Category: Sports News

From Luke Kennard’s Game 1 performance, to Marcus Smart’s offensive surge in Game 2, to Deandre Ayton’s play in Game 6, there were so many great moments for the Lakers during their series win over the Rockets.

While LA’s victory lap has to come to an end as they prepare to face the Thunder in the second round, one lasting memory that deserves an immediate look back is the string of plays LeBron James and Bronny had in Game 3.

With the Lakers looking to take a commanding 3-0 lead and needing a road win to do so, the family duo delivered.

James set a screen for Bronny and he nailed the three. On the next possession, LeBron lobbed it to Bronny, who converted a reverse layup to give LA a 12-point advantage.

LeBron piled on another five straight points, meaning the James family had scored 10 consecutive Lakers points. During Tuesday’s episode of the “Mind The Game” podcast, LeBron reflected on the iconic moment.

“We had that mini-run between the two of us, and that was just something that I will never, ever forget. Something that I’ve learned, obviously, at my elder stage and being 41 years old to kind of like appreciate the small wins in the moment. That was one of the moments where I kind of, I’ve always, like, always been locked in, and that moment right there, throwing him the lob, seeing him make the three, we kind of going back and forth, I kind of blanked out for a little bit and just really accepted and relished in that moment.

“That’s pretty cool for me as a dad. And then us as colleagues and then our whole family, like, I think I mentioned at one point, like my mom being at the game and her being able to watch her son and grandson in a postseason game at the same time. My wife was there. His sister was there. I think Bryce was back home from college. You can’t even write that script in Hollywood better than what’s going on. So just being super appreciative of it.”

After all the hoopla and screaming about nepotism and privilege, it’s great to see that Bronny has silenced those ridiculous criticisms. He stepped up for a shorthanded Lakers team and played meaningful, playoff minutes for LA during the early parts of that series.

Thanks in part to Bronny’s efforts, the Lakers survived without Austin Reaves, and now that he’s back, they’ve advanced to the next round.

LeBron should take this all in as much as he can because these moments are still amazingly cool and unique. Absolutes aren’t wise to say in any sport, but it’s unlikely we’ll ever see another father-son duo playing at that high a level in the NBA again.

You can follow Edwin on Twitter at @ECreates88 or on Bluesky at @ecreates88.bsky.social.

Somehow, someway, the Pistons clawed their way back from a 3-1 series deficit to win in 7 games. They scrapped their way to a historic second-half comeback in Game 6. This team just won’t roll over, we saw that for 82 games, now we’ve seen it in the playoffs. Wes and Blake come to you just before the beginning of the Second Round of the NBA playoffs to react to the extraordinary Round 1 victory, giving specific props to the superstar that is Cade Cunningham, the leadership of Tobias Harris, and the mind of strategies from JB Bickerstaff. They then turn to the upcoming series against the Cavaliers. Do the Pistons have any advantages? Are the Cavs able to employ the same defensive strategy that the Magic did? And, ultimately, what both teams will need to do to secure a trip to the Eastern Conference Finals.

We’ve got you covered for all this and more in this week’s episode!

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Two NBA heavyweights will meet in the playoffs for the first time when Lebron James’ Lakers visit reigning NBA MVP Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and the Oklahoma City Thunders to kick off Round 2 of the playoffs.

After winning three straight against Houston in the first round, it took the Lakers until Game 6 to advance into the second round in a series that saw the return of Austin Reeves. Now, the Lakers will take on the No. 1 seed in the West.

The Oklahoma City Thunder advanced easily, sweeping the Phoenix Suns in four games. The defending NBA champs come into this series having already swept their season series against the Lakers. Of the four wins, only one was decided by less than a 29-point gap.

Both teams are heading into the second round missing key players. The Lakers are still without Luca Doncic after he suffered a Grade 2 hamstring strain on April 2 (in a game against the Thunder), but sources told the California Post that he’s expected to miss the first two games, leaving a door open for a Game 3 return.

Oklahoma City’s Jalen Williams has also been out with a hamstring injury, and his status for tonight’s Game 1 is uncertain.

The next game in the Lakers-Thunder series is scheduled for Thursday night.

Lakers vs. Thunder start time:

Tonight’s (May 5) Game 1 between the Los Angeles Lakers and OKC Thunder is scheduled to tip off at 8:30 p.m. ET.

How to watch Lakers vs. Thunder for free:

If you don’t have cable, you’ll need a live TV streaming service to stream the game for free.

DIRECTV is our top pick for watching basketball live for free — its five-day free trial includes ESPN (plus nearly every other channel you’ll need for the rest of the NBA postseason). When the trial is over, you’ll pay as low as $49.99/month and gain access to over 90 live channels.

You can also stream the NBA playoffs with a subscription to Peacock, which costs $16.99/month after a seven-day free trial.

Lakers-Thunder second round playoff schedule

• Game 1: May 5 (8:30 ET, NBC/Peacock)
• Game 2: May 7 (9:30 ET, Prime Video)
• Game 3: May 9 (8:30 ET, ABC)
• Game 4: May 11 (10:30 ET, Prime Video)
• Game 5: May 13*
• Game 6: May 16*
• Game 7: May 18*

* if necessary

Why Trust Post Wanted by the New York Post

This article was written by Angela Tricarico, Commerce Streaming Reporter for Post Wanted Shopping, Page Six, and Decider.com. Angela keeps readers up to date with cord-cutter-friendly deals, and information on how to watch your favorite sports teams, TV shows, and movies on every streaming service. Not only does Angela test and compare the streaming services she writes about to ensure readers are getting the best prices, but she’s also a superfan specializing in the intersection of shopping, tech, sports, and pop culture. When she’s not writing about (or watching) TV, movies, and sports, she’s also keeping up on the underrated perfume dupes at Bath & Body Works and testing headphones. Prior to joining Decider and The New York Post in 2023, she wrote about streaming and consumer tech at Insider Reviews.

The Brooklyn Nets agreed to extensions with Jordi Fernández and his entire coaching less than three weeks ago. Opposing NBA teams are already looking to break them up.

Tuesday morning, Sam Amick of The Athletic wrote a story pooling together everything he’s heard regarding the head coaching searches active around the league. In it, he named Nets assistant Steve Hetzel as a finalist for the lead job in New Orleans.

As for the league’s other coaching vacancy, New Orleans has been deliberating over finalists Darvin Ham (a Bucks associate head coach under Rivers), Steve Hetzel (Brooklyn assistant), Sean Sweeney (San Antonio associate head coach) and Rajon Rondo (a coaching associate with the Bucks),“ Amick said. ”Mosley has long been believed to be a possible candidate if he became available, but it’s unclear as of yet if he’ll be added to the list.

Will Guillory, also of The Athletic, reported on April 27 that New Orleans had conducted at least one interview with Hetzel. Less than two weeks before that, Fred Katz and Eric Nehm named Hetzel in a story titled “Candidates to be first-time NBA head coaches this coming hiring cycle.”

Hetzel got his start coaching in the NBA as the assistant video coordinator for Gregg Popovich’s San Antonio Spurs in 2005. Since then, he has served as an assistant coach for Mike Brown, Lawrence Frank, Steve Clifford, Chauncey Billups and now Jordi Fernandez in Cleveland, Detroit, Charlotte, Orlando, Portland and Brooklyn. He worked in player development early on before being lauded as a smart tactician in the back half of his career. He also served as the head coach of the Canton Charge for the 2013-14 season.

Indeed, Hetzel has been by Fernández’s side during each his first two seasons in Brooklyn, serving as coach both times in the Summer League as well. Hetzel even led the Nets to one of their 19 wins last year and perhaps their most demonstrative one. With Fernández unable to coach at home against Milwaukee on December 14, Hetzel stepped in as his interim replacement and propelled Brooklyn to a 127-82 victory, which tied a franchise record for their largest win margin ever in a game.

This would be Hetzel’s first full-time head coaching job if he lands the job and departs Brooklyn. It’ll also land the Nets another question mark ahead a sure-to-be intriguing offseason.

Philadelphia 76ers head coach Nick Nurse stepped away from the team Tuesday, May 5 so he could attend the funeral of his older brother.

The 76ers coach flew home to Iowa after the loss against the New York Knicks in Game 1 of the NBA conference semifinals following the death of his older brother, Steve Nurse, per The Philadelphia Inquirer. Nurse's brother reportedly died "unexpectedly" on April 29 before Game 6 between the 76ers and the Boston Celtics in the opening round of the Eastern Conference playoffs.

Steve Nurse, who was 62 years old, was the longtime athletic equipment manager for the University of Northern Iowa.

According to The Athletic, the 76ers held a film session but no practice Tuesday afternoon.

The NBA Draft Lottery is less than a week away. The Washington Wizards, Indiana Pacers and Brooklyn Nets each have the highest odds — 14% — in the lottery to land the No. 1 pick in what is expected to be a loaded draft. Recent years also have seen a number of teams jump bottom of the lottery into the top three of the draft, including the Dallas Mavericks, who won the lottery last year and earned the right to take the future Rookie of the Year, Cooper Flagg.

The defending NBA champion Oklahoma City Thunder, who had the best record for the second season in a row, could even win the lottery. They own the Los Angeles Clippers’ pick courtesy of the Paul George trade.

This figures to be the final NBA Draft Lottery in its current format before the league likely puts a new system in place for next season in an effort to reduce teams tanking for better odds. Here’s everything you need to know about the 2026 including, the top prospects.

NBA mock drafts: 3.0 • 2.0 • 1.0 | NBA Draft combine participants

When and what time is the NBA Draft Lottery?

The lottery is at 3 p.m. ET Sunday, May 10. It will be at Chicago’s McCormick Place convention center and coincides with the draft combine.

Where is the NBA Draft Lottery streaming?

It will be on ABC, ahead of Game 4 of the Eastern Conference semifinal playoff series between the New York Knicks and Philadelphia 76ers.

NBA Draft Lottery odds to land the No. 1 pick

The 14 teams that didn't make the playoffs have a chance to land the No. 1 pick. The teams that finished with the three-worst records — Washington, Indiana and Brooklyn — each have the highest odds (14%) at winning the No. 1 pick.

Here are the odds for every team in the draft lottery, based on team records at the end of the regular season. Teams that finished the season with identical records had their draft order determined by a random drawing.

1. Washington Wizards

Record: 17-65
Odds for No. 1 pick: 14%

2. Indiana Pacers

Record: 19-63
Odds for No. 1 pick: 14%

Due to the Ivica Zubac trade with the Clippers, if the Pacers’ pick lands between the 5-9 spots on lotto night, it will go to L.A.

3. Brooklyn Nets

Record: 20-62
Odds for No. 1 pick: 14%

4. Utah Jazz

Record: 22-60
Odds for No. 1 pick: 11.5%

5. Sacramento Kings

Record: 22-60
Odds for No. 1 pick: 11.5%

6. Memphis Grizzlies

Record: 25-57
Odds for No. 1 pick: 9%

7. New Orleans Pelicans (Atlanta Hawks)

Record: 26-56
Odds for No. 1 pick: 6.8%

The Pelicans owe their unprotected first-round pick to the Atlanta Hawks as part of their 2025 draft-night trade.

8. Dallas Mavericks

Record: 26-56
Odds for No. 1 pick: 6.7%

9. Chicago Bulls

Record: 31-51
Odds for No. 1 pick: 4.5%

10. Milwaukee Bucks

Record: 32-50
Odds for No. 1 pick: 3%

11. Golden State Warriors

Record: 37-45
Odds for No. 1 pick: 2%

12. Los Angeles Clippers (Oklahoma City Thunder)

Record: 42-40
Odds for No. 1 pick: 1.5%

The Clippers owe their 2026 first-round pick to the Thunder as part of the 2019 Paul George trade.

13. Miami Heat

Record: 43-39
Odds for No. 1 pick: 1%

14. Charlotte Hornets

Record: 44-38
Odds for No. 1 pick: 0.5%

How the NBA Draft Lottery works

The draft lottery determines the order of the first 14 picks. It takes place in a private room with NBA officials, representatives of participating teams, select media and the accounting firm Ernst & Young, which oversees the drawings, in attendance.

For the drawings, 14 ping-pong balls (numbered 1 through 14) are dropped in a lottery machine. Before the lottery, 1,000 of a possible 1,001 combinations are assigned to the 14 participating lottery teams. A league representative randomly selects four balls, revealing a four-number combination.

From the NBA:

The drawing process occurs in the following manner: All 14 balls are placed in the lottery machine and they are mixed for 20 seconds, and then the first ball is removed. The remaining balls are mixed in the lottery machine for another 10 seconds, and then the second ball is drawn. There is a 10-second mix, and then the third ball is drawn. There is a 10-second mix, and then the fourth ball is drawn. The team that has been assigned that combination will receive the No. 1 pick. The same process is repeated with the same ping-pong balls and lottery machine for the second through fourth picks.

If the same team comes up more than once, the result is discarded and another four-ball combination is selected. Also, if the one unassigned combination is drawn, the result is discarded and the balls are drawn again.

After the first four picks are determined, the remaining picks are based on regular-season records, in reverse order.

Rest of 2026 NBA Draft order

FIRST ROUND NOS. 15-30

15. Portland (to Chicago)

16. Phoenix (to Memphis)

17. Philadelphia (to Oklahoma City)

18. Orlando (to Charlotte)

19. Toronto

20. Atlanta (to San Antonio)

21. Minnesota (to Detroit)

22. Houston (to Philadelphia)

23. Cleveland (to Atlanta)

24. New York

25. Los Angeles Lakers

26. Denver

27. Boston

28. Detroit (to Minnesota)

29. San Antonio (to Cleveland)

30. Oklahoma City (to Dallas)

Best prospects in 2026 NBA Draft

AJ Dybantsa

Dybantsa could become one of the NBA’s most unstoppable shot-creators. At 6-foot-9, he has a special blend of athletic tools with the way he bends, shifts, and explodes with the ball in his hands. Dybantsa led the nation with 25.5 points per game while breaking Danny Ainge’s 48-year-old BYU freshman scoring record with a 43-point eruption. He gets to the rim at will, cooks in the midrange, draws fouls at a high rate, and displays point-forward potential. What will determine his upside is whether he can become a knockdown 3-point shooter, as well as a more impactful defender to take full advantage of his physical tools. But the native of Brockton, Massachusetts, has a tremendously high floor with his scoring skill alone. — Kevin O’Connor

Cameron Boozer

He’s a do-it-all offensive talent who can post up, run pick-and-rolls, set screens, spot up and crash the boards. He doesn’t need to rely on bully ball to make an impact as a scorer or passer. Defensively, some of the questions about Boozer popped up in Duke’s Elite Eight loss to UConn: He wasn’t big enough to defend Tarris Reed, and he got smoked by Alex Karaban on a key 3-pointer on the perimeter. But he plays hard and has improved at every weakness in his game so far. — O’Connor

Darryn Peterson

He can pull up from anywhere and get to his spots. Plus he’s 6-6 and plays with a fluidity that just screams superstar. Not to mention he’s a defensive playmaker with the tools to guard multiple positions and the approach to impact the game even if he’s not scoring. Between the cramping saga, the missed time, the lack of apparent athletic pop, and the stretches where he played heavy minutes but struggled to produce offensively, there’s a lot to be concerned about. But the pre-draft period could answer any questions. — O’Connor

Caleb Wilson

Wilson is the most gifted athlete in the draft class. He's 6-10 with springs for legs. When he's flying above the rim, finishing through contact, and chasing down every shot in his area code, he looks like a future franchise cornerstone. But the conversation changes when you watch his jumper because he hasn’t shown any consistency as a shooter at any level. Still, even without the jumper, he has star upside. — O’Connor

Darius Acuff Jr.

Acuff is not the biggest guard or the most explosive athlete, but he reads defenses like someone who's been in the league for a decade. He emerged as a freshman as a skilled, low-turnover playmaker. And that’s not even what he’s best at. Acuff is a wiry scorer who can get a bucket from anywhere on the floor with a quick trigger, slippery handle, and a feel for manipulating defenses. He has a knack for clutch moments too. The question that follows every undersized guard into the draft is whether the brilliance survives contact with bigger, longer, faster defenders. — O’Connor

When and where is the 2026 NBA Draft?

The 2026 NBA Draft will again be two days: Tuesday, June 23 for the first round; and Wednesday, June 24 for the second round. Both rounds are in Brooklyn, New York.

ABC/ESPN will broadcast the first round, and the second round will be on ESPN.

Is the NBA Draft Lottery changing?

Almost certainly. NBA commissioner Adam Silver wants to curb the wide-spread tanking teams engaged in ahead of this season’s draft.

The league reportedly will put forth a new 3-2-1 format for a vote by team owners on May 28. The new format will create a system where each team gets a certain number of ping-pong balls to win the No. 1 pick. Here’s how it looks in reverse order of the standings and then play-in game participants:

• No. 1-3: two ping-pong balls (5.4%)

• No. 4-10: three ping-pong balls (8.1%)

• Teams in 9-10 play-in games: two ping-pong balls (5.4%)

• Losers of 7-8 play-in games: one ping-pong ball (2.7%)

The league hopes non-playoff teams will be incentivized to stay competitive late in the season. It also provides the No. 8 seeds in the East and West at least one shot at the top pick.

In addition, the league will not allow teams to win the top pick in back-to-back seasons or win a top-five pick in three consecutive seasons.

NEW YORK (AP) — Philadelphia 76ers coach Nick Nurse was away from the team Tuesday ahead of Game 2 of its second-round playoff series against the New York Knicks to attend the funeral of his brother.

Nurse's brother Steve Nurse, 62, died unexpectedly last Wednesday. Nick Nurse left the team following Philadelphia's 137-98 loss to open the second round against the Knicks on Monday for the service on Tuesday in Ankeny, Iowa.

Nurse is expected to rejoin the Sixers for Game 2 on Wednesday night at Madison Square Garden.

“I'd like to pass my condolences along to Nick Nurse and his family, his brother's family and all their friends," Knicks coach Mike Brown said at the team's training center in suburban Greenburgh. “Life is precious and you don't wish that upon anybody, so I'd like to pass along my condolences to him and his family while they're going through these times.”

___

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

Eliminating the Thunder from the playoffs is no easy task.

Last year, no one could do it. This season, they have yet to lose, much less even flirt with the idea of being eliminated.

The Lakers are well aware of the challenge at hand as they begin their series against OKC. They understand that a near-perfect performance will be required, especially considering that they are still playing without Luka Dončić.

On Tuesday’s episode of the “Mind The Game podcast”, LeBron James laid out the realities of what it’s going to take to pull off this upset.

“We cannot shortcut the details. In order for us to give ourselves a chance to win games, we cannot shortcut the details and the game plan. We know we can’t stop everything. It’s impossible. They’re that great. But if we can control the controllables, which is not turning the ball over because we know how great they are when it comes to pick sixes and how handsy they are and the athleticism and speed that they play with. Then we can give ourselves a chance, and that’s all you can ask for in the postseason is a chance to compete and compete to win games.”

The recipe to beat the Thunder is still being concocted, but how to lose to them is well-known. If you turn the ball over, they’ll take advantage. Thunder opponents have a turnover rate of 16.5, which is the third highest in the playoffs. Off of those turnovers, OKC scores an average of 20.8 points per game. So, they not only create advantages, but they also make you pay.

Add in the fact that the Thunder never foul — at least according to head coach JJ Redick, with his tongue in his cheek — and OKC employs MVP winner Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and has one of the deepest benches in all of basketball and it’s difficult to find a weakness that can be exploited.

So, it’s all about the Lakers controlling what they can control. That means protecting the ball, getting good looks at the basket and defending as well as anyone can against the Thunder.

LeBron’s done impossible tasks like beating the prime Warriors and even winning against the Rockets in the first round this season, so we’ll see if he can pull another unprecedented upset by taking down the Thunder.

You can follow Edwin on Twitter at @ECreates88 or on Bluesky at @ecreates88.bsky.social.