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3 observations after Sixers wrap up long trip with loss in New Orleans

3 observations after Sixers wrap up long trip with loss in New Orleans  originally appeared on NBC Sports Philadelphia

The Sixers’ long road is finally due to wind back to Philadelphia.

They wrapped up a 1-5 trip and dropped their fifth consecutive game Monday night, falling to a 112-99 loss to the Pelicans. 

Justin Edwards and Jared Butler scored 19 points apiece for the 23-49 Sixers.

Rookie Pelicans center Yves Missi tallied 16 points on 6-for-7 shooting and nine rebounds. Karlo Matković scored 19 points off the bench and Elfrid Payton dished out 14 assists. Kelly Olynyk had 14 points, 11 rebounds and seven assists.

The Sixers had nine players sidelined by injuries. Quentin Grimes also rested on the second night of a back-to-back. 

Here are observations on the Sixers’ defeat in New Orleans:

Edwards trending up beyond the arc

The Pelicans regularly beat the Sixers early in transition and did tons of damage inside. New Orleans posted the night’s first 16 points in the paint. 

The Sixers’ offense also wasn’t sparkling. The team started 2 for 10 from the field, though Edwards kept on knocking down shots. He sunk three first-quarter three-pointers and scored 11 of the Sixers’ 23 points in the opening period. 

Edwards has let jumpers fly his rookie year, rarely turning down open, in-rhythm looks. His results have been impressive lately, too.

Over the last five games, the lefty wing has gone 18 of 36 (50 percent) from long range. For the season, Edwards is up to 37.1 percent.

New faces in the mix

The Sixers rolled out their 48th starting lineup of the season. Butler, Ricky Council IV, Edwards, Chuma Okeke and Guerschon Yabusele opened the game. 

The second unit included Adem Bona, who returned from a five-game absence with a left ankle sprain. 

While slamming in a dunk in the second quarter, Bona took a hand to the eye from Matković. He exited the game but was deemed good to go for the second half. In 19 minutes, Bona finished with six points, seven rebounds, two steals and a block.

New Sixers 10-day contract signing Marcus Bagley made his NBA debut in the second quarter and hit a short push shot on his first attempt. Bagley was largely peripheral Monday, recording two points, two rebounds and a steal in 18 minutes.

Former Sixers two-way contract player Lester Quinones debuted for New Orleans and drilled a second-quarter three. For injury-riddled teams near the bottom of the standings like the Sixers and Pelicans, there’s seemingly a new face or two every game this time of year.

Not much comeback juice

Council and Yabusele each had frigid shooting starts. The pair combined to miss their first 10 field goals.

All of a sudden, just about every Sixers jumper began to fall. Yabusele made two straight triples in the third quarter. Council got a wide-open jumper off of a nice two-man action with Yabusele and canned it. An Edwards three capped a 15-2 run and gave the Sixers a 67-65 lead.

Okeke didn’t have a brilliant shooting night (4 for 9 from the floor, 2 for 6 from three-point range), but he again played a decent overall game and did a little bit of everything with 12 points, nine rebounds, four assists, a steal and a block. He recorded 20 offensive rebounds on the six-game trip. 

The Sixers’ lead was short-lived, which was not shocking given the context — few first-choice rotation players available, wrapping up both a back-to-back and an extended road trip. The Pelicans regained control and built their lead to 23 points early in the fourth quarter.

The Sixers will now rest a day and then kick off a three-game homestand Wednesday against another team in the NBA draft lottery picture, the 15-56 Wizards.

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Anthony Davis set to make his return to Mavericks' lineup Monday night vs. Nets

Anthony Davis has pushed to play again and Monday night he gets his wish.

Davis will return to the Mavericks lineup Monday night when Dallas takes on Brooklyn in New York, something Mavericks coach Jason Kidd confirmed pregame, adding Davis was on a minutes restriction (28). Davis has been out since Feb. 8, when he strained his adductor during his one game as a Maverick since the stunning trade that sent him to Texas for Luka Doncic.

Davis had pushed for this return despite Kyrie Irving being out for the season with a torn ACL and Dallas being in danger of sliding out of even the play-in (the Mavericks and Suns are currently tied for the tenth seed in the West and the final play-in spot). All the talk about how Dallas made a mistake with the Doncic trade likely plays into that (even though the frustration of Mavericks fans is not aimed at Davis).

Davis is averaging 25.7 points and 12 rebounds a game while shooting 52.8% from the floor and playing elite defense this season — he was on his way to an All-NBA spot before the latest injury.

If the Mavericks slide further out of the playoff picture over their final 11 games, even with Davis, he could get pulled to avoid risking further injury (some in the organization argued that should have happened anyway).

But starting Monday night, Davis is back. It's what he wanted.

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What we learned as Tatum, Celtics hand Kings third straight loss

What we learned as Tatum, Celtics hand Kings third straight loss originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area

BOX SCORE

SACRAMENTO — The defending NBA champions were in town Monday night, and it was evident from before tip-off to the final second of regulation.

The Boston Celtics extended their win streak to six games with a 113-95 win over the Kings at Golden 1 Center. Sacramento has lost three consecutive games and dropped to 35-36 on the 2024-25 NBA season.

Kings star center Domantas Sabonis made his return to the court after missing the last three games with a moderate ankle sprain. But Sacramento was without Malik Monk (illness), Devin Carter (illness) and Doug McDermott (elbow).

Sabonis was back to his double-double ways, finishing with 16 points and 17 rebounds in 32 minutes. DeMar DeRozan also joined the double-double club Monday, finishing with a team-high 20 points and 10 assists.

Keon Ellis, starting in place of Monk, added 14 points on 5-of-7 shooting with three rebounds, four assists and two steals in 37 minutes.

But the reigning champs put on a show — especially six-time NBA All-Star Jayson Tatum, who exited the game early with an ankle injury. Payton Pritchard added five 3-pointers and finished with 22 points off the bench.

The last time these two teams met, the Kings went into a hostile TD Garden and upset the Celtics in their own building amid a seven-game win streak in January. That was not the case Monday.

Here are the takeaways from the Kings’ loss:

Sabonis returns 

The Kings got their star big man back Monday night – and everything he brings to the hardwood.

Sabonis has had a rough patch of injury luck. Earlier this month, Sabonis returned from a hamstring injury that kept him off the court for six games. The Kings went 2-4 over that stretch before Sabonis returned on March 14 against the Phoenix Suns. He played Sacramento’s next game against the Memphis Grizzlies before exiting that game early with an ankle injury.

The Kings went 1-2 in the most recent three-game stretch without Sabonis.

It is evident they’re a better team with their All-Star center. And that continued to be the case in Monday’s game.

Sabonis finished the game with 16 points on 6-of-10 shooting with 17 rebounds and one assist in 32 minutes.

It wasn’t enough to hold off the reigning NBA champions, but the Kings certainly are happy to have their star back.

Late-Night LaVine

Zach LaVine appears to be in a bit of a funk.

After missing last week’s game against the Cleveland Cavaliers due to personal reasons, LaVine’s shot has gone cold again.

He was 9 of 27 from the field and 2 of 11 from 3-point range over the last two games entering Monday’s game, and he had just four points at the half against the Celtics.

LaVine added two points in the third quarter, but appeared to have caught a quick spark in the fourth and final frame. He scored eight straight points for the Kings that led to a Celtics timeout in the fourth.

But it was too late for Sacramento, as Boston, even without Tatum, got the job done.

LaVine finished with 14 points on 6-of-16 shooting and 1 of 5 from downtown, with five rebounds, two assists and one steal in 37 minutes. While the Kings didn’t get the win, LaVine’s late surge hopes to be a good sign for Sacramento as the team prepares for the second night of a back-to-back against the Western Conference’s No. 1 seeded Oklahoma City Thunder on Tuesday.

Champs in town 

Golden 1 Center is home to some of the most passionate fans in the entire NBA. Even the greatest opposing players have discussed the challenge of playing in the building.

But it wasn’t an issue for the visiting Celtics on Monday, whose fans took over an arena 3,000 miles from Boston.

It looked like Mardi Gras inside the arena as Celtic green meshed with Kings purple by tip-off. “Let’s go, Celtics” chants broke out within the first two minutes of the game, and shortly after, “MVP” was belted aloud as Tatum shot free throws.

Jaylen Brown, who attended UC Berkeley about 75 miles away, received a warm welcome to Sacramento and greeted several fans in attendance pregame.

And the Celtics gave the hundreds of Boston fans at G1C something to cheer for.

Tatum, who exited the game early with an ankle injury, finished with 25 points on 8-of-15 shooting from the field and 5 of 9 from 3-point range, with seven rebounds and eight assists in 26 minutes.

Payton Pritchard was 4 of 9 from downtown and finished with 17 points off the bench.

Brown added nine points, Kristaps Porzingis had 16, Jrue Holiday had five and Derrick White contributed 12.

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Warriors reportedly considered offering Butler below max contract extension before deciding to go all-in

Golden State traded for Jimmy Butler as part of one final swing for the fences to try and bring another title to the Bay Area during the Stephen Curry era. The Warriors have gone 16-4 since that trade with an elite defense, making them look like a threat in the West — so far, so good.

Not long after trading for Butler, the Warriors rewarded him with a two-year, $112 max contract extension — the one Pat Riley very publicly said Miami would not give him, essentially striking a match to burn down that relationship. Butler got what he wanted most of all: to be paid.

However, the Warriors considered negotiating a deal for less than the max, until GM Michael Dunleavy Jr. stepped up for Butler, reports Anthony Slater at The Athletic.

Others in the decision-making tree debated whether they should either hold off on an extension offer or negotiate it below the max, team sources said. Dunleavy vouched for Butler, the player and person, and convinced ownership the financial pledge would prove worth it — a motivated Butler would view it as a signal of belief.

For the Warriors, this made sense — if you're swinging for the fences, don't hold back.

For 20 games, things have worked great for the Warriors and Butler. However, things have started great at other stops along Butler's career only for them to end with fast trades and burned bridges. What happens in the Bay Area remains to be seen, where the Warriors and a 35-year-old Butler (not to mention a 37-year-old Curry and a 35-year-old Draymond Green) are wed for a couple more years in a deep and talented West.

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Bucks vs. Suns Predictions: Odds, recent stats, trends, best bets for March 24

Milwaukee Bucks vs. Phoenix Suns Preview 

The Milwaukee Bucks (40-30) and Phoenix Suns (34-37) are all set to square off from Footprint Center in Phoenix.

The Bucks are fifth in the Western Conference and have won back-to-back games. The Suns are silently putting together a good stretch of games. They have won six of their last 10 games and are on a three-game winning streak.

The Bucks are currently 16-18 on the road with a point differential of 2, while the Suns have a 6-4 record in their last ten games at home. 

We’ve got all the info and analysis you need to know ahead of the game, including the latest info on the how to catch tipoff, odds, recent team performance, player stats, and of course, our predictions, picks & best bets for the game from our modeling tools and staff of experts.

Listen to the Rotoworld Basketball Show for the latest fantasy player news, waiver claims, roster advice and more from our experts all season long. Click here or download it wherever you get your podcasts.

Game details & how to watch Bucks vs. Suns live today

  • Date: Monday, March 24, 2025
  • Time: 6:00PM EST
  • Site: Footprint Center
  • City: Phoenix, AZ
  • Network/Streaming:

Never miss a second of the action and stay up to date with all the latest team stats and player news. Check out our day-by-day NBA schedule page, along with detailed matchup pages that update live in-game.

Game odds for Bucks vs. Suns

The latest odds as of Monday:

  • Odds: Bucks (+125), Suns (-149)
  • Spread:  Suns -3
  • Over/Under: 226 points

That gives the Bucks an implied team point total of 112.33, and the Suns 113.9.
 
Want to know which sportsbook is offering the best lines for every game on the NBA calendar? Check out the NBC Sports’ Live Odds tool to get all the latest updated info from DraftKings, FanDuel, BetMGM & more!

Expert picks & predictions for Monday's Bucks vs. Suns game

NBC Sports Bet Best Bet

Please bet responsibly. If you or someone you know has a gambling problem, call the National Gambling Helpline at 1-800-522-4700.

Brad Thomas (@MrBradThomas) is leaning towards Milwaukee Bucks +3.5...

Thomas: "The Suns are playing great basketball right now, which gives us the perfect sell high situation for them."

Our model calculates projections around each moneyline, spread and over/under bet for every game on the NBA calendar based on data points like recent performance, head-to-head player matchups, trends information and projected game totals.

Once the model is finished running, we put its projections next to the latest betting lines for the game to arrive at a relative confidence level for each wager.

Here are the best bets our model is projecting for today’s Bucks & Suns game:

  • Moneyline: NBC Sports Bet is recommending a play on the Phoenix Suns on the Moneyline.
  • Spread: NBC Sports Bet is leaning towards a play ATS on the Milwaukee Bucks at +3.
  • Total: NBC Sports Bet is staying away from a play on the Game Total of 226.

Want even more NBA best bets and predictions from our expert staff & tools? Check out the Expert NBA Predictions page from NBC Sports for money line, spread and over/under picks for every game on today’s calendar!
Important stats, trends & insights to know ahead of Bucks vs. Suns on Monday

  • The Suns have won 4 of their last 5 matchups against Eastern Conference Central Division teams
  • The average total game score (231.0) in the Suns' last 10 home games is over the Total for this game (224.8)
  • The Suns have covered in their last 5 home games
  • The Suns have won 6 of their last 7 games at home

 
If you’re looking for more key trends and stats around the spread, moneyline and total for every single game on the schedule today, check out our NBA Top Trends tool on NBC Sports!
 
Bet the Edge is your source for all things sports betting. Get all of Jay Croucher and Drew Dinsick’s insight weekdays at 6AM ET right here or wherever you get your favorite podcasts. 
 
Follow our experts on socials to keep up with all the latest content from the staff: 
- Jay Croucher (@croucherJD)
- Drew Dinsick (@whale_capper) 
- Vaughn Dalzell (@VmoneySports) 
- Brad Thomas (@MrBradThomas)

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Sixers sign Marcus Bagley to a 10-day deal

Sixers sign Marcus Bagley to a 10-day deal originally appeared on NBC Sports Philadelphia

The Sixers made another late-season 10-day contract signing Monday.

The team announced that it signed Marcus Bagley to a 10-day deal. 

Bagley is a 6-foot-6 wing who’s been in the Sixers organization the last two seasons as a member of the G League’s Delaware Blue Coats. He’s averaged 11.3 points, 8.1 rebounds and 1.2 assists this year in 18 regular-season games.

Over three college seasons at Arizona State, Bagley appeared in just 17 games because of injuries and clashing with Sun Devils head coach Bobby Hurley. He posted 10.9 points, 5.5 rebounds and 1.2 assists per contest in college.

Bagley’s older brother, Marvin Bagley III, plays for the Memphis Grizzlies and was the No. 2 overall pick in the 2018 NBA draft. 

Along with Bagley, Chuma Okeke and Oshae Brissett are recent 10-day Sixers signings. The Sixers have been decimated by injuries and much of the team’s usual rotation has watched from the bench in recent weeks. 

Going into a Monday night matchup with the 19-53 Pelicans, the Sixers sat at 23-48. March star Quentin Grimes will rest for the finale of the team’s six-game road trip.

Nine other Sixers remain sidelined by injuries, including Tyrese Maxey (lower back sprain and right finger sprain), Joel Embiid (season-ending left knee injury) and Paul George (season-ending left adductor and left knee injuries).