The New York Knicks are hoping to win their third NBA title [Getty Images]
The New York Knicks reached the NBA Finals for the first time in 27 years with a commanding 130-93 win over the Cleveland Cavaliers.
The Knicks continued their fine form as they swept the best-of-seven Eastern Conference Final 4-0 and extended their franchise record play-off win streak to 11 games.
Karl-Anthony Towns led the Knicks' scoring with 19 points and 14 rebounds, while the series' Most Valuable Player Jalen Brunson added 15.
The Knicks, whose only NBA titles came in 1970 and 1973, last reached the Finals in 1999 when they lost 4-1 against the San Antonio Spurs.
Brunson, 29, was two years old when the Knicks last reached the Finals, when his father Rick - who is an assistant coach at the franchise - was a guard on the team.
"It means a lot, but I wouldn't be here without my team-mates, the belief they had in me," said Brunson.
"They give me the confidence. They let me be me. Most importantly, we all believe in each other from top to bottom. It's an honour to play with them."
The Knicks will face either defending champions Oklahoma City or the Spurs in next month's showpiece, with the teams tied at 2-2 in the Western Conference final.
Landry Shamet, who scored 16 points and netted all four of his three-pointer attempts, said his side are remaining focused on the "larger goal" rather than dwelling on their victory over the Cavaliers.
"We've got four more wins to try and go get and we know it's going to be even harder. Being in this position with this team, it's pretty special," he said.
If the Knicks continue their unbeaten run and sweep the finals, they will equal the NBA's record play-off win streak of 15 set by the Golden State Warriors in 2017.
The Knicks ended the first quarter with an 8-0 run and began the second with 12 unanswered points to lead 50-26.
Shamet's third three-pointer later put the Knicks 61-32 up and they never looked back, overwhelming the Cavs after half-time with 22 turnovers.
Donovan Mitchell top-scored for the Cavs with 31 points.
Game five of the Western Conference Final takes place on Tuesday. (01.30 BST Wednesday).
CLEVELAND - In some ways, it’s fitting that Leon Rose and the Knicks are headed to the NBA Finals after knocking out Donovan Mitchell and the Cavaliers.
Rose’s decision to pass on trading for Mitchell was one of the biggest pivot points of this Knicks era.
Remember: New York had the draft picks and the personnel to obtain Mitchell from Utah. But Rose ultimately decided that he didn’t want to meet Danny Ainge’s asking price.
At the time, it was a controversial decision.
In hindsight, it’s one of several pivotal choices by Rose that helped the Knicks ascend to the NBA Finals.
Instead of trading a package centered around RJ Barrett for Mitchell, Rose and his group moved Barrett, Immanuel Quickley and a second round pick to Toronto for OG Anunoby.
Anunoby has been one of the best players in the postseason. He had 17 points, seven rebounds, four assists and two steals in the Knicks’ closeout win over Cleveland on Monday.
Instead of using multiple first-round picks to acquire Mitchell, Rose sent most of his draft capital to Brooklyn in a trade for Mikal Bridges.
Rose took a ton of criticism for the trade, particularly when the Knicks had a chance to acquire Giannis Antetokounmpo the following summer.
So, of course, Bridges made play after play on the defensive end throughout the postseason. He also found ways to attack within the flow of the Knick offense. He and Anunoby have peaked at the best possible time.
If they’d traded for Mitchell, there’s virtually no way they would have signed Donte DiVincenzo the next summer. And without DiVincenzo, the Knicks would’ve needed to use more draft capital to acquire Karl-Anthony Towns from Minnesota.
This was another trade that was criticized and questioned, but Towns on Monday hit 8-of-11 shots and grabbed 14 rebounds.
The Cavs cut the Knick lead to 16 at one point in the third quarter. Towns then went to work, blocking a shot on one end and then knocking down a three-pointer on the other end. Anunoby found Bridges for a wide-open three on the Knicks’ next possession.
That sequence took the life out of any Cleveland comeback.
Shortly after the trophy presentation, Rose spent a quiet moment with his family. Like the rest of the Knicks, Rose seemed to see Monday’s win as a major accomplishment -- but not one worth a raucous celebration.
Maybe that celebration will come in a couple weeks, but the fact that the Knicks are where they are today -- preparing for a trip to the NBA Finals -- is a testament to Rose’s determination and decision-making.
A few weeks ago, the Knicks executive did not receive a vote from his peers for the Executive of the Year award. It’s a regular-season award, and the Knicks had an uneven regular season.
But if you took another vote today, the results would look much different. Rose would probably be at or near the top, which is where his Knicks sit after this remarkable playoff run.
The road to get here wasn’t always easy, but the Knicks are headed to their first NBA Finals since 1999 after sweeping the Cleveland Cavaliers in the Eastern Conference Finals on Monday night, and they are peaking at just the right time.
After going down 2-1 to the Hawks in the first round, New York has rattled off 11 straight wins and has a +272 point-differential over that span. It’s been one of the most dominant stretches not just in Knicks history, but NBA history, and it all starts with head coach Mike Brown who saw his team start playing a this version of basketball towards the end of the regular season.
“Down the stretch, like 6 or 7 games to go, after Landry [Shamet] got back, I started to see us play some good basketball and do more things that were selfless or more sacrificing from the group,” Brown said. “Throughout the course of the season you have your ups and you have your downs, and you have your good and your bad and your adversity that you have to fight through. Sometimes we got through it quickly, sometimes it took us a minute to figure it out.”
The trials and tribulations that the Knicks have faced not just this season but in postseason’s past where they got close to their final destination but couldn’t get over the hump has prepared them for this moment.
Even Brown, in his first season in New York, saw that the team had what it takes to get the job done.
“From afar, I just felt that this team was ready,” he said. “And I’m just thrilled to death that Mr. Dolan gave me an opportunity and Leon Rose gave me an opportunity to be a head coach again, especially here in New York.”
Brown had been a head coach for the Sacramento Kings for two full seasons and helped turn the franchise around before getting fired in the middle of last season.
He’s also no stranger to reaching the finals as he was an assistant coach with the Golden State Warriors for six seasons at the height of their dynasty. Therefore, he knows what it takes to finish the job and has been doing what he can to set his players up for success.
“Our group is playing good basketball and they’re doing it in different ways,” Brown said. “They’re doing it differently, depending on who our opponent is and when you show that type of versatility on both ends of the floor, it adds to your belief.
“I’ve said it before, you use the regular season to get ready for the postseason and our guys did a hell of a job with that.”
“This team is hungry and that’s the most important thing,” added Karl-Anthony Towns. “Even with an amazing, historical win we had tonight, the celebrations were minimal. We really want to get back to work. [We] asked coach can we get back to work quick.”
While the Knicks will and certainly deserve to celebrate their incredible accomplishment of reaching their first NBA finals in more than two decades, they know their ultimate goal is still out there.
However, it’s now within their grasps and closer than it’s ever been for them.
“It feels good. We’re excited, we’re happy we won, but we’re also not satisfied,” said OG Anunoby. “We’re gonna celebrate tonight, but then once tomorrow comes, start resting and preparing for the next round.”
If New York is able to defeat either the San Antonio Spurs or the Oklahoma City Thunder in the NBA Finals, it’ll be the franchise’s first championship since 1973. But the way they’re playing right now – the best they’ve played all season – the Knicks should be considered the favorites.
“We’ve gotten to this point because we worked together, we’ve been a team, we’ve been unified,” Towns said. “The collective group has shown up in spots when we need to.”
Home or on the road, your opponent is desperate trying to keep their season alive.
For the 2026 Knicks, though, they continue to be no sweat.
New York has dominated their opponents in general throughout the playoffs, but they’ve been especially stellar when given a chance to send their opponent packing.
First it was the Hawks in Atlanta, then the 76ers in Philly.
They did so yet again in dominant fashion, establishing an early lead which they never looked back from, en route to a 37-point laugher that saw the benches empties early in the fourth quarter.
With that, the 2026 Knicks became the first team in NBA history to win three closeout games by 30+ points.
Their average margin of victory of 39.3 points is also an NBA record.
“We don’t want to leave any doubt,” Miles McBride said. “We just want to come out and handle our business.”
“We’ve been playing hard and mixing in a little luck,” Jalen Brunson added. “But most importantly, we’ve been coming in focused and are just locked in on the moment.”
That next moment for them will be the opener of the NBA Finals -- a place the franchise hasn't been since 1999.
The scalding hot Knicks will be looking to come home victorious for the first time in 53 years.
SACRAMENTO, CA - MAY 25: Luis Castillo #58 of the Seattle Mariners reacts during the game between the Seattle Mariners and the Athletics at Sutter Health Park on Monday, May 25, 2026 in Sacramento, California. (Photo by Don Collier/MLB Photos via Getty Images) | MLB Photos via Getty Images
The piggyback situation remains an uncomfortable – and I would argue, untenable – situation for Luis Castillo and Bryce Miller, but both of them pitched through that tonight and did their jobs, pitching all nine innings without touching the bullpen, giving up two runs (both Miller’s) with a combined 10 strikeouts to just two walks (both Castillo’s). Meanwhile, the offense jumped on A’s starter Aaron Civale, lighting him up for six runs in one inning alone en route to a 9-2 series-opening win.
The box score for today’s game says “Wind, 18 mph” and where it would normally say a direction instead just says “varies.” Seems rude to ask Luis Castillo to both step into a new role and be all four of the Anemoi, but this is just another thing The Rock must absorb with dignity and grace. The wind early in this game was enough to shake the center field camera significantly and provide a uniquely unpleasant viewing experience that had me reaching for Dramamine (or at least hum the Modest Mouse song). Initially it seemed like it might be affecting Castillo, who walked his leadoff hitter on some fairly significant misses, but was able to lock things down after that, as he did for the rest of his outing.
Meanwhile, the Mariners were able to finally stack up some runs using their (almost) fully-operational lefty lineup. Lefties are hitting almost .300 off Aaron Civale this year, and after getting some traffic on early, the Mariners were able to finally break through in the third during the lefty-heavy portion of their programming. Colt Emerson, continuing to show maturity at the plate, led off with a five-pitch walk and then moved to third on a Julio Rodríguez single. Civale leaned heavily on his cutter, as he did last year, but the Mariners hitters seemed ready for it – Civale had struck out Julio on the cutter in the first inning, and tried to go to it again on the single, but Julio was able to adjust. Josh Naylor knocked Emerson home on a would-be double play that was luckily mishandled by the A’s infield to give the Mariners their first run of the game, and Randy Arozarena pounced on a first-pitch curveball for a double – also mishandled by Carlos Cortes in the outfield, allowing Naylor to score. How fun when it’s not the Mariners making defensive miscues and instead punishing other teams for theirs.
Civale then tried to get a first-pitch cutter past Luke Raley, who intercepted the pitch at the bottom of the zone and squeaked it over the right field fence to double up the Mariners lead – “squeaking” not being a way we’re used to referring to Raley homers, but we’ll take it. Cole Young followed that up by doubling on a splitter, poking it down the right field line, and then Dom Canzone saw a first-pitch fastball to his liking for a decisive homer to right-center, opening up a 6-0 advantage.
It’s a good thing the Mariners built Castillo that cushion because the bottom of the third started with some patented Sutter Home Park Silliness as nine-hole hitter Darell Hernaiz got a leadoff “double” on a ball that first got grabbed by the wind and then bounced in the outfield like an eight year old at a trampoline park birthday party. Castillo, to his credit, cleaned things up and didn’t let that runner score. Carlos Cortes, who is Annoying, hit a ball hard but not home run distance, enough to move Hernaiz to third. Castillo then pitched carefully to Nick Kurtz, walking him, but was able to attack the other head of the monster in Shea Langeliers, getting him to expand off the plate for a swinging strike three on a fastball. He then got Brent Rooker on three pitches, none of which were on the plate, as Rooker continues on a rough start to the season.
In the fourth, J.P. Crawford accidentally made himself the story of the inning, hitting a solo shot to make it 7-0 but throwing the ball away on what should have been an easy groundout to open the bottom of the inning. Once again, Castillo was forced into cleanup duty, striking out rookie centerfielder Henry Bolte looking, getting my personal enemy Jeff McNeil to pop out, and then striking out Zack Gelof looking on a pitch that was probably outside a hair but since the A’s were already down to one challenge, went unchallenged.
The Mariners’ early onslaught of runs forced the A’s into their own piggyback situation, bringing out Jack Perkins as their own second starter, but the real storyline here wasn’t on the field but in the Mariners dugout, as Dan Wilson was seen deep in conversation with Luis Castillo, who looked visibly displeased to be told he would be departing the game in order for Bryce Miller to come in. Considering Luis defeated the A’s hitters, the haunted tuna can of Sutter Health Park, the wind, and his own infield defense, it seems only fair he’d be given a win for that outing. But with the lineup turning over, Wilson opted to go to Miller.
Miller, presenting a completely different set of looks to the A’s hitters, was able to work the back five of the game, allowing Dan Wilson to keep his bullpen in bubble wrap for another day. A brief moment here to also appreciate catcher Jhonny Pereda, who had to prepare for two different starters in this game with two vastly different arsenals.- during Miller’s first hitter Pereda had to burn a mound visit after Miller shook him three times in succession – but guided his two starters through the game. Miller came out throwing hard although slightly less hard than his last outing, touching 98.2 in his first inning of work before settling in at 96.5. The standout for Miller today was his splitter, which looked sharper than his last outing; three of his four strikeouts were on the pitch. Miller was also mostly successful throwing his slider, although he did hang one to Langeliers for a homer for the A’s first run of the day in the eighth.
But Randy Arozarena got that run back plus one, finally getting to Perkins in the ninth with two outs, scoring Naylor, on base with a Naylor Special (a base hit to left off a pitch up and away).
The A’s would claw one more back off Miller off a couple of objectively stupid hits as the A’s were in swing mode down big in the ninth. Tyler Soderstrom led off with a double on a curve that he didn’t hit so much as vaudeville hook into left, then advanced to third on an infield hit. A run did score when Jeff McNeil grounded into a double play – niftily handled by Naylor, who managed to both tag speedy rookie Henry Bolte and touch first before McNeil creaked his way down there, setting up a game-ending strikeout of Zach Gelof. Since Miller didn’t get the glamor of being the opener this time, we’ll give him the honor of closing out the recap – just don’t look too carefully at the win dance, which is a little messy; appropriate, given the situation.
The Cleveland Cavaliers' season is over. A sweep in the Eastern Conference finals at the hands of the New York Knicks — capped off by a 37-point loss on their home floor, no less — is almost sure to bring a new level of scrutiny to a core that, while talented, has faltered time and time again in the playoffs.
One of the biggest questions facing the Cavs this summer will be James Harden and his impending $42.3 milion player option. But Harden, Cleveland's prized midseason acquisition, has already publicly said he's on board with coming back.
“Yes, 100%, definitely to both,” Harden told reporters after Game 4 when asked if he wants and expects to be in Cleveland next season. “Definitely want to be here. It’s tough ending it not how we wanted to, but I think we found something.”
A slow start to this season led to a blockbuster trade for James Harden from the Los Angeles Clippers at the deadline in February in exchange for point guard Darius Garland and a second-round draft pick. Harden, an 11-time All-Star, averaged 20.5 points, 7.7 assists and 4.8 rebounds in 26 regular season games with the Cavaliers but struggled down the stretch in the playoffs, something that has reared its head before in Harden's career.
In the four games against the Knicks this series, Harden failed to reach 20 points once. His statline in the decisive Game 4 was as flat as the energy the Cavs as a whole played with: 12 points on 2-of-8 shooting, four rebounds, two assists and five turnovers.
James Harden was asked if the Knicks were better than the Cavaliers
"It was 4-0, but I don't think we had a chance as far as our best shot. They dominated us 4-0. but I don't know if I can necessarily answer that question. Because genuinely I do feel like we're the better team" pic.twitter.com/8CAMItRK2H
The blame didn't solely lie on Harden; the Cavaliers in general were outplayed and outclassed across the board in such a way that's sure to invite questions about this team's roster going forward.
But Harden made it a point to answer one of those questions early. So did Donovan Mitchell.
“I love it here,” Mitchell said after the game. “I don’t know how else to say it. I said it before I signed the other extension: I love it here. I have no doubt this group can get there. But reports are going to be reports and people are going to be people. I’ll say the same thing: we have unfinished business."
Mitchell's situation is a bit different as he's under contract through next season and has a player option for 2027-28. He is, however, eligible for an extension this offseason and if he doesn't look to re-sign, there's speculation that the Cavs could be open to trading him.
Cleveland has become a home for Mitchell since arriving from the Utah Jazz in the summer of 2022. He's been the face of their post-LeBron era since and after getting the Cavs to their furthest point since 2018, the seven-time All-Star is determined to see it through.
“It was great energy to see in the city when we got to the conference finals. Just to feel that, it was amazing," Mitchell said. "That’s why getting swept like this sucks because even driving in, people were going crazy. I love that. I love that about this place. The city deserves a ring and we just got to keep going.”
In this week’s Injury Report, the Blue Jays lose Dylan Cease for at least the next two weeks with a hamstring strain. Cole Ragans will shut things down after suffering a setback in his last rehab outing. And Logan Webb appears on track to return by this weekend. All that and more as we look into all the latest relevant injury news around baseball.
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Dylan Cease (hamstring)
Cease’s start against the Pirates was cut short on Sunday as he departed in the fifth inning with left hamstring discomfort. The team placed him on the 15-day injured list on Monday with a left hamstring strain, sidelining him for at least the next two weeks. There’s no clear timeline yet, but the hope is that Cease will be ready to return when first eligible in early June.
Ragans made a rehab start with Triple-A Omaha on Saturday, giving up one run over 4 1/3 innings while reaching 68 pitches. While he pitched well, manager Matt Quatraro told reporters he “didn’t bounce back well” following the outing. Ragans is apparently feeling the same elbow discomfort that landed him on the injured list. He’ll be shut down from throwing for a few days before he’s reevaluated. It’s not the most promising development, but we hope to learn more about Ragans’ status by the end of the week.
Hunter Brown (shoulder)
We got more encouraging news regarding Brown, who responded well enough in his last batting practice session to begin a rehab assignment. He made a start with Double-A Corpus Cristi on Sunday, striking out five over two scoreless innings. Brown reached 35 pitches and reportedly hit 98 mph on the fastball. The 27-year-old right-hander needs a couple more rehab outings to build up his pitch count, the next of which will come with Triple-A Sugar Land. Barring any setbacks, he appears on track to return in early to mid June.
Lourdes Gurriel Jr. (hamstring)
Gurriel was removed from Friday’s game against the Rockies with left hamstring tightness and was initially considered day-to-day. The team opted to give him a full ten days to recover, putting him on the 10-day injured list. Manager Torey Lovullo stated the hope is to get him back after the minimum stay. The 32-year-old outfielder is slashing .228/.284/.304 with one homer, seven runs scored, 11 RBI, and one steal across 102 plate appearances. Tommy Troy was recalled to take his place on the roster. Troy is one of the team’s top prospects. He’ll have a week and a half to make an impression after posting an .846 OPS with three homers and six steals over 44 games at Triple-A Reno.
Max Muncy (wrist)
Muncy was removed from Friday’s game against the Brewers after he was hit by a pitch on the right wrist. X-rays came back negative for any fractures, but he’s sat out the three games since. The 35-year-old slugger avoided serious injury, but the team is giving him the extra time off as a precaution. Expect him back in the lineup by Wednesday’s game against the Rockies.
Wyatt Langford (forearm)
Langford was cleared to resume hitting on Monday and took batting practice before the team’s game against the Astros. The hope is that he’ll take live at-bats on Friday and begin a minor league rehab assignment over the weekend. Langford indicated on Monday that he is feeling better now than he did the last time he ramped up baseball activities. An optimistic timeline probably puts him back in the Rangers’ lineup at the start of June.
Spencer Schwellenbach (elbow)
Schwellenbach has finally been cleared to begin a throwing progression, starting with tossing from flat ground for a couple of weeks before moving on to bullpen sessions. It’s the early stages of the ramp-up process following surgery in mid-February to remove bone spurs from his pitching elbow. The 25-year-old right-hander is expected to be an option for the Braves’ rotation in the second half of the season.
Garrett Crochet (shoulder)
Crochet is scheduled to face hitters in a live batting practice session on Tuesday after checking out fine following a couple of bullpen sessions. As long as there aren’t any setbacks, the next step would likely be a minor league rehab start before rejoining the Red Sox rotation. Crochet has been out since April 29 with left shoulder inflammation.
Logan Webb (knee)
Webb, out since May 6 with right knee bursitis, made a rehab start with Triple-A Sacramento on Friday. He tossed 62 pitches over 3 1/3 scoreless innings. Manager Tony Vitello said the 29-year-old right-hander could return to the Giants’ rotation sometime this weekend against the Rockies in Colorado. His activation from the injured list likely boots Trevor McDonald from the rotation.
Shane Bieber (elbow)
Bieber has been sidelined all season with elbow inflammation that delayed his ramp up process in spring training. He’s been brought along slowly, finally making his first rehab start in the Rookie-level Florida Complex League on Monday. Bieber struck out three over two scoreless innings. The 30-year-old right-hander will need at least a few more weeks of rehab outings to build up before he’s ready to join the Blue Jays' rotation in the next month.
Francisco Alvarez (knee)
Alvarez underwent surgery to repair a torn meniscus in his right knee just two weeks ago, with a 6-8 week timeline to return. He’s apparently well ahead of schedule as manager Carlos Mendoza reported on Monday that the 24-year-old backstop has already resumed hitting. It seems there’s a chance Alvarez could at least meet the short end of his timeline and return before the end of June.
Francisco Lindor (calf)
The Alvarez update wasn’t the only good news for the Mets. Mendoza told reporters on Monday that Lindor has begun a running program and resumed baseball activities. He’s been sidelined for over a month with a left calf strain. While Monday’s update was the most positive news yet, he’ll likely also need a rehab assignment once he’s ready for game action after his lengthy absence.
SACRAMENTO, CALIFORNIA - MAY 25: Aaron Civale #45 of the Athletics pitches in the top of the first inning against the Seattle Mariners at Sutter Health Park on May 25, 2026 in Sacramento, California. (Photo by Lachlan Cunningham/Getty Images) | Getty Images
The A’s had no answers for the Mariners tonight as the team came up helpless on their Holiday evening, dropping the first game of the series. Time to get back to winning.
You can make the case that no team in NBA history has played better basketball over an 11-game stretch than the New York Knicks are playing right now.
They are just the fifth team to win 11 consecutive games in a single postseason, and their point differential of +262 is the highest for over any 11-game span, regular season or playoffs.
All that said: can they actually win the NBA Finals?
The Spurs and Thunder are each formidable, yes, and popular convention is that the winner of the West will be the eventual champion. But do not overlook this Knicks team; it can absolutely win a title.
New York can score, defend and has plenty of depth, all of which are necessary in an NBA Finals.
New York has been bulldozing through its opponents, and can kindle on offense. From asking captain Jalen Brunson to anchor scoring, to playing through Karl-Anthony Towns as a point-center, to sprinting out in transition, the malleable Knicks are built to compete with San Antonio and Oklahoma City and can adjust on the fly to either.
“Our group, they’re playing good basketball, and they’re doing it in different ways,” Knicks coach Mike Brown told reporters after Game 4. “They’re doing it differently, depending on who our opponent is. When you show that type of versatility on both ends of the floor, it just adds to your belief.”
Throughout the Eastern Conference finals, the Knicks shot 38.1% from 3-point range, sinking 53 made triples.
Eastern Conference finals MVP Jalen Brunson dropped 38 points in Game 1, sparking an improbable 22-point fourth quarter comeback. Against the Cavs, Brunson averaged 25.5 points on 47.8% shooting.
Against the defenses of the Spurs or Thunder, that offensive versatility will be crucial because either opponent would easily be the toughest test New York will face this postseason.
New York, on the other end of the floor, is smothering opponents with its defense, led by the trio of OG Anunoby, Josh Hart and Mikal Bridges. The group allows for flexibility, since New York can switch pick-and-rolls with all three.
Similarly, the versatile trio can alter their assignments to be matchup-dependent. Hart is comfortable guarding Hawks All-NBA third-team forward Jalen Johnson just like he is Cavs center Jarrett Allen. Bridges can clamp down Sixers All-NBA third-team guard Tyrese Maxey and Anunoby, an NBA All-Defensive second-team selection, is the best of the bunch.
The Knicks forced the Cavaliers to commit 66 turnovers in the East finals and posted a +16 in turnover differential across the four games in the series.
During the regular season, the Thunder ranked second in the NBA in turnovers committed per game (12.6) and the Spurs ranked fourth (13.5), so those active hands and deflections will be essential in gaining an edge.
And coming off the bench, Mitchell Robinson, Miles McBride, Landry Shamet and Jose Alvarado have each embraced their roles.
Robinson is a defensive spark. McBride is a 3-point sniper. Shamet does a little bit of everything and Alvarado might be the most annoying defender, aside from Thunder guard Luguentz Dort.
With 7:47 left to play in Game 4 on Monday night, with the lead so lopsided that Knicks coach Mike Brown emptied his bench, New York held a 39-7 edge in bench points.
The Thunder are the deepest team in the NBA. The Spurs aren’t too far behind.
But one area where the Knicks will carry an edge into the Finals is rest and freshness. The Spurs and Thunder are tied at two games apiece and this series, at a minimum, will span two more games and will finish Thursday, May 28, at the earliest. The series, frankly, looks like one that’s headed for seven.
“This team is hungry, and that’s the most important thing,” Towns told reporters after the game. “Even with an amazing, historical win we had tonight, the celebrations were minimal. We really want to get back to work. We asked coach if we could get back to work quick. We knew what happened last time when we had a long layoff, so we already talked after the game about preparing.”
It has been 53 years since the New York Knicks won an NBA championship. This is the mentality it takes to win one.
Yankees pitcher Max Fried reacts on the mound during a May 3 start.
KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Max Fried was feeling good enough to start playing catch Monday, the first time he has done so since being shut down with a left elbow bone bruise 10 days ago.
But Aaron Boone pumped the brakes on it being anything more than that, as recent imaging of the left-hander’s elbow evidently did not show enough healing to allow him to begin building back up yet.
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“There’s nothing really that would say he can start the ramp-up process yet,” Boone said before the Yankees beat the Royals 4-3 in the series opener at Kauffman Stadium.
Essentially, Fried is able to keep his arm moving by playing some light catch but is not yet ready to throw with the kind of intensity that would test the injury he is dealing with.
“Don’t read too far into that,” Boone said. “He’s been doing plyos and stuff. He’s had a pretty good week overall as far as symptoms and feeling pretty good and responding to everything pretty well. But he’s not at a point to where we can start ramping him up yet.”
When Fried was originally diagnosed with the injury May 15, the Yankees said he would get more imaging “in a few weeks [or when asymptomatic] to further determine when Fried can resume throwing.”
Yankees pitcher Max Fried reacts on the mound during a May 3 start. JASON SZENES FOR THE NEW YORK POST
Carlos Rodón is expected to start Friday’s series opener against the Athletics after he was pushed back a few days — after Saturday’s rainout — to allow Gerrit Cole to start on his regular fifth day Wednesday. The Yankees have an off-day Thursday and another Monday, so they wanted Cole to pitch on his fifth day this turn before going on his seventh the next time through. Rodón, who threw a bullpen session Monday, will be starting on his eighth day Friday before going on his sixth day the next time.
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Giancarlo Stanton is set to undergo another round of imaging on his right calf Tuesday to determine whether his strain has healed enough to start a running progression.
“I think he was actually going outside to do some of his agility stuff today,” Boone said. “Hopefully, with the next round of imaging, we’re in a position to start ramping up the running.”
Clarke Schmidt will move his rehab from Tommy John surgery up to New York next week after spending the first two months of the season doing so in Tampa. The right-hander, who could become a factor in the second half, has been throwing bullpen sessions but has not yet faced hitters.
LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA - MAY 25: Shohei Ohtani #17 of the Los Angeles Dodgers reacts after a double during the first inning against the Colorado Rockies at Dodger Stadium on May 25, 2026 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Katelyn Mulcahy/Getty Images) | Getty Images
The Colorado Rockies had a 3-1 when the fans at Dodger Stadium sang “Take Me Out to the Ballgame,” but the two-run cushion didn’t turn out to be enough on Monday night.
The bullpen surrendered four runs in the bottom of the seventh, erasing a solid start from Tanner Gordon, who reduced his ERA to 5.85 after only giving up one run in five innings of work.
While Ezequiel Tovar hit his second homer of the season, the Rockies biggest offensive stat was their 12 strikeouts. Colorado dropped its third straight to fall to 20-35, while the NL West-best Los Angeles Dodgers improved to 34-20.
Gordon gets back on track
Even though the Dodgers had a lot of traffic against Gordon, the 28-year-old found ways out of jams with routine flyballs and other easy outs. Los Angeles saw the leadoff hitter reach base in four of five innings — and two of those were doubles — but Gordon held the Dodgers to a 1-for-9 RISP and stranded five runners.
Despite giving up a double to Shohei Ohtani in his first at-bat, Gordon settled in, striking out three in the first two innings. The Dodgers then struck first in the third when Hyeseong Kim led off with a single and scored when Kiké Hernández doubled in his first at-bat of 2026 after returning from elbow surgery. It looked like it might be a long inning when Gordon walked Ohtani, but Gordon prevented the worst. He got Mookie Betts to fly out, and then Freddie Freeman hit into a double play to keep it at 1-0 L.A.
That was all the Dodgers could get out of Gordon. After five innings, he kept L.A. to one run on six hits with three strikeouts and no walks to give the Rockies a chance. His strikeouts came against Kyle Tucker, Teoscar Hernandez and Freeman.
“I thought TG was fantastic tonight — just attacking the strike zone, getting out of jams a couple times, he didn’t waiver,” Rockies manager Warren Schaeffer said after the game. “He was fantastic in his start tonight.”
Bullpen falters with debut exception
Juan Mejia entered the game in relief for the Rockies in the sixth inning and sent the Dodgers down in order.
But it all fell apart in the seventh. Mejia walked the first two batters to get the hook from Schaeffer.
Brennan Bernardino then came in and — immediately — it got worse when he hit Miguel Rojas to load the bases. It seemed like the Rockies might avoid a big inning when Ohtani grounded into a fielder’s choice and Betts added a sac fly to tie the game. But then Freeman hit a double to score Ohtani and put the Dodgers up 4-3.
“Just a couple of hiccups in the bullpen tonight,” Schaeffer said. “Juan was really good in the sixth. Then the walk-walk to lead off the inning is just — late in the game against a good team in their yard, that’s just not going to work.”
Jaden Hill then entered the game and didn’t fare much better. He surrendered a single to Andy Pages, and L.A. increased its lead to 5-3. The inning finally ended when Hill got Kyle Tucker to line out to Johnston in left field.
Schaeffer said the best way to respond is to just send Hill and Bernardino back out again because that’s how baseball goes.
“Sometimes that happens. We are learning not to do that and turn those 1-to-2-run games into victories,” Schaeffer said. “We know what it takes, and it’s just a matter of time. Tomorrow, we look to flip the script on them.”
In the eighth, Welinton Herrera made a perfect MLB debut. Called up just earlier in the day, the 22-year-old from the Dominican Republic got Teoscar Hernandez to ground out on his first MLB pitch. He then retired Will Smith on a fly ball and Kim on a ground out.
“That’s pretty much the biggest stage you can make your debut on, Dodger Stadium,” Schaeffer said. “I am extremely happy for him that he got in there and got the first one out of the way. He attacked the strike zone and didn’t look nervous a bit. I am sure he was, but he didn’t look it.”
Rockies strike in 4th, Tovar breaks HR drought
The Rockies responded to a 1-0 deficit in the third by taking the lead in the fourth. Tyler Freeman started off the inning with a double and moved to third when Troy Johnston hit a comebacker off Emmet Sheehan’s arm that bounced into foul territory over the first baseline.
Willi Castro capitalized with a single to tie the game.
Tovar struck again in the seventh with his second homer of the year. The 431-foot shot to left-center field was more than just an insurance run. It helped Tovar snap a streak of 187 plate appearances without a homer, the longest slump of his career.
“Tovi was good. He keeps progressing,” Schaeffer said. “People who watch every day, I hope they see how hard he is trying to make adjustments, and it’s paying off.”
The dinger off Kyle Hurt was also the first run given up by the Dodgers bullpen in 11 games (37 innings), which was the Dodgers longest streak in franchise history.
Outside of the fourth and the seventh, the Rockies offense couldn’t do much against L.A. They were held to seven hits. Hunter Goodman struck out three times and was part of the Rockies No. 1, 2 and 3 hitters who went 0-for-10 in the game. Castro and Tovar each recorded two hits.
In more bad news on the injury front, TJ Rumfield was hit by a pitch in the right hand in the first inning. He was forced to leave the game and was replaced by Edouard Julien, who went 0-for-2 with a strikeout and walk. After the game, Schaeffer delivered good news that the X-rays came back negative.
Up Next
The Rockies and Dodgers will face off again on Tuesday at 8:10 p.m. MDT. Colorado’s Kyle Freeland (1-5, 7.04 ERA) will match up against Eric Lauer (1-5, 6.69 ERA).
Dodgers third baseman Kiké Hernández rounds the bases during the fifth inning of Monday's game against the Colorado Rockies. (Eric Thayer / Los Angeles Times)
In his first big-league game back since Game 7 of the World Series, Kiké Hernández received playoff-level cheers at Dodger Stadium on Monday night, nearly drowning out his walk-up song as he stepped into the batter’s box against the Rockies in the bottom of the third inning. Some fans tipped their hats. Others joined the rising “Kiké!” chants.
After taking a ball, Hernández sent a four-seam fastball hopping down the left-field line for an RBI double that scored Hyeseong Kim. The crowd of 48,778 exploded.
It was shaping up to be a happy return, but it wasn’t until the seventh inning that the rest of the Dodgers lineup found its footing, taking advantage of some shaky relief pitching to rally for a 5-3 victory over the Colorado Rockies.
Hernández reached on an infield single in his second at-bat before being lifted for a pinch-hitter as the Dodgers began to rally in the seventh.
Hernández’s journey back to the big leagues has been an arduous one. Throughout his two-month stint last year on the injured list, he received seven injections in his left elbow. None worked.
A procedure by Dr. Neal ElAttrache helped numb the pain, but it came roaring back when the 34-year-old dove for a ball in Game 3 of the National League Championship Series against the Brewers.
“Every time I would get in my batting stance, I would feel like I had a blowtorch on, and it was kind of frustrating because there was not much we could do for it,” Hernández said before the game.
Hernández had made peace with his injury, given he was able to push through to a World Series win with little time to heal. After the season, Hernández had surgery on the elbow, not knowing the damage or the timeline for return.
When he woke, still a little delirious, ElAttrache told him the news: “This was the worst injury I’ve ever seen of this kind, and I don’t know how you played,” Hernández recalled him saying.
Hernández then FaceTimed Dodgers president of baseball operations Andrew Friedman.
“I told him, ‘ElAttrache, tell him what you just said,’” Hernández said, “I was like, ‘I did this for you, so you better bring me back.’”
Hernández signed a one-year, $4.5-million deal with the Dodgers in February, and began the process of starting over, relearning how to play baseball with a newly reattached left elbow.
In the process, he missed playing for Team Puerto Rico in the island territory where the team had been located in the group stages of the World Baseball Classic, what he called a “childhood dream.” He also missed spring training and opening day for the first time in his career. Still, he wouldn’t change a thing if given the opportunity.
“In a weird way, I would’ve rather missed the WBC and win a World Series than getting to fulfill a life dream of playing in Puerto Rico after losing a World Series,” Hernández said. “It was a fair trade.”
Hernández will play a mix of infield and a little bit of outfield, giving his teammates a chance to rest. Utility man Santiago Espinal, whom the Dodgers claimed on waivers and broke out in spring training, was designated for assignment to make room on the roster.
“Santiago was great for me, great for the team, and I think we were very forthright, up front, about the expectation, so I think he respected that,” Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said.
While Hernández found contact on each of his at-bats, the rest of the team sputtered through six innings. Rockies starter Tanner Gordon commanded his slider, throwing the pitch for strikes 74% of the time.
Trailing 3-1, the Dodgers (34-20) found their momentum in the seventh after Rockies reliever Juan Mejia walked two, and Brennan Bernardino, who replaced Mejia, hit pinch-hitter Miguel Rojas with a pitch.
Shohei Ohtani plated a run on a forceout, Mookie Betts drove in Kim on a sacrifice fly to tie the score and Freddie Freeman bounced a double off the right-field wall to drive in Ohtani. Andy Pages hit a looping ball to right-center off Jaden Hill, the third Rockies pitcher of the inning, to score Freeman and complete the Dodgers’ scoring.
“Fortunately we were victims of good fortune,” Roberts said. “ I think that allowing ourselves to build off that inning, and then we started getting some hits, which was great. It was good to see us show some life tonight.”
Dodgers first baseman Freddie Freeman rounds third base on his way home during the seventh inning of Monday's game. (Eric Thayer / Los Angeles Times)
Starter Emmet Sheehan ran into trouble when he gave up a ground-rule double to Tyler Freeman to lead off the fourth inning. Troy Johnston smacked a line drive on the next pitch that glanced off Sheehan’s right arm for an infield single. After Roberts and head athletic trainer Thomas Albert checked on Sheehan, the right-hander stayed in and gave up a run on a single to right field by Willi Castro to tie the score. Ezequiel Tovar put the Rockies ahead with a sacrifice fly to left field.
“I felt fine,” Sheehan said. “I knew it just caught muscle so stung in the moment, but it wasn’t anything to be worried about.”
Sheehan completed six innings, striking out eight and walking one.
“I gave him every opportunity,” Roberts said. “Thomas gave him every opportunity, but he wanted to stay in, and we took him at his word.”
Kyle Hurt, who eventually picked up the win, replaced him in the seventh and immediately surrendered a home run to Tovar on the second pitch of the at-bat to pad Colorado’s lead. The homer ended the bullpen’s franchise record of 38 consecutive scoreless innings set Sunday.
Will Klein pitched a scoreless eighth before Alex Vesia and Blake Treinen pitched the ninth, with Treinen picking up the save on a strikeout of Braxton Fulford.
“Kyle’s been great for us, and Tovar hit a changeup,” Roberts said. “ It was good to see Kyle come back and get that next hitter.”
Max Muncy Update
The Dodgers are hopeful for a Max Muncy return Wednesday after the swelling in his right wrist decreased. The 35-year-old was struck by a 95.5-mph slider on Friday. Initial X-rays were negative, and he hasn’t undergone more testing for the injury since. Roberts didn’t rule out a retroactive move to the injury list, though the team feels good about him avoiding it.
“He’s done better,” Roberts said before the game. “He’s a little less sore today. The swelling has dissipated.”
Roberts said after the game that Muncy was available if Rojas hadn’t been able to continue on after getting hit.
“I didn’t know how bad Miggy was, so I wanted to check in on Max to see if he could potentially go up and stand at third base,” Roberts said. “He was up for it, but fortunately we didn’t have to use that.”
Kike Hernandez had an RBI double in his Dodgers return.
First came the return. Then, a long-awaited rally.
On a night Kiké Hernández impressed in his season debut, the Dodgers did the same in just the nick of time.
Down two runs in the seventh inning on Monday, the team needed just two hits to surge to a 5-3 win over the Colorado Rockies, negating what had been a frustrating offensive performance with a four-run outburst.
The inning began with back-to-back walks from Rockies right-hander Juan Mejia. Lefty Brennan Bernardino then came in and plunked pinch-hitter Miguel Rojas with an 0-2 curveball.
Just like that, the Dodgers had the bases loaded with no outs. The top of their order was due up. And though they had gone 1-for-10 with runners in scoring position to that point of the contest, they finally found a way to push some runs across the plate.
Shohei Ohtani #17 and Andy Pages #44 of the Los Angeles Dodgers celebrate a run scored in to take the lead 4-3 after a double hit by teammate Freddie Freeman #5 during the seventh inning against the Colorado Rockies at Dodger Stadium on May 25, 2026 in Los Angeles, California. Getty Images
Shohei Ohtani trimmed a 3-1 deficit in half by beating out a potential double-play grounder at first. Mookie Betts then tied the score with a sacrifice fly to left field, hit just deep enough for speedy Hyeseong Kim to race home with a slide.
After that, the club at long last got some big hits to drop in. Freddie Freeman roped a double off the wall in right to push the Dodgers in front. Andy Pages collected his MLB-leading 46th RBI with an insurance-adding single in the next at-bat.
“I just don’t think our focus was where it needed to be early,” manager Dave Roberts said. “But what we’ve done all year is, seventh, eighth and ninth innings, we start kind of bearing down a little bit more.”
Indeed, the Dodgers had been desperate for such an inning.
Without it, contributions from two of the night’s other stars would have gone to waste.
Hernández went 2-for-2 in his first game back from offseason elbow surgery, getting a loud ovation before his first at-bat –– then an even louder one when he lined an RBI double down the third-base line to open the scoring in the bottom of the third.
“I felt tonight was good to have him in the game, get him a start,” Roberts said. “I thought he was going to bring some energy, just obviously having (not) played for a while. And did bring that, got a big hit for us.”
Starting pitcher Emmet Sheehan also gutted through a six-inning, two-run, eight-strikeout start. Both runs came in the fourth inning, after Sheehan was drilled in his upper right arm by a 103.8 mph comebacker. But he went on to retire eight of his final nine, after twice convincing Roberts and head athletic trainer Thomas Albert he was OK to stay in during visits to the mound.
“He’s just a good competitor,” Roberts said. “This was his day and he wasn’t about to come out of that game.”
That all kept the Dodgers in striking distance just long enough, allowing their offense to finally capitalize on a golden opportunity late.
“Fortunately, we were kind of [the beneficiaries] of good fortune, allowing ourselves to build that inning,” Roberts said. “We started getting some hits, which was great. It was good to see us show some life tonight.”
What it means
The Dodgers (34-20) are still hot.
Fresh off an impressive 7-2 road trip, and having won nine of their previous 11 games overall, the club stayed in the win column Monday by picking up their 18th come-from-behind victory already this season. In the seventh inning or later, they led MLB in OPS and rank third in batting average.
It also helped continue a recent stretch in which the Dodgers have produced more consistently. Monday was their eighth time in the last 12 games scoring at least five. On the year, they are back up to third in the majors in scoring.
Who’s hot
Hernández had waited two long months to reach Monday night, after opening the season on the 60-day injured list while recovering from his offseason surgery.
So in his first at-bat, he didn’t hesitate to be aggressive, jumping on the second pitch he saw from Rockies’ right-hander Tanner Gordon for his RBI double on a 100.6 mph grounder.
Kike Hernandez had an RBI double in his Dodgers return. AP Photo/Jessie Alcheh
Hernández would get another hit in his next trip to the plate, chopping an infield single in the fifth that was misplayed by Rockies third baseman Kyle Karros.
He was only removed when the Dodgers did some strategic pinch-hitting in his spot in the seventh –– initially calling upon Dalton Rushing to get the left-handed Bernardino in the game, before pivoting to Rojas in the at-bat that loaded the bases.
“You’re so excited to get back, [a lot of guys in that situation are] trying to do too much,” Roberts said. “There’s a lot of emotion, adrenaline, anticipation. That’s probably the thing you got to guard against. But he did a good job of managing those emotions.”
Who’s not
The Dodgers’ bullpen, but only barely.
After setting a franchise record by combining for 38 consecutive scoreless innings dating back to May 12, the team’s relief corps finally faltered for the first time in almost two full weeks Monday.
In the top of the seventh, the first man out of the bullpen, right-hander Kyle Hurt, gave up a home run to the first batter he faced, Rockies shortstop Ezequiel Tovar.
With that, the Dodgers’ bullpen streak ended 7 ⅔ innings shy of the all-time MLB record. It went down as the longest such run by any team since Cleveland in 2017.
“All good things are meant to come to an end,” Roberts joked. “and “We’ll start another one.”
Indeed, the unit bounced back once the Dodgers went in front. Will Klein retired the side in order in the eighth, which was puncuated by a 100.5 mph fastball. Alex Vesia and Blake Treinen combined for three outs in the ninth, with Treinen collecting his first save this year.
Up next
The series continues on Tuesday, when Eric Lauer will make his Dodgers debut after being acquired in a trade with the Toronto Blue Jays last week. He’ll face off against fellow left-hander Kyle Freeland (1-5, 7.04 ERA).
Veteran batting great Virat Kohli and 15-year-old Vaibhav Sooryavanshi will be in the spotlight as the T20 Indian Premier League spans the generations in the playoffs beginning on Wednesday morning AEST.
HOUSTON, TEXAS - MARCH 28: Bennett Stirtz #14 of the Iowa Hawkeyes dribbles against Kylan Boswell #4 of the Illinois Fighting Illini during the second half in the Elite Eight of the 2026 NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament at Toyota Center on March 28, 2026 in Houston, Texas. (Photo by Kenneth Richmond/Getty Images) | Getty Images
I know what you’re thinking, and you’re right – Bennett Stirtz is definitely not one of the Big 3 prospects that the Jazz need to consider with their 2nd overall pick. However, players with Stirtz’s combination of ball handling, shooting versatility, and awareness don’t come around often, and deserve to be scouted in the event that the Jazz fall in love and decide to trade into the later half of the first round. You can count on the Iowa guard to consistently make the correct decisions, and he has the skills to then capitalize on the advantages he created. However, analyzing Stirtz is more complicated than the simple reading of his talents would indicate. His coach at Iowa, Ben McCollum, coached a style of play so unlike anything Stirtz will encounter at the next level, that it takes some real work to understand whether or not Stirtz will be able to provide anything close to his impressive collegiate production.
What Stirtz is good at, he is really good at. His shooting provides a skill that he’ll be able to hang his hat on in the NBA, and his aptitude in this regard far exceeds the raw counting stats. While his near 40% clip from downtown in his junior year at Drake better represents the level of shooting prospect that Stirtz is, no stat can properly quantify the otherworldly touch Stirtz has on his shot. His attempts are often remarkably difficult – with very few other ballhandlers or offensive options on the team, a difficult Stirtz jumper was often the most efficient look for the Hawkeyes. His shot is stable in all sorts of circumstances – against type coverage, off of movement, or after a step-back, and a Stirtz look still feels like it’s going in. Due to the unique construction of the Iowa offense, Stirtz shot off-the-dribble jumpers at 97.4 percentile frequency, and somehow maintained elite efficiency despite that heavy offensive load: 83.7 percentile efficiency during his senior season. Simply put, if you need someone to take a shot at the end of the shot clock, Stirtz is one of the best choices in the class. Naturally, he’s even more efficient on catch-and-shoot shots – his efficiency in this play-type was in the 89.5th percentile. However, due to Iowa’s heavy dependance on their star guard, these shots were not a huge part of his offensive diet, with his frequency being in the 29.7th percentile. There isn’t a roster in the NBA that would rely on Stirtz to the same extent that Iowa did, so it’s easy to expect for his overally efficiency to increase as his difficult shot diet of off-the-dribble looks are replaced with his more effective catch-and-shoot opportunities.
However, even if Stirtz is used more off of the ball in the NBA, it would be a waste of his talents to not let him utilize perhaps his defining skill – in my opinion, Stirtz is the best pick-and-roll operator in this draft class. While he lacks the dynamic speed necessary to take advantage of switches, his understanding of angles, timing, and positioning combined with an exceptionally functional handle and his aforementioned shooting touch allowed him to spearhead consistent offensive production, even without high level offensive teammates. Once again, his assist numbers undersell his talent as a passer. While not outstanding in this regard, his vision and accuracy are sound and versatile – if a teammate becomes open as a result of his pick-and-roll probing, it’s likely that he will recognize this and capitalize. And, if he is the one that the defense sags off of, he is a threat to score from all 3 levels, with his rim finishing (70% efficiency) being perhaps his most underrated trait.
No matter the type of offense he is asked to participate in at the next level, Stirtz will be a solid contributor because he simply knows how basketball works. He moves instinctively off of the ball, he understands when to shoot, and he knows when to make the extra pass – basketball comes easy to Bennett, and so I struggle to see a world where Stirtz is not a key cog in a team that wins games. He’s a cerebral player, and that is evident in nearly every aspect of his game.
A smaller skill but an important one – Stirtz has my vote as the player with the most stamina in the draft class. This past season, he played 37.7 minutes per game, and for each of those minutes the entire opposing defense was honing in on him. He’s a true endurance runner, and I would be fascinated to see how that skill is utilized in the NBA where he won’t be playing every minute of every game as the only offensive option. A unimportant but fun fact; in conference play in 2024-2025, Stirtz pulled a Wilt Chamberlain and averaged 40.3 minutes per game, which is more than the amount of minutes in regulation – he literally never came off the court.
Weaknesses
With that offensive profile, we can be sure that it isn’t talent that is limiting Stirtz’s high-end upside. Unfortunately, Stirtz’s athleticism can sometimes impede his productivity on both ends of the court. He isn’t immobile or ground bound by any means, but he does lack the strength of a Darius Acuff, the vertical pop of a Mikel Brown, and the end-to-end speed of an Ebuka Okorie. While his shooting projection is solid, it’s worrying how much he had to rely on difficult jumpers. This is a symptom of lacking top-end speed or quickness – without being able to separate consistently from his defender, he is sometimes forced to settle for contested shots. He’s exceptionally skilled at those shots, but no one is so skilled as to make these shots more efficient than an open jumper or attempt at the rim. While I still have high hopes in his offensive projection, his highest-end upside is certainly constrained due to his lack of dominant physical traits.
This athleticism deficiency extends to the defensive end as well, although the analysis on his translation is once again made difficult due to his unique collegiate situation. He isn’t a glaring negative like Acuff was this year – he moves his feet well and knows where to be – but you wouldn’t mistake him for a defensive difference-maker either. He was often stationed on the least intimidating offensive option and recuperated in the corner while watching the action go on around him. However, in especially pivotal moments, he showcased some high level processing and quick hands. You would hope that once he reaches the NBA and shoulders a less all-encompassing offensive load that he would be able to maintain that higher-level defensive production, but expecting him to be anything more than a net-neutral in a playoff context is unrealistic.
While concerns about age are sometimes overblown – if a guy can play, he can play – it is worth mentioning that Stirtz is about 3 years older than many of his peers in the 2026 guard class. At this moment, I think Stirtz is a better basketball player than any non-Darry Peterson guard in the draft, and that he has accessible areas of improvement, but his overall room for growth is lower than some of his younger counterparts.
Conclusion/Fit on the Jazz
For all watching the playoffs, it is clear that the Jazz need additional ball-handlers. The Spurs and Thunders have an abundance of riches in regards to their stalwart perimeter defenders, and once the postseason comes around, those defenders are allowed to be more physical than ever. While a projected starting lineup of Keyonte, Peterson, Markkanen, Jackson Jr., and Kessler is intriguing for a number of reasons, that is a lot of playmaking burden resting on George’s shoulders – I would say that lineup features 2 good dribblers and 1 good passer, and it’s not like all of these high-level creators are sitting on the bench either. Bennett Stirtz would provide much needed offensive resilience for when the going gets tough, with his enviable combination of on-ball creation (likely relegated to his minutes with the bench) and off-ball savvy (more useful when playing alongside Keyonte or our pick at #2). Think of all of the strong off-ball options that the Jazz already have – they will be given so many more opportunities for success with another strong passer on the roster who can fit with the singular strong passer we already have (Keyonte George). No matter who we draft at 2 or pick up in free agency, our offense will be able to make room for Stirtz because he’s just good enough at everything. Need a pick-and-roll partner with Kessler? Stirtz is your guy. A movement shooter to capitalize off of Markkanen collapsing the defense? You can count on Bennett. A cog in the blender, or a late-shot clock creator, or a recipient of Nurkic’s top-of-the-key passes? While he won’t replicate the huge offensive usage of his time at Iowa, Stirtz can do all of these plays and more. He won’t be fixing any of our defensive issues on the perimeter, but with a more subdued offensive load and two huge safety nets in the paint, we can hope that he won’t be a complete sieve on that end. Stirtz is a player I would’ve been happy to take at 8 had the Jazz slipped in the lottery, but now could be an elite value play for the Jazz to make a move for in the later half of the first round.
Current Draft Projections (most recent big board/mock draft)
No Ceilings: 18
ESPN: 19
Bleacher Report: 21
CBS Sports: 18
ClutchPoints: 23
What would be some feasible ways to attain Bennett Stirtz? There are two options that immediately come to mind. There are reports that the Thunder are planning to wheel and deal with their 4 picks – they simply don’t have the roster spots to keep them all. Would they be interested in a future pick for #17, in the name of continuing to spread their wealth of assets into the future? Another team that comes to mind is the Detroit Pistons, currently sitting at #21. This seems to be near the back-end of Stirtz’s draft range, but if the Jazz feel like they can get their guy at this spot, I would suggest calling with an offer of their choice of bench piece (Svi and Filipowski in particular could be interesting to Detroit) along with a less-valuable draft pick than the one we would offer to OKC. If I were Detroit, I’d be happy to snatch up Stirtz myself, but after a disappointing postseason run as the #1 seed, I could see there being pressure coming from the top to shore up the rotation with win-now moves.
Is Stirtz a draft sleeper that you would want the Jazz to acquire? What are some trades you can put together to sneak the Jazz into the back-half of the first round? Let me know in the comments!
Eric Samulski
James Schiano
