Worldwide Sports News

While the Finals are set to start this week between the Spurs and Knicks, the Lakers are firmly into their offseason.

It’ll be an important one, kicking off with the NBA Draft at the end of June. After that, the franchise will head into one of the most important offseasons in recent memory as they look to build around Luka Dončić and Austin Reaves.

Naturally, there are plenty of questions about the draft, free agency and the offseason as a whole. So, fire away with any of them. And if you have any questions about the young WNBA season, send them as well.

Lastly, keep things friendly along the way!

Former Knick Jamal Crawford, who is an analyst for NBC Sports and called the Western Conference Finals on NBC and Peacock alongside play-by-play man Mike Tirico and analyst Reggie Miller, takes a shot at some Q&A with Post columnist Steve Serby.

Q: Your thoughts on Wemby (Victor Wembanyama)?

A: Transcendent, generational. His off-the-court view of life, his point of view of life are even more impressive than the stuff you can see on the court. He’s just different. And we use the term different so much in today’s culture, but he’s even more different than the people we call different.

Q: How about on-the-court different?

A: He could do everything. Look how the game’s evolved. We saw a 6-[foot]-9, 6-10 in T-Mac (Tracy McGrady), and that kinda graduated to Kevin Durant, who’s 7 feet, did the stuff T-Mac did but even more efficiently, and now if you stretch it out even more and go 7-4, 7-5 with Victor Wembanyama, so with him, he can do all those same things, but he has a whole different altitude that he’s doing it from, being that tall. He is just something special.

Q: Why does the city love the Knicks so much?

A: That fanbase and the connection to the fanbase, it’s one of the truly remarkable things in sports — in any sport. They’re like how the Cowboys are loved, how the Yankees are loved, how the Lakers are loved. It’s a different type of love.

Here’s an example: I came to a game a couple of years back, playoffs against Cleveland. And when I left, it was like I played and I had 30 in the Garden the night before, the fans were going crazy. I’m like, “This is crazy, I have not played here in almost 20 years at that point, and they still show that kind of love.” Once A Knick, Always A Knick, and they truly make you feel that.

Q: Paint the picture for me what the city would be like if the Knicks won the NBA championship.

A: They’ll literally party for one year straight like it’s 1999. It would be IN-credible. I don’t mean 1999 as a real year, I mean 1999 that Prince was talking about. It’s gonna be crazy.

Q: What impresses you most about the way the Knicks are playing?

A: They’re playing with a certain belief, like no matter the situation. no matter the outcome, they feel like they can win the game, like no matter how they start, if they get down during the course of a game, they play with a different belief. And the belief is like the strength in numbers. They’re believing that somebody will step up, somebody will provide a spark — obviously Jalen [Brunson] and KAT [Karl-Anthony Towns] and OG [Anunoby] and Mikal [Bridges] and Josh [Hart] — but then you’ll have Deuce [Miles McBride] come in, Mitchell Robinson to come in and get some offensive rebounds. They have so many different weapons, and they’re all pulling in the same direction, they have a different type belief in each other.

It’s really a championship-contending type belief.

Q: What makes Jalen Brunson unique?

A: I think most star players, superstar players, feel like they have to be the superstar all the time, and I think that he lets the game come to him and he lets other guys say, “Oh, they got it going, oh, this guy hasn’t taken a shot, oh, OK, I can kinda sit back and then take over for these next six minutes and give my team confidence.”

He just has a crazy, crazy feel of knowing what to do, how to do it and when to do it, and I think that’s what makes him special.

Q: What adjectives would you use to describe his game?

A: Smart … competitive … gritty … winner.

Q: So you’re not of the Becky Hammond belief that a small man cannot be the alpha champion?

A: No, I think anybody can be a champion. I think sometimes heart goes over height. I also think thinking quick on your toes and having supreme basketball IQ can negate even the biggest people.

Q: If the Knicks were to win, where would that place Brunson in Knicks lore?

A: Mount Rushmore, easy. And the funny thing about that is last season, before I started calling Knick games, I was watching the games and my wife was like, “Look, No. 11’s in the crowd, they’re wearing your number!” I said, “No, no, no (laugh), that’s Jalen Brunson’s number. I’m old news.”

Q: Does Josh Hart remind you of John Starks?

A: I think that No. 3 can be as beloved as Starks if they win a championship, that’s for sure. Yeah, he has some Starks, I think he has some Doug Christie in him when Doug was in Sacramento and just kinda made winning plays or whatever it took, he’ll guard the best player and he’ll provide toughness, he’ll provide extra ballhandling duties, he’ll provide a big shot.

Q: What impresses you about OG Anunoby?

A: That in chaos, he’s calm. When things are really going crazy or whatever, he can provide a big steal, a big rebound, a big shot, and I’m sure he has that internal fire, but on the outside, it looks just so calm, he’s kinda at peace with whatever he’s doing, a la Kahwi Leonard a little bit.

Q: What was your reaction when the Knicks traded for KAT (Karl-Anthony Towns)?

A: I told KAT, actually, I told KAT that he was gonna love it, he was gonna be beloved in New York ’cause I played with him in Minnesota. You can ask him, I was one of the first people that kinda said that to him. He’s so skilled, he’s so like transcendent in that way being a big guy who can do everything on the court. And I think that’s why him and Brunson work, to be honest with you. They both can float between 1A and 1B in the same game, in the same quarter, and they don’t care. There’s no ego in it. That’s what kinda helps make them special as well.

Q: When you played with KAT he was not the facilitator he is now, right?

A: No. At times he could see things. I was playing with a young KAT, I think I played with him the year he made his first All-Star game. He was kinda establishing himself as a player, as a scorer. I think he likes being the hub.

Q: Does Mikal Bridges look like the star player he used to be prior to the Knicks?

A: I don’t know if he looks exactly like a star player, but on this team I don’t think he has to be. I think he has to be shades of who he was at his best in different places — shades of Phoenix, shades of Brooklyn. I think all those different shades can show up at different times whenever the game calls for it, and I think he’s done that.

Q: What are your thoughts on the job Mike Brown has done and how well do you know him?

A: I know him well. I think he’s done a phenomenal job. Imagine the pressure of taking over a team that went to the Eastern Conference final. Anything not going further than that is like a fail, right? But he stepped up to the challenge. It was rocky at times during the season, it was like “What are we doing? We had Thibs,” and Thibs (Tom Thibodeau) did an unbelievable job, no shade to him whatsoever, he set the foundation. But Mike Brown’s kinda taken it up a notch and taken it to another level, and I think that’s what you’re seeing right now from the New York Knicks.

Q: Mitchell Robinson?

A: I think he brings something different to the game. I think his offensive rebounding, his numbers are like off the charts. His energy he plays with. Obviously, he can do better at the free-throw line, but everybody can do better at something. But what he does do, it brings a different type energy to the team. He’s tough too.

Q: How good is the Knicks bench?

A: I think they have specialists. Look at Deuce, you look at Shammy [Landry Shamet], look at Mitchell coming off as a specialist as well, just different guys who provide different things and right now, they seem to believe they can’t lose, and maybe one of the best things for everybody on the Knicks side if you’re a Knicks fan is the slugfest that the Spurs and the Thunder were in. Because now it provides you more rest, more recovery, and you’re getting like a full scout of both teams.

Q: Thoughts on Shamet?

A: Whenever he shoots with no hesitation, it usually goes in. When he’s like hunting his shot, he’s like, “Hey, I’m shooting it regardless,” he usually shoots it with more confidence. I think when he hesitates, that throws him off just a little bit.

Q: Tell me about Leon Rose.

A: Always been the same way, very laid-back, very professional. Very thoughtful. Very real and authentic. I was always very fond of Leon Rose, when he was an agent back when I was with Rick Brunson in 2003 with the Bulls. Rick was a client of Leon’s so I met Leon in passing then.

Q: What do you recall about Rick Brunson?

A: He had hair and he thought he was like The Man at the time, he was coming from the Knicks, and came with this swagger. And I actually shot with Jalen in the Berto Center. He was like 8 years old when he’d come up to visit.

Q: What are some of your favorite Knicks memories (2004-08)?

A: Absolutely scoring 52 in the Garden. Absolutely seeing superstars and actors coming to watch me play. And probably the most important thing is I never got booed in 4 ¹/₂ years and that was a big thing for me. At times we weren’t very good, and I never got booed, so I took that as a badge of honor.

Q: You mentioned celebrities — anybody in particular?

A: Jay-Z, who I knew a little bit before, but our relationship really grew. I remember going after I had a big game at the Garden early in the season in my first year, I saw Adam Sandler at Tao, and I knew he knew me ’cause he was just at the game when I had 25, so that was cool. I didn’t actually meet Heath Ledger, but he was at the game I had 52, and I got a letter from a friend that came with him to the game probably a few years ago now and he told me how it kinda helped Heath Ledger’s love for basketball watching me play.

Q: What was the key to you being such a great Sixth Man?

A: Getting over myself. It wasn’t about me. I had no problem letting others shine. I had no ego when I was coming off the bench. I just wanted to provide what I could provide in the game. And I’m like, this is really cool, I can just watch the game, make some adjustments before I actually go in and provide some extra punch to my team so we’re better.

Q: Who gave you the J Crossover nickname?

A: My childhood friend David Hudson actually came up with it, and it just really stuck with my style of play and my initials, it worked out.

Q: You were the oldest player to score 50 points in a game.

A: Yeah, and the goal was only 25 that night. I just wanted to get 25 so it could be me, Kareem and Kobe to be that far in our career to score 25 three straight games. I had 25 going into the fourth quarter so I said, “Hey, I might as well let it rip.”

Q: How would you sum up your NBA career?

A: Unique. I think it was very unique. I wasn’t the main actor in the movie, but I was the actor who had smaller roles that you wanted to see more of, and he left an impression.

Q: Any regrets over not winning a ring?

A: No, you know what? I think my ring for me personally was actually playing in the NBA. As a kid, when I was 8 years old, it wasn’t to win a ring, it was just to make it. And I made it, and I played 20 years, and in some regards I left my mark on the game. So for me, I think that was my ring.

The Spurs kept their composure and closed out Game 7. Should their poise in the Conference Finals finally put to rest the concerns about their inexperience?

Marilyn Dubinski: They’re going to make mistakes, but so is everybody else, and they’ve put this narrative to rest.  They showed that an alleged “lack of experience” can be overcome with maturity, togetherness, chemistry, good coaching, and of course talent. A theory that has been building in my head is that last year was the “experience” year (i.e. win, lose, learn and grow), and they would have gotten that playoff experience had Victor Wembanyama not gotten deep vein thrombosis.  Sure, it got cut short and they came into this season with a lack of “playoff” experience, but they do know what losing feels like, and they also have a lot of guys who have that experience at other levels, whether it’s Wemby in Europe or the Olympics, Castle at UConn, etc.  Maybe even the NBA Cup Finals was that “losing experience” they needed.  That’s my theory, at least.

Mark Barrington: The Silver and Black made a ton of critical mistakes headed down the stretch of Game 7, with turnovers from Harper and Castle giving the Thunder chances to bring the margin down to two scores several times in the last couple of minutes. But partially thanks to Luke Kornet’s timely block and some incredible rebounding and putbacks, they overcame their poor plays with some really good ones. So, I think the inexperience is still a big concern, but the fact is that the team is so talented and resourceful that they were able to overcome it by not dwelling on the mistakes and making more positive plays than the negative ones, assisted by one veteran hustle play from Luke to make it to the end. I still have concerns, but I also have confidence in the team’s mental toughness to work hard and smart enough to win, even with inevitable mistakes along the way.

Jacob Douglas: I’d encourage anyone still considering this narrative to go watch Mitch Johnson’s locker room speech after Game Seven. It puts into perspective everything this team has been through in the last 7-8 months. This is a team that is much more mature than its age. As some of the other writers have pointed out, they are still making some silly, immature mistakes. However, it’s the team’s toughness and resilience that overcome their youth. This is a team that is not afraid of anyone, nor of the moment. That kind of mental willpower overcomes a lot of their “inexperience”. 

Bill Huan: The Spurs have proven that they’re good enough to overcome the experience deficiency, and even if they lose in the finals, I don’t think it will be because of their inexperience. I see their youth as both a blessing and a curse: a blessing because of their athleticism and ability to maintain the energy needed for a long postseason run, but also a curse when they make some boneheaded plays, especially in crunch time. For example, even in game 7, Castle’s lob to Wemby was stolen by Dort on that final inbounds play, which came on the heels of him turning it over on the previous possession. Fox should’ve had the ball down the stretch, and he showed his veteran savviness by fouling to get their defense set, which will go down as one of the most underappreciated plays of this entire run. Still, given that they just beat the defending champs, I don’t think the inexperience card can be played anymore. 

Devon Birdsong: I suppose that depends on what we’re terming experience at this point. If experience just means no previous postseasons, I’d say I think that ignores the value of the current postseason, which has been challenging enough to count for multiple postseasons for some teams. They survived injuries to their superstar. They’ve taken down a recent Western Conference finalist. They took down the defending champions. They’ve pretty much subverted the entire idea of concerns at this point. A game or two will likely slip away because of inconsistency, but it’ll be hard to argue that that’s because of youth alone, because there are plenty of ‘more experienced’ teams who didn’t make it here because they were more inconsistent than these youngsters. I expressed earlier in the postseason that this is a team of assassins, of gangsters, of silent killers. At this point, my biggest concern is that they’ll start taking themselves too seriously.  

Jeje Gomez: I think at this point the concern should be put to rest. If they happen to lose the Finals, it won’t be because they are young and inexperienced. Even if they benefited from key injuries to opponents on their way there, they took down two seasoned teams with impressive, gutsy wins while occasionally dealing with absences of their own. Adversity didn’t deter them, and no one looked afraid of the moment. They are ready.

Wembanyama won MVP of the Conference Finals. Who was the second most important Spur?

Dubinski: It could be any one of the guard trio, as they all had their highs and lows that showed how important they are.  Castle was their second-best scorer in the series, played great defense and was steady across the board, but his limitations as a ball-handler were exposed with 20 TO’s in Games 1 and 2 without Fox.  In turn, that made Fox’s mere presence super important for managing the game and limiting turnovers, even if he struggled to score at times due to his ankle injury. That being said, I’m going to go out on a limb (and probably differ from everyone else) and say Harper because he is the biggest wildcard of the group.  Outside of Wemby, perhaps the biggest deciding factor in each game was if the Spurs’ bench would hold on when he sat, and when Harper was out for most of Game 2 or ineffective from games 3-5 with the sore adductor, it was a much bigger hurdle for them to overcome.  When he was on point in games 1 (which he admittedly started), 6 and 7, the Spurs had the upper hand almost the entire time.

Barrington: Castle’s toughness and relentless effort on both ends of the court makes him the engine of the team, while Harper’s smoothness and patient demeanor allowed him to break down the defense in the paint anytime he wasn’t double teamed, and he made the good teammate play of the game by making sure that Castle didn’t go after Caruso after his dangerous takedown on a breakaway fast break that was puzzlingly ruled to be just a common foul. Stephon was rightfully mad at being knocked out of the air from behind in what looked like a dirty play, but if he had retaliated, it would have been bad for the Spurs, and Dylan stepped in to keep him from getting a costly technical foul or worse. It’s hard for me to choose between those two guys, because they both bring good things to the team, and they have complementary skills. 

Douglas: It’s hard for me to pick between Castle and Vassell. The edge goes to Castle because of his two-way impact and overall toughness, but I am more excited to talk about Vassell. This felt like the first series where we saw the realization of Vassell’s potential. A legit two-way wing who can create his shot off the bounce when needed. He took on a pretty tough defensive challenge in Chet Holmgren and thrived. He spent time guarding SGA and survived. He hit big shots on offense and made game-breaking steals and blocks on the other end. His motor was running at an all-time high. It’s exactly the type of performance that you hope for from your 4th or 5th option. 

Huan: Castle. He had three rough turnover games and two bad shooting nights, but his playmaking, defensive intensity, and overall toughness were always present. In a series where Fox and Harper were either banged up or sidelined, Castle had a huge burden on his shoulders and stepped up as well as one could hope. Outside of Wemby, he’s the primary reason why Shai struggled so much, and there was not a single moment where I thought he was rattled, even during the high turnover games. Vassell deserves a shoutout too, as he made timely buckets and was also a huge reason why the perimeter defense was so suffocating.   

Birdsong: In that series, I think it has to be Harper. Castle is close due to his defensive assignment, but the Spurs were losing when their bench couldn’t outscore the Thunder bench. As important as Keldon is, it was Harper who was keeping the bench afloat most of the time, and it’s no coincidence that the Spurs won when he had great games. Castle is a very close (and highly defensible) second choice, though. He really put SGA in the dungeon (with help) and that was the other gigantic factor in my mind. 

Gomez: I’m tempted to say Vassell, because he made a lot of big plays and even more smaller ones that mattered a lot, but I’ll give Castle the nod. Even when he made mistakes, and there were a lot of them early in the series, he was being aggressive, which is hugely important to set the tone for this team. The two-way production was there, too. It was a team effort, but Wembanyama and Castle led the way in many ways.

If you had to describe why the Spurs won in one word, what would that word be and why?

Dubinski: Determination.  We already talked about how the Spurs overcame the supposed “lack of experience” problem, and this was another way: they just flat-out wanted it more. (This is not to say the Thunder didn’t want it, of course they did, but there’s no denying that in watching those last two games, the Spurs just had more fire in their eyes.)  We saw it in the Big Three era, when we knew that Tim, Tony and Manu all had the right combination of willpower and talent to make what was in their control happen, and that same level of determination can be seen in this group.

Barrington: Resilience. The Thunder threw so many different things at the Spurs and made the Spurs have to adjust and change their approach from game to game to adapt and overcome the different types of OKC strategies. Daigneault did a great job at switching up lineups and defenses (partly necessitated by injuries) to keep the Spurs off balance, and while these strategies often worked as a one-shot, the Spurs would always respond with effective counters the next game. It was a coaching duel until Game 7, at least, where the coaches ran out of ammo and the most talented team took the win. 

Douglas: Strategy. It felt like Mitch Johnson was constantly tweaking the game plan to give his team an edge. Once the Thunder’s role players started to hit shots, the Spurs stopped doubling SGA so early. In Game Six, they went to an empty-side pick-and-roll play that got them multiple good looks early in the game to get their offense in a flow. In Game Seven, they flooded the strong side when SGA had the ball to try to throw off his rhythm and disrupt OKC’s offense. The game plan was constantly evolving to give the Spurs an edge. Yes, OKC was beat up and shorthanded, so Mark Daignault had a more difficult coaching task. But I thought Johnson outcoached him in this series. 

Huan: Poise. We talked about this team’s inexperience, yet somehow the lights never seemed too bright for them. To go into the defending champ’s arena and snatch their soul in one of the most consequential games in recent memory proved that the Spurs are tough as nails, which will bode well now that they’ll be entering the most raucous stadium in perhaps all of sports. 

Birdsong: Attitude. It was one thing to put the defending champions away on their home court. It was another to end it with a statement dunk instead of just running out the clock. Poise, and resilience, and all those other factors are so reliant/dependent on what these Spurs think they’re capable of. Their declaration about ‘not caring’ wasn’t a declaration of apathy so much as a mission statement about their animosity for the very concept of needed experience. I don’t think I’ve ever seen a Spurs team with swagger like this. They’re not just looking to beat you, they’re looking to punk you if they catch you sleeping, and they will absolutely embarrass you and put on a display while they do it. In the end, there’s always a possibility that will be their downfall, but I’d also be willing to argue that that’s the only reason that they got where they are in the first place. This team has the audacity. Now we’re going to see if they can turn that into something more substantial.

Gomez: Talent. It might seem like saying they won because they had more talent is somehow shortchanging the coaching staff or the character of the players, but it isn’t. Less talented teams prevail all the time. It takes more to win and the Spurs also had the intangibles. But it shouldn’t be overlooked how good the guys getting minutes for San Antonio were, and that edge was one of the main reasons they advanced. To be fair, the Thunder were missing an All-NBA performer, but the Spurs had more top-end talent in their rotation, which is an impressive feat from the front office.

Hall of Fame basketball coach Rick Adelman died on Monday, June 1. He was 79.

One of Adelman's former teams, the Sacramento Kings, and the NBA Coaches Association (NBCA) announced the news that day. A cause of death has not been revealed.

Adelman spent 29 seasons as a coach in the NBA and reached the playoffs 16 times, including two Finals appearances with the Portland Trail Blazers. The coach, known for his stoic nature, had stints with the Kings, Trail Blazers, Golden State Warriors, Houston Rockets and Minnesota Timberwolves. He is 10th in NBA history with 1,042 wins and 12th in total games coached at 1,791.

The Kings said the organization was "deeply saddened" by Adelman's death.

“During his eight seasons in Sacramento, he led the team to unprecedented success and helped create some of the most memorable moments in franchise history," the team said in a statement. "For an entire generation of Kings fans, Coach Adelman represented the very best of Sacramento basketball, and he will be remembered for the way he inspired those around him – with humility, integrity, kindness, and an unwavering belief in the power of teamwork."

Adelman created a basketball family. His younger son, David, shadowed him growing up and is now the head coach of the Denver Nuggets. His older son, RJ, was an assistant coach for him with the Rockets and then the director of player personnel for the Timberwolves before he was killed when he was hit by a car in 2018. His oldest daughter, Kathy, won a basketball state championship in high school and was a girls high school basketball coach in the Portland area for more than 20 years.

The NBA lost a Hall of Famer on Monday, and one with ties to the Golden State Warriors. According to an announcement from the National Basketball Coaches Association, the legendary Rick Adelman has died at the age of 79.

Adelman was a head coach for a whopping 23 NBA seasons, while also spending six years as an assistant coach. He coached five different franchises and amassed a record of 1,042-749, and sits 10th all-time in the win column. Adelman made the playoffs 16 different times, and finished with a 79-78 record, which included winning the Western Conference twice while with the Portland Trail Blazers.

The basketball lifer spent two seasons at the helm for the Warriors, coaching them to a 36-46 record in 1995-96, and a 30-52 record in 1996-97, before being fired. While those records aren’t very good, they were better than before he took over, as the Dubs went 26-56 the season before hiring Adelman.

While Adelman was best known for his lengthy coaching career, he also played in the NBA. After starring at Loyola Marymount, where he was a WCC Player of the Year winner, Adelman was drafted in the seventh round of the 1968 draft by the San Diego Rockets. He spent seven years as a point guard in the NBA, and played for five different franchises.

In 2021, Adelman was inducted into the Hall of Fame. In 2023, he was honored by the Coaches Association with the Chuck Daly Lifetime Achievement Award.

While Adelman is no longer with us, his legacy lives on in the NBA. His son David — one of six children — is currently the head coach of the Denver Nuggets.