One of the biggest X-factors for the Boston Celtics in the upcoming 2026-27 NBA season will be Paul George.
The veteran forward was acquired by the Celtics as part of the controversial Jaylen Brown trade with the Philadelphia 76ers back in July.
George is older and not as talented as Brown, but he should still be a productive player for the C’s.
In the latest episode of team-produced show Beneath the Banners, Celtics president of basketball operations Brad Stevens explained why he thinks George will be a good fit in Boston.
“Paul’s a really good player,” Stevens said. “He’s been a really good player for a long time. He’s one of the more impactful players with regard to winning, even as he’s aged in the NBA. We just think he’s a good fit for how we play, and I think the other part about Paul is he’s very smart.
“He has a good feel for the game; he’s got a good savvy to him about the game, and I think that fits in with the rest of our lineup.”
George averaged 17.3 points, 5.3 rebounds and 3.6 assists per game for the Sixers last season, while shooting 39.2 percent from the 3-point line. He also impressed in the 2026 playoffs, especially in the seven-game series against the Celtics. George averaged 17.4 points per game and shot 55 percent on 3-pointers versus the C’s.
The concern with George is availability. He has battled injuries throughout his career. He played in just 37 games last season (also served a 25-game suspension) and 41 games in 2024-25. George has played 60-plus games in a season only once (2023-24) since 2019.
But if healthy, George can absolutely be a difference maker for the Celtics.
He’s still a good outside shooter, he’s still a quality perimeter defender. He’s a smart player, he can play/defend multiple positions, and he brings tons of experience. George isn’t an All-NBA caliber player at this stage of his career, but his impact on winning can still be pretty high.
And he sounds pretty excited to get going with his new teammates.
“It’s surreal,” George said on the latest Beneath the Banners episode. “I’m ecstatic. I’m looking forward to the journey. I’m looking forward to wearing that green and representing for Boston.”
Well, you can't say New Orleans did absolutely nothing this offseason.
The Pelicans are signing 6'8" power forward Trendon Watford to a one-year, $2.9 million minimum contract, reports ESPN’s Shams Charania. This will be the former LSU star's sixth NBA season, bringing the Pelicans roster to a full 15 contracts.
Watford was at the end of the rotation in Philadelphia last season, getting into 53 games and averaging 6.5 points and 3.3 rebounds per night when he did. He's not a floor spacer, taking nearly three-quarters of his shots last season within 10 feet of the rim (but being pretty efficient on those). Watford reportedly was in talks to play next season in Spain before the Pelicans' opportunity arrived.
Watford will struggle for minutes if the Pelicans are healthy, playing behind Zion Williamson and Derik Queen, but if either player misses time, Watford becomes a veteran reserve off the bench. Also, if the Pelicans make trades during the season — teams are still calling about Trey Murphy III — his role could expand as well.
Watford is the biggest signing this offseason for New Orleans, which says something about how quiet their offseason has been. The Pelicans hired a new coach in Jamahl Mosley, who should help the defense — just as he did in Orlando — but the Pelicans are essentially running it back with a 26-win team from a year ago that did not tank (they didn't control their own draft pick) and was largely healthy. This team looks better on paper than on the court the past couple of seasons, can a new coach change that?
SAN ANTONIO, TX - JUNE 13: De'Aaron Fox #4 of the San Antonio Spurs shoots a three point basket during the game against the New York Knicks during Game Five of the 2026 NBA Finals on June 13, 2026 at Frost Bank Center in San Antonio, Texas. 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 Jesse D. Garrabrant /NBAE via Getty Images) | NBAE via Getty Images
Welcome to Pounding the Rock’s 2025-26 player reviews! The series will look at the players who finished the season with the San Antonio Spurs on guaranteed contracts and who played consequential minutes and/or a vital role (so no two-way players because we hardly saw them this year, no players who were traded away, and none of the deep bench centers, since they were both irrelevant and are now all gone).
Contract Status: 4 years, $221.7 million remaining
Age: 28
What goes into a grade? With 82 games and four playoff series, there is so much time to reflect on. Summarizing it all with an overarching grade is a unique task. And yet, so far, it’s been largely easy to assign a letter to most of the Spurs. Grading De’Aaron Fox is not so easy.
Fox made one of San Antonio’s most famous mistakes of the season. Getting blocked by OG Anunoby with seconds left in Game Four of the NBA Finals will haunt him and the Spurs for quite some time. After being pretty good in the first two playoff series, an ankle injury held him back from being as effective in the Western Conference Finals and Finals. And yet, Fox was an All-Star this season, and without him, the Spurs don’t reach the highest highs of their season.
Fox did two things extremely well this year: lift the team when Victor Wembanyama sits (a very important job for a team with a superstar with some delicate health issues), and steady the ship when things got tough in the postseason. Fox averaged 24.6 points, 6.2 assists and 4.4 rebounds in the 18 games Wembanyama missed this season. With a mostly inexperienced roster, Fox kept the team afloat while guards like Stephon Castle and Dylan Harper could not yet handle a primary ball-handler role (Castle had a major turnover problem when Fox was not in the lineup).
Still, it’s hard not to feel like Fox left a bit on the table this season. San Antonio’s offense, while effective (4th in offensive rating), never seemed to click. Fox was left playing off the ball due to Castle and Harper’s lack of three-point shooting. That meant less of Fox running the pick-and-roll where he was most effective, and a lot of him spotting catch-and-shoot threes, where he hit only 33.2% of his deep shots.
Despite the disappointing end to the season (which was almost certainly affected by injury), Fox was one of the Spurs’ best players all season long. He was a steady, veteran performer who lifted his teammates and took over when he needed to. It was actually kind of the exact type of season you’re looking for from your starting point guard (minus the Finals blunders).
So a grade here is tough, because there are large, glaring negatives to take away from this season. But I am, admittedly, a basketball optimist. For every Fox mistake late in the season, I can think of 5 moments where he came up with a clutch basket, or settled the team after a wild run. So he gets a passing grade, but is certainly one of the Spurs with the biggest microscope on him entering the 2026-27 season.
Looking ahead
Fox’s max contract extension kicks in this year. With that comes even more scrutiny for the veteran, especially coming off his NBA Finals performance. For the first time since he’s been a Spur, it seems like Fox will be fully healthy coming into the season. His ankle is healed up, and there has been no word of other lower body injuries cropping up. A fully rested and motivated Fox could be a dangerous player coming into the year.
It would be great to see Mitch Johnson lean into the Fox-Wembanyama pick-and-roll that was so deadly last season. Castle and Harper have improved as off-ball shooters, and are good enough cutters to make defenses pay for losing them in the half-court. Overall, it’s on Johnson to find a way to play Fox and the other three guards. It’s an offensive scheme that the team needs to figure out to ascend to another level.
San Antonio’s personnel actually should fit Fox a bit better this season, too. A potential lineup of Fox, Devin Vassell, Julian Champagnie, Tobias Harris and Wembanyama could be an interesting mix of shooting, playmaking and finishing that would allow Fox to play a more central ball-handling and playmaking role. If Carter Bryant becomes a better shooter, he could be an interesting player next to Fox who could space the floor on the wing and run out in transition with the point guard.
I am bullish on a bounce-back year for Fox next season on the court. San Antonio needs that to recoup his value. With Harper nipping at his heels, Fox’s time as the starting point guard seems to be dwindling. It is going to be very hard for the Spurs to field a competitive team when they need to hand out max contracts to Castle and Harper, alongside Wembanyama and Fox’s contracts. Right now, it’s easy to point to Fox as the odd man out of that core.
But what realistically could the Spurs get in a trade for Fox at this point? Are teams clamoring to acquire a 28-year-old point guard coming off of his worst playoff series, and starting a contract many have labeled one of the worst in the league? San Antonio needs Fox to play well, not only to help the team this year, but to make him moveable down the road once they need to clear space to build a competitor around Wembanyama, Harper, and Castle.
That is likely not a problem for this season, or maybe even next offseason. But it is something that will be on Spurs fans’ minds, and maybe even Fox and Harper’s as they compete for playing time moving forward. In an ideal world, that drives Fox to play to the level of his contract. In a world where things go wrong for the Spurs, it kills chemistry and a move needs to be made. Which direction things start to go is going to be one of the biggest storylines for the Spurs next season.
PHILADELPHIA, PA - MARCH 15: Trendon Watford #12 of the Philadelphia 76ers dribbles the ball during the game against the Portland Trail Blazers on March 15, 2026 at the Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 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 Jesse D. Garrabrant/NBAE via Getty Images) | NBAE via Getty Images
The final 2026 Sixers free agent has found a home.
ESPN’s Shams Charania has reported that Trendon Watford has signed a one-year, $2.9 million dollar deal with the New Orleans Pelicans.
Free agent F Trendon Watford has agreed to a one-year, $2.9 million deal with the New Orleans Pelicans, sources tell ESPN. Watford considered multiple options but for New Orleans serves as a productive two-way get late into the offseason after a year in Philadelphia where he… pic.twitter.com/F8ecDrfLei
In his lone season with the Sixers, Watford averaged 16.3 minutes across his 53 appearances while struggling with soft tissue injures. A strained hamstring made him miss the start of the season and an adductor strain cost him a healthy chunk of the middle of the season.
Watford put up 6.5 points per game along with 3,3 rebounds and 2.5 assists as a Sixer. As a starter he dropped a triple-double early in the season and was very popular in the locker room as a close friend of Tyrese Maxey.
PHILADELPHIA, PENNSYLVANIA - MAY 10: Mikal Bridges #25 of the New York Knicks and Joel Embiid #21 of the Philadelphia 76ers wrestle for a loose ball during the second quarter in Game Four of the Second Round of the NBA Eastern Conference Playoffs at Xfinity Mobile Arena on May 10, 2026 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. 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. (Photo by Emilee Chinn/Getty Images) | Getty Images
The New York Knicks’ full 2026 preseason schedule has emerged after X account New York Basketball (kudos!) put together other franchises’games, giving us our first look at the reigning champs’ five-game tune-up before the start of their title defense.
The complete slate will run from Oct. 5 through Oct. 15 and feature four different opponents, three games at Madison Square Garden, and two on the road — one of them not in the USA of A.
New York will open preseason play Monday, Oct. 5, with a trip to Philadelphia (of course) before returning home for games against two very exciting and promising teams in Washington and Minnesota. The Knicks will then finish with a home-and-home against Toronto on Oct. 13 and 15.
The final matchup was initially listed by the Raptors with a 7 p.m. ET tipoff, but NBA New York subsequently clarified that the Oct. 15 game at MSG will begin at 7:30 p.m., as corrected by the Knicks.
Philadelphia 76ers: The preseason opener might also feature the most intriguing opponent on the schedule, although we all know there won’t be any NYK vs. LBJ on Oct. 5, right? Philadelphia added LeBron James and Jaylen Brown during the offseason, putting them alongside Tyrese Maxey, VJ Edgecombe and perennially hurt Joel Embiid. On paper, that makes the Sixers quite the first test—even if maybe none of those five play.
Washington Wizards: New York gets its first preseason appearance at Madison Square Garden against Washington on Oct. 8. The Wizards have only lost D’Angelo Russell (if you still cared about him) while adding Deandre Ayton, Khris Middleton, and mostly AJ Dybantsa to their squad. Ever-hated Trae Young is still around, and the Wiz Kiz are my underdog to make the ECF, so I’m highly intrigued!
Minnesota Timberwolves: Minnesota visits MSG on Oct. 12, providing another meeting between two teams that went deep into last season’s playoffs. For the Knicks, it will also be their final preseason game before playing on consecutive nights north of the border. Will we get at least a glimpse of the new LaMelo Ball-Anthony Edwards backcourt? We hope!
Toronto Raptors (x2): We don’t know which sort of team the Knicks will face here. Will Kawhi Leonard play? Will he even be a member of the Raptors by the time we get to this game? Will RJ Barrett and Immanuel Quickley face their former team? Will Brandon Ingram or won’t he? Too many questions for which only Pablo Torre has the answers.
Knicks’ 2026 Full Preseason Schedule
Oct. 5 — at 76ers — 7 p.m. ET Oct. 8 — vs. Wizards — 7:30 p.m. ET Oct. 12 — vs. Timberwolves — 7:30 p.m. ET Oct. 13 — at Raptors — 7 p.m. ET Oct. 15 — vs. Raptors — 7:30 p.m. ET
What do you make of this, if anything at all? Are you already looking forward to anything in particular? Do you expect any spicy matchup to happen during these meaningless, early-to-mid-October games? Let us know in the comments section below!
PHILADELPHIA, PA - MAY 8: Trendon Watford #12 of the Philadelphia 76ers dribbles the ball during the game against the New York Knicks during Round Two Game Three of the 2026 NBA Playoffs on May 8, 2026 at the Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 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 David Dow/NBAE via Getty Images) | NBAE via Getty Images
Free agent forward Trendon Watford has signed a one-year deal with the New Orleans Pelicans worth $2.9 million, per reports.
Free agent F Trendon Watford has agreed to a one-year, $2.9 million deal with the New Orleans Pelicans, sources tell ESPN. Watford considered multiple options but for New Orleans serves as a productive two-way get late into the offseason after a year in Philadelphia where he… pic.twitter.com/F8ecDrfLei
The former LSU Tiger was most recently with the Philadelphia 76ers, after previously spending two seasons with both the Portland Trail Blazers and Brooklyn Nets.
The Birmingham native immediately made an impact at LSU, averaging 13.6 points and 7.2 rebounds per game as a freshman in 2019 and earning SEC All-Freshman Team honors.
As a sophomore, Watford averaged 16.3 points and 7.4 rebounds per game. He scored a career-high 30 points in LSU’s SEC Tournament championship game loss to Alabama and earned First-Team All-SEC honors from the Associated Press and Second-Team honors from the coaches. He declared for the 2021 NBA Draft following the season.
After going undrafted, Watford signed a two-way contract with the Portland Trail Blazers in August 2021, which was converted to a standard contract in February 2022. He scored a career-high 27 points against Washington that March. In the 2022 NBA Summer League, Watford led Portland to the championship with 19 points, seven rebounds, and three steals, earning Championship Game MVP honors and a spot on the All-Summer League Second Team.
In July 2025, Watford joined the 76ers on a two-year contract worth $5.3 million. He recorded the first triple-double of his NBA career on November 8, finishing with 20 points, 17 rebounds, and 10 assists in Philadelphia’s 130-120 win over the Toronto Raptors.
The 25-year-old will now head to New Orleans, where he will look to help the Pelicans turn things around after finishing the 2025-26 season with a 26-56 record, 11th in the Western Conference.
NEW YORK, NEW YORK - JUNE 18: Owner James Dolan looks on during the New York Knicks Championship ticker tape parade and victory rally celebrating winning the 2026 NBA Finals on June 18, 2026 in New York City. The New York Knicks defeated the San Antonio Spurs in five games to win their first NBA Championship in 53 years. (Photo by Angelina Katsanis/Getty Images) | Getty Images
For most of their history, the Knicks and Rangers have been cozy bedfellows, with a shared owner, arena, training facility, and the same balance sheet. Now James Dolan is making moves to break them up.
MSG Sports currently expects to complete the spin-off by the end of October 2026. There can be no assurance that the proposed transaction will be completed in the manner described above, or at all. Completion of the transaction remains subject to various conditions, including any required league approval, receipt of a tax opinion from counsel and Company board approval.
MSG Sports first announced in February that it was exploring a separation. The new filing lays out how the businesses would actually be divided, with the company targeting completion by the end of October. If completed, MSG Sports would become MSG Knickerbockers Corp., containing the New York Knicks and Westchester Knicks. A new publicly traded MSG Rangers Corp. would contain the Rangers, Hartford Wolf Pack, and MSG Training Center in Greenburgh.
Dolan is expected to remain executive chairman and CEO of both companies. Existing MSG Sports shareholders would receive proportional shares in the new Rangers company, leaving investors with stakes in two separate businesses instead of one containing both teams. The key difference is that investors could value and invest in the Knicks and Rangers independently. The timing of this is no surprise: the proposed separation comes on the heels of the Knicks winning their first championship in 53 years and producing record business results.
In July, Dolan’s 32-year-old son, Quentin Dolan, stepped into day-to-day operational control of the New York Rangers as the team’s new President, Chief Operating Officer, and Alternate Governor. Under the new hierarchy, Rangers General Manager Chris Drury continues to oversee hockey operations while reporting directly to Quentin, who will also retain his role heading the organization’s sports science and analytics department. The move allows Dolan to step back from hands-on oversight of the Rangers while maintaining direct control over the Knicks, aligning with the corporate effort to divide the two franchises into distinct business entities.
MSG Sports reported $278.7 million in fiscal fourth-quarter revenue, up 37% from a year earlier, and nearly $1.154 billion for the full fiscal year. The Knicks generated approximately $182 million in playoff-related revenue during their championship run, compared with $115.2 million the previous postseason, despite playing nine home playoff games in both years. Average playoff revenue reached a company-record $20.2 million per home game, with record playoff ticket and merchandise sales. Even the MTA got a boost! The Knicks’ historic championship run drove staggering transit surges across their network, setting multi-year post-pandemic ridership records at 34th St–Penn Station and pushing single-day subway travel past 4.3 million trips. Expanded subway and commuter rail services accommodated over one million fans during the June 18 ticker-tape parade.
The $12.5 billion sale of the Lakers last week was just another reminder of how valuable NBA franchises have become. MSG Sports shares have also roughly doubled over the past year. Separating the teams gives the Knicks their own corporate identity and stock price, while investors would no longer have to determine how much of MSG Sports’ value comes from basketball and how much comes from hockey.
As noted above, the MSG Training Center in Greenburgh, which the Knicks and Rangers both use, would belong to MSG Rangers Corp. That doesn’t necessarily mean the Knicks would need a new practice facility; the Rangers company could play landlord while the ‘Bockers continued using it through some sort of agreement. There is a similar arrangement at Madison Square Garden already. MSG Sports owns the teams, while the arena is operated by the separately traded Madison Square Garden Entertainment.
In a nutshell, the split gives investors the ability to evaluate the Knicks as a standalone business right when the ‘Bocker business is booming. If everything goes according to plan, by the end of October the Knicks will have their own, publicly traded corporate home: MSG Knickerbockers Corp. Try putting that on a jersey.
CLEVELAND, OH - APRIL 20: Jarrett Allen #31 and Max Strus #2 of the Cleveland Cavaliers high five during the game against the Toronto Raptors during round one Game two of the 2026 NBA Playoffs on April 20, 2026 at Rocket Arena in Cleveland, Ohio. 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 Jeff Haynes /NBAE via Getty Images) | NBAE via Getty Images
Strus is entering the final year of his current deal with the Cavaliers earning $16.7 million in 2026-27. Strus spent the bulk of this past season on the shelf due to a Jones fracture he suffered before training camp.
Strus suited up for 12 regular season games, including his debut, where he went 7-9 shooting (6-7 from three), ending with 24 points and eight rebounds in 23 minutes.
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With the trade of Schroder on Friday, the Cavaliers were able to shave $6.8 million off their books for next season. Finding a buyer for Strus could require attaching draft capital, given the amount owed to him next season.
While it is a one-year rental, deals like this are harder to accomplish in the NBA’s apron era. Teams are more hesitant to take on any form of sizeable salary as each apron offers less roster flexibility and prevents an ability to be liquid with their current assets.
While Strus is far from a player teams would view solely as a salary hold, the salary size is notable enough to give certain teams pause. Strus is still a very capable scorer in the league and a great locker-room presence. Cleveland would definitely feel the absence of Strus’s presence on and off the court. However, according to Stein, the Cavs are looking to create the flexibility to acquire either Jonathan Kuminga or Peyton Watson.
The active search would imply the Cavaliers are still proceeding with this approach. The question now is how much the Cavaliers will have to attach or take back from a potential trade partner to clear up the necessary space to pursue a starting small forward.
LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA - MAY 11: LeBron James #23 of the Los Angeles Lakers warms up before the game against the Oklahoma City Thunder in Game Four of the Second Round of the NBA Western Conference Playoffs at Crypto.com Arena on May 11, 2026 in Los Angeles, 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 License Agreement. (Photo by Luke Hales/Getty Images) | Getty Images
For the majority of Joel Embiid’s tenure with the Philadelphia 76ers, the power forward spot has, among other factors, served as a nagging hindrance against their title aspirations.
Ben Simmons was averse to embracing the position and its typical physicality-oriented duties. Tobias Harris could not provide ancillary contributions like keen decision-making and defensive versatility while his supposed foremost trait of scoring proved mercurial in the postseason. Paul George’s health woes and on-court inconsistencies often left Philadelphia in a bind; his finest stretch as a Sixer was headlined by malleable defense, silky shot-making and grease-the-wheels passing to upset the second-seeded Boston Celtics in the first round last spring.
Over the past five years, all three players have exited the City of Brotherly Love, two via trade, one via free agency. In their stead is LeBron James, who signed a two-year, $8 million deal with the Sixers after spending his past eight seasons as a member of the Los Angeles Lakers.
Despite nearing his 42nd birthday*, James remains a very good NBA player who can address weak points for the Sixers since they reshaped their roster by swapping George for Jaylen Brown earlier this offseason.
*This will be the one time I acknowledge James’ age when discussing his skill-set. It is incredibly impressive he persists as such an impactful player this deep into his career. But I am projecting how he fits onto a team carrying championship hopes, not simply celebrating the staggering accomplishment. Through that prism, his game must be assessed without any age caveat.
Most prevalently, James seriously invigorates Philadelphia’s passing attack and broadens the possibilities of the playbook offensively. Prior to his signing, a Brown-Embiid-Tyrese Maxey-V.J. Edgecombe quartet was severely lacking in the playmaking department. I worried how that group could decode stingy, ingenious playoff defenses to optimize their individual scoring talents together.
Now, James helps shore up that once-glaring deficiency, even if he’s not the ethereal offensive engine of five years ago, let alone a decade ago. He is still one of the league’s premier facilitators fueled by his size, manipulation, vision, and processing speed. Given the amount of strain Maxey, Brown, Embiid and Edgecombe can impose upon defenses as scoring threats, James should be equipped to capitalize on whatever concessions opponents allow.
At this stage of his career, his passing comfortably transcends his scoring. Conversely, Maxey, Brown, Embiid and Edgecombe are all score-first options who own varying levels of passing limitations. James is perhaps the ideal solvent to unlock them and won’t be asked to fill too large of a scoring role. Theoretically, it’s about as perfect a partnership as he and Philadelphia could’ve found.
Last season, the majority of his half-court work occurred in the post, against switches following a screen he set or operating around the wings with an empty corner alignment. I anticipate much of that deployment translating to Philadelphia since it’s not too dissimilar from how head coach Nick Nurse utilized George.
Where those two veterans differentiate is in the pressure they inflict from the elbows and mid-post. Most of George’s touches there resulted in jumpers, so teams were content to play single coverage against him, narrowing the scope of his scoring gravity.
James, though, brandishes considerably more lower body strength to chisel himself into deep position at or near the rim. George just shoots over the top of defenders — mismatches or otherwise. James bowls through them to finish inside or elicits multiple bodies to table-set cutters, shooters and big men for rhythmic scores.
According to Cleaning the Glass, 40 percent of his shots were at the rim in 2025-26 (77th percentile among forwards) and he converted 75 percent of them (92nd percentile). That’s a stark upgrade from George’s 15 percent frequency (15th percentile among wings) and 55 percent success rate (ninth percentile), which dramatically alters how the Sixers can leverage James as a stationary hub inside the arc.
James’ effective, audacious passing should behoove Maxey, who’s been overextended as an on-ball engine since James Harden’s departure and flourishes as an off-ball scorer. Look at the discrepancy in his efficiency between creation (pick-and-rolls, isolations, post-ups) and spacing play-types (spot-ups, handoffs, off-screens) last season, per databallr:
I’d love to see screen-the-screener actions for Maxey — who’s a contact-oriented screener — in which he primes Embiid for deep catches inside before zipping around a pick himself. Sets like those spotlight two divergent, high-level scorers but have been hard to embed with the lack of creation and ball-handling around Maxey in recent seasons.
The Sixers should also implement Split actions for Maxey with Embiid — who doled out the sturdiest picks of his career last year — as his screener. Heck, they can even tab Brown or Edgecombe to screen for Maxey, as both are capable of vibrantly diving to the rim if defenses swarm Maxey. Split actions were a staple of the Golden State Warriors’ dynastic run and unfold like this:
Maxey isn’t a Stephen Curry or Klay Thompson-level marksman but has drilled 41.9 percent of his career catch-and-shoot triples. Among his shooting credentials, speed and instinctive off-ball movement, he can certainly tilt the defense to let everyone thrive in Split actions, particularly with a decision-maker like James at the helm.
High-low actions between James and Embiid should feature heavily into the chemistry those two aim to establish together. Embiid’s never played alongside a passer of James’ ilk, the closest being James Harden from 2022-24. During that stretch, he averaged 36.0 points per 75 possessions on 65.5 percent true shooting with Harden on the floor, according to databallr. James’ contemporary playmaking panache is built less around pick-and-rolls than Harden’s but could nonetheless be a nightly stream of easy points for Embiid
With James most comfortable at the elbows and in the mid-post, I do wonder how he meshes alongside Brown, who considers those spots his home as well. The Sixers’ offense is better served treating James as their foundational mid-post player yet such a hierarchy may stunt Brown’s impact.
Brown is likely a superior scorer to James but a much lesser passer and a fairly stationary off-ball cog. He does not routinely cut or move and has only made 34.8 percent of his catch-and-shoot long balls the past three seasons.
The degree to which they harmonize could determine Philadelphia’s offensive ceiling and be contingent on how well each performs as spot-up shooters, where they’ve both oscillated over the years. Although, I do think their collective propensity for physicality and paint scoring are major boons to potentially paper over incongruency elsewhere.
Tossing Embiid, a face-up and low-block player, into the mix could further complicate matters, too. But his size, pick-and-roll scoring, midrange touch, dribble handoff talents and advantage passing make me more optimistic about how he’ll fit with James.
While still a useful half-court technician because of his virtuoso playmaking, James is not much of a dribble-drive creator these days. He can burp up unnecessary, ill-advised jumpers and lacks the explosion/ball-handling to punish defenders off the bounce as he did in his heyday. Perimeter creation attempts sometimes grow stagnant or unfruitful and lead to wasted trips down the court.
Yet in the open floor, he is mesmerizing and devastating, seemingly eager to maximize those opportunities and avoid the constraints of the half-court. Per Cleaning the Glass, with James out there, the Lakers’ transition frequency was 2.4 points higher and their transition offensive rating was 1.6 points higher per 100 possessions last season.
Since the Sixers traded away Simmons — they ranked among the top eight in transition rate during three of his four seasons — they’ve dialed down the tempo. They’ve finished 19th or lower three times and never eclipsed the league’s 11th-highest transition frequency over the past five years.
James, Brown, Maxey and Edgecombe are likely to change that; according to Synergy, the initial three were among the top four in transition possessions per game last season while Edgecombe was 48th overall (409 eligible players). All of them can ignite and punctuate fast breaks, especially James. He’s a bullet train with the ball who loves arcing outlet passes for quick buckets.
In semi-transition, inverted actions including James as the ball-handler and Maxey, Brown or Edgecombe as the roller will lather up this offense. James and Austin Reaves wielded these connections to team up for plenty of snappy scores during their years together. His new running mates should do the same.
James’ passing flair ensures he’ll see plenty of time on the ball. But there will also be many stretches when Maxey, Brown and Embiid commandeer possessions. During those periods, James’ feel and athleticism can shine. He and the Sixers would be shrewd to minimize his half-court creation volume — containing most of it to transition chances — and funnel the majority of his field goals in that context to play-finishing responsibilities.
Cuts, drives off the catch, deep seals, off-ball screens into hard dives and on-ball screens into spacious rolls should be the emphasis. Of course, it is unrealistic to fully separate one’s scoring and playmaking usage like this. He will take shots via his elbow/mid-post touches and snug pick-and-rolls. Being diligent about not letting those scenarios overlap too much, though, is imperative for fostering his ideal offensive environment.
Beyond Maxey, the Sixers’ starting five is quite light on shooting. Reserves Anfernee Simons (career 38.1 percent from deep) and Kentavious Caldwell-Pope (36.5 percent) are pivotal in alleviating some of those concerns. Regardless of what those three do, Philadelphia, to reach the lofty offensive heights it seeks, must ply its trade inside and rely heavily on James to do so.
His individual interior exploits have been outlined above. But he is also one of the NBA’s foremost playmakers around the basket — an area Maxey, Philadelphia’s primary playmaker last year, has long struggled — tossing lobs, whizzing feeds to cutters and fitting drop-offs or wraparounds through keyholes.
Note his at-rim assists per 100 possessions from the past four seasons (smaller number is percentile ranking):
Or how much higher the Lakers’ rim frequency was with him on the court each of the last four years, per Cleaning the Glass (a consistent trend throughout his illustrious career):
An interior-inclined offense short on long-range shooting is not a new phenomenon for the Sixers. They’ve been among the top 10 in rim frequency the last three seasons. But they’ve dawdled as a bottom-15 group offensively partly by virtue of never placing higher than 24th in rim efficiency. James (and Brown) should help remedy that.
For as monumental an offensive upgrade James represents over George for Philadelphia, his latest seasons defensively indicate a notable defensive decline from his Sixers predecessor.
James is a fairly inactive defender, content to switch out of most actions and avoid being thrust into screen navigation requirements or on-ball duties. Once a ferocious help-side rim protector, his flame has dimmed. Vigorous rotations at the basket or pick-six steals are highlights rather than an accurate snapshot of his signature off the ball.
Philadelphia will miss George’s point-of-attack aptitude, swirling limbs of chaos and interior imprint. The gulf between his and James’ rim protection over the past three years is vast, per databallr (top is George, bottom is James):
Similarly, the gulf between their playmaking is substantial. Last season, George averaged 2.7 steals (98th percentile) and 6.5 deflections (98th) per 100 possessions. His STOP rate (steals, blocks recovered by the defense, offensive fouls drawn per 100) was 3.5 (94th).
James’ production in those categories? 1.8 (64th percentile), 2.7 (30th) and 2.4 (60th).
Illuminating this reality does not mean the indirect George-for-James swap at the 4 is a negative for Philadelphia. In essence, the Sixers opted for Brown and James over George. That’s an easy decision that makes them much better entering 2026-27, led by the offensive dominion those two acquisitions will instill.
Yet they are demanding lots from Embiid as the lone interior force (commonplace for him, we’ll see what he looks like another year removed from the tumult of 2023-24); hoping for a bounce-back year on the ball for Brown (while still carrying a hefty load offensively, albeit smaller than 2025-26); asking Edgecombe to expand upon the defensive intrigue of last season, and banking on Dean Wade to continue excelling at the point of attack.
None of those are unreasonable expectations. They’re merely many dominoes needed to fall for Philadelphia’s presumably potent offense to be flanked by a serviceable defense in a post-George existence (again, George out, James and Brown in is a smash hit).
More than anything, envisioning what an overhauled roster uniting so much talent and starpower may resemble is a guessing game of the highest order. I have an idea of what James brings and how he fits. I could be off-base in my assessment.
At worst, I know his passing sorcery is an element Brown has never experienced, nor has the All-NBA version of Maxey or the still-very-good-yet-below-MVP-caliber era of Embiid. That should benefit all of them and render the Sixers an improved team in 2026-27. I’m fascinated to watch it shake out.
LAS VEGAS, NEVADA - JULY 10: Jaime Jaquez Jr. (L) and Kel'el Ware of the Milwaukee Bucks pose for photos as they sit courtside in the first half of a 2026 NBA Summer League game between the Bucks and the Miami Heat at the Thomas & Mack Center on July 10, 2026 in Las Vegas, Nevada. 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. (Photo by Ethan Miller/Getty Images) | Getty Images
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.
With the season inching closer and the preseason and regular season schedules released, it’s time to start thinking about the realities of the Milwaukee Bucks’ roster. And while there are moves yet to be made—the Bucks still have 17 rostered players and thus must trim that to 15 to begin the season—what better way to start than by considering, well, who starts?
Over the next week or so, we’ll break down the options at each position—and, of course, seek your insight too. But to set the scene, let’s first consider the Bucks’ (relatively) newly acquired talent, courtesy of Giannis, Bobby Portis, and the Miami Heat: Tyler Herro, Kel’el Ware, Jaime Jaquez Jr., and Kasparas Jakučionis.
We’ve already profiled each of these players individually, detailing Herro’s homecoming, dissecting Jaquez’s old-school game, examining why Ware is primed to break out, and explaining why Jakučionis was a must-have acquisition. But considering their games and whether they start are two very different things.
Thus, we pose the question: how many of these Miami expats should Taylor Jenkins start?
For reference, the Heat went 43-39 last season, finishing 10th in the Eastern Conference standings. During the regular season, only Herro was a near-lock for the starting lineup, racking up 28 starts in 33 games. Ware was next, but he was part-time at best—34 out of 77. Of course, Jaquez was runner-up in the Sixth Man of the Year award, so he seldom started in his 77 appearances (just once, in fact). As for Jakučionis, he played 53 games, starting 12.
In the postseason, things mostly stayed the same. The Heat played just one game, losing an epic overtime Play-In battle to the Charlotte Hornets, 127-126, and Herro continued to start, putting up 23 points, three rebounds, and six assists. In somewhat of a surprise, Ware joined him, going for 12 points, 19 rebounds, four assists, and five blocks, while Jaquez did his usual thing off the bench (13 points, six rebounds, eight assists, a steal and a block). Jakučionis, on the other hand, collected a DNP-CD.
Context considered, how do you envision the ex-Heat quartet fitting in with the Bucks? Four players. Five starting spots. How many should Taylor Jenkins actually trust with a starting role?
Inglewood, CA - March 25: LA Clippers forward Kawhi Leonard (2) dribbles against Toronto Raptors forward Scottie Barnes (4) during the first half of an NBA basketball game at Intuit Dome on Wednesday, March 25, 2026 in Inglewood, CA. (Eric Thayer / Los Angeles Times via Getty Images)
While Kawhi Leonard was the driving force behind the Toronto Raptors’ first-ever NBA title in 2019, there was an entire operation behind him, constantly scheming to put the superstar in a position to succeed.
Vice President of Player Health and Performance, Alex McKechnie, became a household name among casual basketball fans when he coined and implemented the term “load management”. The season-long strategy was designed to keep Leonard healthy enough for an eventual post-season run. This meant devaluing certain stretches in the regular-season, often games falling in a back-to-back.
Despite not having their captain on the court, Toronto ultimately finished 2nd in the Eastern Conference with a 58-24 record. The Raptors’ home court was a tremendous advantage in the playoffs, particularly during the seven-game series against the Philadelphia 76ers. The 76ers finished as the third seed that year. It’s tough to envision Leonard’s bouncing game-winner anywhere but at Scotiabank Arena.
During that season, Toronto played in 12 back-to-back sets. This year, the Raptors have 15 on the schedule. The 2018-19 Raptors were an impressive 17-7 in back-to-back games. They were also 11-3 from October to December, an astonishing feat considering the roster was still trying to sort out its chemistry at the time.
By comparison, the Raptors finished 12-16 in back-to-back games last year.
When Leonard missed one of these contests, his team still produced, with Toronto accumulating a 12-3 record. Additionally, it seemingly didn’t matter which game of the back-to-back Leonard missed:
Missed the first game: 4-1
Missed the second game: 8-2
Leonard also sat in three entire sets of back-to-back games, with one a month from November to January.
Subsequently, Toronto often leaned on players like Norman Powell (earlier in the season) or Fred VanVleet as fill-in starters whenever Leonard sat. Factor in other options like Serge Ibaka, OG Anunoby and Jeremy Lin, and it’s easy to understand why that team was so successful without Leonard.
Does this year’s iteration of the team have the same luxury?
As it stands, it depends on what’s measured. Defensively, the Raptors are ready to support Leonard at an elite level. The combination of Jamal Shead, Ja’Kobe Walter, Collin Murray-Boyles, and Allen Graves is a relentless group. Offensively, it’s unfair to compare this year’s bench to the firepower that the championship team had. If Walter can make another significant jump in his development, that’ll certainly go a long way.
Toronto could also still make additions this off-season or make a trade-deadline move similar in value to when the team acquired Marc Gasol.
Regardless, the Raptors must improve their back-to-back record, especially in an Eastern Conference that is forecast to be a gauntlet.
PHILADELPHIA, PENNSYLVANIA - CIRCA 1977: Julius Erving #6 of the Philadelphia 76ers tries for a scoop-type layup over Johnny Davis #16 of the Portland Trailblazers during the NBA finals, May 22-June 3, 1977, at the Spectrum in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The Blazers defeated the Sixers in six games to win their first NBA Championship. (Photo by James Drake/Getty Images) | Getty Images
Ken Burns, the brilliant documentarian, is fond of repeating a quote attributed to Mark Twain: “History doesn’t repeat itself, but it often rhymes.”
Burns usually says this in reference to landmark events that shaped the world in which we live, not something so trivial as the fortunes of a pro basketball team. Yet it can be applied to the Sixers at this point in their history.
The addition of LeBron James has seismic implications, and can be compared to the September 1982 trade for Moses Malone, which greased the skids for the franchise’s most recent championship the following spring. But given James’ stature, the better analogue might be the acquisition 50 years ago of Julius Erving.
The comparison is not perfect. Dr. J was acquired from the then-New York Nets for $6 million – half of which went to Roy Boe, the Nets’ cash-poor owner, to cover the territorial fees the Nets were required to pay after being absorbed with three other ABA teams into the NBA, when the leagues merged that summer of 1976. The rest went to Erving, who signed a new six-year contract.
James on the other hand joined the Sixers as a free agent recently, and a cut-rate one at that. He will be paid a mere $8 million over the next two years. He is also 41, and nearing the end of a career entering its 24th season. Erving was 26 when he was acquired by the Sixers, and at the very height of his powers.
“Forget the age, because age has nothing to do with it,” former Sixers player and coach Fred Carter said in a recent phone interview. “It’s the impact each one of them had on the whole sports platform in Philadelphia.”
Doc wound up playing the last 11 of his 16 professional seasons here, leading the Sixers to the Finals that first year and on three other occasions. And with Malone and Co. he collected that 1982-83 title.
LeBron is just passing through, just trying to enhance his already considerable legacy by chasing his fifth championship with his fourth different team. But like Dr. J he is an epic figure. And like Doc he is joining a superteam. That is the foremost comparison, the rhymingest rhyme in this piece of sporting history.
Carter, a Sixers backup guard in ‘76-77, was beginning the last of his eight NBA seasons when Erving arrived on opening night, and would remain with the team only through Dec. 8, when he was traded to Milwaukee. He believes James is coming to a team that has “far more talent” than that one, and added that if everyone stays healthy, “They could win 70 games.”
There was actually similar hype surrounding that ‘76-77 bunch. George McGinnis, a muscular forward, had come over from the ABA a year earlier, and had established himself as the franchise fulcrum. Doug Collins and Steve Mix had already played in All-Star Games by then, and Caldwell Jones had also been plucked from the ABA. Not to be forgotten, either, were young guns like Lloyd Free (still years away from his conversion to World B. Free) and Darryl Dawkins.
So the same questions face this group as that one: Can everybody coexist on the court? Will minutes and touches and shots become issues? That remains to be seen, but Carter, 81, believes James’ mere presence will change things.
“It puts everybody on notice that you’ve got to play the game the right way,” Carter said. “It’s not like you can dilly-dally and come not ready to play.”
Which happens, he added, to every team.
“Players,” he said, “take nights off.”
But that is far less likely to happen with a guy of James’ stature in town.
“Players that have any type of self-esteem, self-respect, will not take nights off,” said Carter, who also served as a Sixers assistant for six years (1987-93) and the team’s head coach for a season-plus after that. “That’s going to force Joel Embiid to play at a level higher than what he’s played at, which will help them tremendously. Because the last thing you want to do is have a 41-year-old guy out there, playing his heart out, and you’re out there half-stepping. That can’t be tolerated.”
The bottom line, Carter said, is this: “The price of poker just went up, and everybody’s got to ante up. … Guys have got to be playing at their highest level, because LeBron is here. The King is here.”
Again, it was a little different when Erving came to Philly. For one thing, his legend had largely spread by word of mouth in that pre-Internet, pre-cable, pre-streaming age. There was a lot of buzz about him, but few had seen video of him, and fewer still had seen him play live.
“I had heard that there was a guy who could walk literally on air,” Harvey Catchings, then a reserve center for the Sixers, said in a recent phone interview, “and he was just an incredible player.”
The Sixers had in fact faced Erving’s Nets in preseason play in the years before his arrival, but didn’t have a full read on him. Nor was it clear whether his game would translate to the more-established league.
“I did not believe the hype,” Mix said.
Others did. Pat Williams, the late Sixers general manager, always said that he described Dr. J as “the Babe Ruth of Basketball” while persuading team owner Fitz Dixon to pony up the cash to bring him aboard. The thing was, McGinnis had established himself as the Sixers’ version of Lou Gehrig the previous season, and for that reason Williams sought Big George’s blessing before finalizing the deal.
But as Catchings said, “What were you going to say? … At least they gave him the courtesy.”
Erving made his Sixers debut in the season opener against San Antonio, scoring 17 points off the bench in a 121-118 loss. Beforehand Mix had chosen to welcome the new guy by taping his hightops together and throwing them atop a light in the Spectrum locker room. (Carter has no recollection of Mix’s prank, though he did add this: “Steve was a jokester, so I can imagine Steve doing that.”)
“He was probably a little irked, I would think,” Mix said of Erving. “I went and got them down. I put them up, I got them down.”
Mix and Doc became fast friends. Roomed together on the road for years, in fact. They also remain close all these years later, and even coach together in the Big3.
But that season was a roller-coaster ride for everyone.
“I don’t know,” Mix said, “whether some of those guys knew how to play as a team.”
“Doc had to get his, Doug had to get his, Lloyd was trying to come into his own,” Catchings, 74, said. “Then you had Darryl. You had a lot of mouths to feed, and egos to feed.”
It reached a point where a Daily News columnist named Bud Shaw likened the Sixers’ offense to “a line at the delicatessen. You took a number and waited your turn at the counter. Every so often, somebody would take all the numbers and four other hungry stomachs would go home growling.”
Mix said Erving was the one who had to make the most sacrifices, the guy who had to tailor his game to everyone else’s. Even so, he made an immediate impression on his new teammates, who marveled at his physical gifts and improvisational abilities.
“It didn’t take but a minute,” Carter said. “Maybe half a minute.”
“You knew the guy could play,” Mix said. “Anybody who has an Afro like that has got to be able to play.”
“It wasn’t as good as Darnell Hillman or Artis Gilmore,” Mix said, naming two others who made the ABA-NBA transition, “but it was a good look.”
His demeanor was no less impressive.
“Just the way that he carried himself was just so different from anything that I had ever seen before,” Catchings said. “It wasn’t arrogance. It was just confidence.”
Erving averaged a team-best 21.6 points a game that first season, two-tenths more than McGinnis. And despite everything the Sixers won 50 games and knocked Boston and Houston out of the playoffs. Then they took a 2-0 lead over Portland in the Finals before getting “backwards swept,” as Carter put it – i.e., the Bill Walton-led Blazers won the last four games.
“We had the best talent,” Mix said. “Portland had the best team.”
It didn’t help that Dawkins squared off with Blazers enforcer Maurice Lucas late in Game 2, throwing a wild punch that caught Collins over the eye. Dawkins, incensed that none of his teammates appeared to have his back (Erving, for example, sat down at midcourt rather than getting involved in the fracas), then trashed the Spectrum’s home locker room.
Nor did it help that McGinnis played poorly in the Finals.
“I wish George was alive, because I don’t want to speak ill of the dead,” Catchings said, referring to McGinnis’ passing three years ago. “But George choked during the playoffs.”
By the time the Sixers returned to the Finals in 1980, they were a vastly different team. McGinnis, traded to Denver for Bobby Jones in ‘78, was gone. Maurice Cheeks, drafted with one of the picks acquired in the Carter trade to the Bucks, arrived that same year. Clint Richardson, who would become a valuable reserve, came in the following selection process.
They finally broke through after acquiring Moses from Houston, and the conclusion is a simple one: Adding a foundational piece like a Dr. J or an LBJ, while obviously significant, is only a start. The right pieces need to be arrayed around them, and sacrifices need to be made for the greater good. That wasn’t the case with the 1976-77 Sixers, and we will only find out in time if that is the case now.
Mix wonders if James is coming as much for business reasons as basketball reasons – if he wants to pick Josh Harris’ brain, then apply those lessons to his own off-court pursuits. Mix further believes, as many do, that LeBron can best be used as a playmaker, despite the fact that he will be playing, in effect, power forward.
As Mix put it, “I don’t expect him to average 20; 12 to 14 would be a good average for him, if he’s distributing.”
Hard to picture James scoring at such a paltry rate, even at his age. He has always been a force, not to mention a force multiplier. Certainly his impact will be felt, as was the case with Erving all those years ago. And certainly much of the history rhymes to this point. Now it’s a matter of adding a few more stanzas, of crafting the perfect ending, in a town where fairytales don’t always come true.
Helping the Michigan Wolverines win only their second ever NCAA title, Yaxel Lendeborg already is having a year to remember.
And now, the newest Warrior is gearing up to be a key player for the franchise from the jump, ready to prove that his older age for a rookie (soon to be 24 years old) will come in handy.
Golden State’s rookie spoke exclusively to The Athletic’s Nick Friedell for a recent story, and recalled his emotional first moments with the Warriors after he was selected with the No. 11 pick in the 2026 NBA Draft.
Lendeborg never watched the NBA Summer League growing up, only tuning in to the competition for the first time last season, when he followed Cooper Flagg shine for the Dallas Mavericks. But barely one year later, as Lendeborg prepared to take the floor as a pro for the first time, he got emotional reflecting on how he got to this point.
“When we were going to the game in Vegas, I was about to cry on the bus,” Lendeborg told Friedell. “Like, this is crazy. I’m about to play in the summer league in Vegas in front of a bunch of people … Three or four tears kind of like dripped from the eye, but I was on a bus with a bunch of guys. They don’t even know me. They barely know me, so I can’t just be crying for no reason.”
Lendeborg joins a Warriors team that not only still is very much in win-now mode, as they look to maximize the final years of Steph Curry’s career, but also that is ready to build towards a successful future. Lendeborg, after shining for Golden State throughout the competition, averaging 14.8 points, 6.8 rebounds and 4.0 assists en route to winning the summer league MVP and guiding the Warriors to the title, is providing optimism.
But Lendeborg admits that it took him time to gain the confidence he needed to play at that high level.
“This is my first year actually going through having a full year of confidence, I guess you could say,” Lendeborg said. “I’ve never been a confident kid. So, actually having this time to believe in myself — it means a lot to me, and I’m trying my best to not lose that no matter what goes on.”
Once again, the Warriors have one of the NBA’s oldest rosters, with their core of Curry, Draymond Green and Jimmy Butler all over the age of 35. And while some of the team’s key reserves are young and players that Golden State could build around, a more developed prospect like Lendeborg surely will give the franchise confidence that it can still compete once the Curry era ends.
Still, Lendeborg is looking to develop and become the player that he knows he can be. From his days of playing junior college basketball in Yuma, Arizona to his two-season stint at UAB and ending with his memorable year at Michigan, Lendeborg stayed the course and now that he is becoming the type of player he dreamed of becoming, he is ready to shatter expectations while still coming to grips with his newfound fame in basketball.
“As far as the expectations and everything that’s going around me, it’s like I’m new to this,” Lendeborg added. “So, I haven’t been living this role my entire life, this just now became who I am. So, I’m just happy-go lucky about everything.
“I’m just smiling through it all. Obviously, I have people that don’t like me or don’t like whatever I say, how I play, all of that stuff, so it’s like whatever. Everyone’s going to have their opinion. And for me, it’s just like, pressure isn’t real.”
SACRAMENTO, CA - APRIL 10: Pat Spencer #61 of the Golden State Warriors looks on during the game against the Sacramento Kings on April 10, 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
The Phoenix Suns front office has done a solid job over the last two years of identifying under-the-radar talent.
Collin Gillespie and Jordan Goodwin are the latest examples of this. Jamaree Bouyea provided real production for key stretches last season. To a lesser extent, we all saw Dillon Brooks breakout in his new home as well. He was much more on the radar than the others mentioned, of course. You get the point. The Suns have a type.
From a cultural perspective, this is who you want to bring in. A hard-nosed competitor who isn’t afraid to mix it up, chirp a little, and make winning basketball plays. He doesn’t need the ball to make an impact. He embraces doing the little things.
Enter Pat Spencer
The Suns signed the 30-year-old guard to a two-way contract in early July, an acquisition that sailed under most national radars. On the surface, it’s a sensible depth move. The guard rotation needed fortification after some early offseason uncertainty.
But dig deeper, and this signing tells you everything about how the front office operates in 2026.
PHOENIX, ARIZONA – FEBRUARY 05: Jordan Goodwin #23 of the Phoenix Suns pressures Pat Spencer #61 of the Golden State Warriors during the first half at Mortgage Matchup Center on February 05, 2026 in Phoenix, Arizona. 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. (Photo by Chris Coduto/Getty Images) | Getty Images
Pat Spencer arrives in Phoenix fresh off the best season of his career with Golden State Warriors.
In 66 games (14 starts), he averaged 7.2 points, 3.5 assists, and 2.4 rebounds, shooting 42.7% from the field and 35.7% from three-point range. Those headline numbers don’t immediately jump off the page, but his starting splits do.
As a starter, he averaged 11.4 points, 5.1 assists, and 3.4 rebounds per game while shooting 40% from three.
Pat was playing in a Warriors system without heavy volume. Steve Kerr wasn’t running the offense through him, becuase they have a guy named Steph Curry (yes he missed time). Yet when he got real minutes in spot situations and starts, he produced with efficiency. He shot a respectable 35.7% from beyond the arc and averaged 0.7 steals per game.
But the stats only matter if the player has the intangibles to stick. Spencer has that in spades.
Spencer embodies toughness, smarts, and competitiveness. Steve Kerr publicly stated that “he’s kind of the perfect guy to have as a backup” because “he can win you games” and brings consistent energy and attitude regardless of playing time. Kerr doesn’t throw praise at role players casually. He meant it.
Why This Fits the Suns’ DNA
Spencer’s competitive fire runs deep. His brother Cam also plays in the NBA, and Pat’s mentality stems from a lifelong need to compete in everything, even in childhood moments like racing to elevators or calling shotgun, displaying a mindset where he’s always trying to prove something. That hunger doesn’t fade because you’re on a two-way contract. It compounds. Phoenix goes after guys with a chip on their shoulder and something to prove.
Phoenix’s guard rotation entering 2026-27 features Devin Booker and Jalen Green as primary creators, with Collin Gillespie and Luke Kennard handling secondary playmaking duties. Jordan Goodwin in the “super guard” role as a psuedo small or power forward with several other guards bodes well for Pat, at least.
Spencer will not crack the rotation unless there is an injury…. or two.
He probably won’t see 15 minutes per game if there is one. But the Suns aren’t counting on that. They’re paying him for reliability and availability when injuries or foul trouble demand rotation adjustments. We all saw the constant musical chairs of injuries to the guard rotaiton last season and how necessary it was to have a deep guard group.
SAN FRANCISCO, CALIFORNIA – DECEMBER 20: Devin Booker #1 of the Phoenix Suns dribbles the ball up court past Pat Spencer #61 of the Golden State Warriors in the first half of an NBA basketball game at Chase Center on December 20, 2025 in San Francisco, 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 License Agreement. (Photo by Thearon W. Henderson/Getty Images) | Getty Images
Consider the modern NBA playoff reality: small guards get hunted on defense. Perimeter players pick up fouls trying to contain athletic wings. Backup point guards need to run second-unit pick-and-rolls without turning the ball over. Spencer checks all three boxes.
His 40% three-point shooting from the starter sample means he spaces the floor. His assist rate suggests he doesn’t force things when he doesn’t have them. His competitive mentality means he won’t shrink in tight moments. These aren’t flashy traits, but they win games.
The gap between a playoff team and a championship team in the Western Conference comes down to depth. It always does. Not stars. Not All-NBA players. The ability to rotate fresh bodies without losing spacing, decision-making, or intensity.
Spencer’s personal journey amplifies this logic. A standout college lacrosse player at Loyola University Maryland who won the Tewaaraton Award as the nation’s top player in 2019 and was selected first overall in the 2019 Premier Lacrosse League Draft, Spencer pivoted to basketball, using his final year of college eligibility to play at Northwestern University, then played professionally overseas with Hamburg Towers in Germany before working his way through the G League to reach the NBA.
This is someone who earned every inch.
What Happens Next
Spencer will spend chunks of time in the G League with the Phoenix Suns’ affiliate squad. That’s the reality of a two-way contract. But the framework exists for rapid escalation. If any of Booker, Green, Gillespie, Kennard or Goodwin pick up an injury or enter foul trouble, Spencer steps in. If second-unit scoring dries up, Spencer gets run. He’s an insurance piece that you need to have to withstand the rigors of an 82-game season.
The real question isn’t whether Spencer will play. It’s whether he’ll capitalize when the opportunity comes. Based on his track record in Golden State, the answer is yes. One of Spencer’s best games last season came against the Suns back in February, where he scored a career-high 20 points and was one of the Warriors’ main contributors in their fourth-quarter double-digit comeback.
This is who the Suns’ front office is now. They’re building connective tissue through under-the-radar depth acquisitions. Guys who fit the system, bring competitive juice, and won’t require massive contracts or draft capital to acquire.
Spencer is the latest addition to that blueprint. Low-risk. High upside for a backup guard. Proven character in a Warriors system known for demanding toughness.
The Suns have been solid at identifying these types. Spencer feels like the next one in line.
After winning a championship for the first time in 53 years, the Knicks kept much of their roster intact for the 2026-27 NBA season. The only big change from the offseason could have ramifications for the team’s hopes of producing similar results.
The Knicks let center Mitchell Robinson walk in free agency. Robinson signed a three-year, $47.4 million deal with the Atlantic Division rival Boston Celtics.
To shore up the backup five spot, New York signed veteran center Andre Drummond to a one-year, $3.9 million contract. A two-time All-Star, Drummond has been a productive player for much of his 14-year NBA career.
At 33 years old, Drummond is a downgrade from Robinson, but he can be an important contributor off the bench. Some of Drummond’s best skills blend well with New York’s philosophy. Robinson was arguably the best offensive rebounder in the NBA. Drummond is not exactly on that level, but it is a strength. Of players who played in at least 40 games last season, Drummond was fifth in offensive rebound rate, grabbing 14.5 percent of available offensive boards.
Creating extra opportunities has been a key part of New York’s strategy to win games. The Knicks finished seventh in offensive rebound rate during the regular season, and third in the playoffs. Listed at 279 pounds, Drummond is also a very good screener for his teammates. He led all players in screen assist points per 36 minutes during the playoffs.
Drummond has added the three-point shot to his skill set. After knocking down just 23 trifectas in his first 13 seasons, the big man made 32-of-90 treys (35.6 percent) last season. However, virtually all of those shots were wide open. Per NBA Stats, in 89 of those 90 three-point attempts, the closest defender to Drummond was 4 feet or more away.
If teams are willingly conceding that corner three to Drummond, it will gum up the paint, limiting driving lanes for New York’s other players. Knicks head coach Mike Brown would likely prefer having Drummond in the paint to cause havoc on the offensive glass, rather than standing idle in the corners.
Weaknesses
There are deficiencies to watch with Drummond. He’s been a weak finisher around the basket. According to NBA Stats, Drummond shot just 54.1 percent in the restricted area. Robinson was much more efficient around the basket, converting on 71.9 percent of his attempts. He was also a lob threat the Knicks will miss that next season.
Unless it’s an easy dunk, Drummond will likely have a hard time scoring efficiently close. Dunks are becoming a rarity for the veteran center, who had just 33 stuffs last season. According to Basketball Reference, just 12.2 percent of Drummond’s field goal attempts last season were dunks, the lowest figure of his career.
Another concern with Drummond will be on the defensive end. He will swat the occasional shot and is passable when it comes to defending the paint. But he lacks the mobility to switch on defense or cover a lot of ground. New York’s perimeter players at times will have to cover up for those limitations.
Drop-off
In replacing Robinson with Drummond, the Knicks are capable of contending for a championship. But this trade-off limits New York’s tool kit for the postseason. When the Knicks needed a defensive stop down the stretch in the NBA Finals, Robinson was on the floor. He forced Spurs star Victor Wembanyama into two missed shots in the closing moments of Game 2 of the NBA Finals. Drummond is unlikely to be relied on for defensive stops. Also, his pick-and-roll defense will be tested in the East against guards like Donovan Mitchell, Tyrese Maxey and Tyrese Haliburton.
Financially, the move does make sense. Robinson only played 13.9 minutes a night during the postseason and never recorded over 20 minutes in any of New York’s 19 playoff contests. It would’ve been difficult to pay him nearly $16 million annually in such a small role with New York’s second apron constraints.
The Knicks also lost third center Ariel Hukporti to the Philadelphia 76ers in free agency. The lack of a third center might also push the Knicks to other strategies. There could be more scenarios where they go small with OG Anunoby at center, depending on opponent matchups.
The Knicks unsuccessfully pursued Dallas Mavericks center Moussa Cisse in July, and SNY’s Ian Begley reported that New York looked at a trade for New Orleans Pelicans center Karlo Matkovic. The club could also look for a center who’s either a more capable switch defender or a stretch five between now and the trade deadline in February.
