Category: Basketball

Welcome back to The Butterfly Effect! Last week, we discussed the Stephon Marbury and Anfernee Hardaway trade to the New York Knicks in 2004 and how it opened up the cap space for the Phoenix Suns to re-sign Steve Nash. That signing, of course, would lead to the Suns beginning one of their greatest eras in franchise history.

That was the beginning of the Steve Nash era. This week, I want to talk about the end. In 2012, the Phoenix Suns traded Steve Nash to the Los Angeles Lakers as part of a sign-and-trade. Now, I believe that all pictures of Nash in a Lakers jersey should be burned, and we should all pretend it never happened. Today, though, we aren’t discussing #13 moving on to LA; we are discussing what the Lakers sent back to the Suns.

Seriously, though, look at this picture and tell me with a straight face that it doesn’t make you sick.

Before we get started, I have one more thing to add. One of my favorite comments last week was from Bright Side reader Zenzino, who said:

“That’s kind of a stretch to attribute the Nash signing to the Marbury/Hardaway trade. Why stop there? Everything is interconnected to some degree.”

Zenzino’s comment at the end is especially important. Everything is indeed interconnected to some degree. In fact, that is a portion of the thesis of this series. This week, we want to find out what names are linked to Nash that we might not have thought of before.

Furthermore, that interconnectedness will require us to make an amendment to the rules of the game this week:

• Subsequent trades count. If Player A was traded to Phoenix, played there for 2 years, and was traded again, that second trade is included in our analysis.
• We go until there is nothing left. The transaction chain continues until a player is waived or leaves in free agency
• All pieces returned will be analyzed. If the Suns received two players and one pick in the deal, we analyze the entire transaction tree of each asset.
• Partials count. If a player is received in a trade, then is flipped alongside two other players in a second trade, the full amount back in that second trade will be counted with the “(Partial)” title.
  • There is no real way to quantify the percentage of value that any one piece has in a trade, so this is how we will compromise. This way a player does not get full credit for value that they did not provide in a trade.
  • Amendment: Partials of partials will not be discussed. This week, you will see Ryan Anderson (Partial). The Suns received Ryan Anderson when they traded away Player X (Partial). We will count what Anderson did on the Suns, but not what the Suns received when they eventually traded him away. The asset dilution is such that if you go back far enough, almost the entire Suns Roster is a result of some trade or another. This keeps us focused on what the Suns got specifically for the player we are discussing, without diluting our analysis too much.
    • If a trade tree has reached a point of too much dilution, I will stop counting players towards our end total.
• Transaction tree branches will be listed in chronological order so that we can analyze the story that was being told by the transaction timeline.

July 11, 2012

Phoenix Suns Trade:

• Steve Nash

Los Angeles Lakers Trade:

• 2013 1st round pick (Nemanja Nedovic)
• 2018 1st round pick (Mikal Bridges)
• 2013 2nd round pick (Alex Oriakhi)
• 2014 2nd round pick (Johnny O’Bryant)

That’s right, folks. The Phoenix Suns traded Steve Nash for Mikal Bridges. This would have ended up being a great trade for Phoenix off of the back of that pick alone, had they kept it. But, they did not. In fact, Phoenix did not end up drafting and keeping any of these picks. All three of the picks that did not go on to be Mikal Bridges were selected by the Suns, but traded before they could ever suit up in purple and orange. The Bridges pick was traded years before Mikal would even be eligible for the draft.

Let’s see where each of these four branches leads us.

July 27, 2012

As part of a three-team trade with the Minnesota Timberwolves and the New Orleans Hornets:

Phoenix Suns trade:

• Johnny O’Bryant
• Robin Lopez
• Hakim Warrik

Phoenix Suns receive:

• Wesley Johnson
• Jerome Dyson
• Brad Miller
• 2016 2nd round pick (Rade Zagorac)
• 2017 2nd round pick (Semi Ojeleye)

The Johnny O’Bryant trade tree is the one we start with. It is also the one with the least interesting branches. In reality, O’Bryant did not bring in much, if any, value to this trade. This was mostly a trade for restricted free agent Robin Lopez, who was at that point a mediocre backup big who could eat up 10-12 minutes per game for a team.

Jerome Dyson and Brad Miller were waived after the trade went through and the two seconds were shipped out later for 40 games of Brandan Wright, who then left in free agency. Because of O’Bryant’s low value in this partial trade, we aren’t going to count Brandan Wright’s games in our final total.

The one player the Suns did get in this trade that contributed at least a little on the court is Wesley Johnson. Johnson played 50 games for Phoenix and poured in a few points and a few rebounds.

This trade isn’t all that notable. Let’s move on to our next branch.

June 27, 2013

Phoenix Suns trade:

• Nemanja Nedovic

Golden State Warriors trade:

• Archie Goodwin
• Malcolm Lee

I want to start with Malcolm Lee. Lee would go on to be traded by the Suns in October of 2013. He was one part of a package with Marcin Gortat, Shannon Brown, and Kendall Marshall that brought back Emeka Okafor and a 2014 1st round pick that went on to become Tyler Ennis. While Ennis himself only played eight games for the Suns, remember his name. It will come up again before we are done.

That said, Lee was waived after this trade. The Wizards were trading for Gortat, not Lee. We aren’t going to count Okafor or Ennis towards our final totals.

Archie Goodwin, on the other hand, played 150 games for the Suns across three seasons before being cut in October of 2016.

This ends the first two branches of the Steve Nash trade tree. I am glad these two trades were up first. The O’Bryant and Nedovic picks brought back the Suns by far the worst returns out of the four. So far, our totals tracker looks like this:

July 12, 2014

Phoenix Suns trade:

• Alex Oriakhi

Sacramento Kings trade:

• Isaiah Thomas

This is a trade that the world should be shocked by. Isaiah Thomas had already been a 20 ppg scorer for Sacramento when they traded him for a 6’ 9” PF that spent four years in college and never made the leap to the NBA.

In 2014-2015, Isaiah Thomas would achieve a second-place finish for Sixth Man of the Year. In 2016-2017 he finished fifth in MVP voting. A truly remarkable career for one of the biggest underdogs in NBA history.

Of course, none of those accolades were achieved in Phoenix, as IT was traded to Boston just 46 games into his Phoenix Suns career. As it turns out, three-point guard lineups don’t work very well.

In his time in Boston, he also took part in one of my favorite moments as a Suns fan, even though it was one of the smallest plays in NBA history.

For all intents and purposes, the Oriakhi trade tree has become the Isaiah Thomas trade tree. So, let’s see what else we find.

February 19, 2015

As part of a three-team trade between the Phoenix Suns, Boston Celtics, and Detroit Pistons:

Phoenix Suns trade:

• Isaiah Thomas

Phoenix Suns receive:

• Marcus Thornton
• 2016 1st round pick (Skal Labissiere)

Marcus Thornton did very little for the Suns. He played a whopping nine games for Phoenix before moving on in free agency. But, the 2016 1st round pick was very important because on draft night in 2016, the Suns pulled off another trade.

June 23, 2016

Phoenix Suns trade:

• Skal Labissiere
• Bogdan Bogdanovic
• Georgios Papagiannis
• 2020 2nd round pick (Xavier Tillman)

Sacramento Kings trade:

• Marquese Chriss

That’s right! There is a direct chain between Steve Nash and Marquese Chriss.

Draft night 2016, what a disaster for the Phoenix Suns. Phoenix used two top-10 picks on power forwards and neither of them worked out for Phoenix. One year later they would blow it again, drafting Josh Jackson with another top-5 pick. Imagine if the Suns had landed these picks. Some combination of three of Domantas Sabonis, Jamal Murray, De’Aaron Fox, Lauri Markannen or Jakob Poetl could have been theirs next to Devin Booker. Instead, we got Booker next to Bender, Chriss, and Jackson. The quartet (sometimes including Tyler Ulis) was christened “The Timeline.”

But I digress, we aren’t here to discuss what could have been. We are here to discuss what actually was, which was bad. How bad? Let me remind you of this lowlight:

In the moment, I was upset that Chriss clearly just had a temper tantrum after he missed a dunk basically uncontested. Now that Rubio has since played for the Suns and been one of my all-time favorites, I am furious that Chriss had the nerve to push our beautiful bubble point guard.

For now, let’s end the Isaiah Thomas trade tree here. We will come back to it, but there is more information you need first, which comes from our final branch.

With just two trades left to discuss, here is where we stand now:

February 19th, 2015

We go back one year before the Suns drafted Chriss for our penultimate trade.

Phoenix Suns trade:

• 2018 1st round pick (Mikal Bridges)
• Tyler Ennis
• Miles Plumlee

Milwaukee Bucks trade:

• Brandon Knight
• Kendall Marshall

The Mikal Bridges pick combines with Tyler Ennis and Miles Plumlee to bring in one of the bigger disasters of the 2010s for the Phoenix Suns, Brandon Knight.

Kendall Marshall, who the Suns traded away to the Wizards earlier, comes back in this trade but is waived immediately after.

Brandon Knight wasn’t bad for the Suns. He averaged 15 points across 117 games for Phoenix. The problem was that Knight got in the way of Devin Booker. With Eric Bledsoe already on the team, the Suns found themselves, once again, with three starting guards.

Unfortunately, Knight was also on a big contract at the time, making him hard to move. Eventually, the Suns did dump him in our last trade of the day.

August 31, 2018

Phoenix Suns trade:

• Brandon Knight
• Marquese Chriss

Houston Rockets trade:

• Ryan Anderson
• De’Anthony Melton

Who remembers being excited about Ryan Anderson? I remember being excited about Ryan Anderson. Unfortunately, he was a massive disappointment for the Suns.

This trade did, however, give the Suns an opportunity to get rid of their two biggest problems in Brandon Knight and Marquese Chriss. 

This is where we are going to stop counting our partials through the trade tree. From here, the values of the players that can be linked back to Steve Nash are too diluted.

It is interesting to note, however, that if you continue following down the path that this trade tree sends you, you will eventually find yourself face-to-face with Royce O’Neale and the current Phoenix Suns roster.

Final Tracker

And so, the final tally for on-court value returned for Steve Nash looks like this.

This might be a hot take, but I think the Suns did all right with this return. Did they get any stars? No, they didn’t. But Nash was 38 years old when he went to the Lakers in this sign-and-trade. That isn’t the sort of deal where the old team gets a lot back.

What they did get back was a collection of role players and some assets that went towards acquiring a top-10 pick. They also got a look at Isaiah Thomas, but then traded him away right before he became an all-star.

What have we learned? The transaction log is wildly interconnected. You never know what some small, seemingly meaningless transaction could turn into. The portion of the transaction that netted the Suns both Isaiah Thomas and some of the pieces to go out and get Marquese Chriss was the second round pick that became Alex Oriakhi.

With the draft rapidly approaching, the Suns may be making seemingly minor moves here or there. Don’t underestimate what those moves could someday become.

The Toronto Raptors’ first round draft pick was shocking because of just how predictable it was.

Allen Graves is not only viewed extremely favourably from an analytics standpoint, but is the archetypical Toronto Raptors player: a defensively minded forward who plays well on both sides of the ball. A one and done college player, the West Coast Conference Freshman of the Year and Sixth Man of the Year is a decorated forward who when stacked with Scottie Barnes and Collin Murray-Boyles, could be a part of a group that – while too short to be a Trio of Towers – could have serious lockdown impact.

But, it seems that the fans might need some time to come around to the rookie.

In this FanDuel sponsored survey, a whopping 50% of Raptors HQ readers polled looked upon the pick as a bad move for the Raptors, with less than a quarter of people answering that they saw it as an above-average pick.

This likely reflects less on an assessment of Graves’ skills, but rather, subverted expectations that led to short-term disappointment. Creator @5starsportz on TikTokn exemplifies this, with his video about the Raptors passing on guard Labaron Philon Jr. reaching more than 30,000 views and nearly 7000 likes at the time of writing.

Philon Jr. was mocked at falling to 19, but was ultimately passed on by the Raptors in favour of Graves. This came as a shock to many fans, who identified guard play and a new centre as major priorities for the team to address with the draft. Still, the Raptors are betting on what’s worked for them in the past. Collin Murray-Boyles is in some respects a variant of the Scottie Barnes archetype, and was seen a superfluous pick at a position the Raptors already had a guy at. I think what has been underdiscussed is how cool it would be to have 3 guys who can play even half as well as Scottie Barnes.

Ultimately, I believe that the Raptors’ front office should be trusted with their decision. The draft is far from the only way to build up a team, and many of Toronto’s most important pieces have joined the team as trades. There are other ways to address the deficiencies of this team, and while taking a great centre or guard in the draft could have worked, searching for an upgrade or backup at either of the positions could be done just as easily in another way.

Graves will be the one who has to cash the cheque with his play that the Raptors wrote with their pick, however. But, if the forward remains tenacious on both ends of the ball and plays his role well, I see no reason why the Louisianian couldn’t flourish here in Toronto.

You may remember that in 2025, Charlotte tried to trade Mark Williams to the Los Angeles Lakers, but they canceled the trade after a physical uncovered some problems they had not been aware of. Later that year, he was successfully traded to the Phoenix Suns, where he is now teammates with fellow Brotherhood members Grayson Allen and Khaman Maluach.

Williams and Maluach give Phoenix a tough pair of big men inside. Maluach is probably the future for the Suns, but Williams is still just 24 and has a lot to offer.

Last season, he averaged 11.7 ppg, 8.0 rebounds, an assist, and a shade under a block.

Whatever health issues he had are apparently behind him, as Phoenix plans to retain him, offering a three-year extension for $38 million.

However, with Maluach and Oso Ighodaro both developing, at some point the Suns may have to move one of their three bigs, and as of now, Williams, with a larger contract might be the logical candidate when the younger guys are ready.

• Suns re-signing Mark Williams adds risk and uncertainty to C picture
• Report: RFA Mark Williams stays with Suns on 3-yr, $38M deal
• Insider Unravels Suns’ Potential Trade Intentions After Mark Williams’ $38 Million Contract Extension
• Suns finalizing deal to bring back Mark Williams on $38 million, 3-year deal, AP source says
• BREAKING: Reacting to Mark Williams re-signing with the Phoenix Suns
• Mark Williams new deal shows why Jazz should hold firm with Walker Kessler offer
• Suns Finally Make Mark Williams Decision

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On Thursday, the San Antonio Spurs held a press conference to introduce the four newest members of the team. Jayden Quaintance, Tarris Reed, Jr., Ja’Kobi Gillespie, and Maliq Brown received their Spurs jerseys.

They met with the press briefly and shared their aspirations as the newest members of the franchise.

From Jayden Quaintance saying that Tim Duncan is his favorite Spur,

to Tarris Reed, Jr.’s realization that he was drafted by San Antonio.

It seems the guys are right at home in front of the mic. And they are excited about the prospect of playing for the San Antonio Spurs.

You can watch the full interviews and see for yourself.

Welcome to the Thread. Join in the conversation, start your own discussion, and share your thoughts. This is the Spurs community, your Spurs community. Thanks for being here.

Our community guidelines apply which should remind everyone to be cool, avoid personal attacks, not to troll and to watch the language.

The 2026 NBA Draft has concluded, and the free agency period serves as the next phase of the league’s offseason.

Rumors across the league have continued to appear, including the reports in the moments following the draft that California native LaMelo Ball could have been on the move.

Things moved quickly and the Charlotte Hornets traded Ball to the Minnesota Timberwolves on Thursday morning.

Trade rumors continue to develop, involving some of the league’s most notable players, including Kawhi Leonard and Jaylen Brown.

Will Kawhi Leonard be traded?

Leonard remains a focal point for team owner Steve Ballmer and the Clippers, but that hasn’t stopped the reported trade interest from other teams from happening.

A few teams, including the Golden State Warriors, might be closely monitoring Leonard’s status and could be interested in trading for him, according to ESPN.

The Warriors reportedly checked in with the Clippers about Leonard leading up to the trade deadline in February, but Ballmer did not want to move Leonard, in contrast to what the team did with Ivica Zubac and James Harden during that same time period.

According to Jake Fischer of The Stein Line, if Leonard were traded to either the Miami Heat or the Detroit Pistons, he would not consider signing an extension.

Is Jaylen Brown still available for trade?

With the Boston Celtics clearly having some interest in acquiring Giannis Antetokounmpo from the Milwaukee Bucks, Brown was rumored to be at the center of the return package.

Antetokounmpo was traded to the Miami Heat, but Brown’s name might remain active in trade discussions.

Brown, who spent time with the Cal Golden Bears before the NBA, took on a starring role on his own in Boston for a good chunk of the season while Jayson Tatum was rehabbing a ruptured right Achilles tendon.

Brown still has three years left on a five-year, $285.4 million extension he signed with Boston back in 2023. The All-Star is eligible to sign a two-year, $141.9 million extension on July 26.

"My speculation is that there is another list with other teams that they'll be talking to and I would believe that there's a very good chance Jaylen Brown is elsewhere to start the season," Brian Windhorst said during ESPN’s draft coverage.

 Will Lakers find a center?

The Los Angeles Lakers would greatly benefit from acquiring a highly talented center to complement Luka Doncic on the roster.

Doncic had reportedly requested an "A-List" center, according to ESPN’s Dave McMenamin.

Deandre Ayton joined the Lakers on July 6, 2025, signing a two-year deal. He does have a player option for the upcoming season.

The former No. 1 overall pick averaged 12.5 points and eight rebounds in 72 games for Los Angeles this past season.

The Lakers would need an athletic and defensive-minded big man to help alleviate some of the team’s struggles defensively, especially with Doncic and Austin Reaves still being considered liabilities on defense.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: NBA free agency rumors: Lakers, Clippers latest updates, targets and buzz

The NBA Draft has come and gone, the Giannis Antetokounmpo “to trade or not to trade” question has been answered, and the Boston Celtics find themselves with just about the same roster they had when their season ended at the hands of the Philadelphia 76ers.

From Brad Stevens’ exit interview, it was clear that he was going to make some changes. “Our margin for error needs to get bigger, and at the same time, I don’t think we’re, like, way far away,” he said.

He did admit that the team has been in a similar spot before, though, and that Boston needs to level up to stay competitive and put themselves in the best position to win. Lately it’s been feeling like those changes will be a lot more drastic than anyone expected from a 56-win team that’s just two seasons removed from a championship.

Stevens wanted the team to do a better job of attacking and pressuring the rim. It was also clear that Boston’s frontcourt was not up to par in the Philly series. He recently commented about the team’s needs after night one of the NBA Draft, saying that the priorities are size and, if possible, adding someone with speed on the perimeter.

The obvious path was to use the Non-Taxpayer Mid-Level Exception to sign either a veteran point guard or center to fill one of those needs, and then use all or part of the $27.7 million Traded Player Exception to address the other need. Brad instead was looking for a bigger swing, entering the Celtics into the Giannis sweepstakes.

By putting Jaylen Brown in trade rumors — and apparently trade offers for Giannis — it seems as though Brad has opened a can of worms. The vultures are swarming, and teams seem to think they can pry Brown away from Boston. It’s been reported by Brett Siegel of ClutchPoints that JB has not formally requested a trade at this time, and Brad Stevens has reiterated that he thinks the Jays can still win a championship together, but he also didn’t commit to keeping them together.

The rumor mill has been full effect, and several notable insiders like ESPN’s Shams Charania and Brian Windhorst, The Ringer’s Zach Lowe, and Yahoo Sports’ Kevin O’Connor believe that, while Jaylen is not being offered in outgoing trades, the Celtics are at least receptive to the calls that are coming in. Windy in particular is convinced that JB has played his last game for the Celtics already, and Lowe seems to be betting on the same, while Shams has been a lot more non-committal.

It didn’t seem like something Boston wanted to reckon with this offseason given Brown’s MVP-level year. Now it’s something they’ll have to face head on. That’s also on top of the other needs which the team hasn’t been able to address yet.

So, here’s where things stand as of now:

Jayson Tatum, Jaylen Brown, Derrick White, Sam Hauser, Payton Pritchard, Hugo Gonzalez, Luka Garza, and Baylor Scheierman are under contract right now. The Celtics have team options on Dalano Banton, Neemias Queta, Ron Harper Jr., Jordan Walsh, Amari Williams, and Max Shulga due on June 29th. Boston also drafted Chris Cenac Jr., an athletic 6’10 F/C out of Houston, with the 27^th pick, and Dillon Mitchell, a 6’8 wing out of St. John’s, with the 40^th pick.

Cenac is expected to sign a standard deal, while Mitchell will likely end up on a two-way. As for the team options, Queta, Harper Jr., Walsh, and Williams are probably locks, whereas Banton and Shulga probably won’t be retained, at least on standard deals. With all of that factored in, Boston will have filled 13 of the league’s minimum 14 standard roster spots. They can bring in up to two more players on standard deals after that. Assuming Mitchell ends up on a two-way deal, they will also have two more of those to offer to other players.

Now, where does that leave the team?

The biggest thing on the agenda is to reckon with the fallout of the Jaylen trade rumors. Brad has to make a commitment one way or another. If the Celtics are serious about trading him, they shouldn’t rush a deal, but they need to know what kind of return they’re looking for.

Are there any players of his caliber in a different position of need that could be available in a swap? If you ask me, the answer is no, in part because of his $57 million salary this season. So, is there an assembly of players that you can expect back that works financially and addresses the needs? That’s another tough one. Through my perusals of the trade machine, I haven’t found anything especially compelling without a convoluted three-team deal, though I’d reckon that NBA GMs are a lot better at constructing these than I am.

So, if you don’t get a perfect assembly of players, can you at least get a litany of draft compensation along with one or two quality guys? That seems like the most straightforward path to completing a deal, but that probably doesn’t bring the Celtics any closer to contention for this upcoming season. And therein lies the crux of the issue. It’s not every day you find a Jaylen Brown in the NBA, so replacing his value can feel impossible for a team that’s trying to win now.

Ultimately, it seems as though Stevens isn’t the one shopping Brown, so it’s up to other teams to make an offer that at least captures Brad’s attention enough to reach the negotiating stage. It may be a while before that happens, which could improve the return for Boston, but complicate their overall construction.

Jake Fischer of The Stein Line seems to believe that the Celtics are not looking to move Jaylen unless it makes them better. That is likely the best course of action given that he has three years left on his deal.

Let’s assume JB doesn’t get traded. What’s next?

Well, we’d still have to address the areas of concern: a reliable, veteran paint presence, and a speedy guard. The free-agent market is pretty bare in both areas. For guards, Colin Sexton and Brandon Williams might be the only notable unrestricted free agents. Marcus Smart and Jose Alvarado both have player options, and Boston could offer one of them the MLE, which could give either up to a $10 million salary bump.

There are more options at center, but still nothing to write home about. Kristaps Porzingis, Jusuf Nurkic, Mitchell Robinson, Robert Williams III, Jock Landale, and Nick Richards are a handful of the unrestricted options. Walker Kessler and Jalen Duren are restricted, and it’s unlikely that Boston will outbid either of their teams, but a sign-and-trade could be on the table, at least for Kessler if the reports about him being unhappy with the Jazz have any validity to them.

The Celtics probably won’t be able to address both of their positions of need through free agency, so once they’ve made their choice, they’ll have to think about what, or who, they’re willing to part ways with to address the other. So far, the consensus seems to be that Sam Hauser is the player that a trade will be centered around, though Jordan Walsh could also be in the mix. They also have the Simons TPE to play around with and get themselves a higher caliber, or at least more expensive player, but that’s a chip for them, not their trade partner. They may have to sweeten a deal with picks depending on who they’re pursuing.

Trey Murphy III is a player who has been floated pretty frequently in these talks. He fits perfectly into the TPE, but New Orleans has always been rumored to be looking for significant draft compensation in any deal for Murphy. It’s important to note, that the TPE can be split up among multiple players. That’s created the possibility of trading for more than one quality player. Someone like Daniel Gafford of the Dallas Mavericks is an option, and would leave about $10m of the TPE to use on a second player.

The Celtics are currently $13.2 million under the tax line, and $21.2 million under the first apron. If they do elect to use the TPE and/or the full MLE, they could likely end up as a tax paying team, and will also get hard-capped at the first apron. The expectation was that they would be under the first apron regardless, but if they don’t duck the tax line, they won’t be able to reset the repeater tax. If they want to stay competitive, that’s something they’re going to have to seriously consider.

One last nugget to keep in mind: Derrick White has appeared in a few trade rumors this offseason. It’s been reported that the Celtics are not actively shopping him, but other teams were inquiring about his availability. Making $30.3 million this upcoming season, he could be Boston’s most interesting trade chip aside from Jaylen if they do want to make a drastic move. And before anyone comments — no, neither I, nor the Celtics are going to be entertaining offers for Jayson Tatum. I have no source to corroborate that, but I would bet my life savings on it. (Don’t gamble, kids.)

This is going to be an offseason of hard conversations, and even harder decisions for Boston. It’s definitely the murkiest the waters have looked since 2023, and maybe even the murkiest in the entire Jays era. Prepare your hearts. Spend time with your loved ones. Take your mind off it and enjoy your summer. Us Celtics fans have had a lot of smooth sailing lately, but the waves seem to be getting bigger. Captain Brad Stevens has the wheel, and it’s up to him to get us back to shore safe and sound.

James Harden is an easy punching bag for the Cleveland Cavaliers. The flaws in his game are pretty obvious, and his teams have yet to come through on the biggest stages throughout his 17-year career. Throw in that he was traded to Cleveland in exchange for a home-grown All-Star that’s 10 years younger, and it’s easy to see why the sentiment is what it is.

That said, the Cavs don’t make it to the Eastern Conference Finals this past season without Harden. In fact, they don’t advance out of the first round without trading for him. Despite the flaws in Harden’s game, he consistently elevated the play of the group. That shouldn’t be lost in any of the discussions about his performance.

Regular Season Stats

• 23.6 points
• 8 assists
• 4.8 rebounds
• 43.4% FG
• 37.5% 3PT FG
• 88.4% FT

Koby Altman mentioned in February that they traded for Harden to help in the postseason. He certainly did that.

The Cavs were 12.7 points per 100 possessions better with Harden on the court in the playoffs than they were when he was off. That was the highest mark on the team. This was because he blended well with the starters while still carrying hybrid bench lineups when both Donovan Mitchell and Evan Mobley were off the floor.

Figuring out how to survive the minutes without Mitchell was a problem all regular season and has hurt the Cavs in previous postseason runs. Being able to stabilize those minutes was incredibly useful and allowed the team to get as far as they did in the postseason.

The Cavs don’t make it past either the Toronto Raptors or Detroit Pistons if it weren’t for Harden. His ability to get to the line and continually get the bigs involved kept a Cleveland offense on schedule that often became too reliant on the three-ball. This led to the Cavs winning the minutes he played in 10 of the 14 games he played in the first two rounds.

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Things didn’t work out nearly as well against the New York Knicks. Jalen Brunson hunted mismatches against him down the stretch of Game 1 when the Cavs squandered a 22-point lead in the final frame. Most of that was good shot-making, but it also highlighted the weaknesses in Harden’s game.

The Cavs aren’t the undersized backcourt they were with Darius Garland alongside Mitchell. Harden’s size (6’5″) and strength mean that you can’t just shoot over him. But if you force him to defend in space without help around him, he’s going to be exposed. The same could be said for Mitchell.

This team needs Harden’s playmaking and ability to get the bigs involved because these are things Mitchell struggles with. At the same time, having both members of the starting backcourt as defensive targets puts a cap on how good you can defend against elite competition, even if you have three good defenders behind them.

Harden and Mitchell aren’t going to magically become better defenders at this point in their careers. Maybe there are things the Cavs can do from a scheme perspective to keep either from being targeted as much, but the cleanest path forward is just figuring out how to make the offense work better.

The pairing between Harden and Mitchell got off to a good start in the regular season — particularly late in games — but the chemistry didn’t carry over as much as you’d hope it would in the playoffs. It often turned into “your turn, my turn” with isolation attacks.

Harden and Mitchell were both in the top 10 for isolation possessions per game in the playoffs. They were both pretty good at this, with Mitchell scoring one point per isolation possession and Harden averaging 0.99. However, if your overall offense is that isolation-heavy, things can become stagnant quickly.

Turnovers were an issue for Harden. He deserves the blame for those giveaways, but it’s fair to point out that these were also the byproduct of a stagnant offense that didn’t have a cohesive plan of attack.

Head coach Kenny Atkinson drastically remade Cleveland’s offense over the final few months of the season. He did away with his preferred motion-based offense for a more stationary, spaced-out isolation attack to fit his best two players. However, they never quite found a way to maximize that approach.

More often than not, Cleveland’s role players would find themselves cutting into traffic when they should’ve stayed stationary, and staying stationary when they needed to cut. The floor balance wasn’t what it needed to be in order to make this work.

That’s excusable given the fact that Atkinson was trying to build the plane while flying it. Those same excuses won’t be there next season. The Cavs need to figure out how they want to play offensively and surround Harden and Mitchell with guys who can fit that mold.

Adjusting to a new team that late in the season is difficult. Harden handled the change well and helped elevate this core to heights they’ve never reached before. That’s exactly what he was brought in to do. From that perspective, it was a successful season for Harden.

At the same time, it’s fair to wonder how much higher the ceiling is for a Harden-led Cavs. Can Harden and Mitchell complement each other better offensively than they did in the playoffs? Will the defense be able to thrive with two below-average defenders on the perimeter? The answer to both questions will determine whether this core can take the next step forward.

Grade: A-

On Thursday, the Washington Wizards introduced AJ Dybantsa in a major press conference. Today, they will introduce their second round draft pick, Felix Okpara at a ceremony this afternoon at the Rubell Museum at Navy Yard. The time of the ceremony is at 12 p.m. ET. Kevin Broom wrote about Okpara on Wednesday which you can access here.

With the Wizards moving past a traditional rebuilding direction, I’m pretty excited to see what Wizards General Manager Will Dawkins and Okpara have to say. Over the past three seasons, the Wizards have looked to acquire multiple draft picks and play them significantly. In the 2026 draft however, the Wizards have only acquired two players, Dybantsa and Okpara.

Because of the press conference, the museum will be closed until 2 p.m. ET for general visitors. We’ll have a link to the press conference, if available below.

You know the old internet meme. A dog with a fedora sits in a room. A mug is on a table. And the walls are on fire. Seemingly calm despite the circumstances, the dog says, “this is fine.”

To most of the talking heads, this is where the Celtics are heading into free agency. After striking out in their pursuit of Giannis Antetokounmpo, many suspect that 1) Jaylen Brown has/had asked to be traded, 2) bridges have been burned between him and the front office, and/or 3) Brad Stevens is actively shopping the 2024 Finals MVP and 2026 All-NBA Second Teamer.

On Thursday, ClutchPoint’s Brett Siegel reported that “Jaylen Brown has not once approached the organization or Brad Stevens to ask for a trade.” The Stein Line’s Jake Fischer also said that “Boston is very much moving forward in the market with the thought that they don’t have to trade Jaylen Brown..I don’t believe at this juncture that the Celtics want to move Brown unless it makes them better.”

Despite those missives throwing water on a lot of the speculation from more mainstream outlets like ESPN, there’s still an air of indecision with the fanbase. Brad Stevens tried to quell those rumors in his post-draft presser, but actual NBA GMs and armchair GMs alike have already hit the trade machine with possible deals that could make sense for the Celtics.

We polled our readers on the current state of the team before free agency starts on June 30th at 6 pm EST:

What does Jaylen Brown think? Well, he’s overseas at the moment, but on Wednesday, he simply tweeted that he “loves cats.” It’s not exactly the energy-shifting attitude we were expecting from JB, but it ain’t the “this is fine” dog either.

Despite the palace intrigue at Waltham, our friends at FanDuel still have the Celtics as the favorite at +210 to represent the East in next year’s Finals and third behind the Thunder and Spurs to raise the Larry O’Brien.

June 26, 5:30 a.m. ET Update: Shout-out Andrew Claudio for bringing this to my timeline. While the Knicks’ financial plans for next season already seemed rather clear, James L. Edwards and Fred Katz just confirmed on the “Katz & Shoot” podcast that the Knicks’ front office was “blindsided” by James Dolan’s second-apron comments.

“It sounds like a mandate from Dolan, that was my takeaway from the draft,” Edwards said. “To be clear, the ‘not going into the second apron stuff,’ the front office did not advise that… It was not like the front office went to Doland and was like, ‘No, strategically, (it’s helfpful) to not go into the second apron;’ that didn’t happen. Then Dolan went on the radio and people in the Knicks were like ‘Wait, what?’” Katz explained. “They were blindsided,” Edwards finished.

“The Knicks’ front office understands that if they don’t go into the second apron, they’re gonna lose guys, and if they just let guys walk, then they are not going to be able to get equivalent guys back, because they won’t have the room,” Katz said.

The New York Knicks are expected to lose center Mitchell Robinson in free agency.

According to the New York Post’s Stefan Bondy, Robinson is “unlikely to return to the Knicks next season,” mostly because of New York’s self-imposed financial cap.

“Heard it’s unlikely Mitchell Robinson will be back with Knicks next season. He’s longest tenured Knick but also an unrestricted free agent. Owner James Dolan said he’s unwilling to pay into second apron so running it back with bench is not feasible.” — New York Post’s Stefan Bondy

According to Bondy’s sources, the longest-tenured Knick, with the team since New York drafted him with the No. 36 pick in the 2008 NBA Draft, is expected to depart and put an end to his time in New York shortly after becoming a champion.

Robinson’s situation is tied directly to the franchise’s financial stance, with Knicks owner James Dolan making it clear his organization will not cross the second apron this summer, even though that would inevitably lead to breaking the title-winning core, with the exception of the under-contract starting five.

“There’s certain things in the NBA that you’d have to be suicidal to do. One of them is the second apron. Cannot go into the second apron,” Dolan said. “I’ll write as big of a check as possible, but I can’t write a check that goes into the second apron.”

Dolan’s mandate has already influenced New York’s early offseason moves, including trading out of the 2026 NBA Draft’s first round to avoid adding guaranteed salary to its books, ultimately landing two second-round rookies that will likely sign minimum or two-way contracts.

Meanwhile, SNY’s Ian Begley added that retaining Robinson would likely require a pay cut from the big man, which feels highly unlikely given his value on the open market has increased and multiple suitors—the Los Angeles Lakers and the Sacramento Kings among them—could enter a bidding war for his services.

“It’s unlikely Mitchell Robinson returns to the Knicks because, in the best case scenario, he’d have to take a pay cut in order for NYK to remain under 2nd apron.” — SNY’s Ian Begley

Even out of the upcoming free-agency context, there is no realistic scenario in which Robinson, who isn’t necessarily old (he will play next season at age 28) but has only appeared in 167 games of the last possible 328 (51%) in the regular season, would take such a massive pay cut to fit the Knicks’ books.

Robinson has completed a four-year, $60 million deal with an average annual salary of $15 million per year. As things stand, per Yossi Gozlan, Mitch would need to take a substantial discount and sign for around $8-$9 million for New York to retain him. The word out there is that the Lakers and Kings would start their pitches at Robinson’s current $15-million-per-year salary with the expectation that the figure would increase.

Earlier on Thursday, ESPN’s Brian Windhorst already said that “There is a real possibility that (the Knicks) won’t keep Mitch Robinson.”

“There is a real possibility that they won’t keep Mitch Robinson. The Knicks are working on it. They made several different moves to free up about $4 million in airspace under the apron. There’s a possibility they may trade off another player to save some money. They’re trying to figure out Mitch Robinson, but I would say it’s not a guarantee that it will work. I would say Mitch Robinson is 50/50… maybe 51/49 to come back.” — ESPN’s Brian Windhorst

If Mitch has played his last game as a Knick, he’d leave New York with 397 regular-season games under his belt, averaging 7.5 points, 8.0 rebounds, and 1.7 blocks. On top of that, he appeared in 53 postseason games, putting up 4.9 points, 7.0 rebounds, and 0.9 blocks per game.

With free agency nearing, the gap between Robinson’s market value and what the Knicks can offer appears to make his return to Manhattan unlikely. Blame it on the little room for maneuvering imposed by the NBA’s second apron, but mostly on Dolan’s stubbornness. Some things never change.

Ben Humrichous went undrafted in the 2026 NBA Draft, as expected, but quickly signed an Exhibit 10 contract with the Brooklyn Nets. Humrichous was overlooked coming out of high school but worked his way into earning an opportunity with an NBA organization.

Humrichous is originally from Tipton, Indiana, and graduated from Tipton High School as a zero-star recruit. He began his college career at the NAIA level before transferring to Evansville and eventually Illinois for his senior and super senior seasons. At 6-foot-9, he always had the physical tools to develop into someone capable of playing professional basketball.

The former Illini forward started his college career in the NAIA ranks and worked his way to high-major basketball at Illinois over his final two seasons. The Indiana native averaged 14.7 points per game while shooting an impressive 41.4% from beyond the arc at Evansville before transferring to Champaign. He averaged 5.8 points per game last season but was excellent defensively and on the glass. His commitment to getting stronger and improving defensively is a major reason why he earned a contract with the Nets.

It was not a smooth ride for Humrichous during his two years in Champaign, but he trusted the process and became a key contributor on last season’s Final Four team. He began his Illinois career as a starter and an important offensive piece before transitioning into a reserve role with fewer scoring opportunities. He could have left Illinois following a disappointing first season in Champaign, but he stayed, embraced his new role, and helped the Illini make a deep postseason run.

NBA Fit

It is unlikely that Ben Humrichous will ever appear in a regular-season game for the Brooklyn Nets or another NBA team, but he will get his opportunity this summer. He will join several former Illini on the NBA Summer League circuit as they fight for a roster spot.

Illinois fans have recently watched Coleman Hawkins, Giorgi Bezhanishvili, Quincy Guerrier, Dain Dainja, Marcus Domask, Justin Harmon, and Malcolm Hill compete in NBA Summer League. Former Illini Malcolm Hill grinded through Summer League and the G League before eventually earning his opportunity in the NBA. Humrichous and Kylan Boswell will be the next Illini looking to follow a similar path.

Boswell also went undrafted in the 2026 NBA Draft but get his opportunity to prove himself during Summer League with the Charlotte Hornets. It will be challenging for both players to make an NBA roster next season, but a continued commitment to development could give them a chance.

Humrichous is a versatile 6-foot-9 forward who can provide shooting, defense, and rebounding off the bench, much like the role he played at Illinois. Boswell is just 20 years old and brings tough on-ball defense and a different style than the big guards that have become increasingly common across the NBA.

Be on the lookout for the NBA Summer League schedule to watch Ben Humrichous, Kylan Boswell, Keaton Wagler, and several other former Illini in action this July.

The Utah Jazz are entering next season with a prospect many are considering the best prospect in team history. But is he really? Let’s take a look at all the prospects in team history and decide who were the top ten best prospects in Jazz history. It’s important to note that this is not a list of the best players in Jazz history, but the best prospects. Basically, how much hype and expectation did each player have coming into the league when they were drafted?

10. John Stockton

This was a choice between John Stockton and Truck Robinson. Truck Robinson was a second-round pick who was considered undersized but overcame it and became a monster rebounder and two-time all-star. John Stockton was famously booed by Jazz fans when he was drafted at pick #16 and played a backup role his first three seasons.

Because he was at least a first-round pick, Stockton gets the nod. But even he was surprised he was picked so high, most had him as a late first-round pick or later. Utah kept it secret that they had an interest, but probably didn’t have to.

9. Donovan Mitchell

Once again, this isn’t a list of best players for the Jazz, just the most hyped prospects in team history. Like Stockton, Mitchell talked about how he wasn’t sure he’d even be drafted when the Jazz picked him at pick #13.

What Mitchell did have was a fantastic wingspan (6’10” for a 6’1″ player) and impressive athleticism (40″ vertical). The signs were there for him to have some nice upside but no one expected him to become what he did.

8. Enes Kanter

Most people forget that Enes Kanter was the #3 overall pick. The pick was conveyed from the trade with the Brooklyn Nets. Kanter was a top prospect from Kentucky, but was ruled ineligible by the NCAA and didn’t play. Because he was from Turkey and there was no film on him in college, he was a massive unknown with all sorts of potential outcomes. A lot of Jazz fans were throwing out names like Dirk Nowitzki at the time, but that was clearly not what he became.

I remember poring over grainy clips from Turkey like the Zabruder film and not really having any idea what he could be. The fact that Kentucky wanted him encouraged fans like me that there had to be more to him than what we saw. Because of the unknown, there was hype, but it was nothing compared to the excitement we’re feeling right now.

7. Karl Malone

Because Karl Malone came from a small school and was little known, he didn’t have much hype at all coming out of school. He did have impressive physical tools, but there were questions about his style of play, and there were rumors that he was hard to deal with. Because of that, Malone fell a little later than expected to #13 in the draft.

It obviously turned out well for Utah, but it was not clear how things would work out for the physical specimen from Louisiana Tech.

6. Dante Exum

Dante Exum is the first player on this list who had some serious hype coming to the NBA. Utah was at #5 in the draft, and it was the hope that Exum could actually fall out of the top so Utah could draft him. With his large 6’6″ size with 6’10” wingspan, overzealous draft analysts compared him to guys like Penny Hardaway. Needless to say, Jazz fans were very excited about Exum.

When he joined the Jazz, the summer league hype for him was huge, and he gave fans something to cheer for with a great first game. Obviously, things didn’t turn out as everyone hoped, but the buildup to drafting Exum was fun, and Jazz fans had serious excitement about him. You had to be there.

5. Ace Bailey

Like Exum, Ace Bailey went #5 in the draft to the Utah Jazz and came with impressive physical tools and potential. So far, Bailey has shown real flashes of what he can do, much better than what we saw from Exum. He also had a better opportunity as the Jazz were tanking for a lot of his season, which gave him a lot of time to play.

The reason Bailey gets the nod here, and could be argued to be higher, is that before his college season started, many experts had him slated for top-3, even #1 by some. But his performance at Rutgers wasn’t quite as strong as expected. He still put up numbers, but they weren’t dominant, and there were some questions about his skill set. Bailey also received bad advice from his player-manager, Omar Cooper, and didn’t give any teams a workout. He tried to work his way to Washington, but Utah selected him even without a workout. Bailey is still receiving a lot of hype and has a chance to become a real star for Utah if he continues to improve.

4. Deron Williams

Williams came into the league with some huge hype as a draft riser who led his team to the national championship. He was considered a strong pick because of his high IQ, court vision, and strong frame. Because of his great positional size, he also looked like a potential star who could punish opposing guards. That’s exactly what he did.

Williams was such a good prospect that Utah made sure to get him by trading to draft him at #3. Williams went on to become a multi-year All-Star and a 2-time All-NBA Second Team selection. And no matter what anyone says, he outplayed Chris Paul during his tenure with the Jazz.

3. Darrell Griffith

The Golden Griff was considered by many as the best talent in the 1980 draft, not unlike Darryn Peterson. His nickname “Dr. Dunkenstein” was well earned, with his legendary reported 48-inch vertical during the draft. Griffith was a national champion and Wooden Award winner, and Utah was excited to draft him as the potential face of the franchise and future star.

You could argue that Griffith probably deserves the #1 spot, so this might be recency bias, and the fact that I wasn’t there for Griffith. As the only other #2 pick for the Jazz, he is well-deserving of, at minimum, this #3 spot.

2. Dominique Wilkins

This is one of the more interesting notes in Jazz history. Wilkins was very hyped coming out of college and looked like the prototypical NBA superstar. His athleticism, size, and scoring were as good as they come. The issue was that he didn’t want to play in Utah. Utah drafted him and had to trade Wilkins because of his refusal to play with the team. Things have changed a lot since then, but we still see a little of this. The good news? It appears that Utah is slowly gaining a better reputation and will hopefully continue to prove itself as a place where players would love to go.

In his own words, here’s how Wilkins described the Jazz draft situation.

1. Darryn Peterson

Yes, Darryn Peterson really is the best Jazz prospect ever. His mix of talent, skill, and athleticism is as high as any prospect you’ll ever see. Coming into Kansas, Peterson was considered by many as the #1 pick. Because of his issues at Kansas, Washington was given enough pause to draft AJ Dybantsa, but that doesn’t take away from just how awesome Peterson has the potential to be. Personally, because of where he was mocked all year, and even up until draft night, I look at him as maybe the first #1 pick for the Utah Jazz. He’s for sure the best all-around talent coming out of college the Jazz have ever drafted.

But now, it all comes down to how he joins the team. The hype and potential couldn’t be highert, the hope is that he can live up to it.

According to FanDuel, Peterson has the second-best odds to win Rookie of the Year. If he plays at the level of his hype, that should be easy.

Victor Cruz popped the question for a celebratory Thursday night.

The Giants legend and Super Bowl champion proposed to Orange Calderon, an artist, record producer and DJ, who shared photos of the moment on Instagram.

“Mrs. Cruz” has a nice to it,” she wrote as the caption.

View this post on Instagram

Cruz, 39, picked out a big oval-cut diamond for the next step in the relationship that started to take form last year.

The couple was spotted at various public events that sparked dating rumors, including arriving together at Coachella in April and have various recent travel social media posts together.

Cruz, a Knicks fan, was also seen with the musical artist on celebrity row throughout the historic season that was capped off by an NBA title — a first in 53 years.

He was in attendance for Game 4 of the NBA Finals, witnessing OG Anunoby’s show-stopping game-winning tip-in that gave the Knicks a commanding 3-1 series lead.

“Still not over this! @nyknicks,” Cruz wrote on Instagram after the game.

View this post on Instagram

The engagement comes five years after Cruz’s split from ex-girlfriend, actress Karrueche Tran, in February 2021.

The two were an item for three years before calling it quits due to long distance. At the time, Cruz lived in New Jersey with his daughter, Kennedy, while Tran was in Los Angeles.

Send in your questions now for this week’s episode of The Pindown: A Detroit Pistons Podcast to discuss everything Pistons. Submit your question to the comments section here or on X/Twitter to @TheRealWesD3 and/or @blakesilverman.

Join us live on Saturday morning for the show where Tyler Metcalf from No Ceilings NBA will join the show to review the NBA draft. What will Ebuka Okorie bring to the Pistons? How about Ugonna Onyenso? And what else could the Isaiah Stewart trade be setting up?

Plus, The Pindown has a phone line where you can leave a message and hear your voice on the show. Call (313) 355-2717 and leave us a voicemail with your question. Please try to keep the message around 45 seconds or less so we can fit everyone into the show.

The podcast will be uploaded to all audio platforms the following morning.

The Pindown: A Detroit Pistons Podcast Vitals:

When: Saturday June 27 at 10 a.m. ET

Where: Detroit Bad Boys YouTube Channel

How to submit questions:

• Detroit Bad Boys Website: Comment section of the weekly Pindown episode articles.
• Call (313) 355-2717 and leave us a voicemail with your question. Please try to keep the message to 45 seconds or less.
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As always, leave any questions or topics you want to be discussed in the comment section below.