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After an incredible NBA lottery, the Utah Jazz are sitting pretty at the #2 spot in the NBA Draft. That means they will have a chance to choose from the top tier of the draft with their pick. The NBA Combine is now happening, and it officially kicks off draft season. The measurements become vital for teams at the top of the draft and can help shape the most important decision each team will make. Here are the measurements of the main prospects the Utah Jazz will be looking at. Oh, and just a reminder, the height is measured without shoes. But since basketball is played with shoes on, you typically want to have an inch or so added when you’re thinking about the different prospects.

AJ Dybantsa

Height: 6’8.5”

Weight: 217

Wingspan: 7’0.75”

Standing Reach: 8’8”

Dybantsa comes out with solid numbers that confirm great size with his 6’8.5” height minus shoes. His wingspan is really good at the +4 differential. That said, this doesn’t raise any real red flags or give teams interested in the potential #1 pick any reason to question taking him. Dybantsa brings the measurements of a prototypical wing creator that teams dream of building their team around.

Darryn Peterson

Height: 6’4.5”

Weight: 199

Wingspan: 6’9.75”

Standing Reach: 8’7”

Peterson’s measurements are also unsurprising and great for a shooting guard. With shoes, Peterson will be about 6’6” and also brings a fantastic wingspan ratio at +5. The biggest question for Peterson will come from his medicals. If Peterson checks out clean, he makes a big case for the #1 pick in this draft. Dybantsa gets an edge on Peterson with his size, which gives him a fantastic ceiling, but Peterson should get the edge in pure skill. His scoring ability is the best in the draft, and we’ll see if the Washington Wizards make a surprise pick come draft night.

Cam Boozer

Height: 6’8.25”

Weight: 253

Wingspan: 7’1.5”

Standing Reach: 9’.0”

Boozer ends up with height just a hair shorter than AJ Dybantsa, but he brings a slightly longer wingspan and standing reach, which is great. Boozer combines a high level of skill and IQ that comes with fantastic functional strength. Boozer comes into the draft with one of the highest floors but could also be considered to have the lowest ceiling among the top prospects. The question for Boozer will be whether he can be the hub of an NBA offense or more of an off-ball player. It will be fascinating to see just how effective he can be. His production in college was fantastic, but does that translate to the NBA, or was he more of a bruiser that overpowered inferior college talent?

Caleb Wilson

Height: 6’9.25”

Weight: 211

Wingspan: 7’0.25”

Standing Reach: 9’0”

The numbers for Wilson are a little disappointing and could put him at #4 to Chicago if the Grizzlies are torn between Wilson and Boozer. He’s surprisingly light at 211, and I expected a longer wingspan than just 7’0.25”. What this does is lock Wilson into the 3/4 mold, although that’s not a change for teams that have followed him closely. Wilson does have fantastic athleticism, which could potentially help him go higher.

Before the Lakers successfully ended their first round playoff series against the Rockets, coach JJ Redick explained what makes close out games so challenging.

“You have to kill them,” Redick said. “It’s difficult to kill someone. Survival instincts say, ‘I want to stay alive.’ So, you got to be able to kill them. That’s what [it takes].”

The Lakers’ sense of urgency in Monday’s Game 4 against the Thunder at Crypto.com Arena, with their season on the line, showed exactly why that’s the case.

But in the end, the Thunder killed the Lakers’ 2025-26 season, with the Lakers falling to the Thunder, 115-110, in Game 4 to be eliminated from the playoffs.

“When the season ends there’s always a whirlwind of emotions,” Redick said. “I am certainly feeling a sense of gratitude for our players, the Lakers, and our fan base. You’ve seen these 3-0 games before; I thought there were two different times during the game where our team could have gave in or let go of the rope. We didn’t.”

Each fourth-quarter bucket from Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Ajay Mitchell were deep gashes into the Lakers’ chest.

The Lakers kept responding, not letting anything take away from their fight, getting big plays from everyone on the floor late. 

But there were too many daggers to recover from.

The Lakers didn’t score in the final 30 seconds. And the Thunder got dunks from Chet Holmgren and pairs of free throws from Gilgeous-Alexander and Mitchell to close out Game 4.

Austin Reaves (27 points, 7 rebounds, 6 assists), Rui Hachimura (25 points), LeBron James (24 points, 12 rebounds) and Jaxson Hayes (18 points, 5 rebounds) all came up big late.

But the Thunder still delivered. And were simply better for the entire series.

“They’re really f—–g good,” Reaves said.

Gilgeous-Alexander led the Thunder with 35 points and eight assists.

Mitchell added 28 points on 12-of-19 shooting, while Holmgren added 16 points and nine rebounds.

What it means

The Lakers’ season ended with a four-game sweep to the defending champions — just the fourth time in James’ career his team has been swept in the playoffs. 

The other times: 2007 NBA Finals against the Spurs, 2018 Finals against the Warriors and the 2023 Western Conference finals to the Nuggets.

The Thunder will face either the Spurs or Timberwolves in the Western Conference finals.

Turning point 

When Jared McCain hit a 3-pointer to cut the Lakers’ lead from 89-84 to three with 8:24 left in the fourth. 

It provided a screeching halt to the Lakers’ momentum that they carried over from the third quarter, which they won 39-31.

MVP: Gilgeous-Alexander

The reigning league MVP saved his best game for the end of the series. 

Gilgeous-Alexander shot 11-for-22 from the field and 12-for-15 on free throws.

He and Mitchell combined for 19 of the Thunder’s 35 points in the fourth quarter.

Stat of the game: 19

Taking care of the ball was an emphasis entering the series.

The Lakers once again failed to do that, turning the ball over 19 times. Reaves had a team-worst eight turnovers, while Marcus Smart had six.

The Thunder scored 22 points off of the Lakers’ giveaways. 

Up next

Exit interviews for the Lakers, with Redick and president of basketball operations Rob Pelinka speaking with reporters on Tuesday morning.

All Lakers coach JJ Redick asked of his group was to “win the day.”

That day had to be Monday night, the only day that mattered for a Lakers team on the brink of elimination.

The Lakers came close, but they did not win the day, losing Game 4 115-110 to the defending NBA champion Oklahoma City Thunder on Monday night at Crypto.com Arena.

The Lakers’ season is over, having been swept 4-0 in the Western Conference semifinal series.

Austin Reaves led the Lakers with 27 points, Rui Hachimura had 25 points and LeBron James had 24 points and 12 rebounds.

Read more:Plaschke: For the sake of their future, Lakers should bid farewell to LeBron James

When the game was over, James hugged several of the Thunder players.

James is in the final year of a contract that paid him $52 million this season, and at 41 and in his 23rd season, the conversations now turn to his future.

Will James retire? Will James return to the Lakers? Will James play for another team?

Those are the big questions going forward.

With 40.9 seconds left in the game, Marcus Smart scored, was fouled and made the free throw for a 110-109 Lakers lead.

But Chet Holmgren scored on a dunk for a 111-110 Thunder lead with 32.8 seconds left.

The Lakers called a timeout to set up a play.

James missed a floater just outside the lane and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, who finished with 35 points and eight assists, was fouled with 12.2 seconds left. He made both free throws for a 113-100 Thunder lead.

The Lakers called another timeout to set up another play with their season on the line.

Reaves missed a potential game-tying three-pointer and Alex Caruso got the rebound, leading to a timeout for the Thunder with 7.6 seconds remaining.

Ajay Mitchell was fouled after the inbounds pass and made two free throws for a 115-110 lead that stood.

Earlier in the fourth quarter, Jared McCain drilled a three-pointer to tie the score at 92-92.

Then James threw a pass away that bounced off two Thunder defenders and Reaves, with the officials ruling it was still the Lakers' possession. The call was challenged by the Thunder. The official review determined that the ball went off Reaves, giving the Thunder the ball with six minutes and 35 seconds left.

Mitchell scored, was fouled by Smart and made the free throw for a three-point play and a 95-92 Thunder lead.

For the first time in this series, the Lakers won the third quarter, outscoring the Thunder 39-31 to open an 84-80 lead heading into the fourth.

Jaxson Hayes punctuated the third with a two-handed dunk, bringing the crowd out of their seats.

The Lakers sizzled in the third quarter, shooting 76.5% from the field and 71.4% from three-point range.

Hachimura was on fire in the third quarter, scoring 12 points on four-for-six shooting.

Reaves had a strong first quarter, scoring eight points on three-for-three shooting, two for two on three-pointers.

With James adding six points and six rebounds, the Lakers opened a 26-21 lead after the first quarter.

But the Thunder hit the Lakers with a 17-0 run to open a 12-point lead in the second quarter.

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This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.

LeBron James is unsure about returning for a 24th NBA season after Lakers' exit originally appeared on NBC Sports Philadelphia

LeBron James says he has no idea whether his 24-point performance in the Los Angeles Lakers‘ season-ending playoff loss to the Oklahoma City Thunder on Monday night was the final game of his NBA career.

The top scorer in league history stuck to the strategy he has taken into the past several summers when he declined to announce his future immediately after the Lakers’ final postseason defeat.

He hasn’t ruled out retirement or a return to the Lakers, and he said nothing about the possibility of moving to another team as he contemplates an unprecedented 24th NBA season.

“I don’t know what the future holds for me, obviously, as it stands right now tonight,” the 41-year-old James said. “I’ve got a lot of time now. I think I said it last year after we lost to Minnesota. I’ll go back and recalibrate with my family and talk with them and spend some time with them, and then obviously when the time comes, you guys will know what I decide to do.”

James’ record 23rd season ended with a heartbreaking 115-110 loss, completing a four-game sweep of the short-handed Lakers by the defending NBA champions. Los Angeles began the playoffs without NBA scoring champ Luka Doncic and second-leading scorer Austin Reaves due to injury, yet James led the Lakers to a first-round upset of Houston before running into the league’s best team in the second round.

“It’s amazing what he’s doing out there at this age,” Thunder superstar Shai Gilgeous-Alexander said. “It’s very impressive. It’s hard to put it to words. He’s not very old in the grand scheme of life, but for the NBA, he’s pretty old, and he doesn’t seem like it out there. He was a force. He was the top of the scouting report all series. His size gave us issues at times. He was impressive out there. I’m not sure we’ll see anything like that again, his longevity and his greatness.”

James has played in more games, won more games, scored more points and taken more shots than everybody else who ever put on a uniform, but he has never put a limit on his time in the game.

Instead, he repeated his oft-stated declarations that he’ll figure it out with his family over a few glasses of wine in the next couple of months.

“Nobody has any idea what the future holds, and I don’t either,” James said. “I’ll take time to recalibrate and look over the season and see what’s best for my future, and when I get to that point, everyone will know.”

James showed only marginal signs of age’s encroachment in his 23rd season, continuing to play versatile basketball at an elite level throughout the Lakers’ successful regular season.

Injuries forced his largest compromises: He missed training camp and the first 14 games of the season with sciatica, and he missed eight additional games during the regular season, eliminating him from consideration for inclusion on the All-NBA teams for the 22nd consecutive time.

With Doncic winning the NBA scoring title and Reaves emerging as a legitimate top-level NBA scorer, James willingly assumed a supporting role as the No. 3 option in the Lakers’ offense — and it worked.

His 20.9 points per game were his fewest since his rookie season, largely because his 3-point shooting accuracy declined to 31.7%, and his 33.2 minutes per game were his fewest ever. Yet he contributed 7.2 assists and 6.1 rebounds with another season of steady performances — and when the Lakers needed him to step up, he did it repeatedly.

“It was so many different seasons in one season with our ballclub,” James said. “Obviously injuries played a big part in it, but as far as our identity, I thought it was super-resilient.”

James was chosen for the All-Star Game for the 22nd time, and right before the midseason break, he became the oldest player in NBA history to record a triple-double. He surpassed Robert Parish’s record for the most regular-season games played in late March.

The Lakers picked up steam down the stretch in the regular season, winning 16 of 18 heading into April and kindling hope of being a dark-horse candidate to give trouble to the Thunder or Spurs in the playoffs. But that’s when Doncic and Reaves both incurred major injuries, sidelining both indefinitely.

James handled the disappointment by stepping up and coolly taking charge of the Lakers’ offense again. While nearly every NBA observer wrote off Los Angeles’ chances of any playoff run, James and his supporting cast improbably knocked off the fifth-seeded Houston Rockets in six games in the first round, sending the Lakers into the second round for only the second time since 2020.

“For our group to have the moment that we had when Luka goes down with the hamstring and AR goes down with the oblique and we’re staring down the barrel of a playoff series with Houston, I thought our guys responded and were just super-resilient,” James said. “To win that series was big-time for the group that went out there.”

James’ reasons to prolong his career in Los Angeles would be multifold.

He has spent the past two seasons playing alongside Bronny James, his oldest son and a backup guard for the Lakers. They even got significant playoff minutes together this season, allowing LeBron to live another dream.

His family loves living in Southern California — and while his sons are both out of the family home, he has spoken frequently of his desire to watch the progress of his 11-year-old daughter, Zhuri, a competitive volleyball player.

And the Lakers’ outstanding play down the stretch suggested they could be among the NBA’s best teams with full health for Doncic, James and Reaves — who is expected to sign a massive contract to stay with the Lakers this summer.

Whether the Lakers can actually contend for a championship next season will be one factor that James must weigh, but finding a true title contender to join at this stage of his career would be difficult even if the Thunder and the rising San Antonio Spurs didn’t appear to be head and shoulders above the rest of the league.

For now, James will take time off to enjoy life away from the daily grind that has allowed his career to reach unprecedented lengths — and if he decides not to come back, he doesn’t appear to have regrets about how this season ended.”

“I left everything I could on the floor,” James said. “I control what I can control, and I can leave the floor saying even though I hate losing, I was locked in on what we needed to do.”

CLEVELAND (AP) — Donovan Mitchell tied an NBA playoff record with 39 points in the second half and the Cleveland Cavaliers evened their second-round series against the Detroit Pistons with a 112-103 victory Monday night.

Mitchell matched the mark of Eric “Sleepy” Floyd on a free throw with 27.6 seconds remaining. He had a chance to break the record, set in 1987 against the Los Angeles Lakers, but missed his second foul shot.

Mitchell finished with 43 points, including 15 during Cleveland’s 24-0 run that went from the last 12 seconds of the first half to the first six minutes of the third quarter. Cleveland trailed 56-52 at halftime before taking control.

The 24-0 run was the longest in an NBA playoff game since since Minnesota also scored 24 straight in Game 6 of its Western Conference semifinal series against Denver in 2024. It was also the longest spurt by Cleveland in a postseason game since play-by-play stats were kept in 1997-98. The previous high was 19 in an Eastern semifinal series contest against Boston.

James Harden had his 40th playoff double-double with 24 points and 11 assists. Evan Mobley had 17 points, five blocked shots and three steals as Cleveland remained unbeaten at home in six playoff games.

Caris LeVert had a season high 24 points for Detroit. Cade Cunningham scored 19, the first time he has been held under 20 in 11 playoff games this season, and Tobias Harris added 16.

Game 5 is Wednesday night in Detroit.

THUNDER 115, LAKERS 110

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Shai Gilgeous-Alexander scored 35 points, Chet Holmgren made a tiebreaking dunk with 32.8 seconds to play, and Oklahoma City swept Los Angeles out of the second round of the NBA playoffs with a victory in Game 4.

Ajay Mitchell scored 10 of his 28 points in the frantic final period as the Thunder overcame the Lakers’ tenacious effort and improved to 8-0 in the playoffs with their toughest victory of the postseason.

LeBron James had 24 points and 14 rebounds in the final game of the unprecedented 23rd season for the top scorer in NBA history, but he missed a driving bank shot with 20 seconds left that would have put the Lakers ahead.

The 41-year-old James has repeatedly said he hasn’t decided whether to play next season, so there was no ceremony or momentousness around this game. Instead, the Lakers desperately tried to extend their year, only to lose to Oklahoma City for the eighth time this season.

Austin Reaves scored 27 points before missing a tying 3-point attempt with eight seconds left for the Lakers, who advanced one round farther than almost anybody expected after losing NBA scoring champion Luka Doncic and Reaves to significant injuries a month ago.

If this is indeed it for LeBron James, give him credit for one thing: he was unprecedented, even until the very end.

The Oklahoma City Thunder unceremoniously swept James’ Los Angeles Lakers on Monday, May 11 in the conference semifinal round in what might be the final game of James’ storied 23-year career. James has not revealed his future plans, but will turn 42 in December and has been more vulnerable recently about how basketball is affecting his body.

James also has nothing more to prove.

What he did this year had never been seen before. Not only did he start all 60 games he played during the regular season (adding 10 more in the postseason), he rewrote the standard for what’s possible for players 40 and older.

In the 46 games he played after turning 41 on Dec. 30, he averaged 21.1 points, 7.3 assists and 6.4 rebounds per contest. Compare that scoring figure with the next closest player, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, who averaged just 10.5 points per game after his 41^st birthday.

On the brink of elimination, the Lakers went down swinging.

LA overcame its second-half woes and took OKC all the way to the final minute before losing late, 115-110, as the Thunder completed the sweep.

In the most hotly-contested game of the series, the two teams battled throughout the fourth quarter. The Lakers had the lead late on a Marcus Smart and-one layup, but the Thunder responded with the next five points to win the game.

Deandre Ayton started things offensively for LA with a tip-in layup off a missed shot by LeBron James. Lu Dort and Ajay Mitchell responded with a combined five points immediately after.

Rui Hachimura started cooking for Los Angeles with four points.

At the 6:42 mark, the Lakers were down by six. 

The Lakers surged with nine straight points to jump into the lead. Austin Reaves was now the leading scorer for LA with five points. Smart was the only starter who had yet to score. 

Los Angeles ended the first well with Reaves and LeBron combining for five points, helping give the team a five-point lead.

Alex Caruso opened the second period with back-to-back evil 3-pointers. Mitchell then converted on a layup, which forced the Lakers to call an early timeout as they saw their lead vanish. Out of the break, Caruso finally missed a triple. Unfortunately, LA was also missing shots.

The Thunder were up by five with 9:50 left.

Oklahoma City’s scoring run extended to 17-0 as Los Angeles tried to score, but couldn’t figure out any consistency with their offense. LeBron stopped some of the bleeding with two free throws. 

Jaxson Hayes ended the field goal drought by converting on a layup. The Lakers responded well, making it a four-point game at halftime, despite their shooting struggles. 

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander converted on a midrange jumper to open the third period. Hachimura had the hot hand early for LA with seven points in the quarter. Mitchell had eight in the quarter already for the Thunder.

Cason Wallace drilled a triple that forced Los Angeles to call a timeout after yet another OKC run had the Lakers down 12.

Reaves now had six of LA’s 12 overall turnovers. Out of the break, LeBron converted on one of two free throws. Hachimura also knocked down a big-time 3-pointer. 

SGA was the only OKC player scoring; he was up to 23 for the night. LeBron drained two massive 3-pointers that helped keep Los Angeles within striking distance.

The purple and gold were down by five with 4:04 left in the quarter. 

LA went on a massive 14-5 run that turned the game in their favor. They added to that run to take the lead by one with 3:08 left.

Both teams then took turns leading. Hayes’ four points at the end of the third helped give Los Angeles a lead of four going into the fourth.

This was the first time in the series that they beat OKC in the third. 

LeBron split a pair of free throws to open the scoring in the final frame. Jared McCain converted on a layup on the other end for Oklahoma City. Despite two from Mitchell, LeBron scored four points, helping keep LA in the lead by five. 

Out of a break, McC ain drained a triple.

Reaves launched a ridiculous 3-pointer over Caruso that kept Los Angeles up by five. SGA nailed two free throws that cut into the deficit for the Thunder. McCain knocked down yet another three that tied the game with 6:34 left. 

OKC went up by three after Mitchell completed a three-point play. Hachimura responded with his signature midrange shot on the other end. A back-and-forth battle was taking place over the final five minutes.

The teams took turns leading by one until a triple from SGA put the Thunder up four with 3:47 left. At the 2:13 mark, Oklahoma City was up by six. With 1:41 left, Hachimura completed a wild four-point play to make it a two-point game.

Smart was then fouled and completed a three-point play that put the Lakers up by one with 40 seconds left, capping off a 7-0 run. Chet Holmgren dunked on the next possession and put Oklahoma City up one with 32.8 seconds left. 

LeBron missed a floater with roughly 20 seconds left and, on the other end, SGA was fouled and converted on both free throws, giving the Thunder a three-point lead with 12.2 seconds left. 

Reaves had a nice look at a 3-pointer and unfortunately missed. With 7.6 seconds left, Mitchell was fouled and converted on both free throws, sealing the win for OKC.

Key Player Stats

LeBron finished with 24 points and 12 rebounds. Reaves added 27 points with seven rebounds and six assists. Hayes had 18 points off the bench.

Hachimura scored 25  points on 9-15 shooting. Ayton logged six points. Kennard pitched in with five points.

You can follow Karin on Twitter at @KarinAbcarians.

As the Los Angeles Lakers were facing a possible sweep at the hands of Western Conference No. 1 seed Oklahoma City Thunder, one face in the crowd couldn't be happier to see it all unfold.

Dillon Brooks, the Phoenix Suns wing, enforcer, villain and LeBron James pest, was spotted sitting courtside at Crypto.com Arena with a smile on his face as the Lakers entered halftime trailing 49-45. The 30-year-old, fresh off getting swept against the Thunder in the first round, apparently couldn't help but get out to LA to watch his nemesis possibly meet the same fate in the second round.

Nah man Dillon Brooks a REAL VILLAIN

Bro showed up to Game 4 just to hatewatch LeBron I’M IN TEARS 😂😂😂 pic.twitter.com/noAnFRa7pS

— Hater Report (@HaterReport) May 12, 2026

Brooks and James have a history dating back to the first round of the 2023 playoffs, when he openly taunted the NBA's all-time leading scorer as the two exchanged verbal jabs in the media and got into a confrontation during Game 3, with Brooks later taking jabs at James' age.

"I don't care. He's old. You know what I mean?" Brooks, then with the Memphis Grizzlies, told reporters at the time. "I was waiting for that. I was expecting him to do that [in] Game 4, Game 5. He wanted to say something when I got my fourth foul. He should have been saying that earlier on. But I poke bears. I don't respect no one until they come and give me 40."

After the Lakers took that series in six games, James took to Instagram.

"If you ever see me fighting in the forest with a Grizzly bear," James wrote in his caption. "HELP THE BEAR."

The two were at it again this past December, when Brooks told reporters that James "likes people that bow down. I don't bow down."

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Dillon Brooks sits courtside at Laker playoff game to spite LeBron