NBA expansion: Seattle, Las Vegas, draft format, news, updates
In December 2020, NBA commissioner Adam Silver said the league was taking a fresh look at the idea of expanding after nearly two decades. For the past five years since he floated.
In December 2020, NBA commissioner Adam Silver said the league was taking a fresh look at the idea of expanding after nearly two decades. For the past five years since he floated the concept, an entire industry around the idea has developed as great anticipation has built.
And after several fits and starts, the league is now barreling toward the addition of two teams, as ESPN’s Shams Charania reported Monday that next week’s board of governors meeting will include a vote to explore adding Seattle and Las Vegas franchises beginning with the 2028-29 season.
Here’s our latest intel from conversations with sources in and around the NBA on how this complicated, league-altering process could play out.
Expansion is an economic question for the league’s existing 30 owners. At what point does the math make sense to where it becomes worth it to go from owning 1/30 of the league to 1/32?
NBA teams currently own 3.33% of the league. If the league jumps to 32 teams, that percentage drops to 3.13%. While that might seem like an insignificant change, those fractions of a percentage will really add up over time — particularly when factoring in, for example, the league’s media rights deal, which is currently an 11-year, $76 billion package split between Disney, Amazon and Comcast.
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So why would the owners do it? Because, at some point, the math tips in their favor if the expansion fees — which aren’t shared with the players and go straight into the owners’ pockets — get big enough. With team valuations skyrocketing in recent seasons, including the Los Angeles Lakers selling for $10 billion last year, the realistic numbers the NBA could expect to pursue in expansion has risen along with it. Charania reported that proposals could land between $7 and $10 billion.
For example, let’s say both teams sell for a total of $15 billion. That would mean all 30 existing NBA owners would immediately receive a $500 million check, a massive incentive to move forward with expansion now.
Will expansion definitely happen?
It will be shocking if expansion doesn’t happen.
Within league circles, it has been seen as the expected outcome for several years, though it was far from a certainty because of some pushback from different owners over the economics for the reasons laid out above. However, when Silver said in December a decision was coming in 2026, the belief within the league was that expansion to Seattle and Las Vegas was close to inevitable.
While next week’s vote is not a binding resolution, something like that is more likely to come at the July board of governors meeting during the Las Vegas Summer League, sources told ESPN.
Do the players have any say?
The decision on expansion rests solely with the board of governors and will require approval from 23 of the 30 existing owners to move forward. While the National Basketball Players Association has a say in many matters — for example, potentially making the schedule shorter — adding teams is not one of them.
That said, the idea of adding another 30 roster spots (36 including two-way contracts) is one the union would be very much in favor of, sources said.
Why Seattle?
To right a past wrong.
Seattle has been the biggest city in the country without an NBA team for nearly 20 years, since the SuperSonics moved to Oklahoma City. Bringing a team back to Seattle in 2028-29, 20 years after the Thunder began playing in OKC in 2008, would become one of the defining events of Silver’s tenure as commissioner.
For years, the issue with the NBA’s return to Seattle was the lack of a replacement for KeyArena, deemed inadequate by the league as part of the Sonics’ move. That changed in 2021 when the renovated Climate Pledge Arena opened as home of the WNBA’s Storm and the expansion NHL Kraken.
Why Las Vegas?
Vegas has become the league’s unofficial 31st city, with its annual Summer League growing over the past decade into the NBA’s version of Comic-Con, a massive event that brings hundreds of thousands of fans each July. And, for the first three years of its existence, Vegas hosted the championship round of the Emirates NBA Cup.
Las Vegas has exploded in popularity from a sports standpoint in recent years, with the Raiders arriving from Oakland in 2020, the Aces coming from San Antonio in 2018, the Golden Knights entering the NHL as an expansion team in 2017 and MLB’s Athletics eventually coming from Oakland (via Sacramento).
Could other cities try to get a team?
Several cities have received some attention as being possibilities, from international locations such as Mexico City, Vancouver and Montreal to American cities such as Kansas City, Louisville and Nashville. Maybe in the future a European division could be possible, but not before significant changes in air travel make it more feasible. None, however, were ever likely to leapfrog Vegas or Seattle.
Would Seattle be the SuperSonics? Would it retain that franchise’s pre-2008 history?
In short: yes.
The deal between Thunder ownership and the city of Seattle resolving a lawsuit over the team’s arena lease and allowing its move to Oklahoma City stipulated that the name SuperSonics and all associated logos, colors and trademark would be transferred to the owner of a new NBA team approved to play at a renovated KeyArena at no cost.
That agreement laid out the terms of shared ownership of Sonics history, including the team’s 1979 championship trophy and retired jerseys. Officially, the NBA combines the history of both teams. For example, the league recognizes Hall of Famer Gary Payton as Oklahoma City’s all-time leader in games played.
The Thunder, however, do not hang any banners for the SuperSonics in Oklahoma City, and in their media guide they don’t highlight any Seattle stats — listing, for example, Russell Westbrook as the team’s all-time assists leader, rather than Payton.
Sources said if a team was to return to Seattle, the Thunder would cede the Seattle history back to the SuperSonics — just as the NBA’s Charlotte Hornets reclaimed the Charlotte-era history of the New Orleans Pelicans when Charlotte regained the Hornets name in 2014.
If two teams are added in the West, what will happen to the conferences?
Seattle and Las Vegas would both land in the West, necessitating one franchise shifting from West to East to rebalance the 17-15 split.
The decision would likely be between three teams: the Minnesota Timberwolves, New Orleans Pelicans and Memphis Grizzlies. Geographically, New Orleans and Memphis are the Eastern-most teams in the Western Conference but are short flights from several West opponents (each other, all three Texas teams and the Thunder).
Minnesota is farther west but far more geographically isolated. The Timberwolves’ closest West opponent, the Denver Nuggets, are 680 miles away. Six East cities (Milwaukee, Chicago, Indianapolis, Detroit, Cleveland and Toronto) are within that range.
It would likely be a protracted fight to determine who would move East, but those facts would seem to make Minnesota the most logical choice.
What impact could expansion have on NBA playoffs and NBA Cup formats?
As far as the playoffs go, bumping up to 32 teams shouldn’t change anything at all. Ten teams would qualify for the postseason, six directly and four into the play-in tournament. Six teams, rather than five now, would go directly to the draft lottery.
Going up to 32 teams, however, would potentially result in positive changes for the NBA Cup. Currently, the league splits the tournament’s group stage into six groups of five — meaning it can’t have every team play on the final day of group play, because there are odd numbers of teams in each group.
A 32-team pool would allow the NBA to mirror the 32-team FIFA World Cup format: eight groups of four teams, each of which would play each other once. Then, the NBA could either have 16 teams advance to the knockout portion of the tournament, taking the top two teams from each group (like the World Cup does), or it could have each group winner advance and have the same knockout stage format it does now.
Will there be rule changes from previous expansions?
The NBA is expected to take a close look at the entire process of expansion — for example how an expansion draft would work to restrictions teams would have on spending in their initial years of existence to what the rules governing their draft picks would be — before a formal vote to expand would take place.
The league will be balancing both not making it so difficult on the incoming teams that they have no chance to compete for years, but also not giving them a giant leg up on their competition by walking in with a clean slate to start working from. There will be robust discussions over the next few months about what all this will look like.
How could the expansion draft work?
During the 2004 expansion that brought in the Charlotte Bobcats (now Hornets), existing NBA teams were allowed to protect up to eight players under contract for the next season from being selected.
Past expansion draft rules required that a team had to leave at least one player unprotected, even if the team had fewer than eight players under contract heading into the offseason. Those with options to become a free agent count toward that total, and, if selected, the player’s former team would receive a trade exception in the amount of that player’s 2028-29 salary.
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Teams were also allowed to protect players who could become restricted free agents, but past expansion draft rules did not transfer RFA status to the expansion team. The drafting team would be at risk of losing a player for nothing. (However, the player would not be allowed to re-sign with his original team.)
In past expansion drafts, teams were allowed to select only one player from each existing NBA franchise.
There were no two-way players in 2004, so the league will need to determine if they can be protected in a future expansion draft. Every two-way player whose contract is up normally becomes a restricted free agent.
One thing to point out is that the NBA and NBPA would be operating under the current collective bargaining agreement, which runs through the 2029-30 season. There is a provision however that allows either side the option to terminate the CBA on June 30, 2029, if there is notice given on or before Oct. 15, 2028.
What can be learned from previous expansion drafts?
In 1995, the Toronto Raptors and Vancouver Grizzlies alternated picks until they selected one player from each of the other 27 existing NBA franchises.
The two teams had a coin toss to determine which would select first. The Grizzlies won the toss but chose to defer, giving them the second pick in the expansion draft. Because of that, the Grizzlies got to choose higher than the Raptors in the 1995 NBA draft.
The Raptors finished the expansion draft with 14 players and Grizzlies selected 13.
In 2004, Charlotte could have selected 29 players (one from each team) in the expansion draft but chose 19. The Charlotte front office took an approach in 2004 of selecting players who were restricted free agents. Out of the 19 players Charlotte selected (a minimum 14 was required), nine were restricted free agents. The only one of those nine who re-signed with Charlotte was Tamar Slay.
The standard roster rules during the regular season and offseason will likely apply: A team can carry up to 21 players in the offseason and 18 (including three on two-way contracts) once the regular season begins.
How do expansion teams factor into the leaguewide draft?
The NBA has slotted each expansion team in the first round, with Vancouver selecting sixth and Toronto seventh in 1995 and Charlotte picking fourth in 2004. In that draft, the Bobcats traded up with the Los Angeles Clippers to get the second overall pick (Emeka Okafor).
None of the recent expansion teams have been eligible for the No. 1 pick in their first year. When the Raptors and Grizzlies entered the league, they were also ineligible for the No. 1 pick in their second season. The Raptors won the draft lottery in 1996, but were unable to pick first, so the No. 1 pick went to the Philadelphia 76ers (who drafted Allen Iverson).
How could the salary cap work for expansion teams?
Each expansion team has to work within a reduced salary cap for its first two seasons. In July 2004, the Bobcats had $17.6 million in player salaries and were $11.8 million below the $29.4 million salary cap at the start of free agency.
If an expansion team was entering the league for the 2028-29 season, using that 66.6% figure, that team would be working with a salary cap of $121.9 million, compared with a projected $183 million cap for the league’s 30 existing franchises. The team would have 80% of the salary cap available the following season, and the full cap available for Year 3.
An expansion team would be required to spend 90% of its lower $121.9 million salary cap by the first day of the regular season to reach the league-mandated salary floor. Teams can select a player in the expansion draft and then waive him without his salary counting against the cap, with that money still applying to the salary floor.
Sources: Giannis to miss at least 1 week due to knee injury
Jamal CollierMar 17, 2026, 11:01 PM
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Milwaukee Bucks star Giannis Antetokounmpo has been diagnosed with a hyperextended left knee and a bone bruise, and sources told ESPN’s Shams Charania on Tuesday he will be reevaluated in one week.
Doc Rivers said Tuesday that imaging on Antetokounmpo’s knee showed no structural damage to his knee, but the Bucks coach did not have more details on the injury or provide a timeline for Antetokounmpo’s return.
“The good news was it was really a good image. There was no damage,” Rivers said before Tuesday’s 123-116 loss to the visiting Cleveland Cavaliers. “It was really just good news. But I don’t know the next part [about a timeline].”
Antetokounmpo, 31, landed awkwardly after a dunk during the third quarter of Sunday’s home game against the Indiana Pacers, and although he felt like he could play through it, the Bucks sat him for the rest of the contest.
A source close to Antetokounmpo told ESPN the Bucks superstar doesn’t view this setback as season-ending and intends to play again this season.
Tuesday marked the Bucks’ 68th game of the season, leaving just 14 games remaining for a team falling out of the playoff picture. Rivers said he did not know how the Bucks would weigh the risk of continuing Antetokounmpo’s season with the team falling so far out of contention.
Milwaukee (28-40) remains in 11th place in the Eastern Conference, trailing the Charlotte Hornets by 6½ games for 10th place and the final spot in the play-in tournament.
“That’s a good question,” Rivers said on Tuesday. “I don’t have the answer, but it’s a very good question. Honestly, that’s all I have.
“It’s something we will talk about.”
Antetokounmpo has missed 32 games this season, the most of his career. He has seen extended absences because of strains in his right calf. The Bucks are 11-21 without Antetokounmpo in the lineup this season and 17-19 when he plays.
Antetokounmpo played in six games since his March 2 return from his most recent absence, averaging 25.7 points, 8.5 rebounds, 4.7 assists and 27 minutes as the team aimed to manage his workload.
“He was trying to fit 35 minutes into 20,” Rivers said in assessing Antetokounmpo’s play since his comeback. “Even the last game, he was still on I think 28, which, to be honest, that’s tight. For a coach, that’s really tight.”
In 36 games this season, Antetokounmpo is still averaging 27.6 points, 9.8 rebounds and 5.4 assists.
Milwaukee also was missing center Myles Turner on Tuesday with a right calf strain.
Timberwolves’ Anthony Edwards to miss time with knee soreness
Michael C. WrightMar 17, 2026, 07:33 PM
MINNEAPOLIS — The Minnesota Timberwolves ruled out guard Anthony Edwards for Tuesday’s contest against the Phoenix Suns due to right knee soreness before later announcing he would be reevaluated in one to two weeks.
The Timberwolves announced the timetable for a reevaluation after disclosing Tuesday that an MRI conducted by Dr. Craig Bennett at Mayo Clinic Sports Medicine revealed inflammation in Edwards’ right knee. The team announced that further updates on his progress will be provided when available.
Edwards’ latest setback comes at a crucial time for the sixth-place Timberwolves as they try to hold off the Suns on Tuesday at Target Center. Phoenix sits two games behind Minnesota in the Western Conference standings, having lost two in a row on a six-game road trip, but owns the tiebreaker with a 2-0 record in the series between the teams.
“We’ve been here before,” Minnesota coach Chris Finch said. “I think it’s incredible when you think about Ant playing almost 95% of the games he’s been available to play. That’s almost unheard of. But this year we’ve been without [him] more than in the past. Just got to regroup. We’ve got to worry about playing better basketball all the way around regardless of who’s out there. And I think we don’t need one person to try to step in and fill the scoring. It’s just better if it’s dispersed throughout the lineup.”
Finch said the decision to sit Edwards was “well above my pay grade,” adding that the decision was made after consultation with “the medical performance staff, team of doctors, talking to his people and everything.”
Minnesota, meanwhile, has dropped four of its past five, including Sunday’s loss at Oklahoma City in which the Timberwolves committed 25 turnovers — their second most in a game this season — as Edwards contributed 19 points on 6-of-17 shooting. Edwards attempted only one field goal in the fourth quarter of the loss and appeared to be laboring down the stretch due to the sore right knee.
Edwards, 24, leads the Timberwolves in scoring this season, averaging 29.5 points, 5.1 rebounds and 3.7 assists on 49.2% from the field and 40.2% from 3-point range.
He’s been an iron man for most of his NBA career, missing only nine games combined in the three seasons before this one. However, this season he has already missed 10 contests and has only 57 qualifying games for end-of-season awards because he played only three minutes in an Oct. 26 game vs. the Indiana Pacers. Edwards can miss just six more of the Wolves’ 14 games remaining before being disqualified for awards.
Minnesota’s matchup against the Suns is the first of a back-to-back set that continues Wednesday with the Timberwolves hosting the Utah Jazz.
Timberwolves’ Anthony Edwards to miss time with knee soreness
Michael C. WrightMar 17, 2026, 07:33 PM
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MINNEAPOLIS — The Minnesota Timberwolves ruled out guard Anthony Edwards for Tuesday’s contest against the Phoenix Suns due to right knee soreness before later announcing he would be reevaluated in one to two weeks.
The Timberwolves announced the timetable for a reevaluation after disclosing Tuesday that an MRI conducted by Dr. Craig Bennett at Mayo Clinic Sports Medicine revealed inflammation in Edwards’ right knee. The team announced that further updates on his progress will be provided when available.
Edwards’ latest setback comes at a crucial time for the sixth-place Timberwolves as they try to hold off the Suns on Tuesday at Target Center. Phoenix sits two games behind Minnesota in the Western Conference standings, having lost two in a row on a six-game road trip, but owns the tiebreaker with a 2-0 record in the series between the teams.
“We’ve been here before,” Minnesota coach Chris Finch said. “I think it’s incredible when you think about Ant playing almost 95% of the games he’s been available to play. That’s almost unheard of. But this year we’ve been without [him] more than in the past. Just got to regroup. We’ve got to worry about playing better basketball all the way around regardless of who’s out there. And I think we don’t need one person to try to step in and fill the scoring. It’s just better if it’s dispersed throughout the lineup.”
Finch said the decision to sit Edwards was “well above my pay grade,” adding that the decision was made after consultation with “the medical performance staff, team of doctors, talking to his people and everything.”
Minnesota, meanwhile, has dropped four of its past five, including Sunday’s loss at Oklahoma City in which the Timberwolves committed 25 turnovers — their second most in a game this season — as Edwards contributed 19 points on 6-of-17 shooting. Edwards attempted only one field goal in the fourth quarter of the loss and appeared to be laboring down the stretch due to the sore right knee.
Edwards, 24, leads the Timberwolves in scoring this season, averaging 29.5 points, 5.1 rebounds and 3.7 assists on 49.2% from the field and 40.2% from 3-point range.
He’s been an iron man for most of his NBA career, missing only nine games combined in the three seasons before this one. However, this season he has already missed 10 contests and has only 57 qualifying games for end-of-season awards because he played only three minutes in an Oct. 26 game vs. the Indiana Pacers. Edwards can miss just six more of the Wolves’ 14 games remaining before being disqualified for awards.
Minnesota’s matchup against the Suns is the first of a back-to-back set that continues Wednesday with the Timberwolves hosting the Utah Jazz.
Barack Obama, Anthony Edwards team up to tease Presidential Center opening
Anthony GharibMar 17, 2026, 07:30 PM
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Minnesota Timberwolves guard Anthony Edwards has his fair share of rivals on the court. But one of his most notable competitors might exist outside of the hardwood — former President Barack Obama.
Edwards and Obama have added a new chapter to their relationship in a video teasing the June 19 opening of the Obama Presidential Center in Chicago’s Jackson Park.
The video begins with Obama appearing to be ready for an interview, but then he begins texting with someone. Obama says he’s busy, and the person who is texting him responds with: “u scared.” Eventually, Obama goes outside because he “has some unfinished business to deal with.”
He heads to an outdoor court to find Edwards putting up shots. The two then compete in basketball, ping-pong and Connect 4. They finish by dipping their feet in the pool and making plans for a rematch.
“The next one is going to be on my home court at the Obama Presidential Center on the South Side of Chicago,” Obama says.
The video ends with a message about the center opening in June to all visitors, with an asterisk that reads “even Anthony Edwards.”
Edwards, a four-time NBA All-Star, had a viral moment with Obama at the 2024 Paris Olympics captured on Netflix’s “Court of Gold.” Obama stopped by USA Basketball’s 50th anniversary event in July 2024. While talking with Philadelphia 76ers star Joel Embiid, Obama asked the former MVP what he thinks about Edwards.
“He can hoop a little bit, huh?” Obama asked, prompting Embiid to say: “Just a little bit.”
Edwards, who was standing next to them, exuded confidence in his response to Obama and Embiid.
“Man, y’all better stand down. I’m the truth…” he said. “These boys know.”
Obama then called over Olympic teammates LeBron James and Kevin Durant to tell them about Edwards’ declaration. The two future Hall of Famers had no problem with Edwards’ confidence.
Since that moment, Edwards and Obama have maintained a lighthearted relationship. While talking with Detroit Pistons coach J.B. Bickerstaff at the 2026 NBA All-Star Game, Obama asked Bickerstaff whether he would play Edwards, adding that he “wore him out yesterday.” Edwards denied that and said, “He did aight for an old man though.”https://www.instagram.com/reel/DU4FhwGkno7/embed/captioned/?cr=1&v=14&wp=540&rd=https%3A%2F%2Fglobal.espn.com&rp=%2Fnba%2Fstory%2F_%2Fid%2F46933211%2Fnba-consecutive-scoring-streaks-player-records-know#%7B%22ci%22%3A0%2C%22os%22%3A114513.89999997616%7D
With Obama in attendance, Edwards acknowledged that he wanted his performance to be extra special for the former president.
“He my favorite person in the world,” Edwards said. “We was kicking it yesterday. Me and him. I had a great time yesterday. I told him I was going to put on a show for him.”
Hawks fans sport Magic City gear despite canceled promotion
Associated Press
Mar 17, 2026, 01:09 PMShareLikeOpen Extended Reactions949
ATLANTA — State Farm Arena was packed Monday night as the Atlanta Hawks beat the Orlando Magic for their 10th straight win. With 18,138 fans in attendance, the atmosphere resembled a playoff game.
But it wasn’t a playoff game. It was merely what was once known as Magic City night.
The Hawks’ short-lived collaboration with Atlanta’s renowned strip club was announced Feb. 26 and promised exclusive merchandise, the club’s lemon pepper wings and a halftime show by Atlanta rapper T.I. It lived for less than two weeks before NBA commissioner Adam Silver shut it down, citing concerns from “a broad array of league stakeholders, including fans, partners and employees.”
Collaboration or not, plenty of Hawks fans dressed accordingly anyway. Magic City gear, both official and unofficial merchandise, was a common sight throughout the crowd. Those proudly sporting a club sweatshirt included Hawks principal owner Jami Gertz, who sat near half court as she watched Atlanta roll to a 124-112 victory.
The event’s cancellation was met with mixed reactions and, locally, a good amount of confusion. That was clear by game time, as one of several retail shops in the arena had tallied 12 Magic City hoodie requests through the first quarter.
A Hawks Shop sales associate said that 300 of those hoodies were available for preorder and that they sold out almost immediately. The high demand prompted a larger order of the sweatshirts, which will now be permanently stowed.
Koreena Atkins, a member of the Hawks’ fan section known as the 404 crew, secured one of the 300 sweatshirts. She said the hoodies were gone less than two hours after the preorder opened.
Atkins had hoped to wear her sweatshirt to the game, but the fan club, which makes up the top three rows of Section 122 every game, was told Magic City chants and gear would not be tolerated.
Nichole Kagwisa missed the preorder window, and come Monday night she demanded answers.
“I’ve been a [season-ticket holder] for five years, and I’ve upgraded. Like, I’m a good member. I want a sweatshirt,” she said. “I didn’t have this game. I was going to buy tickets, but then my friends got standing room only. We wanted the experience, and we still ain’t seen the lemon pepper wings yet!”
Among a sea of disappointed Hawks fans were those pleased with the NBA ‘s decision.
“I personally think they should have never done it. I’m here today with my grandson, who just turned 15 years old,” said a longtime season-ticket holder who didn’t want to give his name. “You want to go in that direction, then go in that direction. But when you do, you’re going to lose grassroots, and I’ve been a Hawks fan since they came here in the ’60s.”
Ashton Leroux, who has DJ’d at Magic City for the past eight years, was able to sympathize with both sides.
“I didn’t think it was that big at first, and then I started to realize I’ve been amongst club culture for half of my DJ career, and it kind of took me away from the real world,” Leroux said.
He then pointed to a young boy, also standing in the Hawks Shop.
“Like him, what if he sees this and wants to actually ask, ‘What is this about?’ How do we talk to the kids? I get that side. I really do.”
The controversy brought more attention and interest to the club than any event ever could have, Leroux said, adding that a shoulder-to-shoulder crowd was fully anticipated Monday night.
“If there was stock in Magic City, it would’ve gone through the roof,” Leroux said.
Remember NBA St. Patrick’s Day uniforms? Knicks, Bulls, Celtics, Raptors went green for the holiday
Anthony GharibMar 17, 2026, 11:00 AM
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St. Patrick’s Day is here, with eight games being played around the NBA, and one noticeable difference continues for yet another year — no holiday-themed uniforms.
During the league’s uniform partnership with Adidas, a select group of teams each year would wear special green uniforms on St. Patrick’s Day. The Chicago Bulls, New York Knicks and Boston Celtics were frequent participants and jump-started the trend in the mid-2000s.
However, similar to special Christmas Day threads, the initiative ended when Nike became the NBA’s uniform supplier ahead of the 2017-18 season and introduced the current “Edition” system for uniforms. As a result, more emphasis went toward the yearly City Edition program rather than one-off holiday uniforms. The NBA and WNBA agreed to a 12-year contract extension with Nike in 2024.
In the absence of festive threads for this season, here’s a look back at notable St. Patrick’s Day jerseys of the past.
New York Knicks
How lucky was the look? 3-3 overall record in St. Patrick’s Day uniforms
New York went deep into its uniform closet each St. Patrick’s Day with an all-green look that included orange and black trims throughout. The Knicks debuted the threads against the Detroit Pistons on March 17, 2006, and it brought them good luck.
Led by 18 points off the bench from Jamal Crawford, the Knicks defeated the Eastern Conference-leading Pistons 105-103.
New York last wore the green threads during the 2011-12 season, a win against the Indiana Pacers.
Chicago Bulls
How lucky was the look? 4-6 overall record in St. Patrick’s Day uniforms
The Bulls went from red to green for a look that surely took some getting used to for die-hard fans. Even though the uniform was all green, the bull logo on the shorts and back of the jersey remained the traditional black and red.
Chicago first wore the threads against the Miami Heat in an 85-84 loss on March 18, 2006, a day after the holiday. The Bulls wore the uniform each year until the 2016-17 campaign except in 2015-16.
Boston Celtics
How lucky was the look? 4-4 overall record in St. Patrick’s Day uniforms
Green is already the Celtics’ primary shade, but even they received a neat makeover ahead of St. Patrick’s Day 2006. The numbers and “Celtics” word mark were turned gold with a similar color trim across the shorts and jersey. They uniform set received a slight tweak for the 2013-14 season with a short-sleeve version.
Like Chicago, Boston donned the special look until the 2017-18 campaign.
How lucky was the look? 1-4 overall record in St. Patrick’s Day uniforms
Toronto entered the holiday trend on St. Patrick’s Day 2008, debuting a clean look in a road defeat against the Utah Jazz. The Raptors continued to wear it for the next four seasons.
Their only victory came when Chris Bosh made the winning jump shot with two seconds left against the Atlanta Hawks in 2010, his final season in Toronto.
Steve Kerr 4th-fastest coach to 600 wins as Warriors top Wiz
ESPN News Services
Mar 17, 2026, 03:27 AMShareLikeOpen Extended Reactions494
WASHINGTON — Steve Kerr finally could celebrate win No. 600.
The Golden State coach is one of the fastest to reach the milestone, but after he made it to 599 the Warriors lost five in a row. They snapped that skid with a 125-117 win over Washington on Monday night.
Racking Up The Dubs
Steve Kerr on Monday night recorded his 600th career win as a head coach in his 943rd regular-season game. He became the fourth fastest to reach 600 wins in NBA history:
Coach
Games To Reach 600
Phil Jackson
805
Pat Riley
832
Gregg Popovich
887
Steve Kerr
943
Red Auerbach
953
— ESPN Research
“Not a great basketball game,” Kerr said. “But we needed the win and were good enough to get the win.”
Kerr reached 600 in his 943rd regular-season game. Only three coaches have needed fewer. Phil Jackson did it in 805 games, Pat Riley in 832 and Gregg Popovich in 887.
“It’s surreal to hear my name in that group, but I can tell you that one thing that bonds us all together — those names and mine — is talent,” Kerr said. “You can’t win in this league without great players, and I was blessed from the day I took this job with incredible talent.”
Kerr also had 601 career wins as a player. He became the second person in NBA history to win 600 games as a player and as a coach, joining Don Nelson.
With Stephen Curry and Jimmy Butler III out with injuries, the Warriors are mired in a race for positioning in the play-in round in the Western Conference. They did have Draymond Green and Kristaps Porzingis back Monday after resting them in Sunday’s loss at New York.
Porzingis scored a game-high 30 points, tying his season high.
“He’s quite a talent,” Kerr said. “We’re also on the Kristaps Porzingis reunion tour. It’s kind of crazy. We’re playing every one of his former teams. The Knicks, Washington, Atlanta, Boston, Dallas — all five of his teams, we’re seeing on this trip. Players usually get up for playing against their old teams.”
Up next for the Warriors is a matchup with the Celtics on Wednesday night.
Information from ESPN Research and The Associated Press was used in this report.
Pippen had an operation on his right big toe and Aldama had a procedure and injection to address discomfort in his right knee. The team said both procedures were successful and the players will be ready for next season.
The Grizzlies (23-44) have lost eight straight games and entered Tuesday night nine games back in the race for the final play-in berth in the Western Conference. Star Ja Morant has played in only 20 games this season, missing the last 25 with a left elbow injury.
Pippen had a similar procedure in October and didn’t make his season debut until last month. In 10 games, he averaged 11.4 points.
Aldama was averaging 14 points and 6.7 rebounds this season.
Sources: Giannis to miss at least 1 week due to knee injury
Jamal CollierMar 17, 2026, 11:01 PM
Milwaukee Bucks star Giannis Antetokounmpo has been diagnosed with a hyperextended left knee and a bone bruise, and sources told ESPN’s Shams Charania on Tuesday he will be reevaluated in one week.
Doc Rivers said Tuesday that imaging on Antetokounmpo’s knee showed no structural damage to his knee, but the Bucks coach did not have more details on the injury or provide a timeline for Antetokounmpo’s return.
“The good news was it was really a good image. There was no damage,” Rivers said before Tuesday’s 123-116 loss to the visiting Cleveland Cavaliers. “It was really just good news. But I don’t know the next part [about a timeline].”
Antetokounmpo, 31, landed awkwardly after a dunk during the third quarter of Sunday’s home game against the Indiana Pacers, and although he felt like he could play through it, the Bucks sat him for the rest of the contest.
A source close to Antetokounmpo told ESPN the Bucks superstar doesn’t view this setback as season-ending and intends to play again this season.
Tuesday marked the Bucks’ 68th game of the season, leaving just 14 games remaining for a team falling out of the playoff picture. Rivers said he did not know how the Bucks would weigh the risk of continuing Antetokounmpo’s season with the team falling so far out of contention.
Milwaukee (28-40) remains in 11th place in the Eastern Conference, trailing the Charlotte Hornets by 6½ games for 10th place and the final spot in the play-in tournament.
“That’s a good question,” Rivers said on Tuesday. “I don’t have the answer, but it’s a very good question. Honestly, that’s all I have.
“It’s something we will talk about.”
Antetokounmpo has missed 32 games this season, the most of his career. He has seen extended absences because of strains in his right calf. The Bucks are 11-21 without Antetokounmpo in the lineup this season and 17-19 when he plays.
Antetokounmpo played in six games since his March 2 return from his most recent absence, averaging 25.7 points, 8.5 rebounds, 4.7 assists and 27 minutes as the team aimed to manage his workload.
“He was trying to fit 35 minutes into 20,” Rivers said in assessing Antetokounmpo’s play since his comeback. “Even the last game, he was still on I think 28, which, to be honest, that’s tight. For a coach, that’s really tight.”
In 36 games this season, Antetokounmpo is still averaging 27.6 points, 9.8 rebounds and 5.4 assists.
Milwaukee also was missing center Myles Turner on Tuesday with a right calf strain.
Timberwolves’ Anthony Edwards to miss time with knee soreness
Michael C. WrightMar 17, 2026, 07:33 PM
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MINNEAPOLIS — The Minnesota Timberwolves ruled out guard Anthony Edwards for Tuesday’s contest against the Phoenix Suns due to right knee soreness before later announcing he would be reevaluated in one to two weeks.
The Timberwolves announced the timetable for a reevaluation after disclosing Tuesday that an MRI conducted by Dr. Craig Bennett at Mayo Clinic Sports Medicine revealed inflammation in Edwards’ right knee. The team announced that further updates on his progress will be provided when available.
Edwards’ latest setback comes at a crucial time for the sixth-place Timberwolves as they try to hold off the Suns on Tuesday at Target Center. Phoenix sits two games behind Minnesota in the Western Conference standings, having lost two in a row on a six-game road trip, but owns the tiebreaker with a 2-0 record in the series between the teams.
“We’ve been here before,” Minnesota coach Chris Finch said. “I think it’s incredible when you think about Ant playing almost 95% of the games he’s been available to play. That’s almost unheard of. But this year we’ve been without [him] more than in the past. Just got to regroup. We’ve got to worry about playing better basketball all the way around regardless of who’s out there. And I think we don’t need one person to try to step in and fill the scoring. It’s just better if it’s dispersed throughout the lineup.”
Finch said the decision to sit Edwards was “well above my pay grade,” adding that the decision was made after consultation with “the medical performance staff, team of doctors, talking to his people and everything.”
Minnesota, meanwhile, has dropped four of its past five, including Sunday’s loss at Oklahoma City in which the Timberwolves committed 25 turnovers — their second most in a game this season — as Edwards contributed 19 points on 6-of-17 shooting. Edwards attempted only one field goal in the fourth quarter of the loss and appeared to be laboring down the stretch due to the sore right knee.
Edwards, 24, leads the Timberwolves in scoring this season, averaging 29.5 points, 5.1 rebounds and 3.7 assists on 49.2% from the field and 40.2% from 3-point range.
He’s been an iron man for most of his NBA career, missing only nine games combined in the three seasons before this one. However, this season he has already missed 10 contests and has only 57 qualifying games for end-of-season awards because he played only three minutes in an Oct. 26 game vs. the Indiana Pacers. Edwards can miss just six more of the Wolves’ 14 games remaining before being disqualified for awards.
Minnesota’s matchup against the Suns is the first of a back-to-back set that continues Wednesday with the Timberwolves hosting the Utah Jazz.
Pistons guard Cade Cunningham leaves game with back spasms
ESPN News Services
Mar 18, 2026, 01:06 AMShareLikeOpen Extended Reactions13
WASHINGTON — Detroit Pistons guard Cade Cunningham, a two-time All-Star who is among the leaders in the NBA MVP race, left Tuesday night’s game against the Washington Wizards with back spasms.
Cunningham appeared to suffer an injury early in the first quarter while diving for a loose ball. He played for a few more minutes before being taken out at the 6:40 mark.
The team said during the second quarter he would not return.
Cunningham is averaging 25 points, 10 assists and 5.6 rebounds this season. He had six points and two rebounds in 5 minutes, 20 seconds Tuesday night before leaving the game.
Cunningham has played 61 games this season. A player must appear in 65 games to qualify for major postseason awards such as MVP and All-NBA teams.
Pippen had an operation on his right big toe and Aldama had a procedure and injection to address discomfort in his right knee. The team said both procedures were successful and the players will be ready for next season.
The Grizzlies (23-44) have lost eight straight games and entered Tuesday night nine games back in the race for the final play-in berth in the Western Conference. Star Ja Morant has played in only 20 games this season, missing the last 25 with a left elbow injury.
Pippen had a similar procedure in October and didn’t make his season debut until last month. In 10 games, he averaged 11.4 points.
Aldama was averaging 14 points and 6.7 rebounds this season.
Sources: Giannis to miss at least 1 week due to knee injury
Jamal CollierMar 17, 2026, 11:01 PM
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Milwaukee Bucks star Giannis Antetokounmpo has been diagnosed with a hyperextended left knee and a bone bruise, and sources told ESPN’s Shams Charania on Tuesday he will be reevaluated in one week.
Doc Rivers said Tuesday that imaging on Antetokounmpo’s knee showed no structural damage to his knee, but the Bucks coach did not have more details on the injury or provide a timeline for Antetokounmpo’s return.
“The good news was it was really a good image. There was no damage,” Rivers said before Tuesday’s 123-116 loss to the visiting Cleveland Cavaliers. “It was really just good news. But I don’t know the next part [about a timeline].”
Antetokounmpo, 31, landed awkwardly after a dunk during the third quarter of Sunday’s home game against the Indiana Pacers, and although he felt like he could play through it, the Bucks sat him for the rest of the contest.
A source close to Antetokounmpo told ESPN the Bucks superstar doesn’t view this setback as season-ending and intends to play again this season.
Tuesday marked the Bucks’ 68th game of the season, leaving just 14 games remaining for a team falling out of the playoff picture. Rivers said he did not know how the Bucks would weigh the risk of continuing Antetokounmpo’s season with the team falling so far out of contention.
Milwaukee (28-40) remains in 11th place in the Eastern Conference, trailing the Charlotte Hornets by 6½ games for 10th place and the final spot in the play-in tournament.
“That’s a good question,” Rivers said on Tuesday. “I don’t have the answer, but it’s a very good question. Honestly, that’s all I have.
“It’s something we will talk about.”
Antetokounmpo has missed 32 games this season, the most of his career. He has seen extended absences because of strains in his right calf. The Bucks are 11-21 without Antetokounmpo in the lineup this season and 17-19 when he plays.
Antetokounmpo played in six games since his March 2 return from his most recent absence, averaging 25.7 points, 8.5 rebounds, 4.7 assists and 27 minutes as the team aimed to manage his workload.
“He was trying to fit 35 minutes into 20,” Rivers said in assessing Antetokounmpo’s play since his comeback. “Even the last game, he was still on I think 28, which, to be honest, that’s tight. For a coach, that’s really tight.”
In 36 games this season, Antetokounmpo is still averaging 27.6 points, 9.8 rebounds and 5.4 assists.
Milwaukee also was missing center Myles Turner on Tuesday with a right calf strain.
The Lakers, who are optimistic they are in the process of carving out a defensive identity after struggling on that end of the court most of the season, threw a steady diet of double-teams at Durant in the fourth quarter. The results were disastrous for the Rockets, who committed nine turnovers while scoring only 12 points on 4-of-16 shooting in the final frame, allowing the Lakers to extend their winning streak to six games with a 100-92 victory at the Toyota Center.
“I just felt like I lost the game for us tonight,” said Durant, who scored only two of his 18 points in the second half and committed seven of the Rockets’ 24 turnovers. “It’s that simple. Of course we probably could make more 3s, but it’s on me. I mean, to be honest, I’m the offense and the opposing team is going to use all their resources and not let me get comfortable.
“First half, I got comfortable in iso, comfortable coming off of pindowns, pick-and-rolls, and they decided not to let me get comfortable no more. So I got to be smarter, better with the ball. I got to maybe shoot over some of them double-teams, but space out, be ready to catch and shoot, be ready to be a screener, just be in a dunker spot, just being able to be there as a resource for my teammates to provide space. I didn’t need to have the ball as much as I did tonight.”
The Lakers (43-25) increased their cushion over the Rockets (41-26) to 1½ games in the fight for the third seed in the Western Conference. Houston, which hosts the Lakers again Wednesday night, is only a half-game ahead of the Denver Nuggets and Minnesota Timberwolves.
Houston has frequently struggled late in games when teams force the ball out of Durant’s hands by sending a second defender at him while he handles the ball at the top of the offense, prompting the sixth-leading scorer in NBA history to suggest that maybe he needs to “just get out of the way” and spot up in the corner to space the floor in those situations.
The Lakers’ defensive tenacity, on the other hand, is a recent development.
Los Angeles ranks 20th in the league in defensive efficiency, giving up 115.7 points per 100 possessions. But the Lakers have shown drastic defensive improvement while winning nine of their past 10 games, including victories over several playoff teams. The Lakers have given up 109.3 points per 100 possessions during that span, which ranks sixth in the league.
A dominant defensive effort was necessary to win Monday night, when the Lakers sputtered offensively aside from Luka Doncic scoring 36 points on 14-of-27 shooting. In the second half, Los Angeles held Houston to 35 points and forced 15 turnovers, overcoming the Lakers’ own offensive woes (8-of-34 3-point shooting for the game).
“It’s something that we’ve struggled with earlier in the season,” Lakers coach JJ Redick said. “I think that shows the commitment that our guys have right now to that end of the floor, understanding we’re going to win with both sides of the ball. We won a lot of games with the orfensive side of the ball, and we’ve shown, I think, now — whether it’s been the Knicks game, the Wolves game, this game — we can beat good teams with defense.”
Doncic interrupted Austin Reaves from the neighboring locker to offer a sarcastic answer to a question about the key to the Lakers’ defensive success.
“Luka locking that s— up!” Doncic quipped.
In the interview room later, Doncic attributed the Lakes’ defensive improvement to “effort and communication.”
“That’s what good teams do,” Doncic said. “Not every day you’re going to have a great day shooting the ball.”
Rockets All-Star center Alperen Sengun sat out because of lower back pain, eliminating Houston’s second-leading scorer from the equation, simplifying the strategy of sending double-teams at Durant. The Lakers adjusted their strategy of doubling Durant in the second half. As Redick said, they opted to “fire” instead of blitzing him, waiting until Durant dribbled to send the second defender.
“I got to be smarter, better with the ball. I got to maybe shoot over some of them double-teams, but space out, be ready to catch and shoot, be ready to be a screener, just be in a dunker spot, just being able to be there as a resource for my teammates to provide space. I didn’t need to have the ball as much as I did tonight.”Kevin Durant
“He’s one of the greatest players we’ve ever seen play obviously, so you’ve just got to try to show him different looks, try to keep him off balance,” said Lakers star LeBron James, who had 18 points on 7-of-13 shooting, including a few spectacular dunks to finish fast breaks. “And when he shoots, hope he misses. He don’t miss many shots. So I thought we did a good job of having a game plan, but also just switching up our pitches. Can’t show a great like that too many of the same coverages just throughout the whole game.”
Durant finished 8-of-16 from the field but only 1-of-5 in the second half, when he committed six of his seven turnovers. He expressed doubt about whether the Rockets benefited from him being the primary ball handler down the stretch of games, considering how the Rockets have struggled when he gets doubled.
“I just feel like it just makes us stagnant,” Durant said. “When I come across half [court] and then they waited on me to drive, but I know they’re coming to double, so I wait a split second. I just think the whole process is too slow. And I just think that it’s all on me, because the team, when they see me, it just feels like one-on-five, to be honest. You know what I’m saying? Because I see two guys coming up out the corner to help at the elbows and guys at the boxes. It’s almost like a zone when I get the ball up top. When I try to post up anywhere, it’s going to be double-teams. So I’m just trying to find out ways to open myself up, open my teammates up.”
Steve Kerr 4th-fastest coach to 600 wins as Warriors top Wiz
ESPN News Services
Mar 17, 2026, 03:27 AMShareLikeOpen Extended Reactions494
WASHINGTON — Steve Kerr finally could celebrate win No. 600.
The Golden State coach is one of the fastest to reach the milestone, but after he made it to 599 the Warriors lost five in a row. They snapped that skid with a 125-117 win over Washington on Monday night.
Racking Up The Dubs
Steve Kerr on Monday night recorded his 600th career win as a head coach in his 943rd regular-season game. He became the fourth fastest to reach 600 wins in NBA history:
Coach
Games To Reach 600
Phil Jackson
805
Pat Riley
832
Gregg Popovich
887
Steve Kerr
943
Red Auerbach
953
— ESPN Research
“Not a great basketball game,” Kerr said. “But we needed the win and were good enough to get the win.”
Kerr reached 600 in his 943rd regular-season game. Only three coaches have needed fewer. Phil Jackson did it in 805 games, Pat Riley in 832 and Gregg Popovich in 887.
“It’s surreal to hear my name in that group, but I can tell you that one thing that bonds us all together — those names and mine — is talent,” Kerr said. “You can’t win in this league without great players, and I was blessed from the day I took this job with incredible talent.”
Kerr also had 601 career wins as a player. He became the second person in NBA history to win 600 games as a player and as a coach, joining Don Nelson.
With Stephen Curry and Jimmy Butler III out with injuries, the Warriors are mired in a race for positioning in the play-in round in the Western Conference. They did have Draymond Green and Kristaps Porzingis back Monday after resting them in Sunday’s loss at New York.
Porzingis scored a game-high 30 points, tying his season high.
“He’s quite a talent,” Kerr said. “We’re also on the Kristaps Porzingis reunion tour. It’s kind of crazy. We’re playing every one of his former teams. The Knicks, Washington, Atlanta, Boston, Dallas — all five of his teams, we’re seeing on this trip. Players usually get up for playing against their old teams.”
Up next for the Warriors is a matchup with the Celtics on Wednesday night.
Information from ESPN Research and The Associated Press was used in this report.
NBA intel: Execs, scouts on Peterson, Dybantsa, top draft prospects
Tim Bontemps and
Brian Windhorst
Mar 13, 2026, 11:00 AMShareLikeOpen Extended Reactions908
NBA executives are out in force at conference tournaments across the country as they gather intel on the next class of professional stars. The Big 12 tournament at Kansas City’s T-Mobile Center has been the main focal point, with the conference boasting 10 projected first-round picks in ESPN’s latest mock draft.
“Like a preview of lottery night,” one Western Conference team president told ESPN, “except this time we’ll all leave still excited.”
With the tournament showcasing many of the elite freshmen dominating draft discussions — including potential No. 1 picks in Kansas’ Darryn Peterson and BYU’s AJ Dybantsa, plus Houston’s Kingston Flemings and Chris Cenac, and Arizona’s Brayden Burries and forward Koa Peat — all 30 NBA teams are in attendance, including many lead decision-makers.
And with the 2025-26 regular season reaching its final month, there are as many as eight teams currently playing for draft position. (That number would surely be higher if some bottom-dwelling franchises controlled their first-round pick in June.)
Meanwhile, for teams that miss out on the top-tier talent, the interest in this draft class goes beyond the potential No. 1 picks.
“We’re so interested in this draft because it’s so deep. There’s a lot of impact players,” an Eastern Conference scout said.
“And [the 2027] draft isn’t looking so good. You never know, there are players in every draft, but this year is like a double draft,” a West scout said.
That depth gives hope to teams such as the Sacramento Kings, Brooklyn Nets, Utah Jazz, Washington Wizards — four franchises that will enter the offseason on a collective 15-year run without a playoff appearance — that their pick, wherever it lands, could present a franchise-altering moment.
Ahead of Friday’s Big 12 semifinals (7 p.m. and 9:30 p.m. ET on ESPN2), here’s a look at what executives, scouts and coaches are saying about the biggest names atop NBA draft boards.
The battle for No. 1 remains a two-player race
As it has been all season, Peterson and Dybantsa remain the top two prospects across the majority of draft boards.
Peterson, who remains the No. 1 pick in ESPN NBA draft analyst Jeremy Woo’s latest mock draft, entered the season as the presumptive top pick but has had an up-and-down campaign for the Jayhawks. The down has been due to injury, as he has sat out 11 games because of a series of issues while playing limited minutes in multiple other appearances.
But, when available, Peterson has shown how special he can be, including dropping 27 points on 10-of-15 shooting in the regular-season finale against rival Kansas State and having the highest usage rate in Division 1 at 33.6%, per CBB Analytics.
“As gifted a scorer as it comes,” one power conference general manager said of Peterson’s game. “The wiggle, the aggressiveness, he comes in and takes over games. The NBA guys are working to get the insight on the injuries, but he’s worth a headache or two.”
Dybantsa, meanwhile, is virtually the only healthy player remaining on a Cougars team that has faded down the stretch. Injuries, particularly to senior forward Richie Saunders, have derailed early-season Final Four ambitions.
But that hasn’t dampened his draft stock or his competitive fire. And between his 6-foot-9 frame and natural scoring ability — Dybantsa is the first freshman since Trae Young in 2018 to lead the nation in scoring — the BYU star still has many NBA decision-makers buzzing.
“He’s got all the tools, he’s a dynamic scorer who will put up points in the NBA right away,” a veteran East executive said.
Is AJ Dybantsa ready for the NBA?
Jay Williams and Kendrick Perkins explain why they’re confident AJ Dybantsa can make it in the NBA.
On Tuesday, Dybantsa opened his Big 12 tournament by hitting 15 of 21 shots for 40 points to break Kevin Durant‘s tournament scoring record for a freshman set in 2007. And despite BYU’s run ending Thursday against Houston, Dybantsa passed Durant again with 93 total points to set a new tournament record.
“I think Dybantsa is the easy No. 1,” an East executive said. “He’s special. There’s just so much for him to still grow into.”
“He’s the easiest one to see how he gets to No. 1, but the game doesn’t come quite as easy to him like it does to some of the truly great players,” another East executive said.
“[Dybantsa] is probably going to be our No. 1,” a West scout said. “But it isn’t settled.”
Nowhere near settled, as Peterson, despite his uneven freshman season, remains the player most league insiders point to as the current favorite to be the first name called by NBA commissioner Adam Silver on draft night.
“Talent-wise, he’s clearly [No. 1],” an East scout said. “He’s got the full package. When he’s played, he’s shown that he has the ‘it’ factor.”
A Carolina clash for No. 3
Though a prospect could still leapfrog Peterson or Dybantsa, the widespread expectation is that the third and fourth picks will feature a pair of forwards from Tobacco Road rivals: Duke’s Cameron Boozer and North Carolina’s Caleb Wilson.
Boozer might be the most fascinating player in this year’s draft. His numbers entering this week’s ACC tournament for the presumptive No. 1 overall seed in this year’s NCAA tournament are the stuff of video games: 22.7 points, 10.2 rebounds, 4.1 assists and 1.5 steals per game while shooting 58% from the field, 40.7% from 3-point range. He led Duke outright in points, rebounds and assists in eight games this season, the most by a freshman in 30 years.
That kind of production is why some NBA decision-makers argue that Boozer should join Peterson and Dybantsa as a potential No. 1 pick.
“I think there’s a top three, and a case for any of them,” a second East executive said. “Boozer has always been the best player at every level, and that can help overcome some of his athletic questions. … I would just say to trust the ultra high-level-feel guys to figure it out.”
‘The Hoop Collective’
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So why isn’t Boozer firmly in the mix for the top pick? Simply put, it’s because he’s built like his father, two-time NBA All-Star Carlos Boozer. That has left scouts and executives with questions about whether the 6-9, 250-pound Boozer has already come close to maxing out his game and whether his potential athletic limitations will limit his NBA ceiling.
But for at least one NBA executive, Boozer’s résumé should be enough to curb any trepidation around the league.
“You can focus on what he doesn’t have compared to the other guys in terms of athleticism or whatever,” an East assistant general manager said. “But he’s a winner and he’s been a winner at every level and he’s won everything he’s touched this year.”
Wilson’s draft profile is the polar opposite. He flashed a dynamic skill set with the Tar Heels before a thumb injury suffered last week ended his season, particularly when going coast to coast in transition after snatching a rebound.
“He was a kid in high school who wanted the ball in his hands, wanted to be a point power forward but didn’t have a motor or a toughness to him,” a rival ACC coach said of Wilson. “Since he got to Carolina, his care factor and toughness has really stood out and gone to the next level.”
Wilson averaged 19.8 points, 9.4 rebounds, 2.7 assists, 1.5 steals and 1.4 blocks while shooting 57.8% from the field in 24 games, showcasing why many around the league argue he could go ahead of Boozer as the third player off the board.
“He’s so raw, and there’s a ton of upside there,” the first East executive said. “I can easily see him becoming a top-three player in this draft. I think Cam already has his NBA body, but Caleb has a lot of room to grow.”
Multiple sources compared Flemings’ top-end speed and quickness with the ball to a former MVP.
“Derrick [Rose] had the ability to turn the corner and get a clean layup,” another East scout said. “You don’t see that often and Kingston has that.”
Flemings, along with freshman teammate Cenac, earned praise from NBA scouts and executives for his willingness to play for Cougars coach Kelvin Sampson, who is known for running a no-nonsense program where minutes are not simply handed out.
“He’s shown he can do everything you need to do as a point guard in their two-guard system,” a West scout said. “He checks all the boxes: smart, makes teammates better, positional size, can shoot, engaged defender.”
Kingston Flemings draws the and-1 bucket for Houston
Kingston Flemings gets to the rim and draws the and-1 for Houston.
Wagler has emerged onto the scene over the course of his freshman season at Illinois, with a 46-point performance against fellow NBA prospect Braden Smith and Purdue on Jan. 24 launching a new wave of attention. Wagler is the first Big Ten freshman in the past 30 years to average at least 18 points on 40% shooting from 3.
And at 6-6, his positional size should allow him to adjust to the NBA game.
“Wagler has flown up the board,” the first East scout said. “He has a Tyrese Haliburton profile in a way … weird shot, fast riser. I like him. He definitely has the size. If someone took him at five, I could see it.”
There will be questions about how Acuff’s slight frame will translate to the NBA, but the 6-3, 190-pound guard surely delivered for Arkansas. The SEC Freshman and Player of the Year has averaged 22.2 points and 6.4 assists while shooting 43.7% from 3.
“The guy who is most ready to play in the NBA is Acuff,” the first East executive said. “If you didn’t know anything other than watching him play, you’d think he was a four-year player. That’s how smooth he is.”
If it wasn’t for Peterson’s health questions at the top of the draft, the most perplexing storyline in the lottery probably would belong to Brown. The 6-5, 190-pound guard is averaging 18.2 points and 4.7 assists while shooting 41% overall and 34% from 3-point range. He has dealt with intermittent back issues that have forced him to sit out the ACC tournament.
“He’s like a bigger Darius Garland, a high-level shooter who knows how to use ball screens and make plays for others,” the ACC coach said. (It’s worth noting that injuries limited Garland to only five games in his lone season at Vanderbilt, but the Cleveland Cavaliers still selected him No. 5 in 2019.)
Brown’s résumé features several eye-popping games for the Cardinals — he scored at least 20 points in nine of his 21 games, including 45 in a win over NC State on Feb. 9 — but his health has clouded how NBA teams view his draft profile.
“I like the Louisville kid,” the first East scout said. “He’s really smooth, though I think he’s more of a combo guard than a pure point. But the back stuff is a concern.”
2026 NBA mock draft: Who’s rising and falling ahead of March Madness?
Jeremy WooMar 11, 2026, 11:00 AM
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Whether you’ve followed this 2026 NBA draft class all season or are just tuning in for March Madness, it bears repeating: This is shaping up to be an exceptionally talented draft class.
Within the NBA, conversations around tanking and the league’s efforts to combat it continue — and the strength of this draft has certainly played a role in the unusually high number of teams currently tumbling down the standings. There remains a broad expectation that many quality prospects will return to college next season, primarily among players not entrenched in the first round, as NIL payments shift financial incentives. This mock serves to project what the draft might look like if NBA teams selected today. These projections are not a ranking of the top prospects — for that, consult ESPN’s top 100.
They are informed by ongoing conversations with NBA executives and scouts, as well as my own evaluation process from time spent on the road at games and watching film.
With conference tournaments getting underway and a prospect-heavy NCAA tournament one week out, here are our latest projections looking ahead to the 2026 draft.
The draft order was formulated using ESPN’s BPI projections as of March 8.
Darryn Peterson, PG/SG, Kansas Freshman 2025-26 stats: 19.9 points, 4.2 rebounds, 1.8 assists in 20 games
Much has been discussed about Peterson and his candidacy for No. 1 over the course of a tumultuous season. His issues with cramping and inconsistent play have heightened the perceived risk around taking him first, but he remains the most gifted offensive player in the draft. NBA teams have varying levels of concern but won’t have complete information around his long-term health or other intangibles until later in the process.
The battle for No. 1 is close enough between Peterson and AJ Dybantsa to the point where league sources broadly view this as a matter of which team ultimately makes the pick. Cameron Boozer’s dominant season has also kept him in the debate.
It’s important to keep in mind how strongly many evaluators felt about Peterson coming into the season, particularly scouts who saw him play in high school. Although his role at Kansas has largely moved him off the ball, there remains optimism around his playmaking and ability to operate as a lead ball handler. It’s hard to see Peterson falling out of the top three, and he looked much healthier over the weekend against Kansas State. A big postseason run could help him change the narrative around his season.
Sacramento, in search of a new face of the franchise, has quite a bit riding on this lottery. With five rotation players currently injured, they feel like a safe bet for top-three odds.
AJ Dybantsa, SF, BYU Freshman 2025-26 stats: 24.7 points, 6.7 rebounds, 3.8 assists in 31 games
A huge NBA contingent was present at the Big 12 tournament in Kansas City on Tuesday to see Dybantsa and BYU take on Kansas State, with decision-makers from the majority of lottery teams in attendance. Dybantsa did his part, scoring 40 points nearly every which way on 15-of-21 shooting, in a 105-91 Cougars win. He’ll have another big stage Wednesday night against West Virginia, with Houston awaiting if he can engineer another win.
The Big 12’s Freshman of the Year has done his part to make the No. 1 race interesting, currently leading the NCAA in scoring while also showing growth as a decision-maker. He was playing his best basketball of the season before teammate Richie Saunders tore his ACL on Feb. 14, an injury that sent BYU on a late-season backslide. In what has become a real debate for the No. 1 pick, some around the NBA have come to view Dybantsa as a safer option than Peterson. He’s not as gifted a ball handler or shooter but might have more untapped upside from a physical and skill perspective, as well as on the defensive end.
The Wizards keep this pick (otherwise owed to the New York Knicks) if it falls inside the top eight. Trae Young made his debut last week and Anthony Davis‘ return remains unclear, but this could be Washington’s last dip into the high lottery for a while.
Cameron Boozer, PF/C, Duke Freshman 2025-26 stats: 22.7 points, 10.2 rebounds, 4.1 assists in 31 games
Boozer, the ACC Player and Rookie of the Year, has made a loud argument for himself as the best player in college basketball and would provide excellent value if he falls to No. 3.
He’s having a historically productive season operating as the fulcrum of a Duke team with title aspirations. He excels in nearly every offensive area. But his average explosiveness, coupled with slower defensive ground coverage, has raised questions about his ceiling.
Some scouts wonder whether he can be the best player on a championship-level NBA team, or whether he’s optimally cast as a secondary star.
Indiana’s deadline trade for Ivica Zubac raises the stakes around next season and this selection, as they’ll convey it to the LA Clippers if it falls in the 5-9 range. Adding Boozer to the mix with a healthy Tyrese Haliburton could kick-start the Pacers on another playoff push.
The Boozer twins: Making their own legacy
Rece Davis sits down with fraternal twins Cameron and Cayden Boozer to find out how they are forging their own paths at Duke.
Caleb Wilson, PF/C, North Carolina Freshman 2025-26 stats: 19.8 points, 9.4 rebounds, 2.7 assists in 24 games
Wilson opted to have surgery after breaking his thumb last week in practice, ending his season and depriving him of an opportunity to play in the NCAA tournament.
A first-team All-ACC selection, he has done enough to sit safely among the top picks even without taking the court again, showcasing his ability to play above the rim and two-way upside at power forward. Evaluators are curious how much more he can develop his 3-point shooting (25.9%) and ball skills, but Wilson plays exceptionally hard, having compiled 11 double-doubles and setting himself apart as an elite prospect. NBA teams have penciled him in as a top-four selection.
Brooklyn has built patiently, holding onto Michael Porter Jr. and Nic Claxton at the trade deadline and will be hoping to add star power to the youngest roster in the NBA, no matter where this pick falls.
How far can UNC go without Caleb Wilson?
Jay Williams and Jay Bilas discuss UNC’s chances to make a deep run in the NCAA tournament without Caleb Wilson.
Kingston Flemings, PG, Houston Freshman 2025-26 stats: 16.5 points, 3.9 rebounds, 5.4 assists in 31 games
With a strong tier of backcourt players penciled in through the middle of the lottery, and front offices valuing them all differently, there’s real ground to gain for these players over the next couple of weeks.
Flemings is the most explosive guard in the draft, with his downhill style and budding playmaking ability keeping him high on team boards. Evaluators share some concern about his shooting mechanics, but he has achieved results (84% at the line, 37.6% from 3) and has been on an upward trajectory with his jumper over the past year.
Houston will ultimately go as far as the first-team All-Big 12 selection can carry it in March, beginning Thursday in the conference tournament.
The Jazz need this pick to land in the top eight, or will otherwise convey it to Oklahoma City. Utah beefed up its frontcourt with Jaren Jackson Jr. at the trade deadline and is a team that should be looking hard at guard options ahead of a pivot toward playoff contention next season.
Keaton Wagler, PG/SG, Illinois Freshman 2025-26 stats: 17.9 points, 4.9 rebounds, 4.3 assists in 31 games
Wagler’s unexpected rise from off-the-radar recruit to Big Ten Freshman of the Year has given him a chance to be the second guard off the board. His positional size — 6-foot-6 — 3-point shooting (41%) and impeccable playmaking give him developmental upside.
Continuing to gain strength to better navigate in the paint and becoming a better defender are long-term keys as well. He is the least dynamic athlete of the guards in this group, but the blueprint is there for him to become an NBA backcourt fixture.
Atlanta will be in search of a long-term point guard after moving on from Trae Young, and can address that in this draft, even if its pick doesn’t land in the top four.
Darius Acuff Jr., PG, Arkansas Freshman 2025-26 stats: 22.2 points, 3.0 rebounds, 6.4 assists in 30 games
Acuff was named SEC Player of the Year after a stellar season that solidified him as a lottery pick. His ability to navigate tight spaces on the court, create his own offense and find teammates has been a major separator.
NBA teams have concerns about his defense, but it’s hard to deny Acuff’s ability to manufacture points. There’s variance of opinion on how he stacks up long term against his peers, but Acuff is the most NBA-ready of the four guards.
Dallas is another potential point guard landing spot, with Kyrie Irving now 33 and the Mavs building around the rising Cooper Flagg. Finding a long-term starter at the position would be a coup for their future.
Darius Acuff Jr. explains No. 20 Arkansas’ determination to avenge loss
Acuff Jr. discusses the mindset in the win over Texas as they bounced back from a gruesome loss to Florida, describing the electric offense and chemistry between the Razorbacks.
Mikel Brown Jr., PG, Louisville Freshman 2025-26 stats: 18.2 points, 3.3 rebounds, 4.7 assists in 21 games
Brown was officially ruled out for the ACC tournament Tuesday as he continues to deal with back issues that have plagued him for much of the season. An NCAA tournament return hasn’t been ruled out, but this has become a situation NBA teams want to learn more about when he completes his medical test at the combine in May.
Although he’s shooting just 41% from the field this season, scouts feel comfortable with his history and that his dynamic perimeter shot-creation (34% from 3) remains a strong attribute. The ups and downs of his season haven’t helped his draft profile, though. But he fared better after returning from injury in February. Brown still projects somewhere inside the top 10, with evaluators remaining bullish on his upside as a tall (6-5) backcourt playmaker.
Memphis traded Jaren Jackson Jr. at the deadline as it continues to retool largely through the draft. The Grizzlies should be in best-available mode, with Ja Morant’s long-term future uncertain.
Nate Ament, SF/PF, Tennessee Freshman 2025-26 stats: 17.4 points, 6.4 rebounds, 2.4 assists in 29 games
Ament injured his right leg against Alabama on Feb. 28 and hasn’t played since, but he returned to basketball activities this week. His status is unclear going into Tennessee’s SEC tournament game on Thursday.
He turned his season around in conference play after a slow start, averaging 19 points in 16 league games and reminding teams why he was so highly rated coming into the season. He has at times left evaluators wanting more, but checks valuable size and skill boxes that should make him a long-term NBA fixture. Whether Ament can take a star leap hinges on the evolution of his shot-creation skills.
The Bulls cleared out their roster at the trade deadline and should be in a best-available mindset moving forward, with a clear need for more perimeter shooting.
Brayden Burries, SG, Arizona Freshman 2025-26 stats: 16.0 points, 5.0 rebounds, 2.6 assists in 31 games
Burries has been a major riser since the start of the calendar year, turning around a poor start to the season and earning first-team All-Big 12 honors on an Arizona team that rolled through the conference schedule. He has been effective on and off the ball, a capable screen operator who can also catch and shoot (37% from 3), giving him a good base to build on as a long-term backcourt fixture. While a year older than many of his freshman classmates and slightly undersized for a two-guard at 6-4, he’s gaining steam as a late-lottery name, adding yet another freshman to this mix.
It’s been unclear to rival teams which direction the Bucks are going, with Giannis Antetokounmpo returning to the floor this month with a potential offseason trade still up in the air. If Milwaukee plans to keep him, it could make sense to target a more NBA-ready player with this pick (the worse of its own and Atlanta’s). Still, Giannis’s in-season comeback might ultimately harm the Bucks’ chances of better draft odds.
Brayden Burries drills 3-pointer vs. Colorado Buffaloes
Brayden Burries drills 3-pointer vs. Colorado Buffaloes
While this came in a losing context, NBA teams are optimistic about his mix of size, skill and toughness, keeping him in the late-lottery mix going into the predraft process. Scouts feel he needs to make strides as a shooter, improve defensively and maximize his frame to ultimately stick as a stretch 4, which is his most natural position long term.
Portland appears entrenched in a play-in spot and will convey this pick to Chicago if it sneaks into the playoffs.
Thomas Haugh, SF/PF, Florida Junior 2025-26 stats: 17.2 points, 6.1 rebounds, 2.0 assists in 30 games
A first-team All-SEC selection, Haugh continues to project as one of the more bankable players in this class.
A big, tough frontcourt player with a winning pedigree, he wins extra possessions and plays with tremendous effort. While his confidence on the perimeter has visibly improved, his 3-point shooting has hovered around average for the past two seasons (34%) and it’s an area he’ll need to sharpen.
He doesn’t create much offense for himself, but his versatile role at Florida figures to translate as long as the shot does. At 22, Haugh is on the older side, but he presents a plug-and-play option for playoff-caliber teams beginning in this part of the draft.
The Spurs are set to receive this pick via swap from the Hawks, potentially giving them another lottery selection to add to a young and increasingly deep roster.
Braylon Mullins, SG, UConn Freshman 2025-26 stats: 12.0 points, 3.4 rebounds, 1.3 assists in 24 games
Mullins has an interesting stay-or-go case this spring, as a freshman with a lot of fans in NBA front offices, but one who could feasibly be selected higher next year. A high-level perimeter shooter with positional size (6-6) and scoring instincts, some feel he’s capable of much more than he’s shown this season in a supporting role on an experienced UConn team.
He has good upside regardless and will be positioned to benefit from the March Madness spotlight if the Huskies make a deep run.
The Warriors hung onto this pick at the trade deadline, giving them an outside shot in the lottery if they don’t wind up in the playoffs.
Jayden Quaintance, C, Kentucky Sophomore 2025-26 stats: 5.0 points, 5.0 rebounds, 0.5 assists in four games
Quaintance has become one of the more enigmatic prospects in the class, with the chances of a return this month from knee swelling unclear, plus a limited body of work since tearing his ACL a year ago.
Whether he returns or not, the success of his predraft process will rely heavily on medicals and team workouts. His long-term upside in a draft that lacks top-end center talent should keep him in lottery consideration, with a viable long-term future as a rim-running, shot-blocking five. But his draft range, for the moment, is wide.
Charlotte has taken a step forward this season after nailing last year’s Kon Knueppel selection and could use more help in the frontcourt, something the team could address with its two first-round picks.
Hannes Steinbach, PF/C, Washington Freshman 2025-26 stats: 18.6 points, 11.6 rebounds, 1.5 assists in 28 games
Steinbach has been highly dependable, albeit for a middling Washington team, and looks the part as a future NBA rotation player. He is a solid offensive player with good hands and floor-spacing potential, but struggles at times defensively, where he’s limited defending in space and undersized for a center. Washington will try to extend its season against USC on Tuesday at the Big Ten tournament.
The Clippers turned their season around enough to sit firmly in a play-in spot, reducing the possibility that the Thunder winds up with another lottery selection. With the Thunder tight on roster spots due to their quality depth, there’s an incentive for Oklahoma City to consolidate some of these picks going into draft night.
Anderson has kept Texas Tech afloat after losing star teammate JT Toppin to injury on Feb. 17 and continues to shoot the ball exceptionally well (42.7% from 3).
The First-Team All Big-12 pick has positioned himself well in a very deep point guard class, forming a strong secondary tier with Bennett Stirtz and Labaron Philon. NBA teams love Anderson’s well-rounded game and ability to play on and off the ball, with his average physical profile and lack of strength the main factor suppressing his stock. Texas Tech earned a double-bye and will begin Big 12 tournament play on Thursday.
Oklahoma City owns this pick from Philadelphia with top-four protections, giving them a second chip to play with in the middle of the first round.
Yaxel Lendeborg, PF/C, Michigan Senior 2025-26 stats: 14.7 points, 7.2 rebounds, 3.2 assists in 31 games
Amid an excellent year at Michigan, winning Big 10 Player of the Year, Lendeborg has looked like a readymade rotation player, the primary drawback being his age (23).
He has successfully defended opposing guards and bigs alike, while also helping to facilitate offensively on the perimeter, showcasing a level of versatility that NBA teams appreciate. A capable if not stellar shooter (34.3% from 3), Lendeborg’s switchability and skill level should allow him to plug in all over the floor. He’ll have a big platform in March to buck the age narrative and play his way into the lottery.
The Grizzlies own the better of Phoenix’s and Orlando’s picks, likely giving them a second selection inside the top 20.
Labaron Philon Jr., PG/SG, Alabama Sophomore 2025-26 stats: 21.5 points, 3.2 rebounds, 4.8 assists in 29 games
Philon made first-team All-SEC and continues to show impressive shot creation chops, proving he can get to spots off the dribble and score from all over the floor.
NBA teams know he can score, but some evaluators question his organizational skills and whether he’s ultimately best suited for a bench spark plug role — one that’s viewed as replaceable.
He helped himself quite a bit by returning to school, but the point guard depth in this draft class might hurt his chances of sneaking into the lottery.
Labaron Philon Jr. highlights vs. Tennessee Volunteers
Labaron Philon Jr. highlights vs. Tennessee Volunteers
Koa Peat, PF/C, Arizona Freshman 2025-26 stats: 13.8 points, 5.3 rebounds, 2.7 assists in 28 games
Peat missed a few games in February with a leg injury and hasn’t been quite the same since.
When he’s healthy, he is a rugged, physical forward with feel and versatility, but his poor jump shooting and lack of optimal height (6-8) at the 4 continue to raise concerns about how his role will translate.
He’s another freshman who could ultimately help himself by returning and throwing his name into a 2027 draft that offers room for players to rise.
Charlotte owns the least favorable of Washington’s (if 1-8), Phoenix’s, Orlando’s and Memphis’ picks.
Bennett Stirtz, PG, Iowa Senior 2025-26 stats: 20.2 points, 2.5 rebounds, 4.4 assists in 31 games
An exceptional college player who has done all he can to keep Iowa competitive, Stirtz adjusted nicely to the Big Ten after transferring from Drake.
He has put together another strong statistical season on an extremely slow-paced Iowa team built around his skill set. His impressive decision-making, court awareness and perimeter shooting will have to cover for his limited foot speed in the NBA, and his defense won’t be a calling card.
Given all he does well, Stirtz should still be able to plug in as a depth option immediately.
Motiejus Krivas, C, Arizona Junior 2025-26 stats: 10.8 points, 8.2 rebounds, 1.0 assists in 31 games
Krivas took a big step forward this season and has gradually set himself apart within a large group of bigs projected in the 20-40 range.
He’s on the short list of most impactful defenders in college basketball, using his sheer size (7-2) to deter opponents around the rim, win rebounds (8.2 RPG) and dictate play on the interior. He has good feet and hands, finishes effectively around the rim, has made 79.7% of his free throws and looks like a future NBA rotation player. Krivas doesn’t have flashy upside, but he is a good bet to return value later in the draft.
Chris Cenac Jr., PF/C, Houston Freshman 2025-26 stats: 9.4 points, 7.4 rebounds, 0.8 assists in 31 games
Cenac’s freshman year has been mixed as he’s adjusted to a major role at Houston.
His mobility, length and flashes of shooting touch (36.5% on all jump shots, per Synergy) give him an appealing developmental base, and he’s shown overall improvement this season playing primarily at the 4.
There are also some glaring holes in his profile: He has averaged less than a block per game and doesn’t get to the foul line (59% on only 39 attempts). Some scouts still buy Cenac’s long-term upside, but there’s also some thought that he needs more time in college.
The Pistons acquired swap rights for this pick with the Timberwolves in a three-way deal at the trade deadline, potentially enabling them to move up a number of spots in the 20s.
Cameron Carr, SG, Baylor Sophomore 2025-26 stats: 19.0 points, 5.5 rebounds, 2.7 assists in 31 games
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Carr has been the bright spot in a down year for Baylor, with his season likely ending Tuesday with his 25 points in a loss to Arizona State. He finishes at nearly 40% from 3 on the season, with real shot-making chops and still room to improve in all areas of his game.
While still an inconsistent offensive creator, he’s an explosive leaper with deep 3-point range and plus length (7-foot-1 wingspan) who could succeed in a scaled-down NBA role.
He needs to become a better defender to broaden his impact beyond scoring, but he’s the type of athletic wing shooter NBA teams like to roll the dice on and develop.
Aday Mara, C, Michigan Sophomore 2025-26 stats: 11.3 points, 6.9 rebounds, 2.4 assists in 31 games
Mara is an acquired taste for some scouts, but it’s hard to ignore his role in Michigan’s success.
His gigantic frame — 7-foot-3 — allows him to effectively wall off the paint, and he has real skill and playmaking feel to lean on offensively.
Mara has a hard time covering ground at his size and will likely be limited to drop coverage. He lacks upper-body strength and struggles with ball security at times, too, but he’s a unique player some teams will be willing to invest in, particularly if he can develop a functional 3-point shot. His stroke looks passable in warmups, but it hasn’t translated to game action or the free throw line (52.9%).
Philadelphia acquired this pick at the deadline from Oklahoma City in the Jared McCain trade.
Isaiah Evans, SG, Duke Sophomore 2025-26 stats: 14.5 points, 2.8 rebounds, 1.3 assists in 31 games
Evans continues to display an NBA-friendly skill set as a gifted movement shooter with good positional size (6-6) on the wing.
He’s been an important secondary scorer, providing spacing off Cameron Boozer, and will have more opportunities to show his shot-making chops on a huge stage in March. There’s room for him to rise in a first round that’s shaping up as somewhat light on wings.
Via swaps, the Hawks owe their own first to the Spurs but will wind up with the better of Cleveland’s and San Antonio’s picks.
Scouts are divided on Ngongba: He has intrinsic strengths that make him well-suited as a modern center, as a plus passer and interior defender. But he’s also a below-average run-jump athlete who needs to get more out of his frame (6-11).
His defensive instincts and feel for the game could give him utility, but some scouts feel he’s not ready for NBA physicality and would benefit from more time in college.
How he fares in March might play a role in his eventual decision, with all eyes on Duke over the next few weeks and a number of more league-ready centers potentially available in this 20-40 range.
Morez Johnson Jr., PF/C, Michigan Sophomore 2025-26 stats: 13.7 points, 7.4 rebounds, 1.1 assists in 31 games
It’s been a strong season for Johnson, who has worked his way up draft boards with consistent play and a willingness to do the dirty work.
His strong frame and 7-foot-2 wingspan allow him to play bigger than his size (6-9), and he’s shown the ability to guard 4s and 5s.
His offensive role will be limited, but he’s knocked down spot 3s (10 of 24 on the season) and finishes simple plays around the basket. With NBA teams pivoting back toward double-big lineups, Johnson should have long-term utility and provide immediate depth.
Amari Allen, SF/PF, Alabama Freshman 2025-26 stats: 11.9 points, 7.0 rebounds, 3.1 assists in 28 games
After entering the year under the radar, Allen has shown to be a smart, versatile perimeter player with good positional size (6-8). His passing instincts and developing shot (37% from 3) have caught the eyes of scouts who see long-term upside, particularly if he develops as a ball handler.
The question is whether he can work his way high enough up the board to make returning to school hard to justify. The latter option feels more likely at this stage, but there’s also an opportunity for him to rise as teams learn more about him in the coming months.
Cleveland owns the lesser of San Antonio’s pick and its own via a swap with Atlanta.
Dailyn Swain, SG/SF, Texas Junior 2025-26 stats: 17.7 points, 7.5 rebounds, 3.4 assists in 31 games
Swain has been a gradual riser as a toolsy wing amid a strong individual season.
His shooting has long been a concern for scouts, but he’s shown some progress this season (35% on 80 3s) and is now a career 81% from the line. He also projects as a plus positional defender with his frame and agility.
Swain has to develop as a shooter to play without the ball, with his current high-usage role at Texas expected to scale down in the NBA. Evaluators are mixed on his upside, but it’s the type of chance a team might take in this range.
30. Dallas Mavericks (via Oklahoma City)
Tounde Yessoufou, SF, Baylor Freshman 2025-26 stats: 18.0 points, 5.8 rebounds, 1.6 assists in 31 games
Yessoufou scored 14 points in a loss to Arizona State as Baylor’s season likely came to a close Tuesday.
Scouts have been intrigued by his physical strength and long-term potential, but have largely come away wanting more from him, holding concerns about his shot selection and inconsistent defensive effort.
He likes to hunt his own shot and relies more on strength than skill, and it’s hard to succeed in the league as a 6-foot-5 power scorer who is only an average shooter (30% from 3).
Yessoufou also has the tools and motor to be a plus defender in time, but it hasn’t all clicked for him yet. This leaves him in an interesting position going into the predraft process, with a case for a second year of college based on the body of work this season.
Dallas acquired OKC’s pick from Washington in the Anthony Davis trade.
‘Glass in my hand’: Inside Marcus Smart’s return from The Punch
Dave McMenaminMar 16, 2026, 11:15 AM
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MARCUS SMART WAS scanning Anthony Edwards’ shooting line in the box score as he slumped in a chair in front of his locker. It was March 10, moments after the Los Angeles Lakers had defeated the Minnesota Timberwolves 120-106, jumping from fifth in the Western Conference playoff race to third.
As Smart reviewed it line by line, he suddenly perked up, his exhaustion turning to something else: a sparkle of satisfaction.
Edwards, the Minnesota Timberwolves’ 24-year-old superstar, had scored just 14 points and went 2-for-15 from the floor — including 0-for-5 in the 23 possessions Smart guarded him.
The same Edwards who tormented the Lakers’ wing defenders last spring on his way to averaging 26.8 points in the lower-seeded Wolves’ five-game gentleman’s sweep of L.A. had been stifled by Smart, the former Defensive Player of the Year who joined the purple and gold on a discount deal months after that first-round upset.
While the win represented a glimmer of hope for this year’s Lakers squad that so far has displayed too much inconsistency on both ends to be feared as a top contender in the coming playoffs, it meant so much more for Smart.
He wasn’t supposed to still be locking up All-Stars at age 32.
Not after his last two injury-riddled, irrelevant seasons in Basketball Siberia.
He played 20 games for a 27-win Memphis Grizzlies team in 2023-2024 and 15 games for an 18-win Washington Wizards squad a year ago, while his former team, the Boston Celtics, soared to a title without him.
And he certainly wasn’t supposed to be holding on to the stat sheet with his right hand, which he had come dangerously close to losing eight years ago.
All of which set up Smart’s attitude for this season — one he has pushed the Lakers’ star trio of LeBron James, Luka Doncic and Austin Reaves, and the rest of the roster, to adopt: If he can change the trajectory at this stage of his career, after what he has been through, who is to say the Lakers can’t change theirs for the last couple months of the season?
“We’re tired of hearing people talk s—, basically,” Smart told ESPN. “I know I am. And if you’re a competitor, if you have any type of competitor in you, you’re going to be tired of that too. So you want to try to prove ’em wrong.”
DESPITE PLAYING 56 games for the Lakers so far, and leading them with a team-best plus-minus of plus-209, the most consequential shot of Smart’s career in L.A. still came as a visitor.
It was Jan. 23, 2018, and the Celtics, then the No. 1 team in the East, were on the road to play the Lakers, then the No. 11 team in the West.
Former Lakers guard Kentavious Caldwell-Pope had gone to the line with 5.7 seconds remaining and L.A. up by one and missed both free throws, with the second clanking off the rim and into Smart’s hands.
Smart, who already had 22 points in the game, took the rebound and dribbled frantically up the court until he got to the 3-point line, where he pulled up for 3 at the buzzer.
His shot hit the front iron and rimmed out, and the Celtics lost the game 108-107.
Later that night, at the team hotel, he replayed the shot in his mind and frustration boiled over.
He punched at a picture frame in his room and, this time, he didn’t miss, shattering the glass and leaving a 5-inch shard wedged inside the flesh of his palm.
“I got rushed to the ER and lost a lot of blood,” Smart told ESPN. “I passed out. … That’s how much I lost.”
When he regained consciousness, after receiving 20 stitches, Smart realized the severity of his wound.
“The doctor looked at me in my eye and told me, ‘I don’t know how you still have use of your right hand,'” Smart said. “‘You should honestly be thanking God every day.'” The piece of glass that had sliced into his hand was just millimeters from severing its use entirely. “They said it laid perfectly in between every tendon in my hand without damaging anything,” Smart said. “And they had to leave the extra piece in, because they said it will cause more damage if we go get it out.”
Smart missed 11 games before he was back on the court, helping Boston reach Game 7 of the Eastern Conference finals that season before losing to James and the Cleveland Cavaliers.
The Celtics reached the postseason in all nine seasons Smart was there, including a run to the 2022 NBA Finals to cap his DPOY campaign, before they lost in six games to the final glory run of the Golden State Warriors’ dynasty.
That next year, Boston lost to the eighth-seeded Miami Heat in the 2023 conference finals, and the team retooled, sending Smart to Memphis in a three-team deal that landed Kristaps Porzingis on the Celtics.
It was there, in Memphis, that Smart began to lose his grip — figuratively and literally — on his career.
SMART’S RIGHT HAND fuels his most important skill: his anticipation on defense. He has amassed more than 1,000 steals in his career by sticking his hands where they don’t belong. And it only became more mangled in Memphis.
In January 2024, he ruptured a tendon in his proximal interphalangeal joint — where the finger bends — ending his season.
“I’ve had two dislocations with torn ligaments in two of the fingers,” Smart said. “I’ve had glass in my hand. I’ve torn ligaments on my right thumb and had surgery there. I dislocated four out of my five fingers in total … my whole right hand just has been through a lot. So to be honest, I’m blessed to even have my right hand.
“For six years after the incident with the glass, I still had glass in my hand and I played with it. And there would be times where because of that, my hand would go numb. A lot of times, a lot of games, I couldn’t control it. I had to play and there were a lot of times when I’m shooting the ball and just, I had no feeling in the arm, the hand.”
Meanwhile, Memphis had bigger problems. Ja Morant, suspended for the first 25 games of 2023-24, went on to play just nine games, leading a roster so riddled with injuries that 33 different players suited up for the team at some point that season.
The Grizzlies missed the playoffs — the first time in Smart’s career he was on a team that failed to qualify for the postseason — while his former team went back to the Finals to face Doncic and the Dallas Mavericks. “I was watching every bit of it,” Smart said. “Does it hurt? Of course it hurts because you were the one there from the start before 2014, when Avery Bradley was still there, you guys were in the rebuild and so you watched everything grow. You were there when the seed was planted and everything. So it definitely hurt.”
The start to his next season in Memphis was even harder.
Over the team’s first five games, Smart averaged just 5.6 points on 23.5% shooting (16.7% from 3), and the Grizzlies stumbled out to a 2-3 start.
After an ankle injury sidelined him for two weeks, Smart returned and Memphis went 10-2 in its next 12 games before he suffered a partial tear of the proximal extensor hood of his right index finger.
Around this time, Smart says, he felt a shift in how the Grizzlies organization treated him.
He says he felt pressured to play through it.
“I wanted to be 100%, to give everything I got,” Smart said. “As I’m still working out and getting ready, they’re just like, ‘No, your doctor said you’re ready now.’ And I’m like, ‘I hear what my doctor said, but … it’s how I feel. Yes, surgically the finger is fine. But physically, no. The finger is still weak. I’m still strengthening it. This is my dominant hand.’ So, they didn’t want to hear it and they just kept saying, ‘You need to play.'”
Furthermore, during his rehab, Smart heard “a rumor going around that people said I don’t want to be here,” he said, despite actions that would suggest the contrary — from giving customized boxing gloves to his teammates, to his wife inviting the roster to his birthday party, to writing personalized holiday cards and stuffing them with gift cards for all the staff.
After a 21-game absence, he returned to the lineup Feb. 5, 2025, on the road against the Toronto Raptors.
His hand still didn’t feel right — he went 0-for-6 — but Memphis outscored Toronto by five points in the 18 minutes he was on the floor in the win.
What happened next made him feel like the “scapegoat” for a franchise in flux, Smart said. The following day, he was traded to Washington.
When reached by ESPN about Smart’s claims, the Grizzlies had no comment.
‘The Hoop Collective’
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The deal was part of a three-team trade with the Sacramento Kings. Memphis had to include a first-round pick in what essentially became a salary dump, to get off the remainder of Smart’s $20.2 million contract for 2024-25 and $21.3 million for the following season.
The maneuver allowed Memphis to avoid luxury tax implications with its planned extension for Jaren Jackson Jr.
“The Marcus that you got intel on from Memphis was probably not as consistent with the Marcus that he was in Boston and in his entire career,” a Wizards source told ESPN.
“I think a lot of things went into that. But at the core, we knew who he was as a person and felt really comfortable adding him to a group. And he exceeded expectations in the short amount of time he was with us.”
Smart credits the Wizards for how accommodating they were to him during the 2½ months he spent with the team.
“Washington was great,” Smart said. “I just had to get healthy. … That was my main thing.”
Smart reached a buyout agreement with the Wizards in July to become a free agent, giving back $6.5 million of his 2025-26 contract according to ESPN’s NBA front office insider Bobby Marks.
And then the Lakers came calling.
L.A. HAD LIMITED options to upgrade its roster coming off that playoff loss to the Wolves.
Outside of trading a future first-round pick, the Lakers’ only avenue to reshape their roster was opening up the $14.1 million non-taxpayer midlevel exception by not re-signing Dorian Finney-Smith, plus the biannual exception.
Deandre Ayton and Jake LaRavia split the MLE, and Smart — who was recruited with a phone call by Doncic — got the biannual, agreeing to a two-year, $11 million deal, with a player option on the second year.
He says he wanted to prove that despite being 12 years into his career, his last two seasons were anomalies, not a downward trend.
When he arrived in L.A., he had a conversation with coach JJ Redick about the role he hoped to occupy.
Redick recalls the conversation.
He was at a Fini Pizza in Amagansett, in the Hamptons, and left the restaurant to take the call.
“I told JJ, ‘I’m going to go out here and give you everything I got,'” Smart said. “‘I just ask that if I do earn it, then let me have it. Don’t play too many politics.’ And that’s all I asked, and that’s all you can ask.”
Redick said there were three things he wanted to get across to Smart, now that he had cleared waivers from Washington and was deciding on his next destination. “It was, ‘We need you. We need your defense. We need your voice,'” Redick said. “The second part of that was, ‘I know you because I’ve played against you and I’ve competed against you. … You’re at your best when you’re playing for something. If you come here, we can be playing for something.’ And he agreed with that.”
And the third? “‘You’re going to play,'” Redick said he told Smart. “‘I don’t know exactly what that looks like, but I’m very confident that if you’re at your best, you’re going to play a lot.'”
Redick kept his word, starting him 49 games as Smart has averaged 9.6 points, 2.8 rebounds, 2.8 assists and 1.4 steals per game, and living with his 40.3% shooting from the floor and 34.0% from 3 in large part because of the Lakers’ 111.1 defensive efficiency with Smart on the floor. It’s 117.7 with him off this season.
Smart has drawn 19 charges this season, tied for the second most in the NBA, which is already more than the 16 he drew during his DPOY campaign — and there’s still a month to go in the regular season.
“He competes every night,” Reaves told ESPN. “It’s not always pretty, but his competitive level’s going to be at an all-time high every single night. And you need guys like that. I think he’s the one that sets the example for us on the court to go out there and play as hard as we possibly can, because you know he’s going to do that.
“When he’s doing that, every single night flying around, it makes you be accountable to the effort that you bring.”
“WHO TOLD YOU to miss it?” a wide-eyed Smart asked Reaves.
On Saturday, moments after the Lakers had defeated the Denver Nuggets 127-125 in overtime, Smart didn’t want to talk about his strip of Aaron Gordon that set up a crucial layup with less than a minute to go in the fourth quarter, one of his five steals.
He didn’t want to discuss the go-ahead 3 he hit with 30 seconds to go in OT that put the Lakers up two.
He didn’t even want to yap about his part in holding a notorious Lakers killer, Jamal Murray, to five points on 1-for-14 shooting.
What had Smart excited was his part in the strategy, suggesting to Reaves that, when he went to the foul line for two shots with 5.2 seconds left in the fourth and the Lakers trailing by three, he intentionally miss the second one.
Reaves ended up executing the miss to perfection and L.A. held on in the extra session to sustain its late-season inertia.
“I feel like every game,” Doncic said of Smart after the Denver victory, “he does something different to help us win.”
And his defensive commitment has remained a constant.
Smart has held 2026 All-Stars, like Murray and Edwards, to a 44.3% effective field goal percentage when he has guarded them, fifth best among 75 players to defend 100-plus shots this season, according to ESPN Research.
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“He brings a grittiness and a point-of-attack defender that maybe they didn’t have a year ago,” said Wolves coach Chris Finch. “A guy that can mark somebody all by himself, without a ton of help. Which really is huge, particularly in the playoffs.”
And on a team with Reaves, Doncic and James staying in the headlines, Smart has made his noise in the locker room, as a needed voice.
“On this team, we got a lot of egos, which isn’t saying that these egos are out of control or bad. It’s just everybody’s different,” Smart said of his approach. “We have different personalities and sometimes they just don’t mix at the right time. It’s all about timing with everything.
“And sometimes you might not feel good this day or you might be having a bad game or bad couple games and it just doesn’t feel right. So for me, my leadership was to just make sure I can keep the guys together, keep the positivity and not really let us go into that sunken place that you see most teams do when they’re in a drought.”
There have been some tough stretches for Smart this season, too — just like for the team. He has missed games with back spasms. He went 1-for-12 in a loss to the LA Clippers, 2-for-9 in a loss to the New York Knicks, 0-for-7 in a loss to Boston.
Still, he has kept at it. On March 3, with L.A. clinging to a four-point lead in the final minutes of the fourth against the New Orleans Pelicans, Smart received a pass from Doncic in the corner and hit the 3 to go up seven with 1:34 to go, sealing it — in a game in which he also had seven assists, four steals and three blocks.
“To have the trust to say, ‘You know what? I’m going to give it to this guy in the corner right here,’ I definitely think that it stems from the blocks, the steals, the energy that I bring,” Smart said. “Knowing that this guy’s working. And let’s reward him.”
He has had the third-most starts, fifth-most minutes and sixth-most shot attempts this season for the Lakers. He has had a hand in everything they do.
“He’s made an impact on winning,” Redick said. “And I think that ultimately is … that’s how you rewrite the narrative of your career, is if you’re on a winning team.”
“The standard is the standard,” Tomlin would often say in his news conferences during his near two-decade run on the sideline. That standard was about Super Bowls. Tomlin took the Steelers to two of them, winning one. It’s a run of success that the Knicks, who haven’t reached the NBA Finals since 1999, can’t match.
That’s why the standard that Brown refers to is more micro. The coach, who led the Cleveland Cavaliers to the Finals in 2007 and was an assistant on three title-winning teams with the Golden State Warriors, was hired last July under the expectation that he would elevate the Knicks into playing until June. But that starts with establishing winning habits in the doldrums of the regular season.
“You want to embrace your standard,” Brown said Monday night in the bowels of the Intuit Dome in Inglewood, California, before an eventual loss to the LA Clippers.
“I think our guys have embraced the standard of sacrifice, competitive spirit, connectivity and overall belief in each other’s process.”
For the past two months, Brown’s messaging seemed to be getting through to his team. After a 2-9 stretch from Dec. 31 through Jan. 19, the Knicks lost just four games the rest of January and all of February, buoyed by big wins over the Houston Rockets and San Antonio Spurs that seemed to reignite championship expectations.
Now, a rocky stretch of three losses in five games — including two in a row in Los Angeles against the Clippers and Lakers — have brought back the old feelings of uneven performances, giving ammo to critics who believe the Knicks won’t be able to make a deep playoff run in the wide-open East. That wouldn’t be acceptable to owner James Dolan, who told WFAN in January that the standard for the Knicks this season, at minimum, is a Finals appearance.
“We want to get to the Finals,” Dolan said. “And we should win the Finals. This is sports and anything can happen. But getting to the Finals, we absolutely got to do.”
With six weeks left in the regular season, Brown knows the Knicks need to raise their standard. They are 42-25 and in third in the East, 1.5 games above the Cavaliers. They were 43-24 at this time a year ago.
Here are five issues that the Knicks must solve before the real season begins on April 20:
By the numbers, Towns is having a good, not great, second season in New York. His minutes, production and efficiency are down across the board — his 20.0 points per game are his fewest since he averaged 18.3 as a rookie in 2015-16 — as he has struggled at times finding his way in Brown’s offense.
KAT’s Stats The Past Two Seasons
Stat
2024-25
2025-26
PPG
24.4
20.0
FG%
52.6%
49.1%
3P%
42.0%
36.7%
MPG
35
31.3
He has shown the ability to carry the Knicks for stretches, including on Monday night. Twenty-one of his game-high 35 points came in the first half, as New York’s bench didn’t muster a point and ended up with 14 for the game.
Relying on Towns to carry the team has not been a formula for success, however. The Knicks are 16-11 when he takes at least 15 shots and 24-12 when he shoots fewer than 15 times.
In February, before the Knicks’ comeback win over the Rockets, Brown made it clear that the offense should run through Brunson. When asked about Towns’ season and the feeling that Towns has been underwhelming, he raised his hand about six inches above his head to symbolize Brunson as the No. 1 option. Then he brought it down a few inches to show where Towns should be — as the No. 2.
“I look at KAT and he’s probably right where he should be,” Brown said. “Maybe he should be the leading scorer, I don’t know. He gets the second-most attempts, right behind Jalen.”
“It’s a work in progress, and you got to continue to feel and evolve as a group and hopefully do it around the guys you need to.”
Brown has said he has simplified the offense to fit his entire roster, not just Towns. As gifted as an offensive option as any big in the NBA, Towns has to assert himself while not forcing his own offense — which can look clunky when he does force it. But he also has to make sure he doesn’t allow himself to disappear, either.
“My career has been so crazy where I’ve had to learn how to go with the flow,” Towns told ESPN later that evening. “My usage is high, I’ve got to do something with that. [When] my usage is low, I’ve got to maximize my opportunities so everybody else could get going.”
When told of Brown’s comments, Towns said, “You’re used to touching the ball, having a rhythm of the game, flow of the game — also minutes being lower, you have more time to get into the game.
“It’s different, something different in my career. I haven’t dealt with something like that.”
Hunkering down on defense
The Knicks were a top-five team in the clutch last season, going 19-12 in games that were within five points in the last five minutes. Their clutch-time experience showed in the Eastern Conference semifinals against the then-champion Boston Celtics, when they had two comeback victories in the opening games on the road.
They were a team that couldn’t be counted out, even if the numbers said they were an average defensive team under former coach Tom Thibodeau.
They’re a better overall unit this season, ranking eighth in defensive efficiency. They have been the league’s best defensive team since Jan. 15. They have given up 106.1 points per 100 possessions over that stretch, a huge contrast from the two prior months, when they ranked 23rd at 117 points per 100 possessions.
Josh Hart seemed surprised when notified of the recent developments.
“If that’s what the numbers say, I don’t think the numbers are wrong,” Hart told ESPN on Sunday. “I think what we’re doing is a great attention to detail and a level of physicality. I think we can sustain that. We have good players, smart players. You see the formula that it takes for us to be successful. Now we just have to sharpen that.”
Brown said defensive coordinators Darren Erman and Brendan O’Connor showed the players film on some of the league’s best defensive teams — the Detroit Pistons, Oklahoma City Thunder and Phoenix Suns — to highlight what they get away with and examples of good physicality.
“When we’re watching our games against those guys, we can see the contrast and difference in those kind of things,” Hart said. “You can learn from other teams, see where you can be physical, how to use that physicality to your benefit, where the refs let you play.”
The Knicks fell back to Earth against the Lakers and Clippers but have opportunities against lower-rated offensive teams coming up, including the possibility of going against a Stephen Curry-less Golden State Warriors team at Madison Square Garden on Sunday.
They’ll play four top-10 offenses the rest of the season, including an April 9 showdown against the Celtics, who are second in the East and just got back Jayson Tatum from the Achilles injury he suffered against the Knicks a year ago.
Getting Brunson on track
Brunson is the key to everything the Knicks do offensively. When Mikal Bridges and OG Anunoby have tried to put the ball on the floor to make plays, it hasn’t always turned out well — all roads lead back to Brunson as the sole reliable shot creator from the perimeter.
Teams have gotten more aggressive with the Knicks, however. The usually sure-handed Brunson had seven of the team’s 19 turnovers against the Lakers, and the roster spread around the mishaps the next night (20 turnovers).
Anunoby’s assist-to-turnover ratio is about even and while Bridges has been put in position to facilitate more offense, Brown doesn’t have him making reads from the top of the floor.
Brunson’s 30.3% usage rate ranks 13th in the league, right behind Cade Cunningham and Nikola Jokic, slightly higher than his rate last season (29.5%). He’s getting doubled more as teams try to force the ball out of his hands — he and Brown have found ways to get him free, but more sophisticated defenses will be more physical.
Brunson has avoided serious injuries this season — he missed a month with an ankle sprain last season, which hampered him in the first round against Detroit. Keeping him healthy and fresh is a goal as the Knicks approach the homestretch.
Perhaps it was signs of fatigue or strategy when he had a rough three-game stretch recently, going 16-of-50 against the Lakers, Nuggets and Thunder.
“He’s human, and he’s going to have some nights like that,” Brown said Monday. “And his track record shows that he’ll go get it done.”
Brunson’s scoring has slumped since January, as he has averaged 23.1 points in his last 31 games. He was at 29.4 in the first 30. Is that because of Brunson’s increased effort on defense?
“It’s possible, but we’re not going to focus on that,” Brunson said. “We’re more focused on doing the little things. The offense will take care of itself.”
The plan for the oft-injured but critically effective backup center has worked as well as anyone could’ve anticipated. After playing just 48 games the past two seasons because of an assortment of injuries, Robinson has played 48 this season, with the team holding him out of back-to-back games and keeping his minutes at a manageable rate (19.2 per game) to ensure he will be ready for a heavier load come playoff time.
He averaged 17 minutes per game in November and 19.9 in December. In January, his heaviest month to date, he averaged nearly 22 minutes and crossed the 10-rebound-a-night threshold for the first month since November 2023.
Casey Smith, the Knicks’ highly regarded vice president of sports medicine, has spearheaded Robinson’s plan. Smith has been part of multiple runs with the U.S. men’s national team during the Olympics, as well as winning the 2024-25 NBA Athletic Training Staff of the Year award.
“The biggest thing is to get [Robinson] in games this year, to make sure that he stays healthy,” Brown said Monday.
Robinson’s presence gives the Knicks an advantage on the offensive glass, which Brown has said is part of their strategy to become a more potent 3-point shooting team. Many of their comebacks, such as Christmas Day against Cleveland or recently against the Rockets, were in large part because of Robinson’s offensive rebounding, which leads to a scrambled defense and open shooters.
Robinson’s free throw shooting woes have returned (39.5%) after he shot a career-high 68% last season, but his offensive rebounds per 36 minutes ranks No. 1 in the league (8.0). That’s a skill Brown plans to use in abundance over the next few months.
Holding everyone accountable — including Brown
Brown has had to learn a team that already knew itself before he arrived. The adjustment, especially in November when players, including Hart, grumbled about being benched in fourth quarters in consecutive games to Memphis and Orlando, hasn’t always been smooth.
But Brown has adjusted — and so have the players. The Knicks have turned into one of the league’s best 3-point shooting teams (sixth in makes, fourth in percentage), while going from a fifth-ranked offensive team to third this season. They were 14th in defense a year ago and are now eighth.
“Everybody’s a lot better with the accountability aspect of it too,” Brown said. “Not just making sure we’re holding each other accountable but being OK with being held accountable.”
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Brown has talked about leaning on the assistants who were holdovers on Thibodeau’s staff for guidance on dealing with players. Being collaborative and amenable to suggestions made him an attractive hire following Thibodeau. But that doesn’t mean he doesn’t show his teeth at times.
After Sunday’s loss to the LeBron James-less Lakers, he was as outwardly frustrated as he has been all season. That’s perhaps a callback to the standard he wants.
He routinely said of the Lakers, “This is not a knock at them …” and then referred to mishaps the Knicks made all afternoon: the turnovers, poor decisions and bad defense.
“Whether it’s this game or another game, I’m always direct,” Brown said of his message to his team. “There’s no sugarcoating.”
The Knicks are two games behind the Celtics for the 2-seed in the East, a potential rematch of last season’s shocking semifinals. They’re just ahead of the Cavaliers, who defeated the Knicks easily in their last meeting. If the Knicks slip to the 4-seed, it could put them in the crosshairs of the Pistons, who are likely headed toward the top spot. Detroit has beaten the Knicks in three meetings this season, all in decisive fashion.
That’s where Brown will be ultimately judged: his team’s performance in the playoffs — and the road to getting there these next few weeks is just as important.
Remember NBA St. Patrick’s Day uniforms? Knicks, Bulls, Celtics, Raptors went green for the holiday
Anthony GharibMar 17, 2026, 11:00 AM
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St. Patrick’s Day is here, with eight games being played around the NBA, and one noticeable difference continues for yet another year — no holiday-themed uniforms.
During the league’s uniform partnership with Adidas, a select group of teams each year would wear special green uniforms on St. Patrick’s Day. The Chicago Bulls, New York Knicks and Boston Celtics were frequent participants and jump-started the trend in the mid-2000s.
However, similar to special Christmas Day threads, the initiative ended when Nike became the NBA’s uniform supplier ahead of the 2017-18 season and introduced the current “Edition” system for uniforms. As a result, more emphasis went toward the yearly City Edition program rather than one-off holiday uniforms. The NBA and WNBA agreed to a 12-year contract extension with Nike in 2024.
In the absence of festive threads for this season, here’s a look back at notable St. Patrick’s Day jerseys of the past.
New York Knicks
How lucky was the look? 3-3 overall record in St. Patrick’s Day uniforms
New York went deep into its uniform closet each St. Patrick’s Day with an all-green look that included orange and black trims throughout. The Knicks debuted the threads against the Detroit Pistons on March 17, 2006, and it brought them good luck.
Led by 18 points off the bench from Jamal Crawford, the Knicks defeated the Eastern Conference-leading Pistons 105-103.
New York last wore the green threads during the 2011-12 season, a win against the Indiana Pacers.
Chicago Bulls
How lucky was the look? 4-6 overall record in St. Patrick’s Day uniforms
The Bulls went from red to green for a look that surely took some getting used to for die-hard fans. Even though the uniform was all green, the bull logo on the shorts and back of the jersey remained the traditional black and red.
Chicago first wore the threads against the Miami Heat in an 85-84 loss on March 18, 2006, a day after the holiday. The Bulls wore the uniform each year until the 2016-17 campaign except in 2015-16.
Boston Celtics
How lucky was the look? 4-4 overall record in St. Patrick’s Day uniforms
Green is already the Celtics’ primary shade, but even they received a neat makeover ahead of St. Patrick’s Day 2006. The numbers and “Celtics” word mark were turned gold with a similar color trim across the shorts and jersey. They uniform set received a slight tweak for the 2013-14 season with a short-sleeve version.
Like Chicago, Boston donned the special look until the 2017-18 campaign.
How lucky was the look? 1-4 overall record in St. Patrick’s Day uniforms
Toronto entered the holiday trend on St. Patrick’s Day 2008, debuting a clean look in a road defeat against the Utah Jazz. The Raptors continued to wear it for the next four seasons.
Their only victory came when Chris Bosh made the winning jump shot with two seconds left against the Atlanta Hawks in 2010, his final season in Toronto.
SGA breaks Wilt’s record: Thunder star’s historic feat, by the numbers
Zach KramMar 13, 2026, 03:07 AM
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Editor’s note: Shai Gilgeous-Alexander broke Wilt Chamberlain’s record for most consecutive 20-point games in NBA history (127) against the Boston Celtics on Thursday.
On Nov. 1, 2024, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander scored 30 points in a 137-114Oklahoma City Thunder win in Portland. It wasn’t an especially notable performance at the time; Gilgeous-Alexander had averaged 30.1 points the previous season en route to an MVP runner-up finish.
Now, 16 months later, that game carries great historical importance, as it was the start of a 127-game odyssey for a player who has since won the regular-season MVP award, been named Finals MVP and has now broken a 63-year-old record.
Against the visiting Celtics, Gilgeous-Alexander scored at least 20 points for the 127th game in a row, dating to that night in Portland. He passed the great Wilt Chamberlain for the longest such streak in NBA history.
It’s a fitting record, based in historic consistency, for the man who once declared, “My whole life is consistent, everything I do.”
To commemorate that consistency, here are the 20 wildest, most extreme and most impressive stats about Gilgeous-Alexander’s historic 20-point streak. (Note: The facts that follow reflect his performance through 126 games.)
1. The first surprise about Gilgeous-Alexander’s accomplishment is that he even came close to Chamberlain’s record. Nobody else had done so previously; before SGA, the second-longest 20-point streak in NBA history belonged to Chamberlain himself, at 92 games. There’s a reason Gilgeous-Alexander considers Chamberlain “almost like a mythical creature,” because his statistical feats were so singular.
Oscar Robertson’s 79-gamer was in third place — which means that for all of NBA history until this season, Chamberlain was the only player to push his streak as long as the equivalent of an entire season. And even Robertson’s streak brought him only 63% of the way to the record.
2. The competition has been even less compelling recently. In the 21st century, Kevin Durant is the only other player to get more than halfway to Chamberlain; he had a 72-gamer that started in his last season in Oklahoma City and ended early in his Warriors tenure. Next on the 21st-century list is Kobe Bryant, who reached 63 games in a row — exactly halfway to Chamberlain’s 126 — from December 2005 to November 2006.
On average, the longest 20-point streak for every MVP this century other than Gilgeous-Alexander is only 36 games.
Longest 20-point streaks from 21st-century MVPs
3. Meanwhile, the next-longest active streak behind SGA belongs to Kawhi Leonard at 42 games, and Leonard and the currently injured Joel Embiid (24 games) are the only active players whose streaks extend back to 2025, let alone 2024. Gilgeous-Alexander’s streak isn’t the result of an era effect so much as a superlative achievement from the reigning MVP — and the heavy favorite to repeat in 2025-26.
4. Against that historical backdrop, it’s worth doing some math to place the extremity of this streak in context. Over the past two seasons, during which Gilgeous-Alexander embarked on his record-setting mission, players named to an All-Star team have scored 20-plus points in 71% of their games. Given that base probability, the odds of an All-Star reaching 20-plus points 126 games in a row are about 1 in 3,200,000,000,000,000,000, or 1 in 3.2 quintillion.
The quintillion range is also the same magnitude as one estimate of the number of grains of sand on Earth. In other words, the chances of a modern NBA All-Star surpassing Chamberlain’s streak are roughly the odds of finding a specific grain of sand somewhere on the entire planet.
5. So how, exactly, did Gilgeous-Alexander beat those outrageous odds and chase down one of Chamberlain’s many long-standing records? One answer is that he excelled from every area on the court.
Splitting Gilgeous-Alexander’s 4,092 points during his streak across the general regions of the offensive end, as defined by GeniusIQ, there is a remarkably even distribution. He has scored between 16% and 25% of his points from all five areas: free throw line, restricted area, key, midrange and 3-point range.
For comparison, the second-highest-scoring player over the past two seasons is Luka Doncic. And while Doncic generates a similar proportion of his points from the charity stripe (23%), he is far more skewed to 3-point range (36%) than closer to the basket (11% from the restricted area). Gilgeous-Alexander’s shot distribution is uniquely egalitarian for a guard in the modern NBA.
6. Gilgeous-Alexander is also not a static player; he has improved during his streak. He is only a 35.9% career 3-point shooter, but he’s up at 39.3% since last year’s All-Star break. That mark places him in the same range as star shooters Stephen Curry (39.8%), Kawhi Leonard (39.0%), Anthony Edwards (38.9%), Desmond Bane (38.8%), and Klay Thompson (38.4%) during that span.
7. Gilgeous-Alexander has also improved inside the arc: He’s making a career-high 60.1% of his 15 2-point attempts per game this season. That’s the most efficient 2-point performance for a guard in NBA history (minimum 10 attempts per game).
8. Gilgeous-Alexander’s overall efficiency is also near the top of the charts thanks to the combination of his improved 3-point marksmanship, historic 2-point accuracy and penchant for drawing fouls (and converting at a 90% clip from the line). With a 66.7% true shooting mark, Gilgeous-Alexander ranks second on the all-time list of 30-point scorers. Only Stephen Curry’s 66.9% figure from 2015-16 — when he won a unanimous MVP award and produced arguably the greatest offensive season in NBA history, with a record-setting 402 3-pointers — ranks higher.
9. Gilgeous-Alexander’s overall efficiency improves further because he’s not just generating positive plays, but avoiding negative ones as well. He’s averaging just 2.1 turnovers per game this season, which is the fewest on record for a player averaging 30 PPG. The previous record belonged to … Gilgeous-Alexander, who averaged 2.2 turnovers in 2023-24. And last season, he was at 2.4 turnovers per game, which is tied with Michael Jordan’s 1995-96 campaign for the third-fewest.
10. Since the start of last season, Gilgeous-Alexander naturally leads the league in 20-point games. But he is also No. 1 by a wide margin in 30-point games, with 86. Doncic is in second place with 59, which is 31% behind SGA’s total
11. Gilgeous-Alexander is also tied for the most 40-point games since the start of last season; he and Edwards have 18 apiece.
12. And even though Gilgeous-Alexander is known more as a consistent scorer than an explosive one, he also leads the league in 50-point games since the start of last season, with five. Nikola Jokic (four) is the only other player with more than two.
13. Plotting Gilgeous-Alexander’s game-by-game point totals over the course of his 126-game streak reveals another even spread. Gilgeous-Alexander has scored exactly 20 points, 21 points, 22 points and so on, all the way up to 42, at least once.
SGA’s single-game point totals during streak
He is most often clustered in the low 30s. His modal point total during his streak is 30 points on the nose (13 times), followed by 31 (11 times), 35 (nine times) and 32 and 33 (eight times apiece).
14. Those point totals pale in comparison to Chamberlain’s, of course. The Big Dipper averaged 49.2 PPG over his record streak, compared to SGA’s 32.5. But Chamberlain also benefited from now-unheard-of playing time, as he averaged 48.4 minutes per contest and was subbed out in just three of 126 games. (In those games, he still played 45, 40 and 36 minutes.)
Gilgeous-Alexander, for comparison, hasn’t reached 48 minutes in any game during his streak and has far more games with minutes totals in the 20s (24) than 40s (five).
15. Calculating the two stars’ stats on a per-36-minute basis to even out the playing time disparity reveals a much closer competition: 36.6 points per 36 minutes for Chamberlain versus 34.4 from Gilgeous-Alexander.
16. One statistic where the two scoring superstars notably diverge is team success. Oklahoma City has gone 102-24 during Gilgeous-Alexander’s streak, compared to the Philadelphia/San Francisco Warriors’ 66-60 mark during Chamberlain’s.
17. Zooming out, Gilgeous-Alexander is on pace to average 30-plus PPG for the fourth consecutive season. The only other players in NBA history to accomplish this feat are Chamberlain (seven straight years), Jordan (seven), Robertson (four) and Adrian Dantley (four).
18. The only players to average 30-plus PPG for four straight years and win a title during that span are Gilgeous-Alexander and Jordan.
19. So, returning to Gilgeous-Alexander’s present accomplishment: How high can his 20-point streak climb? After all, Chamberlain’s streak snapped because of a fluke rather than underperformance: After 126 20-point games in a row, he was ejected just four minutes into Game 127 when he received two technical fouls for arguing a foul call against a teammate. Immediately thereafter, Chamberlain eclipsed the 20-point mark for 20 consecutive games, then missed once, then embarked on his 92-game streak.
In other words, Chamberlain was only one ill-timed argument and a few bounces away from an astonishing 240-game 20-point streak, which would have nearly doubled the actual record.
20. Gilgeous-Alexander, conversely, isn’t a threat to be ejected, and he hasn’t even had any close calls of late. Since he returned from injury at the end of February, Gilgeous-Alexander has averaged 30.8 PPG and scored at least 26 in all five games.
It’s still reasonable to expect his streak to end before too long, just given the sheer odds against even reaching triple digits, let alone continuing in perpetuity. Before his current run, SGA’s longest 20-point streaks were 37 games in 2023, 29 games in 2024 and 20 games in 2023-24. He has clearly leveled up as a scorer over the past two seasons, but plenty of other historically great scorers didn’t get anywhere near 126 games — and counting — in a row.
But that’s all the more reason to appreciate Gilgeous-Alexander’s latest achievement. Matching any of Chamberlain’s multitudinous records is worthy of celebration.
Bam Adebayo’s AAU coach weighs in on historic 83-point performance
Jason Jordan
Mar 13, 2026, 06:20 PMShareLikeOpen Extended Reactions182
Even days after Bam Adebayo‘s 83-point outing, the Miami Heat star’s former AAU coach, Ty White, is stuck in a wild mental dichotomy as he ponders the historic night.
Yes, he’s shocked that the 6-foot-9 center finished with the mind-boggling stat line, but not because he didn’t think he was capable.
It’s just that 83 points is, well, 83 points!
“I mean, it’s so crazy to think that anyone could score that many points in an NBA game,” said White, director of Team Loaded. “But in retrospect, the kid was always a super athlete who always had a nose for the basketball. I wasn’t even watching the game live, so many people started texting me saying, ‘Bam Bam Bam!'”
Adebayo’s 83 points, nine rebounds, three assists, two steals and two blocks came in a 150-129 win over the Washington Wizards on Tuesday night. He went 7-of-22 from 3 and set an NBA record for most free throws made (36) and attempted (43).
Prior to the game, Adebayo’s career high was 41 points.
Adebayo’s 83 points were the second-most points scored in a game in NBA history, trailing only Wilt Chamberlain‘s legendary 100-point outing in 1962.
White said that, aside from Adebayo’s overwhelming athleticism, he had the innate ability to “do something to ‘wow’ you every game” during his playing days with Team Loaded.
“That was without fail,” White said. “He would do something that would make you just scratch your head at how he was able to do that. We were the most exciting team in the country to watch, and it was mostly because of him.”
White pointed to Adebayo’s development as a scorer over the years, going from a powerful athlete to a meticulously skilled scorer.
“When he was with me, he was more of a lob threat, drop-off guy,” White said. “Now, he’s initiating offense and he’s one of the most versatile players in the league. The way he’s evolved as a player is just unreal.”
That said, White’s amazement at the point total is understandable — Adebayo’s career high with Team Loaded was just 30 points. He averaged 25 points and 15 rebounds a game.
“Eighty-three is just wild, I don’t care who you are,” White said. “He’s got to just believe the sky is the limit after that. His confidence has to be at an all-time high right now and rightfully so. People can say what they want, but at the end of the day he’s No. 2 behind Wilt with 83, and nobody can take that away.”
Fantasy basketball pickups: Sensabaugh, Williams stepping up for Jazz
André SnellingsMar 16, 2026, 06:15 PM
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We are well into the fantasy hoops playoffs at this point, and every game played is magnified in importance. In both daily and weekly leagues, it is important to maximize the number of productive player-games on your squad, and every day there are more lightly rostered players getting elevated opportunities and performing like starters.
So, as we do every week, let’s identify some of these players that can help your squad get to the finish line with the best chance to win.
Scoot Henderson, PG, Portland Trail Blazers (14.5% rostered in ESPN leagues): Henderson has scored in double digits in four straight games, averaging 20.3 PPG, 3.8 3PG and 3.0 APG in 24.8 MPG off the bench over that span.
Ajay Mitchell, Oklahoma City Thunder (37.8% rostered in ESPN leagues): Mitchell returned from his long injury absence without missing a beat. In three games back, he has averaged 16.7 PPG and 4.0 APG in 28.7 MPG.
Quentin Grimes, SG, Philadelphia 76ers (38.1% rostered in ESPN leagues): Grimes has stepped up as the primary scoring option for the 76ers with their three stars all out either injured or suspended. Grimes has scored at least 23 points in four of his last six games and has averaged 29.5 PPG in his last two.
Cody Williams, SG, Utah Jazz (3.8% rostered in ESPN leagues): Williams has ramped up his game tremendously over the last couple of weeks. He has scored in double figures in six straight games, with one points/rebounds double-double and three other games with at least seven assists. He exploded on Sunday with a by-far career-best 34 points alongside seven rebounds and seven assists.
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Brice Sensabaugh, SF, Jazz (25.6% rostered in ESPN leagues): Sensabaugh has started four straight games for the Jazz and scored at least 21 points in all four. In that span, he has notched 25.8 PPG with 4.3 A3PG, 3.3 RPG and 1.8 stocks.
Gui Santos, SF, Golden State Warriors (26.3% rostered in ESPN leagues): Santos has become a consistent plus-scorer for the Warriors. He has started six straight games, averaging 17.5 PPG, 6.7 RPG and 5.0 APG over that span.
Jarace Walker, PF, Indiana Pacers (17.4% rostered in ESPN Leagues): Walker moved into the starting lineup for the Pacers on February 11 and, in the 14 games since, he has notched 15.0 PPG, 7.7 RPG, 3.9 APG and 1.9 3PG in 31.2 MPG.
Jerami Grant, PF, Trail Blazers (46.8%): Grant has scored at least 20 points in nine of his last 11 games as the most consistent healthy scoring option on the Trail Blazers in that span. He’s also been averaging 2.9 3PG in those games, with his long-range shooting providing a significant portion of his scoring.
Center
Wendell Carter Jr., C, Orlando Magic (30.2% rostered in ESPN leagues): Carter has been productive all season, but in the last week he has stepped up both his scoring and his rebounding to help the Magic stay hot. Over his last three games, he has averaged 15.0 PPG and 10.0 RPG along with a combined three 3-pointers, blocks and steals per game.
Maxime Raynaud, C, Sacramento Kings (33.1% rostered in ESPN leagues): Raynaud has either scored at least 20 points or grabbed double-digit rebounds in 10 of his last 13 games, averaging 15.6 PPG and 9.7 RPG over that span. Raynaud and Precious Achiuwa (40.9% rostered) have formed a strong 1-2 punch in the Kings frontcourt.
NBA consecutive scoring streaks: Player records to know
Keith Jenkins
Mar 18, 2026, 01:34 AMShareLikeOpen Extended Reactions926
What’s more impressive: scoring 100 points in a single game or scoring 60-plus points in three straight games twice in the span of a month and a half?
Wilt Chamberlain accomplished both during a dominant stretch of the 1961-62 NBA season.
One of Chamberlain’s many other NBA scoring records was broken by reigning NBA MVP Shai Gilgeous-Alexander. When the Oklahoma City Thunder guard scored 20 against the Boston Celtics on March 12th, it marked his 127th consecutive game with 20-plus points, breaking Chamberlain’s record of 126 games (1961-63).
While SGA’s streak is going strong, another came to an end. In December 2025, LeBron James‘ streak of consecutive games with 10-plus points ended at 1,297, after scoring eight points in a win against the Toronto Raptors.
Take a look at other consecutive scoring streaks in NBA history below:
Pippen had an operation on his right big toe and Aldama had a procedure and injection to address discomfort in his right knee. The team said both procedures were successful and the players will be ready for next season.
The Grizzlies (23-44) have lost eight straight games and entered Tuesday night nine games back in the race for the final play-in berth in the Western Conference. Star Ja Morant has played in only 20 games this season, missing the last 25 with a left elbow injury.
Pippen had a similar procedure in October and didn’t make his season debut until last month. In 10 games, he averaged 11.4 points.
Aldama was averaging 14 points and 6.7 rebounds this season.
Jamal CollierMar 17, 2026, 11:01 PM
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