Category: Basketball

The injury luck for the Los Angeles Lakers, somehow, just got worse.

Backup forward Jarred Vanderbilt suffered a right hand injury on Tuesday, May 5 during the second quarter of Los Angeles’ conference semifinal game against the Oklahoma City Thunder.

The injury took place with 5:51 left in the first half, when Vanderbilt’s fingers swiped against the left side of the backboard as he attempted to block a shot by Thunder center Chet Holmgren.

As soon as Vanderbilt made contact into the padding, he went down to the court in visible discomfort and was yelling as he was grabbing his hand.

According to ESPN, Vanderbilt suffered a full dislocation of his right, pinky finger.

“I just talked to him,” Lakers coach JJ Redick told reporters after the game. “He’s in as good of spirits as you can be in this situation, obviously frustrated with what happened.”

pic.twitter.com/JqH86uzL8B

— Follow: @PurpGoldLakers (@PGMediaaa) May 6, 2026

It’s unclear how long this might keep him out, but it’s worth noting that Vanderbilt is a left-handed shooter.

The NBC broadcast reported the injury was “gruesome” and indicated that Lakers trainers had to put a towel over it to conceal the injury.

In fact, the NBC broadcast showed the moment when it happened, and the Oklahoma City bench had a visible reaction when players got a closer look at Vanderbilt’s hand as he was being ushered off the floor.

“I went to go check on him (during the game) because it looked bad,” Redick said. “He was screaming and knew he had done something. We’re obviously disappointed that it happened. It’s just a freak injury.”

Look at the Thunders reaction to Vando’s injury. pic.twitter.com/KknAV1Yg2e

— Showtime Luka (@showtimeluka) May 6, 2026

The Lakers ruled Vanderbilt out for the rest of the game.

His injury comes as the team continues to be without All-Star guard Luka Dončić (left hamstring strain) and is only a week or so since Austin Reaves returned from his oblique injury.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Jarred Vanderbilt injury update: Lakers forward suffers finger injury

Well, I missed the first few minutes of this game because we had to take our puppy to the pet urgent care after she found some chocolate on the floor of the pantry – just to turn right back around as soon as we got there to find out she didn’t eat enough chocolate for it to be toxic. Fun times!

Now, back to basketball.

Cleveland big man Jarrett Allen picked up three quick fouls early and Detroit was able to take advantage. After Cleveland started the game 5-0, Detroit responded with a 30-9 run to take a 30-14 lead late in the first quarter. Javonte Green drilled a buzzer-beating three to give Detroit a 37-21 lead after one.

Donovan Mitchell looked good early as he was the focal point of the Cavs offense. They opened the quarter on a 7-2 run, but James Harden was struggling against Detroit’s defense as the Pistons held a 49-35 lead with five minutes left in the half. Ausar Thompson chased down Keon Ellis in transition with one of the nastiest chase-down blocks I’ve ever seen:

DEFENSIVE MENACE https://t.co/Ws2wzJQe4wpic.twitter.com/LtqABmVtf4

— Detroit Pistons (@DetroitPistons) May 6, 2026

Detroit was up 59-46 at halftime after leading by 18 late in the first quarter. Cleveland turned the ball over 11 times in the half as Detroit’s defense was giving the Cavs issues, particularly for Harden as he was guarded mostly by Cade. Cunningham led the way for the Pistons with 14 points while Tobias added 10 – the two combined to shoot 11-for-13 from the free throw line. Donovan Mitchell had 14, but no other Cavs player was in double-digits.

The Pistons opened the second half with back-to-back threes from Duncan Robinson, but Cleveland was battling back despite more Harden turnovers turning into Detroit points. After being up 16 early in the third, Cleveland cut the Detroit lead to four after a 23-10 run. The momentum looked to be shifting in the Cavs direction until a Ron Holland three at the buzzer ended the third with Detroit up 83-76.

In what should be an incredibly fun series, things got chippy after Dennis Schröder got a technical foul for standing over Robinson. Detroit responded with some incredible play from Jalen Duren. He had a great block at the rim on Thomas Bryant, then snagged an offensive rebound off a missed free throw to find Duncan for an open three. After Robinson followed that up with an and-one layup, both of them let James Harden hear about it – this picture captures it in all its glory:

GAME ONE SECURED. ✅ pic.twitter.com/Jd6qQPnyZI

— Detroit Pistons (@DetroitPistons) May 6, 2026

Cleveland responded with an 11-0 run behind some Harden floaters and flopping free throws to tie the game at 93, but that’s when Cade and Duren took over. Cunningham found JD on three consecutive possessions for dunks, including two pretty drop off passes after Cade collapsed the Cleveland defense. It was too much for Cleveland to come back from and Detroit would go on to win Game 1 111-101.

THAT CADE TO JD CONNECTION 😤 pic.twitter.com/4fdZyUDBph

— Detroit Pistons (@DetroitPistons) May 6, 2026

Cunningham led the way for Detroit with 23 points despite not shooting it well, but five other Pistons were in double-digits to help him out. Tobias “Unc” Harris had another 20-point game along with eight rebounds and continues to wear the #2 scorer’s hat for the Pistons this postseason. Duncan Robinson had 19 points and added five threes while Daniss Jenkins provided some quality backup PG minutes off the bench with 12 points and seven rebounds.

Ausar Thompson and Jalen Duren both had 11 points, but Detroit does not win this game without their effort, rebounding, and defense. Duren added 12 rebounds and four assists while Thompson had eight rebounds and five assists. If you only check the box score, it’s going to severely underscore the impact that Duren had on this game. He had some fantastic contests at the rim and had multiple sequences that helped Detroit maintain the lead – the few that come to mind are the block on Thomas Bryant, the offensive rebound and pass to Duncan for three, and his three consecutive dunks late in the fourth. This was JD’s best game of the postseason.

It was way more of a team performance for Detroit in their first game of Round 2. They were able to force 19 Cleveland turnovers to turn that into 31 points, and I believe them turning their defense into offense was what carried them to beating the Cavs tonight. We’ll see if they can repeat this performance in Game 2 Thursday night on Amazon Prime.

Three more wins to go.

Go Stones.

If failing to get out of the first round of the playoffs was bad enough, Jaylen Brown’s wallet is also taking a loss.

The NBA announced Tuesday that the Celtics star has been fined $50,000 for comments he made about referees on his Twitch livestream after Boston was eliminated by the 76ers on Saturday.

Brown’s point of contention was over push-offs and offensive fouls, the latter of which he was called for 10 times during the seven-game series. Brown speculated the reason behind the calls against him could have been because of prior comments he made against officials.

He went as far as to say the refs had an “agenda.”

“Every good basketball player does this. What are y’all talking about? They clearly had an agenda,” Brown said. “‘If Jaylen does this move, call the offensive foul and follow him every time.’ I don’t know if it’s because I pissed the refs off. I’ve been critical about them, and I called them out a bunch of times. So, they were like, ‘You know what, I got you in the playoffs. Watch this.’ [Because] that’s exactly what they did.

“It’s clearly an agenda. Look at the same move. Some referees that if I had to choose, if I had to, like, say there’s some referees that need to be investigated. We had three of them in the last three games.”

Brown also had some strong words for 76ers star Joel Embiid.

“Joel Embiid is a great player. One of the best bigs in basketball history. [But he] flops. He know it,” Brown said. “This ain’t breaking news. It is what it is.”

Without Jayson Tatum, Brown scored 33 points with nine rebounds and four assists in a 109-100 season-ending loss. In Games 5 and 6, though, he was held to 18 and 22 points, respectively.

Ex-Celtics star and current ESPN NBA pundit Kendrick Perkins called out Brown for his rant and said the reason the Celtics got bounced was that they “died by” the 3-pointer and lost three games at home.

“You can miss me with all this s–t,” Perkins said during an appearance on “Road Trippin’ Show.” “You were up 3-1. Motherf–ker, yo ass flops at times. I don’t want to hear that. There was no agenda whatsoever.

“The agenda was that y’all couldn’t make shots.”

The Cleveland Cavaliers have yet to win a playoff series in the Donovan Mitchell era after losing Game 1. They hope that trend ends after they were defeated by the Detroit Pistons 111-101.

Cleveland had plenty of chances to win this game, but a poor start and too many turnovers allowed Detroit to come away with the win.

The Cavs found themselves down early. They opened the game on a 5-0 run, but quickly relinquished all the momentum from there. The Cavs turned it over six times in the first quarter, which led to 12 points going the other way.

Meanwhile, Detroit didn’t turn it over once in the first quarter.

This meant that the Cavs had to work for everything offensively in the half-court, while the Pistons were able to supplement their offense with easy transition baskets. This all added up to Detroit taking an 18-point lead in the first quarter and closing the frame up 16.

Cleveland settled down a bit in the second quarter. They closed the gap to nine midway through the quarter, but couldn’t get it lower than that. Turnovers, particularly from the guards, remained an issue.

The Cavs got back into the game in the third. A 7-0 run at the start and middle of the quarter allowed Cleveland to chip away at the deficit.

Max Strus provided a scoring spark in that frame. He had 10 points on 4-6 shooting, which included going 2-3 from beyond the arc with a steal.

The Cavs cut the Pistons’ lead down to three, but a strong close to the quarter, which included a Ronald Holland buzzer-beating triple, gave Detroit a seven-point lead heading into the fourth.

Cleveland carried the momentum into the fourth quarter. They pulled even midway through the final frame with seven-straight points by James Harden, after he had an awful first three quarters.

Detroit’s offense responded from there. After coming up empty on their next trip down the court, the Pistons scored on their next six possessions. The Cavs couldn’t keep pace as the Pistons came away with a 10-point victory.

Head coach Kenny Atkinson has stressed the importance of winning the possession battle all year. This game showed why.

The Cavs lost this one with their careless turnovers and inability to secure defensive rebounds.

Cleveland gave it away on 21.3% of their possessions (5th percentile). This translated to 20 turnovers, leading to 31 points for Detroit.

Harden was the worst offender. He gave it away seven times of his own. That’s unacceptable from a veteran starting point guard who was brought in to help in high-leverage situations.

This was coupled with the Pistons retrieving 34% of their missed shots (77th percentile). This allowed them to win in second-chance points 19-11.

The Cavs weren’t able to overcome these issues with their star backcourt

Donovan Mitchell wasn’t great by his standards. He was held to just 23 points on 9-19 shooting and had just two attempts at the free-throw line. Mitchell has yet to register 25 or more points or shoot better than 50% from the field in a road playoff game this season.

Harden provided 22 points, seven assists, eight rebounds, and seven turnovers in the loss. He shot just 6-15 from the field, which included going 1-7 from three. Most of Harden’s scoring came at the line, where he went 9-9.

Strus had 19 points on 7-13 shooting with five rebounds and two assists.

Evan Mobley was good for spurts, but couldn’t establish a consistent scoring rhythm. He had 14 points on 6-11 shooting with nine rebounds, five assists, and two blocks.

Foul trouble limited Game 7 hero Jarrett Allen to just 18 minutes. He had just two points on 1-4 shooting.

The Pistons were led by 23 points from Cade Cunningham on 6-19 shooting with seven assists. Tobias Harris and 20 points on 6-14 shooting, while Duncan Robinson provided 19 points on 5-8 shooting from three.

The Cavs had chances to win this game, but they couldn’t make the plays on either end when they needed to.

Game 2 in Detroit is set for Thursday at 7 PM.

NEW YORK (AP) — The NBA has fined Celtics All-Star Jaylen Brown $50,000 for public criticism of game officials following Boston's first-round exit from the playoffs.

The fine was announced by NBA Executive Vice President and Head of Basketball Operations James Jones on Tuesday night, two days after Brown said in a livestream he hosts that game officials “clearly had an agenda” to call fouls against him for "pushing off" when he drove toward the basket while handling the ball.

“There’s some referees that need to be investigated,” Brown said on the livestream Sunday, a day after the Celtics' 109-100 loss to the Philadelphia 76ers in Game 7 of their first-round playoff series.

“Every good basketball player does this. What are y’all talking about? They clearly had an agenda,” Brown said.

Brown was previously fined $35,000 in January after a two-minute postgame rant about the officiating following Boston's loss to San Antonio.

___

AP NBA: https://apnews.com/hub/NBA

Turns out smack-talking officials on Twitch comes with a cost.

Boston Celtics star Jaylen Brown learned this the hard way.

The NBA announced Tuesday, May 5 that Brown has been fined $50,000 for comments he made during a Twitch livestream Sunday, May 3, one day after the Celtics fell in Game 7 of the first round of the NBA playoffs.

NBA executive vice president, head of basketball operations James Jones announced the fine in a statement.

Brown expressed his displeasure about several specific plays from Boston’s 109-100 loss to the Philadelphia 76ers and insinuated that he was being officiated differently from his competitors.

“They clearly had an agenda, maybe because I spoke so critically of them in the regular season,” Brown said during the livestream. “I actually spoke to some refs, and they told me there’s an agenda going on each game, every time Jaylen puts his arm up, just call it.”

Brown said that it was a simple basketball play that several other players do.

“Philly took advantage of that and the officiating and it cost us to some degree,” he added.

During the livestream, Brown even replayed film of the plays in question and also called out 76ers center Joel Embiid by name, accusing him of embellishing contact to get to the line.

“Flopping has ruined our league,” Brown said. “Joel Embiid is a great player. One of the best bigs in basketball history. Flops. He knows it.”

The first-round elimination was Boston’s earliest exit in the postseason since 2021.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: NBA punishes Jaylen Brown for comments about refs

The back half of the NBA conference semifinals tipped off with another pair of series openers.

In the first game Tuesday, May 5, the No. 1 Pistons built an early lead against No. 4 Cavaliers, extending it to as many as 18 points, but Detroit needed to fend off a Cleveland rally in the fourth to defend homecourt.

In the nightcap, the No. 1 seed Oklahoma City Thunder continued their quest to repeat with a defensive masterclass at home against the No. 4 seed Los Angeles Lakers.

Here are the winners and losers from Tuesday night’s conference semifinal games between the Pistons and Cavaliers and Thunder and Lakers:

LAKERS VS. THUNDER: Updates, highlights, scores from Game 1

Lakers vs. Thunder Game 1 box score

• Oklahoma City Thunder 108, Los Angeles Lakers 90

Cavaliers vs. Pistons Game 1 box score

• Detroit Pistons 111, Cleveland Cavaliers 101

WINNERS

Jared McCain, Cason Wallace and the Thunder bench deliver

Oklahoma City’s bench is one of its several strengths, and the group was ready in Game 1. The Thunder bench outscored L.A.’s by a 34-15 margin, which put intense pressure on the Lakers when their starters sat.

Jared McCain led the way with 12 points, but Isaiah Joe chipped in 9 and Alex Caruso and Cason Wallce added 5 points apiece. It’s not just offense, however, where this group makes its mark. Wallace and Caruso are excellent defenders and Wallace — as he has most of the season — was a menace; he swiped 3 steals and also recorded 1 block.

So on a night when the Lakers threw bodies at Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, the role players delivered.

Detroit gets to the line

How does a team shoot a worse percentage than its opponent, have only one more field goal yet win by 10? Get to the free throw line.

The plan for the Pistons early in the game was clear: attack the paint and put Cavs defenders in compromising positions. The Pistons went to the line 35 times and converted 27 of those for a solid 77.1% from the stripe.

And for all the free throws the Pistons shot, the Cavaliers were on the opposite end, going 15-of-16 (93.8%). That means that, in a 10-point game, Detroit’s advantage from the line created a +12 edge.

“I want to separate this from the game,” Donovan Mitchell told reporters after the loss. “The free throw disparity is not why we lost tonight — I want to make sure I say that, but I don’t know, I’m trying to get downhill.

“A friend of mine (Jaylen Brown) got fined for talking about flopping, so I’m not going to try to double down, but, like, I feel like that’s what I’ve got to do at this point. I’m trying to get downhill, get to the bucket and sometimes people are in my way and I’m trying to fight through contact and I’m not getting these calls.”

JAYLEN BROWN: NBA punishes Celtics star for Twitch comments about refs

Pistons turn turnovers into points

The other reason Detroit launched massive runs was because it turned defense into offense. Detroit’s perimeter players smothered Cleveland’s guards, jumping passing lanes and forcing tough passes in pick-and-roll actions. That flustered the Cavs and led to easy Pistons points in transition.

The Pistons forced 19 turnovers (compared to only 11 committed), which led to a 31-16 edge in points off turnovers.

Not surprisingly, Detroit also sprinted to a 15-6 advantage in fastbreak points.

The Pistons find balance

They’ll still want more offense out of Jalen Duren (11 points on 4-of-11 shooting), but the Pistons didn’t need to rely entirely on Cade Cunningham. And, for Detroit, that’s a recipe for success.

Tobias Harris (20 points) continued his hot start to the playoffs, Duncan Robinson (19) drained 5 3-pointers and Daniss Jenkins  (12) provided a spark off the bench.

LOSERS

Austin Reaves

Essentially, with Dončić out, the Lakers need to play as close to perfect hoops as possible to have a chance against the defending champs. Austin Reaves is playing in just his third game since returning from an oblique injury, so some initial struggles are to be expected. Los Angeles, however, cannot afford that.

Reaves was harassed by Oklahoma City’s perimeter defense and he shot just 3-of-16 from the field, finishing with only 8 points.

One issue Reaves may face in this series is the size and length of the Thunder defenders. Whether it was Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Cason Wallace, Luguentz Dort, Alex Caruso — all excellent defenders in their own right — their physicality made it tough for Reaves all night long.

Cavaliers' James Harden and Donovan Mitchell

Simply put: there’s no way the Cavaliers will have a chance in this series if their top two scorers struggle through three quarters the way they did Tuesday night. Mitchell showed some promise in the first half, scoring 14 points on 6-of-11 shooting. Yet, he scored only 3 in the third quarter.

The night for Harden was even worse. After averaging 23.6 points per game in the regular season, Harden had committed more turnovers (5) through three quarters than he had made field goals (2).

The pair did pick it up in the fourth to combine for 19 points, but playing from behind is a tough task against Detroit.

Jarrett Allen's early fouls cost Cavs

He was, arguably, the biggest reason why Cleveland topped the Toronto Raptors in Game 7 in the first round. Allen was a force Sunday, May 3, scoring 22 points and hauling in 19 rebounds, eight of which were offensive.

Tuesday night it was a different story. The Pistons went right at Allen in the first quarter, drawing three early fouls on him in the first 5:58 of the game. That took him out of the game completely, and he finished the night with just 2 points and 3 rebounds in 18:22 on the floor.  

Jarred Vanderbilt injury worsens Lakers tough luck

It’s bad enough that Luka Dončić (left hamstring strain) remains out and may miss the entire second round against the Thunder, but things got worse for Los Angeles.

Backup forward Jarred Vanderbilt suffered a right hand injury when his fingers swiped against the left side of the backboard as he attempted to block a shot. The NBC broadcast reported the injury was “gruesome” and indicated that Lakers trainers had to put a towel over it to conceal the injury. The Lakers ruled him out for the rest of the game.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Cavaliers vs Pistons, Lakers vs Thunder: Winners, losers in NBA today

It was one of the biggest questions ahead of the series. 

Who on the Knicks would get the responsibility of guarding the explosive and dynamic Tyrese Maxey? 

Josh Hart spent the end of the first round guarding the Hawks’ most dangerous guard, CJ McCollum. OG Anunoby often guards the opponent’s best scorer, regardless of their position. But Maxey’s quickness isn’t a great fit for Hart or Anunoby. 

So Mikal Bridges, back as the Knicks point-of-attack defender, got the assignment. When he came out of the game, it was Miles McBride who matched up with Maxey. 

And they both aced the test. 

“That was huge,” Josh Hart said after practice Tuesday. “Both of those guys obviously are blessed enough athletically to be able to keep up with them, use their physicality, use their length to their advantage. Maxey obviously is an offense unto himself, being able to break out in transition. He’s tough to guard off those handoffs and ball screens so they did an amazing job on him and just have to continue it.” 

Maxey finished with just 13 points on rough 3-for-9 shooting from the field while missing all three 3-pointers he took. None of those three field goals came against Bridges or McBride. He committed four turnovers. 

It was his lowest point total since Jan. 26. In the first round against the Celtics, he averaged 26.9 points on 46.4 percent shooting from the field and 41.8 percent shooting from 3-point range. 

“I feel like the whole team was just locked in, honestly,” McBride said Tuesday. “Mikal started off on him really well and then I came in, but there were times where other guys were matched up with him, and all of our antennas are up just guarding him as a team.” 

It was clear the Knicks placed an emphasis on slowing down Maxey, often having a second defender ready to help Bridges or McBride. They were physical with him — particularly when the 76ers tried to get him going in the pick-and-roll. The only concern was that he was able to get to the free-throw line more than the Knicks would have wanted — he took seven free throws, making all of them. 

His usage was also a bit perplexing — there were long stretches where he was not assertive. He didn’t make a field goal until midway through the second quarter. His nine shots were by far the fewest he took so far in the postseason — and fewest in any game since Feb. 3. 

The Knicks expect that to change. 

“We know Maxey is going to be more aggressive,” coach Mike Brown said Tuesday. “So we have to be more alert than we were in our last game.” 

They also acknowledge they perhaps benefited from a bit of luck. 

“He missed some shots, too,” Brown said. “We know his aggression is gonna be at a higher level in Game 2. Like we told all our guys, it’s five guys guarding the basketball, but at the point of attack, we have to be pretty good. The biggest thing with guarding Maxey at the point of attack is, he just moves so well and he can score at all three levels. His quickness, his athleticism for his size is second to none, because he’s able to score from all three levels. So you have to give a multiple effort on every single possession because when he gives it up, you can best bet that he’s gonna get it back at some point on that possession, if not right away.” 

The 76ers will certainly have countermoves they try in Game 2 to get Maxey going. Because if he’s as poor as he was in Game 1, they have little chance. 

But in Bridges and McBride, the Knicks might have the answers.

Not everyone was over the moon that Victor Wembanyama broke the NBA playoff record for most blocks in a game during Game 1 of the conference semifinals between the San Antonio Spurs and Minnesota Timberwolves, Monday, May 4.

The 2026 Defensive Player of the Year finished with 12 blocks on the night, passing the previous mark by two. He also was one swat shy of Dwight Howard’s record for blocks in one half of a playoff game in what ended up being a triple-double performance with 11 points and 15 rebounds.

A day after the remarkable outing in San Antonio, members of the Timberwolves decried Wembanyama’s final stats after even they they earned a 104-102 road win. After coaches and players looked at the game tape, they came to the conclusion that several of Wembanyama’s blocks were not actually blocks, but uncalled goaltending.

“Obviously, he had a historic night, but when we looked at ‘em, at least four of ‘em were goaltending, maybe even a fifth,” Minnesota head coach Chris Finch told reporters Tuesday, May 5. “To me, it’s a little alarming that none of ‘em were called.”

HIGHLIGHTS: Timberwolves edge Spurs in Anthony Edwards' return from injury

Timberwolves center and Wembanyama’s fellow Frenchman Rudy Gobert agreed that not all of the blocks should have registered as such on the box score.

“He fouled me on the first one,” Gobert told reporters. “But I mean, if you look at them, probably three or four (goaltends).”

Finch continued by saying the game officials should have “heightened awareness” of Wembanyama, “a generational shot-blocker” and his style of play. He noted that if Wembanyama, who is known as “the Alien,” had the estimated four goaltends called instead of blocks, that would add up to eight points for the Timberwolves.

“You know the value of eight points in an NBA game? It’s massive,” he said. “That’s also 33 percent of his blocks were goaltending, uncalled. If I were to give you a 33 percent raise, you’d like that, right? That’s a huge number.”

NBA PLAYOFF BRACKET: Scores, schedule, odds for conference semifinals

Finch assured that his squad, which includes four-time All-Star Anthony Edwards, isn’t fazed by the disparity. The conference semifinals continue with Game 2 Wednesday night in San Antonio.

“We’re gonna keep coming,” he said. “And we got to make some better decisions in how we attack the rim. All credit to the guys for not being discouraged.”

Gobert showed how the team was keeping a lighthearted attitude.

“I wish I had that type of treatment, too,” he laughed with reporters.

Victor Wemanyama Game 1 highlights

Watch extended highlights of Wembayama's historic triple-double on May, 4, 2026

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Timberwolves' Chris Finch, Rudy Gobert question Wembanyama blocks

The discrepancy was startling. 

So much so that, just looking at the box score, it’s hard to believe it existed along with the final score. 

The Knicks took half the number of free throws as the 76ers — 17 to Philadelphia’s 34 — during their 137-98 Game 1 rout Monday night at Madison Square Garden.

Joel Embiid scored eight of his 14 points from the free-throw line. Tyrese Maxey scored seven of his 13 points from the line. 

It went under the radar given the margin of victory. But Knicks coach Mike Brown knows it would behoove the Knicks to not let it continue. 

“Maxey and Embiid are really, really good at drawing fouls,” Brown said after practice Tuesday. “Maxey’s speed, he’s gonna drive and he’s gonna attack the chest. I thought our guys did on some of the calls, but most of them, you can’t lead with your hands, you gotta lead with your chest and hope that the referee sees that at times we’re not initiating the contact. But we can’t put ourselves in the position to put the whistle in the referees’ hands. Make them call a no call. So we gotta do better leading with our chest and showing our hands. 

“And then with Embiid, he’s really crafty. Shot fake, shot fake and he can still shoot it, whether it’s from 2 or 3. So we have to be disciplined, we have to stay down and figure out how to be a second jumper while having contests from behind and stuff like that. But we can’t send those two guys to the free-throw line, and the rest of their team, 34 times and expect to get a win, especially if we only go 17.” 

---

Brown began his news conference Tuesday by sending his wishes to 76ers coach Nick Nurse. 

Nurse’s brother, Ian, died unexpectedly April 29, according to the Philadelphia Inquirer. 

“I heard about his brother, Ian, and I’d like to pass my condolences along to Nick Nurse and his family, his brother’s family and all their friends,” Brown said. “Life is precious. You don’t wish that upon anybody. So I’d like to pass along my condolences to him and his family while they’re going through these times.” 

---

Miles McBride believes that, given the 76ers’ lack of depth, the Knicks’ physicality can have a cumulative effect over the course of the series. 

“It can definitely play a part if you’re being realistic,” McBride said Tuesday. “If you have more guys running them, being physical can definitely play a big factor.”

Knicks owner James Dolan was having some fun during a Sphere Entertainment earnings call Tuesday when he cracked a joke that alluded to a star of another team.

According to The Athletic’s Mike Vorkunov, Dolan made the joke when he was asked about the SG&A costs — the costs related to running the business day to day that exclude direct production expenses — during the call.

“Boy, I’m really tempted to crack a joke here,” Dolan said. “So I guess I will. So SG&A is a great basketball player. And when we get to the Finals, I’m sure we’re going to beat them.”

The Knicks and Garden boss was alluding to the nickname for Oklahoma City Thunder star Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, who is commonly referred to as SGA for short.

And SGA has become a bit of an antagonist for the Knicks during a recent meeting when the Thunder visited Manhattan and defeated the Knicks 103-100 on March 4.

Head coach Mike Brown earned a technical foul during the game after he complained to the referees about a missed foul on Gilgeous-Alexander that would have been his third of the game late in the first quarter.

Afterward, Brown used his postgame news conference to call out the way Gilgeous-Alexander plays.

“SGA, he’s a tough cover, and he does a great job of convincing the referees — probably better than anybody in the league — that he’s getting hit,” Brown said.

The Knicks are currently in the middle of a second-round playoff series with the 76ers, whom they defeated handily Monday night, 137-98 in Game 1.

Dolan may have been joking on the earnings call, but the Knicks could end up facing SGA and the Thunder if Oklahoma City reaches the NBA Finals.

The Knicks will have to knock out the Sixers and the winner of the Detroit Pistons-Cleveland Cavaliers series, and Oklahoma City has to defeat the Lakers in a best-of-seven series and then dispatch the winner of the Minnesota Timberwolves-San Antonio Spurs series for it to happen.

New Yorkers are planning to storm Philadelphia for this weekend’s NBA playoff games between the Knicks and 76ers — despite the City of Brotherly Love’s efforts to try to block an orange-and-blue takeover.

Xfinity Mobile Arena is limiting direct sales to buyers with addresses in the Philadelphia metro area, while Sixers fans are promising not to resell their tickets to the Knicks faithful, but some New Yorkers say they’re heading south to Philly anyway.

An X fandom account, @BigKnickEnergy_, announced a $75 roundtrip bus fare from Madison Square Garden to Xfinity when the NBA’s Eastern Conference Semifinals series switches from the Big Apple to Philadelphia on Friday and Sunday.

The en masse migration the will depart Friday at 4:00 p.m. from MSG and return at 10:30 p.m.

On Sunday, departure is at 12:30 p.m. at MSG and return at 7:00 p.m.

The Knicks are up in the series 1-0 after a Monday 137-98 dismantling of the rival Sixers at home. Game 2 at MSG is scheduled for Wednesday.

New Yorkers said the city of Rocky should pull a Rambo the policy because they’re only hurting themselves.

“The (Philadelphia) businesses downtown definitely want the New York fans coming,” Morristown resident Morristown resident Keith Gehm, 54 told The Post. “If you’re selling [cheese]steaks, you want the New York fans spending their money.

“But it’s a second city,” he added. “They’re just too fragile!”!’” 

Some fans remain optimistic the self-buyout scheme would ultimately fail.

Anile Melwani, a fan who attends both the New York and Florida games told the Post, “People will find a way to go.”

“Everyone who has a friend or family in Philly, they’re still gonna show up,” he continued, adding that despite the “unfair” treatment of Knicks fans, “there’s still gonna be a lot of New York fans.”

“You know how resilient New Yorkers are.”

Once again, rumor time has struck the Valley, as online discussion has continued to escalate. With teams continuing to get eliminated from the first round, new shakeups are being hypothesized every single hour over on Twitter. That leaves us today with our latest discussion that has hit the Suns’ world, as fans have clung to a new name that may be hitting the market.

It is expected that the Trail Blazers will field plenty of external trade interest in Jrue Holiday, per @JakeLFischer

(https://t.co/wvquLcpJ48) pic.twitter.com/Ebttw1wdVb

— Fullcourtpass (@Fullcourtpass) May 2, 2026

Even with the Trail Blazers exceeding expectations, similarly to Phoenix, and beating them in the Play-In tournament, some shakeup seems likely for this Northwest franchise. With the emergence of Scoot Henderson in the first round of the playoffs and Damian Lillard gearing up to return, the question of Jrue Holiday remaining in Portland continues to grow.

The guard was traded there just last year from the Boston Celtics, who were looking to shed salary to drop below the second apron. I wonder if that sounds familiar, Suns fans? Anyways, the guard this offseason could also see another change of scenery, from the recent reporting of Jake Fischer.

For a team in Phoenix with already a surplus of guards, you would think this means they turn away from this, but with his complementary fit alongside Booker, the question is: should they? That is why today we are back with another breakdown of how this could be done for the Suns and whether they should consider it.

How could it get done?

Looking at Jrue Holiday’s contract is pretty taxing. The veteran guard is owed $72 million over the next two seasons with a player option in his final year. With making just under $35 million this year, the only two ways it could realistically get done. You either trade Jalen Green in a one-for-one trade or the combination of Royce O’Neale and Grayson Allen.

Which would make the most sense?

As we noted above, the Blazers’ main motivation for moving Holiday off was to give their guard room more freedom, so taking Green back makes zero sense on their end. Unless it was a three-team deal (which, if you want to get creative, let me know down below), it’s virtually impossible.

This leaves us with the package of O’Neale and Allen, who would bring some quality depth and three-point shooting to a team that could benefit from it. Portland was 28th for three-point range last season, hitting 34.3%. And they were dead last in the NBA in bench three-point shooting, where they were 32.0%. Adding O’Neale and Allen would help in this area.

Even if this makes sense for the Blazers and Holiday is a good stylistic fit for the Suns, there are concerns.

Why does it not get done?

For multiple reasons, this package doesn’t get it across the finish line. Mainly on the Suns’ end, as they now take on Holiday, and they face the surplus guard problem. With Collin Gillespie and Jordan Goodwin wanting to resign, this forces them into a Jalen Green trade.

One that the league now knows they are forced to make: with low-ball offers from other GM’s, potentially leaving Phoenix with holes in other areas if they do not accept those deals. Not only that, but you add the age and injury history of Holiday in recent years, and that becomes an issue. With him being 36 going into next year, that does not push forward the youth movement the Suns want to embrace either.

Unfortunately, there is something in the water in Phoenix, as everyone who has come here via trade has suffered an injury. Even if they are completely healthy in their previous endeavors, they always run into some issues here. The guard, who is also going to be in his 18th year, would be a great fit both on the court and playstyle-wise, but has too many concerns with his large dollar amount.

With the league only getting younger and deeper, Holiday would not solve one of those issues for this team and leave an even bigger hole in another spot. Even if his ability to be a perfect locker room fit and culture guy would be a nice addition, it is not worth the cost for the Suns. I do see the benefit of him being the point guard, and of him embracing the team’s defensive hard work and hustle as well. He would definitely make things easier on Booker, but at what cost?

Especially in their position, Holiday is an addition to put you over the top for a championship, as he did for the Bucks and Celtics. The Suns are just not in that spot right now, which is why, even if he is one of my favorite fits alongside Booker, I say it is a no-go.

If Holiday proves he is still a solid player once he is off that contract, I would absolutely LOVE to have him as a secondary guard on a cheaper deal, but the price is not worth the risk in this instance.

Let me know your thoughts down below. Would you entertain a trade for Jrue Holiday for this Suns team?

The Cleveland Cavaliers will look for a strong start in their second-round series against the Detroit Pistons.

Share your thoughts as the game unfolds. If you aren’t a member of the community, sign up so you can talk to your fellow Cavalier fans and make your voice heard!

Go Cavs!