Layup Lines – Page 8 – Syndication Server

The Blazers might be good again, and nobody saw it coming

Portland is 4-0, and it all starts with Damian Lillard.

Welcome to Layup Lines, our daily NBA newsletter where we’ll prep you for a tip-off of tonight’s action, from what to watch to bets to make. Subscribe here to get it delivered to your inbox every afternoon.

What’s good y’all. It’s Prince here with another Layup Lines, and I want to talk about the Portland Trail Blazers for a minute, because did anyone see them being the best team in the NBA through the first week of the season?

I certainly did not, and I was as optimistic about them as anyone this season. Though I picked them to finish under their preseason win total of 39.5, I thought they’d push for the play-in tournament.

But after a 4-0 start to the season, including wins over the Suns, Nuggets and Lakers, Portland’s over is starting to feel like a lock and the playoffs don’t seem so farfetched either. Sure, it’s still early, and this could all go downhill in a hurry, but there are reasons to believe they can keep it up…

…we maybe should have even seen it coming.

It all starts with Damian Lillard, who was deservedly named to the NBA 75 list last year even though his inclusion was endlessly debated. Too much was made about his lack of championships and not enough about how he took a usually flawed Blazers team to the playoffs in eight straight years, including an unlikely conference finals appearance in 2019.

Doing more with less isn’t new territory for him, and Portland quietly re-tooled over their last couple years of decline. The rise of 2018 first-rounder Anfernee Simons made C.J. McCollum expendable. McCollum landed the team a key starter in Josh Hart, and trading him while Lillard was out made them just bad enough to draft Shaedon Sharpe, who’s coming along nicely.

Add in the continued development of 2019 first-rounder Nassir Little, a healthy Jusuf Nurkic and Portland’s one big offseason pickup, Jerami Grant, and you got the makings of squad Lillard can work with. He’s averaging 33 points right now. They also picked up Gary Payton II, who hasn’t even played a game yet.

The Blazers are fun. They rank top 10 in both offensive and defensive rating — seventh in net rating. They aren’t winning a title by any means, but this is a team people should start paying attention to.

The Tip-Off

Some NBA goodness from around the USA TODAY Sports network.

The Blazers aren’t the only surprise team to get off to a blazing hot start. The Jazz and Spurs are right behind them in the standings at 3-1 entering Wednesday night, and what?!

What exactly is happening here?

Well, those situations may be a little more fluke than the one in Portland. Our guy Sykes wrote about 6 way-too-early trends you should and shouldn’t buy this season, and let’s just say he’s not a believer.

“The Jazz have wins over the Nuggets, Timberwolves and Pelicans — three legitimate playoff teams. The Spurs have beaten the 76ers, Pacers and Wolves, which isn’t too bad either.

But, still, we shouldn’t believe in these teams. At all. Of course, they’re rosters of NBA players. And anytime you step on the court you can get a win. But the Spurs are 3-1 with a -0.9 net rating right now, which isn’t believable at all. On the flip side, the Jazz have Kelly Olynyk and Jarred Vanderbilt who are shooting 61% from the floor and looking like All-Stars.

None of that will last. These two will eventually fall into place at the bottom of the standings. They’re just catching some teams by surprise right now. It happens.”

I would have to agree. I’m not even sure these teams want to be winning right now.

One to Watch

(All odds via Tipico.)

Miami Heat (-150) at Portland Trail Blazers (+3.5, +120), O/U 219.5, 10 PM ET

After all the nice things I said about Portland, I feel like I’m setting myself up by picking them to cover against the Heat here. But I’m going to do it anyway. Miami has been the opposite of Portland, a team with high expectations that has come out the gates flat to start the year 1-3. If the Blazers’ hot shooting continues in this one, they’ll not only cover 3.5 points, but they’ll stay undefeated.

Shootaround

— Best bets for Wednesday’s double-header on ESPN.

— Why did Ivica Zubac launch this full-court shot? And almost make it.

— Jordan Clarkson is BALLING. Here’s what it means for his trade value.

— Klay Thompson and Devin Booker got into it, prompting this 4-finger response.

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Russell Westbrook blaming bench role for his injury is a bad sign for Lakers

Just the latest red flag in LA.

What’s good y’all. It’s Prince here with another Layup Lines, and I want to talk about the Lakers for a minute, because their Russell Westbrook problem already appears to be on thin ice just one game into the season.

Westbrook’s status for their opener Tuesday was in question due to a hamstring strain he suffered in LA’s preseason finale, a game head coach Darvin Ham used to experiment with bringing Westbrook off the bench. And though Westbrook ultimately played and started in the opener, he used his postgame availability to say Ham’s decision “absolutely” played a factor in his injury.

“I’ve been doing the same thing for 14 years straight. Honestly, I didn’t even know what to do pregame. Being honest, I was trying to figure out how to stay warm and loose.”

On one hand, Westbrook is right. Coming off the bench was new territory for him. It’s something he hasn’t been asked to do since his rookie season all the way back in 2008. On the other hand, it’s laughable for him to blame that for an injury when so many other players, veterans or not, come in cold without issue. And starters strain hamstrings too.

His answer was just such an unnecessary thing to say…unless, of course, his intention is to make known his feelings about coming off the bench to ensure it never happens again. And that’s a big problem for the Lakers.

In order for them to win with the roster as currently constructed, if possible at all, Ham needs the flexibility to experiment with lineups. One of the apparent best options is allowing Westbrook to run the second unit. Even though he scored 19 points on 7-of-12 shooting with 11 rebounds in Tuesday’s game, they still lost. And we saw enough last season to know his game isn’t optimal next to LeBron James and Anthony Davis.

If he’s already resisting things that can potentially improve the team’s chance for success, the Lakers should just get it over with and cut bait. This is just a sign of another long season in La La Land.

The Tip-Off

Some NBA goodness from around the USA TODAY Sports network.

Another issue for the Lakers, and perhaps their biggest is a lack of shooting. Building a team with either LeBron James or Russell Westbrook, but especially both, without shooting is preposterous.

That weakness was on full display in the loss to Golden State, and James pointed it out after the game.

Sure, doing so means he kind of threw his teammates under the bus. But as my colleague Bryan Kalbrosky wrote, James was right:

“The idea is that if defenders sag off the Lakers and leave them open, they’ll be tempted by the open space. But because they don’t have a ton of shooting talent, the shots won’t go in, and the best defense is simply nothing at all.

Unfortunately for LeBron, this strategy worked like a charm. According to Synergy, Los Angeles was 1-for-9 (11.1%) on uncontested catch-and-shoot attempts against Golden State.

That is simply not a recipe for winning basketball, and it’s not sustainable.”

Of note, Anthony Davis is a part of that shooting problem, as our guy Sykes wrote.

One to Watch

(All odds via Tipico.)

Denver Nuggets (-280) at Utah Jazz (+6.5, +215), O/U 225.5, 9 PM ET

This game features one team I think can be the best in the NBA against another that I think will be near the basement. Give me the Nuggets -6.5, because this spread is way too small.

Shootaround

— Joel Embiid’s beef with Marcus Smart didn’t just start Tuesday night

— James Harden looked like his old MVP self, but is that good for the Sixers?

— Malcolm Brogdon’s Sixth Man award odds have some great value

— These are the top 20 NBA players over 30 years old

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The NBA will be completely unpredictable this season, and that’s for the better

There are so many good teams in the Association.

What’s good y’all. It’s Prince here with another Layup Lines, and I want to talk about the upcoming season, which is quickly approaching next week. Do you know who’s going to win the title? Or who will even make the NBA Finals? Because I have no clue, and I love it.

Bet For The Win recently put together our best bets for win total over/unders and which teams will make the playoffs, and that’s when it hit me how wide open the league is.

In the Western Conference, the reigning champion Warriors will be a force again. But the Clippers and Nuggets are finally healthy, the Suns are still around, and the Grizzlies, Timberwolves, Lakers, Mavericks and Pelicans will also vie for playoff spots. That’s nine potentially good teams fighting for eight spots before we even get into fringe teams like the Trail Blazers and Kings.

In the East, the Heat, Celtics, Bucks and 76ers should all be really good again. But the Nets are finally close to complete, the Hawks and Cavs are better, and the Raptors and Bulls will still be competitive. Again, that’s nine teams before we get to fringe squads like the Knicks and Wizards.

That’s enough interest to hold me all year before we even get into micro-storylines within each team like the Celtics’ coaching situation, the Nets’ drama, the Lakers’ Russell Westbrook conundrum, etc.

People often speak of how overrated parity is, because the league has always had a dominant dynasty. But I, for one, enjoy not knowing who’s going to win the title before the season even starts. And we still technically have a dynasty at play with the Warriors — even if it doesn’t feel like it — which gives us the best of both worlds.

Every team has that target to gun for, while also legitimately having a shot to go really far if things break the right way. This all should just make for another fantastic season of NBA hoops, and I can’t wait.

The Tip-Off

Some NBA goodness from around the USA TODAY Sports network.

Speaking of the Warriors, they have some issues to work through before they can worry about winning another title. But it sounds like they’re on the path to doing just that.

Draymond Green’s discipline for punching Jordan Poole was announced as a fine and not a suspension on Wednesday. Head coach Steve Kerr said Green will re-join the team Thursday and play in their preseason finale Friday.

Some people may be surprised he wasn’t suspended, but as my collegue Bryan Kalbrosky wrote, it was the right call. For one, Green’s teammates wanted him back. But also, he earned the right to be at the ring ceremony ahead of Golden State’s opener.

“This is Green’s fourth ring, and that puts him in rarefied air. Warriors owner Joe Lacob has described this championship as the “most meaningful” that the team has won, too, after their core group recovered from devastating injuries to accomplish it.

But there is also a real possibility this could be Green’s final championship with Golden State. Green has a player option in his contract, and if he does not get an extension, he could very well opt-out and become a free agent.

Green made a mistake, assuredly, but he should be there with his teammates when they are presented with their championship rings. He put in the work, and he should be recognized for his achievement.”

Shootaround

— 10 last-round sleepers to target in fantasy basketball

— Ranking all 30 NBA teams, from least to most watchable

— Zion Williamson credits assistant coach Teresa Witherspoon for saving him from mental breakdowns

— Aren’t you getting bored of the Ben Simmons jokes?

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Draymond Green’s habitual line-stepping failed him at the worst time in his incident with Jordan Poole

The Draymond Green incident just took over the basketball world

Welcome to Layup Lines, our daily basketball newsletter where we’ll prep you for a tip-off of tonight’s action, from what to watch to bets to make. Subscribe here to get it delivered to your inbox every afternoon

What up, folks? It’s Sykes, back again, with another edition of Layup Lines. We’re talking about the Draymond Green-Jordan Poole story here, too. Buckle in.

For those of you who don’t know, video has released of Green punching Poole during Warriors’ practice earlier this week.

Everyone was stunned by it. The visual impact of it adds another level to the situation, but it’s probably being made into a bigger deal than it actually is. At least on its own.

This is part of the deal with Draymond Green. He’s a habitual line-stepper who almost always pushes things too far. But, somehow, he also always manages to keep them from going over the ledge.

We see it every year with loads of technical fouls he accumulates or the different spats he gets into with officials. He’s even gotten into visceral shouting matches with his head coach before.

We’ve also seen him cross the line before like when he got a tech in the 2016 NBA Finals that probably cost the Warriors the series against LeBron James’ Cleveland Cavaliers. Or even this year when he got into it with Jaylen Brown during the Finals.

But to punch a teammate? In the way he did it? That’s way over the line, off the edge and at the bottom of the hill. It’s way too far. But, again, this is Draymond Green.

The Warriors will punish him. Maybe it’ll remain a fine or maybe they’ll actually suspend him for some meaningful games. Despite seeing the visual, we still don’t know the particulars of this situation and what preceded it so it’s hard to know exactly what should be done.

But there’s no punishment that’s going to stop Draymond Green from being this version of Draymond Green. That’s who he is and who he always has been.

The only way to stop it is to move him off the team. And, well, the Warriors just aren’t going to do that.

The Tip-Off

Some NBA goodness from around the USA TODAY Sports network.

Speaking of Draymond Green, everyone is wondering why the Warriors aren’t suspending him. The video changes things and gives us a bit more context, but my colleague Prince Grimes doesn’t think they should give a more severe punishment just because we saw what happened.

“The video is new to us, but it isn’t new to the team. The people who needed to know what happened likely went straight to the video before any kind of discipline was even discussed (and they probably aren’t happy the video got out). But if they did their due diligence in talking to everyone involved, which I’m assuming they did, then they settled on a punishment that all parties were agreeable to.

If that’s not the case, and this causes some dissension in the locker room, then sure, do what needs to be done.

But if Poole was able to put this behind him without any kind of suspension for Green, then why should anyone else care?”

Hard agree.

Shootaround

—LeBron James said he’d dunk on his own mom if she played for the Clippers. Yes, you read that right.

— Andre Iguodala left us with bread crumbs so we had no choice but to pick them up.

— Everyone is comparing Bobby Portis’ situation to Draymond’s, but they’re two totally different things.

— LeBron James wants to own a team in Las Vegas. That would be pretty cool.

Enjoy the weekend.

The Rockets and Thunder just put together the biggest, most insignificant trade in NBA history

This might be the biggest trade in NBA history that actually didn’t matter

Welcome to Layup Lines. It’s your boy Sykes here once again. Let’s talk about the most insignificant humungous trade in NBA history.

It’s rare that anyone misses news about an 8-player trade. Well, for that matter, it’s rare to ever see an actual trade with so many players involved. But, believe it or not, one happened on Thursday. It did! I promise.

You just didn’t hear about it because, well, it actually didn’t matter much. The Thunder and the Rockets swapped a bunch of names many non-hardcore NBA fans might not actually know, according to details from ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski.

Here’s the move:

The Rockets got Ty Jerome, Theo Maledon, Derrick Favors and Moe Harkless along with a 2025 second-round pick
The Thunder got David Nwaba, Sterling Brown, Trey Burke and Marquese Chriss.

Yep. Exactly. Nothing to see here. Just a bunch of dudes, swapping teams.

I wonder how this trade call went. The Thunder were probably like “Yo, do you want to include Theo Maledon in this?” and the Rockets were probably like “…who?” And then they probably proceeded to do the same thing for the next 30 minutes as they mapped the rest of this out.

And that’s not to shame any of these dudes for being involved. Making the NBA is an accomplishment on its own that they should all be proud of. And many of them have been solid contributors on good teams.

But, uh, this ain’t really changing anybody’s fortune. Well, except the Thunder, who literally saved a fortune by shaving $10 million from their cap bill. That’s about it, though.

Good luck to these guys. Hope they find steady homes in the NBA at some point.

The Tip-Off

Some NBA goodness from around the USA TODAY Sports network.

Everyone loves to talk about the bizarro world in which the Lakers never made the Russell Westbrook trade and went out to get DeMar DeRozan. But, as it turns out, it was actually a thing.

DeRozan, himself, thought it was a done deal. He talked about it on JJ Redick’s Old Man and the Three podcast and, man. Wow. Our Bryan Kalbrosky wrote about it.

“[DeRozan] revealed that he was so “hellbent” on going to the Lakers that he had pushed all his other options to the side. Because of this, he said he had to go into “scramble mode” to find his new home.

DeRozan would have fixed many of the issues that Los Angeles had last season, but the front office opted to make the move for Westbrook, and the rest is history.”

I bet the Lakers wish they’d kept that offer on the table now. Sheesh.

Shootaround

— Rui Hachimura’s media scrums in Japan look like LeBron James’ in America.
— Lonzo Ball’s mysterious knee injury just keeps getting weirder and weirder.

— Matisse Thybulle is catching some eyes in Sixers’ training camp.

— Chet Holmgren is still getting a taste of NBA life despite his season-ending foot injury.

That’s all, folks! Enjoy your weekend.

The Pelicans are going to be so fun to watch with Zion Williamson back

Williamson averaged 27 points on 61% shooting the last time he was healthy.

What’s good y’all. It’s Prince here with another Layup Lines, and I want to talk about the Pelicans for a minute. The reason is because Zion Williamson showed up to media day on Monday, and he looked to be in outstanding shape. It got me thinking about the potential of the team in New Orleans this season.

Just think about it. The Pels closed last season as one of the hottest teams in the NBA. Only five teams had a better net rating than them after the All-Star break. They acquired C.J. McCollum at the trade deadline to pair with Brandon Ingram, and the two combined to average more than 46 points per game together. All along, Herbert Jones was emerging as one of the best young players in the game, defending his way to a Second Team All-Rookie selection. And role players like Jose Alvarado gave the team an infusion of good energy.

This culminated in the Pelicans beating the Spurs and Clippers in the play-in tournament to sneak into the playoffs as the No. 8 seed. Once there, they gave a scare to the top-seeded Phoenix Suns — who had been the best team in the NBA all season — taking two of the first four games before losing in six.

And now, they’re adding an explosive athlete like Williamson, who’s potentially as fit as he’s ever been? Yep, I’ll be watching as many of their games I can. Pelicans head coach Willie Green said Williamson “dominated” their scrimmage Tuesday night, and I believe him.

The last time we saw Williamson healthy, in 2020-21, he averaged 27 points on 61% shooting, seven rebounds and almost four assists through 61 games. That was before his new look! With him finally healthy again, the bar raises for what the Pelicans can accomplish. Their preseason win total over/under is 44.5. I think they’ll come close to hitting it, and it’ll be fun to watch them try.

The Tip-Off

Some NBA goodness from around the USA TODAY Sports network.

From one player whose injury woes are behind him to another whose knee injury continues to ail him. The Chicago Bulls announced earlier this week that Lonzo Ball would undergo an arthroscopic procedure on the same left knee that required surgery in January.

It’s a tough blow for Ball, obviously, as his career has been marred by injuries from the beginning. But also for the Bulls, who just weren’t the same team after he went down last season. He’ll be re-evaluated in four-to-six weeks, which is sometime after the start of the regular season. But the latest on his knee is beyond concerning, as our guy Bryan Kalbrosky wrote:

“Ball said he experiences pain climbing stairs, range of motion is an issue, he can’t play basketball, and he can’t jump. He said this is something that he has never dealt with before, and even the doctors are concerned.

This is especially concerning because as part of his injury rehabilitation, he began ramping up to running back in March. He paused running altogether by the end of the month, however, and he began experiencing discomfort once again during the ramp-up process in April.

Ball said that he is worried he may have tried to rush himself back for the playoffs, and he doesn’t want that to happen again.”

Shootaround

— Jamal Crawford is a perfect replacement for Dwyane Wade on TNT’s NBA broadcasts

— The Celtics are still favored to win the title after Ime Udoka’s suspension, but should they be?

— Markeiff Morris hilariously compared the Nets’ offseason drama to his marriage.

— Here’s how you can watch top draft prospects Victor Wembanyama and Scoot Henderson face off.

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The Ime Udoka scandal deserves so much more care than anyone has been willing to give it

The Ime Udoka situation didn’t need to be reported the way it was

Welcome back to Layup Lines. It’s Sykes here to send you off into the weekend. A quick word on the Ime Udoka scandal that has taken the NBA by storm over the last few days.

For those of you who don’t know, Udoka has been suspended for the 2022-23 NBA season by the Celtics for some sort of inappropriate relationship he had with a woman on Boston’s staff.

We don’t know details on exactly why or what he did. We only know that there’s a relationship at the center of this. Outside of that details have been shaky.

But from the beginning, there’s been speculation about all of this including, but not limited to, what woman — or women — Udoka could’ve been involved with, what role those women play for the team, and whether their relationship was consensual or not.

It’s run rampant on the internet over the last couple of days. So much so that Brad Stevens even felt the need to address it during the Celtics’ extremely vague press conference about the entire situation.

“Nobody can control Twitter speculation — rampant bulls–t — but I do think that we as an organization have a responsibility that we’re there to support them now because a lot of people were dragged unfairly because of that.”

This “rampant bulls***,” as Stevens called it, only exists because of the way this story was reported to the public from the beginning.

There were very few details available for people to grab on to. ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski initially reported it as Udoka facing “possible disciplinary action” for an unspecified violation of team guidelines. The very next day, Woj reported a season-long suspension was “imminent,” which is a huge jump from “possible disciplinary action.”

There’s more. The Athletic’s Shams Charania reported that the Celtics’ organization knew about this “consensual” relationship in July but are only choosing to act now, which is a very odd decision considering that it’s resulted in a year-long suspension for the Celtics’ head coach. But none of this is explained at all.

In fact, later on, the relationship is described as “intimate” instead of consensual, which is a completely different thing.

To make measures worse, other media members have received information from sources close to the matter but are hesitant to reveal anything. And that’s totally reasonable considering the sensitivity of the matter. But if you can’t say anything about it, then why speak at all? That’s the question nobody seems to be asking here.

This is the sort of piecemeal reporting we’d get for a trade negotiation or an offer in free agency. But lives are in the balance here. People’s peace has been taken away from them. Udoka’s fiancé, Nia Long, has to see all of this and constantly live through it.

This could’ve all been avoided had things been carefully reported out wholly and fully. What we have now feels more like lunch table gossip.

And these women all deserve way more respect than that.

The Tip-Off

Some NBA goodness from around the USA TODAY Sports network.

John Wall meant a lot to me and so many other Wizards’ fans. Over the last decade, he almost single-handedly lifted the franchise from obscurity into NBA relevance.

So to see him struggling with mental health and contemplating suicide after everything he’s been through is hard. I wrote about it on Thursday. He described the grip depression had on him in a piece for the Player’s Tribune and it was deep.

“The one thing I always held on to, in the darkest times, was the thought of my boys — just the little things, like wanting to be around for their first day of school, or their first vacation. Or wanting them to see their dad play in an NBA game for real, and not just on some highlights from back in the day. Those thoughts held me down during a lot of hard nights. But if I’m being honest, even the thought of being a father wasn’t enough for me to get help. That’s how depression lies to you. That devil on your shoulder is whispering to you, ‘Well, maybe they’d be better off without you here.’”

That’s rough. Extremely rough. But I’m glad Wall is still here with us. And so many others are too.

Shootaround

Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports

— Malika Andrews rightfully called out Stephen A. Smith for placing any sort of blame on the woman involved with Ime Udoka.

— Nia Long finally broke her silence on the Ime Udoka scandal.

— Ben Simmons finally explained why he passed up that dunk against the Hawks.

— Everything you need to know about Celtics’ new coach, Joe Mazzulla.

Enjoy the weekend, folks.

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Robert Sarver agreeing to sell the Suns does the NBA’s other 29 owners a favor

Voting Sarver out would have set the stage for how other owners could be removed.

What’s good y’all. It’s Prince here with another Layup Lines, and I want to talk about Robert Sarver for a minute. The Phoenix Suns owner released a statement Wednesday saying he’s beginning the process of seeking buyers for both the Suns and Phoenix Mercury, bringing closer the end to a saga I was sure would drag out longer.

Rather than digging in and making the situation much more difficult, Sarver seems willing to bow out (read: cash out) a lot quieter than Donald Sterling — besides the disingenuous words in his statement.

There was certainly pressure for him to step away — from a Suns minority owner, a corporate sponsor and several NBA players — but he didn’t have to. Entitled billionaires typically require a little more than a few words to make them go away. So was there pressure behind the scenes to expedite his decision?

Players were the most vocal about their displeasure with the lenient one-year ban Sarver received from the league. That includes LeBron James, the Suns’ Chris Paul and most recently Draymond Green, who on Tuesday called for a vote of the other 29 owners to have Sarver removed.

A public ousting would have been much more embarrassing for Sarver, and it also would have furthered a precedent for how the other owners could be removed themselves. So, naturally, a vote is the last thing they would have wanted. Voting also would have required three-fourths of the owners to agree on Sarver’s removal, and whether or not it passed, anyone who voted against it would have had to answer why.

The heat Sarver brought on himself was starting to get a little too hot for the league, and by extension, the other owners. So his decision to sell just a week after the NBA announced findings of its investigation — and a week before teams host media days — saves them a lot of trouble. That’s not to say the other owners definitely played a quiet role in his decision to step away, but they absolutely benefit in it going away like this.

The Tip-Off

Some NBA goodness from around the USA TODAY Sports network.

When Robert Sarver sells the Phoenix Suns, the other 29 NBA team owners won’t be the only ones benefitting from it. Nope, Sarver himself, will be a big winner too.

That’s right, the “punishment” for his disgusting behavior as a person charged with running an NBA franchise is having to sell that franchise for almost $2 billion. Poor him.

My guy Sykes put the proper context around Sarver’s eventual sale. It’s not a punishment, it’s a privilege.

“He blames an ‘unforgiving climate’ as the reason he must sell the franchise he owns currently valued at $1.8 billion, according to Forbes. Clearly, there’s no such thing as accountability in the world of Robert Sarver. There’s no mention of the derogatory, offensive and straight-up hateful behavior and language he’s used to harm people. Instead, he finds time to cite the ‘good’ he’s done ‘or could still do’ — as if it weren’t a decades-long track record that got him here in the first place.

He makes it seem as if he’s just a boy who the world has chosen to punish for past misdeeds. Woe is him. He’s just another victim of the heinous cancel culture that eventually comes for us all.

But don’t get it twisted. Sarver is no victim here. What sort of victim leaves a situation where they’ve spent decades doing damage only to become $2 billion richer than they were in the first place?

Make no mistake — Sarver having to sell his team isn’t a punishment. If anything, it’s a privilege. One that only the richest of the rich could ever afford to have in our society.”

Shootaround

— Ranking NBA teams by future first-round draft picks, from least to most

— Is this photo of bald LeBron James fake?

— 15 photos from the Aces’ championship parade, Las Vegas’ first ever title parade.

— Are the Nets headed towards contention? Check out HoopsHype’s Nets season preview.

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The NBA won’t be able to protect Robert Sarver for much longer

The NBA will have some more major Robert Sarver problems on their hands soon

What’s good, fam. It’s Sykes back again for Layup Lines. Let’s talk about Robert Sarver. Again.

To this point, it doesn’t really feel like anyone aside from the NBA’s board of governors thinks his punishment for fostering a toxic workplace goes far enough. Compared to the allegations of racism, sexism, and workplace abuse levied against him, his punishment feels like a slap on the wrist.

It’s not just fans who feel this way. So do players, including LeBron James and Chris Paul who plays for Sarver’s Phoenix Suns. It also includes the team’s sponsors, including its jersey sponsor in PayPal who just severed ties with the team behind this.

It also includes at least one prominent minority owner from the Suns organization itself.

Team vice chair and minority owner Jahm Najafi called for Sarver’s resignation in an open letter to employees on Thursday evening, per ESPN’s Baxter Holmes. He very clearly states there should be “zero tolerance” for what Sarver did and is calling upon the powers that be to hold him to a higher standard.

He had strong words for the team’s employees after the league’s determination.

“The fact that Robert Sarver ‘owns’ the team does not give him a license to treat others differently than any other leader. The fact that anyone would find him fit to lead because of this ‘ownership’ position is forgetting that NBA teams belong to the communities they serve.”

Not only is that powerful, but it’s also true.

Being fortunate enough to own an NBA team doesn’t mean one can foster a toxic work environment with no consequences. If anything, the standard should be held higher here. Sarver is ultimately an ambassador for the league on the biggest scale. His values reflect the NBA’s values and one would think that, obviously, they aren’t in line right now.

The NBA is the only entity currently defending his indefensible actions and that’s only because they don’t want to get into litigation — I get it. Discovery is a billionaire’s worst nightmare and there are lots of billionaires being considered here.

But this ain’t going away. Media day is coming — players will be asked about this. More people within the organization will speak up about it. More organizations will pull sponsorship dollars away.

The NBA can’t protect Sarver here. Not anymore. It’s too late for that. Instead of trying to, it needs to figure out the best course of action to separate itself from him.

If they continue to try to, they’ll pay dearly for it with a loss of money, fans and maybe even the trust of their players. And I’m sure they don’t want that.

The Tip-Off

Some NBA goodness from around the USA TODAY Sports network.

Mandatory Credit: Kyle Terada-USA TODAY Sports

The Showtime Lakers of the 80s had a reunion in Hawaii and, man, did it look like a blast. This is how I pray my 50s and 60s go. The homie Bryan Kalbrosky had more here.

This looked like a truly delightful experience for the old teammates to get together once again now more than three decades later. The guys played golf together and reflected on their success and all of their relationships.

Spectrum SportsNet will premiere a “ShowTime Reunion” special on Nov. 4 once the post-game show concludes after the Lakers play the Jazz.

I will absolutely be watching that reunion…right after I finish the “Winning Time” on HBO. Yes, I’m ashamed.

Shootaround

— Breanna Stewart stopped by on Special Delivery to talk to me about her new signature shoe, the Stewie 1. This is a game changer.

— The NBA can’t just tell us Robert Sarver has evolved. They have to prove it.

—The Celtics’ lead governor thinks the team might be a tad bit overrated.

—Steph Curry thinks KD was better off sticking with the Nets as opposed to going to Boston because of course he does.

That’s all, folks. Enjoy the weekend.

NBA’s 1-year suspension of Suns owner Robert Sarver was way too lenient

Donald Sterling’s lifetime ban should have set a precedent.

On April 29, 2014, the NBA issued a lifetime ban of former Los Angeles Clippers governor Donald Sterling for racist comments he made that were caught on an audio recording. The ban precipitated his eventual forced sale of the Clippers, which required a three-quarters majority vote by the other team owners.

On the recording, Sterling was upset with girlfriend V. Stiviano for sharing a photo of herself with Magic Johnson on Instagram, urging that she not post photos with Black people. Eight years later, his punishment was thought to set a precedent for how the NBA would handle Phoenix Suns governor Robert Sarver, who was accused in reports last year of creating a hostile work environment through racism, misogyny and harsh treatment of employees over his 17-year tenure.

Instead, what happened Tuesday fell well short of those expectations. The NBA announced that Sarver was being suspended for just one year and fined $10 million. Commissioner Adam Silver said Sarver’s racist comments were “beyond the pale” but “wholly of a different kind,” whatever that means. Fans were displeased, believing another ousting was in order.

Personally, I’m not as concerned about whether or not they removed him as owner. I do think the precedent was there to do so, but a forced sale is hardly punishment when it nets him upward of a billion dollars. I do, however, believe a one-year ban was extremely too lenient.

The NBA’s investigation found that Sarver “clearly violated” workplace standards. He used a racist slur at least five times, and there were instances of inequitable conduct toward female employees. As isolated incidents go, his transgressions were actually worse than Sterling’s because they happened at the actual workplace, involving people he employees.

Of course, anyone who’s read about Sterling’s past transgressions knows they run deeper than just the comments about Johnson. And the audio recording likely made a legal battle more possible to win. But even if the league didn’t feel it could win in court against Sarver, why didn’t it issue a similar lifetime ban? How did it land on a ban that allows someone who displayed such foul behavior to return after just a year?

This was a rare miss for the NBA.

The Tip-Off

Some NBA goodness from around the USA TODAY Sports network.

Have you been paying attention to EuroBasket 2022? If not, you’re missing out some good hoops, and the latest player to impress is Germany’s Franz Wagner.

An NBA All-Rookie first-teamer for the Orlando Magic last season, Wagner helped Germany eliminate Greece on Tuesday to advance to the semifinals. He finished with 19 points and made the highlight of the game, t his super impressive step-back 3-pointer over Giannis Antetokounmpo.

My colleague Bryan Kalbrosky couldn’t help but wonder how Wagner’s ever-evolving skillset will mesh with the top pick of this year’s draft, Paolo Banchero.

“This excellent performance was nothing new for Wagner, who scored 32 points against Lithuania on Sept. 4. He was 4-for-7 from beyond the arc.

I was most impressed with Wagner against Sweden during the FIBA World Cup European Qualifiers on August 25. He recorded 16 points but added 5 assists, 5 rebounds, 2 blocks, and 2 steals. It was the perfect display of his utility.

Wagner is finishing a large share of his offensive possessions as the ball-handler in pick and roll sets, per Synergy. Only two players have been more efficient when shooting off the bounce. Combine that skill set with rookie teammate Paolo Banchero, and the Magic may have the best blend of height and creation skills of any young frontcourt in the NBA.”

Shootaround

— A poll of NBA execs has Luka Doncic as the top player in the NBA to build around. Here’s more from HoopsHype.

— Kawhi Leonard is working on a hip-hop album, and now we want to know more.

— Devin Booker missed a shot on stage at a Jack Harlow concert, and it was hilarious.

— Kyle Kuzma brought octopus vibes to runway at New York Fashion Week.

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