Florida’s Alex Condon Among Latest To Withdraw From Draft
Florida big man Alex Condon is removing his name from the 2025 NBA draft pool and returning to the Gators for his junior year, he informs Jonathan Givony of ESPN. Condon was a member of the team that won a national championship last month and will be looking to pull off the feat again next season.
[RELATED: 2025 NBA Draft Early Entrants List]
“It’s a really good situation waiting for me there,” Condon said. “A great coach with Todd Golden. Teammates I won a national championship with. I have great chemistry with those boys. We have a good transfer class coming in. I expect guys to make a leap. My big man coach Carlin Hartman is returning, so I will keep developing my game with him.”
A 6’11” forward/center from Australia, Condon was elevated to Florida’s starting lineup as a sophomore in 2024/25 after coming off the bench as a freshman. In his second college season, he averaged 10.6 points, 7.5 rebounds, 2.2 assists, and 1.3 blocks in 24.9 minutes per contest in 37 games (35 starts), earning third-team All-SEC honors.
Condon conducted private workouts for eight NBA teams during the pre-draft process, he told Givony. The big man was the No. 31 prospect in the last update of ESPN’s big board, though in today’s news story, Givony refers to him as ESPN’s No. 38 player. Either way, Condon was far from a lock to be a first-round pick, which factored into his decision to return to school.
Condon is one of several draft prospects reported in recent hours to be withdrawing from the NBA draft. Here are a few others:
- After testing the draft waters following his freshman season, guard Joson Sanon is headed back to school, reports Jon Rothstein of CBS Sports (Twitter link). Sanon, who averaged 11.9 points per game on .422/.369/.714 shooting for Arizona State in 2024/25, is transferring to St. John’s for his sophomore year.
- Ohio State guard Bruce Thornton has officially withdrawn from the draft and is rejoining the Buckeyes for one more season, a source tells Rothstein (Twitter link). As a junior in 2024/25, Thornton put up 17.2 points, 4.6 assists, and 3.4 rebounds per game in 32 outings (all starts), earning a spot on the All-Big Ten second team.
- Forward Devon Pryor, who is transferring from Texas to Oregon for his junior year, is opting out of the draft, per Jon Chepkevich of DraftExpress (Twitter link). Pryor didn’t see much action for the Longhorns last season, averaging just 12.1 minutes per game in 23 appearances.
- Elijah Fisher, a 6’6″ wing, has withdrawn from the draft and will join his fourth school in four years, according to Chepkevich (Twitter link). After spending one season apiece with Texas Tech, DePaul, and Pacific, Fisher has committed to Seton Hall for the 2025/26 campaign.
- Chris Howell is exiting the draft and transferring from UC San Diego to New Mexico, reports Chepkevich (Twitter link). As a junior last season, the 6’6″ guard averaged 5.6 points, 3.8 rebounds, 3.0 assists, and 2.2 steals per game in 35 starts for the Tritons.
- Guard Dominick Harris, who has one year of NCAA eligibility remaining, will pull out of the draft and transfer from UCLA to Loyola Chicago, tweets Chepkevich. Harris has also played for Gonzaga and Loyola Marymount since beginning his college career in 2020.
Yaxel Lendeborg Withdrawing From Draft, Transferring To Michigan
Yaxel Lendeborg, projected to be a first-round pick next month, is withdrawing from the 2025 NBA draft and transferring from UAB to Michigan, he tells Jonathan Givony and Shams Charania of ESPN.
“While it’s been and still is a dream of mine to play in the NBA, I feel the development and growth as a player and a person I will gain at the University of Michigan will be very beneficial,” Lendeborg explained to ESPN.
There will be no shortage of college early entrants pulling out of the NBA draft ahead of the NCAA’s withdrawal deadline on Wednesday, but Lendeborg will almost certainly be one of the highest-rated prospects to forgo the professional route. He had been listed as the No. 26 overall prospect on ESPN’s 2025 big board and was also the 26th player selected in the site’s most recent mock draft.
[RELATED: 2025 NBA Draft Early Entrants List]
A 6’9″ forward, Lendeborg made the All-AAC first team in 2024 and 2025 and was named the conference’s Defensive Player of the Year in both seasons as well. As a senior this past season, he averaged 17.7 points, a conference-leading 11.4 rebounds, 4.2 assists, 1.8 blocks, and 1.7 steals in 33.6 minutes per game across 37 outings (all starts). He posted a strong shooting line of .522/.357/.757.
According to Givony, Lendeborg joined elite company by registering at least 600 points, 400 rebounds, and 150 assists a single season in 2024/25 — Larry Bird is the only other player in Division I history to accomplish that feat.
Lendeborg has one year of NCAA eligibility remaining before becoming automatically draft-eligible in 2026. He told ESPN that he got excited about the idea of joining the Wolverines after seeing how they deployed big man Danny Wolf as a ball-handler and facilitator.
“It’s amazing what Dusty May did with Danny Wolf,” Lendeborg said. “I would watch his games this season and say, ‘Man, I wish that was me.’ I’m trying to bring the same type of versatility he brought to Michigan.”
Jrue Holiday, Lonzo Ball, Chris Paul Possibilities For Mavericks
The Mavericks will explore a potential trade with the Celtics for Jrue Holiday as they look for someone to take over ball-handling duties while Kyrie Irving is injured, Marc Stein reports in his latest Substack column (subscription required).
Stein admits that a deal for Holiday would be tricky given Dallas’ financial position and the fact that he has three years and $104MM left on his contract. Holiday is among the players Boston is reportedly considering moving to reduce next season’s payroll, so the Celtics won’t be looking to take back big contracts in return. A third or fourth team may have to get involved to make a trade feasible.
Irving suffered a torn ACL in his left knee on March 3. A report last month suggested that he might be able to return by January, but Dallas will need someone to serve as the lead guard until he fully recovers from surgery.
Stein cites Bulls guard Lonzo Ball as “a more reasonable trade target” for the Mavs. Ball signed a two-year, $20MM extension in February that includes a team option for the second season. It would be much easier for Dallas to fit Ball’s contract into its current salary structure, and he’s coming off a relatively healthy season after missing two and a half years with severe knee issues. At 27, Ball is seven years younger than Holiday and could turn into a better long-term investment.
League sources tell Stein that Chris Paul is another player to watch for the Mavericks. Even though he turned 40 earlier this month, Paul was able to appear in all 82 games with the Spurs and produced another productive season, averaging 8.8 points, 3.6 rebounds and 7.4 assists in 28 minutes per night with .427/.377/.924 shooting splits.
Stein states that the year Paul spent tutoring Victor Wembanyama and his other young teammates was considered successful, but there’s “anticipation” that he might be changing teams again this summer. San Antonio traded for De’Aaron Fox in February and is expected to add Dylan Harper with the second pick in next month’s draft. With Rookie of the Year Stephon Castle also in the backcourt mix, there may not be enough minutes for Paul.
Stein expects plenty of interest around the league in Paul if he decides to move on.
Josh Hart Suggested Knicks’ Starting Lineup Change
Knicks coach Tom Thibodeau shook up his starting lineup for Game 3 of the Eastern Conference Finals, with Mitchell Robinson replacing Josh Hart. After New York staged a thrilling comeback to pick up its first win of the series, Hart revealed that not only is he OK with the change, it was actually his idea, writes Peter Botte of The New York Post (subscription required).
Hart told reporters that he made the suggestion during a meeting with Thibodeau after watching how well Robinson performed in Game 2.
“It was never going to be a tough day for me because I had a hand in that decision,” Hart said. “When I’m in a decision like that and kind of got the ball rolling on that, it was funny, y’all are scrambling, trying to get answers and I never really cared. Because it was kind of my decision. I was comfortable with it.”
Even though Hart came off the bench, he remained in his regular role for most of the night. He logged 34 minutes while contributing eight points and 10 rebounds, several of which came late in the fourth quarter to help seal the victory.
Robinson had six points, six rebounds and a blocked shot in 29 minutes and enabled the Knicks to avoid the slow starts they experienced in Games 1 and 2. The score was tied at 24-24 when he checked out for the first time with 1:10 left in the first quarter.
“It really didn’t impact either guy from a minutes standpoint. So to me, when Mitch was coming off the bench, he’s a starter coming off the bench. When Josh comes off the bench, he’s a starter coming off the bench,” Thibodeau said. “Their minutes are gonna be the same. And both guys mix and match. Both guys are comfortable with both units. The thing that I love about Josh is the unselfishness.”
Another benefit of the change was more time at power forward for Karl-Anthony Towns, who led the rally by scoring 20 of his 24 points in the fourth quarter.
Hart added that the seeds of Sunday’s move go back to the second-round series against the Celtics.
“This was a conversation that we had, that I’ve had before,” he said. “Actually I mentioned, I talked to a couple of people about it before Game 6 [against Boston], I was struggling with the matchup of Luke Kornet, and wasn’t able to really figure that out. Game 6 I had a pretty good game. But it was something that I’ve had in the back of my mind and I’ve always been willing to do. Down two [games], especially with how Mitch played last game, that was something that we had to do.”
Knicks Make Lineup Change; Robinson In, Hart Out
6:38pm: It’s official. Robinson will start and Hart will come off the bench tonight, Stefan Bondy of the New York Post tweets.
11:57am: The Knicks are “leaning toward” inserting center Mitchell Robinson into the starting lineup for Sunday’s Game 3 in Indiana, sources tell Ian Begley of SNY.tv. Robinson would replace wing Josh Hart in the starting five.
ESPN’s Shams Charania confirms the Knicks are giving “serious consideration” to the idea of benching Hart in favor of Robinson ahead of the pivotal game (story via Chris Herring of ESPN.com). New York lost both games at home to open the Eastern Conference Finals and finds itself in a 0-2 hole ahead of Sunday’s contest.
As Herring observes, the Knicks have gone with their usual starting group of Jalen Brunson, Mikal Bridges, Hart, OG Anunoby and Karl-Anthony Towns for the entire season and playoffs when they’ve all been healthy, so this could mark the team’s first major lineup change of 2024/25.
Despite playing the most minutes of any five-man group this postseason and advancing past Detroit and Boston, the starters have struggled during their time together on the court and have had much more success when Robinson and/or Miles McBride are mixed in.
Replacing Hart with Robinson would slide Towns, who has struggled defensively against the Pacers, from center to power forward, Begley writes. Reserve big man Precious Achiuwa is a candidate to receive more playing time if Robinson moves into the starting lineup for Game 3, Begley adds. An impending free agent who appeared in 57 regular season games (20.5 minutes per contest), Achiuwa has barely seen any action in the playoffs, averaging just 4.8 MPG while appearing in five of the team’s 14 postseason games.
When asked about the potential lineup change, Hart said he believes he’s a starter and had a great year, but he also has no issue if head coach Tom Thibodeau decides to bring him off the bench (Twitter video link via Knicks Videos).
“I can’t sit here and preach about sacrifice and getting out of our own personal agendas and all that and then, a decision like that is made, then be mad at it and not want to sacrifice and not want to do that,” Hart said. “That’s not the kind of person that I am.”
Hart added that the Knicks need to improve in multiple areas to claw their way back into the series, tweets Steve Popper of Newsday.
“Yeah, I think we need something drastic in terms of our energy and effort, our competitiveness,” Hart said.
After averaging 13.2 PPG, 8.5 RPG, 5.2 APG, 1.0 SPG and 0.8 BPG in helping New York reach the ECF (12 games; 37.1 MPG), Hart has averaged 7.0 PPG, 9.5 RPG, 4.0 APG, 1.0 SPG and 0.5 BPG through two games against Indiana (36.5 MPG). The Knicks have been outscored by 14 points during his time on the court in the series, whereas Robinson is plus-six in 50 minutes.
Suns Ready To Move On To Next Round In Coaching Search
The Suns have wrapped up the second round of interviews in their search for a new head coach, according to John Gambadoro of Arizona Sports 98.7 FM in Phoenix (Twitter link).
Gambadoro states that most of the interviews with the nine reported candidates were conducted via Zoom. He expects the finalists for the job to be notified within the next two days that they have advanced to in-person meetings.
It’s been nearly six full weeks since former head coach Mike Budenholzer was fired after one disappointing season on the job. With the 2021 championship on his resume, there was hope that Budenholzer could turn Phoenix into a legitimate title contender, but the team stumbled to a 36-46 record and failed to reach the play-in tournament.
The Suns have the luxury of taking their time in finding Budenholzer’s replacement because no other NBA team currently has a head coaching vacancy.
They went through an exhaustive process as the search began, reportedly holding initial conversations with between 15 and 20 candidates as they try to set a new direction for the team. Owner Mat Ishbia said in a press conference shortly after the season ended that he wants to find a coach who will bring increased toughness to the organization.
As reported last week, current Suns assistant David Fizdale is among the finalists for the job, along with Mavericks assistant Sean Sweeney, Pelicans assistant James Borrego, Cavaliers assistants Johnnie Bryant and Jordan Ott, Nets assistant Steve Hetzel, Timberwolves assistant Micah Nori, Thunder assistant Dave Bliss and Heat assistant Chris Quinn.
The Suns haven’t revealed when they hope to hire their next coach, but with the draft one month away and free agency starting a few days after that, there’s likely a sense of urgency to get the position filled in the coming weeks.
Jaylen Brown Still Contemplating Surgery For Meniscus Injury
Celtics star Jaylen Brown hasn’t made a final decision on whether to have surgery for the partial meniscus tear that has been bothering him since March, writes Noa Dalzell of Celtics Blog.
Brown discussed the injury during an appearance Saturday in Boston to promote his latest sneaker line. Dalzell notes that it was his first public appearance since the Celtics were upset by the Knicks in their second-round playoff series.
“l got a lot of doctors I gotta get evaluated with — see the potential for surgery versus no surgery, wait to speak to the [Celtics] organization,” Brown said. “For now, it’s just rest and recovery. I’m taking a step back from a long season. Mentally, it was a lot of stuff going on.”
Brown had another outstanding individual season, averaging 22.2 points, 5.8 rebounds and 4.5 assists in 63 games and earning an All-Star berth for the fourth time in the past five years. However, the team missed an opportunity to defend its NBA title, and Brown admitted that he was “expecting to be playing right now” instead of doing the shoe launch.
Brown’s sneaker line is unique because he established his own brand, called 741 Performance, in September rather than signing with an established company. It offers a wide apparel line in addition to the shoes, and Brown hopes it will inspire other athletes to pursue similar ventures.
“Just to really get it out there is an accomplishment in itself,” he said. “Just to take the route of independence and starting your own brand … for a high-profile athlete, you don’t really see that too often, especially at this stage in my career. It’s a lot of risk in that, but I wanted the next generation to know it’s possible.”
The Celtics are entering a summer of uncertainty, with numerous reports suggesting that a few high-salaried players will be traded to ease the team’s luxury tax bill. There’s been some speculation that Brown might be among them because of his super-max contract, but he’s hoping to stay put and lead the team back to title contention once Jayson Tatum returns from his Achilles surgery.
Brown talked with fans on Saturday about the team’s prospects for next season and said he’s motivated by their support for his company. Dalzell states that Brown plans to spend most of the summer in Boston for the first time in his career.
“I’m in the community a lot, but I’m leaning toward being even more in the community,” Brown said. “I’m just really trying to touch this community and be around, be available for the city of Boston.”
Mario Hezonja Drawing ‘Serious’ NBA Interest
Former No. 5 overall pick Mario Hezonja is drawing “serious interest” from NBA teams as he contemplates a move away from Spanish EuroLeague club Real Madrid, reports Donatas Urbonas of BasketNews.com.
Although Hezonja signed a five-year contract with Real Madrid last summer, his deal contains an NBA out clause in the range of $850K, according to Urbonas’ sources, which is the standard for international players crossing the Atlantic.
According to Urbonas, “several” NBA teams are keeping a close eye on Hezonja’s situation after a solid three-year stint with Real Madrid. The 30-year-old, who played for Panathinaikos (Greece) and UNICS (Russia) from 2020-22, also put up huge numbers during EuroBasket 2025 qualifiers, averaging 30.3 points, 9.3 rebounds, 3.8 assists and 2.0 steals per game, RealGM notes, though Croatia failed to qualify for the first time in the tournament’s history.
A 6’8″ forward, Hezonja never lived up to his lofty draft status as a young player in the NBA — his stints with Orlando, New York and Portland were plagued by inconsistency in multiple areas. But he did have occasional moments of brilliance, particularly on straight line drives when he could showcase his run-and-jump athleticism, and the outlines of a 3-and-D role player were certainly evident.
More importantly, Hezonja has been one of the better players in Europe over the past five years, and there’s a “real possibility” he could return to the NBA as he weighs his options this offseason, sources tell Urbonas.
While he never played for the Grizzlies, Hezonja was technically paid by Memphis during the 2020/21 season, having been waived before that campaign began.
NBA Reveals Full Voter Ballots For 2024/25 Awards
The NBA has formally revealed the full ballots submitted by the 100 media members who voted for each of this season’s awards, per a press release from the league.
Over the past several weeks, the NBA gradually unveiled its major award winners for the 2024/25 season, starting with Sixth Man of the Year on April 22 and wrapping up with All-NBA on Friday. While the league confirmed at the time of those announcements how many votes each player received, we now know exactly which NBA reporter or analyst submitted each vote.
So if you’ve been wondering who had Derrick White as their runner-up for Defensive Player of the Year, who snuck Jared McCain onto their Rookie of the Year ballot after he played just 23 games, who awarded Reed Sheppard and his 4.4 points per game a spot on their All-Rookie Second Team, or which 29 voters made Nikola Jokic their MVP choice, now you can find out.
Here are the results of this season’s award votes, in the order they were announced, along with our stories on each winner and links to the full media voter ballots:
Sixth Man of the Year
- Payton Pritchard (Celtics)
- Malik Beasley (Pistons)
- Ty Jerome (Cavaliers)
Clutch Player of the Year
- Jalen Brunson (Knicks)
- Nikola Jokic (Nuggets)
- Anthony Edwards (Timberwolves)
Defensive Player of the Year
- Evan Mobley (Cavaliers)
- Dyson Daniels (Hawks)
- Draymond Green (Warriors)
Rookie of the Year
- Stephon Castle (Spurs)
- Zaccharie Risacher (Hawks)
- Jaylen Wells (Grizzlies)
Most Improved Player
- Dyson Daniels (Hawks)
- Ivica Zubac (Clippers)
- Cade Cunningham (Pistons)
Coach of the Year
- Kenny Atkinson (Cavaliers)
- J.B. Bickerstaff (Pistons)
- Ime Udoka (Rockets)
All-Rookie Teams
First Team
- Stephon Castle (Spurs)
- Zaccharie Risacher (Hawks)
- Jaylen Wells (Grizzlies)
- Zach Edey (Grizzlies)
- Alex Sarr (Wizards)
Second Team
- Kel’el Ware (Heat)
- Matas Buzelis (Bulls)
- Yves Missi (Pelicans)
- Donovan Clingan (Trail Blazers)
- Bub Carrington (Wizards)
Most Valuable Player
- Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (Thunder)
- Nikola Jokic (Nuggets)
- Giannis Antetokounmpo (Bucks)
All-Defensive Teams
First Team
- Evan Mobley (Cavaliers)
- Dyson Daniels (Hawks)
- Luguentz Dort (Thunder)
- Draymond Green (Warriors)
- Amen Thompson (Rockets)
Second Team
- Ivica Zubac (Clippers)
- Jaren Jackson Jr. (Grizzlies)
- Jalen Williams (Thunder)
- Toumani Camara (Trail Blazers)
- Rudy Gobert (Timberwolves)
All-NBA Teams
First Team
- Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (Thunder)
- Nikola Jokic (Nuggets)
- Giannis Antetokounmpo (Bucks)
- Jayson Tatum (Celtics)
- Donovan Mitchell (Cavaliers)
Second Team
- Anthony Edwards (Timberwolves)
- LeBron James (Lakers)
- Stephen Curry (Warriors)
- Evan Mobley (Cavaliers)
- Jalen Brunson (Knicks)
Third Team
- Cade Cunningham (Pistons)
- Karl-Anthony Towns (Knicks)
- Tyrese Haliburton (Pacers)
- Jalen Williams (Thunder)
- James Harden (Clippers)
Cade Cunningham Earns Salary Bump With All-NBA Nod
As a result of earning a spot on the All-NBA Third Team on Friday, Pistons guard Cade Cunningham will see the value of the five-year, maximum-salary rookie scale extension he signed last summer increase by a projected total of nearly $45MM.
Cunningham’s contract included Rose Rule language. The Rose Rule allow players coming off their rookie scale contracts to receive salaries worth more than 25% of the cap in year five if they make an All-NBA team during the season (or two of the three seasons) before their extension goes into effect. Players can also qualify by being named Most Valuable Player or Defensive Player of the Year.
Cunningham’s 2025/26 salary will now be worth 30% of the cap instead of 25%. Based on the NBA’s latest cap projections, that means his five-year deal will be worth $269,085,780 instead of $224,238,150.
[RELATED: Maximum Salary Projections For 2025/26]
Cunningham was one of four players to sign a rookie scale extension that included Rose Rule language last summer. Cavaliers big man Evan Mobley, who was named to the All-NBA Second Team on Friday, had already earned a bump to 30% as a result of winning the Defensive Player of the Year award. His five-year deal will look identical to Cunningham’s.
The other two players who signed Rose Rule rookie scale extensions – Magic forward Franz Wagner and Raptors forward Scottie Barnes – didn’t receive any end-of-season awards, so their new contracts will begin at 25% of the cap and will be worth $224,238,150 across the next five seasons.
Meanwhile, Grizzlies big man Jaren Jackson Jr. would have qualified for a designated veteran extension – also known as a super-max contract – if he had earned a spot on any of this year’s three All-NBA teams. However, he finished 17th in total voting, with 55 points, falling a little short of the required threshold. Clippers guard James Harden beat him out for the final Third Team spot with 68 points (Twitter link).
As a result, Jackson won’t be super-max eligible this offseason. That means in order to extend him, Memphis will likely need to give him a raise on his 2025/26 salary of $23,413,395 via renegotiation.
Without a pay bump, Jackson’s maximum extension would be worth $146,848,813 over four years, which may not be enough to convince him to sign. If the Grizzlies renegotiate next season’s salary to give him a raise, they would be able to offer up to 140% of his new ’25/26 salary in that first year of an extension.