Category: Basketball

Why Butler vs. Barnes matchup is key to Warriors-Raptors outcome originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area

When the Toronto Raptors take the court against the Warriors on Thursday night, their best player, Scottie Barnes, will be facing a familiar opponent wearing an altogether different jersey.

Barnes can reacquaint himself with Jimmy Butler III, formerly of the Miami Heat but now of the Golden State Warriors, when the teams meet at Chase Center. Coverage on NBC Sports Bay Area begins at 6 p.m. with Warriors Pregame, with tipoff scheduled for 7.

The game is the finale of a seven-game homestand for the Warriors (40-29), who occupy sixth place in the Western Conference standings. The rebuilding Raptors (24-45, 11th in the East) are crossing their fingers and hoping for luck in the 2025 NBA draft lottery.

Toronto already has identified Barnes, 23, as a core member of its future; he received a rookie maximum extension last summer worth $224.9 million over five years. The 6-foot-8, 225-pound forward owns, like Butler, a comprehensive set of skills as he leads the Raptors in assists (5.9 per game) and steals (1.5 per game) and is second in scoring (19.5 points per game) and rebounding (7.8 per game).

Put simply, Barnes, a 2024 NBA All-Star, is the Raptors’ best route to pulling off an upset.

And Butler is Golden State’s first line of defense against that possibility.

Barnes and Butler faced each other nine times as Eastern Conference foes, and each was the primary defender of the other. Butler posted slightly better individual statistics – including two triple-doubles – but the Raptors posted a 5-4 edge over the nine games.

Butler, 35, has been at the root of Golden State’s recent resurgence, providing stable leadership and the kind of court generalship that has enhanced the games of complimentary players but also allowed stars Stephen Curry and Draymond Green to flourish.

In 17 games as a Warrior, Butler is averaging 17.2 points on 44.8-percent shooting from the field, including a paltry 22.9 percent from distance – but 87.4 percent from the line. His 127 free-throw attempts rank eighth in the league over that span.

Butler’s scoring and efficiency have increased in recent games, as over his last seven games he is averaging 18.9 points on 45.9 percent shooting, including 40 percent from deep. He was Golden State’s top scorer for the first time Tuesday with 24 points in a victory over Milwaukee.

The Warriors, amid a heated playoff race in the West, have won eight of their last nine games and are seeking their first 6-1 homestand since January 2022.

Download and follow the Dubs Talk Podcast

Who will Celtics face in first round? It's likely a two-team race originally appeared on NBC Sports Boston

The Boston Celtics haven’t secured the No. 2 seed in the Eastern Conference playoffs just yet, but they have a 99.6 percent chance of doing so, per Basketball Reference.

Clinching the No. 2 seed would result in the Celtics playing the No. 7 seed in the first round of the postseason. The Miami Heat had a 23.5 percent chance of getting the No. 7 seed last week, but those odds (calculated by Basketball Reference), have since dropped to 9.5 percent.

The two most likely first-round opponents for Boston are the Atlanta Hawks and Orlando Magic. Both of these teams have more than a 40 percent chance of finishing seventh, as of March 20.

Here’s an updated look at the probabilities:

The Pistons, who are 14-5 in their last 19 games (including a Feb. 26 win over the Celtics), would really need to fall apart over the next few weeks to be a No. 7 seed candidate.

The Heat and Bulls could also jump back into the mix for the No. 7 seed, but it’s unlikely.

The Celtics went 1-2 against the Hawks this season. The last meeting was a 119-115 overtime defeat for the C’s in Boston on Jan. 18. The Celtics have one more game against the Magic on April 9 — the third-to-last matchup of the regular season. Boston is 1-1 versus Orlando so far this season. These teams last met on Jan. 17 at TD Garden, where the C’s won 121-94.

The No. 7 seed will be determined by the winner of the No. 7 vs. No. 8 game in the play-in tournament. The play-in tournament runs from April 15-18.

The Celtics last played the Hawks in the playoffs in 2023. Boston won that first-round series in six games. The most recent Celtics-Magic playoff series was the 2010 Eastern Conference Finals, which Boston won in six games.

Celtics to be sold to Massachusetts native William Chisholm originally appeared on NBC Sports Boston

The Boston Celtics have found a buyer.

An investor group led by William Chisholm, a Massachusetts native and lifelong C’s fan, has agreed to purchase a majority of the team at a $6.1-billion valuation — a record for a North American sports team.

“Bill is a terrific person and a true Celtics fan, born and raised here in the Boston area,” Celtics governor Wyc Grousbeck said in a statement. “His love for the team and the city of Boston, along with his chemistry with the rest of the Celtics leadership, make him a natural choice to be the next Governor and controlling owner of the team. I know he appreciates the importance of the Celtics and burns with a passion to win on the court while being totally committed to the community. Quite simply, he wants to be a great owner. He has asked me to run the team as CEO and Governor for the first three years, and stay on as his partner, and I am glad to do so.”

Chisholm is the managing director and co-founder of private equity firm Symphony Technology Group.

“Growing up on the North Shore and attending college in New England, I have been a die-hard Celtics fan my entire life,” Chisholm said in a statement. “I understand how important the Celtics are to the city of Boston – the role the team plays in the community is different than any other city in the country. I also understand that there is a responsibility as a leader of the organization to the people of Boston, and I am up for this challenge.

“My partners and I have immense respect for Wyc, the entire Grousbeck family and their indelible contributions to the Celtics organization over the last 23 years. We look forward to learning from Wyc and partnering with Brad Stevens, Joe Mazzulla and the talented team and staff to build upon their success as we work to bring more championships home to Boston.”

The Grousbeck family announced last July that it intended “to sell a majority interest in 2024 or early 2025.” The Grousbecks have owned the team since 2002 and the franchise has won two championships during that span.

The Celtics, who won their league record 18th championship last season, are in second place in the Eastern Conference standings with a 50-19 record as of Thursday.

This is a breaking news story. This article will be updated when more information is available.