Category: Basketball

Alperen Şengün got away with ‘baby flop' on Draymond flagrant, Lou Williams says originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area

Former NBA guard Lou Williams isn’t a fan of the flagrant foul assessed to Draymond Green for a collision with All-Star center Alperen Şengün during the Warriors’ 106-96 loss to the Houston Rockets on Sunday night at Chase Center.

“That one’s tricky,” Williams told Michelle Beadle and fellow former NBA player Chandler Parsons on FanDuel’s “Run It Back” on Monday. “I wouldn’t give this one too much. This looks like a routine basketball play to me. Now, everything else is typical Draymond, getting on the guy’s skin and trying to get him revved up. But this one right here looks like a basketball play to me.”

Williams, who played 17 NBA seasons with six teams, used a different F-word to describe the play: Flop.

“But referees are human,” Williams continued. “They look at who it is, what type of play it is and your reputation comes into play, and they make calls based on it. I don’t know if he’s seeking out Şengün right here. I really don’t. And it looks like it’s barely even any contact as well. Like, it looks like a somewhat of a little baby flop right there, but yeah, I’m not rolling. I’m not rolling on this one, but again, it’s Draymond Green, so everything that he does is going to be considered with a grain of salt, and referees are going to make this call based on who it is and what it is. So for that I’m not rolling.”

Parsons, who played nine NBA seasons with four teams, agreed with Williams’ assessment of the play, believing there’s nothing Green could have done differently.

“What else do you want him to do?” Parsons said. “That looks like a natural movement that he’s going to. I don’t think this is anything malicious. I don’t think this is dirty. Again, the things he did later were a little obnoxious, but like this is just a normal basketball play. It was unfortunate that he caught an [elbow], but this the risk that you take when you go vertical and you got an aggressive dude coming at you, but I think this is bad. I think this is a natural basketball play.”

Williams doubled down on his assessment of a flop after watching the replay multiple times.

“Honestly, now that I’m watching it over and over and over, this is a flop more than anything to me,” Williams said.

Green also wasn’t sure what the referees expected him to do on that play.

“I mean, the Flagrant call, I don’t know what to do,” Green told reporters after the game. “Go duck? Don’t go up for the layup?”

As Parsons noted, Green picked up a technical foul before halftime for shoving Şengün. The Warriors forward then barked in Şengün’s direction.

Based on Green’s history and reputation, it’s unlikely that the NBA rescinds the flagrant foul.

But two former NBA players believe the four-time NBA champion did nothing wrong, for what it’s worth.

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How Jaylen can become All-NBA eligible over Celtics' final four games originally appeared on NBC Sports Boston

The Boston Celtics are essentially locked into the Eastern Conference’s No. 2 seed entering the final week of the season.

But there’s one interesting storyline worth monitoring over the final four games of the season.

Jaylen Brown, who’s been dealing with a nagging right knee injury and admitted he was “in some pain” during the Celtics’ win over the Miami Heat last Wednesday, has played in 62 games this season as of Monday.

If Brown wants to be eligible to earn All-NBA honors and be nominated for end-of-season awards like Defensive Player of the Year, he needs to meet the following criteria:

• 65 games played
• At least 20 minutes played in at least 65 games
  • Two “near misses” allowed (games with at least 15 minutes played)

Brown insisted last week that the games-played threshold has zero impact on his decision to play or not play as he manages his knee injury. But the fact that he’s suited up in each of the last three games suggests he’ll try to reach the 65-game mark down the stretch.

Based on that criteria above, Brown can become All-NBA eligible by playing in three of Boston’s final four games. He only needs to play 20 minutes in each of those games, however, and because he’s played 20 minutes or more in every game to date this season, he still has both of his “near misses,” meaning he can be limited to 15 minutes in two of the Celtics’ final four games.

Here’s a look at Boston’s remaining schedule:

• Tuesday, April 8: at New York Knicks
• Wednesday, April 9: at Orlando Magic
• Friday, April 11: vs. Charlotte Hornets
• Sunday, April 13: vs. Hornets

If the C’s want to manage Brown’s minutes while getting him to 65 games, a logical plan would be playing him against the Knicks, resting him on the second night of a back-to-back against the Magic, and then limiting him to as close to 15 minutes as possible in each of Boston’s final two games against the Hornets.

Some Celtics fans may want to just see Brown rest down the stretch to make sure his knee gets right for the playoffs, especially since there’s no guarantee he even makes an All-NBA squad. But Brown believes there’s value in learning to play through the pain, which he suggested won’t be going away any time soon.

“Pain is definitely a physical thing, but it also is a mental thing,” Brown said last week. “So, (head coach) Joe (Mazzulla) has allowed me, even though my team visibly can see maybe I’m in a bit of pain, they trust me to go out there and I can control my body and still be able to make plays and mentally, be able to push through it.

“I think that’s going to be something I’m gonna have to have in my back pocket.”

The Celtics also will have about a week off between their season finale and the start of the first round, as the NBA play-in tournament runs from April 15-18. So, don’t be surprised if you continue to see Brown in action as the regular season wraps up.

Jalen Brunson played in an NBA basketball game for the first time in four weeks on Sunday -- as you’d expect, his rhythm was a little off, his conditioning was less than 100 percent. 

Those things will come back with time. 

The best sign for the Knicks on Sunday? Brunson didn’t hesitate in any of his movement on the court. 

“Everyone always talks about the physical part about how you’re feeling. But mentally it’s just trusting (the ankle). Trusting your movement. Trusting the way you play and not second-guessing yourself,” Brunson said. “That was an adjustment, but I’m feeling a lot better.”

Brunson logged 34 minutes on Sunday -- it was his first game since March 6, when he suffered a significant ankle sprain. 

He didn’t have a hard minutes limit against Phoenix. 

“With Jalen and (associate athletic trainer Anthony Goenaga), if there’s fatigue, he’ll tell us. And they’re watching him pretty closely,” Thibodeau said. 

Brunson said his conditioning was better than anticipated. That’s probably because he was diligent in his conditioning during rehab. 

“Right now, it’s more his timing,” Thibodeau said. “He’s got to play. There’s no way around that. He practiced well the other day but the intensity of practice can never be replicated to what the game is.” 

Brunson will have four more games before the postseason. If he plays in three of those games, he will be eligible for end-of-season awards.  

PLAYING UNTIL THE END

The Knicks need one win -- or one Pacers loss -- to clinch the No. 3 seed in the Eastern Conference. 

IF and when they clinch the third seed, don’t expect them to rest in the final games of the season. 

“As you head down the stretch, you want to check boxes,” Tom Thibodeau said after Sunday's win over the Suns. “You want a winning record at home, a winning record on the road. Fifty wins is good. You want the highest seed possible. And then you want to be playing well. So you go step by step. We’re not skipping over anything. And this is the approach we’ve taken all season long. We’re not going to change now so we think this’ll help prepare us for what’s down the road.”

Is this the right approach? Or is it better to rest players after the Knicks clinch the third seed?

The answer to those questions will reveal themselves in the playoffs. 

Minutes have been -- and will be -- a topic of public debate around Thibodeau until he retires. Mikal Bridges and Josh Hart rank first and second in the NBA in overall minutes played. OG Anunoby entered play Sunday ranked 11th in total minutes.

To some, this is a sign that the players should sit once the Knicks clinch the No. 3 seed. But Thibodeau doesn’t see it that way. 

He wants his teams to be playing their best at the end of the regular season. It’s one of his bedrock principles. That means playing regular minutes until the end – even if the games have no bearing on the standings. 

(It should be noted here that the Knicks will have at least five days between the end of the regular season and the start of the postseason. So they have a built-in rest period.)

PISTONS IN FIRST ROUND? 

If the season ended today, the Knicks would face the Pistons in the first round of the playoffs.

Detroit, led by Cade Cunningham, has won two games at Madison Square Garden this year. They are playing at a high level. Veteran Tobias Harris has been part of the turnaround that’s seen Detroit triple it's win total from last season. 

Harris, a Long Island native, took a lot of heat in Philadelphia for the Sixers’ shortcomings.  The Sixers last year won 57 percent of their games with Harris. This season, Philadelphia is winning at an abysmal 29 percent clip.

The Knicks picked up their second consecutive win, defeating the Phoenix Suns 112-98 on Sunday night at Madison Square Garden.

Here are some takeaways...

- Jalen Brunson returned for New York after missing the previous 15 games with a right ankle sprain. The superstar point guard had a relatively quiet night but he stepped up when the Knicks needed it the most, knocking down a massive three late to help stave off a Suns comeback attempt. 

He finished 3-of-9 from the field with 15 points and six assists in 34 minutes of action.

- After a back and forth first quarter, it was Karl-Anthony Towns who helped New York create some separation during the second. The big man was having his way with the Phoenix defense, producing 11 of his 19 points during the frame. He was relatively quiet from there but also finished with 13 rebounds. 

- The Suns’ offense was struggling, but Devin Booker was doing everything he could to keep them in it. The star showing guard has loved playing against the Knicks throughout his career and he finished with a game-high 40 points on the night on 16-of-29 shooting from the field. 

- Just when it looked like Booker was going to take things over, OG Anunoby said not tonight. Anunoby continued his offensive outburst, knocking down all seven shots he took (six threes) during a monster third quarter, to help him finish with a team-high 32 points on 13-of-17 shooting. 

- Anunoby’s surge helped the Knicks open their largest lead of the game, but Phoenix refused to go away. Led by Booker and Bradley Beal (16 points) they were able to get back within three, but clutch buckets down the stretch helped New York pull out their 50th win of the season. It’s the first time they’ve reached that mark since 1995. 

- Miles McBride also returned from an eight game absence with a groin injury and he provided a nice spark off the bench. The backup point guard knocked down three of the six shots he took for eight points and also dished out a pair of assists. 

Game MVP: OG Anunoby

Anunoby continues to develop into an offensive weapon for the Knicks down the stretch.

Highlights

JB is back pic.twitter.com/Hqx7RWvfK9

— Knicks Videos (@sny_knicks) April 6, 2025

Deeeeeeeeuuuuuuuuuuce! pic.twitter.com/pumDeBfJJ5

— Knicks Videos (@sny_knicks) April 6, 2025

OG. Beast. pic.twitter.com/8gQMIRNmgF

— Knicks Videos (@sny_knicks) April 6, 2025

OG ANUNOBY.

UNSTOPPABLE. pic.twitter.com/IOFouloCCT

— Knicks Videos (@sny_knicks) April 7, 2025

Whats next

The Knicks host the Boston Celtics on Tuesday at 7:30 p.m.