Pacific Injury Notes: Suns, Kawhi, Reaves, Monk
The Suns had a tough last-second loss at San Antonio on Thursday and they’ll be shorthanded for Saturday’s game vs. Milwaukee, writes Duane Rankin of The Arizona Republic (subscriber link).
In addition to Dillon Brooks (broken left hand) and Mark Williams (stress reaction in left foot), who continue to be sidelined, veteran wing Amir Coffey sprained his left ankle in the first half on Thursday and didn’t return. He’s out against the Bucks. Forward Haywood Highsmith (right knee injury management) has also been ruled out for the second straight game.
Grayson Allen, who has missed the past two contests because of a left knee injury, is questionable to suit up. Royce O’Neale (left knee soreness), who was sidelined for the first time this season on Thursday, is doubtful to play on Saturday, per the league’s latest injury report.
On a brighter note, Devin Booker isn’t on the injury report after he stepped on De’Aaron Fox‘s foot in the final second of Thursday’s loss, Rankin adds. The incident occurred when Booker was attempting a three from beyond half court.
Here are a few more injury updates from the Pacific Division:
- Clippers star Kawhi Leonard, who has been battling a left ankle sprain, is questionable for Saturday’s matchup in Dallas, tweets Law Murray of The Athletic. The 34-year-old forward is averaging 28.2 points, 6.4 rebounds, 3.6 assists and 2.0 steals on .504/.383/.898 shooting through 54 games this season (32.3 MPG).
- Lakers guard Austin Reaves has been bothered by a right wrist issue recently, but he’s questionable for Saturday’s game at Orlando because of a sore left hip, per Dan Woike of The Athletic (Twitter link). The fifth-year guard is widely expected to decline his $14.9MM option for next season in order to become an unrestricted free agent.
- Kings guard Malik Monk was forced out of Thursday’s lopsided loss to Philadelphia due to a right shoulder injury, according to Sean Cunningham of NBC Sacramento (Twitter link). Monk appeared to suffer the injury when he drove into the paint and was fouled by Andre Drummond, Cunningham notes (Twitter video link). The Kings don’t play again until Sunday, so they have not yet released an updated injury report.
Warriors’ Porzingis Exits Friday’s Game With Back Soreness
9:35 pm: Porzingis said after the game that his back started “spasming up a bit” in the first quarter (Twitter video link via Slater). While he was still experiencing tightness after the loss and “probably” won’t play Saturday in Atlanta, he doesn’t expect it to be a long-term injury.
8:32 pm: Veteran center Kristaps Porzingis experienced lower back soreness in Friday’s road game in Detroit, according to Anthony Slater of ESPN (All Twitter links).
While the Warriors have officially listed Porzingis as questionable to return, he didn’t make his way back to the team’s bench to open the second half after walking slowly to the locker room in the second quarter, Slater notes.
Porzingis had five points, three rebounds and two blocks in 11 first-half minutes.
Golden State currently trails Detroit by 22 points with eight-plus minutes left in the fourth quarter. The Warriors have been in a major slump lately, dropping six of their last seven games and eight of their past 10.
It’s a tough setback for Porzingis, who has been plagued by health issues for much of the past two seasons. He has repeatedly said he was starting to feel better and better after missing several games because of an illness, but now he may be facing another absence.
Entering Friday, Porzingis had appeared in 23 combined games with the Hawks and Warriors in 2025/26, averaging 17.0 points, 4.8 rebounds, 2.7 assists and 1.5 blocks in 23.7 minutes per contest, with a shooting line of .451/.342/.825.
On Friday morning, Moses Moody provided an update on his right wrist sprain, per Slater (Twitter video link). The fifth-year wing has gone some “high intensity workouts” the past couple days, though he’s still experiencing pain in his wrist, which is taped.
“I’ve been progressing over these last couple days,” Moody said. “I’ve taken some big strides. I’m shooting threes and all now so, I think (I’ll be back) pretty soon.”
Pistons First East Team To Clinch Playoff Spot
The Pistons became the first team in the Eastern Conference to clinch a playoff spot when they defeated Golden State on Friday.
Detroit, which was playing without star guard Cade Cunningham (collapsed lung) and backup center Isaiah Stewart (calf strain), received key contributions from several players in the win. Jalen Duren (a team-high 23 points in 21 minutes), Daniss Jenkins (22 points, eight assists, seven rebounds) and Ausar Thompson (career-high seven steals) were among the standouts.
Head coach J.B. Bickerstaff discussed the achievement after Friday’s game, as Hunter Patterson of The Athletic tweets.
“They’ve been a joy to coach,” Bickerstaff said. “They’ve been one of the most connected teams I’ve ever been a part of. I feel fortunate every single day I get to come to work with these guys. … The spirit they play with every night is just different here.”
The Pistons improved to 51-19 with the victory. They currently have a four-game lead over Boston for the top seed in the East.
The Thunder and Spurs, the only teams ahead of Detroit in the standings, both clinched spots in the West earlier this week.
No matter what happens the rest of the regular season, the Pistons can finish no worse than No. 6 in the East, which guarantees a playoff berth. They’re in a strong position to finish first, though their remaining schedule is pretty difficult.
2025/26 continued a dramatic turnaround for Detroit, which had the worst record (14-68) in the NBA just two years ago. The Pistons improved by 30 wins last season, going 44-38 en route to the sixth seed and a first-round playoff loss to New York. They have a chance to win 60-plus games this season.
Atlantic Notes: Poeltl, CMB, Alvarado, Clowney, MPJ
Jakob Poeltl doesn’t know the root cause of the back problems that caused him to miss 33 games this season, but the Raptors‘ starting center appears to be at full strength now and is grateful the issue seems to be behind him, per Michael Grange of Sportsnet.ca.
Poeltl is averaging 13.2 points, 8.7 rebounds, 2.3 assists, 1.4 blocks and 0.9 steals while shooting 70.8% from the field in his last nine appearances (27.9 minutes per game). The 30-year-old logged a season-high 36 minutes in Sunday’s victory over Detroit, finishing with 21 points (on 9-of-12 shooting), 18 rebounds and five assists in a matchup against All-Star Jalen Duren.
“I felt fine, honestly,” said Poeltl, who hadn’t played 36 minutes in a game since Dec. 1, 2024. “Every game’s a little bit different, like you have different energy and stuff. I felt good on Sunday. Felt fine afterwards. Obviously, after a big game, you feel your body aching a little bit, but I think that’s normal for everybody, so I wasn’t too worried.”
Poeltl admits the uncertain nature of his back injury presented several challenges, Grange writes.
“I think the hardest part about it was that there wasn’t a steady timeline,” he said. “With most injuries, you kind of know how long it’s gonna take, and sometimes it takes a bit longer or sometimes it takes a little less time but, generally, you know what the recovery process is.
“But what the time was exactly in this scenario was a big question mark. Like, we almost made up some timelines, kind of hoping that this would be when I would feel better again but, realistically, it wasn’t something that time was just gonna fix. So, I think that was the hardest part.”
Poeltl being healthy has given Toronto a boost at both ends of the court, but he’ll face some difficult matchups over the next few weeks, starting with Nuggets superstar Nikola Jokic on Friday in Denver, Grange notes.
Here’s more from the Atlantic:
- Lottery pick Collin Murray-Boyles won’t play Friday, but he should return from his left thumb sprain in the near future, Grange tweets. Raptors head coach Darko Rajakovic said the rookie forward/center, who has been scrimmaging and doing reconditioning work, is “very close” to playing again. Friday will mark Murray-Boyles’ 10th consecutive absence due to the thumb, which he originally injured in January.
- Regardless of whether he’s playing or not, Jose Alvarado brings consistent energy to the Knicks, according to Jared Schwartz of The New York Post. Star point guard Jalen Brunson doesn’t take Alvarado’s impact for granted. “Absolutely, it helps the team no matter what,” Brunson said after practice Thursday. “You kind of wish he was on the court because he’s a little bit quieter than on the bench. He does so much for this team on and off the court. It’s constant energy. Kind of regardless of how he’s playing, he always has the energy. That’s a skill, that’s a skill that makes someone last in the league a long time. It’s great to have him.”
- Nets forward Noah Clowney, who suffered a right wrist sprain in Wednesday’s loss to Oklahoma City, was out for Friday’s matchup with New York and will likely miss Sunday’s contest at Sacramento as well, head coach Jordi Fernandez told reporters, including Brian Lewis of The New York Post (Twitter link). Fernandez added that Clowney would be reevaluated following Sunday’s game.
- When asked whether Nets forward Michael Porter Jr. could play again this season — he’s out at least two-to-three weeks after suffering a right hamstring strain — Fernandez essentially gave a non-answer, as Lewis relays (via Twitter). “So, two or three weeks and then obviously there’s a ramp up to go back to a competition level,” Fernandez said. “We cannot predict but it’ll be close. So we’re going to go through these two, three weeks, put the work in and then we’ll see where we are.”
Magic Convert Jamal Cain To Standard Contract
The Magic are converting Jamal Cain‘s two-way deal to a standard NBA contract, reports Jason Beede of The Orlando Sentinel.
The team put out a press release officially confirming the news (Twitter link).
Cain, 27, will fill the Magic’s 15th and final standard roster spot and will now be eligible for the postseason. The team won’t be able to back-fill Cain’s two-way spot, as the deadline to sign players to two-way contracts expired on March 4.
As Beede writes, Cain had been active 43 times this season, seven shy of the 50-game limit for two-way players. Orlando has 13 games left on its regular season schedule.
After going undrafted in 2022, Cain spent two seasons with Miami and one with New Orleans prior to joining the Magic last summer. 2025/26 marked the fourth straight season he was on a two-way deal; this is the first standard contract of his career.
Although Cain hasn’t played a ton this season, averaging 3.5 points on .431/.415/.850 shooting in 8.0 minutes per game across 27 appearances, he has provided energy on both ends of the court when he has been given opportunities, according to Beede. Cain’s role has also increased recently amid injuries — he has appeared in four consecutive games (15.3 MPG), averaging 8.0 PPG and 3.3 RPG on .522/.462/1.000 shooting over that brief span.
Cain, who also played in nine G League games with the Osceola Magic, has drawn praise from his teammates for his diligent work ethic, Beede adds.
“One thing about Jamal is that he doesn’t lack confidence,” Paolo Banchero said recently about Cain. “Whether (or not) he doesn’t play 10 straight games, you know he’s ready to go every single game. He’s always working. So, he’s a talented player. Just to have a wing like that, being able to check in and affect the game both sides of the ball, it’s huge.”
Mavs’ Brandon Williams In Concussion Protocol
Mavericks guard Brandon Williams was unable to practice on Friday because he’s still in the NBA’s concussion protocol, according to Grant Afseth of DallasHoopsJournal.com.
“He’s riding the (stationary) bike and shooting. Those two things,” head coach Jason Kidd said.
According to the league’s latest injury report, Williams will miss his second straight game on Saturday against the Clippers. He was also out for Wednesday’s loss to Atlanta.
The 26-year-old was forced out of Monday’s loss at New Orleans after just five minutes after suffering a head injury.
Williams is a key reserve for the Mavs, Afseth writes, averaging 12.8 points, 3.8 assists and 2.8 rebounds in 60 appearances (22.0 minutes per game). The fourth-year guard is in the final season of his contract and will be an unrestricted free agent this summer.
Veteran wing Caleb Martin is questionable for Saturday’s contest due to a right heel contusion. He has missed the last two games and was unable to practice on Friday, per Afseth.
Ivica Zubac To Miss Rest Of Season With Fractured Rib
4:55 pm: The Pacers have officially confirmed Zubac’s injury in a press release. As expected, the 29-year-old big man will miss the rest of the season. He’s expected to make a full recovery, per the team.
10:02 am: Pacers center Ivica Zubac sustained a fractured rib in Wednesday’s loss to Portland, according to Dustin Dopirak of The Indianapolis Star (Twitter link), who reports that Zubac will sit out the rest of the season while he recovers from the injury.
Zubac left Wednesday’s game early, though his exit happened after he was on the wrong end of a Donovan Clingan elbow, and the head contusion he suffered on that play was the ailment he discussed during his post-game media session. It’s unclear when the rib fracture occurred.
Zubac, who was traded from the Clippers to Indiana at February’s deadline, was still recovering from a left ankle sprain at the time of the deal and didn’t make his Pacers debut until last week. He has been limited to just 48 total appearances this season due to various health issues.
In his five games as Indiana’s starting center – all losses – Zubac averaged 11.6 points, 7.2 rebounds, and 1.8 assists in 23.6 minutes per contest. His full-season averages were 14.1 PPG, 10.6 RPG, and 2.2 APG in 30.1 MPG.
Although Zubac was able to suit up for a few games as a Pacer this season, the team traded for him with an eye toward 2026/27 and beyond. With a healthy Zubac in the middle and star point guard Tyrese Haliburton back from his Achilles tear, Indiana is hopeful that it will once again become a title contender after coming within one win of a championship last June.
With Zubac unavailable, big man Jay Huff figures to reclaim a spot in the starting lineup. He started 15 of 16 games at the five between the start of February and Zubac’s debut. Reserve center Micah Potter, who lost his rotation spot with Zubac healthy, will likely resume playing regular minutes once he’s healthy. He was inactive on Tuesday and Wednesday due to a right triceps strain.
Bulls Notes: Miller, Smith, Ball, Okoro, Donovan
Third-year forward Leonard Miller has been a bright spot for the Bulls over the past couple weeks, writes Michael Grange of Sportsnet.ca. The 22-year-old Torontonian rarely received playing time in his two-and-a-half seasons in Minnesota, but he’s getting an opportunity to showcase his abilities with Chicago.
Over his last six games, Miller is averaging 13.2 points and 7.2 rebounds in 29.8 minutes per contest, with a shooting line of .533/.300/.872. The Bulls acquired him in the Ayo Dosunmu trade ahead of last month’s deadline.
“I mean, he’s got a really good motor. He’s good on the glass,” said head coach Billy Donovan. “I think, like any young player who did not really get a chance to play a lot early in his career … he’s got to get better in terms of the game plan and discipline, knowing the league, knowing who he’s guarding, those kinds of things.
“But I think he shoots the ball fairly well. He can put it on the floor some. I think he can be a very, very promising guy for us. I think what he’s done to this point in time, in a short period of time (of) getting the opportunity to play, he’s taking full advantage of it.”
The Bulls hold a $2.4MM team option on Miller for 2026/27. If they decline the option, he would be eligible for restricted free agency this summer.
Here’s more from Chicago:
- Big man Jalen Smith was disappointed in the Bulls’ effort following Wednesday’s loss to Toronto, according to Joe Cowley of The Chicago Sun-Times. “We had no fight,” Smith said. “This is the third time we’ve played them and we’ve gotten punked. At the end of the day we just got to want it. We’ve got to have that fight and we have to have that grit. I honestly couldn’t tell you [why], it’s basketball so every day isn’t going to be perfect, but we’ve got to figure out what else can we do to impact the game. It’s just a mental game right now for us.”
- With the Cavs visiting on Thursday, Donovan reflected on last summer’s trade that sent Lonzo Ball to Cleveland and Isaac Okoro to Chicago, per Cowley. Donovan has been pleased with Okoro’s play and team-first attitude, but feels empathy for Ball, who is an unrestricted free agent after he was salary-dumped to Utah and subsequently waived by the Jazz. “I loved him as a player and a guy, and he was so cerebral,” Donovan said of Ball, who missed nearly three calendar years with a knee injury. “He was so selfless, that’s really one of the things I admired. To see him have to go through what he went through, to fight to get back, see what he’s going through now, that’s tough for me because it’s almost like what could have been, how good could he have been?“
- Dosunmu said on Tuesday that mid-range shots were “really prohibited” during his time with the Bulls, but Donovan pushed back on that notion, as Cowley writes in another story. Donovan pointed out that DeMar DeRozan, Zach LaVine and Nikola Vucevic all took a good amount of mid-range jumpers while Dosunmu was on the team. “I think you have to play to players’ strengths, so I’m a believer in the first part of the shot clock you certainly want to try and get something downhill to the basket, and generally what happens is when the ball gets into the paint and the ball gets sprayed out that’s when the threes are going to go up,” Donovan said in part. “Most of the time the mid-range stuff is coming off (isolation) situations. It’s late clock, a guy is stuck with the ball, and at that time you’ve got to manufacture and generate shots.”
Hoops Rumors Glossary: Minimum Salary Exception
The minimum salary exception is something of a last resort for capped-out teams looking to add players, as well as for players seeking NBA contracts, but it’s one of the most commonly used cap exceptions.
As its name suggests, the minimum salary exception allows an over-the-cap team to sign a player to a minimum-salary deal. A contract signed using the minimum salary exception can be a one- or two-year deal, but can’t cover more than two seasons.
Teams can use the exception multiple times in a league year, giving clubs that have used all of their cap room and other exceptions an avenue to fill out their rosters. The exception also accommodates teams’ acquisitions of minimum-salary players via trade, as players signed via the minimum salary exception don’t count as incoming salary for salary-matching purposes.
Players are entitled to varying minimum salaries based on how long they’ve been in the NBA. In 2025/26, a player with no prior NBA experience was eligible for a $1,272,870 minimum salary, while a player with 10 or more years of experience was eligible for $3,634,153.
[RELATED: NBA Minimum Salaries For 2025/26]
Under the NBA’s current Collective Bargaining Agreement, the minimum salary is adjusted each season to reflect the year-to-year salary cap change. If the cap increases by 5%, so will minimum salaries. If the cap doesn’t change from one season to the next, neither will minimum salaries.
Our minimum-salary estimates for 2026/27, based on a projected salary cap of $166MM, can be found right here.
There’s a wide disparity between the minimum salary for rookies and for long-tenured players, with a minimum-salary veteran of 10+ seasons earning nearly three times as much as a rookie making the minimum next season. The NBA doesn’t want those pricier deals to discourage clubs from signing veterans, however, so the league reimburses teams for a portion of a minimum-salary player’s cost if he has three or more years of experience, as long as the contract is a one-year deal.
For example, when the Kings signed 17-year veteran Russell Westbrook to a one-year pact ahead of the 2025/26 season using the minimum salary exception, he locked in a salary of $3,634,153, but the team’s cap hit was just $2,296,274, equivalent to the minimum salary for a player with two years of NBA experience. The league will reimburse the Kings for the difference between Westbrook’s salary and cap hit ($1,337,879).
Many salary cap exceptions can only be used once each season. When a team uses its full mid-level exception to sign one or more players, the club can no longer use that exception until the following league year. Unlike the mid-level and other cap exceptions though, the minimum salary exception can be used any number of times in a single season.
The Bucks, for instance, used the minimum salary exception to sign Gary Harris, Taurean Prince, Jericho Sims, Thanasis Antetokounmpo, Cole Anthony, and Chris Livingston last offseason. They also used it during the season to add Cam Thomas on a rest-of-season contract.
While many exceptions begin to prorate midway through the regular season, the minimum salary exception prorates beginning after opening night. If a season is 174 days long and a player signs a minimum-salary deal after 25 days have passed, he would only be paid for 149 days.
An example of a prorated minimum salary occurred when the Kings signed Killian Hayes on March 15. Hayes has five years of NBA experience, so he would’ve been eligible for a full-season minimum salary of $2,667,947. But because he signed on the 146th day of the regular season, he received just 29/174ths of that amount: $444,658.
In cases where a veteran player signs a one-year contract using the minimum salary exception midway through a season, his cap hit is prorated in the same way that his salary is.
For example, when Tyus Jones joined the Nuggets on March 5, there were 39 days left in the ’25/26 season. He earned a rest-of-season salary of $814,552 (39/174ths of his full-season minimum of $3,634,153), while his cap hit was $514,682 (39/174ths of $2,296,274, the minimum salary for a player with two years of experience).
When a player signs a two-year contract using the minimum salary exception, his second-year salary is locked in as part of that agreement. Depending on the amount of the second-year cap increase, he may end up making more or less than the amount he would have earned if he’d instead signed two consecutive one-year minimum contracts.
On a two-year, minimum-salary deal, the player’s second-year salary is worth 105% of the first-year minimum for a player with the same years of NBA experience.
For instance, a rookie signing a two-year minimum-salary deal in 2025/26 would be assured of $2,150,917 in ’26/27, once he has one year of NBA experience under his belt — that’s 5% more than the minimum for a player with one year of NBA experience in ’25/26 ($2,048,494).
Finally, it’s worth noting that the minimum salary exception can be used to claim a player off waivers in the same way that it can be used to trade for a player. However, in the case of both trades and waiver claims, a minimum-salary player can’t be acquired using the minimum salary exception if his contract is for more than two years or if his salary exceeded the minimum in any previous year of the contract.
When the Jazz waived Vince Williams Jr. earlier this month, he was earning a $2,301,587 salary, which was his minimum for this season at the time he signed. But Williams was in the third year of his contract and had earned more than the minimum in his first season of that deal back in 2023/24 — both of those factors made him ineligible to be claimed using the minimum salary exception, so if a team had wanted to claim him, it would have needed to use cap room or another exception, such as the mid-level or bi-annual.
Here are a few more notes on the minimum salary exception:
- Players signed using the minimum salary exception are eligible for trade bonuses, but not incentive bonuses. A minimum-salary player with a trade bonus cannot be acquired in a trade using the minimum salary exception unless he waives that bonus.
- When a minimum-salary player is traded during the season, any reimbursement from the NBA is split between his two teams. It’s prorated based on the number of days he spends with each club.
- If a minimum-salary player with a non-guaranteed salary is waived before he exceeds the minimum for a two-year veteran, his team won’t be reimbursed for any portion of his salary.
- Every 10-day contract is worth a prorated minimum salary. The NBA also reimburses teams for a portion of the 10-day minimum salary for veterans with three or more years of experience.
- A team isn’t permitted to sign a player using the minimum salary exception if the deal would push that club’s salary beyond its hard cap. The only exception to this rule is when a team is using the exception to sign a player to an Exhibit 9 or Exhibit 10 contract prior to the regular season, since those deals don’t count against the cap until the season begins.
Note: This is a Hoops Rumors Glossary entry. Our glossary posts will explain specific rules relating to trades, free agency, or other aspects of the NBA’s Collective Bargaining Agreement. Larry Coon’s Salary Cap FAQ and the Basketball Insiders salary pages were used in the creation of this post.
Earlier versions of this post were published in previous years by Luke Adams and Chuck Myron.
Lakers Notes: Doncic, LeBron, Kleber, LaRavia, Redick
Lakers stars Luka Doncic (right hip soreness) and LeBron James (left foot arthritis) were initially listed as questionable for Thursday’s game vs. the Heat on the second night of a back-to-back set, but both players ended up suiting up and submitting historic performances.
As Dave McMenamin of ESPN writes, Doncic poured in a season-high 60 points en route to a 134-126 win, earning MVP chants from the crowd despite playing on the road in Miami’s Kaseya Center. The 27-year-old increased his NBA-best scoring average to 33.4 points per game and led the Lakers to their eighth straight win, making a case that he needs to start being mentioned among the frontrunners for this season’s Most Valuable Player award.
“He’s playing as well as anyone in basketball,” Lakers head coach JJ Redick said. “He’s really elevated his play at a really important time for our team. He’s elevated the play of his teammates. I think there’s a trust level that we all have — coaches, teammates — with him closing games for us. He’s been fantastic, and I think he’s one of the best and should be in the MVP conversation. Hopefully people will start talking about that because he’s having as good a season as anyone.”
James, meanwhile, compiled 19 points, 15 rebounds, and 10 assists to register a triple-double for the 124th time in his career. But he made history by simply stepping on the court. It was the 1,611th regular season game of his NBA career, tying Robert Parish‘s all-time record.
“If anyone is deserving of breaking the iron man record, I would say LeBron James is,” Parish told McMenamin in a Thursday phone call. “Because he takes such good care of himself. … His approach to fitness and what he puts into his body reflects, or mirrors, how I felt about my fitness and what I ate, how I took care of myself. And so, it’s a testament to not only my longevity, but LeBron’s longevity. … He’s playing at an All-Star level still, which is equally impressive.”
We have more on the Lakers:
- Lakers big man Maxi Kleber didn’t play vs. Miami, sitting out for a sixth straight game due to a back strain, but he appears to be nearing a return. The team announced on Thursday that Kleber had been assigned to the South Bay Lakers to practice with the G League team, tweets Khobi Price of the California Post.
- Among the Lakers’ 2025 offseason additions, Jake LaRavia was somewhat overshadowed by former No. 1 overall pick Deandre Ayton and former Defensive Player of the Year Marcus Smart, but LaRavia has played the second-most total minutes of any Laker this season and is the only player on the roster to appear in all 70 regular season games so far. Redick spoke on Wednesday about the forward’s importance to the team, as Benjamin Royer of the Orange County Register relays (Twitter link).
- While the Lakers looked like paper tigers during the first half of the season as they compiled a strong record despite a negative point differential, they’ve come on strong in recent weeks and are establishing themselves as a more serious threat entering the postseason, according to Law Murray of The Athletic (Twitter link), who notes that Los Angeles has gained the tiebreaker edge over Denver, Houston, and Minnesota based on head-to-head results.
- Melissa Rohlin of the California Post argues that Redick deserves more credit than he’s getting for his growth as a head coach and the work he has done with the Lakers this season.