Category: Basketball

September beckons, bitches. Let’s mailbag.

What would your team look like if you assembled it from the stinky years of the 2000s-2010s?

— Unmitigated Gall

In order to tackle this question, I had to settle on what exactly “2000s-2010s” meant. We talking just the awful aughts, ending with the 2009-10 season? Or the whole stinking two decades of stank? I found myself confronted by a mystery I’d never wanted to solve: who was worse, the 2000s Knicks or the 2010s Knicks?

To really get the stink marinating, I compared two nine-year abominations: the Knick teams from 2002-2010 and from 2014-2022. Combined that’s 18 seasons, 17 below .500, 16 missing the playoffs. eight losses in nine playoff games and a partridge in a pear tree. Before I give you the numbers, what does your gut tell you? Which Knicks feel like they were worse?

From 2002-2010 the Knicks were 279-459; adjusted for 82 games that’s 31-51. The 2014-2022 Knicks went 262-450, a 30-50 pace. The numbers wouldn’t settle this debate. Futility being in the eye of the beholder, I had to dig deep. Was there anything particularly sadder about one batch versus the other? For me, there is.

In 2013-14, New York was coming off a tremendous run the year before, plus three consecutive winning seasons and playoff appearances. Carmelo Anthony had just led the league in scoring while finishing third for MVP. J.R. Smith was top-20 in points, Jason Kidd top-20 in steals and Tyson Chandler top-10 in offensive rebounds, an All-Star and First Team All-Defense.

The writing was on the wall once Kidd retired and James Dolan strong-armed Glenn Grunwald outta town and Andrea Bargnani in, but there was reason to feel good heading into 2014. There was excitement in 2016 for the arrival of Kristaps Porziņģis. In 2019 there was hope — if not conviction — that Kevin Durant, Kyrie Irving and Zion Williamson were on their way to save the day.

The 2001-02 Knicks were post-Patrick Ewing and, not coincidentally, not good, failing to win a playoff series in 2001 for the first time since 1991. Jeff Van Gundy left, Marcus Camby and a lottery pick were soon to follow in exchange for the low point of Antonio McDyess’ career, Latrell Sprewell was almost out the door and Isiah Thomas about to walk through it. Gasp. Shudder.

At least the 2010s Knicks had the precedent of the 2000s teams to slightly soften the blow. Watching their initial sinking into stinking, from winning 17 playoff series in 12 years (1989-2000) to winning a single playoff game the next dozen, didn’t merely cause despair. It was a disorienting fall from grace. The 2010s were a bad headache. The 2000s were that plus vertigo.

Without further ado, my ‘02-’10 Knick faves:

Frank Williams
Jamal Crawford
David Lee
Kurt Thomas
Michael Doleac

One Saturday late in my sophomore year of college, some friends and I got in on some pickup games on campus. This was the long-gone dark ages, when I was active and thin and a pretty good baller, and that day I was on. The fadeaway couldn’t miss. People were calling me Jordan. It was a very small, insignificant time and place in history, and if you weren’t literally there experiencing it in real time, it makes neither sense nor difference.

So it goes with those of us who swore allegiance to the Frank Williams cult twentysomething years ago — if you weren’t there, it makes zero sense. To be fair, it didn’t make a lotta sense even if you were; Williams, a point guard, shot just 35% from the field and 30% from deep and started only three games over two years in New York. And yet if the Knicks announce tomorrow they’ve signed Williams outta retirement, I’d tell Jalen Brunson thank you for your service, now get thee to the bench. The prophecy must be fulfilled.

Crawford and Lee were that restaurant that used to be open near you that was delightfully, surprisingly good. It had no business being that good, and it closed years ago. But you appreciated it when it was there, and the memories still warm you today. Looking at you, Amy’s Place in Buffalo. R.I.P.

Kurt Thomas I loved because he was a true warrior for righteousness, willing to tangle with anybody and everybody who was in the wrong, no matter who it was. Whether that be a future Hall of Famer.

Or the biggest fish in his own pond, like in 2004 when Thomas told Knick teammate Stephon Marbury, “Everyone in this organization is afraid of you, but I’m not. I’ll beat your ass.”

Thomas joins Ewing — I think — as the only Knicks who’ve impacted winning for the club over a 14-year stretch. A key reserve for the 1999 Knicks, many of us still fondly remember the final game Thomas ever played down the stretch in 2013: the Knicks had lost a season-high four straight games and five of six as they played in Utah without Carmelo. Gutting through 27 minutes, Thomas helped the Knicks snap the losing skid and kickstart a 13-game winning streak, the finishing touch on their best season in 13 years.

I hold a special place in my heart for Dr. Michael Doleac because of December 30, 2002. I was driving from Rochester to New York City and a friend tagged along looking to visit a friend in Pennsylvania. My friend considered himself hilarious for not telling me the drinks he was downing the whole drive down were spiked; by the time I figured out he was drunk, he figured out we were lost. We were “near” enough that his friend came and got him, leaving without leaving me directions to get back toward the city. It was dark out in the middle of nowhere, Pennsylvania, pre-Google maps (the less said about Mapquest, the better).

I spent the drive low on gas, cursing my friend for my being lost in what looked like every horror movie ever and living and dying with the back and forth in WFAN’s broadcast of what ended up a one-point Knick win over the NBA champion Spurs. In arguably his finest hour as a ‘bocker, Doleac scored 16 points (two off his Knick-high) and grabbed eight boards (tying his Knick best) against Tim Duncan and David Robinson. I wanna end this with “This doctor makes house calls,” but the game was in New York. Then again, “This doctor takes patient visits” just doesn’t work at all. Gimme your best Doleac tag line.

[List your] ranking of trades/signings/moves that built the 2026 champion Knicks.

— Jslashnoel

16) Drafting Pacôme Dadiet
15) Signing Jeremy Sochan
14) Drafting Tyler Kolek
13) Signing Mo Diawara
12) Signing Ariel Hukporti
11) Drafting Miles McBride
10) Signing Landry Shamet
9) Drafting Mitchell Robinson
8) Trading for Mikal Bridges
7) Trading for Josh Hart
6) Signing Jalen Brunson’s first contract
5) Trading for Karl-Anthony Towns
4) Trading for OG Anunoby
3) Firing Tom Thibodeau & hiring Mike Brown
2) Signing Jalen Brunson’s second contract
1) Hiring Leon Rose

Clyde and Jalen in the backcourt with Willis, Patrick and Bernard up front. From my admittedly biased perspective, this starting five could match up with any all-time mythical squad the Celtics could put together.

— DeanJose

DeanJose’s five vs. Bill Russell, Larry Bird, Kevin McHale, John Havlicek and Paul Pierce — who ya got??

The Wizards traded Angel Reese’s brother Julian “Juju” Reese to the Nuggets, who then released him. While he only played 13 games (10 starts) and 30.9 minutes per game, he put up respectable numbers on a tanking team (11.8 points/10.5 rebounds, including the most offensive rebounds per game since Hakeem Olajuwon at 4.2). He’s a little undersized at 6’9, 230 lbs., but seems like a decent candidate for the third-string center job. Thoughts?

— Stan KGRY

First, if this is Angel Reese stanning for her hermano, I fully understand. And email me. Please. God, please email me, Angel Reese.

Assuming this is really Stan KGRY, my only thoughts are that there are definitely dudes who’ve beaten that Olajuwon number from 1987 — Dennis Rodman did a half-dozen times by himself — and that whatever downgrade there is between Mitch and Drummond, the Knicks are probably looking to make that up with an upgrade over Hukporti. You can’t count on KAT playing heavy minutes for 82 games followed by a two-month title defense, nor do I think they want to count on Drummond being the best next man up that whole time. There is 100% room for Juju Reese to make a home and career in the NBA. I don’t see it this year in New York, though.

That’s all she wrote for the mailbag, and it’s gonna be all she wrote for a while. I’m now writing about the Knicks at OnSI, and no longer at P&T. I’ve left before and returned; this feels less like “Goodbye” than “Later.” I’ll still pop into the comments sometimes, and have a few other pots starting to boil. Email if you want. I’m on Bluesky. I love you all. Not all. But you, reading this now, I love. Yes, you.

Anyone wondering what look fashion-forward tennis star Naomi Osaka would sport at the U.S. Open this year received “The Answer” on Monday night at Flushing Meadows in New York.

That is, her look was very much inspired by basketball icon Allen Iverson, complete with cornrows, a headband and arm sleeves.

After her 7-6 (6), 7-6 (3) first-round victory over Anastasia Zakharova, Osaka said she decided to pay homage to the Naismith Basketball Hall of Famer and his signature style after her apparel sponsor chose basketball as its U.S. Open theme.

Read more:Naomi Osaka has fun with fashion at the French Open. She'll have to win again to show off her next look

“It’s my, I guess, my tribute to Iverson. I really like him a lot,” Osaka said during an on-court interview. “I mean, Nike said basketball, so I said, ‘OK, you want basketball, I’ll give you basketball.’”

Osaka took the court wearing a long, hooded gown — possibly inspired by Iverson’s hoodies and baggy clothes from back in the day — with newspaper clippings about her attached to it. She first took off the hood to reveal her hair and headband, then removed the gown to play in a black tank top and metallic tennis skirt.

The two-time U.S. Open champion also gave a nod to the 11-time NBA All-Star during her media day news conference Saturday by wearing a T-shirt that featured the longtime Philadelphia 76ers star’s 1999 Slam magazine cover.

“For me, he’s a trailblazer,” Osaka said when asked about the shirt. “He’s also someone that I look up to a lot, because he’s done a lot in fashion, whether it’s on purpose or not, but he’s shifted the way that NBA players dress. And I also think the whole conversation around clothes in sports, and also just expressing yourself through style, I feel like he’s someone that I look up to in that regard.”

With his hair, tattoos, jewelry and clothes, Iverson gained his reputation as an NBA fashion trailblazer during his playing career from 1996-2010 — so much so that in 2005, when then-commissioner David Stern instituted a stricter dress code for players arriving to games, many felt it was in response to Iverson’s look.

“I took the ass whooping for it, but the dress code thing I actually was just — I was 21,” Iverson said on “The Breakfast Club” last year. “Where am I going after the game? I’m going to the club. Before that, they were used to dudes wearing suits, and I was like, damn. I’ve never worn a suit growing up — going to church or to a funeral was the only time I put on a suit ... and the courtroom. I never wore a suit to the gym to play, to the park.”

On Saturday, Osaka said she had never communicated with Iverson — “but hopefully he’ll see this,” she added.

Turns out, he did. Iverson posted a photo of Osaka in the shirt featuring his image and a clip of her comments about him Monday on Instagram.

“Wow, what a honor!!” Iverson wrote. “BIG FAN can’t wait to meet you. @naomiosaka”

Get the best, most interesting and strangest stories of the day from the L.A. sports scene and beyond from our newsletter The Sports Report.

This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.

Michigan men's basketball freshman Brandon McCoy Jr., one of the top-ranked players of the 2026 recruiting class, will miss the entire 2026-27 season due to injury, the program announced on Tuesday, Sept. 1.

McCoy Jr. suffered an ACL injury in his right knee, per the announcement. The injury occurred in an exhibition game against KK Mega SUPERBET in Montenegro, the final game of Michigan's European tour.

REQUIRED READING: Dusty May left Michigan tired of 'nothing getting fixed' in college basketball

The McDonald's All-American was averaging 14.5 points with five rebounds and four steals per game before the injury. He was expected to be a starter and one of Michigan's top scorers this season. The former five-star recruit was rated the No. 10 prospect nationally and No. 2 shooting guard, per 247Sports' Composite ratings.

Michigan replaces nearly its entire starting lineup from last season after Morez Johnson, Aday Mara and Yaxel Lendeborg were all selected in the lottery of the 2026 NBA Draft. The Wolverines return starting guards Elliot Cadeau and Nimari Burnett, though, along with former high-end recruit Trey McKenney, a sharpshooter off the bench as a true freshman last season.

Michigan also overhauled its front court after winning the national championship, adding former Cincinnati center Moustapha Thiam, former Tennessee forward J.P. Estrella and former LSU forward Jalen Reed.

Regardless, it's an unfortunate loss for the Wolverines and first-year coach Mike Boynton Jr., who has a lot to figure out trying to replicate last season's success without former coach Dusty May, who's now coaching the NBA's Dallas Mavericks, and the roster turnover.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Brandon McCoy Jr. injury update: Michigan star to miss 2026-27 season

7-foot-6 big man headlines Sixers' three training camp additions originally appeared on NBC Sports Philadelphia

The Sixers announced they’ve added three players to their training camp roster Tuesday, signing Tacko Fall, Jameer Nelson Jr. and Saint Thomas.

All three reportedly signed Exhibit 10 contracts, according to ESPN’s Dave McMenamin.

Exhibit 10 deals are essentially training camp contracts that can be converted into two-way deals before the regular season. The Sixers currently have two of their three two-way spots filled by Caleb Love and Rayan Rupert. Players who do not make the NBA roster often remain in the organization and join its G League affiliate.

Fall, 30, is the most recognizable name of the group — and one of the tallest players in NBA history.

The 7-foot-6 center was born and raised in Dakar, Senegal before moving to the United States at 16. He attended high school in Texas and Florida before playing four seasons at UCF.

Fall set three records at the 2019 NBA Draft Combine. He measured 7-foot-7 in shoes with an 8-foot-2¼ wingspan and a 10-foot-2½ standing reach, all the largest measurements in the event’s history.

Fall went undrafted in 2019 but became a fan favorite during two seasons with the Boston Celtics. He later joined the Cleveland Cavaliers and made his first NBA start against Boston on Dec. 22, 2021, grabbing a career-high 10 rebounds.

He has not appeared in an NBA game since the 2021-22 season. Fall played 37 games over three seasons with Boston and Cleveland, averaging 2.2 points and 2.4 rebounds in 6.1 minutes.

Fall spent the past four seasons overseas, primarily in China. He most recently played for the Ningbo Rockets and averaged 11.2 points, 7.2 rebounds and 2.1 blocks in 18.1 minutes across his international stops.

He also played for the Xinjiang Flying Tigers and Nanjing Monkey Kings in China, along with the New Zealand Breakers of Australia’s National Basketball League.

Nelson, 25, brings strong local ties.

The Haverford native is the son of former Saint Joseph’s star and NBA All-Star Jameer Nelson, who now serves as the Sixers’ executive vice president of basketball operations. The elder Nelson played 14 NBA seasons after leading Saint Joseph’s to an undefeated regular season and an Elite Eight appearance in 2004.

Nelson Jr. attended The Haverford School and played five college seasons. He began his career at George Washington, transferred to Delaware and earned All-CAA honors in both of his seasons with the Blue Hens. He finished his college career at TCU in 2023-24.

The 6-foot-1 guard averaged 18.9 points on 47.5 percent shooting, 3.4 assists, 3.0 rebounds and 1.2 steals in 25 games for the Stockton Kings last season.

Nelson scored a career-high 45 points off the bench in March, shooting 62 percent from the field and making eight three-pointers. He previously played for the Austin Spurs in the G League and has also spent time professionally in Canada, China and Puerto Rico.

Thomas, 23, is already familiar with the Sixers’ organization.

The 6-foot-7 forward is from Omaha, Nebraska and attended Millard North High School. He played four college seasons across Loyola Chicago, Northern Colorado and USC.

Thomas earned first-team All-Big Sky honors and was named the conference’s Newcomer of the Year during his lone season at Northern Colorado. He went undrafted in 2025 and joined the Delaware Blue Coats.

According to the Sixers, Thomas averaged 12.5 points on 46.6 percent shooting, 5.0 rebounds and 3.7 assists in 60 appearances for the Blue Coats last season.

He remained with the organization during the 2026 Summer League, averaging 4.5 points, 4.2 rebounds and 1.0 assist in four games.

Training camp really is on the horizon. The Sixers announced the signings of Tacko Fall, Jameer Nelson Jr., and Saint Thomas. Adam Aaronson of PhillyVoice.com was the first to report that these are indeed Exhibit-10 deals, and will be eligible for two-way contracts. That last bit is notable, as Aaronson reported earlier this summer that the Sixers third and final two-way spot is likely to be kept open heading into camp.

Sixers have signed three Exhibit 10 contracts, per source:

• Tacko Fall (7’6, 37 NBA games)

• Jameer Nelson Jr. (E10 signee in 2024 with Spurs + 2025 with Kings; son of Sixers EVP of Basketball Ops)

• Saint Thomas (spent 2025-26 with Blue Coats)

All are two-way eligible.

— Adam Aaronson (@SixersAdam) September 1, 2026

The gigantic Fall of course comes with the most NBA experience. After going undrafted in 2019 he spent two seasons with the Boston Celtics and one with the Cleveland Cavaliers. He averaged 2.2 points, 2.4 rebounds, and 0.8 blocks in 6 minutes a game during his NBA career. He’s spent the last four seasons bouncing between teams in the Chinese Basketball Association and the Australian National Basketball League.

Jameer Nelson Jr., obviously the son of the Sixers’ new executive vice president of basketball operations, was an undrafted free agent in 2024. He’s spent a year with the Spurs G-League affiliate and the Kings G-League affiliate, with a half a season in the Canadian Elite Basketball League in between. In 25 games for the Stockton Kings last season, he averaged 18.9 points on 47.5-percent shooting, along with 3.4 assists and three rebounds per game.

The final signing, Saint Thomas, has been in the Sixers organization since going undrafted in 2025. As a member of the Delaware Blue Coats he’s been on Philadelphia’s Summer League roster the past two years. He put up 12.5 points on 46.6-percent shooting, five rebounds, and 3.7 assists per game last season for the Coats in 60 appearances. In four summer league games this season he averaged 4.5 points, 4.2 rebounds, and one assist in 15.5 minutes per game.

It’s a big day for Mavs Moneyball. Today, the SB Nation app is live, and it’s the best way to follow the Mavericks. 

You can download it by searching SB Nation for iOS or Android.

A year ago we made some big changes to our community, including offering fewer ads and the addition of the Feed. Today, we want to give you even more community tools and fewer ads with this app. It will make starting and joining conversations here as simple as posting to your favorite social media platform.

You can check out the video below showing off some of the useful features of the app, and we’ll dig into them below. 

Why should I download the app?

The app will be the easiest way to interact with everybody else in the community: 

• All your favorite teams’ posts in one dedicated feed
• Notifications when someone replies or recs your post
• New game thread section, with an  experience that’s smoother and faster
• Fewer ads
• Easily navigating between your favorite communities with a swipe

It will be the fastest way to read every post from our community.

How do I download the app?

Head over to the Apple store or the Android store to download the app. Today, the app is only available for US users.

Now that Golden State Warriors legend Steph Curry is 38 years old, the question about his potential retirement isn’t going anywhere.

That is, until Steph’s wife, Ayesha Curry, made a telling claim about her husband’s basketball future during a recent interview.

“Of course, Steph is the hardest-working man in the room. He has no days off. He hasn’t stopped since last season ended. He’s ready. He’s ready to get out there. I think we’re going to be in for some fun surprises over the next couple of years,” Ayesha Curry told NBC Sports Bay Area.

Ayesha mentioning “the next couple of years” seems to hint that Steph still has at least a few seasons left in the tank. And this makes sense, given that he’s still one of the world’s best players and a lethal sharpshooter.

Perhaps the bigger question was whether Steph wants to stay in Golden State. The Warriors’ have only won two playoff series’ since securing the 2021-22 NBA Championship, and Steph surely wants to chase another championship before hanging up the sneakers for good.

But the Warriors legend set the record straight regarding his intention to stay in Golden State, saying in the same interview, “There’s no question I want to be here the rest of my career, and I’m pretty sure that’s going to happen.”

Curry is eligible to sign a two-year, $136.7 million extension that would keep him with Golden State through the 2028-29 season.

If Steph were to sign this contract, it would mean he’s under contract with the Warriors for three more seasons (including this upcoming campaign, where he’s set to make $62.6 million). That seems to align with Ayesha’s “next couple of years” comment, and serves as further proof that Steph could have three NBA seasons remaining.

Jonathan Kuminga’s decision to sign with the Wolves left the Lakers with a glaring hole in the front court.

The discussion around it has largely ranged from making a trade to internal options. Little thought has been given to the free agent market, largely because the Lakers aren’t in a position to sign one with the team already at 16 guaranteed contracts.

However, one name long connected with the team is available. While his links to the Lakers were largely tied to the LeBron James-Anthony Davis era, Bruce Brown has long been chased by the purple and gold.

Despite having a statistically successful season last year with the Nuggets, including playing all 82 games, Brown has remained on the free agent market with few rumors about him. However, his name popped up in a recent live stream by Jake Fischer on Bleacher Report as a potential option for the Lakers.

On a recent livestream for Bleacher Report NBA insider @JakeLFischer said that Bruce Brown is going to be playing for a playoff-caliber team and that he is “in the mix for the Lakers.” #Lakers

Full clip: https://t.co/6mYJBKZVGLpic.twitter.com/mMxUctDnGW

— Eric Sklar (@TheDukeOfSports) August 31, 2026

The Lakers would need to make a host of moves in the next four weeks before training camp to get to a point where signing Brown would even be feasible. As things stand, they already need to consolidate the roster, whether by waiving someone or trading two players for one.

To get to a point where they’d have an open roster spot, it’d be two players released to sign one or trading three players for one, which is basically a non-starter. You could combine the two options as well to get an open roster spot, but you’re starting to see how complicated it would be to get Brown on the roster.

At that point, the question would be whether he’s worth all that, too. He’s an imperfect fit on the roster, even if he’d provide some value with his unique skill set.

There is the chance that Brown starts the season not on a team with the hopes of signing during the season. In that case, perhaps the Lakers could make one or more moves that’d open up a roster spot. But that’d be months away.

It’s not a surprise the Lakers have interest in Brown. But it remains a long shot that he’ll don the purple and gold this season.

You can follow Jacob on Twitter at @JacobRude or on Bluesky at @jacobrude.bsky.social.

The Dallas Mavericks are just weeks away from year-two Cooper Flagg and a new look roster taking the court for training camp. In the calm before the upcoming storm that is the NBA season, basketball-related news is quiet, but that leaves plenty of room for things like… jersey leaks.

It’s no secret that the NBA loves to pump out multiple jerseys for each team around the league, enlisting Nike to help them do just that. Originally having an eight-year deal, Nike and the NBA didn’t even finish their first contract before extending their partnership an additional 12-years through the end of the 2037 season.

Since Nike took over jersey duties, the notion of home and away uniforms has gone by the wayside. Instead, there are five categories of jersey for each team.

• Association Edition: Formerly known as the “home” jersey; the standard white color scheme.
• Icon Edition: Formerly known as the “away” jersey: the standard primary team color.
• Statement Edition: Formerly known as the “alternate” jersey (back when there were only three), which features a more dramatic look and the Jumpman logo.
• City Edition: Features designs that harken to local culture.
• Classic Edition: These are “throwback” jerseys that reference a team’s past classics.

That is a lot of jerseys to go around every team for 82 games, but fans generally seem to like the notion of a changeup from the usual home and road options. Of course, there are plenty of alternate jerseys that meet the ire of a given fan base season-to-season. This year, it seems as though Nike is looking to avoid any new options receiving criticism by giving the league retreads. Case in point, the Mavericks are rumored to be bringing back the gold and white Pegasus jerseys for their City Edition this season.

The Dallas Mavericks are bringing back their 2020-21 "City Edition" for the upcoming season (confirmed by an earlier leak) pic.twitter.com/DXEFTGwkKV

— NBA Uniform Tracker™ (@nbaunitracker) August 29, 2026

Dallas has had a mixed bag of City Editions over the years, but the Pegasus jersey seems to be generally well-liked, despite not having any real tie to the historic blues and greens the Mavericks are known for. The Pegasus jersey does adequately give a nod to the city by way of the famous Pegasus that was adorned atop the Magnolia Building in 1934 (with modern appearances outside the Magnolia Hotel and the Omni Dallas Hotel), making it one of the better city tie-ins, per se.

Although the jersey makes sense based on a nearly 100-year connection to Dallas, the rehash is somewhat ponderous. Just last year, Nike revamped the Pegasus jersey into a black and blue version, which fit better with the Mavericks’ traditional color scheme while still connecting to the city at large. Now, barely 10-years after the start of their partnership with the NBA, and with more than 10-years remaining, Nike isn’t even doing something new. 10 years is a long time, but it seems too soon to bring back what we’ve already seen. Anyone who missed out the first time should be happy, but anyone with long term goals of having a 20-year collection of different City Editions is going to have a duplicate!

Jests aside, this is a weird look for Nike. They position themselves as one of the premier shoe and apparel companies of all time, but this just feels like they are somehow out of ideas and mailing it in. Already we’ve seen different color schemes of the same design, but now we’re getting outright exact duplicates? One would think Nike would have at least the next few years of new designs in the bag in advance, yet here we are.

For my part, I’d be plenty happy with three jerseys. Give me a home, an away, and an alternate that changes (into something new!) every year. Keep it simple. Keep it fresh. If we’re out of ideas already, maybe five different uniform variations is too much.

I invite you to follow me @_80MPH on X, and check back often at Mavs Moneyball for all the latest on the Dallas Mavericks.

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

Sign up here to participate in the weekly emailed surveys:

We’re in one of the deader times for the NBA. There is the FIBA World Cup for men and women but it’s not really on TV in America unless you find some streaming options. That means here at Mavs Moneyball we’re whittling away the time.And while we do have posts, I wanted to ask this poll question to gauge what our August and September diehards think. More thoughts from me once I see the results lby Friday.

“Time does not exist as a horizontal line but rather in a vertical relationship to the present.”
—Rebecca Walker

---

Stop. Find your DeLorean, TARDIS, displacement sphere, or phone booth—whatever you’ve got access to. Set the destination. Close your eyes.

When you arrive, it’s 2003. The San Antonio Spurs have just won the NBA championship in a 4-2 rock fight against the New Jersey Nets. Only twice did either team break 90. Tim Duncan holds the crown as the best player in the league and bigs continue to rule supreme; the last of the great dinosaurs. The game is played down low. Slow. Like the August news cycle.

But around the corner, change looms.

A transatlantic migration has already begun. A new regnal era approaches. Threatening that is a one-and-done collegiate champion.

In the shadows, a flash.

Cyclical: The context

State of the franchise

First, the timing. Coming off a relative golden era, the Miami Heat are in the NBA’s basement. Seven-time All-Star; two-time All-NBA, All-Defensive, and Defensive Player of the Year; and best player in franchise history, Alonzo Mourning, just missed the entirety of the 2002-2003 season as the Heat finished 25-57, the fourth-worst record in the league. Then, in the offseason, he rips the franchise’s heart out, joining the rival Nets in a move NBA GMs envision having the third most impact of any player acquisition. And so the Heat are forced to retool, placing their bets on an uber-talented 6’10” forward with plenty of question marks and a freshly-drafted 6’4” combo-guard dubbed an “NCAA Tournament standout [who] can contribute now.”

That combo-guard is Dwyane Wade.

Draft class

Despite being a highly-touted prospect, Wade doesn’t have the fanfare of his draft class counterparts. He isn’t a 6’8” teenage phenom ready to transform a long-suffering franchise. Nor is he a polished, inside-and-out forward ready to drop 20 a night from the jump. He doesn’t have the tantalising appeal of a versatile, lithe big, either. Even “worse,” he’s older than all of them, putting a supposed cap on his ceiling.

Despite these limitations, Wade bursts onto the scene, finishing third in Rookie of the Year voting with 117 points, trailing only LeBron James (508 points) and Carmelo Anthony (430 points). More importantly, he helps the Heat surpass the 35 wins projected for them prior to the season, finishing 42-40 and beating the New Orleans Hornets in the first round before succumbing to the Indiana Pacers in the Eastern Conference Semifinals. That offseason, Miami trades for Shaquille O’Neal and, well, you know the rest from there.

Now and then: The players

Scouting report

Now, the players. Here, in all of its archival glory—courtesy of another time-bending device (the Wayback Machine)—is Wade’s NBA Draft.net pre-draft scouting report. And here, as you see it today, is Burries’.

From a qualitative standpoint, it’s hard not to see the parallels. Different worlds, different era, remarkably similar players. For starters, they are—for the sake of this exercise, and considering time’s vertical stacking, we’ll stick with present tense—both physical guards with NBA-ready frames:

• Now: Burries is a “Strong, well-built guard with good positional size and an NBA-ready frame”
• Then: Wade “Has an NBA ready body”

Both also excel because of their fast-twitch first steps:

• Now: Burries “Shows a deliberate and quick first step that allows him to gain separation off the dribble.”
• Then: Wade “Possesses one of the most explosive first steps in all of college basketball…”

They weaponise both of these—physicality and explosion—to finish through contact too:

• Now: Burries “Excels in transition where his blend of strength, coordination, and athleticism allows him to finish above the rim or through contact.”
• Then: Wade “Has an NBA ready body which usually allows him to finish after contact occurs”

And excel as rebounders despite their shorter statures:

• Now: Burries “Does a very good job rebounding the ball for a guard”
• Then: Wade “is an excellent rebounder”

Both even raise similar lead-guard concerns:

• Now: Burries has “questions about his full-time point guard projection,” is “Still developing as a pure facilitator in pick-and-roll situations,” and has a “Handle [that] is solid but not elite”
• Then: Wade “is dangerously close to being a combo guard. Too small to be a shooting guard not enough point guard skills to run a team offense” and his “ball handling could stand to be improved if he is to play some point guard in the NBA” 

As defenders, they are disruptive:

• Now: Burries is a “Disruptive defensive presence with solid anticipation (1.5 spg), frequently jumping passing lanes and creating turnovers,” a “Physical defender who competes on that end and uses strength well at the point of attack,” and “Shows the ability to impact the game on both ends with his energy, instincts, and feel”
• Then: Wade “Plays solid perimeter defense and understands how to cut-off the passing lanes”

Beyond skillsets, both exhibit clear leadership qualities too:

• Now: Burries “Emerged as Arizona’s go-to scorer and emotional leader” and is a “High-level competitor with clear leadership traits”
• Then: Wade “Plays very poised and mature for his age. Seems to maintain the same facial expression regardless if his team is up or down by 30 points” and “Has become more of a leader this year”

Remove the names throughout these and you’d be hard pressed to work out which describes whom. The point is clear: prior to playing a game in the L, Burries and Wade were seen by scouts in the same light.

Need more? You’ve got it.

Measurables

From a quantitative standpoint, using Tankathon’s historical NBA Combine data, the parallels between Wade and Burries are even more concrete:

Dwyane Wade	Category	Brayden Burries
6’5”	Height	6’5”
212 lbs	Weight	215 lbs
21.41 years	Age	20.75 years
35”	Max. Vertical	38.5”
10.56 seconds	Lane Agility	10.59 seconds
3.08 seconds	3/4 Sprint	3.21 seconds
8’6”	Standing Reach	8’2.5”
6’10.75”	Wingspan	6’6”

While Wade’s length is the glaring exception, allowing him to do preternatural stuff like this, the numbers are otherwise eerily similar. That Burries actually bests Wade in maximum vertical is especially interesting considering the disparity in athleticism-related superlatives surrounding them (conversationally and, to an extent, in their scouting reports). So, is this more a case of temporal dilation, where Wade appears to explode at a quicker rate than Burries but doesn’t actually? You know, because of the relative quickening of the league and increased gravitational pressure of the three ball.

On that note, Burries’ prowess as a shooter shouldn’t be seen as a point of contention in any comparison with Wade. It is merely a byproduct of time revisiting itself. No Terminator is the same as its predecessor—but they are equally (relatively) destructive.

And this, my friends—contextually, stylistically, and physically—is what we have in Brayden Burries: Dwyane Wade, reincarnate.

Just wait and see.

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Heavy.com’s Sean Deveney, in a summary of things left unresolved at summer’s end, reports that the Brooklyn Nets and their high scorer from last year appear to be at an impasse over an extension, raising the possibility that if it continues, Michael Porter Jr. might be on the trade block.

Porter is in an odd spot because he needs an extension as he heads into the final year of his contract, at $40 million. He showed All-Star ability when given more free reign last year, but that was on a bad Nets team. Brooklyn should be better this year, and Porter will need to show he can keep putting up star numbers on a team that is trying. But if an extension does not get done … what then?

Deveney quotes an “Eastern Conference executive” on the possibility:

“I think what he did last year is legit and teams are going to see it that way. But the problem you have is if you trade for him, are you going to extend him and what is the number? The Nuggets overpaid him when they gave him that extension, and if he wants to be paid based on that, that is not going to be an easy sell. If he can accept getting into a salary slot that makes more sense for him, you can make that trade. It’s an expiring deal but the Nets would get a first-round pick for him still.”

Just turned 28, MPJ is now after that big Nuggets contract an expiring deal worth $40.8 million, which is $7 million more than any other Nets player will receive this year. And even though Sean Marks has said all the right things about Porter Jr. and his agent, Mark Bartelstein, has said all the right things about the way the Nets and particularly Jordi Fernandez, have treated him and how happy he is, it is a business and the two sides have different views on what should happen next.

“I’m sure we’ll have those discussions. I think we’ve got time. There’s no immediate hurry right now with Mike. We value him a lot. He had a terrific year last year, arguably his best year as a pro. I give him a lot of credit for that,” Marks said back on July 16. “It’s been great to see what Mike’s done for us. I look forward to having those discussions, and seeing what Mike can do the rest of the summer and the rest of the season.”

So, no urgency?

“No, any time you’re in a hurry, that’s when people make mistakes,” Marks added. “We’ve got a well-thought-out plan here over not only the last couple of years but the couple of years ahead. We’re gonna try and find who the next Nets are gonna be. I don’t think we wanna do anything hastily or in a rush here.”

And indeed, the Nets can extend Porter Jr. at any time up until July 6 of next year. But Bartelstein sees things differently, as presumably does his client. MPJ has recently talked about how he sees his life beyond basketball, but this could very well be his last chance to make the big bucks.

“Michael loves it in Brooklyn. Jordi has been great for him… I think it’s a great fit,” Bartelstein said in a SiriusXM Radio interview at around the same time. “But that’s something Sean and I have to sit down and talk about. The Nets have to ultimately chart out their course for the way they want to go forward, and we have to do the same thing for Michael. If we can make it work where there’s a long-term fit, that would be awesome. But that’s what we’re gonna be talking about in the days ahead.”

Reportedly the two sides have spoken since but beyond that, there’s been little news. As Deveney noted, Porter Jr. wants a deal that will pay him beyond that $40.8 million and presumably over a longer term than the Nets feel comfortable with. Indeed, it would appear that the length of an extension may be a bigger issue than money. With many teams hamstrung by the luxury tax and first or second aprons, the trend is for shorter deals. The Nets, while not anywhere near either, see themselves in rebuild, if not tanking mode, and don’t appear to want to take on big, long term deals. As we reported Monday in our Off-Season Report:

They do not want, at least at this point in the rebuild, to cut long-term deals either. Thus, the impasse with Michael Porter Jr. as well as the team and “mutual” second-year options Minott, Day’Ron Sharpe, Moe Wagner and Keon Ellis agreed to this summer.

Indeed, other than seven rookies with their two-year guarantees on four-year deals, only Terance Mann is owed guaranteed money beyond this season. He’s got $31 million left on his deal. Julius Randle has a player option. The roster is built to turn on a dime and unsentimentally move on.

In addition, a solution suggested by more than one set of pundits now seems unlikely. Yossi Gozlan and Sam Quinn speculated in July that the Nets could use some of their cap space to give Porter Jr. an immediate raise to say $49 million, then fill out an extension at a lower salary, perhaps in the 30 million dollar range? In that configuration, the two suggested, the Nets could sign Moe Wagner to the room MLE at $9.2 million and pay MPJ out of cap space. But since then, Wagner was signed out of cap space, not the MLE, leaving Brooklyn with only $1.7 million under the cap, per Spotrac.

Whether Porter Jr. would have accepted that is another thing. There was no indication of that.

He did speak about contract negotiations Monday in an interview with Peyton Watson, his former teammate with the Nuggets, but that discussion on his Curious Mike podcast focused not on his situation but Watson’s. (Porter sure seemed like he was recruiting the 23-year-old to the Nets at one point earlier in the summer, but the Nets never seemed that interested.)

What could MPJ bring back in a trade? Another first round pick to add to the 13 firsts and 19 seconds they have already banked? What about as a nice piece in a trade deadline deal for a younger player come February? Whoever takes him on whether for a pick or player would also have to talk to Bartelstein about his future and the issues would likely be the same for that team as for the Nets. What’s his market?

Bottom line seems that the Nets do indeed like Porter Jr. as player and team leader — and need him if they’re going to satisfy their fans need for some wins this season, Marks and Joe Tsai seem ready to stay their course, that “well-thought out plan” Marks mentioned.

And as noted, there’s plenty to time.

• NBA Trade Rumors: Deal Cost for Kyrie Irving, Trey Murphy & More – Sean Deveney – Heavy.com