The United States will enter the 2023 FIBA Basketball World Cup in August as the second- ranked country in the world.

Yes, the second-ranked country.

For the first time in more than a decade, US men’s basketball slipped to No. 2 in the FIBA world rankings back in November. The top spot currently belongs to Spain, winners of the 2022 FIBA EuroBasket—the championship of Europe for men’s national teams—and the 2019 FIBA World Cup (a tournament in which the Americans finished seventh). The US does not send its A-team to events such as the FIBA AmeriCup, where it came in third last year after being knocked out by Argentina, but the results of those tournaments still impact the rankings. And while the squad put together for the Tokyo Olympics emerged victorious two summers ago, it lost to France during the preliminary round and only won by 5, 87-82, in a rematch in the Final. 

You don’t have to look hard for proof that the game is growing around the world. The three finalists for the 2023 NBA MVP hailed from countries outside the United States—winner Joel Embiid (Cameroon) and runners-up Nikola Jokic (Serbia) and Giannis Antetokounmpo (Greece)—as well as six of the top eight vote-getters. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (Canada) finished fifth, followed by Domantas Sabonis (Lithuania) in seventh and Luka Doncic (Slovenia) in eighth. This marked the fifth straight season that a foreign-born player was crowned MVP, dating back to Antetokounmpo’s first triumph in 2019.

Most of those stars have confirmed that they intend to play in the upcoming World Cup, which will take place in the Philippines, Japan and Indonesia. This year’s event will be the second to feature 32 teams and the first to be hosted by multiple nations. It’s also the gateway to the 2024 Olympics in Paris, as seven countries will qualify based on their performances: two from the Americas, two from Europe, one from Africa, one from Asia and one from Oceania.

For the US, the tournament will be far from a cakewalk, regardless of who lands on the team’s final roster. 

“There are quality players around the world—I think we’re starting to see that,” says Carlan Gay, deputy editor at The Sporting News and an announcer for international competitions. “Four of the five that finished at the top of the MVP voting aren’t American born—that just tells you that the world isn’t catching up, it has caught up.” 

“I think that we have this idea that, well, if it’s not American, it’s not as good,” says Jeff Taylor, an international basketball commentator since 1997. “I understood immediately watching the [1997] EuroBasket—watching a game between Poland and Germany—I was struck by how good they were.” 

Taylor has covered most of FIBA’s flagship events since then, observing firsthand how the level of talent has risen in other countries. “It’s grown exponentially,” he tells SLAM. “I think it was already good at the time, but I think there are different factors at work here [that have made it even better].”

For one, an increasing number of Europeans jumped to the NBA in the late 1990s and early 2000s. The success of guys like Dirk Nowitzki, Pau Gasol and Tony Parker helped erase stigmas about foreign players—mainly, that they were too soft and not athletic enough to succeed in the States—and inspired others to follow in their footsteps.

Emerging talents overseas join top professional organizations as teenagers, where they are exposed to elite coaching and stiff competition that accelerates their development. Doncic signed a five-year contract with Real Madrid at the age of 13, and No. 1 NBA draft prospect Victor Wembanyama has been a pro since he was 15. Of course, those high-level prospects also join their respective national team programs early on, which facilitates even more growth.

“There’s more opportunity for development within your national team program [overseas],” says University of Alabama assistant coach Ryan Pannone, who has previously coached in the NBA, G League, China Germany, Slovakia and Israel. “And the pressure those guys are playing under and the pride for their national teams is really high. [For example], Luka was playing within the national team obviously from a very young age in Slovenia, and he was in the academy within Real Madrid in Spain. So he’s getting professional coaching seven days a week from coaches whose full-time jobs are to make sure he develops; and then in the summer, he’s in the national team system of Slovenia, where he’s playing in high-pressure-filled games.”

Basketball journeyman Scotty Hopson, who has played in 10 countries and suited up for the 2018 USA World Cup Qualifying Team, notes that the “athleticism level” has increased among international players. “Whenever I go to these countries and play against other teams and players, I feel like they always have a knowledge of basketball that’s pretty high level,” says Hopson. “And now you add the component that guys are starting to get more athletic, starting to understand how to take care of their bodies, how to train more.”

It’s important to mention that the FIBA game is different—harder, in a lot of ways. Quarters are 10 minutes long as opposed to 12. The court is smaller (91 feet-10 inches by 49 feet-2.5 inches, compared to the NBA’s 94 feet by 50 feet), and the three-point line is about a foot closer. There’s no defensive three seconds, and goaltending rules are modified: players are allowed to swat the ball off the cylinder as soon as it touches the rim.

All of these changes result in a distinct style of play: more strategic and methodical, less spaced. Teams value possessions more because there are fewer of them. On defense, it’s easier to pack the paint and provide help. Closeouts are faster—there’s not as much ground to cover—so coaches emphasize shooting and making quick reads. “The game internationally can be very physical, very tactical. And if you’re going to play it, you have to be very intelligent,” explains Taylor.

“The game in Europe is way harder than the game in the NBA,” Antetokounmpo said last September. “The talent obviously in the NBA is way higher, but the space [is better]—you have a lot of lanes to drive the ball, a lot of lanes to create. Over there it’s more intense.” 

During the 2022 FIBA EuroBasket last summer, Antetokounmpo had to work extremely hard for his points, as opponents clogged the middle and sent double or triple teams his way. “And in the past, this has helped me a lot, like when I came back from [the World Cup] in 2019,” he added. “That was the year we went to the bubble. The first couple of games, I felt like the court was huge.”

“Is it harder? Yes, because I think you really need to have quick thinking,” Jokic said about the international game after EuroBasket. “In the NBA, if you go by the guy, you can see the help is coming. In Europe, help is always there. So you need to think and play ahead.” That challenge helped Jokic evolve into the playmaker that he is today and made transitioning to the NBA much easier. Similarly, Doncic told SLAM in 2022: “I think from [Europe] comes my reading the game, all the passing skills.”

Thus, current and future NBA players can benefit tremendously from participating in FIBA events, especially given the intensity of those environments. Many of those players also assume bigger roles for their national teams, which allows them to showcase other parts of their games. Utah Jazz forward Lauri Markkanen, for example, shined as the number one option for Finland at the 2022 EuroBasket, averaging 27.9 points on 54 percent shooting from the field and 41 percent from three.

When he returned to the States for the 2022-23 NBA season, Jazz head coach Will Hardy encouraged Markkanen to play exactly as he had for Finland—confident, assertive, in more of a central role. And Markkanen had the best year of his NBA career, making his first All-Star team and winning the Most Improved Player award.

Says Coach Pannone, who was an assistant for the New Orleans Pelicans in 2022-23, “Obviously, Lauri Markkanen and the way that panned out doesn’t happen for every [NBA] team, but [FIBA events] certainly give you the chance to see one of your players in more of a star role—how they’re used, how they handle it, how successful they are. And you get that opportunity without it costing you games by trying to experiment with that throughout the NBA season.”

Markkanen will be with Finland again this summer for the World Cup. Other international players expected to compete include Antetokounmpo, Doncic, Jokic, Gilgeous-Alexander, Sabonis, Wembanyama, Rudy Gobert (France), Karl-Anthony Towns (Dominican Republic), Kristaps Porzingis (Latvia), Franz Wagner (Germany), Josh Giddey (Australia), Nikola Vucevic (Montenegro), Jordan Clarkson (Philippines) and more. The US will likely enter the tournament as a significant favorite, but the depth of talent this year will once again make the road to the Naismith Trophy very difficult.

“Whether you’re from the United States or not, there’s going to be amazing competition here because the level of basketball in this World Cup, I think, will be unprecedented,” NBA deputy commissioner Mark Tatum said during an episode of One Sports’ The Game.

Defending champions Spain should have another formidable roster, led by veteran point guard Ricky Rubio, MVP of the 2019 FIBA World Cup, and Willy Hernangomez, MVP of the 2022 FIBA EuroBasket. Australia, ranked third, should have Giddey and several other NBA players, including Patty Mills, Joe Ingles, Matisse Thybulle, Josh Green and Jock Landale. The likely presence of Antetokounmpo, Doncic and Jokic ensures that Greece, Slovenia and Serbia will all be tough opponents. Canada could be stacked with household names: Gilgeous-Alexander, Jamal Murray, RJ Barrett, Andrew Wiggins, Kelly Olynyk, Dwight Powell, Lu Dort, Dillon Brooks and more. And then, of course, there’s France, a country that nearly toppled the United States in the Tokyo Olympics and should have a similar squad, plus the 7-4 phenom Wembanyama. 

The list of worthy competitors for the ’23 World Cup title goes on and on—each one composed of prideful players determined to reach the podium for their countries. 

“You can go down the list of guys who really take pride in putting on that [national team] jersey,” says Gay. “I don’t think it’s something that we truly understand in North America—how much passion there is for basketball outside of these borders and how much passion there is for performing on the world stage for your country—because of the NBA factor. I think kids around the world grow up not dreaming to be in the NBA but dreaming to play and win a World Cup and win an Olympic gold medal.”

“Representing your national team, it’s heavy,” said Antetokounmpo in September. “You represent your whole country.”

Asked about facing Antetokounmpo during the 2019 FIBA World Cup, then-United States head coach Gregg Popovich said this of international superstars: “When they play for their countries, we like to say that they become superheroes. They get together and, through their relationships and their views about their game, they just form a team that—they fall in love with each other. They enjoy playing with each other. And that goes across the board for everybody that’s in the tournament. A lot of them have grown up together, a lot of them have spent a lot of time playing together, and you can see that.”

“The biggest advantage I felt like [other countries] had was that those teams play together for years and years and years,” Hopson reiterates. He speaks from experience, having lost to a cohesive and well-coached Argentina squad during qualifiers for the 2019 FIBA World Cup. “You’re going into a situation where you’re playing against guys who have probably been playing together since they were kids. They have an advantage with that because the chemistry is already built.” 

Combine that chemistry with the rising talent and the hunger of players to win for their countries and the US will certainly have its hands full trying to reclaim the World Cup title and the No. 1 FIBA ranking.

“The gap has closed, but also, the fear factor is gone,” Gay says. “No one’s afraid to play Team USA. In fact, they’re circling that date on the calendar to try to make history.”

SLAM 244 is also available in this exclusive Gold Metal Edition.

Photos via Getty Images.

The post International Superstars are Now Dominating the Game More Than Ever Before appeared first on SLAM.

The song choice is almost too good for this moment. Clarkson, who, per our sources, actually styles himself, is a rock star in his own way, from popping out at New York Fashion Week in the fall to arriving this season ready to really turn things up and average new career-highs. As he poses for his first-ever SLAM cover wearing his Utah Jazz City Edition jersey and rockin’ a black gel manicure, his All-Star teammate, Lauri Markkanen, asks for his thoughts on how he should style his jersey. 

“Gotta have it untucked,” Clarkson says. 

SLAM 243 featuring Lauri Markkanen and Jordan Clarkson is out now. Shop here.

While Clarkson and Markkanen might seem different—Markkanen was born and raised in Finland and turns 26 in May, while Clarkson is from down South, raised in Texas, and a few years older (he turns 31 in June)—they actually have a lot in common. They’re both fathers and both born under the Gemini sign, which is Latin for “twins,” for the two stars that make up its constellation. This season, the Jazz’s two leading scorers are shining brighter than ever: Markkanen is averaging a career-high 25.7 ppg and was just named an All-Star for the first time, while Clarkson has significantly improved as a playmaker and is putting up a career-high 20.8 points and 4.4 assists per contest. They’ve gone from being parts of trades—Clarkson was sent to the Jazz in 2019 after stints in L.A. and Cleveland, while Markkanen was a part of a blockbuster trade this past summer after four years in Chicago and a year in The Land—to becoming two key pieces of a franchise on the rebuild.

“Confidence is everything in this League,” Markkanen says. “In life, in general. It makes everything so much easier when you believe in yourself—what you’re doing—but it goes to your teammates as well. On the court, for example, going [into] every shot, knowing that my teammates believe that I’m going to knock it down. I think it’s just everything in this building. We all believe in each other, and I think that’s really helping us build something bigger than ourselves.”

While JC and Markkanen describe themselves as chill—as Clarkson takes photos, Markkanen chats about taking his family bowling for the first time and wanting to make time for them in between traveling—they’re equally as perceptive when it comes to the future of the organization. They know it’s not just on them, or about them. They’ve got an entire squad behind them, too.

“Everybody is hungry,” Clarkson later adds. “We’ve got a bunch of young guys who are willing to prove themselves, coming in here to work. That’s like a foundation point of anything.” 

Just a few days after our shoot, the Jazz went out and showed how promising their future can be with a big win against Boston, in which Markkanen scored 28. Even as he and JC sat out against Sacramento, the rest of the team held it down, with Kelly Olynyk notching his second straight double-double and rookies Walker Kessler and Ochai Agbaji, who impressed with a 27-piece, shining. 

“We’ve got big goals for ourselves. Obviously it is a process, but we’re not trying to fast forward a little bit as well [in] trying to build a winning culture,” he says. “…For everybody, the end goal is to win a championship. While we’re having a good time as a team, I don’t think that’s why we’re here. I don’t think we’re here just to have a good time. We’re trying to win games and play meaningful games. That’s what we’re working toward.” 

There are guys who have been exactly where the Jazz are working to get to. Even Juan Toscano-Anderson, who just joined the team after a trade sent him to Utah in February, won a championship with the Warriors just last year. JC has been to the playoffs four times throughout his career. What he’s learned from playing with LeBron and Kobe is that in those moments, good or bad, you have to just keep it pushing. 

“It goes with the territory,” Clarkson later adds. “The biggest thing is that you wake up and the sun comes out the next day. You put your shoes back on, tie ’em up and figure it out. All of this is a part of the trials and tribulations, the ups and downs. The roller coaster ain’t no fun unless it makes loops.”

Back in 2018, JC was a 25-year-old with a low-top cut, learning those lessons firsthand in Cleveland. He made his first playoff appearance, and at the time, everything was “eye-opening.” The play calls. The level of communication. The Cavs went seven games against Indiana, swept Toronto and then went seven more against Boston to get to the Finals. Clarkson was trying to get up to speed as quickly as he could, but admits now that he didn’t feel as prepared as he thought he needed to be. 

The Cavs ended up losing to the Warriors in four games in the Finals. Clarkson didn’t hit the floor in either of the last two matchups. 

“Trying to get up to speed in a time where I’d never been in that situation was pretty crazy,” Clarkson says. “I kind of take it as a learning experience for me and just kept pushing and pushing, and now we’re in a position [where I’ve] played in the playoffs the last three, four years, have produced and we’ve won games—not where we wanted to be in the end goal but, I think I’ve made progress in that sense and being in a position now where we’re winning games and we’re trying to lead guys as well.”

As someone who prefers to live in the present, Clarkson has been able to dial in and prove the narrative wrong that his game is one-dimensional and he’s limited to just scoring wrong. He’s emerged as a playmaker who can dish no-look passes to Markkanen and orchestrate an offense. “The biggest thing is calm down. Not try to do too much and let plays happen,” he explains. “A lot of times, aggressiveness turns into bad things, so just being able to find yourself in those moments and being able to reel yourself in with a snowball effect…Knowing that I am an older guy now, I’ve been in the League for a while, [so], just trying to knock those moments down and just help the team. 

Is that what he’d tell his younger self? 

“Oh yeah, for sure. I’m probably talking to myself right now,” Clarkson says.

Both literally and figuratively, JC has really been climbing his way throughout his career, and since he arrived in Utah, he’s also been exploring what the city has to offer. He’s hiked the Living Room Trail, visited the hot springs and traveled even further south to see the canyons. “I just kind of get lost up there,” he says. “I know a few times, we’ve been up there when it was dark—figured out that’s not our cup of tea.” 

Utah has been a turning point for Markkanen, too. While he hasn’t had much time to really see Salt Lake City like that—he was playing for Finland in the EuroBasket this summer when the trade went down—he felt a “mental shift” from the minute he touched down in the city for training camp. 

“Getting traded, first of all, and then arriving here, I think just kind of flipped the switch in my mindset,” he says. “I thought I did everything I was asked to a year ago, and then to see the business side of basketball and still get traded. I kind of go out there and try to play my best every night. That really motivated me as well.” 

When asked how he’s managed to make such a massive leap within just a year, Markkanen admits that he’s always had the individual goal of wanting to become an All-Star. But to actually make that happen, he gives credit to his support system. “Coach [Will] Hardy has been doing a great job in just empowering the whole team and trying to play everybody [to] their strengths,” Markkanen explains. “And so, we’re all working toward a bigger goal, and it’s been a big part of why I’ve been able to do that—just getting the help and watching film, and again, back to that teammate thing, I’m not doing it by myself. A lot of my scoring, for example, is assisted baskets. They’re coming off my teammate’s passes, so they’ve been finding me, giving me good looks, and then I just gotta be able to knock them down. So I always give the biggest credit to my teammates and coaches.”

Clarkson is quick to show him love right back. “This year, as a player, seeing what the defenses are throwing at him and how he’s adjusting has been amazing,” he says, when asked about Markkanen’s growth. “It’s one of those things [where]—I’ve been around stars, major stars. Bron, Kobe. Seeing Don [Donovan Mitchell] last year as a young star. Seeing [Lauri] come into his own as a star, it’s been amazing.” 

Regardless of what the outcome of this season is, there’s power in Clarkson, Markkanen and the whole team keeping everything in perspective. To move up in the Western Conference standings, and solidify themselves as playoff contenders, they’ll have to keep that same energy, and keep it pushing. 

“I know it sounds crazy, but stick with the process,” Clarkson tells Markkanen. “The biggest thing you can always say: it’s never a failure, it’s just a learning experience. Next time, I know how you are, how you get to work. You ’gon figure it out. Next time that happens, he’s ’gon be prepared for it.”

SLAM 243 is also available in this exclusive Gold Metal Edition and Cover Tee.

Portraits by Marcus Stevens.

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It’s easy to explain the 1993 NBA All-Star Game in today’s terms: Lauri Markkanen and Jordan Clarkson are MVPs as their team wins an OT classic. Neat as it would be for the locals if Markkanen and Clarkson played a big role in this year’s game—were they even to make it—or even if this was last season and the Gobert-Mitchell partnership starred, that doesn’t actually do justice to what went down at the Delta Center on February 21, 1993, the first and only time Utah has hosted the game until this year.

The ’92-93 NBA season saw two Jazz legends at their steady and consistent best. Power forward Karl Malone, at 29 years old and in his eighth season, played all 82 regular season games, averaging 27 points and 11 rebounds per game for a Jazz team that was on the rise. Many of his points came via feeds from Utah point guard John Stockton, a 30-year-old in his ninth season who led the League in assists at 12 per while also notching 15.1 ppg and 2.4 spg. At that point in their careers, in fact, Malone and Stockton had each only missed a total of four games. “DNP-rest” did not exist back then, to say the least. The two pick-n-roll greats didn’t rest on the day of the All-Star Game that year, either, each starting and playing more than 30 minutes.

Obviously, every All-Star Game is filled with the best the NBA has to offer, but the way that
year’s classic fell in certain players’ career trajectories gave it an extra sheen. And this was despite the fact that this was the first All-Star Game in NBA history (dating to 1951!) without a Celtic or Laker on a roster.

We had to re-watch this joint on YouTube in part because, in something as rare as the Celtic-Laker stat but in reverse, SLAM wasn’t there. And for an awfully good reason—we didn’t exist yet. So we’ve got no funny stories about run-ins with other media or PR staff, over-the-top gifting suites, too many free drinks, off-the-hook Stance Spades parties or Sprinter vans on the loose. Considering SLAM launched before the ’94 All-Star Game took place, this ’93 mid-winter classic belongs in the record books for that reason alone: The Last All-Star Game Before SLAM. 

And just to stay on that tangent, the cover of the very first SLAM, which hit stands sometime around Jan 1, 1994, featured Larry Johnson, who started the ’93 All-Star Game, which shows how fly a player he was. And yet…you know a crazy stat about LJ vis a vis the other star(ter)s in the ’93 Game? He’s the only one who is not in the Hall of Fame. 

Peep the greatness from the other nine ballers who were on the court for the game’s beginning: Malone, Stockton, Charles Barkley, Clyde Drexler and David Robinson in the West; Michael Jordan, Shaquille O’Neal, Scottie Pippen and Isiah Thomas in the East. 

The game was the last of 12 straight Thomas would make in his career. It was the last All-Star appearance Jordan would make before he won his third straight NBA title and then shocked the world with his first retirement. It was the first All-Star appearance of 15 O’Neal would make in his big career. The ’93 All-Star Game also featured classic pivot men Patrick Ewing and Hakeem Olajuwon off the bench, along with the penultimate All-Star appearance for Dominique Wilkins, who appeared in a total of eight as a member of the Atlanta Hawks.   

Chock full of dudes known as much for their competitive spirits as their on-court abilities, the game was entertaining and tightly contested from the jump, which the video of the game confirms. With Dick Enberg on play-by-play duties and Mike Fratello and Magic Johnson on color commentary, the early hype around the game focused on Jordan (already well on his way to GOAT status) and Shaq (the first rookie to start an ASG since…Jordan in ’85). When the PA announcer ran through the Western Conference starters, he led with Stockton and closed with Malone, who got by far the biggest applause of anyone. It all felt cute, but not like these were real MVPs-in-waiting.

As was their custom, though, the Jazz stars steadily asserted their influence on the game, wearing down the East with their all-around excellence. Jordan was the leading scorer, notching 30 points and making the biggest pass of the game, when he hit Ewing to complete a perfect pick-n-pop for a game-tying jumper with seconds left in regulation. When the West took control in overtime, however, the writing was on the wall. A strong performance in the fifth period helped Stockton and Malone to final stat lines of 9 points and 15 assists (the only player with double-digit dimes) and 28 points with 10 rebounds, respectively. Within about three seconds of the buzzer sounding to end the game, and before the players could even have been told, Enberg made it official: Stockton and Malone were co-MVPs.

What else happened that weekend? Well, not as much as would happen at later extravaganzas, to be honest. Friday was media day, but MJ didn’t even get to town for that because he was off playing golf (as he would do most years). There was no All-Star Friday night because there was no Rookie Game, Rookie-Sophomore Game, Rising Stars Challenge, etc. That whole concept didn’t exist yet. Like SLAM, that was an invention that the world would need to wait until 1994 for. 

All-Star Saturday was a thing, and 1993’s version was, let’s say, average? The Three-Point Shootout was won by Mark Price, which is fun because dude really was a bonkers shooter and because he won the next year, too. Those were the only two three-point shootouts Price was ever in, which is a dope stat. 

The Dunk Contest had already fallen from the ’80s highs of MJ vs Dominique but was still a place you might catch a future star do their thing. In ’93, Harold Miner provided a glimpse of what might be, winning the contest as part of a rookie year that saw him, believe it or not, average 10 points in just 19 minutes per outing with the Miami Heat. The dunks and the instant offense were, as of February 1993, enough to make one think maybe the “Baby Jordan” moniker that had been attached to the 6-5, shaved-head-sporting shooting guard was accurate. Alas, by year three of his career, his numbers had fallen off precipitously, and while Miner did join Price in the two-time champ club when he won the ’95 Dunk Contest, he was out of the League for good by ’96. It could be argued the rookie year dunk title was the high-point of his career.

There was also, if our photo research can be believed, some sort of celebrity dunk contest that involved Jaleel White and Mayim Bialik. We literally can’t figure out what was going on there and probably don’t want to. Honestly, all of the Saturday “action” was long-forgotten by the time Sunday’s game reached its exciting climax. As Enberg would say in his second to last line of the broadcast, the game had produced a “Utah Jazz parlay” in the form of the co-MVPs (Enberg’s sign-off that day was “Wayne’s World is next.” The ’90s were on one.), and that’s all anyone in Utah cared about. Malone himself summed things up with a perfect quote after the game. “I guess if you were writing a storybook,” The Mailman said, “this is just about how you’d write it.” 

Photos via Getty Images.

The post A Look Back at the 1993 All-Star Weekend in Salt Lake City appeared first on SLAM.

Its name is a nod to the neighbor-y, community-driven aura it provides visitors—a time travel-like, nostalgic experience from the moment they enter. 

The Provo spot has already drawn plenty of high-profile names, including Clarkson, Sexton, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Royce O’Neale, to name a few. Clarkson randomly messaged them one day on social media and has been a loyal customer ever since. He recently scooped up a rare Jeff Hamilton All-Star Weekend jacket. 

“Thrifthood actually all happened by mistake. Myself and Alby [Alan Bostrom], the other co-owner…we were just friends who loved to get together, like, to do game night hosting, whatever, for fun with our friends,” says Krysten “Sissy” McDade of how it all originated. “And we also love fashion and somehow stumbled upon getting fits together and reselling and all these things. And it literally was just supposed to be for fun, and suddenly we’re like, Let’s just sell and see if we can make money to shoot ourselves a new pair of shoes, to whatever we wanted, really. And literally since that day in 2018 when we started, we never stopped, and so we actually sold out of a basement for seven months.”

After seven months of that basement, Thrifthood made the transition to a storefront, and like the  saying goes, the rest was indeed history. 

“The day that we opened the storefront, we had $22 in our business bank account, and we were like, This better work, let’s just make sure we can pay for rent month to month,’” says Sissy, who also credits partner Aaron and store manager Warren for the success. “And then slowly but surely our team started coming together.”   

It more than just came together; it’s now high on the to-do list of every hoops fan visiting the state this All-Star Weekend. 

Photos via Thrifthood.

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Patience. 

Patience. 

Patience. 

Patience. 

Patience. 

And… 

Patience. 

Patience. 

Patience. 

Patience. 

Patience.

Still there?

We’re on Lauri Markkanen time right here. 

His story is one of patience. Like, one where nothing, like, nothing really, um, even kinda, sorta happens at first. Or at second. Enough doesn’t happen that what has happened gets forgotten. But that doesn’t mean there’s nothing happening. Stuff is happening. 

Patience is a test. It’s illusions and confusions. What’s real isn’t revealed for a long time. How strong is will? Patience will be the great unveil. Patience is lonely. Patience is a marathon. It’s stamina unending. How long will the run be? How far is the distance? Can the sprint continue all the way into the unknown? What if the running isn’t worth the work?

What if it is?

So…

Patience.

Patience. 

Patience. 

Patience. 

Patience.

This test isn’t pass or fail. Pass or fail is a destination. Markkanen’s story is not about arriving.

It’s about becoming. He knows perseverance. 

Because even what he’s done with the Utah Jazz this season, a season where it looks like he has arrived, isn’t complete yet. Though it does look like the fury of the patient man has become a fire. The 7-foot Markkanen is looking more like the potential has been realized. He’s looking like an offensive cornerstone, a stone that had to survive unforgiving rushing rapids, a stone that’s lasted to become fully polished and shiny.

Shiny like 25 points and 9 boards a game. He’s had a 49-point outburst and he’s had six games of at least 13 rebounds. He’s had gamewinners and he’s had the firepower to ignite complete blowouts. There’s some new confidence to him out there. But it might not even be new. Patience is a test of illusions and confusions. Maybe he’s always been this all along? Has he always been this good? Statistically, no. This is his best and most impactful campaign since the Bulls selected him with the seventh pick in 2017. There’s some type of spirit in him this season, something entirely different from everything we saw during his time in Chicago and Cleveland. It just might’ve been restrained, which can be attributed to any number of reasons, from more famous names demanding more shots to less nuanced leadership not realizing how much Markkanen is capable of. So he’s been let off the leash and all of that marathon sprinting he’s been doing has led him to rove ’round the floor without any restrictions. It’s credit to first year head coach Will Hardy and even more credit to Markkanen for continuing to work in the silence of patience, when absolutely nothing was even promised. 

And with nothing promised, Markkanen improved on everything. He’s gotten better at creating his own shot and at finishing around the rim. He can roll, pop or slip from any ball-screen situation. He can post or face, dunk or shoot, draw fouls and make free throws. He’s the Jazz’s closing option because of the matchup problem that comes with a mobile and aggressive 7-footer. 

The skill set varies from moment to moment. Markkanen acts as a slasher, with his foot pressed all the way down on the accelerator to meet a lob at the rim. He goes off the bounce by himself, finishing through contact. He spots up in the corner, waiting for a pass to drill a three.

More waiting. 

More patience. Many a mind has valued patience to the utmost. 

“Genius is eternal patience,” Michelangelo, who crafted the frescoes on the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel, once said. 

“I get you all you can eat, just have some patience with me,” Aubrey Graham, who is the voice of a generation, once said. 

Markkanen’s whole team is eating because of his patience. Behind resurgent performances from Jordan Clarkson, Mike Conley, Malik Beasley, Kelly Olynyk and Collin Sexton, the Jazz are right back in the playoff hunt during a season in which the bottom was outside the world’s expectations. Their best player has them just 1.5 games from fifth in the West, as we go to press. 

In fact, he and Conley have created a pick-and-roll duo that follows in the tradition of John Stockton and Karl Malone and Deron Williams and Carlos Boozer. Markkanen is in the 80th percentile in the League as a finisher out of PNR. Other numbers tell a similar story as he inches close to a 50-40-90 season. Right now he’s 52-42-87. It’s striking efficiency considering how a ton of the offense relies on him. 

Does high-level basketball like that only come through patience? Could he have done that at stop No. 1 or stop No. 2? Could he have been mature enough to handle so many different looks on the offensive side? 

Do any of these questions even matter? 

No, they don’t. Because we’re here now, in this moment where Lauri Markkanen should represent the Utah Jazz at the ’23 All-Star Game in Salt Lake City. He’s taken the leap out of ever-waiting patience up into a consistent scoring threat from each of the three necessary levels. In a year where nobody expected anything to happen, a lot has happened. If he doesn’t make it, there will be more time for him to get there, no matter which city it’s being held in. He’s just 25 years old. We know that he has patience.

His head coach Will Hardy knows it, too. 

“I thought it was another game where Lauri seemed to kinda do a little bit of everything, made threes, got to the basket with force early in the game,” he said just a few days before we went to press. “He’s just continuing to grow before our eyes every night in terms of understanding there’s a lot of different ways to be effective on the offensive end in this League, especially when you have his combination of size, skill, and athleticism.” 

Just a little patience. 

Photos via Getty Images

The post NBA All-Star Lauri Markkanen is Putting the League on Notice with the Utah Jazz | SLAM appeared first on SLAM.

The only thing is, Atlanta has a STEEP asking price for Atlanta. An Eastern Conference executive reportedly told Heavy Sports that the Hawks want a “big-time return for Collins” and “something in that neighborhood” of what the Utah Jazz received when they traded their All-Star cornerstones, Rudy Gobert and Donovan Mitchell, over the summer.

Gobert was traded to Minnesota for four first-round picks and one pick swap, while Mitchell was traded to Cleveland for three first-round picks and two pick swaps, Collin Sexton and All-Star candidate Lauri Markkanen.

Collins is averaging 13.3 points, 8.1 rebounds, and 1.4 blocks per game during the 2022-23 campaign. His lower numbers can be attributed to a new role and adjusting to De’Andre Hunter and Dejounte Murray taking up more shots and opportunities to score. However, Collins was a major contributor to Atlanta making an Eastern Conference Finals run in 2021 and certainly has All-Star talent.

It’ll be interesting to see if any team will take a significant step forward and essentially give the farm away for Collins by the time the trade deadline ticks down. The Brooklyn Nets are reportedly the main team showing interest. The Nets reportedly expressed interest in acquiring Collins during the 2022 NBA Draft and are looking to add a star or “power-forward-like player” heading into the season’s stretch run.

Atlanta will look to build a consecutive win streak when they take on the Bucks on Wednesday.

The post REPORT: Atlanta Wants John Collins Trade Package Similar to What Utah Got for Rudy Gobert and Donovan Mitchell appeared first on SLAM.

Clarkson understood the assignment and went off for a season-high 39 points in the gritty OT thriller. Clarkson shot 15-of-26 from the field to go along with a season-high eight rebounds and seven threes too.

After the game, Clarkson was asked what it was like to be in a zone, to which he replied:

“It feels good definitely, get the shot going, moving the ball. I think the big thing for us we just kept playing. Even though I was hot, we wasn’t forcing the ball to me. We were just playing together, moving the ball, and making shots, that’s it.”

Clarkson was then asked about the teams clutchness and how they responded in overtime.

“Just big plays at the end. We all grinding, we all hungry, so when it comes down to those clutch moments we just try to make big shots.”

Clarkson went on to credit teammates Lauri Markkanen, Kelly Olynyk, and Malik Beasley for their performances not only in the game, but throughout the season so far as well.

The post ‘We All Grinding’: Jordan Clarkson Drops a Season-High 39 Points in Jazz OT Win appeared first on SLAM.

Markkanen is the lead scorer for a Utah Jazz (12-7) that owns the best record in the West and the third-best in the League behind the Celtics (13-4) and Bucks (12-4). The Jazz playing this well may come as a surprise to NBA fans and media figures who expected Utah to launch a rebuild with new head coach Will Hardy and a new front office regime led by Danny Ainge.

The 25-year-old forward has drawn positive reviews from his teammates, who think that Markkanen is an All-Star. When Mark Medina of NBA.com mentioned this, Markannen said, “it’s pretty cool to know that your teammates have your back.”

“Of course, I know it’s still real early in the season,” Markkanen said. “Obviously, I try to go out there and play like that every night. That’s my goal. It’s fun to hear that from them. But we keep going to work, and we’re focusing on the day-by-day. That has always been a personal goal of mine.”

Jazz forward Lauri Markkanen said that becoming an All-Star “has always been a personal goal of mine.” Markkanen below on his teammates saying he should make the team this season pic.twitter.com/jB3CovzVTl

— Mark Medina (@MarkG_Medina) November 22, 2022

Markkanen said that the Jazz has to keep “winning basketball games” while he works to “keep getting better every day and putting numbers up on a winning team.”

“That’s the trick,” Markkanen said. “I know if I play to the best of my abilities, ‘t’ll help the team.

The post Lauri Markkanen Lists Making the All-Star Game as ‘a Personal Goal’ appeared first on SLAM.

They were again led by great perimeter play, Jordan Clarkson scored 23 points, and Collin Sexton kicked in 22 points from the bench. The Jazz was up by double digits early in the first half, but they blew the lead and had to rally after trailing for much of the third and fourth quarters. 

After a blistering shooting performance on Friday to take down the Los Angeles Lakers, the Jazz had to reach deeper to gut out last night’s win and complete the Los Angeles sweep. The Jazz turned over the ball a whopping 20 times in their victory, but they outscored the Clippers 26-17 in the fourth quarter. 

“Finding ways to win is fun,” Coach Will Hardy said following the game, per ESPN. “I’m very proud of the team to overcome 20 turnovers.” 

The Jazz is the second seed in the Western Conference despite most of the “experts” projecting them to be a bottom-tier team in the league. The Jazz traded Donovan Mitchell (Cavs) and Rudy Gobert (Timberwolves) this summer and are supposed to be starting their rebuild. The draft assets the Jazz got in return: Lauri Markanen, Sexton, Malik Beasley, Walker Kessler, and Kelly Olynk said not so fast.

“I’m starting to get more comfortable in myself,” Sexton said after the game. “Just staying ready and being present throughout the game.” 

Sexton had the game-sealing dunk when the Jazz was up by 4 with 54 seconds left. Clarkson could be seen cheering from the bench. The Jazz has surpassed all expectations of what was projected to be a down year. Whether or not they can maintain this level of play remains to be seen, but one thing is for sure: Utah is a lot of f****ing fun. 

The Jazz plays the Lakers on Monday at 10:15 PM EST.    

The post As They Rebuild, the Utah Jazz Are Now 8-3 and A Lot of Fun to Watch appeared first on SLAM.

The team has relied on Max Strus and Duncan Robinson to handle the load at the power forward slot, but the team looks to be losing hope in their defensive powers as reports suggest the Heat are looking at trade suitors.

“Kyle Kuzma and Taj Gibson aren’t the only potential moves that the Heat have been linked to recently,” according to Heavy.com’s Thomas Darro. “Link them to PJ Washington from the Charlotte Hornets, as well as finalizing a reunion between Crowder and the Heat. But another has been Bojan Bogdanovic from the Detroit Pistons and Lauri Markkanen from the Utah Jazz.”

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Kuzma of the Washington Wizards is off to a fantastic start to the young season as he’s averaging 19.7 points, 7.0 rebounds, 1.3 blocks, and a staggering shooting at 46.5 percent from the field and 40.0 percent from beyond the arc. His size and length could turn him into a problem under the talented Heat coaching staff, but Heat President Pat Riley always keeps the door open to other options.

Washington is a restricted free agent this upcoming off-season due to the inability to negotiate a contract extension. The Hornets may be focused on providing their star point guard LaMelo Ball an enormous deal for the 2024 season, leaving little cap space to work for Washington.

The Heat wouldn’t mind one-year rentals, especially when there’s a lot of talent that needs to be proven out of the group. The 24-year-old would add the floor spacing, agility, and defensive intangibles that much up well against star rivals like Jaylen Brown, Khris Middleton and Demar Derozan.

Finally, the reunion Heat fans would welcome with open arms. Not too long ago, Phoenix Suns’ Jae Crowder was part of the resilient 2020 Heat squad that, as a 5th seed, went six games against the eventual champion Los Angeles Lakers in the NBA Finals. The chemistry on display, both offensive and defensively, is in no way bound to be lost in just the two seasons apart.

With this possibly being his 10th straight playoff appearance, a reunion with the Heat opens the door to a final run at a championship.

The post REPORT: Heat Linked to Kyle Kuzma, P.J Washington, and Jae Crowder appeared first on SLAM.

The Utah Jazz took on the New Orleans Pelicans Sunday night, and it was a beautiful display of basketball at the highest level. Whenever you have two hungry teams going at it, especially this early in the season? As a basketball fan, you know that you are in for a real treat! This game needed overtime, where it came down to the wire as the Jazz took home the win with an insane layup by Kelly Olynk as time expired.

Following the game, Olnyk had the following to say about this year’s Jazz team:

“Top to bottom, guys are playing hard, playing the right way, playing together, unselfish,” Olynyk said. “It’s been really fun to play the first three games. We’re getting better and learning more about each others’ games, it’s been showing, and it’s exciting.”

The Jazz was down by as many as 17 points in the fourth quarter. However, the team did not panic and stayed on the course. Jazz forward Lauri Markkanen was a huge spark for the team, finishing the game with 31 points on 9-17 shooting from the field and 12 rebounds. Markkanen also was a perfect 11/11 from the free throw line, hitting some clutch ones late to pad Utah’s come-from-behind victory and keep them undefeated.

While the Pelicans fought hard and left Utah with the loss, they also lost Zion Williamson late in the 4th due to injury after he took a hard fall on a fastbreak play. The team ruled the injury a posterior hip contusion, and they will continue to evaluate Williamson’s condition. Their next game is not until Tuesday, so we should expect an update on Williamson’s status later Monday or by gametime on Tuesday.

While still early in the season, it is clear that these two teams are ones that we should keep an eye on as the season progresses.

The post Kelly Olynk’s Game-Winner Lifts ‘Exciting’ Jazz Over the Pelicans appeared first on SLAM.

Utah required the three players after trading Mitchell to Cleveland for restricted free agent Sexton, Markkanen, and Agbaji eight days ago. Sexton reportedly agreed to a sign-and-trade deal to help the Cavs finish the trade negotiations; Sexton is locked in with Utah on a four-year deal worth $72 million.

“It was clear that in order to optimize our opportunity to create a team that could truly contend and establish sustained success, we needed to transition our roster,” Jazz CEO Danny Ainge said in a statement. “In trading Rudy (Gobert) and now Donovan, it was a rare opportunity to maximize our ability to get quality talent and picks to best position us moving forward. We have a plan in place to help us assemble the championship team our fans deserve. It will take time to craft our roster. We all understand the work ahead and are committed to our vision.”

GM Justin Zanik believes Sexton, Markkanen, and Agbaji are three “exciting young players.” The endorsement from Zanik could be a sign of good fortune for the three young stars that’ll play a pivotal role in Utah’s rebuilding effort.

Sexton averaged 16.0 points, 3.3 rebounds, and 2.1 assists per game on 45.0 percent shooting from the field in the 11 games he played last season before undergoing season-ending surgery to repair the torn meniscus he suffered in November. Markkanen averaged 14.8 points. 5.7 rebounds and 1.3 assists per game while shooting 44.5 percent from the field goal.

“We believe that they fit the Jazz culture and hard-nosed, competitive brand of basketball we’ve built here in Utah,” Zanik said. “They give us versatility and athleticism on both ends of the floor as we grow toward the future. We look forward to our fans getting to know them.”

The Utah Jazz opens the 2022-23 season against the Denver Nuggets on Oct. 19.

The post Jazz CEO Danny Ainge on Offseason Moves: ‘We Needed to Transition Our Roster’ appeared first on SLAM.

The Cleveland Cavaliers have acquired Donovan Mitchell in a trade, sources tell ESPN.

— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) September 1, 2022

Utah received Lauri Markkanen, Ochai Agbaji, Collin Sexton, three unprotected first-round picks, and two picks, according to Woj. Restricted free agent Sexton reportedly agreed to a sign-and-trade deal so the Cavs could move him to Utah.

Sexton has agreed to a sign-and-trade deal to join Utah, sources said.

— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) September 1, 2022

According to Woj, Cavs GM Koby Altman “circled back” with Utah GM Justin Zanik on Tuesday. The two teams negotiated a deal they had discussed previously. The Knicks declined to do a trade deal on Monday night after re-signing RJ Barrett, opening the door for Cleveland to secure a deal.

https://t.co/5lqkyvBvSP

— Donovan Mitchell (@spidadmitchell) September 1, 2022

The epic trade makes Cleveland a more significant threat in the East as they form a Big 3 around Mitchell, their All-Star duo of Darius Garland and Jarrett Allen, and their future All-Star building block in Evan Mobley.

The post REPORT: Cavaliers Acquire Donovan Mitchell in a Blockbuster Trade appeared first on SLAM.

Where the Cavs front office and Sexton may disagree is the amount of money Young Bull will make. According to NBA insider Michael Scott of the Hoopshype podcast, the Cavs want to retain Sexton, and Sexton will be demanding “starting guard money.”

“The Cavaliers want to retain Collin Sexton,” NBA insider Michael Scotto said on the HoopsHype podcast. “He’s going to demand starting guard money, I’m told.

“There are some teams who will be in the market for a point guard this summer, including the New York Knicks and Washington Wizards, who would have to acquire Sexton in a sign-and-trade if they want to get him. Last season, no restricted free agent signed an offer sheet, and players such as Cavaliers forward Lauri Markkanen switched teams via sign-and-trade.”

Sexton led the Cavs in scoring in 2020-21 (24.1 points per game) and 2021-22 (16.0 points per game) before he suffered a season-ending torn meniscus in his left knee 11 games into the season.

Should Cleveland decide to extend Sexton, he will be joining a team with a new pecking order after Darius Garland, and Jarrett Allen broke out and earned All-Star nominations. With Allen, Garland, and Evan Mobley as their franchise cornerstones, the Cavs (44-38) earned a spot in the Play-In Tournament thanks to their identity as a top-five ranked defense.

The Cavs also acquired Caris LeVert at the trade deadline. Both Sexton and LeVert play the same position. If Sexton returns, the Cavs will be facing a question of who starts and who comes off the bench. Both guards have experience playing a reduced role, with Sexton embracing the Cavs and asking him to take fewer shots for the team’s benefit. LeVert went from key weapon to coming off the bench to playing second-fiddle in his short time in Indiana.

The experience the two have in different roles will help make whatever transition Coach J.B. Bickerstaff will make. The main question will be if Cleveland wants to pay Sexton when they have a logjam at guard and will also need to prepare for extension talks when Garland becomes eligible in 2023. The other question will be does Cleveland believe they will repeat their success with Sexton next to Garland, LeVert, Allen, and Mobley.

Regardless, Cleveland has a bright future with Bickerstaff and GM Koby Altman at the top of the helm and Garland’s rise as the team’s face combined with the rapid development of All-Rookie center Mobley.

The post REPORT: Collin Sexton Wants ‘Starting Guard Money’ in New Cavs Deal appeared first on SLAM.

We’ve got a myth to get out of the way: NBA defense wasn’t better in the ’80s and ’90s. 

Those dudes, for the most part, just hit people. They called that defense. 

There are exceptions, of course. Scottie Pippen, Joe Dumars, Dennis Rodman, Michael Jordan, 
David Robinson, Hakeem Olajuwon, Patrick Ewing, Gary Payton, John Stockton, Dikembe Mutombo and Alonzo Mourning were all defenders ahead of their time—mentally, physically, technically and strategically. 

But defense in this era is a different game. This isn’t just about the new glossary of fancy terms that get yelled out on courts today. This is about a total redefinition of defensive responsibilities, an intellectual overhaul that has swept across the League. 

The new standards for guarding have touched down in Cleveland, where Jarrett Allen is an all-encompassing fortress. He doesn’t just lock down the interior. What started as something of a joke has become something closer to a revelation; the 6-10 Allen has been entrusted to switch pick-and-rolls on the perimeter. 

“I don’t really know how it happened, to be honest,” Allen tells us about the decision that he’d be guarding in space this season. “But I know last year, we were joking around, saying, you know, Let’s just switch 1 through 5. Partly just joking. And then this year we ended up adding Evan [Mobley] and Lauri [Markkanen] and Isaac [Okoro], great defenders. And then DG, he’s alright,” he says with a pause to allow his point guard, Darius Garland, the proper time to react to the playful slight on the group Zoom call. 

“And then we decided, Hey, you know, we’ve got all these bigs, why not just switch 3 through 5? Nobody’s gonna be able to really score against us in the paint. You blow by Evan, then you have to go up against me and Lauri. So we decided, Hey, this just might work. We tried it, what, in like the fifth game? And it worked. So don’t change what’s working.”

SLAM Presents All-Star Vol 2: The Land is available now!

“Working” is a humble way for the 23-year-old to talk about his breakout season.  

Allen’s numbers are career-best across the board. The 2017 draftee has never averaged more points, rebounds or assists, played as many minutes per game or had a better shooting percentage. 

If the season ended today (as of early January), Allen would finish with the seventh best single season field goal percentage in the history of the League. That’s seventh ever, throughout 75 years. 

It’s been dunks, lays, jump hooks and extensions out to the middle. And, as confirmed by the history-maker himself, a three-ball is in the works. 

“It’s just a testament to the team and how we’re playing together,” the Texas alum says. “As corny as it sounds, it’s a team game. Everybody sharing the ball, especially my point guard DG getting me open, throwing me lobs. That’s one of the main reasons that I’m doing what I’m doing. And partly to the work I put in this summer. I made a big emphasis to improve my offensive game, whether it’s passing, scoring in the post, just all of it.”

That connection with Garland has proven devastating for opponents, something the old NBA defenses would’ve needed Hakeem or one of the Georgetown boys to contain. 

“DG, he just said he’s shooting seven threes a game and he’s shooting them super efficiently,” Allen continues. “So it’s really one of those pick-your-poison things. Do you want DG to get hot on the pick-and-roll? Shoot this floater? Or do you want to get dunked on by him throwing the lob to me? It’s one of those things. It’s tough to guard because each option usually leads to a bucket.”

Allen, DG and Mobley make up the Cavs’ young core. Hitters like Markkanen, Okoro and Cedi Osman have filled in the gaps. There’s even more talent—losing Collin Sexton and Ricky Rubio to unfortunate injuries until the 2022-23 campaign stings, but the rest of the active players, including NBA champion and five-time All-Star Kevin Love, have the Cavs in the hunt for home court advantage in the 2022 playoffs.  

“Kevin’s a kid at heart, to be honest,” Allen says. “He kinda fits into our group, our young guys.”

It’s a group that has started barking together. Yeah, barking. Like dogs. Literally. 

“I didn’t start it,” Allen says. “Lamar [Stevens] started it, but I kinda adopted it. I think it’s perfect for what the team is trying to achieve. And it was fun. People look at us like, Why the hell are they barking? Honestly, I don’t know why, but it gets the team going. It’s funny. It’s one of those scrappy mentalities that I think works well with us. We’re a young team, but we have the talent to back up the scrap. I think that’s a perfect mentality for this team right now.”

Team, indeed. Excluding Sexton and Rubio, who would be part of this statistical crew, there are six Cavs averaging at least 11 points per game, as we head to press. Allen, Mobley and Love combine to pull down around 26 boards a night. Over 60 percent of their buckets come from assists. And thanks to Allen, the team has the third best defensive rating in the NBA, behind just the Warriors and the Suns. 

“It’s not a fluke,” Allen says. “That’s what people need to start realizing. You see people saying, Oh, man, they got the three bigs. Oh, this was just a lucky game for them. Oh, it’s not the new Cavs. It’s just a lucky game for them.

“But I’m just gonna keep asking: How many lucky games are we gonna have in a row? How many times are we gonna have to show that we’re a tough team, [that] you’re gonna have to play us hard, before they realize that we’re actually one of the top teams now?” 

Portrait Jimmy Longo/Cleveland Cavaliers and Getty Images.

The post How Jarrett Allen Established Himself as One of the Best Defenders in the League appeared first on SLAM.

Markannen suffered the injury to his right ankle in the first half and never returned to the game.

Lauri Markkanen went down on the court with an apparent ankle injury.

He was carried off the court by his teammates and is headed straight back to the locker room. Hope nothing’s serious.

Prayers up for Lauri. pic.twitter.com/MmoLU4wUG2

— NBA Analysis Network (@HoopAnalysisNet) January 23, 2022

The early injury report came from Cleveland.com’s Chris Fedor. He also reported that the injury is not linked to his knee or Achilles, with more information after more tests are conducted. On Monday, Fedor reported that Markannen will miss the Cavs’ game against the Knicks.

#Cavs Lauri Markkanen is OUT tomorrow with a right ankle sprain.

— Chris Fedor (@ChrisFedor) January 23, 2022

Markkanen hurt himself landing on his right leg trying to challenge Shai Gilgeous-Alexander’s driving layup. Up until that point, the 24-year-old seven-footer had a solid game scoring 9 points to go with two rebounds and one block before exiting the game.

Markannen has been one of several surprises during the Cavaliers’ resurgent 2021-2022 campaign. The Cavs are 28-17, good for fifth in the Eastern Conference playoff race as of Monday. Before suffering his ankle injury, Markkanen hit his scoring stride in the last 10 games scoring 14.3 points per game on 52.0 percent shooting from the field.

The post REPORT: Lauri Markannen Out Against the Knicks With Serious Ankle Sprain appeared first on SLAM.

On Tuesday night, ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski reported that Cavs GM Koby Altman received an extension through the 2027-28 season and promotion to President of Basketball Operations for the franchise.

Altman was first hired by the Cavs’ front office in 2012 but didn’t get the General Manager role until 2017, before the 2017-18 NBA season.

Altman oversaw the Cavaliers’ massive rebuild following the departure of LeBron James in 2018, but this season the Cavs have been a huge surprise. Halfway through the season, Cleveland is tied for fifth in the Eastern Conference with the Philadelphia 76ers with a 23-16 record.

A lot of the success this season is due to Altman’s management, as he was responsible for bringing in the entirety of the Cavs starting lineup, drafting Darius Garland, Evan Mobley, and the injured Collin Sexton, and trading for Jarrett Allen and Lauri Markkanen. As of Wednesday, the Cavaliers rank 14th in offensive rating (109.9) and have transformed their bottom-five defense into the third-best in the League with a 105.0 defensive rating.

Garland leads the team in scoring and assists with 19.5 points and 7.3 dimes per game too. The 21-year-old guard out Vanderbilt holds a 111.7 offensive rating and 102.4 defensive rating. Even as a rookie, Mobley has been a revelation at the center position, averaging 14.8 points and 8.1 boards, and 1.8 blocks per game, good for seventh place amongst block leaders.

The Cavaliers play against the Jazz (28-13) on Wednesday.

The post REPORT: Cavaliers Extend General Manager Koby Altman appeared first on SLAM.

Cleveland’s Lauri Markkanen has entered Health and Safety Protocols, team says.

— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) November 3, 2021

This marks the second player on Cleveland’s roster to enter health and safety protocols in the past week after Kevin Love entered the same protocols on Monday. Both forwards will be out indefinitely and not be allowed to be around the team per Chris Fedor. Markkanen’s quarantine will be the fourth the League has seen this week after Milwaukee’s Khris Middleton tested positive for COVID-19 yesterday and Philadelphia 76ers forward Tobias Harris underwent protocols earlier this week as well.

Per Wojnarowski, players who test positive have two avenues toward being reinstated; waiting 10 days post the first positive test or passing consecutive negative PCR tests 24 hours apart. Players who exhibit symptoms must also pass cardiac testing upon their return to the court and respective organizations.

Markkanen is currently averaging 12.9 points and 5.9 rebounds in just eight games so far this season.

The Cavs (4-4) will take on the Portland Trail Blazers (3-4) on Wednesday.

The post Lauri Markkanen Enters Health and Safety Protocols appeared first on SLAM.

Cavaliers’ Kevin Love has entered health and safety protocols and is expected to miss several games, sources tell @TheAthletic @Stadium. Love is averaging 9.9 points and 7.3 rebounds this season.

— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) November 1, 2021

This latest bout with adversity couldn’t have come at a stranger time for Love, who reportedly has no interest in a buyout despite the youth movement taking over the franchise. The Cavs are off to a 3-4 start since deciding to emphasize the development of their younger players.

That includes the decision to start seven-footer Evan Mobley and Jarrett Allen next to Lauri Markkanen over Love. While coming off the bench for the first time since his second year with the Minnesota Timberwolves, Love has put up 9.9 points and 7.3 boards per game.

With Love set to make roughly $60 million over the next two seasons, the Cavs have yet to find a suitable partner to facilitate a trade for the five-time All-Star. It’s unclear what Cavs GM Koby Altman is asking for but the latest trade rumor came from the Hoops Wire’s Sam Amico, who reported that the Denver Nuggets have “displayed trade interest” in him.

By the time Love will hit free agency in 2023, he will be turning 35 by the time and entering the 15th season of his career.

The post REPORT: Kevin Love ‘Expected to Miss Several Games’ After Entering Health and Safety Protocols appeared first on SLAM.

In a subsequent move, the Cavs are waiving guard Damyean Dotson, per The Athletic’s Kelsey Russo.

Valentine, selected by the Chicago Bulls with the 14th overall pick in the 2016 NBA Draft, has had an up-and-down career filled with highs like a 34-point outing (against the Cavaliers) and lows like major surgeries to his left knee and left ankle.

Perhaps Valentine trying to get back into rhythm following surgeries and in pandemic-shortened seasons (as well as offseasons) is what’s led to his regression as a perimeter shooter since the 2017-18 season, when he shot a career-high 38.6 percent from 3-point range. He’s only shot 33.2 percent from 3-point range since then.

However, playing beside savvy playmakers like Darius Garland, Ricky Rubio, Evan Mobley and Kevin Love could provide Valentine with the type of clean looks he needs while players like Mobley, Isaac Okoro and Lamar Stevens have the potential to take the pressure off of him defensively.

He’ll also reunite with sharpshooting power forward Lauri Markkanen, who the Cavs recently acquired in a sign-and-trade.

Meanwhile, Dotson’s release will come as a surprise to many.

Although he shot a career-low 28.9 percent from 3-point range in 2020-21 (while shooting a combined 36.6 percent from deep in the two previous seasons), he was miscast in a combo guard role.

Just 27-years-old himself, Dotson’s playing career is far from over.

The post REPORT: Cavs Sign Denzel Valentine to Two-Year Deal, Waive Damyean Dotson appeared first on SLAM.

According to Chris Fedor of Cleveland.com, free agents Garrison Mathews and Denzel Valentine both have interest in joining the Cavs before the start of the season.

Mathews is a 24-year-old sharp-shooter coming off his second season in the NBA. Mathews has played in 82 NBA games, 64 last year, with an average of 5.5 points per game and a 38.9 field goal percentage from three-point range.

Valentine is a former first-round draft pick out of Michigan State, coming off four seasons in the NBA with the Chicago Bulls. Valentine has played in 223 career games and has career averages of 7.4 points, 3.5 rebounds and 2.0 assists per game.

The Cavs have already made quite a few moves this offseason, drafting Evan Mobley in the NBA Draft, trading away Larry Nance Jr. in a sign-and-trade to acquire Lauri Markkanen and trading for Ricky Rubio and giving center Jarrett Allen a five-year $100 million contract extension.

The Cavs are coming off another tough season, finishing 13th in the Eastern Conference with a record of 22-50.

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The 25-year old forward appeared in just 18 games for the Brooklyn Nets last season and was waived in conjunction with the DeAndre Jordan trade. He averaged 5.2 points per game, along with 5 rebounds.

The loss of Lauri Markkanen and Thaddeus Young can possibly open up some playing time for Johnson on a very good Chicago Bulls team.

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The hesitance behind offering Fall, who is 7’5″ and 311 pounds, anything outside of a training camp deal at this point is understandable given his relative lack of NBA experience.

Over the past two seasons, Fall has only logged 169 total minutes in the regular season, spending the majority of his time developing with the Boston Celtics’ G League affiliate (the Maine Red Claws).

With the Red Claws, who opted out of the 2020-21 G League season, Fall has played a grand total of 677 minutes in 29 games (including 11 starts). In that time, the Senegal native averaged 12.9 points, 11.2 rebounds and 3.0 blocks in just 23.3 minutes per game, a testament to his dominance.

Not the most lithe or explosive athlete, Fall nonetheless knows how to use his physical advantages on both ends to make his impact felt. Fall, whose size obviously makes him an easy target for inside passes, also possesses decent footwork and touch on the outside. As determined a rebounder as he is a shot-blocker, Fall may be quite useful for the Cavs.

Although Cleveland already has Jarrett Allen and Evan Mobley ready to play minutes at center, and players like Kevin Love and Lauri Markkanen capable of playing the position, Allen is the team’s only true center; while Mobley and Markkanen lack the strength, Love lacks the length at 6’8.”

That’s Fall’s in, along with his intangibles, as he quickly endeared himself to the Celtics fan base with his relatability and innocent demeanor. On a young team sure to have it’s share of growing pains in a tough season, having players who aren’t just beneficial to the team on the court but in the locker room as well is important.

The post REPORT: Cavs Sign Center Tacko Fall to 1-Year Deal appeared first on SLAM.

Over the weekend, ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski reported that Love has no interest in a buyout, taking that option out of the picture as well. 

With that in mind, Cleveland might have to get creative on how they part ways with Love. To make things worse, Sam Amico of HoopsWire reported that Love wishes he had been traded to Portland in the recent three-team deal that brought Lauri Markkanen to the Cavaliers. 

At age 32, Love could still contribute to a contender if he found his way to a team ready to make a deep playoff push. He hasn’t played 60 games in a season since 2016, but could be a key piece if he’s able to stay healthy. 

The post Kevin Love Has No Interest In Buyout With Cavaliers appeared first on SLAM.

According to Shams Charania of The Athletic and Stadium, Cleveland will send prized forward Larry Nance Jr. to the Blazers in return, while the Portland Trail Blazers will send forward Derrick Jones Jr., a protected first-round pick and a protected 2023 second-round pick (via the Denver Nuggets) to Chicago.

With the Cavs the stars of the show in this deal, it makes sense to focus on what the trade means for them, particularly with Markkanen’s contract indicating a significant role in Cleveland’s rotation.

Nance provided the Cavs with a defensive-minded forward who could wreak havoc in passing lanes with his length but found himself at a physical disadvantage against larger players at 6’7.”

Despite this, Nance was also developing on the offensive end. Already a sound decision-maker as a passer and an excellent leaper who routinely made above-the-rim highlight plays, Nance was making strides as an outside shooter (36.0 percent from 3-point range last season) and ball-handler, often playing a quasi-point-forward role with Cleveland.

He’ll now bring those skills to the Blazers, who finished 29th in defensive rating last season (116.0).

Jones will join the Bulls as a defensive-minded forward, although his shooting development is behind the latter’s (31.6 percent from 3-point range last season). The Bulls, who traded versatile veteran forward Thaddeus Young to the San Antonio Spurs this offseason and will need to a player with a similar skillset to help compensate for Nikola Vucevic and DeMar DeRozan’s defensive limitations.

To that point, Markannen’s defensive reputation isn’t stellar. That matters less so on the Cavs, who have an above-average defensive frontcourt with Isaac Okoro, Evan Mobley and Jarrett Allen starting, and second-year forward Lamar Stevens likely to receive minutes with the second unit as well.

However, what will make all the difference for the Cavs is Markkanen’s combination of height (7’0″), shooting ability (36.6 percent from three for his career) and guard skill, as he compliments a frontcourt lacking dependable shooting outside of Dean Wade and Kevin Love (a buyout candidate).

The post Cavs Complete Sign-and-Trade for Lauri Markkanen with Bulls, Blazers appeared first on SLAM.

Bulls restricted free agent Lauri Markkanen tells Finnish journalist @AJ_Sipila he wants out of Chicago: “We have offers from several different teams. I want a fresh start to my NBA career somewhere else.”

— Chris Haynes (@ChrisBHaynes) August 6, 2021

 Markkanen had the best shooting season of his career, shooting 48 percent from the floor and 40.2 percent from beyond the arc. That kind of shooting drew attention from teams like the Dallas Mavericks, New Orleans Pelicans, Minnesota Timberwolves and Boston Celtics. For these teams to acquire him, it would likely have to be done through a sign and trade.

However with the Bulls wanting compensation for Lauri Markkanen’s services, he remains a free agent and with most teams already using up their cap space, Markkanen may have no choice but to accept a one-year qualifying offer that would pay him approximately $9 million. Then after the season, he could become an unrestricted free agent which is something Markkanen reportedly has no interest in. 

As of now, the Bulls own his rights as a restricted free agent, with the ability to match any offer. According to Jake Fischer of Bleacher Report, the price of a sign and trade for the Bulls is a first-round pick in any sign-and-trade deal with Markkanen with a request to find a third team in the deal so they won’t have to take any salary back.

According to Marc Stein, the New Orleans Pelicans may be Lauri’s last chance out of Chicago this offseason.

The Pelicans have expressed interest in Lauri Markkanen and hold a sizable trade exception ($17 million) to take the restricted free agent in on a contract he seeks, sources say.

The post Lauri Markkanen Faces Uncertain Free Agency With Teams Interested appeared first on SLAM.

Regardless of the contract situation of Lauri Markkanen and the injury issues with Wendell Carter Jr., the Chicago frontcourt looks promising. Between Zach LaVine and Coby White, it appears the Bulls have found their guard duo of the future to build around. 

In fact, earlier this week against the New Orleans Pelicans, White and LaVine became the first teammates in NBA history to each make 8 threes in a game. These two combined for 76 points in this game to ensure a 13-point victory. 

With LaVine in a position to make the NBA All-Star team this season and White becoming one of the best young point guards in the league, they could be one of the best duos in the NBA 25 or younger. LaVine is averaging 28.2 points per game while White is averaging 15.5 points. 

The post Zach LaVine And Coby White Are Making History For The Chicago Bulls appeared first on SLAM.

So far this season, the former No. 7 overall pick in the 2017 NBA draft has averaged 20.5 points and 6.3 rebounds per game while shooting .413 from beyond the arc. In his last two games, he’s combined for 61 points with back-to-back 30+ point performances. 

Zach LaVine was recently asked if he’s surprised about Markkanen’s level of play of late. According to Darnell Mayberry of The Athletic, LaVine isn’t at all surprised. 

“I wouldn’t say surprising. I just think his hard work has been paying off. We all know Lauri’s extremely talented, and we’re seeing his full game right now.”

After not coming to terms on an extension with the Bulls prior to the season, there’s still a chance they are able to sign him to a long-term deal this offseason. Regardless, if Markkanen is able to continue to play like he has all season, there will be a long line of teams looking to make him offers. 

The post Lauri Markkanen Could Earn Huge Payday This Offseason appeared first on SLAM.

With the Eastern Conference being extremely competitive this season, it may end up being another season on which the Bulls miss the playoffs.

For more information about the numbers behind our Heat Check series, hop over to our main Heat Check 2020-21 post.

Denzel Valentine	11.0p, 1.0r, 0.0a
Coby White	14.8p, 4.0r, 5.3a
Ryan Arcidiacono	5.0p, 3.0r, 2.0a
Lauri Markkanen	17.3p, 6.8r, 1.3a
Adam Mokoka	2.0p, 1.0r, 1.0a	–
Otto Porter Jr.	13.0p, 5.0r, 1.8a	–
Wendell Carter Jr.	11.8p, 9.3r, 2.8a	–
Tomas Satoransky	6.3p, 2.3r, 6.0a
Daniel Gafford	3.7p, 2.0r, 0.0a
Zach LaVine	23.8p, 3.8r, 3.0a
Chandler Hutchison	3.3p, 4.3r, 1.0a
Garrett Temple	6.7p, 1.3r, 2.0a

Team-by-Team Breakdown

The post Heat Check 2020-21: Chicago Bulls appeared first on SLAM.

We broke down the Bulls’ depth chart for the 2020-21 season below. We’ve also previously published a summary of the Bulls’ offseason.

Biggest Questions

• How much does Coby White improve? If he can be a legit sidekick for Zach LaVine, this Bulls team has a chance to make some noise. Many players take a huge leap from year one to year two and Chicago is hoping that is just the case for White.
• What does the future hold for Lauri Markkanen? After failing to come to an extension agreement, he is set to become a free agent this summer. Will he take that next step and prove he’s worth a big contract from the Bulls next offseason?

All NBA Team Offseason Summaries

The post Chicago Bulls: Projected 2020-21 Depth Chart appeared first on SLAM.

As ‘The House That Jordan Built,’ the Bulls are expected to be a far more competitive club than they have been since the end of the Derrick Rose Era. Yet, despite their collection of talent, they’ve been unable to get the results they want on the floor.

The fix could be simple though.

Offensively, Chicago needs to improve drastically, ranking 27th in points per game (106.8), 26th in field goal percentage (.447) and 22nd in 3-point percentage (.348) by the end of the 2019-20 season.

Related: Full Chicago Bulls Salary Cap Preview

2020 NBA Draft Picks

Bulls Draft Needs

With the fourth overall pick in the 2020 NBA Draft, Chicago isn’t in the best position; prospects between picks 3 and 10 having the look of high-quality starters but not of future stars and the latter may be what the Bulls need most.

Yet, Chicago will be able to find their point guard of the future in this draft, as many of the prospects projected to be selected in the top-10 are lead guards.

Although Kris Dunn did an admirable job as the starting point guard over the past few seasons, his throwback style doesn’t lend itself to the Bulls maximizing their scoring potential. White is the type of scoring guard that’s flourishing in the league but he has the look of a combo guard and sixth man for the foreseeable future.

Getting ‘the guy’ at point guard, one of the two most important positions in the league, should be Chicago’s main focus. From there, the Bulls should improve their frontcourt, looking to add a fluid athlete that complements Markkanen and Carter.

2020 NBA Draft Prospect Watchlist

What The Mocks Are Saying

Projected Roster

Team-by-Team NBA Draft Guides

More: SLAM’s 2020 NBA Draft Preview

The post Chicago Bulls: 2020 NBA Draft Preview appeared first on SLAM.

In addition to a summary for each of the 30 teams (accessible in the link grid below), we’ve also tiered the top NBA free agents league-wide and published a general comparison of all teams’ cap space. Follow @SLAMnewswire on Twitter for constant offseason updates as we head into free agency.

Projected Roster Players

Projected Free Agents

2020 NBA Draft Picks

Exceptions Available

• Non-Taxpayer Mid-Level Exception – $9,258,000
• Bi-Annual Exception – $3,623,000

Key Offseason Decisions

• Will Kris Dunn sign his qualifying offer or work out a long-term deal? Dunn’s Qualifying Offer is for $7.1M. If he signs it, he’d be an unrestricted free agent in 2021. He’s found a place as a defense-minded wing, so he may still have a future in Chicago.
• Will Lauri Markkanen sign a contract extension? If Markkanen doesn’t sign an extension this offseason, he’ll be eligible for restricted free agency this summer.
• How does a new front office view holdover free agents Shaq Harrison and Denzel Valentine? Both have been in and out of the rotation over the years with the Bulls. It wouldn’t be a surprise to see either back or both gone.

Projected Team Salary

$144,189,894

Otto Porter Jr. is a lock to pick up his $28.5M player option. There was a point where it looked like the Bulls might have let Kris Dunn walk but his play now necessitates them giving him a qualifying offer to retain his restricted rights. There are a few teams with cap space who could make Chicago sweat an offer sheet but anything reasonable and the Bulls will match. Because they will already be over the cap, Chicago is probable to keep their rights for the other restricted free agents as well. (@KeithSmithNBA)

Cap Space Forecast

-$35,049,894 (11^th out of 30). $19,212,330 under the Luxury Tax.

Team Salary Cap Outlooks

The post Chicago Bulls: Salary Cap Space 2020 appeared first on SLAM.

We’ve listed the entire roster with comparisons to last year’s launch rating below. We’ve also identified some general NBA 2K21 ratings trends for the league as a whole.

Bulls NBA 2K21 Ratings

View the NBA 2K21 player ratings for other teams below.

The post Chicago Bulls: NBA 2K21 Ratings appeared first on SLAM.

Last Week’s Notebooks: East || West

• Atlanta Hawks – With Dewayne Dedmon out and Clint Capela yet to make his Hawks’ debut, Atlanta has gone to some minutes with their “core five” as a lineup. In 181 minutes over 20 games, the Hawks are +25 with Trae Young, John Collins, Kevin Huerter, De’Andre Hunter and Cam Reddish on the floor together. That might not sound like a lot, but considering Atlanta is -8.1 points per game on the season it’s meaningful. Those five are the Hawks building blocks, so it’s good to see them able to share the floor together.
• Boston Celtics – Boston was expected to struggle with interior defense after losing Al Horford in the offseason. Instead, the Celtics rank fifth in the NBA in blocks per 100 possessions. Some of that is long wings like Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown blocking jumpers, but most of it comes at the rim. Boston actually ranks ahead of much bigger Philadelphia in blocks/100, which is one of the surprises of the season.

• Brooklyn Nets – Kyrie Irving underwent successful surgery on his right shoulder impingement. As expected, Irving will join Kevin Durant on the sidelines for the rest of this season. The Nets are hanging in there without Irving though, as Caris LeVert exploded for 51 points in an upset win over the Celtics in Boston. LeVert scored 37 of his 51 points in the fourth quarter and overtime. He went for 26 in the fourth and then scored all 11 of the Nets points in overtime.

• Charlotte Hornets – With the focus on youth, the Hornets are giving almost all their minutes to players who are 26 years old and under. That’s given increased opportunities to rookies Cody and Caleb Martin and Jalen McDaniels. Those three combined with PJ. Washington and Mile Bridges give Charlotte a really interesting group of forwards. None of the five can really play up and defend the five, and only Cody Martin has shown the ability to play down and defend the two. That makes it a challenge for James Borrego and Mitch Kupchak to figure out how they call fit, but that’s what rebuilding seasons are for.
• Chicago Bulls – Last week we wrote about how banged up the Bulls were. Well, they’re finally getting healthy! Zach LaVine went down with a quad injury, but it’s not expected to be a long-term thing. Otto Porter Jr. returned to the lineup for the first time since early-November. Lauri Markkanen got back after missing over a month. And Wendell Carter Jr. is back as well. That’s important as Chicago can use the last month of the season to see exactly who fits together and how. Look for Coby White to possibly take over as the starting point guard, as it’s getting harder for Jim Boylen to keep White on the bench. White has averaged 28 points per game on 51/49/95 shooting splits over his last six games.
• Cleveland Cavaliers – Cleveland is a mess with injuries. Andre Drummond (calf), Darius Garland (groin), Tristan Thompson (knee) and Dante Exum (ankle) are all out. Drummond, Garland and Thompson aren’t expected to be down long-term, but the Cavs also lost Kevin Porter Jr. to a head injury against Boston on Wednesday night. This point in the year should be about evaluation and development and injuries are robbing Cleveland of that.
• Detroit Pistons – How much are the Pistons hurting for guard depth? Jordan McRae was claimed off waivers on Wednesday afternoon and then played 25 minutes on Wednesday night. McRae did what he does and scored 15 points, but that says a lot about where things are at for the Pistons. Also, keep an eye on Christian Wood. He scored 29 points on Wednesday, bringing his average to 20.1 points per game since the start of February.

• Indiana Pacers – The Pacers lost Jeremy Lamb last week and now Victor Oladipo is back on the shelf with right knee soreness. Indiana knew that they’d have to deal with that as Oladipo works his way back from last season’s knee injury. What the Pacers weren’t expecting is for Malcolm Brogdon to continue to get nicked up. Brogdon left Wednesday’s loss against his former team in Milwaukee with a sore left hip. Injuries to their top three guards have Indiana relying heavily on Aaron and Justin Holiday and T.J. McConnell in the backcourt.
• Miami Heat – The Heat got back home after a tough road trip and ripped off a four-game win streak. That improved their record to 27-4 in Miami. More importantly, the Heat now have a three-game lead over both the Pacers and 76ers in the race for homecourt advantage. And Miami is quietly only 2.5 games behind Boston for the third seed.
• Milwaukee Bucks – The Bucks actually lost a game in the last week! They were handled fairly easily by the Heat in Miami. But it doesn’t really matter. Milwaukee is 12-2 in their last 14 games. And if you’re looking for a weakness on the road, it doesn’t really exist. The Bucks and Lakers are tied at an NBA-best 25-6 away from home. By any measure, Milwaukee is dominant.
• New York Knicks – RJ Barrett played one of the best games of his career this week as the Knicks upset the Rockets in New York. Barrett scored 27 points on 10-of-18 shooting to go along with five rebounds and five assists. Overall, Barrett has scored 14 or more points in seven of his last eight games and is averaging 16.8 points per game during that stretch. It’s incremental, but signs of improvement are there for the Knicks young wing.

• Orlando Magic – Just when things were looking up for Orlando, they dropped three straight games to fall back behind Brooklyn in the standings. The Magic still have a healthy 4.5 game lead over the Wizards for the eighth spot in the East, but could be on a collision course with the Bucks in the first round. That’d be bad news for Orlando, as they are 0-3 against Milwaukee and have lost by an average of 19.6 points per game in those three losses.
• Philadelphia 76ers – Shake Milton stepped up on Sunday with a career game. He scored 39 points, which topped his previous career-high of 27. And Milton sent an NBA record with 14 consecutive made three-pointers over a two-game stretch. Philadelphia’s roster is expensive and will only get more expensive down the line. Milton on a minimum contract through 2022-23 is huge for helping to keep a mounting tax bill down.
• Toronto Raptors – One man in, one man out for the Raptors. Toronto got Norman Powell back, but lost Serge Ibaka. Without Ibaka and Marc Gasol, the Raps have gone small with Pascal Siakam and Rondae Hollis-Jefferson starting at the five. They’ve also given increased minutes to Chris Boucher. He responded with 19 points and 15 rebounds in Tuesday’s win at Phoenix. That play has helped keep Toronto just ahead of Boston in the race for the second seed in the East. And despite it all, Toronto can clinch a playoff spot with a win on Thursday at the Golden State Warriors.
• Washington Wizards – The Wizards are clinging to life in the Eastern Conference playoff race. They’ve dropped 4.5 games behind Orlando and a full five games behind Brooklyn. Injuries continue to be a challenge for Washington, as Thomas Bryant can’t play back-to-backs due to foot soreness and Ish Smith went down with hamstring soreness. Once Washington falls out of the race fully, look for the team to actively sit some of their veterans and focus on the younger players the rest of the way.

The post Newswire Notebook: Caris LeVert Goes Off and More appeared first on SLAM.

• Atlanta Hawks – The Hawks are going to be shorthanded at the center spot once again. Dewayne Dedmon had a non-surgical procedure to help alleviate some right elbow pain. Dedmon is expected to miss at least three games and will be re-evaluated after that. With Clint Capela still out for at least another week due to an injured heel, Atlanta will lean on rookie Bruno Fernando and Damian Jones for minutes at the five.
• Boston Celtics – The Celtics return home to Boston off a 3-1 trip to west coast. All four of those games were played without Kemba Walker. You probably know all about how Jayson Tatum went off, and you might be aware that Jaylen Brown had a big trip as well. But did you know that Daniel Theis averaged 16.8 PPG on 64.1% shooting and 10.3 RPG out west?

• Charlotte Hornets – Charlotte has begun to focus on their future, as the 2020 playoffs have slipped out of reach. Terry Rozier, Devonte’ Graham, Miles Bridges and P.J. Washington will all be in the starting five, while rookies Cody Martin, Caleb Martin and Jalen McDaniels are now rotation fixtures. That means veterans like Cody Zeller, Bismack Biyombo and Nic Batum will likely see sporadic minutes the rest of the way.
• Chicago Bulls – There might not be an NBA team more banged-up than Chicago. The Bulls are already without starting big men Wendell Carter Jr. and Lauri Markkanen and now their backup Luke Kornet is joining them on the shelf. Kornet has a severely sprained ankle and a fracture in his foot and will likely miss the rest of the season. The wing group is also struggling, as Kris Dunn is likely out for the year and Chandler Hutchison and Denzel Valentine haven’t been able to stay healthy. On the plus side, Otto Porter Jr. recently returned to practice, so he could come back soon on a limited basis.
• Cleveland Cavaliers – The Cavs are finishing the season in a bit of a weird spot. They’ve got older players in the frontcourt and mostly young players in the backcourt and on the wing. Collin Sexton and rookies Darius Garland and Kevin Porter Jr. have all had flashes. Porter dropped 30 points this week in a win over the Miami Heat. Look for new head coach J.B. Bickerstaff to emphasize the team’s youth the rest of this season.

• Detroit Pistons – Reports surfaced this week that Detroit will not attempt to work a buyout agreement with Derrick Rose. The Pistons like Rose’s fit with their team and he’s signed for a reasonable salary for next season. With Reggie Jackson out of the mix, Rose has taken over as the starting point guard for Detroit. He’s expected to hold that role for the rest of the season.
• Indiana Pacers – Indiana lost Jeremy Lamb this week to a torn ACL, torn meniscus and a fracture in his left knee. Lamb had started for the Pacers while Victor Oladipo rehabbed during the first half of the season, and went to the bench when Oladipo re-assumed his starting two-guard role. Now, instead of having a double-digit scorer off the bench, Indiana will ask more of Justin and Aaron Holiday and T.J. McConnell on their second unit.
• Miami Heat – The Heat’s road woes continued this week, as they dropped their sixth-straight game away from South Beach. Miami was also upset at home by the Minnesota Timberwolves. With key rotation players Tyler Herro and Meyers Leonard out, the Heat’s depth has been tested. Erik Spoelstra is also dealing with the task of trying to work Andre Iguodala and Jae Crowder into his rotation. All of that has added up to Miami slipping five games behind Boston in the race to stay out of Milwaukee’s half of the Eastern Conference bracket.
• Milwaukee Bucks – Stop me if you’ve heard this one before: The Bucks are on a win streak. This time around it’s “only” four games (and counting!). The most recent of those games was a victory on the road against the Toronto Raptors. Giannis Antetokounmpo said that last year’s playoff loss to Toronto was on his mind entering that game and a motivating factor to come away with a win. The Bucks also became the earliest playoff-clinching team, when they locked up a postseason spot this week.
• New York Knicks – The Knicks continue to have flux at the point guard position. This week Frank Ntilikina went down with a groin injury. This time around Ntilikina will likely be out for a couple of weeks according to head coach Mike Miller. As Ntilikina went out, Elfrid Payton returned from a sore right ankle. Payton immediately reassumed his starting spot, which sent Dennis Smith Jr. back to the bench. The point guard revolving door continues in the Big Apple.
• Orlando Magic – The Magic have inserted trade deadline addition James Ennis III into the starting lineup. Ennis’ presence as a starter gives Orlando another shooter on the floor. While Ennis’ stats aren’t great, it seems to have opened things up for Aaron Gordon. In the month of February, Gordon is averaging 19.9 PPG, 9.0 RPG and 5.0 APG. That’s helped Orlando climb to within half a game of Brooklyn for the seventh seed in the East.

• Philadelphia 76ers – Philadelphia is going to be down both of their All-Stars for at least a little while, as Joel Embiid hurt his left shoulder on Wednesday. Embiid will join Ben Simmons on the sidelines, as Simmons’ return from an impingement in his back is still unclear. Philadelphia went back to Al Horford in the starting lineup with Simmons out, and Horford will remain a starter for however long Embiid is shelved.
• Toronto Raptors – The Raptors dropped a game to the Bucks, but have won 17-of-19 games, including a 15-game win streak. Toronto is getting a little bit healthier too, as they’re now down just Marc Gasol and Norman Powell from their regular rotation. Powell’s return is imminent, as he returned to full practice this week. Gasol will be a little bit longer, as he just started light practice, but the Raps are almost back to full strength in time for the stretch run.
• Washington Wizards – Bradley Beal is playing out of his mind right now. Beal has scored at least 26 points in 14 straight games. This week, he went supernova, as he scored 53, 55 and 30 points. That scoring binge has helped the Wizards cling to playoff life, as they’re 4.5 games behind Orlando for the final postseason spot in the Eastern Conference.

The post Newswire Notebook: Brad Beal’s Scoring Spree and More appeared first on SLAM.

A stress reaction, if left untreated, can turn into a fracture.

The news comes as the latest setback in what’s been a down year for the 22-year-old. Markkanen’s 15 and 7 stat line marks a regression from last year’s 19 and 9 campaign.

Markkanen has started 46 games for the Bulls so far this season.

A four-to-six week absence would keep Markkanen sidelined until late February or early March.

The post Lauri Markkanen Out 4-6 Weeks With Stress Reaction appeared first on SLAM.

Zion Williamson had the world buzzing as he scored 17 straight points in the fourth quarter, nearly taking down San Antonio by himself. The No. 1 pick finished with 22 points, 7 rebounds and 3 assists in just 18 minutes of work in his NBA debut.

Pacers 112 (29-16), Suns 87 (18-26)

TJ Warren scored a team-high 25 in his return to Phoenix to lead the way to victory. Domantas Sabonis did his part, too, adding 24 points (8-for-11 shooting) and 13 boards for the Pacers.

Jazz 129 (31-13), Warriors 96 (10-36)

D’Angelo Russell put up 26 points in 28 minutes, but the Jazz’ depth — 13 different players got on the scoreboard — was far too much to overcome for the depleted Warriors. Rudy Gobert had 22 points and a team-high 15 boards and Donovan Mitchell scored 23 in just 22 minutes.

Nuggets 105 (30-14), Rockets 121 (27-16)

The Rockets’ backcourt was completely in sync as Russell Westbrook and James Harden combined for 55 points, 21 rebounds and 13 dimes to edge the gap between them and the second place Nuggets.

Timberwolves 110 (15-29), Bulls 117 (17-29)

Zach LaVine (team-high 25 points) was able to get the W over his former team despite a 40-point outing from Karl-Anthony Towns. Lauri Markkanen added 21 to aid the Bulls.

Wizards 129 (14-29), Heat 134 (31-13)

The Heat’s bench backcourt duo of Tyler Herro (25 points, 7 threes) and Goran Dragic (22 points, 10 assists) took care of business as Miami scored 16 points in overtime to down the Wizards.

Bradley Beal scored a team-high 38 for Washington.

Grizzlies 95 (20-24), Celtics 119 (29-14)

The Grizzlies had the lead at the end of the first quarter, but the Celtics bounced back to dominate the rest of the night as Jayson Tatum scored 23 in 26 minutes of work.

Lakers 100 (35-9), Knicks 92 (12-33)

LeBron James picked up a win in his favorite arena to travel to, leading the way with 21 points, 6 boards and 5 dimes for Los Angeles.

Thunder 120 (26-19), Magic 114 (21-24)

Dennis Schroder scored 31 points (13-for-18 shooting) and had 9 dimes off the bench to lead the Thunder.

Clippers 95 (31-14), Hawks 104 (11-34)

The Clippers were only able to score 35 points in the second half as John Collins’ 33-point night pushed the Hawks ahead. Kawhi Leonard, Paul George, Patrick Beverley didn’t suit up for Los Angeles and Trae Young missed the night for Atlanta.

Kings 106 (15-29), Pistons 127 (17-28)

Derrick Rose, Christian Wood and Reggie Jackson combined for 67 to lead the Pistons’ charge against the Kings.

De’Aaron Fox had 22 in the effort.

76ers 95 (26-17), Raptors 107 (30-14)

Fred VanVleet’s 22 points and Pascal Siakam’s 18 points and 15 boards led the Raptors past the Sixers in a rematch of last year’s Eastern Conference Semifinals.

The post Post Up: Zion Williamson TOOK OVER in his NBA Debut appeared first on SLAM.

In this post, just one of a series of 30, we’ll break down the reports that have started to trickle out about Bulls players that may or may not be on the move. While there’s no guarantee when it comes to a league as wild as the modern NBA, it doesn’t hurt to brush up on each squad’s roster as the deadline draws near.

Players Unlikely To Be Traded

• Coby White
• Lauri Markkanen
• Wendell Carter Jr.

The Bulls want to make the playoffs but don’t expect the team to trade away its young prospects to inch closer to that goal. Coby White, who was selected with the No. 7 overall pick, is viewed as the point guard of the future and the team envisions Lauri Markkanen and Wendell Carter Jr. manning the paint for years to come.

Biggest Name Available On Market

• Thaddeus Young

Thaddeus Young signed with the Bulls expecting to play a big role on a competitive team angling for the playoffs. Those expectations were based on what the team told him during the free agent courting process. However, things haven’t gone as planned and the 12-year veteran displayed his frustration last month, telling reporters that he wants to play more while remaining professional.

“Like I said, the situation is not the best-case scenario… simply because I am playing 20 minutes a game, but if coach sees fit to play me 20, sees fit to play me 25, 30, I’m with whatever he decides. He’s the man in charge. He’s our chief, and we’ve got to be able to go out there and follow behind our chief,” Young said.

“The conversations in the offseason were the conversations in the offseason… But going into the season, things change and come out a little bit differently.”

Young is seeing just 22.3 minutes per contest during his first season in Chicago. He hasn’t been a staple in closing lineups, instead he’s found himself sitting on the bench during clutch situations. All of this might be acceptable if it were for a team that’s on track to make some noise in the postseason; It’s not so great if it’s on a team that has won just 36% of its games. It wouldn’t be surprising if the search for a destination for Young prior to the deadline and relieve some of the 31-year-old’s frustrations.

Logical Trade Pieces

• Denzel Valentine

Denzel Valentine’s career in Chicago never took. He improved during his sophomore campaign, doubling his points per contest over his rookie season as well as improving in several advanced stats. An ankle injury robbed him off his entire third season in the league and midway through his fourth season, it doesn’t appear that the Bulls are planning for him to play a major role on the team long-term.

Valentine will be a restricted free agent at the end of season, provided the team extends him a qualifying offer. The 26-year-old still has potential to be a contributor in this league and it wouldn’t be surprising if a rival squad scoops him from Chicago before the deadline and uses the next few months to see there’s a long-term fit.

Trades Are Possible

• Otto Porter Jr.
• Zach LaVine
• Tomas Satoransky
• Cristiano Felicio
• Kris Dunn
• Ryan Arcidiacono
• Chandler Hutchison
• Luke Kornet
• Shaquille Harrison
• Daniel Gafford

Otto Porter Jr.’s left foot has kept him out of all but nine games for the Bulls this season. The wing is expected to return around the All-Star break. Zach Lavine was the subject of trade rumors over the summer but it’s hard to envision Chicago dealing him before the trade deadline given that the front office hasn’t seen its full team together for any lengthy stretch. The Tomas Satoransky signing should be considered a success. The 28-year-old has been one of the more consistent contributors for the Bulls, showcasing the ability to play both guard spots. Cristiano Felicio has played in just four games for Chicago this season. He has one more season on his contract after this one where he will make $7.5M. Kris Dunn appeared to be the odd man out over the summer, though he may have carved out a role as a defensive wing for Jim Boylen’s team. Only Ben Simmons averages more steals per contest than Dunn. Ryan Arcidiacono has turned out to be a nice role player for the Bulls. He’ll make just $3M in each of the next two seasons. Injuries have stunted Chandler Hutchison’s growth since coming into the league. The small forward has played in just 17 games this season. Luke Kornet has appeared in 24 contests this season. He’s making just $2.3M this year and he’ll make the same next season. Shaquille Harrison has the right to veto any trade by virtue of re-signing on a one-year deal. He’s seen action in 26 games for the Bulls this year. Daniel Gafford was filling in nicely for WCJ before a finger injury sidelined him.

The post 2020 NBA Trade Deadline Primer: Chicago Bulls appeared first on SLAM.

Denver led the entire game, and mostly by double-digits.

Nikola Jokic dropped a game-high 31 points with 10 boards and 10 dimes.

Raptors 113 (22-10), Celtics 97 (22-8)

Toronto successfully countered every Boston run to snap the Celtics’ 5-game win streak.

Kyle Lowry dropped a game-high 30 points with 7 dimes.

Pacers 98 (21-12), Pelicans 120 (10-23)

New Orleans outscored the Pacers by a combined 31 points in the second and third quarters.

Brandon Ingram dropped a team-high 24 points with 7 dimes.

Jrue, Aaron and Justin Holiday became the first trio of brothers to play in the same game.

Hawks 81 (6-27), Bulls 116 (13-20)

Chicago controlled the entire game against the Trae Young-less Hawks.

Zach LaVine dropped 19 points with 7 boards. Lauri Markkanen added a team-high 25 points.

Atlanta has now lost an abysmal 10 straight games.

Cavs 94 (10-22), Wolves 88 (11-20)

Cleveland led for the majority of the game against the Wolves, who were without Karl-Anthony Towns and Andrew Wiggins.

Tristan Thompson dropped 12 points with 15 boards. Collin Sexton added a game-high 18 points.

Knicks 107 (9-24), Wizards 100 (9-22)

New York built a few double-digit leads only to see them disappear to the Bradley Beal-less Wizards. But they held on to the lead when it mattered the most during crunch time.

Julius Randle continued his strong play, dropping a game-high 30 points with 16 boards and 6 dimes.

Sixers 116 (23-12), Heat 117 (24-8) (OT)

Miami battled back from a 5-point deficit with 1 minute to play to take the lead on a clutch three-pointer by Tyler Herro. But the Heat fouled Josh Richardson with less than a second left. J-Rich intentionally missed his second free-throw and Ben Simmons got a putback to send the game to OT.

The Heat would hold on to improve to an incredible 6-0 in OT this season.

Jimmy Butler dropped a team-high 25 points with 9 dimes and 9 boards. Herro added 17 points (4-8 3FG) off the bench.

Miami has now won 5 straight.

Nets 98 (16-15), Rockets 108 (22-10)

Brooklyn battled back to take the lead in the fourth quarter after falling down by 18 points in the third. But the Rockets would pull away during the final minutes of the game.

James Harden dropped a game-high 44 points with 10 boards and 6 dimes.

Pistons 109 (12-21), Spurs 136 (13-18)

San Antonio would outscore the Pistons by 17 points in the third quarter and go up by as much as 29 points during the fourth.

LaMarcus Aldridge dropped 25 points (5-6 3FG) with 12 boards. DeMar DeRozan added a game-high 29 points.

Mavs 141 (21-10), Warriors 121 (9-25)

After going off for 30 points in the first half, D’Angelo Russell went down with a scary-looking shoulder injury with 5:20 left in the third quarter—and the Mavericks proceeded to blow open the game.

Luka Doncic dropped a team-high 31 points with 15 dimes and 12 boards as Dallas snapped the Warriors’ 4-game winning streak.

Magic 100 (14-18), Bucks 111 (29-5)

Even with Giannis Antetokounmpo (back) missing his second straight game, Milwaukee jumped out to a 12-point lead at the end of the first quarter and never looked back.

Ersan Ilyasova dropped 17 points with 14 boards and 5 dimes. Khris Middleton added a team-high 21 points.

Suns 112 (12-20), Kings 110 (12-20)

Phoenix blew a 14-point third quarter lead but held on to snap an 8-game losing streak.

Devin Booker dropped a game-high 32 points with 10 dimes.

Sacramento has now lost 6 straight.

Lakers 128 (25-7), Blazers 120 (14-19)

The Lakers looked sharp after their Christmas Day loss to the Clippers, snapping their 4-game losing streak.

LeBron James dropped 21 points with 16 dimes and just 1 TO. Kyle Kuzma added a team-high 24 points.

Jazz 120 (20-12), Clippers 107 (23-11)

Utah outscored the Clippers by 12 points during the fourth quarter to pick up a big road win.

Donovan Mitchell dropped a game-high 30 points with 9 dimes and 7 boards.

The post Post Up: Heat Defeat Sixers Behind Tyler Herro’s Clutch Heroics appeared first on SLAM.

A standout game from Collin Sexton (23 points on 10-14 shooting) helped Cleveland secure the home win. Terry Rozier’s 35 points for Charlotte came up just short.

Raptors 112 (19-8), Pistons 99 (11-17)

Toronto enjoyed impressive scoring nights from their trio of Pascal Siakam (26 points), Serge Ibaka (25 points) and Kyle Lowry (20 points). Andre Drummond put up 22 points and 18 rebounds in the loss.

Bulls 110 (11-19), Wizards 109 (8-18)

Bradley Beal’s go-ahead jumper with 0.5 seconds left looked like the nail in the coffin. Then Zach LaVine hit two free throws and the Bulls prevailed in overtime. Lauri Markkanen led Chicago with 31 points and 9 rebounds.

Heat 108 (20-8), 76ers 104 (20-9)

The Heat are no joke. Rookie Kendrick Nunn led the team with 26 points in 41 minutes, while Bam Adebayo added 23 points to the winning effort. Joel Embiid contributed a double-double of 22 points and 19 rebounds.

Pelicans 107 (7-22), Timberwolves 99 (10-16)

Brandon Ingram continues to impress in a breakout year. The forward finished with 34 points, 6 rebounds and 5 assists. Andrew Wiggins scored 27 points for the Wolves.

Grizzlies 122 (10-18), Thunder 126 (13-14)

At one point OKC trailed by 24, but the Thunder came roaring back to get the home win. Dennis Schroder led the way with 31 points and 7 assists. Grizzlies rookie Brandon Clarke paced the team with 27 points.

Magic 104 (12-16), Nuggets 113 (18-8)

Denver was led by its dynamic duo of Jamal Murray (33 points) and Nikola Jokic (18 points, 12 assists, 9 rebounds). Nikola Vucevic put up 20 points for the Magic.

Celtics 109 (18-7), Mavericks 103 (18-9)

Boston had the offensive firepower with Kemba Walker (32 points), Jaylen Brown (26 points) and Jayson Tatum (24 points) pouring in buckets. Kristaps Porzingis registered a double-double of 23 points and 13 rebounds in the loss.

Warriors 112 (5-24), Blazers 122 (12-16)

Portland closed out Golden State thanks to big nights from Damian Lillard (30 points, 13 assists) and Hassan Whiteside (16 points, 23 rebounds). D’Angelo Russell scored 26 points for the Warriors.

The post Post Up: Kendrick Nunn and the Heat Hand 76ers First Home Loss appeared first on SLAM.

San Antonio played their fourth-straight overtime game and came away with, incredibly, their third win during that stretch.

Patty Mills dropped a game-high 26 points off the bench. Dejounte Murray added 18 points (8-12 FG) with 7 boards and 5 dimes.

Nets 102 (13-12), Raptors 110 (17-8)

Toronto took a 7-point lead after scoring 38 points in the first quarter and would lead the rest of the way.

Pascal Siakam dropped a game-high 30 points with 10 boards, 5 dimes, 3 blocks and 3 steals.

Wizards 111 (7-17), Grizzlies 128 (9-17)

Memphis outscored the Wizards by 15 points in the first half and would go up by as much as 24 points during the fourth quarter.

Brandon Clarke dropped 25 points (11-14 FG) off the bench, and submitted his name into the Dunk of the Year running. Dillon Brooks added a team-high 27 points.

Clippers 106 (20-8), Bulls 109 (10-18)

One night after putting up just 73 points against the Hornets, the Bulls scored 109 points against the Clippers.

Zach LaVine dropped a game-high 31 points and the go-ahead bucket. Lauri Markkanen added 13 points and 17 boards.

Cavs 108 (6-20), Bucks 125 (24-3)

Milwaukee built an 18-point lead by halftime and would cruise the rest of the way to their 18th (!!) straight victory.

Giannis Antetokounmpo needed just 24 minutes to score a game-high 29 points.

Heat 122 (19-7), Mavs 118 (17-6)

Dallas battled back from a 24-point deficit after losing Luka Doncic to an ankle injury, but would fall short in overtime.

Bam Adebayo dropped 18 points with 11 boards and 10 dimes. Jimmy Butler added a team-high 27 points.

Pistons 115 (11-15), Rockets 107 (17-9)

After losing Blake Griffin in the first half to a left knee injury, Derrick Rose would lead the Pistons to a big road victory.

Rose dropped 20 points and 12 dimes off the bench. Luke Kennard added a team-high 22 points.

Thunder 102 (11-14), Nuggets 110 (16-8)

Outside of the first couple minutes, Denver would lead for the entire game.

Nikola Jokic dropped a game-high 28 points with 14 boards and 12 dimes.

The post Post Up: Zach LaVine Drops 31 Points to Lead Bulls Past Clippers appeared first on SLAM.

Stop us if you’ve heard this before, but James Harden is ridiculous.

The Beard dropped 54 points, 5 rebounds, 7 assists, 10 3-pointers, 2 steals and 3 blocks. Pure dominance. Russell Westbrook added 23 points, 7 rebounds and 6 assists and some exhilarating fast-break dunks for good measure.

76ers 116 (20-7), Pelicans 109 (6-20)

After a hard-fought win in Boston, the 76ers turned around to take care of business against the slumping Pelicans. Tobias Harris was phenomenal with 31 points and 5 boards on efficient shooting. Joel Embiid put up 24 points, 11 rebounds and 5 assists, and Ben Simmons bounced back for a stat-stuffing with 24 points, 11 assists, 2 steals and 3 blocks.

For the Pelicans, they can at least bask in JJ Redick’s warm reception back in Philly, and Brandon Ingram’s continued scoring dominance.

Lakers 113 (23-3), Heat 110 (18-7)

This was a barnburner.

The Lakers snapped Miami’s previously 11-0 home record to start the season, even amidst an uncharacteristically tough start to the game for LeBron, who had 7 turnovers in the first half. But the Lake Show pulled it together. Bron still got his, with 28 points, 9 rebounds and 12 assists, while Anthony Davis dropped 33 points, 10 rebounds and 3 blocks. Also, shoutout JaVale McGee, who had five monster blocks on the game, many of which were stuffing Bam Adebayo (no slouch himself!) at the rim.

Pacers 110 (17-9), Hawks 100 (6-20)

The Pacers are one of the most well-rounded teams in the league; and they don’t even have Victor Oladipo back.

All five starters hit double digit points again, with Malcolm Brogdon leading the way with 19 points, 8 rebounds and 12 assists. The Hawks have been, to put it mildly, awful. Trae Young had a rare rough game, going 9-30 from the field, DeAndre Hunter chipped in 21 points and Jabari Parker had 20, but overall, just another bad loss for a Hawks team that could use reinforcements.

Hornets 83 (12-16), Bulls 73 (9-18)

It’s legitimately shocking to see such a low scoring game. Nowadays, this is commonly the score at the end of 3 quarters.

Every Hornets starter scored in double digits, while no Bulls player scored more than 12 points. Honestly, the less we discuss this game the better.

At least we were offered this awesome Lauri Markkanen slam:

Bucks 127 (23-3), Grizzlies 114 (8-17)

The Bucks could be on an all-time run if they keep this up. They have not lost since Nov. 8 and have now won S-E-V-E-N-T-E-E-N games in a row. And Giannis is barely playing! He dropped 37 points and 11 rebounds in only 27 damn minutes.

But this is not a one man team. The Bucks are deep, and full of capable players who can comfortably play multiple positions and knock down 3-pointers. Right now, they’re the clear favorite to represent the East in the Finals.

On the bright side, the Grizzlies finally got that breakout Jaren Jackson game. Jackson, who has been mired in consistent foul trouble virtually all season, blew up for 43 points on 9-15 from 3-point range. He is dripping with potential and brief glimpses of production, but my man has got to stay on the court.

Jazz 114 (15-11), Warriors 106 (5-22)

This game was probably closer than it should have been considering the Warriors’ depleted state, but ultimately, the Jazz got the W, and sometimes that’s all that matters.

Bojan Bogdanovic stayed hot from deep, converting 8 of his 13 attempts for 32 points, while Donovan Mitchell had 28 points, and Gobert added a solid 15 points, 15 rebounds and 2 blocks. The Jazz are not perfect and Mike Conley has struggled to fit in, but they usually flip the switch as the season progresses. Also, check out this wicked move by Mitchell for the slam:

Clippers 124 (20-7), Timberwolves 117 (10-15)

Despite a roaring and inspired Timberwolves comeback from 27 points, the Clippers put them away when the going got tough. Missing Lou Williams, Patrick Beverley, Landry Shamet and JaMychal Green, the dynamic duo of PG and The Klaw took it upon themselves to wreck absolute havoc. Kawhi scored 42 on 19-19 from the free throw line, while George dropped a monstrous 46, making them the first Clippers duo to ever score 40 points each.

The game was a blowout, until it was not, and that was mostly thanks to the grit of Karl Towns (39 points, 12 rebounds) and Andrew Wiggins (34 points) putting the team on their back. There are no moral victories in professional sports, but the Wolves’ refusal to give up should be commended.

Knicks 103 (6-20), Kings 101 (11-14)

The Knicks have won two in a row! Repeat, the Knicks have won two in a row! Thanks to Julius Randle’s 26 points, 9 rebounds and 4 assists, and good bench contributions from Mitchell Robinson, Elfrid Payton and Damyean Dotson, New York now has their first winning streak of the season. There is talent on this team, but it is either raw, repetitious or misused. The tide may be turning.

The Kings fought their way into the playoff chase after a brutal 0-5 start to the season, but losing to the Knicks will not keep them there for long. Buddy Hield was a flamethrower from deep, draining 6 3’s en route to 34 points and 12 rebounds. A minor silver lining: Marvin Bagley has worked his way back from a thumb surgery and is quietly putting up numbers in limited minutes.

The post Post Up: Lakers Snap Heat’s Perfect Home Game Streak in Barnburner appeared first on SLAM.

Spencer Dinwiddie finished a tough, go-ahead layup with 26 seconds left to lift the Nets to their 3rd win in a row and 8th in their last 10. Dinwiddie dropped a team-high 24 points and added 8 assists, and Jarrett Allen finished with 19 points and 11 rebounds in the win. Nikola Jokic stuffed the stat sheet with 24 points, 11 boards, and 6 assists, and Jamal Murray added 21 for Denver.

Hawks 122 (6-17), Hornets 107 (9-16)

The Hawks outscored the Hornets 34-24 in the fourth quarter to secure the win in Charlotte. Trae Young did his thing, dropping a game-high 30 points and adding 9 dimes. The Hornets were led by PJ Washington and Miles Bridges, who both finished with 20 points in the loss.

Clippers 135 (17-7), Wizards 119 (7-15)

The Clippers’ superstars were dominant as LA cruised to a win in Washington. Kawhi finished with 34 points, 11 boards, and 5 assists on 12-18 shooting, and PG dropped 27, 6, and 6. Montrezl Harrell added 20 points off the bench. For the Wizards, Davis Bertans hit 6 threes and finished with 25 points in the loss.

76ers 110 (17-7), Raptors 104 (15-7)

Philly came away with a big win in a battle between two of the top teams in the East. Tobias Harris led the way with 26 points, and Ben Simmons added 16 points, 11 rebounds, and 9 assists. Kyle Lowry dropped 26 on 7-14 shooting for Toronto.

Heat 110 (17-6), Bulls 105 (8-16)

It was the Tyler Herro show in Miami.

The rookie hit big shot after big shot in the Heat’s thrilling overtime win over the Bulls. Herro finished with 27 points, including 16 of the team’s last 18 and 11 of 13 in overtime. It’s safe to say that this young bucket getter has officially arrived.

Jimmy Butler added 23 points, 6 rebounds and 7 assists in the win. The Bulls were led by Lauri Markkanen, who dropped 22 points in the loss.

Kings 110 (9-13), Mavericks 106 (16-7)

The Kings went up big early and held off the Dallas comeback to secure a big road victory. Nemanja Bjelica led Sacramento with 30 points on 13-18 shooting, and Buddy Hield added 26 points on 10-15 shooting. For Dallas, Tim Hardaway Jr. dropped a team-high 29 in the loss. Luka Doncic (27p, 7r, 8a) extended his streak of consecutive games with 20+ points, 5+ rebounds, and 5+ assists to 19, passing Michael Jordan for the most since the ABA-NBA merger in 1976. The 20 year old has been unstoppable all year and is showing no signs of slowing down.

Thunder 108 (10-12), Blazers 96 (9-15)

OKC outscored Portland 26-18 in the fourth quarter to grab their 10th win of the season. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander dropped 14 of his team-high 21 points in the 4th quarter for the Thunder. For the Blazers, Damian Lillard finished with 26 points and 7 assists, and CJ McCollum added 20 in the loss.

Lakers 142 (21-3), Timberwolves 125 (10-12)

There’s something special brewing in LA, and it all starts with the dominant duo of Anthony Davis and LeBron James.

AD went OFF for a season-high 50 points, 7 rebounds, and 6 assists on 20-29 shooting, his first 50-piece as a member of the Lakers. The King added 32 points and 13 assists on 12-20 shooting in the win. The LakeShow secured their NBA-best 21st win of the season and have won 9 of their last 10.

Are the Lakers the early favorites to win it all? Let us know what you think in the comments below.

The post Post Up: AD Drops 50 to Lead Lakers to Win Over Wolves. appeared first on SLAM.

Carmelo Anthony (20 points), Hassan Whiteside (22), Dame Lillard (24) and CJ McCollum (33) led the way as the Trail Blazers shot a blistering 56 percent from the field and 50 percent from deep.

Portland improved to 4-3 since signing Anthony.

Warriors 91 (4-19), Hornets 106 (9-14)

Terry Rozier got the Hornets rolling early with 12 points in the first quarter and Devonte Graham finished the visitors off with 10 made 3’s en route to a 33-point night. Graham’s 10 3’s tied a franchise-record.

D’Angelo Russell scored 18 points in 25 minutes of action — his first game since Nov. 15 — but it wasn’t enough for the struggling Warriors.

Bucks 127 (19-3), Pistons 103 (8-14)

Giannis Antetokounmpo only needed 28 minutes to put up 35 points (4-for-8 from 3), nine rebounds and two blocks as the Bucks won their 13th straight contest.

Andre Drummond had the highlight of the night, dunking over Antetokounmpo and Robin Lopez. He finished the night with 23 points, 14 rebounds, five assists, two steals and three blocks.

Suns 114 (9-11), Magic 128 (10-11)

Aaron Gordon shot 5-for-5 from deep and 13-for-15 overall as he clocked out with 32 points, five assists and five rebounds. Evan Fournier added another 21 to help lead the Magic.

Frank Kaminsky scored 21 points in the first half for Phoenix, but he cooled off after the intermission, finishing with just 23.

Lakers 121 (19-3), Jazz (12-10)

There were complaints about the Lakers’ strength of schedule (or lack thereof) to open this season, but back-to-back wins over Denver and Utah have put doubts of Los Angeles’ legitimacy to bed.

Anthony Davis scored 26 on only 11 shots and LeBron turned in 20 points and 12 dimes in just 29 minutes. Rajon Rondo moved up to 17th all-time on the NBA’s assists leaderboard.

Nets 130 (11-10), Hawks 118 (5-17)

Taurean Prince shined against his former team, scoring 23 points on 9-for-15 shooting.

The Nets trailed be four to the end first quarter, but a second quarter surge made the difference in what was an otherwise close game the rest of the way.

Trae Young scored a game-high 39 points and dished out 10 dimes.

Heat 93 (15-6), Celtics (15-5)

Jimmy Butler followed up his triple-double from the previous night with a game-high 37; however, a combined 59-point outing from Kemba Walker and Jaylen Brown was too much for his team to overcome.

Grizzlies 99 (6-15), Bulls 106 (8-14)

Zach LaVine continued to shine, scoring a team-high 25 points. All four other Chicago starters (Satoransky: 13 points, Kris Dunn: 10, Wendell Carter Jr.: 16, Lauri Markkanen: 15) scored double-digit points.

The Grizzlies struggled to get its backcourt going as Ja Morant missed his third game due to injury.

Pacers 107 (14-7), Thunder 100 (8-12)

Seven Pacers scored double-digit points as TJ Warren’s 24 led the way.

Steven Adams had 20 on 8-for-8 shooting to lead OKC.

Timberwolves 114 (10-10), Mavericks 121 (15-6)

Dallas’ bench got hot in the fourth quarter — Jalen Brunson was a team-best + 21 with 16 points — as the Mavs closed out the final period with 41 points.

Luka Doncic turned in 22 points, six assists and seven boards to keep the Mavs hot. Dwight Powell added 24 on 9-for-9 shooting. Karl-Anthony Towns had 26 points, nine boards and seven assists for Minnesota.

The post Post Up: LeBron, Lakers Blow Out Jazz, Bucks Win 13th Straight appeared first on SLAM.

The Suns went on a 12-0 run to end the game, stealing a win in Charlotte. Kelly Oubre Jr., who hit the go-ahead 3-pointer, scored 23 points, tied for the team lead with Devin Booker.

Jazz 94 (12-9), 76ers 103 (15-6)

Philadelphia overwhelmed the Jazz, pulling away in the second quarter and maintaining their lead throughout. Tobias Harris poured in a team-high 26 points. Rudy Gobert registered a double-double of 27 points and 12 rebounds in the loss.

Warriors 79 (4-18), Hawks 104 (5-16)

Trae Young put in 24 points and added seven assists in the home win. Warriors rookie Eric Paschall notched 24 points and nine rebounds.

Pacers 117 (13-7), Grizzlies 104 (6-14)

Indiana boasted seven double-digit scorers, paced by Malcolm Brogdon’s 19 points. Domantas Sabonis impressed with 18 points, 14 rebounds and 8 assists. Jaren Jackson Jr. scored a game-high 31 points for the Grizzlies.

Knicks 88 (4-17), Bucks 132 (18-3)

Milwaukee continues its winning ways. The Bucks won their twelfth straight, helped by a double-double from Giannis Antetokounmpo (29 points, 15 rebounds) in just 21 minutes.

Bulls 113 (7-14), Kings 106 (8-11)

Zach LaVine (28 points) and Lauri Markkanen (20 points) brought the scoring edge for Chicago. Buddy Hield put up 26 points in the loss.

The post Post Up: Giannis Posts Double-Double as Bucks Win Twelfth Straight appeared first on SLAM.

LaVine erupted for a career-high 49 points and a game-winning three-pointer Saturday night in Charlotte, one day after being benched for “three egregious defensive mistakes” in Friday’s home loss to Miami.

“That’s the greatest love you can show somebody,” Boylen told reporters about singling out Chicago’s best player.

Per NBC Sports Chicago:

“I let him know how I felt,” LaVine said. “We’re not going to try and drag this out. We had a misunderstanding. We still have a lot of things to work out as a team — personal, coaching. We all have to be accountable for our actions.”

Boylen said LaVine’s postgame comments from Friday, in which LaVine said he felt singled out, didn’t bother him because he knows “Zach’s heart and what kind of person he is.” He said he and LaVine talk regularly. “I know he cares about the team. I know he cares about playing good basketball. I know we all can get frustrated with a poor performance, me included with my performance. Those things happen,” Boylen said. “I just want him to be more consistent. He wants to be more consistent. We have a whole team I think that needs to be more consistent. I’ve held Lauri [Markkanen] out of fourth quarters. I’ve pulled Hutch (Chandler Hutchison) the other day because I wanted him to play better in that situation. My job is to try to get this team to move in the right direction. That’s what I try to do.”

Does LaVine want to be coached that way?

“To each their own. If that’s how he feels he has to coach me, that’s his prerogative,” LaVine said. “Like I said, I let him know how I felt and we’re in a better place now. So we’ll see how it goes.”

Related Zach LaVine: Lack of Trust With Bulls Coach Jim Boylen

The post Zach LaVine and Bulls Coach Jim Boylen in a Better Place Now’ appeared first on SLAM.

LaVine responded by telling a reporter that he feels a lack of trust with the Bulls’ head coach.

The 24-year-old guard is currently putting up 19.5 points (on 40.9 percent shooting from the field), down from career-best averages of 23.7 points, 4.7 rebounds and 4.5 assists last season.

Per Yahoo Sports:

“Zach LaVine and Lauri Markkanen and our starters have to play better. They’ve got to play better for us to become what we can become. That’s how it works,” Boylen said. “I didn’t want [LaVine] in the game anymore. I think he needed to come over and think about it.”

Does [Boylen] trust you?

LaVine: “I feel I earned that trust, but I guess he feels differently. Other players around the league — and everybody’s situation isn’t the same — I feel other players around the league have that trust. I guess we haven’t got there.”

Do you trust him still?

LaVine: “I’m trying my best, I’ll say that. I’m playing my minutes and trying to do the best I can do. It’s tough, especially when you’re in a rut. If he doesn’t trust me, it’s hard to trust someone who doesn’t trust you.”

Related ‘Ain’t This Crazy’: Zach LaVine Unhappy Giving Up Midrange Shots

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RJ Barrett, Julius Randle and Marcus Morris combined for 72 points in their Knicks debuts, but it wasn’t enough as San Antonio scored 37 in the final period to secure the win.

LaMarcus Aldridge scored a team-high 22 for the Spurs.

Mavericks 108, Wizards 100

Kristaps Porzingis (23 points) and Luka Doncic (34 points, nine rebounds) showed why they belong in the same conversation as the league’s most elite duos, leading Dallas to a chippy win.

Thunder 95, Jazz 100

Donovan Mitchell had an especially efficient night, scoring 32 points on 14-for-22 shooting and grabbing 12 boards as the Jazz earned the win.

OKC’s newest acquisitions shined as Shai Gilgeous-Alexander scored a career-high 26, Chris Paul had 22 and Danilo Gallinari added 21.

Hornets 126, Bulls 125

Lauri Markkanen stole the show with 35 points and 17 boards, but a collective outing the Hornets’ PJ Washington (27 points), Devonte Graham (23) and Dwayne Bacon (22) sent the Bulls home with a loss.

Washington knocked down seven 3’s in his NBA debut.

Pistons 119, Pacers 110

Blake Griffin missed the season-opener due to soreness, but his frontcourt mate Andre Drummond held it down with 32 points, 23 rebounds, three steals and four blocks. The Pistons shot 45.8 percent from deep — Luke Kennard hit six from deep en route to 30 points — to hold off the Pacers.

Cavaliers 85, Magic 94

Neither team was particularly inspiring on offense, but Nikola Vucevic (21 points on 8-for-16 shooting) and Evan Fournier (16 on 7-for-13 shooting) were able to push their squad ahead.

Timberwolves 127, Nets 126

Kyrie Irving had 50 points, eight rebounds, seven assists and zero turnovers in his Nets debut, clocking out with a plus-minus of +18. It wasn’t enough, though, as the Timberwolves’ depth made the most of limited minutes to keep Minnesota ahead when Irving came out of the game.

Karl-Anthony Towns had 36 points, 14 rebounds, three steals and three blocks.

Grizzlies 101, Heat 120

Jimmy Butler didn’t make the game due to personal reasons, but undrafted Kendrick Nunn had no problem filling the void, scoring 24 points on 10-for-18 shooting to secure the W in South Beach.

Celtics 93, 76ers 107

Al Horford (16 points) got the W over his former team as every Philadelphia starter scored at least 15. Ben Simmons’ 24 led the way.

Kings 95, Suns 124

The Suns outscored the Kings 70-36 in the second half as the #ValleyBoyz took over the night — Devin Booker had 22 points and 10 assists, Kelly Oubre had 21 points and nine boards and DeAndre Ayton added 18 points, 11 boards and four blocks.

Nuggets 108, Trail Blazers 100

The Nuggets avenged last year’s playoff series loss to the Trail Blazers as Nikola Jokic stuffed the stat sheet with 20 points and 13 rebounds in just 24 minutes due to foul trouble.

Damian Lillard scored a team-high 32 and Hassan Whiteside had 16 points and 19 rebounds in his Portland debut.

The post Post Up: Kyrie Drops 50 in Brooklyn, Kristaps and Luka Shine in Dallas appeared first on SLAM.

Carter Jr. was limited to just 44 games as a rookie because of a thumb injury which required surgery. He missed the team’s summer league while recovering from the core muscle surgery he had in the offseason and was expected to be ready by the time Chicago’s training camp began. October 1 is that day and WCJ should be a full participant.

The center made .485% of his looks in 25.2 minutes of action during the 2018-19 season. He should begin the season as the starter in Chicago, pairing with Lauri Markkanen in the frontcourt.

The post Wendell Carter Jr. Back At Full Strength appeared first on SLAM.

Below is a list of the contract types the Chicago Bulls have heading into training camp. This resource will be updated as players are signed and waived. Check back often to see if your team’s roster configuration has changed.

Chicago Bulls

For a complete list of all the NBA teams and links to each team’s roster breakdown, check out our 2019 NBA Training Camp Index. Follow the curators of this database, Chris Crouse and Austin Kent, on Twitter.

More NBA Training Camp Rosters

The post Chicago Bulls Roster Count: 2019 Training Camp appeared first on SLAM.

We’ve broken down the overall ratings for each player and sorted them by team so that you can see how your squad stacks up against the rest of the league.

Chicago Bulls NBA 2K20 Ratings

This table is updated as of Nov. 22, 2019

Can’t get enough 2K? SLAM’s dedicated gaming channel, @SLAMftw, is blowing up. Hit us with your best uploads and watch our streams!

More NBA 2K20 Ratings

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Carter Jr. will miss all of summer league but is expected to be back in action in time for training camp. While the core muscle injury has nothing to do with the thumb injury that brought his 2018-19 campaign to a premature end, it’s a costly setback nonetheless.

In his first taste of NBA action, Carter Jr. averaged 10.3 points, 7.0 rebounds and 1.3 blocks per game. Those numbers were slightly higher at the beginning of the campaign while Lauri Markkanen recovered from his own injury and before new head coach Jim Boylen took over and started utilizing his young big man differently.

Carter Jr.’s surgery will be performed next Tuesday by Dr. William Meyers in Philadelphia.

The post Wendell Carter Jr. To Undergo Surgery On Core Muscle Injury appeared first on SLAM.

Wojnarowski tweets that Bulls ownership and management views Boylen as the type of teacher that rebuilding franchise with a young roster can benefit from.

During Boylen’s 58 games with the Bulls this season, the team went 17 and 41. Injuries played a substantial role in Chicago’s lack of success in 2018-19, however, as no player started more than 62 games.

Zach LaVine led all Bulls with those 62 starts, while Lauri Markkanen finished second with 51. In fact, only three players – Robin Lopez, Shaquille Harrison and Ryan Arcidiacono – played more than 63 games period.

The post Bulls, Head Coach Jim Boylen Agree To Extension appeared first on SLAM.

Markkanen was shut down for the 2018-19 season in late March after experiencing abnormal fatigue and a rapid heart rate in a game against the Toronto Raptors.

Even at the time there was optimism that Markkanen’s incident was isolated, as K.C. Johnson of the Chicago Tribune wrote, but the team opted to be cautious with their star big man.

In the weeks since Markkanen has been out of action, he’s been tested and observed by multiple doctors whose conclusion is that he suffered from dehydration and nutrient deficiency.

Markkanen will head into the offseason with a clean bill of health, beginning his training in Finland before returning to Chicago in the summer.

Markkanen averaged 18.7 points and 9.0 rebounds per game in his second NBA season.

The post Lauri Markkanen Cleared To Resume Basketball Activities appeared first on SLAM.

When the 76ers needed a bucket, Jimmy Butler rose to the occasion. After fending off tough defense from Kyrie Irving, Butler planted his feet and hit the dagger to ensure the win for his team. Butler finished with 22 points, while Joel Embiid put in a monstrous effort of 37 points and 22 rebounds.

Raptors 123 (51-21), Thunder 114 (42-30)

Russell Westbrook went coast-to-coast to tie the game at the end of regulation, but with Paul George fouling out also at the end of regulation, OKC fell short in OT. Pascal Siakam put in 33 points for the Raptors.

Bucks 102 (52-18), Cavaliers 107 (17-53)

The Bucks lacked a spark on offense with Giannis Antetokounmpo out, losing on the road to Cleveland. Collin Sexton hit several clutch buckets down the stretch to lead his team to the win; he scored 25 points.

Pelicans 96 (30-42), Magic 119 (33-38)

Orlando scored 39 points in the opening frame to grab the lead and never looked back, leading the entire game. They enjoyed scoring from the trio of Evan Fournier (22 points), Aaron Gordon (20 points) and Terrence Ross (19 points).

Jazz 137 (40-29), Knicks 116 (14-56)

Donovan Mitchell dropped 30 points in just 28 minutes as the Jazz cruised to a win. Teammates Joe Ingles and Rudy Gobert each added 18 points. Knicks rookie Kevin Knox scored 27 points.

Wizards 120 (30-40), Bulls 126 (19-52)

Bradley Beal hit a clutch bucket to force the game into overtime, but Chicago pulled it out at home. They were led by Lauri Markkanen’s 32 points, while Kris Dunn added 26 points.

Rockets 125 (44-26), Grizzlies 126 (28-42)

James Harden scored eight straight points in overtime and dropped 57 points, but Houston fell on a last-second free throw by Jonas Valanciunas. Mike Conley and Valanciunas combined for 68 points, 20 rebounds and nine assists.

Heat 110 (33-36), Spurs 105 (41-29)

Miami had just enough offensive gas to push them ahead on the road. Goran Dragic led the team with 22 points in 22 minutes. Dwyane Wade, who finished with 11 points in his final game in San Antonio, hit a ridiculous shot down the stretch to hold off the Spurs.

Mavericks 118 (28-43), Blazers 126 (44-27)

Three Blazers notched double-doubles in their win: Damian Lillard (33 points, 12 assists), Enes Kanter (14 points, 10 rebounds) and Jusuf Nurkic (13 points, 10 rebounds). Luka Doncic led Dallas in scoring with 24 points.

RELATED: Jimmy Butler Plans To Retire by Age 35

The post Post Up: Jimmy Butler Nails CLUTCH Shot as 76ers Beat Celtics ❄️ appeared first on SLAM.

Isaiah Thomas got the win in his return to Boston as Denver pulled ahead in the final period.

Nikola Jokic stuffed the stat sheet with 21 points, 13 rebounds, seven assists, two steals and three blocks. Kyrie Irving had game-highs in points (30) and steals (four).

Pistons 119 (36-34), Cavaliers 126 (18-53)

The Pistons weren’t able to get the job done without Blake Griffin as the Cavs scored 39 points in the fourth quarter. Cleveland shot a blistering 58.2 percent from the field and 50 percent from deep — Collin Sexton spearheaded the offense, scoring a game-high 27 on 10-for 16 shooting from the field and 5-for-6 on 3’s.

Warriors 105 (47-22), Spurs 111 (42-29)

Gregg Popovich and the Spurs clinched their 22nd straight winning season as they took advantage of uncharacteristically poor shooting nights from Steph Curry (9-for-25) and Klay Thompson (5-for-18).

Andrew Bogut had seven points and seven boards in 19 minutes as a starter in his return to the Warriors.

DeMar DeRozan scored a game-high 26 points and LaMarcus Aldridge added 23 points, 13 rebounds and two blocks to lead San Antonio.

Jazz 116 (41-29), Wizards 95 (30-41)

No Utah player scored more than 20 points, but a 53.8 percent shooting night as a unit was more than enough to get the job done as the Jazz blew out the Wizards.

Donovan Mitchell scored a team-high 19 and Joe Ingles added 16 on 4-for-8 shooting from behind the arc.

Pelicans 129 (31-42), Mavericks 125 (28-42)

Anthony Davis only played 21 minutes of the 53-minute overtime game, but he made the most of that time, racking up 20 points, six rebounds and five assists. His frontcourt mate, Julius Randle, took care of business down the stretch with 30 points, nine boards and four dimes of his own.

Luka Doncic finished the night with 29 points, 13 rebounds and 10 dimes and Dirk Nowitzki moved pass Wilt Chamberlain on the NBA’s all-time scoring leaderboard.

Knicks 92 (14-57), Raptors 128 (50-21)

Jeremy Lin stepped up off the bench with a team-high 20 points as he played extra minutes due to an ankle injury that took Kyle Lowry out for the night.

Eight different Raptors scored at least 10 points.

Allonzo Trier scored 22 points for New York.

Heat 116 (34-36), Thunder 107 (42-29)

The Heat improved to 7-2 in their last nine as Dwyane Wade and Goran Dragic combined to score 51 points off the pine.

The Thunder dropped its third game in a row despite 31 points from Paul George.

Pacers 98 (44-27), Trail Blazers 106 (43-27)

The Pacers led at the end of the first quarter, but the Trail Blazers built a lead that went as high as 21 in the fourth quarter to put the game to bed.

Damian Lillard was the star of the show as he had 30 points, 15 assists and three steals. His plus-minus of +17 was at least 12 points higher than every other Portland starter.

Bulls 116 (20-52), Suns 101 (17-55)

Devin Booker and DeAndre Ayton combined for 50 points, but the Suns struggled without the services of Kelly Oubre Jr.

The Bulls’ big men showed up as Lauri Markkanen (17 points, nine boards, two blocks) and Robin Lopez (24 points, seven rebounds) took care of business.

The post Post Up: Gregg Popovich Clinches 22nd Straight Winning Season, Spurs Down Warriors appeared first on SLAM.

Bam Adebayo wore those sick futuristic-looking Nike Zoom Kobe IV Protros, but DeMar DeRozan showed why he’s the top Kobe collector in the League as he broke out the latest colorway in that style which featured an all-black base with bright contrasting color pops. Fellow Kobe aficionados Allonzo Trier and Tobias Harris wore vintage models. Iso Zo went with the Nike Zoom Kobe VI ASG “Orange County” and Harris donned the “Big Stage” Nike Zoom Kobe V.

In the evening’s craziest kicks, Jimmy Butler came with another sick pair of the Jordan Supreme Elevation as he donned an orange and green number in the 76ers win. Dwyane Wade went with a new Li-Ning Way of Wade 7 colorway which featured a leopard print over a multicolored upper.

Closing out, our P.J. Tucker sneaker watch continues and the League’s sneaker king showed pride in his alma mater as he wore a pair of “Texas Longhorns” Nike Zoom KD4 PEs.

Check out the rest of the league’s footwear game in our recap below.

Photos via Getty Images

The post NBA Kicks of the Night appeared first on SLAM.

Dwyane Wade, a.k.a. Father Prime, had to flex his magic Wednesday night. Wade hit an improbable buzzer-beater against the Warriors that was nothing short of otherworldly. He sent the Miami crowd and his teammates into hysteria following the shot.

Wade finished with 25 points.

Rockets 118 (36-25), Hornets 113 (28-33)

Houston scored 28 points in the fourth quarter to get a win on the road. James Harden contributed 30 points and dished out seven assists while Clint Capela scored 23 points and grabbed 17 rebounds. Kemba Walker had 35 points for the Hornets.

Timberwolves 123 (29-32), Hawks 131 (21-41)

Atlanta was able to come out on top in overtime thanks to the duo of Trae Young (36 points, 10 assists, eight rebounds) and John Collins (34 points, eight rebounds). Karl-Anthony Towns scored 37 points in the loss.

Wizards 125 (25-36), Nets 116 (32-21)

Bradley Beal (31 points) and Trevor Ariza (23 points, 10 rebounds) led Washington to a road win in Brooklyn. D’Angelo Russell put in 28 points and seven rebounds for the Nets.

Blazers 97 (38-23), Celtics 92 (37-25)

Damian Lillard’s 33 points propelled the Blazers to a win in Boston despite a comeback attempt by the Celtics. Kyrie Irving scored 31 points in the loss.

Bulls 109 (17-45), Grizzlies 107 (24-39)

The Bulls’ trio of Zach LaVine (30 points), Lauri Markkanen (22 points) and Otto Porter Jr. (20 points) helped Chicago hold off Memphis. Avery Bradley put in 23 points for the Grizzlies.

Pistons 93 (29-31), Spurs 105 (34-29)

San Antonio used a 27-point third quarter to expand their lead and cruise to the home win. LaMarcus Aldridge led the team with 24 points while DeMar DeRozan added 17 points, 13 rebounds and eight assists.

Pacers 101 (40-22), Mavericks 110 (27-34)

Dallas turned the tide in the fourth quarter, putting in 31 points that pushed them ahead for the win. Rookie Luka Doncic flirted with a triple-double yet again, registering 26 points, 10 rebounds and seven assists.

Clippers 105 (34-29), Jazz 111 (34-26)

Utah enjoyed double-digit scoring from six players, including each of their starting five. Donovan Mitchell led the team in scoring with 32 points, while Rudy Gobert added 20 points and 13 rebounds.

Bucks 141 (47-14), Kings 140 (31-30)

Milwaukee and Sacramento played an electrifying game that went down to the final seconds in overtime. Eric Bledsoe led the Bucks with 26 points and 13 assists. Buddy Hield scored 32 points for the Kings.

Pelicans 119 (27-36), Lakers 125 (30-31)

With his team up three and time winding down, LeBron James nailed a one-legged 3-pointer from the corner to seal the game. James finished with 33 points and 10 assists as the Lakers exacted revenge after a loss to the Pelicans last week.

RELATED: Dwyane Wade Channeling His ‘Inner Allen Iverson’ With Braids

The post Post Up: Dwyane Wade Hits Ridiculous Buzzer-Beater Against Warriors ⚡️ appeared first on SLAM.

DeMarcus Cousins scored a season-high 24 points on 9-for-15 shooting and added 11 boards and three blocks as Golden State took care of business in Queen City.

Cody Zeller led all players with 28 points on 13-for-14 shooting from the field.

Trail Blazers 123 (37-23), Cavaliers 110 (14-47)

The Trail Blazers scored 71 first half points in a game that was never really close as CJ McCollum scored 35 points on a scorching 7-for-8 shooting night from deep.

Cedi Osman was a bright spot for the Cavs, scoring a team-high 27.

Pacers 109 (40-21), Pistons 113 (29-30)

Blake Griffin’s triple-double (20 points, 10 rebounds, 10 assists) led the way as the Pistons won their third game in a row. Andre Drummond had game-highs in points (26), rebounds (16) and blocks (3).

Suns 124 (12-50), Heat 121 (26-33)

The Suns snapped a 17-game losing streak as seven players chipped in double-digit points in South Beach — Devin Booker’s 20 led the way. The Suns outscored the Heat 72-58 in the second half to complete the comeback victory.

Hassan Whiteside had 29 points and 11 boards for Miami.

Bucks 117 (46-14), Bulls 106 (16-45)

Lauri Markkanen and Robin Lopez each scored 26 for Chicago to lead all scorers, but the Bucks’ collective effort without Giannis Antetokounmpo was too much to defeat.

Malcolm Brogdon scored 22 points and had a +25 plus-minus in 25 minutes of work for Milwaukee.

Hawks 111 (20-41), Rockets 119 (35-25)

The cellar-dwelling Hawks threw everything they had at the Rockets after falling behind early Trae Young scored a career-high 36 on 8-for-12 shooting from deep and dropped eight dimes.

James Harden’s streak of 32 straight games with at least 30 points came to an end as he scored 28 points on 7-for-21 shooting from the field. Chris Paul scored 20 for Houston.

Mavericks 112 (26-34), Clippers 121 (34-28)

Luka Doncic had 28 points, 10 rebounds and 10 dimes as the Mavericks fell short in Los Angeles. Montrezl Harrell (32 points, 14-for-17 shooting) and Lou Williams (21 points, 10 assists) led the way off the pine for the Clippers.

76ers 111 (39-22), Pelicans 110 (27-35)

Tobias Harris continued to shine for his new squad, clocking out with 29 points on 10-for-16 shooting with 10 rebounds. Anthony Davis scored 18 points and three blocks in 21 minutes.

Lakers 105 (29-31), Grizzlies 110 (24-38)

The Lakers fell to 2-6 in the month of February as Mike Conley’s 30-piece led a shorthanded Grizzlies squad to a win at the FedEx Forum. Newly acquired Jonas Valanciunas added 20 points, 13 boards and two blocks in 25 minutes of work for Memphis.

LeBron James had 24 points, 12 rebounds, 11 assists and three steals. Kyle Kuzma (22 points, 9-for-15 shooting) and Brandon Ingram (32 points, 12-for-18 shooting) turned in strong offensive performances for Los Angeles.

Kings 105 (31-29), Timberwolves 112 (29-31)

Karl-Anthony Towns scored 34 points and grabbed 21 boards in his first game since a car accident forced him to miss two games of action. Derrick Rose scored 20 points off the pine as the Timberwolves made the race for the 8-seed in the Western Conference a bit more interesting.

Spurs 85 (33-29), Nets 101 (32-30)

DeMar DeRozan and LaMarcus Aldridge combined to score 49 points on 21-for-35 shooting, but it wasn’t enough as the rest of the Spurs shot just 34.4 percent from the field and just 4-for-23 from deep.

D’Angelo Russell scored a team-high 23 points and dropped eight dimes for Brooklyn while his All-Star Weekend companion Joe Harris scored 15 on 5-for-6 shooting from 3.

The post Post Up: Trae Young Drops 36, Boogie Cousins Scores Season-High appeared first on SLAM.

Portland outscored the Sixers by 15 in the third quarter and kept a 20-point lead for much of the fourth.

Dame Lillard (17, 8 dimes, 6 boards) and Jusuf Nurkic (24 and 10) were both a +24 plus/minus on the night.

Ben Simmons and Nurkic went at it with some, er… friendly banter on the court, and Nurk even posted about Simmons on Instagram after the game. Too bad this was their final meeting this season.

Suns 112 (11-50), Hawks 120 (20-40)

The score was tied with 3 minutes to play, but Atlanta would go on a 13-5 run to close out the game.

John Collins had 19 points, 14 boards and a +19 plus/minus.

Phoenix has now lost an abysmal 17 straight.

Nets 117 (31-30), Hornets 115 (28-31)

Brooklyn held the lead for most of the game and were up by as much as 19 points in the third quarter. But Charlotte battled back and took an 8-point lead late in the fourth.

D’Angelo Russell, on his 23rd birthday, scored five straight buckets to regain the lead for the Nets. He would finish with 40 points, tying a career-high.

Grizzlies 107 (23-38), Cavs 112 (14-46)

Both teams played neck-and-neck throughout the fourth quarter, but Cleveland was able to pull away in the end.

Kevin Love, in his eighth game of the season, dropped a game-high 32 points (on 15 shots) with 12 boards.

Pacers 119 (40-20), Wizards 112 (24-36)

Despite a ton of turnovers, Indiana was able to maintain a lead for the majority of the game. (It also helped that the Wizards were also turning the ball over like crazy.)

Thad Young dropped a team-high 22 points on just 11 shots.

Lakers 115 (29-30), Pelicans 128 (27-34)

With Anthony Davis sitting out, New Orleans dropped 42 points in the first quarter and never looked back. They led by as much as 20 points during the fourth.

Jrue Holiday scored a team-high 27 points with 7 assists and 3 steals.

The Lakers have now lost 9 of their last 13 games.

Pistons 119 (28-30), Heat 96 (26-32)

Detroit outscored the Heat by 15 points in the fourth quarter, leading by as much as 26.

Blake Griffin had 20 points, 6 dimes and a +21 plus/minus.

Celtics 116 (37-23), Bulls 126 (16-44)

The last time the Celtics were in Chicago, they beat the Bulls by 56 points. This time, Boston was trailing by as much as 25 points.

Zach LaVine dropped a career-high 42 points and Lauri Markkanen had 35 points and 15 boards. The last pair of Bulls teammates to score 35+ points in a game were… you guessed it, Michael Jordan and Scottie Pippen during the 1996-97 season.

Kings 119 (31-28), Thunder 116 (38-21)

The Kings blew a 16-point third quarter lead but were able to hang on. Paul George had a chance to send the game to overtime, but his three at the buzzer fell short.

Buddy Hield dropped a team-high 34 points with 5 boards and 4 assists.

Wolves 128 (28-31), Bucks 140 (45-14)

Even without Karl-Anthony Towns (concussion), Minnesota was able to keep the game close until the Bucks pulled away in the fourth quarter.

Giannis Antetokounmpo had 27 points, 10 boards, 7 dimes and a +15 plus/minus.

Rockets 118 (34-25), Warriors 112 (42-17)

Even without James Harden (neck strain), Houston was able to come away with a victory at Oracle Arena.

Eric Gordon scored a team-high 25 points and Chris Paul (23 points, 17 dimes) put the team on his back with a vintage performance.

Mavs 109 (26-33), Jazz 125 (33-26)

After a heartbreaking 2OT loss the night before in OKC, Utah bounced back at home against the Mavs. The Jazz went off for 39 points in the final quarter to close out the victory.

Donovan Mitchell dropped a game-high 25 points with 8 boards and 6 dimes.

The post Post Up: CP3 Carries Rockets To Victory at Oracle 🚀 appeared first on SLAM.

Paul George continues to prove that he deserves to be in the MVP conversation. George scored 45 points in 50 minutes as the Thunder battled the Jazz to the last second in a double overtime thriller.

It was George who iced the game for his team with a floater with only 0.8 seconds left on the clock.

Teammate Russell Westbrook added 43 points before fouling out in the first overtime.

Spurs 117 (33-27), Raptors 120 (44-16)

DeMar DeRozan’s return to Toronto did not disappoint. However, it was the Raptors who prevailed thanks to Kawhi Leonard‘s steal from DeRozan and subsequent layup to put Toronto ahead for good. DeRozan finished with 23 points; Leonard finished with 25 points.

After the game, noted best friends DeRozan and Kyle Lowry embraced.

Wizards 110 (24-35), Hornets 123 (28-30)

Bradley Beal’s 46 points were all for not as Charlotte overcame Washington at home. Kemba Walker led his team with 27 points and 11 assists in the win.

Pelicans 111 (26-34), Pacers 126 (39-20)

New Orleans simply couldn’t muster enough offense to beat the Pacers in Indiana. Recent free-agent signing Wesley Matthews led his new team to the win with 24 points on 6-of-11 shooting from deep.

Bulls 110 (15-44), Magic 109 (27-33)

Lauri Markkanen stepped up to the free throw line with 1.5 seconds left and a chance to put the Bulls ahead — he did just that, sinking two of three free throws to put Chicago ahead for good. The second-year forward led the Bulls in scoring with 25 points.

Pistons 125 (27-30), Hawks 122 (19-40)

Thon Maker iced the game for Detroit with a 3-pointer with under 20 seconds left that pushed the Pistons ahead for the win. Andre Drummond finished with 26 points and 21 rebounds while Reggie Jackson led the team with 32 points.

Timberwolves 115 (28-30), Knicks 104 (11-48)

Derrick Rose (20 points) and Taj Gibson (19 points) paced the Wolves in their road win over the Knicks. Allonzo Trier and Damyean Dotson each scored 20 points for New York.

Clippers 112 (33-27), Grizzlies 106 (23-37)

Montrezl Harrell continued his impressive season with 30 points on 11-of-14 shooting from the field in a win at Memphis. Mike Conley led the Grizzlies with 25 points and 10 assists.

Nuggets 114 (40-18), Mavericks 104 (26-32)

Denver enjoyed an all-around scoring effort as seven players scored in double digits, led by Nikola Jokic with 19 points. Jalen Brunson put in 22 points for the Mavs as Luka Doncic sat due to right ankle soreness.

RELATED: DeMar DeRozan Details the Moment He Found Out About Trade to San Antonio

The post Post Up: Raptors Steal Win Over Spurs in DeMar DeRozan’s Return appeared first on SLAM.

Teammate Jayson Tatum added 30 points (including six made 3-pointers) and nine rebounds to the winning effort.

Fellow Team USA guard Trae Young dazzled with several nutmegs on the night; he finished with a double-double of 25 points and 10 assists.

Team World was led by Ben Simmons’ 28 points and Lauri Markkanen’s 21 points.

Possible Rookie of the Year Luka Doncic deferred to his teammates most of the night, scoring 13 points and racking up nine assists.

Ben Simmons dropping the (via @sixers) pic.twitter.com/KKWf6432zk

— SLAM (@SLAMonline) February 16, 2019

John Collins goes 360 off a Trae Young oop. SHEESH (via @ATLHawks) pic.twitter.com/qwuLkcUoZs

— SLAM (@SLAMonline) February 16, 2019

A SECOND nutmeg for Trae (via @ATLHawks) pic.twitter.com/mRMTekOGSa

— SLAM (@SLAMonline) February 16, 2019

Rising Stars MVP. Salute, @kylekuzma pic.twitter.com/gJtTgQs9nq

— SLAM (@SLAMonline) February 16, 2019

RELATED:
Kyle Kuzma Talks Favorite Jerseys, Playing with LeBron James and More

The post Post Up: Kyle Kuzma Wins MVP as Team USA Beats Team World in Rising Stars Challenge appeared first on SLAM.

The Cavaliers rode a 66-point first half performance to deliver the Knicks a franchise-worst 17th straight loss.

Kadeem Allen scored a career-high 25 points on 10-for-16 shooting for New York. Collin Sexton led the Cavs with 20 points and Kevin Love put up 14 points and nine boards in just 16 minutes of work.

DeAndre Jordan’s reaction to Mario’s poster tho (via @BleacherReport) pic.twitter.com/70TsCXa3L5

— SLAM (@SLAMonline) February 12, 2019

Trail Blazers 111 (33-23), Thunder 120 (37-29)

Russell Westbrook (21 points, 14 rebounds, 11 assists) and Paul George (47 points, 12 rebounds 10 assists) became the 10th pair of teammates to ever record triple-doubles as OKC cruised to the W.

With 68 combined points, the duo surpassed Vince Carter/Jason Kidd and Michael Jordan/Scottie Pippen for the highest scoring output between two teammates with triple-doubles — the previous record was 56. They were also the first duo to both score at least 20 points.

Westbrook’s 10th consecutive triple-double moved him past Wilt Chamberlain for the League record.

BIG PG ENERGY (via @nba) pic.twitter.com/KudXM4AlnY

— SLAM (@SLAMonline) February 12, 2019

Heat 87 (25-30), Nuggets 103 (38-18)

Nikola Jokic had 23 points and 12 rebounds and Malik Beasley added 20 as the Nuggets scored 35 first quarter points and never looked back.

Nets 125 (29-29), Raptors 127 (42-16)

Kawhi Leonard (30 points) knocked down the go-ahead shot with four seconds to go as the Raptors won their fifth game in a row. Marc Gasol had 16 points and six boards in 22 minutes in his first home game in Toronto.

Joe Harris and Allen Crabbe combined for 46 points and 13-for-18 shooting from deep.

who forgot to teach Marc Gasol the pregame intro routine? (via @TSN_Sports) pic.twitter.com/tc43wezOg9

— SLAM (@SLAMonline) February 12, 2019

30 PTS | Game-Winner#KawhiLeonard improves the @Raptors to 42-16 on the season! #WeTheNorth pic.twitter.com/fHbvjTKmsE

— NBA (@NBA) February 12, 2019

Bucks 112 (42-14), Bulls 99 (13-44)

Giannis Antetokounmpo stuffed the stat sheet with 29 points, 17 rebounds, eight dimes and three blocks as the Bucks held onto first place in the Eastern Conference. His plus-minus of plus-21 in 35 minutes was a team-best

Zach LaVine and Lauri Markkanen combined for 47 points, nearly half of Chicago’s points.

Mavericks 104 (26-30), Rockets (33-23)

James Harden knocked down a 30-foot 3 with 52 seconds to go to extend his 30-point streak to 30 games as he finished the night with 31 points, eight rebounds, seven dimes and five steals.

Luka Doncic led the Mavs with 21 points, 10 rebounds and eight assists.

YO WHAT?!

LUKA’S HANDLE PACKAGE IS INSANE. (via @nbatv) pic.twitter.com/B4zjTEg9PT

— SLAM (@SLAMonline) February 12, 2019

“DON’T REACH YOUNGBLOOD.”

PJ Tucker just made Luka #TouchEarth. pic.twitter.com/0JTdiQCfaH

— SLAM (@SLAMonline) February 12, 2019

BANG.

James Harden nails the 30-footer to hit 31 and keep the streak alive. (via @nbatv) pic.twitter.com/W8pLBZtast

— SLAM (@SLAMonline) February 12, 2019

Clippers 120 (31-27), Timberwolves 130 (26-30)

The two sides were knotted up 53-53 late in the second quarter, but a 34-11 run by Minnesota put the game out of reach for Los Angeles, who were only able to cut the deficit back down to four in the final period.

Bench stars came up big for both sides as Derrick Rose scored 22 in 25 minutes for the Timberwolves and Lou Williams had 45 points on 13-for-25 shooting for the Clippers. Williams’ 45 was the most points by a bench player since JR Smith in 2009.

4.4 seconds.

Derrick Rose can, and will, always beat the clock. pic.twitter.com/7ZjvAVjeFc

— SLAM (@SLAMonline) February 12, 2019

Wizards 112 (24-33), Pistons 121 (26-29)

Blake Griffin (31 points, nine rebounds, nine assists) and Andre Drummond (32 points, 17 rebounds, four steals) took over as the Pistons raced out to a quick lead and held on the rest of the way.

Bradley Beal scored 32 for the Wizards.

Hornets 90 (27-29), Pacers 99 (38-19)

Kemba Walker scored 34 points, but the Hornets were only able to shoot 32.2 percent from the field and 17.5 percent from behind the arc as seven Pacers chipped in at least eight points. Myles Turner led Indiana with 18 points, three steals and three blocks.

The post Post Up: Russell Westbrook and Paul George Record Historic Triple-Doubles appeared first on SLAM.

Philadelphia enjoyed a high-scoring night from JJ Redick (34 points, 6-7 on threes) as they held off the Denver Nuggets at home. Jimmy Butler added 22 points and new arrival Tobias Harris put in 14 points in his Sixer debut, adding yet another weapon to a team that has high playoff aspirations in the Eastern Conference.

Welcome to Philly, Tobias Harris (via @NBA) pic.twitter.com/vpJovasTkp

— SLAM (@SLAMonline) February 9, 2019

Knicks 103 (10-44), Pistons 120 (25-29)

The Pistons’ formidable frontcourt of Andre Drummond (29 points, 20 rebounds, three blocks) and Blake Griffin (26 points, six rebounds, four assists) led the way in securing a home win. Dennis Smith Jr. paced the Knicks with 31 points and eight assists, including a very casual in-game 360-degree dunk.

DSJ making an in-game 360 look casual (via @NBA) pic.twitter.com/DwowN8oQSe

— SLAM (@SLAMonline) February 9, 2019

Cavaliers 106 (11-44), Wizards 119 (23-32)

Bobby Portis showed out in his first game with the Wizards, leading the team in scoring with 30 points as Washington beat Cleveland at home. Cavs rookie Collin Sexton scored 27 points in the loss.

The game also marked the return of Kevin Love after missing 50 games with a foot injury.

HEEEEEE'S BAAAAAACK.

Kevin Love is returning to the @cavs' lineup tonight. pic.twitter.com/88M0EGolMv

— SLAM (@SLAMonline) February 8, 2019

Bulls 125 (13-42), Nets 106 (29-28)

Lauri Markkanen (31 points, 18 rebounds) and Zach LaVine (26 points) helped the Bulls earn a road win in Brooklyn.

For the Nets, the game was all about Caris LeVert, who returned after a foot injury that had NBA fans fearing the worst. He received a standing ovation from the home crowd after checking in.

Caris LeVert getting a standing O in his return to the floor got us (via @BrooklynNets) pic.twitter.com/FHRA94qnQR

— SLAM (@SLAMonline) February 9, 2019

Bucks 122 (41-13), Mavericks 107 (25-29)

All-Star Game captain Giannis Antetokounmpo led his team with 29 points, 17 rebounds and five assists as Milwaukee overwhelmed the Mavericks in Dallas. The Bucks shot an impressive 54.3 percent from the field and enjoyed the advantage in both rebounds and assists. Luka Doncic scored 20 points for the Mavs.

Warriors 117 (39-15), Suns 107 (11-46)

Golden State’s win over the Suns marked the Warriors’ 14th win in 16 games. Each of the team’s starters notched double-digit scoring, led by Klay Thompson‘s 25 points — on his birthday no less. Suns rookie Deandre Ayton registered his 30th double-double of the season with 23 points and 12 rebounds.

Timberwolves 117 (25-30), Pelicans 122 (25-31)

Anthony Davis paced the Pelicans with 32 points and nine rebounds, but he was benched the entire fourth quarter. Instead, Julius Randle (12 points) and Kenrich Williams (19 points) stepped up in his place as New Orleans held on down the stretch. Karl-Anthony Towns had 32 points in the loss.

Heat 96 (25-28), Kings 102 (29-26)

Sacramento’s young core rose to the occasion to steal a win from the Heat in the final five minutes. The Kings scored 27 points in the fourth, compared to just 13 for Miami, which allowed them to take back the lead late. They were led by Buddy Hield’s 23 points.

Dwyane Wade walked off the court under his own power after a scary fall (via @FOXSportsFL) pic.twitter.com/lW2X4NHS9F

— SLAM (@SLAMonline) February 9, 2019

RELATED:
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The post Post Up: Sixers Take Down Nuggets in Tobias Harris’ First Game 💪 appeared first on SLAM.

The Bucks proved to have too much firepower for the Wizards to overcome at the Fiserv Forum. Milwaukee started off the game with a season-high 50 points in the first quarter, jump-starting their lead from the get go. Giannis Antetokounmpo registered 43 points on the night.

$5K half-court shot? BAG SECURED (via @NBA) pic.twitter.com/BtbWKxoKU7

— SLAM (@SLAMonline) February 7, 2019

Nuggets 130 (37-17), Nets 135 (29-27)

Brooklyn continued an impressive season with a win over the No. 2-seed Nuggets at home. Newly minted All-Star D’Angelo Russell put in 27 and 11 assists; he was one of seven Nets players to hit double digits in the win.

Pelicans 125 (24-31), Bulls 120 (12-42)

With Anthony Davis out it was Julius Randle who stepped up. Randle came off of the bench to lead New Orleans in scoring with 31 points, adding seven rebounds as well. Lauri Markkanen scored 30 points for the Bulls.

Hornets 92 (26-28), Mavericks 99 (25-28)

These two teams played even until the fourth quarter as Dallas was able to pull away in the closing minutes. Rookie Luka Doncic secured his third triple-double of the season with 19 points, 11 assists and 10 rebounds. Kemba Walker had 30 points in the loss.

Forward Harrison Barnes drew attention after he was traded mid-game to the Kings, but seemed cool as he left the arena.

Oh my, Kemba (via @hornets) pic.twitter.com/qs4esHiwWT

— SLAM (@SLAMonline) February 7, 2019

Mavs fans showing love to Kristaps Porzingis after he was introduced in the arena (via @townbrad) pic.twitter.com/TkuN9Xsvoh

— SLAM (@SLAMonline) February 7, 2019

Harrison Barnes is on to Sacramento (via @TheKobeBeef) pic.twitter.com/earwSwQiaL

— SLAM (@SLAMonline) February 7, 2019

Suns 88 (11-45), Jazz 116 (31-24)

Utah held the lead for virtually the entire game in an easy home win over the Suns. The Jazz were led by Donovan Mitchell (21 points) and Rudy Gobert (16 points, 12 rebounds).

Rockets 127 (32-22), Kings 101 (28-26)

James Harden pushed his streak of 30+ points to 28 straight games with 36 points in the win against the Kings. Teammates Gerald Green (25 points) and Eric Gordon (20 points) added some scoring punch as well.

Spurs 102 (32-34), Warriors 141 (38-15)

Golden State popped off for a 49-point third quarter that prevented any kind of comeback by the Spurs. Klay Thompson led the team with 26 points, followed by Kevin Durant with 23 points.

Iggy got all kinds of confidence turning around before the shot went in (via @NBCSWarriors) pic.twitter.com/v5DWu3OVeo

— SLAM (@SLAMonline) February 7, 2019

RELATED:
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The post Post Up: Milwaukee Bucks Put On Offensive Show Against Wizards 🔥 appeared first on SLAM.

Team World’s Luka Doncic and Ben Simmons will face Team USA’s Donovan Mitchell and De’Aaron Fox. Dirk Nowitzki (World) and Kyrie Irving (USA) will serve as the honorary coaches for the game.

Be sure to check out the full rosters below.

The 2019 Rising Stars teams have been announced.

Thoughts on Team USA and Team World? pic.twitter.com/tc7Tir0614

— SLAM (@SLAMonline) January 30, 2019

TEAM USA

Donovan Mitchell, Jazz
Jayson Tatum, Celtics
De’Aaron Fox, Kings
Trae Young, Hawks
Jaren Jackson Jr, Grizzlies
Lonzo Ball, Lakers
Kyle Kuzma, Lakers
Jarrett Allen, Nets
Marvin Bagley III, Kings
John Collins, Hawks

TEAM WORLD

Luka Doncic, Mavs
Ben Simmons, Sixers
DeAndre Ayton, Suns
Lauri Markkanen, Bulls
OG Anunoby, Raptors
Bogdan Bogdanovic, Kings
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Clippers
Rodions Kurucs, Nets
Josh Okogie, Wolves
Cedi Osman, Cavs

The post Luka Doncic, Ben Simmons Headline 2019 Rising Stars Rosters 🌟 appeared first on SLAM.

The Wizards came from behind to down the Knicks in London, England as Thomas Bryant scored with two seconds to go due to a goaltending call on Alonzo Trier.

Bryant finished the day with 26 points and nine boards while Emmanuel Mudiay scored 25 on 11-for-18 shooting from the field for New York.

Crazy finish. The Wizards just beat the Knicks on a goaltend. (via @NBATV) pic.twitter.com/tuJoKvzDnD

— SLAM (@SLAMonline) January 17, 2019

Suns 109 (11-35), Raptors 111 (34-13)

Pascal Siakam (10 points, 12 rebounds, five assists) finished at the buzzer to lead the Raptors past the Suns. Eight Phoenix players scored at least nine points as Kawhi Leonard had the night off.

Devin Booker scored a game-high 30 points for Phoenix.

GAME WINNER

VOTE PASCAL https://t.co/SqKKSjdIqy pic.twitter.com/kM8yNjyEpc

— Toronto Raptors (@Raptors) January 18, 2019

Bulls 105 (10-35), Nuggets 135 (30-14)

Lauri Markkanen scored a game-high 27 (15 of which came in the first quarter), but it wasn’t enough to overcome an electric shooting night for Denver (52.1 percent from the field, 50% from 3). Nikola Jokic had 18 points, eight boards and 11 dimes and Jamal Murray scored a team-high 25 for Denver.

Lakers 138 (25-21), Thunder 128 (26-18)

Kyle Kuzma knocked down seven 3’s en route to a 32-point outing and Lonzo Ball took over as a floor general to lead the Lakers past the Thunder in overtime. Russell Westbrook had 26 points, nine boards and 13 assists in addition to knocking down three free throws at the end of regulation to send the game to the extra period.

Ivica Zubac was the Lakers’ third standout in the absence of LeBron James, scoring 26 points and grabbing 12 rebounds in 28 minutes of action on 12-for-14 shooting. His plus-minus of plus-35 was a game-high.

STEVEN ADAMS GOT THAT JELLY RIGHT (via @NBAonTNT) pic.twitter.com/WKnIjN68cQ

— SLAM (@SLAMonline) January 18, 2019

oh hell yeah that’s some Chino Hills range (via @nbaontnt) pic.twitter.com/tQdBO6sILu

— SLAM (@SLAMonline) January 18, 2019

it happens (via @shaqtin) pic.twitter.com/4f1bn377Jb

— SLAM (@SLAMonline) January 18, 2019

Russell Westbrook and his son warming up together is the cutest thing you’ll see today. (via @OKCThunder) pic.twitter.com/aEsiMyQcdP

— SLAM (@SLAMonline) January 18, 2019

Kings 95 (23-22), Hornets 114 (21-23)

A 43-point second quarter was the difference as the Hornets won at home, largely in part due to four bench players (Miles Bridges, Michael Kidd-Gilchrist, Willy Hernangomez and Tony Parker) scoring double-digit points. Kemba Walker scored a team-high 23.

BRIDGES BOUNCY (via @nbatv) pic.twitter.com/Xeke1eujrh

— SLAM (@SLAMonline) January 18, 2019

lmaooo Harry Giles isn’t old enough to accept the brewski (via @SacramentoKings) https://t.co/MAg0DV0xgh

— SLAM (@SLAMonline) January 18, 2019

“WATCH THIS, YOUNGBLOODS.”

Tony Parker just split De’Aaron Fox and Marvin Bagley with a NASTY spin. (via @BleacherReport) pic.twitter.com/RBg889GMDL

— SLAM (@SLAMonline) January 18, 2019

Sixers 120 (30-16), Pacers 96 (29-15)

Joel Embiid flirted with a triple-double (22 points, 13 rebounds, eight assists, three blocks) as Philadelphia took care of business in enemy territory. Jimmy Butler scored a team-high 27 and JJ Redick scored 20 while shooting 6-for-9 from behind the arc. Thad Young scored 27 for Indiana.

The post Post Up: Ivica Zubac’s Career-Night Leads Lakers Past Thunder in OT, Pascal Siakam Nets Winner appeared first on SLAM.

Jimmy Butler took it back a couple of years and brought out the Air Jordan XXX “Cosmos” which released back in 2016. Also rocking with an older pair of Jordans was Chris Paul as he took in the action in the 2015  Air Jordan I Retro Pinnacle. Paul’s teammate P.J. Tucker continued to stoke the flames of his godly sneaker collection has he brought out a rare Nike Zoom Kobe VI PE as well as the “Lightning” Air Jordan IV Retro.

In Chicago, Cristiano Felicio took a page out of teammate Lauri Markkanen’s LeBron playbook and donned the Nike LeBron 10 XDR “Floridian.” Speaking of the king, LeBron James took in the Lakers game rocking the funky A-COLD-WALL* x Nike Zoom Vomero +5. On the custom front, Langston Galloway and Spencer Dinwiddie whipped out another set of sick creations with Galloway going with a Scooby Doo themed Q4 Sports Specialist while Dinwiddie paid homage to the baseball legend Jackie Robinson with his K8IROS Kronos.

And if all that wasn’t enough, DeMar DeRozan wore the Nike Zoom Kobe 1 Protro “81 Point Game” which is slated to release this January 22nd.

Peep the rest of the night in NBA kicks right below.

Photos via Getty Images

The post NBA Kicks of the Night appeared first on SLAM.

Langston Galloway and Spencer Dinwiddie have proven to be the most consistent this season when it comes to rocking customs and both showed out with their latest pieces. Galloway went with a Christmas theme as his design featured both Frosty the Snowman from the 1969 animated film and Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer from the 1948 classic. Dinwiddie went with a more modern approach as he rocked a Black Panther/Thanos number of his K8IROS Kronos.

Galloway and Dinwiddie weren’t the only ones flexing their custom might. Karl-Anthony Towns paid homage to Prince and “Purple Rain” with his Nike Hyperdunk X and Heat’s towering duo of Hassan Whiteside and Bam Adebayo served up another pair of Miami-themed versions of the Air Jordan XIV Retro and Nike LeBron 12, respectively.

On the topic of Miami and LeBrons, Lauri Markkanen continued his LeBron parade with the grail-worthy “Miami Nights” Nike LeBron 8 V/2 Low. Over his last several games, Markkanen has made it abundantly clear that his ‘Bron sneaker collection is one of the best in the League. But Markkanen is going to have to keep it up if he wants to contend with Montrezl Harrell, who also went the LeBron route and wore a pair of the Nike LeBron 12 Low “LeBronald Palmer” in addition to the SneakersnStuff x Reebok Question “15 Stars” which released back in 2014.

And if that wasn’t enough, Kobe fans were treated to Tobias Harris’ Nike Zoom Kobe V “Lower Merion,” Trey Lyles’ Nike Zoom Kobe VI “Grinch,” DeMar Derozan’s Nike Zoom Kobe 1 FTB and De’Aaron Fox’s Nike Kobe 9 Elite “Christmas.”

For all these and more, make sure to peep our latest NBA kicks recap below.

Photos via Getty Images

The post NBA Kicks of the Night appeared first on SLAM.

Langston Galloway was definitely in the holiday spirit as he rocked another custom pair of Q4 495 Specialist. Like all the incredible customs he’s worn this season, this pair was created by Andrew Lewis and features a portraits of the Grinch and his trusty dog, Max. Lauri Markkanen also felt the holiday vibes as he donned another vintage LeBron model going with the “Christmas” 11s.

Fans of Kyrie Irving’s latest model, the Nike Kyrie 5, were treated to a few colorways on the night led by Kyrie himself rocking the “Just Do It,” Jayson Tatum in the “Brotherhood” colorway and Rondae Hollis-Jefferson in the “Taco PE.” Lance Stephenson made sure to get noticed in the Air Jordan XV Retro Doernbecher Freestyle and Swipa rocked the “Influence” Nike Kobe 9 Elite. Closing out, Montrezl Harrell and Kevin Durant both doubled up again as Trezz wore the “Vegas Nights” adidas D Rose 773 III and the “Mint” Nike LeBron 14 Low while KD rocked two colorways of his Nike KD11.

Get a glimpse of these holiday kicks and the rest of the Sunday’s best NBA footwork in the gallery below.

Photos via Getty Images

The post NBA Kicks of the Night appeared first on SLAM.

Blake Griffin missed two free throws that would’ve given the Pistons the lead but he couldn’t connect. Alex Len had 15 points and a season-high 17 rebounds and Vince Carter contributed 18 in the win.

Pacers 105 (22-12), Wizards 89 (13-21)

Myles Turner took full advantage of the Wizards, who were coming off a back-to-back after winning in triple-overtime, scoring 18 points and grabbing a career-high 17 rebounds. This is Turner’s fourth straight double-double of the season.

Celtics 119 (19-13), Hornets 103 (16-16)

After Friday’s loss to the Bucks that prompted a players-only meeting, Kyrie Irving posted a team-high 25 points as the C’s defeated the Hornets at home Sunday. Jayson Tatum also had 16. Al Horford, who finished with 10 points and six rebounds, returned to the lineup after missing seven games with a sore left knee.

Nets 111 (15-19), Suns 103 (8-25)

The Nets’ backcourt of Spencer Dinwiddie and D’Angelo Russell was too much for the visiting Suns. Dinwiddie led the way with 24 points and Russell chipped in 18 as Brooklyn has now won the last eight of nine games.

Bulls 112 (9-25), Cavaliers 92 (8-26) 

Following Lauri Markkanen’s career-high 32 points against the Magic, the second-year forward posted 31 points at Quicken Loans Arena. The win was also the first time this season the Bulls have won consecutive games.

Heat 115 (16-16), Magic 91 (14-18)

Four out of five starters finished in double digits for Miami as Tyler Johnson was the team’s leading scorer with 25 points. Justise Winslow had 22 points and Josh Richardson finished with a double-double (15 points, 10 rebounds). The win, which was the Heat’s fifth straight, also gave Erik Spoelstra his 500th career victory.

Flash Forever 3⃣ (via @NBA) pic.twitter.com/DBz1F7D0aj

— SLAM (@SLAMonline) December 24, 2018

Kings 122 (17-15), Pelicans 117 (15-18)

The Kings overcame an 11-point deficit in the fourth quarter as Buddy Hield went off against his former team, scoring 28 points at home. Willy Cauley-Stein had 22 points and 17 rebounds (a career high), Bogdan Bogdanovic chipped in 24 points, while De’Aaron Fox finished with his own double-double (19 points, 11 assists) and an amazing chase-down block.

@swipathefox (via @SacramentoKings) https://t.co/dSeGvGQK5M

— SLAM (@SLAMonline) December 24, 2018

Timberwolves 114 (15-18), Thunder 112 (21-11)

Down one with 17 seconds to go, Andrew Wiggins took matters into his own hands, driving to the basket to give the Wolves a one-point lead on a night where Russell Westbrook posted a 17-point, 11-rebound, 10-assist triple-double (his 9th of the season).

Warriors 129 (23-11), Clippers 127 (19-14)

In a game that went to the wire, Steph Curry hit the go-ahead layup with 0.5 seconds to give the Warriors the win. Curry finished the night with 42 points, tying his second-highest scoring performance of the season. Kevin Durant had 35 points.

And with the go-ahead bucket to give the Warriors the win! (via @NBA) pic.twitter.com/G4JPnYKQ03

— SLAM (@SLAMonline) December 24, 2018

Blazers 121 (19-14), Mavericks 118 (15-17)

Damian Lillard was going to do everything in his power to get his team the win in front of his home crowd. And he did. Lillard scored 33 points in a game that went to overtime after Luka Doncic hit a ridiculous corner three-pointer in the final seconds of the fourth quarter to tie the game up at 107.

Grizzlies 107 (17-16), Lakers 99 (19-14)

Rookie Jaren Jackson Jr had an evening in L.A., scoring 27 points in 31 minutes with his father courtside. Mike Conley and Marc Gasol contributed 17 apiece, and Garrett Temple had 14, including a corner three-pointer that was the dagger.

The post Post Up: Steph Curry Finishes with 42 Points Against Clippers appeared first on SLAM.

Toronto became the first team to hit 25 wins with the victory at home even despite Kyle Lowry and Serge Ibaka missing the game due to injury. Kawhi Leonard dropped 37 points while OG Anunoby added 21 points for the Raptors. Jordan Clarkson led Cleveland with 20 points.

Dang, OG (via @Raptors) https://t.co/xJbFkAC9mt

— SLAM (@SLAMonline) December 22, 2018

Pistons 86 (15-15), Hornets 98 (16-15)

Marvin Williams poured in a career-high seven 3-pointers to lead all scorers and help Charlotte secure the win. Teammate Kemba Walker added 22 points and five assists in the win. Blake Griffin put in 23 points, seven rebounds and five assists for Detroit.

"KEMBA!!! HUUUGGEEE SHOT!" -Eric Collins

Get those out again! @KembaWalker doing what he does best in the clutch! #BuzzCity | #DETatCHA | #Hornets30 pic.twitter.com/HnfIrWoOku

— Bally Sports: Hornets (@HornetsOnBally) December 22, 2018

Pacers 114 (21-12), Nets 106 (15-19)

Indiana finished the game on a 14-3 run to capture the road win. Four of the Pacers’ five starters scored in double digits, led by Victor Oladipo’s 26 points. Rodions Kurucs paced Brooklyn with 24 points.

That's nasty, Vic (via @Pacers) https://t.co/MxdGarqOif

— SLAM (@SLAMonline) December 22, 2018

Hawks 114 (8-23), Knicks 107 (9-25)

Atlanta was propelled by an all-round effort, with seven players hitting double digits. Kent Bazemore (22 points, six rebounds) and John Collins (17 points, 16 rebounds) were the Hawks’ standout performers. Emmanuel Mudiay continued a hot stretch of play with 32 points.

Kevin with the bunnies pic.twitter.com/IP5v6kXOUY

— Atlanta Hawks (@ATLHawks) December 22, 2018

Bucks 120 (22-9), Celtics 107 (18-13)

This matchup of Eastern Conference heavyweights was mostly one-sided. The Bucks held a sizable lead in the first half and didn’t back down when the Celtics cut down their lead in the fourth quarter. Giannis Antetokounmpo put in 30 points, eight rebounds and five assists in the road win.

This is your nightly "GIANNIS" tweet (via @NBA) pic.twitter.com/zU23asCxDo

— SLAM (@SLAMonline) December 22, 2018

Magic 80 (14-17), Bulls 90 (8-25)

Lauri Markkanen led Chicago to the win behind his game-high 32 points, which included a monster dunk on Nikola Vucevic. Evan Fournier led Orlando with 24 points.

MARKKANEN POSTER (via @chicagobulls) pic.twitter.com/Cf80NpWdu7

— SLAM (@SLAMonline) December 22, 2018

Timberwolves 98 (14-18), Spurs 124 (18-15)

San Antonio displayed incredible ball movement, registering 36 assists on 46 made field goals. Bryn Forbes (22 points) and Marco Belinelli (17 points) provided the scoring punch. Andrew Wiggins led the Wolves in scoring with 15 points.

Ball movement
Bryn three
The reaction

Everything about this play. https://t.co/QK6GWLVvtf

— San Antonio Spurs (@spurs) December 22, 2018

Jazz 120 (16-17), Blazers 90 (18-14)

A hot shooting night by Utah doomed Portland. The Jazz shot an astounding 51.6 percent from 3-point range and 55.3 percent from the field. They were led by Ricky Rubio, who dropped 24 points on 4-4 shooting from three. Damian Lillard scored 19 in the loss.

This whole sequence is on the Nice List https://t.co/Ox74TBwe3q

— Utah Jazz (@utahjazz) December 22, 2018

Grizzlies 99 (16-15), Kings 102 (16-15)

This one went down to the buzzer as each team was tied close to each other throughout. Each team had six double-digit scorers as well. Buddy Hield led Sacramento with 28 points; Mike Conley led Memphis with 23 points.

Fox showed off his bunnies on the block (via @NBA) pic.twitter.com/gNQRJzL8Xm

— SLAM (@SLAMonline) December 22, 2018

Pelicans 104 (15-18), Lakers 112 (19-13)

Los Angeles and New Orleans flipped the lead several times in the first half, but the Lakers took control in the third and fourth quarters. LeBron James posted a triple-double of 22 points, 14 assists and 12 rebounds. Anthony Davis paced the Pelicans with 30 points and 20 rebounds.

Bron. (via @NBA) pic.twitter.com/cRZWxWswFZ

— SLAM (@SLAMonline) December 22, 2018

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The post Post Up: Raptors Beat Cavs, Become First Team to Hit 25 Wins appeared first on SLAM.

Middleton wasn’t the only one wearing an exclusive Hyperdunk X Monday night. P.J. Tucker debuted his second PE colorway of the Hyperdunk X which was done in all-red with black accents and Tuck’s “PJ17” logo printed on the back heel. Sticking with the red/black color theme, Jimmy Butler wore the XXXs for the second night in a row as he donned the “Gym Red” edition while Lauri Markkanen went with the Nike LeBron 10s once again as he rocked the “Heat Away” version.

Several other bangers were spotted on the evening so make sure you check them out in our Monday night NBA kicks recap below.

Photos via Getty Images

The post NBA Kicks of the Night appeared first on SLAM.

James Harden was a man on a mission. The star used an array of moves to drop 47 points on the Jazz in the win, including a monstrous dunk on Rudy Gobert. As Utah crept back into the game and pulled it even late in the fourth quarter, Harden took over and hit multiple clutch shots that sealed it for good.

James Harden danced on 'em for the dagger (via @NBATV) pic.twitter.com/920ZtIfIdj

— SLAM (@SLAMonline) December 18, 2018

Bucks 107 (20-9), Pistons 104 (14-14)

Milwaukee enjoyed a 15-point lead in the third quarter before Detroit came back, taking the lead shortly in the fourth quarter. But behind Giannis Antetokounmpo’s 32 points, 12 rebounds and five assists, the Bucks held on to the win. Blake Griffin contributed a triple-double (19 points, 11 assists and 10 rebounds) in the loss.

Good luck going up at the rim with Giannis (via @NBA) pic.twitter.com/CWHne9W9hD

— SLAM (@SLAMonline) December 18, 2018

Suns 128 (7-24), Knicks 110 (9-23)

Phoenix’s main core put on an offensive showing. Devin Booker notched a season-high 38 points, TJ Warren scored 26 points and Deandre Ayton had a double-double (21 points, 13 rebounds). Even veteran Jamal Crawford dropped a career-high 14 assists.

"I had my career high in points & now assists in the same building. That's pretty cool."

Former Knick Jamal Crawford loves playing @TheGarden. pic.twitter.com/9sCFeZAenY

— MSG Networks (@MSGNetworks) December 18, 2018

Kings 105 (16-14), Timberwolves 132 (14-16)

Nine Wolves players hit double-digit points in the all-around team win. Andrew Wiggins led the team with 17 points while Karl-Anthony Towns posted a double-double of 14 points and 14 rebounds. Buddy Hield put in 21 points for the Kings.

Taj Gibson playing defense with a shoe in his hand (via @Timberwolves) https://t.co/TSHWF9GP5o

— SLAM (@SLAMonline) December 18, 2018

Bulls 96 (7-24), Thunder 121 (19-10)

With 13 points, 16 rebounds and 11 steals, Russell Westbrook registered his 111th career triple-double. Teammate Paul George added a game-high 24 points. Bobby Portis and Lauri Markkanen each scored 16 points for Chicago.

Clear the deck for @russwest44
2nd half now on @FOXSportsOK #OKCvsCHI pic.twitter.com/6qDLE1v0ag

— OKC THUNDER (@okcthunder) December 18, 2018

76ers 96 (20-12), Spurs 123 (16-15)

San Antonio’s triple threat of Rudy Gay (21 points), DeMar DeRozan (20 points) and LaMarcus Aldridge (20 points) propelled the Spurs to the win. The 76ers were held to just 17 points in the second quarter, allowing the Spurs to grab the lead. Ben Simmons and JJ Redick led the 76ers in scoring with 16 points each.

That ball movement #GoSpursGo https://t.co/y4SXxgMOye

— San Antonio Spurs (@spurs) December 18, 2018

Grizzlies 93 (16-14), Warriors 110 (21-10)

It was a night of memorable buckets for both Stephen Curry and Kevin Durant. Curry hit a 3-pointer to hit the 15,000-point mark for his career; Durant passed Larry Bird for No. 33 on the all-time scoring list. The pair finished with a combined 43 points in the easy win.

Of course Steph Curry hits 15,000 points with a 3 (via @NBATV) pic.twitter.com/RdCAKrPxHh

— SLAM (@SLAMonline) December 18, 2018

Blazers 131 (16-13), Clippers 127 (17-2)

Portland and L.A. went down to the wire as the Clippers fought back to make the game close in the final minutes. However, the tandem of Damian Lillard (39 points) and CJ McCollum (27 points) helped the Blazers pull it out. Tobias Harris dropped 39 points in the loss.

D A M I A N pic.twitter.com/E3bDXNkUrN

— Portland Trail Blazers (@trailblazers) December 18, 2018

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The post Post Up: James Harden Drops 47 Points in Clutch Win vs. Jazz 🔥 appeared first on SLAM.

Despite turning the ball over 22 times, Orlando was able to rally back from an 11-point deficit in the third quarter to win the game in Mexico City.

The Magic shot 47.2 percent from the field and 45.8 percent from three, proving to be the difference maker in the game.

Nik Vucevic continiued his All-Star campaign, dropping 15 points with 19 boards and 5 assists.

Lakers 128 (18-11), Hornets 100 (14-15)

For the first time since 1982, two Lakers triple-doubled in the same game.

LeBron James (24/10/11) and Lonzo Ball (16/10/10) joined Magic Johnson and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar in the Lakers record books.

L.A. cracked open a 31-point lead in the third, which only grew to a 36-point chasm in the fourth. Lonzo finished a +34 on the night, and held Kemba Walker to just 4 points.

TELL EM HOW YOU FEEL LONZO

(via @Lakers) pic.twitter.com/YakH4RdcMY

— SLAM (@SLAMonline) December 16, 2018

Celtics 104 (18-11), Pistons 113 (14-13)

Heading into Friday’s matchup, Boston was the League’s hottest team, and Detroit was the League’s coldest.

That’s no longer the case.

The Pistons built a 16-point lead in the fourth quarter and managed to hang on. Andre Drummond was a beast, dropping 19 points with 20 boards and 5 blocks (RIP Jayson Tatum). Dre was a +12 on the night.

Drummond DENIES Jayson Tatum at the rim  (via @DetroitPistons) pic.twitter.com/V1UhlflGrL

— SLAM (@SLAMonline) December 16, 2018

Rockets 105 (14-14), Grizzlies 97 (16-13)

Houston was playing their brand of fast-paced basketball, and the Grizzlies just couldn’t keep up.

The Rockets built a 21-point lead by halftime and led the entire game.

James Harden was as efficient as ever, scoring 32 points (on 14 shots) with 12 boards and 10 assists.

Bulls 98 (7-23), Spurs 93 (15-15)

Down 21 points in the third quarter, Chicago battled back to get a signature win in San Antonio.

Kris Dunn (24 points) made clutch shot after clutch shot, and Lauri Markkanen (23 points) was a +12 on the game.

Kris Dunn CLUTCH #DunnDeal (via @BleacherReport) pic.twitter.com/IRMnFJWzA8

— SLAM (@SLAMonline) December 16, 2018

Clippers 104 (17-12), Thunder 110 (18-10)

As Paul George pointed out after the game, the Thunder are damn near unbeatable at home.

George put up an impressive 33 points (on 19 shots) with 7 boards, 6 assists and 0 TOs to lead OKC to a bounce-back win.

Russell Westbrook had 6 steals, spearheading the Thunder’s vaunted defense.

Wolves 99 (13-16), Suns 107 (6-24)

Don’t look now, but the Suns have won two in a row.

Devin Booker (hamstring) returned to the lineup and showed almost no rust, dropping 27 points (on 16 shots) with 7 boards and 7 dimes. The difference he makes for the team is night and day.

The loss was Minnesota’s fourth in a row.

The post Post Up: LeBron, Lonzo Triple-Double in Lakers’ Rout 😤 appeared first on SLAM.

Bulls have engaged in talks with several teams regarding Jabari Parker, per sources. There’s considerable interest in Parker the player. Finding right fit financially is next.

— K.C. Johnson (@KCJHoop) December 14, 2018

The return of Lauri Markkanen and Bobby Portis has created a log jam at the power forward position, and Parker appears to be the odd man out.

When Parker signed a two-year, $40 million deal this summer, he proclaimed that teams “don’t pay players to play defense.”

Issue is, they might not play you.

RELATED:
Jabari Parker: ‘They Don’t Pay Players to Play Defense’

The post Report: Bulls Engaged in Trade Talks on Jabari Parker appeared first on SLAM.

While Curry was breaking necks in Oakland, the night’s marquee event was going down in Los Angeles as Dwyane Wade squared off against LeBron James one last time. For this final matchup, James sported a Lakers colorway of the Nike LeBron 16 while Wade went with the Li-Ning All City 7. Lance Stephenson continued his strong sneaker campaign as went with the “Calvin Bailey” Air Jordan IX Retro.

Montrezl Harrell got KD fans hyped as he brought out two pairs of the Nike Zoom KD 4: the “Galaxy” and the “Year of the Dragon.” Staying with the throwback theme, the Bulls Lauri Markkanen wore the Nike LeBron X while Jeff Teague rocked the “SVSM” Nike Air Zoom Generation Retro. Last but not least, Gary Harris may have missed last night’s game, but he certainly didn’t miss an opportunity to flex as he broke necks from the sideline in the “Rust Pink” Air Jordan I Retro High OG NRG.

Make sure to peep close to 40 of the night’s best NBA kicks in our latest recap.

Photos via Getty Images

The post NBA Kicks of the Night appeared first on SLAM.

OKC and Chicago played down to the wire. That’s when Lauri Markkanen, aka The Finnisher, stepped in, with the second-year big man using a spin move and floater to give his team the lead for good with just under five seconds. Markkanen finished with 24 points in 28 minutes.

LAURI MARKKANEN FOR THE WIN (via @NBA) pic.twitter.com/b9n2NawuqE

— SLAM (@SLAMonline) December 8, 2018

Raptors 105 (21-6), Nets 106 (9-18)

Brooklyn and Toronto battled all the way into overtime; in total, there were 15 lead changes throughout the game. D’Angelo Russell led his team to the win behind his 29 points, five rebounds and five assists. Kawhi Leonard dropped 32 points in the loss.

https://t.co/gbIIrqRAEb

— Brooklyn Nets (@BrooklynNets) December 8, 2018

Nuggets 107 (17-8), Hornets 113 (12-13)

Denver was down by 11 with five minutes left before they stormed back to get the game within one possession. Thanks to clutch play from Kemba Walker (21 points) and Tony Parker (19 points), the Hornets were able to hold on.

Kemba is cooking (via @NBATV) pic.twitter.com/cXPSTkcwp4

— SLAM (@SLAMonline) December 8, 2018

76ers 117 (18-9), Pistons 111 (13-10)

Jimmy Butler and Blake Griffin engaged in a fierce battle throughout this one. Butler scored 26 of his 38 points in the second half alone. Griffin contributed 31 points but came up short in getting the win.

SHEESH https://t.co/yaPGf62wNx

— Philadelphia 76ers (@sixers) December 8, 2018

Pacers 112 (15-10), Magic 90 (12-14)

Indiana took control of the lead midway through the first quarter and never looked back. They shot an impressive 47.3 percent from the field in the win. Bojan Bogdanovic paced his team with 26 points in just 29 minutes.

BOOM BABY! https://t.co/1N6R42H0zY

— Indiana Pacers (@Pacers) December 8, 2018

Kings 129 (13-11), Cavaliers 110 (5-20)

De’Aaron Fox just continues his breakout sophomore year. The point guard used an array of moves and quickness to drop 30 points on the Cavs, along with 12 assists. Fox’s backcourt mate, Buddy Hield, added 25 points to the winning effort.

De'Aaron Fox in transition! #SacramentoProud 57#BeTheFight 53

: https://t.co/L3VurkatG8 pic.twitter.com/JCdxdtHEjS

— NBA (@NBA) December 8, 2018

Grizzlies 107 (15-9), Pelicans 103 (13-14)

Memphis turned it on to end the game, going on a 15-3 run en route to securing another win. Jamychal Green led the Grizzlies in scoring with 24 points. The Pelicans enjoyed 20-point games from Julius Randle (26 points), Anthony Davis (25 points) and Jrue Holiday (20 points) in the losing effort.

GROWN MAN SLAM

24 points for @Jmyke1 pic.twitter.com/Gvs7bue2kn

— Memphis Grizzlies (@memgrizz) December 8, 2018

Lakers 120 (15-10), Spurs 133 (12-14)

L.A. led for much of the first three quarters and even half of the fourth quarter, but San San Antonio executed down the stretch to get the win. The Spurs shot 50.5 percent the field. DeMar DeRozan led his team with 36 points, nine assists and eight rebounds. LeBron James had 35 points, 11 assists and eight rebounds in the loss.

DeMar. Buckets. DeRozan. https://t.co/lfkbprw0KU

— San Antonio Spurs (@spurs) December 8, 2018

Heat 115 (10-14), Suns 98 (4-22)

The second half was all Miami as the Heat only turned it on when it was winning time. Bam Adebayo (22 points, 10 rebounds) and Justise Winslow (20 points, eight rebounds and six assists) led Miami to the win. No. 1 pick Deandre Ayton contributed 16 points and 11 rebounds for Phoenix.

BAM flies in for the BIG TIME oop! #HEATCulture

WATCH on #NBA League Pass: https://t.co/L3VurkatG8 pic.twitter.com/Dzjj60nvE0

— NBA (@NBA) December 8, 2018

Warriors 105 (18-9), Bucks 95 (16-8)

No one player led Golden State to the win, rather it was an all-around effort for the reigning champs in the win. Four of Golden State’s five starters hit double digits, with Klay Thompson and Steph Curry each dropping a team-high 20 points. Giannis Antetokounmpo put in 22 points and 15 rebounds in the loss.

The Warriors' ball movement is on another level (via @warriors) pic.twitter.com/93iqkgFbfp

— SLAM (@SLAMonline) December 8, 2018

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The post Post Up: Lauri Markkanen Hits Game-Winner to Beat Thunder 🎈 appeared first on SLAM.

New York erased a 14-point fourth-quarter deficit to defeat one of the League’s hottest teams in overtime.

Emmanuel Mudiay (28 points, 7 dimes) hit big shot after big shot and Kevin Knox dropped a career-high 26 points, but the pervading talk about this game will be about Mario Hezonja’s dunk and step-over on Giannis Antetokounmpo.

When pressed about the incident after the game, Giannis told reporters, “I’m going to punch him in his nuts next time.” He was dead serious.

THAT STAREDOWN (via @nyknicks) pic.twitter.com/zKFqlknhrr

— SLAM (@SLAMonline) December 1, 2018

Giannis on Hezonja stepping over him: "I'm going to punch him next time."

(via @APOOCH) pic.twitter.com/VG8MnjsV7m

— SLAM (@SLAMonline) December 2, 2018

Warriors 102 (15-9), Pistons 111 (13-7)

Stephen Curry returned after an 11-game absence, but Golden State could not get its offense going in this one.

The Warriors shot a combined 6-26 from three and turned the ball over 15 times as they trailed for most of the game.

Blake Griffin (26 points, 5 assists) and Andre Drummond (16 points, 19 boards) led the way for Detroit, who has now won five games in a row.

Blake Griffin puts Damion Jones on a POSTER (via @NBATV) pic.twitter.com/NLN2ycHtH3

— SLAM (@SLAMonline) December 2, 2018

Nets 88 (8-16), Wizards 102 (9-14)

Washington picked up a much-needed win after getting completely blown out in Philly the night before.

John Wall had 30 points (on 24 shots) and 9 assists to lead the Wizards.

Brooklyn, who lost in a double-OT heartbreaker on Friday, has now dropped six games in a row.

Raptors 106 (20-4), Cavs 95 (4-18)

Even without Kyle Lowry, Toronto was able to come away with a win in Cleveland.

Kawhi Leonard had 34 points and 9 boards to lead the Raptors to their eighth straight win. The Cavs, on the other hand, are now on a four-game skid.

Good luck stopping Kawhi on his way to the cup (via @NBA) pic.twitter.com/2PxahJFOVB

— SLAM (@SLAMonline) December 2, 2018

Bulls 105 (5-19), Rockets 121 (11-11)

Lauri Markkanen returned after missing the first 23 games of the season, but Chicago still lost in blowout fashion in Houston.

The Rockets outscored the Bulls by 16 in the first quarter and never looked back. As usual, James Harden led the way for Houston, finishing with 30 points, 7 dimes and 6 boards.

Chicago has now lost six games in a row.

Celtics 118 (13-10), Wolves 109 (11-12)

Boston is once again starting to resemble a rising superpower, having won four of their last five games.

In by far his best game of the season, Gordon Hayward came off the bench to score 30 points (on 16 shots) with 9 rebounds and 8 assists.

The Celtics were whipping the ball around the court, recording 30 assists for the fifth time in their last seven games.

That pass by Marcus Smart tho… (via @NBA) pic.twitter.com/3zP5PSkeDN

— SLAM (@SLAMonline) December 2, 2018

Pacers 110 (13-9), Kings 111 (10-11)

Bookending the night with another highly entertaining game, the Pacers and Kings went back-and-forth with 25 lead changes.

Both Bogdanovic’s played excellent ballgames, with Indy’s Bojan dropping 27 points and Sacramento’s Bogdan scoring 20 with 6 assists.

Willie Cauley-Stein (17 points, 13 boards) gave the Kings the lead for good with a put-back dunk with 16 seconds remaining.

CLUTCH! Willie Cauley-Stein cleans up the glass (via @NBA) pic.twitter.com/xEo0Np9Vaf

— SLAM (@SLAMonline) December 2, 2018

The post Post Up: Young Knicks Outlast Bucks in Overtime appeared first on SLAM.

INJURY UPDATE: Lauri Markkanen sustained a right elbow injury in practice yesterday. He underwent an MRI today that showed a high grade lateral elbow sprain. Markkanen is estimated to be out six-to-eight weeks. pic.twitter.com/lwSdKvKIiS

— Chicago Bulls (@chicagobulls) September 29, 2018

As a rookie last year, Lauri averaged 15.2 points and 7.5 rebounds per game.

The NBA regular season starts Tuesday, October 16.

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The post Lauri Markkanen to Miss 6-8 Weeks with Elbow Injury appeared first on SLAM.

KICKS 21 is “The List Issue.” Over the next few weeks, we’ll be releasing rankings that put an end (or beginning) to every hot debate in the world of sneakers. 

Order your copy of the magazine at our online store!

—

The 2017-18 season featured plenty of on-court heat. The Swoosh was well represented with both brand new and classic kicks. Scroll down to see the best of the best, excluding the Sneaker King.

1. Nike Kyrie 3 “Luck” (Kyrie Irving)

2. Nike Kyrie 4 “Wheaties” (Jayson Tatum)

3. Nike Kyrie 3 “Rayguns” (Kyrie Irving)

4. Nike Kobe 6 “Orange County” (Isaiah Thomas)

5. Nike PG2 “PS4” (Paul George)

6. Nike Kobe 5 “Dark Knight” (Shabazz Muhammad)

7. Nike Kyrie 3 “Mom” (Kyrie Irving)

8. Nike Foamposite One “Galaxy” (Markieff Morris)

9. Nike Kobe 7 “Galaxy” (Trey Burke)

10. Nike Air More Uptempo “Supreme” (JR Smith)

11. Nike Air Zoom Generation “Wheat” (Trey Lyles)

12. Nike Kobe 1 “FTB” (DeMar DeRozan)

13. Nike Kobe 1 Protro “OVO” (DeMar DeRozan)

14. Nike Kyrie 4 “Confetti” (Kyrie Irving)

15. Nike LeBron 15 “City of Angels” (Montrezl Harrell)

16. Nike Foamposite One “Ducks” (Markieff Morris)

17. Nike Kobe 6 “BHM” (Isaiah Thomas)

18. Nike LeBron 3 “ASG” (Malcolm Delaney)

19. Nike LeBron 11 “What The” (Jordan Clarkson)

20. Nike Kobe 3 “MVP” (Kyle Kuzma)

21. Nike Huarache 2K4 “Laser” (Lance Stephenson)

22. Nike Air Foamposite One “Legion Green” (Eric Bledsoe)

23. Nike LeBron 7 “Black/Metallic Gold” (Lauri Markkanen)

Other lists from KICKS 21:
The 8 Hottest KICKS of 2018 (So Far)
The 15 Best UA Colorways of 2017-18
The 15 Best LeBron 15 Colorways of 2017-18
The WNBA’s 25 Biggest Sneakerheads
Three Reasons Why Kyrie Irving’s Signature Sneaker Line Is Important
All 106 Sneakers That PJ Tucker Wore in the 2017-18 Season
Three Reasons Why Matters

The post The 23 Best Nikes of 2017-18 (That PJ Tucker Didn’t Wear) 🔥 appeared first on SLAM.

“Wake up around 9:00 am, get some food, head over to the gym with my trainer and work on whatever I’m working on that day,” he explains. “I do about an hour and a half workout there, then go get some more food. I either do a stretching session or what they call the R3Bar – you work on that for your core. Then drive up to my dad’s spot, lift or do a field workout. And then shoot again at night.”

The moments when Zach is not fixated on basketball are few and far between, but SLAM caught up with him on one of those atypical afternoons.

It’s about 2:30 pm on the West Coast and he has just finished testing out the new “Gambit” mode in Destiny 2: Forsaken – the most recent version of his favorite video game. The event, which took place at a studio near Zach’s hometown in Bellevue, Washington, was also attended by Dallas Mavericks rookie Luka Doncic.

Normally LaVine won’t throw on the headphones to play Destiny until very late in the evening, once all those hours of training have been completed. As a kid, his father actually worried that video games would sidetrack from his ambitious dream of making it to the NBA.

“I had a Game Cube all the way up until high school,” LaVine admits with a laugh, seeing that the console was extremely outdated by the time he reached that age.

But those potential distractions — either then or now — never truly got in the way. In fact, much of Zach’s “downtime” is spent on a court anyway.

“My hobby is playing basketball. When I’m messing around – I just bought my parents a house with a little workout facility and a court in the back – we go out there and play horse or one-on-one or something like that,” he says. “So basketball is pretty much my life.”

Living without the Playstation was tolerable. Living without basketball was not.

It wasn’t until February of 2017 that Zach got to experience that void. In a game against the Pistons, the Timberwolves guard elevated for a layup and came down awkwardly on his left knee. After being examined by the medical staff, LaVine actually battled through considerable pain for another six minutes of action until it became too much to bear.

An MRI the following morning revealed the extent of the damage: Torn ACL.

For an ambitious 21-year-old just beginning to solidify himself in the League, having to suddenly watch from the sidelines in street clothes wasn’t easy. The former UCLA Bruin was having the best season of his career to that point, averaging 18.9 points, 3.4 rebounds and 3.0 assists per contest.

“It was terrible sitting out the season. It felt like it was so long because I was waiting to play,” he describes. “Obviously it makes you hungrier because you’re not able to go out there and show what you can do. It’s not that you get forgotten about, but other things come into people’s minds because you haven’t been playing. So you want to get back out there – take a hold of what was yours.”

That opportunity would have to wait nearly a year, as LaVine worked to regain his health and explosiveness. The long road back would require a lot of patience, a lot of Destiny and even a change of scenery. Roughly four months after sustaining the injury, he was traded to the Chicago Bulls in the blockbuster deal for All-Star Jimmy Butler. Amid his summer of rehab, Zach had to gather his things and relocate to the Windy City.

His Bulls debut came the ensuing January, midway through the 2017-18 campaign. LaVine had to get re-acclimated to the NBA speed and learn to mesh with his new team all at once – a task that, unsurprisingly, proved challenging.

There were flashes of what makes LaVine such an intriguing player to build around. He has exceptional athleticism (as the two dunk contest titles have made clear) and can score in a multitude of ways, putting constant pressure on opposing defenses with his quick first step and range from the perimeter.

Against his former team in early February, Zach led the Bulls to a 114-113 victory with a season-high 35 points, including the final 11. He caught a body in Sacramento, showing that elite elevation to get above the rim.

Yet the talented wing would struggle to establish a good rhythm, averaging just 16.7 points on a career-low 38 percent shooting in 24 outings. With the Bulls out of playoff contention, LaVine was shut down in March due to tendinitis in the same troublesome knee.

The impression you get in talking with Zach is that the real, full-blown return still looms – and the entire summer has been dedicated to ensuring it goes as planned. From the early morning workouts to the evening shooting sessions, LaVine has seen enough results to tell SLAM definitively, and repeatedly, that he is “back 100 percent.”

“I got my speed back, my jumping back,” he says. “Once you get off an ACL injury, you’re lifting and eating. So I got up to, like, 210 pounds. I’ve never been that heavy before. I’m not a post-up player. I’m fast, a more athletic guy. I got back down to the weight I need to be at [185 pounds], but still I feel strong. I feel really good, man. I’m excited for the season.”

Meanwhile, the Bulls re-affirmed their faith in LaVine, swiftly matching a four-year, $78 million deal he signed with the Kings as a restricted free agent. Zach has since clarified that he never wanted to leave and was hoping Chicago would meet the offer.

“We’re excited to have him back,” Bulls head coach Fred Hoiberg said at the recent Summer League. “He’s a 23-year-old. He has as good athleticism as anybody in this League.

“Obviously there’s a ton of value in Zach and what we feel he can bring long-term to the organization. And again, he fits with the way we want to play with his athleticism. Now that he’s got a taste and a feel for how we want to play, to have that full summer leading into training camp this year is very important.”

Not everyone sees the value that Hoiberg alluded to and some have made that known, voicing their opinions that the Bulls paid too steep a price to retain LaVine. These critics mostly point to defensive flaws and offensive inconsistency – two things Zach has been addressing in his training.

As for the dip in his field goal percentage, LaVine has studied plenty of film and is determined to eliminate all the deep 2’s from his game, knowing that he can create better looks using his handles and agility.

To be honest though, the outside noise really doesn’t bother Zach. You can detect in his tone just how confident he is in his own abilities.

“Over the last couple years, I’ve been trying to get better and better and I feel like I’m at the stage now where I should be trying to reach accolades like an All-Star and things like that,” he says. And as someone who has never made the postseason and is tired of going home early, Zach intends to help Chicago return there as fast as possible.

The front office has assembled a core of youngsters that they believe will blossom nicely as a unit. LaVine, point guard Kris Dunn and forward Lauri Markannen – all foundational pieces who came over in the Butler deal and have only appeared in 12 games together – will be joined by newcomers Jabari Parker, Wendell Carter Jr, and Chandler Hutchinson. Big man Bobby Portis has grown into a serious contributor off the bench. None of those players have celebrated their 24th birthday yet.

According to Zach, most guys reported early to camp by choice in order to make sure they develop the utmost chemistry. The team, which had the best attendance in the NBA despite going a woeful 27-55 last season, wants to give their passionate followers much more to cheer about in 2018-19.

A glance into the rafters at the United Center should provide all the motivation one needs. Six banners from the Michael Jordan era hang from the ceiling – mementoes of their storied past and not-so-subtle reminders that there is a history of winning in this building.

“Be ready,” Zach says, when asked if he has a message for Bulls fans. “Chicago is a big-time sports town and you deserve winners, and we’re going to try to get back to the glory days of the 1990s when you guys got spoiled.”

It’s going to take some time to be sure, but those fans can find hope in the fact that cornerstones like Zach LaVine are working tirelessly each and every day, from 9 am until the sun goes down, to get there.

—

Alex Squadron is an Associate Editor at SLAM. Follow him on Twitter @asquad510.

Photos via Getty Images. 

The post On The Rise: Zach LaVine is Back and Ready to Put on for Chicago 😤 appeared first on SLAM.

Rest In peace @SenJohnMcCain, I will forever be grateful for you helping a kid from Finland get a visa to live out my dream of playing basketball in the States

— Lauri Markkanen (@MarkkanenLauri) August 26, 2018

In 2016, Markkanen traveled from Finland to the United States, where he played collegiately for one season at Arizona.

The 7-foot forward would go on to be selected No. 7 overall by the Chicago Bulls in the 2017 NBA Draft.

“He was having trouble with his visa and they went to our office and we helped out with the visa,” McCain told ABC in March of 2017.

“He had to have a student visa, and there was some question about whether he was actually a student or not in Finland. […] We just kind of weighed in and said, ‘Hey, how about expediting this?’”

Great mtg @UofA basketball fwd Lauri Markkanen of #Finland who my office helped secure a visa to pursue his athletic goals in #AZ! #BearDown pic.twitter.com/fnWAzRcqGz

— John McCain (@SenJohnMcCain) October 13, 2016

The post Lauri Markkanen Remembers John McCain: ‘I Will Be Forever Grateful’ appeared first on SLAM.

Celtics wing Jayson Tatum would have been unanimous First-Team, if not for one Second-Team vote.

A panel of 100 media members voted for the 2017-18 NBA All-Rookie Teams, with a First Team vote counting for 2 points, and a Second Team vote counting for 1 point.

Check out the full results below:

2017-18 NBA All-Rookie Team Voting Results

First Team: Kyle Kuzma (193), Lauri Markkanen (173), Donovan Mitchell (200), Ben Simmons (200), Jayson Tatum (199)

Second Team: Lonzo Ball (87), Bogdan Bogdanovic (75), John Collins (76), Josh Jackson (45), Dennis Smith Jr (96)

Other rookies receiving votes: Bam Adebayo (44); De’Aaron Fox (34); OG Anunoby (25); Jarrett Allen (18); Dillon Brooks (14); Jordan Bell (5); Royce O’Neale (4); Zach Collins (3); Milos Teodosic (3); Luke Kennard (1); Frank Mason III (1); Malik Monk (1); Frank Ntilikina (1); Semi Ojeleye (1); Sindarius Thornwell (1)

The 2017-18 NBA All-Rookie First Team! @spidadmitchell @BenSimmons25 @jaytatum0 @kylekuzma @MarkkanenLauri pic.twitter.com/9Sk3KGHlOI

— NBA (@NBA) May 22, 2018

RELATED:
Ben Simmons Responds to Donovan Mitchell’s ‘Rookie’ Hoodie

The post Mitchell, Simmons Voted Unanimous All-Rookie First Teamers appeared first on SLAM.

The Timberwolves are headed to the playoffs, and they got there in riveting fashion. Hosting the Nuggets in what was essentially a play-in game, Minnesota led 99-91 late in the fourth quarter. Then Jamal Murray led a 10-2 run that forced overtime. But the Timberwolves kept the Nuggets off the board for the final 2:28 of OT as they hit free throws down the stretch to seal the win. Nikola Jokic scored 35 points, including 17 in the third quarter, to lead all scorers, while Jimmy Butler had 31 for Minnesota. Next up for the Timberwolves: the Houston Rockets.

CLAMPS. pic.twitter.com/sJBpmSGFh9

— x – Timberwolves (@Timberwolves) April 12, 2018

Thunder 137 (48-34), Grizzlies 123 (22-60)

Paul George scored 40 points and Russell Westbrook had 16 rebounds to lead the Thunder. Westbrook’s performance gave him a triple-double average for the season, making him the first player in NBA history to do that more than once in his career. Though he scored just six points on Wednesday, he had a career-high 20 boards and 19 assists. Dillon Brooks ended his rookie season with a 36-point performance. The Thunder will play the Jazz to start the postseason.

Rebound number 16 makes #Hist0ry pic.twitter.com/wuS0Bz0pz2

— OKC THUNDER (@okcthunder) April 12, 2018

Celtics 110 (55-27), Nets 97 (28-54)

With the Celtics resting their regulars, Aron Baynes had himself a night, scoring 26 points and grabbing 14 rebounds. Jonathan Gibson added 18 more off the bench. For the Nets, Alan Crabbe scored 16 and hit five threes to go with seven rebounds and three assists. The Celtics will face the 7 seed Bucks in the First Round.

Too easy for the pic.twitter.com/yxvy4jzNtz

— Boston Celtics (@celtics) April 12, 2018

Knicks 110 (29-53), Cavaliers 98 (50-32)

The Cavs dropped their final game of the regular season, but head into the playoffs with a clean slate after a turbulent campaign. John Holland had 21 points and Ante Zizic had 20 for Cleveland, which only played its regulars for a few minutes early on. Luke Kornet scored 23 for the Knicks. The Cavs draw the Pacers in the First Round.

Get ’em, @FrankLikina pic.twitter.com/9XgJhEVL2U

— NEW YORK KNICKS (@nyknicks) April 12, 2018

Heat 116 (44-38), Raptors 109 (59-23) (OT)

Wayne Ellington set the Heat’s single-season record with 227 threes on his way to 32 points Wednesday night. That helped Miami clinch the 6 seed in the East, which means they’ll visit Philadelphia to start the playoffs. Ellington’s final three came with just under 20 seconds in regulation to put Miami ahead, but the Raptors forced overtime on a Jakob Poeltl tip-in a few seconds later. The Heat never trailed in OT as they held on to defeat the No. 1  seed in the conference.

.@WayneElli22‘s record setting 226th 3-pointer this season! pic.twitter.com/HztnqXMIsW

— Miami HEAT (@MiamiHEAT) April 12, 2018

Magic 101 (25-57), Wizards 92 (43-39)

The Wizards went just 5-25 in the fourth quarter and as a result dropped to the 8 seed in the East, forcing a matchup with the Toronto Raptors. Rodney Purvis led the victorious Magic with 16 points in their final game of the season, while Jodie Meeks had 18 off the bench to lead all scorers.

WITH AUTHORITY, @BISMACKBIYOMBO! pic.twitter.com/VAdeIoaxR7

— Orlando Magic (@OrlandoMagic) April 12, 2018

76ers 130 (52-30), Bucks 95 (44-38)

The Sixers led 46-18 after a quarter and never looked back, dismantling the Bucks even as Joel Embiid continues to sit out, recovering from injury. Justin Anderson had 25 points to lead Philly, which finished the regular season with 16 straight wins. Jabari Parker led the Bucks with 25 points.

Another put-back jam for pic.twitter.com/SpppxmA2UC

— x – Philadelphia 76ers (@sixers) April 12, 2018

Pistons 119 (39-43), Bulls 87 (27-55)

Detroit won every quarter, opening up a 14-point lead after one and cruising to victory. Eric Moreland had 16 points, 17 rebounds, and four blocks to lead the Pistons, and rookie Luke Kennard added 23 points. Lauri Markkanen had 20 to lead the Bulls as both teams ended disappointing seasons.

“Way to go get it, big fella” #PistonsNow pic.twitter.com/eomvoyXzHR

— Detroit Pistons (@DetroitPistons) April 12, 2018

Pelicans 122 (48-34), Spurs 98 (47-35)

The Pelicans will head into the postseason with five straight wins, led by 22 points, 15 rebounds, and four blocks from Anthony Davis. Rajon Rondo had 19 points and 14 assists to go with that. No player for the Spurs scored more than 11 points, a mark matched by LaMarcus Aldridge, Dejounte Murray, and Tony Parker. New Orleans will play Portland in the First Round and the Spurs will face Golden State.

Rondo AD (via @NBA) pic.twitter.com/irTtqx5aZO

— SLAM Magazine (@SLAMonline) April 12, 2018

Lakers 115 (35-47), Clippers 100 (42-40)

Josh Hart scored 30 points on 7-9 three-point shooting as the Lakers won the battle of L.A. teams to close the season. Gary Payton II had 25 points and 12 rebounds off the bench. For the Clippers, Tobias Harris led the way with 23 points.

Josh Hart from WAY downtown! #LakeShow (: @SpectrumSN & @spectdeportes) pic.twitter.com/hQqxcbbj2S

— Los Angeles Lakers (@Lakers) April 12, 2018

Kings 96 (27-55), Rockets 83 (65-17)

With James Harden, Chris Paul, Clint Capela, and more sitting out, the Rockets couldn’t get much going against the Kings. Gerald Green did manage 31 points and hit seven threes, but seven Kings players scoring in double figures was too much. Willie Cauley-Stein led the Kings with 22 points, 11 rebounds, and four assists.

Buddy… (via @SacramentoKings) pic.twitter.com/pZfFCbiQ2o

— SLAM Magazine (@SLAMonline) April 12, 2018

Trail Blazers 102 (49-33), Jazz 93 (48-34)

The Blazers clinched the Northwest Division behind 36 points and 10 assists from Damian Lillard and 19 points from CJ McCollum. Ricky Rubio and Donovan Mitchell each had 17 to lead the Blazers, who shot just 37 percent as a team.

How it’s been for Portland tonight (via @nba) pic.twitter.com/2K5hOlaeVG

— SLAM Magazine (@SLAMonline) April 12, 2018

The post Post Up: Timberwolves Earn Playoff Berth, Westbrook Makes History appeared first on SLAM.

The Knicks struggled to find a consistent offensive spark as Tim Hardaway Jr. sat out with a left ankle sprain; meanwhile, the Bucks were able to overcome the absences of Giannis Antetokounmpo and Malcolm Brogdon as all five of their starters scored in double-digits.

Eric Bledsoe led the way with 22 points and 10 dimes.

BURKE TO DOTSON SLAM pic.twitter.com/2qMMYp3yIz

— The Knicks Wall (@TheKnicksWall) April 8, 2018

Nuggets 134 (45-35), Clippers 115 (42-38)

It was essentially a playoff game for both sides, but the Clippers were never able to compete as the Nuggets knocked them out of playoff contention behind Nikola Jokic’s 23 points, 11 assists and 11 rebounds. Will Barton led the way in scoring with 31 on 11-for-15 shooting from the field.

The Nuggets stayed at ninth in the Western Conference standings, but the win gave them the same record as the No. 8 Timberwolves.

Lou Williams scored 24 off the bench for Los Angeles.

Nets 124 (27-53), Bulls 96 (27-53)

The Bulls moved a full game ahead of the Knicks in the Tankathon rankings as Quincy Acy scored a career-high 21 points (with six made 3’s) for Brooklyn.

Joe Harris had 16 points and six assists with a game-high plus-minus of plus-22 while Allen Crabbe added 20 points.

Kris Dunn, Robin Lopez, Lauri Markkanen and Zach LaVine didn’t play for Chicago.

Thunder 108 (46-34), Rockets 102 (64-16)

Oklahoma City sparked its path towards the postseason thanks to a 70-point outing from its big three of Carmelo Anthony (22), Paul George (24) and Russell Westbrook (24).

Anthony, who had shot just 36 percent from the field over the Thunder’s previous nine contests, went 7-for-14 from the field and knocked down three 3’s.

Oklahoma City trailed by one with seven minutes to go before an 11-0 run gave it the largest lead either side held all night.

James Harden dropped 26 points and had nine assists while Chris Paul added 17 and nine.

BRODIE IS TOO TUFF (via @nba) pic.twitter.com/uHD3FASq6K

— SLAM (@SLAMonline) April 8, 2018

Pelicans 126 (46-34), Warriors 120 (57-23)

Two of the NBA’s most prolific 7-foot scorers went head-to-head and they didn’t disappoint: Kevin Durant had 41 points, 10 rebounds and five assists while Anthony Davis led his squad to a victory with 34 points, 12 rebounds, four blocks and two steals.

Rajon Rondo‘s steal with 31 seconds to go that led to an E’Twaun Moore jumper on the other end put the Pelicans up four with 23.5 seconds to go and secured the victory.

Rondo finished the night with 12 points and 17 assists. His plus-minus of plus-21 led all players.

Quinn Cook continued to ball out in Steph Curry’s place, scoring 21 on 8-for-14 shooting.

Rajon Rondo steals it from KD and it leads to a clutch #Pelicans bucket! pic.twitter.com/3eAmCvSPsx

— Def Pen Hoops (@DefPenHoops) April 8, 2018

Rajon Rondo and Anthony Davis were on the same page and connected on the impressive long range alley-oop in tonight's #AssistOfTheNight! #DoItBig pic.twitter.com/21mumjvMqY

— NBA (@NBA) April 8, 2018

Trail Blazers 105 (48-32), Spurs 116 (46-34)

With the Pelicans and Thunder picking up wins earlier in the night, the Spurs’ matchup against the Trail Blazers became that much more important.

Rudy Gay broke the stalemate with 8:58 to go in the game and San Antonio never looked back as LaMarcus Aldridge scored 28 points, grabbed eight rebounds and had four steals against his former team.

Damian Lillard led the Trail Blazers with a game-high 33 points.

Western Conference Playoff Race

1. Rockets (64-16)
2. Warriors (57-23)
3. Trail Blazers (48-32)
4. Jazz (46-33)
5. Pelicans (46-34)
6. Spurs (46-34)
7. Thunder (46-34)
8. Timberwolves (45-35)
9. Nuggets (45-34)