MEMPHIS, TN - OCTOBER 16: Kon Knueppel #7 of the Charlotte Hornets & Cameron Boozer #27 of the Memphis Grizzlies shake hands after the game during a preseason game on October 16, 2026 at FedExForum in Memphis, Tennessee. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2026 NBAE (Photo by Joe Murphy/NBAE via Getty Images) | NBAE via Getty Images
It’s still preseason in the NBA – the regular season doesn’t start until Tuesday – but former Blue Devil Cameron Boozer has made an impression on many people, not least of all, former All-Star and NBA Champion Kevin Garnett.
Obviously, Garnett knows what he’s talking about, and he has nice things to say about Boozer. Check it out:
“I like him, I like him.
“He is really polished. And he plays defense too…
“He is going to be in (Rookie of the Year talks). He got the most give, he got the most – I can get away with anything any night – he can mess up and still (produce).
“He gonna be 20/10.
“He got a little Jokic in his game. He is a little more athletic, he will dunk you. The high-post where he can make decisions.
“He nice, I like him. He got a high IQ too. Shout out to Boozer.”
For people who were sure that Boozer wasn’t athletic enough, there’s a pretty good indication that you might be wrong.
ATLANTA, GA - JUNE 25: Onsi Saleh of the Atlanta Hawks looks on during the Atlanta Hawks New Draft Picks Press Conference and Portraits on June 25, 2026 at Atlanta Hawks Practice Facility in Atlanta, Georgia. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2026 NBAE (Photo by Joe Boatman/NBAE via Getty Images) | NBAE via Getty Images
Onsi Saleh has consistently emphasized financial flexibility, but his latest comments offer an important clarification: Atlanta has the authority to enter the luxury tax when the right opportunity comes.
During an appearance on SiriusXM, the Hawks’ president of basketball operations discussed navigating the NBA’s apron restrictions and making responsible roster decisions.
“Even with us, we could go in the tax and we have full authority on the tax,” Saleh said.
That statement matters because maintaining flexibility can sometimes leave fans wondering whether an organization is willing to spend. Saleh’s explanation suggests Atlanta’s approach centers on choosing the right investment and understanding the consequences that follow.
The luxury tax and the aprons are separate thresholds. Paying the tax carries a financial cost, while crossing the apron levels brings additional roster-building restrictions. At the second apron, teams lose tools such as the midlevel exception and the ability to combine outgoing player salaries to acquire a more expensive player. Those limitations can make improving an already expensive roster considerably harder.
For Atlanta, keeping options available can create opportunities when other teams need to reduce spending. Saleh discussed that advantage, and the Hawks’ offseason already provides an example of how it can work.
"Even with us, we could go in the tax and we have full authority on the tax."@ATLHawks president Onsi Saleh talks to @BGeltzNBA and @SamMitchellNBA about staying out of the second apron
Oklahoma City traded Lu Dort, Aaron Wiggins and Isaiah Joe in moves that helped bring the Thunder below the second apron. Atlanta acquired Dort and Wiggins, adding championship experience and perimeter depth while Oklahoma City addressed its financial commitments.
The Thunder were not prohibited from keeping those players. However, the costs and restrictions associated with an expensive roster helped create circumstances Atlanta could exploit. That distinction illustrates why financial discipline can have basketball value beyond the money saved.
Saleh’s challenge is recognizing when preserving flexibility becomes less valuable than using it. Keeping room to maneuver helps Atlanta pursue upgrades, but that flexibility ultimately needs to translate into a stronger team around Jalen Johnson.
His comments do not establish a spending timetable or identify a particular move. They do, however, indicate that entering the tax is an available option rather than a boundary the front office has been instructed never to cross.
That leaves the central decision with Saleh and his staff: determining which opportunity justifies the commitment. Spending on a roster that still needs substantial work could leave Atlanta paying more while making its next improvement harder. Spending when the right pieces are in place could help sustain a team capable of competing deeper into the postseason.
For now, Saleh’s message remains consistent. The Hawks want to make smart decisions, benefit from opportunities elsewhere and preserve the ability to act decisively. His willingness to discuss entering the tax adds substance to that approach. When Atlanta believes the moment has arrived, Saleh says the authority to spend is there.
(Photo illustration by Tate Rudisill / Los Angeles Times; photos by Elizabeth Ruiz Ruiz / Getty Images, Mark J. Terrill / AP Photo, Jae C. Hong / AP Photo, Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Times)
The Clippers will have their hands full when the season opens trying to contend in the always tough Western Conference after being slapped with the harshest penalties in league history for violating salary cap circumvention rules.
With Kawhi Leonard, James Harden and Ivica Zubac gone from last season’s team, they’ll focus on developing a new core of stars, including rookie Keaton Wagler, when they open play Wednesday by hosing the Sacramento Kings at Intuit Dome.
Another positive for the team: Tyronn Lue is a proven asset as coach and he’ll be tasked with developing and blending in the younger players. Wagler spent the summer building up his body and has potential to be a strong defender.
The league’s year-long investigation is over and the Clippers have a clear path, albeit rocky, to move on and again become competitive in the West. They finished ninth in the conference last season and were eliminated by the Warriors in a play-in game.
Now fully recovered from a foot injury, two-time All-Star guard Darius Garland will be counted on to provide floor leadership. Also returning are former All-Star guard Bradley Beal, guard Kris Dunn, forward Derrick Jones Jr. and center Brook Lopez.
“I think we can surprise a lot of people,” Garland said.
Garland is fully recovered from toe and foot ligament injuries. In 19 games last season, he averaged 19.9 points with 6.4 assists. With a full offseason and training camp, Garland is expected to be one of the team’s top players.
Other young players to watch are guard Kobe Sanders, who had a productive rookie season when averaging 7.3 points and nearly 20 minutes a game as part of the rotation, and center Yanic Konan Niederhauser, who had his rookie season end early because of a foot injury but he showed promise over 41 games.
Forward Brandon Ingram, driving against Clippers forward Derrick Jones Jr. last season, is now a teammate after the Kawhi Leonard trade was completed following the salary cap circumvention investigation. (Ronald Martinez / Getty Images)
Additions include All-Star forward Brandon Ingram and guard Gradey Dick, who were part of the Leonard trade to Toronto, wing Max Strus, guard Jalen Pickett, forward Baba Miller, forward Isaiah Jackson and forward Nick Martinelli.
“I know [there are] little to no expectations for us this year,” said Ingram, who will miss the start of the season while recovering from May surgery for a partially torn Achilles. “We have enough in the building to compete. This is what we love to do. So, we’ll go out and compete every single night, learn, go on to the next game and get better and better.”
Strus also will be out for a while after injuring his right foot during training camp.
Departed from the team are forward John Collins, guard Bogdan Bogdanovic, forward Nicolas Batum and wing Bennedict Mathurin.
Also noteworthy: owner Steve Ballmer won’t be sitting courtside after being banned by the NBA for a year as part of the team’s steep punishment for circumventing salary-cap rules. Top basketball executive Lawrence Frank has been banned for six months. The penalties included the loss of five first-round draft picks.
“I give our players a lot of credit … the leadership is great [and] the morale is great, even in these tough situations,” Lue said at the start of training camp. “That’s good to see, when you have your players coming in every day, giving everything they have; a lot of teams don’t have that.”
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Yet, no team has repeated as NBA champion in eight seasons, not since the Golden State Warriors did so in 2018.
The NBA, however, did see some seismic changes in the offseason, none more impactful than in the Eastern Conference, where the Miami Heat acquired two-time Most Valuable Player Giannis Antetokounmpo, where the Philadelphia 76ers pried away LeBron James and Jaylen Brown and where Kawhi Leonard is returning to Toronto to lead the Raptors.
In any case, it’s a new day, and optimism abounds. The title pursuit begins now.
With that in mind, here are the record predictions for the entire 2026-27 NBA season, with a sneek peek at the playoffs below.
NBA regular-season record projections
Predicting how each division will shake out following 82 games in the 2026-27 season:
NBA playoff projections
Our predictions for the 2026-27 NBA postseason from the first round in each conference to the NBA Finals:
Kawhi Leonard is back for a second spell with the Raptors. Photograph: Cole Burston/Getty Images
When Kawhi Leonard became a Toronto Raptor for the first time in the summer of 2018, he looked shellshocked. “There’s just more questions you have to ask me in order for me to tell you about myself,” he said, introducing himself to an organization and city he reportedly had no interest in joining.
Leonard had fallen out with his former team, the San Antonio Spurs – one of the most respected franchises in professional sports – due to differences in opinion about an injury that had limited him to just nine games in the 2017-18 season. The Los Angeles native had hoped to end up in southern California, but instead the Raptors risked it all by swapping franchise cornerstone DeMar DeRozan for one year of an injured, malcontent Leonard. It worked: Leonard led the Raptors to their maiden championship on the back of a historic playoff run, averaging 30.5 points, 9.1 rebounds, 3.9 assists and 1.7 steals en route. Leonard won his second finals MVP to go alongside the one he had claimed with the Spurs when he helped them to the title in 2014.
“The narrative of not wanting to come to this city is gone,” the team’s president, Masai Ujiri, said at that 2018 press conference, speaking to insecure Raptors fans who had watched American players like Vince Carter, Tracy McGrady, and Chris Bosh leave Toronto since the franchise opened its doors in 1995. “We should move past that. Believe in this city. Believe in yourselves … We are proud of who we are.”
But even a historic season wasn’t enough to convince Leonard to stay north of the border. After a long and contentious free-agency period managed by his uncle, Dennis Robertson, Leonard spurned the reigning champions in favor of his hometown Los Angeles Clippers. “There wasn’t as much anger in 2019 as there was with Vince Carter or some of the other guys who left,” says Bruce Arthur, who has covered Leonard since 2018 for the Toronto Star. “I think he was given a little bit of special dispensation because he was going home, because he had delivered a title, and because I never felt like there was ever a connection outside of Kawhi the basketball player, with Toronto.”
Raptors fans’ anger was instead directed towards the Clippers, who not only showed up to almost every Raptors game during the championship season, but who also, we now know, went under the table to ensure Leonard signed lucrative endorsement deals totaling over $50m – violating the NBA’s salary cap rules.
Robertson was suspended for five years and Clippers owner Steve Ballmer was handed the harshest punishment in NBA history, including the loss of five first-round draft picks and a year-long suspension. However, thanks to a side-deal between the NBA and its Players Association executed to avoid arbitration, Leonard was given a relatively light $700,000 fine (he has earned $375m in salary so far in his career).
“Kawhi’s … gotten away really clean from what is obviously out-of-bounds behavior,” says Arthur, who reported that Leonard – as much as he pleads ignorance to all this – was in the room when Robertson asked the Raptors for an ownership stake in the Toronto Maple Leafs and at least $10m per year in no-show sponsorship deals in 2019. “So, perfect heist-type stuff from Kawhi.”
Despite being one of the greatest players of his generation, the 35-year-old has burned bridges on his way out of every franchise he’s played for. Spurs fans are still upset by the way his injury was handled in 2017-18, while Clippers fans are distraught about being left holding the bag without even a genuine apology from Leonard. But Raptors fans have much more complicated feelings towards the seven-time All-Star – arguably the best player in franchise history.
On the one hand, “There was a sense of defiance, especially the first year after Kawhi left [when the Raptors lost to the Boston Celtics in Game 7 of the Eastern Conference semi-finals] ... and there was a great deal of pride that went into that,” says William Lou, the host and creator of the Hello and Welcomepodcast. But as time went on, “The Clippers were humbled in a basketball sense. They never could get that version of Kawhi … that Toronto got in their one year, and so it’s hard to be too mad.”
Arthur says Raptors fans will always associate Leonard with the championship win. “I think the bottom line isn’t necessarily about a lack of moral reckoning by Raptors fans as much as: this guy’s so good that you forgive him, right?” says Arthur. “The [championship] was the greatest moment in franchise history by galaxies. Two and a half million people on the streets of Toronto for the parade. That was one of the best days Toronto’s ever had.”
The sentiment was seemingly shared by the organization. Despite being frustrated by the way his previous free agency unfolded, the Raptors front office couldn’t pass up the opportunity to grab the lifeline Leonard represented – even in his mid 30s. The Raptors have failed to win a playoff series since 2020, a stretch that includes three grim seasons of 30 wins or fewer. Last season, the franchise pulled itself out of the dregs of the league thanks to a star leap from 25-year-old Scottie Barnes and a handful of smart trades and draft picks, but the Raptors looked like a relatively expensive, middle-of-the-pack team with a difficult path towards contention until Leonard not only became available, but pushed his way towards Toronto.
“This city took a liking to my family, and I took a liking to this city,” Leonard said in the team-owned documentary series Open Gym after the Raptors traded Brandon Ingram, Gradey Dick, two first-round picks, two second-round picks and a pick-swap for him in mid-September. “Hopefully they embrace me back and [I] give them my all again, and we can make something special happen once again.”
Although there were extenuating circumstances leading to Leonard’s return – he and the Clippers are under investigation by the Justice Department – it is meaningful that he chose the Raptors over big-market championship contenders like Miami, Minnesota, and Detroit. It’s also important that he proclaimed his desire to retire a Raptor before signing a two-year, $115m extension with the franchise. “He deserves to have his jersey retired somewhere,” says Lou. “But due to the circumstances of his career, he kind of was a player without a home.”
Leonard now has a chance to rewrite his complicated legacy with a familiar franchise. Leading the Raptors back to anywhere near the promised land would ensure him a jersey retirement ceremony, a first-ballot Hall of Fame induction, and Canadian sports immortality.
The Raptors, meanwhile, aren’t just getting an upgrade at the wing position; they are getting an all-time great coming off one of the best seasons of his career – an American superstar who experienced all the small cultural discomforts of playing in Toronto and still had such positive memories of the fans, organization, and city that he chose to return to.
“It’s a little surreal having this guy who leaves after a championship, and you think the story’s done there, and then he becomes the biggest scandal in the NBA, and then somehow forces his way to the Raptors,” says diehard Raptors fan Imman Adan. “But I definitely think him coming back cements Toronto’s legacy.”
It’s complicated, of course. It always will be so long as the Raptors are the lone NBA franchise outside of the United States. But no matter how Leonard’s second tenure in Toronto plays out, his return is a stamp of approval – one that many Raptors fans have been waiting for since the franchise began.
SAN FRANCISCO – The worst of all fears for the Warriors and their fans flashed before their eyes Sunday afternoon during an open practice at Chase Center.
Everything seemed normal as Curry was dribbling up the court, darting from the left wing to the right wing. But when he stopped to pivot, he suddenly froze, took two more dribbles and tossed the ball behind him as he left the court favoring his right leg. The immediate concern was that this could be a reoccurrence of the runner’s knee diagnosis that sidelined him for nine weeks last season.
That is not the case, according to the Warriors, who say Curry tweaked his right ankle.
“He said he’s fine,” coach Steve Kerr said, unusually tersely, nearly an hour later.
How sad is it, though, that Curry tweaking an ankle allows the Warriors and their fans to breathe easier? That it could have been worse?
“Always, always,” Kerr said when asked if his heart skipped a beat when Curry limped into the locker room.
“But he’s fine. I went and talked to him after he went downstairs, and I went in the training room. He’s doing fine.”
If Curry is indeed “fine,” the Warriors and their fans can restore their most optimistic hopes for successful start to the regular season that begins Wednesday night against the Lakers in Los Angeles.
Yet the momentary scare on Sunday is an overt reminder of Golden State’s fragility as it prepares for the next 82 games. Neither Jimmy Butler III nor Moses Moody is expected to be available before 2027. The availability of Kristaps Porziņģis, who missed training camp and all six preseason games, is an ongoing mystery. Butler and Porziņģis represent 40 percent of the projected starting lineup, and Moody started 49 of the 60 games he played last season.
Age is an obvious issue for these Warriors, but it’s only one factor within the overall health that can dictate how high they can fly. Most NBA observers see their roster and immediately dismiss them as non-contender.
“We don’t really pay attention on that much on this,” Gui Santos said. “It doesn’t matter a lot what the big noise or what they say about us because at the end of the day, what really matters is what we show on the court. if we have, like they say, ‘the old guys,’ but it’s Steph . . . Steph can go there and drop 30 every night. And Dray (Draymond Green) is one of the best passers and the best defender of the league.
“We still have those guys with us.”
When everyone is healthy, the Warriors have a roster that can beat any team in the league. On paper, general manager Mike Dunleavy has done a commendable job of integrating accomplished veterans with intriguing youngsters. In reality, Golden State will enter the season with the most injury-weakened starting lineup in the league.
The plan is for the available veterans like Green (36), Al Horford (40), Gary Payton II (33) and Georges Niang (33) and – hopefully Curry (38) — to stay upright and prop up youngsters like Santos (24), Brandin Podziemski (23) and rookie Yaxel Lendeborg (24).
No one is more essential than Curry to ensuring Golden State will have a fighting chance against all opponents. His presence still scares the rest of the NBA.
On Sunday, seeing him come to a halt and limp off the court put a scare into the Warriors and their fans, who understand how they’d look without him.
Timberwolves have won three of six games in pre-season [Getty Images]
With eight different teams the winners over the past eight seasons, it is hard to predict who takes home the NBA's Larry O'Brien Trophy in June.
If there is to be a ninth different name in as many seasons, you might look to San Antonio Spurs, with Victor Wembanyama leading the team to the Finals last season before coming unstuck against the New York Knicks.
Maybe the Philadelphia 76ers off-season moves to acquire Jaylen Brown and sign the NBA's all-time leading scorer LeBron James is an attractive pick, or perhaps the Cleveland Cavaliers.
As the season tips off, the first British-born coach in the NBA, Tim Lewis will be hoping he can assist Anthony Edwards and the Minnesota Timberwolves to their first NBA title.
Lewis has been something of a journeyman in basketball.
Born in Saint Asaph, Wales, he went on to represent the country in the 1990s, before forging a coaching career that spans almost the entire globe.
He has coached the Thailand and Qatar national teams and had spells in Germany, Belgium, Canada, the United States of America and Panama. He most recently worked in Japan as head coach of Eneos Sunflowers who he helped to the Empress Cup in January.
That is not including more than 15 years of coaching England and Great Britain age groups, where he was an assistant to now Minnesota Timberwolves head coach Chris Finch at the London 2012 Olympics.
Lewis was one of the Team GB assistant coaches, alongside Philadelphia 76ers head coach, Nick Nurse.
But Lewis and American Finch's friendship began way before that.
"We played against each other when I was back at [Crystal] Palace and Chris was at Sheffield [Sharks], he said.
"I've had stops with Chris when he was in Belgium and then before the Olympics, I spent six months at Houston with him.
"We've become close, it's almost like brothers. We've known each other 25 years and it's a strong bond."
After a previous brief spell with Minnesota, Lewis left to continue to be a head coach in Japan for three years, but Finch was persistent.
"For the last year and a half, Chris has knocked on the door and said, 'come back, come back'.
"Eventually I gave in this summer again and gone back for a more influential role, with more of an input and impact on things with stuff that's going on and I'm excited."
Minnesota Timberwolves head coach Chris Finch lead Team GB at the London 2012 Olympics where Lewis was an assistant coach [Getty Images]
Lewis had a spell as a replacement coach with Minnesota's G League team, the Iowa Wolves during Covid, before joining the staff the following season with a responsibility for post-game analysis.
"I would just go through all our game plans," he told BBC Sport Wales.
"I had a little bit of player development, but it was time consuming, nobody had done it before.
"Teams do the analysis pre-game of what we're going to do and how we're going to do it with plans, but not post-game.
"I'm not sure how many of the other staff appreciated me critiquing what was going on, but that was my role, and it stayed in place."
As Lewis returns to Minnesota, his role has expanded.
"Pablo [Prigioni] is going to take the lead on the offence and my role will be to help create some of these game plans offensively," he said.
"It's a full assistant's role with responsibility for offensive game planning.
"I look at what the other team are doing defensively and what can we do to maximise our ability to beat them offensively.
"On top of that, some player development with a couple of the young bigs."
A new-look backcourt pairing
Anthony Edwards and LaMelo Ball were the 1st and 3rd picks in the 2020 NBA draft [Getty Images]
In July, Minnesota acquired Josh Green and LaMelo Ball as part of a four-team trade.
Ball scored with 272 three-point shots in the 2025-26 season, the second most of any player in the NBA.
His partnership with Anthony Edwards in the backcourt appears to be an offensive coach's dream.
"Anthony and LaMelo and those guys are going to be exciting to watch," said Lewis.
"With LaMelo, you've got somebody that can now throw the lob and Rudy becomes a bit more of a rim threat, which we haven't necessarily had.
"It takes the pressure off Anthony.
"Teams will find it harder to double-team him when you've got people like LaMelo on the floor with him."
Lewis says Edwards is "easy to coach".
"I don't know whether or not Anthony wants the burden of being the next face of the NBA, who knows?
"He is an immense talent, very responsive, a great kid overall and he's a great person, very coachable and wants to get better."
An NBA title?
Minnesota's NBA title hopes were ended 4-2 by San Antonio in the Western Conference semi-finals in 2026 [Getty Images]
It will be a daunting start for the Timberwolves this season, with Giannis Antentokounmpo and Miami Heat first up but Lewis says the team are ready for the challenge.
"We come out of the gate hard, Miami, Orlando, and then Toronto," he said.
"They've all got three bruising power forwards, which is one area where we're a bit light.
"Everybody's worried we don't have size at the four, but Chris [Finch] will figure out how that looks.
"One of the things Minnesota's going to be lucky to do is be able to play different ways and the team's going to be exciting to watch."
The ambition is clear for Minnesota and Lewis, the NBA title is the ultimate goal for 2027.
"We want to make the play-offs and get to the championship games, everybody wants to win a championship, but you've got 29 other teams that are trying to do the same thing," said Lewis.
"Fifty-plus wins a season is what you want, that puts you in a great position to make the play-offs and to be a contender for that first seed.
"You don't ever want to jinx it but everybody's saying this team has an opportunity to go a long way this year, but you never know, we've been close every year.
"Teams are going to have to adjust to the way Minnesota plays and the personnel we have."
In terms of his own predictions for the season, Lewis offered a few suggestions for potential Larry O'Brien trophy winners.
"It's one of the things about the NBA at the moment, it's somewhat unpredictable," he said.
"Teams that maybe surge in the regular season but aren't built to compete in the playoffs.
"San Antonio could be that team, Minnesota could be that team.
"We've had Denver's number now for a number of years, other than the year they won it [2023].
"Who knows what Philly's going to do with the additions they've made."
Lewis says an NBA title would mean "so much" to Minneapolis.
The franchise formed in 1989 as an expansion team, with the supporters patiently waiting to make it to the NBA Finals.
"Minnesota fans are unbelievable," he said.
"It goes way back to Minneapolis Lakers [1947-1960] that are now the Los Angeles Lakers, who did win a championship.
"As an organisation, being able to win in that environment against a bigger market team is always a huge success.
"It's more for the city, it would be an amazing accomplishment."
Cason Wallace is about to take on a much larger role with the Oklahoma City Thunder — and the team had to make sure he wasn't going anywhere.
Wallace, 22, and Oklahoma City have agreed to a five-year, $139 million contract extension, a story first reported by ESPN’s Shams Charania.
This is a good number for OKC, locking up a starting guard at an average annual salary of $27.7 million (a number that will look better as the salary cap rises in the coming years). With this move, the Thunder have all their starters — Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Jalen Williams, Chet Holmgren, Isaiah Hartenstein and Wallace — locked in on multi-year deals, and Alex Caruso is signed up for three more seasons off the bench.
Wallace gets some security rather than risking restricted free agency next summer. Wallace brings real value. He was voted Second Team All-Defense last season and shot 35.1% from beyond the arc, which might have tempted teams with cap space to throw a big offer at him and try to poach him from OKC. However, Wallace also watched the Jalen Duren drama with Detroit this summer and likely didn't want to mess around. Wallace gets a generational wealth contract.
The Thunder made a number of cost-cutting moves this summer — trading Lu Dort, Isaiah Joe and Aaron Wiggins — so they could keep their core together. Wallace is now a part of that core.
Former Kentucky Wildcats standout Cason Wallace is staying in Oklahoma City, as Shams Charania reports that Wallace signed a five-year, $139 million rookie-scale contract extension with the Thunder.
Wallace has been a valuable piece for the Thunder since being drafted in the first round in 2023. Last year, coming off the bench for the Thunder, Wallace averaged 8.6 points per game to go along with 3.1 rebounds and 2.6 assists per game.
However, Wallace’s value has consistently been on the defensive side of the ball, where he has averaged almost two steals per game the last two seasons and has been one of OKC’s most reliable perimeter defenders and one of the best perimeter defenders in the league, as evidenced by being named a member of the 2025-26 NBA All-Defensive Second Team.
After some offseason moves, including trading Luguentz Dort to the Atlanta Hawks, Wallace is expected to see an expanded role with the Thunder, and it’s clear from this contract extension that the Thunder see Wallace as a key piece to the team long-term.
Just in: Oklahoma City Thunder All-Defensive guard Cason Wallace has agreed to a five-year, $139 million rookie-scale contract extension, agents Jeff Schwartz, Max Lipsett and Marcus Monk of Excel Sports Management tell ESPN. pic.twitter.com/vCNVSJjp0q
A false alarm was rang during the Golden State Warriors’ open practice on Sunday.
The hearts of everyone gathered in the Chase Center sank when Steph Curry was seen limping off the court and into the locker room.
According to Nick Freidell of The Athletic, head coach Steve Kerr said that Curry left practice early because of an ankle injury.
Steve Kerr expects Steph Curry to be okay. IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect
Freidell reported that Kerr spoke with Curry “in the training room, and he’s fine.”
As of now, nothing is imminent on how Curry is feeling, but Anthony Slater of ESPN reported a team source told him his ankle injury is not considered serious.
Steph Curry leaves Warriors practice early due to an ankle injury. AP Photo/Jeff Chiu
Curry, 38, was limited to only 43 games last season after spending the second half of the season due to a runner’s knee injury.
When he was healthy last season, Curry averaged 26.6 points, while having a 46.8 shooting percentage from the field and 39.3% from downtown.
He was also averaging 3.6 rebounds, 4.7 assists, and 1.1 steals per game with 30.9 minutes per game.
When Curry wasn’t on the court, Golden State went 13-26. When he was playing, the Warriors were 24-19.
Steph Curry exits practice early due to an ankle injury on Sunday. AP Photo/Jeff Chiu
Staying healthy will be key for the Warriors this season, as the team will already begin the season dealing with injuries, as they will be without Kristaps Porzingis and Jimmy Butler.
Last Wednesday, Porzingis made an announcement on X that he will be out indefinitely, as he and his doctors are working on finding a way for him to be his old self again.
Curry is set to kick off his 18th season in the league this week when the Warriors open their season on the road against the Lakers on Wednesday night.
I’m old enough to remember when Oso Ighodaro wasn’t good enough to get minutes on a team that got their coach fired. | Photo by Brian Sevald/NBAE via Getty Images
With the start of the 2026-27 NBA season right around the corner — NBC has a tripleheader on Tuesday! — it’s the time of the year where teams start nailing down the details of contract extensions as deadlines to file rapidly approach. That has benefited a former Marquette Golden Eagle, as Oso Ighodaro has agreed to terms on a three year extension with the Phoenix Suns, according to ESPN’s Shams Charania.
The Suns are picking up Ighodaro's $2.5M team option for 2027-28, so the extension starts in 2028 and runs through 2031 for the franchise's second-round find who has established into a reliable center. https://t.co/wPhFMCxiZm
When Ighodaro was drafted #40 overall in 2024, he signed a deal for three years with a team option for a fourth. The 2026-27 season is the third and final full year of the deal, which the Suns guaranteed for the former Marquette center back in June. Part of the process of agreeing to this extension is Phoenix already picking up the option for the 2027-28 season and thus guaranteeing Ighodaro his nearly $2.5 million salary for that season.
The three year extension then kicks in after that, guaranteeing Ighodaro a paycheck through the end of the 2030-31 season. Spotrac’s breakdown of the deal has him making just under $9 million in 2028-29, $9.7 million in Year Two, and then $10.3 million in Year 3. Oso Ighodaro is a $10 million a year player in the NBA, what a time to be alive.
Ighodaro played in 61 games as a rookie for the Suns, starting six times and averaging 4.2 points, 3.6 rebounds, and just over an assist per game in 17 minutes a night. Last season, he played in all 82 games, getting 24 starts for Phoenix. He averaged 6.5 points, 5.1 rebounds, and 2.3 assists in 22 minutes per game overall, but as a starter, that was up to 8.0 points, 6.3 rebounds, and 3.1 assists in nearly 27 minutes per game. Ighodaro started all four games of Phoenix’s first round playoff series against the Oklahoma City Thunder last spring, putting up 7.5 points, 7.0 rebounds, and 4.0 assists in more than 32 minutes. That’s, uh, not too shabby for a former second round pick, so you can see why the team is enthused about locking him up on a deal that’s worth roughly 5% of the salary cap through 2031.
Phoenix opens their season on Wednesday, October 21st, with a road game against the Portland Trail Blazers.
That noise you hear is a huge sigh of relief coming out of the Bay Area.
Warriors fans' hearts were in their throats on Sunday when Curry limped off the court at an open practice, as Dalton Johnson of NBC Sports Bay Area recorded.
Steph Curry limps off the court at open practice and he just went back to the locker room @NBCSWarriors
Curry limped straight back to the locker room, and there were concerns he had done something to his knee.
However, after practice, coach Steve Kerr told reporters that the 12-time All-Star just tweaked his ankle. Kerr downplayed what happened, saying, "He's fine."
The Warriors open the season on Wednesday night in Los Angeles against the new-look Lakers.
The Warriors will take the court for that game already missing key players, with Jimmy Butler (ACL) and Moses Moody (left patellar tendon) both expected to return midseason. Center Kristaps Porzingis remains away from the team with an undisclosed medical issue but says he is improving and working toward a return.
Even when those players return, the Warriors are built around Stephen Curry, both his scoring and the gravity he provides, which creates spacing and opportunities for others. Kerr already said this week that they need to rest the 38-year-old Hall of Famer in some situations, particularly back-to-backs.
"But to be really frank, every year we run into this (situation) where, if we have a bunch of games stacked together..." Kerr told reporters, via Nick Friedell at The Athletic. "So, I would just come out and tell the fans out there to be mindful when you're buying the tickets, of the schedule. Take a look. Because we've got not just Steph but multiple vets we are going to try and manage, because it's the only way we can do this."
SACRAMENTO, CA - OCTOBER 5: Jake LaRavia #12 and Sandro Mamukelashvili #54 of the Los Angeles Lakers look on during the game against the Sacramento Kings during a 2026 NBA Preseason game on October 5, 2026 at Golden 1 Center in Sacramento, California. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2026 NBAE (Photo by Rocky Widner/NBAE via Getty Images) | NBAE via Getty Images
An exciting new era of Lakers basketball kicked off this preseason with lots of excitement and intrigue.
While we only briefly got a look at the new Big 3 that will guide the team into the future, there were plenty of other players fans got a long look at, for better and for worse.
Let’s dive into some of the preseason winners and losers for the purple and gold.
Winner — Sandro Mamukelashvili
Lakers fans didn’t have to wait long to find their new fan favorite. As a jack-of-all-trades type of player, Mamu found many ways to make an impression.
Some nights, it was knocking down a barrage of threes. Other nights, it was an unexpected reverse dunk. But most often, it was each of those things and more throughout the game.
Pretty quickly, Mamu established himself as someone who is going to be able to come in and change games with his energy and his versatility, all while getting the fans into the game as well.
Loser — Jarred Vanderbilt
A byproduct of the Lakers bringing in multiple new wings this offseason is that Vando became a lot less valuable in that sense. And with head coach JJ Redick already showing his hand in being willing to sit Vando even when there was more of a need for him, it probably shouldn’t have been a shock to see how little he was used in the preseason.
Even with the team shuffling through players and lineups because of injuries and rest, it was not an uncommon occurrence for Vando to have to wait until the fourth quarter to get his first minutes.
He can still bring value to the team as a chemistry and locker room guy as everyone on the team seems to like him. But he’s very far down the pecking order when it comes to actually getting on the court.
Winner — Ziaire Williams
From effectively the first preseason practice on, Williams was mentioned as a standout player. Despite missing time with an injury, Williams seems to be an odds-on favorite for the starting lineup to open the season.
Considering he was waived by the Nets and came to LA on a minimum deal, it’s already a strong start to the season. The goal now is to make that a springboard to a better campaign and not the high point.
Loser — Jaden Hardy and Dalton Knecht
Coming into training camp, there was supposed to be a battle for the final roster spot and most circled Hardy and Knecht as the guys likely duking it out.
Somehow, both lost.
Based on preseason playing time, Knecht seems likely to lose that battle. But Hardy did not paint himself in any sort of glory. The Lakers probably won’t cut both of them, but it wouldn’t be shocking if they did. President of Basketball Operations Rob Pelinka likes to have an open roster spot going into the season and Hardy certainly didn’t do enough to earn a roster spot.
Winner — Jake LaRavia
LaRavia’s campaign was a roller coaster last year. After a fast start, he hit a funk and struggled for most of the rest of the way. By the postseason, he seemed scared to even look at the basket.
But a revamped jumper and a renewed mindset have him in a much better space this preseason. His shot looks unorthodox, but he’s shooting it with confidence and it’s going on. It doesn’t matter how pretty it looks, just whether he hits it regularly.
If he does, then he’s another wing the Lakers can turn to this season.
That’s all well and good. The Sixers won’t be naive to the bumps and battles that come with an NBA season. Youth and internal improvement should matter plenty, though.
Time and again, Maxey’s teammates have echoed his mantra of “One percent better every day” in press conferences over the past several weeks. It’s a solid default to any sort of team-building question and words are words. Still, it makes plenty of sense for this Sixers squad to be focused on steady growth.
While James, Brown and the other pickups from the Sixers’ very eventful summer are far from strangers, so much newness always presents major challenges. The awkward turnovers and miscommunications won’t stop just because the preseason is over. As James highlighted at media day, patience and day-after-day dedication will be required.
“Look at the team I have around me,” Edgecombe said with a laugh on Sept. 29. “There’s no pressure on me at all. I’m just going to go out there and be myself. Once I’m out there being myself, playing with joy, I think we’ll be good.”
James certainly does not view Edgecombe as an immature youngster.
“He’s just not quiet,” the four-time MVP said on Oct. 3 after the Sixers’ Blue-White scrimmage. “And I’m saying that in a good way. If there’s things that happen on the floor, if there’s things that he sees, if there’s things that we see, we just automatically figure it out right there. … He’s a very cerebral player and he’s always looking for ways to get better on the floor, even at his young age.
“It definitely feels like he’s much older. It definitely feels like he’s not in Year 2. … We have a lot of guys that have been around the block, a lot of guys that have a voice, and a lot of guys that want to get better every day and hold each other accountable. It’s great to see.”
The Sixers will rely on Edgecombe to keep developing defensively, sink open three-pointers, and trust his instincts as the kid in the starting lineup.
He has an abundance of star ingredients.
“VJ’s gotten better every single day,” Maxey said Thursday. “He grows as a player every single day. His mind grows, his athleticism grows. He was dunking last year, but he wasn’t dunking like this. You can tell he got a little bit stronger, a little bit more confident. I’m excited to step on the court and compete with him.”
After averaging career highs last year in points (28.3 per game), assists (6.6), rebounds (4.1) and steals (1.9), what’s on his agenda this season?
“I’m at the point now where I’ve showed what I can do talent-wise, I think,” Maxey said following Day 2 of training camp. “Of course I’m going to get to better, but I want to be judged by winning. If we win, that’s what I want to be judged by. That’s really my main mindset, my whole goal, is finding ways to win.
“And because I’ve played so many different roles, I’m capable of doing so many different things. I think that’s going to be a positive for myself and for this team. I can play on the ball, I can play off the ball, I can play in transition, I can catch and shoot, I can play off pin-downs, I can play in pick-and-roll. I’m going to play however they need me to play.”
Shifting to the bench, the notable young names include 23-year-old backup center Adem Bona and rookie guard Labaron Philon Jr.
However, a world in which Philon eventually seizes a meaningful rotation spot isn’t outlandish to imagine. Sixers head coach Nick Nurse said at training camp that he was “super impressed with his vision and his passing and his offensive creation.”
Philon played 24.3 minutes per game in his first preseason and averaged 9.3 points and 4.5 assists. He’s been curious about all his veteran teammates have to offer, asking questions on topics ranging from Brown’s secrets to making tightly contested shots to Edgecombe’s process for building a personal routine in the NBA.
Philon has maintained a deep belief in his own game, too.
“I would say I’ve always been a great passer,” he said on Oct. 2. “Having the right guys, the right plays and the right mindset. First, you have to be unselfish. Second, you’ve got to have guys that want to move on the floor. And then third, it just comes down to making the best decision. For me, the best decision is making the easiest play.
“Right now I don’t really need any showtime or any flashy plays. The position that I’m in right now, making the right play every time will be great for me. And I’ve been doing it. So just seeing that (in training camp) has been good.”
The Sixers will happily take right play after right play this season.
The hunch here is that the youngsters will make many of them.
