari’s grievance. Players routinely learn they have been traded after executives make cold calculations. Having another player effectively initiate the process might sting differently.

Calling the move responsible for Gallinari’s subsequent career, however, requires some imaginative accounting.

He averaged 18.7 points and 5.2 rebounds during his lone Thunder season, shot 40.6 percent from 3-point range and helped Oklahoma City reach the playoffs. He then signed a three-year, $61.4 million contract with Atlanta.

That is a strange definition of financial ruin.

Gallinari was also 31 during his Oklahoma City season. His eventual decline arrived at an age when most NBA careers begin bending downward, and only after he secured another enormous payday.

Leonard is hardly innocent in the Clippers scandal, but the cold reality of winning in modern sports is not another offense to add to his ledger.

For the first time in roughly forever, the Eastern Conference appears to be loaded this year. The reigning champion New York Knicks are atop the conference for now, but the Sixers and others will be nipping at their heels all season as they vie for East supremacy.

The Sixers loaded up by adding LeBron James and Jaylen Brown this offseason, but they were hardly the only East team to make a major splash. The Miami Heat landed Giannis Antetokounmpo. The Toronto Raptors (finally) landed Kawhi Leonard. The Boston Celtics, Cleveland Cavaliers and Indiana Pacers didn’t make any additions on that level, but Mitchell Robinson, Peyton Watson and our beloved Kelly Oubre Jr., respectively, are notable adds nevertheless.

Now that the dust has (mostly) settled on the offense, how does the new-look East stack up, and who’s the biggest threat to the Sixers this year? We’ve ranked the top five based on their current rosters and the potential matchup problems that they could present.

Honorable Mention: Miami Heat

Any team with Giannis Antetokounmpo and Bam Adebayo can’t be dismissed outright. But with all due respect to Simone Fontecchio, the Heat don’t have much else for the Sixers to fear.

Could the Heat patch together a half-decent rotation with Giannis, Bam, Fontecchio, Andrew Wiggins, Davion Mitchell, Tim Hardaway Jr., Klay Thompson, Bobby Portis and Nick Richards? Sure. Is their rotation a house of cards that will collapse if either Giannis or Bam miss significant time? It sure seems that way.

The Giannis-Bam pairing should give the Heat a formidable defensive backbone, but it’s fair to wonder how they’ll fit together offensively. Bam began firing threes at a relatively high volume last year, but he knocked down only 31.8 percent of them, and Giannis isn’t a great three-point shooter either. Can they avoid getting in one another’s way?

Heat head coach Erik Spoelstra is the right man to figure out that problem, but the loss of Norman Powell and Tyler Herro could cramp Miami’s offensive spacing, barring a turn-back-the-clock type of season from Thompson. If the Heat and Sixers clashed in the playoffs, the Heat’s best chance to win might be turning the series into a rock fight.

6. Cleveland Cavaliers

Is this disrespectful to the reigning NBA Analytics Champions, who are fresh off an appearance in the Eastern Conference Finals? Yes.

But until Cavs head coach Kenny Atkinson shows that he’s willing to bench James Harden in high-leverage moments, it’s hard to have much faith in his squad as a legit threat this year.

The Cavs held a 22-point lead over the Knicks in the fourth quarter of Game 1 of the Eastern Conference Finals last season. Then Jalen Brunson started playing Hunt The Bozo with James Harden, and the rest was history. The Cavs wound up getting swept even though Donovan Mitchell averaged 27.3 points per game while shooting 47.5 percent from the field in that series.

The Cavs did add Watson this offseason, but they also lost Max Strus, Dean Wade and Dennis Schröder, all of whom played roles off the bench for them in the playoffs. Their starting five is solid, and Sam Merill and Jaylon Tyson are nice to have off the bench, but their depth beyond that is largely unproven.

Maybe this is the year that Evan Mobley actually takes The Leap that’s been promised for the last few years and the Cavs are much more of an actual title threat than anticipated this season. But Harden has nowhere to hide defensively against the Sixers in particular, and Atkinson doesn’t have a ton of great options off the bench to replace him, either.

5. Detroit Pistons

The Pistons surged to the top of the East with a 60-win season last year, but they proved to be more of the 82-game juggernaut than the 16-game variety once the playoffs began. They barely squeaked by the eighth-seeded Orlando Magic in the opening round and lost to the Cavaliers in seven games in the Eastern Conference Semifinals.

Jalen Duren, who remains in restricted-free-agency purgatory, went from an All-NBA regular season to looking like Jahlil Okafor 2.0 in the playoffs. His lack of a bag on offense made him a relative non-factor both against Orlando and Cleveland, which could be a major problem against Joel Embiid if the Pistons cross paths with the Sixers in the playoffs.

The Pistons moved on from Tobias Harris, Isaiah Stewart and Caris LeVert this offseason and brought in John Collins, Isaiah Joe, Taurean Prince and Gary Harris to boost their offensive floor spacing. Those additions should help the Pistons be more well-balanced, but they still may be overly reliant on Cade Cunningham.

Cunningham is one of the league’s best young guards, but Detroit is short on players who can help him generate offense. That could prove problematic against the Sixers in particular since they can alternate between throwing Brown, LeBron, Wade and VJ Edgecombe at him.

4. Boston Celtics

The Celtics have been getting buried all offseason for trading Brown to the Sixers for Paul George and a pair of first-round picks, but you know who isn’t burying them? Oddsmakers. They have Boston with the third-best odds to win the East, trailing only the Knicks and Sixers.

It’s easy to see the rationale. George won’t generate as much rim pressure as Brown, but he’s an accurate, high-volume three-point shooter. He should fit perfectly with Joe Mazzulla’s Math Ball. And while Neemias Queta emerged as a legitimate starting-caliber center last year, the Celtics were short on frontcourt depth behind him. That won’t be the case this year after they spent their non-taxpayer mid-level exception on Robinson.

Jayson Tatum will now be roughly 18 months removed from his Achilles tear once the season tips off, and he already got about a month’s worth of games under his belt last year to shake the rust off. He should be all systems go on opening night. And considering that they apparently have Jalen Brunson 2.0 in Payton Pritchard, the Celtics might not even miss Brown this year.

We might be giving too much respect to Boston here, but 40 years worth of trauma—this past spring notwithstanding—does that to a person. But hey, remember when they blew a 3-1 series lead for the first time in franchise history last year? Good times.

3. Toronto Raptors

Now that the Kawhi trade is finally set to go through, the Raptors could be a sleeping giant in the East.

Scottie Barnes is already one of the NBA’s most versatile young forwards. He finished fifth in the Defensive Player of the Year race last season and averaged a well-rounded 18.1 points, 7.5 rebounds and 5.9 assists per game. He might be miscast as a No. 1 option, but he should be a strong No. 2 alongside Leonard.

Between Barnes, Immanuel Quickley and RJ Barrett, the Raptors would have plenty of supplemental scoring around that duo. But the truly terrifying prospect is the three-man combination of Leonard, Barnes and Collin Murray-Boyles. That type of length on defense could give the Sixers’ guards and wings plenty of trouble.

Jakob Poeltl is the wild card for Toronto, particularly with Sandro Mamukelashvili now on the Los Angeles Lakers. Poeltl has missed at least 25 games in each of the past three seasons, and his balky back limited him to a career-low 46 games last year. The Raptors don’t have much (any?) proven frontcourt depth behind him, which perhaps makes this a matchup tailor-made for Embiid in particular to dominate.

Still, with Kawhi back in Toronto, the PTSD from 2019 alone might earn the Raptors a top-three spot here.

2. Indiana Pacers

The perception of the Pacers heading into this season has me feeling like I’m taking crazy pills. They’re below the Orlando Magic in terms of their odds to win the East. What are we doing here?

Yes, Tyrese Haliburton missed the entire 2025-26 season to recover from the torn Achilles that he suffered in the 2025 NBA Finals. He’ll likely need to spend the early part of this season shaking off rust and getting back into rhythm. But as Tatum showed last year, Achilles injuries are hardly the career death sentence that they once were.

Meanwhile, the Pacers are bringing back almost everyone from the roster that was one game away from winning the 2024-25 NBA championship. Bennedict Mathurin and Myles Turner are the only key rotation players from that squad who are no longer in Indiana. The Pacers have since replaced them with Oubre and Ivica Zubac, respectively.

It’s fair to wonder how the more half-court-oriented Zubac will fit with Indiana’s preference to push the pace and fly up and down the floor. He’s also a non-factor from deep, unlike Turner, although he’ll be far more of a lob threat for Haliburton in pick-and-rolls.

The Pacers might not have the top of top-end talent as Cleveland or Miami, and they might not finish with a top-four seed in the East. More than anything else, this is a bet on their style of play. They ran teams ragged in the 2025 playoffs by leaning into their pace and depth. If Nick Nurse falls into the trap of shortening his rotation and overplaying his starters, the Sixers might gas out in the fourth quarter of a series against Indiana.

1. New York Knicks

As the defending champions, the Knicks get this spot by default. After all, they’re fresh off one of the most dominant playoff runs in recent history, which made their roller-coaster regular season a distant memory by June.

Jalen Brunson is one of the best guards in the NBA, bar none. Karl-Anthony Towns’ ability to run the Knicks’ offense from the high post was the changeup that unlocked their title run. OG Anunoby and Mikal Bridges are both excellent two-way wings. Josh Hart is the Swiss-army-knife glue guy who makes everything click into place for New York.

The Knicks did lose Mitchell Robinson and Ariel Hukporti this offseason, although they signed Andre Drummond to replace them. They also have Landry Shamet, Miles McBride, Jose Alvarado and Jordan Clarkson off the bench. However, they don’t have a ton of forward depth behind Anunoby and Bridges, barring a massive leap from Mo Diawara or Pacôme Dadiet.

The Sixers should be far better equipped to combat the Knicks this season than they were in last year’s playoffs, when they got demoralizingly swept out of the second round. If nothing else, the excitement around this year’s team should (hopefully) convince more Philadelphians not to sell their tickets to Knicks fans.

By mid-April, it’s entirely possible that another team will have supplanted the Knicks as the Sixers’ biggest threat in the East. But as the ancient philosopher Ric Flair once said, to be the man, you’ve gotta beat the man. Until further notice, the reigning champions hold that title.

Unless otherwise noted, all stats via NBA.com, PBPStats, Cleaning the Glass or Basketball Reference. All salary information via Spotrac and salary-cap information via RealGM.

Follow Bryan on Bluesky.

After the Lakers’ front office doled out hundreds of millions of dollars in contracts, many fans were left wondering how many of these players could realistically outperform their contracts.

Here are four new Lakers and one returning player who look well positioned to obliterate the national media’s low expectations and a cautious local fanbase that’s been burned once too often.

Note: Since cheaper rookie deals are locked in, recent draft picks like Cameron Carr, Bronny James, Dalton Knecht and Adou Thiero were left out.

Matisse Thybulle

Defense-starved Lakers fans have dreamed about adding Matisse for years. Now, an injury-filled career has left him playing for LA on a minimum deal right in the middle of his prime.

Availability will always be a concern. But the former All-NBA defender has one trait that will position him to outplay that minimum deal: He’s the best at what he does on the entire team.

A look at Thybulle’s numbers reveals an impossibly high steal rate combined with an increasingly reliable three-point shot. He’s also shown the ability to defend up and down, offering head coach JJ Redick a level of versatility he had in Marcus Smart, only in a taller and younger package.

Injuries could once again have Matisse in street clothes for much of the upcoming season. But if he can regain some level of health like Smart did last year, LA could end up with a rotation-level wing fighting for one of the team’s 2027 exceptions.

Jake LaRavia

Besides injuries, one sure-fire way to make fans crazy is consistently missing wide-open 3-point shots. So, no one was surprised when many ended last season ready to move on from the once promising “Jake of All Trades.”

Still, there are several reasons to believe LaRavia can have a significant bounceback season.

First, he is still relatively young, with his 25th birthday coming just a few days into the regular season. Second, Jake spent his first three years on relatively aimless teams, forcing him to develop lasting NBA skills and habits in less-than-optimal environments.

Third, before his mid-season collapse, LaRavia looked poised to build on his career-best prior season. This included breakout games that had opposing fans crying out in anguish.

Luckily, LA’s new batch of wings and forwards should help shoulder more of the load. Assuming a reasonable minute allotment, consistent defense, motor, availability, and continuity with a coach that trusted him nearly all last season, it wouldn’t be a huge surprise to see Jake regain his shooting stroke and the faith of Laker fans.

Walker Kessler

When LA spent two unprotected first-round draft picks and two swaps (which seem less than likely to convey) on Walker, the national media widely panned it as a major overpay. Annoying, but likely the point.

Still, several reasons suggest Walker can outplay those low expectations.

First, Walker is clearly a high-level shot blocker and rim protector. Former Utah Jazz reporter and current Philadelphia Sixers media member Tony Jones, who spent multiple seasons covering Walker, recently told Jovan Buha of Buha’s Block that he believes the former Team USA center has a chance to be a Rudy Gobert-level defender

“Which is essentially a one-man top-10 defense,” Jones explained.

Kessler also offers surprising advantages on the offensive end as well. Although not an elite post player, Jones also stated more than once that Walker is surprisingly fast end-to-end, regularly leading to fast breaks, quick seals, and easy lay-ins. Those points will be extremely valuable for a team that wants to push the pace on offense.

There were also concerns about Kessler’s ‘highest for a non-All-Star center’ payday. However, with the rising cap, it is more than likely that Kessler’s contract will end up in the lower half of starting centers before it ends.

Like many physically massive players, Kessler may turn out to be a valued game-changer who simply can’t stay healthy. If so, the critics might be right.

But given how many games Utah sat him in successive tanking seasons while he was seemingly able to play, and their decision to address his longstanding shoulder issue with surgery at the start of yet another Great Salt Lake tank campaign, his chances of injury don’t seem to be proportionately higher than any NBA player.

And, oh yeah. If the rumors of a 3-point stroke turn out to be real, his sub-max contract and middling draft asset price may become long-forgotten relics of a predetermined narrative meant to satisfy everyone but Lakers fans.

Ziaire Williams

Ziaire Williams isn’t a complete unknown. But given his relative level of obscurity playing for Memphis and Brooklyn, it’s not a surprise that many Laker fans are talking themselves into the idea of Ziaire starting over more well-known, identifiably flawed options like Sandro Mamukelashvili, Jarred Vanderbilt, Matisse, Jake, and Adou.

A quick glance at Ziaire’s youth and athleticism, and his picture-perfect combo-wing size, reveals a player who merited a first-round gamble. His time in the league has been a mix of solid play, spotty effort, and role concerns.

The other common criticism of Ziaire is how thin he is. His light frame might have worked for a player who used his length to smother opposing guards and his quickness to ably navigate screens. But LA needs a combo forward.

It sounds like Ziaire has added significant muscle, revealing recently that he’s up to around 215 pounds, to potentially compete for the open starting forward spot. While that’s not enough added poundage to bang with bigger fours, the up-and-coming wing might have increased his defensive versatility enough to compete for legitimate rotation minutes.

On offense, a quick look at Williams’ shot chart shows a player who is at his best shooting open catch-and-shoot threes. Now, he is joining a backcourt that has been known to generate “butt-naked wide open” threes.

There are scenarios where Ziaire’s lack of hustle, thin frame, or inconsistent shot doom him to the bench. But considering his added weight, upward career trajectory as a shooter, and JJ’s ability to put together defenses that maximize disrupters like him, it feels like Ziaire has a chance to dramatically outperform his minimum contract and force LA to consider spending part of their MLE on him next summer.

Arthur Kaluma

Unlike rostered players, two-way players like Arthur Kaluma typically have two goals: Show they belong and earn a long-term guaranteed contract. While there’s no single path to a permanent call-up, former Laker and two-way contract pioneer Alex Caruso has offered an insider’s guide.

Instead of trying to score the most points, the do-it-all role player who’s proven a valuable cog in several championship runs said two-way players should try to forge a role with their G League team that they would most likely play with the big club.

A comfortable on-ball scorer, Arthur often found himself stuck in the corner as a third or fourth scoring option behind guys like Bronny, Nick Smith Jr., and Drew Timme. But when the ball came to him, the bulky wing showed that hitting open threes and attacking close-outs with a savvy Euro-step into the paint followed by a crafty finish at the rim is exactly what he does.

Ultimately, given the limited number of options at power forward and his breakout Summer League performance, Arthur Kaluma may obliterate expectations and force LA to sign him before the season ends.

Christopher Plain has spent the last six years as Associate News Editor and Head Science Reporter at The Debrief. Follow and connect with him on X, learn about his novels at plainfiction.com, or email him at christopher@thedebrief.org.

We have reached the Final Four of our Spurs Villain Tournament, where the winners of each bracket have been determined, and the winners of this round will go head-to-head to determine who is the biggest Spurs villain of all time. The heavy favorites mostly continue to prevail. In the Elite 8 (or Finals for each bracket), three of the top seeds came out on top by varying margins, along with one kinda-but-not-really “upset” in the fourth.

On the “on court” side of the bracket, we had Spurs Killers, which was the closest match-up. Derek Fisher’s 0.4 shot plus other killer plays was just enough to beat out Ray Allen’s “The Shot” by a relatively slim 19% margin. The Dirty Players poll was not as close as expected, with Zaza Pachulia’s slide blowing out Karl Malone’s elbow. The level at which Pachulia won this one, with 72% of the votes, seems pretty wide, but despite Malone’s extensive history as a dirty player (and human being), Pachulia’s play came in the playoffs and ultimately cost the Spurs a chance at a championship, while Malone’s elbow was in the regular season.

On the “off court” side, actions dominated over words. Kawhi Leonard’s dynasty-destroying moves unsurprisingly blew Stephen Jackson’s big mouth out of the water, and our lone “upset” was the one non-1 vs. 2 match-up of the series, where 4th seed Uncle Dennis Robertson continued his “Cinderella” run by blowing out another loudmouth in 3rd seed Mark Cuban. Did recent news and the more recent timeline play a role in his rise over the most notorious haters of the Spurs’ championship era? Quite possible, but the result still means we’ll have a Family Feud in the next round.

1. Derek Fisher vs. 1. Zaza Pachulia

This was the inevitable match-up the instant the brackets were released. Despite a couple of formidable 2nd seeds, they never really stood a chance against these two behemoths of negative Spurs lore. Both left two teams vying for championships wondering “what if,” and both moments are so notorious that the NBA had to make rules in response. Since we have more room with only two polls today, I figured we’d shake things up a bit and actually make you watch two of the more painful moments in Spurs history to burn them back into your brain, as badly as you may want to forget them.

First we have the notorious Derek Fisher, who became a Spurs villain the instant he hit this shot with 0.4 seconds left in Game 5 in Round 2 in 2004. It came right after Tim Duncan had just hit what seemed like an amazing game-winner, there’s still plenty of controversy surrounding the clock, and it caused the “0.4 Rule” to be created, which states it is impossible for a player to get a catch-and-shoot off in less than 0.4 seconds, so anything less means they can only tip the ball.

And lest anyone forget, that wasn’t all the damage Fisher did: there was also the no-call foul on Brent Barry in Game 4 of the 2008 Western Conference Finals, which sent the Spurs back to LA down 3-1, and he was a pest in general for the 2012 Thunder in their WCF victory over the Spurs. Fisher truly was the Repeat Denier for the Spurs at the height of their Lakers rivalry.

And then we have Pachulia, who also got a rule named after him after he carelessly (purposefully?) slid under Leonard in Game 1 of the 2017 WCF against the Warriors, knocking him out while the Spurs were up by 21 and ending their chances at returning to the promised land. After that, any case of a player interfering with a shooter’s landing space became subject to video review and a potential flagrant 1 or 2 foul. Also, unbeknownst at the time, this for all intents and purposes marked the end of Kawhi was a Spur, which we’ll get to in a moment.

1. Kawhi Leonard vs. 4. Uncle Dennis Robertson

And now we get to the Family Feud match-up that is surprisingly relevant today after the NBA just laid the hammer down on the Clippers’ Aspiration Scandal, in which they are accused of circumventing the salary cap to pay Leonard extra money at Uncle Dennis’ behest. Kawhi played the “I’m just a basketball player who trusted the wrong people” card and came away relatively unscathed with “only” a $700k fine, but he also fired Uncle Dennis as his representative, who himself is banned from all NBA activity for five years (should have been for life, in my opinion).

But that’s neither here nor there for Spurs, which is something everyone needs to remember when voting. They won’t come out and say it, so we can’t be sure Uncle Dennis demanded the same impermissible benefits from the Spurs that we know he did from the Raptors, Lakers and Clippers (although I place the odds at likely). What we do know is he was a huge influence on Kawhi even back then and most assuredly played a role in pushing the narrative that the Spurs had mismanaged his injury so he would look less bad when demanding a trade from the “perfect” organization, with the ultimate goal being to get back to LA, and it mostly worked. Leonard followed his lead, stayed away from the team for most of the 2017-18 season and even hid in a closet when they tried to check on him.

It’s hard to imagine he would have done all this without the bad influence of his uncle if “all he cares about is basketball,” but here’s the thing: Leonard is an adult who had already made almost $100 million at that point. I fully understand that after the horrible tragedy he endured as a young teenager — seeing his father murdered right in front of him in a case that has never been solved — he needed a father figure, and that ended up being his maternal uncle. But was there ever a point where he thought, “I don’t like the way this is playing out or how people I care about and have shed blood, sweat and tears with for the last seven years are being portrayed”?

Did he actually not realize he was being used and taken advantage of by his own family? Is he truly a child in an NBA player’s body who is so naive and gullible that he couldn’t differentiate what has happening right in front of him vs. what his uncle was saying? That is ultimately what you have to decide when voting. Do you blame Uncle Dennis for negatively influencing Kawhi against the organization, or do you blame Kawhi for going along with it and allowing things to play out the way they did? Let us know with your vote!

Can Devin Carter earn a roster spot with the Celtics? originally appeared on NBC Sports Boston

The Boston Celtics have reportedly signed former lottery pick Devin Carter to an Exhibit 10 deal, which will allow him to audition for the team at training camp. The question now: Can the 24-year-old guard play his way into a roster spot?

The Celtics currently have one open roster spot, but there’s also motivation to maintain financial flexibility as staying below the luxury tax for one more season would eliminate pesky repeater penalties after the season. Boston also has one open two-way roster spot, with only rookie wing Dillon Mitchell and second-year big man Amari Williams inked to three available slots.

Carter prepped at Brewster Academy in New Hampshire and played his final two college seasons at Providence before the Sacramento Kings selected him with the 13th pick in the 2024 NBA Draft. Sacramento traded Carter to Atlanta in June, and the roster-crunched Hawks waived Carter last week.

Carter checks a lot of boxes for what Boston likes in players, most notably a nearly 6-foot-9 wingspan for a 6-foot-2 player. He was tops in the 2024 combine in both max vertical and ¾-court sprint. Those physical tools allow him to excel as both a point-of-attack defender and as a rebounder.

Carter grabbed 13.9 percent of all available defensive rebounds during his floor time last season, ranking in the 96th percentile for his position. He also averaged 2.3 steals per 100 possessions and drew 0.8 offensive fouls per 100 possessions (both strong numbers for his position).

Boston’s guard depth chart is well stocked with Derrick White and Payton Pritchard, along with veteran offseason addition Mike Conley. But the Celtics clearly love versatile defenders who can guard multiple positions, and Carter plays bigger than his height.

Put Carter in an ecosystem where he can learn from Pritchard/White/Conley, even if on a two-way deal, and there’s potential to maximize a player that couldn’t carve out a home in Sacramento. Three years ago, the Celtics signed Neemias Queta after he was waived by the Kings and nurtured him into their starting center.

The knock on Carter is his shooting. He’s a career 27.4 percent from beyond the 3-point arc and 40.1 percent from the floor overall. He did shoot 51.1 percent on all 2-point shots last season with 34 percent of his attempts at the rim (and another 29 percent in the short midrange).

Carter averaged 8.9 points over 18.4 minutes per game in 38 appearances for Sacramento last season, including 12 starts.

Carter plays with a force on both ends that should intrigue Boston decision-makers. He can create chaos with his physical tools on the defensive end, but the Celtics must help him hone his offensive game.

There have been plenty of comparisons to Derrick White through the years, and the Celtics would surely love any opportunity to mold a player who can make good things happen on the basketball court. Teams can never have enough chaos causers.

Carter, particularly as a former lottery pick, might be overqualified for a two-way spot, but he found himself on the open market at a time when plenty of teams are already overstocked. Camping with Boston offers multiple pathways to stick here while also allowing him to audition for 29 other teams in the process.

The Celtics have reportedly signed former Sacramento Kings lottery pick Devin Carter to a training camp contract, per HoopsHype’s Michael Scotto. Carter, who was drafted 13th overall in 2024, will be one of four players on Exhibit-10 deals to compete for a two-way contract this fall.

The Boston Celtics and Devin Carter have agreed to a deal, league sources told @hoopshype. Carter will compete for an NBA roster or two-way spot in camp. Carter averaged 8.9 points, 3.3 rebounds and 2.7 assists in 18.4 minutes during 38 games for the Sacramento Kings last season. pic.twitter.com/eo4U82bCg2

— Michael Scotto (@MikeAScotto) September 14, 2026

Last season, in his sophomore campaign, Carter averaged 8.9 points, 3.3 rebounds, and 2.7 assists in 18.4 minutes across 38 games. Though he had several big-time performances in the Spring, he’s been a below-average shooter in the NBA; he shot 41.4% from the field and 26.3% from three. But, Carter has been able to put pressure on the rim, and is a strong perimeter defender.

In college, Carter played for the University of South Carolina (2021-2022) and Providence (2022-2024). In his senior season, he was named the Big East Player of the Year after averaging 19.7 points, 8.7 rebounds, and 3.6 assists.

But, after a lackluster second year in Sacramento, Carter was traded to the Atlanta Hawks in a salary dump and later waived. Now, he’ll join one of the most illustrious franchises in sports.

Devin Carter could turn a training camp deal into a real opportunity

While there’s no guarantee that Carter will secure the Celtics’ third remaining two-way contract, there is precedent for this kind of situation being fruitful in Boston.

Last year, Ron Harper Jr. arrived in Boston on a training camp deal as one of several players duking it out for a two-way deal. Harper Jr. ultimately beat out Jalen Bridges, Kendall Brown, and Wendell Moore for the spot, and went on to have such a good season in the G League that he was ultimately signed to a standard roster spot. Now, Harper Jr. is on a 4-year, $13.7 million contract.

The Celtics have yet to officially announce the Devin Carter signing, but training camp formally opens up on Monday, September 28th.

Welcome to SB Nation Reacts, a survey of fans across the NBA. Throughout the year we ask questions of the most plugged-in Bucks fans and fans across the country.

Our season predictions will come in October, when we undertake our first of four Roundtables for the season, but before we get to them we’re after your expertise.

In years past, the Bucks were pretty much guaranteed to have representation in the end-of-season awards. And while most of those can be attributed to Giannis Antetokounmpo and his brilliance—from MIP to MVP and everything in between—others, too, received some spotlight. 

Most recently, Jrue Holiday and Brook Lopez made the All-Defensive First Team in 2022-23. That same year, Holiday also took home the Twyman-Stokes Teammate of the Year award, which he also won two years earlier (when he also won the NBA Sportsmanship Award). In 2022-23, Lopez similarly doubled up, taking home the NBA Community Assist Award. Outside of those three, other recent Bucks award winners include Mike Budenholzer (2018-19 Coach of the Year), Eric Bledsoe (2018-19 All-Defensive First Team; 2019-20 All-Defensive Second Team), and Malcolm Brogdon (2016-17 Rookie of the Year). 

This season, awards are far less likely. But that doesn’t mean they are out of reach. In fact, if things play out favourably, any number of Bucks players could see themselves feature in end-of-season voting. That being said, here are the awards the Bucks have the best shot at making a run at—along with the players who have the best chances of doing so:

Most Improved Player 

Ryan Rollins arguably should have won this award last year, yet somehow he wasn’t even a finalist. And while a similar statistical jump is unlikely—last year’s was insane—players often benefit from recognition the year after they actually deserve it, especially with an award like this. If the Bucks surprise—let’s face it, this is a prerequisite for nearly all of these projections to have a chance at coming to fruition—Rollins will likely be at the centre of it. That, coupled with a bump in points that comes mostly at the foul line (with the newfound respect that a player gets the year after breaking out), could just get the job done.

The other Buck who has a real shot at this award is Kel’el Ware. Kept on a short leash for his Miami Heat tenure, Ware has game that very few centres have. He’s a rebounding machine, a dunk threat anywhere near the hoop, an emerging rim protector, and a 40% three-point shooter. Should he earn enough playing time—he averaged 18.1 PPG and 14.0 RPG on .646/.514/.739 shooting splits with a 145 offensive rating and 107 defensive rating in games in which he played 30 or more minutes last year—watch out.

Outside of Rollins and Ware, increased opportunity courtesy of two wide open forward spots gives Jaime Jaquez Jr. a shot at this award too.

Sixth Man of the Year 

Ricky Pierce is the only Buck to ever win this award and he did it twice (1986-87 and 1989-90), while Bobby Portis garnered attention in recent years, twice finishing as a finalist. Looking forward, a number of this year’s crop of Bucks could find themselves in contention and you don’t have to squint hard to see it. Herro has already won the award, so he knows what it takes, Jaquez was runner-up just last year, so he knows too, and, if Myles Turner starts, Ware could really feast on reserve bigs.

But the Buck I’ll keep my eye closest on, at least as far as this award goes, is Kevin Porter Jr. Coming off a productive but injury-plagued 2025-26 season, Porter could flourish in a sixth man role, where he’d likely have greater opportunity to do what he does: dominate the ball while racking up points and assists (aka the prototypical 6MOY playstyle). That he’s a flashy player—handle, dimes, dunks—can only help his cause. Of course, all of this conjecture could become moot depending on how Taylor Jenkins decides to manage his rotations.

Rookie of the Year

Considering the draft class, this one might be a bit of a reach, but Brayden Burries was arguably the best rookie in Summer League play and Bucks fans see him becoming an All-Star down the road—so he might as well start collecting hardware this season. Truthfully, there are likely too many guards in front of him on his own team to make a real push. But you never say never, not with a guy like Burries.

All-Rookie Team

Even if he doesn’t win ROY, Burries still has a chance at hardware via All-Rookie honours, especially as there are two teams that need filling. It won’t be easy—this draft is that deep—but Burries was the 10th overall pick, so he only has to play up to that pick to earn selection. And if that somehow eludes him, Nate Ament or Bogoljub Markovic might even surprise (not really, but it’s nice to dream).

Coach of the Year 

Outside of the players themselves, new head coach Taylor Jenkins has a pathway to hardware too. The recipe is straightforward: take control of a team that’s gone through turmoil, including losing its franchise GOAT, and get them to greatly exceed expectations. He’s got a few things going in his favour too. One, he’s succeeding Doc Rivers. Two, no one expects the Bucks to do much of anything—in fact, most expect them to be one of the very worst teams in the NBA. So, if Jenkins can turn this team into a gritty, upstart squad that other teams dread and, in the process, somehow gets them to postseason play (even just the Play-In Tournament), he’d be more than deserving of consideration.

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Alright, that’s enough from me. What do y’all think? Cast your vote below and, as always, share your musings in the comments. 

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OK, it’s not like they have to after having one of the splashiest offseasons of all time.

In recent history, the Sixers haven’t been the most prolific at finding cheap, productive talent on the two-way market, but that wasn’t the case in 2025. Last offseason they brought in Dominick Barlow and Jabari Walker, both of whom were converted to standard contracts and played over 60 games for Philadelphia last season. Barlow was a contributor in their playoff run as well, making nine postseason appearances.

Heading into this season, the Sixers are using their two-way contracts on two more Portland Trail Blazer castoffs: Caleb Love and Rayan Rupert. They are reportedly leaving their final spot open heading into training camp, according to Adam Aaronson of PhillyVoice.com.

Love was a four-year college guard who signed a two-way with Portland after going undrafted in 2025. He played in 49 games as a rookie with one start. He got 20 minutes a game in that time and averaged 10.4 points shooting 38% from the field and 31% from three along with 2.3 rebounds and 2.5 assists.

Rupert is a 6-foot-7 wing who was a mid second-round pick back in 2023. He played just 139 games in his three seasons as a Blazer, averaging 12 minutes a game putting up 3.2 points, 1.8 rebounds and 0.9 assists. After being waived in February by Portland, Rupert was picked up by a Memphis Grizzlies team playing for lottery balls and got the most opportunity of his NBA career.

Playing 30 minutes a game for the Grizzlies he averaged 12.2 points, 6.4 rebounds, 2.1 assists and 1.6 steals per game shooting 42% from the field and 33% from three. Those were also improvements on his 38 FG% and 32 3PM%.

That uptick in steals feels like the most worth monitoring if Rupert is going to make an impact as a Sixer. The most encouraging sign is probably that he was forcing steals at the same rate in his 48 games for the Trail Blazers before being cut. The per game production was lower because he was playing a third of the minutes, but he posted a steal rate over 2% for the entire 2025-26 season, putting him in the 80th percentile, per Cleaning the Glass.

An important factor in how much impact either two-way will have with the Sixers (assuming they make it through training camp) will be that they will hopefully have much less rotation minutes up for grabs than a season ago.

Barlow proved his value in the starting lineup early last season, but that opportunity to start came in large part due to preseason injuries to Paul George and Trendon Watford. Walker also saw more minutes for this reason, as well as the center rotation, which is always in need of bodies.

The forward rotation obviously revolves around LeBron James and Jaylen Brown. While James will certainly miss his fair share of regular season games, Brown should be quite an innings eater for a player of his caliber. The Sixers roster felt like it was in more of a transitional phase at this point last season as well, more willing to take chances on giving two-ways regular season minutes. Rupert would have to have one hell of a training camp and preseason to crack a bench rotation featuring Dean Wade and Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, but if he becomes a guy that forces a lot of steals, that’s something his coach is a big fan of.

Love’s journey to minutes feels even harder. The Sixers brought in Anfernee Simons to come off their bench and used their 2026 first-round draft pick on Labaron Philon Jr. A score-first guard, Love had some impressive games as a rookie. His career high is 26 points against the Warriors back on Nov. 23.

As someone who will turn 25 years old just before the start of training camp, he’s about as old as it gets for someone with his experience. He doesn’t exactly fit a need on this team, but he is still a seasoned bucket getter who’s had a moment or two at the NBA level.

As it stands, it’s unlikely the Sixers will get as much two-way contribution as they did a season ago, but two-way contributions aren’t always the thing you see coming. Who, if anyone, emerges with the third spot will be an intriguing training camp storyline. Now that this team aspires for true playoff success again, they hope to be less reliant on two-way players in the rotation.

Sixers pre-camp questions: Can retooled 2nd unit get the job done in playoffs?  originally appeared on NBC Sports Philadelphia

The Sixers’ new era is on deck.

With LeBron James and Jaylen Brown on board and training camp set to begin in late September, we’re taking a look at key questions for the 2026-27 Sixers. 

We’ve asked: 

• Just how dramatic of an impact will James make?
• What role will Brown play on his new team?
• Will the Sixers be healthy when it matters? 
• Who will the Sixers run their late-game offense through?

Next up: Can the Sixers’ retooled second unit get the job done in the playoffs? 

The Sixers’ offseason transformation wasn’t solely about the stars. Dean Wade, Anfernee Simons, Ariel Hukporti, Kentavious Caldwell-Pope and rookie Labaron Philon Jr. are all new bench pieces. 

The 33-year-old Caldwell-Pope is hoping to earn a third NBA championship. Hukporti won his first title as the third-string center on the 2025-26 Knicks. 

The Sixers have also added a pair of new two-way contract players in Caleb Love and Rayan Rupert. Their third two-way slot remains open. Tacko Fall, Jameer Nelson Jr. and Dillon Jones are among the players who have signed Exhibit 10 deals with the team.  

Sixers head coach Nick Nurse will work to land on optimal rotations. He likely won’t start with perfection, although the clarity of Wade and Simons’ roles should help. 

Both Simons and Wade project to be integral, every-game bench players when they’re available. Wade’s main tasks will be playing stellar, dogged on-ball defense and sinking open jumpers. Simons will be asked to launch three-pointers and mesh smoothly with his fellow guards. He averaged 14.3 points, 2.5 rebounds and 2.4 assists last season in 24.9 minutes per game.

The 27-year-old is eager to play with starters Tyrese Maxey and VJ Edgecombe. 

“Just helping them out as much as I can,” Simons said in a July virtual press conference, “whether it’s handling the ball or being off the ball, giving them space to work. … Just doing whatever it takes for us to be successful as a team. People say Tyrese had a big workload the last couple years — him and VJ. I’m just here to help them in any way they need to relieve some pressure.” 

As far as both simple shotmaking and team spacing, Simons’ deep range should benefit the Sixers. 

He attempted 5.5 shots per game between 25 and 29 feet last year (and made 38.0 percent). For a player who averaged under 25 minutes, that’s quite a high number. All-Star guards Anthony Edwards and Jamal Murray also attempted 5.5 jumpers per game from the same range.

Simons last played in February because he aggravated a left wrist fracture, but he said in July that he was “fine” physically.

“I’m pretty much completely healed now,” Simons said. “I haven’t felt it in a long time, so there’s no concern with that.” 

Philon is another bench guard worth highlighting, especially given that Nurse on draft night called the Alabama product “talented enough to play” as a rookie. 

The shifty 20-year-old showed off all sorts of offensive skills as a college sophomore, posting 22.0 points and 5.0 assists per game. His efficiency dipped in summer league, but Philon still impressed over four games in Las Vegas and averaged 18.5 points, 5.8 assists and 3.5 rebounds.

“I think he’s another fast, exciting guy that kind of plays a lot like Tyrese and VJ,” Nurse said. “The speed, athleticism, quickness, deep range, the creativity with the ball. He’s a pretty good pick-and-roll player already, probably more advanced than a lot of guys coming into the NBA. We’ll have to see. … I think it’s just another really fast, exciting guy.”

We imagine Philon will have regular-season opportunities to prove he deserves consistent rotation minutes. Perhaps the No. 22 overall pick will capitalize and surge into the playoff spotlight much like Maxey did as a rookie. 

While Quentin Grimes, Andre Drummond and Trendon Watford departed the Sixers in free agency, Dominick Barlow, Adem Bona, Justin Edwards and Jabari Walker are back. 

Those four players all experienced playoff basketball for the first time last season. Walker was outside of Nurse’s rotation, but Barlow, Bona and Edwards each received meaningful minutes. 

For Barlow, the path to a greater role appears to be continued success as a hustling, savvy frontcourt player and significant strides as an outside shooter. Edwards will aim to be a dependable 3-and-D wing. Bona will try to reduce his unnecessary fouls while keeping the core of his energetic, rim-protecting game. He may very well compete with Hukporti for the No. 2 center spot behind Embiid. Anyone seeking to cement a place on the second unit will know that defensive rebounding matters and the Sixers must improve as a team in that department. 

The Sixers certainly might tinker with their bench personnel during the season, but they’ve got an intriguing mix of veterans and youngsters as things stand.

Just like with their starters, they’ve upgraded on the surface but will need to meet expectations once the games begin and thrive in the postseason.

Every day, we’ll take a closer look at another member of the 2026-27 Phoenix Suns, examining what they bring to the roster and what their role could mean for the season ahead as we count down to training camp and the preseason.

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Haywood Highsmith

Forward, 6’5”, 220 lbs, 29, 7th season

The last edition to the 2025-2026 Phoenix Suns roster, Haywood Highsmith wasn’t able to find his groove as a member of the Phoenix Suns, dealing with injuries before and during his first season with the team. Signing with Phoenix during the NBA All-Star break, his acquisition was viewed by local experts as an insurance policy in case the team lost any forwards during the offseason.

While the team traded away two of their main forwards from the past few seasons in Grayson Allen and Royce O’Neale, acquiring Miles Bridges and drafting Koa Peat puts Highsmith as a reserve who will get minutes in the waning moments of blowouts, or if a forward ahead of him on the depth chart suffers an injury.

On a non-guaranteed deal until January 10th, he’ll have to earn his spot on the roster with a strong training camp and preseason.

Last Season

Highsmith played in just seven games for the Suns in the regular season and appeared in two postseason games, coming off the bench in all of them. The team signed him while he was recovering from meniscus surgery and it limited him and forced the team to sit him out games after he returned. Playing more than 15 minutes just three times in his ten total games including the playoffs last year, his best game came against the Boston Celtics back in March when he scored 16 points and hit four threes. Amid on low-efficiency, he hit 57.1% of his triples on a small sample size.

With Rasheer Fleming emerging as primary backup forward once Ryan Dunn’s minutes started to decrease, Highsmith’s value to the team diminished before he even played a game with Phoenix. He played more than 13 minutes just three times in his appearances.

A member and a key contributor to the 2022-2023 Miami Heat team that made a miraculous Finals run as an eighth seed, Highsmith didn’t score a single point and took two shots in his eleven minutes and two appearances in the team’s short playoff run against the Oklahoma City Thunder.

GP	MIN	PPG	RPG	APG	STL	FG%	3PT%	FT%	OFFRTG	DEFRTG	+/- (TOTAL)
7	13.0	5.4	1.9	1.0	0.6	52.2%	57.1%	85.7%	117.8	116.1	+10

Contract and Roster Context

Initially signed to a two-year deal, Phoenix waived and resigned Highsmith in August for more financial flexibility. Currently on a one-year, $3 million deal, his salary becomes fully guaranteed on January 10th, 2027. If he makes the roster, he’ll be eligible to be traded on December 15th. He currently sits behind Miles Bridges and Rasheer Fleming on the depth chart.

What He Brings

An improved three-point shooter since coming into the league from Wheeling University in West Virginia, Highsmith is one of the team’s most experienced players when it comes to playoff experience. He didn’t play in the playoffs, but was a part of the 2018-2019 Philadelphia Sixers team that suffered a heartbreaking defeat to the Toronto Raptors after Kawhi Leonard’s Game 7 buzzer beater, was a member of the Miami Heat when they made the Eastern Conference Finals in 2022, and then the NBA Finals as an eighth seed in 2023; and has experienced going home early in the playoffs in his last two years in Miami and last year in Phoenix.

If Bridges or Fleming get hurt or go through any struggles, Highsmith will be ready to check in. He’s made the playoffs every season of his career and knows what it takes to be a quality regular-season team and knows how to play alongside ball-dominant players and All-Stars after years alongside Tyler Herro, Bam Adebayo and Jimmy Butler.

If his name is called, he’ll provide Phoenix with a gritty defender, a floor spacer and someone who doesn’t need the ball to make an impact.

What Needs to Improve

Availability. While he played 130 combined games in his two previous seasons, Highsmith was limited to just seven games last year after dealing with a meniscus injury, made his regular season debut in March, and had to miss games once he returned to manage the injury.

Assuming he comes into the season healthy, Highsmith needs to improve as a free throw shooter. While he shot 86% from the charity stripe on just seven attempts last year, he’s a career 62% free-throw shooter, which limits his abilities late in games. If Highsmith can become more consistent from the line, Suns coach Jordan Ott can rely on him more late in games if Fleming or Bridges get in foul trouble or are injured.

Prediction

I do believe Highsmith will make the roster. There aren’t many free agents under 30 who have as much playoff experience and floor-spacing abilities as he does, and for a Phoenix Suns team determined to make a jump in the standings into the top-four, his skillset is valuable if needed.

While I don’t expect him to play every game, when he’s in, he’ll be a low-maintenance wing that matches up against the other team’s 3’s and 4’s. I see Highsmith putting up as many threes as possible in his limited minutes to align with Ott’s three-point-centric approach.

Stat Prediction: 60 Games, 5.3, 2.1 RPG, 0.9 APG, 45.8/38.3/74

Final Word

The Suns should want Highsmith to make the team. They already have a flurry of young players whose roles and potentials are undefined. Highsmith is in the middle of his best seasons and can be a consistent voice for a hungry team devoid of heavy playoff experience outside of a few key players. If he comes in and makes an impact on the team’s spacing when he’s needed and stays healthy, the team should be happy they took a flier on an injured player at the All-Star break a season ago.

Even though Cormac Ryan has been ranked 18th, projecting the role he plays this season is harder than you assume it would be. After bouncing around the league for a while, Ryan began last year playing for the Herd. I highly doubt that, at 27 years old, he was on the Bucks’ radar at all to begin the year, but credit to him: the man kept knocking on the door until he got his shot… and man, did he take advantage. In the 11 NBA games Ryan played to end the season, he averaged 14.3 PPG on .52/.45/.92 splits! Like, it was shocking how natural the NYC native looked on an NBA floor; he did everything you would want from a fourth or fifth starter and even showed some advanced shotmaking in the lane.

Now, we should pump the brakes just a tad and consider that 1) there wasn’t exactly serious basketball being played in a lot of these games, and 2) there was no scouting report to go off. For the most part, Ryan got to play consequence-free hoops against guys who had no clue who he was. That said, dropping 25 points on 9/14 shooting against what was a mostly healthy Rockets team isn’t nothing; many NBA players could never come close to that. At this point, I am comfortable in my assessment that there’s clearly something to continue exploring with this guy… the issue, of course, is that the minutes aren’t there for the Bucks to do that exploring.

And not to be a downer, but another assessment I feel confident in is that Ryan’s ceiling as a player does not exceed the aforementioned role as a fourth or fifth starter/tertiary creator. Like 80% of basketball players, he is not a primary option, and he never will be. We saw evidence of this at Summer League, where Ryan was often entrusted to be the team’s lead guard and command a high usage—it was not pretty. He averaged 11.0 PPG, 1.5 APG, and 3.5 TPG on .35/.35/.40 splits.

So at once, you have this duality: Ryan killed it in a relatively siloed role at the NBA level, then stunk it up at a much lower level in a significantly bigger role. To me, that really seals the deal on what he is and, crucially, what he is not. Regardless, I hope the coaching staff can find pockets this season to get Ryan into the rotation and keep gathering data on him. Maybe last season’s flurry was a flash in the pan; maybe it was more—only one way to find out.

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And onto 17 we go…