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Wizards

The Oklahoma City Thunder came out of last Tuesday&rsquo;s NBA Draft Lottery as the night&rsquo;s runner-up, taking home the No. 2 overall pick.&nbsp;
The Thunder have never received the first-overall pick in their franchise history, which technically goes back to 1967 when they were still the Seattle Supersonics. They have selected second on two occasions though, and both worked out really well (Kevin Durant in 2007 and Gary Payton in 1990).
The Thunder have a war-chest of draft picks in the coming years, but those picks are meaningless if they don&rsquo;t select a franchise-altering talent. Fortunately, the No. 2 pick should provide an opportunity to do so. The 2022 draft class features a few &ldquo;can&rsquo;t-miss&rdquo; prospects, including Auburn&rsquo;s Jabari Smith, Gonzaga&rsquo;s Chet Holmgren and Duke&rsquo;s Paolo Banchero. All three have their pros and cons, but adding any of them to the existing core of Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Josh Giddey should work out beautifully.
In the 2021 NBA Draft, the Thunder made six selections, but they traded three of those players. They added Giddey (who was named to the 2021-22 All-Rookie Second Team), Tre Mann and Aaron Wiggins &ndash; none of whom are bigs. The Thunder did trade for a seven-footer in the 2020 draft (Aleksej Pokusevski), but he&rsquo;s still extremely raw and is not the same caliber of player as the top-three prospects.
Of course, there is still a lot of work to be done through the scouting process to effectively evaluate all three of this draft's most-coveted prospects, but a look back at the last 10 NBA drafts reveals a murkier history than one might assume. After <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/examining-the-success-of-teams-selecting-first-in-the-nba-draft" target="_blank" rel="noopener">examining the success of teams selecting No. 1 in the NBA Draft</a> last week, let's look at how recent No. 2 overall picks have fared.&nbsp;
2012 NBA Draft: Michael Kidd-Gilchrist, Charlotte Bobcats/Hornets
The Hornets bombed with the second pick in 2012. Kidd-Gilchrist had a fine career, averaging 12.3 points and 7.9 rebounds per game across eight seasons in the NBA. The thing is, Bradley Beal was selected third and Damian Lillard was selected fifth, and both of those guys are All-NBA-caliber players annually. Comparatively, that&rsquo;s a huge miss for Charlotte.
Verdict: Failure.
2013 NBA Draft: Victor Oladipo, Orlando Magic
The Cavaliers certainly surprised many of us by picking Anthony Bennett with the first overall pick, but the Magic stuck to the script. Oladipo was universally seen as a top-three player in this draft, and he became the second-best player in the class before knee and quad injuries derailed his career.
As much as injuries have robbed much of what Oladipo was, he is still an intriguing player, and he&rsquo;ll probably command some decent free-agent offers this offseason. Obiously, CJ McCollumn (selected 10th) and Giannis Antetokounmpo (selected 15th) are better players, but neither was being considered by the Magic. Considering that Oladipo is a two-time All-Star, an All-Defensive selection and a one-time All-NBA selection, I&rsquo;d say the Magic did a fine job in picking Oladipo.
Verdict: Success
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2014 NBA Draft: Jabari Parker, Milwaukee Bucks
The 2014 draft was a weird one. Neither the first nor the second pick ended up being the best player from this draft class. Andrew Wiggins found a good role, even if he is far less successful than most thought he&rsquo;d be, but Jabari Parker really underwhelmed. Granted, Parker stuck around in the league for eight seasons, including some of the current one, but his career simply never materialized even if it&rsquo;s not his (nor Milwaukee&rsquo;s) fault.
Parker tore his ACL twice. He looked like he was becoming a pretty darn good player (even if he was a defensive liability) before the second ACL injury, averaging 20.1 points and 6.2 rebounds per game in 2016-17. However good Parker could have been, the fact of the matter is that Joel Embiid was intriguing enough as of draft night to be taken one pick later, and that stings.
Verdict: Failure
2015 NBA Draft: D&rsquo;Angelo Russell, Los Angeles Lakers
Here&rsquo;s an instance where a player actually was worth a top-three pick. The problem is that the Lakers had the second pick, and there&rsquo;s a big difference between Karl-Anthony Towns or Devin Booker and Russell. Making matters worse, the Lakers sent Russell to Brooklyn before he matured. His immaturity was part of the reason he was traded, but that doesn&rsquo;t change the fact that the Lakers picked him and moved on very quickly. Russell may or may not end up being a franchise-altering talent, but he hasn&rsquo;t realized his full potential yet, and he clearly won&rsquo;t do so for the Lakers.
Verdict: Failure
2016 NBA Draft: Brandon Ingram, Los Angeles Lakers
Ingram is one of the best No. 2 picks in the last 10 drafts. He&rsquo;s a true number one option on a playoff team, a career 18.5 points-per-game scorer and a one-time All-Star. It&rsquo;s debatable that Jaylen Brown (selected third) and/or Jamal Murray (selected seventh) are as good or better players, but both have played alongside more talented teammates throughout their careers.
Ingram has been the best player on the New Orleans Pelicans for a few years now, and we shouldn&rsquo;t take for granted the fact that Ingram led a playoff team this season. Sure, the Lakers didn&rsquo;t cash in on him specifically, but he was part of the package that led to Anthony Davis landing in Los Angeles. So, it worked out for them too.
Verdict: Success
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2017 NBA Draft: Lonzo Ball, Los Angeles Lakers
The Lakers picked second overall again in 2017. They weren&rsquo;t as successful this time around. First, there&rsquo;s Jayson Tatum to consider. Tatum was selected third and is the best player in the 2017 draft class. Being selected by the Lakers wouldn&rsquo;t have changed that, and that should be enough. But there&rsquo;s also Ball&rsquo;s rough shooting mechanics to consider. Sure, he&rsquo;s grown into a good shooter, but the Lakers didn&rsquo;t benefit from that. It&rsquo;s hard to categorize Ball&rsquo;s selection as an outright failure because like Ingram, he helped facilitate Davis to the Lakers. Still, it's tough to classify his selection a success.
Verdict: Push
2018 NBA Draft: Marvin Bagley III, Sacramento Kings
Bagley might be the worst second pick in the last 10 years. The 2018 NBA Draft will forever be remembered as the Luka Doncic class. The Kings could have drafted Doncic, as he was still on the board, but they chose to go with Bagley instead. Bagley isn&rsquo;t even on the Kings any longer, and his time in Sacramento was not memorable.
Bagley is a sub-par defender and three-point shooter. He&rsquo;s scored the ball at a decent pace, averaging 19.5 points per-36 minutes, but he&rsquo;s never earned a big enough role to demonstrate what he can really do, and he&rsquo;s exclusively been on losing teams. Comparatively, Doncic and Trae Young (selected No. 5 in 2018) have turned their franchises around.
Verdict: Failure
2019 NBA Draft: Ja Morant, Memphis Grizzlies
Ingram was the best second pick in the last 10 years, until 2019. Morant stole that made-up accolade almost immediately in his rookie season. The thing is, the 2019 NBA Draft was supposed to be all about Zion Williamson. However, unlike Williamson, Morant has backed up all the hype and then some. So, while Williamson has dealt with injuries for much of his young career, Morant has brazenly become the face of his draft class.
Morant is drawing comparisons to numerous superstars, and he was named to the 2021-22 All-NBA Second Team. No one selected after him comes close to making the Grizzlies think twice about their decision.
Verdict: HUGE success
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2020 NBA Draft: James Wiseman, Golden State Warriors
Unlike his brother Lonzo, LaMelo Ball was deserving of the second pick in 2020. Instead, the Golden State Warriors went with James Wiseman, though the logic behind the pick is clear, even in retrospect. The Warriors already had two All-NBA guards. The thing is, Jordan Poole looks pretty good alongside Steph Curry and Klay Thompson, doesn&rsquo;t he? So, it&rsquo;s feasible to assume that Ball would have fit too.
After two seasons, Ball is a significantly better player, but he&rsquo;s also had plenty of opportunity to demonstrate that fact. Wiseman has had terrible health-related luck. He played in 39 of the Warriors' first 53 games in 2020-21, but he tore his meniscus in Golden State&rsquo;s 53rd&nbsp;game of the season and hasn&rsquo;t been seen since. Wiseman could still be a serious contributor, as his per-36 numbers were impressive for a rookie (19.3 points, 9.7 rebounds, 1.6 blocks and 1.1 assists on .542/.316/.628 shooting). This is one we&rsquo;ll have to continue monitoring.
Verdict: Unclear
2021 NBA Draft: Jalen Green, Houston Rockets
Basing the success of a pick on only a rookie season is tough. Green posted an impressive rookie campaign, but his defensive deficiencies were clear. That&rsquo;s an understandable flaw for a rookie. Green was the assumed second-best player in the class. Having the luxury of hindsight, we now know that Scottie Barnes (selected fourth) and Evan Mobley (selected third) translated to the NBA incredibly well. But wing scorers have a tougher time making the jump, as they must shoot deeper three-pointers and compete against far more athletic competition. Green&rsquo;s floor may be lower than that of Barnes and Mobley, but I'd argue that his ceiling is still higher. Let&rsquo;s give him a little more time.
Verdict: Unclear&nbsp; &nbsp;&nbsp;
In the last 10 drafts, the second overall pick has clearly been one of the best players in the draft class just three times (2013, 2016 and 2019).&nbsp;
A deeper examination of No. 2 overall picks reveals a limited number of franchise-altering talents. For every Kevin Durant, Jason Kidd, Gary Payton, Earl Monroe and Bill Russell, there are a number of players who didn't live up to expectations. Sometimes, there isn't a generational player on the board; other times, the team picking No. 2 overall just overthinks it or goes in the wrong direction. Either way, No. 2 hasn&rsquo;t produced as many all-time greats as you might expect, but there have been quite a few significant contributors.
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Oklahoma City will pick No. 2 in the 2022 draft. A look back at the last 10 drafts reveals that there are no guarantees for No. 2 picks.

Examining the success of teams selecting No. 2 in the NBA Draft

It is common for the players who score the most points to get the most praise. They get the credit on SportsCenter and are viewed as the stars of the night. But there is another kind of player who typically doesn't get the credit they deserve, whose importance to the team is not often illuminated.
Enter Victor Oladipo.
In Game 3 of the Eastern Conference Finals against the Boston Celtics on Saturday night, Oladipo's 5 points didn't make the ESPN highlight reel or pop out in the box score. His stat line wasn&rsquo;t highlighted on the NBA TV recap.
After being bumped out of the rotation in the first half in favor of Caleb Martin and Duncan Robinson, Oladipo could have pouted and had an attitude. This is something that happens at every level: a player doesn&rsquo;t play in the first half and mentally checks out. Sometimes, they are visibily disgruntled. You may be able to see it during halftime warm-ups or in his demeanor on the bench.&nbsp;
Oladipo didn&rsquo;t do any of that. He stayed locked in and was ready and prepared if his number happened to be called. Then, it happened. Jimmy Butler went down and could not return to the game in the second half. Butler has been carrying the team throughout the series; he is who the offense runs through, who the team relies on every trip down the court in some capacity. When he couldn't return due to a knee injury, Oladipo&rsquo;s number was called and he was ready.
In just 20 minutes, Oladipo had 4 steals (twice as many as the Celtics had as team for the entire game) and 8 pass deflections (one more than the Celtics). After the game, PJ Tucker raved about Oladipo's play.
&ldquo;It&rsquo;s usually his offense everybody talks about,&rdquo; Tucker said. &ldquo;He comes in with a spark. But his lateral slides and quickness were unbelievable. I told him tonight, 'That was some of the best lateral foot speed I&rsquo;ve seen anybody have.' Jaylen Brown, when he gets going &mdash; especially right &mdash; he's tough to get back in front of. For Vic to square him up was unreal. He gave us a spark.
&ldquo;We talked about it at the half, knowing he was about to start the half and play. To not play at all and then step in and do what he did in the second half, that level of professionalism is few and far between.&rdquo;
Former NBA guard Jamal Crawford tweeted: &ldquo;Vic Oladipo&rsquo;s stats won&rsquo;t justify the game he actually played. They don&rsquo;t win this game without him.&rdquo;
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Vic Oladipo&rsquo;s stats won&rsquo;t justify the game he actually played. They don&rsquo;t win this game without him.
&mdash; 🏁 Jamal Crawford (@JCrossover) <a href="https://twitter.com/JCrossover/status/1528214518660157440?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 22, 2022</a></blockquote>

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&ldquo;Everything about it, it speaks to his competitive character,&rdquo; Heat head coach Erik Spoelstra said of Oladipo. &ldquo;That was not easy. We went with a slightly different rotation because Kyle [Lowry] came back. That is going to force some changes throughout the rotation, so he didn&rsquo;t play in the first half. We&rsquo;ve had so many guys that have had to take on different roles and sacrifice. We say it&rsquo;s always easy to sacrifice when you&rsquo;re not the one doing it, and he&rsquo;s had to sacrifice many times. That wasn&rsquo;t easy. That wasn&rsquo;t necessarily the way we were going to go the first half. Just things were going really well. We just kept going with that. Then, all of a sudden, boom: Jimmy is not going to go in the second half.
"For him to be stable enough and not be frustrated and not be rolling his eyes and like, 'Oh, okay, now I get an opportunity.... he&rsquo;s just steady. Stays the course. He&rsquo;s made himself available, made himself vulnerable through this whole process. He&rsquo;s prepared behind the scenes. His minutes in the second half were so important defensively against their two studs (Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown), and then offensively, he just gave us a facsimile of a lot of the stuff we do with Jimmy. And I mean that as the ultimate compliment.&rdquo;
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This isn&rsquo;t the first time during these playoffs that Oladipo has had to be ready to jump right in and be a determining factor when his number was called. Oladipo was actually outside of Miami's rotation in the first round against the Atlanta Hawks. However, he ended up being one of the key reasons for the Heat's 97-94 win in Game 5, which could have easily gone in the Hawks favor. Oladipo poured in 23 points, 3 assists and 3 steals, while shooting 50% from the floor and 50% from three. After that game, his play was featured in ESPN's highlight reel and his stat line jumped out when looking at the box score.
But again, if he hadn't been ready when his number was called, none of that would have been possible. Time and time again, Oladipo has shown that when given the opportunity, he can produce at a high level and be a game-changing player. Any questions about his past injuries (including a ruptured right quadricep tendon) should be laid to rest as he's proven that he's back in terms of his lateral movement, athleticism, ability to create his own shot, outside shooting and transition defense.
&ldquo;Signing Victor Oladipo [to a veteran-minimum deal] was one of the biggest steals in NBA history for the Miami Heat," said Daniel Abraham, Oladipo&rsquo;s former AAU coach. "To get a former All-Star and All-Defensive Team player still near his prime like that for very little and be able to wait patiently for him to get healthy is the type of move that will likely land them in the NBA Finals! And if you know Vic like I do, you know the level of the dedication and work ethic he has always had, so none of this would surprise you.&ldquo;
Many in the NBA world were ready to write him off into irrelevance after he re-injured his leg in 2020 and got traded twice. In January 2021, Oladipo was traded to the Houston Rockets in the four-team blockbuster deal that also sent James Harden to Brooklyn and Caris LeVert to Indiana. Two months later, the Rockets sent Oladipo to Miami for a first-round pick swap, Avery Bradley and Kelly Olynyk.
But with all that behind him, Oladipo is proving all of his doubters wrong. He is far from finished and he has proven that he's still capable of being an impact player and a X-Factor for his team &mdash; whether it&rsquo;s by solely playing defense on one of the best scorers in the league or stepping in and being one of the game's high scorers himself. Regardless of his role, Oladipo will have the right attitude and energy, even if those opportunities don&rsquo;t present themselves each and every game.
This is the type of player whom any organization would want on their team, and Oladipo should receive plenty of interest from teams when he hits unrestricted free agency this summer.
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Regardless of what the box score showed, Victor Oladipo played a crucial role in the Heat's Game 3 win over the Celtics.

Victor Oladipo staying ready and making the most of every opportunity

Ever since Artūras Karni&scaron;ovas and Marc Eversley took over the Bulls&rsquo; front office two years ago, Chicago has been one of the most aggressive teams in the NBA. Their fingerprints are all over this roster, with notable acquisitions such as DeMar DeRozan, Nikola Vucevic, Lonzo Ball and Alex Caruso.
These moves have translated to on-court success, as the Bulls posted their best winning percentage since the 2014-15 season and ended their four-year playoff drought. This year, Chicago was 46-36 &mdash; more wins than they had in the 2018-19 and 2019-20 seasons combined. (Zach LaVine and Coby White are the only remaining players from that 2019-20 squad).
The Bulls entered the playoffs as the sixth seed in the Eastern Conference while boasting the NBA's 11th-ranked offense (scoring 111.0 points per 100 possessions) and 23rd-ranked defense (allowing 111.1 points per 100 possessions).&nbsp;
While this season marked a step in the right direction, the Bulls&rsquo; first-round series against the Milwaukee Bucks showed that there&rsquo;s still plenty of work to be done. Despite Milwaukee losing their second-best player, Khris Middleton, to a sprained MCL in Game 2, the Bucks completed a gentleman's sweep against the Bulls. Chicago wasn&rsquo;t at full strength either, with Ball sidelined due to a knee injury and LaVine (COVID-19) and Caruso (concussion) each missing Game 5. Still, the reigning champions were a good litmus test.
Entering the offseason, where does Chicago go from here? Are big changes coming?
RE-SIGNING ZACH LAVINE
Entering this offseason, Chicago&rsquo;s top priority should be re-signing LaVine, who is set to hit unrestricted free agency. The 27-year-old has emerged as a perennial All-Star, earning a spot on the Eastern Conference squad in each of the last two seasons.&nbsp;
This year, LaVine averaged 24.4 points, 4.6 rebounds, 4.5 assists and 2.8 threes, while reducing his turnovers to 2.6 per game and shooting 47.6% from the field, 38.9% from three and 85.3% from the free-throw line.&nbsp;
LaVine will certainly expect a maximum contract from the Bulls, which would <a href="https://hoopshype.com/lists/bulls-offseason-preview-zach-lavines-free-agency-nikola-vucevic-extension-more/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">pay him</a> $212.3 million over five years. The most he could receive from another team is $157.4 million over four years. This is a relatively weak free-agent class, so it seems very likely that LaVine will get a max deal from some team.&nbsp;
The Bulls would be wise to re-sign their star shooting guard, as replacing his production would be difficult, and the team would certainly take a step back if LaVine signed elsewhere.
"I plan to enjoy free agency," LaVine said recently. &ldquo;We're going to have to experience A through Z without making any fast decisions. I think that's something me and [Rich Paul] are going to go through and experience."
LaVine was asked if the Bulls are the front-runners to sign him, but he wouldn&rsquo;t say.
"You guys have been a really, really soft spot in my heart," LaVine said to the Chicago media. "I have to do this as a business decision, as a man, to not just be viewed one way and be like, 'I'm automatically coming back,' or, 'I'm automatically leaving.'"
In multiple interviews, LaVine has reiterated that he wants to be paid what he feels he deserves.
"I just want my respect. I think that's the main thing," LaVine <a href="https://www.nbcsports.com/chicago/bulls/zach-lavine-prepares-olympic-quarterfinal-bulls-free-agency" target="_blank" rel="noopener">said</a> last August. "I outplayed my contract; I've been very loyal to Chicago, I like Chicago. I just want my respect."
FREE AGENCY
Aside from LaVine, the bulk of Chicago's core is under contract for the foreseeable future.&nbsp;
The Bulls have $103,181,950 in guaranteed salaries on the books for next season, spread across nine players: DeRozan, Vucevic, Lopez, Caruso, White, Patrick Williams, Javonte Green, Ayo Dosunmu and Marko Simonovic. Projections set next year&rsquo;s salary cap at $122 million and the luxury tax at $149 million.
Derrick Jones Jr.,Tristan Thompson and Matt Thomas will be unrestricted free agents. Tony Bradley has a player option worth $2,036,318, so he could opt out and test the market as well.
The team will have three restricted free agents (assuming Chicago extends a qualifying offer to each): Troy Brown Jr. ($7,228,448 QO), Tyler Cook ($1,576,305) and Malcolm Hill ($1,576,305).
Last year, the Bulls were very aggressive in free agency, making splashy moves left and right. Given their cap situation, it seems unlikely that Chicago will be able to go star hunting, but they&rsquo;ll likely try to improve their depth and add certain specialists. For example, Chicago could use a rim protector, as they averaged just 4.0 blocks per game (which ranked 27th in the NBA). Can they afford Mitchell Robinson? Could they throw an offer sheet at or sign-and-trade for a restricted free agent like Nic Claxton or Mo Bamba? Can they add a veteran like JaVale McGee or Hassan Whiteside?&nbsp;
In addition to a rim protector, it would make sense to add other defensive reinforcements as well (especially if Jones signs elsewhere). Caruso and Ball give Chicago a strong defensive backcourt, but they need some help if the Bulls want to improve their 23rd-ranked defensive rating (113.2). Some of the top defensive role players who are hitting the market include Bruce Brown, Gary Payton II and PJ Tucker. Lu Dort and Jae'Sean Tate each have a team option, but it seems unlikely that either will be available given their bargain contracts.
The Bulls will look to add a contributor or two using the non-taxpayer mid-level exception, which is worth $10,349,000. Last offseason, that is how Chicago was able to sign Caruso to a four-year, $37 million deal, which ended up being a terrific addition. Other players who signed for the non-taxpayer MLE last offseason include McGee (Phoenix Suns), Tucker (Miami Heat), Reggie Bullock (Dallas Mavericks) and Khem Birch (Toronto Raptors).
It will be interesting to see what the Bulls do in free agency. However, keep in mind that some of Chicago&rsquo;s biggest additions in recent years were acquired through trades.
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TRADES
After watching the Bulls&rsquo; front office trade for Vucevic, DeRozan and Ball, fans are understandably thinking big when it comes to Chicago&rsquo;s trade targets entering the offseason.
Myles Turner has been mentioned as a possible target for the Bulls since he could solve their rim-protection issues, but the window on acquiring Turner may have slammed shut as a <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/despite-trade-talks-the-pacers-want-to-keep-myles-turner-longterm" target="_blank" rel="noopener">recent report</a> suggested that the Indiana Pacers are now expected to keep the 26-year-old long-term.
Another dominant shot-blocker who may become available is Rudy Gobert. The Utah Jazz just had another season end in disappointing fashion, and there has already been a <a href="https://twitter.com/realOCsports/status/1521141215411941376" target="_blank" rel="noopener">report</a> that the Jazz will be forced to choose between Gobert and Donovan Mitchell. If Utah opts to keep their young shooting guard, a three-time Defensive Player of the Year and five-time All-Defensive First-Team selection could suddenly be obtainable.
If that happens, the Bulls should at least reach out and start a conversation. Our Evan Sidery recently <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/examining-potential-trade-destinations-for-rudy-gobert" target="_blank" rel="noopener">broke down potential destinations for Gobert</a> and listed Chicago as the top landing spot. Here&rsquo;s what he wrote:
Imagine the possibilities for Chicago with Gobert patrolling the paint with Lonzo Ball and Alex Caruso hawking the perimeter. It&rsquo;s the perfect complement to offensive dynamos Zach LaVine and DeMar DeRozan. Chicago&rsquo;s new starting lineup of Ball, Caruso, LaVine, DeRozan and Gobert would seemingly have no holes in it from a two-way perspective. I absolutely love this idea for Chicago, and they should be blowing up the Jazz&rsquo;s phone this summer if it seems plausible.
Jazz receive: Nikola Vucevic, Patrick Williams, Coby White, draft compensation Bulls receive: Rudy Gobert
It remains to be seen if either side would do this, but it&rsquo;s an intriguing idea.
With that said, if the Bulls are committed to Vucevic and don&rsquo;t want to trade for a new big man, HoopsHype&rsquo;s Yossi Gozlan <a href="https://hoopshype.com/lists/bulls-offseason-preview-zach-lavines-free-agency-nikola-vucevic-extension-more/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">points out</a> that an extension for Vooch could make sense this offseason.
If that happens, perhaps Chicago just looks for a complementary shot-blocker who can play behind Vucevic like one of the free agents we mentioned above or more of a minor trade target such as New York&rsquo;s Nerlens Noel or Minnesota&rsquo;s Jarred Vanderbilt.
It&rsquo;s also worth noting that the Bulls have a $5,000,000 trade exception that expires on July 7, 2022, from their Daniel Theis deal.
DRAFT
The Bulls have the No. 18 pick in the 2022 NBA Draft. In BasketballNews.com's <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/draft" target="_blank" rel="noopener">2022 NBA Mock Draft</a>, our senior NBA Draft analyst Matt Babcock has Chicago selecting Ohio State forward <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/draft/2022-nba-mock-draft/players/ej-liddell" target="_blank" rel="noopener">EJ Liddell</a>.&nbsp;
The 6-foot-7, 21-year-old junior is a well-rounded, NBA-ready player who makes sense for a Bulls team that wants to win now. Last season, Liddell averaged 19.4 points, 7.9 rebounds, 2.5 assists, 2.6 blocks, 1.4 threes and 0.6 steals, while shooting 49.0% from the field, 37.4% from three and 76.5% from the free-throw line.
&ldquo;Although he is a bit undersized for the position, the Buckeyes often used Liddell as a 4 or 5 in their lineups,&rdquo; Babcock noted in his scouting breakdown. &ldquo;He is physical and versatile on both ends of the floor, scoring both inside and out. He appears more comfortable in the mid-range and paint, which works well for his college system but raises questions in regards to his translatability to the NBA. Liddell filled up the box score and played with great effort and toughness. He has certainly carved out a spot for himself in the 2022 NBA Draft.&rdquo;
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Other players who are projected to be available in that range are G League Ignite wing <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/draft/2022-nba-mock-draft/players/marjon-beauchamp" target="_blank" rel="noopener">MarJon Beauchamp</a>, Baylor forward <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/draft/2022-nba-mock-draft/players/kendall-brown" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Kendall Brown</a>, LSU forward <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/draft/2022-nba-mock-draft/players/tari-eason" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Tari Eason</a>, Notre Dame guard <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/draft/2022-nba-mock-draft/players/blake-wesley" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Blake Wesley</a>, G League Ignite guard <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/draft/2022-nba-mock-draft/players/jaden-hardy" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Jaden Hardy</a>, Serbian forward <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/draft/2022-nba-mock-draft/players/nikola-jovic" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Nikola Jovic</a> and Tennessee guard <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/draft/2022-nba-mock-draft/players/kennedy-chandler" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Kennedy Chandler</a>.&nbsp;
If the Bulls aren&rsquo;t interested in any of these prospects, or if Karni&scaron;ovas and Eversley continue to be aggressive on the trade market, Chicago could look to deal the No. 18 pick as part of a win-now move.
It&rsquo;s worth noting that Chicago must forfeit their next-available second-round pick after an NBA investigation revealed that they contacted Ball prior to the start of the NBA&rsquo;s free-agency period. As it stands, the Bulls&rsquo; next-available pick is the team&rsquo;s 2026 second-rounder, but Chicago can&rsquo;t acquire a second-round pick before then because they&rsquo;d have to forfeit it.
***
After a few rough years, the Bulls seem to be back on the right trajectory, and there&rsquo;s no question that this team has the talent to be a perennial playoff squad in the East. Winning 46 games despite trying to get so many new players acclimated is impressive, especially when you factor in the injuries to Ball, Caruso, Williams, etc.
Even if the Bulls bring back largely the same roster, they will benefit from that continuity and improved chemistry. However, given what we&rsquo;ve seen from this front office in recent years, don&rsquo;t be surprised if they look to wheel-and-deal in order to take the roster to the next level.

After winning 46 games and losing in the first round, where will the Bulls go from here? Alex Kennedy previews Chicago's summer.

2022 NBA offseason preview: What's next for the Chicago Bulls?

In the 2020 Summer Olympics, which took place in 2021 due to COVID, France matched up with Team USA in the men&rsquo;s basketball gold-medal game for the third time.
The first gold-medal meeting between the two nations took place was in 1948, with France <a href="https://www.usab.com/history/national-team-mens/games-of-the-xivth-olympiad-1948.aspx" target="_blank" rel="noopener">losing 65-21 in that final</a>.
Despite having been historically good since then, it took another 52 years for the Frenchmen to return to that stage for a second time; unfortunately, Team USA awaited again. The game was much closer in 2000 than in 1948, but the Americans &mdash; led by Vince Carter, Kevin Garnett, Alonzo Mourning and Ray Allen among others &mdash; outlasted Antoine Rigaudeau, Laurent Sciarra, Frederic Weis and France, 85-75.
(No, that wasn&rsquo;t the game Carter <a href="https://youtu.be/WihbbVEmppI" target="_blank" rel="noopener">dunked on Weis</a>; that was earlier in The Games.)
And in last year&rsquo;s gold-medal game, in the countries' third meeting on that stage, France <a href="https://www.espn.com/mens-olympics-basketball/boxscore/_/gameId/401347899" target="_blank" rel="noopener">got even closer</a>.
France's best Olympic team ever was defeated by the Americans, 87-82. Team USA started Damian Lillard, Jrue Holiday, Devin Booker, Kevin Durant and Bam Adebayo, answering the French quintet of Nando De Colo, Evan Fournier, Nicolas Batum, Guerschon Yabusele and Rudy Gobert.
Contributions from the U.S. bench came from Jayson Tatum, Zach LaVine, Draymond Green and Khris Middleton, while Timoth&eacute; Luwawu-Cabarrot, Frank Ntikilina, Thomas Heurtel and Moustapha Fall were key components of France's second unit. The Frenchmen trailed by as little as 3 points with just eight seconds remaining before Durant iced the game with two free throws.
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Now imagine that game with Joel Embiid... playing for France.
The 28-year-old NBA MVP candidate, who was born and raised in Cameroon and has never played for his home national team (despite <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/things-to-monitor-as-the-next-fiba-world-cups-next-qualifying-window-arrives">coming close in 2017</a>), is reportedly <a href="https://www.si.com/nba/2022/05/02/joel-embiid-could-change-nationality-play-french-national-team-report">eyeing an opportunity to suit up for France</a>.
Embiid has family in France, and is <a href="https://rmcsport.bfmtv.com/basket/basket-joel-embiid-superstar-de-nba-se-rapproche-de-l-equipe-de-france_AV-202205020664.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">considering changing his nationality</a> in order to play for the Frenchmen in the 2024 Olympic Games, where they&rsquo;d enter as one of the favorites to challenge Team USA again for the gold. According to French basketball general manager Boris Diaw, Embiid is <a href="https://actucameroun.com/2022/05/03/boris-diaw-manager-general-de-lequipe-de-france-confirme-les-demarches-entamees-par-joel-embiid-pour-jouer-avec-les-bleus-en-vue-des-jo-2024/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">taking the necessary steps</a>.
(Looks like we won't ever see the Embiid-Pascal Siakam tandem for Cameroon, unfortunately.)
In FIBA, each team is allowed one naturalized player on its roster. Current and recent instances of this include American-born players to suit up for different countries, such as Javonte Green (Montenegro), Matt Costello (Ivory Coast), Anthony Randolph (Slovenia) and Andray Blatche (Philippines). Non-American examples include Congolese center Serge Ibaka playing for Spain, Cuban native Ismael Romero playing for Puerto Rico and French-born Aaron Cel playing for Poland. Another famous occasion where this occurred saw Hakeem Olajuwon playing with Team USA in the 1990s.
Regarding American-born WNBA players, known examples include Bria Hartley representing France, Becky Hammon representing Russia and Leilani Mitchell representing Australia. Non-American examples in the women&rsquo;s game include Bahamian Jonquel Jones playing for Bosnia and Herzegovina and Senegal native Astou Ndour playing for Spain.
Now, it may be long before we see Embiid actually playing for France if this process gets finalized, or less than we think if he decides not to wait for the Olympics.
The next major European basketball tournament is EuroBasket 2022, <a href="https://www.fiba.basketball/eurobasket/2022">which will run from Sept. 1-18 later this year</a> across Italy, Germany, Georgia and the Czech Republic. France will be one of 24 teams competing, but seeing Embiid there would be surprising.
The 2023 FIBA World Cup, which France is <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/where-things-stand-after-the-second-window-of-fiba-world-cup-qualifiers">currently attempting to qualify for</a>, will take place from Aug. 25 through Sept. 10, 2023. Qualifying for the World Cup will run through next February before the final pool of 32 teams gets decided.
And the 2024 Summer Olympics, assuming we avoid another global pandemic, is expected to actually run that summer. The host of the Games? France, who will automatically qualify for the tournament <a href="https://www.fiba.basketball/pr-n34-brazils-national-teams-granted-automatic-places-at-2016-olympic-basketball-tournament" target="_blank" rel="noopener">by rule</a>. Embiid will be 30 years old by the next Olympics.
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Since Embiid is reportedly targeting the 2024 Games, let&rsquo;s look at some players who might be his teammates.
The oldest players from the silver-medal-winning squad last summer were De Colo and Batum, who&rsquo;ll be 37 and 35 by the 2024 Games, so expect many of the same players to run it back if possible. One name that could join the fray is Boston Celtics second-round pick Juhann Begarin, who is just 19 years old and was the No. 45 overall selection last summer. Isma&euml;l Kamagate and Hugo Besson, both of whom are 21, are in the 2022 NBA Draft pool; the same goes for 18-year-old Ousmane Dieng, who is quickly rising up draft boards. There's also plenty of hype surrounding fellow 18-year-old, ASVEL star and 7-foot-2 sensation Victor Wembanyama &mdash; a lock to be a high draft pick in 2023.
<a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/draft">BasketballNews.com Sr. NBA Draft Analyst Matt Babcock</a> has Dieng going No. 21 overall, Kamagate at No. 40 and Besson at No. 51.
But really, there&rsquo;s one question we need to answer, and it has to do with a three-time Defensive Player of the Year already on the roster who holds down the 5 position. Could an Embiid and Gobert frontcourt lead France over Team USA?
If you haven&rsquo;t realized, the American pool of bigs is slighter than you think.
Many of the best centers in the NBA aren&rsquo;t American and don&rsquo;t represent America internationally. Examples include Embiid, Gobert, Nikola Jokić (Serbia), Karl-Anthony Towns (Dominican Republic), Nikola Vučević (Montenegro), Kristaps Porziņģis (Latvia), Clint Capela (Switzerland) and Jonas Valančiūnas (Lithuania).
The best centers that have represented Team USA, and/or have Team USA eligibility, have been Adebayo, Green, Jarrett Allen and JaVale McGee. Deandre Ayton (Bahamas) is a player to watch <a href="https://www.azcentral.com/story/sports/nba/suns/2021/06/22/suns-big-deandre-ayton-ideal-team-usa-2024-summer-olympics-paris/5307682001/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">who could represent Team USA in the future</a>, along with younger bigs like Evan Mobley and Chet Holmgren.
Assuming health, so the 2024 American team could start either Adebayo, Ayton or Allen, if not 2 of the 3. Team USA is generally harder to guess in advance, but your starting lineup could look like some combination of Ja Morant, Anthony Edwards, Booker, Tatum and Adebayo. Maybe, to match size, Ayton gets in there instead of Edwards.
Maybe a Trae Young, LaMelo Ball, Bradley Beal, Jaylen Brown and Donovan Mitchell sneak into the backcourt instead. Maybe someone we&rsquo;re not projecting to make another huge leap does &mdash; like Jordan Poole, Tyler Herro or Tyrese Maxey &mdash; or maybe Jaden Ivey or Jabari Smith are more ready than we think by 2024. Even so, you&rsquo;d throw, at best, Adebayo, Ayton, Allen, and Mobley at the Embiid-Gobert combo, and that tandem could be backed up by Dieng, Yabusele, and Vincent Poirier for France.
It&rsquo;s a lot to project, no doubt, but giving <a href="https://www.fiba.basketball/rankingmen" target="_blank" rel="noopener">the No. 4 team in the world</a> a top-four player in the world could be what it takes for someone to snatch the gold medal away from Team USA in the Olympics for the first time since 2004.
But a lot can happen in two years, so we'll table this... for now.&nbsp;
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Bryan Fonseca looks at the potential of Joel Embiid joining France in international competition.

We’re not talking enough about Joel Embiid possibly playing for France

We&rsquo;re officially two months away from 2022 NBA Free Agency officially kicking off. Although the class is rather shallow &mdash; especially on superstar movement &mdash; the headliners provide some intrigue and there are endless possibilities in terms of the potential domino effects.
Will Zach LaVine and Deandre Ayton be viewed as max-level talents by their respective organizations? What will happen with James Harden and Kyrie Irving? Will Bradley Beal once again commit long-term to the Washington Wizards?
Let&rsquo;s dive into my predictions on what the top-five projected free agents will likely do this offseason, and how those moves could alter the calculus of the entire NBA.
James Harden
Player Option ($44.7 million)
Philadelphia 76ers president Daryl Morey accomplished his long-awaited dream when he helped James Harden and Joel Embiid join forces in Philadelphia earlier this season. When Harden wanted to get out of Brooklyn (an era we'll look back on as a huge "what if" in NBA history), the Sixers pushed their chips all-in on the dominant inside-out duo&rsquo;s potential.
However, having sent out Ben Simmons, Seth Curry, Andre Drummond and future draft capital to the Nets, it hasn&rsquo;t gone as smoothly as many expected for Harden. After a fast start with his new team, Harden's production has tailed off. Now, with Embiid's postseason status in jeopardy due to an orbital fracture, can Harden recapture his form before another important career decision?
Harden averaged 21.0 points, 10.5 assists and 7.1 rebounds in 21 regular-season games with the Sixers, and through six playoff games, has produced to the tune of 19.0 points, 10.2 assists and 5.0 rebounds.
Since these numbers aren't anywhere close to vintage-Harden levels of offensive production, does Morey feel comfortable shelling out a gigantic long-term extension to the 32-year-old, high-usage guard? It feels like we&rsquo;re entering into the next phase of Harden&rsquo;s career, and if that&rsquo;s the case, he&rsquo;s probably not a $40-plus-million player.
It seems like Philadelphia is backed into a corner in this situation though. After shipping off Simmons and future assets to Brooklyn, the Sixers have committed to Embiid and Harden hopefully delivering a championship within their short-term window.
Prediction: Harden opts out and re-signs on three-year max contract
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Kyrie Irving
Player Option ($36.5 million)
Who knows what the future holds as it relates to Kyrie Irving? Unwilling to get vaccinated against COVID-19, Irving cost the Nets a realistic chance at competing for an NBA championship this season; this should've never been an issue, but he had to try to catch up and learn on the fly with his teammates.
Brooklyn still holds those championship expectations moving forward, especially with Kevin Durant and Simmons alongside Irving.
Irving is the true wildcard to watch this summer. If he decides to <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/why-the-nets-should-part-ways-with-kyrie-irving" target="_blank" rel="noopener">move on from the Nets</a>, it wouldn&rsquo;t be a surprise at all. Honestly, even retirement wouldn&rsquo;t be a complete surprise with Irving. In the end, though, the Nets are also married to this idea of competing for rings over the extended window with Durant.
The reason why Durant joined the Nets was to play with his best friend in Irving. It&rsquo;s hard to envision Irving leaving Brooklyn, and he echoed similar sentiments after the Nets&rsquo; disappointing first-round exit against the Boston Celtics.
&ldquo;There&rsquo;s no way I&rsquo;m leaving my man 7 anywhere,&rdquo; Irving said after the series.
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"I don't really plan on going anywhere.... when I say I'm here with Kev [Durant] I think that it really entails us managing this franchise together alongside Joe [Tsai] and Sean [Marks]... we're cornerstones here but we have Ben, we have a few other guys..." -Kyrie Irving on FA <a href="https://t.co/ulk86MzHTK">pic.twitter.com/ulk86MzHTK</a>
&mdash; DaveEarly (@DavidEarly) <a href="https://twitter.com/DavidEarly/status/1518782963579867138?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">April 26, 2022</a></blockquote>

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The Nets should definitely reconsider their stance on handing out a potential five-year max extension to Irving though. Understanding his unpredictability, who knows what could happen in the future with him? With Durant still dominating, Irving will likely align his next contract on a similar path.
Prediction: Irving opts out and re-signs on four-year max contract
Bradley Beal
Player Option ($36.4 million)
Will Bradley Beal really decide to stick around in D.C. for the long-term? I have serious doubts on that idea, and Beal should as well for his legacy. Even in a down year for the Washington Wizards &mdash; one in which he was shut down due to a torn ligament in his left wrist on Feb. 8 &mdash; he&rsquo;s still a star-level player in the NBA. Capable of dropping 30-plus points with ease at anytime, Beal has consistently shown the team around him has been the main issue. Carrying subpar teams on his back since John Wall left, Beal needs to consider doing the greater good for his own individual outlook.
From Beal&rsquo;s perspective, looking around at other options to win right now would be the best-case scenario. While he's been very loyal to the Wizards since being drafted by the organization, this could become very awkward rather quickly once the offseason window opens.
Washington has done a fantastic job retooling its team on the fly since trading away Russell Westbrook. Rolling the dice on Kristaps Porzingis at the trade deadline is a massive risk, but he&rsquo;s the closest thing to a star-level player who would be willing to stay long-term. With Porzingis and a plethora of young talent led by Kyle Kuzma, will Beal lock himself into this situation for another four or five years?
The trade market will be the most realistic route to see star movement in the summer. Beal is one of those names to watch via sign-and-trade. If Beal opts out, don&rsquo;t be surprised to see him sign elsewhere while not leaving the Wizards high and dry with nothing back in return. Beal seems destined to spread his wings elsewhere and serve as the cherry on top of a true title contender's roster.
Prediction: Beal opts out and the Wizards pull off sign-and-trade to recoup some assets
Zach LaVine
Unrestricted Free Agent
Zach LaVine is one of the more underrated players in the league. He&rsquo;s a highlight reel on the offensive end, but his defense leaves so much to be desired. We&rsquo;ve seen incremental improvements with LaVine on that end with better talent around him, but will the Bulls view him as a max-level player? Committing that type of money to LaVine could be risky &mdash; especially with an upcoming offseason knee surgery &mdash; but it&rsquo;s the Bulls&rsquo; best bet to keeping their core together long-term.
If the Bulls balk at paying LaVine, many teams with cap space will come knocking on his door. San Antonio Spurs point guard Dejounte Murray has already started <a href="https://twitter.com/ClutchPointsApp/status/1519870631180791808?s=20&amp;t=vGdMwWWoEEc20-pQbx0udg" target="_blank" rel="noopener">recruiting LaVine on social media</a> with photoshops of him in their jersey, for example.
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LaVine and DeMar DeRozan showed throughout this season that they are a lethal scoring combination that is very difficult to contain. Before injuries ravaged Chicago&rsquo;s roster, they were one of the best teams in the Eastern Conference. Maybe the Bulls try to move Nikola Vucevic, who has a $22 million expiring contract; <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/examining-potential-trade-destinations-for-rudy-gobert" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Rudy Gobert could be a name to watch</a> if the Bulls try to take their team to another level.
But LaVine is a different story.
A core in Chicago of LaVine, DeRozan, Lonzo Ball, Patrick Williams and Alex Caruso is a fun one. Chicago runs it back and doesn&rsquo;t hesitate coughing up huge money to its star shooting guard.
Prediction: LaVine signs a five-year max extension with Bulls
Deandre Ayton
Restricted Free Agent
This is one of the more interesting situations to follow heading into the offseason. After the Phoenix Suns shockingly decided not to pay 2018 No. 1 overall pick Deandre Ayton before the season began, questions are still bubbling under the surface on his long-term future with the organization. Ayton hasn&rsquo;t let this impact his on-court performance though, as he's continued to be a two-way anchor to the Suns&rsquo; immense success. The Bahamian big man keeps proving his game is tailor-made for the postseason as well.
Will the Suns actually allow Ayton and his representation to test the open market as one of the top free agents available? It would be stunning, but it feels like we could be heading in that direction.
ESPN&rsquo;s Adrian Wojnarowski has mentioned that, in negotiations, the Suns didn&rsquo;t view Ayton as a max-level player at the time, which stunned many executives around the NBA. Has Phoenix&rsquo;s stance changed after Ayton&rsquo;s consistent performances throughout this season and the playoffs?
Here&rsquo;s a little nugget: According to a league source, Phoenix is more than comfortable paying up and going deep into the luxury tax as long as its roster is competing for championships. Ayton is part of that puzzle, and 2019 lottery pick Cameron Johnson is eligible for an extension this offseason. Do with that information what you will, but it would truly be stunning to see Ayton playing elsewhere in 2022-23.
Prediction: Ayton tests the market and signs four-year max offer sheet elsewhere, which includes a player option; Phoenix eventually matches the offer sheet and keeps him long-term 
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What will happen with the best projected 2022 free agents this offseason? Evan Sidery shares his predictions for the top five.

2022 NBA Free Agency: Predicting where 5 stars will land this summer

As he went through a 45-minute exit interview with media, a tumultuous season with the Los Angeles Lakers was officially put to rest for Russell Westbrook.
The 33-year-old veteran was candid throughout his closing press conference, leaving little doubt regarding how he felt about his situation.
When Westbrook was introduced upon his arrival in Los Angeles, his message was that he desired to be somewhere he was wanted. He was asked on Monday if he still felt wanted.
"When I first got here, I felt I was never given the fair chance just to be who I needed to be to help this team." Westbrook told reporters, mentioning preconceived notions as a major factor. "From top to bottom, just every aspect, because what I bring to an organization is not just basketball.
"I never felt like, coming in, I had a fair chance on the basketball front, on any front."
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Westbrook claims that those preconceived notions arose from false stories from the media, so coming to Los Angeles, he was fighting against this story and that story like no other stop in his career.
"Unfortunately, throughout the season &mdash; especially this season &mdash; the ability to be able to constantly create stories about myself, and things I may have and people thought I may be doing, it can jade people's perspective about me," Westbrook said. "The outside fan and the outside world (think), 'Oh, well maybe he is the problem, maybe he is the bigger issue,' and in actuality, there are so many issues going on internally that are actually, really happening."
One of those internal issues revolved around now-former Lakers head coach Frank Vogel and the job he did this season with three All-Stars. Immediately following Westbrook mentioning internal issues, he was asked about Vogel.
"I have never had an issue with any of my coaches before, as much as people may assume," Westbrook said. "I have never had an issue with any coach, any players, any staff members, anybody actually... I'm not sure what his issue was with me, or I am not sure why... but I cannot really give you answer why we never really connected. That's something he has to answer.
"From the get-go, it felt like I was trying to prove myself to him."
As far as making adjustments was concerned, Westbrook said he knew he was going to have to make the biggest sacrifice coming to L.A, but "any situation I have been in, I have had to make the sacrifice. Whether it was in D.C. whether it was in Houston, whether it was in Oklahoma City. In actuality, I have always been able to make a sacrifice."
In terms of on-court adjustments by the coaching staff, Westbrook stated that he "just does what he's asked."
LeBron James, who addressed the media first for Laker exit interviews, offered his thoughts on his first season as Westbrook's teammate.
<blockquote>
One thing about Russ that I love and will always love, is just his competitive spirit, what he brings to the game every night. And when you&rsquo;re in a profession when so many injuries happen and so many things go on, to have a guy that&rsquo;s reliable, who can put on the uniform every single night, that&rsquo;s something I respect out of everything. I&rsquo;m not gonna sit here and make decisions for the front office and things of that nature, but I love being a teammate of Russ.
I mean, at the end of the day, the reason why we were not very good together is we weren&rsquo;t on the damn floor together. That is the No. 1 thing. I mean, how many games did we play together? We played, what, a quarter of the season together? ... I played more games with my high school teammates in a season, and we only played 27 games. So there it is.
</blockquote>
(For what it's worth, Westbrook and LeBron weren't great in those 21 games together this season, going just 11-10 with a minus-3.5 Net Rating.)
"Russ is a hall of fame player that gave everything he could to this organization this year... In terms of Russell Westbrook and his future, part of that is in his control," Lakers general manager Rob Pelinka added.
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"Russ is a hall of fame player that gave everything he could to this organization this year... In terms of Russell Westbrook and his future, part of that is in his control." -Pelinka, on Russ' player option and future. Says they will "look under every stone" for ways to improve.
&mdash; Harrison Faigen (@hmfaigen) <a href="https://twitter.com/hmfaigen/status/1513597954585554947?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">April 11, 2022</a></blockquote>

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For Westbrook himself, this was the first season in his career in which he was not in the 98th percentile or better in usage rate. Even beside Kevin Durant, James Harden or Bradley Beal, Westbrook had one of the top usage rates in the league. He recorded his second-lowest assist percentage (31.0%) and second-worst turnover percentage (15.4%) &mdash; both barely edging out his rookie season.&nbsp;
The 2021-22 campaign also saw Westbrook take his fewest amount of shots per game (15.3) on the lowest field-goal percentage of his career (39.8%). His minus-4.0 NET was a product of his second-worst Offensive Rating (107.5) and career-low Defensive Rating (111.5).&nbsp;
One point Westbrook repeatedly made was that he wasn't allowed to use his strengths on the floor to help make the team successful. The veteran's ability to score on the fastbreak and take advantage of his opponents' turnovers has always been one of his strengths, but this year, he had career-lows in points off turnovers and fastbreak points per game.
Whatever the reason may be &mdash; whether it was coaching style, roster fit or straight up regression &mdash; Westbrook was clearly not the same player we have seen throughout his career.
It is clear that a new fit should be on the horizon for the oft-misunderstood point guard, or else it'll be back to the drawing board for all parties involved.
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Justin Lewis reviews Russell Westbrook's candid exit interview with the Lakers heading into Los Angeles' offseason.

Westbrook: I 'never felt like I had a fair chance' to be myself in L.A.

A few weeks after the surgery that ultimately ended his season, Bradley Beal was talking with reporters when he was asked a simple question: Was it fair to say he was leaning toward re-signing with Washington?
&ldquo;It's fair,&rdquo; Beal said in early March, without offering any more assurance than that.
Now the Wizards embark on a massive offseason, and all eyes are on Beal, who can become a free agent this summer. His next move will obviously have a big impact on the franchise's direction.
Beal had surgery in February on his left wrist and didn't play again. A Washington team that started fast under new coach Wes Unseld Jr. ended up going 35-47 and missing the playoffs.
Washington began the season by winning 10 of its first 13 games. <a href="https://apnews.com/0a2695fdd5ae8dd8fe48470ed51ef2e9">The trade</a> that sent Russell Westbrook to the Los Angeles Lakers was paying dividends, with Kyle Kuzma, Kentavious Caldwell-Pope and Montrezl Harrell all contributing after coming to Washington in that deal.
By the time Beal went down, however, the Wizards were already slipping. That injury certainly didn't help their prospects, and they ended up making <a href="https://apnews.com/article/washington-wizards-nba-sports-spencer-dinwiddie-davis-bertans-f47895e153d50f9b23d4d5ce09121a0d">more significant moves</a> at the deadline. Spencer Dinwiddie, who was acquired to play point guard before the season, was dealt to Dallas in a deal that brought Kristaps Porzingis to Washington. The Wizards also traded Harrell.
The 7-foot-3 Porzingis played well for Washington, averaging 22.1 points in 17 games for the Wizards. He never got to play alongside Beal, and the question now is whether he'll have that chance next season.
&ldquo;Slowly, we're kind of figuring each other out, especially my teammates with me, because I just got here," Porzingis said late this season. &ldquo;I think we're still pretty far away from where we want to be, in terms of chemistry and stuff like that, but it's not bad for this short a period of time. It's pretty good. I'm excited to see what's ahead of us.&rdquo;
AT THE POINT
The point guard spot has often been a strength for Washington, with Westbrook, John Wall and Gilbert Arenas having occupied it. Dinwiddie had big shoes to fill when he arrived, and his tenure with the Wizards didn't last long. Now Washington needs to find another solution.
DEFENSIVE ISSUES
The Wizards remain a work in progress on defense after Unseld's first season. They finished 25th in the league in defensive rating.
&ldquo;We had to change how we defended certain things, pretty much in the middle of the season," Unseld said. "A bit of a hiccup, but that's what we had. So we had to adjust things a little bit, and it took a little time to get back on track in that area.&rdquo;
Washington ranked last in the NBA in steals.
LONG DISTANCE
The Wizards also finished last in the league in made 3-pointers, but in this area, their defense did succeed. No team held opponents to fewer 3-point attempts than Washington, and only two teams allowed fewer made 3s.
NEW ADDITIONS
Kuzma averaged 17.1 points, his highest average since his second season with the Lakers in 2018-19. Caldwell-Pope averaged 13.2 points.
EFFICIENT
Daniel Gafford averaged a career-high 9.4 points per game on 69% shooting from the field. The 23-year-old Gafford doesn't have the height of Porzingis, but his athleticism could be an asset for the Wizards in the seasons to come.
&ldquo;I think overall, he's shown growth in a lot of areas. He still has a lot of untapped potential, in my opinion,&rdquo; Unseld said. &ldquo;He's very impressionable. I think at times, his confidence wanes, but that's all young players.&rdquo;

The Wizards will embark on a massive offseason, and all eyes are on Beal, who can become a free agent this summer.

All eyes on Bradley Beal as big offseason begins for Wizards

For a third of the NBA, summer break comes early.&nbsp;
Though 10 teams didn't make the playoffs, it's not all doom and gloom. Several NBA bottom-feeders took tangible steps forward in their rebuilding efforts, while others &mdash; well, they're not supposed to be here.
Every franchise enters the offseason with summer plans. As teams get eliminated from the postseason, I'll be rounding up every team's offseason outlook and posing one question they must answer over the summer. You'll see each squad's 2022 NBA Draft chest, plus their potential free agents, along with the central question.&nbsp;
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Let's get started!
DETROIT PISTONS 
Draft assets: First-round pick (14.0% chance at No. 1), Second-round pick (via Brooklyn)
Potential free agents:&nbsp;Marvin Bagley III (restricted), Cory Joseph (player option), Hamidou Diallo (team option), Frank Jackson (team option), Luka Garza (team option), Carsen Edwards (team option), Rodney McGruder 
Central question: How do the Pistons build an offense around Cade Cunningham?
This was a pretty solid season for Detroit as far as rebuilding efforts go. Cade Cunningham emerged as a Rookie of the Year front-runner and two-way centerpiece who has fans ecstatic about his ceiling. The Pistons finished a solid 10-14 after the All-Star break, and have shown flashes of an improving defense. They did still finish with the 28th-ranked offense, per Cleaning the Glass, and one of the worst shooting rates in the NBA.
Cunningham had to carry a ridiculous offensive load in the latter stages of the season. Detroit has the power to change that in 2022-23, starting with its high draft pick. Maybe Jabari Smith's lights-out scoring means he's an ideal secondary option? Perhaps Paolo Banchero thrives as an additional creator, or maybe Chet Holmgren makes sense as a finisher and spot-up threat? The fun part about Cunningham is that his versatility creates so many pathways for the Pistons in the draft &mdash; whether or not the ping pong balls fall their way.
Detroit wields a cap hold of approximately $28 million on Bagley, and once that lifts (either via a new contract or letting him walk), the Pistons should have a solid chunk of cap space to add to the supporting cast.
HOUSTON ROCKETS
Draft assets: First-round pick (14.0% chance at No. 1), better of Brooklyn/Miami first-round picks
Potential free agents: John Wall (player option), Dennis Schroder, Bruno Fernando (restricted), Jae'Sean Tate (team option), Anthony Lamb (qualifying offer), Trevelin Queen (qualifying offer)
Central question: How patient is the front office willing to be?
Houston's 2021 draft strategy of "draft talent, figure out the fit later" appears to be working out. Jalen Green demonstrated an Anthony Edwards-esque leap post-All-Star break, Alperen Sengun is already one of the NBA's best passing bigs, and guys like Josh Christopher and KJ Martin routinely hinted at upside. Houston gets another prime shot at a franchise cornerstone this draft cycle. We're approaching Stage 2 of the strategy, though: figuring out how the pieces fit.&nbsp;
The Rockets were one of two NBA teams with bottom-five ratings on offense and defense. They led the league in rim frequency and were fourth in three-point frequency, but posted mediocre shooting clips. Houston evokes memories of the rebuilding Nets, who played a similarly extreme brand of ball for a few years as the team slowly reshaped into a fun playoff squad. Does the front office have the foresight to let head coach Stephen Silas work things out with his roster of young guns?&nbsp;
INDIANA PACERS
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-theme="dark">
How is there a &ldquo;rebuild&rdquo; to afraid of if it isn&rsquo;t a rebuild? <a href="https://t.co/0pDD7E6Mss">pic.twitter.com/0pDD7E6Mss</a>
&mdash; Caitlin Cooper (@C2_Cooper) <a href="https://twitter.com/C2_Cooper/status/1512127632758001664?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">April 7, 2022</a></blockquote>

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Draft assets: First-round pick (10.5% chance at No. 1), First-round pick (if 15-30, via Cleveland), Second-round pick (via Houston), Second-round pick (via Phoenix)
Potential free agents: Ricky Rubio, T.J. Warren, Jalen Smith, Lance Stephenson, Nate Hinton (restricted), Oshae Brissett (team option)
Central question: How extreme is the incoming rebuild, and what veterans mesh with the future vision?
Notably unlisted among the potential free agents are Malcolm Brogdon, Myles Turner, Buddy Hield and T.J. McConnell. All range from solid starters to rotational complements, and 3 of the 4 (not Turner) will be 30 next season. The Pacers are clearly retooling, as evidenced by their trade-deadline fireworks and Tyrese Haliburton's subsequent high usage. They also have publicly flip-flopped regarding the direction of the team; see the above Tweet.
Indiana doesn't have the pure depth of talent to straddle the line. The Pacers can trade many of these talented players and build up a chest of draft picks and young pieces, or they can charge ahead, turn their picks into win-now players and hope Haliburton is ready for the playoff push. But a middle ground doesn't exist in an Eastern Conference where just about every team has solidified its direction.
LOS ANGELES LAKERS
Draft assets: None
Potential free agents: Russell Westbrook (player option), Kendrick Nunn (player option), Austin Reaves (team option), Stanley Johnson (team option), Carmelo Anthony, Avery Bradley, Wayne Ellington, Dwight Howard, Kent Bazemore, Malik Monk, D.J. Augustin, Wenyen Gabriel, Mason Jones (restricted)
Central question: What does team-building around two injury-prone superstars look like?
LeBron James <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/lebron-james-i-dont-have-a-cap-on-how-long-i-want-to-play" target="_blank" rel="noopener">turns 38 next season</a>, and has played 60-plus games just once in the past four seasons. Anthony Davis has now missed more than half the season in back-to-back years. Sure, the Lakers were a mess regardless of their stars' health, but going forward, is pursuing fits next to James and Davis even worthwhile if the two won't consistently be on the court?
With just three players under contract (the aforementioned stars, plus Talen Horton-Tucker), the Lakers enter another offseason of a roster overhaul. This time, I'd recommend almost entirely forgetting about James and Davis when building the squad and simply try to assemble units that make sense together.&nbsp;
NEW YORK KNICKS
Draft assets: First-round pick (2.5% chance at No. 1, could change based on Play-In results), Second-round pick via Boston and Charlotte (if 56-60)
Potential free agents: Mitchell Robinson, Ryan Arcidiacono 
Central question: What's going to happen with the veterans?
The top six moneymakers for the Knicks next season are all 27 or older, and I think many fans would say that out of the group, only Julius Randle should have started &mdash; and he seriously regressed this season. The young Knicks <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/explain-one-play-young-knicks-playing-chess" target="_blank" rel="noopener">clearly showed they're ready to take the mantle</a>.
So what happens with Randle, Evan Fournier, Derrick Rose, Alec Burks, Nerlens Noel and Kemba Walker? Is Tom Thibodeau prepared to reduce their (their meaning Burks specifically in this case) minutes and usage, will trades be coming, or will Madison Square Garden burn when Immanuel Quickley opens the season by playing 16 minutes off the bench? New York has drafted extremely well in recent seasons, but the ceiling of the young core is capped if these youngsters don't get a chance to prove themselves in meaningful situations.
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OKLAHOMA CITY THUNDER 
Draft assets: First-round pick (12.5% chance at No. 1), First-round pick via Clippers, First-round pick via Phoenix, Second-round pick
Potential free agents: Derrick Favors (player option), Mike Muscala (team option), Lu Dort (team option), Isaiah Roby (team option), Melvin Frazier (restricted)
Central question: What is the pathway in the frontcourt?
I've stanned Sam Presti's team-building strategy for years now, and I still think it's on track for a serious payoff. Josh Giddey slots in somewhere on your All-Rookie ballot, and draft classmates Tre Mann, Jeremiah Robinson-Earl and Aaron Wiggins flashed rotation-caliber play as well. It is simply a joy to watch a random young player have a breakout game on any given night, and OKC has already shown the <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/the-oklahoma-city-thunders-emerging-defensive-identity" target="_blank" rel="noopener">early stages of a prominent defense</a>.
Next up: Capitalize on a draft loaded with intruiging frontcourt players. Banchero, Holmgren and Smith are obviously the best of the best. But even if the Thunder slide in the lottery, they could pounce on an athletic shot-blocker like Jalen Duren, or use one of their later picks on a center like Mark Williams. I'm just spit-balling, but the point is that OKC has plenty of chances to find its big-man anchor and further flesh out its core.
ORLANDO MAGIC
Draft assets: First-round pick (14.0% chance at No. 1), Second-round pick, Second-round pick via Indiana
Potential free agents: Gary Harris, Robin Lopez, Bol Bol (restricted), Ignas Brazdeikis (restricted), Admiral Schofield (restricted)
Central question: How do the offensive pieces fit together?
Orlando quietly logged a 17th-ranked defense this season, and an 11th-ranked unit since Feb. 1. A dismal offense ultimately doomed the Magic, who were riddled with inconsistent shotmaking and poor team efficiency marks throughout the half-court. We don't need to sound any player alarms; it takes time for young guards in particular to grasp the responsibilities of running NBA offenses.&nbsp;
But what if I told you Orlando has wielded bottom-10 offensive ratings every season for the last decade?&nbsp;
Change can start in the draft, again with some of the top offensive forward options like Banchero or Smith. Adding another ball-dominant guard in Jaden Ivey might be overkill, but AJ Griffin and Bennedict Mathurin feel like good wing fits at first glance. Spotrac estimates the Magic could have up to $30 million in practical cap space, leaving plenty of room for veteran players to accentuate the young talent.
PORTLAND TRAIL BLAZERS
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-theme="dark">
THE D IN DREW STANDS FOR DUNK DO NOT GOOGLE THIS <a href="https://t.co/2AojdAskYV">pic.twitter.com/2AojdAskYV</a>
&mdash; Portland Trail Blazers (@trailblazers) <a href="https://twitter.com/trailblazers/status/1508636734900166659?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">March 29, 2022</a></blockquote>

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Draft assets: First-round pick (9.0% chance at No. 1), First-round pick via New Orleans (if 5-14), Second-round pick, Second-round pick via Memphis
Potential free agents: Joe Ingles, Jusuf Nurkic, Ben McLemore, Anfernee Simons (restricted), CJ Elleby (restricted), Elijah Hughes (restricted), Keljin Blevins (restricted)
Central question: Is Portland actually trying to win "now" or win soon?
Some really great development happened for the Blazers during the "wash" portion of the season in the form of players like Trendon Watford, Keon Johnson and Drew Eubanks. Add them to Anfernee Simons, Nassir Little and the incomng draft picks, and Portland suddenly has... kind of a sneaky-deep prospect pool? There's real potential to mold this group into a rotation cast that gives Portland one of its deepest rosters in years.
That's why these <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/jerami-grant-trade-rumors-portland-is-still-the-frontrunner" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Jerami Grant trade rumors concern me</a>. Giving up a possible lottery pick to try and piece together a short-term playoff team risks too much and keeps the Trail Blazers in the limbo they have lounged in for several years. Understandably, the franchise wants to build a contender while Damian Lillard is invested and in his prime. With some patience, Portland can without sacrificing sustainibility.
SACRAMENTO KINGS
Draft assets: First-round pick (7.5% chance at No. 1), Second-round pick, Second-round pick (via Chicago)
Potential free agents: Jeremy Lamb, Josh Jackson, Damian Jones, Donte DiVincenzo (restricted), Neemias Queta (restricted), Trey Lyles (team option)
Central question: How does Sacramento turn into a competitive NBA defense?
The Kings have trotted out lackluster defenses for as long as I can remember. In fact, they haven't ranked above 20th in Defensive Rating since 2005-06 &mdash; notably, the last time they made the playoffs.
And that didn't change under interim head coach Alvin Gentry. (Gentry will not return as head coach next season, but is <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/shams-alvin-gentry-no-longer-interim-coach-of-the-kings" target="_blank" rel="noopener">in talks for a front-office role</a>, per ESPN.) However, the on-paper roster actually shines some hope. Davion Mitchell made highlight reels out of his "Off-Night" defense. Justin Holiday is a solid individual defender, as is Harrison Barnes, and even De'Aaron Fox has his sporadic moments.&nbsp;
Can Sacramento find a head coach who turns a group of intriguing players with defensive potential into even an average squad? What draft and free agency options exist? Of course, the Kings would like to end their NBA-leading playoff drought. That'll come with changing the culture on defense.
WASHINGTON WIZARDS
Draft assets: First-round pick (2.5% chance at No. 1, depends on Play-In results), Second-round pick (via Dallas)
Potential free agents: Bradley Beal (player option), Thomas Bryant, Raul Neto, Tomas Satoransky, Anthony Gill (restricted), Cassius Winston (restricted)
Central question: What style of guard play is a feasible best fit?
Okay, so obviously the biggest question mark surrounds Bradley Beal's free agency. But from a conceptual standpoint, Washington has tried and failed over the past few seasons to find Beal's best-fitting partner in crime. John Wall, Russell Westbrook and Spencer Dinwiddie were each supposed to provide the downhill juice Beal lacks. The Wizards either did this at serious expense of another skill area (Wall, Westbrook), or it just didn't translate their at-rim ability (Dinwiddie). All battled injuries as well.
"I think we need bigger guards," <a href="https://www.nbcsports.com/washington/wizards/bradley-beal-outlines-what-wizards-need-build-contender" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Beal said in March</a>. "We need more guys that can get in the paint for us, more ball-handlers, more guys that can really create and get two feet in the paint, but also who can knock down threes."
I mean, Beal's needs make total sense. The problem is that every other basketball team on Earth also wants this type of guard.
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Ethan Fuller sets the offseason stage for each team that missed the NBA playoffs.

Summer plans for the NBA's 10 non-playoff teams

It&rsquo;s the most wonderful time of the year. We've reached the end of another NBA regular season, and the playoffs are just around the corner. Good teams are prepping for their matchups, bad teams are looking forward to next season, and media types are debating awards.&nbsp;
From Most Valuable Player to Defensive Player of the Year to Sixth Man of the Year, end-of-the-season awards are meant to honor players, coaches and executives for a remarkable season. And yet, despite a failed season, one man keeps finding his way onto people&rsquo;s All-NBA ballots: LeBron James.&nbsp;
Now, let me preface this by saying: I do believe there&rsquo;s a case to be made for LeBron earning All-NBA honors. I just also believe that for the first time in a long time, there&rsquo;s also a case to be made that he should be left off of the ballot.&nbsp;
All-NBA slots are awarded to the top 15 players of a given season, divided by positions: six guards, six forwards and three centers. James is certainly one of the six best forwards in the league, but I&rsquo;d argue that he isn&rsquo;t having a top-six season and that's a demarcation that should nudge James off of anyone&rsquo;s ballot.&nbsp;
As the old NBA saying goes, "If you believe someone should make a roster, you must name who they would replace." So, if I don&rsquo;t believe LeBron is All-NBA worthy, I should name the forwards who ought to make it ahead of him.
In my opinion, those slots should be reserved for Giannis Antetokounmpo, Jayson Tatum, DeMar DeRozan, Pascal Siakam, Kevin Durant and Jimmy Butler. All six forwards listed are on winning teams.&nbsp;
LeBron's case for All-NBA appears to be twofold &mdash; one is his statistical dominance, and the other is his legacy.
This season, many point to his scoring proficiency to bolster his All-NBA case. James is the second-leading scorer in the league, averaging 30.3 points, 8.2 boards and 6.2 assists on 61.9 TS%.&nbsp;
These are gaudy numbers that are certainly hard to ignore. But let&rsquo;s take a closer look.
LeBron leads all forwards in points per game and assists per game. However, because he only played 56 games this season, Tatum, Antetokounmpo and DeRozan all scored more total points than James.&nbsp;
Still, LeBron would finish with 144 more total points than Siakam. But if we dig a little deeper into these numbers, we&rsquo;ll see that James also leads forwards in total points scored while their team is trailing big, per NBA.com. LeBron scored 189 points this season when his team was down by more than 16 points. By comparison, only 35 of Siakam&rsquo;s points came when his Raptors were trailing big.
<img style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" src="https://cdn.basketballnews.com/images/story/body/bron2_lg.jpg" alt="" width="690" height="352" />
It&rsquo;s easy to poo-poo LeBron&rsquo;s scoring as having happened in low-leverage moments. In fact, James has been criticized quite a bit this season for chasing statistical milestones when his team had no hope of winning. His defenders would argue the Lakers needed every point, rebound and assist to have a chance in the game, and detractors would point to the times he&rsquo;s hunted for baskets even after the game was out of reach.&nbsp;
This isn't to say LeBron is scoring maliciously and padding his stats. The question I ask is: if much of his case is bolstered by his scoring prowess, should we not question how much of his scoring was done in low-leverage moments or why it didn't translate to wins?&nbsp;
Despite being in contention for the scoring title, LeBron would not have qualified because he didn&rsquo;t meet the requisite number of games. A player must play in 58 games to qualify, and LeBron only suited it up for 56.&nbsp;
Though there aren&rsquo;t similar benchmark requirements for an All-NBA selection, this is also something that voters should take into account. The best ability is availability, and LeBron would have played the second-fewest games of all potential All-NBA forwards, only ahead of Kevin Durant (who will finish one game shy of LeBron).
I can already hear you asking: does that mean Durant should also be written off All-NBA ballots? I don&rsquo;t think so, and that&rsquo;s because of one key factor: wins.&nbsp;The Nets are 44-38 and in the Play-In Tournament as the East's seventh seed. The Lakers are 32-50 and are the 11th seed.&nbsp;
Though it&rsquo;s easy to point to the Lakers&rsquo; roster flaws for their bad record, a similar argument could be levied at the Nets. Without LeBron, the Lakers are 7-19. Without Durant, the Nets are 8-19 &mdash; similarly bad records on par with the worst teams in the league.&nbsp;
But, with Durant, the Nets are 36-19 in contrast to LeBron&rsquo;s record of 25-31, so it&rsquo;s easy to see how a case can be made that Durant&rsquo;s presence elevated one of the worst teams in basketball to contention. And this season, LeBron simply has not.&nbsp;
In fact, LeBron has a negative net rating (-2.5) for the first time since his rookie season. For the first time in nearly two decades, James&rsquo; team is not winning the minutes he&rsquo;s on the court.&nbsp;And though that isn&rsquo;t entirely his fault, it&rsquo;s hard to mount an argument that you&rsquo;ve had one of the six-best seasons at your position when your team loses with you on the court.&nbsp;
LeBron has celebrated more birthdays than he has celebrated wins this season. I&rsquo;m not sure if that&rsquo;s more a testament to his greatness and longevity or an indictment on the Lakers' poor season.
However you choose to see it, remember that only one of those numbers matter when honoring a player for end-of-the-year awards, and that&rsquo;s wins.
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Many seem to marvel at his superhuman ability to play at this level in year 19 and at 37 years old, and rightfully so. It&rsquo;s incredible, a true testament to his greatness, and it will surely matter in the greatest of all-time debate.
But it doesn&rsquo;t hold up in this debate. All-NBA doesn&rsquo;t grade players on an age curve; you&rsquo;re not rewarded more for your ability to excel in spite of something believed to be holding you back.&nbsp;
It is more than just wins and losses, it&rsquo;s about meaningful basketball. The Lakers haven&rsquo;t played a meaningful basketball game in weeks, and you could argue that they haven&rsquo;t won one in months. LeBron has only led them to four wins since the All-Star break. In that span, they have a worse record than the Oklahoma City Thunder, who have been actively tanking.&nbsp;
For years, guys have been derided for putting up showy stats on poor-performing teams. We&rsquo;ve used terms like &ldquo;empty calories&rdquo; to describe racking up counting stats in relatively meaningless games. In 2019-20, Bradley Beal missed out on All-NBA honors while also being the NBA's second-leading scorer (averaging a similar 30.5 points per game) on the ninth-seeded Wizards.&nbsp;
While it&rsquo;s easy to dismiss the Beal comparison and point to LeBron&rsquo;s better efficiency and rebounding rate, the point remains that players with showy numbers on poor-performing teams have a history of being ignored come award season, and for good reason. &nbsp; &nbsp; Why should LeBron&rsquo;s season be any different? I get it. He&rsquo;s LeBron James and he has a history of impacting winning. This will mark the first time in over a decade that he will miss back-to-back Finals. No one has won more or impacted winning more over the last two decades. But this isn&rsquo;t a legacy award; this isn&rsquo;t about who we know LeBron James to be. This is about the 2021-22 season and though it feels sacrilegious to type, LeBron is a high-usage guy on a bad team, racking up numbers as quickly as he racks up losses.&nbsp;
Like many high-usage players on bad teams before him, LeBron has also been absolutely horrid on the defensive end. He has a 113.5 defensive rating and though that&rsquo;s not a number that can capture the entire story, tune in to any Lakers game and you can catch multiple instances of LeBron simply not getting back on defense. His defensive rating is the lowest of the bunch &mdash; a far cry from the defense he was playing en route to the Lakers' last championship.&nbsp;
James' individual numbers are remarkable. This season, he catapulted Karl Malone for second all-time on the NBA's all-time scoring list and Oscar Robertson for seventh on the all-time assists list. LeBron&nbsp;has been exceptional this season, but unlike in previous seasons, it hasn&rsquo;t translated to wins.&nbsp;
And if you&rsquo;re not winning, and others are, why should you be rewarded over them? After all, the point is to win games. He isn&rsquo;t impacting winning, he has ignored the defensive end and he is scoring a ton in low-leverage moments for a team that couldn&rsquo;t even crack a top-10 seed. It seems harsh, but I believe the All-NBA teams should represent the players who mattered most that season. Despite his best efforts, James and the Lakers did not matter in 2021-22.
Yes, James has been a staple on All-NBA ballots since his sophomore season. But as Laker fans have come to learn this season, staples change, word to Crypto.
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Does LeBron James deserve a spot on one of the All-NBA teams this season? Imman Adan shares her thoughts.

A closer look at LeBron James' All-NBA case

WASHINGTON (AP) &mdash; Obi Toppin scored a career-high 35 points, and the New York Knicks beat the Washington Wizards 114-92 on Friday night.
RJ Barrett scored 14 points for the Knicks before leaving the game with a sprained right knee. His early exit came on a night when a number of key players from both teams didn't play at all. Both teams are eliminated from playoff contention. New York (36-45) moved a game ahead of Washington (35-46) for 11th place in the Eastern Conference.
The Knicks allowed the game's first 10 points and shot just 2 of 9 from 3-point range in the first quarter, but they dominated after that. New York was 14 of 30 from long distance the rest of the way.
The Knicks took control when they outscored Washington 36-19 in the second quarter to lead 59-50 at halftime.
New York scored the final six points of the first half on a dunk and then a four-point play by Toppin. Then the Knicks scored the first 13 of the third quarter. Toppin capped the run with two more 3-pointers to make it 72-50.
Rui Hachimura led the Wizards with 21 points. Immanuel Quickley had 23 points and 10 assists for New York.
DID NOT PLAY
The Wizards have been without Bradley Beal (left wrist) for more than two months, and Kyle Kuzma (right knee) was out for a 12th straight game. Kristaps Porzingis (right knee) and Kentavious Caldwell-Pope (rest) did not play either.
Coach Wes Unseld Jr. said Kuzma, Porzingis and Caldwell-Pope will also miss the team's finale at Charlotte.
New York was without Julius Randle (right quadriceps tendon) for a fourth straight game. The Knicks have also been without Nerlens Noel (left foot), Cam Reddish (right shoulder), Derrick Rose (right ankle) and Kemba Walker. Quentin Grimes (right knee) and Mitchell Robinson (non-COVID illness) each missed a second straight game.
TIP-INS
Knicks: Toppin's previous career high was 20 points.
Wizards: Washington was blown out despite shooting 51% from the field. The Wizards had 22 turnovers, which led to 33 New York points.
UP NEXT
Knicks: Host Toronto on Sunday night.
Wizards: At Charlotte on Sunday.

Obi Toppin poured in a career-high 35 points in Friday's win over the Washington Wizards.

Toppin scores 35, Knicks rout Wizards 114-92

Anyone else love going back and looking at old box scores and falling down afternoon-long rabbit holes, or am I the weirdo?
You might&rsquo;ve read the headline and either recalled this event actually happening, or are befuddled at how such a thing could take place, even in that NBA.
This article, published on April 6, 2022, marks 25 years since the Del Harris-led Los Angeles Lakers held Jim Cleamons and his Dallas Mavericks to 2 points in the third quarter of a regular-season game.
The contest was held at the LA Forum, where a 50-24 Laker team met a 22-53 Mavs squad with two weeks remaining before the playoffs started. Staples wasn&rsquo;t that big yet, and Crypto didn&rsquo;t exist. (Some might say it still doesn&rsquo;t, but you can fight about that amongst yourselves.)
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A large-ass, Biggie verse-having, All-Star center named Shaquille O&rsquo;Neal had been <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/1997/02/14/sports/injury-to-o-neal-is-a-blow-to-lakers.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">out with a knee injury</a> suffered that February, which he returned from five days later. Something tells me, if you made it here, you&rsquo;ve heard of him. Also on the Lakers, quite famously, was a talented rookie named Kobe Bryant, who had been playing regular rotation minutes at 18 years old, but wasn&rsquo;t yet Kobe.
The Mavericks had traded a controversial-but-talented point guard in Jason Kidd earlier in the season &mdash; along with Tony Dumas and Loren Meyer &mdash; to the Phoenix Suns for a package highlighted by Michael Finley, Sam Cassell and A.C. Green. They also dealt Jamal Mashburn to the Miami Heat several weeks later for Kurt Thomas, Sasa Danilović and Martin M&uuml;&uuml;rsepp.
And right before the deadline, Dallas rerouted Cassell as part of a five-man package including Jim Jackson, George McCloud (who wound up on the Lakers retroactively), Eric Montross and Chris Gatling for Shawn Bradley, Khalid Reeves, Robert Pack and Ed O&rsquo;Bannon &mdash; famously the Most Outstanding Player of the 1995 Final Four, and <a href="https://www.primerus.com/business-law-articles/ed-obannon-shines-a-light-upon-student-athletes-right-of-publicity-624201.htm" target="_blank" rel="noopener">killer of EA's NCAA Football and NCAA Basketball video game franchises</a>. This move not only cemented Dallas&rsquo; rebuild, but it officially made way for a <a href="https://www.dallasnews.com/sports/mavericks/2018/06/06/flashback-jamal-mashburn-on-what-really-happened-between-jason-kidd-jim-jackson-and-toni-braxton/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Toni Braxton-less future in Texas</a>.
The Mavericks, <a href="https://www.basketball-reference.com/teams/DAL/1997_games.html">who came in as losers of 10 straight heading into this game</a> &mdash; a lengthy skid that never saw the team score more than 92 points &mdash; went into Hollywood and started Pack, Finley, Green, Bradley and Derek Harper. Without Shaq, the Lakers began with Derek Fisher, Eddie Jones, Jerome Kersey, Corie Blount and Sean Rooks, who played a game-high 43 minutes (33 over his season average).
<a href="https://www.basketball-reference.com/boxscores/199704060LAL.html">The Mavericks led 30-17 after the first quarter and 51-37 at halftime</a>. The teams combined to attempt 12 threes in the first half, which most teams would typically combine to do in a quarter today. The Mavericks shot 21 of 44 from the field and outrebounded the Lakers 24-16 while holding L.A. to 12 of 32 shooting.
Bryant and Robert Horry went a combined 2 of 9 off the bench, and Rooks had logged 10 points and 7 boards to that point. Harper and Finley combined for 25 points on 9 of 15 shooting, while Bradley had 9 points and 9 rebounds.
Okay, now let's get to why you&rsquo;re here.
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Not only did the Mavericks score 2 points in the entire third quarter, but the points came from a pair of Harper free throws with 1:51 left in the quarter. So it took over 10 minutes to even get on the board in this period.
Anyway, the Mavericks shot 0 of 15 from the field for the quarter and missed all 4 of their three-balls. They also had 9 turnovers and only made one substitution over the entire 12 minutes, removing Pack for Sa&scaron;a Danilović about halfway through the third. That meant Green, Harper, Finley and Bradley were each a minus-25 for the quarter, and Pack was a minus-20.
For good measure, the Mavericks third quarter could be summed up like this:
<ul>
<li>Points: 2</li>
<li>Fouls: 3</li>
</ul>
The Lakers outscored the Mavericks 27-2 and still just led 64-53 after three. L.A. shot 10 of 17 in the quarter, made 5 of 7 triples, only needed to pull down 8 rebounds and turned the ball over just twice.
The Mavs outdid their horrific third quarter only 48 seconds into the fourth with two layups. They even cut their deficit to as close as 7 points in garbage time before the Lakers pulled away with a 87-80 win.
Fisher scored 21 points &mdash; not even close to a career-high for him &mdash; but to that point, his highest point tally had been just 14. In fact, the 21 points would remain a career-best mark for Fisher until he netted 26 points on March 13, 2001 in a win over the Boston Celtics four years later.
Sean &ldquo;2019 Bam Adebayo&rdquo; Rooks ended the night with 15 points, 11 rebounds, 5 assists and 3 blocks. Bryant logged about 22 minutes off the bench, netting 13 points on 3 of 9 shooting, also finishing with 3 steals and going a perfect 5 of 5 at the free-throw line.
Harper led the Mavs with 18 points on 6 of 15 shooting. Finley only put up 9 shots in over 34 minutes of play. The next time he put up just 9 shots in that many minutes? <a href="https://www.basketball-reference.com/boxscores/200203310WAS.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">March 31, 2002</a>.
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So, what ended up happening to these two teams? Glad you asked!
The Lakers finished 56-26 and fourth in the Western Conference, sweeping the Kenny Anderson, Isaiah Rider, and Rasheed Wallace-led Portland Trail Blazers in Round 1. Then, in the West semifinals, L.A. fell to the No. 1 seed Utah Jazz, who eventually lost to the Chicago Bulls in the 1997 NBA Finals. The Lakers still had a few more years of Harris before Phil Jackson eventually came to clean things up prior to the 1999-2002 three-peat era.
The Mavericks finished 24-58 and were actually still fourth in the Midwest Division among seven teams, completing 1996-97 with only the sixth-worst record in the league. Unfortunately, they didn&rsquo;t own their own draft pick, but fortunately, the Celtics &mdash; who had it at No. 6 &mdash; used it on Ron Mercer, so it wasn&rsquo;t an egregious miss.
Tracy McGrady did go No. 9 overall, and the Mavs did settle on Kelvin Cato at No. 15, but they landed with a kid named Dirk Nowitzki in the 1998 NBA Draft after another 20-win season.
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Bryan Fonseca revisits when the Mavericks only mustered a measly 2 points in the third quarter against the Lakers.

25 years ago, the Mavericks scored just 2 points in an entire quarter

The Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame today announced the 13 honorees in the Class of 2022 to be celebrated September 9-10 during this year&rsquo;s Enshrinement festivities in Springfield, Massachusetts. The announcement was made in New Orleans, Louisiana, the site of the 2022 NCAA Men&rsquo;s Final Four and was televised live on ESPN2.&nbsp;
This year&rsquo;s class includes two-time NBA All-Star and four-time NBA champion&nbsp;Manu Ginobili,&nbsp;five-time NBA All-Star&nbsp;Tim Hardaway,&nbsp;two-time NCAA National Coach of the Year&nbsp;Bob Huggins,&nbsp;the NBA&rsquo;s sixth-winningest coach of all-time&nbsp;George Karl&nbsp;and longtime NBA referee&nbsp;Hugh Evans.&nbsp;On the women&rsquo;s side, the Hall of Fame is proud to welcome five-time WNBA All-Star, three-time WNBA Champion, and two-time Olympic Gold Medalist&nbsp;Lindsay Whalen,&nbsp;four-time WNBA All-Star and two-time Olympic gold medalist&nbsp;Swin Cash&nbsp;and NCAA national champion and WNBA Coach of the Year&nbsp;Marianne Stanley.
Distinguished committees focused on preserving all areas from the game also selected five directly elected enshrines. They include&nbsp;Lou Hudson&nbsp;from the Veterans Committee,&nbsp;Larry Costello&nbsp;and&nbsp;Del Harris&nbsp;from the Contributor Committee,&nbsp;Theresa Shank-Grentz&nbsp;from the Women&rsquo;s Veterans Committee and&nbsp;Radivoj Korac&nbsp;from the International Committee.&nbsp;&nbsp;
&ldquo;Year after year, we are constantly reminded of the extraordinary and transcendent efforts of the remarkable men and women who have impacted the game of basketball from a global perspective,&rdquo; said John L. Doleva, President and CEO of the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame. &ldquo;The Class of 2022 is ripe with individuals who have had a significant historical impact on the game we love. We congratulate and thank them for everything they&rsquo;ve done to better the sport and look forward to honoring them during Enshrinement this fall.&rdquo;
To be elected, North American and Women&rsquo;s Committee finalists must receive 18 of 24 votes from the Honors Committee for election into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame. Direct elect committees are incorporated into the election process to maintain a strong focus on keeping history on the forefront of the voting procedures and to preserve a balance between two eras of basketball.
The Class of 2022 will be enshrined during festivities in Springfield, Mass., the Birthplace of Basketball, on September 9-10, 2022. Here's some more information about each of the inductees:
HUGH EVANS&nbsp;[Referee] &ndash; Evans served as an NBA Official for 28 consecutive years (1973-2001), tallying over 1,900 regular season games, 170 playoff games, 35 NBA Finals games and four NBA All-Star Games. Following his on-court officiating career, Evans worked as the NBA Assistant Supervisor of Officials (2001-03). He is a recipient of the Each One Teach One Community Service Award and is enshrined in the New York City Basketball Hall of Fame as well as the North Carolina A&amp;T Hall of Fame.
MANU GINOBILI&nbsp;[Player] &ndash; Ginobili is a two-time NBA All-Star (2005, 2011) and four-time NBA Champion with the San Antonio Spurs (2003, 2005, 2007, 2014). Over his 16-year NBA career, all with the Spurs, the Argentine guard amassed 14,043 points, 4,001 assists, 3,697 rebounds and 1,392 steals and was honored with the NBA Sixth Man of the Year Award in 2008, as well as twice being named to the All-NBA Third Team (2008, 2011). On the international stage, Ginobili helped deliver the first and only Gold Medal in the country&rsquo;s basketball history at the 2004 Olympics, as well as the bronze at the 2008 games. He joins Bill Bradley as the only two players to have won a EuroLeague title (2001), an NBA championship and an Olympic Gold Medal.
TIM HARDAWAY&nbsp;[Player] &ndash; A 2000 Olympic Gold Medalist, Hardaway played 13 NBA seasons scoring a total of 15,373 points while averaging more than 20 points per game for four consecutive seasons. He is the 1990 recipient of the Jack McMahon Award for most inspirational player and a 1997 All-NBA First Team selection. He currently ranks 18th in NBA history with 7,095 career assists. The Chicago native was a member of the men&rsquo;s basketball team at the University of Texas at El Paso (1985-1989) and is known for making his signature move &ndash; the &ldquo;UTEP Two-step&rdquo; &ndash; famous in 1989, the same year he was named WAC Player of the Year.
BOB HUGGINS&nbsp;[Coach] &ndash; Huggins has been coaching in the collegiate ranks for 45 years, including the last 15 as the head coach at West Virginia University. Over the course of his career, Huggins has led his teams to 25 NCAA Tournament berths, including nine appearances in the Sweet Sixteen (1992, 1993, 1996, 200, 2008, 2010, 2015, 2017, 2018), four trips to the Elite Eight (1992, 1993, 1996, 2010), and two appearances in the NCAA Final Four (1992, 2010). In 16 years as the head coach at the University of Cincinnati (1989-2005), Huggins led the Bearcats to eight Conference USA regular season championships (1996-2002, 2004), four Conference USA Tournament championships (1996, 1998, 2002, 2004), was a three-time Conference USA Coach of the Year (1998-2000) and was honored as the Conference USA Coach of the Decade in 2005. On the national level, he a was tabbed as the&nbsp;Sporting News&nbsp;National Coach of the Year in 2000 and the&nbsp;ESPN.com&nbsp;National Coach of the Year in 2002.
GEORGE KARL&nbsp;[Coach] &ndash; Karl spent 27 seasons as a head coach in the NBA, leading the Cleveland Cavaliers (1984-1986), Golden State Warriors (1986-88), Seattle Supersonics (1992-1998), Milwaukee Bucks (1998-2003), Denver Nuggets (2005-2013) and Sacramento Kings (2015-2016). During his career, he guided five different franchises to a total of 22 playoff appearances, led the Supersonics to the NBA Finals (1996), was named the NBA Coach of the Year (2013), and was called upon to be an All-Star Game head coach four times (1994, 1996, 1998, 2010). Karl owns a lifetime coaching record of 1,175-824 (.588), ranking sixth all-time in NBA career wins and posted 12 seasons of 50+ victories and three seasons of 60-plus.
SWIN CASH&nbsp;[Player] &ndash; Cash is a four-time WNBA All-Star (2003, 2005, 2009, 2011) and two-time Olympic gold medalist (2004, 2012). A true champion, she was a member of three WNBA championship teams during her 15-year career with the Detroit Shock (2003, 2006) and Seattle Storm (2010) as well as two NCAA National Championships at the University of Connecticut (2000, 2002) and a Gold Medal at the 2010 FIBA World Championships. Cash was recognized as one of the 20 best WNBA players of all time in 2016 as she twice named WNBA All-Star Game MVP (2009, 2011) and twice received All-WNBA Second Team (2003-2004) honors. During her collegiate career, she was named the NCAA Final Four Most Outstanding Player and received Kodak First Team All-America honors in 2002 after UConn won their third national title in program history after finishing the season a perfect 39-0. In 2021, Cash was inducted into the Women&rsquo;s Basketball Hall of Fame.
MARIANNE STANLEY&nbsp;[Coach] &ndash; Coaching in the collegiate and professional ranks for a combined 45 years, Stanley currently serves as the head coach of the WNBA&rsquo;s Indiana Fever. In 22 years as a college coach with Old Dominion (1977-1987), Penn (1987-1989), USC (1989-1993), Stanford (1995-1996) and Cal (1995-1996), Stanley compiled a 416-222 (.652) record, including a NCAA National Championship in 1985, three Final Four appearances (1983, 1985, 1996) and back-to-back AIAW National Titles (1979-1980). She has accumulated numerous Coach of the Year honors, including AIAW National Coach of the Year (1979), Virginia Coach of the Year (1979, 1980, 1981, 1984, 1985), Sun Belt Conference Coach of the Year (1984, 1985), Pac-10 Conference Coach of the Year (1993) and WNBA Coach of the Year (2002). On the national team level, she helped lead the United States to a Goodwill Games Gold Medal (1983) and FIBA World Championship Gold Medal (1986). Stanley has been enshrined in the Women&rsquo;s Basketball Hall of Fame (2002) and the Philadelphia Sports Hall of Fame (2010).
LINDSAY WHALEN&nbsp;[Player] &ndash; Whalen is a five-time WNBA All-Star (2006, 2011, 2013-2015), four-time WNBA Champion (2011, 2013, 2015, 2017) and two-time Olympic Gold Medalist (2012, 2016). After averaging 11.5 points and 4.9 assists over 15 seasons in the WNBA, she was named to the WNBA First Team three times (2008, 2011, 2013) and was recognized&nbsp;as one of the 20 best WNBA players of all time in 2016.&nbsp;Whalen ranks third all-time in assists (2,345) and led the league in total assists five times (2007, 2011-2015) and assists per game on three occasions (2008, 2011, 2012). During her collegiate career at University of Minnesota, Whalen led the Golden Gophers to the NCAA Final Four in 2004 and was twice named a finalist for the Naismith Award (2003, 2004) and Wade Trophy (2003, 2004). She also received numerous accolades for her on-court performance, including being named to the Kodak/WBCA All-America Team (2003-2004), USBWA All-America Team (2002-2004), AP Second Team All-America Team (2003-2004) and the All-Big Ten First Team (2002-2004).Whalen currently serves as the head coach of the women&rsquo;s basketball program at her alma mater.
LOU HUDSON&nbsp;[Player] &ndash; Recognized posthumously, Hudson was a six-time NBA All-Star (1969-1974) and averaged 20.2 points and 4.4 rebounds per game in 13 NBA seasons. The athletic shooting guard played 11 seasons with the St. Louis/Atlanta Hawks (1966-1977) and has his jersey No. 23 retired by the franchise. A native of Greensboro, North Carolina, Hudson attended the University of Minnesota where he was part of the first African American recruiting class in school history and went on to receive All-American honors and had his jersey No. 14 retired. He is also a member of the Minnesota Hall of Fame as well as the North Carolina Hall of Fame.
LARRY COSTELLO&nbsp;[Contributor] &ndash; Recognized posthumously, Costello was a six-time NBA All-Star (1958-1962, 1965), a member of the 1967 World Champion Philadelphia 76ers and coached the Milwaukee Bucks to the 1971 NBA title, as well as a Finals appearance in 1974. As a player, he averaged 12.2 points and 4.9 assists per game over 12 NBA seasons, earning All-NBA Second Team in 1961. Known as the last two-handed set shooter, the point guard led the NBA in free throw percentage twice (.881 in 1963; .877 in 1965). As a coach, he was one of the first people to employ a working, accountable assistant coach and employ videotape to analyze the game. He also traveled extensively for the U.S. State Department, lecturing in Germany, Africa, Asia and Europe. Costello is also a member of the Niagara University Hall of Fame, Syracuse Sports Hall of Fame, Greater Buffalo Hall of Fame and the New York State Hall of Fame.
DEL HARRIS&nbsp;[Contributor] &ndash; Harris has dedicated his life to basketball, serving as a coach, mentor and tireless advocate for the game. In his more than 50-year coaching career, he coached every level of the sport, ranging from junior high hoops to the NBA. Harris is deeply respected by players, coaches and executives alike, having earned the Jerry Colangelo Award for Leadership and Character in 2010, the Coach John Wooden &ldquo;Keys to Excellence&rdquo; Award in 2014 and the Basketball Hall of Fame&rsquo;s John W. Bunn Lifetime Achievement Award in 2019. For over 35 years, he served as both a treasured assistant coach and head coach of several franchises including the Houston Rockets, Milwaukee Bucks, Los Angeles Lakers, Dallas Mavericks, Chicago Bulls, and New Jersey Nets. Harris led the Houston Rockers to the NBA Finals in 1981 and was recognized as the NBA Coach of the Year in 1995 while at the helm of the Los Angeles Lakers. Harris currently serves as Vice President of the Mavericks G League affiliate, the Texas Legends, while providing game analysis for the Mavericks on Fox Sports Southwest. He is also a member of the NAIA Basketball Hall of Fame and Indiana Basketball Hall of Fame.
THERESA SHANK-GRENTZ&nbsp;[Player] &ndash; Shank-Grentz was a member of three consecutive AIAW National Championship teams and was a three-time All-American at Immaculata University from 1972-74. The 1974 title game was the first ever live coverage of a women&rsquo;s basketball game in the United States. She scored over 1,000 career points at Immaculata, including a record 104 points and 76 rebounds in the 1973 AIAW Tournament. Shank-Grentz was named the AMF Collegiate Player of the Year in 1974 and has her jersey No. 12 retired by the university. She also scored over 1,200 points as a prep player at Cardinal O&rsquo;Hara High School in Springfield, PA, and was a three-time All-Conference Philadelphia Catholic League.
RADIVOJ KORAC&nbsp;&nbsp;[Player] &ndash; Recognized posthumously, Korac is known as Yugoslavia&rsquo;s first basketball superstar, helping lead the country to the silver medal at the 1968 Olympics after leading all players in averaging 23.6 points per game during the Games. He also led Yugoslavia to silver medals in FIBA World Cup play in 1963 and 1967. He still holds the EuroLeague&rsquo;s all-time single-game scoring record with 99 points in a game vs. Alviks during the 1964-65 season. Korac tragically passed away in a car accident in 1969 at the age of 30 and has been remembered as the namesake of FIBA&rsquo;s Korac Cup in 1971 and Serbia&rsquo;s Korac Cup in 2002. He was named one of FIBA&rsquo;s Greatest Players in 1991, was enshrined in the FIBA Hall of Fame in 2007 and was named one of the 50 Greatest EuroLeague Contributors in 2008.

The Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame announced the 13 honorees in the Class of 2022 to be celebrated September 9-10.

Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame announces Class of 2022 inductees

LOS ANGELES (AP) &mdash; CJ McCollum scored 32 points, Brandon Ingram added 29 against his former team and the New Orleans Pelicans spoiled Anthony Davis' return from injury with another fourth-quarter rally in a 114-111 victory over the Los Angeles Lakers on Friday night.
Jonas Valanciunas had 17 points and 12 rebounds for the ninth-place Pelicans, who won for the sixth time in eight games while dealing the second major blow in five days to the Lakers' hopes of squeaking into the play-in tournament.
New Orleans beat Los Angeles 116-108 at home last weekend after rallying from a 23-point deficit, and the Pelicans swept the season series with this comeback on the road.
&ldquo;It was big-time,&rdquo; Pelicans coach Willie Green said. &ldquo;They threw the kitchen sink at us. LeBron (scored) 38 points. Getting Davis back sparked their team a little bit. We just hung in there, and the game was back and forth. We have to win games like that. Been talking about it all season, and it will pay dividends down the stretch.&rdquo;
LeBron James missed a 3-pointer at the buzzer and scored just two of his 38 in the fourth quarter for the Lakers (31-46), who have lost five straight and 15 of 19 to fall one game behind 10th-place San Antonio (32-45), which holds the tiebreaker.
&ldquo;The big picture is that it was pretty much a must-win for us, and we didn&rsquo;t get the job done,&rdquo; James said.
Davis had 23 points, 12 rebounds and six assists in his return from a six-week injury absence since Feb. 16, but the eight-time All-Star's presence wasn't enough to beat his former team. The Lakers now face long odds just to get past the Spurs for a one-game shot at the Pelicans, since four of LA's final five games are against playoff-bound opponents.
&ldquo;It's going to be tough to catch (New Orleans) now, with the lead they have and the tiebreaker,&rdquo; Lakers coach Frank Vogel said. &ldquo;But we have plenty of time to win as many games as we can down the stretch and see what happens with San Antonio.&rdquo;
New Orleans trailed for most of the fourth quarter, but Valanciunas hit a tying 3-pointer with 2:52 to play. After Davis missed a floater, Ingram put the Pelicans ahead 110-108 on a fadeaway jumper.
&ldquo;We had some poise late in that game,&rdquo; Ingram said. &ldquo;Down the stretch, we had some good execution. Everybody was locked in on the defensive end, and we seemed confident."
Avery Bradley's 3-pointer with 15.8 seconds left trimmed New Orleans' lead to 112-111. McCollum hit two free throws, and James' triple-clutch 3-point attempt amid double coverage didn't go in at the horn.
&ldquo;It was a tough environment with AD coming back, and we just fought,&rdquo; said Herbert Jones, who harassed James along with Larry Nance Jr. on the last play. &ldquo;Once LeBron came across the court and I got screened, I knew Larry was over there. I just wanted to be there as well. Just force him to shoot it. I feel like we did a great job of making it tough on him to make the shot.&rdquo;
Davis missed the previous 18 games with a sprained foot during his second lengthy injury absence of the year. Davis had been hurt for 39 games and healthy for 37 this season, his second straight with major injury problems.
Los Angeles went 4-14 in Davis&rsquo; most recent absence, its disappointing season turning into a potentially humiliating one. James also missed three of the previous four games with a swollen ankle, but he elected to play through the pain Friday with Davis&rsquo; return.
That meant Davis, James and Russell Westbrook played together for only the 21st time in the Lakers&rsquo; 77 games this season &mdash; and just the sixth time since Dec. 17. Injuries have been the leading &mdash; but hardly the only &mdash; factor in Los Angeles&rsquo; descent from a likely championship contender to a borderline playoff team.
TIP-INS
Pelicans: Green said his team also was motivated when the lights weren't turned on for their morning shootaround, forcing them to work out in the dark. ... Jaxson Hayes dunked with 36 seconds left in the first half, but the points were taken off the board following video review after the halftime buzzer because Hayes didn't beat the shot clock.
Lakers: Davis crossed the court to say something to a fan in the second row early in the fourth quarter after New Orleans called a timeout when LA took a six-point lead. The fan, who wore a Kobe jersey, was escorted away from his seat by security. ... Carmelo Anthony was unavailable due to a non-COVID illness.
OH YEAH REAL FUNNY
James got into the spirit of the holiday Thursday morning with <a href="https://twitter.com/KingJames/status/1509941094712184834">a straight-faced tweet</a>: &ldquo;I&rsquo;m out for the season officially. See y&rsquo;all in the fall.&rdquo;
James and the Lakers didn't acknowledge the joke, but at least James apparently warned Vogel when he sent out the tweet. The coach declined to say whether he thought it was funny.
&ldquo;I would have guessed it was an April Fool's even if I hadn't known it was an April Fool's,&rdquo; Vogel said.
UP NEXT
Pelicans: At Clippers on Sunday.
Lakers: Host Nuggets on Sunday.
&nbsp;

CJ McCollum scored 32 points and the Pelicans spoiled Anthony Davis' return in a 114-111 victory over the Lakers.

Pelicans rally past Lakers 114-111 despite Davis' return

WASHINGTON (AP) &mdash; DeMar DeRozan scored 14 of his 32 points in the fourth quarter, and the Chicago Bulls pulled away for a 107-94 victory over the Washington Wizards on Tuesday night.
Nikola Vucevic scored 27 points for Chicago, which is trying to stay in the top six in the Eastern Conference and avoid the play-in round of the postseason. The Bulls (44-32) took a half-game lead over Toronto (43-32) for fifth place in the East, and they lead seventh-place Cleveland (42-33) by 1 1/2 games.
Chicago has played 12 of its last 15 on the road, but the Bulls now have only six games remaining in the regular season &mdash; and the next five are at home.
Rui Hachimura scored 21 points for the Wizards, who had their modest two-game winning streak snapped. Kentavious Caldwell-Pope added 20.
The Bulls rebounded from a loss to the New York Knicks the previous night, and they overcame a scoreless first half from Zach LaVine, who finished with 14 points. DeRozan was just 2 of 12 from the field in the half, but he went 10 of 15 in the second.
Chicago led 75-73 after three quarters, but the Bulls made their decisive run early in the fourth. DeRozan's breakaway dunk made it 90-80 &mdash; the first double-digit lead for either team &mdash; and Chicago comfortably closed the game out from there.
Vucevic scored 20 points in the first half, and the Bulls led 51-46 after two quarters.
TIP-INS
Bulls: Javonte Green scored nine points on 4-of-4 shooting. That included a one-handed dunk in the second quarter and an alley-oop moments later.
Wizards: Washington is without star Bradley Beal (left wrist), and Kyle Kuzma (right knee) wasn't available either. ... Kristaps Porzingis and Deni Avdija scored 14 points apiece.
UP NEXT
Bulls: Host the Los Angeles Clippers on Thursday night.
Wizards: Host Orlando on Wednesday night.
&nbsp;

DeMar DeRozan scored 32 points as the Chicago Bulls earned a 107-94 victory over the Washington Wizards.

Bulls alone in 5th place after 107-94 win over Wizards

Bradley Beal recently spoke with Draymond Green on the <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oGVebd6XDw0&amp;t=16s" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Draymond Green show</a> about his upcoming free agency. He emphasized to Green that he wants to win in Washington.
"I have to have that understanding with Washington that we are in the pursuit of winning... That is my destination and goal. The money is awesome... But that also comes with, when you make that money, you want to win ball games. You want to be able to play for something. Right? I want to play in meaningful games. Right? I want to be playing in late June. That's what I want."
Beal also acknowledged that he would like to play with stars like most players of his calber around the league have.
"I have desires to, hell, play with everybody... Trust and believe I would love to be in an environment around K.D. [Kevin Durant], Dray, Steph [Curry] and going hard, winning games. That would -- what? Who wouldn't?"
If Beal opts out of his contract this summer, he could be paid upwards of a five-year, $246 million contract extension by Washington.
ANALYSIS:&nbsp;Beal is well within his rights to get paid every cent he's owed in Washington. The real question is, is Washington really willing to pay him that kind of money with the state of flux they're in? The last time they made the playoffs was 2018, and they got burned badly by the mega-extension they gave Wall around that time. They don't have a whole lot of avenues to get better from here, so it in their best interest to use a gargantuan portion of their cap space to keep Beal around? That's some food for thought.

Bradley Beal opened up about his upcoming free agency on The Draymond Green show.

Bradley Beal wants to win in Washington, but remains open-minded

Giannis Antetokounmpo had 25 points and 17 rebounds in his return to action and the Milwaukee Bucks extended their recent mastery of the Chicago Bulls with a 126-98 blowout on Tuesday night.
Antetokounmpo missed the Bucks&rsquo; 138-119 loss at Minnesota on Saturday due to a sore right knee. Milwaukee played without All-Star forward Khris Middleton, who was dealing with a sore left wrist.
&ldquo;He took a fall in the Minnesota game, and it was pretty sore and stiff, so we&rsquo;ve had it looked at,&rdquo; Bucks coach Mike Budenholzer said before the game. &ldquo;We feel like it&rsquo;s short term, but we&rsquo;ll see how he feels the next day or two.&rdquo;
Jrue Holiday had a game-high 27 points to go along with seven assists as the Bucks won for the 15th time in their last 16 meetings with the Bulls, including all three matchups this season. The Bulls&rsquo; lone win during that stretch came in their <a href="https://apnews.com/article/cleveland-cavaliers-brooklyn-nets-milwaukee-bucks-chicago-bulls-nba-d0ef1e66e228bc0d4a77432eec000456">2019-20 regular-season finale, </a> when the Bucks rested their starters because they were locked into the East&rsquo;s No. 3 playoff seed.
Brook Lopez had 10 points and six rebounds in 24 minutes for Milwaukee after making his first start since the season opener. The 7-footer had come off the bench for the Bucks&rsquo; last three games after missing 67 due to a back injury that required surgery.
Nikola Vucevic had 22 points for the Bulls, who opened a five-game trip one night after a 113-99 victory over the Toronto Raptors. DeMar DeRozan and Zach LaVine added 21 points each.
Milwaukee took command with a 23-4 spurt that began late in the first quarter and continued in the second period. The game was tied 20-all before the Bucks scored the final 13 points of the opening period.
Milwaukee extended the lead to 59-33 before the Bulls charged back by scoring 13 straight points. That included a personal 10-0 run by LaVine, who capped the outburst by hitting a 3-pointer to open the second half.
Chicago cut the lead to 64-54 on a pair of free throws by LaVine with 8:51 left in the third, but the Bucks regrouped and pulled away again. They eventually led by as many as 35.
LATE T'S
Milwaukee's Serge Ibaka and Chicago's Tristan Thompson each received technical fouls late in the fourth quarter after they got into a brief tussle on an inbounds pass attempt.
TIP-INS
Bulls: Patrick Williams remained on a minutes restriction in his second game back after missing 65 with a torn ligament in his left wrist. He has played 18 minutes each of the last two games. &ldquo;He&rsquo;s going to need I think a series of games to get up where we can move his minutes up,&rdquo; coach Billy Donovan said before the game.
Bucks: George Hill was fined $15,000 after getting ejected from Saturday's loss for shoving Timberwolves guard Patrick Beverley from behind. Beverley, who shoved Ibaka from behind earlier in the altercation, was fined $20,000. ... Bulls fans made up a sizeable minority of the crowd, so Grayson Allen got a mix of loud cheers and boos whenever he was introduced. It was the Bulls&rsquo; first game back in Milwaukee since Jan. 21, when <a href="https://apnews.com/article/nba-sports-billy-donovan-grayson-allen-milwaukee-bucks-e0490cd97dc21b6a4b58f40e6a2eef3a">Allen was ejected for a flagrant foul on Alex Caruso</a> that <a href="https://apnews.com/article/nba-sports-milwaukee-bucks-chicago-bulls-cleveland-cavaliers-16bc3d74b234b58975beeecd4a5c7eab#:~:text=NEW%20YORK%20(AP)%20%E2%80%94%20Milwaukee,Bucks%20visit%20the%20Cleveland%20Cavaliers."> caused the Bulls guard to miss 22 games with a fractured right wrist. </a> The teams faced each other in Chicago on <a href="https://apnews.com/article/chicago-bulls-milwaukee-bucks-nba-sports-khris-middleton-25d12e2cb31e6d22971ffae033d3027f">March 4.</a>
UP NEXT
Bulls: At New Orleans on Thursday. <a href="https://apnews.com/article/nba-sports-chicago-bulls-zach-lavine-new-orleans-pelicans-62987853394c85f76de405d645f57f35">The Bulls beat the Pelicans 128-112 </a> in Chicago on Oct. 22.
Bucks: Host the Washington Wizards on Thursday. The Bucks have split two previous meetings with the Wizards. <a href="https://apnews.com/article/nba-sports-washington-wizards-bradley-beal-milwaukee-bucks-f44b85e844504596148df2d0a87f60cb">The Bucks lost 101-94</a> at Washington on Nov. 7 and won 112-98 at Milwaukee on Feb. 1.

Giannis Antetokounmpo had 25 points and 17 rebounds in his return to action and the Bucks extended their recent mastery of the Bulls.

Antetokounmpo returns, Bucks roll to 126-98 win over Bulls

The Portland Trail Blazers are expected to seriously pursue Pistons forward&nbsp;<a class="ath_autolink" href="https://theathletic.com/player/nba/pistons/jerami-grant/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Jerami Grant</a> in the offseason, according to <a href="https://theathletic.com/3198951/2022/03/21/heat-a-potential-suitor-for-bradley-beal-herniated-disc-holding-ben-simmons-back-and-more-nba-news-inside-pass/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Shams Charania of The Athletic</a>.
"Armed with the Pelicans&rsquo; 2022 first-round draft selection, the Trail Blazers will explore offering the pick should it fall between Nos. 5 and 14 in the June draft," Charania said. "If the pick does not fall in that range and convey to Portland this offseason, the organization&rsquo;s package falls behind competing teams that are chasing Detroit&rsquo;s versatile forward."
ANALYSIS:&nbsp;Portland is in a unique predicament this offseason to say the least. Even though they've punted on this season, it appears more likely than not they're opting for re-tooling instead of rebuilding. Grant is a nice piece to have, but, though he would improve their putrid defense, he's not much of a game-changer for them. If they want Damian Lillard's prime to count for something, they must have more plans in store besides potentially acquiring Jerami Grant.

Shams Charania reports that Portland may look into acquiring Jerami Grant if the pick they acquired from New Orleans conveys.

Shams: Portland may pursue Jerami Grant this upcoming offseason

Most NBA teams have approximately 10-12 games left on the regular season calendar. It's all about the playoff races, and as we hit the home stretch, three are worth monitoring.&nbsp;
The Minnesota Timberwolves and Denver Nuggets are tied for sixth place in the Western Conference, with Dallas just above them by 1.5 games. Whoever loses out on this race gets the unfortunate ticket to the play-in tournament with three other teams who simply don't measure up. But just down the standings is a tie between the New Orleans Pelicans and Los Angeles Lakers for ninth. Have the Lakers really fallen this far, and could they fall even further?
The Cleveland Cavaliers and Toronto Raptors have jockeyed for the sixth seed in the East, but the weary Chicago Bulls have sagged into the battle as well. But Brooklyn, Charlotte and Atlanta can at least feel safe in their play-in chances since no one else appears to want a postseason spot.&nbsp;
As the tension increases, several of these playoff tightrope acts appear in this week's rankings.
If you're new to the Sour Rankings, here's a refresher: Unlike the typical "power rankings" that are so common throughout sports media, Sour Rankings are a bizarro-world counter. These rankings highlight the top-10 most frustrating NBA franchises throughout the season, and they are updated every week to match the twists and turns of the league.
This is not merely a bottom-10 of your typical best-to-worst outlooks. You will see championship contenders and playoff hopefuls mixed in with struggling squads. Teams well under .500 may never touch the Sour Rankings because they are on track with their respective processes. Injuries, drama, transactions and generally underwhelming play will earn you a spot on this list.
The central question is ultimately this: How good should you feel about the direction of each franchise? Let's get going.
Escaping the Sour Rankings:&nbsp;Charlotte currently rides a four-game winning streak and has moved into ninth in the East standings with a real chance at overtaking Brooklyn for eighth place. Cleveland, despite some injury woes, maintains its hold on sixth place and could even jump the struggling Bulls.
Though Houston is among the NBA's bottom-feeders, the Rockets continue to find promise in its young core, led this week by Jalen Green, Alperen Sengun and KJ Martin.
10. Golden State Warriors (47-24)
Just as Draymond Green makes his return, Stephen Curry goes down with a foot injury. Curry feels confident that <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/breakingnews/warriors-curry-expects-to-return-by-start-of-playoffs" target="_blank" rel="noopener">he'll be back to start the playoffs.</a> But the Warriors remain in a tight seeding race with Memphis and Utah, and will now have to sort out the West hierarchy without their centerpiece. Seeding is critical in determining when Golden State matches up against the almighty Suns and if they could catch a play-in team (by being a No. 2 seed) versus a rested playoff squad.&nbsp;
(Last week: 10)
9. Chicago Bulls (41-29)
Chicago's offense is in a state. The Bulls wield the 26th-ranked offense in the NBA since the All-Star break and have gone 3-8 out of the pause. Their halfcourt offense is ranked seventh on the season per Cleaning the Glass, but has dropped to 21st since the break and is averaging just 93.4 points per 100 possessions.
Chicago is at its healthiest in a long time with only Lonzo Ball and Patrick Williams sidelined. The Bulls need to get the offense back on track before Cleveland and Toronto shoot past them in the East standings.
(Last week: Unranked)
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8. Brooklyn Nets (37-34)
Kyrie Irving, with everything that surrounds his persona and playing status, is the most electric player in basketball right now. I mean, the man is averaging 37.8 points per game since the All-Star break while shooting 55.3% on 9.4 three-point attempts per game. He dropped 60 on the Orlando Magic this past week... and then scored a combined zero points in the next two games because of his playing status.
Could Irving haved turned the tide in a narrow 113-111 home loss to Dallas? I'm guessing so. Is this a preview of how the Nets' postseason could be affected by his own actions? I think so.
(Last week: 6)
7. Atlanta Hawks (35-36)
So Atlanta is under .500 and has been hovering there for several weeks now. I was listening to <a href="https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/mailbag-madness/id1547857052?i=1000554467191" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Friday's episode of The Dunker Spot</a>, and Nekias Duncan and Steve Jones Jr. forced me to hit the reality-check button on the Hawks.
Atlanta is 7-6 since the All-Star break and has leveled out with an offense and defense that fall around league average in efficiency over the past two weeks. John Collins is now out indefinitely with a finger injury, depriving Trae Young of his chief running mate. The Hawks have two rotation players over age-30 (Danilo Gallinari and Lou Williams) and underwent little roster change in the offseason or at the trade deadline. Yet they have undoubtedly regressed since their breakout Eastern Conference Finals run last season.
What exactly is the read on this team long-term, especially if they go out with a whimper in the play-in tournament?
(Last week: Unranked)
<img style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" src="https://cdn.basketballnews.com/images/story/body/qq_lg.jpg" alt="" width="727" height="367" />
6. New York Knicks (30-41)
It's bizarre to see the Knicks, Pelicans and Lakers all sitting together at 30-41 after what feels like three radically unique seasons. But though New York's playoff chances have all-but evaporated, we're getting some fun moments in the twilight of the season.&nbsp;
Enter Immanuel Quickley. The second-year guard is putting up 14.7 points, 5.5 rebounds and 4.1 assists per game in his last 10 contests. Quickley has finally found his perimeter touch and is making 43.2% of his long-range attempts. New York is 5-5 in March, which is a relative positive given the course of the season, and I'm still very high on Quickley's future in this backcourt.
(Last week: 5)
5. Dallas Mavericks (43-28)
<a href="https://www.espn.com/nba/story/_/id/33527472/ex-gm-donnie-nelson-sues-dallas-mavericks-says-was-fired-reporting-sexual-misconduct-team-denies-claim" target="_blank" rel="noopener">ESPN's Don Van Natti Jr. published a full report</a> of ex-GM Donnie Nelson's recent lawsuit against the Mavericks on Thursday. Included in the lawsuit is a claim from Nelson that owner Mark Cuban fired him "as retaliation for reporting that Cuban's chief of staff sexually harassed and sexually assaulted his nephew during a job interview in 2020."
This is obviously extremely serious, but additionally, it reinforces a pattern of discord in the Mavericks' front office that is suspiciously intertwined with a history of poisonous culture in the organization. Remember when the Mavericks were <a href="https://www.nba.com/news/nba-statement-dallas-mavericks-workplace-investigation-official-release" target="_blank" rel="noopener">investigated back in 2018</a> and the not-so-heavy punishments laid out? There's no way to properly state how dangerous this trend looks on the Mavs and the NBA at large, especially as the Suns' Robert Sarver situation is still unresolved.
(Last week: Unranked)
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4. Portland Trail Blazers (26-44)
Removing Anfernee Simons due to injury, Portland's four leading per-game scorers in March are: Josh Hart (20.5), Brandon Williams (16.6), Trendon Watford (15.9) and Drew Eubanks (12.0). I don't mean this as slander toward the players at all. Hart in particular has been a force since the trade from New Orleans and the latter three have maximized their real shots at sticking in the NBA. It's more of a reminder of where Portland is right now without any cornerstone young talent or heathy, proven veterans playing.&nbsp;
(Last week: 2)
3. Sacramento Kings (25-48)
We've hit that same old slog with the Kings, who are plum out of playoff hope and spring momentum with a 2-8 record in March. Sacramento is one of six teams with bottom-10 ratings on both offense and defense since the All-Star break.
(Last week: 3)
2. Washington Wizards (30-40)
Bradley Beal's upcoming offseason has overshadowed the floundering on-court Wizards. Shams Charania reported today that the 76ers seriously attempted to trade for Beal during the season before ultimately pivoting back to James Harden. The Heat are <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/report-heat-legitimate-suitor-for-bradley-beal-if-he-hits-free-agency" target="_blank" rel="noopener">reportedly</a> a "legitimate suitor" should Beal hit free agency in the summer.
For the n-th time, the Bradley Beal sweepstakes feels more important than anything happening on the court. Washington lost six-straight before beating our top (or bottom, depending on your perspective) team.
1. Los Angeles Lakers (30-41)
The San Antonio Spurs are 5-8 since the All-Star break. Their remaining 10 games include winnable matchups against the Pelicans, Rockets and Trail Blazers (three times) and imposing tasks versus the Warriors, Mavericks, Timberwolves, Nuggets and Grizzlies. Going 5-5 or better in 10 games won't be easy for a young Spurs team that still sits 2.5 games back of a play-in bid.
All of this is to say: The Lakers are somehow making a very safe situation feel treacherous. Eight of their final 11 contests are against top-six seeds. There's a very real chance that this race comes down to the final days.
(Last week: 4)
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Ethan Fuller is back with this week's Sour Rankings as the NBA's playoff races tighten up.

NBA Sour Rankings: Lakers' Play-In bid still not guaranteed

According to a <a href="https://theathletic.com/3198951/2022/03/21/heat-a-potential-suitor-for-bradley-beal-herniated-disc-holding-ben-simmons-back-and-more-nba-news-inside-pass/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">new report from Shams Charania of The Athletic</a>, Ben Simmons is dealing with a herniated disc in his back, but he is still hoping to play this season for the Brooklyn Nets.
After sitting out most of the season because of his frustration with the Philadelphia 76ers, Simmons was part of <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/nets-trade-james-harden-to-76ers-for-ben-simmons-in-blockbuster-move" target="_blank" rel="noopener">the blockbuster deal at the NBA trade deadline</a> that sent him to the Nets with James Harden going back to the 76ers.&nbsp;
The Nets were hoping to have Simmons on the court last week, but his ongoing back issues have delayed his return. Just last week, he had an epidural injection to help relieve the soreness.
Simmons is still working towards a return this season &mdash; ideally in time for the NBA playoffs &ndash; but it's not certain when he will cleared to play.&nbsp;
The Nets are currently 37-34 and hold the No. 8 seed in the Eastern Conference.

Ben Simmons is dealing with a herniated disc in his back, but he is still hoping to play this season for the Brooklyn Nets.

Ben Simmons has herniated disc in back, still hopes to play this season

The Miami Heat are considered a "legitimate suitor" for star guard Bradley Beal if he hits free agency this summer, <a href="https://theathletic.com/3198951/2022/03/21/heat-a-potential-suitor-for-bradley-beal-herniated-disc-holding-ben-simmons-back-and-more-nba-news-inside-pass/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">according to Shams Charania of The Atlantic</a>.
After 10 seasons with the Washington Wizards, all eyes will be on the three-time All-Star when he can opt out and become an unrestricted free agent this offseason.
The Heat currently sit in the top seed in the Eastern Conference with a core that includes Bam Adebayo, Jimmy Butler, Tyler Herro and Kyle Lowry. Miami would have to complete a sign-and-trade deal for Beal if he wants to join the team.
Beal recently said that he is <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/bradley-beal-confirms-hes-leaning-towards-resigning-in-washington" target="_blank" rel="noopener">leaning toward re-signing with the Wizards</a> this offseason, and he is eligible for a five-year, $245.6 million max contract.
Beal underwent season-ending surgery on Feb. 10 to repair a torn ligament in his left wrist. Prior to that, he averaged 23.2 points, 4.7 rebounds and a career-high 6.6 assists on the season.

The Miami Heat are considered a "legitimate suitor" for Washington Wizards star guard Bradley Beal if he hits free agency this summer.