Ex-Grizzlie De'Anthony Melton says Warriors had no business winning 2022 title originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area

SAN FRANCISCO – As an opponent in May 2022, De’Anthony Melton had a microscopic view of the Warriors’ last championship team. Now that he is on their payroll, he’s comfortable going public with what many have whispered for 3.5 years.

“In ‘22, they had no business winning the championship,” Melton, then with the Memphis Grizzlies, said during a guest appearance on the “Dubs Talk” podcast, which debuted Friday. “They had no business there. There were so many teams better than them. But they just fought. They just willed their way. And everybody played, they played their role.”

Melton is not alone in that reaction. Former Golden State general manager Bob Myers admitted nobody saw it coming. Coach Steve Kerr says the ’22 NBA Finals win over the Boston Celtics was a case of coming together at the right time – and having Stephen Curry.

The Warriors entered the 2022 playoffs as the No. 3 seed in the Western Conference, with a 53-29 record. The Grizzlies finished at 56-26 to earn the No. 2 seed and homecourt advantage in the conference semifinals against Golden State.

“We wanted to kill the dynasty so bad,” Melton recalled. “You had to show us. You had to come and really show us. It was like ‘OK, why are y’all so good, why are you so great? We’re not going to lay down, let y’all tell us why, but you got to come out here and get it.

“We really felt that day in and day out, and game in and game out, we just take it game by game because you never know what could happen. Next thing you know, you could be up 3-2.”

The Grizzlies, young and impetuous, saw the Warriors as old news that should be discarded from the elite.

“Some (Warriors) got families and kids,” Melton said. “They got paid. They were paid up already. We were all young and hungry. It was like ‘Come on with it.’ ”

The teams split the first two games in Memphis before the Warriors swept Games 3 and 4 at Chase Center. A 3-1 lead is considered “commanding,” but the Grizzlies responded with a 134-95 rout in Game 5. This was, again, a series.

Golden State answered with a 110-96 win in Game 6, banishing the Grizzlies and advancing to the Western Conference finals.

“In ’22, nobody thought the Warriors were going to go on to win, you know what I mean?” Melton said. “But it was crazy to see them having to go through us and that would be one of their tougher series.”

The Warriors had the fourth-best record in the league, but the Celtics entered the playoffs as the hottest team, going 26-6 over their last 32 games. Golden State was a slight favorite because of its postseason experience and championship core.

And Curry, whose spectacular Game 4 performance – 43 points when the rest of the starting lineup combined for 35 – tilted the series and moved him to the doorstep of his first Finals MVP award.

Melton, whose favorite team a decade ago was the Oklahoma City Thunder, had a perception of Curry at that time that matched that of many outside observers: Great shooter.

Melton’s perception of Curry as a teammate much of last season and this season is, well, greatly expanded.

“He’s amazing,” Melton said. “That’s all you could say sometimes. Dudes like that, they continue to put the work in, and they love the game so much that you see them day in and day out. Before, I was seeing him on the outside looking in. Now, I’m on the inside, seeing the work he puts in, the everyday work, the consistency that he has. You can see as to why he’s continued.

“His ability to shoot the ball is out of this world, but it’s his ability to be conditioned and run around, his physicality and just be able to still be able to get open and get a shot off and stuff like that. He’s averaging pretty much 30 (points per game) now – at 37 years old. You’ve just got to admire that type of stuff and just to help as much as possible.”

That admiration, however, does not change Melton’s view of the past, something he occasionally mentions to Gary Payton II, who was a pivotal player in the ’22 Finals.

“I talk to GP still, to this day, like ‘I don’t know how y’all won it ’22,’ ” Melton said. “I don’t. I don’t. I don’t know why or how or for what.”

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How Garza's resurgence is bolstering Celtics' bench in several ways originally appeared on NBC Sports Boston

Maybe the most surprising recent storyline as the Boston Celtics flip the calendar to 2026: The Luka Garza resurgence.

There was a point in mid-December where it felt like Garza might stay glued to the Boston bench. The team had struggled so mightily in his floor time through the first 15 games of the season that, even with rebounding woes and a lack of pure size, the Celtics elected to simply go small when Neemias Queta wasn’t on the court. Garza logged just 27 total minutes while piling up seven DNPs over an 11-game stretch.

But on Dec. 20 in Toronto, Joe Mazzulla went back to Garza. And the 27-year-old big man was ready for his opportunity.

Garza is averaging 10.7 points and 5.8 rebounds over 22 minutes per game while Boston has posted a 5-1 record over its last six games. Garza is shooting 55.6 percent beyond the 3-point arc, and 72 percent inside of it, all while making good things happen with a heavy helping of hustle and grit.

Now it feels like Mazzulla is struggling to take Garza off the court. The Celtics’ best basketball in this stretch has often featured Garza alongside an energy-gushing bench unit.

A few numbers that jump off the page:

GARZILLA: A net rating monster

The Celtics are outscoring opponents by a team-best 29.2 points per 100 possessions during Garza’s 132 minutes of floor time in his last six games. What’s more, Boston is being outscored by 5.1 points per 100 possessions in his 156 minutes on the bench, giving him a ridiculous net rating differential of plus-34.3 in that span.

Boston is putting up wild offensive numbers with Garza on the floor the last six games with a 127.7 offensive rating. That number drops to 113.1 without him. Boston’s defensive rating is a stingy 98.5 with Garza on the floor and spikes to 118.2 without him.

It’s a rather surprising turnaround considering the Celtics had a minus-6.2 net rating over Garza’s first 15 appearances before he faded from the rotation.

Lean, mean screening machine

Since Garza reentered the rotation on Dec. 20, no one in the NBA has been credited with more screen assists than the 6-foot-10 big man. Garza’s 28 screen assists over the past six games have led to 67 points.

That number doesn’t even begin to explain his screening impact. Garza spends many offensive possessions looking like an offensive lineman trying to pancake opposing defenders. Teammates sprint off his screens, creating space that either leads to clean looks or forces opposing defenses to send help as a Boston player heads to the basket with a head of steam.

On Thursday night in Sacramento, Garza was credited with seven screen assists leading to 19 points. That was more screen assists and screen points than the Kings generated as a team (six assists leading to 13 points).

We can’t help but wonder what Jayson Tatum is thinking watching Garza’s screening ways. Tatum has thrived in the past with screen-setting big men like Daniel Theis and Luke Kornet. That could be an intriguing combo whenever Tatum is back on the court.

He’s a hustler, baby

Screen assists aren’t the only hustle stat that Garza is piling up. On Thursday night against the Kings, he also totaled a team-high four deflections, his activity routinely disrupting passing lanes.

Garza’s signature move, though, has become his flailing arms when he hits the turbo button while zooming up and down the court. Whether hustling to get back on defense, or breaking out in transition on offense, Garza always seems to be at full throttle.

The NBA’s tracking data suggests Garza’s average speed is 4.7 miles per hour over the last six games. That’s far and away the top speed on the team (next closest: Sam Hauser, 4.53).

There are still areas for Garza to improve. He has obvious defensive limitations and his defensive rebound rate is among the worst at his position. For the season, Garza has 61 offensive rebounds but only 40 on the defensive end. Over the past six games, he’s grabbed 23 offensive rebounds but only 12 on the defensive side.

But you can’t quibble with the effort. Garza sometimes sacrifices defensive boards while trying to simply put a body on an opposing big. He was credited with six of Boston’s nine box outs in Thursday’s win in Sacramento, including five of Boston’s six on the defensive end.

The Celtics have repeatedly pledged a desire to be the hardest playing team. Garza embodies that. He makes up for his limitations with a full-throttle nature. His finishing around the basket has improved since rejoining the rotation and a 74.2 percent effective field goal percentage in that span is among the best at his position.

As the Celtics try to get more consistency from other bench pieces, Garza is showing that good things can happen if you simply put an emphasis on playing hard.

Depth has not been the Knicks’ calling card over the past few years. But over the past month, it’s become more common to expect head coach Mike Brown to go to a 10-man rotation. In New York’s last two games against the San Antonio Spurs and New Orleans Pelicans, 11 Knicks have played in close games.

Not much was expected from any of the Knicks’ first or second year players coming into this new season. The past couple of weeks, several of New York’s youngsters have stepped up and contributed to wins. In the process, the group has altered the ceiling of this roster both for this year and in the future.

Tyler Kolek has led the way among New York’s youth movement. The 24-year old point guard has assumed a spot in New York’s rotation over the last handful of games and has even seen crunch time minutes in significant moments like New York’s NBA Cup win against the Spurs. In the past couple of weeks, Kolek has a 16-point, nine-assist Christmas Day performance, and 20 points, 11 rebounds, and eight assists while filling in as a starter against the Minnesota Timberwolves.

Second-year player Kevin McCullar Jr. had 13 points, eight rebounds, and two steals in New York’s Saturday night win over the Atlanta Hawks. In Monday night’s victory against the Pelicans, rookie second-round pick Mohamed Diawara emerged, knocking down four threes and scoring 18 points in 16 minutes.

As young players, they’re not always going to have standout games. But it doesn’t feel like the Knicks are having to rely heavily on any of the youngsters to consistently produce. In Wednesday night’s loss to the Spurs, Kolek had three points in 15 minutes while McCullar and Diawara both saw under 10 minutes of action. 

The presence of the three aforementioned players adds depth to a Knicks bench that has looked thin at times. Landry Shamet and Miles McBride both have missed time with injuries and reserve forward Guerschon Yabusele has been ineffective. The performances from Kolek, McCullar and Diawara have come just at the right time.

Another added bonus is the size of both Diawara and McCullar on the wing. Diawara is listed as 6-foot-9 with a 7-foot-4 wingspan. McCullar is 6-foot-5 with a 6-foot-9 wingspan. One of the concerns has been New York’s lack of size on the perimeter outside of the trio of OG Anunoby, Mikal Bridges, and Josh Hart. New York’s bench has trended towards small with McBride, Shamet, and Jordan Clarkson seeing significant time during the early stages of the season.

Future play

The growth of players like Kolek, Diawara, and McCullar will also be important to New York’s future. The club has the second-highest payroll in the NBA for the 2025-26 season behind the Cleveland Cavaliers. According to Spotrac, the Knicks are currently just $148,358 beneath the second apron.

After the most recent collective bargaining agreement, teams that exceed the second apron face the most stringent penalties, such as not being able to use the taxpayer midlevel exception to sign free agents or aggregating multiple salaries in a trade.

One way to combat an escalating payroll is drafting well and signing incoming draft picks to modest salaries at a fixed cost. Kolek and Diawara make just under a combined $3.5 million this year. McCullar is on a two-way deal. 

The Knicks have five players making $19 million a year or more. With Mitchell Robinson set to become an unrestricted free agent after the season and McBride potentially heading towards free agency in the Summer of 2027, the Knicks need to develop players to be a part of the rotation in the future.

That puts a spotlight on player development, a weakness of the Knicks for much of this century. Developing young, homegrown talent will be a decisive factor in New York being able to build around its core and field a championship contender this year and beyond.

Warriors rule Steph Curry, Jimmy Butler, Draymond Green out vs. Thunder originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area

The Warriors will face the reigning NBA champions without their three star players.

Steph Curry (ankle), Jimmy Butler (illness) and Draymond Green (rest) all have been ruled out of Friday’s game against the Oklahoma City Thunder at Chase Center.

Warriors coach Steve Kerr first confirmed the news to Bonta Hill and Evan Giddings on Friday morning on 95.7 The Game.

Veteran guard De’Anthony Melton (knee, injury management) also will sit, in addition to Seth Curry as he continues to recover from a sciatic nerve-related injury.

It is the first game of a back-to-back for Golden State, which will host the Utah Jazz on Saturday.

Al Horford (sciatic nerve irritation) is probable.

Golden State (18-16) certainly will have its hands full against the reigning champs, who are 29-5 and dominating the Western Conference.

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Warriors' Draymond Green addresses viral interaction with elderly Nets fan originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area

Draymond Green enjoyed himself during the Warriors’ 120-107 win on Monday at Barclays Center.

Aside from securing the victory, Green had fun with all the extracurricular activities throughout the course of the game, including a viral exchange with Nets superfan, Mr. Wammy.

“There’s a lot being said about my interaction with Mr. Wammy last night. I had so much fun in last night’s game from the moment with Mr. Wammy, moments with the Nets players, Terance Mann getting mad, so I had a lot of fun in that game,” Green said on “The Draymond Green Show.” “It was a great, fun game. A good time. That was beautiful. But the interaction with Mr. Wammy, I don’t think it’s fair for someone to come stand next to the rim and throw up gang signs. I think it’s crazy that they just let this old man come and stand right next to the rim, not in a seat, not in an aisle. This man is standing right next to the rim.

“And if you think about us, basketball is muscle memory. It’s repetition. I’ve seen this same picture over and over and over again. And then there’s this old guy just standing there throwing up gang signs. So I see him before the first free throw, so I tell myself I’ve got to make this free throw so I can tell him to sit his old ass down. So I made the first free throw, and I walk over to him and tell him to sit his old ass down. Me and Jimmy [Butler] are cracking up laughing. But once I told him to sit down, it was so much pressure on me to make the next free throw. I had to make the next free throw. But that was an incredible moment.

“Sometimes you get lost in the game. Needless to say, I actually wanted to go talk to Mr. Wammy after the game, but I just completely forgot. But shoutout to Mr. Wammy. That was a fun interaction. I appreciate allowing me to have that interaction. He was a great sport about it. He laughed. We all laughed. It was beautiful to see.”

Green thrives off that type of energy, and it helped the Warriors along their path to a needed, bounce-back victory.

Oftentimes, we’ve seen Green have similar interactions with fans or opposing players that have derailed the Warriors’ success. But this playful exchange was nothing but a good laugh for both parties.

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