Southeast Notes: Diabate, Magic, Snyder, AD, Wizards
The Hornets could be missing their starting center when they play at Orlando on Friday to determine the No. 8 seed in the Eastern Conference playoffs. Moussa Diabate is questionable to suit up for the elimination game due to left hip soreness, Charlotte announced (via Twitter).
A French big man, Diabate recorded eight points, 14 rebounds and a block in 36 minutes during Tuesday’s play-in victory over Miami. The 24-year-old averaged 7.9 PPG, 8.7 RPG, 1.9 APG and 1.0 BPG in 73 appearances this season (26.0 MPG).
Here’s more from the Southeast:
- The Magic are looking to bounce back on Friday after dropping Wednesday’s play-in game at Philadelphia, writes Jason Beede of The Orlando Sentinel. Orlando won its October 30 matchup with the Hornets by 16 points, but lost its final three regular season contests against Charlotte by 15, 27, and 19 points. “They’ve kicked our ass this year,” Paolo Banchero said about the Hornets. “So we’ve got to be ready. I’ve got to be ready. And we’ve got to be locked in from the jump. I thought we played hard (Wednesday), but it wasn’t enough. And so it’s going to take even more of an effort, and it’s going to take me playing better, as well, for us to get the win.”
- Head coach Quin Snyder deserves kudos for helping the Hawks turn their season around, according to Ken Segiura of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution (subscriber link). The Hawks made multiple big trades that reshaped their roster after injuries foiled their offseason plans, but they closed out the regular season by going 20-6 after the All-Star break, the third-best mark in the NBA over that span. “He’s done a great job just adjusting to the personnel,” guard CJ McCollum said of Snyder. “We’ve changed and really looked at our team, how we play, how certain guys’ games have evolved over the course of the season, which also happens. We’ve added stuff, we’ve taken stuff out, we’ve kind of evaluated what works, what doesn’t work and what’s going to work for this group.”
- Trae Young and Alex Sarr are among the Wizards who have expressed excitement about playing with Anthony Davis in 2026/27, per Chase Hughes of Monumental Sports Network. “I’ve never played with a player as talented or as special as A.D. is. We haven’t gotten to play on the court yet, but we’ve talked about a lot of things,” Young said. “We talked about what it would look like when we do get on the court together.”
Magic Notes: Sunday’s Loss, Banchero, F. Wagner, Bane
Head coach Jamahl Mosley has bemoaned the Magic lacking a sense of urgency throughout the season, and it was a talking point again after Sunday’s loss in Boston, writes Jason Beede of The Orlando Sentinel. The Magic had a chance to secure the No. 7 seed and home court advantage for Wednesday’s play-in contest vs. the Sixers, but instead they’ll travel to Philadelphia for their first of two chances to advance to the playoffs.
“It was a must-win game, at least I thought,” forward Paolo Banchero said. “I just think we didn’t come out with urgency. It’s frustrating, honestly.”
According to Beede, Orlando led by 16 points early in the game, but a disastrous third quarter turned out to be too much to overcome. Banchero finished with a triple-double (23 points, 11 assists and 10 rebounds) and was plus-two in 38 minutes during the five-point loss, though he shot just 7-of-22 from the field and had six turnovers.
“I definitely didn’t play my best basketball,” Banchero said. “I think collectively, we just have to have more urgency. We can’t expect to win just because guys are out.”
Here’s more on the Magic:
- As Beede notes, the “guys” Banchero was referring to on the Celtics included the team’s entire starting lineup and several key reserves. Boston was already locked in as the No. 2 seed in the East and only had eight players available, but four of them — Baylor Scheierman (30 points), Ron Harper Jr. (27), Luka Garza (27) and John Tonje (13) had career scoring nights. “They hit a ton of shots, we turned it over, gave them a couple extra opportunities and that was a big portion of the ballgame,” Mosley said. “But you’ve got to give Boston a hell of a ton of credit for the way they came out with those seven-eight guys and played their tails off.”
- Forward Franz Wagner was on a minutes restriction in his sixth game back from a high ankle sprain, Beede adds. The German star had 20 points and four rebounds in 26 minutes, but didn’t score efficiently (7-of-18 from the field) and was wearing a wrap on his left leg while on the bench. “I’m trying to push through and get as much time out there as I can,” Wagner said. “I feel all right. … For sure, it’s frustrating but there’s only one way to get past that and that’s to push through it and do it in a smart way. But to go to that point consistently, and that’s all I can do.”
- Desmond Bane appeared in all 82 regular season games in 2025/26 for the first time in his career, but Mosley’s plan to limit the 27-year-old’s minutes on Sunday backfired, per Beede. The sixth-year wing played the first six minutes of the game and the original plan was to sit out the remainder of the contest. However, after the Magic fell behind in the third quarter, Bane wound up playing nearly the entire fourth period, finishing with 18 minutes. “I kept my mind ready to go, my body ready to go, riding a bike, putting heat on my knees and stuff like that,” Bane said. “But I don’t think coach really wanted to (put me back in), just to protect me. Keeping me healthy was his main goal. But I appreciate him letting me go back in the game and giving me a chance to try to help us win.”
- Both Wagner and Bane struck an optimistic tone following Sunday’s loss, according to Beede. “I’m excited,” Bane said. “We’ve got an opportunity to go and play postseason basketball. Not everybody gets to say that. That’s not something that everybody gets to experience so I’m looking forward to the opportunity.”
LeBron James, Brandon Ingram Named Players Of Week
Lakers forward LeBron James and Raptors forward Brandon Ingram have been named Players of the Week for the week of April 6-12, according to the league (Twitter links).
The Western Conference winner, James averaged 24.0 points, 9.7 assists and 6.0 rebounds per contest as the Lakers won three straight contests to close the season and clinch home court advantage in the first round of the playoffs despite playing without Luka Doncic and Austin Reaves. LeBron had back-to-back double-doubles on Thursday and Friday, putting up 26 points and 11 assists in Golden State and then 28 points and 12 assists vs. Phoenix.
Ingram averaged 25.5 points per game on 57.8 percent shooting from the field across four games as the Raptors went 3-1 to wrap up their season and clinched the No. 5 seed in the East. The veteran forward poured in a season-high 38 points to go along with seven rebounds and seven assists in Thursday’s victory over Miami.
It’s the first Player of the Week award of the season for either James or Ingram, though it’s the 70th time LeBron has won it over the course of his 23-year NBA career. Ingram has now earned the honor five times.
Deni Avdija (Trail Blazers), Kevin Durant and Amen Thompson (Rockets), and Terrence Shannon Jr. (Timberwolves) were the other nominees from the Western Conference, while Paolo Banchero (Magic), Jalen Brunson and Karl-Anthony Towns (Knicks) and Jalen Duren (Pistons) were also nominated in the East.
The Players Who Could Be Financially Impacted By The 65-Game Rule
Earning a spot on an All-NBA team is the simplest way for a player to become eligible for a Designated Veteran or Rose Rule contract, allowing them to earn a higher maximum salary than they'd typically qualify for (35% instead of 30% for veterans, or 30% instead of 25% for players coming off rookie contracts). But that doesn't mean that there are financial benefits for every player who receives All-NBA recognition.
In order to become "super-max" eligible, a player must meet a set of specific criteria related not just to his on-court achievements but to his total NBA years of service, his contract situation, and how he joined his current team.
For instance, Luka Doncic would have been super-max eligible last summer as a member of the Mavericks, but the trade that sent him to the Lakers took that option off the table, since a player who changes teams via trade during his second contract isn't permitted to sign a Designated Veteran deal. With a super-max deal no longer in play, Doncic signed a standard max-salary extension (starting at 30% of the cap) with his new team last summer.
So, while Doncic's bid to be granted an "extraordinary circumstances" exception to circumvent the 65-game rule and gain All-NBA (and MVP) eligibility this spring could have a real impact on his career résumé, there are no financial implications hinging on that ruling.
For other players who narrowly met the 65-game criteria or will fall just short of it, there are more significant financial consequences to take into account. In the space below, we're taking a closer look at the All-NBA caliber players whose future earnings figure to be impacted the most by whether or not they got to 65 games this season.
Luka Doncic, Jalen Johnson Named Players Of The Month
Lakers guard Luka Doncic and Hawks forward Jalen Johnson have been named the NBA’s Players of the Month for March in the Western Conference and Eastern Conference, respectively, the league announced today (Twitter link).
It was a monster scoring month for Doncic, who became one of just 10 players in league history to pour in 600 points in any calendar month. He did so across 16 contests, for an average of 37.5 points per night. That run included a 60-point game, a 51-point game, and five additional outings of at least 40 points.
The star guard also contributed 8.0 rebounds and 7.4 assists per game while posting a shooting line of .492/.392/.794. The Lakers went 15-2 in March (14-2 when Doncic played), and the 27-year-old was even recognized for his defensive contributions — he was a Defensive Player of the Month nominee after averaging 2.3 steals per night.
The Hawks have been another one of the NBA’s hottest teams as of late, with Johnson playing a crucial role in their recent success. Atlanta went 13-2 in March (11-2 when Johnson played) and he averaged 22.4 PPG, 8.5 RPG, and 8.5 APG while shooting 48.9% from the floor, 39.2% from beyond the arc, and 80.7% from the free throw line.
Johnson’s best games of the month came against conference rivals, including a 35-point, 10-rebound performance vs. Philadelphia on March 7 and a 24-point, 15-rebound, 13-assist triple-double against Orlando on March 16.
It’s the second time this season and the seventh time in his career that Doncic has been named a Player of the Month. He beat out fellow nominees Kevin Durant of the Rockets, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander of the Thunder, Kawhi Leonard of the Clippers, Victor Wembanyama of the Spurs, and Nikola Jokic and Jamal Murray of the Nuggets, according to the NBA (Twitter link).
Johnson, meanwhile, is a first-time Player of the Month winner. The other nominees in the Eastern Conference were his Hawks teammate Nickeil Alexander-Walker, Hornets guard LaMelo Ball, Celtics wing Jaylen Brown, Cavaliers guard James Harden, Magic teammates Paolo Banchero and Desmond Bane, and the Knicks duo of Jalen Brunson and Karl-Anthony Towns.
Luka Doncic, Bam Adebayo Earn Player Of Week Honors
Lakers guard Luka Doncic and Heat big man Bam Adebayo have been named the Western and Eastern Conference Players of the Week, respectively, according to the league office (Twitter links). The awards cover games played from March 9-15.
Doncic led the Lakers to a 3-0 week by averaging 37.3 points, 11.0 assists and 10.3 rebounds per game. He came one assist away from registering three consecutive triple-doubles, had 51 points on Thursday vs. Chicago, and made a last-second basket to defeat Denver in overtime on Saturday.
The selection of Adebayo was a foregone conclusion after his historic 83-point game against the Wizards, which represented the second-highest single-game scoring output in NBA history. Overall, Adebayo averaged 41.3 points, 8.0 rebounds and 2.3 steals per contest last week as the Heat won two of three games.
Doncic became the second player to win a third Player of the Week award in 2025/26, joining Shai Gilgeous-Alexander. For Adebayo, it’s his second Player of the Week selection this season and the fourth of his career.
Devin Booker (Suns), DeMar DeRozan (Kings), Gilgeous-Alexander (Thunder), Kawhi Leonard (Clippers), Austin Reaves (Lakers) and Victor Wembanyama (Spurs) were the other nominees from the Western Conference. Paolo Banchero and Desmond Bane (Magic), Jalen Brunson (Knicks), Cade Cunningham and Jalen Duren (Pistons), Brandon Ingram (Raptors) and Jalen Johnson (Hawks) were the other nominees from the East.
Eastern Notes: Banchero, Poole, Pistons, P. Williams
Magic forward Paolo Banchero admits the first half of the season didn’t go the way he or the team wanted it to, but he has been playing excellent basketball over the past few weeks. The former No. 1 overall pick tells Marc J. Spears of Andscape he was motivated by not making the All-Star team.
“I’m always honest with myself,” Banchero told Andscape. “I looked in the mirror first. Over the All-Star break, I watched a lot of film over the early part of the season. I just wasn’t happy with what I put out. Some of that had to do with me being injured and coming back. …
“I could’ve had a better mindset, and that was part of it. But I know I’m an All-Star in this league. My confidence is still the same. It’s about being honest with yourself and realizing that you didn’t really deserve to be an All-Star, honestly. It’s about taking that with a grain of salt and being better in the second half of the season.”
In his 10 games (36.1 MPG) since the break, Banchero is averaging 26.2 points, 9.2 rebounds and 5.7 assists (3.8 turnovers) on .508/.341/.822 shooting. The Magic are 7-3 in that span and currently have their longest winning streak of the season at four games.
“Paolo has been ultra-aggressive attacking, getting early baskets,” head coach Jamahl Mosley told Spears. “He’s also been taking on the best player assignments defensively.”
Here’s more from around the Eastern Conference:
- Jordan Poole was disappointed he was traded by the Wizards over the summer, as he says he was told he was in the team’s long-term plans. “That’s what I was looking forward to,” Poole told Josh Robbins of The Athletic. “But it’s the NBA, so things happen differently.” According to Robbins, Poole’s tenure with the Wizards was largely “misunderstood.” While the team was abysmal during his two seasons, Poole was beloved by his teammates, who rushed over to greet the veteran guard after Sunday’s game in New Orleans. Kyshawn George, Alex Sarr and Bilal Coulibaly all have said Poole helped boost their confidence, Robbins writes. “He just kept my head straight,” George said. “I didn’t necessarily shoot it well at the beginning of (last) season, but he was always there to tell me, ‘Keep going. Keep going. We need you to make shots at the end of the season. We need you to make shots through the next couple of years on the road, the important shots.’ (He was) just making sure that I stick with my habits, and I don’t lose confidence. I think that’s a big thing for me that he taught me: (With) 82 games in the NBA season, the first 15 don’t define you, the first 30 don’t define you. It’s really how you finish. And when it’s time to really play and hoop, you’ve got to show up.”
- The Pistons snapped their four-game losing streak on Tuesday with a 38-point road victory at Brooklyn, per Keith Langlois of Pistons.com. “We’ve been playing high-level basketball all year. Had a little bit of a dip,” Cade Cunningham said in his post-game interview. “Every team has a moment in the season where they think the sky is falling. We had that and we just wanted to get back on the right track.”
- Bulls head coach Billy Donovan is optimistic better days are ahead for Patrick Williams, per Joe Cowley of The Chicago Sun-Times. “He’s turned out to be a really good catch-and-shoot three-point shooter, but one of the things he was getting himself into trouble [with] was putting it down on the floor — traffic, turnovers,” Donovan said. “For him, it’s just a consistency part. He’s shown more consistent signs this year than he has in the past, but I still feel like there’s more there for him. I believe that.” The sixth-year forward has battled injuries in recent weeks and Williams’ contract — he’s in the second season of a five-year, $90MM deal — is “effectively immovable,” Cowley writes.
Victor Wembanyama, Tyler Herro Named Players Of Week
Spurs big man Victor Wembanyama and Heat guard Tyler Herro have been named the Western and Eastern Conference Players of the Week, respectively, according to the league (Twitter links). The weekly award covers games played from March 2-8.
Wembanyama averaged 26.0 points, 10.5 rebounds and 4.8 blocks per game as San Antonio went 4-0 last week. It’s the second weekly award this season for the former No. 1 overall pick and the third of his career.
The Player of the Week honor continues an impressive run of award recognition for Wembanyama, who last week was named the Western Conference’s Player of the Month and Defensive Player of the Month for February.
Herro averaged 26.3 points and 5.5 rebounds per game while shooting 51.7 percent from three-point range as Miami also went 4-0 last week. This marks Herro’s second career Player of the Week award and his first of the season. He has been limited to just 20 appearances so far due to injuries but has been highly productive when available, averaging 22.1 PPG on .500/.402/.917 shooting.
Devin Booker (Suns), Luka Dončić (Lakers), Anthony Edwards (Timberwolves), Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (Thunder), Jrue Holiday (Trail Blazers) and Kawhi Leonard (Clippers) were the other nominees from the Western Conference. Bam Adebayo (Heat), Paolo Banchero (Magic), Jalen Johnson (Hawks) and Karl-Anthony Towns (Knicks) were also nominated in the East.
Magic Notes: Bane, Da Silva, Banchero, Isaac
Desmond Bane helped lead the Magic to one of their best victories of the season on Saturday in Minnesota, according to Jon Krawczynski of The Athletic.
The Timberwolves were determined not to let Bane beat them from behind the three-point line, Krawczynski writes, and the sixth-year wing went 0-for-5 from long distance. However, Bane took advantage of Minnesota’s aggressive defense by regularly driving past his opponents, Krawczynski notes. He was 10-of-12 on twos and 10-for-10 at the free throw line, finishing with a team-high 30 points in the lopsided road win.
Bane admits he was a little tentative at the beginning of the season, saying he didn’t want to “step on toes” with his new team. But he knows what Orlando needs from him now and is comfortable with his responsibilities.
“I don’t think there’s any more thinking or second-guessing what’s needed of me, what’s asked of me,” Bane said, per Krawczynski. “I know night-in and night-out what the team needs. It’s a freeing feeling just being able to go out there and do what I do.”
Here’s more on the Magic, who are now the No. 6 seed in the Eastern Conference:
- Tristan Da Silva has stepped up since the All-Star break, averaging 12.1 points, 5.5 rebounds, 2.3 assists and 1.0 steal in eight games (30.3 minutes per contest) leading into Saturday, writes Jason Beede of The Orlando Sentinel. The second-year forward had another solid outing vs. Minnesota, finishing with 11 points, seven rebounds, four assists and two steals. He was a game-high plus-24 in 31 minutes. “It’s not easy to do to go from starting to off the bench to back to starting to back off the bench,” head coach Jamahl Mosley said. “So, it says something about him as a professional. It says something about his work ethic and the coaches that work with him. It’s not easy to do. I know it looks like that because he comes in and shoots the heck out of the basketball, but the ability to do that and just play your part, whatever you’ve been given and tasked to do, he did that. And that’s what we need from our guys every night.”
- Paolo Banchero played an important role in Saturday’s win as well, finishing with 25 points, 15 rebounds and three assists, though he did have five turnovers. Mosley was particularly happy about the former All-Star’s defensive rebounding, Beede writes in another story. “It allows us to finish the possession off and now we’re playing against an unset defense,” Mosley said. “Once he’s got the rebound, we can play with pace, play a little faster, continue to do a great job of throwing it ahead and keep challenging him to get down that floor easily so we can get some early, easy baskets, especially against great defensive teams. But he’s done a great job just honing in and locking in on rebounding the basketball because he knows that continues to help our defense every night.”
- Backup big man Jonathan Isaac missed his second consecutive game Saturday due to left knee soreness, Beede adds. Mosley discussed the injury prior to the game. “That’s just something that’s been kind of lingering,” Mosley said. “We just continue to monitor it to make sure that it doesn’t continue to get worse over time, just being more careful than anything.”
Southeast Notes: Heat, Suggs, Magic, Vukcevic, L. Black
The Heat remain likely to waive Terry Rozier at some point before the end of the regular season, but they’re in no rush to do so right away, according to Barry Jackson of The Miami Herald.
With Rozier still on leave after being arrested on federal gambling charges back in the fall, he’s not expected to play again this season. That means there’s probably no need for Miami to cut him by March 1 to ensure he retains his playoff eligibility for another team.
Additionally, as Jackson explains, the Heat don’t have their eye on any specific players on the buyout market and would be reluctant to bring in a veteran free agent who is comparable to what the team already has on its roster. Miami wants to make sure there are plenty of minutes available for its young players down the stretch and may ultimately use Rozier’s roster spot to sign a developmental prospect to a multiyear deal late in the season, Jackson continues.
Putting off that decision until the season’s final weeks would also give the Heat the roster flexibility to see if a new hole opens up on their depth chart due to injuries (or any other factors), which could necessitate signing a veteran at a specific position ahead of the postseason, Jackson concludes.
We have more from around the Southeast:
- Magic guard Jalen Suggs, who has missed the past three games with a back strain, has been upgraded to questionable to play on Thursday vs. Houston, notes Jason Beede of The Orlando Sentinel (Twitter link). Suggs has appeared in just 34 of the team’s 57 games this season due to various health issues.
- Yossi Gozlan of The Third Apron (Substack link) takes a look at the Magic‘s challenging cap situation going forward, speculating that Goga Bitadze and Jonathan Isaac will be trade candidates this summer and noting that Paolo Banchero‘s up-and-down year is something of a double-edged sword. Banchero won’t increase the value of his maximum-salary rookie scale extension from 25% of the cap to 30% by making an All-NBA team, but Orlando would probably prefer him to be performing closer to an All-NBA level. We also covered the Magic’s upcoming roster decisions in a story last week for Front Office subscribers.
- The Wizards gave Tristan Vukcevic a rest-of-season salary of $2,857,143 using their non-taxpayer mid-level exception when they promoted the big man to their standard roster over the weekend, Hoops Rumors has confirmed. Vukcevic’s three-year deal also includes a guaranteed $3MM salary for 2026/27, with a team option worth $3MM for ’27/28.
- Meanwhile, Leaky Black‘s new two-way contract with the Wizards covers two seasons, as Keith Smith of Spotrac tweets. That means if the 26-year-old forward sticks with the team for the full deal, he wouldn’t be eligible for restricted free agency until the 2027 offseason.