Before Jon Scheyer coached his first game as Duke’s head coach, he coached a game against Houston as Duke’s head coach. Duke and Houston, for teams that haven’t played very often, are creating a bit of history. The Blue Devils and Cougars have only played once — last year’s Sweet 16, a win by Duke.
College coaches see a game shifting beneath piles of NIL cash as March Madness arrives
More than the deep runs in March Madness, the 660 victories over 37 years or even the 20 or so players he coached who ended up making millions in the NBA, Leonard Hamilton is proud of a number he can count on one hand. It is, he says, the number of players he coached at Miami, and then for the past 23 seasons at Florida State, who failed to graduate. Hamilton, now 76 and stepping away from a business he barely recognizes anymore, says he is at peace with leaving coaching behind.
Maryland’s Derik Queen says he’s unsure about his future; 4 others enter transfer portal
Maryland’s outstanding starting unit — nicknamed the “Crab Five” — is splintering in the wake of Willard’s exit.
Rutgers star freshman Dylan Harper declares for NBA draft
Rutgers freshman Dylan Harper announced Monday he’s leaving college and entering the NBA draft.
Keon Johnson's 24 points powers Nets' comeback win over Mavericks, 113-109
DALLAS (AP) — Keon Johnson scored 24 points and the Brooklyn Nets beat the Dallas Mavericks 113-109 on Monday night to win consecutive games for the first time since the All-Star break.
D’Angelo Russell added 18 points and 11 assists for the Nets (25-51), who last won two in a row during a three-game winning streak from Feb. 7-12. Playing without leading scorer Cam Johnson, who has a back injury, Brooklyn rallied from a 10-point deficit midway through the fourth quarter with a 12-0 run.
Daniel Gafford scored 17 points in his first game since Feb. 10 for the Mavericks (37-39), who were trying to reach .500 for the first time since March 10.
Anthony Davis had 12 points and seven rebounds in 28 minutes in his first home game since being injured Feb. 8 in his initial Mavericks appearance following the trade that sent superstar Luka Doncic to the Los Angeles Lakers. Davis returned last week and played three road games.
The Mavericks are ninth in the West, a half-game ahead of 10th-place Sacramento.
Takeaways
Nets: They finished 8-7 in road games against the West and overall are better on the road (14-26) than at home (11-25). Jalen Wilson and Drew Timme played before hometown fans. Wilson, from Denton, Texas, scored 12 points. Timme, from Richardson, had nine points in his third game after signing with Brooklyn last Friday.
Mavericks: Dereck Lively II, out since Jan. 14 with an ankle stress fracture, could return this week.
Key moment
Nic Claxton scored on a reverse layup with 47 seconds left and was fouled, the 51.7% free-throw shooter completing the three-point play for a 111-107 lead.
Key stat
The Nets hit 20 of 51 3-pointers to the Mavericks’ 10 of 30.
Up next
The Mavericks will host Atlanta on Wednesday. The Nets will begin a four-game homestand Thursday against Minnesota.
Miles Bridges scores 26 as Hornets beat Jazz 110-106 to snap 5-game losing streak
Miles Bridges had 26 points, 10 rebounds and eight assists and the Charlotte Hornets defeated the Utah Jazz 110-106 on Monday night to snap a five-game losing streak. Mark Williams added 18 points and 13 rebounds for the Hornets, who held the Jazz to 41% shooting. Keyonte George had 20 points and Brice Sensabaugh added 19 points on five 3-pointers for the Jazz.
Pelicans officially shut down Zion Williamson, CJ McCollum for the season
Zion Williamson missed the last five Pelicans games with a low back bone contusion, while CJ McCollum missed the previous three with a right foot bone contusion. With the Pelicans out of any playoff chase, nobody expected them to return this season.
Monday night, the Pelicans made that official, announcing that the duo "will miss the remainder of the 2024-25 season due to their respective injuries." The 21-54 Pelicans have seven games remaining.
Zion only played in 30 games this season due to a hamstring strain and an assortment of other injuries, including the current lower back contusion. When he did play Zion looked like an All-NBA force, averaging 24.6 points, 7.2 rebounds and 5.3 assists a game (and that came with a minutes restriction a lot of nights.
The big question is whether the Pelicans will make Zion available via trade this offseason. If they do, a number of teams will have interest in making the bet a new environment (and trainers) can unlock Zion's health and potential.
McCollum played in 56 games this season, averaging 21.1 points per game and shooting 37.3% from 3. New Orleans is expected to see if there is a trade market for McCollum and his expiring $30.7 million contract for next season, but how much of a market there is for the 33-year-old guard at that price remains to be seen.
Johni Broome injury update: Will Auburn star play in men’s Final Four vs. Florida?
Auburn forward Johni Broome suffered injuries in the Tigers' win vs Michigan State in the Elite Eight. Here's the latest on his Final Four status.
Tatum: C's ‘fed off' Horford's energy in win over Grizzlies
Tatum: C's ‘fed off' Horford's energy in win over Grizzlies originally appeared on NBC Sports Boston
Al Horford turned back the clock Monday night in the Boston Celtics’ 117-103 win over the Memphis Grizzlies.
The veteran big man, who turns 39 in June, delivered a team-high and season-high 26 points with nine rebounds off the bench. That’s the most points he has ever scored as a reserve in his 18-year NBA career.
Horford achieved the feat by knocking down six 3-pointers. He hadn’t scored 26 points in a regular-season game since Feb. 2021.
C’s star Jayson Tatum credited the ageless wonder for setting the tone in Boston’s victory.
“Al played amazing today. He kept us in it and he hit some big shots in that second half. We just fed off his energy,” Tatum told NBC Sports Boston’s Abby Chin.
“Oldest guy on the team and he had the most energy in the last game of the road trip. We needed him big tonight. That was a special performance.”
Horford’s dedication off the court has allowed him to maintain a championship-level impact despite being one of the league’s oldest players.
“A lot goes into what you guys see out here,” Horford said after the game. “There’s preparation and getting myself ready as best I can to perform and taking care of my body. And for me, it’s always just staying ready and trying to play the right way.
“I feel like I put in a lot of work, so even though I’m older, I feel like I can do things when I’m called to contribute or impact winning. It all goes for me with my preparation and my work.”
Horford and the C’s are at the top of their game with the playoffs looming. Boston completed its six-game road trip with a perfect 6-0 record for the first time in franchise history and has now won nine consecutive games.
The Celtics will look to extend their win streak to double digits when they return home to host the Miami Heat on Wednesday night.
Knicks signing P.J. Tucker to two-year contract
The Knicks are rewarding veteran P.J. Tucker with a two-year contract, SNY NBA Insider Ian Begley confirms.
The deal will keep Tucker -- who completed his second 10-day contract with the club -- around for the remainder of the regular season and leaves the organization with enough room under the second apron to add another veteran free agent before the playoffs, if they wait until the last day or two of the regular season to make the transaction, Begley noted.
Of course, if New York wants to add, they would need to waive a player to create room on the roster.
Tucker logged just 107 seconds of game action during his time with the Knicks at the end of a 120-105 loss at Sacramento earlier this month, but he's been a big help elsewhere.
"Knicks people have appreciated Tucker’s off-court impact, vocal approach during his two-week stint with the club," Begley said on Monday.
The second year of Tucker's deal is a team option that will allow New York to include additional salary in any offseason trade.
The 39-year-old last played during the 2023-24 season, splitting time between the Philadelphia 76ers and the Los Angeles Clippers. In 31 games (10 starts), Tucker averaged 1.7 points and 2.7 rebounds in 15.7 minutes per game. He was also a part of Milwaukee's run to the NBA title in 2020-21, after coming over from Houston.
During his 14 years in the league, Tucker has played for seven different teams, with the Knicks being his eighth.
March Madness live updates, scores, bracket: Paige Bueckers, UConn vs. USC; Texas knocks out TCU to make Final Four
Follow along Monday as the Final Four field is set.
Michigan basketball lands North Carolina transfer Elliot Cadeau, Sam Walters enters portal
The season just ended on Friday for Michigan, but the Wolverines are already busy in the transfer portal, landing North Carolina guard Elliot Cadeau.
Rutgers star freshman Dylan Harper declares for NBA draft
Rutgers freshman Dylan Harper announced Monday he’s leaving college and entering the NBA draft. Harper made the announcement on ESPN's “NBA Today.” Harper, a 6-foot-6 point guard, is projected by many mock drafts to be selected right after Duke's Cooper Flagg.
White breaks Celtics record for most 3-point shots made in a season
White breaks Celtics record for most 3-point shots made in a season originally appeared on NBC Sports Boston
Derrick White has set a new Boston Celtics team record.
The veteran point guard made his 246th 3-point shot of the season in Monday night’s road game against the Memphis Grizzlies. He has surpassed Isaiah Thomas, who set the C’s single-season record for 3-pointers with 245 during the 2016-17 campaign.
It’s not surprising that this record has fallen. The Celtics are on pace to break NBA records for the most 3-pointers made and attempted by a team in one season.
The fact that White has broken the record is a little surprising. White came to the Celtics in a pre-trade deadline deal with the San Antonio Spurs in 2022. He was not known as an excellent outside shooter, but to his credit, he has improved quite a bit in this aspect of his game.
White never shot better than 36.6 percent from 3-point range in a full season with the Spurs. He has never shot below 38.1 percent in his three full seasons with the Celtics (including this year). White entered Monday with a 38.3 3-point percentage this season.
White broke the record, but he probably won’t be the only Celtics player to pass Thomas this season. Jayson Tatum came into Monday needing eight 3-pointers and Payton Pritchard needed nine 3-pointers to pass Thomas’ previous record of 245 3-pointers.
Based on his season averages, White could end the season with 270 3-pointers made.
The league record belongs to Golden State Warriors guard Stephen Curry, who made 402 3-point shots in the 2015-16 campaign.
Kevin Durant expected to miss at least one week with sprained ankle, out for coming road trip
While the news itself could have been worse, it feels like this drops the curtain on the Phoenix Suns' season.
Kevin Durant is going to miss at least a week due to the sprained ankle he suffered in a blowout loss to the Houston Rockets on Sunday, reports Shams Charania of ESPN. That implies this is a Grade 1 sprain, which usually sidelines a player for 1-2 weeks. Durant is not with the team and will be out for a critical three-game road trip for Phoenix against Milwaukee, Boston and New York.
Here’s a closer look at the ankle injury Kevin Durant just suffered:
— ClutchPoints (@ClutchPoints) March 31, 2025
Hope KD’s okay pic.twitter.com/58Y4rzW6sjhttps://t.co/cNbbrTe5jY
There is a chance Durant could return for the final games of the regular season and the play-in, but will they need him to?
This injury feels like the final nail in the coffin of the Suns' season. It may well mean we've seen Durant's last game in a Suns uniform.
After a four-game win streak that sparked hope this Suns roster was invested and turning things around, Phoenix has dropped three in a row, two of those games by 30+ (the other, to Denver, by "just" 15). This looks like a team that has let go of the rope. Phoenix is 1.5 games back of Sacramento for the No. 10 seed and final play-in spot in the West with seven games to go, and the next three of those games are a brutal road trip the Suns will take without Durant. The only thing keeping the Suns close is that the Kings are falling apart as well, but neither looks like a team ready to make a push and advance out of the play-in and into the eight-team playoffs.
It's time for the Suns' front office and coaching staff to consider shutting things down rather than risk further injuries to stars, as much as that is against the ethos of owner Mat Ishbia. Bradley Beal has missed the last seven games and has yet to be cleared to play 5-on-5, there is no timetable for his return. Durant is now out. Devin Booker likely plays in every game on this road trip, and he's not going to want to be sat for games, but it's time for the Suns to discuss sitting him and giving a larger role to Collin Gillespie and rookie Ryan Dunn (as well as rookie Oso Ighodaro) and see what they can do with it.
What are the Suns playing for at this point? This season has been a massive disappointment, it's better to get to the offseason and retool the roster (likely with a Durant trade).