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Cavs basketball is back, or at least preseason basketball is. We’ll see how the team looks in their first time taking an NBA floor since last May.
Share your thoughts as the game unfolds. If you aren’t a member of the community, sign up so you can talk to your fellow Cavalier fans and make your voice heard!
There’s only so much stock you can put into a preseason game, but a 34-point win is never a bad thing. It Brooklyn nailed 20 of 37 from deep and dished out 31 assists without Mikel Brown Jr., while stars made the most of the minutes. Now, the Nets head home to Barclays Center for the first (and only) time the preseason.
On the flip side, the star-studded 76ers come in with a preseason win of their own — a 120-97 blowout over the Knicks on Monday. Both teams are 1-0, which is about as much as anyone should read into October. The storyline tonight? We’ll get to see LeBron James, Tyrese Maxey, VJ Edgecombe, Jaylen Brown and Joel Embiid playing together.
Keep an eye on the minutes. Most of the Nets’ starters were finished by halftime in Charlotte, and these are professionals playing as a team while also battling for their own minutes.
Nets: Michael Porter Jr. (left wrist soreness), Day’Ron Sharpe (left shoulder soreness), Mikel Brown Jr. (ankle recovery) and Joshua Jefferson (lower back).
Share your thoughts and react, but please be respectful. NetsDaily prides itself on being a safe space for Nets and basketball fans alike to have healthy conversation. Reach out to Anthony Puccio or Net Income with any issues.
CLEVELAND — The Celtics will rest most of the roster in their preseason opener against the Cleveland Cavaliers. Jayson Tatum, Derrick White, Paul George, Mitchell Robinson, Neemias Queta, Sam Hauser, Ron Harper Jr., and Payton Pritchard are all out.
Mike Conley, Baylor Scheierman, Hugo Gonzalez, Jordan Walsh, and Luka Garza will start, with Chris Cenac Jr., Dillon Mitchell, and Amari Williams all available to sub in. Exhibit-10 players Devin Carter, Gabe McGlothan, Milos Uzan, and Tucker DeVries are all available to play as well.
Thursday will mark the Celtics debuts of Conley, Cenac, and Mitchell; George and Robinson’s will wait.
For the Cavaliers, Donovan Mitchell, Jarrett Allen, Jaylon Tyson, Payton Watson, and Meleek Thomas will start the game.
On top of the limited rotation, the Celtics will be coached by assistant coach Tony Dobbins for the first half and assistant coach DJ MacLeay for the second half.
“I want to give them the opportunity to be able to just build themselves as coaches,” Joe Mazzulla said at shootaround on Thursday morning. “Both those guys had head coaching interviews this past summer, and I want them to be able to build on that.”
Before the game, Dobbins expressed his excitement for the opportunity to coach several players’ first NBA games.
“I’m excited to get started with this group that we have, and then for me, there’s some guys who it’ll be their first time stepping on the NBA court, and that’s exciting,” Dobbins said. “Like you get to be a part of somebody living out their dream, and that would be the case whether I was coaching or whether Joe’s coaching — but just not taking those moments for granted. You’ve got a person, a family, who has worked for this moment, as long as they can remember, and they have an opportunity.”
Knicks guard Tyler Kolek’s girlfriend, Lexi Sousa, recounted his run-in with police after they mistook him for a fan during the team’s championship parade in New York — and she revealed that it actually happened twice.
“Oh, I was there,” Sousa said in an interview with Wag Talk on Wednesday. “It didn’t happen to him once. It happened to him twice.
“Not a lot of people know that.”
Lexi, who is a mental health counselor, did not get into the details of Kolek being stopped by police for a second time during the June 18 parade.
At the time, the 25-year-old Kolek was running along the parade route and greeting fans while holding a Michelob Ultra in one hand when he was stopped by two police officers who grabbed him.
One officer was seen shaking his head, appearing to say “no,” while another turned him around and pointed for him to leave the area.
That’s when others intervened to inform the officers that Kolek was a member of the championship team.
Cops mistook Tyler Kolek for a fan
— Kimberley A. Martin (@ByKimberleyA) June 18, 2026#alwaysknickspic.twitter.com/7LxI29zahb
The officers backed down after that.
“I swear I’m on the team bro,” Kolek wrote on X, responding to post that said, “security almost tackled” him.
Kolek did not play in any of the 2026 NBA Finals games, in which New York won four of five against the Spurs to clinch their first championship in 53 years.
He averaged 4.4 points and 2.7 assists per game last season.
Kolek — who was a second-round pick out of Marquette by the Trail Blazers in the 2024 NBA Draft — spent the 2024-25 season with the Westchester Knicks, New York’s G-League affiliate.
The Knicks open the 2026-27 regular season on Oct. 20 at home against the 76ers.
The Washington Wizards play the New York Knicks tonight at 7:30 p.m. ET. Watch the game on Monumental Sports Network.
It’s been nearly half a month since we’ve see the Wizards, meaning the actual team (not the Summer League version), play basketball. Playing against the Knicks will be a challenge. The biggest thing I am looking forward to is seeing AJ Dybantsa make his preseason debut against the defending NBA champions. I’m not hoping for a win per se when the games don’t count yet.
But I am looking to see a more cohesive offense and stronger defense. Watching the Wizards the last few seasons has been tough. But now, there’s a franchise player and it’s time to see if the tanking can produce some winning seasons in the near future.
Go wizards!
Observations after James makes impressive Sixers preseason debut in Brooklyn originally appeared on NBC Sports Philadelphia
NEW YORK — LeBron James is truly up and running as a Philadelphia 76er.
James made his Sixers preseason debut Thursday night at Barclays Center and played a strong first half in the team’s 114-108 loss to the Nets.
The four-time MVP logged 18 minutes and scored 10 highly efficient points, going 1 for 1 from the field and 8 for 8 at the foul line. He added five assists and four rebounds.
Jaylen Brown was the Sixers’ top scorer with 18 points and Tyrese Maxey tallied 14.
The Sixers were without Ariel Hukporti (right Achilles tendon tear), Adem Bona (left foot sprain), Anfernee Simons (hamstring), Dominick Barlow (back) and Tacko Fall (left hip strain). Here’s a full rundown on the team’s injury picture.
Next up for the Sixers is their third of four preseason games Saturday against the Celtics in Boston. Here are observations on their defeat to the Nets:
James’ pregame introduction in the Sixers’ starting lineup prompted a massive swell of noise. A bright spotlight will be on the Sixers wherever they go this season.
Once the action began, the team wasted no time flashing its immense offensive potential. The Sixers started 7 for 8 from the floor.
VJ Edgecombe leaked out for a fast-break layup to get the Sixers on the scoreboard. When healthy, the star-stuffed Sixers should be a menacing team in transition.
While they don’t appear to have installed a vast half-court playbook yet, the Sixers generally looked sharp out of the gates with both designed sets and improvisation.
James should be a giant help as an elite passer and world-class offensive organizer. He notched all five of his assists in the first quarter, including a clever one-handed pass that set Edgecombe up for a slam. On another eye-catching play, Maxey slipped open, James rifled the ball to him, and the Sixers’ All-NBA guard sunk a wing three-pointer.
Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, Dean Wade and Jabari Walker were the first men off of the Sixers’ bench.
Brown and Edgecombe were the last starters on the floor with the second unit. James then replaced Brown for the final minute and 50 seconds of the first quarter. The starters all came back together for the final few minutes of the first half.
Labaron Philon Jr. and Justin Edwards joined the rotation in the second quarter. Philon was ready to roll, draining a catch-and-shoot three on his first touch.
Simons, Bona and Barlow should be in the rotation mix once available, but Thursday was a decent indication of Sixers head coach Nick Nurse’s current broad blueprint for using his bench and staggering the stars. He’s clearly a fan of the Brown-Edgecombe duo, which impressed Monday in the Sixers’ preseason opener vs. the Knicks.
Embiid had an odd second quarter and was far from his A-game overall.
He got whistled for a technical foul after expressing vehement disagreement about multiple calls and missed an easy, flat-footed layup in transition. The seven-time All-Star big man posted six points on 1-for-5 shooting, three rebounds, three assists and eight turnovers in 23 minutes.
Of course, preseason rust is common and not automatic cause for deep concern.
The Sixers held a two-point halftime lead and kept Embiid, Brown and Edgecombe on the court until around the midpoint of the third quarter. From that point, the Sixers’ bench closed out the night. They ended the game well and cut Brooklyn’s lead down to 109-108 on a late Edwards three, but the youthful Nets ultimately secured the win.
Austin Reaves knows how to get Luka Doncic fired up and he’s willing to go to extreme lengths to ensure the Lakers superstar plays well.
Reaves has thought about hiring fans to talk trash to Doncic throughout games in order to awaken the Slovenian beast inside.
“I’ve thought about paying people in the stands to just talk crazy to him because he goes to that different level,” Reaves said to Chris Mannix of Sports Illustrated.
The Lakers have officially kicked off a new era in Los Angeles with Doncic at the helm and the squad enters the 2026-27 campaign with several question marks. How will Doncic acclimate to being the captain of the Lakers?
Can the Lakers be a playoff contender without LeBron James? Will the major roster overhaul by general manager Rob Pelinka pay off?
While many of these questions won’t be answered until the Lakers take the floor Opening Night, Doncic has already taken action in assuming his role as the leader of the team. For one, the entire roster traveled to Slovenia for a four-day minicamp hosted by Doncic.
The overseas trip was meant for the Lakers to get a feel for one another on court, but perhaps just as importantly, the team got to know one another on a personal level.
Getting to build a rapport with his teammates was important for Doncic and will certainly play a role with how the squad performs on the court together. The pressure heavily lands on the shoulders of Doncic for the Lakers’ success.
Thus, paying fans to talk trash might be Reaves’ solution to ensuring Doncic is at his best every single night.
As a Houston Rockets writer, I don’t write about Alperen Sengun very often.
Some of you know why. For the uninitiated, here’s a potentially self-indulgent confession.
I have a graphic saved on my phone quoting me as saying the Rockets should trade Sengun (and picks) for Nic Claxton and Mikal Bridges. I know that if you search my name on Houston Rockets Reddit, it won’t take long before the word “moron” comes up.
And…it bothered me. I don’t like being called a moron. But that was a while ago. My life has changed. I am a teacher now, and this is a hobby. I still don’t love being called a moron, but my reaction is softer in my old age. I know that I am neither a genius nor a moron.
I’m not the only variable that’s changed. Sengun’s PR is presently in the gutter. If you don’t believe me, find any post in any corner of social media that mentions Sengun that isn’t from a Rockets-focused account.
Pick One: Alperen Sengun, Lauri Markkanen, Chet Holmgren, or Jaren Jackson Jr. This was a viral (and meaningless) comparison that was making the rounds recently. Here’s what the replies looked like
“Sengun is clearly the worst”
“Definitely not Shampoo”
…Etc.
If anyone answers Sengun, they’re almost certainly a Rockets fan, a Turkish person, or a combination of both. The criticisms are the same that this moron levied against him from a much earlier time. He’s a bit too small to be a five, he’s a defensive liability, and he’s a ball-dominant player who can’t shoot.
Is there any hope left?
The year was 2023-24. Sengun posted an impressive 4.9 Box Plus/Minus (BPM). The numbers people were having a field day. There was a veritable mass of think pieces along the lines of “here’s a list of players in their age-21 season to post a BPM above 4”. Sengun was a poster boy for a certain brand of basketball fan.
The next year, it was 4.4. Then, it was 4.2. Last year, per DataBallr, the Rockets were +3.5 with Sengun on the floor, and +12.3 when he was resting. None of these stats are perfect, but in this case, it has reflected reality. It’s begun to feel like Sengun peaked early.
Unless…
There’s plenty of room for improvement. Take your pick. Better three-point shooting? Better defense? Better interior efficiency?
Yet, isn’t that the point? We’re heading into year six, and there is so much room for improvement.
The Sengun Army is already at arms. Doesn’t Thompson have room to improve? Why are we protecting Jabari Smith Jr.?
Wake me up when Smith Jr. is the highest-usage player in the young core, or when he isn’t making roughly $10 million less per year than Sengun. Smith Jr. is useful even if he’s not a star, which, again, is the point. Sengun doesn’t have those secondary qualities to carve out a secondary role.
Thompson does. A non-shooting role player makes for some roster construction barriers, but at his best, Thompson is a top-5 wing defender. He’s also got two fewer NBA seasons under his belt, and despite their comparable ages, that means two fewer seasons of NBA-level training.
Sengun’s talent is beyond reproach. His footwork, passing creativity, and understanding of the game are all on display every year.
I always remember when the Rockets lost Chandler Parsons and replaced him with Trevor Ariza. Such a downgrade. Ariza is worse in almost every way: ball-handling, passing, isolation scoring…
Well, he’s a better defender. That’s about it, and that’s all that mattered. It was an upgrade, and I came to understand portability in basketball.
Perhaps it’s a lesson I’ve applied too thoroughly to Sengun. If it isn’t clear, I would have likely replaced him with an above-average defensive big years ago, even if they had minimal juice in their offensive repertoire. The Sengun and picks for Claxton and Bridges framework I’d have advocated for would have been a disaster, as Amen Thompson would not have been ready (if he ever will) for the offensive responsibilities he’d have necessarily taken on.
Replacing Sengun with role players isn’t viable. Replacing him with a different star player, rather than pairing him with one, could be the path forward for this roster: Emphasis on “could”.
Speaking of this roster…
It would be fair to assert that it hasn’t been built to optimize Sengun. A playmaking hub operating in the interior should be surrounded by shooters and smart off-ball movers. Sengun is surrounded by non-shooters. Thompson is a great off-ball mover, but he’s the most non-shootingest non-shooter of all the non-shooters.
The counterargument is that Sengun also needs to be surrounded by defenders, and defenders who can shoot are a market scarcity. Fair, but if we’re strictly talking about what would have been best for Sengun, it would have been to maximize the offense and punt on defense.
It’s too late for that. That doesn’t mean it’s too late for Sengun, but the clock is ticking. If the Rockets run into “sure there’s talent here, but they can’t shoot” again in the first round, he’s probably gone next summer.
Maybe you’d prefer Thompson on the chopping block. If you think the front office will trade him before they trade Sengun, I’ll softly recommend not gambling on sports. Tea leaf reading is not your strong suit.
We’re 902 words deep here. That’ll do. You have reached the end of my annual-ish Alperen Sengun piece.
The next one will either be about his on-court improvements or a summary of his time in Houston.
There are certain moments that haunt us. That gnaw at us. That creep into our minds in quiet moments and play with our emotions like a fiddle.
Luka Dončić knows his.
It happened on April 2 in a game against the Thunder last season. It was a measuring stick game against the reigning NBA champions. The Lakers’ momentum was at a fever pitch.
The Lakers were on a 16-2 run. Dončić was playing out of his mind, averaging 37.5 points, 8 rebounds and 7.4 assists per game in March. He had catapulted himself into the MVP conversation and turned the Lakers into a championship contender.
If Dončić led the Lakers past the Thunder, he could have leapfrogged Shai Gilgeous-Alexander in the MVP race. He could have made the Lakers considered real threats for the Larry O’Brien trophy.
But the game was a nightmare from tipoff.
The Lakers were being steamrolled. To make matters worse, Dončić felt a tweak in his left hamstring in the second quarter.
Given the implications of this game, he decided to push through it. Even though the Lakers were down by 31 points at halftime, he decided to fight.
Then disaster struck.
Five minutes into the third quarter, the pain worsened. Dončić grabbed at his left hamstring again. He was taken out of the game.
An MRI later revealed that he suffered a Grade 2 hamstring strain. Dončić missed the final five games of the season. He was sidelined for the entire postseason.
That moment effectively ended the Lakers’ championship hopes. It put a red slash through his MVP campaign. It marked his team’s postseason demise.
If Dončić could go back, he would.
“When it comes to my spirit of trying to win, I am just stubborn,” Dončić told Sports Illustrated. “I felt a little bit in the first half that I should have just stopped. I should have come out. I think we had a team that could compete for the championship. I definitely regret it.”
That was Dončić’s first time publicly acknowledging he wishes he would’ve handled things differently in that moment.
It’s impossible to assess fault here.
Sure, Dončić should’ve known better. You don’t mess around with hamstrings. But teams have coaches and training staffs to prevent players from getting in their own way.
Lakers coach JJ Redick could’ve refused to put Doncic back in. The training staff could’ve intercepted. There were a lot of dropped balls in retrospect. Hindsight is 20-20.
But it’s hard not to imagine a sliding doors situation, especially knowing Dončić believes things could’ve easily gone another way.
What would’ve happened if Dončić had pulled himself from that game at the first sign of pain?
It’s impossible to say.
The Lakers lost their regular season games against the Thunder by an average of 29.3 points. Maybe they never had a chance of getting past Oklahoma City in the playoffs.
Or maybe they did.
No one thought the Lakers would go on a 16-2 run last spring, including beating the Knicks, Timberwolves, Nuggets and Rockets.
No one thought they’d take a 3-0 lead against the Rockets in the first round of the playoffs without Dončić and Austin Reaves (who suffered a Grade 2 oblique strain against the Thunder on April 2).
The Lakers were on a roll.
Dončić was playing better than anyone in the league last spring. LeBron James had fully bought into being the Lakers’ third offensive option. Austin Reaves looked like an All-Star.
Things were clicking.
In many ways, belief is more powerful than anything in basketball. And the Lakers really believed. Dončić really believed.
But Dončić’s hamstring strain robbed the Lakers of knowing their potential.
James put the Lakers on his 41-year-old shoulders and carried them past the Rockets in the first round of the playoffs. But without Dončić, they had no chance of getting past the Thunder in the second round.
Los Angeles was swept out of the playoffs. And now, that iteration of the Lakers is history. James chose to leave for the 76ers in free agency and LA added nine new players last offseason.
There will forever be a “what if?”
Dončić was in the zone. Over a six-game stretch in March he averaged 40.6 points, 6.6 rebounds 6.3 assists and 2.6 steals, becoming the first player to average 40 points over six road games since Michael Jordan in 1986.
Players don’t get into trances like that often. And when they do, it’s powerful.
The Lakers’ potential last season will forever be unknown. At that moment, it felt limitless. It felt as though they could really compete for a championship.
Then everything went up in flames in that one fateful game against the Thunder.
We’ll forever be left with more questions than answers.
And Dončić will forever be left with pangs of regret.
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An emergency protective order has been filed against former NBA star J.R. Smith after he was accused of causing “serious bodily injury” to a woman during a violent incident in Texas last month, new court documents obtained by the California Post show.
Smith has been ordered to have “zero communication” with the woman except through an attorney, and he has also been barred from going within 333 yards of the woman’s residence or place of employment, a copy of the EPO states.
Smith also cannot possess a firearm or ammunition, according to the EPO.
The order, which was signed by a judge on Sept. 29, is to remain in effect until Dec. 29, the document states.
Smith was accused on Sept. 18 of “intentionally, knowingly, or recklessly” causing injury to a woman who was a member of his family or household or with whom he had a dating relationship, a criminal complaint filed on Oct. 2 states.
Smith allegedly hit, grabbed or pushed the woman with his hand during the altercation, according to the complaint.
A warrant for Smith’s arrest was issued by the Southlake Police Department a short time after the alleged incident, and the ex-Los Angeles Lakers guard was taken into custody over the matter during a traffic stop in Royse City, Texas on Sept. 28.
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Smith, who was released on $5,000 bond on Sept. 29, has since been charged with one count of assault causing bodily injury family violence, court records show.
The 41-year-old’s attorney, Justin A. Moore, said in a statement to The Post last week that “JR is eager to see this matter resolved and has full confidence in the legal process.
“He is presumed innocent,” the lawyer added, “and we will address this matter in Court. We ask that everyone respect the privacy of all involved throughout the process.”
A request on Thursday seeking further comment from Moore on the EPO was not returned.
Smith played in the NBA from 2004 to 2020 and won two NBA championships.
The Celtics begin their preseason slate with a game against the Cavaliers in Cleveland. The Celtics held the first few days of training camp in Boston and then traveled to South Carolina for 3 days of camp at The Citadel. The Cavaliers traveled a bit farther as they traveled to Andalusia, Spain for training camp from September 30 through October 5.
The Cavaliers kept their core group of Donovan Mitchell, James Harden, Evan Mobley and Jarrett Allen together. They added a 3&D guy in Peyton Watson, who came over from Denver. They also added Jaylon Tyson and rookie Meleek Thomas, who was the 34th pick in this year’s draft. They lost Max Strus, Dean Wade, Dennis Schroder, Larry Nance, Jr, and Keon Ellis.
The Celtics kept a core group of Jayson Tatum, Derrick White, Payton Pritchard, and Neemias Queta together. In what was the most controversial trade of the summer, they traded Jaylen Brown to Philadelphia for Paul George. They also brought in Mike Conley and Mitchell Robinson as free agents. They also drafted Chris Cenac, Jr with the 27th pick of the draft.
The starting lineups are a guess on my part. For the Celtics, Derrick White, Jayson Tatum and Paul George are pretty much a lock to start. There is a question mark at center where Joe may start either Neemias Queta, who started last season and had a break out season, or new arrival Mitchell Robinson. At Shooting Guard, Payton Pritchard may start, or Joe may choose to start one of the talented wings who have shown improvement in camp.
Boston Celtics Roster
Chris Cenac, Jr
Mike Conley
Luka Garza
Paul George
Hugo Gonzalez
Ron Harper, Jr
Sam Hauser
Payton Pritchard
Neemias Queta
Mitchell Robinson
Baylor Scheierman
Jayson Tatum
Jordan Walsh
Derrick White
2-Way Players
Dillon Mitchell
Amari Williams
Exhibit 10 Players
Devin Carter
Tucker DeVries
Hayden Gray
Gabe MccGlothan
Milos Uzan
Injuries
None
Head Coach
Joe Mazzulla
Possible Celtics Starters
PG: Derrick White
SG: Payton Pritchard
SF: Paul George
PF: Jayson Tatum
C: Neemias Queta
Cleveland Cavaliers Roster
Jarrett Allen
Thomas Bryant
Khalifa Diop
James Harden
Mario Hezonja
Sam Merrill
Donovan Mitchell
Evan Mobley
Craig Porter, Jr
Tyrese Proctor
Meleek Thomas
Nae’Qwan Tomlin
Jaylon Tyson
Peyton Watson
2-Way Players
Tristan Enaruna
Riley Minix
Ernest Udeh, Jr
Exhibit 10 Players
Rashaun Agee
Zach Austin
Curtis Jones
Kadary Richmond
Injuries
None
Head Coach
Kenny Atkinson
Possible Cavaliers Starters
PG: James Harden
SG: Donovan Mitchell
SF: Peyton Watson
PF: Evan Mobley
C: Jarrett Allen
What to Watch
How Jayson Tatum Plays – Jayson Tatum played in just 16 games last season, plus 6 playoff games. He looked good and averaged almost 22 points and 10 rebounds, however, he didn’t seem to have the same explosion that he did before the injury. He also played along side of Jaylen Brown for the past 10 years and will be playing as the Alpha without him for the first time in his career.
How About the New Guys– How will Paul George’s game fit with Jayson Tatum and how will he play in the Celtics’ system. Does he still have a lot in the tank and can he still play at a high level? Will Mitchell Robinson start or come off the bench and how will his game fit with Mazzulla Ball? Can he hit his free throws? Mike Conley has already proved to be a good signing as he is mentoring the younger players. How much will he contribute on the court? Can Chris Cenac, Jr contribute this season?
Improvement from Young Guys – There are reports from camp that Baylor Scheierman, Jordan Walsh, Ron Harper, Jr and Hugo Gonzalez are all improved from last season. They are all hungry and want to earn playing time. Which ones have improved the most and will earn a larger role and more playing time?
Roster Battles – The Celtics have one regular roster spot and one 2-Way spot open. They have 5 talented and intriguing players in camp on Exhibit 10 contracts. One of them will win the final 2-way spot. The Celtics have kept the final spot open in the past but will one of these players impress enough to earn that final spot.
X-Factors
It’s the Preseason – The preseason is a time for the coaches to get a look at players who may or may not make the team, to experiment with lineups and different plays. Wins and losses are not as important as learning things about the players and the team. Regardless of whether the Celtics win or lose it will be great to see them on the court again!!
Rust and Chemistry– This is the first preseason game with some new faces for both teams. Even with the same group, the first game always includes shaking off a lot of rust. Hopefully the Celtics can quickly play through the rust and play together as a team right from the start and that the new players can quickly gel with the returning Celtics.
Preseason results deserve a healthy dose of skepticism, but with Mark Williams sidelined for multiple months, the Phoenix Suns have a position battle worth paying attention to. Through two games, Oso Ighodaro and Khaman Maluach have provided an early glimpse into what each brings to the starting center position, and perhaps more importantly, what each still needs to improve.
At first glance, when you consider that the center will likely be the fifth offensive option on this team, you begin looking at what the other four starters are lacking. Jalen Green, Devin Booker, Dillon Brooks, and Miles Bridges bring plenty to the table, but there are deficiencies within that group that will need to be addressed. You could point to the lack of effective facilitation and distribution. You could point to shooting. You could point to size and rebounding. All of those observations would be valid, and all are areas of concern as the regular season approaches. And that is a lot of pointing.
The Suns will have to manufacture effective ball distribution because they don’t have a true facilitator in that starting group. Fingers are crossed that Jalen Green will grow in this role, but the more likely outcome is that a distribution-by-committee approach will be their modus operandi, with multiple players creating opportunities rather than relying on a single traditional playmaker to orchestrate the offense. Such is modern NBA life
Shooting is another challenge. None of those four players can be defined as an “above-average three-point shooter”, and some are coming off the worst shooting seasons of their careers (Booker at 33.3%, his second-worst year, and Jalen Green at 31.3%, his worst). Collectively, they’re career 34.7% shooters from beyond the arc, which creates questions about how effectively Phoenix can space the floor.
Then there’s size and rebounding. None of those four players is particularly imposing physically or known for being a dominant presence on the glass. Of the quarter, Miles Bridges had the best rebounding percentage at 9.2%, but that ranks 140th out of the 367 players who played at least 40 games a season ago. That puts additional pressure on whoever occupies the center position to provide some of what the rest of the starting lineup lacks.
That’s what makes this position battle so interesting. When you look at the two candidates competing for the starting role, Oso Ighodaro and Khaman Maluach, you’re looking at two players with very different skill sets. Each offers a potential solution to certain deficiencies within the starting lineup, and determining which of those needs takes priority could ultimately dictate who earns the job.
You have Oso Ighodaro, who is a plus facilitator and rather unique in his ability to distribute the ball from the five position. He elevates those around him with his ability to see the floor, make quick decisions, deliver quality passes, and set effective screens that create space for his teammates. But he’s average when it comes to size and rebounding. And shooting? Like a certain Margaret Mitchell novel, it’s Gone with the Wind.
Then you have Maluach, who has yet to develop passing and distribution into a reliable part of his skill set. That’s not to say he’s horrible at it, but it certainly isn’t one of his primary strengths. Can he shoot? Yes. He has the potential to stretch the floor, and if given enough opportunities, he might begin shooting with enough regularity that opposing defenses have to respect it, opening up space for his teammates. But size and rebounding? That’s supposed to be his bread and butter.
So you look at these two candidates, knowing that head coach Jordan Ott has opted to start Oso through the first two preseason games. And personally? I don’t blame him. He’s going with what he knows. He’s going with experience. He’s going with a player whose facilitation can help unlock the other four starters’ offensive potential. That leaves Maluach with the secondary minutes, along with a few opportunities sprinkled in alongside the starters.
Through the first two games, I wouldn’t go so far as to say Oso has lapped Maluach, but he’s certainly rounding the second corner of the track with a comfortable lead. I think much of that comes down to his understanding of where he needs to be on the floor and his cerebral approach to the game. It also has to do with the fact that Maluach hasn’t looked particularly comfortable.
Again, it’s preseason, and that’s what these repetitions are for. Repetition becomes retention, right? Khaman needs opportunities to get on the floor, feel his way through different situations, and begin translating all the work he’s put in this offseason into tangible results. Because my first observation of Maluach through these two games is that the effort is there. As every good football coach has told his team at some point, there are only two things you can control: your attitude and your effort. Both are aligned for Maluach.
The problem is that the results of that effort haven’t consistently materialized. Some of that comes down to poor positioning. Some of it is being too reactive. And some of it feels like he’s perpetually facing the wrong direction. When operating in high-dribble handoffs, he isn’t looking downhill to recognize whether an opportunity might be available. He’s so focused on being a cog in the wheel of the offensive action that he isn’t identifying what the defense is giving him. He hands the ball off, rolls into a defender, and the entire sequence becomes predictable. When a shot goes up, he’s looking for somebody to box out rather than tracking the ball. By the time it hits the rim, he’s already slightly out of position.
These are things that come with repetition and instinct. It’s about learning to track the basketball while maintaining awareness of your opponent’s position, feeling for him with your hand, and positioning yourself to secure the rebound. It was disappointing to watch him get pushed around by Bulls rookie Tobe Awaka and lose that individual matchup. That’s the kind of performance that makes it difficult to envision Maluach winning the starting role at this point.
But as I always say, development isn’t linear. What matters now is what he does moving forward. Can he recognize these mistakes on film, understand why they occurred, and put those lessons into action the next time he takes the floor? That’s what will determine the next step in his development.
Through two preseason games, he’s attempted only one three-pointer, so the shooting hasn’t become a threat in any meaningful capacity. And the size and rebounding that should be his greatest advantages haven’t been particularly impressive either. For a player who had a 15.1 rebounding percentage last season and 22.4% in Summer League, his rebounding percentage is at 10.0% in his team-high 42.1 minutes played thus far this preseason.
He’s totaled 14 points and six rebounds on 5-of-8 shooting while going 4-of-8 from the free-throw line. The effort is there. The attitude is there. Now we need to see the execution catch up. I assume we will see him get some run with the starters at some point this preseason, so the team can not only see what it looks like, but also allow him the developmental opportunity.
As for Oso, he’s getting his run with the starters and fitting comfortably into the role, much like he did last season. Through two preseason games, he’s shooting 71.4% from the field and an abysmal 25% from the free-throw line, going 1-of-4. He’s added seven rebounds, three of which have come on the offensive glass, four assists, and a pair of steals. Overall, he’s a +12. His assist percentage sits at 14.8%, identical to Devin Booker’s, while his rebound percentage is 12.1%.
His rim-running ability has opened up different aspects of the offense, and his versatility on that end of the floor continues to illustrate why Jordan Ott prefers him in the starting lineup. He understands how to operate within the offense, where to position himself, and how to create opportunities for those around him. He possesses more experience, and through the first two preseason games, that experience has been apparent.
That’s where we stand at this moment in the battle for the starting center position. It’s a fluid situation that can constantly change, and once the regular season begins, it could ultimately become matchup-dependent.
If you focus on doing the little things right, the big things tend to take care of themselves. Oso is doing those little things right. And while it might not be particularly impressive to some, especially those who want him to become more of a shooter than he’ll likely ever be, we have to remember that not every center in the NBA possesses the ability to stretch the floor. And that’s okay. What needs to become a greater point of emphasis, however, is rebounding.
I understand that it’s difficult when you’re constantly being pulled away from the basket defensively, switching onto perimeter players, and being asked to defend in space. That’s another area where Oso excels. But you can’t be underneath the basket securing rebounds when you’re out on the perimeter defending a switch.
That’s why team rebounding is going to be so important for the Phoenix Suns this season. They lack the overall size and rebounding presence that larger teams possess simply by having bigger bodies on the floor. It will require a collective effort, with everybody understanding their responsibilities and doing the little things necessary to finish defensive possessions. And right now, those little things are precisely what’s giving Oso the advantage in this position battle.
Ultimately, this battle is about finding the right balance for a starting lineup with some very specific needs. Oso currently provides the reliability, connectivity, and defensive versatility that make everyone else’s job easier. Maluach offers a different dimension, but his physical advantages need to translate into consistent execution. Both have value, and both will have opportunities. For now, Ott appears to be prioritizing understanding over upside. And given what we’ve seen through two games, that’s a decision I can get behind.
Luka Dončić has now had several months to digest LeBron James’ exit from the Lakers.
The superstars had a solid relationship as teammates, and the mutual respect they have continued even after James took his talents to Philadelphia.
Dončić was interviewed by Sports Illustrated’s Chris Mannix and was asked whether James reached out to him when he left the Lakers.
“Yeah,” Dončić said. He then added, “And I reached out to him. You know, ‘Thank you for everything.’ Obviously, it was amazing being his teammate. Learned so many things [from him].”
He then said that becoming the Lakers franchise’s new face after James’ exit isn’t pressure, but that it’s an honor.
There’s clearly no bad blood between James and Dončić, as well as between James and the Lakers’ franchise.
This should be seen as a good thing because it means Los Angeles can move forward with its future without dwelling on James’ exit. Fans can do the same thing, instead turning their attention toward who Los Angeles has on its roster now rather than who it had.
That being said, James’ first time playing the Lakers on Christmas Day will be must-see TV.
This preseason, the NBA and its officials released their Points of Emphasis for the 2026-27 season and one of the most-discussed sections was off-arm push-offs by offensive players.
A move popularized by some of the league’s most dynamic offensive players, like Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Jaylen Brown, has become one of the more natural moves in modern basketball, as polarizing as it is. League officials are beginning to crack down on the space it creates and, most importantly, the disadvantage it creates for the defender.
The Lakers roster two of the league’s best offensive scorers, Austin Reaves and Luka Dončić, who may often be in the scope of officials and those points of emphasis. Head coach JJ Redick, though, has been a voice in the ears of the league regardingthis issue behind the scenes for a while.
Redick told reporters during training camp that, following an unnamed game last season, he sent Monty McCutchen, NBA senior vice president of referee development and training, a dozen clips of instances where the off-arm push-off was used against Los Angeles.
“I just wanted an explanation because of how we teach our guys defensively,” Redick said as he pantomimed the motion. “We teach a first bump, arms out, bump them with your chest. So if the offensive player is allowed to fully extend and shove off. I showed them 12 clips from this one single game — it was called once.
“I certainly wasn’t the only coach that sent in clips to [McCutchen] and the refs … We got to protect the offensive player, and we’ve got to also give the defense a chance. And the league, and the refs, and the competition committee, I think, do a great job every year of trying to find that balance.”
Redick revealed that NBA coaches met with the league’s referees and competition committee in Chicago in September to review these points of emphasis and that they actually showed two of the clips he sent in from that game last season.
Redick and the team also met with Hall of Fame referee Joey Crawford the week before training camp for what was a “healthy” conversation about the league’s areas of focus. Crawford, who retired in 2016, serves as a referee performance development advisor for the NBA.
Reaves was also asked for his opinion during training camp and was almost facetiously reluctant to share it so as not to get in trouble with the league. Overall, he agrees that fully extending the arm to create space should be an offensive foul and that it would be a correct call it it were called on him. But he was also of the opinion that there are similar ways to create space that shouldn’t necessarily warrant a whistle.
“I think there’s different ways to do it,” Reaves said. “There’s ways of just using your shoulders where you don’t extend the arm, and I think that’s perfectly fine. There’s a fine line there, but I think anytime your arm actually extends without it being pulled, I technically think it should be [a foul].”
Dončić and Reaves have thrived, for better or worse, at manipulating defenders and officials on offense. Being able to draw fouls in the open court is a critical part of their games. Dončić led the league with 10.1 free throw attempts per game last year. Austin was 13th, getting up 7.3 at the charity stripe per contest.
Just how much will this officiating change affect the Lakers? Bronny James was already whistled for this when he extended his arm on Stephen Curry during their preseason game against the Warriors on Tuesday.
It may affect Dončić and Reaves sporadically throughout the season. Dončić relies more on his patented step-back to create space, while Reaves uses more of his shoulders, as he alluded to. But where this really helps the Lakers is on the defensive end.
Redick is deploying a more aggressive point-of-attack defensive mindset that includes picking up ball handlers for the full length of the court. Defenders like Ziaire Williams, Quentin Grimes and Matisse Thybulle are now encouraged to be more aggressive defending the ball.
Overall, this change feels like a net positive for the new-look Lakers.
You can follow Connor on Twitter at @cmorenoNBA.