As the team that demolished the Sixers out of the 2026 playoffs continues playing for a championship, Philadelphia’s new brass is under no delusions on how far they are from contending for one.

In his introductory press conference, president of basketball operations Mike Gansey gave a frank assessment on where he thinks his new team is, one that Bob Myers would agree with in a media availability an hour later.

“They got swept in the second round, so it’s not a championship-caliber team right now,” he said, “but we’re going to work on that.”

Gansey went on to explain that getting the core four of Tyrese Maxey, VJ Edgecombe, Joel Embiid and Paul George on the court will be central to that. The presence of those last two has become quite the topic of debate amongst the fanbase. The current CBA already makes it hard to fill out a roster built around maxing out stars, but Embiid and George only being able to get on the court for about half the games makes it a Herculean task.

Gansey had to field multiple questions about balancing the potential long term of Edgecombe and Maxey while having the veterans Embiid and George under contract.

“I don’t look at it as a timeline, I just look at it like, we have those four and we have to maximize those four,” Gansey said. “Obviously, Tyrese and VJ are younger, but Paul and Joel can still play at a high level.”

He went on to cite the 24-14 record the team had when Embiid played this season, as well as their first-round series comeback win over the Boston Celtics. The commitment Gansey showed in his presser to the top four players on this roster could be seen as a contradiction to the organization’s view that this team is not ready for true contention.

As awesome as their success was against Boston, they were worn down by the time they reached the second round. The bench being too thin combined with a front office that was too stingy to provide any sort of reinforcements led to an ugly sweep.

For at least the very beginning of Gansey’s Sixers tenure, he has no choice but to present confidence. Whether it’s best for VJ Maxx to dump Embiid and George as quickly as possible or see what kind of support they can give the backcourt as they play out their contracts is a debate worth having several times over this offseason. Regardless of which path Gansey thinks is right, it’s in his best interest to show belief in this core as it currently stands.

“They’re our four guys, they’re under contract. We got to do the best to get them to their best self,” Gansey said, “because I think every night at 7 p.m., we got to get them to their best to help us win.” 

That’s true whether Gansey has a deal to trade Embiid or PG tomorrow or not. Whether it’s hoping to turn those guys into a bunch of medium-sized contracts, or waiting until Edgecombe hits his prime as their contracts expire, this is a large ship that Gansey has to turn around.

The re-tool, re-vamp, whatever it is, is not going to be as straightforward as hoping to land a star at the top of the draft as Sam Hinkie’s capital P process was. A difference in Gansey’s favor though is that he certainly inherits more building blocks to start out. It’s clear Gansey values some pieces that are here.

Now it’s time to see just how much exactly.

Players from both teams in the NBA finals have condemned apparent attacks on San Antonio Spurs fans by supporters of the New York Knicks.

Videos circulating on social media showed Spurs fans having their jerseys ripped off on the streets of New York in the aftermath of the Knicks’ loss in Game 3 of the finals at Madison Square Garden.

“My thoughts of course [are] that we can’t forget it’s a game,” Spurs star Victor Wembanyama said when told of the incidents. “We’re just playing a game out there. I am all for passion, but [with] the respect of each other. It’s unacceptable.”

Related: NBA finals: Wembanyama silences Garden’s party as Spurs beat Knicks in Game 3

According to CBS News, 21 people were taken into police custody, with eight arrested, after Monday’s game in violence related to the NBA finals.

Several members of the Knicks expressed their disquiet about the behavior of some of their fans.

“The game is built off of respect and passion,” Knicks center Karl-Anthony Towns said. “We want everyone to respect each other. We want everyone to enjoy basketball at its purest state. It’s the NBA finals. There’s no better place to watch basketball. Leave the physicality to everyone on the court.”

Spurs forward Julian Champagnie grew up in New York but said he had not felt threatened walking around Manhattan during these finals. He did, however, say fans should moderate their behavior.

“I feel we’re here to play a basketball game. That’s the main thing,” he said. “I feel like for the fans, it should never be that serious where you have to jump people, beat people up, follow people home. Whether we win, they win, it doesn’t really matter. Everybody should be able to come and enjoy the game, no matter who they’re rooting for.”

A watch party outside Madison Square Garden was cancelled for Monday’s game due to enhanced security measures because of Donald Trump’s attendance. Several other outside gatherings took place around the city without serious incidents.

The Knicks host the Spurs again on Wednesday night at Madison Square Garden. The Knicks, chasing their first NBA championship since 1973, lead the series 2-1.

Josh Hart said it perfectly while talking to reporters after the Knicks’ practice on Tuesday, “We knew they weren’t just gonna lay down and let us win four straight.”

Hart, of course, was referring to the San Antonio Spurs who recovered from losing the first two games at home in the NBA Finals by beating New York in Game 3 on Monday night at Madison Square Garden and putting the pressure on the Knicks who are up 2-1 heading into Wednesday’s Game 4.

“We knew this was gonna be a battle,” Hart said. “They played very well and you gotta give them credit for that.”

Still, in the loss, the team’s first since April 23, New York made some uncharacteristic mistakes that it wasn’t making during its 13-game winning streak. 

Perhaps the most obvious was the amount of turnovers – the Knicks had 13 to the Spurs’ eight which led to San Antonio scoring 21 points. Jalen Brunson had five turnovers by himself and emphasized not turning the ball over as a way to improve the team’s flow offensively.

“Our attention to detail needs to be better,” he said.

“We were making turnovers that were uncharacteristic of us, just being sloppy with the ball, not being on the same page,” OG Anunoby added. “Throughout the course of a game stuff like that happens so we’re just gonna try and clean it up.”

Turnovers are a part of the game and there’s no escaping them entirely. However, the goal is to cough up the ball fewer times than the opponent which New York had been doing an excellent job of during the playoffs.

Another thing the Knicks had done so well until Monday’s loss was moving the ball around and not being stagnant on offense. Yes, Brunson is capable of playing hero ball late in the game when his team needs a clutch bucket, but New York was running teams out of the gym in previous rounds thanks to its game speed and constant movement around the court.

But in Game 3 the Knicks had just 18 assists, their lowest total in the postseason and the first time they’d gone under 20 assists since their last playoff loss against the Atlanta Hawks in the first round.

“We gotta pick up the ball movement for sure,” Karl-Anthony Towns said. “… We have 13 games in a row, 50 days of film to show what it looks like when we’re at our best so we got good film. We’ll get back to our fundamentals which makes us great and get back to work tomorrow.”

“We didn’t play to the best of our capabilities and I think that’s the frustrating part because we knew we didn’t play our best basketball,” Hart added. “We learned from film today and we’ll be better tomorrow.”

Hart dove into the benefits of watching film, not just from the loss to the Spurs, but in general as it can help players and a team quickly identify and correct mistakes or how to plan to counteract an opponent’s strengths.

“You wanna watch kind of as much film as you can or get as much information as you can to then go out there and play to that,” he said. “Obviously you want to play with your instincts as a basketball player that you’ve been playing the game for such a long time, but certain situations you want to have that information so certain plays you can try to deter them from getting to their spots.”

Despite losing Game 3, New York still leads the series and head coach Mike Brown mentioned that “nobody is panicking” in his “veteran group”. In fact, whether the Knicks won or lost on Monday night, nothing would’ve changed with their preparation on Tuesday for Game 4, a mentality they’ve been running with for a while now.

If anything, a loss, especially after such a long time without one, can bring out new ways to improve.

“Obviously I'm a firm believer that you can grow and learn a lot in wins, but you can do the same in losses, too,” Brown said. “... Everybody is disappointed that we didn't go out and execute and play to what we feel our standard is. 

“That's not taking anything away from San Antonio, but we feel like we can play a lot better than what we did. We're looking forward to going out on the floor and showing it.”

“Each game, no matter what the situation is, we're growing as a team,” Brunson added. “I think we're learning and we're getting better… No matter what the situation is, we're going to stick together. We're going to execute, we're going to be better. That's just how our mindset has to be going forward.”

Victor Wembanyama clearly got away with a cheap shot in Game 3, and the Knicks haven’t forgotten about it.

In the first quarter of the Spurs’ victory at the Garden, Wembanyama tossed Jalen Brunson to the floor. No foul was called.

“I think that’s not basketball,” Jose Alvarado, the feisty reserve guard from Brooklyn, said on Tuesday. “That’s something that they gotta look at. But he got away with one. That’ll be the last one.”

It is possible for the NBA to retroactively rule it a flagrant foul, although as of Tuesday afternoon, that had yet to happen.

Wembanyama was already assessed a flagrant two foul earlier in the postseason against the Timberwolves for throwing an elbow at the throat of Minnesota forward Naz Reid, giving him two penalty points.

Four points triggers an immediate one-game suspension. So if he was retroactively assessed a flagrant one — that is one penalty point — he would have to be careful to avoid missing a game in the Finals.

Brunson has not directly commented on the play. When asked about it after Game 3, he said: “Whatever you saw is what you saw.”

As the New York Knicks chase glory in the 2026 NBA Finals, their fan base's passion has been on full display, manifesting itself in inventive and sometimes downright quirky gestures that capture the essence of New York fandom.

Ahead of Game 3, one superfan named Jake Epstein took team spirit to a new level, vowing to repeat Jalen Brunson's name 100,000 times before tip-off. He set up outside the 34th Street subway entrance just steps from Madison Square Garden. Despite his unsuccessful attempts to score a ticket, Epstein’s energy was undeterred, chanting “Jalen Brunson” for hours on end.

Seated comfortably in a folding lawn chair, Epstein held a handmade sign reading, "Saying Jalen Brunson 100,000 times." Beside him, a laptop kept an official tally, its screen clearly visible to passersby who stopped to witness the spectacle.

More: Will Trump return for NBA Finals Game 4? What we know after buzzy Game 3 appearance

Epstein told USA TODAY Sports that the inspiration for his quirky marathon chant came after watching viral video stunts by internet personalities such as Mr. Beast. Motivated by a desire to channel that same spirit of fun and community, he recruited two close friends to join him, scouted a prime spot outside MSG and set up a livestream that kicked off at 8:40 a.m.

The journey wasn’t without challenges. Intermittent rain and spotty internet connections threatened to derail the attempt. Yet, as the hours passed, Epstein said his determination drew a growing crowd of supporters. Strangers offered high-fives and words of encouragement. The scene reached a new level of excitement when actor and comedian Ben Stiller stopped by, snapping photos of Epstein and later sharing them on social media.

On Monday, I wrote about how Mike Brown was always making the right adjustments for the Knicks to allow them to cruise through this playoff run. The amount of adversity the Knicks have faced has been minimal, but they’ve done a great job adjusting to all of it.

Well, for the first time in over seven weeks, the Knicks lost. In-game adversity happens to everyone, but this was new. For the first time in 14 games, the Knicks didn’t have the in-game answer and walked away disappointed.

They’re still in the driver’s seat in this series, but the margin for error is gone. Despite still being -180 favorites to win the series on FanDuel, they’re at risk of completely soiling the advantage they gained by winning the first two games in San Antonio. Winning Game 4 would restore their firm control of this series, while also putting them 48 minutes from a championship.

But how do they do that? Here are three adjustments they need to make to retake control of this series in Game 4:

Less Ball Dominant Brunson

Every series has a different strategy. After the last 2.5 series seemed to follow the strategy of running the offense through Karl-Anthony Towns at the top of the key, the Knicks seemed to shift back to leaning on heavy Jalen Brunson ballhandling through three games in this series.

There are reasons for that, but it hasn’t had the intended effect through three games. The ball pressure from the likes of Stephon Castle and Dylan Harper is playing into their hands, slowing down the Knicks’ offense and forcing them to rush their actions in the final eight seconds of the shot clock. It goes against everything the Knicks set out to do when they hired Mike Brown.

But it’s not as easy as just running the same actions that worked against Atlanta and those other Eastern Conference teams. The Spurs started the game with Wemby in the ghost coverage on Josh Hart, which puts a wing like Julian Champagnie or Devin Vassell on Towns. On paper, that sounds like a mismatch, but when you factor in Wemby’s ability to play free safety in the paint, it limits what Towns can feasibly do.

But there were times in the second half where Towns did have Wemby on him, but was pushed into the corner for Brunson to isolate. The common denominator on every possession where Brunson brings the ball up and doesn’t immediately move the ball is that the offense is stagnant until about eight on the shot clock.

There’s no clear solution against a defense that can give you so many looks, but the best option might be to take a considerable chunk of these Brunson-dominated possessions and throw multiple looks in there. Experiment with KAT as the facilitator even when he has a wing on him. Have Hart or Bridges bring the ball up. Get Brunson moving off the ball.

It’s not just in terms of a play-by-play basis; it’s also the degree to which he’s getting beaten up when he has the ball in his hands. You want him fresh for the second half, something the team did brilliantly against Cleveland.

(Also, the team as a whole just needs to stop being so careless with the ball. At least half of the team’s 13 turnovers were unforced and/or unnecessary)

Give the Spurs a Taste of Their Own Medicine

Speaking of ball pressure, why not try to give the Spurs a taste of their own medicine?

San Antonio only committed eight turnovers in Game 3, the fewest they have in the entire postseason to this point. For a team that is very young and turnover-prone, it’s a remarkable turnaround for them in a game that they needed to win badly to keep their championship hopes alive.

They struggled mightily with turnovers in the Western Conference Finals against Oklahoma City, turning it over 15 times in four games and at least 20 times in two of them. That’s because of OKC’s ability to put pressure on the ball with the likes of Lu Dort, Cason Wallace, and Alex Caruso.

The Knicks don’t have those levels of defenders, but they have enough talent on that end to at least try to fluster them. Mikal Bridges, Jose Alvarado, Deuce McBride, and even Jordan Clarkson to an extent are fully capable of providing backcourt pressure to slow down the Spurs’ offense in similar fashion to how they’re doing to the Knicks.

You see, the Knicks manage to score despite a stagnant offense through much of the shot clock because they’re veterans. When you put a young team in that situation, you’re much more likely to see frantic decisions and bad passes. Don’t you think that game-losing turnover in Game 2 was caused by them speeding up their internal clock?

Less time to run their half-court offense means less time for them to move the ball around. They’re much less iso-centric on offense and are able to swing the ball to open shooters (or find that 7’5” guy under the basket). We’ve seen a few times where they’re able to get the ball to Wemby with 8-10 seconds on the shot clock in a spot where he can take his time. Imagine how it would look if you started rushing him, giving him less time to methodically get to his spot?

It’s worth trying, at the very least.

Modifying the Minutes Distribution

If you look at the minutes distribution of Game 3, you notice something jarring right off the bat.

Mitchell Robinson and Deuce McBride, the team’s two core bench players, played 16 combined minutes.

16. The team’s usual sixth and seventh men played 16 combined minutes.

That’s not a criticism of Coach Brown, of course. Both men played pretty bad on Monday, but you have to wonder if there’s a better way to use them to put them in better positions to succeed.

For Robinson, whose effort level has been noticeably lacking the last two nights, in all fairness, he’s not getting much of an opportunity because of the looming threat of the Hack-a-Mitch. The Spurs got into the bonus relatively early in the first and second quarters, leading to Brown keeping him glued to the bench to not play into Mitch Johnson’s hands.

They seem not to want to run double big in this series because the Spurs don’t have a traditional 4, often playing Wemby or Luke Kornet around a few 6’6” guys at the wings. That’s all well and good, but if that’s the case, you still need to find opportunities to give Towns a rest and not go to small ball lineups against a team with a 7’5” alien.

Could putting Robinson in earlier in the first quarter work? Unless the Spurs commit a bunch of quick fouls, why can’t he sub in at the 6 or 7-minute mark for a few minutes? We know Towns is going to start the second with the bench unit, so he needs the rest. Best-case scenario, Mitch can play the whole back half of the quarter essentially. That also helps avoid foul trouble for Towns, who’s had some frustrating sequences in the last two games racking up fouls.

There’s also the matter of guard play. Some people are suggesting running Alvarado alongside Brunson to add another ballhandler who can take some of the pressure off Brunson, and they’d have a point in some regard:

I’m not so sure, though. The Spurs have some physical guards who can absolutely exploit a lineup of two miniature guards, so any offensive benefit gets completely thrown out by the defensive issues. The answer might just be to give Alvarado a longer leash at times, or try Clarkson in the same lineups as Brunson for spurts.

As for how to get McBride more involved? I’m not sure. He doesn’t really deserve to be the first sub over Landry Shamet right now, but he needs to be getting opportunities to do what he does best on offense: getting catch-and-shoot looks. He’s had almost no good looks through three games and has been forcing stuff up at times just to seemingly fit a quota.

I’m not sure what the fix is there right now, but it’s going to be hard to win this series without any contributions from Deuce.

Welcome to SB Nation Reacts, a survey of fans across the NBA. Throughout the year we ask questions of the most plugged-in Lakers fans and fans across the country. Sign up here to participate in the weekly emailed surveys.

The bond LeBron James has with the Lakers is unlike any other he has with his former teams. LeBron has been with the Lakers for eight years, making this his longest individual stint with any franchise.

During that time, he’s won a title, reached two Western Conference Finals and been an All-NBA player. But with Luka Dončić now the clear franchise player and Austin Reaves set to be the team’s No. 2, that puts LeBron in a strange spot of no longer being LA’s top priority.

Now that he’s played an NBA record 23 seasons, he is an unrestricted free agent and has to decide if he wants to play a 24th and, if so, will it be with the Lakers?

So, for our SB Nation Reacts survey this week, we ask, do Lakers fans want LeBron back next season?

The case for retaining LeBron is easy to make. This season, he averaged 20.9 points, 6.1 rebounds, and 7.2 assists per game. He did that while playing in 60 contests, producing regardless of whether he was the top option or playing behind Dončić and Reaves.

Not only was he an All-Star and an All-NBA-caliber player, but in the postseason, he was the reason the Lakers beat the Rockets despite Luka being out and Reaves returning only for the last two games of the series.

LeBron was far and away the best player in that Lakers-Rockets series, and that includes Reaves and Alper Sengun, who is considered one of the best young bigs in the NBA.

This is clear proof that LeBron can still play at the highest level, and even if he is on a decline, the list of players above him is small, and the cost of a player of LeBron’s caliber is not cheap.

When looking at all this, letting a player like LeBron walk seems foolish. In doing so, the Lakers won’t get better, and whatever money they save on LeBron, they won’t be able to replace him with better players.

The counterargument, however, is that it’s time to move on.

This is now Luka’s team. Reaves is his backcourt partner, and while bringing back LeBron might work next year, it doesn’t make sense to commit big money to your third offensive option, who is also the oldest player in the NBA.

It’s better for the Lakers to turn the page on the LeBron era and leave him now that he’s still a productive player than to be in a situation where you are paying him while he begins a steep decline.

Also, the Lakers have a ton of cap space, roster spots and multiple first round draft picks they can trade to make their team better. This is an opportunity for them to be aggressive and improve their roster. Tying themselves up into a big three that went 1-7 against the Spurs and Thunder in the regular season is a tough sell as well.

But what do you think? Should the Lakers bring back LeBron and build around this core or is it time to move on and truly begin a new era of Lakers basketball?

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

On Monday night, as his Spurs pulled off a 115-111 win in Game 3 of the NBA Finals, Victor Wembanyama turned himself into a Knicks villain.

The Madison Square Garden faithful, in one of their better showings in the World’s Most Famous Arena’s history, berated Wembanyama and his teammates, yet they responded by cutting the Knicks’ series lead to 2-1.

Knick fans had gotten used to winning, having not witnessed a loss since April 23, the first day of the 2026 NFL Draft.

A big part of that streak being broken was Wembanyama breaking out in his best game of the series thus far, scoring 32 points with eight rebounds, six assists and three blocks.

Wembanyama, however, doesn’t see himself as the ultimate Knicks villain quite yet.

When asked whether he sees being vilified by the feisty crowd as a compliment, he didn’t think he had reached the level of another notorious New York villain.

“I guess,” Wembanyama said. “I’m nowhere near Trae Young level, though.”

Wembanyama, while certainly having faced the wrath of the Knicks faithful, hasn’t quite taken the Young-established route of showboating and responding to Knicks fans while on the floor at MSG like the ex-Hawks star did while leading Atlanta to a first-round playoff win over the Knicks in 2021.

But Wembanyama did shove Jalen Brunson in the first half last night, which automatically makes him the newest subject of Knick fan fury.

Fans also changed “F–k you, Wemby” during the contest.

He does seem to enjoy all that New York has to offer, though.

Last season, he challenged New Yorkers to play him in a game of chess at Washington Square Park.

Before Monday’s game, he was spotted sketching in Gramercy Park.

The list of New York villains is long, but the hatred of Knicks villains in particular brings the city together like little else.

Should Wembanyama continue playing like he did Monday night, the vitriol he feels will surely only grow.

Ask any athlete, there’s nothing like playing for your hometown. But what is it like when you play in your hometown for the opposing team, and what about when your hometown features one of the largest and most historic organizations in sports? After Game 7 of the Western Conference Finals, Spurs forward and New York native Julian Champagnie expressed his anticipation for playing in in the NBA Finals in New York City.

“That’s every kids dream, that’s every kid’s dream. I remember my first time actually playing in the Garden. I was at St. John’s and was just like in awe, of just how much greatness has gone through there and what that means for a kid form the city. Being now we get to go play for a championship — that’s personal, that’s personal…being able to go back there and compete for a championship, there’s no better feeling.”

Monday night was his dream come true, when he returned to Madison Square Garden as part of the NBA Finals against his hometown New York Knicks. During the Spurs media availability on Tuesday afternoon, he was asked, “After Game 7 in OKC, you were asked about returning back to New York. Now in the Finals, now that you’ve experienced that, could you share what it was like for you to play last night?”

“Yeah, it was pretty cool. Obviously we had a game to win, and that was the most important thing, especially being down 0-2. The initial reaction of just running out there, seeing all the celebrities, the fans, how loud it was, the music, it was definitely a surreal feeling that I’ll carry for life. But it was pretty cool,” he responded.

Champagnie, who was born in Staten Island and played high school ball in Brooklyn, attended St. John’s University from 2019-2022. In 2020, he made the Big East All-Freshman Team. The following year, he was the Big East Co-Most Improved Player along with Xavier’s Zach Freemantle. In 2021 and 2022, Champagnie made the All-Big East team.

After going undrafted in 2022, Champagnie signed a two-way contract with the Philadelphia 76ers. Earlier this season, he shared that sitting through Draft Night without hearing his name upset him.

“I thought it was over, I ain’t going to lie to you. Getting waived with no warning, no explanation or anything, it was tough. It was a hard night. Obviously, I cried a lot, was pissed, but it just fueled the fire.”

He only played 7 minutes in two games for the 76ers before being unceremoniously waived on Valentine’s Day 2023 solely for the 76ers to create a roster spot for Mac McClung to participate in the NBA All-Star Dunk Contest. The Spurs picked up Champagnie two days later off waivers.

Since then, he’s signed a 4-year/$12M contract, a great deal for the Spurs. Over the past three season, he has shown that he has the skills to receive a bigger payday in the future. That said, he appreciates that Spurs role in his development, the trust instilled in him and his fit with the team.

“I want to be here. That’s what I can say. I want to be here. I love it here. Love my teammates, love the coaches, love the front office, love everybody. So I’m going to just keep doing what I’m doing and hopefully that works itself out.”

This season the native New Yorker earned his way into the starting line-up. As a three-point specialist with great rebounding, he has blended well with Victor Wembanyama, De’Aaron Fox, Stephon Castle, and Devin Vassell. And now, he’s setting records as a member of the Silver & Black.

His 56 made three-pointers during this playoff run is the most in Spurs franchise history. He hit 5 of 10 in Game 1 and has since added another five over Games 2 and 3. Him continuing to shine in New York is one key to the Spurs evening up the series on Wednesday before taking the Finals back to San Antonio for Game 5, hopefully tied 2-2. Expect him to come out swinging Wednesday for all of New York to witness — and perhaps to help show what a mistake the 76ers made in never giving him the chance the Spurs did.