Trail Blazers Request Permission To Interview Jeff Van Gundy
As the Trail Blazers continue their search for a new head coach, one notable candidate is reportedly receiving serious consideration. The Blazers have requested permission from the Clippers to interview assistant coach Jeff Van Gundy, according to NBA insider Chris Haynes, who reports (via Twitter) that Van Gundy has emerged as a finalist for the job.
Van Gundy has been the lead assistant with the Clippers for the past two seasons and has extensive head coaching experience, initially with the Knicks (1995-2001) and then the Rockets (2003-07). He compiled a 430-318 record (.575) with those two teams and made a trip to the 1999 NBA Finals with the Knicks. Only five current coaches have more career playoff wins than Van Gundy: Erik Spoelstra, Steve Kerr, Rick Carlisle, Mike Brown, and Tyronn Lue.
Prior to joining the Clippers, Van Gundy spent 16 years as a broadcaster with ESPN, often alongside Mark Jackson, whom Van Gundy coached as an assistant with the Knicks and in Jackson’s final season with the Rockets.
While Tiago Splitter served as the team’s interim head coach following the arrest of Chauncey Billups as part of a federal investigation into illegal gambling, reports have indicated that new owner Tom Dundon‘s preference was to go in a different, possibly cheaper, direction.
Timberwolves’ assistant Micah Nori is one of several coaches who have also been identified as potential candidates for the position.
Thunder Notes: Caruso, Gilgeous-Alexander, McCain, Accountability
The Thunder boast a two-time MVP guard, an All-Star big man, and an All-NBA wing, but through two games of the Western Conference Finals, 32-year-old backup guard Alex Caruso has been the key to unlocking the team’s potential on both ends of the court, Kelly Iko writes for Yahoo Sports.
A year after showing his versatility by defending Nikola Jokic in the playoffs, Caruso has been tasked, at times, with guarding Spurs star Victor Wembanyama. Even more importantly, he has shown no fear in attacking the first-ever unanimous Defensive Player of the Year on offense, even as some of his teammates shied away from the large barrier Wembanyama represents.
“He’s got an unbelievable focus and is a monster competitor,” said coach Mark Daigneault said of Caruso. “It seems like the bigger the moment, the bigger the game, the more he wants to compete in it. And he’ll fail and not blink, and he’ll be aggressive in the next possession, next game and he was huge again tonight. His minutes were massive for us.”
With Jalen Williams limited by injuries and Ajay Mitchell and Chet Holmgren working themselves into a rhythm, Caruso has stepped up offensively. Through two games, he is the series’ third-leading scorer behind the two teams’ respective MVP finalists, averaging 24.0 points per contest while hitting 11 of his 18 threes.
Caruso’s ability to guard up in the lineup also has downstream effects on the Thunder’s offense, as they are able to play more guards alongside him, thereby injecting much-needed shooting and ball-handling as the team searches for creases in San Antonio’s imposing defense.
“His leadership is over the roof, honestly, especially on the [defensive] end of the floor,” Luguentz Dort said. “He communicates a lot. He’s really smart as a player and watches a lot of basketball as well. So he knows a lot of plays and the tricks we need to get stops defensively. Able to read the game well and he’s been amazing.”
Whether he can keep up the hot shooting remains to be seen, but with Williams being listed as day-to-day after leaving Game 2 early with a hamstring injury and Mitchell also suffering an injury scare, Caruso’s responsibilities are unlikely to decrease as the series progresses.
We have more from the Thunder:
- After an uncharacteristically quiet performance in the Game 1 loss, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander put together the kind of MVP performance fans have come to expect from him in Game 2, Joel Lorenzi writes for The Athletic. “I guess I just have sucked when I get too long of a break,” he said. “I don’t think it’s anything other than that. I don’t know. I guess I gotta do a better job with my breaks, especially during the playoffs.” Instead of playing into the Spurs’ coverages, Gilgeous-Alexander found ways to get to his spots and stopped letting Stephon Castle‘s rugged defense get to him. “We just had no choice but to play to our strengths,” he said, “or else.”
- If you just looked at the efficiency, it would be easy to miss Jared McCain‘s impact on Game 2, Lorenzi writes. Although McCain made just 4-of-14 shots from the floor, his energy and hustle were clearly infectious as he played his way to 12 points, six rebounds, and two steals in 26 minutes. This is nothing unusual for a player who has quickly ingratiated himself with his Thunder teammates due to his outsized personality, Marc J. Spears writes for Andscape. “The first week or two that he was here felt like he had been here the whole season,” Dort said of McCain. “That is the type of guy he is. That is the type of locker room we have. Really funny and really loud, and he blended in with everyone really quick.” It’s not just about his off-court personality, though. “That translates to his game as well,” Caruso added. “He is constantly moving on offense, which is manipulating the defense. He’s starting to pick up some of our other principles. He picked up a big offensive rebound tonight.”
- The Thunder have built a juggernaut based on the principles of precision, attention to detail, and accountability, writes Dan Woike of The Athletic. On a roster as loaded with NBA-level talent as Oklahoma City’s, players have had to find roles they can thrive in, even if that feels like a sacrifice. Cason Wallace is a good example of that trait: there are 20 players from the 2023 draft class that are averaging more points per game than the former 10th overall pick, but those guys aren’t playing critical minutes in the Western Conference finals, as he is. Even when Wallace isn’t on the floor, though, he knows what is expected of him. “Honestly, you just go out there and be who you are,” the defensive-minded point guard said. “If it’s your night then, you know, it’s your night, and we’re all gonna be excited, and we’re all gonna put our best foot forward. But when it’s somebody else’s night, we also understand that and we cheer them on.”
- While that sounds good in theory, Daigneault and the players know that it’s one thing for players to talk about accountability, but quite another to buy into it. “There’s a collective understanding of where the bar is,” Holmgren said, per Woike. “And it’s human nature is to be imperfect. Nobody’s gonna be perfect. I might shoot a shot where it’s ‘S–t, I ain’t shot one in a while.’ Human nature is ‘OK, let me get one up’ … But there’s an understanding that there’s human nature, that nobody’s gonna be perfect. But there’s also an understanding if somebody sees you drifting, hey, we’re gonna pull you back in.”
Jalen Williams Day-To-Day With Hamstring Injury
Jalen Williams is day-to-day with a left hamstring injury and will be reevaluated by the Thunder one game at a time, Shams Charania reports for ESPN (via Twitter).
This is the second time in the last month that Williams has dealt with a left hamstring issue, and his return will be largely dependent on how the injury responds to treatment. The previous injury caused him to miss approximately three weeks, including the entire second-round series against the Lakers.
Williams returned from that injury for a brutally taxing double-overtime Game 1 against the Spurs, in which he played over 37 minutes and scored 26 points while often taking the Victor Wembanyama defensive assignment.
Whether or not that game took a toll, the All-NBA wing left Game 2 after just seven minutes to receive treatment on the leg and was later ruled out for the rest of the night. It was subsequently reported that he would undergo an MRI, as would Spurs guard Dylan Harper, who also left the game early.
While Charania’s update doesn’t offer any sort of concrete return timeline for Williams, it may be an encouraging sign that he’s being considered day-to-day rather than week-to-week, as was the case after he sustained his previous hamstring injury.
Game 3 will take place on Friday in San Antonio, with Game 4 to follow on Sunday.
Heat Notes: Jakucionis, 13th Pick, Offseason, Playoff Implications
The Heat‘s Kasparas Jakucionis wasn’t named to the All-Rookie team, but he already has his sights set on another target. The 6’5″ point guard was called up by the Lithuanian national team for July’s European World Cup qualifying tournament, reports Ira Winderman of the South Florida Sun-Sentinel (via Twitter).
The competition will overlap with the California Classic Summer League, as Lithuania will be in action on July 2 and July 5, but will not interfere with the Las Vegas Summer League. Winderman adds that the team expects Jakucionis to be a participant in the Vegas portion of Summer League.
Jakucionis played 53 games for Miami this season, including 12 starts, and averaged 6.2 points and 2.6 assists in 17.8 minutes per contest while hitting 42.3% of his threes.
We have more notes on the Heat:
- Miami has pick No. 13 in the 2026 draft, and is preparing for all possibilities, Anthony Chiang writes for the Miami Herald. The team has done well with late lottery picks in the past, with Tyler Herro selected at 13th overall and Bam Adebayo a 14th overall pick. “I think you’re just zooming in on your range,” said vice president of basketball operations Adam Simon. “I think the further back you go, the bigger the range of players. The closer you go to the top, the range gets smaller. Otherwise, it’s the same process.” The Heat are also open to using the pick in a trade, though such a deal would have to be completed on or after draft day, due to the rules prohibiting teams from trading away consecutive first-round picks.
- The Heat missed the playoffs entirely this season after losing consecutive first-round series in the two previous years. This inability to position themselves as a true threat in the East has the team at something of a crossroads this summer, Keith Smith writes in his offseason preview for Spotrac. The Heat will undoubtedly look at a possible Giannis Antetokounmpo trade, but they are also a year away from opening up substantial cap space. They also have potential free agent decisions to make on Andrew Wiggins, who holds a player option, and Norman Powell, two veterans who helped keep the ship afloat at times this season. With Adebayo approaching 30, Smith writes that while this summer isn’t a “now or never” situation, it’s getting closer.
- While the Heat are watching the playoffs from afar, the various series outcomes could still impact the team’s future, Barry Jackson writes for the Herald. The Cavaliers and Knicks have both gotten to the conference finals, which could convince team leadership that they don’t need to go all-out for an Antetokounmpo trade. On the other side of that coin, the disappointing endings for the Pistons and Celtics could push either team to make a big move. The Rockets and Timberwolves could also send a compelling offer to the Bucks after bowing out earlier than expected, Jackson writes.
Mavs’ Masai Ujiri Talks Coaching Search, Flagg, Irving, Finley
The Mavericks‘ recently hired president, Masai Ujiri, spoke to the press on Wednesday for the second time this month following the team’s split with head coach Jason Kidd. Over the course of the press conference, Ujiri laid out his initial priorities and his long-term goals for the team.
The most pressing short-term concern is finding the team’s next head coach, after it was announced on Tuesday that Kidd and the organization had mutually agreed to part ways. Ujiri said that he plans to cast a wide net in order to bring in the perfect candidate, as he did with the Raptors, when he hired two different first-time head coaches (Nick Nurse and Darko Rajakovic), Eddie Sefko writes for NBA.com.
“I think our minds are very open,” Ujiri said. “We’re going to look everywhere. Every stone will (be turned over). We will really try to look at what’s best for this organization, be it first-time, be it experienced, be it college, be it European. Everywhere. Whatever is best for this organization going forward is what we are going to look at. It’s going to be very comprehensive.”
Illustrating the different directions the Mavs’ search could take, Ujiri pointed out that the Western Conference finals features two very young coaches, while the Eastern Conference finals matches up two veterans, per Mike Curtis of the Dallas Morning News (Twitter video link).
“The kind of person who I bring in here has that mindset of trying to win, and moving in that direction,” Ujiri said. “… We all have to have a united front and think the same way, and we’re going to continue to build this team to think like that.”
Ujiri told reporters that he has not been in touch with any candidates yet, since doing so would be disrespectful to Kidd and that isn’t the way he likes to do business. He also said that Kidd’s alleged role in the Luka Doncic trade played no role in the decision but that he viewed the move as a chance to give the franchise a “clean slate” ahead of the next era of Mavs basketball.
“I’m in no position to criticize or blame or even really investigate some of the things that happened then,” he said. “We have to figure out a way to slowly move on from this, and I have to hold myself accountable for doing this.”
We have more notes from Ujiri’s presser:
- Ujiri emphasized that everything he’s trying to do is aimed at maximizing the future of Cooper Flagg, Grant Afseth writes for the Dallas Hoops Journal. “Every decision we are going to make here is going to be future-based,” Ujiri said. “We have a 19-year-old generational player on our roster, and we have to think that way. We’re not going to make decisions based on winning today. I don’t think that would make sense for the organization.” The Mavs have the ninth overall pick this year, but don’t control their own unprotected pick after that until 2031.
- However, that statement does not seem to indicate that the new president is looking to move on from veteran point guard Kyrie Irving. Ujiri said that the organization is very interested in seeing Flagg and Irving play together, Christian Clark writes for The Athletic. The star point guard missed Flagg’s entire rookie season while recovering from a torn ACL. “Kevin Durant once told me, ‘There is only one Kyrie walking around in the world,‘” Ujiri said. “I think we have to figure out how Kyrie fits with our program. I have had those conversations with Kyrie. I think Kyrie will fit.”
- Matt Riccardi‘s reported departure from the team, it raised questions as to the future of franchise alumni and Riccardi’s fellow co-interim general manager Michael Finley, but Ujiri said that the team remains in talks with Finley to find him a potential role within the organization, writes Schuyler Dixon of AP News.
Warriors Notes: Roster, Offseason, Draft Workouts, Armstrong
The Warriors got their most pressing bit of offseason business done early when they extended head coach Steve Kerr for two more years. Now, their focus will turn to shaping a more competitive version of the roster.
General manager Mike Dunleavy Jr. previously expressed confidence in the roster the team put out this year from a talent standpoint. That could mean that improvements will be more in the form of marginal adjustments, rather than wholesale changes.
There’s a 70% chance of Draymond Green returning next season, The Athletic’s Nick Fridell predicts within a preview of who could be on the move. He gives Al Horford a 65% chance of remaining with the Warriors and suggests there’s a 50/50 chance that Kristaps Porzingis is back. Lowest on Friedell’s list is soon-to-be third-year center Quinten Post (15%). Post has gotten a number of opportunities, but he fell out of the rotation at times and his status will likely depend on what happens with Horford and Porzingis.
While the big names at the top of the depth chart might not change much this summer, Kerr and the team know that this marks a transition point for the organization, Dalton Johnson writes for NBC Sports Bay Area.
“We can’t legitimately look at our roster, look at our injuries, look at the Spurs, at OKC and Minnesota — we can’t sit here and say we are a championship contender right now,” Kerr said. “This is going to require some personnel moves. It’s going to require rethinking how we’re operating. … There’s a lot to fix this summer, and before we can even begin to talk about playoffs and championships, we’ve got a big challenge ahead, and we’re excited about it.”
We have more on the Warriors:
- Game 1 between the Thunder and Spurs was a clear message of what the Warriors need to focus on adding this offseason: namely, dynamic athleticism, Johnson writes. Dunleavy is aware of the team’s deficiencies in that regard, especially with Jimmy Butler and Moses Moody expected to miss a portion of the season while recovering from major injuries. “That’s a huge hole in generally your most athletic position,” he said. “We’ll always look to add athletically — length, size, skill, all those things. But, watching the playoffs, you learn a lot. You see the teams where they’re at, where you need to go, and it’s good to see.” Dunleavy also wants to prioritize players who take care of the ball and don’t turn it over.
- Golden State hosted a pre-draft workout on Wednesday, the team announced (via Twitter). The group included Maliq Brown (Duke), Ryan Conwell (Louisville), Ja’Kobi Gillespie (Tennessee), Robert McCray V (Florida State), Emanuel Sharp (Houston), and Ernest Udeh (Miami). The Warriors have the 11th and 54th in the 2026 draft. The players who worked out on Wednesday are potential second-round targets.
- Warriors two-way restricted free agent Taran Armstrong has signed a two-year deal with the Tasmania JackJumpers, per ESPN’s Olgun Uluc (Twitter link). The second year of the deal is a player option. Armstrong spent this past season with a loaded Dubai team featuring Davis Bertans, Dwayne Bacon, Matt Ryan, and other former NBA players, averaging 2.9 points in 15.9 minutes per game. Before that, he played for the Cairns Taipans in Australia’s NBL, where he averaged 17.1 points and 4.7 assists per game. The Australian guard never actually appeared in a regular season game for Golden State, but finished the 2024/25 season on a two-way deal with the Warriors and was tendered a qualifying offer last offseason, allowing the Warriors to retain his RFA rights.
Spurs’ De’Aaron Fox Out For Game 2
De’Aaron Fox will miss Game 2 of the Western Conference finals in Oklahoma City on Wednesday as he continues to deal with a right ankle injury. While the Spurs‘ official designation for Fox on their injury report is right ankle soreness, Shams Charania of ESPN (Twitter link) refers to the injury as a high ankle sprain.
The Spurs were without their All-Star point guard in their Game 1 victory, and they turned to 20-year-old rookie Dylan Harper to fill his shoes. Harper contributed a historic game for a player his age, with 24 points, 11 rebounds, six assists, and seven steals.
Justin Martinez of The Oklahoman notes (via Twitter) that the Spurs are starting the same group in Game 2 that they did in Game 1.
While San Antonio was said to be optimistic that Fox would back for Game 2, the team’s road win in Game 1 on the road accomplished an important goal of eliminating the Thunder’s home court advantage for the series. As a result of that win, the Spurs may have felt less urgency to get Fox back on the court for Game 2, suggests Rylan Stiles of Locked On Thunder (via Twitter).
Fox’s next chance to suit up will be Game 3, which will be played on Friday back in San Antonio.
Blazers Notes: Henderson, Williams, Avdija, Krejci, Layoffs
The Trail Blazers are entering an offseason of upheaval, with a new owner running the show and a search for a new head coach underway. They also have decisions to make about several key players this summer, including the highest-drafted young player on the roster: Scoot Henderson.
This was supposed to be the season that Henderson, who is extension-eligible following the third year of his rookie contract, took the reins as the point guard of the future, writes Joe Freeman of Oregon Live (subscriber link). Instead, a hamstring injury sustained right before training camp proved to be a critical setback, as he wasn’t able to get on the court for four months.
Henderson ultimately played just 30 games, and while he had some highly successful outings during the Blazers’ first-round series against the Spurs, he didn’t exactly put questions about his future to rest.
“His shot improved a little bit and that’s something you can continue to work on,” an anonymous scout told Freeman. “He has intangibles that you can’t teach. But he has to learn to use them in an NBA game. He needs to finish better. He has no idea how to play explosive against bigger, stronger athletes. Will he get it? Who knows.”
We have more from the Blazers:
- Portland will also have to make a decision on 28-year-old unrestricted free agent Robert Williams III. Though he was limited by a minutes restriction, Williams played 59 games this season, which is the second-highest mark of his career, Freeman notes (subscriber link). The veteran center also stepped into a larger role in the playoffs due to the struggles of Donovan Clingan. Injuries and availability remain a question mark with the talented, defensive-minded big man, but his impact when he plays could draw the interest of other playoff teams if the Blazers don’t retain him. “I feel like I found another home in Portland,” Williams said. “I’d be happy to stay here, help the rebuild. I’m proud of the young guys. We’ve been together for a couple years … but everything is a business. It’s a negotiation. And we’ve got to get into talks.”
- One player whose status with the team is clear at this point is Deni Avdija, who blossomed into an All-Star point forward despite playing on a team that featured some of the worst spacing in the league, according to Freeman (subscriber link). Avdija clearly cemented himself as a franchise cornerstone, though some scouts still wonder if he’s more of an elite second option than the best player on a truly competitive team, Freeman writes. The 25-year-old forward is aware that he may have taken the league by surprise this season and recognizes that likely won’t be the case next year. “A lot of teams are going to prepare and they know me right now and maybe have different solutions,” he said. “I need to learn how to drive both ways, be a better defender, a better leader, be more vocal.”
- The Blazers acquired sharpshooting wing Vit Krejci before the trade deadline to upgrade their perimeter rotation, but he struggled to close the season, possibly in part due to a left calf bruise. Still, Freeman says the team remains intrigued by Krejci’s defensive tools, his shooting, and his team-friendly contract, which is partially guaranteed for next season and non-guaranteed for the following season (subscriber link).
- The mass layoffs from the Portland organization weren’t limited to the business or media side of operations. Blazers scout and WNBA legend Tina Thompson was one of the cuts, as Sean Highkin of the Rose Garden Report relays (Twitter link). Highkin notes (via Twitter) that Thompson was particularly close with Damian Lillard, who recently recruited her son to Weber State.
Pistons Notes: Bickerstaff, Duren, Jenkins, Game 1
The Pistons were the worst team in the league when J.B. Bickerstaff was hired as the head coach. In just two seasons, they have become a formidable force in the East, winning 60 regular season games and finishing as the No. 1 seed in the conference.
Much of the credit for that success goes to the players, especially Cade Cunningham, who catapulted himself into MVP conversations this season, but Bickerstaff’s approach and emphasis on playing with maximum effort and tenacity have been a massive part of setting the team’s identity, Hunter Patterson writes for The Athletic.
Beyond his grit-and-grind mentality, what makes Bickerstaff special is how he approaches his relationship with the team, as Patterson relays.
“Everybody feels like they can call him to talk about if they have problems with their girlfriend or if they need something for their kids,” Cunningham said. “He’s just a very selfless and supportive person. Having somebody like that who cares about you on the court and wants you to be great on the court, but then also actually cares about your life and your well-being off the court is huge.”
Bickerstaff was previously the coach of the Cavaliers, but he’s not bringing any baggage from his dismissal to this series, Chris Fedor writes for Cleveland.com (subscriber link). However, that doesn’t mean that his added familiarity with many of the players isn’t helpful when it comes to game planning.
“I just … I spent a lot of time with those guys,” he said, smiling.
We have more Pistons notes:
- After a rough first round against the Magic, in Game 1 against the Cavaliers, Jalen Duren once again looked like the star big man he has been all season, per Omari Sankofa II of the Detroit Free Press. Whether crashing the offensive boards, making momentum-building defensive plays, or hitting timely dunks, Duren made it hard for Cleveland’s big men to get comfortable on Tuesday. He said that one thing he learned in the series against Orlando was how much he can impact a game when the offense isn’t clicking, writes Larry Lage of the Associated Press. “My value is on the defensive end,” he said. “My value is crashing the glass. It doesn’t always have to be scoring for me.”
- Daniss Jenkins‘ breakout season has carried over into the playoffs, when he’s been asked to play major minutes in high-leverage situations, including 29 minutes in Game 1 against Cleveland. He repaid that confidence by scoring six points and adding three rebounds and a steal in the final three-and-a-half minutes of the game, Lage writes. It’s the latest accomplishment in a season full of them for the former undrafted free agent, who was on a two-way contract until February. “He’s been building for it all year,” teammate Duncan Robinson said. “His journey is unique, and it takes somebody with a special will and character to have that story. He has unshakeable confidence for someone who’s been overlooked his whole career, and he just wears it as a chip.”
- Bickerstaff believes that having to win three games in a row to advance past the first round helped the Pistons learn what it takes to survive in the playoffs, ESPN’s Jamal Collier writes. “You understand how to close and how to finish. How to get to your spots,” he said. “Then you grow belief that you can. That series did a lot of that for us.”
Bulls Notes: Graham, Rebuild, Coach, Draft, Luxury Tax
The Bulls know that they’ve let the city down in recent years. In Wednesday’s official introduction of the newly hired head of basketball operations Bryson Graham, team CEO Michael Reinsdorf placed the blame for the lack of success on himself, writes Joe Cowley of the Chicago Sun-Times.
“First I’ll start with our fans,” Reinsdorf said. “I want to, actually I need to, say I’m sorry because the results obviously haven’t been there. It’s not something I’m proud of and it’s something I want to get right. Ultimately it flows up to me and I take responsibility. I do feel that (Wednesday) is a step in the right direction and it’s an important step.”
Reinsdorf says it only took him two minutes at dinner with Graham to know that he had found his new executive vice president of basketball operations, Jon Greenberg writes for The Athletic. One of the reasons he hired Graham was the feeling that he wouldn’t take shortcuts. Graham agreed, likening his own grit and determination to that of the championship Bulls teams of the 1990s.
To that point, Graham’s first order of business was setting expectations. He made it clear that the team understands how much work there is to do in order to field a competitive roster, Jamal Collier writes for ESPN.
“I’m not going to be up here and mince words and say we’re further along if we just add a couple of pieces,” Graham said. “Because that’s not the case.”
Instead of continuing the previous regime’s attempts to compete for playoff spots, it sounds like the word “rebuild” has finally been embraced in Chicago.
“Most rebuild situations is when you don’t have star-caliber players,” Graham said. “Right now, not to say we don’t have anyone on this roster that can get there, but until we continue to draft well, add to this mix, and add overall talent and team identity, yeah, we’re in a rebuilding phase.”
Here’s more from Graham’s introduction:
- The new executive said he’s going to cast a wide net in order to find the team’s next head coach, including names that are unfamiliar to the public. It sounds like that openness won’t apply solely to the coaching staff, either. “I want a collaborative and very communicative organization,” Graham said. “It doesn’t matter about the position. Everyone in this room can have something that can add to making the right decision, so I want to take in what everyone says, and I want to process that.”
- While Graham has never led a basketball operations department, he did run the Pelicans’ draft room, Greenberg writes, and played a large part in New Orleans hitting on players like Herbert Jones, Nickeil Alexander-Walker, Trey Murphy III, Naji Marshall, and others later in the first round. “Over a six-year period, by several different metrics, Bryson’s had the best draft record in the NBA,” former Pelicans executive David Griffin said. “The return on those guys versus expected value has been remarkable.”
- Reinsdorf says the Bulls will be willing to operate as a large-market, luxury tax team when it’s ready to compete at that level, but likely not before then. “If we’re competing for championships, we expect that we’ll probably be in the luxury tax and totally okay with that,” Reinsdorf said. “I don’t want to be in the luxury tax for a team that’s not in the playoffs.”