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The NBA’s tank-off isn’t just embarrassing. It’s unnecessary

The Utah Jazz were punished after sitting Lauri Markkanen. <br>Photograph: Rob Gray/AP

The Toronto Raptors aren’t new to losing. But they are new to whatever this is.

After taking over as the Raptors’ president of basketball operations in 2013, Masai Ujiri refused to embrace the blatant, in-your-face tanking that Sam Hinkie and the “process” Philadelphia 76ers were busy popularizing during that same era, instead opting to build from the middle. “I’m not sure the karma is great when you do stuff like that,” Ujiri said about tanking. “We’re not doing that here,” he later added.

The Raptors made history in 2019 by becoming the first team to win an NBA Championship without a single lottery pick. But after Toronto missed the playoffs in three of the last four seasons and were rewarded with just one top 10 draft pick, Ujiri finally decided to follow in a long line of teams who are taking advantage of the NBA’s incentive structure that means bad teams have better odds of landing a top pick in the draft.

Now, the Raptors find themselves in the middle of an embarrassing and unwatchable multi-team tank-off that has come to define the 2024-25 NBA season.

“As a purist of the league, a purist of basketball, we play every game to win,” 15-year veteran and vice-president of the National Basketball Players Association, Garrett Temple, tells the Guardian. “[But] the way the rules are set up, it’s advantageous to be the worst team in the league record-wise. I don’t think it’s a great look for the NBA.”

And the Raptors have given bad looks this season. After leading playoff-bound Orlando Magic by double digits in the fourth quarter on 4 March, Raptors head coach Darko Rajakovic pulled the plug by sitting starters Immanuel Quickley, Scottie Barnes, Jakob Poeltl and RJ Barrett, leaving about $100m in salaries on the bench and less than $10m in rookies and two-way players on the floor. “All I could do was laugh,” Barrett said.

Related: ‘The food is bad, everything is bad’: what it feels like to be on a hopeless NBA team

While Rajakovic explained that “for us, it’s very, very important now to take a look at different players and young guys and to develop those guys, to give them important minutes,” the reality was that the Raptors were as close to the bottom of the Eastern Conference standings as they were to a playoff spot. Even though about a third of the regular season was still to be played at that point, the team had already decided to prioritize managing its lottery odds over making a push for the playoffs.

And they are not the only ones.

“Right now there are nine teams tanking,” one league executive told ESPN. “And next year’s draft is going to have maybe more franchise players than this year’s draft. A year from now, you may still have nine teams tanking.”

That’s almost one-third of the league that exists somewhere on a spectrum from being comfortable with mediocrity to coming up with increasingly creative ways to lose games. Teams are sitting their best players due to “rest” and quiet-quitting by pulling starters late in games, causing upwards of 20 star players to be in street clothes on any given night in March and April, making the quality of late-season basketball worse than ever.

“Teams can put whatever they want on their injury report, and the league has not policed injury reports,” NBA writer Brian Windhorst said on the Hoop Collective podcast. “So you have situations where guys are truly injured, but listed as out. And other situations where stars are not really injured, but they’re listed as out. And so the credibility is all over the place, and the league has let that go down the block and around the corner … it’s just a mess.”

While it makes sense for teams to take advantage of the NBA’s incentive structure so long as they can get away with it, the popularization of tanking has created a lose-lose situation for the league, the fans who pay large sums to attend games or watch on TV, the players who are missing out on crucial developmental reps and, most importantly, the NBA’s TV partners, who recently signed an 11-year agreement worth $76bn.

People have been trying to come up with creative solutions to solve the NBA’s tanking problem for more than a decade, ranging from flattening the draft lottery odds so that every non-playoff team has an equal chance of getting the No 1 overall pick, to creating a “play-out” tournament where the worst teams compete for better draft odds at the end of the season, to replacing the draft with rookie free agency.

But each so-called solution comes with unintended consequences, such as teams on the playoff bubble tanking to get in the lottery if the odds are flat or if there is a play-out tournament, and the best rookies hurting parity by signing in big markets in free agency.

We know that the NBA doesn’t approve of tanking because it has a long history of railing against it. The league pressured the 76ers to get rid of Hinkie in 2016, and fined Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban $600,000 for admitting to tanking in 2018.

The question, then, is how does the NBA keep a similar incentive structure but discourage the blatant, unethical tanking that has become popular in recent years? The obvious answer is to start by seriously penalizing anything that goes against the integrity of the game.

After all, we usually have a pretty good idea about who the worst teams are by the 50-game mark, with the league sorting itself into tiers of contenders, playoff teams and bottom-dwellers. But at a certain point, some teams rest veterans or quiet-quit to increase their lottery odds. The rest of the bottom-dwellers have no choice but to follow suit, and bam! Unmitigated, unethical tanking ensues.

“When I first came in the league, I don’t remember this happening as much,” Temple, who has been around the NBA since 2009, says. “People are trying to take advantage of situations and have their team be the best team they can be. At the end of the day, no team is doing this in order to have a bad team. They’re trying to make their team better.”

But what if there was a way to pressure teams to play out the entire season the way they play the first 50 games? That way, the lottery order would sort itself out naturally, and the worst teams would get the best odds without the need to ever lose on purpose.

It may sound extreme, but that’s exactly what happens in the NHL, where a culture of competitiveness and power at the hands of head coaches keeps teams from resting players in order to lose on purpose. Instead, the NHL employs a different, more ethical form of tanking where the worst teams choose to offload veteran players at the trade deadline and naturally lose out as a result.

The NBA can’t expect the culture to change naturally given that teams have learned how to exploit the system, but the league can make it a significantly harder system to game. This would require the NBA to get serious about discouraging tanking, penalizing teams who are found guilty of resting healthy players with significant fines or the removal of future draft picks in order to get the best players to play all season.

In March, the NBA fined the Utah Jazz $100,000 for violating the league’s player participation policy for sitting star Lauri Markkanen for nine straight games when he appeared to be free of significant injury. But the standard $100,000 fine that the league levied against the Jazz this year, the 76ers last year, and Mavericks the year before is a drop in the bucket for team owners like Ryan Smith, who has an estimated net worth of $2.6bn. And when Markkanen did return the following game, he played just 19 minutes and sat the entire second half, showing how seriously the organization took the penalty.

“These next few weeks,” one NBA executive told ESPN. “Could be the worst tanking stretch we’ve ever seen.”

What the NBA needs is a new set of rules specifically designed to discourage tanking – a “Shame Doctrine” that clearly lays out a set of increasingly significant penalties that will be levied against teams for tanking, with each infraction setting them back millions of dollars and future draft picks.

Of course, it can be complicated to police injuries when almost every player is banged up by the end of the season. But the league already has its own doctors to determine whether a player is healthy enough to play, and enforcing it would be similar to what the NFL does in order to satisfy football’s integrity (and the NFL’s betting partners).

Plus, common sense should apply here. If a team pulls its starters in the fourth quarter as the Raptors did, they should be penalized. If the Jazz refuse to spread out Markkanen’s minutes so that he only plays in the first half, so should they.

The solution isn’t to come up with a different incentive structure besides the lottery because they all have flaws. Instead, it’s time for the NBA to be proactive and get serious about penalizing tanking violations. Otherwise, teams will continue to find creative ways to game the system, and the product will continue to suffer.

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The Steph Curry Show perfectly featured his 35-year-old co-stars

The Steph Curry Show perfectly featured his 35-year-old co-stars originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area

Steph Curry leaned to his left, slowly walking out of frame from the bottom left corner as he watched the ball perfectly splash through the net. 

The 3-pointer gave him a dozen on the night, also awarding him with 50 points to put the Warriors ahead by one point as only three minutes remained on the clock in an eventual 134-125 win against the Memphis Grizzlies on Tuesday night at FedExForum, pushing Golden State to the No. 5 playoff seed in the Western Conference. 

Curry scored 52 points on 16-of-31 shooting and made 12 of his 20 3-point attempts, adding 10 rebounds, eight assists and five steals as an exclamation to his latest heroics. The 37-year-old was the star of the show, the leading man for all of us to still marvel at in his 16th season. His 12th and final triple of the night also highlighted why the Warriors believe they have the right 35-year-old co-stars around him.

Draymond Green caught Brandin Podziemski’s pass from the left wing and didn’t have to think twice. Playing his 13th season as Curry’s running mate, Green knew exactly where he’d be and when. As Green hauled in Podziemski’s pass, he already was in his own passing motion for Curry, who was sprinting through the paint to reach the left corner for three points. 

It was who was next to him, and his subtle nuance of basketball smarts, that deserves recognition and appreciation. Jimmy Butler, running along the baseline, looked to be right in step with Curry. Maybe even in his way. But Butler gets it. He sees things. He knows what the right play is, nearly every time. 

And in this instance, the right play was making room for Curry – clearing space by screening Ja Morant and getting in the way of Santi Aldama. Curry only needs a crack to let it fly. He had a whole lane, thanks to Butler. 

Those are the kinds of plays that don’t show up in the box score, yet ultimately lead to winning. 

“Jimmy saved our season,” Warriors coach Steve Kerr said to reporters in Memphis after the win. “The trade saved our season. Everybody knows that, but you watch what he did tonight – 12 for 12 from the line. Steph goes off the floor, we’re running everything through him. Just a big-time defender, big-time two-way player. … As Steph talked about, he wanted to play meaningful basketball again, and he’s getting to do that. 

“We’re all getting to do that, and it’s a lot of fun.” 

The spotlight and all the headlines belonged to Curry. Rightfully so. Butler also was fantastic, scoring 27 points on 7-of-11 shooting, and had six rebounds, four assists and three steals. He made all 12 of his free throws and now has made 10 or more free throws six times in the 23 games he has played for the Warriors. His basketball IQ down the stretch was off the charts. 

First, he found a way to get NBA All-Star and 2022-23 Defensive Player of the Year Jaren Jackson Jr. off the floor with two minutes to go in the game and the Warriors only up by one point. Knowing Jackson had five fouls, Butler baited him into a sixth mid-shot and then made both free throws to give the Warriors a three-point lead. 

Then, not even a minute later, Butler’s swipe-down steal on Ja Morant led to Moses Moody’s game-sealing 3-pointer. Let the party in Grind City commence. 

“Playoff Jimmy, ya know,” Kerr said. “It’s a real thing. He’s a big-time, big-game performer at both ends. So much of that comes down to IQ, your basketball IQ. Obviously he’s got a lot of gifts. Incredibly strong and really fluid athlete, but to me, it’s his brain that puts him over the top. 

“The pump fake on Jaren was kind of the play of the game, to me.”

The dagger drained by Moody was off Green’s 12th assist of the game. Though he always does a little bit of everything, Green recorded his first triple-double of the season, totaling 13 points, 10 rebounds and 12 assists. He assisted five of Curry’s 12 threes, and his 12 assists accounted for 31 points. 

The Warriors now are 31-2 all-time when Green has a triple-double.

Winning time is when dogs like Butler and Green are let off their leash. In the fourth quarter, Butler scored 10 points, made all six of his free throws and was a plus-10 in 10 minutes. Green was a plus-12 in just under 10 minutes, grabbing six rebounds and dishing four assists. 

Any kind of curtain call was made for Curry. His co-stars, Butler and Green, could take a bow right alongside him.

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Ten wild stats from Steph's 52-point explosion in Warriors' win

Ten wild stats from Steph's 52-point explosion in Warriors' win originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area

The storylines are endless around Steph Curry’s 52-point explosion in the Warriors’ gritty 134-125 win over the Memphis Grizzlies on Tuesday night at FedEx Forum.

Curry finished the game with 52 points on 16-of-31 (51.6 percent) shooting from the field and a whopping 12 of 20 (60 percent) from 3-point range. He added 10 rebounds to pick up his ninth double-double of the 2024-25 season, with eight assists, five steals and one block. He was a plus-17 in plus/minus rating through 36 minutes.

Not only did he help will his team to a needed victory that jumped them into the Western Conference’s No. 5 playoff seed, but he made impressive NBA history all while in Year 16 at age 37.

Here are 10 mind-boggling stats from Curry’s unforgettable performance:

Father Time who?

Curry celebrated his 37th birthday on March 14.

Since that date, Curry is averaging 25.5 points on 42.3-percent shooting from the field and 40.8 percent from beyond the arc, with 5.0 rebounds, 5.5 assists and 2.0 steals in 32.2 minutes through six games. The Warriors are 5-1 in such contests.

Let’s continue:

A lot of NBA talk has been about who will be the next face of the league. It might be best to sit back and appreciate what we are witnessing now, because Tuesday’s performance served as just another reminder that the Chef is still cooking.

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Brooks leads Butler against Boise State after 22-point game

Boise State makes 46.1% of its shots from the field this season, which is 2.3 percentage points higher than Butler has allowed to its opponents (43.8%). Butler scores 8.3 more points per game (74.2) than Boise State allows to opponents (65.9). TOP PERFORMERS: Tyson Degenhart is averaging 18 points and six rebounds for the Broncos.

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UCF faces Cincinnati, looks for 5th straight home win

Cincinnati scores 70.9 points and has outscored opponents by 5.3 points per game. UCF averages 8.7 made 3-pointers per game, 2.3 more made shots than the 6.4 per game Cincinnati gives up. Cincinnati has shot at a 44.9% rate from the field this season, 0.2 percentage points less than the 45.1% shooting opponents of UCF have averaged.

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USC faces Villanova following Agee’s 27-point game

USC averages 77.2 points and has outscored opponents by 2.2 points per game. Villanova ranks eighth in the Big East with 22.7 defensive rebounds per game led by Wooga Poplar averaging 6.0. USC averages 77.2 points, 9.8 more per game than the 67.4 Villanova allows.

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Jokic sets NBA record in 61-point haul

Nikola Jokic
Nikola Jokic scored at least 50 points for the third time in his NBA career [Getty Images]

The Denver Nuggets' Nikola Jokic hit a career-high 61 points as he recorded the highest-scoring triple-double in NBA history.

The Serb, a three-time MVP, claimed 10 rebounds and 10 assists in a 140-139 overtime defeat by the Minnesota Timberwolves at Ball Arena.

The previous record was held by Nuggets team-mate Russell Westbrook, who scored 57 points and made 13 rebounds and 11 assists for Oklahoma City Thunder in 2017.

Westbrook, who joined the Nuggets in 2024, missed a lay-up with 10 seconds remaining in overtime with the Nuggets leading 139-138.

He then fouled Nickeil Alexander-Walker in trying to block a three-point attempt with 0.1 seconds on the clock.

Alexander-Walker made two of the three free throws to seal a dramatic Timberwolves victory.

They were without Naz Reid and Donte DiVincenzo, who were serving one-match bans for their part in a brawl with the Detroit Pistons this week.

The Timberwolves are seventh in the Western Conference and the Nuggets third.

Curry shines for Warriors

Two-time MVP Stephen Curry hit 12 three-pointers in a 52-point haul as the Golden State Warriors beat the Memphis Grizzlies 134-125 at FedEx Forum.

"The guy's 37 years old - it's incredible," said Warriors coach Steve Kerr.

"I can't believe he's still doing this at this age. But he's put the work in and he's still got it.

"Fifty-two points with people draped all over him all game long. The conditioning, the skill, the audacity, the belief. It's incredible to watch Steph at work."

Victory lifted the Warriors above the Grizzlies and into fifth in the Western Conference.

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Fantasy Basketball Waiver Wire: Nickeil Alexander-Walker saves the day

Tuesday's matchup between the Timberwolves and Nuggets was critical regarding the Western Conference standings. While Denver is looking to make a run at the two-seed, Minnesota hopes to avoid the play-in tournament. The two teams combined to stage an instant classic, with the visiting Timberwolves winning 140-139 on two SG/SFNickeil Alexander-Walker (seven percent rostered, Yahoo! leagues) free throws with one-tenth of a second remaining in double overtime.

The free throws capped a big night for Alexander-Walker, who finished with 26 points, seven rebounds, eight assists, two blocks and five three-pointers in 45 minutes. While he remained in a bench role, the absences of Naz Reid and Donte DiVincenzo (both were suspended) raised Alexander-Walker's fantasy ceiling. He made the most of his opportunity, and Minnesota is now tied with Memphis for sixth in the West.

Reid and DiVincenzo were only suspended for one game, so they'll be available for Thursday's game against the Nets. That doesn't help Alexander-Walker managers, but there may be additional minutes due to the competition. Minnesota ends its week with games against two teams (Brooklyn and Philadelphia) focused more on improving their draft lottery odds than racking up wins.

Let's look at a few of Tuesday's other low-rostered standouts:

PG Ryan Rollins (13%), Milwaukee Bucks

Rollins had the best night of his NBA career, finishing Tuesday's win over the Suns with 23 points, five rebounds, five assists, two steals and five three-pointers in 31 minutes. Shooting 8-of-10 from the field, he established career highs in points and three-pointers. With Damian Lillard (calf) out indefinitely and the Bucks playing three games in the final four days of Week 22, there's no reason not to roll the dice on Rollins now that he's serving as the starting point guard.

SF/PF Julian Champagnie (12%), San Antonio Spurs

Champagnie was solid in Tuesday's loss to the Magic, finishing with 19 points, four rebounds, two assists and five three-pointers in 32 minutes. While he was not Jeremy Sochan's replacement in the starting lineup, Sochan's absence due to back spasms raised Champagnie's fantasy ceiling. With Sochan not expected to play in Wednesday's game against the Nuggets, it would be a good idea to add Julian ahead of that contest. Bismack Biyombo (three percent) returned to the starting lineup and finished with an 11/5/1/1/2 in 26 minutes, but Champagnie is the superior streamer.

PG/SG/SF Grayson Allen (11%), Phoenix Suns

The Suns were without Bradley Beal and Kevin Durant on Tuesday, with the latter sidelined for at least one week. Allen moved into the starting lineup and provided valuable offensive production, finishing the loss to Milwaukee with 23 points, four rebounds, three assists, one steal and six three-pointers in 34 minutes. Allen shot 6-of-13 from beyond the arc, and the shots will continue to be there as long as Durant and Beal are sidelined. The lone negative is the upcoming schedule, as the Suns don't play again until Friday against the Celtics.

C Mitchell Robinson (10%), New York Knicks

With Karl-Anthony Towns (knee) ruled out, Robinson received the starting nod on his 27th birthday. The Knicks center only needed 21 minutes to record 14 points, 14 rebounds, one steal and two blocked shots. Robinson shot 5-of-9 from the field and 4-of-4 from the foul line in his best performance of the season. Robinson has yet to play both games of a back-to-back this season, so he may not be available for Wednesday's game against the Cavaliers. However, his only playing 21 minutes may keep the door cracked open ever so slightly.

SG Ja'Kobe Walter (6%), Toronto Raptors

Walter started Tuesday's game because the Raptors held out RJ Barrett (rest), and the rookie had a good night in the loss to Chicago. In 27 minutes, he accounted for 17 points, four rebounds, four assists, one steal and five three-pointers. Walter was 5-of-5 from deep, and it isn't difficult to envision his playing time increasing. Tuesday's defeat eliminated Toronto from postseason contention, so there's even less reason to play guys like Barrett, Immanuel Quickley and Jakob Poeltl (Scottie Barnes is held to a different availability standard by the league due to his being an All-Star) down the stretch.

PG/SF Talen Horton-Tucker (0%), Chicago Bulls

Horton-Tucker wasn't on anyone's fantasy radar before Tuesday, and with good reason. However, the Bulls were down multiple rotation guards, and he played 32 minutes against the Raptors. THT finished with 27 points, six rebounds, three assists and three three-pointers, shooting 8-of-16 from the field. There's no need to add him in the aftermath of this performance. Also, there's hope that Lonzo Ball will be able to return from his wrist injury as soon as Friday. That said, while Horton-Tucker should not be added, he deserved a mention after his performance against the Raptors.

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Knicks Notes: Potential timeframe for Jalen Brunson's return; Mitchell Robinson's conditioning

Mitchell Robinson had his best game of the season on Tuesday, putting up 14 points and pulling down 14 rebounds in the Knicks’ win over the Sixers.

His rhythm and conditioning seem to be trending in the right direction.

“Still got a lot of work to do,” Robinson said late Tuesday night.

When asked to elaborate on where he wants to be conditioning-wise, Robinson chuckled and said, “I need to be able to play like seven minutes straight. But, been working on the conditioning stuff still so, we rollin’.”

The rust is understandable. Robinson missed 10 months while rehabbing from ankle/foot surgery.

The Knicks took a cautious approach with their backup center. They held him out until they felt he was 100 percent healthy and able to sustain that health.

Robinson has played well over his past three games. Tuesday’s performance against the Sixers was his best yet. He is playing this season at a much lighter weight than in past years.

“Way lighter now,” Robinson said. “…. All that extra weight that I was carrying last year and the year before that was just keeping me down. But now, (I’m) lighter, and I feel better.”

The Knicks will rely on Robinson to play rotation minutes off the bench in the postseason. They clearly feel confident about Robinson’s ability to fill the role; they passed on any opportunity to acquire a backup center at the deadline, essentially betting that Robinson could be healthy and productive by the time the playoffs rolled around.

Robinson on Tuesday said that he hopes to have his conditioning all the way back by the time the playoffs start.

“The way I’ve been working, I feel like I can. That’s the goal,” he said. “I’m just going to continue to keep working, work on my conditioning and keep going.”

Robinson hasn’t played in both games of a back-to-back this season. It’s unclear if the Knicks will hold him out of Wednesday’s game against the Cavs.

BRUNSON WEEKEND?

Also on the injury front, I think this weekend is a realistic timeframe for Jalen Brunson’s return from injury. Brunson has been out with a right ankle sprain since March 8. The Knicks play at Atlanta on Saturday and host Phoenix on Sunday. Based on the current trajectory, I’d expect Brunson to return during one of those games.

Apr 1, 2025; New York, New York, USA; New York Knicks guard Landry Shamet (44) drives to the basket while being defended by Philadelphia 76ers forward Justin Edwards (19) during the first half at Madison Square Garden.
Apr 1, 2025; New York, New York, USA; New York Knicks guard Landry Shamet (44) drives to the basket while being defended by Philadelphia 76ers forward Justin Edwards (19) during the first half at Madison Square Garden. / John Jones-Imagn Images

SHAMET STREAKING

Landry Shamet had 20 points and hit six threes against the Sixers. He’s made 19 of his last 40 three-point attempts. This is a welcome sign for a Knick team that needs Shamet’s scoring and defense off the bench.

Late last month, Shamet said he was comfortable with whatever the Knicks needed from him on a given night.

“I think you just lean into the fact that - I’ve said this before - it’s going to be something different night to night,” Shamet told SNY late last month. “That’s just how it’s going to be. And that’s OK. I think a lot of people maybe fight that – not saying here, but just in general. There’s kind of two choices: you can fight the variability of what’s going to be needed of you night to night or you can just accept it, welcome it and I think choosing the latter is a better approach.

“So that’s what I’m trying to do; just be OK with the fact that it’s going to look different night to night. Might get one three up, might get four or five. Might be all cutting and guarding. Being defensive-minded. It’s going to look different night to night. Minutes, all that. It’s going to change. And that’s OK. That’s part of it. That’s why we have to sacrifice and be willing to do.”

Tom Thibodeau was strongly in favor of keeping Shamet coming out of training camp. That decision has paid off, as Shamet gave the Knicks solid minutes for much of the season. Even when he wasn't hitting shots, Thibodeau praised Shamet for playing strong defense.

Shamet wears No. 44 in New York; it’s a tribute to late NBA legend Jerry West. West was an executive with the Clippers when the club drafted Shamet.

“Pre-draft, my interview with [West] was probably the most memorable one I had,” Shamet told SNY late last month. “To a young kid trying to make it into the NBA, he was giving [me] all this advice. I didn’t know Jerry was like that. Just a great dude, willing to give information. [I] had the luxury of being there [with the Clippers] for a couple years, spending time with him. For the rest of my career when we’d go play them he’d always be sitting in his seat on the baseline in LA and we’d just wink at each other.”

Another Shamet anecdote I found interesting? The role Patrick Beverley played in a Shamet three-pointer last month. Beverley was sitting behind the basket for a Warriors-Knicks game in early March. He was interacting with fans and players throughout the game. At one point in the fourth quarter, he was talking to Shamet about the best way to approach the Warriors’ zone defense.

“He was coaching me from the corner. He was forecasting the game. He was talking to me and I was like, ‘Is that Pat talking to me?’” Shamet recalled with a laugh, telling his version of an anecdote that Draymond Green relayed on his podcast.

Beverley helped Shamet recognize the right play against a Warriors zone defense in the fourth quarter.

“The guy guarding the corner was stepping up and it looked like you could cut from the corner – I went to go cut then I pulled back out and [Beverley] was like ‘Yeah, be patient, be patient. It’s gonna come, be patient.’ And sure enough, it was right in front of him in the corner [where Shamet got the pass from Cam Payne and knocked down a three]. It was funny.”

Credit Beverley with an unofficial assist this season.

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Watch Stephen Curry hit 12 3-pointers, drop 52 on Grizzlies as Warriors move into fifth in West

NBA: Golden State Warriors at Memphis Grizzlies

Apr 1, 2025; Memphis, Tennessee, USA; Golden State Warriors guard Stephen Curry (30) reacts during the fourth quarter against the Memphis Grizzlies at FedExForum. Mandatory Credit: Petre Thomas-Imagn Images

Petre Thomas-Imagn Images

There is still nothing in the NBA quite like the Stephen Curry show.

Memphis didn't enjoy that show on Tuesday but the red-hot Warriors did Curry drained 12 3-pointers on his way to 52 points to spark a Warriors win.

That is Stephen Curry's second 50-point game this season and the 15th of his career.

What he will care more about is the win, which moved the Warriors in front of the Grizzlies for fifth in the West. The 44-31 Warriors are now 17-5 since the Jimmy Butler trade and half-a-game ahead of the sixth-seed Grizzlies (and just one game ahead of the Timberwolves and Clippers at seeds seven and eight).

Jimmy Butler III added 27 for Golden State. Ja Morant led Memphis with 36.

The Grizzlies have lost four in a row and 7-of-8, and have yet to pick up a win for interim coach Tuomas Iisalo. Memphis is the struggling team in the middle of a conference with a lot of hot teams, and it feels more and more like the Grizzlies will slide back into the play-in.

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Chattanooga tops Loyola Chicago 80-73, will play UC Irvine in NIT championship game

Trey Bonham scored 23 points and Honor Huff hit a big 3-pointer late to lead Chattanooga to an 80-73 victory over Loyola Chicago in an NIT semifinal at Hinkle Fieldhouse on Tuesday night. The Mocs (28-9) will play UC Irvine in the championship game on Thursday. The Anteaters (32-6) set a school record for wins in a season after beating North Texas 69-67 in an earlier semifinal.