Knicks Notes: Brunson, Robinson, Rose, Sacrifice
Jalen Brunson accomplished something no other Knick has since the turn of the millennium, leading New York to the Finals for a shot at bringing home the first Knicks championship since 1973. For the people who have watched him the most, this success is only natural, given the makeup of who he is as a player.
“He has an iron will. He’s not tall, he’s not fast, he’s not overly athletic. But he’s one of the mentally strongest players I’ve ever been around,” said longtime Knicks and ESPN broadcaster Mike Breen in an interview with Steve Serby of the New York Post. “They talk about Michael Jordan, they talk about Kobe Bryant … in terms of mental toughness, I’d put him up there with anybody.”
Breen, who has worked alongside Knicks legend Walt Frazier for years, says that regardless of whether or not the Knicks beat the Spurs, Brunson has put himself in the conversation for the greatest Knick of all time, despite only being with the team for four seasons.
Brunson is also making a special kind of history, as his appearance in the Finals marks the first time that a father-son duo both played in the NBA Finals for the same team, the NBA tweeted. Brunson’s father and Knicks assistant coach Rick Brunson played for the Knicks in their 1999 Finals matchup against, coincidentally, the Spurs. The elder Brunson played just 10 seconds in the series as a bench depth piece, while the younger Brunson’s responsibilities will be considerably greater.
We have more news and notes from the Knicks:
- According to head coach Mike Brown, Mitchell Robinson did some individual work during the Knicks’ practice today, per Stefan Bondy of the Post (Twitter link). Brown said he wasn’t sure exactly what Robinson is wearing to protect his pinkie, which recently underwent surgery, nor could he provide an availability update for Game 1. The Knicks’ back-up big man figures to play a crucial role in the series, if healthy, as his size, defensive ability, and offensive rebounding could be a critical part of New York’s plan to deal with Victor Wembanyama.
- Team president Leon Rose took over a Knicks team that was in the midst of what would end up being a 21-45 season that was cut short by COVID. The first decision he made was to hire Tom Thibodeau to lead the team into what he hoped would be a resurgence of competitiveness. That was move 1 of 160 that brought the team from perpetual bottom-feeder to NBA Finalists, Mike Vaccaro writes for the Post. While there were a couple of missteps, such as the summer of Kemba Walker and Evan Fournier, he was able to quickly fix his own mistakes as easily as he moved on from previous mistakes.
- If there’s one word that describes the makeup of this Knicks team, it’s sacrifice — so much so that the door of the team locker room has a “Standard of a Champion” contract signed by every player and coach, Jared Schwartz writes for the Post. “My willingness to sacrifice at the highest level for the team, on and off the floor will represent my dedication to our collective objective,” says the first clause in the contract. The players have taken that to heart, whether it’s Karl-Anthony Towns sacrificing shots in order to help facilitate the team offense, Jordan Clarkson shifting from the run-and-gun style he played in Utah to hustling for offensive rebounds and intensifying his defensive intensity, or Robinson being willing to play as few or as many minutes as needed, despite being one of the premier defensive big men in the league. “Being unselfish, I think that’s the biggest thing,” Josh Hart said. “And where we’re at right now, everyone is unselfish. We’re willing to sacrifice numbers and stats for the betterment of the team. And I think when we do that, we’re playing our best basketball.”
Thunder Notes: SGA, J-Dub, Mitchell, Wallace, More
After largely struggling in the first six games of the Western Conference finals, back-to-back MVP Shai Gilgeous-Alexander was excellent for the Thunder in Saturday’s Game 7 loss to San Antonio, finishing with 35 points (on 12-of-21 shooting), nine assists, four rebounds, three steals and one block in a game-high 43 minutes.
“He was brilliant,” head coach Mark Daigneault said, per Joe Mussatto of The Oklahoman (subscriber link). “… Obviously that would’ve been one of the stories of the game had we been able to figure out a way to win it.”
The 27-year-old guard credited the Spurs after the game, as Tim Reynolds of The Associated Press relays.
“Yeah, they’re young, they’re talented, well-coached,” Gilgeous-Alexander said. “Play the right way, play together, seems like they like each other. They have the makeup, for sure. You don’t beat us without the makeup and they beat us. They have the makeup to go get one.”
Gilgeous-Alexander, who acknowledged the roster might look different next season due to the ever-changing nature of the NBA, said he won’t be involved in any personnel moves.
“I will give zero input. I will let Sam Presti, the greatest GM ever, do his job,” he said (Twitter video link via Michael Scotto of HoopsHype).
- As Tim MacMahon of ESPN writes, the Thunder refused to use injuries an excuse after the loss even though they weren’t at full strength; Jalen Williams (hamstring) and Ajay Mitchell (calf strain) were both sidelined for most of the series. Alex Caruso noted that injuries are part of any playoff run and Oklahoma City was fortunate last year but “unlucky” in 2025/26 in that regard. Still, several members of the Thunder felt as though they still could’ve come out on top. “To be a 64-win team, have the net rating we did, overcome some of the adversities we did in the season, is something we’re incredibly proud of,” Daigneault said. “It’s something we can build on. When you have a team that’s together for a long time, you have to grow from every experience, including the tough ones. And it’s the NBA — there are tough ones. And we can also be really disappointed. We felt like we could have won the series, obviously, right there in the game and in the series. There’s nobody that we don’t think we can beat, respectfully.”
- Daigneault admitted on Sunday that the absences of Williams and Mitchell lowered the Thunder’s ceiling but said he’s looking forward to a having Williams healthy again in 2026/27 after he was plagued by various injuries over the past year-plus, according to Joel Lorenzi of The Athletic (Twitter video link). “Missing (Williams) impacts your ceiling. Missing Ajay Mitchell impacts your ceiling. But we’ve been able to maintain a really high floor. I’m proud of that,” Daigneault said. “That’s a huge accomplishment for the season, and it will pay dividends moving forward and will pay dividends for us this year. … I’m excited about a healthy Jalen Williams. I’m excited about a healthy team and what that can look like moving forward. So that becomes the priority especially with him. It was a tough year for him, and we need to do everything we can to get him in full form, and he does too.”
- Gilgeous-Alexander referred to ’25/26 as a failure on Sunday since he and the team were unable to win their second straight championship, writes Anthony Slater of ESPN. “I failed at my goal,” Gilgeous-Alexander said. “I didn’t achieve what I wanted to achieve. But I learn the most about myself and make the greatest amount of increases in my career when I fail and don’t get what I want. I look at this no different. I didn’t get where I wanted to go this season. There’s a reason for that. Now I have to look at that reason and try to make sure it never happens again.”
- Williams believes he would’ve made a difference in the series had he been healthy, tweets Justin Martinez of The Oklahoman. “I don’t do the hypothetical thing too much because it does not solve anything that’s going on right now,” Williams said. “But to humor your question, obviously I think I could have made an impact. I think we could have won if I played. We went to seven with them without me playing. I don’t think I make us worse. That’s really my answer to that. It’s also hats off to (San Antonio). What do you want them to do about me being hurt? … We’ll just have to wait until we meet again at some point.”
- Cason Wallace, who made a number of huge plays in the fourth quarter to keep the Thunder in Game 7, said he loves being part of the team but signing a rookie scale extension this offseason isn’t his top priority, according to Rylan Stiles of SI.com (Twitter link). “Love the Thunder. But you know I’m more focused on getting better this summer and being able to go out there and compete next season,” said the former lottery pick, who was named to the All-Defensive Second Team in ’25/26.
Spurs Notes: Wembanyama, Kornet, Champagnie, K. Johnson
Victor Wembanyama was overcome with emotion when the Spurs defeated the defending champions on Saturday night to advance to the NBA Finals for the first time since 2014, writes Anthony Slater of ESPN.
“Winning the Larry O’Brien, it’s a childhood dream,” Wembanyama said. “Having a real shot at it, having a chance, tangible chance at winning it, realizing a dream. … The day we win it, speaking for myself, it’s going to be an amazing day of a realization of a dream. It’s hard to put into words. It’s almost like the meaning of my life.”
Former NBA guard and current NBC analyst Jamal Crawford told Jared Weiss of The Athletic he knew Wembanyama had a special ability to handle pressure and quickly learn new skills when he worked with him in the 2024 offseason. The French big man said learning how to channel his emotions has been one of the keys to his success, even if it’s an ongoing work in progress.
“This game is so hard, this team [The Thunder] is so good, that you gotta use every single emotion you got in you in order to win,” Wembanyama said on NBC’s postgame show. “Like, sometimes, these emotions (are) passion. It’s love for the game. Sometimes it’s anger. Sometimes it might even be jealousy, but I don’t wanna weigh myself down with any of these energies. I use them on the court.”
According to Weiss, Wembanyama has leaned on his teammates, coaches, franchise legends and his camp and family as he navigates his first postseason. The French big man “hugged every member of the Spurs organization he could find” after the final buzzer, and after he was awarded the Magic Johnson trophy for winning Western Conference finals MVP, he brought it over to Spurs fans to let them touch it and show his appreciation.
“I would say what I learned is I can go through hurdles that I didn’t know those hurdles could get so high,” Wembanyama said. “It’s just pushing through. I found resources inside of me, relentlessness. I already knew that, but doing it at this level, this is the best basketball on the planet that’s being played right now.
“The crazy thing is, maybe I’m crazy for that, but I want to do that 15, 20 more times,” Wembanyama said. “Let’s hope it doesn’t become an addiction. Maybe it is already.”
Here’s more on the Spurs:
- Wembanyama received plenty of help in Saturday’s Game 7 victory in Oklahoma City. De’Aaron Fox, Stephon Castle, Dylan Harper, Julian Champagnie and Keldon Johnson all delivered in key moments, but the Spurs say the biggest play of the game may have belonged to backup big man Luke Kornet, according to Tom Orsborn of The San Antonio Express-News (subscriber link). With the Spurs up six with about six-and-a-half minutes remaining in the fourth quarter, Kornet had an epic chase down block on Isaiah Hartenstein, who was going for a breakaway dunk after stealing Castle’s entry pass. “I’ve never seen Luke run that fast,” Champagnie said. “He was hauling, man, hauling.” As Orsborn notes, Castle made a pull-up jumper to put the Spurs up eight after the block then Champagnie hit a three-pointer to push the lead back up to 11. “That’s a momentum play. If they get that dunk, the crowd gets into it, guys start to feel good, and you never know what happens,” Champagnie continued. “Guys make some shots and instead of it being a six-point game it’s a two-point game, a whole different ball game. So shout out to Luke. I think that was the biggest play of the game. It took all the life out of the building. That play right there gave us the step we needed to keep the lead and keep pushing.” As
- As Kelly Iko of Yahoo Sports details, Champagnie struggled in the first four games against the Thunder but he delivered again with San Antonio’s season on the line, pouring in 20 points while making 6-of-10 from long distance, grabbing six rebounds and playing high-level defense. He was a game-high plus-16 in 38 minutes. “Julian is amazing,” Wembanyama said. “He deserves everything that he gets. And he’s the type of guy that makes you wanna die for him on the court because he gives so much effort. And he’s got such an amazing story — he got cut in the NBA a few years back. He’s had tough moments, but he keeps pushing and now he’s taken his team to the NBA Finals.”
- Johnson, the longest-tenured member of the team, has had relatively quiet postseason after being named the league’s Sixth Man of the Year. However, the 26-year-old said his confidence never wavered after scoring eight points in the fourth quarter on Saturday. “My teammates and my coaches continued to believe in me,” he said, per Orsborn (subscription required). “I continued to believe in myself. I knew the tide would turn eventually. I didn’t know when. I didn’t know how. But I knew that as long as I just stayed engaged, stayed locked in, it would pay off. I couldn’t write it any other way than how it went today. It’s been a hard playoffs for me. There’s no denying that, but it makes it all worth it when you have big moments like this in Game 7.”
Hartenstein, Dort, K. Williams Hope To Stay With Thunder
Oklahoma City was unable to defend its championship in 2025/26, having been eliminated by San Antonio on Saturday night in Game 7 of the Western Conference finals. No matter how their season ended, the Thunder were going to have to decide what route they wanted to take with Isaiah Hartenstein, Luguentz Dort and Kenrich Williams.
The Thunder currently project to have a payroll of about $196.2MM in ’26/27 with 12 players under contract. That doesn’t account for the team options for starting center Hartenstein ($28.5MM), starting forward Dort ($18.2MM), or reserve forward Williams ($7.2MM).
There’s technically nothing preventing Oklahoma City from exercising all three of those options as long as ownership is willing to foot the luxury tax bill. Picking up all the options would see the Thunder go soaring past the second apron (projected to be $221.7MM) though, and they could be facing a roster crunch. They control a pair of first-round picks (Nos. 12 and 17) in the upcoming draft, and players selected in the first round get four-year contracts, with the first two being guaranteed.
Williams was straightforward in his desire to stay with the Thunder long term, according to Rylan Stiles of SI.com (Twitter link).
“It’s no secret that I want to be here until I’m done playing,” said Williams. “Just the environment, the culture, the people that I work with every day. This is a job where I can come in and be myself and everybody around me is good people and a good environment.”
Hartenstein was a little more guarded in his response, noting the decision is largely the team’s, but made it clear he loves the franchise, as Justin Martinez of The Oklahoman tweets.
“We just lost yesterday, so at the end of the day, that’s something that will be discussed more at the end,” said Hartenstein, likely referring to the end of June, the deadline for the team option. “I love being here. I love the organization, but it’s a lot in their hands. I think that them and my agent will talk. It’s a business at the end of the day. But whatever happens, I’m truly grateful.”
Dort, the longest-tenured member of the team, said his priority is to stay with the Thunder, per Joel Lorenzi of The Athletic (Twitter link).
“The conversation hasn’t happened yet. I have a lot of trust in this organization, in (head of basketball operations) Sam (Presti),” Dort said. “Really grateful for all the stuff he did for me to this point. I want to stay here. This organization, this city shaped me as a player. My main goal is to stay here.”
Thunder Not Expected To Pursue Giannis, Interested In Mobley?
The Spurs not only caught up to the Thunder sooner than expected but surpassed them by eliminating the defending champions in Oklahoma City on Saturday night, according to Sam Amick of The Athletic. The big question now facing the Thunder is how the team can solve the unprecedented challenge that Victor Wembanyama presents.
While a major roster overhaul would be shocking considering the Thunder were 71-14 against every other team in the league in 2025/26, they went just 4-8 against San Antonio in what could be the beginning of a long rivalry.
League sources have told Amick throughout the season that Oklahoma City is not expected to pursue Bucks superstar Giannis Antetokounmpo, though speculation will undoubtedly pick up on that front in the wake of the Thunder being eliminated. Amick has also heard “chatter” for some time about the Thunder being interested in Evan Mobley, whom Cavaliers president of basketball operations (Koby Altman) recently called “part of our future.”
As Dan Woike of The Athletic writes, one key player who really struggled under the bright lights of Game 7 was big man Chet Holmgren, who was named to the All-NBA Third Team and finished runner-up to Wembanyama in Defensive Player of the Year voting. Holmgren finished with just four points (on 1-of-2 shooting), four rebounds, two steals, two blocks and two turnovers in 33 minutes.
“They’re a unique team in terms of personnel, what their personnel does,” Holmgren said softly after the game. “I don’t think there’s another team that has the same kind of play style.”
Holmgren’s struggles against Wembanyama and the Spurs aren’t a new development, as he was largely ineffective during the 12 combined times the two teams faced off in 2025/26. The 24-year-old center/forward averaged 10.7 points, 7.1 and 1.1 blocks in 29.9 minutes per game with a shooting line of .510/.273/.769 during the Western Conference finals, a far cry from the numbers he posted during the first two rounds of the playoffs (18.6 PPG, 9.1 RPG, 1.8 BPG, 1.4 SPG on .600/.387/.885 shooting).
“That’s not all on him,” Thunder head coach Mark Daigneault said. “I actually thought he played his minutes pretty well. You know, I thought that run at the end of the second quarter that got us back going and cut into the (lead), I mean, he was a huge part of that in ways that may not be in the box score visibly.”
While Daigneault certainly wasn’t wrong in that assessment of that stretch, Woike points out that Holmgren was unable to sustain that level of play throughout the game. Jenni Carlson of The Oklahoman (subscriber link), graded Holmgren’s Game 7 performance as an “F,” while her colleague Joe Mussatto gave Cason Wallace an A+.
“There’s no running from improvement,” Holmgren said, per Woike. “I always look at it as no matter what — good, bad, win, loss, whatever it might be — you have to continue to improve. So, that’s the mindset.”
The Thunder will face some difficult roster decisions this summer, with the five-year, maximum-salary extensions for Holmgren and Jalen Williams set to begin in 2026/27 and sizeable team options on Isaiah Hartenstein, Luguentz Dort and Kenrich Williams.
Still, Alex Caruso was defiant in his belief that the Spurs aren’t a problem that can’t be solved, Woike adds.
“There’s nothing that needs to be solved,” Alex Caruso said. “We could have won the game (Saturday), and we would have been asking them maybe the same thing. I don’t think there’s this huge narrative of, like, this is a bugaboo. … We should have played better and won the game and been in the NBA Finals.
“They’re a good team, they’re young. We’re a good team, we’re young. Both will probably be around for a while, so we gotta get better and try to win next time.”
Heat Notes: Ellington, East, Giannis, Morant, More
Wayne Ellington says “it was an easy decision” to rejoin the Heat when he started his coaching career in 2023, writes Anthony Chiang of The Miami Herald. The former NBA shooting guard played for nine different teams during his 13 years in the league, last suiting up for the Lakers in 2021/22.
Ellington, who had some of his best seasons as a player in his two-plus years with the Miami under head coach Erik Spoelstra, will be the Heat’s summer league coach in July for both the California Classic and the league-wide competition in Las Vegas.
“This is the next step in my journey, and I’m super excited for it,” Ellington said Friday during a teleconference with a few South Florida reporters. “I’m super appreciative of the opportunity and the confidence that Spo and the front office has in me, allowing me to do this this summer. So I’m looking forward to it.”
As Chiang notes, Ellington was a player development coach in his first year on the Heat’s staff and has been an assistant the past two seasons. The 38-year-old, who is one of four former Heat players on Spoelstra staff, says he’s learned a lot over the years from his own coaches and aspires to become a head coach.
“Obviously, my next step is to be a bench coach. And then, yeah, I do have the ambition to be a head coach one day,” Ellington said. “I’m still growing and still learning, obviously. But that is my goal in the end.”
Here’s more from Miami:
- The way the Eastern Conference playoffs transpired, Heat president Pat Riley may have been right in his belief that the team wasn’t as far from making another trip to the NBA Finals as it appeared on the surface after a 10th place finish and a quick play-in exit, according to Ira Winderman of The South Florida Sun Sentinel. Riley expressed a belief that Miami could have been a player (or a few lucky breaks) away from being near the top of the conference. “I think we were competitive as hell,” Riley said at his end-of-season press conference last month. “Yes, do I think we might have got up there? The only two teams that I would consider that I would be uncomfortable playing against would be OKC and San Antonio. And they’re out there (in the Western Conference). But if I can get into the (NBA) Finals, just like we did in ’23, then I would be happy.” As Winderman writes, while the Knicks were absolutely dominant in their run to the finals, they were also fortunate in the sense that they didn’t have to play the Pistons (who swept New York during the regular season) or Boston, and will now face their third straight opponent coming off a seven-game series.
- In a mailbag column (subscriber link), Winderman observes that the Heat are in a tricky spot from a salary-matching standpoint if they try to trade for a star player like Giannis Antetokounmpo, since Tyler Herro is the only mid-to-large salary currently on their books aside from Bam Adebayo, who is said to be off limits. Still, Winderman thinks it’s a good time for Miami to make a trade from an asset perspective, since the team has some appealing young players who may or may not continue to improve. He also answers a question about whether the Magic would be able to trump the Heat’s offer for Antetokounmpo if Orlando includes a package headlined by Paolo Banchero.
- In another subscriber-only mailbag, Winderman says the Heat shouldn’t offer any draft picks to the Grizzlies if they pursue Ja Morant as a fallback option. In fact, Winderman says he would require Memphis to take on Nikola Jovic‘s four-year, $62.4MM extension to offset some of the money owed to Morant. Herro would still likely have to be involved in that framework though, Winderman notes, likely in a multi-team deal, which makes it less appealing from the Heat’s perspective.
2026 NBA Offseason Preview: Sacramento Kings
It doesn't seem long ago that the "Beam Team" Kings were snapping a record-breaking 16-year playoff drought after going 48-34 and finishing as the No. 3 seed in a surprising 2022/23 season. Sacramento proceeded to lose to Golden State -- the defending champions at the time -- in a seven-game first-round series.
That Kings group, led by De'Aaron Fox, Domantas Sabonis and head coach Mike Brown, went 46-36 the following season, but those two fewer wins resulted in the team falling all the way to No. 9 in the standings. Sacramento got revenge on the Warriors in the 9/10 play-in game, but lost to the Pelicans with a chance to advance as the West's No. 8 seed.
The Kings weren't as content to run back the same group in the 2024 offseason, making an aggressive three-team sign-and-trade to acquire DeMar DeRozan. It was a suspect move at the time, considering they gave up Harrison Barnes and a 2031 first-round pick swap (to San Antonio), plus Chris Duarte and a pair of second-round picks (to Chicago), in order to sign DeRozan to a three-year contract worth nearly $75MM.
After a 13-18 start to 2024/25, the Kings fired Brown and named Doug Christie -- an ex-Kings guard and then-assistant on Brown's staff -- his interim replacement. They also traded Fox after the star point guard indicated he wouldn't sign an extension in Sacramento, once again making a controversial three-team deal involving the Bulls and Spurs that saw Sacramento receive two first-round picks, four second-rounders, and the maximum-salary contract of Zach LaVine.
Perhaps unsurprisingly, owner Vivek Ranadive reportedly pushed the former front office regime to acquire both DeRozan and LaVine, who had proven to be a ill-fitting pair together in Chicago for multiple seasons leading up to the deals.
Sacramento played a little better under Christie, going 27-24 and finishing the season as the ninth seed. The team lost its first play-in contest against Dallas though, marking another early postseason exit.
The Kings parted ways with former general manager Monte McNair after the '24/25 season and quickly replaced him with Scott Perry, a former Pistons and Knicks executive who previously had a brief stint in Sacramento. Perry's first roster moves were draft-focused. He sent a protected 2027 first-rounder to Oklahoma City to land the 24th pick (Nique Clifford) in last year's draft, then added Maxime Raynaud with the 42nd pick and signed Dylan Cardwell to a two-way contract after the former Auburn big man went undrafted.
Although the Kings were reportedly open to trying to acquire Jonathan Kuminga in a sign-and-trade with the Warriors, nothing came to fruition on that front. Their main free agency move was acquiring Dennis Schröder in a sign-and-trade deal with Detroit, and they eventually signed Russell Westbrook and Precious Achiuwa to round out their roster.
Unfortunately for fans in Sacramento, the 2025/26 campaign was pretty close to a worst-case scenario for the Kings, who entered the season with playoff aspirations and finished just 22-60, tied for the fourth-worst record in the NBA. Their two highest-paid players -- LaVine and Sabonis -- combined to play just 58 games due to injuries, while a third starter -- Keegan Murray -- was limited to a career-low 23 appearances because of his own ailments.
The Schröder acquisition didn't work out, as the Kings ended up trading him in February to acquire De'Andre Hunter from Cleveland. Sacramento also sent out Keon Ellis (to the Cavs), plus Dario Saric and a 2028 second-round pick (to the Bulls) in that three-team deal. There were rumors the Kings could've gotten second-round picks for Ellis, but they instead prioritized adding Hunter, who provides a different skill set and a much pricier contract. Hunter was forced to undergo season-ending surgery after he was inadvertently poked in the eye in his second game as a King.
After a 16-game losing streak that stretched from January 18 through February 21, Sacramento was just 12-46 and had a three-game lead on the Pacers at the "top" of the NBA's reverse standings. However, the Kings somewhat inexplicably decided to keep trying to win games even though every other team near the bottom was clearly prioritizing draft positioning. They went 10-14 down the stretch to finish tied with the Jazz for the fourth-worst record.
A pre-lottery tiebreaker determined whether Utah or Sacramento would end up No. 4 in the pre-lottery order, and the Jazz ended up winning that drawing, which turned out to be highly consequential; they moved up to No. 2 in the draft lottery, while the Kings slipped from No. 5 to No. 7. If the Kings had remained at the very bottom of the standings, their lottery floor would have been the fifth overall pick. For what it's worth, the Wizards -- who went 1-26 down the stretch to finish with the worst record -- landed the first pick.
As poorly as 2025/26 went for the Kings, they still have a chance to add a potential All-Star caliber talent with the seventh pick in what's viewed as an excellent draft. They also control two second-rounders (Nos. 34 and 45) as they look to establish a young core alongside Clifford, Raynaud and Cardwell, who were a relative collective bright spot in what was largely a season to forget.
The Kings' Offseason Plans
While adding a foundational player at No. 7 will be the top priority in Sacramento this offseason, figuring out how to trim payroll isn't far behind. As of now, the Kings project to not only be a taxpayer in 2026/27 but also over the first tax apron, which is untenable given the (poor) state of the roster.
Spurs Reach NBA Finals; Victor Wembanyama Named MVP Of WCF
The Spurs won a tough Game 7 at Oklahoma City on Saturday night to advance to the NBA Finals for the first time since 2014. The 111-103 victory sets up a matchup with the Knicks for the NBA championship, with Game 1 tipping off Wednesday night in San Antonio.
Victor Wembanyama was a unanimous choice as Most Valuable Player of the Western Conference Finals (Twitter links). He received the Earvin “Magic” Johnson trophy in a vote by nine media members.
Wembanyama played 42 minutes in Game 7, finishing with 22 points, seven rebounds and two assists, and he got plenty of help from his teammates.
De’Aaron Fox contributed 15 points, five assists and three steals and hit several big shots to stave off Thunder rallies. Julian Champagnie added 20 points with six three-pointers, Keldon Johnson sank two crucial threes in the fourth quarter and backup center Luke Kornet may have made the play of the game by blocking Isaiah Hartenstein on a breakaway (Twitter video link).
League MVP Shai Gilgeous-Alexander finished with 35 points, with many of them coming on difficult shots over multiple defenders. Cason Wallace added 17, but OKC couldn’t find much additional scoring with Jalen Williams and Ajay Mitchell both sidelined by injuries. Chet Holmgren had a particularly forgettable night, finishing with four points on just two shots from the field.
“They’re young, talented, well-coached, play the right way, seems like they like each other,” Gilgeous-Alexander said of the Spurs (Twitter link from Joel Lorenzi of The Athletic). “They have the make-up. You don’t beat us without the make-up.”
The victory not only gives the Spurs a shot at their first NBA title in 12 years, it may signify the start of a long-term shift in the balance of power. With the deepest roster in the league, the Thunder looked capable of stringing together a potential dynasty after winning 68 and 64 games the past two seasons. But San Antonio took down the defending champs with a younger core built around Wembanyama (22), Stephon Castle (21) and Dylan Harper (20).
This year’s series could also be the start of an extended high-stakes rivalry between the two franchises. The Thunder have the ability to bring back virtually their entire roster next season, but they also have a stockpile of draft picks if they want to chase a veteran star. Regardless of which path they choose, Oklahoma City and San Antonio figure to enter the 2026/27 season as heavy favorites to grab the top two seeds again and return to the Western Conference finals.
Wembanyama was overcome by emotion as the final seconds ticked away, and he spent several minutes hugging teammates and friends before heading to the locker room. Speaking at the post-game press conference, he made it clear that the Spurs’ mission isn’t complete, per Tim Reynolds of The Associated Press.
“We want four more,” Wembanyama said. “We’re not done.”
Warriors Notes: Porzingis, Green, Podziemski, Free Agent Targets
The most important decision of the Warriors’ offseason could be whether to re-sign free agent big man Kristaps Porzingis or to free up enough money to use the non-taxpayer mid-level exception, writes Keith Smith of Spotrac. Porzingis was productive when he played this season, but he was only available for 15 games after being acquired from Atlanta at the trade deadline. Smith suggests a short-term deal if Golden State decides to keep him, something in the neighborhood of $50MM over two years.
However, parting with some salary could enable the Warriors to use the NTMLE, which is projected to be worth a little over $15MM next season. Smith theorizes that could be enough to lure LeBron James if he decides to leave the Lakers this summer and doesn’t want to settle for a salary that’s at or near the veteran’s minimum. Smith mentions a few other free agents who might be available in that price range, including John Collins, Rui Hachimura, CJ McCollum, Anfernee Simons and Khris Middleton.
Smith expects Draymond Green to turn down his $27.7MM player option for a longer deal, but not at a huge discount. Smith proposes around $75MM over three seasons, with either a partial guarantee or a team option on the final year. Al Horford ($5.9MM) and De’Anthony Melton ($3.5MM) also have player options that Smith believes they’ll exercise because neither is likely to earn more in free agency.
There’s more on the Warriors:
- A potential rookie scale extension for Brandin Podziemski is another order of business for the summer, Smith adds. Podziemski hasn’t become a star during his three years with the team, but he’s steadily improved and has value as a passer and rebounder as well as a scorer. Smith advises the Warriors to make the deal if they can lock up Podziemski for around $64MM over four seasons. Otherwise, they should wait and negotiate with him as a restricted free agent next summer.
- Michigan State center Carson Cooper, who worked out for the Warriors this week, patterns parts of his game after Green and believes he would be a good fit in Golden State, Shayna Rubin of the San Francisco Chronicle relays in a subscriber-only story. “How he played, the way he can impact the game is kind of how I feel I can impact the game a little bit,” Cooper said. “I play hard-nosed defense, get shooters open, give them the ball, work on the (dribble handoffs), facilitate, find cutters and passing and just be a solid player.”
- Sam Gordon of The San Francisco Chronicle (subscription required) points to Simons, Ayo Dosunmu, Jaxson Hayes, Josh Okogie, and Coby White as free agents who could add some youth and athleticism to the Warriors’ roster.
Spurs Notes: Sweeney, M. Johnson, Barnes, Game 7
Sean Sweeney has been considered for several head coaching vacancies, so it was no surprise to the Spurs when news broke Friday that their top assistant was finalizing a deal with the Magic, according to Tim Reynolds of The Associated Press. Speaking to the media before tonight’s Game 7 at Oklahoma City, San Antonio head coach Mitch Johnson expressed support for Sweeney in his new endeavor.
“Thrilled for Sean. He deserves it,” Johnson said. “He’s had many opportunities of potentially becoming a head coach and so it was a matter of when, not if, even when I reached out to him to speak with him for the first time.”
Johnson hired Sweeney last summer to run the defense, and the team’s improvement on that end of the court has been significant. Sweeney has relied on an aggressive scheme at the perimeter, with Defensive Player of the Year Victor Wembanyama patrolling the middle to erase any mistakes.
“Definitely happy for him,” Devin Vassell said of Sweeney. “The impact that he’s had here has been tremendous. I mean, he’s challenged everybody to be better on the defensive end. He’s holding us to a certain standard. You know, I wish him all the luck.”
There’s more on the Spurs:
- Game 7 will be a new experience for most of San Antonio’s young roster, but Johnson is confident that his team is ready to meet the challenge, relays Tom Orsborn of The San Antonio Express-News (Twitter link). The Spurs seized the momentum in the back-and-forth series with a 27-point win on Thursday. “I think we’ve handled it appropriately,” Johnson said of the preparation since then. “Played this team a lot this year and recently, so a lot of attention to detail, but not a whole lot of new for the most part, at least on the surface level.”
- Harrison Barnes is celebrating his 34th birthday today, and the Spurs are hoping it’s a good omen, Orsborn writes in a subscriber-only story. Research by Legion Hoops recently revealed that no NBA player has lost a Game 7 on his birthday since at least 1966. Teammates sang “Happy Birthday” to Barnes after this morning’s shootaround and talked about his importance. “Shout out to HB,” Vassell said. “It’s been great for us so far and just his wisdom and his knowledge being in so many different games, game sevens, championship games, whatever the case may be. He’s been able to just kind of calm us down and just tell us kind of what to expect. It’s unexpected what’s going to happen in this game, but he’s kind of just giving us guidance in what to expect and what to feel during these games.“
- Even though the series has reached a seventh game, it hasn’t featured many memorable moments since the overtime thriller in the opener. Eric Koreen of The Athletic says that’s relatively common in playoff history, but adds that the matchup could still be remembered as legendary if it has an exciting conclusion.