Pacific Notes: Lakers, Horford, Santos, Durant, Suns
After missing nine straight games due to a right ankle contusion, former Defensive Player of the Year Marcus Smart will return to action on Friday for the Lakers, tweets Jovan Buha. Los Angeles, which is jockeying for playoff seeding in the Western Conference, faces Phoenix tonight.
Head coach JJ Redick said Thursday that he spoke to Luka Doncic, who is rehabilitating from a Grade 2 left hamstring strain in Europe, per Dave McMenamin of ESPN (Twitter link). Redick said Doncic was in “relatively good spirits,” adding that it’s been good to have Austin Reaves around the team as he recovers from his own injury (oblique strain).
Redick also had a conversation with Jarred Vanderbilt about Tuesday’s spat in which the 27-year-old forward accosted Redick for calling a timeout to remove him from the game (Twitter link via McMenamin). Redick didn’t divulge any details about that conversation but said it went “great.” Vanderbilt played 26 minutes in Thursday’s win at Golden State after receiving just five on Tuesday.
Here’s more from around the Pacific Division:
- As expected, Al Horford will return from a 14-game absence on Friday in Sacramento, relays Anthony Slater of ESPN (via Twitter). The Warriors big man has been out since March 13 due to a right calf (soleus) strain. Horford, who holds a $5.97MM player option for next season, has averaged 8.3 points, 5.0 rebounds, 2.6 assists and 1.2 blocks in 43 appearances in 2025/26 (21.7 minutes per game).
- Several filmmakers from Brazil have been recording documentary footage of Gui Santos throughout the course of the Warriors forward’s third NBA season, as Danny Emerman of The San Francisco Standard details. The former second-round pick has unexpectedly been thrust into a major rotation role the past couple months after Jimmy Butler suffered a torn ACL in his right knee. Santos said he watches every episode and his family back home in Brazil loves the series, which is released on YouTube with English subtitles. “It’s on the internet, so that’s one thing that’s never going to get lost,” Santos told Emerman. “So, when I’m 50 years old or 40 years old, sit with my grandsons on the sofa just watching that: ‘Look, your grandpa was strong, your grandpa was playing in the NBA.’ That will be nice.“
- Rockets forward Kevin Durant said prior to Tuesday’s matchup in Phoenix that he’s “pretty much over” the way his Suns tenure ended, per Duane Rankin of The Arizona Republic. It was Durant’s first game in Phoenix since he was traded to Houston last summer. “At the time, it was tough to take. A place I wanted to be. I wanted to keep building, but it’s the business of the league and it’s the business of basketball,” Durant said. “You’re not going to be in the same place all the time. It is what it is. Yeah, I was sour early on, but I think I’ve gotten over it. Time heals all. Just move on.” The 37-year-old star had 24 points, four rebounds and three assists during Tuesday’s game, which Houston won.
Warriors Notes: Horford, Porzingis, Curry Brothers, Bassey
Veteran big man Al Horford, who is recovering from a right soleus (calf) strain, will miss his 14th consecutive game on Thursday. However, Warriors head coach Steve Kerr said Horford went through a 5-on-5 scrimmage on Wednesday and is optimistic the 39-year-old will be active for Friday’s game vs. Sacramento, as Nick Friedell of The Athletic tweets.
Golden State’s longtime coach is also hopeful Kristaps Porzingis (general illness injury management, right knee soreness) will return to action on Friday. Porzingis was out Tuesday and will miss Thursday’s matchup with the Lakers as well.
As for Stephen Curry, Kerr said the star guard is doing well and will play Friday, Friedell adds (via Twitter).
Here’s more on the Warriors:
- Curry and Porzingis were only able to play nine minutes together during Sunday’s loss to Houston, partly because Porzingis fouled out after 23 minutes. Seeing how the two players fit together will be critical ahead of Porzingis’ impending free agency, writes Danny Emerman of The San Francisco Standard. “I thought we have a lot more to prove out there,” Curry said. “I know he was in foul trouble all night. But there were a couple possessions — they tried to blitz me, get somebody in the pocket, KP’s spacing the floor, the defense has to make a decision. So, more of those reps will be great, not just for me and him, but for all of us to continue to build chemistry.”
- Curry and his younger brother Seth Curry finally shared the court together on Sunday for the first time in an injury-plagued season for both players, according to Friedell of The Athletic. Steph, who called it a “special” day, said it was the first time they’d played together since high school. “It’s a dream come true,” Seth said. “We’ve played against each other for a while now. For us to be on the same floor together as teammates was a different dynamic, and I’m sure everybody was watching on the East Coast — (our mother) was over there sneaking pictures when we were both in the hall trying to get loose. She was really excited.”
- Fifth-year center Charles Bassey earned praise from Kerr and Draymond Green after just two games with the team, per Monte Poole of NBC Sports Bay Area. The Nigerian big man finished Tuesday’s win with 14 points, 12 rebounds, two steals and two blocks and was plus-nine in 27 minutes. “It means a lot, man, to have this opportunity,” Bassey told NBC Sports Bay Area. “I’m just trying to use this because, you never know when your chance will come. It means a lot just being here. They gave me this opportunity, and it means a lot to me, my family and the team.”
Pacific Notes: LeBron, Curry, Post, Horford, Ott
After Lakers star LeBron James made disparaging comments about Memphis on a YouTube show this week, he may have alienated a couple of other fan bases on Saturday, writes Law Murray of The Athletic. Given a chance to clarify his statements about the city and his feeling that the Grizzlies should move to Nashville, James pointed out to reporters that he criticized the Bucks‘ hometown as well.
“Milwaukee was, too. Did they miss that one, too? They didn’t see that?” James said. “Forty-one years old, it’s two cities I do not like playing in right now. That’s Milwaukee, and that’s Memphis. What is the problem?”
James was reacting to a question about NBA travel, telling the host that “it just wears on you more” at his age. The Akron, Ohio, native also listed Cleveland as one of the cities he doesn’t enjoy visiting, which probably comes as a surprise to Cavaliers fans.
“I don’t like going home either … and I’m from there,” he said. “People are ridiculous. They also get mad at my son (Bronny) being on the (Lakers), too. So what are we talking about? People need to figure out other ways to put their energy to other things that’s important. Like seriously? I’m not talking about the city, like the people in Memphis. I don’t like staying at the Hyatt Centric. What’s wrong with that? Nothing! What are we talking about? … People need to chill the hell out.”
There’s more from the Pacific Division:
- The Warriors are likely stuck in 10th place, but there’s optimism that the season can be saved with Stephen Curry expected to return Sunday after missing more than two months with a knee issue, per Noah Furtado of The San Francisco Chronicle (subscription required). “Now, Superman’s back,” Gary Payton II said, “so we’ll figure it out with that.” After being out of action since January 30, Curry is looking forward to teaming up with Kristaps Porzingis, who wasn’t acquired until the trade deadline in February. “I was telling him, I don’t know how people are going to guard our pick-and-roll,” Curry said. “Anytime you have talent like that and two guys that can demand attention, it’s always a good thing, to create good offense and help elevate whoever we’re out there with.”
- The Warriors say Quinten Post, who’s sidelined with soreness in his right foot, is making progress and will be reevaluated next week, relays Marc J. Spears of Andscape (Twitter link). Al Horford is also set for a reevaluation next week and seems to be getting close to returning before the regular season ends, adds Nick Friedell of The Athletic (Twitter link).
- Jordan Ott picked up his first technical foul as Suns head coach in Thursday’s loss at Charlotte, notes Duane Rankin of The Arizona Republic. His players weren’t sure if he might make it through all 82 games without one. “I’ve been waiting all season for him to get one,” Royce O’Neale said. “I think it was right timing. Moments like those help us get a boost of energy. Just shows that he got our back in every situation.”
NBA Announces Finalists For Sportsmanship, Teammate Of The Year Awards
The NBA announced the 2025/26 finalists for a pair of awards on Tuesday, naming the six players who are eligible to win the Sportsmanship Award for this season, as well as the 12 players who are in the running to be named Teammate of the Year.
The Sportsmanship Award honors the player who “best represents the ideals of sportsmanship on the court,” per the NBA. Each of the league’s 30 teams nominates one of its players for the award, then a panel of league executives narrows that group to six finalists (one from each division) and current players voted for the winner.
The trophy for the Sportsmanship Award is named after Joe Dumars, the Hall-of-Fame guard who won the inaugural award back in ’95/96. This season’s finalists are as follows (via Twitter):
Bam Adebayo (Heat)- Harrison Barnes (Spurs)
- Al Horford (Warriors)
- Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (Thunder)
- T.J. McConnell (Pacers)
- Derrick White (Celtics)
Gilgeous-Alexander is the only one of this year’s finalists for the Sportsmanship Award who was also nominated last season. Whoever earns the honor for 2025/26 will be a first-time winner. Jrue Holiday took home the Joe Dumars Trophy a year ago.
Meanwhile, the NBA also announced its finalists for the Teammate of the Year award for 2025/26. According to the league, the player selected for the honor is “deemed the best teammate based on selfless play, on- and off-court leadership as a mentor and role model to other NBA players, and commitment and dedication to team.”
The voting process is similar to the Sportsmanship Award — a panel of league executives selects 12 finalists (six from each conference) for the award, then current players vote on the winner.
Holiday is a three-time Teammate of the Year, having earned the honor in 2020, 2022, and 2023. He’s the only past recipient who is among this season’s group of finalists.
Those Teammate of the Year finalists are as follows (via Twitter):
- Desmond Bane (Magic)
- Jalen Brunson (Knicks)
- Pat Connaughton (Hornets)
- De’Aaron Fox (Spurs)
- Jeff Green (Rockets)
- Jrue Holiday (Trail Blazers)
- DeAndre Jordan (Pelicans)
- Duncan Robinson (Pistons)
- Marcus Smart (Lakers)
- Jayson Tatum (Celtics)
- Garrett Temple (Raptors)
- Jaylin Williams (Thunder)
Stephen Curry (Knee) To Be Reevaluated Next Week
7:50 pm: Head coach Steve Kerr acknowledged that time is running out for Curry to return this season, per Slater (Twitter link).
“We’re not bringing him back (only) for the play-in game,” head coach Steve Kerr said. “He’d need to play some games. We need to give him a runway if this is going to work. And we are running out of games.”
Moses Moody also underwent surgery on Friday to repair his torn patellar tendon, tweets Nick Friedell of The Athletic.
6:54 pm: Warriors guard Stephen Curry will be reevaluated sometime next week as he continues to deal with a right knee injury, according to Shams Charania and Anthony Slater of ESPN (Twitter link).
Golden State hosts Washington on Friday and plays at Denver on Sunday, and Curry will miss both of those contests. He has been out since January 30 due to patellofemoral pain syndrome, colloquially known as runner’s knee.
While Curry, who turned 38 years old this month, “continues to make good progress,” he still hasn’t participated in a 5-on-5 scrimmage yet, the team announced in a press release (via Twitter). That’s supposed to happen in the “coming days,” per the Warriors.
Even though he’s been out for two months — he’ll be up to 25 consecutive absences after Sunday — Curry hasn’t given up hope on potentially returning this season, sources tell ESPN (Twitter link).
Following Sunday’s contest in Denver, Golden State returns home for a five-game stretch against four playoff teams. The Warriors’ final two games will be on the road (at Sacramento on April 10 and at LAC on April 12).
The Warriors also announced injury updates on Al Horford (right soleus strain), Seth Curry (left adductor strain) and Quinten Post (right foot soreness). Horford has begun light on-court workouts but is out at least one more week, while Seth Curry and Post are considered day-to-day.
Horford and the younger Curry brother have both missed the past seven games due to their respective injuries, while second-year big man Post has been out for the past two contests.
Al Horford, Seth Curry To Be Reevaluated In One Week
Warriors big man Al Horford and guard Seth Curry will be reevaluated in a week after undergoing MRIs on their respective injuries, according to Nick Friedell of The Athletic (Twitter link).
Horford was diagnosed with a calf strain after leaving Friday’s game against Minnesota in the first quarter with what was initially referred to as right calf tightness. Kerr said after the final whistle that he expected Horford to miss multiple games.
Curry exited the Wolves game early as well, heading to the locker room in the second quarter with what is now being called a left adductor strain.
Horford has made 43 appearances for the Warriors, who are 32-35 after dropping Sunday’s matchup with the Knicks. He has averaged 8.3 points and 5.0 rebounds in 21.7 minutes per game this season. Curry has struggled to stay on the floor at all, missing a significant chunk of the season due to sciatica and playing just four times since signing with the club at the start of December.
Golden State was also without Draymond Green (back injury management), Kristaps Porzingis (illness management), De’Anthony Melton (knee injury management), and Stephen Curry (knee) on Sunday.
Warriors Sign Omer Yurtseven To 10-Day Deal
March 15: The Warriors’ 10-day deal with Yurtseven is now official, according to the team (Twitter link). It will run through March 24, covering Golden State’s next six games.
March 14: The Warriors plan to sign free agent center Omer Yurtseven to a 10-day contract, according to Marc Stein of The Stein Line (Twitter link).
Agents Keith Glass and Luke Glass confirmed the news to Shams Charania of ESPN (Twitter link).
Yurtseven, who averaged 5.0 points and 4.6 rebounds in 11.8 minutes per game in 113 NBA regular season appearances with the Heat and Jazz from 2021-24, signed a G League deal 10 days ago and had been playing for the Rio Grande Valley Vipers, the Rockets’ affiliate.
In three games with the Vipers this month, Yurtseven averaged 23.0 points, 13.3 rebounds and 2.3 blocks in 29.7 minutes per contest. The 27-year-old converted 56.9% of his field goals and 87.5% of his free throws in a small sample size.
The Turkish big man has spent most of the past two years overseas playing for Panathinaikos, but recently parted ways with the Greek EuroLeague team.
Yurtseven will provide a strong rebounding presence for Golden State, which has been hit hard by a spate of recent injuries.
In addition to Jimmy Butler (torn right ACL) and Stephen Curry (runner’s knee), who have been out since January, Moses Moody has missed the past six games due to a right wrist sprain and four other players (Draymond Green, Al Horford, Seth Curry and Quinten Post) were hurt either before or during Friday’s loss to Minnesota.
Veteran big man Horford is expected to miss multiple games due to a right calf injury. The 39-year-old has formally been diagnosed with a soleus (calf) strain, per Anthony Slater of ESPN (Twitter link), while Seth Curry has a left adductor strain. All of the aforementioned players (aside from Post, who’s questionable) are out for Sunday’s game in New York. De’Anthony Melton (left knee injury management) and Kristaps Porzingis (general illness management) are out as well on the first of a back-to-back.
As a three-year veteran, Yurtseven will make $141,463 over the course of his 10 days with Golden State, while the Warriors will carry a $131,970 cap hit. The team had one roster opening and won’t need to waive anyone to add Yurtseven.
Pacific Notes: Warriors Injuries, Porzingis, Lopez, Ayton
The injuries keep piling up for the Warriors. Already without Stephen Curry and Jimmy Butler, they are dealing with four more injuries, as Anthony Slater of ESPN details.
Draymond Green was scratched 30 minutes before tip-off of Friday’s loss to Minnesota because of lower back soreness. Al Horford departed after five minutes with right calf tightness. Seth Curry limped to the locker room in the second quarter with left adductor soreness and Quinten Post sprained his left ankle.
“We’re going through it,” Warriors coach Steve Kerr said. “We’re about as beaten up as any team I can ever remember.”
Kerr expects Horford to miss several games. “With a calf, we’re not going to rush him back,” he said.
Stephen Curry missed his 16th consecutive game and the Warriors have gone 5-11 in that stretch. Now, they embark on a six-game road trip.
Here’s more from the Pacific Division:
- There was a bright spot for the Warriors on Friday. Midseason acquisition Kristaps Porzingis scored 20 points and told reporters after the game that he feels like he’s fitting in, according to Michael Wagaman of NBC Sports Bay Area. “We’re starting to develop a decent feel,” Porziņgis said. “I think guys are getting accustomed to playing with me. It’s progress. We’re getting better for sure. Overall, I think we’re heading in the right direction.”
- Clippers center Brook Lopez is in the midst of his 18th season and he’s aiming for more, he told Marc J. Spears of Andscape. “I always had a number of 20 years. A lot of great players played 20 years [whom] I looked up to,” he said. “Timmy [Duncan], Kobe [Bryant]. I think Ticket [Kevin Garnett] got there. That’s always been a goal of mine, but I feel great. So now that we’re as far along as we are, I don’t really want to put a cap on it. Just see how long we can keep going until we fall.” The Clippers have a decision to make early in the summer regarding Lopez. They hold a $9.19MM team option on his 2026/27 contract. He’s averaging 11.8 points and 5.1 rebounds per game since the All-Star break.
- Deandre Ayton has developed into the Lakers’ X factor, Khobi Price of the California Post contends. The Lakers are 27-8 when he grabs at least eight rebounds and 24-9 when he takes at least eight shot attempts. Ayton had 23 points and 10 rebounds against Chicago on Thursday. Ayton holds a $8.1MM player option on his contract for next season.
Al Horford Exits Friday’s Game With Right Calf Tightness
The Warriors entered Friday’s contest vs. Minnesota shorthanded, with leading scorers Stephen Curry (patellofemoral pain syndrome in right knee) and Jimmy Butler (torn right ACL) sidelined and Draymond Green a late scratch due to a lower back issue.
Golden State lost another veteran contributor to injury during the game, as Al Horford experienced right calf tightness and was ruled out for the remainder of the contest, the team announced (via Twitter).
Horford sustained the calf injury in the first quarter. He played five minutes, recording three points and one rebound.
The 39-year-old center/forward entered Friday’s game averaging 8.4 points, 5.1 rebounds, 2.7 assists and 1.2 blocks on .425/.361/.846 shooting in 42 appearances (22.1 minutes per contest). Horford has mostly come off the bench in his 19th season — Friday was his 12th start.
Second-year big man Quinten Post is a candidate for more playing time with Horford out. The Dutch big man missed Wednesday’s loss to Chicago and was questionable entering Friday’s game due to bilateral foot injury management before being upgraded to available. De’Anthony Melton also returned to action Friday following a one-game absence because of a left adductor injury.
Horford holds a player option for next season worth a little under $6MM.
Seth Curry To Return Monday For Warriors
Veteran guard Seth Curry will be active for Monday’s matchup at Utah, Warriors head coach Steve Kerr confirmed before the game (Twitter link via Nick Friedell of The Athletic).
Curry has been out for a little over three months due to sciatic nerve irritation (sciatica) on his left side. He has been upgraded to available on tonight’s injury report after previously being listed as probable.
A 12-year veteran, Curry has been limited to two games with Golden State since he re-signed with the club on December 1. The 35-year-old spent training camp and the preseason with the Warriors but was waived ahead of the 2025/26 regular season because his veteran’s minimum salary couldn’t fit under the team’s second-apron hard cap at the time.
Curry appeared in two games with the Warriors prior to the injury. The 35-year-old had 14 points (on 6-of-7 shooting), two rebounds, two assists and a steal in 18 minutes in his debut on December 2, then had zero points (on 0-of-2 shooting), two rebounds, one assist and one steal in 14 minutes on Dec. 4. He hasn’t played since.
The 6’1″ combo guard is the younger brother of Warriors superstar Stephen Curry, but the two have yet to play a game together this season, notes Kevin Borba of NBC Sports Bay Area. The elder Curry continues to be sidelined with a right knee injury.
Moses Moody (right wrist sprain) and Will Richard (right ankle sprain) remain out Monday for Golden State. Veteran big men Al Horford (left toe injury management) and Kristaps Porzingis (illness management) are out as well, but Kerr is optimistic they’ll both be available for Tuesday’s home game vs. Chicago, per Friedell.