Category: Basketball

It was deja vu all over again for the Lakers on Saturday as they battled early, led at halftime and lost in a blowout to the Thunder in Game 3, 131-108. LA now trails the series 3-0.

The purple and gold used red-hot shooting in the first half to hold a 59-57 lead at the break. But just as they did in the two prior games, OKC turned it up to a level in the second half that the Lakers couldn’t match.

Ajay Mitchell took over in the fourth to bury a clearly exhausted LA side, who looked out of gas and out of answers.

The Thunder jumped to a quick lead. Chet Holmgren and Isaiah Hartenstein combined for eight points. LA responded by tying the game behind Rui Hachimura and Marcus Smart 3-pointers. LeBron James and Deandre Ayton both had two points as well. 

Rui Hachimura, currently No. 1 all-time in playoff 3-point percentage (51.1% entering tonight), opens with another make to start Game 3.

He's now 8 for 14 in this series, and has a 13-game streak (5 regular season, 8 postseason) going at least 50% from 3.

— Mike Trudell (@LakersReporter) May 10, 2026

OKC was winning the points in the paint battle early, 10-4. 

Austin Reaves was off to a slow start, missing all four of his shot attempts. Hachimura, however, continued his incredible shooting from behind the arc, draining yet another triple. Los Angeles was struggling mightily on defense, leaving shooters wide open and giving players easy paths to the rim. 

At the 3:57 mark, the Thunder were up by seven. 

Cason Wallace splashed two 3-pointers that helped OKC get a double-digit lead. Hachimura nailed another three as well, giving him nine points for the game so far. The purple and gold cut the deficit to six at the end of the first. 

The Thunder lead the Lakers 31-25 after one quarter of play. Rui Hachimura has a team-high 9 points. However, Cason Wallace has been red-hot for the Thunder, scoring 11 points on 4-4 shooting. OKC is destroying LA in the paint with a 16-6 advantage.

— Edwin Garcia (@ECreates88) May 10, 2026

Luke Kennard and Reaves both knocked down 3-pointers early in the second quarter. Jared McCain’s instant offense continued with a triple of his own.

Holmgren had an easy time making shots in the paint, scoring six more points. LeBron and Hachimura both knocked down 3-pointers, forcing an OKC timeout.

LeBron tied the game with a 3-pointer out of the break. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander responded with a triple on the other end before LA responded to jump ahead by four. SGA helped erase that deficit fast, but the Lakers held on to lead by two at halftime. 

The Lakers lead the Thunder 59-57 at the half. Rui Hcahimura leads all scorers with 16 points. Austin Reaves is struggling from the field, going 3-9, but has 12 points, 3 rebounds and 8 assists. Still plenty of time left in this one.

— Edwin Garcia (@ECreates88) May 10, 2026

Lu Dort opened the third period with a 3-pointer for the Thunder. Deandre Ayton responded on the other end with a shot in the paint. The offense was strong for both teams, as they traded baskets until OKC went up by seven. 

Ayton had been keeping Los Angeles in it with six points in this quarter. 

Oklahoma City was on an 11-2 scoring run. The Lakers started piling the turnovers and were now at 12 for the game. LeBron stopped some of the bleeding with a midrange jumper. 

Kennard and Hachimura combined for five points to help keep the team in it. 

The Thunder kept hitting back at full force, keeping their lead in double figures with 3:11 left in the quarter. Reaves was up to five turnovers. Marcus Smart and Adou Thiero put in great minutes to make it a single-digit deficit until Isaiah Joe responded with back-to-back threes, which gave Oklahoma City a lead of 11 at the end of the third. 

The Thunder lead the Lakers 90-79 after three quarters.

— Edwin Garcia (@ECreates88) May 10, 2026

Hartenstein had two easy opportunities in the paint for four quick points to start the final frame. LeBron scored four points, trying to help the Lakers inch closer to make it a game, but they still had an uphill climb as they were down by 12. 

Oklahoma City’s offense was proving to be too much again as LA just didn’t have enough to firepower to match the Thunder’s depth, led by Ajay Mitchell. The Thunder blew the game open, as they did in the preceding games, before the two sides emptied their benches in the final minutes

Key Player Stats

LeBron finished with 19 points, six rebounds and eight assists. Hachimura ended with 21 points, five rebounds and four assists. Reaves pitched in with 17 points and nine assists.

Kennard had 18 points off the bench. Ayton logged 10 points with six rebounds. Smart scored 10 points with three rebounds. Adou Thiero played rotation minutes and had a chaotic outing, finishing with four points and eight rebounds in 13 minutes.

Game 4 will be on Monday against the Oklahoma City Thunder at 7:30 PM PT.

You can follow Karin on Twitter at @KarinAbcarians.

Karl-Anthony Towns was in foul trouble early in Game 3. He played just 10 minutes in the first half and 25 minutes overall. But that was more than enough time for Towns to hurt the Sixers with his passing.

The All-Star center finished with seven assists in Game 3 -- six coming in the second half. It was the continuation of a remarkable passing stretch for Towns. The big man is averaging 7.7 assists in the Knicks' six-game winning streak. That's more than double his average in the opening three games against the Hawks (3.3); it's also more than double his regular-season average (3.0).

Some may be surprised by his passing. He is not.

"I feel like I've always had this my whole career," Towns said after Game 3 on Friday. "It's just I never had the opportunity to utilize that skill set. It's being utilized. My teammates have been in great positions for me to find them when they're open."

Mike Brown and the Knicks decided to use Towns as a passer on the perimeter starting in Game 4 against the Hawks. That adjustment is one of the reasons why New York has run off six consecutive wins with a 25.8-point average margin of victory. And it's one of the reasons why the Knicks are one win away from the Eastern Conference Finals.

The Knicks trailed the Hawks, 2-1, when they first implemented the changes.

"The real change for us came before Game 4 in Atlanta," Towns said. "That's when we really changed our offense. It's been great. It's been something I’ve talked about for a lot of the season, to feel like we can help our guys (on offense) more. We made the right moves."

Towns knows that the Knicks have more work to do. He and his teammates have talked about staying in the moment as they look to close out Philly. But the Knicks may have missed this moment without those offensive adjustments.

"It was the perfect time for all of us to really get on the same accord," Towns said. "There's no better time to be playing your best basketball than right now. So shout out to Mike and really the whole coaching staff for putting us in the best position to succeed."

The changes were a product of conversations among Brown, his staff and the players.

"I feel like we all had an opinion and we were able to figure out what was best for our team, especially in a spot like that -- down 2-1," Towns said. "I had my opinion. I feel like we've done a great job adjusting to have all of us be our best."

If you go back to Game 4, the Knicks have the No. 1 offense among playoff teams in that span. They also have the second-best defense. In their opening three games, the Knicks ranked sixth in offense and seventh in defense among playoff teams.

Brown calls it an "equal opportunity" offense.

"Anybody can be in any position," he said Friday before Game 3. "Anybody can set screens. Anybody can initiate it, but it's going to take some time to expand on it."

The Knicks are "just scratching the surface" of what they want to implement on offense, Brown said.

They obviously don't have much time left in the season to make significant changes. NBA teams don't practice at this time of year. So maybe the Knicks can make some small changes here or there.

But in a big-picture sense, Brown believes Knicks are just "scratching the surface" on their offensive potential.

"What we're doing now, I think, can have great carryover next year and down the line because we'd be able to expand on it the right way through a training camp," Brown said.

BUILDING BRIDGES

Brown appreciates Mikal Bridges' ability to impact games in ways that may go unnoticed by the casual observer. What does Brown mean by that?

"One of the things is his ability to run, both directions," he said of Bridges. "I mean, he runs like a deer. His game is beautiful, which makes him fast, and it doesn't even look like it. (He) puts a lot of pressure on the defense because of his ability to run. He's got a good feel for what his pace needs to be in half court; he'll sprint into a ball screen and slip out. And when he slips out, he slips with vision.

"And the ball may not go to him for a score or for an assist, but when you generate something like that with pace and you're a threat to slip because you can score from the medium range or get to the rim, the defense has to (adjust). When the defense (adjusts), it opens up other opportunities for your teammates. And then he's always uplifting. He's extremely positive with his teammates.

"Those things are just a few of the things that go unnoticed to others throughout courses of games and throughout the course of year and we appreciate when he brings those to the table."

HART PLAYING THROUGH DISCOMFORT

Josh Hart suffered a sprained left thumb in Game 2 against Philadelphia. He played in Game 3 but will be playing through some discomfort in the thumb for the rest of the season. He said he had an X-ray during Game 2 and he learned he hadn’t broken his thumb. So he returned to the game, finishing out the Knicks' home win.

"It's something I'll revisit in the offseason," Hart said before Game 3. "There's people that played through this."

Hart pointed to Kyle Lowry, Philadelphia's veteran point guard, who did so while leading the Toronto Raptors to a 2019 NBA Finals win.

"They got someone on their team who played through it and won a championship," Hart said. "So it's something that's doable."

Ric Flair just took another shot at Los Angeles Lakers superstar Luka Doncic.

With the Lakers trying to avoid an 0-3 deficit against the No. 1 seed Oklahoma City Thunder in the Western Conference semifinals, the WWE Hall of Famer took to X yet again to voice his frustration — and direct it towards the injured superstar.

"@lukadoncic, There Is Only One Word That I Can Possibly Say, And That’s DISAPPOINTED," Flair wrote. "46 Million Dollars, And You Can’t Play. OMG, I Would Jump Off The Empire State Building With A Parachute For 46 Million Dollars A Year, And I Don’t Even Know How To Pull The Cord To Open It- But I Would Take My Chances."

.@lukadoncic, There Is Only One Word That I Can Possibly Say, And That’s DISAPPOINTED. 46 Million Dollars, And You Can’t Play. OMG, I Would Jump Off The Empire State Building With A Parachute For 46 Million Dollars A Year, And I Don’t Even Know How To Pull The Cord To Open It-… pic.twitter.com/Q4KsivXySB

— Ric Flair® (@RicFlairNatrBoy) May 10, 2026

Doncic has been sidelined with a grade 2 left hamstring strain since April 2 and recently revealed that he was originally given an eight-week timeline, which would mean a return isn't likely until the end of the Western Conference finals, should the Lakers get there. Doncic did travel to Spain to undergo platelet-rich plasma injections — a non-surgical treatment that uses a sample of the patient's own blood to accelerate healing in joints, tendons, ligaments and muscles, according to Johns Hopkins medicine — in hopes to accelerate his recovery, though he is proceeding under the original eight-week timeline for the time being.

This is the second time this series that Flair has called out Doncic over social media. He previously wrote, "Luka, Please Get In The Game! Take A Shot Of Cortisone And Deal With The Pain! They Are Paying You 50 Million A Year, And You’re Not There! WTF! I Hope @JeanieBuss Trades You Next Year. Nobody Wants A Lame Duck On Their Team!" during the Lakers' 107-90 loss to OKC in Game 1 on Tuesday.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Ric Flair takes another shot at injured Luka Doncic

Saturday night in downtown Los Angeles brought all the stars of stage, screen, music, and sports for Game 3 of the Western Conference Semifinals between the Oklahoma City Thunder and the Los Angeles Lakers. 

In a parade of power and influence, actor Leonardo DiCaprio sat along the baseline near the Thunder bench, flanked by friend and fellow actor Lukas Haas. To his left sat longtime actors Don Johnson and Noah Wyle, star of the hit HBO show “The Pitt.” 

Leonardo DiCaprio, sporting a new mustache, is sitting courtside for Thunder vs. Lakers Game 3 pic.twitter.com/yTnsrvAKNG

— Michael J. Duarte (@michaeljduarte) May 10, 2026

Industry executives and producers were well represented as well. Film producer Jeffrey Katzenberg exchanged pleasantries with legendary TV producer Dick Wolf.

Across from them sat record producer Lou Adler, who was not joined by his friend Jack Nicholson, but instead his son, Ray Nicholson, star of the horror sequel “Smile 2.”

Longtime Laker season ticket holders Andy Garcia, Dustin Hoffman, and Dyan Cannon cheered on the purple and gold, as did former Lakers’ owner Jeanie Buss and her husband actor/comedian Jay Mohr. 

Speaking of comedians, that artform was also well-represented as Byron Allen and Adam Ray shared laughs during the game.

Academy Award nominee James Franco watched the game undetected, whereas Jaafar Jackson, star of the hit biopic “Michael” about his uncle, pop-star Michael Jackson, wanted all the attention in his courtside seats. 

Then there was other sports colliding with the NBA Playoffs, woven into the tapestry of the crowd like they belonged there. Former Laker, Sasha Vujacic, a champion of a different era, chatted up with the referees before the game. Former Chelsea and Real Madrid star Eden Hazard took a break from watching Champions League to catch the Lake Show up close and personal.

Former Dodgers and Phillies second-baseman Chase Utley, forever tied to October nights, watched with his children. Dallas Cowboys linebacker Micah Parsons, a frequent attendee during the NFL offseason sat one row in front of him. Even Nez Balelo, the CAA super-agent who represents Shohei Ohtani, was in attendance. 

Comedian Adam Ray, actor James Franco, Green Bay Packers LB Micah Parsons, former Dodgers/Phillies infielder Chase Utley, and actor/singer Jaafar Jackson are all at Game 3 between the Thunder and Lakers pic.twitter.com/wBoWOtAPUc

— Michael J. Duarte (@michaeljduarte) May 10, 2026

Rounding out the list was NBA superfan and real estate mogul, James Goldstein, And reality star Corey Gamble, but without his famous girlfriend Kris Jenner. 

Even LA Mayoral candidate and another former reality star, Spencer Pratt watched the show.

LA mayoral candidate Spencer Pratt is sitting next to Linda Rambis in the second row here during Game 3 pic.twitter.com/KlhfljAkSF

— Dan Woike (@DanWoikeSports) May 10, 2026

Meanwhile, on the court the Lakers and Thunder battled for survival in the best-of-seven series. 

This story will continue to be updated…

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Steve Kerr will be remaining in The Bay for the near future.

Kerr agreed to a two-year deal to remain as head coach of the Warriors, ESPN reported Saturday.

The exact amount of the contract has yet to be disclosed, with league officials telling ESPN that the deal will keep Kerr as the highest-paid coach in the NBA annually.

Last season, Kerr made $17.5 million.

The contract came after three weeks of deliberations between Kerr and Golden State controlling owner Joe Lacob and general manager Mike Dunleavy, in which they discussed the long-term outlook of the franchise.

“It was never going to be about money,” one team source said, according to ESPN. “We had to make the best basketball decision.”

It was a general consensus within the franchise that Kerr was going to stay with the Warriors since earlier this week.

Kerr re-signing was not always a foregone conclusion, however, as he announced during training camp in October that he would not seek a contract extension, opting to let his final season under contract play out and make a decision after.

The Warriors, who struggled with injuries throughout the year, finished this season with a 37-45 record and lost to the Suns in the play-in bracket.

“I still love coaching, but I get it,” Kerr told reporters the night they were eliminated in Phoenix, according to ESPN. “These jobs all have an expiration date. There is a run that happens, and when the run ends, sometimes it’s time for new blood and new ideas.”

Kerr, who joined the Warriors ahead of the 2014-15 season, has been at the helm of all of Golden State’s success, coaching the team to four NBA Finals championships and holds a career 604-353 regular season record.

The deal also likely will see Kerr coach the final days of Warriors legend Steph Curry’s playing career, who just finished his 17th NBA season.

“I want Coach to be happy,” Curry said following Golden State’s elimination. “I want him to be excited about the job. I want him to believe he’s the right guy for the job.

“I want him to have an opportunity to enjoy what he does. … He knows how I feel about him. That shouldn’t even need to be said.”

That was a tough one. After a closely fought Game 2 without Joel Embiid, Game 3 felt like it was going to be a solid chance for the Sixers to get their first win of the series in his return. OG Anunoby, who’s been excellent all around in these playoffs, being sidelined with a hamstring strain was another big factor in Philly’s favor.

But things didn’t quite go to plan. The Knicks were simply the better team at both ends of the floor yet again, winning Game 3, 108-94. Now, as the early 3:30 p.m. tipoff of Game 4 approaches, the Sixers are back to facing elimination.

New York could stay shorthanded on Sunday, as Anunoby is only listed as questionable to return.

Philly got off to a fantastic start on Friday, and the first quarter shows what this team can be when they’re hitting their threes and their stars are firing. They went up by double digits eaerly and ended the period with a 31-27 lead, led by an electric 15-point quarter from Paul George. This turning step-back three was absolutely beautiful.

PG SINKS A TOUGH STEPBACK 3 🔥

What a move to create separation 😲

He's got 13 PTS in Q1 of Game 3! pic.twitter.com/MCmtwPWM3S

— NBA (@NBA) May 8, 2026

VJ Edgecombe even threw down back-to-back alley-oops from Tyrese Maxey. The Sixers’ energy was buzzing early.

https://t.co/5OhXi1tn8Epic.twitter.com/sITlEtpYgY

— Philadelphia 76ers (@sixers) May 8, 2026

They gradually lost steam after that, though. From then on, we saw plenty of reasons why these teams are on different levels right now.

Not being able to stop Jalen Brunson remains a major problem for the Sixers. He led the way again in Game 3 with 33 points on 11-of-22 shooting and an 8-of-9 mark from the free throw line. A range of defenders have been thrown at him — from Quentin Grimes to Kelly Oubre Jr. and Edgecombe, with the latter two in particular being strong options who’ve guarded him highly well before. The Sixers have tried using different coverages on Brunson as well. Whether that’s Embiid showing high and recovering to the lane against pick-and-roll ball screens, Embiid in drop, Adem Bona coming high and switching onto Brunson as he did well sometimes in Game 2, or even smaller, switchier lineups like frontcourts with George and Dominick Barlow like we saw more of in Game 3.

But Brunson’s still getting to his spots from the arc, drawing a flurry of fouls (whether you approve of how he does it or not), cutting well off dribble hand-offs, and creating for himself from mid-range or getting to the rim. Embiid’s mobility being diminished right now makes it even harder for him to switch or press high in pick-and-roll coverage, too. It’s easier for Brunson to drive past Embiid or collapse the Sixers’ help defense and pass to shooters. Unless Brunson’s on-ball defenders can do even more to slow him in Game 4, there’s only so much the Sixers can do with Embiid in this state.

Another area the Sixers have to improve in Game 4 is their rebounding. After a great first quarter in Game 3, the tide started turning in the second, in part due to the Knicks getting five offensive rebounds in that period alone. They finished the game with 13 offensive boards overall, giving them 20 second chance points. While it’s understandable the Sixers have entered this series drained after their historic yet tiring 3-1 comeback against the Celtics, the simple difference in effort and intensity against the Knicks, especially on the boards, is costly.

One bright spot in Game 3 was Oubre, who scored a team-high 22 points on 7-of-16 shooting and grabbed eight rebounds. He was cutting well, hit a pair of threes, screening effectively, and pressuring the rim with his finishing.

Oubre was involved in some of the crisper offensive possessions the Sixers put together, too. Like the play below, where Maxey draws two defenders in a pick-and-roll, Embiid gets the ball to roll down a clearer lane, and once Brunson steps up onto Embiid, Oubre is left with a wide-open baseline cut and dunk.

Maxey with the quick pass to Embiid while being blitzed leads to an easy dunk for Oubre pic.twitter.com/6lqyUbPPiS

— Drew Peltzman (@dapeltz13) May 9, 2026

Or the following play, using Embiid’s passing with some simple yet effective off-ball movement. Oubre screens for George this time to get the latter cutting inside, and forcing smaller defenders (including Brunson) to help protect the rim makes it easy for George to finish.

Sixers giving the Knicks a dose of their own medicine to a degree. Use Oubre as a screener for Paul George. Key is Jalen Brunson is in action. No show or switch, PG scores easy. pic.twitter.com/QkCN2ta0D4

— Steve Jones (@stevejones20) May 8, 2026

There have been some good offensive processes in place. It’s just outweighed by all the flaws right now.

We could get into more nitty gritty adjustments for Game 4 that could help get the Sixers their first win. They tried a George-Dominick Barlow frontcourt in this one, including opening the fourth quarter with them alongside Maxey, Edgecombe and Quentin Grimes. They even pulled back within four points early in the fourth. This lineup gives them more switchability and speed on defense, which in theory could work better against Brunson.

Maybe they go back to Adem Bona in Game 4 and hope his size, rim protection and more aggressive pick-and-roll coverage shows up — and the fouls stay away. Maybe they ramp up their rebounding. Or find new ways to exploit Brunson’s lacking defense by forcing him to switch onto George or Oubre, or attacking him in pick-and-rolls more than they already have.

That said, what really matters most is the play of the Sixers’ stars and a weary defense that can’t stop these Knicks. It hardly looks like more tinkering with defensive coverages alone is going to turn this series around.

If Brunson remains a level up, Embiid continues struggling with his movement and shot-making (7-of-17 in Game 3), Maxey’s aggressiveness stays low, and George cools off (he’s been stellar these playoffs, but after his lights-out 15-point first quarter in Game 4 he failed to score another point), the smaller details don’t matter as much. If Maxey and Edgecombe are worn out by the fourth quarter because their minutes are so high and they can’t get a break from handling the ball outside of George’s help, then they just can’t keep up with a Knicks team of this quality.

It was smart for Nick Nurse to lean on a six-man rotation of his best guys through the first round. They wouldn’t have come back without it. Nurse doesn’t have many more options either. But the Sixers could clearly use more help off the bench to buy them some extra offense and rest for Maxey and Co. by this point.

The Knicks got an injection of 15 points from Landry Shamet in Game 3. With the low scoring of Grimes in pretty much every game of these playoffs, the Sixers have no player on the team — someone like, I don’t know, Jared McCain — who’s going to give them that production to ease the load on their backcourt.

Plenty needs to change for the Sixers to win Game 4. Let’s see if they can find a way to claw out a win in Philadelphia to build on the competitive spells they’ve had over the last two games.

Game Details

When: Sunday, May 10, 3:30 p.m. ET
Where: Xfinity Mobile Arena, Philadelphia, PA
Watch: ABC
Radio: 97.5 The Fanatic
Follow: @LibertyBallers

PHILADELPHIA — It has been 24 minutes of ugly offensive basketball for the 76ers, two fourth quarters in which they managed a grand total of 30 points. 

Twelve points in the final quarter of Game 2, 18 in the final quarter of Game 3.

Both were winnable games that were lost because of Philadelphia’s offensive ineptitude, and now it will have to make NBA playoff history as the first team to rally from 3-0 down to advance. 

At least, that’s how the 76ers see it. It wasn’t the Knicks defense that did them in. It was their own doing. 

“We’re not making shots, we’re getting a lot of looks,” rookie VJ Edgecombe said Saturday. “We just watched the film. We’re generating a lot of good looks. Nothing is going in for us.” 

In Game 2, the 76ers shot 4-for-19 from the field over the final 12 minutes. In Game 3, it was 7-for-20. Both contests were well within reach before Philadelphia went ice-cold.

In Friday’s loss, Sixers head coach Nick Nurse pointed to a pivotal moment.

Trailing by 4 late in the third quarter, the 76ers got three consecutive stops but couldn’t take advantage. Joel Embiid and Edgecombe missed open looks from 3-point range. 

“There’s certainly an element of that for sure that has got us in the last two games,” Nurse said. “I don’t expect to make them all. But you make one of those, it’s a one-point game. Make two of them, you’re up two. I don’t know what else you can do other than create wide-open shots. Certainly, in Game 2, down the stretch there, all we did was have really good offensive creation. We just didn’t make enough. I can’t fault the guys’ effort and trying to do the right thing. We just need them to go in.” 

Perhaps most concerning is the right players have taken the shots. Paul George is 0-for-8 in those quarters, and Tyrese Maxey is 4-for-11. Embiid didn’t play in Game 2 and was only 1-for-3 in Friday’s fourth quarter. 

One potential issue is the Knicks are wearing down the 76ers. Philadelphia doesn’t have much depth to speak of, and the Knicks go deep into their bench.

Maxey, for instance, is averaging 40.4 minutes in the postseason, Edgecombe is at 37.7 and George is at 36.7.

“Obviously, fatigue is a factor. But fatigue’s a factor for every team this late in the season,” Edgecombe said. “If you want to win, that shouldn’t matter. We’ve just been missing wide-open shots.”

Steve Kerr isn’t moving on from coaching just yet.

The former Arizona great has agreed to a two-year extension as head coach of the Golden State Warriors, according to ESPN, ending speculation that he might retire from coaching.

Kerr will be entering his 13th season as head coach of the Warriors. He has led the franchise to four NBA championships since 2014-15 but has missed the postseason in two of the last three seasons.

Breaking: Steve Kerr has agreed on a new two-year contract to return as head coach of the Golden State Warriors, his agents told @shamscharania, @anthonyVslater and @ramonashelburne.

The new deal will keep Steve Kerr as the highest paid coach in the NBA annually, sources tell… pic.twitter.com/4MHlnCBG08

— ESPN (@espn) May 10, 2026

Kerr has a 957-604 career record as the Warriors head coach with eight playoff appearances.

Kerr is expected to remain the highest-paid coach in the NBA, according to ESPN’s Shams Charania, Anthony Slater and Ramona Shelburne. He made $17.5 million this past season.

Kerr’s decision to remain with the Warriors means he’ll get to coach Steph Curry for at least one more year, as Curry is signed through the 2026-27 season.

Kerr, at age 60, still has plenty more years in the tank, whether he wants to one day get into broadcasting or work in basketball in another capacity.

Kerr starred at Arizona from 1983-1988. He helped lead the Wildcats to their first Final Four in 1987-88 before embarking on a 15-year playing career.

We all know what the problems are for the Sixers against the Knicks and we all know they can’t be fixed during this series. After losses in Games 2 and 3 against New York, we can no longer simply point to the sub-48-hour turnaround from the first round to the second round as a reason for Philadelphia’s fatigue. The Sixers’ star players are getting outplayed by the Knicks starters and New York has several more bodies it can trust off the bench. When you put it like that, it’s kind of hard to fathom Philly was even competitive in Game 2, having lost Games 1 and 3 by double-digits.

No one should be pointing the finger at head coach Nick Nurse for the Sixers’ struggles in this series, and, to be fair, it doesn’t seem like anyone is. With the exception of maybe playing Dominick Barlow a little more in Game 2 when Joel Embiid was not available, Nurse has not had any levers to pull. Nurse finally emptied his bench in Game 3 when New York had the game won, but that’s about the only time he’ll ever do so. Frankly, who can blame him?

It begs the question, why are so many useless players on Philadelphia’s roster? Surely, Daryl Morey will be asked that question in some fashion at his end-of-season media availability. For as much focus gets put on trading Jared McCain away at the deadline this year, the issues are bigger than one subtraction anyway. In the last two drafts, Philadelphia spent picks in the top half of the second round on Adem Bona and Johni Broome. Bona has seen some meaningful minutes in this year’s postseason but has been far from a regular rotation player for Nurse to rely on. Broome only appeared in 11 NBA games in the regular season so he was never going to see playoff minutes. Not all second-round picks become playoff rotation players, but those bigs are taking up NBA roster spots.

Last season, Justin Edwards was playing a lot of minutes for a bad Sixers team. He hasn’t seen those same minutes for a better Sixers team in 2025-26. In the summer, Morey gave Trendon Watford a two-year minimum contract (2026-27 is a team option). Watford had a bench role for the Sixers in the regular season but his only postseason action has been in garbage time. Part of this year’s trade deadline was converting Jabari Walker’s contract to a standard deal. Like Watford, Walker saw bench minutes in the regular season but has been phased out in the playoffs.

Then there’s the veterans. Kyle Lowry has been lauded for his leadership role, but he’s taking up a roster spot without giving any on-court contributions. Andre Drummond has had his moments from time to time in these two playoff series with Boston and New York, but has been far from consistent. When you add this all up, you end up with six-to-eight players on a nightly basis for Philadelphia that are either sitting on the bench until garbage time or are never taking their warm-up clothes off.

It’s fair to wonder what meetings have looked like this season between Nurse and Morey or what they will look like when the season is over. Nurse would be well within his right to tell Morey “I can’t play these guys!” in reference to his reserves if he hasn’t done so already.

Nurse’s actions this postseason tell us that he agrees with the loudest complaint fans have had about the team during the Knicks series. The roster just isn’t deep enough. So what is Nurse left to do? Play his starters 40 minutes a night and cross his fingers they can outplay the Knicks starters. That hasn’t happened and so you get a 3-0 deficit.

To be completely fair, there were moments in third quarter of Game 3 where you might have been able to talk yourself into it being one that would go down to the wire. We got some glimpses of fight in the third quarter from Philly after an abysmal second quarter saw a four-point lead after one turn into an eight-point deficit at the half. The Sixers trailed by just two with 2:28 remaining in the third quarter. But the Knicks were not at all fazed, and quickly grew the lead back to nine by the end of the quarter and coasted to a victory in the fourth.

Despite some signs of fight in the third quarter, when the quarter was over, the Sixers had gone 36 minutes without a single point from their bench. When it’s that jarring for three full quarters of a playoff game, that’s a sign that the head coach doesn’t believe he can win games with the players he has on his bench. We know this. Nurse knows this.

As a result, Nurse runs his stars into the ground. Embiid’s availability is always in question and even when he plays he does not always look 100%. Tyrese Maxey could very well still be dealing with complications from his pinky injury. Paul George is 36 and just not going to regularly perform at the level he performed against Boston. Sometimes, VJ Edgecombe will look like a rookie. When even one of these things happens, the Sixers are bound to lose the game because they don’t have a way to compensate for their stars underperforming.

It’s all left Nurse with one of two options. Would he rather watch this season die by playing bench players he doesn’t believe in or allow his star players to wear down? He’s chosen the latter and I think we all would do the same if we were in his shoes.

Just four days after suffering a gruesome injury, Jarred Vanderbilt was available to play again.

Vanderbilt was upgraded from questionable to available for Saturday’s Game 3 against the Thunder.

The 6-foot-8 forward suffered an open dislocation to his right pinky during the second quarter of Tuesday’s Game 1 loss to the Thunder in Oklahoma City. 

Medical personnel were able “to put his finger back together,” according to Lakers coach JJ Redick, who added that Vanderbilt’s status was day to day.

Vanderbilt was doubtful before being downgraded to unavailable for Thursday’s Game 2 loss.

“We just had to kind of make sure that the tissue and the stitches were good to go so that the bone wouldn’t pop out again. But, I mean, he’s certainly tough-minded and wants to give it a go,” Redick said.

Redick added on the left-handed Vanderbilt: “Glad he’s never taken a shot right-handed in his life.”

Sources told The California Post on Tuesday that a bone in Vanderbilt’s pinky broke through the skin after he attempted to block an alley-oop for Chet Holmgren during the second quarter of Game 1, with Vanderbilt’s pinky hitting the backboard as he swiped for the ball. 

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The 6-foot-8 forward immediately went to the ground in pain, holding his right hand near the Thunder bench, with Oklahoma City players reacting when they saw Vanderbilt’s hand. 

He immediately went back to the locker room at the 5:51 mark of the second quarter.

The Golden State Warriors appear ready to run it back — at least with one key piece of the puzzle reportedly locked in.

Steve Kerr has agreed to return as head coach of the franchise after both sides agreed to a two-year contract extension, his agents told ESPN. Kerr will remain the highest-paid coach in the NBA on a yearly basis, ESPN reports.

This comes after weeks of speculation that Kerr was considering stepping down. Kerr, whose contract was set to expire, had been engaged in meetings with the Warriors over his future with the team.

“I still love coaching, but I get it,” Kerr told reporters after the Warriors lost in the Play-In Tournament. “These jobs all have an expiration date. There's a run that happens, and when the run ends, sometimes it's time for new blood and new ideas and all that.”

In fact, in the closing seconds of the Warriors' season-ending loss April 18 against the Phoenix Suns, Kerr embraced Stephen Curry and Draymond Green on the sideline.

“I don't know what's going to happen next,” the Amazon Prime Video mics picked up Kerr telling his star players. “But I love you guys. Thank you.”

Steve Kerr returns: what does it mean?

This is a clear indication that the Warriors are looking to run it back once more with Stephen Curry (38 years old), Jimmy Butler (36) and Draymond Green (36) — all of whom will be on expiring contracts in 2026-27, assuming Green exercises his player option.

Green could decline the option and seek a multi-year deal, but the Warriors will need to carefully consider their future beyond the next two seasons.

It’s also an indication that Kerr and the Warriors feel they can win; presumably, Kerr wouldn’t want to be part of a rebuild. And, along a similar thread, if the Warriors were looking to build for the future, they would presumably want a coach earlier in his career than the 60-year-old Kerr.

In any case, the Warriors likely need to add some pieces to stay competitive in the Western Conference.

In January, Butler suffered a torn anterior cruciate ligament, and his status for the start of the 2026-27 season could be in doubt. Either way, it became clear that this Warriors roster was deficient, so Golden State general manager Mike Dunleavy Jr. could use this closing window to compete to seek out a star.

Prior to the February trading deadline, the Warriors had been linked to Bucks star Giannis Antetokounmpo, and as Antetokounmpo’s future in Milwaukee will be assessed this offseason, Golden State could once again become involved in that pursuit.

In any case, one thing that will benefit the Warriors is if Kerr can get some of their younger players to develop and take steps forward.

Steve Kerr coaching record

Since taking over in 2014, Kerr’s record at Golden State is 604-353 (.631). He’s the second longest-tenured active head coach in the NBA behind only Erik Spoelstra, who has been head coach of the Miami Heat since 2008.

The 2025-26 season marked the first time in Kerr’s 12-year run that the Warriors finished with a losing record (37-45) in an 82-game season. Golden State went 15-50 in 2019-20, but they played only 65 games because of the COVID-19 pandemic.

How many championships has Steve Kerr won?

Not counting his five rings as a player with the Chicago Bulls and San Antonio Spurs, Kerr has won four NBA championships as the head coach of the Warriors.

Kerr took over in 2014-15 for previous head coach Mark Jackson and led Golden State to the Finals in his first season. Eventually, the Warriors knocked off the Cleveland Cavaliers, ending a 40-year title drought. The team won a regular-season record 73 games the following year but ultimately lost a Finals rematch against the Cavs in seven games after Golden State blew a 3-1 lead.

That offseason, the Warriors shifted the balance of power in the NBA by signing Kevin Durant and proceeded to win consecutive titles in 2017 and 2018 before losing their bid for a three-peat to the Toronto Raptors in 2019.

The Warriors captured their most recent championship in 2022.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Steve Kerr contract with Warriors reached: Coach staying in Bay Area

PHILADELPHIA — It seemed like a throwaway comment at the time, but it’s the perfect encapsulation of how Mike Brown has the Knicks on the front foot. 

When asked how the 76ers might adjust to the Knicks playing without OG Anunoby in Game 3, Nick Nurse said, “I guess I gotta see what happens, which way they go.” 

Throughout these playoffs, it’s been Brown who is dictating things, and opposing coaches who are reacting and trying to keep up. 

Brown used the regular season to experiment — a major departure from his predecessor, Tom Thibodeau — and it is paying major dividends in the postseason.

The Knicks have been nimble in making needed adjustments, whether with the rotation or with scheme. 

The biggest adjustment has been with the offense. Midway through the first round, the Knicks began running their offense through Karl-Anthony Towns at the elbow. It allowed Jalen Brunson to play off the ball and set screens for his teammates. It gave OG Anunoby more freedom as a cutter, rather than having to stand in the corners for kickout 3s. It brought the best out of Towns and his playmaking ability. 

In the first round, Quin Snyder tried to combat the new offense by having Dyson Daniels guard Towns instead of Brunson. It was a complete failure, and he quickly abandoned the plan. 

“I feel like the real change for us came before Game 4 in Atlanta,” Towns said Saturday. “I think that’s when we really changed our offense. It’s been great. It’s been something I’ve talked about for a lot of the season, to feel like we can help our guys more. We made the right moves. [Brown] set the table for us to have this kind of run.” 

And in this second-round series, the Knicks decided to completely target Joel Embiid, when he’s playing and on the floor, in pick-and-rolls to expose his lack of mobility. Nurse and the 76ers have had no answer for it. 

On the defensive end, Brown and his staff — in collaboration with the players — have made huge impacts on the game with their matchup decisions. The move to have Josh Hart guard CJ McCollum completely neutralized McCollum and changed the course of the first round. In Friday’s 108-93 Game 3 win over the 76ers, they at times shifted Mikal Bridges onto Paul George, who torched them for 15 points in the first quarter and then went scoreless and 0-for-9 from the field the rest of the way. 

Nurse and the 76ers had no successful countermove to get George going the final three quarters. 

“It was the perfect time for all of us to really get on the same accord,” Towns said. “There’s no better time to be playing your best basketball than right now. So shout out to Mike and really the whole coaching staff for putting us in the best position to succeed.” 

Even before the Knicks played without Anunoby in Game 3, the rotation looked different than expected. Jose Alvarado, who appeared to be out of the playoff mix when the postseason started, now has regular minutes. It was a tweak Brown felt was needed to have a more natural point guard on the floor rather than having Miles McBride or Landry Shamet handling that responsibility. 

It meant Shamet was buried on the bench, a major departure from the key role he played in the regular season. But, without Anunoby in Game 3, there he was, providing a huge lift with 15 points in 26 minutes Friday. It didn’t matter that he had basically been on ice since early in the first round. He stayed ready. 

“When guys are engaged like that 24/7 throughout the course of the year,” Brown said, “it bodes well for the environment, for the culture and guys are actively trying to keep their mind present because when they get an opportunity, they want to perform well.” 

It’s part of a culture of professionalism Brown has established where there are contributions up and down the roster. Every coach talks about players being ready for when their number is called. For the Knicks — because Brown gave them all a chance in the regular season — it’s actually reality. 

“As a coach, you love to see it,” Brown said. “That’s why you give different guys opportunities at different times. Sometimes, you start Landry. Sometimes, you start Mo. Sometimes, you start this guy. And what hopefully it shows at the end of the day coming from me is that I have confidence in them, and not only that, your number can be called any time, so be ready. And our guys have taken that to heart. We’ve got a lot of good guys that are resilient. They’re fighters. And they’ve done a good job of keeping their mind on staying present in whatever we’re doing, and it’s showing when they go out there and get the opportunity.” 

Whether with schematics or rotation, Brown is pressing the right buttons. 

And it has the Knicks surging at the perfect time. 

Many reasons explain why the Lakers are trailing their best-of-seven second-round playoff series against the Thunder.

The Thunder’s depth has overwhelmed the Lakers, evident by the 82-39 combined margin the Thunder’s reserves outscored the Lakers’ in Game 1 and Game 2.

Or the fact the Thunder outscored the Lakers by 22 points across the 33 minutes that Thunder superstar and reigning MVP Shai Gilgeous-Alexander didn’t play in the first two games.

The Lakers have struggled taking care of the ball: The Thunder averaged 23 points off the Lakers’ 19.5 turnovers in the first two games.

The Thunder also averaged 19 second-chance points despite only grabbing nine offensive rebounds per game — highlighting how efficient they were with an extra scoring opportunity.

These are the areas the Lakers were better during the first round, especially toward the end of their series victory over the Rockets.

And were significantly better throughout the regular season.

But the Thunder also exploited an old Lakers’ weakness during the first two games in Oklahoma City: The Lakers struggle against teams that deploy drop coverage defensively. 

The issue is far from new.

It was a talking point from coach JJ Redick after the Lakers’ Feb. 22 home loss to the Celtics, a team that deployed a deep drop coverage to stifle the Lakers’ offense, which mustered 89 points in defeat — their third-lowest scoring total of the season.

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The Lakers became less efficient against drop coverage throughout most of December and January before improving throughout February, March and the end of the regular season, utilizing the proper counters.

That wasn’t the case in the first two games against the Thunder.

The Thunder had their big men in drop for most of Game 1, with the Lakers not creating quality looks against the coverage — in part because of poor shotmaking but also the team and players not using the proper counters.

Too many drag screens that didn’t create quality offense. 

Not enough stack sets. Not enough pull-up 3-pointers. Not enough Gortat screens. 

“Our options out of early offense, specifically, we ran so many just early drags,” Redick responded ahead of Game 2 when asked what stood out from the offensive film of Game 1. “Which has been a great play for AR [Austin Reaves], but was not a great PPP [points per possession] play for us [Tuesday] night. So just trying to be organized with early offense.”

The Lakers struggled against the Thunder’s drop in Game 2, but they also faced it less often because the Thunder decided to hedge/blitz more — specifically when Reaves handled the ball coming off a screen.

The Lakers are very comfortable in this situation.

The counters are more natural for them after seeing these types of coverages more since Luka Doncic joined the franchise in February 2025.

But the Thunder’s decision to go away from what was working masked an issue that it looked like the Lakers had overcome toward the end of the regular season.

If the Lakers don’t consistently tap back into those counters from the late winter/early spring against the Thunder’s drop, their season will likely end this week.

CLEVELAND — After collapsing in the clutch in the first two games of the Eastern Conference semifinals, the Cleveland Cavaliers got timely plays in the final three minutes from James Harden and Max Strus to get back into their series against the Detroit Pistons.

Harden hit three big shots and Strus came up with the steal and go-ahead basket in the Cavaliers’ 116-109 victory on Saturday to cut the Pistons’ lead to 2-1.

“We know how important it is to get this first win to make it a series. So, really a team win where a lot of guys contributed tonight,” Cavaliers coach Kenny Atkinson said.

The Cavaliers will look to even the series when they host Game 4 on Monday night.

Donovan Mitchell led Cleveland with 35 points and 10 rebounds, while Harden finished with 19 points and Jarrett Allen scored 18.

There were 11 lead changes, with the final one occurring with 2:28 remaining when Strus jumped to snare Cade Cunningham’s inbound pass to Daniss Jenkins near midcourt. Strus then drove past Cunningham and Jenkins to make a layup and give the Cavaliers a 106-104 advantage.

Atkinson called it the winning play of the game.

“That was a game changer right there. It gives us a lead, get a couple stops and a couple buckets and that’s the game,” Harden said.

Strus said it was about 3-4 seconds into the inbound play that he timed his jump and made the play.

“My job is to help win in any form or fashion,” said Strus, who finished with seven points, five rebounds and one steal. “Some nights it’s going to be shooting. Some nights it’s going to be defense. Some nights it’s going to be rebounds. The ball didn’t find me tonight, but I don’t care. As long as our team wins, I just want to make an impact and find a way to win.”

It was also the first of three straight turnovers by Cunningham, who had his second career postseason triple-double with 27 points, 10 rebounds and 10 assists, but also committed eight turnovers.

“I don’t want to say they were careless turnovers because I care about it a lot. They were just bad turnovers,” he said.

Harden, who drew plenty of criticism for turnovers in the clutch in the first two games, kept the Cavaliers in front with big shots. The 17-year veteran hit a 16-foot step-back jumper to extend the lead to 108-104. After a driving dunk by Cunningham, Harden made a floating 7-footer to put the lead back up to four.

Cunningham responded with a 3-pointer before Harden provided the decisive blow with 25 seconds remaining on a step-back 3-pointer while being guarded by Harris to make it 113-109.

Mitchell reached 2,000 career postseason points in his 73rd game, tied for third-fastest among active players and ninth in NBA history. He said Harden’s performance showed why he wasn’t worried after two tough games in Detroit.

“I think the biggest thing is just he’s always consistent. He’s not result based. I think the biggest thing is we’ve seen him thrive and for me and for the group just continue to be like, ‘Hey, we know who you are. Keep being yourself.’ We’ve seen him play at a very high level, so we have no doubt that he’s going to continue to be great,” Mitchell said. “Every game might not be that way for him, for me, for whoever. But it’s just how do you continue to stay even keel and find ways to impact the game.”

Tobias Harris added 21 points for Detroit, which had its five-game playoff win streak snapped.