Category: Basketball

The Clippers enter the playoffs on an eight-game winning streak that helped them secure fifth place in the highly competitive Western Conference and a matchup with the Denver Nuggets, who won the 2023 NBA title behind three-time MVP Nikola Jokic.

The Clippers do have size with 7-foot Ivica Zubac to combat Denver's all-world center as well as a healthy and once-again productive Kawhi Leonard, one of three players averaging 20-plus points along with James Harden and Norman Powell.

The Nuggets have recovered since a four-game losing streak cost Michael Malone, the franchise's most successful coach, his job. Denver has recovered under interim coach Dave Adelman, winning three in a row to close the season and secure the fourth seed.

The two clubs last met in the postseason during the 2020 bubble playoffs when the Nuggets rallied from a 3-1 series deficit to eliminate the Clippers.

Here's how two Western Conference scouts, speaking on condition of anonymity because they're not authorized to speak publicly about opponents, break down the series:

Scout 1

“I think it's probably gonna be one of the best series out there. Like, I don't know if a team is playing better than the Clippers are right now, and you're going against the best player in the world.

“I think it'll be it'll be a chess match, and I'm curious to see how Adelman does against arguably the best Xs and O's coach in the league [in Tyronn Lue]. I think they're gonna throw a lot a lot of different looks at Joker. But I think I think if I'm the Nuggets, the Clippers are one of the teams that I would not want to be playing because I think they can play you a lot of different ways. Like, they have size to go against Joker to keep them from just bullying. If they want to kind of speed up the game, they can go small at five and match up to him as a shooter.

"Yeah, the Clippers have got pretty good wing defenders in Kris Dunn and obviously Kawai and Derrick Jones that they can kind of stay with the movement of Denver off the ball. So, I think it's going to be a tough matchup for Denver. I think on paper Denver is the more talented team, but they've had so much turmoil this season. It's hard to pick against the team playing as well as the Clippers are with Kawhi playing like he is.”

Read more:How do the Clippers match up against the Nuggets entering their playoff series?

“I think with something like the Clippers’ defense, especially in the playoffs, it's all about can you take away what they really want to do and what Joker wants to do is get everybody else involved because when Michael Porter is hitting open threes, and Jamal Murray is getting his scoring and Christian Braun is cutting back door and doing all that stuff, they just become really, really potent. If you can kind of take them out of that — I don't know if it's the stay home on everybody and make Jokic score 50 method. I don't know if it's still like play one on one with with Zu down there and if he beats you over the top out of the post you live with it. But to me, I think it's both the initial look and you take away what they want to do and then what's your adjustment and that's where I think Ty is so good at like you know whether it's bringing a double team or doing something different in like the Joker-Murray two-man game. Like, I think there's just a lot a lot optional there because that group's been together in that group kind of knows what to do. I think they've done some different things throughout the season to experiment with some different stuff. So I think it's been a really good series.”

Scout 2

“The whole game plan is going to start with the Clippers dealing with Nikola Jokic. The one advantage the Clippers have that a lot of teams don’t is that they got the size with Zubac to matchup with Jokic. Like, Jokic can’t push him around or bully him under the basket because Zubac is just as big. So, I don’t think the Clippers will need to double team. I think they’ll be content with just playing him straight-up with Zubac. Because with Jokic, if you start double-teaming him, he picks you apart. So it’s almost like you want to play him one-on-one and have him score in the paint rather than getting everybody else involved. So, what I see with the Clippers is playing him straight up with Zubac and not really wanting to double-team him.

“Now when he steps out and shoots those threes, I think you come up and contest those threes. You don’t back all the way off him. You got to put a little bit of a contest, get your hand up. But you live with him making a couple a game.

“Now the Clippers have weapons with Kawhi, James, Norman and Zu. The Clippers have much more firepower than Denver, much more. They got four guys that can at any time score 20. They got two guys at any time could score 30. The Clippers create much more problems than Denver does for the Clippers on offense. The biggest concern is James has got to keep playing. He can’t revert back to 19 dribbles, one-on-one, all that stuff. There’s going to be spots in the game where he’s going to have to isolation, but he’s got to keep playing the way he’s been playing this last two or three months.

“It hurts Denver a little bit that Mike Malone got fired so late in the season. But the one thing that helps them is that the assistants have been there for a couple of years. The others guys have been there so they are real familiar with the players, they are familiar with the Clippers. So, it’s not as bad as some people think. Now, does it affect them a little bit? Sure, because Malone is a championship coach, like Ty Lue, who has been through it. But at least they have some continuity there with their assistants.

Read more:Clippers' Kawhi Leonard still has 'love' for the game of basketball

“So, when you look at Denver’s team, really the key is is Jamal Murray healthy and does Michael Porter make jump shots. Because if Porter is making jumpers, they are a whole different team. He’ll shoot from anywhere, anytime. The best play in the NBA, when Murray is healthy, is the Murray and Jokic two-man pick-and-roll game. It’s that tough to defend. When both guys are healthy and got it going, that two-man game with them, it’s a nightmare.

“The Clippers have the depth advantage. Denver does not have a good bench. They don’t have the bench that the Clippers have, not even close. That’s going to be a factor.

“So, even though the Clippers don’t have home court, I still think they are going to win the series."

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This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.

Warriors' four keys to four NBA playoff wins vs. Rockets originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area

Breaking their NBA play-in tournament curse, the Warriors used an extra game as a gift to get back into the playoffs, earning a trip to Houston to play the Rockets. These two teams have a long history in the playoffs, too. The coach is new, as is the roster, but the bad blood remains.

The Warriors won the season series 3-2, and their core has much more postseason experience. They’ll be leaning on that to take down the No. 2-seeded Rockets, starting Sunday night. Will that be enough? 

Here are four keys to the Warriors getting four wins in the first round against the Rockets.

Protect The Ball

Jimmy Butler blew a kiss and thanked the basket nearest the Warriors’ bench at Chase Center in Tuesday’s win against the Memphis Grizzlies after making back-to-back free throws. Butler hates missing free throws and had gone 1 of 2 at the line his previous four trips. It was obvious how annoyed Butler was with missing a total of six shots at the free-throw line, but it’s even more clear what part of the game frustrates him most. 

Turnovers. Nothing compares for the 14-year veteran.

“I hate turning the ball over,” Butler says. “Free throws; but turnovers really irk me.” 

A lack of turnovers had to make Butler happy after surviving the Grizzlies. The Warriors committed half as many turnovers as the Grizzlies – 20 to 10 – and scored 27 points off turnovers, compared to giving up 12. Nearly every player, along with coach Steve Kerr, said turnovers will be the main factor in the Warriors’ either moving on to the second round, or having to answer a long list of questions from a first-round exit. 

They turned the ball over 20 times in their most recent game with the Rockets, a 106-96 loss, and that turned into 18 points for Houston. The Rockets in that game had 14 more fastbreak points than them, 16 more points in the paint and two more second-chance points in a win where they shot 33.3 percent from 3-point range. The equation is simple: Don’t give the Rockets more chances. 

Their half-court offense can keep them out of games, but they make up for it by hitting the offensive glass and sprinting past you. The Warriors, in their three wins against the Rockets, averaged 11.7 turnovers and 14 points conceded off them. But in their two losses, they averaged 21 turnovers and 24 points conceded off them. 

Ball security will either make or break the Warriors against the Rockets.

Freeing Steph

Like a phantom haunting him all over the court, nobody made Steph Curry look more human this season than Amen Thompson. The 22-year-old made his Defensive Player of the Year case in the final regular-season game between the Warriors and the Rockets. Thompson had three steals and two blocks, badgering Curry all game. 

Here’s what an off-night it was for Curry: His four turnovers were more than the three points he scored. Curry was 1 of 10 overall and 1 of 8 on threes, making a heave at the end of the first half. Thompson was the main defender guarding Curry’s nine missed shots just once. A combination of Dillon Brooks and Fred VanVleet made up for the rest. 

But it was all the off-ball trouble that Thompson caused. Curry played three games against the Rockets this year and averaged 16.3 points on 36.4 percent shooting (16 of 44) and 30 percent on threes (9 of 30), all being incredibly low numbers for him. The Rockets will force the referees to adjust to them, particularly with the physicality of guarding Curry. 

He has scored just five points with Thompson as his primary defender this season, going 2 of 8 overall and 1 of 6 from deep. Curry’s 0 of 5 with Brooks as his main defender, all being 3-pointers, but 4 of 8 with VanVleet on him. Can Curry exploit Jalen Green or Alperen Sengun in the pick-and-roll? Can Butler’s early scoring recently allow Curry to cook when it counts most? 

In the simplest of terms, this series can be decided on Kerr finding ways to free up his 37-year-old star. Curry is the king of adjusting throughout a series, and the opposing coach called him out for crying about fouls last game. Every “Steph Stopper” has eventually failed. The mental and physical toll of a renewed rivalry should be a treat.

Big vs. Small

Houston houses a starting backcourt of a 6-foot VanVleet and a 6-foot-4 Green, who plays even smaller. Then, there’s just a long line of players who are big, long and want to impose their size over you. 

An Ime Udoka-led team can throw Tari Eason and Jabari Smith Jr. at you off the bench, and they’re sure to go to the two-big lineup of Sengun and Steven Adams. Those two played 162 minutes together this season and had a 29.9 net rating with a 122 offensive rating and 92 defensive rating. As Sengun had a 19-point, 14-rebound double-double last game against the Warriors, including seven offensive rebounds, Adams was a plus-7 with eight rebounds in 17 minutes. 

Curry went 3 of 10 – 1 of 7 from three – when Sengun guarded him this season. Adams defended him for 11 seconds and forced a turnover. Sengun offensively has not been good in the post with Green on him. In the Warriors’ three wins over the Rockets this season, Sengun was a minus-36. That two-big lineup cannot work when Curry’s on the floor.

The biggest flare-up less than two weeks ago was with Draymond Green and Sengun. Watch the 22-year-old try to make a statement on the 35-year-old. And watch how the four-time champion responds. Against the Grizzlies, Green kept so many possessions alive, and he knocked numerous balls out from the scrum. The Warriors need him to contain Sengun on the offensive glass and remain out of foul trouble. 

Will Kerr show his faith in Kevon Looney? How much of a factor can Quinten Post be as a stretch-five to pull the Rockets’ big men away from the rim? 

Both Gary Payton II and Moses Moody can have major roles in small-ball lineups. Moody should have open shots the Warriors need him to knock down, and Payton was the Warriors’ best player against the Rockets last game with 16 points, five rebounds, two assists and three steals. Then there’s the player who can match the Rockets’ youth, size and athleticism. 

Is This The Kuminga Series?

His skill set would suggest yes. So would his numbers against Houston this season. But Jonathan Kuminga remains the biggest question mark for the Warriors’ playoff run, as well as the offseason. 

Kerr essentially declined to answer a pregame question about Kuminga on Tuesday before the Warriors’ play-in tournament game, saying that conversations to maintain a player’s mental strength can’t be necessary at this stage of the season. But Kerr and the Warriors will have to hope Kuminga has stayed ready, mentally and physically, for a series he very well could be needed in. 

“He’ll contribute,” Green said later that night. “He’s great. He’s getting his work in. That’s all you can do in that situation is get your work in.

“And he’ll be meaningful for us in that series. I have zero doubt about that. I think the challenge for him is to stay mentally engaged, as it is for anyone in that situation. But I have zero doubt in my mind that he’s going to help us in this series. He will, 1,000 percent.” 

Kuminga played in four of the Warriors’ five games against the Rockets this season, missing their 105-98 win on Feb. 13 while still dealing with a badly sprained right ankle. The four games (two starts) he did play were a sample of why it could be hard for Kerr to completely ignore him. Kuminga averaged 21.3 points and 6.8 rebounds in 28.8 minutes per game against the Rockets. 

In their first meeting, Kuminga led the Warriors to an overtime win as a plus-18 off the bench with 23 points and six rebounds, scoring six of their eight points in OT. He was even better the next time the two teams played each other. The Warriors’ former top draft pick dropped a then-career-high 33 points on 13-of-23 shooting, made three of his six 3-point attempts and skied for seven rebounds. On a night the Warriors didn’t have Curry or Green, Kuminga showed all the promise the franchise has invested in. 

The Warriors have lost their last two games against the Rockets that Kuminga has played, but not because of him. He had 20 points and another seven rebounds in his third game against them, and then played just 19 minutes off the bench in the Warriors’ loss to the Rockets earlier this month, despite being a team-high plus-9 with nine points and seven rebounds. Everything shows the Rockets were Kuminga’s best matchup, by far, and he’s Golden State’s only player who is as athletic and long as Houston’s young and hungry roster.

It’ll be extremely telling where Kuminga’s present and future as a Warrior stand in the case he’s reduced to his warmups on the sidelines for however long the first round goes.

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Podziemski out of Warriors playoff spotlight but on the spot originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area

SAN FRANCISCO – When the Warriors step into the NBA playoffs Sunday, the eyes of planet hoops will focus on Stephen Curry, Jimmy Butler III and Draymond Green. Yet their youngest teammate, Brandin Podziemski, knows he’ll be in the corners of those eyes.

The haters will keep him in view, anticipating failure so they can say, “We told you he shouldn’t be on the floor.”

The believers will be vigilant, hoping for success, so they can say, “Maybe now you understand why he’s playing.”

Podziemski scans social media and is aware of the chatter, some of it rational, such as those signaling that he’s a bit too audacious for a 22-year-old in his second NBA season. Much of it, however, is from unnerved folks venting from afar behind a keyboard.

Taking advice from Paige Bueckers, the former UConn star who was the No. 1 overall pick in the 2025 WNBA draft, Podziemski insists he ignores the noise.

“She just told me never take criticism from someone you wouldn’t ask for advice from,” he says. “So, I kind of just took that. Seeing random people say things good or bad, if I wouldn’t ask for advice from them, why would I accept their criticism?

“I know my circle. I know the Warriors. They always have my best interests and are going to do things that are best for me.”

Golden State’s stance on Podziemski is solid. There is organizational belief. That he has started the last 24 games – usually alongside Curry, Green, Butler and Moses Moody – is strong testimony. That lineup is 17-3 and provided the boost that lifted the Warriors into position for the playoffs.

None of those 24 games were playoff games. Most of them, surely the last nine, were high-stakes affairs with playoff implications. Consider that stretch a primer of what’s to come beginning this weekend against the Rockets in Houston.

“I’ve been able to feel it since the Memphis game in Memphis (April 1),” Podziemski says. “Every game since then, except maybe Portland, has been like that. You can feel it. People have asked me, ‘Is there any pressure in those situations, knowing, you’re with Steph, Jimmy and Dray out there a lot of the time? For me, there’s no pressure if you don’t set an expectation for yourself in terms of making or missing a shot.

“You just go in there, open-minded and play instinctually, which I know I’m really good at. And just kind of live with the results. And so that just kind of cleared my mind of having any pressure.”

Coach Steve Kerr trusts Podziemski and has been willing to let him play through mistakes, mostly because he doesn’t make many of the mindless variety. Yes, he is prone to over-dribbling. Yes, he sometimes struggles to keep his man from exploding toward the rim; there is a reason Moody gets those assignments.

But the Warriors benefit from Podziemski’s general court awareness and grit. If he’s shooting well, it’s a welcome bonus; they’re 15-6 when he scores 15 or more points. He was fourth on the team in rebounding and seventh among all NBA guards. He tends to find ways to make a positive impact.

Podziemski has studied Kerr’s flexible coaching patterns in the postseason enough to know his starting role is not guaranteed. If he starts Game 1, he’ll have to earn it every game thereafter.

“I know it’s going to be, maybe not the smoothest ride to a championship in terms of my individual success,” Podziemski says. “But I know coach knows that he can count on me to make plays down the stretch and help us win games. So, I don’t really look too much into that. I just try to go out there and maximize my minutes.

“Making shots is a part of that. Any team that’s won a championship in the history of the game, every team has their stars that perform, and the teams that have the most consistent role players that step up every night from the playoffs win the championships.”

Podziemski’s task is offense-first, to balance playmaking with getting buckets. Defensively, he’ll be asked to stay solid enough to avoid being cooked repeatedly. The Warriors can live with mediocre offense if he holds his own defensively. He’ll have to go nuclear on offense to stay on the floor if he’s leaky on defense.

And don’t think for a minute that the keyboard gangsters will spare Podziemski if he shows any indication of being unable to meet the moment in his first foray into the playoffs.

“It’s just taking the matchup personally, whether I have Fred VanVleet or Jalen Green or whoever it is,” Podziemski says. “Knowing that I can kind of give it all now, and it’s the playoffs. It’s ‘go time.’ Since my back injury, I just been kind of not coasting through defense, but just being conservative with my back.

“And now that it’s playoff time, I’m just going to give it everything I have out there.”

If that’s enough to succeed, eyes will turn elsewhere. To Steph, or Jimmy or Draymond.

If that’s not enough, those eyes will turn toward Podziemski, no matter who else is on the floor.

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On the night Luka Doncic returned to Dallas, the Mavericks condensed his American basketball career into an emotion-filled two minutes full of game-winners, highlight passes and trick shots that helped connect the Slovenian star to the Texas city.

As Doncic watched the footage, occasionally hiding his eyes behind a white tear-filled towel, one moment in particular stood out as most special.

It was Game 2 of the 2024 Western Conference finals, his team down by two points, the final seconds ticking off the clock. Rudy Gobert, the league’s four-time defensive player of the year, stood out at the three-point line attempting to stop the inevitable from happening.

Doncic, in one of the biggest moments of his career, moved Gobert to the left, to the right and then back toward the paint, opening a window for Doncic to make the big shot in the big moment.

Read more:NBA insiders break down the Lakers-Timberwolves playoff series

He celebrated with a scream, joy and anger combining for uncontainable passion and an image that’ll define Doncic.

“I like big games,” Doncic said with a half-smirk on Thursday. “Playoffs is a fun time.”

The Lakers are about to see if Doncic’s reputation as one of the league’s premiere big-time players carries over to their stage. After he was dealt from the Mavericks, some people wondered how Doncic would fit in Los Angeles, the star player living mostly in the shadows off the court. Would he even want the kind of stardom that Los Angeles could give him?

That was the wrong question. It wasn’t about being a star; it was about having the stage.

“Typically guys that love being on stage and love the performance aspect of it are typically elite players and great players,” coach JJ Redick told The Times after the Lakers' win in Dallas. “And like when I think about Luka, it’s performance art. He’s on stage. He’s, he’s in some ways ad-libbing… and there’s an element of art to it. The same way that an actor on a Broadway show goes on stage. It’s the live aspect of being able to perform and then feed off the energy in the building.”

And that moment with Gobert encapsulates how electric those performances can be.

Since Doncic is so big and because he’s so in control on offense, teams are forced to try all different kinds of defensive strategies to slow him down. Sometimes, teams will double team. Sometimes teams will blitz multiple players at him to force pass. And, sometimes, teams will surrender and switch, putting players like Gobert on an island against one of the NBA’s best one-on-one players.

“Always since I came to the league, I like to play pick and roll,” Doncic said. “I like to get a center on me. That's what I've been doing since I came into the league.”

Read more:How Austin Reaves earned his place among the Big 3 on the Lakers

Through experience and inherent intelligence, he’s become an expert on how to dissect the ways teams try to stop him.

“He thinks that there's not a person in the world that can guard him,” Redick said Wednesday. “So I think he takes that seriously.”

Ever since he was a rookie, Doncic has played with tremendous confidence when the moments were the toughest, Dorian Finney-Smith said.

“He always wants the ball in the big situations. He always wants that moment,” Finney-Smith said. “I’ve seen that from the beginning since his rookie year. You would’ve said like, Harrison [Barnes] probably was our go-to guy, but end of the game, it just magically became his time to shine.”

While the Timberwolves have one of the NBA’s best defenses and multiple players who they’ll use to try to stop Doncic, the Lakers have the luxury of spreading the offensive responsibility to an emerging star in Austin Reaves and the NBA’s all-time leading scorer in LeBron James as complementary options.

After some rough minutes for the three on the floor, the Doncic-James-Reaves lineups are plus-10.8 points per 100 possessions over 103 minutes in their last five games of the season.

And the Lakers and Doncic understand that there are still ways for those three players to develop even more chemistry to the gains they’ve already made.

While Doncic was far from alone in taking down Minnesota in the Western Conference finals a year ago, he was in the center of the spotlight.

“It’s a different team,” Gobert told reporters Thursday. “But it’s still Luka Doncic.”

And it shouldn’t be a surprise if he ends up there again, another performance of his show and his favorite scenes, with everyone watching him try to take down a giant defender.

“At certain points in the game, he just feels like nobody can guard him. Even if Coach telling us to put certain guys in the action, Luka don't care,” Finney-Smith sad. “Sometimes he’s just yelling, 'Just bring ’em Doe.’ Don't care who it is.

“Sometimes he just gets in a mode where you know whoever in front of him is just a cone."

And sometimes, that cone has to hear Doncic celebrate with a scream.

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This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.

Kings stars hint at uncertain futures entering pivotal offseason originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area

SACRAMENTO – All good things must come to an end. So must all bad things.

The Kings missed the playoffs for the 18th time in 19 years with an NBA play-in loss to the Dallas Mavericks on Wednesday night at Golden 1 Center. It marked the end of their unfathomable 2024-25 season but also a sign that major change is on the horizon.

Well, more change.

Sacramento’s lone playoff appearance since 2006 came two seasons ago during its magical 2022-23 “Beam Team” run. The starting five for that historic campaign consisted of: De’Aaron Fox, Kevin Huerter, Harrison Barnes, Keegan Murray and Domantas Sabonis. Three of those players no longer are part of the team, and the future for the other two in Sacramento also is cloudy.

Sabonis will seek clarity on the organization’s future plans, per a report from The Athletic last month, after major changes included parting ways with their head coach and franchise player midseason. 

While discussions will be had this summer, the Kings center made it clear where his mind is at moving forward.

“First of all, I want to say I love it here,” Sabonis said Thursday morning during his end-of-the-season exit interviews. “I want to stay here. I want to win here. I also do want to know what’s going to happen. 

“All these things are happening so quick. I want to get together with the new people, whoever comes in, and really try to get this right and get it back to what it was.”

Sabonis will make $43.6 million next season, $46.7 million in 2026-27 and $49.9 million in the final 2027-28 year of his contract. That’s $140.3 million over the next three years. The three-time NBA All-Star and two-time All-NBA member has proven his worth, but after the Kings missed the playoffs two years in a row and Sacramento needing to shed some salary, a potential divorce could be best for both sides.

Sacramento acquired Sabonis in the blockbuster trade that sent Tyrese Haliburton to the Indiana Pacers in 2022. Sabonis has averaged 19.2 points, 13.2 rebounds and 7.1 assists in a Kings uniform.

Perhaps the biggest question marks surround DeMar DeRozan and Zach LaVine’s futures with the team. Both were first-time Kings this season, with LaVine’s tenure limited to just 32 games after Sacramento traded for him midseason.

An emotional DeRozan was very candid while speaking to the media after the Kings’ season-ending loss Wednesday night. Even 12 hours later speaking at the same podium, the 16-year vet didn’t shy away from his truth after missing the playoffs for a third consecutive season.

“Watching other teams still play, that sucks,” DeRozan said Wednesday night. “For me, just the realization of going into my 17th season. That’s the reality of it for me. You don’t have many opportunities left to get yourself a chance to compete in the playoffs. And that’s all you want at this stage of your career, just a chance to get in there and see what happens.

“To know that window is closing, it ain’t like this job is like being a teacher or being a reporter, when y’all can do this as long as you can. So for me, that’s where frustration and the emotional side come from.”

DeRozan, who turns 36 this summer, said he doesn’t want to play another five years. He knows his clock is ticking, and that will be top of mind while making a decision for Year 17.

The six-time NBA All-Star is under contract with the Kings through the 2026-27 season after agreeing to a three-year, $73.9 million contract last July. While DeRozan averaged 22.2 points on 47.7 percent shooting, with 3.9 rebounds and 4.4 assists in 77 games during his first Kings season, his individual success didn’t lead to the team success the organization had hoped for.

Sacramento could explore trading DeRozan to retool its roster. If both sides decide to stay united, organizational stability is a key factor for DeRozan.

“You always want a foundation that’s stable and understanding going forward,” DeRozan said. “I’m pretty sure a lot of decisions got to be made from top to bottom. Just a structure and a foundation of a compete level. I think all year we had such an uncertainty of everything. You can’t really operate in any successful environment if you have so much uncertainty. 

“I think for me, just the certainty of what it’s going to be going forward. I can always work with that. As long as you put something on the table, I can work with that. But the uncertainty for me has always been the frustrating part.”

While the season admittedly was frustrating for the NBA veteran, he doesn’t regret coming to Sacramento, and he acknowledged from his July 9 introductory press conference to nine months later just how special it feels to be wanted.

It was a similar sentiment shared by LaVine, who doesn’t imagine being anywhere but Sacramento for the years to come. When asked about his long-term prospects with the team, LaVine made his stance unequivocally clear.

“I’m very happy with where I’m at right now,” LaVine said Thursday. “The team that just traded for me obviously is the team that values me. So that’s something I’ve always put very high. If this is going to be an organization that’s going to build with me and with us, then we’re going to go in the right direction. Why wouldn’t I want to be in a great place like this? 

“From what I’ve seen in these 35 games, even if we didn’t end the season the way we wanted to, I’d be crazy if I said I wouldn’t want to be in Sacramento.” 

LaVine pieced together his most efficient shooting season this year, and in 32 games with the Kings, he averaged 22.4 points on 51.1 percent shooting from the field and 44.6 percent from 3-point range, with 3.5 rebounds and 3.8 assists.

Despite the career shooting splits, it took LaVine some time to adjust to Sacramento’s offense. He often looked out of place, but to be fair, the Kings lost their offensive identity since trading Fox.

Nonetheless, LaVine is ready to move forward with the Kings. Maybe adjustments around him are what’s needed, but he wants to leave that up to the front office. Whatever team they assemble around him is the team he’ll be prepared to compete with. And more than anything, he’s looking forward to a full season in Sacramento to make things right again for the basketball-loving city.

“This city loves basketball. I’ve known that for a long time, growing up in Seattle and watching basketball,” he said. “Sacramento fans are some of the best. I’ve seen that since being here and how devoted they are. As players, especially with the situation I’m in, you want to give them what they deserve and the product that they deserve. 

“So it’s something I’m looking forward to going into the offseason. We want to go out there and compete and be ready.”

Like LaVine, Malik Monk’s stance is clear. The always-straightforward guard shared where he stands after a calf injury abruptly ended his third season with the Kings.

“I’m all in. I’m all in,” Monk said Thursday. “Yeah, no question. Don’t question that.”

While Monk acknowledged some of the challenges of the up-and-down season, noting he felt like he had to be “four different players” with the constant role changes, he is confident he has found a long-term home in Sacramento.

“I signed here because I feel at home,” Monk said. “They treat me like home. Everybody’s welcoming. Fans are crazy, I love that. Why not be all in?”

Monk showcased a career year in his eighth NBA season, averaging 17.2 points, 5.6 assists and 3.8 rebounds. Last offseason, he signed a four-year contract worth a reported $78 million to remain in Sacramento.

Another foundational piece of Sacramento’s past success and potential future fortune will surround Keegan Murray, whom the Kings drafted No. 4 overall in 2022. He enters the final year of his rookie contract next season and will become a restricted free agent in 2026-27.

Murray said he wants to be in Sacramento and will talk to his agent and the Kings about a potential extension this summer.

Keon Ellis, after a full season of proving he belongs in the NBA, wants to leave his complicated contract talks to his agent.

“Honestly, I don’t know. I’ll leave all that up to my agent and let him do his job on that one,” Ellis said of his future with the Kings. “But I definitely would love to be back. One, I hate moving. The fans here are great. The hype, the love the fans have given me since I’ve been here and where I started out at, everything’s been great.

“So it would definitely be good to remain here.”

The Kings hired Scott Perry as their new general manager after mutually agreeing to part ways with Monte McNair. Perry is a longtime, respected NBA executive, but the task at hand waiting for him in Sacramento is a tall one, even for him.

A roster rebuild could be in store. Who stays and who goes will be top of the to-do list for Perry, and make all the difference in bringing winning basketball back to Sacramento.

Kings stars hint at uncertain futures entering pivotal offseason originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area

SACRAMENTO – All good things must come to an end. So must all bad things.

The Kings missed the playoffs for the 18th time in 19 years with an NBA play-in loss to the Dallas Mavericks on Wednesday night at Golden 1 Center. It marked the end of their unfathomable 2024-25 season but also a sign that major change is on the horizon.

Well, more change.

Sacramento’s lone playoff appearance since 2006 came two seasons ago during its magical 2022-23 “Beam Team” run. The starting five for that historic campaign consisted of: De’Aaron Fox, Kevin Huerter, Harrison Barnes, Keegan Murray and Domantas Sabonis. Three of those players no longer are part of the team, and the future for the other two in Sacramento also is cloudy.

Sabonis will seek clarity on the organization’s future plans, per a report from The Athletic last month, after major changes included parting ways with their head coach and franchise player midseason. 

While discussions will be had this summer, the Kings center made it clear where his mind is moving forward.

“First of all, I want to say I love it here,” Sabonis said Thursday morning during his end-of-the-season exit interviews. “I want to stay here. I want to win here. I also do want to know what’s going to happen. 

“All these things are happening so quick. I want to get together with the new people, whoever comes in, and really try to get this right and get it back to what it was.”

Sabonis will make $43.6 million next season, $46.7 million in 2026-27 and $49.9 million in the final 2027-28 year of his contract. That’s $140.3 million over the next three years. The three-time NBA All-Star and two-time All-NBA member has proven his worth, but after the Kings missed the playoffs two years in a row and Sacramento needing to shed some salary, a potential divorce could be best for both sides.

Sacramento acquired Sabonis in the blockbuster trade that sent Tyrese Haliburton to the Indiana Pacers in 2022. Sabonis has averaged 19.2 points, 13.2 rebounds and 7.1 assists in a Kings uniform.

Perhaps the biggest question marks surround DeMar DeRozan and Zach LaVine’s futures with the team. Both were first-time Kings this season, with LaVine’s tenure limited to just 32 games after Sacramento traded for him midseason.

An emotional DeRozan was very candid while speaking to the media after the Kings’ season-ending loss Wednesday night. Even 12 hours later, speaking at the same podium, the 16-year vet didn’t shy away from his truth after missing the playoffs for a third consecutive season.

“Watching other teams still play, that sucks,” DeRozan said Wednesday night. “For me, just the realization of going into my 17th season. That’s the reality of it for me. You don’t have many opportunities left to get yourself a chance to compete in the playoffs. And that’s all you want at this stage of your career, just a chance to get in there and see what happens.

“To know that window is closing, it ain’t like this job is like being a teacher or being a reporter, when y’all can do this as long as you can. So for me, that’s where frustration and the emotional side come from.”

DeRozan, who turns 36 this summer, said he doesn’t want to play another five years. He knows his clock is ticking, and that will be top of mind while deciding for Year 17.

The six-time NBA All-Star is under contract with the Kings through the 2026-27 season after agreeing to a three-year, $73.9 million contract last July. While DeRozan averaged 22.2 points on 47.7 percent shooting, with 3.9 rebounds and 4.4 assists in 77 games during his first Kings season, his individual success didn’t lead to the team success the organization had hoped for.

Sacramento could explore trading DeRozan to retool its roster. If both sides decide to stay united, organizational stability is a key factor for DeRozan.

“You always want a foundation that’s stable and understanding going forward,” DeRozan said. “I’m pretty sure a lot of decisions got to be made from top to bottom. Just a structure and a foundation of a compete level. I think all year we had such an uncertainty of everything. You can’t really operate in any successful environment if you have so much uncertainty. 

“I think for me, just the certainty of what it’s going to be going forward. I can always work with that. As long as you put something on the table, I can work with that. But the uncertainty for me has always been the frustrating part.”

While the season admittedly was frustrating for the NBA veteran, he doesn’t regret coming to Sacramento, and he acknowledged from his July 9 introductory press conference to nine months later just how special it feels to be wanted.

It was a similar sentiment shared by LaVine, who doesn’t imagine being anywhere but Sacramento for the years to come. When asked about his long-term prospects with the team, LaVine made his stance unequivocally clear.

“I’m very happy with where I’m at right now,” LaVine said Thursday. “The team that just traded for me obviously is the team that values me. So that’s something I’ve always put very high. If this is going to be an organization that’s going to build with me and with us, then we’re going to go in the right direction. Why wouldn’t I want to be in a great place like this? 

“From what I’ve seen in these 35 games, even if we didn’t end the season the way we wanted to, I’d be crazy if I said I wouldn’t want to be in Sacramento.” 

LaVine pieced together his most efficient shooting season this year, and in 32 games with the Kings, he averaged 22.4 points on 51.1 percent shooting from the field and 44.6 percent from 3-point range, with 3.5 rebounds and 3.8 assists.

Despite the career shooting splits, it took LaVine some time to adjust to Sacramento’s offense. He often looked out of place, but to be fair, the Kings lost their offensive identity when they traded Fox.

Nonetheless, LaVine is ready to move forward with the Kings. Maybe adjustments around him are what’s needed, but he wants to leave that up to the front office. Whatever team they assemble around him is the team he’ll be prepared to compete with. And more than anything, he’s looking forward to a full season in Sacramento to make things right again for the basketball-loving city.

“This city loves basketball. I’ve known that for a long time, growing up in Seattle and watching basketball,” he said. “Sacramento fans are some of the best. I’ve seen that since being here and how devoted they are. As players, especially with the situation I’m in, you want to give them what they deserve and the product that they deserve. 

“So it’s something I’m looking forward to going into the offseason. We want to go out there and compete and be ready.”

Like LaVine, Malik Monk’s stance is clear. The always-straightforward guard shared his perspective after a calf injury abruptly ended his third season with the Kings.

“I’m all in. I’m all in,” Monk said Thursday. “Yeah, no question. Don’t question that.”

While Monk acknowledged some of the challenges of the up-and-down season, noting he felt like he had to be “four different players” with the constant role changes, he is confident he has found a long-term home in Sacramento.

“I signed here because I feel at home,” Monk said. “They treat me like home. Everybody’s welcoming. Fans are crazy, I love that. Why not be all in?”

Monk showcased a career year in his eighth NBA season, averaging 17.2 points, 5.6 assists and 3.8 rebounds. Last offseason, he signed a four-year contract worth a reported $78 million to remain in Sacramento.

Another foundational piece of Sacramento’s past success and potential future fortune will surround Keegan Murray, whom the Kings drafted No. 4 overall in 2022. He enters the final year of his rookie contract next season and will become a restricted free agent in 2026-27.

Murray said he wants to be in Sacramento and will talk to his agent and the Kings about a potential extension this summer.

Keon Ellis, after a full season of proving he belongs in the NBA, wants to leave his complicated contract talks to his agent.

“Honestly, I don’t know. I’ll leave all that up to my agent and let him do his job on that one,” Ellis said of his future with the Kings. “But I definitely would love to be back. One, I hate moving. The fans here are great. The hype, the love the fans have given me since I’ve been here and where I started out at, everything’s been great.

“So it would definitely be good to remain here.”

The Kings reportedly are hiring Scott Perry as their new general manager after mutually agreeing to part ways with Monte McNair. Perry is a longtime, respected NBA executive, but the task at hand waiting for him in Sacramento is a tall one, even for him.

A roster rebuild could be in store. Who stays and who goes will be top of the to-do list for Perry, and make all the difference in bringing winning basketball back to Sacramento.

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Dillon Brooks not-so-subtly leaving Warriors-Rockets ejections to somebody else originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area

The Warriors’ upcoming first-round NBA playoff series against the Houston Rockets will be spicy.

That’s the safest bet on the planet.

The second safest bet? There will be ejections.

Golden State and Houston don’t like each other, and each team has combustible players, so there surely will be fireworks as the best-of-seven series progresses.

Rockets forward Dillon Brooks, who earned 16 technical fouls during the 2024-25 regular season, was asked by reporters Thursday if there will be ejections during the series, which starts Sunday at Toyota Center.

“I don’t know,” Brooks said. “I’m not going to get ejected. I’ll leave that to somebody else.”

Dillon Brooks on how many ejections to expect in the Rockets and Warriors series

"I don't know. I'm not gonna get ejected. I'll leave that to somebody else."

(Via @JTGatlin)
pic.twitter.com/hD1GUgbhh0

— Fullcourtpass (@Fullcourtpass) April 17, 2025

That “somebody else” Brooks is referring to likely is Warriors forward Draymond Green, who has his own history of arguing with referees and fiery antics with opponents.

Green picked up 13 technical fouls during the recently completed season, three fewer than Brooks.

Ironically, Green and Brooks were each ejected just once this season. But Houston guard Fred VanVleet was ejected three times this season, while second-year guard Amen Thompson was disqualified early twice.

So while Brooks might be insinuating that he’ll leave the ejections to Green, the eight-year NBA veteran is more likely to see one of his teammates get an early shower.

The fact that ejections are a topic of conversation leading into the series speaks to everyone’s expectations for the Warriors and Rockets.

So, get your popcorn ready.

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Kerr shares blunt reasoning for Kuminga's reduced Warriors role originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area

While there are plenty of buzzworthy stories surrounding the Warriors as they enter the 2025 NBA playoffs, Jonathan Kuminga’s reduced role in Golden State’s two biggest games of the season continues to remain a sticking point among fans.

The fourth-year veteran registered a DNP in consecutive contests after not seeing the floor in the Warriors’ pivotal matchups with the Los Angeles Clippers and Memphis Grizzlies.

Golden State coach Steve Kerr offered very blunt reasoning for why the 22-year-old seemingly has fallen out of the Warriors’ rotation at the most critical juncture of their season during an interview with 95.7 The Game’s Mark Willard and Dan Dibley.

“Mostly, I feel for JK, because I like him. He’s been here for four years, he’s a talented guy. Sometimes things go in a different direction. I think what happened here is pretty obvious; I’ve talked about it. Jimmy Butler came in,” Kerr told Willard and Dibley. “When JK was out, we traded for Jimmy and they play the same position. Our whole team changed. We became an ISO team with Jimmy. Movement with Steph [Curry] and iso with Jimmy. Jimmy is one of the best players in the league, so it’s not as simple as just saying, ‘Oh, OK we’ll just play them together.’ Basketball doesn’t work that way.

“The puzzle has to fit. We found a really good formula when JK was injured and we got Jimmy, I think we went 18-2 or something right away. So we found lineup combinations that have clicked, and we’re winning and we have to stick with that. It’s brutal for JK, it really is. He’s a young player, he wants to play and he’s absolutely talented enough to play. He still may be a part of the equation in this series and maybe the next series after that. So we just have to keep plugging away and keep moving forward and he’s doing a good job of that, and I definitely feel for him.”

Kuminga averaged 15.3 points, 4.6 rebounds and 2.2 assists per game in 47 appearances during the 2024-25 NBA season, playing a critical role in the Warriors’ rotation before being sidelined for over two months with an ankle injury.

The No. 7 overall selection in the 2021 NBA Draft, Kuminga already has first-hand experience with what the NBA playoffs entail after helping the Warriors secure their 2022 championship as a rookie.

While his role this season appears to be much different, Kuminga still could end up playing a crucial role for Golden State during the Warriors’ upcoming postseason run.

But for now, the 22-year-old wing appears to be entrenched near the bottom of the pecking order as Kerr and Co. pursue another piece of hardware for the franchise’s trophy case.

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DeMar DeRozan, Kings stars stunned by ‘rollercoaster' 2024-25 NBA season originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area

SACRAMENTO – Seven hundred and forty-nine days separated the beginning of an exciting new voyage for Kings basketball and the volatile ending of a sinking ship in Sacramento.

The Kings clinched their first playoff berth in 17 years on March 29, 2023, as the Western Conference’s No. 3 playoff seed. A first-round playoff exit at the hands of the then-defending champion Golden State Warriors was far from disappointing, as it signaled what was supposed to be the start of sustainable success in Sacramento.

The Kings would not make the playoffs in the two seasons following.

General manager Monte McNair and coach Mike Brown helped bring a winning culture back to the state’s capital two years ago. As of Thursday morning, neither remains with the organization as Brown was fired midseason and McNair and the Kings mutually agreed to part ways after Wednesday’s season-ending NBA Play-In Tournament loss to the Dallas Mavericks.

Somewhere in between, Doug Christie stepped in as interim coach, franchise point guard De’Aaron Fox was traded midseason to the San Antonio Spurs, which meant implementing new pieces such as Zach LaVine and Jonas Valančiūnas with the clock ticking on the season, and an assistant coach and assistant general manager leaving midway through the season.

It was a season DeMar DeRozan, a 16-year NBA veteran who has seen just about everything the league has to offer, still is trying to wrap his head around.

“I think it really won’t hit me for the next couple of days,” DeRozan said Wednesday night after the Kings’ 120-106 loss. “It’s probably the most I’ve been through in my 16-year career. The season that we had, it was a lot. It’s too hard to kind of fathom right now, but I’m pretty sure over the next couple of days it will kind of hit, the reality of everything that we all went through.”

DeRozan and his Kings teammates spent Thursday morning talking to the media during end-of-the-season exit interviews, each trying to find the right words to articulate the season they just endured.

DeRozan explained the year, his first with the Kings, as difficult, frustrating and emotional. Having missed the playoffs the previous two seasons during his time with the Chicago Bulls, DeRozan sought a fresh start and figured Sacramento was the perfect place.

The No. 9 seed and a win-or-go-home play-in game probably wasn’t what he expected, especially when the result was the latter.

“I put so much time, effort, preparation, sacrifice into the game of basketball,” DeRozan said Thursday. “As much as I care for it, it’s hurtful when you just don’t give yourself the opportunity to play for what matters, and that’s to make it to the playoffs, give yourself a chance, and then not knowing what could have happened. It sucks.”

DeRozan’s veteran leadership was believed to benefit a mostly inexperienced team. It was. But all the moving parts weighed on the team’s production on the court. And even as a respected, well-established NBA vet, this Kings season was like no other he’s endured.

“I mean, first time in my career I dealt with the firing of the coach in the middle of the season. I’ve never had that before. So that alone was a first,” DeRozan said. “You have a GM leave. Throughout the season, an assistant coach leaves in the middle of the season. A lot of those things were definitely a first. A lot of stuff that people on the outside may not understand what we go through internally, what we see every day, the people we got to deal with every single day, see them here and then all of a sudden see them gone.

“The aura of so many changes like that could change internally that people don’t get to see so that can make it definitely difficult.”

Domantas Sabonis, part of the original “Beam Team” two years ago, labeled the past season as “crazy.” He said he wasn’t consulted on the team’s decision to part ways with McNair, nor the decision to hire Scott Perry as the new general manager. The Lithuanian big man made it known that he wished he could be more involved in those discussions, but added he understands his role as a player and to leave those moves to the front office.

Another player who has seen the ins and outs of the association is LaVine, who was brought to Sacramento from Chicago as part of the deal that sent Fox to San Antonio.

He refused to make excuses for how the season ended, simply stating all the moving parts are “the nature of the business.”

Malik Monk, as expected, was a bit more straightforward with his assessment of the turbulent season. He has had a fair share of adversity over his eight-year career. From the rock-bottom lows in Charlotte to getting a fresh start with the Los Angeles Lakers to finding a place he loves to call home in Sacramento, Monk is no stranger to change and adaptation. 

Still, nothing compares to what he experienced this year with the Kings.

“Not s–t like this,” Monk said when asked if he’s seen anything like this Kings’ season. “Nothing at all. I haven’t seen anything like this before.”

Like the Kings’ season, Monk’s role this year changed sporadically. He went from a top Sixth Man of the Year candidate to the starting shooting guard to the starting point guard and then back to the bench in that sixth-man role before injuring his calf and missing the season’s final four games.

Monk said he felt like he had to “four different players” this season but wouldn’t complain. He doesn’t know which role he’ll play next season, though he admitted feeling most comfortable at the starting two-guard position.

Whatever role, whichever coach, players, or executives are around him, all he longs for is a little stability moving forward.

“I feel like NBA players, we go off routine and stability,” Monk said. “And when you tweak that a little bit, something can happen. So yes, it’s always good to have stability in life, man. Because if you’re going up and down, life is not fun. So having stability, it just makes it level out and makes everything go smoother. So I feel like we need that for sure.”

Keegan Murray labeled his junior year “a whirlwind of a season.” Keon Ellis seconded that notion: “The whole season has been crazy.”

It was a similar theme echoed by most players, including Trey Lyles, who believes the inconsistencies affected his performance this season.

“I’d say this season in a nutshell has been a rollercoaster,” Lyles said. “From teammates leaving, teammates coming in, coaches leaving, coaches coming in, and that type of thing, it was a pretty up-and-down season. For myself, I told Doug I feel like when I got consistent minutes, my game was consistent. When it wasn’t consistent, I wasn’t consistent.

“So that’s just where it was going into games, not knowing how much I was going to play, sometimes being told I wasn’t going to play. So just all over the place with that. As a player, it’s hard to stay consistent with those things going on.”

Players spoke to the media from 10:45 a.m. PT to 1 p.m. on Thursday. Over that two-hour-and-15-minute span, the one consistent talk point was the lack of consistency within the organization.

Before reporters could finish their questions asking the players to evaluate the up-and-down season, several players’ facial expressions said everything for them before actual words came out of their mouths.

But after the twists and turns, loops and sudden drops, this rollercoaster ride officially has come to an end. The ride will undergo a major makeover and construction might take some time, but eventually, it’ll be time to sit down, buckle up and brace for yet another journey of Kings basketball.

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