The Los Angeles Lakers have made another addition to the business operations side of their front office.
Yao Williams II has been named vice president and head of global partnerships, the team announced in a statement on Tuesday, June 2. He will lead the Lakers' global partnerships team in his role, which includes partnership sales, business solutions and partnership activation. The Lakers also pointed to Williams' "proven track record of securing both domestic and international large-scale deals while leading high-performing sales teams."
"I couldn't be more excited to have Yao Williams join the Lakers business and lead our global partnership team," Lakers president of business ops Lon Rosen said in the statement. "Yao is an engaging leader with an appetite for innovation that will help drive performance and deliver best-in-class experiences for Lakers partners."
Williams' previous stops include the NBA and Manchester City throughout his two decades of experience in global sales and brand partnerships in sports and entertainment. He was most recently at Elevate Sports Ventures, where he co-led global partnerships.
Williams is the latest hire of the Lakers' ongoing revamp of the front office since owner Mark Walter bought the team for a record $10 billion last year. On the basketball operations side, the Lakers most recently hired Rohan Ramadas as assistant general manager of strategy and data systems. According to Rob Pelinka's comments in his exit interview after the Lakers were eliminated from the playoffs, they're expected to hire another assistant GM to lead scouting and player development before the NBA Draft on June 23.
The idea of LeBron James wearing a Golden State Warriors jersey has lingered around the NBA for years. Now, one prominent Bay Area insider believes the possibility is more realistic than ever.
Speaking about James’ uncertain future with the Los Angeles Lakers, The San Francisco Standard’s Tim Kawakami recently suggested the Warriors should be viewed as a legitimate contender if the four-time NBA champion reaches free agency.
Insider shares latest on LeBron James joining the Warriors. James is considered a “live option” AP
“I think the Warriors would be a very live option,” Kawakami said. “Check that: I think the process has already started and the Warriors are a live option.”
The comments come as questions continue to swirl around James’ future after completing his 23rd NBA season.
Kawakami added a return to the Lakers remains the most straightforward outcome, but also pointed to the possibility of both sides reassessing their partnership, particularly as Los Angeles continues building around Luka Doncic and a younger timeline.
Golden State Warriors guard Stephen Curry (30) dribbles the basketball against Los Angeles Lakers forward LeBron James USA TODAY Sports via Reuters Con
If that happens, Golden State could emerge as a serious landing spot.
The Warriors have long been connected to James. The franchise explored a trade for him before the 2024 deadline, and James has developed strong relationships with Stephen Curry, Draymond Green, and head coach Steve Kerr through years of competition and international play.
The biggest hurdle remains financial. According to Kawakami, Golden State could offer James only the non-taxpayer mid-level exception worth approximately $15.1 million. That would require a dramatic pay cut from one of the highest-paid players in league history.
Stephen Curry #30 of the Golden State Warriors and head coach Steve Kerr Getty Images
Still, the basketball fit is easy to imagine.
A core featuring Curry, James, Draymond Green and Jimmy Butler would instantly become one of the most recognizable groups in the NBA. For a Warriors team searching for one final championship window during Curry’s career, adding James could represent the ultimate all-in move.
Whether it remains speculation or develops into something more, Kawakami’s comments have reignited one of basketball’s most fascinating possibilities.
Knicks center Mitchell Robinson's status for Game 1 of the NBA Finals against the Spurs is still a bit of a mystery.
SNY NBA Insider Ian Begley reported last week that Robinson, who had surgery last week, will "push to play" when the Finals start.
Robinson arrived at Frost Bank Center in San Antonio on Tuesday without a brace or splint on his finger/hand ahead of practice.
Speaking shortly after, head coach Mike Brown said that Robinson did individual work at practice on Monday and that he would speak with the medical staff about the plan for Tuesday.
At practice a bit later, Robinson had a wrap/brace on as he handled the ball with both his right and left hand and took shots.
The team then listed him as questionable in the official injury report with a fractured right 5th Metacarpal.
Robinson has been a crucial part of the Knicks' playoff run.
In the Eastern Conference Finals against the Cavaliers, Robinson provided key minutes, impacting the game with his signature defense and rebounding prowess. In the clinching Game 4, Robinson scored eight points on 4-of-6 shooting, grabbed 10 rebounds, and was a plus-14 on the court in his 18 minutes of play.
One thing that has hampered Robinson and the Knicks this postseason is when opposing teams have used the "hack-a-Mitch" strategy to send him to the free-throw line.
Robinson went just 2-for-14 from the line against the Cavs after going 6-for-16 against the 76ers in the second round and 5-for-13 against the Hawks in the first round.
"I know that Robinson will push to play. Just in having conversations with people over the last couple of hours," Begley reported last Thursday. "He will want to play; it's ultimately up to the Knicks' medical staff. A player's opinion does matter in these things and so he's going to want to be out there."
With the Knicks facing the Spurs, Robinson could be the physical, tall center to help match up with Victor Wembanyama.
Robinson, who will be an unrestricted free agent this offseason, averaged 5.7 points, 8.8 rebounds and 1.2 blocks across 60 games this season. The 60 games were the most Robinson has played in a season since he played 59 games in 2022-23.
The Phoenix Suns have numerous decisions ahead of them this upcoming offseason, including multiple restricted free agents, unrestricted free agents, and players with trade value. The following series will examine those decisions as our writing team presents both a point and a counterpoint for each.
Why do you love the Phoenix Suns? When discussing the future of Devin Booker, this question becomes more than a conversation topic at Majerle’s.
For many of us, our sports fandoms were not chosen, but inherited. We sat, week after week, next to our fathers on the couch and rooted alongside them. In doing so, we gained our own emotional attachment, not just to the team but also to our childhood. That inexorable link can last a lifetime.
My own father didn’t care much for basketball. It was baseball and hockey on the TV in our house growing up. I sat next to him as the Red Wings won the Cup in 2008 and cheered with him. I remember sitting in his bedroom watching Jim Joyce blow the call on the last out of Armando Galarraga’s perfect game for the Tigers.
But when it came to basketball, I was a free agent. I didn’t watch until I was already in High School, and there was no reason to choose the Pistons in the 2010s. But one team had recently picked a young shooting guard born in my home state of Michigan. Thus, Devin Booker became my gateway drug into the Phoenix Suns.
Today, I am as loyal an acolyte as any. Until the day he was traded, I delusionally defended the Ayton pick to my friends. When the Suns made the finals in 2021, I had people all over the country texting me because the one thing that everyone knew about me was that I loved this team.
But what about you? Year in and year out, you come back. Why?
By definition, it can’t be that you are addicted to the feeling of seeing your team win an NBA championship. It has to be something else. That something else is more important now than ever.
The Phoenix Suns are at a crossroads. Devin Booker is a Tier-2 kind of star. Some players, like Wemby, you might be willing to build a team around without a true second superstar. Booker just isn’t that guy.
So, what do the Suns do?
Option A: Use what little draft capital the Suns have to build what team they can around Devin Booker, while combatting the total lack of cap due to the Bradley Beal stretched contract.
Option B: Accept that the Suns are not winning a title with Devin Booker and trade him for assets that can make the foundation of the next great Suns team.
Both options are rather unpalatable. If you go with Option A, you are likely dooming yourself to years of the Play-In and first-round exits. If you go with Option B, you know that you are dooming yourself to years of handing over high draft picks to other teams while the Suns wallow in disappointment.
Neither option feels great, but neither option brings the Suns a title either. So, what are the benefits of trading Devin Booker now?
Booker’s value will never be higher
This is, I think, the most urgent point. We are still years away from Book being a distressed asset. He is coming off of a season where the Suns overperformed with him at the wheel. It is likely that, around the league, Devin Booker has regained some of the value that he likely lost under Frank Vogel and Mike Budenholzer. There are teams out there that do have their number one star that could look over at Devin Booker and think, “There’s our missing piece.”
The clock on that is running out, though. Booker turns 30 in October and already looks like he might be a step slower than he used to be. Soon, he will reach a point where some of those random lower-body injuries are more likely to recur. If Booker sustains one major injury, the Suns will have nothing significant to trade and will become the most pitiable franchise in the NBA.
Right now, the Suns have a guy with an All-Star floor and an NBA Finals ceiling. Every year that they wait to trade Devin Booker, both of those lower a little bit more. That is a problem. Every little bit of value that Devin Booker loses could mean fewer draft picks or young players coming back in a trade. Given the recent NBA Draft Lottery reform, Booker is already going to net the Suns less in a trade than he would have two weeks ago. Teams are surely going to be less willing to part with their draft picks now.
Booker is getting harder to trade
Devin Booker is being paid like one of the best players in basketball. He will make fifty-seven million dollars this season. In the final year of his contract, he will make almost $69 million dollars at age 33, depending on what the league cap number is at that time. Regardless, he will account for 36% of your cap in 2029-30.
The teams most likely to trade for Book are the teams closest to winning. Those teams are also the teams most likely to be at, over, or close to the second apron.
Currently, only the Cleveland Cavaliers are over the second apron. Go back one season, and there were three teams. Go back another, and there were five. Every year, teams fear the second apron more and more. It melts a team’s financial and roster flexibility. The second apron currently sits at around $207 million. Is a team going to be willing to pay over a quarter of that for a second star in his thirties?
Surely, one team will be willing. Every year, there is a team that feels like they are so close that they are willing to trade away key pieces and flexibility for the final player that they think will bring them over the top. This past season, the Cleveland Cavaliers were the prime example of that, trading for James Harden.
My point, though, is that the first and second aprons, and the rules surrounding them, make trades for high-salary players complicated. Many teams would have to gut their cores to bring in a guy making as much as Devin Booker does. If they have also traded away draft capital and are hard-capped or close to it, how will they build around Booker and their other star?
If Booker were Giannis, this wouldn’t be an issue. True, 1A superstars are worth every penny and loss of flexibility. Booker just isn’t that. As his salary continues to rise alongside his age, Booker is becoming less tradable by the season.
What are the Suns really accomplishing by keeping him?
In my opinion, this is the best argument. If you are willing to sit and just watch enjoyable basketball for the next few years and are content as long as the Suns win more than they lose, then you should go and sit on the other side of the fence.
But if you really want to see the Suns win a title and force their way out of the mess that they have built, you should want Devin Booker to be traded.
Until the Suns are free of the Bradley Beal shackles and have some draft capital back, they are playing at a severe disadvantage compared to the rest of the NBA. 13% of the Suns’ salary cap is already dead next season, being paid to Bradley Beal and Nassir Little to be anywhere but Phoenix. Meanwhile, their first pick that doesn’t have a “least favorable of X, Y, and Z teams” qualifier on it doesn’t come until 2032, two years after the end of Booker’s contract in 2030.
The Suns are set up for years of disappointment either way. They can do it now, while there is already the sunk cost of Bradley Beal and no draft capital, or they can do it later when Devin Booker is either in his mid-thirties or on a different team, and there is still no draft capital. The only difference between the two options is whether or not the Suns give themselves some tools to rebuild with along the way.
It’s time
Look, I want to see the Larry O’Brien trophy in the Valley of the Sun. This franchise and this city deserve it. Arizona sports is a hellscape that some are born into and others enter willingly, but it is a hellscape either way. The Coyotes are gone, the Cardinals always disappoint, and the D-Backs are forced to play in the same division as the Dodgers, which are apparently run by Mr. Monopoly Moneybags.
But none of that matters, because Phoenix is a basketball city. The Suns will always be Phoenix’s first love. I don’t want the Suns to trade the franchise’s greatest player because I’m some black-pilled doomer. I want the Suns to trade him because I wholeheartedly believe that doing so will bring the Suns closer to a title than they currently are.
I don’t watch sports for seasons that end barely over .500. I watch because I want to see my team reach the mountaintop. I watch because I know when they do, it will be the end of the great, long journey that it took to get there. When the Suns do win the title, it won’t be in spite of the fact that they traded Booker. On the contrary, all future Suns teams will be built on the back of the legacy Booker will leave behind in Phoenix. Just like recent Suns teams are built on the backs of Nash, Barkley, Stoudemire, Westphal, Adams, and so many more.
Booker will be one more in the line of greats that Phoenix Suns fans have watched on the road to glory.
The end of Booker’s time in Phoenix doesn’t mean the end of his legacy. But trading him now for pieces that can build the next great Suns team can enhance his legacy even more. His value on the trade market can be his last great gift to this organization.
Devin Booker was my entry point into Suns fandom, but even so, I believe it is time to let him go.
Mitchell Robinson had just a black bandaid on his broken right pinky Tuesday when he arrived to Frost Bank Center in San Antonio to practice on the eve of Game 1 of the NBA Finals.
When practice began he had a thin protective black sleeve on his right hand.
Mitchell Robinson at Knicks practice Tuesday. Charles Wenzelberg / New York Post
Robinson underwent surgery after breaking the pinky and is hoping to play in Game 1, although it’s uncertain where he will suit up for Wednesday’s game and beyond.
The Post’s Stefan Bondy previously reported that Robinson had fractured his fifth metacarpal, which is the bone that connects the pinky to the wrist.
It’s unknown how he suffered the injury, although Brown clarified that Robinson did not suffer the injury in a game nor during a practice.
He completed individual work each of the last two days at Knicks practice, and wore a protective brace on his right hand.
“I’m just waiting on the medical staff,” Brown said Monday. “He just did individual work today. I’m waiting on the medical staff to let me know what the next step is.”
Robinson’s size and rebound prowess is needed against Spurs phenom Victor Wembanyama, especially since Karl-Anthony Towns can run into foul trouble.
Mitchell Robinson on Tuesday in San Antonio. Charles Wenzelberg / New York Post
He is averaging 5.3 points, 5.5 rebounds and 0.6 blocks across 13 playoff games this year, leaving marks on games on the boards although teams have successfully employed hack-a-Mitch strategies.
Robinson missed Game 2 against the 76ers in the second round.
While he has not commented on the injury, he did post a message to Instagram on Saturday.
“I can’t thank you guys enough for the love and support most of you bring especially at a time like this in my life,” Robinson wrote. “It makes everything in fighting for 100x easier to deal with.
“The ones that want to see me down and hurt all I gotta say for you is f–k you. And last the ones that say they love and care about me but can’t be there for me when I need them but I’m always there to when they need me god get you.”
The Houston Rockets head coach Rick Adelman (2nd from left) stands along the sidelines with players during the first quarter of the NBA Western Conference First Round Playoff game against the Utah Jazz at the EnergySolutions Arena Thursday, April 24, 2008, in Salt Lake City. ( James Nielsen / Chronicle ) (Photo by James Nielsen/Houston Chronicle via Getty Images)
The basketball community is in mourning, following the news of former Rockets coach Rick Adelman’s passing on Monday. Adelman was 79 years old.
The cause of death has not been disclosed or announced by Adelman’s family. In total, Adelman coached for five different teams: the Portland Trail Blazers, Golden State Warriors, Sacramento Kings, Houston Rockets and Minnesota Timberwolves.
Adelman ranks tenth all-time in wins, with 1,042 victories in 23 years of coaching. Only four coaches have coached longer than Adelman and posted a better win percentage than Adelman’s 58.2 winning clip. He’s also one of just 11 coaches in league history to nab 1,000 victories and posted eleven 50-win seasons, while making the playoffs in 16 of his 23 seasons as a coach.
On the Rockets front, Adelman was hired in 2007 by Daryl Morey, who was a first-time front office executive, at the time. Adelman coached the Rockets for four seasons and the Rockets never had a losing season under Adelman’s tenure, despite dealing with injuries to both Tracy McGrady and Yao Ming throughout his reign in Houston.
The Rockets earned the fifth seed in each of Adelman’s first two seasons in Houston, going 55-27 in 2007-08 and 53-29 in 2008-09. Adelman’s second season was quite memorable, as Houston won 22 consecutive games, which still ranks as the fourth-longest win streak in NBA history.
That Rockets team also took the eventual champion Los Angeles Lakers to seven games in the Western Conference Semifinals — the only such team that can make that claim among the Lakers’ opponents during their path to the championship. Adelman ranks as the fourth-winningest coach in the history of the Rockets franchise, behind Mike D’Antoni, Kevin McHale and Ime Udoka, boasting a 58.8 percent winning clip.
Adelman also ranks fourth in Rockets victories, with 193, tying McHale. In addition, he ranks third in franchise history in games coached, with 328 games.
There’s no such thing as a guaranteed win in the world of sports — unless you’re Knicks forward Jeremy Sochan. The fifth-year NBA player finds himself in rare company entering the 2026 NBA Finals, because it quite literally doesn’t matter who wins, he’s getting a ring anyway. It’s something we saw in 2020 with Dion Waiters in the Lakers/Heat final, and now it’s happening once more.
This is happening because Jeremy Sochan began the 2025-26 season with the San Antonio Spurs where he played 28 games, averaging 4.1 points per game in 12.8 minutes. It was clear that the former top-10 pick didn’t figure into the Spurs’ long-term plans, especially in a post-Wemby world — so in February, he reached a mutual agreement with the team to be waived.
Sochan wasn’t looking for a team for very long. Two days later, after he cleared waivers, the Knicks signed him to add to the team’s depth for their playoff run. This meant that he was part of both the Spurs and Knicks in 2025-26, and now Sochan will get a ring regardless, now that they’re meeting in the NBA Finals.
It’s only the fourth time in NBA history that a player has been guaranteed a ring before the first game of the NBA Finals. Heres the history of those games:
Anderson Varejão (2016-17): Began the season with the Cavaliers and was traded to the Blazers, where he was waived. Signed with the Golden State Warriors. NBA Finals were Cavaliers vs. Warriors, with Cleveland winning. Varejão declined his championship ring.
Dion Waiters (2019-20): Began the season with the Heat and was traded to the Grizzlies, where he was waived. Signed with the Los Angeles Lakers. NBA Finals were Heat vs. Lakers, with Los Angeles winning and Waiters getting a ring.
Torrey Craig (2020-21): Began the season with the Bucks. Was traded to the Phoenix Suns for cash considerations. The NBA Finals were Bucks vs. Suns, with Milwaukee winning and Craig getting a ring.
The lesson in all this: Maybe if you really want an NBA ring, you shouldn’t bust your butt to form an unstoppable team — but instead be an utterly dispensable role player who gets waived or traded for cash. Then you might be lucky enough to bounce between two teams and guarantee yourself a ring!
Entering the last two NBA Finals, there was an accepted feeling of fait accompli. Neither the Mavericks nor the Pacers really felt like they had a chance, though Indiana clearly proved that wrong last year.
These Finals feel different, as you'll see in my Knicks vs. Spursprops for Game 1.
While the New York Knicks are distinct underdogs, their 11-game run of absolute dominance in the Eastern Conference should stoke some fear in the San Antonio Spurs.
These NBA picks start by looking at New York’s offense during that run to find value in Game 1 on Wednesday, June 3, featuring Karl-Anthony Towns.
Game 1 Prop #1: Karl-Anthony Towns Over 1.5 3-pointers
For most players, it's worth noting that the San Antonio Spurs have held postseason opponents to 32.9% from deep. But Karl-Anthony Towns can shoot over any defensive look. Yes, even over Victor Wembanyama to start this series.
Only to start this series because Wembanyama’s instinct will be to keep one foot in the paint and then close out on Towns. That will not work. As Towns hits 3-pointers in this series, that should draw the Frenchman out toward the perimeter, thus reaping another benefit for the New York Knicks’ offense.
Towns has hit 48.9% of his 3-pointers this postseason. The only issue is whether he will attempt enough triples to be a threat. But in this series more than ever, Towns’s success on the perimeter could be the make-or-break piece for New York.
Game 1 Prop #2: De'Aaron Fox Over 1.5 steals
This is as much a bet on how often Jalen Brunson will handle the ball as it is on De’Aaron Fox’s quick hands. Fox should be Brunson’s primary defender more often than not — allowing Stephon Castle to match up with a bigger wing — and when facing such a ball-dominant point guard, the steal opportunities will be bountiful.
Fox cleared this prop twice in the final three games of the Western Conference Finals, again facing a ball-dominant guard in Shai Gilgeous-Alexander.
Betting on Fox’s steals prop makes most sense early in the series — as is the case with any Spurs — as it may take a game or two for New York to adjust to this unique, Wembanyama-supported defense. San Antonio’s perimeter defenders can be aggressive, knowing the quality of rim protection awaiting behind them.
Game 1 Prop #3: Jalen Brunson Under 6.5 assists
If not wanting to bet an Under, then consider Towns’s Over 4.5 assists prop, priced at +122 at bet365. But the bet with more avenues to cashing is indeed this Under.
First of all, the Knicks have put the ball into Towns’s hands as an offensive fulcrum more often. By no means is it a majority of New York’s offense, but it has opened up space in the halfcourt. Since that move, Towns has averaged 6.5 assists while Brunson has averaged 6.7.
Secondly, Brunson’s assists have come in chunks this postseason. Since that shift to moving the ball through Towns, Brunson has fallen short of this modest prop in seven of 11 games. Even in the two genuinely competitive games in this stretch of dominance, Brunson notched only six assists in each.
Cash your ML bets quicker with bet365's early win payout!
Take advantage of the early win payout at bet365, where any pre-game NBA moneyline bet gets paid out as a winner if your team goes up by 20+ points!
Learn more about this feature, and all of bet365's offerings, with our comprehensive bet365 review!
Sign Up Now atimg src="https://img.covers.com/betting/sportsbooks/2/bet365.svg" alt="bet365" width="100" height="28" style="vertical-align: middle;"
21+. Gambling problem? Call 1-800-GAMBLER
Odds are correct at the time of publishing and are subject to change. Not intended for use in MA. Affiliate Disclosure: Our team of experts has thoroughly researched and handpicked each product that appears on our website. We may receive compensation if you sign up through our links.
NEW YORK, NEW YORK - MARCH 01: Victor Wembanyama #1 of the San Antonio Spurs dunks the ball during the third quarter of the game against the New York Knicks at Madison Square Garden on March 01, 2026 in New York City. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Dustin Satloff/Getty Images) | Getty Images
The NBA Finals will be filled with fresh faces. Both the San Antonio Spurs and New York Knicks are made up of players who haven’t appeared on this stage before. It’s an exciting time for the league, as the Spurs look to begin a new dynasty with Victor Wembanyama at the helm, and the Knicks look to win their first NBA Championship since 1994.
Right now, the Spurs are -198 favorites to hoist the Larry O’Brien Trophy on FanDuel. Which team ends up doing that will come down to the performances of their best players. These teams are loaded with talent. But which players rise to the top? Let’s break down the top-10 players in the NBA Finals.
1. Victor Wembanyama
The Western Conference Finals MVP will headline these NBA Finals. The 22-year-old Frenchman has been dominant. Over the course of the playoffs, Wembanyama is averaging 23.2 points, 10.8 rebounds, and 3.5 blocks per game while shooting 51% from the field and 37% from three. He’s proven that even in his first playoff run, he may be the best player in the league. His biggest impact in this series will likely come on the defensive end, as the Knicks feast in the paint and on the boards. If Wembanyama can own the paint, he’ll give the Spurs a major advantage.
2. Jalen Brunson
Brunson is writing himself into New York lore. He’s the best modern Knick, and may go down as one of the best New York athletes in history if he can bring home an NBA Championship. He’s scoring 26.9 points per game on 48.6% shooting from the field and 35.2% from three. That last stat is perhaps the most important. Brunson will be able to hurt the Spurs with his pull-up three-point shooting. It’s a shot that they’ve been prone to giving up in their drop pick-and-roll coverage. Brunson’s pull-up shooting from three and in the mid-range is a major factor in this series.
3. Karl-Anthony Towns
Towns is the type of player who can create big problems for the Spurs. He’s big, strong, and can shoot the three. Towns is averaging 16.9 points and 10.6 rebounds (2.6 of them offensive) while shooting 48.9% from three in the playoffs. The Knicks have used him as a hub for their offense and have thrived as a result. Towns has to stay out of foul trouble and hold up defensively against a physical Spurs team. If Wembanyama guards him, Towns will likely try to pull him out of the paint. If Stephon Castle guards him, as he did in the regular season, Towns will have a chance to bully the Spurs inside. How the Spurs decide to guard KAT is one of the more interesting strategic decisions in the Finals.
4. OG Anunoby
This was the first tough decision on the list. It’s very close between Anunoby and Castle for the fourth-best player in the series. The edge goes to Anunoby, who has been one of the Knicks’ best scorers this postseason, averaging 19.7 points on 57.7% shooting from the field and 48.3% from three. He’s accomplished that all while being their best perimeter defender. Anunoby may also find himself guarding Wembanyama a bit, as he did in the regular season. He’s a big, strong, agile wing who can hold his own against bigger players. Anunoby is an X-factor in this series just based on his defensive prowess. If he also continues to score the ball at a high level, he gives the Knicks a significant advantage.
5. Stephon Castle
After a run of three-straight Knicks, we finally have a Spur rounding out the top-five players in the series. Wembanyama has a huge gap between him and Brunson, but the margin between Castle and Anunoby is slim. Castle has emerged as the Spurs’ second-best player in the postseason with his lockdown defense and aggressive driving. He’s averaging 19.2 points and 6.7 assists while shooting 36.3% from deep in the postseason. The keys for him in this series are to keep spacing the floor with his shooting, reduce his turnovers (averaging 3.7 in the playoffs), and guard without fouling. He will likely be asked to take on several different tough defensive matchups against New York, switching between banging with Towns inside and chasing Brunson around screens on the perimeter.
6. De’Aaron Fox
Which version of Fox will we see in the NBA Finals? If it’s the Fox we saw explode for big scoring nights against the Portland Trail Blazers, he should be higher on this list. If his ankle injury still restricts him, as it did against the Oklahoma City Thunder, then he could actually be too high. Fox will be key to the Spurs’ offensive attack. He’s going to face tough matchups like Josh Hart or Mikal Bridges, who will have the length and speed to keep up with his quick attacks to the basket and contest his mid-range shots. Even if Fox’s scoring doesn’t return to his heights from the first round, he still has a role to play as a steadying hand for San Antonio. They’ll need him to be a leader against a tough Knicks defense.
7. Mikal Bridges
Bridges has been up and down for the Knicks in the postseason. He started the playoffs ice-cold from the field, but he has caught fire lately. He’s averaging 14.6 points on 58.6% shooting from the field and 34.1% from deep. New York needs him to hit threes in this series. He’ll likely have some open opportunities as the Spurs send a lot of defensive attention at Towns, Brunson, and Anunoby. Bridges is an ace-in-the-hole defensively for the Knicks. He provides some matchup issues for the Spurs with his length and athleticism. He’ll likely guard the Spurs guards, who will try to get their bodies into Bridges to counter his length.
8. Dylan Harper
Harper is the only non-starter in the top-10, and for good reason. He’s looked years ahead of where he should be as a 20-year-old guard in his first postseason. Harper is averaging 13.1 points off the bench while shooting 52.5% from the field and 36.4% from deep. He’s competing defensively and has been a force on the glass. Harper struggled through an adductor injury in the WCF, but now looks to be back to near full health. He should create some issues for the Knicks’ smaller bench backcourt. With rebounding being so critical in this series, Harper’s ability to crash the offensive glass should help the Spurs make up for their size disadvantage against New York.
9. Devin Vassell
You need great glue guys to win a championship. The last two players on this list fit the bill. Vassell was excellent in the WCF, knocking down big shots while making clutch defensive plays. Vassell’s defensive effort has been the biggest development for the Spurs this postseason. He’s had tough defensive assignments, like Anthony Edwards and Chet Holmgren, and risen to the occasion every single time. He’s been active in the passing lanes (1.4 steals per game) and made some highlight blocks. He’ll once again have to take on a difficult defensive assignment in the Finals, trying to guard players like Anunoby and Brunson. San Antonio needs him to hit shots and continue defending his tail off if they want to take home a championship.
10. Josh Hart
Hart isn’t going to wow anyone with his box score stats, but he does a lot of the little things that make a team great. He rebounds the ball, hustles on defense, and is a high-level passer. Whatever the Knicks need him to do, he does with intensity. The Spurs will force him to make three-pointers in the Finals. Hart is shooting just 30.3% in the postseason. If he makes open threes, the Spurs’ defensive scheme becomes even more difficult to execute. If he doesn’t, San Antonio can treat him like they did non-shooters in other series, leaving him open while Wembanyama roams the paint to block shots.
As anybody who has stayed up night after night through the NBA postseason knows, the human body wasn’t built for the late hours of playoff basketball.
Our circadian rhythm typically optimizes for peak performance in the late afternoon and early evening, and it’s not just mental acuity that varies by time of day.
“It’s mainly physical—for example, your muscle strength has a very strong circadian rhythm,” said Steven Lockley, a consultant to athletes and teams around the world as well as the co-founder and chief scientist for Timeshifter, an app that helps people mitigate jet lag.
That lends Western Conference teams an edge, including in the NBA Finals.
During the season, West Coast players are more often playing at 4 p.m. biological clock time (East Coast away games) or 7 p.m. (home), rather than the 7 p.m. (home) and 10 p.m. (away) tips East Coast players are managing.
In other sports, circadian rhythms have been credited with helping swimmers break more records in afternoon plunges and giving Pacific time NFL teams a leg up in Monday Night Football contests.
The wider the time-zone differential, the larger the impact. Since the 1999-00 season, Eastern time zone NBA teams have won 39% of their road games in other time zones when starting before 8:30 ET. That drops to 36% for tipoffs between 8:30-10:29 p.m. ET … and falls further from there.
To maximize TV audience, the Finals maintain a consistent 5:30 p.m. PT/8:30 p.m. ET start time (games started after 9 p.m. ET as recently as 2022).
“The West Coast teams definitely have an advantage on average over the East Coast,” Lockley said.
With only a one-hour difference between San Antonio and New York, the Knicks won’t face as big a disadvantage as past Eastern champions. The typical body can handle a one-hour shift within a day of landing. Still, the Spurs could find a small edge. If they remain rooted on San Antonio time, Game 3 and 4 in New York will feel like 7:30 p.m. tipoffs rather than 8:30 starts.
The Knicks, then, might be wise to try living on Texas time. However, maintaining an artificial schedule for the home portion of a series, with players surrounded by families and other obligations, is trickier than when stars are largely sequestered in a team hotel, as the Spurs will be in NYC.
A 2022 study of 11,481 NBA games from Australia’s Monash University found that the eastward jet-lag effect impaired returning home teams more than visiting away teams, amplifying the league’s geographic imbalance.
Thanks to dynastic Los Angeles Lakers and Golden State Warriors runs, 13 of the last 25 Eastern Conference champions have had to handle cross-country flights in the Finals (not counting the COVID Bubble Finals). Pacific time teams are 9-4 in those matchups.
Of course, having Kobe Bryant and Steph Curry probably factors in, too. The aforementioned time-based winning percentage numbers do not take into account team quality. Over the last 25 years, the Lakers and Warriors have generally presented stiffer tests than the New Orleans Pelicans and Memphis Grizzlies, regardless of what time the games are played. Utah and Denver have unique altitude edges as well.
That said, some western teams have pressed their advantage by keeping their body clocks on hometown time when traveling east, i.e.,staying up late on the road, this time on coach’s orders, before adjusting slowly.
In college hoops, Cal reportedly did exactly that after hearing from a former NASA consultant, as it figured out how to handle playing in the ACC against many teams located on the East Coast.
There are two potential benefits: keeping games in earlier biological clock time windows and—with proper adjustments to light exposure and meal planning—limiting the effect of jet lag. For those forced to shift their clocks, travel-related sleep disruption has been found to impair everything from shooting percentage to defensive rating.
The result of all these temporal challenges? Since 1999-00, seven of the 10 teams with the smallest home court advantages—measured in terms of average point differential at home versus away—play in the Eastern time zone, and none of those 10 are on Pacific or Mountain time. New York is 26th in home court advantage over that span.
Following a growing acceptance of sleep science, NBA teams have adjusted their flight and practice times to navigate player clocks, Lockley said, leaving plenty of time for rest. Certain stars have also mastered the art of the pregame nap.
Victor Wembanyama, in particular, has put an emphasis on ZZZ’s. Entering the draft, he already aimed for 10 hours of sleep per night, with afternoon time set aside for additional snoozes. He’s been known to put his phone on airplane mode after 9 p.m. ET, while staffers are told not to contact him after 9:30.
“That’s when he reads for an hour,” Spurs director of basketball communications Jordan Howenstine toldThe Athletic in 2024. “Then he goes to sleep.”
After games, Spurs vet De’Aaron Fox recently shared, Wemby has returned to the locker room wearing blue light-blocking glasses, counting down the time until he can rest.
While travel is disruptive for everyone, preparation for the unique challenges of NBA play in June—from later-than-normal starts to there-and-back-again time zone hops—could prove decisive.
Getting nine hours a night throughout the playoffs? Whether you’re on the court or just watching from home, there’s nothing more alien than that.
Jun 1, 2026; Phoenix, Arizona, USA; Los Angeles Dodgers first baseman Freddie Freeman (right) looks on as Arizona Diamondbacks third baseman Nolan Arenado rounds the bases after hitting a solo home run in the seventh inning at Chase Field. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images | Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images
Los Angeles had two hits in eight at-bats with runners in scoring position, but neither hit did not drive in a run. Shohei Ohtani did not score from second base on the Andy Pages double in the third inning, mostly because the ball was nearly caught in center field. The Dodgers scored their only run of the game in that inning, though on a ground out.
The other non-run-scoring hit with a runner in scoring position was a Miguel Rojas infield single in the second inning that moved two runners up 90 feet to load the bases. Believe it or not, 22 of the Dodgers’ 137 hits (16.1 percent) with runners in scoring position failed to score a run this season. But that’s right in line with MLB as a whole (16.4 percent), so this happens more often than you — or at least I — might have thought.
The bigger drain on offense was all eight of those at-bats with runners in scoring position came in the first three innings, with nary a threat over the final six innings.
But despite all that, the Dodgers still led 1-0 into the sixth inning. But home runs in three consecutive innings spoiled that hope. Arizona was hitless in two at-bats with runners in scoring position, both in the first inning. But they found a workaround with the long ball.
The Dodgers have allowed three home runs in a game five times this season, never more than that to date, though one of those contests was last Tuesday’s blowout of the Colorado Rockies that saw Rojas give up two of the three home runs in an inning he entered with a 14-run lead.
The Dodgers have won three of the five games in which they allowed three home runs. They are 12-0 when hitting at least three home runs, four of those games in the last week. MLB teams as a whole this season have a .238 win percentage when allowing at least three home runs, including .279 when allowing exactly three home runs.
Eric Lauer allowed one home run, a solo shot for the only run he allowed in his Dodgers debut last Tuesday, the aforementioned blowout of the Rockies. He led the American League with 11 home runs allowed at the time the Toronto Blue Jays traded him to Los Angeles.
Lauer’s mound opponent on Tuesday, right-hander Michael Soroka, has allowed four home runs in his 11 starts this season. Only two of those home runs were hit in his 34 1/3 innings at Chase Field, during which he has a 1.57 ERA.
Colorado’s front office is heading into a familiar-looking transition point, as Chris MacFarland moves on from the Avalanche after more than a decade with the organization to take over hockey operations in Nashville.
Nashville Makes Its Move
The Nashville Predators officially named MacFarland their new president of hockey operations and general manager on Tuesday, filling the most important vacancy in their organization with one of the NHL’s most experienced executives.
MacFarland leaves Colorado after 11 years with the club, including the past several seasons as general manager following Joe Sakic’s transition to president of hockey operations after the Avalanche’s 2022 Stanley Cup win.
According to Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman, MacFarland had conversations with Predators owner Bill Haslam on Monday after being given permission by Colorado to speak with Nashville.
“We could not be more pleased that Chris has elected to join the Predators organization and lead our hockey operations group,” Haslam said in a statement. “We conducted an exhaustive search and were able to meet with several very qualified and impressive candidates, but all along, we were hopeful to interview Chris. He turned out to be a perfect fit for us — just what we were looking for to lead our organization moving forward."
Nashville had been searching for a permanent hockey operations leader since Barry Trotz stepped away from the general manager role in February.
Colorado Turns The Page Internally
Back in Denver, the Avalanche confirmed that Joe Sakic will step back into general manager duties “for the foreseeable future,” covering key upcoming moments like the NHL Draft and the start of free agency.
Avalanche owner Josh Kroenke expressed gratitude for MacFarland’s long run with the organization and the role he played in shaping the current roster core.
"Chris was instrumental in our success over the last decade and a key part of our 2022 Stanley Cup championship. This was an opportunity for him to take on a bigger role with the Predators while being closer to his family. We wish him and his family all the best in Nashville."
MacFarland officially took over as GM in 2022 and helped maintain Colorado’s status as a consistent contender. The Avalanche reached the playoffs in every season of his tenure as general manager, including a Presidents’ Trophy campaign this year. That season ultimately ended in disappointment with a sweep at the hands of the Vegas Golden Knights in the Western Conference Final.
Now in Nashville, MacFarland steps into a situation that has been aggressive but inconsistent. The Predators fell just short of the playoffs this season despite major offseason swings, including the additions of Steven Stamkos and Jonathan Marchessault.
“I know this is a proud organization with a solid track record of putting together teams that the fans of Smashville support wholeheartedly," MacFarland said in a statement. "My goal here is to build a winner, working with Bill Haslam, Sean Henry and our hockey operations staff and players to put a team on the ice that will compete for the Stanley Cup. I am excited about our future.”
With the move, Nashville completes its search for a top executive, while Colorado stays the course with a familiar structure under Sakic heading into a crucial offseason.
Last week the MLBPA and MLB each submitted their initial offerings to each other as they staked out their arguments for what the terms of the next Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA) should contain. There are a lot of interesting elements to those proposals we’ll talk about in detail over the coming weeks and months, but in today’s “Reading the CBA Leaves” I’m focusing on one in particular: MLB’s proposal for a salary floor.
MLB formally proposed a salary cap of $245.3 million and a salary floor of $171.2 million. The cap is a non-starter. The 2026 first tier for the Competitive Balance Tax (CBT) kicks in at $244 million. The idea that MLB would cap salaries at a substantially less than inflation increase above that is laughable. But the more interesting number for discussion today is the proposed salary floor, which almost looks compelling until you start to dig into it a little bit.
The devil really is in the details here. Baking those fixed costs into the salary floor allows MLB to offer a floor that looks reasonable while actually just reallocating items the players have already won to bolster a floor that frankly isn’t high enough with those elements included.
In 2027, the salary floor would be set at $171.2 million, meaning that 12 teams would be required to increase payroll by a combined $617 million to meet the floor, enabling more clubs to pursue free-agent players and retain their homegrown stars.
Those 12 teams, based on 2026 Opening Day payrolls, are the Marlins, Guardians, Rays, White Sox, Cardinals, Nationals, Pirates, Twins, Brewers, Athletics, Rockies and Reds.
It all sounds well and good that 12 teams would need to increase salaries by $617 million, but Feisand goes on to note that “eight clubs – the Dodgers, Mets, Yankees, Blue Jays, Phillies, Red Sox, Padres and Braves – would be required to reduce payroll by a combined $578 million.” That’s a recipe for relatively flat salary numbers for players with a heavy hand in redistribution.
Which payroll number you use matters more than just the bonuses and benefits that are included, as Jon Becker of Fangraphs noted when he looked at team salaries last year:
Please note that for contracts with significant deferrals, the league’s Labor Relations Department (LRD) will recalculate their value to a significantly lower number than what is displayed on the RosterResource pages to account for the discounted rate. For each year, we show the money that ultimately will be paid out to each player. So, for example, RosterResource lists Shohei Ohtani’s real-dollar payroll value for 2025 as $70 million, even though his 10-year, $700 million contract is heavily deferred.
The CBT payrolls shown on RosterResource, and in the AAV column for each player, do accurately reflect how the league discounts contracts. I wrote more about Ohtani’s deal in particular here. Ken Rosenthal wrote more about the nuances of Ohtani’s contract’s three values ($700 million, about $460 million, and about $280 million) here; RosterResource only accounts for the first two values, while the league’s LRD calculation reflects the third.
CBT payrolls include ancillary expenses that the real-dollar payrolls don’t, including player benefits (estimated at $17.5 million this year), payment into the $50 million pre-arbitration bonus pool ($1,666,667 per team), and minor league salaries for 40-man roster players (estimated at $2.5 million per team).
You should read that whole piece, and pay special attention to how using the CBT numbers for salaries impacts the amount of compensation going to players. It really is telling that MLB’s proposal would be based on a calculation that shows the 2025 Athletics paid their players $115.3 million in 2025 as opposed to the $76.5 million the LRD number indicates they paid their players. Here is the full chart from Becker’s piece:
And therein lies the rub, this isn’t a move towards competitive equity and a fairer playing field. This is an attempt to fix labor costs under the guise of moving to a more fair playing field. So of course the league is using a dataset of payroll values that is most favorable to the ownership group and includes all sorts of additional compensation the players would probably argue are distinct from their salaries.
The average baseball team is worth $2.9 billion, more than double MLB’s $1.3 billion average from a decade ago, per Forbes’ annual estimates. But some franchises are appreciating at a much slower rate than others. When they put their teams up for sale in recent years, the owners of the Los Angeles Angels, Washington Nationals and Minnesota Twins were disappointed by the bids that came in.
What’s perhaps most irksome to baseball owners, however, is that they keep getting trounced by owners in other leagues. The average National Basketball Association team is worth $5.4 billion, and the average National Football League team $7.1 billion, per Forbes
Drellich continues:
The owners are emboldened not only because they see a problem — they also believe they see a solution.
Every day, they watch other leagues make use of the system they want in baseball. The NBA, NFL and National Hockey League all have a salary cap and floor. MLB does not.
The leading reason MLB valuations trail is a lack of “payroll certainty,” according to Sal Galatioto, president of the sports banking firm Galatioto Sports Partners.
It is an audacious move for a league with an estimated $12.5 billion value to attempt an increase in franchise values across the board by orders of magnitude by limiting the cost of player labor across the board. It is perhaps a sign of the times that the owners and MLB believe they can define what counts as salaries in the most favorable possible terms to owners as the negotiations begin.
The terms of the debate matter a lot and $171 million just isn’t what it used to be, especially when those terms result in a salary floor that is actually closer to $128 million.
Relief Pitcher Taylor Clarke with catcher Aramis Garcia. (Photo by Norm Hall/Getty Images) | Getty Images
Inspiration.
In May, the Diamondbacks had 17 quality starts. Quality starts often require the bullpen to pitch less innings. Those starts should keep them rested. More importantly, the interesting question is whether the Diamondbacks relievers pitch better in games in which the starter executed a quality start? Let’s look at that question. Data from Baseball Reference, FanGraphs, and Baseball Savant.
The 17 Quality Starts in May.
There were seven relief pitchers with at least 14 PAs in those quality starts (Pfaadt was not considered because of too few PAs in quality starts).
Zero Earned Runs. Three relievers (Jonathan Loaisiga, Brandyn Garcia, and Taylor Clarke) allowed zero earned runs. That could imply that they were not challenged by their batters. To test that idea, I looked at stats (OBP, SLG, and RBIs/PA) for the batters they faced. I found seven dangerous batters: Luis Arraez, Jake Burger, Oneil Cruz, former Diamondback Jake McCarthy, Bryan Reynolds, Casey Schmitt, and Juan Soto. To my surprise, they each had exactly four PAs against those dangerous batters. My conclusion is they were indeed challenged and pitched admirably. The following table shows the dangerous batters they faced.
Side Note: In 2022, Jake McCarthy was voted Rookie of the Year by the AZ Snake Pit. After last season’s career low .591 OPS, the Diamondbacks traded him during the offseason. This season with the Rockies, Jake McCarthy had a career best .784 OPS and a career best .149 RBIs/PA. Those career best statistics made him a dangerous batter.
Win Probability Added (WPA). In May, which of the seven pitchers made the most impact as measured by WPA? To my surprise, despite allowing earned runs, Kevin Ginkel and Paul Sewald ranked third and fourth ahead of Loaisiga. Another note is that two games (13 and 21 May) were responsible for Juan Morillo ranking last in WPA. The following table shows their WPAs.
Quality Starts in the Entire Season.
Now, let’s look at the big question, “This season, did the Diamondbacks relievers pitch better in quality starts?” Each of their game-WPAs were placed into one of two bins: games with quality starts and games without quality starts. Each reliever had between 7 and 9 quality start games, with the exception of Thompson, who had 5. Sample size was not an issue.
The following table shows the WPA for each reliever.
The answer is that it depends on which relief pitcher.
Three relievers pitched better in quality starts (Clarke, Garcia, and Loaisiga). It makes sense that those three allowed zero earned runs in May’s quality starts.
One Reliever pitched about the same in both, with a slight edge to no-quality starts (Ginkel).
Three relievers pitched better in non-quality starts (Thompson, Sewald, and Morillo).
Summary.
In May, three relievers allowed zero earned runs in their quality starts, despite facing dangerous batters. They were Jonathan Loaisiga, Brandyn Garcia, and Taylor Clarke. This season, some relievers pitched better in games with quality starts (Loaisiga, Garcia, and Clarke), and some relievers (Morillo, Sewald, and Thompson) pitched better in games with non-quality starts. One reliever (Ginkel) pitched about the same in each type of game.
BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS - MAY 27: Bryce Elder #55 of the Atlanta Braves delivers a pitch during the first inning against the Boston Red Sox at Fenway Park on May 27, 2026 in Boston, Massachusetts. (Photo by Paul Rutherford/Getty Images) | Getty Images
The Braves are back home after another successful road trip. They’ll face Toronto and Pittsburgh now at home, but Toronto comes first and former Brave Kevin Gausman will take the mound Tuesday.
Gausman has essentially pitched at a star level since leaving the Braves, as they seem to have done the right scouting, but couldn’t quite get the development right with him. The 35 year old righty is essentially a two-pitch pitcher, throwing his four-seamer and sinker over 90% of the time, with a token slider for a different look. The fastball sits around 94 with good extension and great life, particularly in the horizontal axis. His splitter has strong horizontal break as well and he throws it below the zone often for a bunch of whiffs. He’s a very good pitcher, but a righty probably is better for the Braves’ current platoon splits, so hopefully they can hit him well.
Bryce Elder will be on the mound and while he has looked more like an enhanced Bryce Elder than prime Corey Kluber of late, he is having a good year and giving the Braves a chance to win when he takes the mound. He is coming off of his worst start by far, as a lack of strikeouts, bad defense, and BABIP luck resulted in 6 runs over 3.1 innings. He’ll hope to bounce back against a Toronto lineup that has talent but has been a huge disappointment this season, with a bottom 10 team wRC+ of 94. Hopefully they stay disappointing and don’t find their talent again while in Atlanta. This seems like a solid bounce-back opportunity for Bryce and the Braves might need that from him against Gausman.
Karl-Anthony Towns
De'Aaron Fox
