Jazz’s Sensabaugh Discusses Development, Offseason, More
Brice Sensabaugh was viewed as something of a tweener ahead of the 2023 draft. He played power forward in his lone college season at Ohio State, but at 6’6″, he has the height of a wing, his primary position since he was selected 28th overall by the Jazz a few years ago.
Speaking to Mark Medina of RG.org, Sensabaugh says he overhauled his diet and improved his conditioning last summer in preparation for his third NBA season and now weighs approximately 225-227 pounds, down from roughly 240 in 2024/25.
“I was just in the gym with our Jazz strength and conditioning staff,” he said. “We had some boot camps and conditioning work all summer. But I think the biggest curve for me was my diet. I’m eating whole foods and trying not to have a diet with too many ingredients. I’m not picky at all. So I’ll eat anything. But I’m trying to keep whole foods and have fewer ingredients. I also substituted small things. Instead of sour cream, I have Greek yogurt. I have cauliflower instead of carbs. It worked out pretty well. I dropped like 15 pounds. I feel great and am getting off the ground pretty well.”
Known for his accurate jump shot, Sensabaugh has only converted 32.4% of his three point tries through 32 games in ’25/26 after knocking down 42.2% of his outside looks last season. While he admits he was hoping to have a higher percentage at this point in the season, Sensabaugh says he’s still pleased with his overall development and is finding other ways to impact the game when his shot isn’t falling.
“I feel pretty good about it. Coming from the second to third year, now there are a lot of things that I understand now that I didn’t before, such as the flow of the game and the intensity that it takes to win,” Sensabaugh told Medina. “I feel like this season my mentality has changed a lot. Toward the end of last season, I started hitting shots and scoring a good amount of points. But it wasn’t really translating into winning. This year, I’ve had four or five games where I made a big impact and translated to a win.
“I’m starting to understand the intensity and attention to detail that it takes to alter games and make a big impact like that. That’s the biggest takeaway I’ve had so far. The NBA is the best league in the world and has the best players. So it’s hard to do that consistently for a young player. But I’m searching for that every single game and trying to make that impact to give us a good chance to win.
“It’s been a fun year. I feel like my defense has gotten a lot better with my intensity and attention to detail. I still feel like I’m searching for my shot a lot of the times. There are a lot of games where my shot is going in and out. I’m trying not to dwell on it too much. I trust that it will go in. I’m doing my work early with my feet and my balance and am trusting the results. I try not to overreact to the misses too much. I just keep on playing and wait until they go in.”
Medina’s interview with Sensabaugh covers several other topics, including Utah’s veteran leaders, Keyonte George‘s breakout season, and more. The 22-year-old guard/forward will be eligible for a rookie scale extension in the 2026 offseason.
Injury Notes: Warriors, Young, LaVine, Pistons
After previously announcing that Draymond Green would miss Friday’s matchup with the defending champion Thunder, the Warriors have also ruled out Stephen Curry (left ankle sprain) and Jimmy Butler (illness), per Anthony Slater and Shams Charania of ESPN.
It’s the first half of a back-to-back set, and the Warriors are hopeful that all three players will be back on Saturday vs. Utah, according to Slater and Charania. It’s also worth noting that Friday’s game will be nationally televised, which means Curry and Butler couldn’t be rested without legitimate ailments, since they qualify as “stars” under the NBA’s player participation policy. Green, who doesn’t meet the star criteria, is listed on the injury report as out due to “rest.”
With three starters sidelined, forward Jonathan Kuminga is expected to play on Friday for the first time in over two weeks, head coach Steve Kerr said today during a radio appearance on 95.7 The Game (Twitter link).
Here are a few more injury updates from around the NBA:
- Hawks guard Trae Young (right quad contusion) has been ruled out for a third consecutive game and won’t be available on Friday in New York, tweets Brad Rowland of Locked on Hawks. Young was initially listed as questionable, which suggests he’s considered day-to-day and should probably return soon, barring a setback.
- Kings guard Zach LaVine will miss a ninth straight game on Friday vs. Phoenix due to a left ankle sprain. Asked on Thursday if he had any updates on LaVine’s status, head coach Doug Christie had little to offer, telling reporters there’s “nothing new” (Twitter video link via James Ham of The Kings Beat).
- The Pistons were without Tobias Harris (left hip sprain) and Caris LeVert (left knee inflammation) for Thursday’s loss to Miami (Twitter links via Omari Sankofa II of The Detroit Free Press and Hunter Patterson of The Athletic). Head coach J.B. Bickerstaff said that LeVert’s injury, which has kept him on the shelf for the past two games, is one they’ve been managing all season and that it “flared up on him” this week. As for Harris, Bickerstaff suggested he would have more info on the forward’s prognosis within the next few days.
Spurs’ Johnson, Celtics’ Mazzulla Named Coaches Of The Month
Spurs head coach Mitch Johnson is December’s Coach of the Month in the Western Conference, while Joe Mazzulla of the Celtics is the Eastern Conference recipient of the award, the NBA announced today (Twitter link).
Johnson guided the Spurs to an 11-3 record in December, not including the NBA Cup final, which doesn’t count toward the regular season standings. San Antonio’s big month, which included three separate victories over the defending champion Thunder, occurred despite Victor Wembanyama and Stephon Castle each missing multiple games due to injuries.
In addition to posting the NBA’s best record for the month, the Spurs also had the fifth-best offensive rating (118.9) and sixth-ranked defensive rating (112.0), which helped earn Johnson Coach of the Month recognition over fellow nominees David Adelman (Nuggets), Mark Daigneault (Thunder), and Chris Finch (Timberwolves), per the league (Twitter link).
As for Mazzulla’s Celtics, they ranked eighth in the East entering December, but finished the month as the No. 3 seed in the conference after going 9-3.
Even without perennial All-NBA forward Jayson Tatum, Boston had the NBA’s best offensive rating (124.3) and second-best net rating (+11.0) in December en route to wins over the Knicks, Lakers, and Raptors (twice), among others.
J.B. Bickerstaff of the Pistons, Mike Brown of the Knicks, and Jordi Fernandez of the Nets were also nominated for the award.
Daigneault and Bickerstaff earned the monthly honor for games played in October and November.
Jalen Brunson, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander Win Player Of The Month Awards
A pair of star point guards and MVP candidates have been named the NBA’s Players of the Month for December, with Jalen Brunson of the Knicks winning the award in the East and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander of the Thunder claiming it in the West, per the league (Twitter link).
Brunson was named Player of the Week twice in December and led the Knicks to an NBA Cup championship. He averaged 30.6 points, 7.1 assists, and 3.2 rebounds per contest in 13 December outings, posting a strong shooting line of .475/.405/.826 and leading his team to a 10-3 record in the games he played.
Those stats don’t include the NBA Cup final, which doesn’t count toward the regular season, but he was excellent in that game too, racking up 25 points and eight assists as the Knicks toppled the Spurs.
Gilgeous-Alexander, meanwhile, continued to strengthen his case for a second consecutive Most Valuable Player award in 12 December appearances, with averages of 31.4 points, 6.1 assists, 4.6 rebounds, and 1.7 steals per game, and a scorching-hot .594/.436/.882 shooting line.
Gilgeous-Alexander now ranks second in the NBA in scoring (32.1 PPG), while his Thunder – following a 9-4 December – hold the league’s best record at 29-5.
It’s the third time Brunson has won a Player of the Month award and the fifth time Gilgeous-Alexander has earned the honor. Pistons guard Cade Cunningham and Nuggets center Nikola Jokic were the NBA’s first Players of the Month this season, for games played in October and November.
Cunningham was also nominated for the Eastern Conference award in December, along with Celtics wing Jaylen Brown, Sixers guard Tyrese Maxey, Raptors forward Brandon Ingram, Hawks forward, Jalen Johnson, Cavaliers guard Donovan Mitchell, Nets forward Michael Porter Jr., and Brunson’s teammate Karl-Anthony Towns, according to the NBA (Twitter link).
The other Western Conference nominees were Jokic, Clippers forward Kawhi Leonard, Warriors guard Stephen Curry, Rockets forward Kevin Durant, Spurs guard De’Aaron Fox, Jazz guard Keyonte George, Mavericks forward Cooper Flagg, Trail Blazers teammates Deni Avdija and Shaedon Sharpe, Timberwolves teammates Anthony Edwards and Julius Randle, and Lakers teammates Luka Doncic, LeBron James, and Austin Reaves.
Holmgren, Stewart Named Defensive Players Of The Month
A Thunder player has been named the Western Conference’s Defensive Player of the Month for a second consecutive time. After guard Cason Wallace won the award for October/November, big man Chet Holmgren has earned the honor for December, the NBA announced today (via Twitter).
The Thunder, who entered December with a 20-1 record, have looked more mortal in recent weeks, winning nine of 13 games over the course of the month. However, they still posted the conference’s top defensive rating (106.2) in December, with Holmgren acting as the team’s anchor and rim protector.
Holmgren’s 2.0 blocks per game in December ranked second in the conference, while his 8.5 contested shots per game placed him seventh among Western players. Oklahoma City’s defense this past month was nearly six points per 100 possessions better when Holmgren was on the court (101.7) than when he wasn’t (107.6).
Clippers guard Kris Dunn and a trio of former Defensive Players of the Year – Rudy Gobert (Timberwolves), Draymond Green (Warriors), and Jaren Jackson Jr. (Grizzlies) – were also nominated in the Western Conference, per the league (Twitter link).
An unlikely winner claimed the Eastern Conference’s Defensive Player of the Month award for December, with Pistons big man Isaiah Stewart taking it home despite coming off the bench in 12 of his 13 games and averaging just 23.0 minutes per night during the past month.
Despite his limited role, Stewart ranked second in the East in blocks (2.2) and contested shots (9.4) per game, helping lead Detroit to a 9-4 record and the league’s third-best defensive rating (109.8) in December. The Pistons’ defensive rating with Stewart on the floor was 104.5, compared to 112.2 when he sat.
Knicks teammates OG Anunoby and Mikal Bridges, Raptors forward Scottie Barnes, Cavaliers big man Evan Mobley, and Celtics guard Derrick White were the other nominees in the East. Notably, the Nets didn’t have a nominee despite posting the NBA’s best defensive rating (105.4) in December.
Cooper Flagg, Kon Knueppel Named December’s Rookies Of The Month
For a second consecutive month, former Duke teammates Cooper Flagg and Kon Knueppel have been named the NBA’s Rookies of the Month for the Western Conference and Eastern Conference, respectively, the league announced today (Twitter link).
Flagg, this year’s No. 1 overall pick, averaged 23.5 points, 6.2 rebounds, 4.8 assists, 1.2 blocks, and 1.0 steal in 35.5 minutes per game in 13 outings this past month for the Mavericks, making 51.6% of his shots from the floor and 80.8% from the free throw line.
While Dallas still hasn’t looked like a playoff team – the Mavs went 6-7 in December – Flagg is showing why he was the consensus top prospect in the 2025 draft class and is considered one of the best rookies to enter the NBA in the past decade. He’s the NBA’s youngest player, having turned 19 on December 21.
Although Flagg has taken over as the betting favorite in the Rookie of the Year race, that’s through no fault of Knueppel, who showed no signs of slowing down after his hot start to the season. In 12 games in December, the Hornets sharpshooter averaged 20.8 PPG, 4.7 APG, and 4.2 APG, with an outstanding .500/.462/.903 shooting line.
Only Donovan Mitchell and Stephen Curry have made more three-pointers so far this season than Knueppel, who knocked down 4.0 per game in December and now has 117 on the season.
Grizzlies forward Cedric Coward, Spurs guard Dylan Harper, Mavericks guard Ryan Nembhard, Pelicans big man Derik Queen, and Kings center Maxime Raynaud were also nominated for the Western Conference Rookie of the Month award, while Nets guard Egor Demin, Sixers guard VJ Edgecombe, and Wizards guard Tre Johnson were nominated in the East (Twitter link).
Salaries For 10-Day Contracts In 2025/26
While 10-day deals using the hardship exception can be signed at any time, this coming Monday represents the first day this season that an NBA team will be able to sign a player to a standard 10-day contract. As we explain in a glossary entry, a 10-day deal allows a club to temporarily add a player to its 15-man roster without any commitments beyond those 10 days.
Under the league’s current Collective Bargaining Agreement, all 10-day contracts are worth a player’s minimum salary. The minimum salary in a given season differs from player to player, based on his years of NBA service entering the season. For instance, in 2025/26, a rookie on a full-season minimum deal will earn $1,272,870, whereas a 10-year veteran who is earning the minimum will make $3,634,153.
[RELATED: NBA Minimum Salaries For 2025/26]
The same is true for 10-day deals. A rookie will earn significantly less over the course of his 10 days with a team than a tenured NBA veteran will.
Because the 2025/26 regular season is 174 days long, a player’s full-season minimum salary can be divided by 174 to calculate his daily salary. From there, it’s just a matter of multiplying by 10 to determine his salary on a 10-day contract.
Using that formula, here’s the full breakdown of what salaries for 10-day deals look like in ’25/26:
| Years in NBA | Salary |
|---|---|
| 0 | $73,153 |
| 1 | $117,730 |
| 2 | $131,970 |
| 3 | $136,717 |
| 4 | $141,463 |
| 5 | $153,330 |
| 6 | $165,197 |
| 7 | $177,064 |
| 8 | $188,932 |
| 9 | $189,872 |
| 10+ | $208,859 |
Because the NBA doesn’t want teams to avoid signing veteran players in favor of cheaper, younger options, the league reimburses clubs who sign veterans with three or more years of service to 10-day, minimum-salary contracts.
In those instances, teams are on the hook for $131,970, the minimum salary for a player with two years of experience, while the NBA covers the difference. So a team would pay the same amount and carry the same cap hit ($131,970) whether they sign a player with three years under his belt or a player with 12 years of NBA experience.
Grizzlies Re-Sign Christian Koloko
12:20 pm: Koloko’s second 10-day deal is official, according to the Grizzlies (Twitter link). The contract will run through January 11, covering Memphis’ next six games.
11:56 am: The Grizzlies have been granted another hardship exception and will use it to bring back center Christian Koloko on a second 10-day contract, reports Shams Charania of ESPN (Twitter link).
Memphis initially added Koloko via a hardship deal on December 22. The big man appeared in five games for Memphis during his first 10 days with the team, averaging 18.6 minutes per night and making one start on Tuesday vs. Philadelphia.
Although Koloko only scored 10 points in those five outings, he contributed in other ways, grabbing 19 rebounds and registering six steals and six blocks. Memphis had a +15.2 net rating during his 93 total minutes on the court.
A hardship exception allows a banged-up team to add an extra player beyond the 15 on its standard roster. A team qualifies if it has four players who have missed three or more consecutive games due to injuries or illnesses and are expected to remain sidelined for at least two more weeks.
Ty Jerome, Scotty Pippen Jr., Zach Edey, John Konchar, and Brandon Clarke are all in the midst of extended absences for the Grizzlies. While they’re all due to be reevaluated at some point in January, the fact that Memphis has been granted another hardship exception by the league suggests that at least four of them aren’t especially close to returning.
After Koloko’s second 10-day contract expires, the Grizzlies will have to either sign him to a rest-of-season contract or let him go, since players can’t sign three 10-day deals with the same team. As our tracker shows, Koloko is the first Memphis signee to get a second 10-day contract this season — Charles Bassey and Kobe Bufkin each just got one.
Koloko will earn $136,717 over the course of his second 10-day deal, while the Grizzlies carry a cap hit of $131,970.
Sixers Notes: Oubre, Power Forward, Grimes, Embiid
Sixers head coach Nick Nurse said earlier this week that forward Kelly Oubre Jr., who has been sidelined since November 14 due to a sprained left knee, could return to action during the team’s current road trip. That trip will wrap up on Saturday in New York, and Oubre’s chances of playing against the Knicks may hinge on whether he can take part in a five-on-five scrimmage on Friday, writes Keith Pompey of The Philadelphia Inquirer.
Oubre participated in a three-on-three scrimmage on Monday and a four-on-four session on Wednesday, Pompey notes. If he plays five-on-five and his body responds well, his return should be imminent, though the 30-year-old declined to speculate on that subject, indicating he’s leaving the decision up to the experts.
“I’m just going off what the trainers and the docs say,” Oubre said. “So for me, I don’t feel any pain, any shortness after workouts, and things like that, which is a good sign. So I take that as a positive and just continue to build from there and get stronger. But I’m leaving it to the docs and the trainers.”
While the 76ers have been hit hard by injuries over the past year-and-a-half, they’re close to getting fully healthy, with both Oubre and Trendon Watford (adductor) in the final stage of their respective recovery processes.
Here’s more on the Sixers:
- Even when Oubre returns, Nurse says he envisions Paul George “mostly” as a three, according to Pompey. So who will handle the primary power forward duties? Nurse suggested he may take a committee approach to the position. “I think it’s Paul. I think it’s (Dominick) Barlow. Could be a little Oubre. Could be a little (Adem) Bona,” the Sixers’ coach said. “But I think it just depends on who we’re playing. Hopefully, we can be versatile enough to figure out what we are doing in all those different lineups. That’s what’s going to take some time.”
- Quentin Grimes averaged 11.8 shot attempts per game in his first 24 outings of the season, but that numbers has dipped to 7.5 per game in his past six contests. As long as Joel Embiid, George, and Tyrese Maxey are healthy and available, that trend may continue, but Grimes can continue to provide value with his defensive effort and by making the most of the opportunities he does get on offense, Pompey writes for The Inquirer. “He’s kind of a good wild card for us,” Maxey said of Grimes. “He can get hot. He can make threes. He can drive the ball. He can play defensively, too. That’s what’s really good for us. He can play with a lot of lineups too.”
- While Embiid’s offensive production has increased as of late – he has averaged 29.2 points per game in his past six starts – the former MVP says he believes his improving health is more evident on the other end of the court, per Pompey. “Physically, where I felt most (like myself) is defensively,” Embiid explained. “I’m getting back to that level of (protecting the rim), blocking shots and being that defensive presence.”
Windhorst/Bontemps’ Latest: Giannis, Trade Deadline, LeBron, More
A number of league insiders who spoke to ESPN’s Brian Windhorst and Tim Bontemps about what will happen in the NBA in 2026 believe that this will be the year the Giannis Antetokounmpo saga in Milwaukee reaches an inflection point, according to Bontemps.
“The rubber is going to finally hit the road, one way or the other,” one Western Conference executive said.
However, several of those sources believe the situation will carry over into the offseason, with one Eastern Conference scout suggesting that the Bucks star would have “maximum leverage” if he waits until the summer to request a trade.
“They aren’t trading him in-season,” a Western scout predicted.
In fact, many of the executives surveyed by Bontemps are anticipating a relatively quiet trade deadline, with resolutions on players like Antetokounmpo, Anthony Davis, Zach LaVine, and Trae Young potentially not coming until June or July (or later). One Eastern Conference exec suggested that a “crazy summer” could be on tap if February’s deadline ends up being somewhat uneventful.
“All these guys are going to be stuck where they are (at the trade deadline),” another Western Conference exec said. “I don’t think it will be as busy as people think, and I don’t think the available players will be that good.”
Here’s more from Windhorst and Bontemps:
- According to Windhorst, league executives believe there will be three paths available to LeBron James after this season: Re-sign with the Lakers at a reduced salary, join another team in free agency, or retire. In other words, they don’t expect Los Angeles to continue paying the four-time MVP maximum or near-max money. While James is no longer performing at his peak level, he would continue to be a coveted player if he decides not to retire, one head coach said: “LeBron is still averaging 20 points and shooting 50%. You just have to find the right situation.”
- The NBA is reportedly weighing rule changes to further disincentivize tanking, and ESPN’s sources expect the outcry for changes to grow as the season progresses, Windhorst writes. “This is only going to get louder,” an Eastern Conference executive said. “By the spring, I think one out of every three games we’re going to play is going to be against a team that’s tanking.”
- While commissioner Adam Silver has said the NBA will make a decision on expansion in 2026, stakeholders who have been working with the league on possible domestic expansion and a new European league are skeptical that the NBA would be able to move forward on both endeavors simultaneously, says Windhorst. The NBA reportedly hopes to launch its European league in the fall of 2027, so perhaps the NBA would aim to expand a year or two after that.