Newsletters – Page 2 – Syndication Server

The Warriors owe it to Steph Curry and their core to choose their present over their future

The Warriors need to do right by their core players and keep them around

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, family. It’s Sykes, back from beaching, to deliver you another edition of Layup Lines. Today, we’re talking Warriors.

That latest championship run might’ve been the last of the golden years for Golden State. The band may be breaking up soon. A report from The Athletic’s Anthony Slater and Marcus Thompson surfaced Wednesday talking about the Warriors’ future and how they want to keep their championship team together beyond next season. But the reality is that’s not possible without footing a $500 million luxury tax bill.

The Warriors will have the choice to extend all of Draymond Green, Andrew Wiggins, Jordan Poole and Klay Thompson over the next two seasons. To keep them all around, one or more of those players would have to take a haircut. It remains to be seen if any will.

Per the report, Green wants a max extension and is willing to go elsewhere if he can’t get one. Jordan Poole just saw Jalen Brunson’s massive payday. Andrew Wiggins was an All-Star starter and Thompson has $83.8 million guaranteed remaining on his deal.

The Warriors are probably going to have to choose between keeping their youth movement going or continuing to move forward with their core. If it comes down to that? To me, personally, the decision is a no-brainer.

Keep it rolling with the core and don’t look back.

You’d hate to see players like Jordan Poole and Andrew Wiggins leave. Or anyone else, really. They’ve found a really special mix of talent in Golden State that works extremely well together.

But having those auxiliary pieces without the engine that gets things rolling won’t get you anywhere. Even if the Warriors’ core isn’t what it used to be, they still know how to play together better than anyone else in the league. And they play unlike any other team we’ve ever seen before because of that.

Yes, they’re old. Steph Curry is 34 years old and will be 35 next year. Draymond is 32. Klay is 32 but is also coming off of two pretty serious injuries. You’ve only got two to three years left of this — max. Paying for them to stick around isn’t going to benefit your future at all.

But here’s the thing. The Warriors’ core has earned this. They’ve been to 6 NBA Finals in 8 years and won 4 of them. They’ve been Warriors for their entire careers. Fans will come to see them regardless of if they’re up, down or in the middle.

Traditionally in sports, we’ve seen organizations tell their all-time greats to take a hike. But, in rare cases, teams do reward their players for what they’ve done. Remember when the Lakers gave Kobe a massive extension to end his career? It’s because he’d earned that. These Warriors have, too.

We’ve seen what it looks like when teams don’t honor that. Jordan in a Wizards jersey. Olajuwon as a Raptor. Ewing with the Magic. It’s gross.

The Warriors owe it to their core and their fans to make sure that doesn’t happen. That all starts now.

The Tip-Off

Some NBA goodness from around the USA TODAY Sports network.

Mandatory Credit: Stephen R. Sylvanie-USA TODAY Sports

Some of you might think the most unbelievable thing that happened in the NBA this offseason was Kevin Durant requesting a trade from the Nets. And, yes, that absolutely is wild. But something wilder happened today.

Longtime Spurs assistant and shot doctor Chip Engelland left the team for the Thunder.

It’s heartbreaking for the Spurs but a great get for the Thunder — particularly Josh Giddey, who might have a shot at becoming an All-Star now. Bryan Kalbrosky has more.

“The promise is there for the Australian-born standout, who is one of nine players in NBA history with career averages of at least 12 points, 7 rebounds and 6 assists per game. Six of those players have won an MVP award.

But among that group, Giddey’s 3-point percentage is lower than each of those players except for Ben Simmons (the only player on that list other than Doncic not to win an MVP).

If he can become a more accurate shooter while working with Engelland, the future looks especially bright for Oklahoma City.”

OKC is going to be a force in a few years. Just you watch.

Shootaround

— Speaking of Steph Curry, he definitely shouldn’t try picking up baseball anytime soon.

— Please keep giving Kelsey Plum tiny trophies. This is hilarious. They need to downsize the MVP joint when they give it to her.

— Paul Pierce has thoughts on a potential Jaylen Brown-KD swap.

— The “Free Britney Griner” movement has momentum. But will it get the job done?

That’s all, folks! Thanks for rocking with us. Check back in tomorrow for more NBA goodness.

Gannett may earn revenue from Tipico for audience referrals to betting services. Tipico has no influence over nor are any such revenues in any way dependent on or linked to the newsrooms or news coverage. See Tipico.com for Terms and Conditions. 21+ only. Gambling problem? Call 1-800-GAMBLER (NJ), 1-800-522-4700 (CO), 1-800-BETS-OFF (IA).

The Knicks probably tampered a little bit to get Jalen Brunson, but NBA fans should be OK with that

The Knicks might be tampering for Jalen Brunson, but that’s not that big of a deal.

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

What’s good, family. It’s your boy Sykes here with another edition of Layup Lines. Free agency is the talk of the town right now around the league — more specifically, Jalen Brunson.

It seems like the Mavericks guard is about to be a former Mavericks guard. Brunson is reportedly going to have a 4-year, $110 million offer from the Knicks waiting on him, per Chris Haynes of Yahoo! Sports.

After their trade with the Pistons on Wednesday where the shipped Nerlens Noel, Alec Burks, a 2nd round pick and $6 million (!!!!!!) in cash, the Knicks have cleared about $30 million in cap space to use on Brunson.

It’s pretty clear at this point this is a done deal. Everyone is reporting it from Marc Stein to ESPN to The Athletic and more. Brunson’s days as a Maverick seem to be over.

Now, if you’re a Mavericks fan, you’re probably a bit peeved right now. Free agency doesn’t even start for another day. But it feels like Brunson’s contract with the Knicks has already essentially been negotiated — he just needs to sign on the dotted line.

Let’s be honest about it — the Knicks probably tampered here. Maybe it was through his agent, Drew Morrison, who works at the Creative Arts Agency where Knicks Team President Leon Rose used to head the basketball division. Or maybe it was through his father, Rick Brunson, who the team recently hired. I’m not sure.

This is an NBA problem — we’ve seen it through the years. Most recently, we saw what happened with the Bulls and Heat with Lonzo Ball and Kyle Lowry, respectively.

But here’s my thing: I think tampering is fine! Especially this sort of tampering. The season is over. All we’re doing is twiddling our thumbs and waiting for free agency to start, anyway. Why not get it popping early?

I get there’s decorum and you want to make sure teams get a true first swing at their own players. But the Mavericks had every chance to retain Brunson — at the beginning of the season with a better extension offer and in January before his extension deadline. They could even beat out the Knicks here if they wanted to, though it’d come at a hefty price.

At this point, this just is what it is. The Mavericks can’t be upset at anyone but themselves here if Brunson leaves. That’s on them.

The Tip-Off

Some NBA goodness from around the USA TODAY Sports network.

Mandatory Credit: Kamil Krzaczynski-USA TODAY Sports

Candace Parker just made some pretty huge WNBA history — again, my dude Cole Huff writes.

She’s the triple-double queen in the W already. But she also just became the first player to ever reach some pretty impressive milestones in her career. Cole has more here.

“Last week, Parker became the first player in WNBA history to record three career triple-doubles. On Wednesday, she became the only WNBA player to reach 6,000 points, 3,000 rebounds and 1,500 assists in a career after dishing a sweet, no-look dime to Kahleah Copper on the fastbreak.”

That’s pretty awesome stuff, man. Shoutout to Candace for continuing to grow her legend.

One to Watch

(All odds via Tipico.)

Storm (-1.5, -105) vs. Aces (-115), O/U 232.5, 10 PM ET

The Seattle Storm and Las Vegas Aces are two of the teams most think could make a legitimate run to the WNBA Finals. The Aces have been the clear-cut best team in the W all season long with three legitimate MVP candidates on the roster in A’ja Wilson, Kelsey Plum and Jackie Young. I’m taking the Aces +1.5 pretty easily here.

Shootaround

— The 5 free agents that might be great steals this offseason, including Gary Payton II

— The Monte Morris trade between the Wizards and Nuggets broke an obscure NBA record

— Here’s a Summer League roster tracker for every team in the NBA.

— The Kyrie Irving situation in Brooklyn isn’t quite over just yet.

The Warriors may have won the Finals, but the drama is just beginning with the NBA

The NBA never sleeps, y’all.

What’s good, family. It’s Sykes, back again for today’s edition of Layup Lines.

The Warriors are NBA champions. They’ve reached the mountaintop yet again and showed off quite a bit while doing it.

Steph Curry pointed at his ring finger in the middle of the game. Draymond Green wore black to the Celtics’ “funeral” in Game 6. Klay Thompson is throwing barbs at players who don’t have anything to do with anything. The Dubs are back, man.

Just like that, the NBA’s regular season has ended. But there’s still plenty of drama left to unfold with the league. Almost nothing is certain with the league’s offseason. There are a ton of mysteries still left to solve.

Don’t look now, but the NBA draft is in just a week. There’s a ton of mystery outside of the top 3 picks that will be Jabari Smith, Chet Holmgren, and Paolo Banchero in some sort of order.

On top of that, a number of players could be traded during or after the draft. We’re talking Rudy Gobert, John Collins and more. We’ve already seen a couple of names on the move — JaMychal Green and Christian Wood, to be specific. We’ll almost certainly see more.

And after that? That’s when we dive into free agency. Bradley Beal, Zach LaVine and more big names might actually be available this offseason. It could be an absolute madhouse.

Aside from where those names will go, we’ll also see what teams around the league are going to do. There are a number of fascinating questions we need answers to. How will the Celtics improve? Will the Lakers trade Russell Westbrook? Will the Nets trade Kyrie Irving? Are the Bucks going to reload? Who will the Warriors keep around?

We’ll get the answers to all of these questions and then some, basically, all within the next calendar month. It’ll be an absolute whirlwind.

But it’ll be fun, too. And I can’t wait to dive into it with you all.

The Tip-Off

Some NBA goodness from around the USA TODAY Sports network.

Enough about the offseason, though. Let’s talk a bit about the Warriors reaching the mountaintop again. They’ve done something truly special.

Somehow, thanks to a postgame adrenaline spike, I managed to cobble together a few words after Game 6 to try and properly contextualize what this team has done. Basically, they’ve become this era’s San Antonio Spurs. And that’s absolutely incredible.

“Let’s run it down. They’ve been to 6 NBA Finals in the last 8 years and they’ve won 4 of them. LeBron James is the only force in the NBA that can even think about claiming to be as dominant.

It doesn’t stop there. We saw them eclipse those same aforementioned Spurs in these NBA Finals. During this series, the Warriors’ big 3 of Stephen Curry, Klay Thompson and Draymond Green officially passed the Spurs’ big 3 of Parker, Manu Ginobili and Tim Duncan for the most NBA Finals wins by a trio in the last 30 years, per Yahoo! Sports. They now have 21 total.”

Since 2015, the Warriors have been absolutely dominating the league. Each iteration of this team has done something special no matter how you slice it. Pre-Kevin Durant, with Durant, post-Durant. It doesn’t matter.

All they’ve done is win. And you’ve got to tip your cap to that.

One to Watch

(All odds via Tipico.)

Dallas Wings (-5.5, -230) vs. Phoenix Mercury (+180), O/U 169.5, 8 PM ET

(Photo by Christian Petersen/Getty Images)

Skylar Diggins-Smith and the Phoenix Mercury are heading into Dallas winning four of their last five games with Smith shooting nearly 50% from the floor while averaging 19.3 points per game. On the other end, the Wings are struggling. They’ve lost 4 straight and are looking to get right at home. They should be highly motivated, but I’m taking the Mercury outright in this one.

Shootaround

— Steph Curry doesn’t forget anything. Somebody let Kendrick Perkins know that.

— Remember the dude who got the Celtics championship banner tattoo? Yeah, he’s leaning into it.

— This Warriors’ championship hits different. Jeff Zilgitt does an amazing job of diving into why.

— What the Warriors winning a title means for the rest of the NBA.

That’s all, folks! Happy Juneteenth. Have an incredible weekend.

Layup Lines: The Miami Heat don’t stand a chance without Bam Adebayo

The Heat need Bam Adebayo now more than ever

What’s good, family. It’s Sykes, once again, here to usher you into tonight’s playoff action. But first, a quick word on Bam Adebayo.

Two seasons ago in the NBA Bubble, it was Bam Adebayo who put away the Boston Celtics. There was no one on that roster that could guard him.

Daniel Theis was too slow. Everyone else was too small. He got to the rim at will. I haven’t even mentioned the terror that he was on the defensive end — something that probably still haunts Jayson Tatum’s nightmares to this day.

That’s the Bam Adebayo Heat fans remember. That’s the Bam that looked like he could be the best player on the Miami Heat in a year or two.

But that Bam has yet to show up in this year’s postseason — especially not against today’s version of the Boston Celtics. Miami Heat fans are two seconds away from photoshopping his face on a virtual milk carton.

Through two games, Adebayo has just 10 shots and he’s only scored 16 points. He’s got four blocks, but he got them all in Game 1. He hasn’t attacked at all. He’s only setting screens, catching the ball, and looking for the next dribble handoff.

It’s not just this series, either. Adebayo has taken a step back throughout this postseason. The most alarming stat? His field goal attempts per game. It’s a basic stat, sure. But it also helps us track aggression. It can tell us just how involved a player is in the offense.

Adebayo’s shot attempts have fallen from 13 per game in the regular season to just 8.2 per game in the postseason. As the team’s second-best player and an offensive fulcrum, that’s unacceptable.

Now, all of that might not be on Bam. Per NBA.com’s stats tool, his touches per game have also dropped to 54.2 in the playoffs from 65 per game in the regular season. The Heat need to find more creative ways to get him the ball and he needs to attack with it.

In Game 3, they’ll need to figure this out. Because what’s happening now? It simply ain’t going to cut it here. Not if the Heat want to make it back to the NBA Finals.

The Tip-Off

Some NBA goodness from around the USA TODAY Sports network.

As a Wizards fan, I’m finding myself diving deeply into NBA draft content. Luckily, I work with draft guru Bryan Kalbrosky who has kept me in the loop with all the buzz surrounding every prospect in the draft.

One that Bryan hipped me to early was Jalen Williams, who measured in at 6’5 with a 7’2 wingspan at the NBA Draft Combine. Sounds intriguing, right? Yet, somehow, this kid was viewed as a 2nd round pick coming into this week. I can assure you that won’t be the case after the combine, though.

Kalbrosky wrote about players who raised their stock at the combine. Williams was among them. Why? Because of this, Kalbrosky wrote.

“Williams is just 6’4.5″ without shoes, but his max vertical reach of 12’0.5″ is ahead of vertical athletes like Aaron Gordon and John Collins as well as rim protectors like Rudy Gobert. (Yes, you read that right. This man can actually get higher than Gordon, Collins, and Gobert.)”

Man, what? Wizards, please. Y’all know what to do, man.

One to Watch

(All odds via Tipico.)

Warriors (-6.5, -280) vs. Mavericks (+220), O/U 213.5, 9 PM ET

Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports

The Warriors looked absolutely dominant in Game 1. They did one of the best jobs we’ve seen all season in defending Luka Doncic — he was held to just 20 points on 18 shots. But Luka is a great player. And great players aren’t normally held down like that two games in a row. I think the Warriors win a close game 2, but I’m taking the over.

Who’s in and out?

Mandatory Credit: Kyle Terada-USA TODAY Sports

Andre Iguodala (neck) remains out for the Golden State Warriors with a neck strain.

Gary Payton II (elbow) also remains out for the Golden State Warriors with a fractured elbow.

Shootaround

Mandatory Credit: Dan Hamilton-USA TODAY Sports

— The 76eres have a long list of offseason goals they’ll need to accomplish. Here are 3 of them from Sixers Wire.

— Al Horford passed through the NBA’s COVID protocols in the nick of time for Game 2. Here are details on the whirlwind leading to that.

— Looking for the latest mock draft? We’ve got your consensus mock right here.

— Marcus Smart is the point guard the Celtics have always been looking for. They’ve finally figured it out and it’s paying off.

That’s all, y’all! Enjoy the basketball tonight.

LAYUP LINES: Don’t use the playoffs to knock Nikola Jokic’s MVP candidacy

Don’t let the playoffs cloud your judgement about Nikola Jokic

What’s good, family. It’s Sykes, once again, leading you into tonight’s playoff action. But first, a thought on the MVP race that was.

For pretty much the entire season there were three MVP candidates putting up historic numbers that totally deserved consideration for the award: Nikola Jokic, Giannis Antetokounmpo, and Joel Embiid.

So far through three games this postseason, Antetokounmpo and Embiid have at least one a single game. Nikola Jokic — who will probably win the award — has not.

The conversation surrounding MVP has already gotten awkward and the playoffs just started.

Look, Nikola Jokic totally deserved MVP. The numbers bear it out. He put up a historic season with the Nuggets and carried a team that had no business making the playoffs to a 48-win season. But there is also certainly something to be said for him being another MVP who may possibly be out in the first round of the playoffs.

That’s sort of where that conversation starts and ends, though. Would a first-round exit mean he doesn’t deserve MVP? Absolutely not. The fact is this is a regular-season award. And the postseason has no bearing on it because, well, no one can predict the future.

If anything, the Nuggets’ performance should probably bolster his candidacy. It’s become pretty clear that, without Jokic, the Nuggets might be one of the three or four worst teams in the NBA. And for him to drag them this far without any co-stars? That’s pretty impressive.

So let’s maybe chill on Jokic a bit and start thinking more critically about what MVP means as a regular-season award. Once we do that, then we can circle back and have a much better — and more productive — conversation.

The Tip-Off

Some NBA goodness from around the USA TODAY Sports network.

Kevin Durant is playing some of the worst basketball we’ve ever seen him play right now against the Celtics.

I wrote a bit about that today after crunching the numbers and, whew boy, are they bad.

Durant has only shot worse than 25% on at least 15 field goal attempts five times in his playoff career including Wednesday’s game.

The last time it happened was 6 years ago in 2016 against the Mavericks where he shot 7-33 (!!!!!!) from the field. That might actually be the worst shooting performance of his career.

The Nets have to free KD up a bit. Otherwise, they stand no chance in this series.

One to Watch

(All odds via Tipico.)

Nuggets (+115) vs. Warriors (-2.5, -140), O/U 223.5, 10 PM ET

The Warriors have been blistering the Nuggets with their new death lineup of Stephen Curry, Klay Thompson, Jordan Poole, Andrew Wiggins and Draymond Green. That lineup has a +123.9 net rating in the series.

It’s hard to pick against them tonight. So I’m not doing it. The Warriors win this thing in a blowout. I’m taking the under.

Who’s in and out?

Mandatory Credit: Jerome Miron-USA TODAY Sports

—Luka Doncic (hamstring) is listed as questionable for the first time in the Mavericks series against the Jazz.

—Andre Iguodala (neck) is listed as probable for the Warriors in game 3 against the Nuggets.

Shootaround

—The Celtics are looking good, but you probably shouldn’t bet on a sweep of Kevin Durant, writes our Prince Grimes.

—Speaking of sweeps, Joel Embiid basically just promised Drake he’d sweep the Raptors.

—The 76ers praised Tobias Harris as the unsung hero in their comeback over the Raptors, Ky Carlin of Sixers Wire writes.

—Scottie Barnes missing time in this series changed everything and Tyrese Maxey isn’t happy about it.

That’s a wrap, folks! Til next time.

Bam Adebayo thinks Heat didn’t have enough games on national TV to win Defensive Player of the Year

Miami Heat big man Bam Adebayo thought the voting for Defensive Player of the Year was disrespectful. Does he have a point?

Bam Adebayo was my pick for the NBA’s Defensive Player of the Year. I thought his versatility gave him an advantage over other candidates.

However, the Miami big man was not named as a finalist for the award. That honor went to Mikal Bridges, Rudy Gobert, and Marcus Smart. Adebayo said the voting was “disrespectful” and believes he was snubbed because the Heat were not on national television often enough.

To his credit, although they finished the season with the best overall record in the Eastern Conference, Miami didn’t spend a ton of team in the spotlight. In fact, per NBA.com, the team had 21 games broadcast on national television. Compare that with the Bridges’ Suns (38), Smart’s Celtics (31), and Gobert’s Jazz (24).

But the lack of national television games isn’t stopping Adebayo’s teammate, Tyler Herro, from becoming our projected winner for the NBA’s Sixth Man of the Year.

There was a bigger issue at play: Bridges led the league in minutes played and he was one of just two NBA players to appear on the court for more than 70 percent of possible minutes in 2021-22. Smart and Gobert both played for more than 50 percent of all possible minutes for their teams, but Miami had more minutes without Adebayo than they did with him.

The Tip-Off

Some NBA goodness from around the USA TODAY Sports network.

When I was watching the Nets take on the Celtics in Boston, it was hard to keep my eyes off Kyrie Irving.

But I wasn’t just fixated by his dazzling performance on the court. I also couldn’t help but notice the way that fans at the TD Garden treated Irving, too. Chris Korman summed it up better than I could, and you could read his thoughts here:

“There are precisely zero valid reasons to yell obscenities at Kyrie Irving as he attempts to do his job. There’s also no reason to expect him to not respond in kind, as he did Sunday evening in Boston, causing the usual commotion about athlete decorum.”

It’s despicable behavior to treat Irving, and other professional athletes, as if they exist only for entertainment. He has every right to be upset by hostility in the crowd.

One to Watch

76ers (-7.5, -360) vs. Raptors (+270), O/U 215.5, 7:30 PM ET

(All odds via Tipico.)

Philadelphia captured the first win of this series, but to be honest, I’m sure I’m convinced they’re a better team than the Raptors. Toronto is dealing with health concerns, unfortunately, but I think they have enough depth to make serious noise in the postseason.

James Harden and Joel Embiid both struggled with efficiency during the first game of the series, but it seems Tyrese Maxey is ascending in front of our eyesd. Still, if the Raptors can even this one out, we will have an especially compelling few games on our hands.

Who’s in and out?

— Raptors: Scottie Barnes (ankle) is out against the 76ers on Monday

— Hawks: Clint Capela (knee) is out indefinitely and Lou Williams (back) is questionable

— Mavericks: Luka Doncic (calf) is out indefinitely

— Nuggets: Facundo Campazzo is eligible to return from his suspension

Shootaround

— NBA consensus mock draft: How experts project the first round

— Fans are mad at Reggie Miller for what he said about Herbert Jones

— HoopsHype compiled NBA awards ballots to determine expected winners

— Celtics Twitter reacts to Jayson Tatum’s buzzer-beater vs. the Nets

LAYUP LINES: We are way too fixated on the future when it comes to the NBA

Enough about the future. Let’s focus on this weekend’s playoff picture.

What’s good, family! Welcome to Layup Lines. It’s your boy Sykes here to lead you into tonight’s NBA action. But first a quick thought.

I know things have been this way for a while, but can we stop looking so far ahead into the future when it comes to the NBA?

ESPN’s Jay Williams did just that today when he made waves on the internet by saying LaMelo Ball is not long for Charlotte. He’s literally putting the kid on the Lakers already.

Never mind the fact that he’s just finished his 2nd season as an NBA player or the fact that there’s this whole restricted free agency thing that makes it all the more likely he’ll be in Charlotte until, at least, 2027.

Forget all that. The dude is just a Laker already.

This is a huge problem with NBA coverage. And it’s not just a Jay Williams thing or an ESPN thing. People everywhere are more obsessed with the transactions in the NBA than basketball itself. This is what Kevin Durant meant when he said NBA fans don’t like anything about the NBA last year— there’s plenty to talk about, but we never talk about it.

Instead of talking about Ball being the youngest player ever to make 200 3-pointers in a year, we’re shipping him to the Lakers. Before Giannis Antetokounmpo re-signed with the Bucks and won a title, we shipped him to the Warriors. You get the drift by now.

We’re way too focused on the future with the NBA and what will come as opposed to what’s happening right now. We just had 4 awesome play-in games. We’ve had a historic MVP race. There are plenty of awesome playoff matchups to talk about.

And instead? LaMelo to the Lakers dominated the online conversation. We need to do better. Much, much, much better.

The Tip-Off

Some NBA goodness from around the USA TODAY Sports network.

Mandatory Credit: Dale Zanine-USA TODAY Sports

Don’t trick yourself when it comes to the Hawks vs. the Cavaliers tonight. We tend to get a bit too caught up in the regular season at times, my colleague Prince Grimes writes.

But the Hawks than the Cavaliers coming into the season. They certainly feel like the better team right now. Roll with that.

Atlanta has a bottom five defensive rating over the course of the season but ranks 11th in the last 15 games, better than the Cavs who are 24th in that time. Paired with a top 10 offense in that span, the Hawks have the league’s seventh-best net rating. As hard as it is to do, I’m ignoring what we’ve seen over the course of most of 82 games and taking the Hawks to ride this momentum and end up in the playoffs where they always belonged.

Couldn’t agree more.

One to Watch

(All odds via Tipico.)

Clippers (-105) vs. Pelicans (-1.5, -115), O/U 215.5, 10 PM ET

Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports

The play-in game out west is probably going to be the most interesting one tonight with Paul George missing time in the NBA’s health and safety protocol. The Pelicans looked dominant against the Spurs and CJ McCollum can’t miss right now. I’m going Pels -1.5 tonight.

Who’s in and out?

Mandatory Credit: Jayne Kamin-Oncea-USA TODAY Sports

— Paul George (health and safety protocols) is out for Friday night’s game against the Pelicans

—Jarrett Allen (finger) is probable for the Cavaliers for Friday’s game against the Hawks.

—Bogdan Bogdanovic (ankle) is questionable for the Hawks for Friday’s action against the Cavs.

—Luka Doncic (calf strain) will miss game one against the Jazz on Saturday and will be day-to-day after that game.

—Steph Curry (foot) says he’ll be ready to go for game 1 against the Nuggets.

Shootaround

—The Clippers and Pelicans game will determine how the Trail Blazers’ rebuild goes this summer, our Cole Huff writes.

—Joel Embiid has some advice for James Harden ahead of the playoffs, from Ky Carlin Sixers Wire. Advice for the playoffs never feels great.

—The Rockets G-League affiliate just won its 4th NBA G-League title which is pretty incredible, per Ben DuBose of Rockets Wire.

—Brad Stevens just shut down the possibility of him coaching the Lakers, from Justin Quinn of Celtics Wire.

That’s all, folks! Have a great weekend.

Gannett may earn revenue from Tipico for audience referrals to betting services. Tipico has no influence over nor are any such revenues in any way dependent on or linked to the newsrooms or news coverage. SeeTipico.com for Terms and Conditions. 21+ only. Gambling problem? Call 1-800-GAMBLER (NJ), 1-800-522-4700 (CO), 1-800-BETS-OFF (IA).

LAYUP LINES: The NBA’s Play-In tournament is extremely fun…but it shouldn’t be a thing

The Play-In is fun but it’s fertile ground for disaster.

What’s good, party people? It’s Sykes here to usher you into tonight’s NBA Play-In action. Speaking of the Play-In, a quick word on that.

This little tournament the NBA has put together for its bottom four playoff seeds is pretty fun — I have to admit that. Tuesday’s action with the Timberwolves and Clippers was particularly exhilarating.

But…I’m also not the biggest fan of the Play-In. Now, look. I’m sure this comes off as a bit of hate. But I have good reason, though!

The league is lowering its playoff standard while it punishes teams in the 7 and 8 slots. Imagine a world where the Timberwolves as a 7 seed don’t make the playoffs because they couldn’t win a Play-In game due to some unforeseen circumstance. At 46-36 they’d be 12 games better than the Spurs as the 10 seed and out of the postseason completely. Make that make sense.

That’s going to happen someday. A star player will get injured or a team will just go ridiculous cold in the last week of the season and they’ll lose out. It won’t make sense but it’s Play-In chaos, baby. That’s what y’all want.

Look, I get it. This is fun. It’s NBA-style March Madness and this is what everyone loves to see. But this isn’t how you determine the NBA’s best teams.

The Play-In is here to stay because y’all love it so much. But don’t be mad when your favorite team falls victim to the chaos. Because it’s bound to happen at one point or another.

Anyway, let’s jump in.

The Tip-Off

Some NBA goodness from around the USA TODAY Sports network.

The NBA world hated so hard on Patrick Beverley and the Timberwolves after their admittedly over-the-top celebration of a Play-In win.

It was really like they won a title. Especially for Beverley as my colleague Charles Curtis writes.

“He celebrated by tossing his jersey. He talked a lot of trash in the postgame press conference. He got on a live social media feed and said some more wild stuff.”

Beverley had real tears in his eyes after beating his old team. Anthony Edwards jumped up on the scorer’s table with his point guard. Karl-Anthony Towns had a celebratory kiss on the sidelines with his boo, Jordyn Woods. These dudes were happy.

Honestly? I can’t really blame them. This is their second postseason appearance since 2004. Let them go crazy — even if it’s just for one night. They deserve at least that.

One to Watch

(All odds via Tipico.)

Hawks (-5.5, -230) vs. Hornets (+180), O/U 234.5, 7 PM ET

Mandatory Credit: Jim Dedmon-USA TODAY Sports

For a 9 seed vs. 10 seed matchup, this sure is an exciting game. You’ve got Trae Young going head to head against LaMelo Ball. Their season series is tied 2-2 with each team taking one on the road. The key here is the Hornets defense on Trae Young, who they’ve guarded exceptionally well this season. He’s only shooting 38% from the field against Charlotte.

I think the Hawks win outright at home. But I think it’ll be close so I’m taking the Hornets +5.5.

Who’s in and out?

Mandatory Credit: Darren Yamashita-USA TODAY Sports

—Pelicans: Brandon Ingram (hamstring) is probable for the Pelicans’ Play-In matchup against the Spurs on Wednesday.

—Pelicans: As expected, Zion Williamson (foot) is still listed as out for New Orleans.

—Hornets: Gordon Hayward (ankle) remains out for the Hornets.

—Hawks: John Collins(foot) has also been ruled out for Atlanta.

Shootaround

—Speaking of the Hawks, our Bryan Kalbrosky got a chance to chat with Trae Young about the playoffs, acting alongside his brother and so much more.

—I wrote a bit about Karl-Anthony Towns still struggling with physicality on the basketball court.

—A fan really glued herself to the Timberwolves’ court on Tuesday. Seriously. That’s a thing that happened.

—Here are some potential candidates for the Lakers head coaching vacancy from Robert Marvi.

That’s all, folks!

Gannett may earn revenue from Tipico for audience referrals to betting services. Tipico has no influence over nor are any such revenues in any way dependent on or linked to the newsrooms or news coverage. SeeTipico.com for Terms and Conditions. 21+ only. Gambling problem? Call 1-800-GAMBLER (NJ), 1-800-522-4700 (CO), 1-800-BETS-OFF (IA).

LAYUP LINES: Appreciate the MVPs you’ve got before they’re gone, folks

Put some respect on these MVPs names, y’all.

Welcome back to Layup Lines, folks! It’s your boy Sykes here, once again, to be your Sherpa into Tuesday night’s NBA action. But before we dive into all that, there’s a tweet out there that keeps popping up on my timeline and it bothers me.

It’s the Kendrick Perkins tweet about who the next face of the NBA will be. He says it’s between Ja Morant, Trae Young and Luka Doncic. Jayson Tatum might be included in the conversation, too. Regardless, carry on.

Those players are great! They’re already All-Stars and, most certainly, are going to be recognizable faces in the NBA for years to come.

But, uh, we have three potential MVPs right now in Nikola Jokic and Giannis Antetokounmpo who are both 27 years old and Joel Embiid who is 28. They’re not going anywhere. One just won a title. Another just won an MVP. They’re putting up historic efficiency numbers — literally the greatest of all time.

So, sure. Those other guys are fine. But let’s not try to rush the guys we have now out. They’re in the midst of their primes and have lots more winning to do.

The Tip-Off

Some NBA goodness from around the USA TODAY Sports network.

Fake news can get to the best of us, man. Even Stephen A. Smith. The First Take host was “sacked” by the Ballsack Sports Twitter account and Kevin Durant would not let him live it down.

Honestly, man, I can’t say I blame Durant here. That’s embarrassing when you work with literal NBA insiders. Everyone gets got, sure. But navigating the Twittersphere is easy when you only pay attention to reputable sources.

“These virtual streets are dangerous out here, folks. You’ve got to have real discerning eyes and ears when it comes to where you get your information and who that information comes from. There’s lots of fake news out there.

That sounds kind of daunting, right? But, honestly, it’s pretty easy. You just have to pay attention to reputable sources like Adrian Wojnarowski and explicitly not sources like a place called Ballsack Sports.”

It’s significantly less embarrassing to be right than it is to drop a juicy, but incorrect, quote on everyone. The bar just doesn’t hit the same.

So beware, folks.

One to Watch

(All odds via Tipico.)

Bulls (+205) vs. Bucks (-6.5, -260), O/U 232.5, 8 PM ET

The Chicago Bulls seem to be safely out of that play-in range, but this is a matchup that could have playoff implications if the Bulls fall to 6th place in the East. Milwaukee is in 3rd and are just a half-game behind the Celtics for 2nd, but they’ve lost two straight.

I think this winds up being a blowout in the Bucks favor. I’m taking the under here.

Who’s in and out?

—LeBron James is missing a second consecutive game thanks to that ankle injury and the Lakers’ playoff hopes are pretty much dead now.

—Zach LaVine was downgraded from probable for tonight’s showdown against the Bucks to questionable. Not a great sign.

—Giannis Antetokounmpo is also having knee issues ahead of that game but has been listed as probable.

Shootaround

—Bryan Kalbrosky explains the meaning behind the sweet gift Bill Self gave an amazingly sweet gift to Devon Dotson after winning the national championship. Dotson was on that 2020 team that had its season cancelled.

—Magic Johnson is blaming LeBron James for the Lakers not getting DeMar DeRozan last summer. Hindsight is always 20/20, though.

—A look at some former March Madness MOP’s and where they are now. Look at how young Carmelo Anthony is.

—Charles Barkley trolling Kenny Smith after UNC’s loss is so incredibly savage.

LAYUP LINES: Jordan Poole is the face of the future for the Golden State Warriors and it starts right now

Paul George also comes back tonight!

YEERRRRRRR! What’s good, folks? It’s the homie Sykes and you are locked in for another edition For The Win’s Layup Lines newsletter.

Yes, that’s right. They let me come back to send another one of these things off despite me absolutely needing to be jailed somewhere for making a “cha ching” noise on a sneaker unboxing video about Kawhi Leonard’s new shoes. You don’t need to watch it. Just know it was really bad.

…Maybe still go watch it, though. Anyway, let’s jump in.

The Tip-Off

Highlighting some NBA goodness from around the USA TODAY Sports network

When it comes to breaking down the tape on upcoming prospects and young players around the league, our guy Bryan Kalbrosky is an absolute wizard (no, not those Wizards. He’s actually good).

He gave us another gem with this recent breakdown of Jordan Poole and his spectacular March so far. Bryan says he should be the NBA’s most improved player and I can’t say I disagree — no disrespect to Ja Morant and the other guys in the discussion.

But, uh, anytime you’re mentioned with Nikola Jokic and LeBron James, you’re doing something right.

That was during the first game he played in March and he has since averaged 25.5 points per game. He has reached 30 points on three separate occasions and there are only two players in the Western Conference who have scored as many total points in March: LeBron James and Nikola Jokic.

That dude is on fire.

One to Watch

(All odds via Tipico)

76ers (-1.5, -125) vs. Bucks (+102), O/U 230.5, 7 PM ET

This is must-see television right here, folks. Not only are there two MVP candidates clashing here in Giannis Antetokounmpo and Joel Embiid, but it’s also the tiebreaker between these two as they’ve both already beaten each other once. You smell that, y’all? That smells like playoff implications!

The stakes are high, folks. It’ll be an excellent game. There’s always a lot of scoring between these two sides so I’m pounding the over here.

Who’s in and out?

—Big news! Paul George is officially listed as “questionable” for the Clippers’ game against the Jazz tonight. Barring a setback, he should play for the first time since December.

—Speaking of the Jazz, Donovan Mitchell is off their injury report completely. Rudy Gobert and Bojan Bogdanovic are both listed as questionable.

—Both LeBron James and Anthony Davis are still listed as doubtful on the Lakers’ injury report for their game against the Mavericks.

—X-rays were negative on Evan Mobley’s sprained ankle but it’s unclear when he’ll be coming back for the Cavs. That could mean a lot for the East’s standings.

Shootaround

—This is the sort of investigative journalism we need more of today. A fan found that the Lakers weren’t including LeBron James‘ picture on any of their tweets after a loss and I’m still cackling about this.

—The NBA’s most random feud is between Ty Lue and Daryl Morey and I’m so confused about it. It gets pretty vicious!

—Speaking of LeBron, here’s a look at him through two decades of video games from Hoopshype. The dude looked like a straight-up box in 2004.

—Austin Krell of Sixers Wire explains why the 76ers have a backup center problem they need an answer to ASAP. He also spells out why Deandre Jordan is absolutely not it.

And we’re out! Thanks for reading. We’ll see you tomorrow.