Category: Basketball

The Cleveland Cavaliers are in a tough salary cap position. Because they’re hard-capped at the first apron after completing the sign-and-trade for Peyton Watson, they needed to sign someone with zero years of NBA experience to remain under that threshold. To accomplish this, they signed 2022 second-round pick Khalifa Diop.

Diop is a 24-year-old, 6’11” center from Senegal. He’s spent the last three years playing professionally for Baskonia in Spain. Diop played in 47 games last season in the Liga ACB in Spain and EuroLeague. He started 38 of those contests and averaged 3.8 points, 4.2 rebounds, and 0.7 blocks in 16.4 minutes per contest on 67% shooting from the field.

Support us and Let ‘Em Know with Homage!

Anything bought from the links helps support Fear the Sword. You can buy the Believeland shirt HERE. You can also shop all of Homage’s Cavs gear HERE.

Diop’s only experience in the wine and gold came during Summer League in 2023. There, he played just three games and averaged 4 points, 8 rebounds, and 1.7 assists in 17.4 minutes.

Cleveland’s main roster is likely set for the start of next season. They’ve typically gone into the season with 14 players on the roster, leaving one slot open until after the trade deadline to maintain flexibility. There’s an outside chance that an additional trade gets made or a player on an unguaranteed contract such as Mario Hezonja (contract guarantees on 11/15/26) or Craig Porter Jr. (contract guarantees on 1/10/27) is waived. Barring something like that, this is going to be the group heading into the year.

Diop likely won’t get many minutes with the Cavaliers next season. He’ll be the fourth center on the roster behind Thomas Bryant. Still, there’s upside there given Diop’s physical traits. We’ll see if he can reach his potential in Cleveland.

Taylor Swift had the “Eras Tour.” Now, the Brooklyn Nets have “Era Nights.”

For Nets fans of all ages, Barclays Center is becoming a celebration of the franchise’s past, present and future in the coming season with six different celebrations. The biggest surprise? The Nets will host Swamp Dragons Night on January 29, 2027, when they face the Los Angeles Clippers at Barclays Center. The event is part of the Nets’ six-night 2026-27 Era Nights series celebrating different periods in franchise history.

In 2016, Zach Lowe uncovered the story behind the Nets’ nearly becoming the “Swamp Dragons” in an exclusive ESPN feature, revealing a treasure trove of photos of uniforms, logos, court designs and merchandise created for the proposed rebrand that had never seen outside dusty trademark applications.

Appropriately, Lowe broke the news before the Nets sent out official word…

The Nets were struggling to attract fans and sell merchandise in New Jersey, and then-team president Jon Spoelstra was searching for a way to give the franchise a new identity. The idea he landed on? The Swamp Dragons — inspired by the Meadowlands and the era of colorful, cartoonish NBA logos.

And the Nets didn’t just kick the idea around. They went all the way in.

The NBA spent $500,000 protecting the Swamp Dragons name and related marks. The team settled on a teal, purple and black color scheme, commissioned new logos and developed uniforms, court designs, shooting shirts and warmups.

Then, it all fell apart because of the Nets! Even after the NBA’s Board of Governors voted 26-1 to approve the name change, the Nets themselves had voted against it. The one dissenting vote was their own!

More than three decades later, the Swamp Dragons are finally getting their night in Brooklyn. Will they play in Swamp Dragon uniforms? Nope, says C.J. Holmes but there will be merchandise. Oh yeah.

The Brooklyn Nets Era Nights Series

The Brooklyn Nets’ 2026-27 Era Nights series will celebrate six distinct periods in franchise history, from the team’s ABA roots and Julius Erving era to the move to Brooklyn and the back-to-back Eastern Conference Finals appearances of the early 2000s.

Here’s the full Brooklyn Nets Era Nights schedule…

ABA Night — November 18 vs. Chicago Bulls

The Nets will celebrate their ABA roots, including their championship teams, league innovations and the Julius Erving era that helped establish the franchise as one of basketball’s most forward-thinking organizations.

80s Night — December 18 vs. Orlando Magic

The Nets will look back at their move to New Jersey and stars like Buck Williams, among others who helped lay the foundation.

90s Night — January 9 vs. Houston Rockets

The 1990s brought some of the most influential players and moments in Nets history. The night will celebrate Dražen Petrović’s lasting legacy, as well as the era’s impact on the franchise and the global game.

Swamp Dragons Night— Jan. 29 vs. Los Angeles Clippers

One of the strangest “what ifs” in NBA history will finally get its night in Brooklyn. Expect merchandise to pop off the shelves for this one — Nets fan or not.

2000s Night, presented by Ticketmaster — March 15 vs. Indiana Pacers

The Nets will celebrate the most successful era in franchise history, honoring the back-to-back Eastern Conference championship teams and the players who helped put New Jersey on the national basketball map. So many fans now are present because of this team.

Hello Brooklyn Night — March 31 vs. Cleveland Cavaliers

The series concludes by celebrating the Nets’ move to Brooklyn. Hello Brooklyn Night will mark the franchise’s arrival at Barclays Center and the return of major professional sports to the borough after a 55-year absence.

As for the future, we’ll know more then than we do now.

• Nets celebrating Swamp Dragons night in homage to rebrand that fell apart – Matt Ehalt – New York Post
• The Swamp Dragons live: Inside the Nets’ plans to revive their strangest almost-identity ($) – C.J. Holmes – New York Daily News

NBA fines Clippers $30M, penalizes Kawhi Leonard and more after investigation originally appeared on NBC Sports Philadelphia

Los Angeles Clippers owner Steve Ballmer has been suspended for one year by the NBA, the team will forfeit five first-round draft picks from 2029 to 2033, and president of basketball operations Lawrence Frank has been banned for six months for violating salary cap circumvention rules.

Also, president of basketball operations Lawrence Frank has been banned for six months and team president of business operations Gillian Zucker was suspended for one year. Leonard was hit with a $700,000 penalty.

The league came down hard on the organization after a nearly year-long investigation led by an outside law firm.

The Clippers had said multiple times that they had done nothing wrong and expected to be exonerated.

The team maintained that stance after the league’s announcement.

“We vehemently reject the NBA’s findings, which are the result of a heavily biased investigation seeking to justify a predetermined narrative rather than facts and evidence,” the team said in a statement. “What the league told us privately differs from what it announced today publicly, and they have not held themselves close to the standard Commissioner (Adam) Silver set at the start of this investigation to ensure it’s fairness and accuracy.”

The Clippers said they will “now fight just as hard to demonstrate our innocence. We intend to vigorously challenge these findings and penalties through every avenue available to us and look forward to an ethical and impartial arbitration process.”

The NBA opened the investigation in September 2025 into whether a $28 million endorsement contract between Leonard and Aspiration Fund Adviser LLC — a company that filed for bankruptcy last year — broke league rules, following a report by podcast journalist Pablo Torre. Earlier this year, Aspiration co-founder Joseph Sanberg was sentenced to 14 years in federal prison after pleading guilty to defrauding investors and lenders of at least $248 million.

“I accept full responsibility for lapses in judgment by people within my inner circle and regret the distraction this situation has caused the fans and my family,” Leonard said in a statement issued through his new agent, Harrison Gaines.

The NBA said Leonard, through his former business manager and uncle Dennis Robertson, “violated the circumvention rules by pressuring the Clippers to assist him in obtaining off-court income opportunities, successfully obtaining those opportunities, and failing to reimburse payments by the Clippers for personal expenses.”

“I entered into my contract with the Clippers as well as the agreements in question in good faith, fully committed to fulfilling my obligations and with no knowledge of any intent on anyone’s part to circumvent the salary cap,” Leonard said in his statement.

The league said Ballmer was suspended for “knowingly seeking to help Mr. Leonard obtain off-court income opportunities,” among other issues.

Leonard’s trade to the Toronto Raptors has been on hold pending the outcome of the investigation. The Raptors had said they still want Leonard, and he apparently is just as eager to return to the team where he won an NBA title in 2019, when he was Finals MVP.

“As I return to Toronto, I am focused on what I can control, closing this chapter, and moving forward with a clean slate,” Leonard said in his statement.

NBA fines Clippers $30M, penalizes Kawhi Leonard and more after investigation originally appeared on NBC Sports Boston

Los Angeles Clippers owner Steve Ballmer has been suspended for one year by the NBA, the team will forfeit five first-round draft picks from 2029 to 2033, and president of basketball operations Lawrence Frank has been banned for six months for violating salary cap circumvention rules.

Also, president of basketball operations Lawrence Frank has been banned for six months and team president of business operations Gillian Zucker was suspended for one year. Leonard was hit with a $700,000 penalty.

The league came down hard on the organization after a nearly year-long investigation led by an outside law firm.

The Clippers had said multiple times that they had done nothing wrong and expected to be exonerated.

The team maintained that stance after the league’s announcement.

“We vehemently reject the NBA’s findings, which are the result of a heavily biased investigation seeking to justify a predetermined narrative rather than facts and evidence,” the team said in a statement. “What the league told us privately differs from what it announced today publicly, and they have not held themselves close to the standard Commissioner (Adam) Silver set at the start of this investigation to ensure it’s fairness and accuracy.”

The Clippers said they will “now fight just as hard to demonstrate our innocence. We intend to vigorously challenge these findings and penalties through every avenue available to us and look forward to an ethical and impartial arbitration process.”

The NBA opened the investigation in September 2025 into whether a $28 million endorsement contract between Leonard and Aspiration Fund Adviser LLC — a company that filed for bankruptcy last year — broke league rules, following a report by podcast journalist Pablo Torre. Earlier this year, Aspiration co-founder Joseph Sanberg was sentenced to 14 years in federal prison after pleading guilty to defrauding investors and lenders of at least $248 million.

“I accept full responsibility for lapses in judgment by people within my inner circle and regret the distraction this situation has caused the fans and my family,” Leonard said in a statement issued through his new agent, Harrison Gaines.

The NBA said Leonard, through his former business manager and uncle Dennis Robertson, “violated the circumvention rules by pressuring the Clippers to assist him in obtaining off-court income opportunities, successfully obtaining those opportunities, and failing to reimburse payments by the Clippers for personal expenses.”

“I entered into my contract with the Clippers as well as the agreements in question in good faith, fully committed to fulfilling my obligations and with no knowledge of any intent on anyone’s part to circumvent the salary cap,” Leonard said in his statement.

The league said Ballmer was suspended for “knowingly seeking to help Mr. Leonard obtain off-court income opportunities,” among other issues.

Leonard’s trade to the Toronto Raptors has been on hold pending the outcome of the investigation. The Raptors had said they still want Leonard, and he apparently is just as eager to return to the team where he won an NBA title in 2019, when he was Finals MVP.

“As I return to Toronto, I am focused on what I can control, closing this chapter, and moving forward with a clean slate,” Leonard said in his statement.

The Golden State Warriors’ outlook is always solid when Steph Curry is on the court.

Unfortunately, Curry might not be on the court as often as Warriors fans want next season.

This sentiment stems from a comment that NBC Sports reporter Monte Poole shared during an episode of “Dubs Talk” on Tuesday.

“There’s at least some lingering concern about [Curry’s] knee,” Poole said.

Curry missed 39 games during the 2025-26 regular season because of patella-femoral pain syndrome, which is more commonly known as runner’s knee.

“From what I’ve been told, it can be managed. But it has to be managed. And that’s a new thing for Steph, because people always say he’s the most conditioned guy in the league, and now he has to manage a knee. I guess we’ll find out,” Poole added.

“But from what I understand, he and his trainers have devised ways to kind of work around that, and sort of support that whole possibility of the knee not being as great as he wants it to be. So, I’m curious to see how it turns out. But Steph seemed pretty confident that he’ll be able to go out there and put out 70-plus games.”

Curry has said in the past that the unpredictable nature of this knee ailment (as opposed to something like a sprained ankle, which has a more clear and direct recovery timeline) is especially frustrating.

But nobody expected this issue to last into the 2026-27 season. And the fact that Golden State is already preparing to manage Curry doesn’t bode well for him and the fans who want to see him play.

Jaylen Brown set to enter first Sixers season with ‘kill' mentality originally appeared on NBC Sports Philadelphia

What has happened since July 1, the day the Sixers made the blockbuster move to acquire Jaylen Brown from their conference rival, Boston Celtics?

A lot of questions have been raised over the past two months about his relationship with the Celtics and, more importantly, his former teammate of nine seasons, six-time All-Star, Jayson Tatum. On August 6, Brown held his introductory press conference with the Sixers at the Francis J. Myers Recreation Center in Philadelphia, where reporters asked if he and Tatum were still in touch.

“Not really,” he responded.

Despite the lack of communication between Brown and his former teammate, he’s doing his best to leave his former city on good terms.

Let’s fast forward earlier this week. Brown organized a single-day farewell block party – the 741 Frequency Fest – a free public thank you event and goodbye celebration for Boston fans after playing ten seasons with the Celtics.

Brown’s farewell party was also livestreamed on his FCHWPO Twitch channel, where he also streamed again once the event concluded.

Brown wasted no time diving right into his offseason with the Sixers.

“It’s been a great summer,” he said. “We’ve been working, don’t let it fool you, don’t let nothing fool you, we’ve been in the gym, we’ve been working. I know y’all seen some of the workouts and stuff like that.”

Yes, yes, we have Jaylen.

On Aug. 19, NBA trainer Chris Johnson posted an Instagram video that featured Brown, Tyrese Maxey, and LeBron James working out together. The video has 10.8 million views — one of the most-viewed videos on Johnson’s page. 

During the stream, Brown disclosed that the workout took place in the “birthplace of The Bean,” referring to the late, great Kobe Bryant and the city of Philadelphia.

“We’ve been working, building chemistry with the guys,” he said. “Maxey is a dawg, LeBron is the f****** — don’t even need to say what LeBron is, he looks good, healthy.”

Aside from Brown working out with Maxey and James, he also gave a shoutout to the youngsters.

“Been working with the young guys. Labaron [Philon Jr.], VJ [Edgecombe]. Dogs. Even [Dominick] Barlow, [Adem] Bona, Anfernee [Simons]. I worked out with everyone on the team constantly.

“I’m grateful to the city of Philadelphia already and I ain’t even been there for that long. I’m grateful that they’ve just been a warm embrace.”

The season hasn’t even begun yet and it seems like Brown is already enjoying the City of Brotherly Love.

Brown then went on to express how he has been perceived, discussed and handled by those within the basketball world. Was he talking about the Celtics organization? USA Basketball? The media? He doesn’t say for sure and leaves it up to the viewers to interpret.

“For reasons I don’t need to share, I just feel like people don’t be understanding.”

“There is politics and so much stuff that goes on behind closed doors … It is what it is, but that just only motivates me even more to come out and show you who I am versus you trying to create these narratives and create these storylines because, in reality, you know what it is.”

But the narratives still linger about the type of person he is.

“And now they create these narratives that I’m saying ‘I’m the smartest person in the room’ or ‘I got a disease.’ Colin Cowherd, you know, to quote him, he said ‘it’s a disease’ or to quote one of his sources. Like these people is crazy, bro, and y’all got to see it.”

“These companies they be crazy. Corporations they be crazy, they be lying to us, they be putting stuff, propaganda out, putting out false statements, stuff that’s not even true. That’s why I started streaming in the first place. Because these industries be so corrupt bro, we force the hand. I want the chat to be able to see it, be able to stand up.”

If there’s one thing the Sixers are going to get from Brown, it’s intensity.

We saw a glimpse of that intensity between him and Embiid in Game 7 of the first round of the NBA playoffs, when the Sixers overcame a 3-1 deficit to take the series at TD Garden.

“My mentality is kill … I feel like I want blood this year,” he said. “I feel like that’s the mentality, I want blood.”

As a Sixers fan, that’s a sentence that makes your mouth water. To have a player as driven as Brown makes all the difference for a team like the Sixers. This is a player who is already an NBA champion, Finals MVP and five-time NBA All-Star. For him to be this motivated going into his first season with Philadelphia is a scary sight.

Only 48 days until new-look Sixers take on the Knicks at Madison Square Garden, but who’s counting.

Jaylen Brown set to enter first Sixers season with ‘kill' mentality originally appeared on NBC Sports Philadelphia

What has happened since July 1, the day the Sixers made the blockbuster move to acquire Jaylen Brown from their conference rival, Boston Celtics?

A lot of questions have been raised over the past two months about his relationship with the Celtics and, more importantly, his former teammate of nine seasons, six-time All-Star, Jayson Tatum. On August 6, Brown held his introductory press conference with the Sixers at the Francis J. Myers Recreation Center in Philadelphia, where reporters asked if he and Tatum were still in touch.

“Not really,” he responded.

Despite the lack of communication between Brown and his former teammate, he’s doing his best to leave his former city on good terms.

Let’s fast forward earlier this week. Brown organized a single-day farewell block party – the 741 Frequency Fest – a free public thank you event and goodbye celebration for Boston fans after playing ten seasons with the Celtics.

Brown’s farewell party was also livestreamed on his FCHWPO Twitch channel, where he also streamed again once the event concluded.

Brown wasted no time diving right into his offseason with the Sixers.

“It’s been a great summer,” he said. “We’ve been working, don’t let it fool you, don’t let nothing fool you, we’ve been in the gym, we’ve been working. I know y’all seen some of the workouts and stuff like that.”

Yes, yes, we have Jaylen.

On Aug. 19, NBA trainer Chris Johnson posted an Instagram video that featured Brown, Tyrese Maxey, and LeBron James working out together. The video has 10.8 million views — one of the most-viewed videos on Johnson’s page. 

During the stream, Brown disclosed that the workout took place in the “birthplace of The Bean,” referring to the late, great Kobe Bryant and the city of Philadelphia.

“We’ve been working, building chemistry with the guys,” he said. “Maxey is a dawg, LeBron is the f****** — don’t even need to say what LeBron is, he looks good, healthy.”

Aside from Brown working out with Maxey and James, he also gave a shoutout to the youngsters.

“Been working with the young guys. Labaron [Philon Jr.], VJ [Edgecombe]. Dogs. Even [Dominick] Barlow, [Adem] Bona, Anfernee [Simons]. I worked out with everyone on the team constantly.

“I’m grateful to the city of Philadelphia already and I ain’t even been there for that long. I’m grateful that they’ve just been a warm embrace.”

The season hasn’t even begun yet and it seems like Brown is already enjoying the City of Brotherly Love.

Brown then went on to express how he has been perceived, discussed and handled by those within the basketball world. Was he talking about the Celtics organization? USA Basketball? The media? He doesn’t say for sure and leaves it up to the viewers to interpret.

“For reasons I don’t need to share, I just feel like people don’t be understanding.”

“There is politics and so much stuff that goes on behind closed doors … It is what it is, but that just only motivates me even more to come out and show you who I am versus you trying to create these narratives and create these storylines because, in reality, you know what it is.”

But the narratives still linger about the type of person he is.

“And now they create these narratives that I’m saying ‘I’m the smartest person in the room’ or ‘I got a disease.’ Colin Cowherd, you know, to quote him, he said ‘it’s a disease’ or to quote one of his sources. Like these people is crazy, bro, and y’all got to see it.”

“These companies they be crazy. Corporations they be crazy, they be lying to us, they be putting stuff, propaganda out, putting out false statements, stuff that’s not even true. That’s why I started streaming in the first place. Because these industries be so corrupt bro, we force the hand. I want the chat to be able to see it, be able to stand up.”

If there’s one thing the Sixers are going to get from Brown, it’s intensity.

We saw a glimpse of that intensity between him and Embiid in Game 7 of the first round of the NBA playoffs, when the Sixers overcame a 3-1 deficit to take the series at TD Garden.

“My mentality is kill … I feel like I want blood this year,” he said. “I feel like that’s the mentality, I want blood.”

As a Sixers fan, that’s a sentence that makes your mouth water. To have a player as driven as Brown makes all the difference for a team like the Sixers. This is a player who is already an NBA champion, Finals MVP and five-time NBA All-Star. For him to be this motivated going into his first season with Philadelphia is a scary sight.

Only 48 days until new-look Sixers take on the Knicks at Madison Square Garden, but who’s counting.

Noah Clowney and the Brooklyn Nets surely have greater ambitions than winning social media, fan-voted awards, especially on the cusp of a new season. However, it still would’ve been nice to do so.

This week, the NBA announced the winners for its 2026 NBA ID Fan Favorites, which fans vote on across the NBA App, its website and social handles to determine the best moments from the 2025-26 season. The awards up for grabs were Dunk of the Year, Photo of the Year, Assist of the Year, Block of the Year, Handle of the Year, Performance of the Year, Clutch Play of the Year and Drip of the Year.

Clowney was one of six finalists for Block of the Year with this rejection he had on Ja’Kobe Walter in a late December game last season. Clowney finished that contest with 19 points, nine boards, two assists, and two blocks. He was also a team-high +28 in what was Brooklyn’s eight win of the season.

However, the Block of the Year nod went to Luke Kornet for his pivotal rejection in the Western Conference Finals vs the Oklahoma City Thunder.

Clowney was the only Net nominated for an NBA ID award this year. The last time a Brooklyn player received a nomination and won one came after the 2022-23 season, when Kevin Durant has his double crossover on Daniel Gafford celebrated as the Handle of the Year.

Clowney will surely be on the prowl for more suffocating rejections in the upcoming season, motivated by falling short for this award … and his expiring rookie contract. I’ll go out on a limb and say the latter is probably more compelling than the former.

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

Golden State Warriors fans have been blessed to get to watch Steph Curry play for 17 years now. It’s been one hell of a journey, filled with four championships, two MVP awards, and the most made threes in NBA history.

Thankfully for us, there’s no end in sight. Curry is preparing to lace up his sneakers for an 18th season, and is in talks with the Warriors regarding a contract extension.

On the one hand, he’s still one of the best players in the NBA, and clearly still has a love for the game. On the other hand, he’ll turn 39 during this upcoming season. So it’s no secret that he has more games behind him than ahead of him.

So, Dub Nation: how many more years will we get the gift of watching The Chef?

NBA fines Clippers $30M, penalizes Kawhi Leonard and more after investigation originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area

The Los Angeles Clippers were fined $30 million and star player Kawhi Leonard was hit with a $700,000 penalty by the NBA on Wednesday for violating salary cap circumvention rules.

The league came down hard on the organization after a nearly year-long investigation.

Owner Steve Ballmer has been suspended for one year, president of basketball operations Lawrence Frank has been suspended without pay for six months and president of business operations Gillian Zucker was suspended for one year, all for their involvement.

NBA issues huge punishments for Kawhi Leonard-Clippers cap circumvention scandal originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area

The Los Angeles Clippers were fined $30 million and star player Kawhi Leonard was hit with a $700,000 penalty by the NBA on Wednesday for violating salary cap circumvention rule, the league officially announced after ESPN’s Shams Charania first reported the news.

The league came down hard on the organization after a nearly year-long investigation. The Clippers had said multiple times that they had done nothing wrong and expected to be exonerated.

Los Angeles maintained that stance after the league’s announcement.

“We vehemently reject the NBA’s findings, which are the result of a heavily biased investigation seeking to justify a predetermined narrative rather than facts and evidence,” the team said in a statement. “What the league told us privately differs from what it announced today publicly, and they have not held themselves close to the standard Commissioner (Adam) Silver set at the start of this investigation to ensure it’s fairness and accuracy.”

The Clippers said they will “now fight just as hard to demonstrate our innocence. We intend to vigorously challenge these findings and penalties through every avenue available to us and look forward to an ethical and impartial arbitration process.”

The NBA opened the investigation in September 2025 into whether a $28 million endorsement contract between Leonard and Aspiration Fund Adviser LLC — a company that filed for bankruptcy last year — broke league rules, following a report by podcast journalist Pablo Torre. Earlier this year, Aspiration co-founder Joseph Sanberg was sentenced to 14 years in federal prison after pleading guilty to defrauding investors and lenders of at least $248 million.

“I accept full responsibility for lapses in judgment by people within my inner circle and regret the distraction this situation has caused the fans and my family,” Leonard said in a statement issued through his new agent, Harrison Gaines.

The NBA said Leonard, through his former business manager and uncle Dennis Robertson, “violated the circumvention rules by pressuring the Clippers to assist him in obtaining off-court income opportunities, successfully obtaining those opportunities, and failing to reimburse payments by the Clippers for personal expenses.”

“I entered into my contract with the Clippers as well as the agreements in question in good faith, fully committed to fulfilling my obligations and with no knowledge of any intent on anyone’s part to circumvent the salary cap,” Leonard said in his statement.

The league said Ballmer was suspended for “knowingly seeking to help Mr. Leonard obtain off-court income opportunities,” among other issues.

Leonard’s trade to the Toronto Raptors has been on hold pending the outcome of the investigation. The Raptors had said they still want Leonard, and he apparently is just as eager to return to the team where he won an NBA title in 2019, when he was Finals MVP.

“As I return to Toronto, I am focused on what I can control, closing this chapter, and moving forward with a clean slate,” Leonard said in his statement.

NBA 2K27 is a towering achievement and a testament to how good a game can be when developers listen to their players. The series has always been great, but often falling victim to resting on its laurels too much — afraid to upset the established player base, at the expense of bringing in new fans to the franchise. With a focus on MyPlayer it’s been understandable from a business perspective, but not one that pushes the series forward.

It’s with profound joy that I tell you that NBA 2K27 has flipped the script. Mammoth overhauls to defense, shooting, dunking, and dribbling has breathed new life into the franchise. 2K27 is not just the best sports game of the year, but the best 2K there has ever been — and I say this as an old head who has been playing this series since NBA 2K on the Dreamcast in 1999 with Allen Iverson on the cover.

A focus on defense shines

There’s been very little reason to play a big man in past iterations of 2K. A lack of defensive tools, particularly in the paint, paired with inconsistent shot blocking and steals meant that the only functional way to play defense was to try to contest shots — and even then it was iffy at best.

This year everything feels different. The revamped animations in NBA 2K27 make the defensive side of the ball feel more chaotic and realistic than ever before. Canned block animations that often left a big man soaring away from the ball and looking like an idiot are gone. Instead, blocks are much more contextual, with defenders rising straight up to meet slashers at the rim, low blocking scoop layups, and even coming up under shots where appropriate to knock the ball in the air, hoping a teammate can come down with it. There’s a real skill and nuance that comes with knowing when to jump up for a block, and on one occasion my timing was perfect, leading to Victor Wembanyama meeting Lauri Markkanen in the air, and snatching the ball one-handed — leading to an easy outlet assist.

The attention to detail extends to the perimeter as well. It’s now easier to fight through screens with players who are able to in real life, and even this is contextual. Jalen Brunson will use his quickness and athleticism to squeeze around the big man to continue locking down the ball carrier, while James Harden will force his way around, making more contact with the screening player to get back on the ball.

Turning up both the skill required to play good defense, as well as putting more abilities in the toolbox of players makes it equally entertaining to play either side of the ball — which is something the game has often struggled with. There’s legitimate value in playing with premier defensive players now, and it really makes lockdown two-way players like Kawhi Leonard, Scottie Barnes, or Amen Thompson feel special.

Shooting is much tougher, and that’s a good thing

One of the worst aspects of NBA 2K26 was how easy shooting had become. A factor of both a more generous shot meter, paired with a faster game pace, meant that after a few games you could lock down your timing and consistently shoot 80% from three without concern. That’s all gone in NBA 2K27 with much narrower shot timing on contested shots to “green” releases (resulting in a guaranteed make).

There are still very large green windows on wide open threes, rewarding the work that goes into shaking a perimeter defender or executing a good screen — but now there are myriad factors that go into the size of the green release window on most shot occasions. As soon as you go up for a shot the game runs through an advanced algorithm to determine how easy the shot would be. It takes into account:

• Player rating
• Was the shot contested or not?
• The height of the defensive player contesting the shot
• How they contested the shot with either a timed jump or arms up on the floor
• Did the shooter set their feet?
• The location of the shot on the floor
• What happened immediately before the shot? Did the player execute an advanced Iso dribbling chain, or was this a catch and shoot?
• Player fatigue

All of these determine the size of the window for a perfect release and a make. Use someone like Steph Curry and contested threes will still be generous; try to fade away a three after crossing the ball over with LeBron James and the timing window will be a single pixel, making the shot near-impossible to hit. There’s always the slimmest of chances it will still go, adding heightened excitement — but don’t expect it to be happening on the regular.

On the flipside the 2K team has made dunking much easier than in last year’s iteration. NBA 2K26 introduced the dunk meter, which brought the shot meter to driving on the rim, determining whether or not a dunk was successful. The major criticism with this is that the meter wasn’t contextual, meaning that far too often a big under the rim would miss a wide open dunk after getting a rebound, simply because a player’s timing was off.

That’s gone now as well. The dunk meter is still here, but context has been given to the experience. Catch the ball under the rim with a big and nobody contesting them — they’re going to dunk it. The entire dunk meter will be green, with only the smallest pixel on the meter resulting in a miss. Similarly, the dunk meter can shrink when you’re driving to the rim with a slasher. It might be very difficult for even someone like Anthony Edwards to put Joel Embiid on a poster, but the chance is still there — nail the dunk and it will pull off a highlight moment, which feels incredible and earned in a way that past dunks simply didn’t.

MyPlayer is largely the same, for better and worse

Full disclosure that I’m not the biggest fan of the online, competitive MyPlayer experience. I like to tinker around, play a few games here or there — but I’m not someone who researches ideal player builds, follows the meta, or invests too heavily.

The city from NBA 2K26 was extremely good, and it’s the same layout this year. There is now skill-based matchmaking in runs, as well as the addition of Rucker Park, which are both fantastic additions to the mode. The biggest gripe from players who deeply invest in MyPlayer are twofold: Once again it’s going to cost you anywhere from $60-80 in additional microtransactions to upgrade a player to the point where you can actually compete online, and also that this is one area where the changes to the shot meter is really frustrating players. The whole online MyPlayer meta is based around consistency and predictability, so adding a wild card like the changing shot window is a pain point.

There’s also a fully realized story that follows the trials and tribulations of a former 5-star prospect on a path through the G-League and into the NBA. It’s not bad by any stretch of the imagination, but it’s not exactly memorable either. There are also some weird moments contrived for the story that really don’t make sense in real-world basketball. Upon arriving at a street ball tournament at Rucker Park everyone is immediately aware of who the player character is, despite him being a high school prospect from California who was set to attend Duke, but never did. People really don’t follow five-star recruits like that outside of college hoops nerds, unless they’re in close proximity. If the player character went to high school in Brooklyn, or if they committed to play at St. John’s then there would have been some reason that everyone recognized me. Also, I understand it’s for dramatic effect — but upon arriving in the G-League people tell you that “everyone is fighting for a chance at making the NBA,” which is totally understandable; however the amount of in-fighting and an attempted sabotage inside the team is beyond the pale.

More options on the women’s side, but we’re just not there yet

This year allows for women to be created in MyPlayer, so games inside the city are co-ed. This is a really good move that’s nice to see. Also the same attention to the on-court action has been applied to the WNBA, making the game feel better than it ever has before.

Still, there remain some pain points. There isn’t a fully fleshed-out story mode for a female create-a-character, which can be partially forgiven due to the budget required to make it happen — but the lack of real-world commentary for WNBA games is simply inexcusable.

For the second straight season, we have complete, NBA-realistic announce teams, two of them, with Kevin Harlan, Greg Anthony, and Doris Burke — as well as Brian Anderson, Stan Van Gundy, and Richard Jefferson on another. The NBA also gets a pseudo Inside the NBA halftime show with Ernie Johnson, Shaquille O’Neal, and Kenny Smith.

The WNBA gets … three voice actors who call the high school game in the men’s career mode. It’s absolutely not a knock on the three voice actors, who are genuinely good at their jobs, but it’s a slap in the face to WNBA fans. It would be the most minor of investments to get real TV commentators like Ryan Ruocco, Rebecca Lobo, and Holly Rowe, who call the WNBA for ESPN — even using Michael Grady, Lisa Byington, and Mike Watts, who call the game for Amazon. Ideally it would be both, but there needs to be better representation of the women’s game and further investment to make it feel like more than a perfunctory add-on.

Final thoughts

NBA 2K27 is a monumental achievement that requires a lot of deep nitpicking to find fault with as it pertains to playing the game of basketball. The developers have created something truly special that will be on the Mt. Rushmore of greatest versions of the game ever created. Fresh defensive options paired with less-consistent shooting and an overall slower pace makes NBA 2K27 feel more realistic than last year’s entry in the series.

The cracks appear online. MyPlayer remains a frustrating cash cow for those who are invested, gatekeeping anyone who doesn’t want to shell out more money to make a player good enough to hang on the court. Honestly, it’s just not even worth trying to play in the city if you haven’t spent the money to upgrade your character, and while technically possible to grind VC on your own, it takes so long to level up that it’s worth ignoring.

If you come to the series to play NBA quick games, run a team season, or create a player to do a solo career then you will find immense joy in this game. NBA 2K27 is brilliant, and absolutely worth your time — from there it just depends how much more time and money you want to invest.

Welcome back to our in-depth schedule preview for the Sixers’ 2026-27 season (here’s a look back at part one and part two). Part three will be picking the schedule back up in the middle of January and stretching through the beginning of March. It’s another spread out part of the season as it contains the trade deadline and the All-Star break.

It’s a 20-game stretch that contains three back-to-backs, with most of the travel being short trips to the middle of the country. It starts with one of the biggest road trips of the season, shipping up to Boston to take on the Celtics on January 21. Jaylen Brown will have already played his former team once, but all eyes will be on him when he plays in TD Garden as an opposing player for the first time (in the regular season at least, the Sixers are also scheduled to play in Boston in the preseason.) Unsurprisingly, that game will be on national television.

It’s a bit of a wonky two-game trip as they’ll head over to Chicago for a game on the 23rd, but the Bulls should present a much easier opponent. They’ll get two more games at home against opponents that should be easier games in the Clippers and Kings before hitting the road again, this time for a back-to-back against the Pelicans and Heat.

By this point in the season, how the Sixers stagger their stars in back-to-backs will be clear, but this looks like one where they can play everyone in Miami and feel confident about that Pelicans game as well. Of course how healthy the team is generally will dictate those decisions as well.

They’ll get their fill of the Pelicans that week, playing them again at home on February 1, then they’ll wrap up their series with the Grizzlies on the 3rd. That trip to Memphis is sandwiched between five games at home, and tricky ones at that.

The Pistons come to town on the 5th, then another nationally televised matchup against the Celtics on the 7th. Things lighten up only a bit when they take on the Brooklyn Nets on the 8th, before the defending champion New York Knicks play Philly on the 11th.

February 11 also marks the trade deadline, so that’ll be a big day in several areas for the team. Not only should those three games be a pretty big measuring stick for the team, but it’ll be their last day to make significant in-season changes to the roster.

Life doesn’t get much easier as the Sixers’ next game will be in Oklahoma City on the 13th. After the Thunder they’ll just have to get through the Mavericks on the road and the Suns at home before getting to the All-Star Break.

After the time off and hopefully some participation in All-Star Weekend, the Sixers start one of their lightest road trips in terms of travel, albeit with two tough opponents. They’ll start the unofficial second half of the season in Brooklyn on the 25th before wrapping up their season series with the Knicks on the 27th at MSG. That sound you heard is every traveling Sixers beat reporter celebrating such a convenient trip. They’ll wrap up the trip with a flight to Cleveland, wrapping up that season series on March 1.

This stretch of games concludes with a home back-to-back against the Hornets and Lakers. Those certainly aren’t the two hardest opponents listed but with the lack of rest it won’t be an easy one either. This stretch of games will tell the Sixers a lot about how they stack up with the rest of the Eastern Conference and for the most part, they’ll be well rested enough to show it.

1/21: @Celtics

1/23: @Bulls

1/25: V Clippers

1/27: V Kings

1/28: @Pelicans (B2B) 

1/30: @Heat

2/1: V Pelicans

2/3: @Grizzlies

2/5:V Pistons  

2/7: V Celtics

2/8: V Nets (B2B) 

2/11: V Knicks (Trade deadline) 

2/13: @Thunder

2/15: @Mavericks

2/17: V Suns (ASB) 

2/25: @Nets

2/27: @Knicks

3/1: @Cavs

3/3: V Hornets

3/ 4: V Lakers (B2B)

For years now, Harrison barnes has shown he more than a basketball player. Together with his wife Brittany, the Barnes have made many charitable donations. Since moving to San Antonio and joining the Spurs, they donated $250,000 to AlamoPROMISE, $50,000 to the San Antonio MLK Commission, and another $150,000 across ten nonprofit organizations. They were involved with court renovations in Austin, Texas and Saltillo, Mexico.

Now Barnes has invest $25M into a bank in Paton, Iowa, a small town of approximately 250 people. The bank is located just over 40 miles from where he grew up.  He has previously served on bank boards and studied at the Iowa School of Banking. His interest in community banking blossomed during the COVID-19 pandemic.

“This is not a vanity project,” Barnes said. “We want to be Iowa’s next great bank.”

Barnes’ ownership in Community State Bank is designed to preserve rather than overhaul it. Community State Bank’s name, staff and management will remain in place. The bank, celebrating its 70th anniversary, was acquired through Barnes Bancorp, Inc., a company he owns.

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, do not troll and watch the language.