The Spurs did it. After starting the season with relatively low expectations, they made the NBA Finals, taking down the reigning champions, the Oklahoma City Thunder, in the process. The odds were against them, but with talent, preparation, and some luck, they will now battle the New York Knicks, hoping to win their sixth title.

San Antonio is favored almost two-to-one in FanDuel to take home the Larry O’Brien trophy, but before we get into the Finals matchup, it’s time to take a look at the huge win in the Conference Finals. To do that, J.R. Wilco and Jeje Gomez discuss what the series against the Thunder meant and highlight some of the biggest and most memorable plays that got the Spurs back to the biggest stage.

J.R. Wilco: The Finals, my friend. The Finals! I’m on vacation in Colorado at the moment, sitting out on a porch and looking out at one of my favorite views in the world: some of the foothills at the edge of the San Juan Mountains, not too far from Castle Rock (one of the most significant archaeoastronomical sites in North America, but that’s a topic for another time).

About six hours after the Spurs punched their ticket to the Finals, we woke up to get in the car to come up here from Austin. Being here in one of my favorite places on the planet resonates with San Antonio’s achievement of getting past OKC by climbing past the lack of experience with a first year coach and a 22 year old team leader, taking on the reigning champs (complete with MVP) in a seventh game on the road and getting ready to play the Knicks just like a 22 year old Tim Duncan did 27 years ago. 

What a trip it was to get there, since about eight months ago Victor Wembanyama created a headline by stating his expectation that San Antonio would skip the play-in and snag the 6th seed in the west. High expectations for a team that hadn’t seen the postseason since 2019, but you could honestly get vertigo from peeking down at the 6 seed from the lookout point the Spurs have reached on their climb prior to their last ascent to the peak of the Larry O!

You and I have had so many conversations this year around the topic of our discontent with San Antonio’s offense, but I could argue that it was the adjustments that the coaching staff implemented, not only on defense but on offense, that weren’t just impressive in keeping the Thunder off balance but allowed them to find the cracks through which they could score. 

Just consider the Game 6 approach of having Wemby drag iHart out to the three-point line and putting him in actions that neutralized his physicality. Then compare that to the Game 7 design, which went back to so many plays from mid-season (that OKC had forced the Spurs offense away from since early in the series) with Victor using his gravity in hard rolling to rim to set up deep shooting and secondary offense to take advantage of a Thunder defense in rotation. 

5. Wemby draws all the attention, and KJ benefits

It’s the kind of sophisticated approach that I wasn’t sure the team could develop, and when I consider the youth of the squad that executed it, I feel myself going beyond mere acknowledgement into full-on celebration. How about you: what stood out from the last seven games — particularly the last two they won while facing elimination?

Jesus Gomez: I remember back in the day when your vacations used to routinely overlap with some deep playoff runs. That wasn’t an issue in the last few years, but it’s great to see the return of a tradition that will likely continue for a decade, at least. 

I did think back to our discussions about the offense during Game 6 and Game 7, and I think this series, in general, showcased that sometimes, you don’t need overly complex sets when you have incredible talent. You mentioned the adjustments and the shifting strategies, and Mitch Johnson does deserve credit for that. But the best thing he might have done was put the game in the hands of the players. 

The fetishisation of Xs and Os, of which I’m definitely guilty, often overshadows how fun it is to see a player just get a bucket and how sometimes the best coaching consists of simply putting that player in a good position to do so. While we were bemoaning the lack of set plays that offered multiple options, the staff was probably thinking that their guys would be fine with just a simple cross-screen or pindown, and they were proven right. I disagree with you on it being a sophisticated approach, but sometimes you don’t need sophistication, and insisting upon it is foolish. Make sure to remind me of that when I inevitably start complaining again during the Finals.

Enough about strategy. What impressed me the most about the last two games, in particular, was the aggressiveness the team showed. It’s not that I was expecting them to shy away from the moment, but it was a long series against a physical opponent. The bench had been bad. I kept fearing we’d run into a moment in which they just couldn’t keep up with the energy level, but it never happened. I guess that’s the good thing about young teams. 

And speaking of youth, how impressed were you with the young guards? Castle bounced back from two high-turnover games like a veteran, and maybe I’m still riding the high from Game 7, but Dylan Harper looked Manuesque in the way he made the play the team needed. I’m not saying we have a Shabazz Muhammad situation in our hands, but they don’t act like we normally expect guys their age to act to me.

J.R.: You can count on me to remind you of this conversation the moment you start griping again, and we can agree to disagree (won’t be the first time) about the strategy piece. 

The team showed elite aggression, and I agree that it was extremely impressive. When I see an aggressive team, I think about the confidence that’s required to maintain that kind of approach. That this team is as sure of themselves as they are is a credit to the whole organization; that they’re this confident while being so young is the product of … genetics? The foolhardiness of youth? That their aggressive confidence hasn’t written checks their talent and preparation couldn’t cash is either a function of the team’s cohesiveness or of dumb luck the degree to which this league has never seen. Or it could just mean that they have the NBA’s only alien playing for them. 

And I’m beyond impressed with the young guards. Castle is an untamed bronco that’s never seen a creek bed he couldn’t jump across. While his toughness and his will are unquestionable, it’s his decision-making that’s easy to sometimes second-guess. But as his ability to read defenses catches up to his grit, he’s displayed a level of calm under pressure that’s sustaining him in the midst of his education. I’m stunned that he’s able to play at such a high level while undergoing on-the-job training in an environment as intense as the WCF. I can’t say enough good things about him.

But when it comes to Harper, I’m concerned about my ability to capture it all in words. It’s like, how can any rookie be so good?! He plays at his own pace, which is great, but he also sometimes enforces his pace on the action. As a rookie. He drives with the assurance of a 10-year veteran, and he took Lu Dort all the way to the basket, shrugging him off like he was Trae Young before simply laying the ball in the hoop. As a rookie! He’s got the best post moves of any Spur since Boris Diaw’s Cream Shake, you know the one where Boris would start with his back to the basket 18 feet from the rim and make four or five post moves and somehow end up 3 feet from the rim? Dylan does that too, as (say it with me) a rookie! And I haven’t even discussed his remarkable defense that has one of the best analysts on YouTube in awe.

But the biggest thing for me is the way he has been able to do something that no one but Manu Ginóbili did as regularly for the Spurs: repeatedly be in the right place at the right time to make the right play to turn a game from defeat to victory. During the game, I was texting with Gary Quan, who almost has as big a crush on Manu as you and I do. During the third quarter, we were remarking about how well Dylan was playing and how far beyond his years his game looked. I told him I was reminded of an early postseason series in 2003 and a rebound that Ginóbili made on the baseline that saved the game for the Spurs. Not 15 minutes later, Harper made not one but two separate baseline rebounds and put one of them back in for two points. He’s a gem beyond value right now and he’s only going to get better. 

4. Dylan Harper’s huge offensive rebound

What’s your main takeaway from a WCF that seems prepped to be a recurring matchup for years to come?

Jeje: Now I’m officially concerned because too many of us see some Manu in Harper. Are we setting him up to fail, because few players have ever been as good as Manu? Wait, this is a time for celebration. There will be years to worry about that, so I’ll leave it alone for now. 

I don’t know if I have a main takeaway involving OKC, because it’s hard to say much about a team missing their second-best player for six games, but I have a few about the league. The first one is that title windows are not as long as people think in today’s NBA, and “who can stop this team?” takes should be used more sparingly. A Thunder repeat seemed inevitable at one point and the ascension of the Spurs and some bad injury luck stopped that in its tracks. So, as I watch a San Antonio core that should keep the franchise as the best in the West or, at worst, the second-best team in the conference for the foreseeable future, I still remain cautious and in the moment. As far as I’m concerned, this is their title chance. You will not hear any “playing with house money” comments from me. 

Second, I’ll go back to the season preview and reiterate how much fun it is to have great expectations. Back then, a playoff berth was all most of us thought the Spurs should get, but as the season progressed and it was clear they were much better than I estimated, the more invested I became in their success. I don’t begrudge the “ahead of schedule” crowd for trying to lower the stakes for a young team with an inexperienced coach and a front office that didn’t go all in, but I personally would rather get my heart broken by a team I overrate than be pleasantly surprised by overachievement. And while I picked the Thunder to win, I have believed for a while that this team was a true contender. 

Finally, we have to address the giraffe in the room. It’s surprising we’ve gotten this far without gushing about Wembanyama, and particularly his defense. He faced Rudy Gobert and Chet Holmgren, widely considered the two best defenders behind Wemby, and their impact didn’t come close to matching The Alien’s. What we’ve seen so far feels special. Overloading the side SGA operated in was smart, as was trapping him, at least for a while, but Wembanyama is the reason the Thunder couldn’t score like they normally do.

The fact that he appears to be a fantastic leader and a burgeoning elite offensive player on top of it seems almost unfair. How can a 7’5 center start Game 7 as the point guard and make it work? I didn’t think he could do anything that would surprise me anymore, but the moment Wemby faced help defense on a drive and found the open man did the trick.

3. Point Wemby finds the open man

But how about you? Did you have any major takeaways about the matchup in particular? And is there anything we haven’t discussed that you think deserves at least a mention?

J.R.:I guess my first takeaway is to echo what I heard Zach Lowe say: the way this series will be remembered years from now is going to be due to the phenomenal Game 1 and the excellent Game 7. People will be looking at the box scores for games two through six and shrugging their shoulders. I mean, the ground is largely prepped for a takedown of the series in 15 years by some 20-year-old YouTuber who’s right how jist happy to have graduated from kindergarten. He’ll be ranting about how you can’t call the 2026 Western Conference finals one of the great series in NBA history because five of the seven games were practically blowouts. And that’s fine. I have zero problems with anyone who thinks this series shouldn’t mean as much as people say it did because if they haven’t lived through it. They won’t realize how deadly the Thunder were for the last three years and how everyone assumed that they would be “the team that everyone’s aiming for“ and how big a deal it was that anyone was able to upset them.

My second takeaway is an odd one, but I have to go on record to say I really feel for Chet Holmgren. We are basketball fans, sure, but we are people first and it’s good to realize that Chet is a person. Falling short in the public eye to the extent he did is not something I would wish on anyone. It’s so human, though, and you’ve got to feel for him. First, he didn’t ask to be in Wemby’s sights. It’s not his fault he was given the trophy all those years ago when Wemby wasn’t.

Second, we’ve all been there. Failure is more common than success. In fact, Chet is way more relatable than Victor because most of us aren’t the best in the world at something that happens publicly. And it’s way more frequent that you want to accomplish something and get sat down in the middle of it. Third, I’ve suspected for a while that Wemby was in his head, but I wasn’t sure until the end of the third quarter of Game 6. That’s the play where Vic blocked Holmgren’s buzzer-beating attempt on Thursday.

2. Wemby demoralizes Chet

Chet just sat on the floor afterwards like “yup, that’s what happens to me” instead of popping up as most athletes do. I feel for the guy, and as long as it doesn’t cost the Spurs a title in the future, I’d like for him to regain his mojo. 

Third Takeaway: Isn’t it ridiculous that it’s practically impossible to quantify just how quickly the Spurs have learned? As much as it’s been a talking point in San Antonio that experience isn’t necessary, that’s just a reaction to the fact that people were using the lack of experience to disqualify the Spurs from being able to go all the way. Well, here they are as the champs of the West. There’s no disputing that. So we don’t need to pretend that experience doesn’t matter, because it absolutely does. It’s just that this team, as it’s constructed with its coaching staff and players, can learn on the fly (i.e. accumulate experience) faster than any other team I’ve ever rooted for. This is the kind of thing I’ve never seen before, which I guess makes sense because the last time a younger team made it to the finals was 1977!

Takeaway number four is the play that I will always call the Kornet Contest. That moniker is no longer in my mind as something that he does to throw off three-point shooters. It’s the chase-down block that turned away Hartenstein, preserved the lead, and probably the game.

1. Luke Kornet blocks Hartenstein

It’s such an impressive play that he got there in time, but also because he didn’t try to block the dunk. He just contested and let Isaiah push the ball right into his hand. Such an amazing play! I’ve loved Kornet ever since he came to San Antonio, and I can’t be more excited that the play of the game that practically clinched the series was made by the guy so many were ragging on for essentially not being Victor Wembanyama. By my account, that’s the second game this season he’s saved with a block, and I might as well add that he blocked the Atlanta Hawks from making a bad decision with that promotion they were going to do until he wrote a blog post. Keep up the good work, Luke. You’re all right in my book.

Final takeaway: Would anyone object to giving a Co-MVP award to the Corgi?

Jeje: Not me!

The Sixers sure did corner the market on mid-first-rounders from the 2022 draft. While the team’s biggest addition of the 2026 trade deadline may have been converting Dominick Barlow from a two-way to a standard NBA contract, it at least gave them more flyers to take for the rest of the season.

After Barlow was converted, the team signed Dalen Terry, who had been traded and waived after spending the first three and a half seasons of his NBA career with the Bulls. Terry was sent from Chicago to the New York as a part of deal that helped the Knicks salary dump Guerschon Yabusele. New York rerouted Terry along with some second-round picks to New Orleans in exchanger for Jose Alvarado. Terry was able to sign with the Sixers after being waived by the Pelicans.

Terry arrived in Philadelphia as a player with intriguing tools, but still trying to put them together to become a regular rotation member. The 13.5 minutes per game he averaged were the most in a season with Chicago. He’s a great athlete who has shown ability to defend at an NBA level, but has yet to develop any consistency on the other end to be dependable.

After signing a two-way with Philly, Terry played in 14 games. Like MarJon Beauchamp, most of those appearances came in a stretch during March where Tyrese Maxey, Joel Embiid, Paul George, and even Kelly Oubre Jr. were all on the bench.

He averaged 4.1 points as well 1.6 rebounds and 1.6 assists playing 12 minutes a game as a Sixer. As someone who’s always been a low-volume shooter, he made 25% of his threes in Philadelphia after shooting 41% in his time last season with the Bulls.

His high-point was helping a shorthanded group escape with a win over a tanking Memphis Grizzlies team in March. Terry provided crucial point-of-attack defense on Ty Jerome. He was also able to show off how his athleticism helps him in transition as he was a +23 in a 10-point win.

That blend made Terry the most intriguing of the three two-ways the Sixers rostered for the latter half of the season. His defense was the most ready-made skill of the bunch, and was also the most physically equipped to keep developing. Every now and then he would have a flash like this to affirm that belief.

As his three-point percentage in Philly would indicate, those flashes were few and far between. He saw even less playing time than Beauchamp as the top of the roster shuffled back in the lineup. He would only appear again for four minutes in the regular season finale.

Potentially entering his fifth year in the league, Terry will run into the same two-way eligibility problems Beauchamp will as well. He’s an even more intriguing flyer to have on a two-way spot, but he’s yet to show he’s worth one of the full 15 roster spots for a team that is at least trying to be serious enough to make the playoffs.

Should the Sixers be able to fill out the rest of their bench with better shooting than last season, he could be an interesting gadget player to bring on for the league minimum. That’s still a big “if” though, and the Sixers certainly have bigger battles to tackle this offseason.

Plenty of decisions lie ahead for the Phoenix Suns this offseason, and one of the biggest revolves around the center position. Mark Williams is set to become a restricted free agent, carrying a qualifying offer of $9.6 million. That leaves Phoenix with plenty to sort through when it comes to the future of the position.

One thing they don’t have to worry about, however, is Oso Ighodaro.

Ighodaro is slated to make $2.3 million next season, his third year in the NBA. Originally, his contract was partially guaranteed. He was set to earn $500,000 guaranteed, with the remaining $1.8 million becoming guaranteed if he remained on the roster through January 10, 2027.

According to Bobby Marks, that guarantee has already kicked in.

Given what Oso meant to the team last season, that doesn’t come as much of a surprise. Honestly, the bigger surprise is that the guarantee already occurred, and it largely flew under the radar.

Oso was integral to executing Jordan Ott’s system. Yes, the jumper still needs work. That part is obvious. The way he facilitates, processes the game, and makes quick decisions with his high basketball IQ is incredibly valuable, especially in a system that asks a lot from its centers. When you consider he was selected 40th overall in the 2024 NBA Draft, he feels like a steal at this point. And getting that kind of production and versatility for $2.3 million is an easy decision.

There are plenty of other decisions that still need to be made. It’s nice knowing this one has already been made for you.

There are still two players on the roster carrying non-guaranteed contracts for next season. Haywood Highsmith has $1 million guaranteed, though his full $3.8 million salary does not become guaranteed until January 10, 2027. The same is true for Jamaree Bouyea. That provides another layer of flexibility for Phoenix moving forward. It gives the organization time. Time to evaluate Highsmith. Time to evaluate Bouyea. Time to see how the roster comes together before making permanent financial commitments.

And considering the Suns are likely to spend the season navigating luxury tax and first apron hurdles, every ounce of flexibility matters.

In a summer that will be defined by difficult decisions and financial constraints, having a few easy ones matters. Oso Ighodaro has already proven he belongs, and the Suns now have cost certainty at a position where very little else is certain. As Phoenix continues trying to balance flexibility, development, and competitiveness, knowing you have a valuable rotation player locked in at a team-friendly number is one less thing keeping the front office up at night.

The 2026 NBA Draft has something for everyone. There’s star power at the top, a deep point guard class, talented forwards young (Nate Ament, Hannes Steinbach) and old (Yaxel Lendeborg) throughout the lottery, a classic 7’3 drop coverage big man in Aday Mara, and a long-term stretch five bet in Chris Cenac Jr. Like last year, the biggest winners will be the teams that moved into the top-4 on lottery night, but there should still be valuable contributors available into the 20s, plus a few more players who exceed expectations in the second round.

Our instant mock draft after the lottery tried to take a stab at how the first round will actually play out. I also wrote up a mock on what I would do with every pick if I was the GM for each team. Read my story on why Cameron Boozer is the top overall prospect in this class.

Now, let’s dive into some draft fits we love from both the team and player perspective. These six fits stand out entering the draft.

Darryn Peterson – Utah Jazz

Peterson looked like he might be developing into the best prospect in the class when he dropped 58 points in a head-to-head matchup against A.J.Dybantsa as a high school seniors in Feb. 2025. Fast forward a year and change, and Peterson enters the draft as a somewhat polarizing prospect after a bizarre freshman year at Kansas plagued by cramping and soft tissue injuries. Peterson didn’t show the same explosiveness he possessed in high school, but he claims he’s fully recovered now after realizing his issues were caused by taking too much creatine without proper hydration.

The Jazz have close ties to A.J. Dybantsa after he spent the last two years playing in the state of Utah, but Peterson feels like a better fit for what the team needs going forward. The Jazz already have a strong core in place with Jaren Jackson Jr., Lauri Markkanen, and (probably) Walker Kessler in the frontcourt, Ace Bailey on the wing, and Keyonte George in the backcourt. The ideal final piece would be a guard who can make an impact on defense while adding offensive firepower by blending on-ball and off-ball utility next to George. Peterson fits that description to a tee.

Peterson proved he could be a deadly off-ball scorer without his best burst while playing at Kansas. His three-point volume and accuracy both vastly exceeded preseason expectations, and the movement shooting he showed off for the Jayhawks would be an ideal fit in Will Hardy’s Utah schemes. It’s also totally possible that Peterson could again become the takeover scoring guard he looked like in high school, thus demanding more touches on the ball. If he regains his burst, only thing really holding him back will be his playmaking vision, which looked pretty mediocre at Kansas. Whatever Peterson gives you offensively will be made even more valuable because he’s an impactful defender who can rack up steals and blocks as a helper. George will look a lot better defensively with Peterson deterring ball handlers with hard digs in the paint or even by taking the tougher assignment.

Add Peterson, and I really think Utah can be a playoff team in the Western Conference next year.

Aday Mara and Ebuka Okorie – Atlanta Hawks

The Hawks pick at No. 8 and No. 23, and they have long-term needs at point guard and center. It will be tempting to take whichever top-rated guard is still available with their first pick — Mikel Brown Jr., Darius Acuff, Kingston Flemings, and Keaton Wagler among them. I like waiting until their second pick to land a point guard since it’s the deepest position in this draft class, thereby allowing them to select the draft’s clear top center prospect in Michigan’s Aday Mara at No. 8.

The Hawks made a mistake by passing on Zach Edey and Donovan Clingan with the No. 1 pick in the 2024 draft in favor of Zaccharie Risacher (okay, they could have had Stephon Castle, too), and this would be an opportunity to right that wrong. There are only so many 7’3 players available in the world, and Mara brings special passing vision and enough post scoring touch to give him real two-way viability. Mara is not the most scheme-versatile defender, but he should be effective in drop, and it helps that the Hawks would have some dogs at the point of attack in front of him with Dyson Daniels and Nickeil Alexander-Walker hounding opposing ball handlers.

If Ebuka Okorie is still on the board at No. 23, it would be a home run pick for Atlanta. The 6’2 Stanford point guard has the best first step in the class with a tight handle to help generate paint touches whenever he pleases. He’s more of a scorer than a passer at this stage, but it’s worth noting he didn’t have much talent around him in college, and could take a big leap as a playmaker with better teammates in the NBA. Okorie has been rising up draft boards lately and could even challenge for a lottery pick, but he’s been viewed in the 20s for most of the cycle, and it’s possible teams aren’t quite as high on him as the online hipsters like me. Mara and Okorie would set the Hawks up to compete in the East for a long, long time.

Yaxel Lendeborg – Oklahoma City Thunder

Yaxel Lendeborg is a month older than Josh Giddey, who just completed his fifth NBA season. He’s also clearly one of the best prospects in the 2026 NBA Draft with a unique skill set that few modern day forwards can replicate. Lendeborg was the second-best player in college basketball this season behind Cameron Boozer, but it wasn’t just because he was an overwhelming scorer against younger competition. After going through the pre-draft process last season, Lendeborg told me he entered Michigan with the intention of showing off his role player skills by upping his three-point volume and proving he could take on more challenging defensive assignments. He excelled in both areas in the Wolverines’ run to the national championship, and he looks like a plug-and-play starter who adds value on both sides of the ball as he enters the NBA.

Lendeborg is almost as big as an NBA center standing nearly 6’9 barefoot with a 241-pound frame and a 7’3.25 wingspan. He proved he could play on the perimeter offensively full-time at that size by taking 8.4 threes per 100 possessions and making 37.2 percent of them this season. He’s always been a good passer who can make quick, connective reads all over the floor, he’s a solid offensive rebounder, and he’s a load to deal with when he starts attacking downhill on cuts or off the dribble. The Thunder need cost-controlled contributors, and they always value prospects who can dribble, pass, and shoot with an NBA frame. OKC should be doing backflips if Yaxel still on the board at No. 12. I’d take him in the top-6 of this draft.

Bennett Stirtz – Detroit Pistons

Cade Cunningham had to take on almost all of the creation responsibility for the Pistons this season on a roster devoid of extra ball handling. It feels like an obvious area of need for Detroit to address with the No. 21 overall pick, and there’s no better fit than Iowa point guard Bennett Stirtz if he’s still on the board.

Stirtz almost never came off the floor for the Hawkeyes this season while providing efficient scoring and playmaking in a high-usage role. He’s a skilled pick-and-roll operator who knows every passing read on the floor but can also pressure the opposing defense with his off-the-dribble scoring. Stirtz is also one of the draft’s better shooters and would be a valuable floor spacer when Cunningham is at the controls. I’m also fascinating to see what Stirtz would look like in a more uptempo system after Iowa played about as slow as anyone in college basketball this past season.

Stirtz is just an additive player in every way offensively. He might struggle a bit defensively, but the Pistons just finished with the league’s top defense and have plenty of big bodies to insulate him. This feels like a mutually beneficial pairing between player and team in every way.

Morez Johnson – Charlotte Hornets

The Hornets finished with the best net-rating in the NBA after Jan. 1, but their play-in tournament exit showed the team still needs some more toughness and beef on the interior. There won’t be an obvious center prospect on the board at No. 13 overall assuming Mara is gone, but his Michigan teammate Morez Johnson is the next best thing. Johnson is a tweener, but that’s not a knock on him. He showed he can thrive in two big lineups with the Wolverines, but he also measured big enough at the combine to hold down center minutes on his own. Johnson came in at 6’9 barefoot with a 250-pound frame and 7’3.5 wingspan, giving him the length and strength needed for an NBA five. He’s an excellent athlete for his size who will win by finishing feeds from the dunker’s spot, beating opposing bigs down the court in the open floor, and catching lobs as a roll man. He’s also one of the best defenders in this class with a low center of gravity to win the battle for positioning on the ground, and quick enough feet to switch screens on the perimeter.

Playing with an elite facilitator like LaMelo Ball and an elite spacer like Kon Knueppel would open up so much room inside for Johnson’s finishes. He could play next to Ryan Kalkbrenner and Moussa Diabate, or act as the lone big man for stretches. Johnson would also be a great pick for the Chicago Bulls at No. 15 or the Thunder at No. 17 (or No. 12). There might be higher upside players with more shooting value on the board, but sometimes to win a playoff series, you have to build a team that can win a street fight. Johnson’s the perfect player for trying to build that type of mentality.