Knicks Notes: Bridges, Robinson, Brunson, Towns, More
Mikal Bridges came away with the game-sealing steal against the Celtics on Wednesday. And in Game 1 on Monday, his late three-pointer helped the Knicks secure victory in overtime. James L. Edwards III of The Athletic writes that while Bridges’ tenure in New York started off on the wrong foot, no one is thinking about the draft picks the Knicks gave up to acquire the defensive-minded wing with the Celtics on the ropes.
“Get your damn apology forms out,” teammate Josh Hart said. “I’ll be collecting them next game.”
As Edwards writes, Bridges’ performance reflects his ability to overcome adversity.
“Going back to our days in college, the way we practiced and prepared for games, it was more mental than anything,” Bridges’ Villanova and Knicks teammate Jalen Brunson said. “Then, when you get to the game situations, you’ve practiced it and been prepared for it. When you do that at a young age and have that in your repertoire going into a professional career, you have that in your back pocket. He has the ability to block out the noise.”
We have more from the Knicks:
- Mitchell Robinson proved to be a major force for the Knicks in their Game 2 win, Zach Braziller of the New York Post observes. The Knicks outscored the Celtics by 19 points with Robinson on the court and he recorded six points, eight rebounds and three steals in the win.
- Brunson opened Game 2 on a rough note, shooting just 23.1% from the field through three quarters. However, in crunch time, the 2024/25 Clutch Player of the Year showed up, Jared Schwartz of the New York Post writes. He wound up scoring nine points in the fourth quarter to help lift New York over Boston. “That’s Jalen,” coach Tom Thibodeau said. “It doesn’t matter what’s going on in the game, he’s going to be at his best when his best is needed.”
- Add Karl-Anthony Towns and Hart to the list of players who stood out when their numbers were called, Schwartz and the New York Post’s Stefan Bondy write in separate stories. “KAT, the way he started off the game was great for us,” Brunson said. “The way he’s been throughout the entire season, he’s been one of the best teammates we have. The way he gives us energy and the way he goes and gets rebounds and what he does, it doesn’t go unnoticed. It’s just the way he’s been.“
Heat Primed For Pivotal Offseason With Herro Extension On Horizon
The Heat are set up to face one of the more pivotal offseasons in franchise history. Miami’s 2024/25 season seemed off from the start, with president Pat Riley calling out Jimmy Butler last spring before the latter requested out of Miami in December. The Heat ultimately acquiesced and sent Butler to the Warriors.
What followed the Butler saga were significant ups and downs. The Heat lost 10 games in a row before immediately winning six straight. The team then defeated both the Bulls and the Hawks as the 10th seed in the play-in, earning a playoff appearance, before getting swept by the Cavaliers in the most lopsided series in league history.
As Anthony Chiang of the Miami Herald writes, Riley will have plenty to discuss during his end-of-season news conference on Friday. Several looming topics will likely be addressed, including the general state of the franchise, avoiding the repeater tax, and Tyler Herro‘s potential extension.
While Riley has never really operated this way, it’s possible a soft reset is on the horizon with Miami owning its first-round pick in 2026. As for the tax, the Heat have been a luxury tax team each of the past two seasons and are in danger of triggering the repeater penalties, which could dictate how they operate this year.
Meanwhile, Herro is eligible for a three-year extension worth up to $149.7MM starting Oct. 1. If an agreement isn’t reached by Oct. 20, he would be eligible for a four-year deal worth $206.9MM next summer. Whether or not that will be addressed this year will also be worth watching.
It’s also increasingly likely that Miami goes star hunting again this offseason. While past pursuits of stars like Kevin Durant and Damian Lillard came up empty, the Heat have appealing assets this offseason, including up to three first-rounders. Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald breaks down the Heat’s complex asset cabinet that could be increased before the draft, meaning clarity on whether a star player would join would be necessary by that point.
The Heat also have numerous large expiring contracts and young players to make the math work for a potential trade.
This isn’t to say Miami will absolutely make a massive move this offseason. However, the first-round series against Cleveland proved that the Heat aren’t yet a contender, and it’s unclear whether they believe a full offseason with Andrew Wiggins on the roster will push them forward.
Pacific Notes: Kings, Warriors, Green, Spencer, Harden
The Kings are in the process of revamping their front office and coaching staff, having already added B.J. Armstrong as an assistant general manager and Mike Woodson as the lead assistant on their coaching staff.
A Wednesday report indicated that Sixers assistant Bobby Jackson will return to Sacramento (where he played and coached for multiple years), but Jason Anderson of The Sacramento Bee hears a deal has yet to be finalized. It is a strong possibility, per Anderson, that it does in fact happen, but the Kings haven’t asked Philadelphia for permission to speak to him and there have been no formal discussions yet.
Additionally, vice president of player personnel Phil Jabour, vice president of player development Paul Johnson and vice president of basketball engagement Alvin Gentry will all remain with Sacramento moving forward, according to Anderson.
We have more from the Pacific Division:
- Buddy Hield maintained his hot shooting streak in Game 1 of the Western Conference semis and the Warriors as a whole kept their three-point shooting intact after Stephen Curry went down to claim a win over the Timberwolves. Kevin Pelton of ESPN says that shouldn’t be the expectation for the series moving forward with Curry out due to injury. Pelton opines that the Warriors can still craft an offensive edge built around Jimmy Butler, but cautions that the team will have to be careful not to run Butler into the ground and adds that other role players will need to step up.
- Without Curry, the Warriors will turn to Draymond Green on and off the court, ESPN’s Ohm Youngmisuk writes. “He’s our leader,” coach Steve Kerr said. “And when he’s right, like he was [in Game 7 of the first round], he’s an incredible player to watch. The defense, just kind of owning the court on that side of things and then just being patient and not turning it over and being in the right spots offensively. I think the guys understood after Game 6 we were scattered, we were out of sorts.“
- Pat Spencer is one of the Warriors‘ bench pieces who stepped up in Game 1 and will be relied on moving forward, Marcus Thompson II and Shakeia Taylor of The Athletic write. “Pat is a damn good basketball player,” Green said. “And I know he don’t look like it. He don’t just jump off the page at you when you see him in a basketball jersey. I don’t think the No. 61 helps him. But he is one of the toughest guys on this team, and that includes myself.” Spencer is a former lacrosse star who worked his way up through the G League and onto the Warriors’ standard roster. He provided a spark of energy for Golden State in Game 1.
- The Clippers outwardly supported James Harden after he followed an impressive regular season with an inconsistent playoff run, including a seven-point Game 7 performance, Law Murray of The Athletic notes. “We really asked James to do a lot,” president of basketball operations Lawrence Frank said. “And at his age, to deliver what he did … 79 games. And he does that time and time and time again. We have a deep appreciation for that sort of availability and to be able to deliver and do what he did.” The Clippers fell to the Nuggets in a first-round Game 7 in which Harden attempted only eight field goals.
Clippers To Target Malcolm Brogdon In Free Agency?
In a discussion about the Clippers‘ offseason with Yossi Gozlan of Third Apron (YouTube link), Law Murray of The Athletic said veteran guard Malcolm Brogdon is a name worth monitoring. Brogdon will be an unrestricted free agent this summer after earning $22.5MM in 2024/25 with the Wizards.
“I would consider Brogdon a primary target for the Clippers,” Murray said (Twitter video link). “ … They almost traded (for him in the past). I think if Brogdon would have been a buyout guy (after the February trade deadline), I think the Clippers would have considered him along with Ben Simmons.”
Murray noted that Brogdon has a longstanding relationship with former Clippers executive Michael Winger, who now leads Washington’s front office.
“At the very least, there will be some consideration there,” Murray said. “He fits everything that the Clippers look for as far as a point guard who can shoot, who has positional size. That’s like a bullet on the board there.”
When healthy, Brogdon has been a very productive NBA player. He won Rookie of the Year back in 2017 and Sixth Man of the Year in ’23, and he holds career averages of 15.3 points, 4.1 rebounds and 4.7 assists on .463/.388/.874 shooting in 463 appearances (29.1 minutes).
However, injuries have been a major issue for Brogdon. He was limited to just 24 games this season for the Wizards and has appeared in fewer than 40 contests in three of the past four campaigns. That could limit his market value this summer.
Brogdon also wasn’t as effective as he’s been in the past in 2024/25. He averaged a career-low 23.5 MPG and shot a career-worst 28.6% from beyond the arc, though those numbers are a little misleading because it’s a fairly small sample size and he was playing for the second-worst team in the league.
Still, Brogdon makes some sense as a potential target for the Clippers. As Murray mentioned, the 32-year-old can play both guard spots, has plus size, and is a very good shooter when given space.
Stephen Curry Discusses ‘Tricky’ Hamstring Strain
Warriors star Stephen Curry sustained a Grade 1 left hamstring strain on Tuesday in the second quarter of Golden State’s Game 1 victory over Minnesota. Speaking to reporters — including Anthony Slater of The Athletic and Ohm Youngmisuk of ESPN — at Thursday’s shootaround, Curry called the situation a “gut punch.”
“Fight through the last two months of the season, a hard first round that you get through a Game 7,” Curry said. “The way that we were playing and I was playing individually, that first half (of Game 1), I was starting to feel really, really good about where we were at, and then you kind of get a gut punch like that. So it was really emotional at first.”
Curry has already been ruled out for the next three games of the series due to the injury. If necessary, Game 5 will take place next Wednesday. While the 37-year-old said he doesn’t have a specific return date, he suggested next Wednesday might too optimistic at this point. Both Slater and Youngmisuk point out that there would be three full days off before a potential Game 6.
“This is new, and from all that I’m learning about how quickly you can get back, there has to be a healing process,” Curry said. “You can’t accelerate it more than what it’s telling you. So it’ll be one of those, after a week, really reevaluating every day to understand when it’s safe just to even think about playing, let alone how much can you push it.”
According to Youngmisuk, Curry was asked if he will have to fight an urge to return early if his team finds itself in a hole without him.
“There will eventually be conversations like that,” Curry said. “I’m not even anywhere close to that right now, so I’m not rushing it because there has to be a natural healing process that happens and the body will tell you even if you’re able to do normal basketball movements, pain-free and all that stuff.
“And I know how tricky hamstrings can be where they can fool you and think that it’s healed even if you don’t feel anything. And so that gray area is a little, will be confusing I’m sure, but I’ll do everything in my power to get back as soon as possible.”
While he was obviously extremely disappointed to have suffered a hamstring injury for the first time this late in his career with an opportunity to win another title, he said he was grateful the strain wasn’t more severe. Curry also said Golden State gained confidence after taking Game 1 and believes the team can do well without the 11-time All-Star.
“There is a great vibe in our locker room in terms of them trying to hold the fort down,” Curry said. “We have a lot of confidence that we can still win the series, and guys step up no matter how it looks. And it’s obviously a situation where you want to think positively and optimistically that we can win games and buy me some time to get back and stretch, hopefully have another series after this and be able to be in a position where I can get back out there safely where I’m not putting too much risk on the body if it’s not ready.”
Nuggets Notes: Gordon, Jokic, Starters, Physicality, Westbrook
Three-time MVP Nikola Jokic fouled out in the third quarter for the first time in his career during Wednesday’s Game 2 in Oklahoma City. Nuggets forward Aaron Gordon is frustrated by the way Jokic is being officiated, writes Troy Renck of The Denver Post.
“They are calling the second foul almost all of the time. They are fouling Joker first,” Gordon said. “You know Jok is reactionary and they do get the second guy a lot of the times. But they are fouling him throughout the game — point blank. Period. And it’s a thing you can’t call every foul because you would be calling a foul every single play. But they are fouling him. They are a handsy team.”
As Renck notes, no one on the Nuggets blamed the officials for Wednesday’s lopsided defeat. But Jokic has now accumulated 11 fouls in two games against a physical Thunder team, and that will be an important trend to monitor for the remainder of the second-round series.
“You can (help him), but if they are going to let them push him and shove him, like two hands on him, root him out, (use) the knee, elbows, all types of stuff that they are doing to him that is not necessarily legal, then, there’s not much you can do,” Gordon said. “Jok has gotta play through it. If they are not going to call it, they are not calling it. We can help hit them. But they are fouling the guy.”
Here’s more on the Nuggets:
- Denver was thoroughly dismantled on Wednesday and trailed by 31 points at halftime. After the game, interim head coach David Adelman explained why he played the starters in the third quarter with the contest seemingly out of reach. “I felt like we needed to find a rhythm, a physicality,” Adelman said, per Bennett Durando of The Denver Post. “I think that (Oklahoma City) thought that we were trying to junk up the game, which we weren’t. We were just trying to play much harder than we did in the first half. Obviously, when (Jokic) fouled out, (we) got them all out with about a minute left (in the third quarter). They got to sit the whole (fourth) quarter. They get to sit tomorrow. All day Friday. And get ready for Friday night. So no, I was not just gonna sit the guys at halftime. That’s not what we’re doing here.”
- In order for the Nuggets to rebound from Wednesday’s humiliating defeat and take a 2-1 lead in Friday’s Game 3, they will have to match the Thunder’s physicality, according to Tony Jones of The Athletic. “We got punked,” Adelman said. “And we allowed ourselves to get punked. We didn’t play well enough at any point, and we have to realize that this is a team that can separate from other teams. There’s a reason this team has a historic plus/minus. We need a better start than that. We need to be better than that. We can say the series is tied 1-1, but we aren’t going to flush that. That’s not what this game was. We’ll have to look at what they did and how we responded, and I would expect a much better effort than that on Friday night.” Renck of The Denver Post also believes the Nuggets need to play more forcefully against the top-seeded Thunder.
- Russell Westbrook‘s game is polarizing, but the Nuggets “would be a mess” without him in these playoffs, Renck contends. Westbrook, who assisted Gordon’s game-winning three in the series opener, is averaging 15.0 points, 4.0 rebounds, 3.0 assists and 1.0 steal on .451/.375/.719 shooting through eight postseason games (25.6 minutes per contest).
Hoops Rumors Chat Transcript: 5/8/2025
Hoops Rumors hosted a live chat today at 1:00 pm Central time (2:00 pm Eastern).
Click here to read the transcript.
Magic Notes: KCP, F. Wagner, Suggs, Carter
After converting 40.3% of his three-point attempts from 2019-24, Kentavious Caldwell-Pope struggled with his shot in his first season with the Magic, making just 34.2% of his outside looks — the third-lowest mark of his career.
Caldwell-Pope, who signed a three-year, $66MM contract with the Magic last offseason, conceded his shooting wasn’t up to par in 2024/25, according to Jason Beede of The Orlando Sentinel.
“Not as I expected for my performance,” Caldwell-Pope said. “I finished a little solid, but shooting-wise that could be a lot better. That goes into a lot. I thought my season was pretty good despite everything we’ve been through.”
As Beede notes, injuries to Paolo Banchero, Franz Wagner and Jalen Suggs, among others, made it difficult for Caldwell-Pope to consistently find the types of looks he likes, particularly since he was playing with new teammates. The veteran shooting guard won’t have to worry about free agency this summer, so he plans to spend more time in the gym honing his craft.
“I felt like I was a little bit more stagnant this year as far as not moving to get open or find open windows to be able to get those shots,” he said. “For me, just this summer, getting more attempts at the rim and being able to just shoot all summer.”
Here’s more on the Magic:
- Despite tearing a right abdominal muscle, which cost him 20 games, Franz Wagner posted career-best counting stats in ’24/25 and likely would have been an All-Star for the first time had he not been injured, Beede writes for The Orlando Sentinel. “I was put into a little bit of a new spot when Paolo went out and looking back on it, I handled it pretty well,” Wagner said. “I was pleased with how I was playing then. For me, the injury was at a terrible time because I felt like we were rolling as a team. But that’s how it goes sometimes. I handled it well — the injury and the rehab stuff. I played a decent second half of season, got better at a couple of things and also saw a couple of things I need to improve on.”
- Suggs, who has dealt with numerous injuries over the course of his four NBA seasons, was limited to a career-low 35 games in ’24/25 due to back, quad and knee injuries. He recently discussed a number of topics at his end-of-season media availability, including his approach to the game and how his rehab is going, as Beede relays.
- Like many members of the Magic, big man Wendell Carter struggled with his long-range shot this season. After making 35.1% of his threes over the previous three seasons, he converted just 23.4% in ’24/25. He said rediscovering his outside touch will be a high priority this offseason (story via Beede). “Become that knockdown shooter I was a year or two ago, and be in the best shape of my life,” Carter said of his plans for the summer. “There’s a lot of goals I have for myself going into this next season … [including] being able to play as many games as possible, but also being at the top of my game.”
Celtics Notes: Game 2 Loss, Porzingis, Horford, Tatum, Holiday
After going 4-0 against the Knicks during the regular season with an average margin of victory of 16.3 points per contest, the Celtics built 20-point leads in each of the first two games of their second-round playoff series vs. New York before improbably losing both of them.
“Two games we’re up 20 points somehow end up not with wins is inexcusable,” Celtics wing Jaylen Brown said after Wednesday’s Game 2 loss, per Brian Windhorst of ESPN. “Obviously being down two, it sucks.”
No NBA team had a better regular season record in “clutch” games than Boston’s 24-11 (.686) mark. However, the fourth quarter has been a disaster for the Celtics through two games of the conference semifinals. As Windhorst details, the team missed 14 of its final 15 field goal attempts and was outscored by a 23-6 margin in the final 8:30 on Wednesday. Boston has also made just 4-of-26 (15.4%) three-pointers in fourth quarters through two games.
The Celtics still had a chance to win both games, but didn’t do quite enough, losing in overtime by three points on Monday and by a single point on Wednesday.
“I don’t have the answer honestly, I don’t have the answer,” Celtics big man Kristaps Porzingis said. “Just a little bit of execution here and there. There’s a couple missed shots here and there. A couple things go their way and it just adds up and it’s this result.”
Here’s more on the reeling Celtics as they prepare for the series to head to New York:
- Porzingis continues to be plagued by the illness that cost him eight consecutive games in February and March and five additional games during the last few weeks of the regular season. He played just 14 minutes on Wednesday and wasn’t part of the Celtics’ starting or closing lineups. “I don’t know how to call it, but I’m just not feeling my best, not feeling my best at all,” he said after the game, according to Windhorst. “It just kills me inside that it’s happening in this moment. But who cares? Nobody feels sorry for us, sorry for me and we have to keep going.”
- As Matt Ehalt of The New York Post writes, the Celtics had to overextend Al Horford in Porzingis’ absence — the veteran big man played the entire fourth quarter on Wednesday and had trouble handling Karl-Anthony Towns in the post over the course of the night, notes Brian Robb of MassLive. Horford was just 2-of-11 from the floor and the Celtics were a -11 when he was on the court.
- Celtics All-NBA forward Jayson Tatum has struggled mightily with his shot through two games, making only 12-of-41 field goals (29.3%) and 5-of-20 three-pointers (25.0%) while committing eight turnovers, including one on the final possession of Game 2. According to Windhorst, Tatum didn’t speak to the media after Wednesday’s loss because the arena had to be evacuated due to a fire alarm.
- Ahead of Game 2, Celtics guard Jrue Holiday earned another end-of-season honor, receiving the Kareem Abdul-Jabbar Trophy as the NBA’s Social Justice Champion for 2024/25. The award recognizes a player who advances Abdul-Jabbar’s mission “to engage, empower and drive equality for individuals and groups who have been historically disadvantaged.” Holiday, who also won the NBA’s Sportsmanship award last week, beat out four other finalists for the Social Justice award, as detailed in a press release from the league.
And-Ones: Vezenkov, Metu, Bad Contracts, Front Offices, More
Former NBA forward Sasha Vezenkov, who spent the 2023/24 season with the Kings, is enjoying a hugely successful return to Europe this season. Vezenkov finished as the runner-up in EuroLeague MVP voting after averaging 20.2 points per game for Olympiacos and has now been named the EuroLeague Playoffs MVP for his performance in the Greek team’s quarterfinal series vs. Real Madrid, according to a press release.
It’s the first time the EuroLeague has named a Playoffs MVP — the award doesn’t encompass the league’s Final Four, which will be played later this month. Vezenkov, who gave up a fully guaranteed $6.7MM salary with the Raptors last summer in order to head back overseas, will be looking to lead Olympiacos to a win over AS Monaco on May 23 in the semifinals and – ultimately – to a EuroLeague championship.
In other European basketball news, Barcelona is parting ways with former NBA big man Chimezie Metu, who tore his Achilles in March, per a Mundo Deportivo report (hat tip to Sportando).
After appearing in 260 regular season games for four NBA teams from 2018-24, Metu played a key role for Barça this season prior to the injury, averaging 11.0 points and 4.8 rebounds in 20.0 minutes per game across 24 EuroLeague outings.
Here are more odds and ends from around the basketball world:
- Eric Pincus of Bleacher Report identifies five star players he believes have negative trade value due to their massive contracts, including a pair of Sixers (Joel Embiid and Paul George) and Nuggets guard Jamal Murray. Interestingly, Pincus gives Jazz forward Lauri Markkanen an honorable mention, noting that one Eastern Conference executive referred to Markkanen’s deal (four years, $196MM) as the worst in the league. That’s “probably hyperbolic,” Pincus writes, though he notes that several teams view the contract as a major overpay.
- In an article open to non-subscribers, Yossi Gozlan of The Third Apron (Substack link) hands out his front office awards – the “Yossis” – for the 2024/25 NBA season. Gozlan recognizes the Thunder for their overall salary cap management, the Knicks for their creative cap machinations in the Karl-Anthony Towns trade, and the Hawks for most improving their long-term outlook over the past year, while also handing out a few other awards.
- Even before home teams opened the second round by losing their first six games, the impact of home-court advantage in the NBA playoffs was on the decline, writes Mike Vorkunov of The Athletic. According to Vorkunov, home teams won at least 60 percent of their games in 56 of the NBA’s first 78 postseasons, but that hasn’t happened since 2018 — and home teams have lost 10 of 15 Game Sevens since 2021. So far this spring, teams have a home record of just 26-24 in the playoffs.