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Two of the best teams in the Eastern Conference do battle when Cade Cunningham and the Detroit Pistons host James Harden and the Cleveland Cavaliers.

With Cleveland banged up, Detroit is a 6-point home favorite, but my Cavs vs. Pistons predictions break down why the East’s No. 1 seed still deserves more respect.

Read more in my NBA picks for this matchup, set to tip off at 7:00 p.m. ET from Little Caesars Arena in Detroit.

Cavaliers vs Pistons prediction

Cavaliers vs Pistons best bet: Pistons -6 (-110)

It feels like people aren’t giving the Detroit Pistons enough respect. Cade Cunningham and Jaren Duren are stars, and the only team that has a better net rating than the Pistons this season is the Oklahoma City Thunder.

They’ve also been a great team at home this season, going 22-7 with an average margin of victory of 10.3 points.

Meanwhile, the acquisition of James Harden has been a home run for the Cleveland Cavaliers. Unfortunately, he’s questionable to play with a thumb injury while Donovan Mitchell is already out.

That’s too much to overcome against this really great Pistons team.

Cavaliers vs Pistons same-game parlay

Sure, the James Harden thing has worked for Cleveland so far. But he won’t help the fact that the Cavaliers allow the fifth-most points per game to opposing guards. Give me Cade to go Over 25.5 points, something he’s done in eight of his last 11 games.

The Pistons are also an elite rebounding team, ranking second in rebounding rate. Tobias Harris has hauled down six or more rebounds in seven of his last eight games, and with the Cavs potentially down their top two shooters, there could be plenty of boards up for grabs.

Cavaliers vs Pistons SGP

• Pistons -6
• Cade Cunningham Over 25.5 points
• Tobias Harris Over 5.5 rebounds

Our "from downtown" SGP: Cade!

Cade is getting some MVP buzz down the stretch, and a big game against an East contender could bolster that case.

Cavaliers vs Pistons SGP

• Cade Cunningham Over 25.5 points
• Cade Cunningham Over 5.5 rebounds
• Cade Cunningham Over 9.5 assists
• Cade Cunningham Over 1.5 steals

Cavaliers vs Pistons odds

• Spread: Cavaliers +6 | Pistons -6
• Moneyline: Cavaliers +200 | Pistons -240
• Over/Under: Over 227 | Under 227

Cavaliers vs Pistons betting trend to know

The Pistons have covered the 1H spread in 28 of their last 45 games (+10.75 Units / 21% ROI). Find more NBA betting trends for Cavaliers vs. Pistons.

How to watch Cavaliers vs Pistons

Cavaliers vs Pistons latest injuries

This article originally appeared on Covers.com, read the full article here and view our best betting sites or check out our top sportsbook promos.

There has been plenty of speculation as to whether new Boston Celtics big man Nikola Vucevic will be starting or coming off the bench for the Celtics. Now attention turns to that question for when star Boston forward Jayson Tatum returns to action from the Achilles tendon injury he picked up in the 2025 NBA Eastern Conference Semifinals.

And while we do not yet have an answer to that particular potential conundrum, we do know how the former Chicago Bulls center feels about coming off the bench for Boston at the moment. "When I got to Boston and (was) talking to (Celtics head coach) Joe (Mazzulla), he had mentioned that," said Vooch in an interview with NBC Sports Boston. "And in our conversation, I told him I was open to (it)."

"I didn't mind if my role would be different, if I'd come off the bench, if my minutes were different and he just ... asked me to be flexible to start off the bench and see how it goes and figure out the minutes and everything," he added.

"And I told him I was open to that," continued Vucevic "I didn't know that was an issue for me. I knew it would be an adjustment, when you start for so long, you have a certain routine, you go from the warm-up straight to the intro to playing."

"Now it's that you sit on a bench for a little bit and, so it was an adjustment. I think the first game I was just excited to be out there and just wanted to play as hard as I can to help the team. And there was a lot of process, learning the offense, learning the defense, the communication we use, and things like that."

Listen to "Havlicek Stole the Pod" on:

Blue Wire: https://tiny.ee/CdKp

iTunes: https://tiny.ee/RK47

YouTube: https://tiny.ee/cOW3

This article originally appeared on Celtics Wire: Nikola Vucevic on coming off the bench for the Celtics

What will the impact of Jayson Tatum returning be for the Boston Celtics? The St. Louis native is nearing the end of his long rehab process for the Achilles tendon injury he sustained vs. the New York Knicks in the 2025 NBA Eastern Conference Semifinals, and speculation on how he will be integrated back into the ball club that has found uncanny success in his (and Al Horford, Jrue Holiday, Luke Kornet, and Kristaps Porzingis') absence this campaign.

The team looks quite different, and plays a different style than when Tatum was at the helm, and there is also the whole issue of his costar on the wing Jaylen Brown having a season worthy of winning the league's Most Valuable Player award. What should we expect from the Duke alum returning to the fold?

The folks behind "Havlicek Stole the Pod" put together a clip taking a deep dive on the subject in conjunction with the Ringer's Howard Beck. Check it out below!

Listen to "Havlicek Stole the Pod" on:

Blue Wire: https://tiny.ee/CdKp

iTunes: https://tiny.ee/RK47

YouTube: https://tiny.ee/cOW3

This article originally appeared on Celtics Wire: What will the impact of Jayson Tatum returning be for the Celtics?

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A pair of tanking teams face off in the Lone Star State tonight, where the Dallas Mavericks host the Memphis Grizzlies.

Both teams are decimated by injuries, which is why my Grizzlies vs. Mavericks predictions expect Memphis forward Taylor Hendricks to continue shining in an increased role.

Here are my best free NBA picks for Friday, February 27.

Grizzlies vs Mavericks prediction

Grizzlies vs Mavericks best bet: Taylor Hendricks Over 9.5 points (-120)

The Memphis Grizzlies have been without leading scorer Ja Morant (19.5 ppg) since mid-January, and standout rookie Cedric Coward (13.3 ppg) is also sidelined.

That means plenty of shots for Taylor Hendricks, who was acquired in the Jaren Jackson trade, while Santi Aldama and Zach Edey are injured. Hendricks has stepped up, dropping 10+ points in four of his last six games.

The Dallas Mavericks' defense has collapsed with the departure of Anthony Davis and injuries to Cooper Flagg and P.J. Washington. Dallas ranks 28th in the NBA in defensive rating while playing at the sixth-fastest pace over the last month.

Grizzlies vs Mavericks same-game parlay

Rookie guard Walter Clayton Jr. also came over in that Jaren Jackson trade, and he has also thrived in a bigger role. Clayton has dropped 6+ assists in three of four games with Memphis.

The Griz have lost seven of their last eight games, but the Mavs have dropped 11 of their previous 13. I'll take the points with the visitors against a Dallas squad on the tail end of a back-to-back.

Grizzlies vs Mavericks SGP

• Taylor Hendricks Over 9.5 points
• Walter Clayton Jr. Over 4.5 assists
• Grizzlies +4.5

Our "from downtown" SGP: Grizz!

There's plenty of volatility in these late-season games between teams that aren't trying to win.

Since we're betting on a couple of hungry young players on the Grizzlies, let's also back them to lead at half and pull off the minor upset. 

Grizzlies vs Mavericks SGP

• Taylor Hendricks Over 9.5 points
• Walter Clayton Jr. Over 4.5 assists
• Grizzlies moneyline
• Grizzlies 1H moneyline

Grizzlies vs Mavericks odds

• Spread: Grizzlies +4.5 (-110) | Mavericks -4.5 (-110)
• Moneyline: Grizzlies +165 | Mavericks -200
• Over/Under: Over 239 (-110) | Under 239 (-110)

Grizzlies vs Mavericks betting trend to know

The Grizzlies have covered the first half spread in their last 10 games on the road (+10.00 Units / 88% ROI). Find more NBA betting trends for Grizzlies vs. Mavericks.

How to watch Grizzlies vs Mavericks

Grizzlies vs Mavericks latest injuries

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There’s no better way to kick off the weekend than with some winning bets.

I’ve combed through the latest NBA odds and singled out my three favorites for today, including points props for two role players capitalizing on extra opportunities.

Check out all of my NBA picks for Friday, February 27.

Best NBA player props today

Player	Pick
Kyle Kuzma	Over 1.5 threes	+150
GG Jackson Jr.	Over 16.5 points	-112
Julian Strawther	Over 9.5 points	-115

Prop #1: Kyle Kuzma Over 1.5 threes

+150 at bet365

It’s been an unusual season for the Milwaukee Bucks. With Giannis Antetokounmpo missing significant time, they’ve still managed to win eight of their last 10 games heading into tonight's matchup with the New York Knicks.

Kyle Kuzma has stepped up for Milwaukee, averaging 14.6 points over his last 12 contests and shooting 40% from 3-point range over his last five.

The Knicks' perimeter defense has been shaky this season, ranking 20th in opponent made threes per game. Kuzma has made 2+ threes in four of his last five starts, and he’s likely to do it again tonight.

• Time: 8:00 p.m. ET
• Where to watch: MSG, FanDuel Sports Network Wisconsin

Prop #2: GG Jackson Jr. Over 16.5 points

-112 at bet365

The Memphis Grizzlies’ injury list reads like a horror story, and they desperately need scoring.

G.G. Jackson Jr. is averaging 17.4 points with a .667 eFG% over his last nine games, and tonight he faces a Dallas Mavericks team that’s nearly as depleted as the Grizzlies.

With the Mavs playing their second match in as many nights, I like Jackson to eclipse 16.5 points for the fifth time in six games.

• Time: 8:30 p.m. ET
• Where to watch: FanDuel Sports Network Southeast-Memphis, KFAA

Prop #3: Julian Strawther Over 9.5 points

-115 at bet365

The game of the night features the Denver Nuggets visiting the Oklahoma City Thunder.

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander is back after missing nine games, but in a matchup loaded with NBA stars, I'm focusing on a prop for a lesser-known role player.

Julian Strawther has capitalized on his increased opportunities. The Nuggets guard is averaging 15.6 points and shooting 37% from three over his eight starts, and he’s expected back in the starting lineup tonight.

OKC allows the fourth-most made threes per game, and Strawther has reached double digits in scoring in seven of his eight games while in an elevated role.

• Time: 9:30 p.m. ET
• Where to watch: ESPN

These props are available now at bet365, one of our best betting sites.

This article originally appeared on Covers.com, read the full article here and view our best betting sites or check out our top sportsbook promos.

Kon Knueppel set the NBA record for the most 3-pointers in a season by a rookie on Thursday, helping the Charlotte Hornets to their ninth straight win on the road.

Knueppel produced 28 points, four rebounds, two assists, one steal and one blocked shot in a 133-109 victory over the Indiana Pacers at Gainbridge Fieldhouse. He knocked down eight 3s and was a team-best plus-26 in 31 minutes, 12 seconds of action.

The fourth overall pick clinched the record in the third quarter with his sixth triple, surpassing Keegan Murray for the most in history. Murray sealed it in 80 games with the Sacramento Kings during the 2022-23 season, while Knueppel did so in his 59th game.

"Just my teammates for embracing me and really helping me out," Knueppel said of what means most about the record. "That is a lot of 3s, and it is a lot of looks off other teammates. So them letting me come on the team and letting me play my game, I think, is cool."

KON MAKES HISTORY ‼️

With this three, Kon Knueppel has set the new NBA rookie record for 3-pointers made in a season! pic.twitter.com/CoaK09QIQY

— NBA (@NBA) February 27, 2026

Averaging 3.5 3s per game this season, Knueppel on Tuesday became the fastest player in history to reach 200 career 3-pointers (58 games). He is currently the only player in the league this season with at least 200 3-pointers (209).

Knueppel tied his own franchise record for 3s made in a single game with the performance, which was originally set on Jan. 29 in a win over the Dallas Mavericks. He is also the third rookie in history with multiple games of at least 30 points and seven 3s.

"It is very special to be a part of," Hornets coach Charles Lee said. "Any time you can be around moments like that, that are historic, it is pretty special. To see where his story started and where he continues to ascend to is really cool. I think that not only has Kon done a phenomenal job to accomplish what he just accomplished, but it is also the players around him have put him in great positions. They've helped him along the way."

KON KNUEPPEL.

MOST THREES EVER BY A ROOKIE 🚨 pic.twitter.com/1aPSC2c3SO

— NBA (@NBA) February 27, 2026

Knueppel is averaging 19.4 points, 5.4 rebounds and 3.5 assists while shooting 44.2% from 3-point range this season with the Hornets. He leads the rookie class in total scoring (1,146) and is one of two first-year players with at least five 30-point games.

The former Duke guard has emerged as a significant contributor for the Hornets (29-31) and is a key reason the team is in contention for the play-in race. He wants to continue to build toward reaching the playoffs for the first time in 10 years.

"We got to take care of the games that we believe we should win," Knueppel said. "So going forward, just playing together defensively and offensively will be the best strategy."

This article originally appeared on Rookie Wire: Hornets news: Kon Knueppel reacts to setting NBA rookie 3-point record

The Brooklyn Nets (15-43) have not won a game since coming back from the All-Star break and part of the reason for that is the team being unable to play well for all four quarters. Brooklyn had another chance of ending their losing streak with the San Antonio Spurs (43-16) coming to Barclays Center, but they failed in being able to win a game against one of the best teams in the NBA.

The Nets lost to the Spurs on Thursday 126-110 in a game where Brooklyn didn't earn the lead once while also falling behind by as many as 26 points in a lopsided game. Forward Michael Porter Jr. had 25 points and 14 rebounds for one of his better games in recent memory while backup center Day'Ron Sharpe had 14 points and 11 rebounds coming off the bench.

The Nets did a great job of limiting center Victor Wembanyama's impact as he scored just 12 points on 3-of-9 shooting from the field, but Julian Champagnie scored 26 points by taking advantage of the gravity that Wembanyama has. Brooklyn will be facing the Boston Celtics on Friday, but for now, here are three Nets takeaways from Thursday's loss to the Spurs:

Michael Porter Jr. Has Uneven Performance

Porter finished this game with a great stat line of 25 points and 14 rebounds, but he also had a whopping six turnovers while notching most of his production in an dominant third quarter. In the first, second, and fourth quarters, Porter notched eight points on 3-of-14 shooting from the field, but in the third period, he had 17 points and 6-of-8 shooting. This has been an interesting trend for Porter as he doesn't seem to be able to sustain his efficient scoring for an entire game, but he certainly has some impressive stretches.

Day'Ron Sharpe Notches Another Double-Double

Sharpe came off the bench in this game, but he finished with 14 points, 11 rebounds, and four assists in just 19 minutes while also going against Wembanyama and Luke Kornet during his time on the floor. In a game that turned into another blowout, Sharpe is having arguably the best season of his career as he heads into an offseason where the Nets have a team option on his contract for next season.

Egor Demin Passes Well, But Wasn't Aggressive Scoring

This was arguably Demin's best passing game of his rookie season as he finished with nine assists to just one turnover against one of the best defenses in the league. With that being said, Demin also had six points on just three shots, showing that he wasn't particularly aggressive looking for his own offense. At some point, Demin should be able to combine the scoring/shooting and playmaking at the same time.

This article originally appeared on Nets Wire: 3 Nets takeaways from 126-110 loss to Victor Wembanyama, Spurs

Houston Rockets second-year guard Reed Sheppard has taken quite the leap in the 2025-26 season.

After a disappointing rookie season, the second-year guard has provided plenty of highlights in an expanded role with Fred VanVleet injured, perhaps none bigger than his second-half performance against the Magic on Thursday night. It looked like a game to forget for the Rockets, who trailed 76-57 late in the third quarter after Sheppard's turnover led to a Paolo Banchero dunk in transition.

From there, though, it was the Reed Sheppard show. He helped spur a 21-0 run for Houston, scoring or assisting on 13 of those points while lighting it up from deep. That run was enough to convince head coach Ime Udoka to finally let Sheppard close the game, and Udoka's faith was rewarded with multiple clutch threes from the 21-year-old to ice the comeback win.

It was only one game, but in one of Houston's best wins of the season, Sheppard proved why he should regularly close games for the Rockets.

Sheppard meeting the moment

Rockets 21-0 run, all 21 points were scored or assisted by Reed Sheppard or Kevin Durant. pic.twitter.com/3BDwrKMa9p

— Rockets Clips (@Rockets_Clips) February 27, 2026

Sheppard finished with 20 points off the bench in the win, scoring 18 of those in the second half. He didn't even attempt a three-pointer in the first half, but hit five of them in the final two frames while shooting an efficient 7-for-11 from the field.

It's the type of confidence that Sheppard lacked in his first season with Houston, but one that's been on full display in his first year as a regular part of the rotation. When the Rockets needed a basket down the stretch, it was the 21-year-old who hit the clutch shots, not Kevin Durant.

At this point in the season, that type of production still likely won't be enough for Sheppard to enter the starting lineup. Udoka heavily implied earlier in the season that he wouldn't even consider bringing Amen Thompson off the bench despite his spacing issues on offense. Thompson was a team-worst -15 against Orlando, and the head coach subbed him out for good with eight and a half minutes left to let Sheppard run the offense.

It's clear that Sheppard's shooting ability is a better fit for Houston's offense, but if Udoka is determined to stick with Thompson, then the solution is to have him close games instead.

After watching the second-year guard's heroics down the stretch, there's no reason why he shouldn't be on the court in crunch time. The second-year guard showed he's deserving of more minutes in the win over Orlando, and Udoka needs to give Sheppard that opportunity, especially if he continues to play at the recent level he has.

"What he does for them on the offensive end—I mean, you saw how much easier their offense flowed, especially down the stretch in the 3rd quarter and the 4th quarter. I mean, you have to know where he is at all times, and that's something they've sort of been missing, so I'm a big… pic.twitter.com/JsSY2p3rsU

— Rockets Clips (@Rockets_Clips) February 27, 2026

This article originally appeared on Rockets Wire: Houston's Reed Sheppard shows why he should close games in Magic win

Today in Boston Celtics history, the storied franchise signed Stephon Marbury as a free agent in 2009. The Brooklyn, New York native elected to sign with the Celtics after he was bought out by the New York Knicks in the wake of a major fall-out with the head coach of the Knicks at that time, Mike D'Antoni. The Marbury stint in Boston was nearly as brief as they come, though. The former Georgia Tech standout finished one of the worst seasons (and the last) of his NBA career playing for the Celtics. His capabilities dropped considerably across most counting stats.

Marbury averaged 3.8 points and 3.3 assists in 23 regular-season games with the Celtics in 2008-09, compared to his career rates of 19.3 points and 7.6 assists per game. He played in 14 postseason games that season; Boston lost its second-round series to Orlando in seven games. The following season, Boston only offered the veteran's minimum to Marbury, which the veteran summarily dismissed.

Instead, the Coney Islander headed overseas to the Chinese Basketball Association (CBA), where he has had a long, successful career as a player and as a coach.

Historic milestones

It's also the date of a game legendary Boston point guard Bob Cousy dished out 28 assists in 1959, then an NBA record. It came in a game against the (then) Minneapolis Lakers (now, Los Angeles) in Boston's (and the NBA's) highest-scoring game in history, a 173-139 obliteration of the Lakers.

The Phoenix Suns matched the scoring record in 1990, and the assist record stood until Scott Skiles broke it with 30 assists in one game -- also in 1990.

This article originally appeared on Celtics Wire: Celtics history: Marbury deal; Cousy dishes 28 assists in 173-point game

Lakers’ Deandre Ayton trolled hard by fans after embarrassing loss to Suns appeared first on ClutchPoints. Add ClutchPoints as a Preferred Source by clicking here.

Los Angeles Lakers center Deandre Ayton tempted the basketball gods and karma when he reportedly complained that the team is trying to turn him into a version of lob threat/rim-runner Clint Capela. Less than 48 hours later, he paid dearly for those alleged locker-room remarks. The No. 1 overall pick in the 2018 NBA Draft scored two points on 1-of-3 shooting with four rebounds and one steal. He was a -24 on the court versus the Phoenix Suns, as LA fell 113-110 in the Mortgage Matchup Center.

Royce O’Neale deserves to bask in the limelight after nailing the game-winning 3-pointer with less than one second left on the clock, but the public is focusing much of its attention on Ayton. In what was the Lakers’ second straight devastating loss, he disappeared against his former team and was force-fed a gigantic piece of humble pie. His performance effectively tells the story, but fans are expressing their opinions on the matter just the same.

NBA fans come for Lakers’ Deandre Ayton

“Deandre Ayton said the Los Angeles Lakers were trying make him Clint Capela, and in his first game following those comments, he ended up playing more like Kwame Brown,” Chris Walder of Odds Shark posted on X, referencing the former No.1 pick and LA big man who severely underachieved during his NBA career.”

For those wondering, Capela recorded four points, six rebounds, three assists and four blocks in just 17 minutes of action, as the Houston Rockets edged out the Orlando Magic on the same night as Ayton’s dud.

“On everything I love Deandre Ayton would literally be delivering my doordash if He wasn’t 7 foot tall,” @BeenHim16 proclaimed. “The Deandre Ayton signing is going exactly how the haters said it would go,” @jeff_on_sports commented. “Finally earned the #1 pick for the Suns,” @The_MilesFiles quipped. “Their best player tonight.”

Ouch. Ayton has experienced some good moments while wearing the Purple and Gold — totaled 21 points and 13 boards Tuesday versus the Magic — but his first season in LA is not going how fans hoped. The 27-year-old was averaging 13.2 points and 8.5 rebounds through 49 games entering the Suns clash. Fans rip him apart, but he could be a true difference-maker when at his best.

Ayton averages a double-double for his career, so he should have the ability to make a consistent impact. The Lakers and NBA fans are just not seeing it, however. Following this rough outing in Phoenix, the Bahamian has reached a pivotal point in his Los Angeles tenure. He can allow himself to be inundated by the struggles and subsequent ridicule, or he can use this low point as motivation for the remainder of the campaign.

Which path will he walk?

Related: What hurt Lakers in narrow loss to Suns, per JJ Redick

Related: Austin Reaves’ 2-word mic drop after crushing loss vs. Suns

Minnesota Timberwolves star Anthony Edwards wasn't afraid to put Thursday's game in his own hands ... and wasn't afraid to let everyone know about it, including Minnesota head coach Chris Finch.

Edwards made a huge shot to give the Timberwolves a 92-88 lead over the Los Angeles Clippers with 42.9 seconds left in the fourth quarter, before getting in Finch's face.

"That's what I do," Edwards could be seen telling Finch on the broadcast after the shot.

The Timberwolves went on to win 94-88 and Edwards was asked about that moment during his postgame interview with Amazon Prime.

Ant explains pic.twitter.com/EP9IfyLN9g

— Rob Perez (@WorldWideWob) February 27, 2026

“The play before, when I took the midrange over two (players), (Finch) said to pass the ball and I told him, 'You don't want me to pass the ball, you want me to shoot it,'" Edwards said.

Edwards had 31 points, five assists and three rebounds for the Timberwolves. He shot 12-of-24 from the field, including 2-for-6 from the 3-point line.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Anthony Edwards yells 'that's what I do' at own coach after late shot

NBA fans react to Deandre Ayton’s 2-point effort in Lakers-Suns game originally appeared on The Sporting News. Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.

Comments from Deandre Ayton did not age well for Thursday night’s game between the Los Angeles Lakers and the Phoenix Suns. 

Following a Lakers loss against the Orlando Magic, Ayton was accused of taking a shot at Houston Rockets center Clint Capela. 

“They're trying to make me Clint Capela," Ayton told ESPN. "I'm not no Clint Capela!"

The comments went viral on social media on the day of the Suns-Lakers battle, and they were kept in mind after the LA loss on Thursday. Unfortunately, a rough outing for Ayton led to the expected reaction from NBA fans.

NBA Fans Discuss Ayton’s Rough Night

via @TBExceed: Clint capela clears this fraud

@mtpluggrinder: Genuinely what is this guys problem?

@jamestheg3: Terrible

@danhurleyuconn: Not even as good as 2026 Capela 

@BronOverBumJ: Worse than Jaxon Hayes I can’t believe it

@SeeMeInShadow: ran out of crunk juice

Ayton started and played for 23 minutes on Thursday night against the Suns.

The veteran center was the only starter to fail to reach double-digit scoring. Ayton shot 1-3 from the field, scoring just two points. He had four rebounds and one steal on the night.

Going into the matchup on Thursday, Ayton had collected 49 games with the Lakers. Statistically, it’s been a down year. Ayton is averaging 16.1 points and 8.5 rebounds. His career-average is 16.1 points and 10.3 rebounds.

The former first-overall pick has had a productive career as a full-time starter over eight years with three different teams, but he always tends to miss expectations as a top pick. Unfortunately, the combination of speaking out and struggling in the following game caught up to Ayton.

He’ll get his shot at redemption on Saturday, February 28, when the Lakers pay a visit to the Golden State Warriors. 

More NBA News: 

• Erik Spoelstra admits that the Heat must improve in their clutch-time performances
• Warriors get concerning Steph Curry injury news
• Kon Knueppel credits his teammates for helping him get the historic three-point record

Erik Spoelstra admits that the Heat must improve in their clutch-time performances originally appeared on The Sporting News. Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.

The Miami Heat have a talented roster that is headlined by the likes of Tyler Herro, Norman Powell, and Bam Adebayo. With that amount of talent on the roster, many expect Erik Spoelstra's team to stand out in crunch-time situations.

Unfortunately, that was not the case during their Thursday game against the Philadelphia 76ers. The Heat were doing well, but it was not enough to knock off the 76ers, who had standout nights from their star duo of Tyrese Maxey and Joel Embiid.

Spoelstra wants the Heat to be better in the clutch

Throughout the years, the Heat have always been competitive when it comes to clutch situations. They usually had Jimmy Butler in recent years step up and take over.

He is not there anymore, so everybody else must step up. Herro is often the player given the responsibility because he is the best shot-maker on the roster. Powell can also do that, but Herro is probably the best option for Spoelstra.

MORE: Tyler Herro and the Heat appreciate that ball movement is a big part of their offense

Unfortunately, that has not been the case this season because the Heat have been losing many clutch games. That is not what Spoelstra wants to see because he has a high standard for crunch-time success.

"I'll have to look at the one Tyler tried to scoop with his left hand, we might've been able to get something better out of that, but he was terrific in that 2nd half," Spoelstra said after the game against Philly.

"We're gonna improve in that area, there will be a lot more clutch games in these last 20 plus, and we'll continue to get better at them and win these games."

If the Heat want to get more wins this season, they have to brush up on their crunch-time performances. They have let results slip away this season, and they could have been in a much better state if they won those games.

More NBA news: 

• Dwyane Wade names the best leaders he played with — and one isn't LeBron James
• Erik Spoelstra is confident in the Miami Heat's depth playing a big part in a rocky season
• Norman Powell opens up on first career All-Star appearance
• Miami Heat big man Kel'el Ware honored to be part of NBA All-Star Weekend as a sophomore
• Miami Heat star named one of NBA's most overrated players

The Brooklyn Nets (15-43) have not won a game since coming back from the All-Star break and part of the reason for that is the team being unable to play well for all four quarters. Brooklyn had another chance of ending their losing streak with the San Antonio Spurs (43-16) coming to Barclays Center, but they failed in being able to win a game against one of the best teams in the NBA.

The Nets lost to the Spurs on Thursday 126-110 in a game where Brooklyn didn't earn the lead once while also falling behind by as many as 26 points in a lopsided game. Forward Michael Porter Jr. had 25 points and 14 rebounds for one of his better games in recent memory while backup center Day'Ron Sharpe had 14 points and 11 rebounds coming off the bench.

The Nets did a great job of limiting center Victor Wembanyama's impact as he scored just 12 points on 3-of-9 shooting from the field, but Julian Champagnie scored 26 points by taking advantage of the gravity that Wembanyama has. Brooklyn will be facing the Boston Celtics on Friday, but for now, here are the Nets player grades following Thursday's loss to the Spurs:

Nolan Traore: C+

Traore did a good job of scoring the ball overall as he was penetrating the paint on almost every possession, but he also had some trouble trying to get daylight with Victor Wembanyama in the game. Traore has been doing a great job of being aggressive with the ball in his hands, but the team expects to create more scoring opportunities for his teammates than he did against the Spurs.

Egor Demin: B

Demin had an interesting game against the Spurs as he wasn't too aggressive with getting some of his shots off, but he finally put his passing chops on full display by getting close to 10 assists. What the Nets have to be hoping for is that at some point this season, Demin can show his ability to put the scoring and passing together instead of doing just one or the other.

Michael Porter Jr.: B

Porter had a slow start to this game in terms of his scoring as the Spurs' defense did a great job of making him take tough shots for the majority of the first 24 minutes. However, in the third quarter, Porter woke up in a huge way by scoring 17 points in the period to pair with his excellent rebounding to make up for his poor performance in that aspect against the Mavericks.

Noah Clowney: C+

Clowney had a solid performance against the Spurs as he was efficient with his offensive touches, showing that he is likely over his extended drought of the past month or so. Clowney had some issues guarding his man without fouling and didn't excel in any other category, but his offensive contributions were encouraging to watch with his recent shooting struggles being considered.

Nic Claxton: B-

Claxton had arguably his toughest matchup of the season with him having to go against Victor Wembanyama, but Claxton handled himself well aside from fouling out early in the fourth quarter. Claxton did a good job of scoring around the rim along with doing a good job of rebounding and passing the ball while also bothering Wembanyama on most possessions.

Ziaire Williams: F

Williams struggled with his shooting in this one as he couldn't get much to drop from the perimeter, especially with the way that the Spurs were closing out hard on the shooters. Williams also had his fair share of struggles on the defensive end of the floor with San Antonio running their offense down to a science for the majority of the contest.

Danny Wolf: B-

Wolf did a good job scoring the ball from all over the floor and the fact that his three-pointer was falling helped open up the rest of his game, especially driving to the rim. Wolf did a good job of rebounding the basketball during his time on the floor and did a better job of taking care of the basketball, but Brooklyn didn't have much to prevent the Spurs from exerting their will.

Day'Ron Sharpe: B+

Sharpe had one of his better performances of the season despite having to against Wembanyama and Luke Kornet during his time on the floor as he played within himself. Sharpe did a good job of finishing in the paint and was all over the boards on both ends of the floor, but he also turned the ball over more than he usually does when he has the ball in his hands.

Ochai Agbaji: D

Agbaji went scoreless against the Spurs as he couldn't get any of his shots to fall or get to the free-throw line, making this his worst offensive performance since coming to the team earlier in February. Part of Agbaji's appeal is also on the defensive end of the floor and while he typically brings a solid effort on that end of the court, he has to be better offensively.

Drake Powell: C-

Powell was solid, if unspectacular, on the offensive end during his time on the floor as he took the shots that came to him and didn't look for much more than that. Powell didn't make much of an impact during his time coming off the bench, but the good news is that he was ready to play once he stepped on the floor, something that has been an issue for him recently.

This article originally appeared on Nets Wire: Nets' Michael Porter Jr. drops 25 points in 126-110 loss to Spurs

After a hard-fought, exhausting win in Toronto the night before, the Spurs avoided a letdown game against the Brooklyn Nets by beginning the game strong and overcoming some rough stretches by spreading the wealth and riding the hot hand of the moment on their way to a 126-110 victory. Seven Spurs scored in double figures, led by 26 from the hometown kid Julian Champagnie on 10-14 shooting, 6-9 from three. Michael Porter, Jr. was cold in the first half but exploded in the second for the Nets, finishing with 25 points and 14 rebounds.

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This article originally appeared on Hoops Hype: Spurs win 11th consecutive game in memorable Julian Champagnie homecoming

Spencer Payne: FINAL: HOU 113, ORL 108 The #Magic had a 19-point lead halfway through the third quarter, but a 21-0 run by the #Rockets let them back in the game. Kevin Durant ends with a season-high 40 points, including 26 in the second half. Thank you for following my coverage!

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This article originally appeared on Hoops Hype: Kevin Durant explodes for 40 points in Rockets comeback win over Orlando

Antwane Willis Jr: The Atlanta Hawks improve to 30-31 on the season after decimating the Washington Wizards 126-96. Corey Kispert had his breakout game with 33 points and 6 rebounds. Hawks return Sunday night vs the Portland Trail Blazers.

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This article originally appeared on Hoops Hype: Corey Kispert enjoys career night in win over former team

Adam Aaronson: “Our season was, was very, very, very, very bad last year,” Tyrese Maxey said. “…We were blessed with VJ Edgecombe, and I think as a Sixers organization, as a fan base, we should be very happy, very pleased, and very thankful. I know I am. I’m extremely thankful for him.”

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This article originally appeared on Hoops Hype: “Our season was, was very, very, very, very bad last …

Austin Krell: Nick Nurse did not have any updates on Joel Embiid after the game, but mentioned that he saw the rib and shoulder ailing him. Nurse suggested he's back on some sort of minute limit.

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This article originally appeared on Hoops Hype: Nick Nurse did not have any updates on Joel Embiid …

Dustin Dopirak: Rick Carlisle on Obi Toppin: "Just the reaction was the crowd was heart-warming. ... It's clear this is going to be a slow process of getting him graduatlly back up to speed."

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This article originally appeared on Hoops Hype: Rick Carlisle on Obi Toppin: "Just the reaction was …

Tony East: Obi Toppin: "I know that my foot's good right now." Said that he knows his explosion isn't where it was at the end of last season but thinks it will get there as he plays more often down the stretch.

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This article originally appeared on Hoops Hype: Obi Toppin: "I know that my foot's good right now." …

Pablo Torre Finds Out: NEW INVESTIGATION: Former LSU star and Bulls guard Antonio Blakeney is the unnamed "Co-Conspirator 1" in the NBA gambling scandal, according to law-enforcement officials — and he's still playing. "This... is the real original sin — but he is continuing to exist under the radar."

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NEW INVESTIGATION: Former LSU star and Bulls guard Antonio Blakeney is the unnamed "Co-Conspirator 1" in the NBA gambling scandal, according to law-enforcement officials — and he's still playing.

"This... is the real original sin — but he is continuing to exist under the radar." pic.twitter.com/YNlXo4PaVC

— Pablo Torre Finds Out (@pablofindsout) February 26, 2026

This article originally appeared on Hoops Hype: Antonio Blakeney is the unnamed "Co-Conspirator 1" in …

Charlotte Hornets PR: Kon Knueppel has set the NBA rookie record for 3-pointers made in a season (207). Knueppel is the only player in the NBA with over 200 3-pointers made so far this season.

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This article originally appeared on Hoops Hype: Kon Knueppel breaks rookie record for most three-pointers in a season with 22 games to go

The Golden State Warriors have had over 600 players don the more than 60 jersey numbers used by their players over the more than 75 years of existence the team has enjoyed in its rich and storied history.

Founded in 1946 during the Basketball Association of America (BAA – a precursor league of the NBA) era, the team has called home the cities of Philadelphia, San Francisco, Oakland, and even San Diego.

To commemorate the players who wore those numbers, Warriors Wire is covering the entire history of jersey numbers and the players who sported them since the founding of the team. For this article, we begin with the first of two players who wore the No. 47 jersey for the Warriors.

That player would be Golden State forward alum Dave Lattin. After ending his college career at Texas-El Paso, Lattin was picked up with the 11th overall selection of the 1967 NBA Draft by the (then) San Francisco (now, Golden State) Warriors.

The Houston, Texas native played the first season of his pro career with the Dubs before he was drafted by the Phoenix Suns in the 1968 NBA expansion draft.

During his time suiting up for the Warriors, Lattin wore only jersey No. 47 and put up 2.2 points and 2.4 rebounds per game.

All stats and data courtesy of Basketball Reference.

This article originally appeared on Warriors Wire: Warriors jersey history - No. 47 - Dave Lattin (1967-68)

The Brooklyn Nets have 52 jersey numbers worn by over 600 different players over the course of their history since the franchise was founded in 1967 as a charter member of the American Basketball Association (ABA), when the team was known as the "New Jersey Americans".

Since then, that league has been absorbed by the NBA with the team that would later become the New York Nets and New Jersey Nets before settling on the name by which they are known today, bringing their rich player and jersey history with them to the league of today.

To commemorate the players who played for the Nets over the decades wearing those 52 different jersey numbers, Nets Wire is covering the entire history of the franchise's jersey numbers and the players who sported them since the founding of the team.

And for today's article, we will continue with the fifth of 21 people to wear the No. 44 jersey, wing alum Ralph Simpson. After ending his college career at Michigan State, Simpson was picked up with the 11th overall selection of the 1972 NBA Draft by the Chicago Bulls.

The Detroit, Michigan native played the first six seasons of his pro career with the ABA's (defunct) Denver Rockets and Denver Nuggets before he was dealt to the Detroit Pistons in 1976. He also played for the Nuggets again and the Philadelphia 76ers before he was dealt to the (then) New Jersey (now, Brooklyn) Nets in 1979 for the final two seasons of his NBA career,

During his time suiting up for the Nets, Simpson wore only jersey No. 44 and put up 6.6 points, 1.8 rebounds, and 2.1 assists per game.

All stats and data courtesy of Basketball Reference.

This article originally appeared on Nets Wire: Nets jersey history No. 44 - Ralph Simpson (1979)

NEW YORK -- The Brooklyn Nets looked like they were capable of being one of the better teams in the league during the month of December when they were operating on all cylinders. However, since the calendar turned to January, Brooklyn has looked like a shell of its former self and head coach Jordi Fernandez explained how the team remains positive amidst the extended losing.

"Winning matters and competing for games is extremely important. The record is what it is, we’re well aware of it and we don’t like it. But, the players show up and work every day," Fernandez said prior to Thursday's matchup against Victor Wembanyama and the San Antonio Spurs. The Nets have the worst record in the NBA in 2026 and at this point, it seems that the team is just trying to stay focused and continue to improve while keeping the big picture in mind.

"It’s not uncomfortable, it’s not a bad feeling. Coming here and feeling like we can compete against anybody has to be important," Fernandez continued. "If you’re up 10, you want to be up 20. If you’re down 20, you want to be down 10. We have to be competitive and understand this is a process."

While Brooklyn is hoping to win every game from now until the end of the season, the fact of the matter is the Nets have the eighth-hardest schedule to finish the year, in terms of opponent win percentage. Players like forward Michael Porter Jr. have recently spoken about maintaining the mindset of winning while keeping in mind that part of the team's mission is also to develop the younger players on the team.

If the Nets are lucky after this season is over, they may have the chance to draft a franchise player of their own, similar to what the Spurs did three years ago when they drafted Wembanyama. This season, similar to last season, has been hard for the organization as well as the fanbase, but everyone in the building is choosing to remain positive down the stretch with the hope that the growing pains will be worth it when the rewards start pouring in.

This article originally appeared on Nets Wire: Nets trying to remain positive amidst recent losing stretch

Iga Swiatek is widely recognised as one of the greatest tennis players on the planet and quite possibly a future all-time great.

The Polish star has already won six Grand Slam titles by the age of 24, and could add another to her collection when she competes at the French Open in a couple of months.

Last year, Swiatek had the opportunity to go and watch a certified all-time great basketball player at the Chase Center in San Francisco.

That player was Stephen Curry, the former MVP and four-time NBA champion.

Iga Swiatek expressed her respect for Steph Curry’s ability to manage the expectations of making three-pointers

Steph Curry is a basketball legend: a marksman who has made the most three-pointers in NBA history and is the only unanimous NBA MVP in history.

Iga Świątek had the opportunity to see Curry play live in March last year. Swiatek attended the Golden State Warriors game against the Charlotte Hornets, which the Warriors won 119-101.

“I loved watching this game,” Swiatek told the WTA Tour.

“I was super grateful for the reception, because, I don’t know, I wasn’t really expecting that. It was amazing and I really appreciate that.”

“It was more like a 6-love, 6-love match kind of,” she said, laughing. “So it wasn’t really super exciting till the end. They were winning it pretty easily.

“But still, watching Steph live was amazing, and, for sure, you can see the skills straightaway.

“I also thought about how it is for him when everybody just expects from him to have these three-point shots. I really, really respect how he manages that.”

Iga Swiatek’s performance at Indian Wells 2025

Swiatek was in San Francisco ahead of her participation in Indian Wells: a Californian WTA 1000 event.

Swiatek, who was defending her 2024 title, defeated Caroline Garcia, Dayana Yastremska and Karolina Muchova to reach the quarter-finals.

There, she beat Qinwen Zheng 6-3, 6-3, setting up a clash with 18-year-old Mirra Andreeva in the semi-finals.

Andreeva, the ninth seed, stunned Swiatek 6-7, 6-1, 3-6, advancing to the championship match against Aryna Sabalenka.

Andreeva defeated top seed Sabalenka, winning her second WTA 1000 tournament in as many events.

Shams Charania: The return: Taj Gibson has agreed on a deal with the Memphis Grizzlies, Mark Bartelstein of @PrioritySports tells ESPN. At 40 years old, Gibson is back in the NBA for his 17th season – a big man regarded as a consummate leader and professional over his career.

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This article originally appeared on Hoops Hype: Taj Gibson returns to the NBA at age 40 with Grizzlies

Welcome to Atlanta, where the players play and the gentlemen's clubs have the best wings in town.

The Atlanta Hawks are leaning into the city's famed hip-hop culture and history, featuring what the team is calling an "iconic cultural institution" that's definitely NSFW in an upcoming promotional night.

The team announced Wednesday it will collaborate with prominent Atlanta strip club Magic City for a one-night only, in-game celebration of hip-hop called "Magic City Monday" against the Orlando Magic on March 16.

“From the food to the music and the exclusive merchandise, we are excited to team up with Magic City to create an authentic, True to Atlanta-inspired game experience,” Hawks Executive Vice President and Chief Marketing Officer Melissa Proctor said in a news release.

Magic City Kitchen will serve two versions of their "world famous" lemon pepper wings, Louwill Lemon Pepper BBQ, named after Atlanta-native and three-time NBA Sixth Man of the Year-winner Lou Williams.

More NBA: Suns owner willing to pay millions to get best NBA players in dunk, 3-point contests

What else is planned for 'Magic City Monday'?

The Hawks' celebration of "Magic City Monday" doesn't stop at wings. Atlanta rapper and entrepreneur T.I. is expected to perform at halftime.

Being that Tip is back home in Atlanta, at the State Farm Arena, it'll be interesting to see if he'll perform any recent cuts including diss tracks toward rapper and entrepreneur Curtis "50 Cent" Jackson.

Keeping it so ATL, the organization tabbed native DJ Esco to provide the pregame tunes.

Before the game, ticketed fans will have a chance to view a recording of the Hawks AF Podcast featuring a conversation with Magic City founder Michael “Mr. Magic” Barney and T.I., hosted by comedian D.C. Young Fly, another Atlanta native.

“We doin’ this one for the city ... Magic City,” T.I. said in a news release.

Why is Magic City famous?

Magic City has become influential not only in Atlanta but as a tourist stop for those who visit the city. Ask NBA players who have a road game against the Hawks about the lore of Magic City wings.

Williams famously couldn't help but visit the spot for its wings in 2020 when he was excused from the NBA Bubble in Orlando to attend a funeral, while everyone was social distancing due to the spread of the COVID-19 virus.

The moment went viral after a photo he snapped with rapper Jack Harlow during the visit that was posted to social media.

"We had our masks on, I thought we did it how we were supposed to do it," Williams said, explaining the incident during a June 2025 episode of Gil's Arena, a podcast hosted by former NBA player Gilbert Arenas with Nick Young, Kenyon Martin, Rashad McCants and Josiah Johnson.

He continued: "I want to put this to bed. I didn't sneak out the bubble to go to Magic City. They excused me from the bubble to go to a funeral. ...The funeral home was a block away from Magic [City]. I've been staying in a hotel [in the NBA bubble in Orlando] eating hotel room service food. Magic got good food, this is my hometown and if you know ATL, we eat in our strip clubs. That's where you can find the best food."

Williams received a 10-day quarantine for violating safety protocols but maintains that the league's focus was on him going to a strip club rather than his real reason for going – the food.

The incident did two things: birthed the nickname "Lemon Pepper Lou" and also cemented Magic City's kitchen's place as the stuff of NBA and Atlanta legend.

But long before Williams's visit, the site was a landmark for Atlanta and its visitors, which is the focus of the documentary "Magic City: An American Fantasy" that discusses the impact of the club on Atlanta music, sports and culture through interviews with Atlanta rappers Big Boi, Killer Mike and T.I., along with other celebrities and artists who they discuss its role in hip-hop and Black culture.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Atlanta Hawks to feature prominent strip club in upcoming promotion

He might not have been able to secure the win vs. the Denver Nuggets for the Boston Celtics by himself this past Wednesday (Feb. 25) night, but Celtics point guard Derrick White has been impressive for Boston this season, and even Nuggets coach David Adelman admitted as much ahead of the tilt his team would win 103-84.

"One thing he does is he plays the same way every night," said Adelman of White's consistency. "And there's a lot to be said for that. And I think, from the San Antonio (Spurs) days, it's incredible when he came in the league how much you just went under everything with him. He's going to drive the ball with his right hand – that's what he does."

"And he just turned himself into a confident 3-point shooter," he added. "That makes you have to make a decision nightly because if he does get downhill, he's so effective."

"I think he's over a block a game for a guard," continued the Denver coach. "Just a complete basketball player. That trade really worked out for them and he just compliments whoever he plays with so well."

"It's funny he used to be in our gym in the summers and he's back home playing pickup. And just to see where his career has gone, it's (made him) a very well-deserved, just a really good all-around basketball player."

Listen to "Havlicek Stole the Pod" on:

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iTunes: https://tiny.ee/RK47

YouTube: https://tiny.ee/cOW3

This article originally appeared on Celtics Wire: Denver coach David Adelman lauds growth of Celtics guard Derrick White

Dustin Dopirak: Rick Carlisle: "Toppin will play tonight. He will be on a minutes restriction and it's safe to assume he'll be a minutes restriction the rest of the season."

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This article originally appeared on Hoops Hype: Obi Toppin cleared for first game since October

Jamal Collier: CavsDonovan Mitchell is listed as OUT for tomorrow’s game against the Pistons with a strained right groin. James Harden (thumb) is once again listed as questionable. He had his thumb wrapped heavily as he exited the locker room Wednesday night in Milwaukee

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This article originally appeared on Hoops Hype: Donovan Mitchell is listed as OUT for tomorrow’s game …

James Ham: Keegan Murray is officially listed as out with a left ankle sprain. Russell Westbrook is also out with a right thigh contusion. Malik Monk is questionable with right ankle soreness. Sabonis, Hunter, Cardwell and LaVine remain OUT.

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This article originally appeared on Hoops Hype: Keegan Murray is officially listed as out with a left …

Bob Costas, Doug Collins and Mike Fratello never all called a game together when they were teammates at NBC a quarter-century ago. That'll change on Tuesday — in a throwback night for the network's NBA coverage. NBC has announced plans for Costas, Collins and Fratello to handle the courtside duties Tuesday when Victor Wembanyama — who wasn't even born when that trio was involved in NBC's NBA coverage in the early 2000s — and the San Antonio Spurs take on Joel Embiid and the Philadelphia 76ers.

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This article originally appeared on Hoops Hype: NBC has announced plans for Costas, Collins and …

Jim Gray will be the sideline reporter for that game, and NBC said it plans to incorporate “reminiscent and familiar components” from how games aired in the 1995-96 season, including the graphics package.

Houston Chronicle

This article originally appeared on Hoops Hype: Jim Gray will be the sideline reporter for that game, …

Also coming back from the past: the studio team. Hannah Storm, Isiah Thomas and P.J. Carlesimo will handle a throwback version of “NBA Showtime” starting at 7 p.m. Eastern, an hour before the game broadcast.

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This article originally appeared on Hoops Hype: Hannah Storm, Isiah Thomas and P.J. Carlesimo will …

Throughout most of the first three quarters of the Boston Celtics 103-84 loss to the Denver Nuggets, the Celtics were able to keep the game close despite shooting just 28% from beyond the arc and 35% from the field overall. But the Nuggets broke the game open vs. a tired Boston squad to secure the victory on their own home court of Ball Arena this past Wednesday (Feb. 25) night.

After the loss, star Celtics forward Jaylen Brown weighed in on what went sideways for his team in the defeat, saying "I think we just had a tough time tonight converting. I thought we got a lot of great looks, some open catch issues, and we just didn't convert."

"So, move on to the next tough night shooting the ball," he added. "The physicality was pretty good tonight, but I thought we just didn't convert on the offensive end, that spilled over the defense a little bit."

"Every night is an opportunity to learn, so definitely some takeaways from tonight," said Brown, taking a positive tack from the loss. "They're a good team. I thought we put ourselves in a good position. We've just got to convert."

"I feel like offensively, I think we had like 84, 85 points, but I thought we had a bunch of open looks. And we've just got to stick them and trust our guys to shoot it confidently. And then also, I think we gave them a couple more extra chance points than we would have liked on the glass. But other than that, I thought we competed."

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This article originally appeared on Celtics Wire: Jaylen Brown points to cold shooting, defense in Celtics loss to Nugs

Law Murray: Surprise, Kawhi Leonard and John Collins are both out tonight vs Timberwolves Both didn't finish last Friday at Los Angeles. Leonard played on questionable tag Sunday. Collins will wind up with eight days off prior to Sunday vs Pelicans.

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This article originally appeared on Hoops Hype: Kawhi Leonard and John Collins are both out tonight vs …

NBA Agent Bernie Lee: Every now and then you meet a person who will argue for an hour over a rule definition in a game of UNO, leave the table in disgust, and then talk about the perceived injustice for a week and how much it bothered them (see Jimmy Butler), and you realize, "Oh wait, there are levels to this." Those levels are where the special in all of this lies. I will give you a real-time example of this: the Boston Celtics. There isn't a person among us who didn't watch them lose earlier in the playoffs than expected last year see their best player go down to a catastrophic injury who didn't expect them to purposely take a step back.

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This article originally appeared on Hoops Hype: NBA Agent Bernie Lee: Every now and then you meet a …

Bernie Lee: When free agency began, they requested a meeting with a client I had at the time who had underperformed for years and was going to be on a vastly reduced contract, with the thought that if he could prove he was healthy, his value would return. I looked at it as a great opportunity for both sides, but I also had my eyes open and expected in the meeting to be told of a different directive than competing for a championship in 2025–2026. That was until our meeting began at 6:01 p.m. on July 1st. I have done this agent thing for over 20 years, and I have participated in countless free-agent meetings for players of all levels, and I can honestly tell you I have never in my entire career been more impressed with a coach than I was with Joe Mazzulla.

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This article originally appeared on Hoops Hype: I have done this agent thing for over 20 years, and I …

Bernie Lee: 1. The amount of alignment and respect from Brad Stevens to his coaches was unparalleled; and 2. If anyone asked Joe to do anything other than compete like the world was about to end, they would probably only get the chance to ask him once. Fast-forward 58 games, and not shocking to me, Joe was right. If I am lucky enough to do this another 20-plus years, I highly doubt I will ever see another midstream pivot with this amount of success, and most importantly, a group that was built through adversity versus giving in to it. And that, to me, is the principle that all of this has to be built on. Period. End of sentence.

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This article originally appeared on Hoops Hype: Bernie Lee: 1. The amount of alignment and respect …

League executives have spent the past month meeting with dozens of potential investors in franchises in Europe, including wealthy individuals and private equity funds. Non-binding bids for those teams are due in late March. I’m told the NBA wants franchise fees of about $1 billion, though some investor groups have balked at that number and have pushed for fees closer to $500 million. It’s possible the NBA Board of Governors could greenlight the sale of franchises in some cities, and thus the formation of the league, during its upcoming March meeting. The NBA has targeted October 2027 for the league’s debut. The NBA has held conversations with several media companies with global aspirations to broadcast the games, including Amazon and YouTube, according to sources familiar with the matter. Amazon and YouTube spokespeople declined to comment. No decision on a broadcast partner or partners has been made yet, according to an NBA spokesperson.

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This article originally appeared on Hoops Hype: Amazon, YouTube among companies in talks to broadcast NBA Europe games

While a fledgling league without hard audience data will likely be limited in the media rights money it initially commands, the NBA hopes that anchoring permanent teams in Europe’s biggest media markets – many of which don’t have permanent teams in the EuroLeague, the continent’s top basketball league – will make the league interesting to big partners. Currently, some of Europe’s best basketball teams (including Turkey’s Fenerbahçe Beko and Greece’s Olympiacos Piraeus) aren’t connected to its largest media markets, dampening ubiquitous continental interest in the sport and lowering its television value.

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This article originally appeared on Hoops Hype: While a fledgling league without hard audience data …

NBA senior leadership has expressed hope the EuroLeague and NBA Europe can become partners, including the possibility of EuroLeague taking a stake in NBA Europe, an equity exchange between the two leagues, or perhaps even a merger, according to sources familiar with the matter.

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This article originally appeared on Hoops Hype: NBA senior leadership has expressed hope the …

Washington Wizards: Update: Tristan Vukcevic has been upgraded to available for tonight's matchup. Kyshawn George (left knee contusion) is now out.

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This article originally appeared on Hoops Hype: Tristan Vukcevic has been upgraded to available for …

The Brooklyn Nets are still in the midst of the 2025-26 NBA season and at the moment, they're trying to turn their season around before April comes around. Despite the fact that Brooklyn remains focused on finishing this season in a strong fashion, it's important to note that matters after the season, like free-agency, are still being considered at this moment.

As of this writing, the Nets are projected to have at least $46 million in cap space to use in the offseason, not accounting for the fact that they would also have access to the Room Mid-level Exception (RMLE). When considering the RMLE, Brooklyn could have as much as $56 million in cap space to work with this summer, third only to the Los Angeles Lakers ($89 million) and the Chicago Bulls ($75 million).

What is important to reference is that the Nets do not have their own pick for the 2027 NBA Draft as that pick went to the Houston Rockets after Brooklyn traded draft picks with the Rockets two summers ago. That means that the Nets do not have as much of an incentive to be as committed to the rebuild heading into the 2027 Draft since Houston would ultimately be the beneficiary.

All that is to say that the Nets could be using this upcoming summer to upgrade the team as much as possible around the young players on the team, including the five rookies taken in the 2025 Draft. Forward Michael Porter Jr. ($40.8 million due to him in 2026-27) and center Nic Claxton ($23.1 million) will be the only players on the roster making more than $15 million next season.

While the recent Collective Bargaining Agreements (CBA) have changed how impactful free-agency is, there's still a possibility that the Nets could look to the market for immediate improvements. With that being said, here are five players that Brooklyn has to make contract decisions on following the conclusion of the 2025-26 campaign:

Ochai Agbaji

Agbaji has not played much for the Nets since being acquired from the Toronto Raptors via trade prior to the trade deadline, but the rest of the season will be seeing how he fits within this system. Agbaji will be a restricted free-agent after this season, but given how he has played at various points in his career, he could be an interesting player to monitor.

Ziaire Williams

Williams has had his bright spots for Brooklyn this season as he has shown more ability in his dribble-drive game while displaying the defensive tenacity that he was known for since his days with the Memphis Grizzlies. Williams has a team option for the 2026-27 season that is worth $6.25 million, but his spot in the rotation as of this writing seems to be situational.

Day'Ron Sharpe

Like he has done for the past couple of seasons, Sharpe has displayed his penchant for being ultra-productive in limited minutes while also showing his ability to be an effective starting center when Nic Claxton is out of the lineup. Sharpe, like Williams, has a $6.25 million team option for next season and given his play this season, the Nets will likely exercise that option.

Josh Minott

Similar to Agbaji, Minott will be a restricted free-agent after this season, but he has not played one second for the Nets since being acquired from the Boston Celtics prior to the deadline. Minott is available for Thursday's game against the San Antonio Spurs and with the team needing to see how he fits on this roster, he could be getting some playing time down the stretch of this campaign.

Jalen Wilson

Wilson has been lauded by head coach Jordi Fernandez for his professionalism when it comes to his role as primarily coming off the bench whenever a few rotational players are injured or when games have gotten out of hand. While acknowledging the fact that Wilson is always ready to play, he will be a restricted free-agent after this season so it'll be interesting to see how much playing time he gets towards the end of the year.

This article originally appeared on Nets Wire: Who do the Nets have to make contract decisions on after this season?

Michael Scotto: The Milwaukee Bucks and Cormac Ryan have agreed to a two-way deal, league sources told @hoopshype. Ryan, a G League standout for the Wisconsin Herd, has averaged 20.4 points on 48.2% shooting from the field and 42.1% from 3-point range, 4.6 rebounds, 2.9 assists, and 1.5 steals.

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This article originally appeared on Hoops Hype: Bucks sign sharpshooter Cormac Ryan to two-way deal

Tom Orsborn: Spurs list Stephon Castle (left hip flexor tightness) and Keldon Johnson (left shoulder sprain) as questionable for tonight at Brooklyn.

bsky.app

This article originally appeared on Hoops Hype: Spurs list Stephon Castle (left hip flexor tightness) …

Tony Jones: Lauri Markkanen is undergoing his MRI, I’m told, so the Jazz should have results coming. The NBA is evaluating the results, as standard practice. They did not send medical personnel to Utah. That part I got wrong. My apologies.

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This article originally appeared on Hoops Hype: Lauri Markkannen undergoing MRI

Joel Lorenzi: Patrick Williams and Jalen Smith both listed out tonight vs Portland. Anfernee Simons remains out with a “left ulnar styroid fracture.” Bulls are about to get…creative, particularly in the frontcourt.

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This article originally appeared on Hoops Hype: Patrick Williams and Jalen Smith both listed out …

The impact of no longer having NBA live rights is all over the latest earnings report from Warner Bros. Discovery. But the TNT Sports parent company is still touting its current rights portfolio and financial savings to come. WBD said Thursday that it posted $9.46 billion in revenue for the fourth quarter of 2025, down 6% from the same period in 2024. Meanwhile, the net loss was $252 million, an improvement from the comparable $494 million loss. Within those topline figures, WBD said that the loss of NBA live rights created a 4% drag on advertising revenue in the fourth quarter, absent of currency effects. That effect is expected to grow to 7% in the first quarter 2026 and to 20% in the second quarter due to the comparison to last year’s NBA postseason.

Front Office Sports

This article originally appeared on Hoops Hype: WBD said that the loss of NBA live rights created a 4% …

Still, WBD said the current NBA pact focused in part on highlights and production of Inside the NBA is beginning to yield significant cost savings and that the loss of that advertising revenue from live games “will be more than offset by an associated improvement in operating expenses.” WBD also said “not all sports rights are created equal,” and the retooling of its overall portfolio to include additional college sports and tennis content, among other sports, remains a key strategy.

Front Office Sports

This article originally appeared on Hoops Hype: Still, WBD said the current NBA pact focused in part …

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The Charlotte Hornets will try to run their road trip winning streak to three games as they visit the Indiana Pacers on Thursday night.

Indiana hasn’t come close to covering in any of its last four games, so I’m taking a surging Charlotte squad to win big in my Hornets vs. Pacers predictions for tonight.

Let’s take a deeper look at this Eastern Conference matchup in my free NBA picks for Thursday, February 26.

Hornets vs Pacers prediction

Hornets vs Pacers best bet: Hornets -13 (-110)

The Indiana Pacers have lost four straight games and have failed to cover in any of them, losing by 21 as an 11.5-point underdog to the Philadelphia 76ers on Tuesday. Indiana is allowing 119.2 ppg on the year and has allowed more than 130 points to each of its last three opponents.

The Charlotte Hornets have covered in nine of their last 10 games, including its last five games as a favorite. The Hornets are averaging 130.0 ppg on their current road trip and have too many weapons for the Pacers to handle. I’m taking Charlotte to cover as a big favorite tonight.

Hornets vs Pacers same-game parlay

Both teams have played to totals of 230+ points in each of their last three games, and they’re averaging a total of 235.5 in their first two meetings this year, so I’m confident in including the Over in my SGP.

I’ll also take Hornets rookie Kon Kuneppel to score Over 17.5 points, something he’s done in each of his last three games.

Hornets vs Pacers SGP

• Hornets -13
• Over 229.5
• Knueppel Over 17.5 points

Our "from downtown" SGP: A deep sting

Charlotte has no shortage of players who can fire away from deep, and I’m going to bet on three of them to hit their targets for my longshot parlay tonight. LaMelo Ball, Knueppel, and Brandon Miller have all hit this target in at least two of their last three games, and they’ve had plenty of nights where all three have done so at the same time, making this a realistic scenario in a high-scoring Hornets win.

Hornets vs Pacers SGP

• Hornets -13
• Ball Over 3.5 threes
• Knueppel Over 3.5 threes
• Miller Over 2.5 threes

Hornets vs Pacers odds

• Spread: Hornets -13 | Pacers -13
• Moneyline: Hornets -850 | Pacers +575
• Over/Under: Over 229.5 | Under 229.5

Hornets vs Pacers betting trend to know

The Hornets are 9-1 ATS in their last 10 games overall. Find more NBA betting trends for Hornets vs. Pacers.

How to watch Hornets vs Pacers

Hornets vs Pacers latest injuries

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Young was the franchise pillar for the better part of 8 seasons here in Atlanta, and he leaves behind a résumé as good as any player since Dominique Wilkins himself. Wilkins can also empathize closely with being traded away from a franchise so key to one’s own identity. Wilkins spoke on the trade, saying that, “sometimes in life, things don’t work out, and it’s time. We all have been through it. I’ve been through it, and it’s nobody’s fault. It’s just the way the business is running, how it’s done. Trae was a tremendous player in an Atlanta Hawks jersey. No one could ever take that from him. What he did was very special.”

Yahoo! Sports

This article originally appeared on Hoops Hype: Dominique Wilkins on Trae Young trade: We all have been through it

“Jalen Johnson has developed quicker than a lot of people have given credit for or expected,” Wilkins said. “But they always say, take care of your business at hand. Don’t worry about too much down the road right now. Worry about what you’re doing now. You take this one game at a time, one month at a time, one year at a time.” “He’s still a young guy, so it’s a few different areas where he can get better, and he will get better,” Wilkins detailed. “He will get better defensively. He will get better as far as different ways he can score. As a young guy, you can always get better. You can always add new things to your game to make you an even more lethal player. Being 24 years old, he’s still learning right now.”

Yahoo! Sports

This article originally appeared on Hoops Hype: “Jalen Johnson has developed quicker than a lot of …

Dominique Wilkins spoke with DJ Saddiqi of Casino dot org on his meteoric rise, saying: “Well, I must say he’s a little bit of Scottie Pippen as far as being a point forward,” Wilkins led with. “Pippen was a point forward and was very effective at the position. This guy Jalen, he brings even another element, because the way he rebounds, the way he passes, and he flirts with a triple-double every single night. I love Jalen Johnson. The way he plays, man, and he’s so deserving of this honor that he received during All-Star weekend. I couldn’t be happier for him.”

Yahoo! Sports

This article originally appeared on Hoops Hype: Dominique Wilkins spoke with DJ Saddiqi of Casino dot …

Following a dominant victory over the Boston Celtics, 31-year-old Jokic spoke candidly about his anticipation of seeing Nikola Topic. The two shared a brief but impactful tenure with the senior Serbian national team, and Nuggets leader was quick to offer high praise for the 20-year-old point guard. “He’s a really good guy, really talented. I know he’s the future of Serbian basketball,” stressed the Sombor native in a postgame interview following Wednesday’s win.

EuroHoops.net

This article originally appeared on Hoops Hype: “He’s a really good guy, really talented. I know he’s …

It's approaching a year since the Denver Nuggets fired Calvin Booth and Michael Malone on the same day. It was a stunning move that ended the tenures of the GM and coach who delivered the franchise its first championship just two years earlier. The two clashed over how to build a roster after the title. Malone wanted veterans. Booth wanted to develop young players. They didn’t see eye to eye. They talked behind each other’s backs. And Nuggets president Josh Kroenke had enough of the tension consuming the organization. “I think we both would admit a lot of stuff is overblown,” Booth said on The Kevin O’Connor Show in an illuminating conversation that shows an ex-GM still processing what happened, still proud of what he built, and still waiting on the phone to ring.

Yahoo! Sports

This article originally appeared on Hoops Hype: Former Nuggets GM Calvin Booth addresses Denver exit

"You could put 100 GMs in my position," he said. "I don't know what, three or four of them do as good as I did." Still, understanding the problem and solving it are different things. "When I get that title, it's not an option for me not to do my job," Booth said. "So I think one of the only outcomes where everybody thinks we're aligned is me submit, lay down, not do the job. And that's not an option for me. So some version of this was going to happen. Could have been quieter. Could have not grown legs with the media. Could have not been such a crawl in ownership's pants. Maybe there's some different things that could happen in that regard.”

Yahoo! Sports

This article originally appeared on Hoops Hype: One of the only outcomes where everybody thinks we're …

Marc J. Spears: Cavaliers star Donovan Mitchell has joined WellWithAll as a strategic investor in the Black-owned and led wellness company working to close health gaps and create generational wellness for all.

x.com

This article originally appeared on Hoops Hype: Donovan Mitchell has joined WellWithAll as a strategic …

What happened to Jamal Murray? Nuggets guard leaves game vs. Celtics, gets injury update originally appeared on The Sporting News. Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.

The Denver Nuggets are already missing Aaron Gordon and Peyton Watson. They've spent a whole season with their roster battling various injuries.

They can't afford to miss Jamal Murray for too long, as well.

Murray left Wednesday's game against the Boston Celtics.

The star guard had played eight minutes and scored two points in the first half before departing.

MORE: Lakers have a very specific LeBron, Luka, Reaves problem

What happened to Jamal Murray?

Murray apparently is dealing with an illness.

The Nuggets announced that Murray is questionable to return to Wednesday's game for that reason.

If he's legitimately sick, there isn't great reason to bring him back in the game. 

The Nuggets can run most of their offense through Nikola Jokic anyway, and the likes of Spencer Jones, Tim Hardaway Jr. and Bruce Brown can get more minutes off the bench.

If Murray comes back in, it's a good sign and suggests there will be no long-term negative impacts here.

If Murray doesn't return, it'll at least bear watching to see what the Nuggets intend to do with him next.

MORE: Dylan Harper ties Kobe Bryant's all-time NBA record

Why Aaron Gordon isn't playing tonight for Nuggets with injury news originally appeared on The Sporting News. Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.

The Denver Nuggets are in a big spotlight game on Wednesday night.

They're taking on the Boston Celtics for a national TV audience on ESPN.

One problem: They don't have Aaron Gordon.

Really, they haven't had Gordon on the floor for a while.

Why isn't Aaron Gordon playing tonight?

Gordon is out on Wednesday against the Celtics because he's injured.

He last played on Jan. 23, when he left midway through a win over the Bucks.

Gordon is dealing with a hamstring injury.

MORE: Lakers have a very specific LeBron, Luka, Reaves problem

When is Aaron Gordon coming back?

Gordon still has a little while before he returns.

On Jan. 29, the Nuggets announced Gordon would be re-evaluated in 4-to-6 weeks.

Now with this matchup against the Celtics on Feb. 25, it's getting just about the time for the Nuggets to figure out what they're doing next with Gordon.

Nuggets coach David Adelman recently implied that he's hoping Gordon can return sometime next week

"Aaron's been great," Adelman told reporters on Tuesday. "He's understood the process. And I think you all understand how frustrating this has been for him. He sees us losing games that he could be a part of."

The sooner Gordon gets back, the better.

MORE: Dylan Harper ties Kobe Bryant's all-time NBA record

Jayson Tatum is playing 5-on-5 basketball again with the Boston Celtics, and fans of the team can almost feel his return to the court this season. But such a return is still, even now, not certain -- nor is what will happen to the Celtics when he does. The surprise success of Boston in his absence (and that of Al Horford, Luke Kornet, Jrue Holiday, and Kristaps Porzingis, while we're at it) might be the story of the season in the NBA.

But how the Celtics respond to Tatum's return could very well be the story of the decade depending on how it pans out, good or bad. What can we expect from the St. Louis native when he does start playing again? How will Boston reintegrate the Duke alum into what has been a play style very different from what he has grown used to? How will Tatum and his costar on the wing Jaylen Brown share the load? And most importantly, could this team win it all with Taco Jay playing for them again?

To assess the likely imminent return of Tatum to the Celtics, the hosts of "Havlicek Stole the Pod" linked up with Ringer reporter and Real Ones cohost Howard Beck. We cover all the angles of JT's return from injury, get caught up on all the Celtics news of the week, and even check in on the state of the Los Angeles Lakers - Celtics rivalry. Check it out!

Listen to "Havlicek Stole the Pod" on:

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iTunes: https://tiny.ee/RK47

YouTube: https://tiny.ee/cOW3

This article originally appeared on Celtics Wire: What we should expect (and might get) in Jayson Tatum's return

According to NBA insider Shams Charania, Celtics star Jayson Tatum is getting closer and closer to a return to the parquet floor. Tatum, who ruptured his Achilles during the 2025 Eastern Conference Semifinals in May 2025, has taken another step forward in his recovery, according to Charania. “I can tell you that Jayson Tatum has been a full-go in five-on-five scrimmages with the Celtics,” Charania said on ESPN’s “NBA Today” Wednesday.

Boston Globe

This article originally appeared on Hoops Hype: Jayson Tatum ‘a full-go’ in five-on-five scrimmages

Shams Charania: “The common theme that I’ve gotten around Jayson Tatum is he will be back on the floor when ‘JT feels like JT.’ The Celtics have continued to let him lead that process. He’s in the driver’s seat. They will take Jayson Tatum’s lead as far as when he feels like he’s ready and cleared.”

Boston Globe

This article originally appeared on Hoops Hype: Shams Charania: “The common theme that I’ve gotten …

Sean Cunningham: Keegan Murray is out for the remainder of the game with a left ankle injury.

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This article originally appeared on Hoops Hype: Keegan Murray is out for the remainder of the game …

Rylan Stiles: Isaiah Joe (left glut contusion) and Branden Carlson (low back soreness) will not return to tonight’s game at Detroit.

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This article originally appeared on Hoops Hype: Isaiah Joe (left glut contusion) and Branden Carlson …

Star Boston Celtics forward Jayson Tatum is reportedly inching ever closer to a return based on a recent report coming from senior ESPN news breaker Shams Charania. According to Charania, Tatum has been a full participant in 5-on-5 scrimmages. This is likely to be among the final steps left to reach before a return to the court for the first time since the Achilles tendon injury he sustained vs. the New York Knicks in 2025 NBA Eastern Conference Semifinals sidelined the St. Louis native.

Still, both Tatum and the Celtics front office have kept the specifics of the Duke alum's recovery under wraps, and the entire organization has remained tight-lipped about any potential return date even as the likely range of dates draw closer.

For now, all we can do is wait for an official release to such an effect or an admission from someone within Tatum's camp to know when he will return to action for the Celtics.

But with this news, it is looking more likely than ever that such an outcome is not far off for fans of the storied franchise.

Listen to "Havlicek Stole the Pod" on:

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This article originally appeared on Celtics Wire: Shams: Jayson Tatum playing 5-on-5 with Celtics

Coby White hopes to become part of the Charlotte Hornets' long-term future originally appeared on The Sporting News. Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.

The Charlotte Hornets have been one of the most impressive teams in 2026. The trio of LaMelo Ball, Kon Knueppel, and Brandon Miller looks to be the core for the long-term future. Coby White seems ready to join that core, as he wants to stay with the Hornets beyond the 2025-26 season.

White is set to become an unrestricted free agent in the summer of 2026. He will likely get offers around the league because he is a valuable offensive player. However, he would prefer to stay with the Hornets because he likes the organization and he feels right at home in North Carolina.

White wants to stay with the Hornets for the foreseeable future

During his Chicago Bulls days, White was always a shining light on the roster. He was always a positive force on offense, as he was a playmaker and scorer at the same time. It was a tough situation to be in because Chicago kept struggling.

Now that he is with the Hornets, he might have found the optimal role for himself. At the moment, he is a sixth man, which means he has the green light whenever Ball, Knueppel, and Miller are not on the floor. Considering that White loves Charlotte, that might be the role he wants in the long run.

MORE: Coby White had the early sense that the Charlotte Hornets had something special brewing

He has kept a close eye on the Hornets throughout the season. That is probably because they were rivals with the Bulls for the spots in the Play-In Tournament, but it seems the Hornets have leapfrogged White's old team by now.

White will play the remainder of the season in Charlotte, but it will be interesting to see where he ends up. Being an unrestricted free agent means he has the freedom to choose, but at the moment, he seems set on staying in Charlotte.

"They did some podcasts saying they want me to be there for a long time. I don't think they would have said that if they didn't mean it. Obviously, I want to be a Hornet for a long time, so I want to be. Every moment I've been here, I've really enjoyed it, I've really enjoyed everyone's presence here, and I want to be here for a really long time," White said about his future in Charlotte.

It will be an interesting situation for both parties, but they appear to have similar perspectives. If they can sign him to an extension sooner rather than later, it would be good for all the parties moving forward.

More NBA news: 

• Charles Lee boasts praise for Kon Knueppel after making NBA history
• Hornets make NBA history and franchise history in win over Bulls
• Kon Knueppel’s Olympic dream doesn’t feel crazy anymore
• LaMelo Ball focused on winning after franchise record performance
• Charles Lee raves about LaMelo Ball's willingness to be a playmaker despite his hot night

Boston Celtics rookie Hugo Gonzalez received quite the praise from Los Angeles Lakers superstar Luka Doncic after their two teams squared off this past Sunday. Both players have played for Real Madrid basketball team at a young age, helping pave the way for their NBA careers, with Doncic becoming one of the best players in the world, since entering the NBA in the 2018 draft.

Speaking with reporters after the game on Sunday, Doncic said it was very special to play against Gonzalez after their previous encounters with Real Madrid, to which the Celtics rookie took a lot of respect from. Doncic said Gonzalez is an amazing person and amazing player, and on Tuesday night, Gonzalez responded by saying the Lakers star is an example for everybody.

Hugo González responded to Luka Dončić's well wishes for him after their first matchup in LA the other day with @RealBobManning tonight: "It was great ... for any guy that's coming out of the (Real Madrid) academy, he's an example for everybody." @CLNSMediapic.twitter.com/3q2HLHNqNr

— Celtics on CLNS (@CelticsCLNS) February 25, 2026

"He's an example for everybody," Gonzalez told CLNS Media. "The best situation you could ever be in (in Real Madrid), he's also a great person and we have a great relationship. He did his first two camps in Madrid in the city that I was living in, and I asked him for a photo, I was lucky that his first two camps were in my city."

Doncic would add to his praise for Gonzalez, saying he's a "high-effort player, who is all around the court. It's only his first year, he's still has time to learn and I think he's going to be a very important piece for every team he plays for."

Coming to Boston as the 28th overall pick in this year's draft, Gonzalez has earned the trust of Celtics head coach Joe Mazzulla with his aforementioned high effort, and tenacious defense. On a team that has had opportunities for others to shine due to injury and the loss of Jayson Tatum, Gonzalez has surprised many by making a considerable rookie impact.

Listen to "Havlicek Stole the Pod" on:

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This article originally appeared on Celtics Wire: Hugo Gonzalez and Luka Doncic share mutual respect for each other

Tom Orsborn: Darko Rajakovic on what he learned about Victor Wembanyama coaching him at All-Star Game: “Super-focused kid… He’s really on a mission to be one of the best players.”

bsky.app

This article originally appeared on Hoops Hype: Darko Rajakovic on Victor Wembanyama: 'He's really on a mission to be one of the best players'

Jon Krawczynski: The plan is for Jules Bernard to remain in Iowa right now.

Twitter

This article originally appeared on Hoops Hype: The plan is for Jules Bernard to remain in Iowa right …

Lamar's manager, Gina Rodriguez, told us he wanted to shake his marijuana use -- out of concern it could lead to doing hard drugs again.

TMZ.com

This article originally appeared on Hoops Hype: Lamar's manager, Gina Rodriguez, told us he wanted to …

Kristaps Porzingis made his Golden State Warriors debut on Thursday, Feb. 19. Unfortunately, he was back on the injury report for the team's game against the Denver Nuggets on Sunday, Feb. 22, and didn't make the trip to New Orleans for Tuesday's loss. Porzingis will also be absent when the Warriors face the Memphis Grizzlies on Thursday.

When speaking with the media ahead of Tuesday's loss to the Pelicans, Steve Kerr addressed Porzingis' illness before noting that the veteran big is starting to show signs of improvement.

"He's getting better," Kerr said. "I didn't talk to him today, but our training staff did. He's just been really sick, but making some improvements. So we'll see how he is. It's just an illness. It's not related. It's a bug."

The Warriors knew Porzingis had been dealing with health issues over the past year when they traded for him. Acquiring him was always going to be a dice roll in terms of availability. Nevertheless, when healthy, Porzingis is capable of making a sizeable contribution to the Warriors roster.

Unfortunately for Warriors fans, there's no timeline for when Porzingis will be back on the court. However, when that time does come, the hope will be that he can start stringing a run of games together.

This post originally appeared on Warriors Wire! Follow us on Facebook and Twitter!

This article originally appeared on Warriors Wire: Warriors' Steve Kerr provides update on Kristaps Porzingis illness

The Philadelphia 76ers started off their 3-game road trip with a dud in the bayou as they lost by 15 to the lowly New Orleans Pelicans. It was their season-high fourth straight loss and it appeared they were headed for another loss when they faced the Minnesota Timberwolves on the second night of a back-to-back.

However, Tyrese Maxey laced up his sneakers and led the Sixers to a much-needed win over the Wolves. Then, in the return of Joel Embiid from injury, Philadelphia handled business against the East-worst Indiana Pacers on Tuesday to go 2-1 on the trip.

The Sixers were able to shake off what was slowing them down a bit and will now turn their attention to returning home and hosting the Miami Heat in a hugely important matchup on Thursday.

"I think being realistic, if you come out here and get two out of three, you gotta be happy, right?" coach Nick Nurse told reporters after the win over the Pacers. "Obviously, it didn't start very well at all, but I still think we're kind of shaking off some All-Star, pre-imposed rust and stuff. I think we've had enough games to do that now, and two good ones on the road."

Now, nobody's going to be jumping for joy over a win against these Pacers, but a win is a win. Especially, when considering how tight things are in the Eastern Conference. The Sixers are currently only half a game head of the Orlando Magic for the No. 6 seed--and the final guaranteed playoff spot in the East--and 1.5 games ahead of the Heat.

Thursday's matchup will be huge for tiebreaker purposes as well. The Heat won the first matchup between the teams way back on Nov. 23. If the Heat win on Thursday, they will own the tiebreaker with only one more matchup between the teams on March 30 down in South Florida.

This article originally appeared on Sixers Wire: Sixers discuss results of 3-game road trip following win over Pacers

Thunder injury report: Updates on Chet Holmgren, Alex Caruso and more originally appeared on The Sporting News. Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.

Like many other teams, the Oklahoma City Thunder have dealt with plenty of injuries, as ailments begin to add up for the defending champions in the second half of the season.

Though the Thunder still lead the San Antonio Spurs for the No. 1 seed in the Western Conference by three games, they'll be shorthanded to say the least in Wednesday's matchup against the Detroit Pistons.

For starters, No. 1 and 2 leading scorers Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Jalen Williams remain out with abdomen and hamstring injuries.

Ajay Mitchell has also been ruled out with an abdominal strain.

To make matters worse, Oklahoma City Thunder insider Brandon Rahbar reported that Isaiah Hartenstein has been downgraded to out.

Rahbar also reported that the duo of Chet Holmgren and Alex Caruso are now listed as doubtful for the contest.

If Holmgren is unable to suit up, Oklahoma City will be without five of their six leading scorers, leaving Isaiah Joe as the highest scorer, only averaging 11 points per game on the year.

In their absence, along with Joe, the newly acquired Jared McCain is expected to take on scoring duties along with Cason Wallace who has scored 20 points or more in back-to-back games against the Raptors and Cavaliers.

If Oklahoma City were to lose Wednesday and San Antonio were to beat Toronto, the Spurs would be within two games of the top-seed.

Following Wednesday's road matchup against the Pistons, the Thunder will return home for another tough matchup Friday against the Denver Nuggets. 

More NBA news:

• Charles Lee boasts praise for Kon Knueppel after making NBA history
• Hornets get vote of confidence from franchise legend
• Suns reveal injury timeline for Dillon Brooks following broken hand
• Team USA eyeing Kon Knueppel for 2028 Olympic team
• LaMelo Ball focused on winning after franchise record performance
• LeBron James adds another milestone to the history books in loss vs. Celtics

It would be easy to see an accomplished big man being added to the roster of the Boston Celtics head of the 2026 NBA trade deadline as a threat for Neemias Queta, who has only this season truly begun to cement his place as an impact frontcourt player with Boston. But to the contrary, the Portuguese center has embraced the addition of former Chicago Bulls big Nikola Vucevic, using the opportunity to learn from a vet instead.

So said the man himself after the Celtics' 97-81 road win vs. the Phoenix Suns on Tuesday (Feb. 24) night. "It's been huge," said the Utah State alum. "(I'm) trying to pick his brain every day, trying to figure out how I can get better on my game as well."

"And for the team, I think he's just been a great, great addition in terms of spacing the floor, being able to be a threat down low," said Queta. "He's going to rebound for sure, too, so he's going to be key for us later on in the season."

"We're still trying to figure out a couple (of) things with him and how to get him in his best spots," he noted. "And he's trying to get loose, too."

"He's trying to not be that passive, and that will be key for us when he's getting more aggressive and making teams decide what they have to do with him, we'll be in a better spot. So we're in the transition period, and I think we're doing a good job."

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This article originally appeared on Celtics Wire: Neemias Queta picking the brain of new Boston big Nikola Vucevic

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We’ve got some great matchups on the hardcourt tonight, including the Oklahoma City Thunder taking on the Detroit Pistons and the Boston Celtics facing the Denver Nuggets.

Games like those are loaded with talent, and I’ve found my favorite player props for those matchups and more NBA picks for Wednesday, February 25. 

Best NBA player props today

Player	Pick
Tobias Harris	Over 5.5 rebounds	+120
Ty Jerome	Over 16.5 points	+100
Derrick White	Over 6.5 assists	-105

Prop #1: Tobias Harris Over 5.5 rebounds

+120 at bet365

The Oklahoma City Thunder are really good. They’re 5-3 and ranking 10th in net rating, without Shai Gilgeous-Alexander in the lineup.

But they might be overmatched when they visit the Eastern Conference-leading Detroit Pistons in the second half of a back-to-back.

The Pistons already had a big edge on the glass, ranking third in rebounding rate to the Thunder’s 22nd. Heavy legs mean more missed shots and fewer boards for OKC.

That has me backing Tobias Harris to go Over 5.5 boards. He’s averaging 6.7 over his last 11 games, hauling down six or more eight times over that stretch.

• Time: 7:30 p.m. ET
• Where to watch: ESPN

Prop #2: Ty Jerome Over 16.5 points

+100 at bet365

The Memphis Grizzlies don’t have many bucket-getters these days. So, getting Ty Jerome back has been a big help. 

And while sportsbooks have adjusted his point totals after some solid performances, it's not enough to scare me away against the Golden State Warriors.

Jerome has played just seven games since returning at the end of January. He’s averaging 19.3 points while shooting 39.5% from three and has topped 16.5 points in six of those games. 

Tonight, he plays a Warriors team that is stumbling and ranks 17th in defensive rating since the start of February.

• Time: 7:30 p.m. ET
• Where to watch: NBCSBA, FanDuel Sports Network Southeast-Memphis

Prop #3: Derrick White Over 6.5 assists

-105 at bet365

The Boston Celtics continue to impress. They’ve won nine of their last 10 and now close out their West Coast road trip against the Denver Nuggets.

The Celtics aren’t known for moving the ball, but the guys who do, specifically Derrick White and Payton Pritchard, will try to pass the ball a little more with Jaylen Brown nursing a knee injury.

Today, my favorite bet is White to go Over 6.5 assists. He’s averaging 7.5 per game over his last 10 games and has topped this number seven times over that stretch. Denver ranks 20th in opponent assists per possession.

• Time: 10:00 p.m. ET
• Where to watch: ESPN

These props are available now at bet365, one of our best betting sites.

This article originally appeared on Covers.com, read the full article here and view our best betting sites or check out our top sportsbook promos.

Is Jayson Tatum playing tonight? Final status for Celtics star amid Achilles injury originally appeared on The Sporting News. Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.

After securing a 97-81 win over the Phoenix Suns on Tuesday night, the Boston Celtics are hoping to consolidate the second seed in the Eastern Conference when they visit the Denver Nuggets in a nationally-televised game Wednesday night.

The Celtics (38-19) continue to outperform expectations and have closed to within 4.5 games of the East-leading Detroit Pistons. Boston's strong season to date has come entirely without All-Star forward Jayson Tatum, who suffered an Achilles injury last May and has yet to play this season.

MORE: Celtics' Payton Pritchard has basically turned into Caitlin Clark since viral comparison

With rumors building that Tatum is getting closer to a return, expectant fans will have to wait at least a little longer to see the 27-year-old don the Celtics' famed green jerseys.

Is Tatum out against the Nuggets?

Yes, Tatum will miss the Celtics' game against Nikola Jokic and the Nuggets, which tips off at 10 p.m. Eastern on ESPN.

When will Tatum return?

Tatum's highly-anticipated return does not yet have a date.

ESPN's Ramona Shelburne reported last week that the five-time All-NBA selection has not yet made a decision on whether he will return at all this season.

However, speculation persists that Tatum could make his comeback in dramatic circumstances on Sunday, when the Celtics host the rival Philadelphia 76ers in another national broadcast

More NBA news:

• Is Shai Gilgeous-Alexander playing tonight at Pistons? Latest update on Thunder star's injury

• Lakers have encountered a very specific LeBron James, Luka Doncic, Austin Reaves problem

• Is Steph Curry playing tonight? Latest injury news reveals timeline for return for Warriors

• Dwyane Wade names the best leaders he played with — and one isn't LeBron James

NEW YORK -- The Brooklyn Nets (15-42) had some unexpected travel issues affecting them with the blizzard that New York City was hit with over the weekend. Brooklyn had to fly back to the Big Apple early on Tuesday, but the Dallas Mavericks (21-36) had to do the same thing. However, the Nets just couldn't make the necessary plays to end their losing streak at home.

The Netslost to the Mavericks on Tuesday 123-114 in a matchup where Brooklyn never allowed the game to get into blowout territory, but they also couldn't put themselves in a position to tie the game. Forward Michael Porter Jr. had 26 points and three assists while forward Noah Clowney had one of his best games of the season with 22 points and five rebounds of his own.

Dallas did not have the services of Cooper Flagg or Kyrie Irving, but they had forward Marvin Bagley III going off for 22 points and five rebounds off the bench to complement forward Naji Marshall's 21 points and seven assists. The Nets have one more left left on their home stint on Thursday against the San Antonio Spurs, but for now, here are three Nets takeaways from Tuesday's loss to the Mavericks:

Michael Porter Jr. Bounces Back (Somewhat)

Porter finished Tuesday's loss with 26 points (9-of-16 shooting from the field, 2-of-6 from three-point land), but there was still a difference between his first half and second half performances. In the first half, Porter had 16 points (6-of-7 shooting from the field, 2-of-2 from deep), but in the second half, he had 10 points on just 3-of-9 shooting from the field.

Noah Clowney Shows Full Package

Clowney has had his fair share of struggles this season, but he had one of his best games of the season with 22 points and five rebounds in 33 minutes on the floor. What made this game encouraging for Clowney is he looked confident throughout the entire contest, whether it was driving to the rim, shooting the three-pointer, and even on the defensive end when he switched onto various defenders.

Terance Mann Shines In Fourth Quarter

Mann has been accepting of his bench role in recent games as head coach Jordi Fernandez has turned to rookie Nolan Traore to be one of the starting guards, but the veteran has been in this league for as long as he has because of games like what he had against the Mavericks. Mann has always been more known for his defense than anything else, but after scoring 10 of his 17 points in the fourth quarter, he once again showed how he has improved the weaker parts of his game over the course of this trying season.

This article originally appeared on Nets Wire: 3 Nets takeaways from 123-114 loss to Mavericks

The Golden State Warriors have struggled to win games on the road all season long, but they will look to buck that trend when they do battle against the Memphis Grizzlies at FedExForum.

On paper at least, it appears as though the Warriors have a prime chance of getting back in the win column. After all, Memphis is a team that's primed for a lottery pick and currently riddled by the injury bug.

Records, standing, and streaks

At present, the Warriors have a 30-28 record, which puts them in the Western Conference standings' eighth-place slot.

The Grizzlies are the owners of a 21-35 record and two-game losing streak, good enough for 11th in the Western Conference.

What happened in the last game for each team?

Golden State lost to the New Orleans Pelicans (113-109) on the road.

Memphis came up short versus the Sacramento Kings (123-114) at home.

Injuries

For Golden State, while the team has yet to release its injury report, Stephen Curry can be ruled out with a right knee injury.

For Memphis, Kyle Anderson (right knee patellar tendinitis) is questionable, Santi Aldama (right knee injury management) is out, Kentavious Caldwell-Pope (right fifth finger surgery recovery) is out, Brandon Clarke (right calf strain) is out, Cedric Coward (right knee posterior capsule strain) is out, Zach Edey (left ankle stress reaction) is out and Ja Morant (left elbow UCL sprain) is out.

Probable starting lineups - Golden State

• De'Anthony Melton
• Pat Spencer
• Moses Moody
• Gui Santos
• Draymond Green

Probable starting lineups - Memphis

• Scotty Pippen Jr.
• Cam Spencer
• Jaylen Wells
• GG Jackson II
• Olivier-Maxence Prosper

Here's when you should tune in to see the game:

• Date: Feb. 25, 2026
• Time: 7:30 p.m. ET 
• TV Channel: NBC Sports Bay Area
• Live Stream: Fubo (watch for free)

This article originally appeared on Warriors Wire: Warriors vs Grizzlies: Stream, lineups, injury reports and more

The Los Angeles Lakers faced a sneaky tough Orlando Magic team on Tuesday, and although the Magic were without star forward Franz Wagner, they fought back from a 12-point deficit in the third quarter to put the outcome of the game in doubt down the stretch.

Even though the Lakers got outrebounded by eight, and even though they shot 31% from 3-point range, and even though Luka Doncic shot 8-of-24 from the field, 2-of-10 from 3-point range and 4-of-9 from the free throw line, they had a chance to win the game in the final seconds. Doncic took the inbounds pass and appeared to momentarily have a good look at a trey, but he passed it up. He gave the basketball to LeBron James, who had to attempt a highly difficult fallaway 3-pointer right before the horn, which he missed.

The result was a 110-109 loss for Los Angeles. Doncic commented afterward on what happened during that ill-fated final play between him and James.

"I mean, I just saw him open and I didn’t want to lose the ball. We didn’t have timeouts. … [But] I shouldn’t have picked up the ball. I should have attacked. … That’s on me."

It was a completely botched possession for L.A., especially considering the team had 6.7 seconds to get off a shot and didn't even need a 3-pointer to win the game. Throughout the game, the Lakers displayed a lack of pace, and their overall ball and player movement was clunky and mechanical, which is a problem they have had on and off throughout this season.

They will now head out for a quick two-game road trip that will start on Thursday against the Phoenix Suns. With a 34-23 record, they have fallen back into sixth place in the Western Conference, and they're two games ahead of the Suns, who are in seventh place.

This article originally appeared on LeBron Wire: Luka Doncic on Lakers' botched final play versus Magic

Today in Boston Celtics history, Francis H. "Mo" Mahoney made his debut for the team in an 87-80 victory over the (then) Philadelphia (now Golden State) Warriors at the old Boston Garden in 1953.

Mahoney was selected from Rhode Island's Brown University by the Celtics in the 1950 NBA Draft. He spent the following two years serving in the U.S. armed forces during the Korean War before playing his first game for the team that drafted him, three years later. The Brooklyn native scored just one point and committed as many fouls as points he scored in his debut with the Celtics.

He went on to average 2 points and 1.2 rebounds per game over 6 games with the franchise.

Birthdays

It is also the birthday of former Celtic guard E'Twaun Donte Moore, born this day in 1989 in East Chicago, Indiana. Taken by the Celtics with the 55th overall pick of the 2011 NBA Draft, Moore played just 38 games for Boston. He was traded to the Houston Rockets as part of a three-team deal that sent Courtney Lee to the Celtics. The former Boilermaker averaged 2.9 points per game while with Boston.

Finally, it is also the birthday of ex-Boston point guard James Blackwell, who came into this world in 1968 in Mount Kisco, New York. Blackwell went undrafted out of Dartmouth College, and after stints with the Charlotte Hornets on 10-day contracts, would sign a pair with the Celtics. He played just 9 games with Boston, over which he averaged 1.6 points per contest.

This article originally appeared on Celtics Wire: Celtics history: Mahoney debut; Moore, Blackwell born

Viral sensation Old Ball talks All-Star Game, Dunk Contest, '90s NBA originally appeared on The Sporting News. Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.

It's not every day you can talk to a basketball.

MORE:Can anyone break Glen Rice's insane NCAA record this year? Glen Rice weighs in

But that's exactly what The Sporting News did last week, having been granted the unique opportunity to chop it up with animatronic internet sensation Old Ball — as well as the three-headed brain trust behind his operation.

That brain trust is Funny or Die alums Ben Bayouth, Adam Aseraf and Christian Heuer, who now handle Old Ball's shenanigans via their own Benched Studios.

Old Ball got a chance to hang out with NBA royalty at the Los Angeles Clippers' home arena, Intuit Dome, during All-Star Weekend.

As of this writing, Old Ball has notched over 438,000 Instagram followers and close to 250,000 TikTok fans.

After talking with Bayouth, Aseraf and Heuer, The Sporting News got into it with Old Ball himself.

The Sporting News: Old Ball, what was your favorite moment of All-Star Weekend? Did you like the new All-Star game tournament format?

Old Ball: "Loved the new format. Ty Lue and Ballmer must have found the reboot button on Kawhi because that guy was automatic. My favorite moment was housing a bacon-wrapped hot dog outside Intuit Dome. My least favorite moment was discovering I am not built for street meat at 2 a.m."

How did you feel about this year’s Slam Dunk Contest?

"Look, Gary Payton Senior once told me there’s guys who dunk on people and guys who CREATE dunks. Gordon, LaVine, McClung – those are creators. I think we gotta get more creative with the dunks. Give me a Superman over a 7-footer. Give me a 360 windmill over a bonfire. Hang glide from the rafters and crater the Earth with your dunk supremacy. "

Would you have been comfortable being dunked? There were a lot of misses this year. It would probably not be ideal to have been Jase Richardson’s ball.

"Dunked? I watched the warmups and started updating my will. I need two pumps and a pep talk just to stay inflated."

There’s been a lot of chatter recently that All-Star Weekend is washed and needs a change. What would you alter about the format?

"I actually liked the format this year. Felt like those guys were playing hard. I think it’s all about having that one dude that doesn’t want to lose. This year, it was Wemby. He set the tone. You got in the lane with the Frenchman, you were gettin’ smeared into Creme Brulé."

I’ve read in other interviews that you had a shot at the pros in the ’90s, and subsequently were in a shed for three decades. What do you miss most about ’90s basketball? What do you miss most about the shed?

"How about the mid-range jump shot? How about a 130-point game being a rarity? But I digress, these cats today have game – you can’t hate on that. As far as the shed, I miss those cold winter nights where I had nothing to entertain me except a rogue cob web the wind blew onto my face that wouldn’t fall off for months. Oh wait, I don’t miss that at all. Nah, dude. My shed days are over."

Old Ball's creators unpack his journey to All-Star Weekend originally appeared on The Sporting News. Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.

Do you know ball? Then you likely know Old Ball, the ascendant animatronic viral sensation who's been sweeping the nation.

MORE:Can anyone break Glen Rice's insane NCAA record this year? Glen Rice weighs in

Conceived less than a year ago by Emmy-nominated Funny or Die alums Ben Bayouth, Adam Aseraf and Christian Heuer, the refreshingly retro talking basketball has been making the media rounds of late. Bayouth constructed and now operates and voices Old Ball, while Heuer and Aseraf serve as co-writers and producers for Old Ball's various adventures. 

Together, the trio collaborates under the banner of Benched Studios.

"We've known each other for 10 years-plus, and have worked on a bunch of different stuff together throughout the years," Heuer tells The Sporting News. "Ben's the Jim Henson-level genius that's behind the fabrication of Old Ball, and the design of it. I've known about Ben's superpower, obviously, since I met him, and I've always wanted to do some sort of animatronic puppet-in-the-real-world idea or concept or show. It just kind of came to us one day, like, 'What if we did a basketball?'

"We're obviously fans of basketball. We feel like there's something familiar about a basketball, rather than just creating an alien creature or something, we could actually insert this into a world that already exists. And we did some research, and we just couldn't believe that nobody had quite done something like this. We just got super, super fired up. So we put our heads together and built old ball and we honestly just started super small. We started filming videos in Ben's old home studio," Heuer reveals. "We started taking Old Ball on the street, and just from there it was electric and just blew up."

Old Ball's New Rise

It's only been a matter of months since Old Ball made his debut, but he's already graduated to the big time.

Last week, Old Ball made a splash in Los Angeles while celebrating All-Star Weekend at Intuit Dome, the deluxe new homecourt of the L.A. Clippers. 

Old Ball has already accrued over 438,000 followers on Instagram and nearly 250,000 followers on TikTok.

Two-time All-Star Chicago Bulls center Joakim Noah was apparently smitten with Old Ball from the jump. 

"[Noah] just was so taken by it," Aseraf says. "And he was just like, 'This is my guy. Can I have him?' I'm like, 'You can't have him. It's not an apple that we brought to All-Star Weekend!' But yeah, it's really cool to see."

A big element of Old Ball's leveling up to the point where he's being coveted by the 2014 Defensive Player of the Year has been an openness to change from his creators.

"At first, we made him and we were like, 'It's gonna be ESPN meets Jim Henson. He's going to have hot takes, he's this grumpy Old Ball, and [he] sits at the desk and just fires off these sort of grumpy takes, right? And then, we took him out on the street, and we're like, 'Oh, there's also a man on the street version of this,'" Aseraf adds. "And then we started pranking people, we [realized], 'Oh, there's a pranking version of this, too.' It's kind of the gift that keeps on giving, because it just feels like all of these formats seem to be working for Old Ball. So we're just having fun with it as we go along. And he just hosted at All-Star Weekend. It's funny, because people just have him on their lap, like a lap dog. He's like a lap dog that talks."

Finding Old Ball's voice and personality has been a process — and knowing how to establish fluidity in that process has allowed his creators to discover new wrinkles in their broader formula.

"It was like any character that we've created before. You look at the puppet and you're like, 'Oh okay, what would be surprising? What would be fresh? But also, what does the voice want to be?' We sort of carved out a general personality that we wanted for him, and then as we went out into the street and Ben started improvising as him, and we saw what was working and what wasn't, it's been this sort of progressive shape," Aseraf observes. "When you find something surprising about him, we'll follow that lead too and just add more dimension to him."

Behind the Seams of Old Ball

From all appearances, Old Ball is seamless — that is to say, there is no external wiring that needs to be plugged in somewhere, Bayouth isn't puppeteering him directly.

Rather, a network of intricate animatronics are fully contained within the ball itself, and are being remote-controlled by Bayouth on site. The eyebrows, eyelids, eyeballs (which can move independently of each other), and mouth (lips, jaws, and now a new smile) are all fully articulated and remarkably expressive.

"Sometimes with puppets, some parts of it have to fit on the outside, or it's just the face and you can take the hair off around the back [and] you can access, but with a character like this, being full 360 is really integral to the experience of the person who's interacting with him," Bayouth says. "I think the all-inclusive ball that has everything built inside of it that is seamless — that moves and talks and can be passed around — is something that doesn't feel, for some reason, attainable to some people who don't know how the animatronics work."

That's not to say that other methods wouldn't be doable. But the wireless approach allows for maximal viral reactions, in the Old Ball team's estimation. The fact that he is a physical, self-contained animatronic also helps Old Ball's creators and the people with whom he interacts on-site lean into the cheerfully semi-retro element of the whole operation.

"There's a nostalgia feeling to Old Ball, to where you're like, 'Wait a second, did this exist? Was this around when we were kids?' We like that vibe to it. And just again, that it's old school meets new school," Heuer says. "Obviously there's the remote that Ben uses... but there are some new elements to it. It's '80s, '90s technology." 

Specifically, Old Ball harkens back to a somewhat magical time for the NBA: when the Magic Johnson/Kareem Abdul-Jabbar/James Worthy Los Angeles Lakers and the Michael Jordan/Scottie Pippen Chicago Bulls were running the league.

"I think it's a throwback to these eras that we just have a lot of reverence for," Aseraf posits. "There's certain times in certain sports where it just felt like everything was clicking... Basketball has it with that '90s, late '80s era of Jordan and the sunsetting of the Showtime [Lakers] era. We just wanted to encapsulate that — like with Little Penny, there's something about that time, that feels pulpy and vibrant, that I think people enjoy. Old Ball is kind of a reflection of that."

Finessing the character's off-the-cuff expressions and vocalizations has offered up its own unique set of challenges.

"You really have to be tuned into, as I'm performing the character, the voice of the character — how the tone and the voice sounds — the comedy of what's actually being said, the smarts of being accurate to the sport and also performing the actual robotics of it all," Bayouth reveals. "It's a marriage of many different things that I'm juggling at the same time."

A Ball-Verse on the Horizon

So what's next for Old Ball? Some siblings, from the sounds of things!

"What we've really realized is Old Ball, and what we're calling 'The Ball-verse,' is kind of this infinite creative well," Heuer indicates. "We realize, we want to try to make— this is going to sound grandiose — our version of the 'sports Muppets.' We'd love to do a ball for every sport, and have a show where the balls are together, that's fun, and has heart. But then each of the characters would exist in the sport, like Old Ball has been materializing with basketball. Again, it's a big vision, and it's just one day at a time, but it feels like we kind of have an open runway, and it's been so fun to see how this is working."

Specifically, to coincide with the World Cup, a talking animatronic soccer ball is the next critter on the horizon.

"We made a soccer ball that we want to put out pretty soon that we want to start hyping up for the World Cup," Heuer reveals. "The tides of media have changed so much, and a lot of times it feels destitute with AI slop and all this stuff. We're kind of like, 'Man, this is part of a new chapter of entertainment, where this could really go anywhere.' We could have a short-form travel show on YouTube, but then we could have a prank movie on Netflix. Who knows where this could go, but we're just really excited."

When it comes to, say, a narrative feature film, there's a specific — and, yes, retro — tone the Benched team wants to capture.

"It would be nice to make a movie and to continue that '90s nostalgia, a Small Soldiers-type movie. These fun, FX-heavy movies that are all-ages, four-quadrant film-type thing I think would be super fun to do," Bayouth allows. "Helps fill in some of the gaps for people who are just wondering, and want to know, 'Where did he come from? What happened?'"

Small Soldiers director Joe Dante has a knack for cultivating family-friendly chaos with wonderfully lifelike puppet creations. To wit, he also helmed the two Gremlins films, Explorers, Matinee, Piranha, and The Howling.

Beyond spending time with Bayouth, Aseraf and Heuer, The Sporting News recently had a chance to catch up with Old Ball himself and talk shop about all things All-Star Weekend.

But that's another story.

The Oklahoma City Thunder avoided an epic collapse in their 116-107 win over the Toronto Raptors on Tuesday. Once up by 25 points, they had to have a strong finish to avoid a meltdown.

Cason Wallace had 27 points, eight rebounds and seven assists. Isaiah Joe scored 22 points. Alex Caruso finished with 16 points and four assists. Lu Dort tallied 15 points and five rebounds.

Meanwhile, RJ Barrett had 21 points and eight rebounds. Scottie Barnes finished with 15 points and seven assists. Brandon Ingram totaled 15 points and six assists.

Let's look at some of the best photos from the Thunder's nine-point win over the Raptors:

This article originally appeared on OKC Thunder Wire: Photos: Best images from Thunder's 116-107 win over Raptors

Stealing RJ Barrett's inbound pass, Cason Wallace pushed the pace to swing the ball over to Isaiah Joe for the transition 3-pointer. Big-time bucket to regain some breathing room. The OKC role player connection highlighted the two guys who became the headliners.

The Oklahoma City Thunder avoided disaster in their 116-107 win over the Toronto Raptors. They continue to survive without Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Jalen Williams.

Wow. What a win. Since the NBA All-Star break, the Thunder have cooked up a winning formula sans Gilgeous-Alexander. The Raptors have been a respectable squad this season. They've figured out a way to be a winning club with tough-nosed defense and two NBA All-Star players.

To get things started, the Thunder couldn't buy a bucket. Neither could the Raptors, really. You saw two top-six teams in defensive ratings show why they've made their money on that end of the floor. OKC was in a 32-25 deficit after the first quarter.

Scoring struggles were quickly put in the past, though. The Thunder had a game-altering 17-3 run in the second quarter to flip the scoreboard. Wallace swished in an off-dribble 3-pointer to get up to 14 points on perfect shooting. That put OKC ahead 40-36 with a little under six minutes left.

The Thunder scored an unreal 35 points in the second frame. Alex Caruso joined in on the fun with Wallace. He had 14 points. They entered halftime with a 60-51 lead over the Raptors. The Toronto crowd was as quiet as a library as OKC dominated the second quarter.

After the break, it was Joe's turn to help out. Scoreless in the first half, he blitzed the Raptors for 19 points in the third quarter alone. The left-wing spot became his favorite as he knocked down daringly deep outside jumpers. The Thunder opened up a 22-4 run to completely take Toronto out of it.

Joe's four-point play pushed OKC's lead to 96-71 with under two minutes to go in the third frame. More often than not, that should be enough to cruise the rest of the way. The Thunder had a 98-80 lead through three quarters. Alas, their hot shooting cooled off.

The early signs were there in the fourth quarter. Immanuel Quickley's second-chance 3-pointer caused the Thunder to call an early timeout. Suddenly, their lead was down to 99-85 in just a little over one minute into the final frame. Uh oh. A 14-point game at that juncture is nothing.

For almost eight minutes, the Thunder forgot how to play basketball. Turnovers every other possession had them panicking. At one point, they had four straight second-chance looks from deep that clanked. Frustratingly enough, they were on the wrong side of a 21-3 run to start the final frame.

Unreal. Jamal Shead's 3-pointer tied things up at 101 points with four minutes to go. Gulp. Just like that, OKC's 25-point lead evaporated. In record time, too. Even for today's high-paced NBA game. Happens when you forget how to run a functional offense against one of the league's best defenses.

With a fully-awaked Toronto crowd, the Thunder settled down. Specifically Wallace. He had two straight driving layups. Finally, they were no longer frozen at three points in the fourth quarter. He then found Joe for a 3-pointer. Talk about composure.

How do the Thunder react to an all-time meltdown and being tied at 101 points? Well, they simply rattled off nine straight points to create some breathing room. It was the Raptors' turn for their offense to melt. Scottie Barnes had some critical turnovers. Brandon Ingram couldn't hit on critical jumpers.

The Thunder only had 18 points in the final frame, but that was enough to avoid an epic collapse. Phew. Disaster was avoided after it looked like, for most of the second half, the short-handed squad would steal a game from Toronto.

The Thunder shot 47% from the field and went 16-of-40 (40%) from 3. They shot 10-of-12 on free throws. They had 26 assists on 45 baskets. Five Thunder players scored double-digit points.

Wallace had an unreal 27 points, eight rebounds and seven assists. Joe finished with 22 points and three assists. Caruso had 16 points and four assists. Lu Dort tallied 15 points and five rebounds. Isaiah Hartenstein had 11 points and nine rebounds.

Meanwhile, the Raptors shot 47% from the field and went 18-of-38 (47.4%) from 3. They shot 7-of-12 on free throws. They had 30 assists on 41 baskets. Six Raptors players scored double-digit points.

Barrett led the way with 21 points and eight rebounds. Barnes finished with 15 points and seven assists. Ingram had 15 points, six rebounds and six assists. Quickley scored 17 points. Ja'Kobe Walter also scored 17 points. Shead finished with 13 points and four assists.

Another humongous win for the Thunder. I was never a subscriber to the glass-half-full approach with Gilgeous-Alexander's injury, but it really feels like OKC's role players have grown up in front of our eyes over the last three weeks. To the point you wonder how the reigning MVP fits in with the newly-confident versions of guys like Wallace and Joe.

Even though the Thunder fell apart with a blown 25-point lead, they immediately got things together to conjure up one last run. Can't get overstated how impressive a win this is with the Raptors, who've been an upper-half team all season. The short-handed squad has kept pace with the red-hot San Antonio Spurs without losing any ground in the standings.

Let's look at Thunder player grades:

Cason Wallace: A-plus

Getting the switch off Hartenstein's screen, Wallace lowered his shoulders and went at Barnes. He drove downhill and went up with the layup that rainbowed in off the glass. The highly-difficult finish through the DPOY candidate served as the dagger.

Wallace finished with 27 points on 11-of-16 shooting, eight rebounds and seven assists. He shot 4-of-5 from 3 and went 1-of-2 on free throws. He also had one steal.

My oh my. What a game by Wallace as he tied his career-high in points, which he set earlier this month. No Gilgeous-Alexander and Williams meant a glut of possessions were up for grabs. In this stretch without those two, the 22-year-old has taken full advantage of the newfound opportunities.

Playing with all-time confidence, Wallace has figured out how to slice through NBA defenses. This time, it was against one of the best in Toronto. Patient with the ball in his hands, he dissected the Raptors with simple drives to the basket and standard finishes through traffic. Nobody could stay in front of him once he leaped off the floor for the driving layup.

Wallace had 17 points in the first half. He had 13 points in the second frame alone. Usually a designated catch-and-shoot guy, he had the creative freedom to knock down outside jumpers off a pull-up. To think, just a month ago, you cringed anytime he took more than two dribbles with the ball.

After the Raptors tied things up at 101 points, the Thunder quickly needed to figure out who'd carry them over the finish line. Most nights, it's Gilgeous-Alexander or Williams. Or even Ajay Mitchell. But all three remained out. So of course, Wallace did so with a couple of straight-line drives and big-time defensive stops.

I mean, what an all-around game by Wallace. He's turned into a full-time point guard. Some folks prefer to learn on the job. Think it's fair to say he fits in that category. Not only have the scoring numbers jumped up, but the playmaking has caught most folks' attention.

Nothing crazy, but Wallace is simply making the right reads. Whether that's scooping the ball over to someone at the dunker's spot or spraying it out in the perimeter. When he joined the NBA, it felt like that aspect of his game had the most room to grow. And for the first time in three seasons, he's learned to orchestrate OKC's offense.

LET CASO COOK ♨️ pic.twitter.com/lXtQwbdtyi

— OKC THUNDER (@okcthunder) February 25, 2026

Anotha one 🥵 pic.twitter.com/3ctC7Aj8Sh

— OKC THUNDER (@okcthunder) February 25, 2026

Turning defense to offense ↔️ pic.twitter.com/WgLdaVPZFD

— OKC THUNDER (@okcthunder) February 25, 2026

What a finish from Caso ‼️ pic.twitter.com/bSBveu0fTy

— OKC THUNDER (@okcthunder) February 25, 2026

Isaiah Joe: A-plus

Catching Wallace's pass from the left-wing spot, Joe quickly got into his shooting motion and drilled the ball through the basket from the perimeter. The outside jumper opened a third quarter that saw the 26-year-old completely go unconscious.

Joe finished with 22 points on 7-of-14 shooting, three assists and two rebounds. He shot 6-of-11 from 3 and went 2-of-2 on free throws. He also had two steals.

Speaking of guys who've stepped up in the recent bevy of injuries, Joe has completely changed his season outlook for the better. You're seeing him play some of his best basketball over the last three weeks. To the point that the rare 20-point treat has turned into the norm.

The early parts of this game felt like we were going to see an old-school rockfight. Neither team could generate consistent offense. Eventually, though, the Thunder upped the scoring to the modern NBA. You can thank Joe's sizzling third quarter for some of that.

Joe scored 19 points in the third quarter. He made five outside jumpers. To show you how much he was feeling himself, he knocked down a deep 3-pointer despite Jamison Battle's flagrant foul of invading his landing space. A few possessions later, Walter was ticketed for another 4-point play as OKC's sharpshooter swished in another jumper.

The Thunder eventually ballooned their lead to 25 points. Joe was the main catalyst for that as they kept feeding him the ball. While they slowly lost their ginourmous lead, it gave them enough cushion where three points in eight minutes wasn't catastrophic.

We got a hot cuppa Joe for you ☕️ pic.twitter.com/bWEb6g9IgO

— OKC THUNDER (@okcthunder) February 25, 2026

ISAIAH. JOE. 😳 pic.twitter.com/gu0mEXRyuj

— OKC THUNDER (@okcthunder) February 25, 2026

Another stop. Another bucket. 🔋 pic.twitter.com/b1Cy9kGHtS

— OKC THUNDER (@okcthunder) February 25, 2026

Alex Caruso: A-plus

Hovering in the paint, Caruso jumped Collin Murray-Boyles' roll. He punched the ball out of his hand before he found Dort for the transition 3-pointer. The defense-to-offense sequence was part of OKC's third-quarter avalanche to completely break open the scoreboard.

Caruso finished with 16 points on 6-of-10 shooting, four assists and two rebounds. He shot 2-of-5 from 3 and went 2-of-2 on free throws. He also had two steals.

Stepping up as a scorer, Caruso had 14 points in the first half. He didn't do anything flashy. No isolation looks or breaking someone's ankles. Just good, solid basketball plays. He had a handful of layups by being at the right place at the right time. He even knocked down a couple of outside jumpers.

On the other end, Caruso helped the Thunder defend their butt off. The Raptors didn't really see anyone have a monster scoring night. Several guys were decent, but you can chalk some of that up to unreal outside shooting luck. The mediocre shooting team had one of its better nights from deep.

Even though Caruso came off the bench, the Thunder view him as one of their most important players. There's a reason why he's a plus-minus darling. The advanced analytics absolutely love what he brings to the court despite mundane counting stats.

The Thunder don't win this without Caruso. He was part of their closing lineup for a reason. The 31-year-old might play a physically-taxing style of basketball, but you can easily help manage his workload for these types of nights where he can swing a game's flow.

This AC is 🔛🥶 pic.twitter.com/ogB44GB5Jy

— OKC THUNDER (@okcthunder) February 25, 2026

Lu Dort: A

Going for the pump-fake, Dort drove to the basket. Nudging Barrett off of him, he swished in the pull-up mid-range jumper. Over. The self-created bucket put the Thunder ahead by eight points with a little over a minute left in the game.

Dort finished with 15 points on 5-of-16 shooting, five rebounds and three assists. He shot 3-of-9 from 3 and went 2-of-2 on free throws. He also had one steal.

You never gotta worry about Dort getting gun-shy. If the possessions are there, the 26-year-old will gladly eat them up himself. He had a busy night from beyond the perimeter. He also returned to his mid-range game as the Thunder badly needed the points. No matter how pretty or ugly they looked.

Visiting Toronto is always a special yearly event for Dort. He tries to show off in front of his home country. This time, he did it by locking down Ingram once again. Those two have a history that goes way back. From their 2024 NBA playoff series to the latter's nasty ankle injury he sustained in New Orleans last year.

In this latest chapter, Dort made Ingram uncomfortable. The Toronto All-Star had a meh 15 points on 14 shot attempts. He mostly settled for contested jumpers. You can tell that the physical defender made him timid once again. It feels like the All-Defense member has his number.

LUUUUU 👌 pic.twitter.com/HPODzlqyIx

— OKC THUNDER (@okcthunder) February 25, 2026

Lu with the stepback 🤌 pic.twitter.com/Yt08m98EwS

— OKC THUNDER (@okcthunder) February 25, 2026

Highlights:

This article originally appeared on OKC Thunder Wire: Player grades: Thunder avoid disaster in 116-107 win over Raptors

The Boston Celtics didn't give the Phoenix Suns any breathing room on Tuesday night, allowing just 35 points in the second half en route to a blowout 97-81 win in Arizona. This lack of scoring isn't exclusive to the Suns, though, as the Celtics have held their opponents to 100 points or fewer in eight of their last 12 games.

With Celtics star Jaylen Brown sidelined with a right knee contusion (on the first leg of a back-to-back set of games), guard Derrick White picked up the scoring slack. He finished with a game-high 22 points to go along with 8 rebounds and 8 assists in 34 minutes of play. Celtics starters Sam Hauser, Neemias Queta, and Baylor Scheierman also all scored in double figures. And while Ron Harper Jr. — who was making the second start of his young NBA career — didn't reach double digits, he still put together a solid outing with 8 points, 5 rebounds, and 1 monster block.

GET THAT 🤬 OUTTA HERE pic.twitter.com/xQHVL5Q0Ae

— Boston Celtics (@celtics) February 25, 2026

The Suns weren't fully healthy either. Due to injury, they were missing 5-time All-Star Devin Booker, forward Dillon Brooks, and guard Jordan Goodwin. Phoenix shot under 40% from the floor and 3-point land and managed just 11 points in the third quarter. Guard Collin Gillespie led the way in the losing effort with 15 points and 3 assists in 27 minutes.

Following the 16-point win, the Celtics have won nine of their last 10 games and boast a perfect 8-0 record against the Pacific Division. Moreover, Boston's 14-6 record against Western Conference teams is the best of any Eastern Conference squad.

The 38-19 Celtics will look to remain perfect on their four-game road trip out West when they face the 36-22 Denver Nuggets on Wednesday night.

But before that pivotal showdown, let's take a look at some of the best photos from the Celtics' dominant win over the Suns.

Listen to "Havlicek Stole the Pod" on:

Blue Wire: https://tiny.ee/CdKp 

iTunes: https://tiny.ee/RK47 

YouTube: https://tiny.ee/cOW3  

This article originally appeared on Celtics Wire: Celtics put on a defensive show vs. the Suns en route to ninth win in last 10 games

The Boston Celtics headed to Phoenix on Tuesday night looking to extend their winning streak, but having to do so without Jaylen Brown, and the team did not miss a beat. Taking on a Suns team that was without two of their biggest key players in Devin Booker and Dillon Brooks, the Celtics got control of the game after the first quarter and used a big momentum shift in the third quarter to get a vice grip in the matchup.

After struggling out of the gate, Boston cruised through the final three quarters and did so while giving everyone a bit of run and opportunity in this game. It was the perfect showing for who the Celtics have been this year, even with Brown's absence, just his sixth missed game of the season. On any given night, any player can step up for Boston and a balanced effort on both ends of the court now pulls them to 4.5 games behind the Detroit Pistons for the top seed in the Eastern Conference.

Here's a quick recap of Tuesday night's victory:

Final score: Boston Celtics 97, Phoenix Suns

Keys to the game:

Big third quarter: While the Suns got the advantage in the first quarter, Boston came back with a winning second quarter to give themselves the lead at halftime, but took complete control of the game in the third. Boston outscored Phoenix 30-11 in the third quarter, which saw the Suns go several minutes without scoring a basket until late in the frame, and it set the tone for the rest of the second half. Phoenix had no chance at the end of the third, and Boston kept their foot on the gas throughout.

Neemias Queta: With no Jaylen Brown in the lineup, the Celtics had to have step up performances from others on the team, and tonight belonged to Neemias Queta. Putting up 14 points and 13 rebounds, including 6 offensive rebounds, and 2 blocks, Queta was all over the court. He thoroughly outplayed Phoenix's Mark Williams, and didn't require much run from Nikola Vucevic

Balanced effort: Four starters reached double figures tonight in the win, and two of them, Queta and Baylor Scheierman, finished with double-doubles. The balanced effort didn't just show up on offense, as the Celtics held Phoenix to under 40% shooting both from 3-point range and the field overall.

Highlight of the game: Ron Harper Jr. makes emphatic block

GET THAT 🤬 OUTTA HERE pic.twitter.com/xQHVL5Q0Ae

— Boston Celtics (@celtics) February 25, 2026

What's next: @ Denver Nuggets, Wednesday, February 25, 10:00PM ET

Boston will finish out their road trip on the second night of a back-to-back when they face the Denver Nuggets in an ESPN primetime showdown. It is likely that the Celtics will get the return of Jaylen Brown back, but may be without a starter or two depending on how the roster is managed on the second night of the back-to-back frame. Back in January, the Nuggets came into Boston and defeated the Celtics by 4, without 3-time MVP Nikola Jokic, as Jamal Murray put up 22 points and 17 assists.

Listen to "Havlicek Stole the Pod" on:

Blue Wire: https://tiny.ee/CdKp

iTunes: https://tiny.ee/RK47

YouTube: https://tiny.ee/cOW3

This article originally appeared on Celtics Wire: Celtics roll past Suns without Jaylen Brown for fifth straight victory

Tyler Herro and the Heat appreciate that ball movement is a big part of their offense originally appeared on The Sporting News. Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.

The Miami Heat are one of the most exciting teams to watch in the NBA this season. They play with the fastest pace in the league, as they love to go out in transition. This was a shift they made this season, as they went away from the methodical basketball they played with Jimmy Butler. 

Head coach Erik Spoelstra made a point that he wants the Heat to play with more pace. With that kind of change, touches have become more diverse for the Heat players, so everyone gets a shot to contribute on offense. This is a change that players appreciate, including Tyler Herro.

Ball movement is crucial for the Heat's successful offense

Playing with the fastest pace in the league can be tough to go against for most teams. The Heat have all types of players who thrive with that kind of play style, including first-time All-Star Norman Powell and Jaime Jaquez Jr.

It is one of the toughest systems to play against because the Heat's effort level is always high. Ball movement is also quite strong with the Heat because they have a lot of unselfish players. Of course, Herro and Powell like their isolation plays, but they are not selfish with their touches.

MORE: Erik Spoelstra is confident in the Miami Heat's depth playing a big part in a rocky season

The Heat may have three All-Star-level players with Herro, Powell, and Bam Adebayo. However, they do not have that true #1 option who can truly lead them to victories like Shai Gilgeous-Alexander does with the Oklahoma City Thunder.

Miami does it by committee, which is why they love to move the ball on offense. It can be challenging to keep doing so, which is why the Heat often struggle on offense. However, that is the long-term vision they are focused on following up on.

"When we are top of the league in possessions per game, we don't have to pressure to score their average, we're gonna have enough possessions where everybody is going to touch the ball. We have a bunch of unselfish guys on the team," Herro said before the Heat's game against the Bucks.

"Every night can be a different guy's night. We’re all happy to see the other guys succeed. Ultimately, it’s about winning."

Herro saying this is significant because he has stepped up as a primary ball handler. Most of the time, he is looking to score, but he is willing to make the right play and be unselfish. It is a great look for Herro because he wants to keep leading the Heat on offense.

More NBA news: 

• Haywood Highsmith wants to get healthy to help the Phoenix Suns improve their depth
• Heat forward Andrew Wiggins celebrates the achievement of scoring 15,000 career points
• Miami Heat big man Kel'el Ware honored to be part of NBA All-Star Weekend as a sophomore
• Norman Powell opens up on first career All-Star appearance
• Miami Heat star named one of NBA's most overrated players

Hugo González is playing a vital role off the bench this season with the Boston Celtics, and coach Joe Mazzulla believes the rookie is progressing well on the court.

González is averaging 3.8 points and 3.6 rebounds while shooting 32.5% from 3-point range in 51 appearances for Mazzulla entering their matchup on Tuesday, including two starts. He leads all players in the NBA in net rating (plus-17.2).

The 28th overall pick has made a significant impact as a reserve, averaging 15.1 minutes per game. He is providing a spark while impacting both ends of the court with his energy and effort, traits that have helped decide games for the Celtics.

"I think he is getting better and better," Mazzulla said on Tuesday, via Justin Turpin of WEEI. "I think you saw the other night, he was really good. In the first half, I thought he changed the energy of the game. I think he has just continued to get better. Understand what his role is for us, understand how to do that every night. It is not an easy role to play, especially for the young guys. I think he is just continuing to get better with that."

After playing sporadically to begin the year, González has appeared in every game for the team since Nov. 30. He scored in double figures six times, including a career-high 14 points and five rebounds on Dec. 4 in a win over the Washington Wizards.

The 20-year-old Spaniard earlier this season became the first Celtics rookie since Daniel Theis in January 2018 to haul in 10 or more rebounds in consecutive games. He was only the seventh Celtics rookie since 2000 to accomplish that feat.

González is establishing himself as a player Mazzulla can't keep off the floor, based on his production in the second unit. He likely won't be in the running for any end-of-season awards, but it is clear the team has identified a key rotational player for this year and beyond.

This article originally appeared on Rookie Wire: Celtics news: Joe Mazzulla believes Hugo González is improving

“I just wanted the Hawks fans to know how much I love and appreciate them …,” Young said. “Getting drafted, obviously the (draft night) trade … I still found a way to make a name for myself, make a name for my team and try to put this city on the map where people were talking about us. You can’t do that without the fans. The fans showed us so much love throughout the years that I was here, even the years that we was down. It felt like there was still a lot of love. So, I’ve got so much love for this city and these fans.”

New York Times

This article originally appeared on Hoops Hype: Trae Young on being back in Atlanta: I just want Hawk fans to know how much I love and appreciate them

Before tipoff Tuesday, Young told reporters that, ever since the trade, he had been wondering how he would feel when he returned to State Farm Arena for the first time. “It’s been crazy, it’s been different,” Young said when asked what it was like to return. “From everything, I’ve just been, to be honest, trying to soak everything in since I’ve been back, just the new experiences and things like that that, obviously, I’m not used to. It’s super unique and something that I’ve been thinking about these past few weeks.”

New York Times

This article originally appeared on Hoops Hype: “From everything, I’ve just been, to be honest, trying …

Atlanta Hawks: Standing ovation in Atlanta for Ice Trae

x.com

Standing ovation in Atlanta for Ice Trae ❄️❤️ pic.twitter.com/tRSrZmBxoK

— Atlanta Hawks (@ATLHawks) February 25, 2026

This article originally appeared on Hoops Hype: Standing ovation in Atlanta for Ice Trae

“He reminds me of a lot of older guys in this league,” Magic center Wendell Carter Jr. (15 points, 14 rebounds) said about Bane. “Guys who have established themselves and have a mindset of, he’s going to play his game no matter what. His process is going to remain the same. Early on (in the season), he was struggling a little bit but one thing about it, he stuck to what he knows he’s good at. “And now we’re seeing the benefits of what trading for a guy like that does,” Carter added. “His continued elevation just shows he’s one of the best in this league in terms of his position, shooting the 3-ball, getting downhill, facilitating, playmaking … He’s exactly what we need.”

Orlando Sentinel

This article originally appeared on Hoops Hype: “And now we’re seeing the benefits of what trading for …

“It’s a tough one because quarter-zips are so comfortable. They’re so easy to wear,” Rivers said. “I will say this, and I brought this up to someone (and) that’s going to go through the chain: I do think it wouldn’t be a bad idea during playoffs because the most you’re going to travel for is two games, and wearing suits in the playoffs shows the significance of the playoffs. “Easy to travel (with suits in the playoffs). I would be in favor of that one … other than, I would have to start working out again because none of my suits would fit anymore.”

New York Times

This article originally appeared on Hoops Hype: “Easy to travel (with suits in the playoffs). I would …

After an episode in the NBA, where he was a member of Atlanta, talented Serbian basketball player Nikola Đurišić is on the verge of cooperating with the red and whites, Meridian Sport has learned . As soon as the parting was certain, the president of the club from Mali Kalemegdan, Željko Drčelić, went all out to get Mega's former student, who gave the green light and is expected to sign a contract with the team that has been in his heart since childhood. Details will be known perhaps tomorrow.

Meridian Sports

This article originally appeared on Hoops Hype: Nikola Djurisic joins Red Star

Within two months of the Raptors trading for Ingram, Shead made a bet with the All-Star on the result of the NCAA men’s basketball tournament semifinal between both teams’ alma maters. It ended with Ingram wearing a Jamal Shead University of Houston jersey on the bench. More recently, Shead was the first one to greet centre Trayce Jackson-Davis, this year’s lesser-known deadline acquisition, when he arrived in the Raptors’ locker room. Shead took the crucial step of adding Jackson-Davis to the group chat. “A character,” Jackson-Davis said less than a week into being teammates with Shead. “He’s the life of the party. Full of energy, a good spirit and a great teammate.”

New York Times

This article originally appeared on Hoops Hype: “A character,” Jackson-Davis said less than a week …

“Even with a lot of the video guys, I just talk s— all day,” Shead said. “I like messing with people. I like getting a smile out of people — making sure people laugh before we get to the serious stuff.” “He already had some experience (as a leader) and has the natural skills of somebody who is a good leader,” Rajaković said, explaining why he tasked Shead with gathering some of the Raptors in the summer. “He likes to connect with people. People like to be around him. Promoting that and developing those skills, you have to put him even more in those situations.”

New York Times

This article originally appeared on Hoops Hype: “He already had some experience (as a leader) and has …

Duane Rankin: Jordan Ott said he still wants to play 10-man rotation even with Dillon Brooks out for extended time and Jordan Goodwin out for one to two weeks. #Suns

x.com

This article originally appeared on Hoops Hype: Jordan Ott said he still wants to play 10-man rotation …

Joel Lorenzi: Billy Donovan says Anfernee Simons has a wrist fracture, which was determined after imaging. Says it’s a recurring injury from his time in Boston from training camp that didn’t properly heal. Sounds like he won’t get any procedure midseason, and that option hasn’t been discussed. Donovan doesn’t want to call it day-to-day, says it’s a matter of when the pain subsides.

x.com

This article originally appeared on Hoops Hype: Anfernee Simons has wrist fracture

Ira Winderman: Prior to tonight's game in Milwaukee, Erik Spoelstra addressed Pat Riley's comments over the weekend about his preference that coaches return to suits:

x.com

Prior to tonight's game in Milwaukee, Erik Spoelstra addressed Pat Riley's comments over the weekend about his preference that coaches return to suits: pic.twitter.com/94scTMFtGi

— Ira Winderman (@IraHeatBeat) February 24, 2026

This article originally appeared on Hoops Hype: Prior to tonight's game in Milwaukee, Erik Spoelstra …

MrBuckBuck: Zion Williamson is slated to make his 26th consecutive start tonight, which will be the longest streak of his career.

x.com

This article originally appeared on Hoops Hype: Zion Williamson is slated to make his 26th consecutive …

Eric Nehm: Before tonight's game vs. Miami, I asked Bucks coach Doc Rivers if Giannis Antetokounmpo has played 5-on-5. Rivers: "No. He's done some 3-on-3, 4-on-4. We don't really need to go to 5-on-5. It doesn't go from 3 to 4 to 5. It's usually 4-on-4 is pretty good...No setbacks."

x.com

This article originally appeared on Hoops Hype: "No. He's done some 3-on-3, 4-on-4. We don't really …

Kellan Olson: Jordan Ott said all signs are pointing in the right direction for Grayson Allen to play tonight

x.com

This article originally appeared on Hoops Hype: Jordan Ott said all signs are pointing in the right …

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Our NBA player prop projections are back for tonight's prime-time matchup, and the model has spotlighted a few plays that really pop.

We ran the numbers, lined our projections up against the market, and locked in on the spots with genuine value.

For these Knicks vs. Cavaliers predictions, it’s not guesswork — it’s all driven by the data.

If you’re building your betting card, these are the NBA picks the model likes most for Tuesday, February 24.

Knicks vs Cavaliers computer picks for February 24

Knicks	Cavaliers
Towns u19.5 points  -112	Mitchell u27.5 points  -112
Hart o4.5 assists -155	Harden o2.5 3-pointers +135
Brunson o2.5 3-pointers -112	Allen o8.5 rebounds -112

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Knicks computer picks

Karl-Anthony Towns Under 19.5 points (-112)

Projection: 18.9 points

Compared to last year's 23.8 mark, Karl-Anthony Towns' points per game have dipped to 19.6.

The New York Knicks have played at the fifth-lowest up-tempo pace in the league over the last 15 games. 

Whereas the Cleveland Cavaliers have played at the 10th-lowest up-tempo pace in the NBA over the last five games, which ought to reduce possessions for the Knicks.

span style="font-size: 14px;"🔥/span spanBet towns Now at bet365!/span

Josh Hart Over 4.5 assists (-155)

Projection: 4.6 assists

Josh Hart has a strong path to clearing 4.5 assists because he’s not just a wing who spots up. He pushes the ball in transition, initiates sets in the halfcourt, and thrives as a connector who keeps the offense flowing. When the ball swings, he’s often the guy making the extra pass that leads directly to a bucket.

Another big factor working in his favor is New York’s dominance on the offensive glass. The Knicks are the NBA's fourth-ranked offensive rebounding team, which creates second-chance possessions and extended plays.

span style="font-size: 14px;"🔥/span spanBet hart Now at bet365!/span

Jalen Brunson Over 2.5 3-pointers (-112)

Projection: 2.7 3-pointers

This game against the Cavaliers sets up nicely for threes since opposing starting point guards have attempted the second-highest rate of triples in the NBA this season (41.4%) against them.

That kind of defensive tendency gives an elite guard like Jalen Brunson plenty of room to capitalize.

span style="font-size: 14px;"🔥/span spanBet brunson Now at bet365!/span

---

Cavaliers computer picks

Donovan Mitchell Under 27.5 points (-112)

Projection: 26.5 points

Donovan Mitchell has hit the Under 27.5 points in six of his last 10 games, and the trend makes sense when you look at how he’s been used and the defensive matchups he’s faced.

Over this stretch, Mitchell has seen more balanced scoring roles, with teammates stepping up offensively and defenses collapsing on him in key spots, limiting his efficiency and high-volume scoring opportunities.

span style="font-size: 14px;"🔥/span spanBet Mitchell Now at bet365!/span

James Harden Over 2.5 3-pointers (+135)

Projection: 2.6 3-pointers

James Harden has been scorching from deep lately, hitting the Over 2.5 made 3-pointers in six of his last 10 games.

Tonight, the conditions are ideal for Harden to keep that hot streak alive.

The Knicks have struggled to contain elite perimeter scorers this season, often leaving shooters open in catch-and-shoot situations and giving up extra possessions through their defensive schemes.

Combine that with Harden’s ability to create his own shot or pull defenders out of the paint, and he has multiple paths to knock down three or more from beyond the arc.

span style="font-size: 14px;"🔥/span spanBet harden Now at bet365!/span

Jarrett Allen Over 8.5 rebounds (-112)

Projection: 9.2 rebounds

Jarrett Allen has been a rebounding machine, hitting the Over 8.5 rebounds in nine of his last 10 games.

He’s consistently active on both ends of the floor, using his size, timing, and positioning to snatch boards over smaller or slower opponents. Allen’s ability to read the ball off the rim and box out effectively gives him multiple chances to control the glass, and his motor ensures he’s always around the action.

span style="font-size: 14px;"🔥/span spanBet Allen Now at bet365!/span

How to watch Knicks vs Cavaliers tonight

Location	Rocket Arena, Cleveland, OH
Date	Tuesday, February 24, 2026
Tip-off	7:00 p.m. ET
TV	Peacock

Not intended for use in MA.
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The Boston Celtics will make the trip to the state of Arizona to face the Phoenix Suns in their home arena of Mortgage Matchup Center this Tuesday (Feb. 24) evening. In that contest, the Celtics will be looking to keep their current win streak alive. On the other side of the court, the Suns are going to be looking to secure a victory after a recent stumble at home.

We expect the Celtics to win this road game, but the Suns are not the pushovers many expected even with several players out, so this is not a game Boston can mail in, especially with a key player potentially a scratch.

Records, standing, and streaks

At present, the Celtics have a 37-19 record and a three-game win streak, which has them second in the Eastern Conference standings.

The Suns are the owners of a 33-25 record, good enough for seventh place in the West.

What happened in the last game for each team?

Boston beat the Los Angeles Lakers 119-89 on the road.

Phoenix lost to the Portland Trail Blazers 92-77 at home.

Injuries

For Boston, Jayson Tatum (Achilles) is out, and Jaylen Brown (knee) is questionable.

For Phoenix, Cole Anthony (not with team), Devin Booker (hip), Dillon Brooks (hand), Jordan Goodwin (calf), and Haywood Highsmith (knee) are out, and Grayson Allen (knee, ankle) is questionable.

Probable starting lineups - Celtics

• Derrick White
• Baylor Scheierman
• Jaylen Brown
• Sam Hauser
• Neemias Queta

Probable starting lineups - Suns

• Royce O'Neale
• Ryan Dunn
• Mark Williams
• Koby Brea
• Jalen Green

What time is tipoff, and on what channels?

Here's when you should tune in to see the game:

• Date: 2/24
• Time: 9:00 p.m. ET
• TV Channel: NBC Sports Boston
• Live Stream: Fubo (watch for free)

Listen to "Havlicek Stole the Pod" on:

Blue Wire: https://tiny.ee/CdKp

iTunes: https://tiny.ee/RK47

YouTube: https://tiny.ee/cOW3

This article originally appeared on Celtics Wire: Celtics at Phoenix Suns: Stream, lineups, injury reports, broadcast (2/24)

On Sunday, Feb. 22, the Golden State Warriors secured an impressive 128-117 win over the Denver Nuggets, despite being short-handed due to injury. Al Horford, a veteran pick-up during the offseason, stepped into the starting lineup for the sixth time this season, making a huge impression and producing arguably his best performance in a Warriors jersey.

When speaking to the media after the game, Steve Kerr addressed Horford's big night. The veteran head coach praised the spacing Horford can provide when on the court, along with his playmaking and passing ability.

“Al was fantastic,” Kerr said. “The spacing with him — popping and knocking down shots early — really set a good tone. We hit 15 threes in the first half. Even when we went cold in the third, the spacing and ball movement were really good, and Al was a big part of that.”

Horford ended the night with 22 points, 7 assists, 1 rebound and 3 steals, shooting 8-of-11 from the field with 6 of his made shots coming from behind the three-point line. With Kristaps Porzingis ruled out for the upcoming back-to-back against the New Orleans Pelicans and Memphis Grizzlies, Horford could continue in a starting role, especially after such an impressive showing.

Nevertheless, Kerr needs some more of his veteran talents back on the court. Right now, the Warriors are seriously short-handed. If they want to continue fighting for a guaranteed playoff spot, they will need to get health in time for the stretch run.

This post originally appeared on Warriors Wire! Follow us on Facebook and Twitter!

This article originally appeared on Warriors Wire: Warriors' Steve Kerr shares glowing praise over Al Horford performance

The 2025–26 NBA season has entered its most exciting stretch, and the MVP conversation is heating up like never before. What makes this year so compelling isn’t just the individual brilliance on display, but how those performances are intertwined with team success, storylines, and the narratives voters tend to favor. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander has emerged as the favorite in most odds markets, and it’s easy to see why — his scoring, playmaking, and leadership have lifted Oklahoma City into elite territory. But while SGA’s dominance is hard to ignore, Nikola Jokić remains a constant presence in the conversation. The Nuggets’ offense revolves around his unique combination of passing, rebounding, and scoring, and even voters who shy away from repeat winners struggle to overlook the impact he has night after night.

RELATED: NBA points per game season leader in Week 18

Beyond the favorites, the MVP race is full of fascinating storylines. Cade Cunningham has quietly transformed Detroit into a contender, proving that he can carry a team in multiple ways, while Victor Wembanyama continues to mesmerize with his defense and expanding offensive game. Stars like Luka Dončić and Jaylen Brown are always in the mix, capable of putting their teams on their shoulders and producing highlight-reel performances that grab attention. Even younger players like Anthony Edwards and Tyrese Maxey remind us that a few unforgettable games or a late-season surge can suddenly catapult a player into MVP contention.

What makes this race so compelling is how it blends pure talent with timing, team success, and storylines that capture voters’ imaginations. Every game matters, every win counts, and every moment shapes the conversation. As the season moves into its final months, the MVP race is far from settled — it’s a living, breathing story that continues to evolve with each buzzer-beater, clutch performance, and standout stretch of games.

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander

Odds: -145
Gilgeous-Alexander has firmly positioned himself as the MVP frontrunner, and the odds reflect how dominant his season has been. His scoring efficiency, clutch shot-making, and leadership have powered Oklahoma City into elite territory. What separates him is consistency — he rarely has an off night and controls the tempo every game. If the Thunder maintain their trajectory, he’s clearly the player everyone else is chasing.

Nikola Jokic

Odds: +290
Jokić continues to redefine what a center can do, blending scoring, passing, and rebounding into a nightly triple-double threat. His game looks effortless, but the impact is undeniable — Denver’s offense still flows entirely through him. Even with voter fatigue always a factor for past winners, his production makes it impossible to ignore him. If the Nuggets surge late, he could quickly close the gap in the race.

Cade Cunningham

Odds: +600
Cunningham’s rise in the MVP race reflects both his personal growth and Detroit’s emergence as a serious Eastern Conference team. He’s playing with poise, controlling pace and making smart decisions in high-leverage moments. His ability to balance scoring with playmaking has transformed the Pistons’ identity. If Detroit finishes near the top of the standings, his candidacy becomes even more compelling.

RELATED: Highest NBA career earnings of all-time

Victor Wembanyama

Odds: +2700
Wembanyama’s odds capture the intrigue surrounding one of the most unique talents the league has ever seen. His defensive presence alone changes games, while his offensive skill set continues to expand at an incredible rate. Even when San Antonio struggles, his individual brilliance keeps him in the conversation. With more team success, his MVP trajectory could accelerate dramatically in future seasons.

Luka Doncic

Odds: +4000
Dončić’s numbers remain spectacular, and his ability to control an offense is as strong as ever. He thrives with the ball in his hands, dictating pace and creating scoring chances seemingly at will. The challenge for his MVP push lies in team momentum and standings position. If the Lakers make a strong late-season climb, his odds could shorten quickly.

Jaylen Brown

Odds: +5000
Brown continues to prove he’s far more than just a complementary star — he’s a driving force behind Boston’s success. His two-way impact, from efficient scoring to physical perimeter defense, strengthens his overall value. When he plays aggressively, the Celtics often look like a championship-level team. For MVP consideration, maintaining elite production while Boston dominates the standings is key.

RELATED: NBA MVP odds as of February 6, 2026

Donovan Mitchell

Odds: +10000
Mitchell remains one of the league’s most explosive scorers, capable of taking over games in short bursts. His offensive firepower keeps Cleveland competitive on any given night. However, MVP momentum typically requires top-tier team performance, which has been harder to sustain. A strong finish from the Cavaliers could help him gain late attention.

Anthony Edwards

Odds: +25000
Edwards brings energy, charisma, and elite scoring ability every time he steps on the floor. His highlight-level athleticism and fearless shot-making make him one of the league’s most exciting young stars. The biggest factor in his MVP viability is Minnesota’s consistency in the standings. If the Timberwolves take a major leap, his odds could change dramatically.

Jalen Brunson

Odds: +50000
Brunson’s steady leadership has helped define the Knicks’ identity, especially in tight games. He may not dominate headlines, but his efficiency and composure make him indispensable. His value shows most in late-game execution and offensive organization. For MVP consideration, New York would need a dominant season that forces voters to spotlight his impact.

Tyrese Maxey

Odds: +100000
Maxey’s speed and scoring bursts give Philadelphia an offensive spark few players can replicate. He continues to develop as a primary option, showing flashes of star-level production. However, MVP contention typically requires sustained elite performance and team dominance over a full season. For now, he remains an exciting long-shot with significant upside.

Conclusion

Heading into the final stretch, the MVP race is a thrilling mix of established stars, rising talents, and storylines that could shift in an instant. While the odds point toward certain frontrunners, nothing is guaranteed until the final buzzer. In a league as deep and unpredictable as this one, every game matters, and the battle for the MVP trophy is far from decided.

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The post NBA MVP odds as of February 23, 2026 appeared first on The Big Lead.

Is Cooper Flagg playing tonight vs. Nets? Final status for Mavericks star originally appeared on The Sporting News. Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.

The Dallas Mavericks snapped a 10-game losing streak with a 134-130 victory over the Indiana Pacers on Sunday night.

Now, they’ll look to push their winning streak to two when they travel to Brooklyn to face the Nets on Tuesday night.

Cooper Flagg ruled out vs. Nets with left midfoot sprain 

Unfortunately for the Mavs, they’ll continue to be without the services of star rookie Cooper Flagg, who has been officially ruled out of the game due to a left midfoot sprain.

It will be the fourth straight game missed by Flagg due to the injury, which also forced him to miss the Rising Stars Challenge at All-Star weekend. Flagg's last game action came on Feb. 10 against the Phoenix Suns.

So far this season, Flagg has appeared in 49 games for the Mavericks and posted averages of 20.4 points, 6.5 rebounds, 4.1 assists and 1.2 steals per performance.

Flagg remains the current favorite to win Rookie of the Year, and his status isn't in jeopardy yet, but if he continues to miss games it could become a problem. 

Flagg needs to play in at least 16 more games for Dallas this season in order to hit the 65-game threshold and be award eligible. The Mavs have 26 games remaining on their schedule, including the game against Brooklyn on Tuesday night. 

The meeting between Dallas and Brooklyn will be the third and final of the season. The Mavericks won both of the previous matchups. 

More NBA news: 

• Kevin Durant sends clear message regarding participation in 2028 Olympics
• Rockets' Kevin Durant responds to burner account allegations
• Jalen Brunson sends clear message regarding his next contract with Knicks
• Jeanie Buss makes it clear that the Lakers are now Luka Doncic's team

The game felt pretty much like any other at the start of the contest between the Boston Celtics and the Minnesota Timberwolves. That is, at least, before star Celtics forward Jayson Tatum began to heat up in the second half of the contest. Soon it was evident this was no typical scoring outburst from the St. Louis native, and that we were collectively witnessing some history in the making.

By the time the final buzzer had sounded on that historic contest, Tatum had put up the second most points he had ever logged in his career, and one of the best scoring nights had by any Celtic in the storied franchise's history, a whopping 53 points.

The folks behind the official "Boston Celtics" YouTube channel put together a clip of the best plays (and every basket) from that masterpiece in 2021 from the Duke alum for us to watch later. Check it out below!

Listen to "Havlicek Stole the Pod" on:

Blue Wire: https://tiny.ee/CdKp

iTunes: https://tiny.ee/RK47

YouTube: https://tiny.ee/cOW3

This article originally appeared on Celtics Wire: Every basket from Jayson Tatum scoring 52 vs. Timberwolves

The 2010-11 Miami Heat, with new arrivals LeBron James and Chris Bosh, were quite possibly the most hyped and anticipated team in NBA history. During a pep rally that was held shortly after James announced he was signing with them, he infamously proclaimed that they would win "not two, not three, not four, not five, not six, not seven" championships.

It looked like the trio of James, Bosh and Dwyane Wade would be together for many years. That partnership actually lasted four years and yielded four trips to the NBA Finals and back-to-back rings. It ended when James left Miami in 2014 in a brusque manner that left a bad taste in team president Pat Riley's mouth.

Riley was honored by the Los Angeles Lakers, the team he coached to four world titles in the 1980s, on Sunday with a statue outside of Crypto.com Arena. He admitted that he thought he had put together another dynasty when he brought James and Bosh to South Florida in 2010.

“I thought in getting the big three, Dwyane, Chris Bosh, and especially LeBron, that we had finally put together what I thought could become a dynasty. It was. Four trips to the finals in a row, two world championships… it was an incredible run… I saw something that could’ve lasted eight to 10 years. But I understood, as I said in my speech, the business of the NBA is the business of the NBA. Players have to get an opportunity to go somewhere else, and he went to Cleveland and he won a title up there. I wish him nothing but the best. But I want to be selfish here and say I wish I had him for another eight or six years would’ve been great. But we’ll never know, will we?”

All things considered, those Heat teams had a nice run, and only a handful of other squads in league history have accomplished what they accomplished. But James' critics always get on him for not sticking with the same team for more than a handful of years at a time.

It looks like he did leave at the right time, at least as far as his own greatness was concerned. Wade's game was starting to decline, and Bosh would soon be forced to prematurely retire due to multiple blood clots.

James went back to the Cleveland Cavaliers, the team he started his career with, in 2014, and he led them to their first NBA championship in 2016. He has been with the Lakers since 2018, but there is lots of speculation that this will be his last go-around with the Purple and Gold.

He will become a free agent after the end of this season, and there has been talk that he may return again to Cleveland for a third stint with the Cavs.

This article originally appeared on LeBron Wire: Pat Riley thought LeBron James-led Heat could've had 10-year window

The Los Angeles Lakers were dealt a reality check on Sunday in the form of a 111-89 loss to the Boston Celtics. While their defense has often been their big weakness this season, on Sunday, it was their offense that rendered them ineffective against an intense and physical Celtics squad.

Many people seem to feel that the Lakers, who currently have a 34-22 record and are in fifth place in the Western Conference, will end up losing in the first round of the playoffs. Some likely even feel the team will have to go through the play-in tournament. But former NBA star and Hall of Famer Carmelo Anthony said prior to Sunday's game that Los Angeles can reach the Western Conference finals this spring (h/t Sports Illustrated).

“We talk about the Lakers' ceiling,” Anthony said. “To me, I think they have a shot at a legit Western Conference Finals run. When you talk about their firepower, star power wins games in the playoffs, right?

“So they have the star power. Now it's about their defense. Can they get their defense back to being an above-average defensive team? If they can do that with the big three and offensive power that they have, the way they close games out in clutch game situations is very special. So the Lakers' ceiling, to me, could be that Western Conference finals run.”

While L.A. ranks 24th in defensive rating, it is 11th in offensive rating and first in overall field-goal percentage. It probably has the best star trio in the NBA in LeBron James, Luka Doncic and Austin Reaves, and it does have a few reliable role players, such as Rui Hachimura and newcomer Luke Kennard.

Seeding and matchups will be of the utmost importance when it comes to how far the Lakers will go in the playoffs. If the postseason started today, they would face Kevin Durant and the Houston Rockets, a team they lost to by 23 points on Christmas Day, in the first round.

This article originally appeared on LeBron Wire: Carmelo Anthony: Lakers can reach Western Conference finals this year

What channel is Cavs vs. Knicks on today? Time, TV schedule, live stream to watch Tuesday NBA game originally appeared on The Sporting News. Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.

As the NBA season kicks into high gear, the fight for spots in the standings is getting serious.

In the eastern conference specifically. two games separate two teams from second seed to the fourth seed, which will have a big impact on the playoff schedule. Two of those teams are the Cleveland Cavaliers and New York Knicks, who are currently ranked No. 4 and No. 3 in the east, respectively.

The Cavaliers have gotten hot, winning 14 of their last 17 games while acquiring James Harden in the process. Cleveland jumped all the way up into the top four, and has its eyes even higher.

Meanwhile, the Knicks have been more uneven than expected this year, but remain in good position to make a playoff run. New York has already won two games against the Cavaliers this year, and are looking for a clean regular season sweep.

Here's everything you need to know to watch Tuesday's game between the Cavaliers and Knicks, including TV and streaming options.

What channel is Cavs vs. Knicks on today?

• TV channel: NBCSN
• Live stream: Peacock

Peacock will have the broadcast of the Cavaliers and Knicks on Tuesday night, but fans who have NBCSN can find the game on that network as well.

Peacock’s sports programming features live coverage of NFL Sunday Night Football, the NBA, Olympic and Paralympic Games, Big Ten football and basketball, Notre Dame football, Big East and Big 12 basketball, Premier League soccer, golf, and more.

Cavs vs. Knicks start time

• Date: Tuesday, Feb.23
• Time: 7:30 p.m. ET 

The game between the Cavaliers and Knicks will tip off at 7:30 p.m. ET live from Rocket Arena from Cleveland, Ohio.

Cavs vs. Knicks radio station

• Radio channel: SiriusXM channel 86

Fans looking to listen to the Cavaliers play the Knicks can find the game on SiriusXM, using channel 86.

New subscribers can listen to SiriusXM for free for four months. Listen to live NFL, MLB, NBA and NHL games, plus NASCAR, college sports and more. Stay updated with all the news and get all the analysis on multiple sport-specific channels.

Cavs schedule 2025-26

Here's a look at the next five games on the Cavaliers schedule.

Knicks schedule 2025-26

Here's who the Knicks will play over their next five games.

Related Links

• Latest NBA news and rumors
• Full 2025-26 NBA schedule and scores
• How to bet on the NBA

Are the Rockets using Reed Sheppard correctly? originally appeared on The Sporting News. Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.

The Houston Rockets were a team filled with top-end talent and deep playoff run aspirations after the Kevin Durant trade. However, Fred VanVleet’s torn ACL injury in the preseason derailed the hype, with Houston left scrambling to fix the glaring hole at the point guard position. While results have remained relatively consistent from last season to now, the team’s lack of a controller down the stretch has led to some tough losses, with the most recent example being Houston’s loss to the New York Knicks, where they blew an 18-point lead in the fourth quarter. 

A development that some people noticed from the game was that guard Reed Sheppard, who knocked down 10 points in 21 minutes, was absent from the closing stretches. That begs the question: Could Reed Sheppard have helped Houston avoid their late-game collapse? And, could he be the answer going forward at the point guard slot as Houston gears for the playoffs?

SI’s @a_duckett thinks Reed Sheppard can “unlock” Houston’s offense if Ime Udoka plays him more

“Reed Sheppard is the only guard on the roster that can unlock the Rockets' offense, whether by playmaking or long-range shooting. He can't do that if he's not on the floor.” pic.twitter.com/KvG1Cya3rN

— SleeperRockets (@SleeperRockets) February 22, 2026

In theory, Reed Sheppard can provide what Houston’s been missing

Reed Sheppard has stepped up and received more minutes this year compared to his rookie campaign, which can be partly attributed to necessity due to injuries. However, it seems like coach Ime Udoka still doesn’t fully trust him with minutes in crunch time. After the team’s crushing loss to the Knicks, Udoka demanded that he be “more demonstrative and get us into our sets.” For as much as Udoka can complain about Sheppard, the second-year player was absent for most of the collapse against New York.

In their next game against the Utah Jazz, which was a 125-105 win for Houston, Reed Sheppard displayed the qualities that have fans complaining about his usage. He shot well from the field, created offensive opportunities, and most importantly, controlled the pace of play. Last year, VanVleet was the controller, and although he wasn’t elite by any means, he provided a calming presence and poise when games got tight. 

Reed Sheppard could step into that role, and he’s most likely the closest fit currently available. It’ll be up to Ime Udoka to decide if his young guard is ready to take the next step, but as of now, it seems like Sheppard still has a ways to go before earning that trust. 

More NBA news: 

• Lakers' LeBron James sends seven-word message to Jaylen Brown after viral Bronny James diss
• Donovan Mitchell admits the OKC Thunder are overly physical, but teams have to adapt
• Cason Wallace knew how to step up in the pressure-packed matchup against the Cavaliers
• Shai Gilgeous-Alexander saves the day in hilarious Jared McCain vlog

HOUSTON -- Coming off one of their most frustrating losses of the 2025-26 season, Rockets forward Jabari Smith Jr. made sure there was no hangover effect in Monday’s 125-105 victory (box score) over the rebuilding Jazz.

With a blowout win at home, Houston (35-21) moved back into the No. 3 spot in the tightly packed Western Conference standings. Utah (18-40) remains at No. 13 among 15 teams.

Key individual statistics were as follows:

• Jabari Smith Jr.: 31 points, 9 rebounds, 3 blocks, 3 steals; 12-of-17 shooting (70.6%), 6-of-11 on 3-pointers (54.5%)
• Kevin Durant: 18 points, 12 assists, 5 rebounds; 7-of-13 shooting (53.8%), 4-of-6 on 3-pointers (66.7%)
• Amen Thompson: 20 points, 7 rebounds, 3 assists; 8-of-8 shooting, 4-of-5 on free throws (80.0%)
• Alperen Sengun: 16 points, 9 rebounds, 9 assists; 7-of-12 shooting (58.3%)
• Reed Sheppard: 15 points, 4 assists; 5-of-9 on 3-pointers (55.6%)
• Lauri Markkanen (Jazz): 29 points, 3 rebounds, 2 steals; 10-of-23 shooting (43.5%), 8-of-8 on free throws

Next up for the Rockets is Wednesday’s finale of a brief two-game homestand at Toyota Center. Tipoff versus the Sacramento Kings (13-46), who own the NBA’s worst record this season, is at 7:00 p.m. Central.

The game will be broadcast regionally on Space City Home Network and nationally via NBA League Pass.

More: ‘Same story’: In latest collapse, Rockets lament ‘freestyle’ offense

Final: Rockets 125, Jazz 105

Jabari Smith goes for 31 points and 9 rebounds -- his 2nd game with 30+ points this season. Amen Thompson had 20 points on 8-8 shooting. Kevin Durant had 18 points and a season-high assists.

Rockets win convincingly but they also finish with a…

— Will Guillory (@WillGuillory) February 24, 2026

Season-high 26 turnovers for Houston in what’s shaping out to be a blowout win over Utah. All of this is very strange.

— Kelly Iko (@KellyIko) February 24, 2026

Jabari Smith in his last 10 games:

18.6 ppg
7.5 rpg
1.4 bpg
55.0 FG%
48.3 3PT%

— Will Guillory (@WillGuillory) February 24, 2026

This article originally appeared on Rockets Wire: Rockets return to No. 3 in West as Jabari Smith Jr. silences Jazz

Rockets’ Alperen Sengun jukes Jazz for sweet reverse slam dunk appeared first on ClutchPoints. Add ClutchPoints as a Preferred Source by clicking here.

Alperen Sengun pulled off an incredible dunk highlight during the Houston Rockets’ clash with the Utah Jazz on Monday night.

Sengun is going through the fifth year of his NBA career with the Rockets. He has bloomed into being one of the best big men in the league, helping the Rockets return to relevancy.

His offensive skillset, especially his playmaking, often comes to light. What doesn’t appear very often is his dunking tendency. That part of his game went on full display during Houston’s contest with Utah. The highlight took place in the third quarter as Sengun and Kevin Durant used pick-and-roll action to pull it off. Durant got the ball back to his co-star, who did a euro step to get past his defender then leap in the air for the reverse dunk.

How Alperen Sengun, Rockets played against Jazz

It was a great highlight for Alperen Sengun to successfully complete, helping the Rockets blow out the Jazz 125-105 at home.

Perimeter shooting and rebounding made the difference in this matchup. The Rockets won in both categories after making 18 3-pointers and securing 53 rebounds. It wasn’t the same for the Jazz as they only converted eight triples and grabbed 36 rebounds.

Six players scored in double-digits for Houston in the win, including Sengun. He finished with a stat line of 16 points, nine rebounds, nine assists, two blocks, and one steal on 7-of-12 shooting from the field. Jabari Smith Jr. boomed for a performance of 31 points, nine rebounds, three steals, and three blocks. Amen Thompson came next with 20 points and seven rebounds, Kevin Durant had 18 points and 12 assists, Reed Sheppard put up 15 points and four assists, while Tari Eason provided 11 points and 10 rebounds.

Houston improved to a 35-21 record on the season, holding the fourth spot in the Western Conference standings. They are one game above the Los Angeles Lakers and the Minnesota Timberwolves. However, they trail the Denver Nuggets by a tiebreaker and the San Antonio Spurs by 5.5 games.

The Rockets will look forward to their next matchup, remaining at home. They host the Sacramento Kings as tip-off will take place on Feb. 25 at 8 p.m. ET.

Related: Kendrick Perkins makes shocking Rockets playoff guarantee

Related: Rockets’ Kevin Durant hints at playing in 2028 Olympics with defiant mic drop

The Los Angeles Lakers embarrassed themselves against the Boston Celtics on Sunday with one of their worst offensive outings in recent memory. They shot 39.1% from the field and 30% from 3-point range, and they were also outrebounded by 11 in a 111-89 loss.

They will look to bounce back on Tuesday when they host the Orlando Magic, a team that was expected to be very competitive this season but instead has a modest 30-26 record and is in seventh place in the Eastern Conference. While star forward Franz Wagner is out of action, the Magic still have a strong and talented front line that L.A. will have to deal with.

L.A. is expected to be at full strength on Tuesday, with the exception of backup center Jaxson Hayes. Hayes had to leave Sunday's game early, and he's listed as doubtful with a sprained ankle.

Lakers injury report for Tuesday: pic.twitter.com/VX9F33HExb

— Dave McMenamin (@mcten) February 24, 2026

According to coach JJ Redick, Hayes got imaging done on his hurt ankle. The imaging revealed a bruise, and as a result, the big man is considered day-to-day.

JJ Redick says Jaxson Hayes received imaging on his right ankle Monday, which showed a "little bruise." Redick said Hayes is day-to-day going forward and assumed the backup center will be listed as questionable for Tuesday's game vs. ORL

— Dave McMenamin (@mcten) February 23, 2026

This could mean that reserve big man Maxi Kleber, who has been in and out of Redick's rotation this season, could get some meaningful playing time on Tuesday. It also could mean LeBron James will be forced to play some minutes at the 5.

This article originally appeared on LeBron Wire: Lakers reveal injury report for Tuesday's game versus Magic

Thunder's Shai Gilgeous-Alexander was a Jeopardy clue — except no one knew the answer originally appeared on The Sporting News. Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.

Well, no one on this episode of Jeopardy is an NBA fan.

Because this clue? It was an absolutely wide open layup.

They put a picture of Oklahoma City Thunder superstar Shai Gilgeous-Alexander on the screen.

Then they described everything he accomplished during the 2024-25 NBA season, including his MVP and his championship.

And, well, nothing. Not a single buzz in to guess.

Here's how it looked on the show:

Jeopardy whiff...#SGApic.twitter.com/ke7K7RNlqt

— Paul Pabst (@PaulPabst) February 24, 2026

To anyone reading this story on this website, it's probably stunning that SGA wouldn't be known.

But seriously, there are people who don't watch sports, or read about sports, or talk about sports.

Gilgeous-Alexander is a Canadian playing in Oklahoma City. As far as headline grabbers go just to the totally non-sport fan, he doesn't have a lot going for him.

Still, it seems he may have come across the radar once or twice while winning MVP and a ring.

Apparently not. Gilgeous-Alexander will just have to do it all again.

MORE: This Michael Jordan scoring stat makes a strong GOAT case

Jeremiah Fears has emerged as a franchise cornerstone for the New Orleans Pelicans, and the rookie guard recently earned some praise from veteran teammate Dejounte Murray.

Fears is averaging 13.2 points, 3.7 rebounds, 3.1 assists and 1.3 steals while shooting 31.4% from 3-point range in 58 appearances. He is fifth among all rookies in scoring and is one of four first-year players with at least 10 20-point games.

Murray is expected to make his season debut on Tuesday after recovering from a right Achilles rupture sustained on Jan. 31, 2025. Watching from afar, the 10th-year guard has been impressed with Fears and is eager to play alongside him.

He is the future. He is going to be great. My job is to continue to be a pro, work on my game and show him what it looks like. He is a confident young man. But he has just got to understand that there are a lot of ups and downs and he has got to enjoy his journey. We were all at that point and he will get to where he wants to go, as long as he continues to be a sponge and work on his game.

Fears earlier this season became the fourth-youngest player in history to register three consecutive 20-point performances, trailing Cooper Flagg, Kevin Durant and LeBron James (19 years, 51 days). It was the third-longest streak by a Pelicans rookie.

The seventh overall pick has filled in as a starter and reserve this season for Pelicans interim coach James Borrego. He is now providing valuable minutes off the bench, with his scoring, playmaking and ability to run the offense on the court.

Fears will now have the luxury of learning from Murray on and off the court, thanks to his work ethic and knowledge of the game. Borrego sees similarities between Fears and Murray, and believes his return to the court will only further help their first-year guard.

"It is on Fears to watch him," Borrego said. "I think that communication: Pick Dejounte's brain, watch him, sit by him, emulate exactly what he is doing out there on the floor. I think, if he does that, that is a great mentor to have as an example, but also someone he can talk to within the game. I think it is only going to elevate Fears' growth and development."

This article originally appeared on Rookie Wire: Pelicans news: Borrego reveals how Dejounte Murray can help Fears

Tom Orsborn: Spurs more than measure up in a measuring stick game, downing the East-leading Pistons 114-103 for their 9th straight win. Vassell pumped in 28 points on the strength of 7 3s. Wemby finished with a hard-earned 21 points and 17 rebounds to go along with 6 blocks.

x.com

This article originally appeared on Hoops Hype: Devin Vassell, Victor Wembanyama power Spurs past Pistons for nine straight wins

Omari Sankofa II: FINAL: Spurs 114, Pistons 103. Spurs shot 18-40 from 3 (45%), Pistons shot 7-for-36 (19.4%). Castle did a great job on Cunningham, who finished with 16 points on 5-for-26 overall shooting, 10 assists, 3 blocks and 2 steals. Snapped a five-game winning streak.

x.com

This article originally appeared on Hoops Hype: FINAL: Spurs 114, Pistons 103.

Omari Sankofa II: JB on the team figuring out how to attack Wemby: "You have to go through him, you can’t go around him. (Duren) did a great job late where he was going through him. If you allow him to play in space he’s too smart, too talented … you have to go through him more."

x.com

This article originally appeared on Hoops Hype: "You have to go through him, you can’t go around him.

Omari Sankofa II: JB on giving up 18 3-pointers: "They moved the ball well, they attacked off the bounce to get those looks. Some of those were all fault, we gave up strong side corner 3s which we typically don’t … credit to them. They played a strong game."

x.com

This article originally appeared on Hoops Hype: "They moved the ball well, they attacked off the …

Chris Paul picks Shai Gilgeous-Alexander as his preferred choice over Luka Doncic originally appeared on The Sporting News. Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.

As the two standouts from the 2018 NBA Draft class, Oklahoma City Thunder guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Los Angeles Lakers guard Luka Doncic are always bound to be compared. They have plenty of similarities in their game as bigger guards who are dominant on offense.

Gilgeous-Alexander has the advantage when it comes to accomplishments with a championship, an MVP, and a Finals MVP under his belt. Doncic is considered among the very best, but some people, like the legendary Chris Paul, prefer OKC's cornerstone.

Paul admits that he prefers Gilgeous-Alexander over Doncic

Paul is one of the most respected basketball minds in recent basketball history. He might have never won a championship in his career, but basketball fans can admit that he was one of the best floor generals in NBA history. 

With his knowledge, Paul knows what it takes to be a star in the NBA. The league has plenty of stars, but two of the most compelling ones are Gilgeous-Alexander and Doncic. They have earned their status as two of the best players in the league, which has led to a debate about picking between them.

MORE: Shai Gilgeous-Alexander on why controlling his pace is the secret behind his dominant play

He might be a bit biased because he was his teammate, but Paul prefers Gilgeous-Alexander. The OKC guard is a tremendous player, especially when he plays isolation basketball. He knows how to control his pace, which throws off any defender.

At the same time, Gilgeous-Alexander is the much better defender between the two 2018 draftees. That was a deciding factor in Paul's decision to pick the Thunder's main man.

"I think that year that we played together, he also started to see that defense matters. You ain't got to be a lockdown defender or whatnot, but when you are playing defense, the teammates want to see the stars are actually trying," Paul said during the 7PM in Brooklyn show hosted by Carmelo Anthony.

"Now, Steph, he defends up. I got a lot of respect for Steph, Shai, and all these guys who at least try on the defensive end. That's part of it, and the teammates love to see it."

Of course, Doncic is a fantastic player, but the defensive gap might be too wide. It might have been the key behind SGA's success because he can lead the team by example on defense, while Luka is more of a passive player on that end of the floor. 

Paul's statement about Gilgeous-Alexander will resonate with more people because that two-way ability can go a long way. If Doncic wants to close the gap, he might need to try harder on defense to complement his absurd offensive impact.

More NBA news: 

• Lakers projected to have absurd amount of money to spend to build championship roster around Luka Doncic
• Donovan Mitchell admits the OKC Thunder are overly physical, but teams have to adapt
• Cason Wallace knew how to step up in the pressure-packed matchup against the Cavaliers
• Jared McCain loves how the Oklahoma City Thunder has made him comfortable after joining
• Shai Gilgeous-Alexander saves the day in hilarious Jared McCain vlog

Myron Gardner finally opens up about his bizarre scuffle against Scotty Pippen Jr. originally appeared on The Sporting News. Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.

On Saturday, the Miami Heat beat the Memphis Grizzlies by 16 points. However, that was not the primary story from that game because Myron Gardner and Scotty Pippen Jr. were involved in a scuffle that saw them both ejected from the game.

They were handed out punishments in the form of a $35,000 fine. Both players avoided suspensions, which is an intriguing result from that kind of altercation. Pippen was angry because Gardner seemingly tackled him from the back after making a jump shot, but the latter disagrees with that perspective.

Gardner was surprised by Pippen's anger during their altercation

Pippen retaliated because he thought that Gardner had taken a cheap shot at him. He had no idea that the Heat guard was behind him, so Pippen made sure to call out his Miami counterpart. Unfortunately, Pippen's frustration got the best of him, which led to the altercation. 

Heat head coach Erik Spoelstra did not see what happened, as he only saw that Pippen was on the floor. Spoelstra made sure to show support for Gardner, considering he is a Heat player. 

MORE: Heat sign undrafted rookie to three-year NBA deal

Gardner obviously disagrees with Pippen's thoughts on the situation. He has said that he did not intend for that to happen, which was why he was shocked when Pippen came at him.

"I was just running back on defense, so my momentum took me toward him. I was just paying attention to the game, then saw him come last minute, so he sorta surprised me a little bit. It was fun, it’s just basketball, it’s part of it. I don’t know too much about Scotty. I know about Scottie Pippen Sr," Gardner said in response to his fine from the scuffle.

It was a bizarre situation because most people thought that Pippen lost his composure. Gardner and Spoelstra think that, but Pippen might have a legitimate gripe with the situation because Gardner's collision with him did not look good for the Heat guard when watching the clip.

More NBA news: 

• Norman Powell opens up on first career All-Star appearance
• Erik Spoelstra is confident in the Miami Heat's depth playing a big part in a rocky season
• Heat forward Andrew Wiggins celebrates the achievement of scoring 15,000 career points
• Miami Heat big man Kel'el Ware honored to be part of NBA All-Star Weekend as a sophomore
• Miami Heat star named one of NBA's most overrated players

Memphis Grizzlies guard has memorable first half of Monday's game originally appeared on The Sporting News. Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.

Scotty Pippen Jr. did something on Monday night that is rarely seen at any level of basketball, especially the National Basketball Association.

In the home game for Pippen and his Memphis Grizzlies, the point guard recorded a steal on four straight possessions.

That was part of the 124 points scored between the two teams in the game on Monday night.

At halftime, the Kings led the Grizzlies 63-61

Scotty Pippen Jr..
4 steals on 4 consecutive possessions 🤯

Tap to watch SAC/MEM: https://t.co/kxYZLzzSEtpic.twitter.com/LeKZQi2YyV

— NBA (@NBA) February 24, 2026

Coming into the game, the Kings were on a 16-game losing streak. Sacramento lost on Saturday at the San Antonio Spurs for their 16th straight.

The Grizzlies also came into the game off a loss, as they were beaten in Miami by the Heat.

Sacramento is 12-46 on the season, while Memphis sits at 21-34.

MORE:  Cooper Flagg’s Tonight Show debut scrapped as Mavericks get stranded

For Pippen, this was just the fifth game of the season. Other point guard Ja Morant has played in just 20 games, as the Grizzlies have been beaten up with injuries. Pippen scored 16 on the road at Miami for his season high, as he played 20 minutes of game action.

This is the fourth season for Pippen in the league. Last season he played 79 games, starting 21 of them. He scored 9.9 points per game and dished out 4.4 assists.

Pippen's halftime statline for this game was an odd one with two points, a rebound, six assists, five steals and four turnovers in 11 minutes of action.

More NBA news: 

• Cooper Flagg’s Tonight Show debut scrapped as Mavericks get stranded
• Michael Jordan was supposed to boost NBC’s NBA coverage. Instead, he’s barely there
• Kon Knueppel's Olympic dream does not feel crazy anymore
• Giannis Antetokounmpo jokingly recruits NBA star as injuries and contracts shape two franchises

JJ Redick admits that he is the main reason behind the Lakers' ball movement problems originally appeared on The Sporting News. Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.

On their best day, the Los Angeles Lakers can have one of the strongest offenses in the league. With Luka Doncic as their superstar player, anything is possible with him dictating the team's offense. His teammates often get the ball in the right spots, and he can dominate his matchup with his shot-making.

Despite Doncic's fantastic offensive capabilities, the Lakers do lack some ball movement. They are a much better team when the ball is moving, and everyone is involved, which head coach JJ Redick is holding himself accountable for.

Redick shoulders the blame for the Lakers' lack of ball movement

Over the past few seasons, NBA fans have gotten to know that when Doncic is playing, the system revolves around him. It was called a "heliocentric" way of playing basketball because the system does not work without the star.

The Dallas Mavericks succeeded because of it, and the Lakers are bound to succeed with it as well. However, the Lakers have a roster that is much better than just relying on one guy.

LeBron James is still a game-changer, even at 41. Austin Reaves is an All-Star-level talent who can turn the game on its head by himself. The rest of the team can benefit from more touches, too, which is why people want better ball movement.

MORE: Lakers projected to have absurd amount of money to spend to build championship roster around Luka Doncic

As the head coach, Redick is in charge of the offense. Putting the ball in Doncic's hands is the best choice, but the Lakers might need more dynamic offensive sets rather than just fully relying on Doncic's pick-and-rolls and isolations.

Redick seems to know this because he wants to adjust the offense and make it more reliant on ball movement. If that can happen, the Lakers could have a more potent offense because everyone is contributing.

"When the teams play the deep drop, we have our counters, and we just have to execute. When the ball is changing hands quickly, it can get to drag after drag. I took ownership of that. We have our counters for deep drop," Redick said about his offense when playing against a set defense.

"We looked it up today. Our lowest potential assist games are all against the deep drop, so I got to do a better job."

Considering that he knows a big problem when teams are setting up against them, this is a good sign for Redick. Knowing that he is a problem point against an effective defensive scheme matters because he knows he has to make adjustments. 

When that happens, the offense will be more unpredictable. It should be a tougher offensive system to put out, but the Lakers have all the talent in the world to execute the game plan.

More NBA news: 

• Lakers' LeBron James sends seven-word message to Jaylen Brown after viral Bronny James diss
• 'No respect for the uniform': Legend rips Luka Doncic and LeBron James’ Lakers after Celtics loss
• Lakers' JJ Redick reveals what is preventing LeBron James, Austin Reaves, Luka Doncic from winning
• Lakers insider exposes nightmare stat for LeBron James, Luka Doncic, Austin Reaves playing together
• LeBron James shares incredibly high praise for Kawhi Leonard

The Brooklyn Nets have 52 jersey numbers worn by over 600 different players over the course of their history since the franchise was founded in 1967 as a charter member of the American Basketball Association (ABA), when the team was known as the "New Jersey Americans".

Since then, that league has been absorbed by the NBA with the team that would later become the New York Nets and New Jersey Nets before settling on the name by which they are known today, bringing their rich player and jersey history with them to the league of today.

To commemorate the players who played for the Nets over the decades wearing those 52 different jersey numbers, Nets Wire is covering the entire history of the franchise's jersey numbers and the players who sported them since the founding of the team.

And for today's article, we will continue with the second of 21 people to wear the No. 44 jersey, forward alum Hank Whitney. After ending his college career at Iowa State, Whitney was picked up with the 37th overall selection of the 1961 NBA Draft by the (then) Syracuse Nationals (now, Philadelphia 76ers).

The Brooklyn, New York native played the first six seasons of his pro career playing in other leagues before he signed with the (then) New Jersey Americans (now, Brooklyn Nets) in 1967 for parts of two seasons ending with a trade to the (defunct) Houston Mavericks in 1969.

During his time suiting up for the Nets, Whitney wore only jersey No. 44 and put up 12.6 points, 9.7 rebounds, and 1.4 assists per game.

All stats and data courtesy of Basketball Reference.

This article originally appeared on Nets Wire: Nets jersey history No. 44 - Hank Whitney (1967-69)

The Golden State Warriors have had over 600 players don the more than 60 jersey numbers used by their players over the more than 75 years of existence the team has enjoyed in its rich and storied history.

Founded in 1946 during the Basketball Association of America (BAA – a precursor league of the NBA) era, the team has called home the cities of Philadelphia, San Francisco, Oakland, and even San Diego.

To commemorate the players who wore those numbers, Warriors Wire is covering the entire history of jersey numbers and the players who sported them since the founding of the team. For this article, we begin with the fourth of five players who wore the No. 45 jersey for the Warriors.

That player would be Golden State forward alum Joe Courtney. After ending his college career at Southern Miss, Courtney went unselected in the 1992 NBA Draft, playing in other leagues until he signed with the Chicago Bulls in 1993.

The Jackson, Mississippi native played the first 5 games of his pro career with the Bulls before he signed with the Dubs in 1993. His stay with the team lasted until he signed with the Phoenix Suns that offseason.

During his time suiting up for the Warriors, Courtney wore only jersey No. 45 and put up 3.1 points and 2.4 rebounds per game.

All stats and data courtesy of Basketball Reference.

This article originally appeared on Warriors Wire: Warriors jersey history - No. 45 - Joe Courtney (1993)

Even though Shai Gilgeous-Alexander has missed three weeks, the telltale signs show that he's running away with the MVP award. To the point that the question might be how large a margin he wins the prestigious trophy by.

ESPN released its latest NBA MVP straw poll this past Friday. Tim Bontemps' brainchild has been an accurate forecast tool over the years of who might come away with the yearly award. He questions 100 local, national and international media members in a mock vote that resembles the real thing.

Every NBA regular season, ESPN updates its MVP straw poll three times — at around every one-third mark. In the second one for the 2025-26 campaign, Gilgeous-Alexander is so ahead of the rest of the field that he's lapped them twice.

Gilgeous-Alexander has 930 total voting points. For reference, a first-place vote counts for 10 points; second-place for seven; third-place for five; fourth place for three; and fifth place for one point. Nikola Jokic is the runner-up with 700 voting points.

Gilgeous-Alexander has 78 first-place votes. Jokic has 18. Victor Wembanyama has three and Cade Cunningham has one. The rest of the reigning MVP's points go to 20 second-place votes and two third-place votes.

Summed up, Gilgeous-Alexander looks like he's going to easily win his second consecutive MVP trophy — barring missing any additional time. He's played in 49 of OKC's 58 games. That means he can only miss seven more games the rest of the way to stay eligible with the controversial 65-game minimum rule for awards.

Gilgeous-Alexander will miss nine games with an abdominal strain. The 2026 NBA All-Star break cut him a break with a week off without burning any contests.

If Gilgeous-Alexander returns relatively soon, he should stay ahead of the rest of the field. Most likely because the other top candidates have missed too much time. He'll seal things if the Oklahoma City Thunder can finish with the first seed or the NBA's best record.

The Thunder sit atop the standings with a 44-14 record. Being plagued by injuries has only slightly deterred them from being the league's title favorite. Gilgeous-Alexander has averaged 31.8 points on 55.4% shooting, 6.4 assists and 4.4 rebounds.

SGA with a comfortable lead in ESPN’s latest MVP straw poll: pic.twitter.com/q1YY1ixHGz

— Clemente Almanza (@CAlmanza1007) February 20, 2026

This article originally appeared on OKC Thunder Wire: Shai Gilgeous-Alexander comfortably leads latest ESPN NBA MVP straw poll

Anthony Slater: The Hawks have upgraded Jonathan Kuminga to questionable tomorrow night vs the Wizards. The expectation is that he will make his Atlanta debut.

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This article originally appeared on Hoops Hype: Jonathan Kuminga expected to debut for Hawks against Wizards

Joel Lorenzi: Coby White (calf strain) has been upgraded to probable for what’s shaping up to be his Hornets debut on Tuesday in…Chicago.

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This article originally appeared on Hoops Hype: Coby White may make his Hornets debut against the Bulls, his former team

Bennett Durando: Nuggets w/o Nikola Jokic: Clutch games 8-2 Non-clutch games 2-4 Nuggets w/ Jokic: Clutch games 6-13 Non-clutch games 20-3 (including Miami game that was tied when he got hurt) Unusually poor 4Q execution. But also only *2* uncompetitive losses when their star player is healthy.

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This article originally appeared on Hoops Hype: Nuggets w/o Nikola Jokic:

Dan Woike: Asked Rui Hachimura this today at practice

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Asked Rui Hachimura this today at practice https://t.co/Zkc7I3qKJzpic.twitter.com/PEPFYLjjhr

— Dan Woike (@DanWoikeSports) February 23, 2026

This article originally appeared on Hoops Hype: Asked Rui Hachimura this today at practice

Alexa Philippou: Breaking: The WNBA told the WNBPA and its teams today that a term sheet for a new CBA ought to be completed by March 10 for the 2026 schedule not to be impacted. That's two weeks from tomorrow.

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This article originally appeared on Hoops Hype: The WNBA told the WNBPA and its teams today that a …

Heat injury report vs. Bucks: Are Tyler Herro, Norman Powell playing? originally appeared on The Sporting News. Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.

The Miami Heat (31-27) are going for their fourth win in a row on Tuesday as they take on the Milwaukee Bucks (24-31).

Miami has faced injuries all season long, and this same momentum has followed them into their final regular-season push following the All-Star break.

In a list that includes nine players, the Miami Heat provided updates to Tyler Herro, Norman Powell, and others.

Tyler Herro (ribs) and Norman Powell (back) among nine listed on Heat injury report vs. Bucks

According to the NBA's injury report, Tyler Herro (ribs), Norman Powell (back), Andrew Wiggins (toe), Pelle Larsson (finger), Dru Smith (calf), and Keshad Johnson (knee) are all listed as available and will play for the Heat on Tuesday.

Herro and Powell have been on minutes restrictions in the games following the All-Star break. Both of them could see a slight increase in playing time moving forward.

Nikola Jovic (back) is listed as doubtful, and Davion Mitchell (illness) is questionable for the contest, but both players travelled with the team with hopes to play, Heat insider Anthony Chiang mentioned.

As for the Bucks, they will be without Giannis Antetokounmpo (calf), Alex Antetokounmpo (G League), and Taurean Prince (neck).

Miami is half a game behind the Philadelphia 76ers for the final spot in the Eastern Conference playoffs. 

More Heat news:

• Heat forward Andrew Wiggins celebrates the achievement of scoring 15,000 career points

• Erik Spoelstra is confident in the Miami Heat's depth playing a big part in a rocky season

• Heat sign undrafted rookie to three-year NBA deal

• Miami Heat big man Kel'el Ware honored to be part of NBA All-Star Weekend as a sophomore

Kristaps Porzingis didn't play in the Golden State Warriors' win over the Denver Nuggets on Sunday, Feb. 22. The veteran big man reportedly woke up feeling sick, informing head coach Steve Kerr via text. Porzingis' absence was certainly a blow for the Warriors, especially as he'd made his debut for the franchise in their previous outing, a 121-110 loss to the Boston Celtics.

Now, it would appear that Porzingis is set to miss at least two more games. According to The Athletic's Anthony Slater, the veteran big man has not travelled with the team to New Orleans and, therefore, will not be available when Golden State faces off against the Memphis Grizzlies on the second night of a back-to-back.

"Kristaps Porzingis did not make the trip to New Orleans with the Warriors. It’s a quick two-gamer with a back-to-back in Memphis," Slater reported via X. "This would indicate Porzingis (out with illness yesterday) is expected to miss at least the next two games. Draymond Green did make the trip."

Porzingis isn't the only member of Golden State's roster that's dealing with injury issues. Kerr's team was also without Stephen Curry, Jimmy Butler, Seth Curry, and Draymond Green for their game against the Denver Nuggets. However, Porzingis' health issues will continue to be a concern until he can string a sizeable run of games together. Furthermore, the Warriors will need Porzingis at his best if they're going to make any noise during the playoffs.

Without Porzingis in the rotation, Al Horford may keep his spot in the starting lineup. And considering the impact he made against Denver, that could be the right call.

This post originally appeared on Warriors Wire! Follow us on Facebook and Twitter!

This article originally appeared on Warriors Wire: Warriors get another injury blow ahead of upcoming back-to-back

Stephen Curry could become Klay Thompson's teammate again, but not on the Warriors originally appeared on The Sporting News. Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.

It has been a fascinating season on and off the court for Stephen Curry. The Golden State Warriors' longtime superstar guard has been nursing a knee injury of late, but at 37 years old, he is averaging 27.2 points per game on a Warriors team that largely appears locked in to a Play-In Tournament spot.

Off the court, Curry in November split with longtime sneaker partner Under Armour, where he had been under contract since 2013. The breakup has gotten a bit acrimonious; Sole Retriever reported last week that Under Armour had "migrated" the vast majority of Curry Brand's Instagram followers to their basketball-specific account

MORE: Klay Thompson just signed a lifetime contract but not with the Warriors or Mavericks

Curry remains a sneaker free agent, but Sole Retriever reported Monday that he has narrowed his search down to three brands. Anta, the Chinese brand that has a long affiliation with Dallas Mavericks guard Klay Thompson, is one of the finalists.

Uniting Curry and Thompson under the same roof again, four years after they won their fourth NBA championship together with the Warriors, would be tremendously appealing for Anta, which signed Thompson to a "lifetime" contract extension earlier this month.

The chance of this reunion happening gained traction over the NBA All-Star break, when Curry was seen working out in a pair of Anta shoes -- with the Curry brand logo emblazoned on them.

Steph was spotted during ASW wearing a pair of the ANTA Enclosion Type 2 with his Curry Brand logo on the heel 👀🤔 @StephenCurry30pic.twitter.com/jrY4UGhxod

— Sole Retriever (@SoleRetriever) February 22, 2026

More NBA news:

• Lakers projected to have absurd amount of money to spend to build championship roster around Luka Doncic

• Kevin Durant plus 11 more roster predictions for USA men's basketball at 2028 Olympics

• Michael Jordan was supposed to boost NBC’s NBA coverage. Instead, he’s barely there

• Giannis Antetokounmpo jokingly recruits NBA star as injuries and contracts shape two franchises

Cooper Flagg’s Tonight Show debut scrapped as Mavericks get stranded originally appeared on The Sporting News. Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.

The week was lining up to be another milestone in Cooper Flagg’s already electric rookie season.

A road matchup in Brooklyn. A national late-night television appearance. Another reminder that the 19-year-old is not just producing numbers, but becoming a face of the league.

Instead, a blizzard changed the itinerary.

Severe winter weather across the Northeast forced the Dallas Mavericks to remain in Indianapolis following their 134-130 win over the Indiana Pacers. With thousands of flights canceled and major delays at New York-area airports, the team was unable to travel in time for Flagg’s scheduled appearance on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon.

What was supposed to be a celebration of his rapid ascent became a weather casualty.

A spotlight put on hold

Flagg’s planned late-night debut would have marked another symbolic step in a season filled with them. Not many rookies are invited onto a national talk show before the All-Star break. Even fewer do it while serving as the offensive engine of an NBA franchise.

The Mavericks chose caution over chaos. Rather than risk uncertain travel conditions, the team stayed put and adjusted its schedule. Head coach Jason Kidd acknowledged the unpredictability of the situation, noting that travel in these conditions comes with no guarantees.

For Flagg, the disappointment is understandable. The opportunity represented more than television exposure. It was validation that his impact has extended beyond box scores.

MORE:  Michael Jordan was supposed to boost NBC’s NBA coverage. Instead, he’s barely there

From Duke star to Dallas cornerstone

Flagg entered the league carrying massive expectations after his lone collegiate season with the Duke Blue Devils. Selected No. 1 overall in the 2025 draft, he immediately became central to Dallas’ future plans.

Through 49 games, he is averaging 20.4 points, 6.6 rebounds and 4.1 assists in just over 34 minutes per night. He is shooting 48.2 percent from the field and over 80 percent from the free-throw line. His 999 total points lead the team.

The raw numbers are impressive. The milestones are even louder.

Flagg became the youngest player in league history to score 40 points in a game. He later delivered a 49-point, 10-rebound performance, becoming the first rookie since Michael Jordan in 1985 to post a 49-and-10 stat line. He also strung together four consecutive 30-point games, another mark that underscores just how quickly he has adapted to the professional level.

Dallas is not easing him into responsibility. He is initiating offense, closing games and defending across positions. For a franchise transitioning into a new era, he has already become the centerpiece.

An injury adds another layer

The travel setback arrives as Flagg works his way back from a left midfoot sprain suffered before the All-Star break. He has progressed out of a walking boot and resumed light workouts, but remains day to day.

That context matters. The Mavericks are thinking long term. Protecting a 19-year-old cornerstone takes precedence over short-term headlines, whether that means missing a game or a television appearance.

Still, the optics are notable. In a matter of weeks, Flagg went from record-setting rookie to injured observer to weather-delayed guest. The momentum has paused, even if briefly.

The bigger picture

The snowstorm may have canceled one appearance, but it has not cooled the momentum surrounding Flagg’s first season. His profile continues to rise. His production continues to validate the hype.

The Mavericks will eventually make their way to Brooklyn. The Tonight Show invitation can be rescheduled. And Flagg’s return to full health appears to be trending in the right direction.

Rookie seasons are rarely linear. They are defined by surges and interruptions, bright lights and sudden detours.

For Cooper Flagg, this is just another chapter in a year that continues to command attention.

More NBA news: 

• Michael Jordan was supposed to boost NBC’s NBA coverage. Instead, he’s barely there
• Kon Knueppel's Olympic dream does not feel crazy anymore
• Giannis Antetokounmpo jokingly recruits NBA star as injuries and contracts shape two franchises

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Tonight's marquee NBA game is undoubtedly the San Antonio Spurs vs. the Detroit Pistons, with both teams riding extended win streaks.

We ran our NBA player prop projections to see where the lines don’t quite match the numbers.

If you’re locking in your NBA picks, these Spurs vs. Pistons predictions are the spots where the model sees value on Monday, February 23.

Spurs vs Pistons computer picks for February 22

Spurs	Pistons
Champagnie o7.5 points  -112	Thompson o8.5 points  -125
Wembanyama o23.5 points  -115	Cunningham u27.5 points  -110
Vassell o1.5 assists  +100	Harris o5.5 rebounds  +115

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Spurs computer picks

Julian Champagnie Over 7.5 points (-112)

Projection: 9.1 points

Julian Champagnie doesn’t need plays drawn up for him to clear this number. A few catch-and-shoot looks, and one trip in transition put him well on pace. The model has Champagnie north of nine points, giving this a comfortable margin Over 7.5.

He's gone Over this number in seven of his last nine games. 

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Victor Wembanyama Over 23.5 points (-115)

Projection: 24.8 points

Victor Wembanyama carries enough usage to live in the mid-20s most nights. He scores inside, stretches the floor, and gets to the line, which keeps his floor high. The projection puts Wembanyama nearly a full bucket above this line.

He's gone Over this number in five of eight February games.  

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Devin Vassell Over 1.5 assists (+100)

Projection: 2.1 assists

Devin Vassell only needs two assists to cash this, and that’s well within his normal role. With the ball in his hands consistently, a couple of simple kick-outs or drive-and-dish reads get him there. The model gives Vassell a solid edge at even money.

He's gone Over this number in three straight and in five of his last six. 

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---

Pistons computer picks

Ausar Thompson Over 8.5 points (-125)

Projection: 10.6 points

Ausar Thompson scores more on activity than on isolation. Cuts, offensive boards, and transition chances add up quickly. The projection has Thompson clearing double digits, creating separation from this 8.5 line.

span style="font-size: 14px;"🔥/span spanBet Thompson Now at bet365!/span

Cade Cunningham Under 27.5 points (-110)

Projection: 25.5 points

Cade Cunningham is capable of a 30-point night, but the model points toward a mid-20s output. If the defense crowds him and forces the ball elsewhere, Cunningham’s scoring dips just enough to stay Under.

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Tobias Harris Over 5.5 rebounds (+115)

Projection: 5.9 rebounds

Tobias Harris logs steady minutes and spends enough time around the paint to flirt with six boards. At plus money, the projection gives Harris a small but playable edge Over this number.

He's gone Over 5.5 boards in three straight and in five of the last six. 

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How to watch Spurs vs Pistons tonight

Location	Little Caesars Arena, Detroit, MI
Date	Monday, February 23, 2026
Tip-off	7:00 p.m. ET
TV	Peacock

Not intended for use in MA.
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Anthony Chiang: The NBA announced that Heat guard Myron Gardner and Grizzlies guard Scotty Pippen Jr. have both been fined $35,000 for their altercation on Saturday.

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This article originally appeared on Hoops Hype: Myron Gardner, Scotty Pippen Jr. fined $35k each for fight, no suspensions

Draymond Green goes off on Kendrick Perkins: Yeah, Perk, you never had bad games. Perk, we seen you play big fella. We saw you, big dog. Like, you played. You know what I’m saying? Like to go in on one bad night Perk, you played. We got the clips. We got your clips of your screen setting. We got clips of your jump shots Perk. We got clips of your jump hooks. Like you played big Perk. So, like careful man. We can start pulling clips how. Big Perk.

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This article originally appeared on Hoops Hype: Draymond Green goes off on Kendrick Perkins: We seen you play, big fella, we seen your jump shots, jump hooks

Draymond Green on Cade Cunningham vs. Knicks: Came out the All-Star 42-9 at the Garden owning the New York Knicks. Cade Cunningham owns the New York Knicks. And you know with the play like man, he making everybody better. He’s scoring the basketball. He’s so poised. You can’t speed him up. It’s so fun to watch. Like the way he is revived Detroit basketball is insane

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This article originally appeared on Hoops Hype: Came out the All-Star 42-9 at the Garden owning the …

The Lakers have still not figured out how to maximize Dončić, James and Reaves. “I think you see we’re not there yet,” Dončić said. “We’re working on it. But there should be big potential about us three playing together.”

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This article originally appeared on Hoops Hype: “I think you see we’re not there yet,” Dončić said. …