And-Ones: All-Defense, G League Playoffs, Acuff, Fertitta
Yahoo Sports contributor Nekias Duncan lists his picks for the two All-Defensive teams (as of March 27). Victor Wembanyama, Chet Holmgren, Rudy Gobert, Bam Adebayo and Derrick White comprise Duncan’s first team, while Cason Wallace, Stephon Castle, Dyson Daniels, Scottie Barnes and Marcus Smart are on the second.
Duncan also cites nine honorable mentions who didn’t quite make the cut, including Evan Mobley, last year’s Defensive Player of the Year. Duncan says Ausar Thompson would replace Smart if he qualifies; the third-year forward needs to play at least 20 minutes in seven of Detroit’s last eight games to be eligible (Smart may not qualify either due to the requirements of the 65-game rule).
Here are a few more odds and ends from around the basketball world:
- The 16-team field and schedule for the NBA G League playoffs has been set, the league announced in a press release. The Osceola Magic (26-10) are the top seed in the Eastern Conference, while the South Bay Lakers (26-10) are the No. 1 seed in the West. The NBAGL playoffs feature a single-elimination tournament until the finals, which is best-of-three. Osceola and the Stockton Kings (23-13, the third seed in the West) faced off in last year’s finals, with Stockton winning the title.
- Darius Acuff Jr. is widely projected to be a top-nine pick in the upcoming draft and one NBA general manager recently told Marc J. Spears of Andscape he thinks the Arkansas guard is the third-best prospect in the 2026 class, behind BYU’s AJ Dybantsa and UNC’s Caleb Wilson. Razorbacks head coach John Calipari, who has coached numerous future NBA stars in college, says teams would be foolish to pass over Acuff, a first-team All-American as a freshman. “Pass on him, you’ll regret it,” Calipari told Andscape. “I said it about Tyrese (Maxey). I’ve said it about a bunch of guys. I said it about Shai (Gilgeous-Alexander): ‘You’re going to regret passing on this kid.’ And I know there are other good players, but this kid (Acuff) is unique.”
- Rockets owner Tillman Fertitta and his family have reached an agreement to purchase the WNBA’s Connecticut Sun and relocate the team to Houston, confirms Alexa Philippou of ESPN. Chris Baldwin of PaperCity Magazine first reported the news. The plan is for the Sun to finish 2026 in Connecticut before relocating in 2027. The Fertitta family is spending $300MM to buy the team, which is expected to be called the Comets. The Houston Comets were a WNBA team from 1997-2008.
And-Ones: Las Vegas, Free Agents, WNBA, Misery Index
The NBA’s Board of Governors will vote this week on whether to explore adding expansion teams in Las Vegas and Seattle. Mike Vorkunov, Jesse Granger, Vic Tafur, Sabreena Merchant and Oskar Garcia of The Athletic consider whether Las Vegas is the right choice for NBA expansion.
While the general consensus among the authors is that the city would be a viable choice for expansion despite being a relatively small media market, Tafur suggests that it would benefit the league if the potential new team is able to be competitive sooner rather than later, as Las Vegas “does not have a strong attention span.”
Here are a few more odds and ends from around the basketball world:
- Yossi Gozlan of The Third Apron (Substack link) examines the contract situations of 10 players who will or could be free agents this summer, including four Lakers (Austin Reaves, LeBron James, Luke Kennard and Marcus Smart) and two Pistons (Tobias Harris and Daniss Jenkins). Reaves has earned a significant raise on his current contract and has boosted his value this season, according to Gozlan, who wonders if a rival team might give the 27-year-old guard a two- or three-year maximum-salary deal in an effort to poach him away from Los Angeles. Either way, Gozlan expects Reaves to still be a member of the Lakers in 2026/27.
- The WNBA and WNBPA have reached a tentative agreement on a new collective bargaining agreement, the NBA announced in a press release. Players are projected to receive major pay increases across the board, among other noteworthy details.
- Zach Harper of The Athletic lists the top five teams on his Misery Index, with the Bucks coming in at No. 1, followed by the Kings at No. 2 and the Pelicans at No. 3. Not only has Milwaukee had a very disappointing season, but the team also doesn’t have young players to build around or much hope of turning things around in the near future, Harper writes.
Northwest Notes: George, SGA, C. Johnson, Blazers
With Jazz guard Keyonte George not expected to have his hamstring strain reevaluated for another week-and-a-half, his chances of winning this year’s Most Improved Player award appear to be on life support. Most Improved Player is one of the awards that requires candidates to appear in at least 65 games — George is at 54, and one of those games won’t count toward his minimum, since he played fewer than 15 minutes.
In other words, in order to qualify for award consideration, George would have to return to action next Saturday and play in Utah’s final 12 games, which appears highly unlikely. As Kevin Reynolds of The Salt Lake Tribune writes, even before George’s most recent injury, head coach Will Hardy had made it clear that the 22-year-old’s long-term health would be the team’s priority over reaching that 65-game threshold.
“I would like to get Keyonte 65. I’m not ever trying to take away someone’s ability to have individual success,” head coach Will Hardy said in early March. “But I think Keyonte also understands that we’re going to approach it a game at a time, and we’re going to try to make sure that he’s healthy. That’s always going to be our approach. We’re going to choose the health of our organization, the health of our players, over chasing awards.”
While he likely won’t be on the ballot for Most Improved Player this spring, George has taken a promising step forward in 2025/26, registering new career highs in points (23.6), assists (6.1), and steals (1.1) per game, as well as field goal percentage (45.6%), three-point percentage (37.1%), and free throw percentage (89.2%). He’ll be eligible for a rookie scale extension beginning in July.
We have more from around the Northwest:
- In the wake of Shai Gilgeous-Alexander breaking Wilt Chamberlain‘s NBA record for most consecutive games with at least 20 points, Justin Martinez of The Oklahoman takes a look at how the Thunder guard became the league’s most consistent scorer. Gilgeous-Alexander has scored 20 or more points in 127 consecutive regular season games — the last time he failed to reach that mark was on October 30, 2024, when he had 18 vs. San Antonio.
- Nuggets forward Cameron Johnson has had an up-and-down first year in Denver and admits that there’s “still an element of figuring it out,” even with just a month left in the regular season, per Bennett Durando of The Denver Post (subscription required). According to Johnson, who has scored at least 15 points in three straight games for just the second time this season, the coaching staff has encouraged him to be more decisive. “I think sometimes, he’s trying to make perfect plays, instead of just making the play that is right there in front of you (that) is the right decision,” head coach David Adelman said. Johnson will be extension-eligible this summer as he enters the final year of his current contract, which will pay him $23.1MM in 2026/27.
- Visiting Portland this week, NBA commissioner Adam Silver said he has been encouraged by the steps that have been taken so far to secure public funding for renovations to the Trail Blazers‘ Moda Center, according to The Associated Press. “I’ve had great conversations with the governor and the mayor, and it’s been a bipartisan effort,” Silver said. “I think everyone in this community recognizes that, even in addition to the Trail Blazers and the (WNBA expansion) Fire — and we can’t forget about the Fire, which are about to open this season — that these arenas are multi-use facilities, whether it’s conventions or trade shows, concerts, graduations, you name it. They’re part of the life blood of communities. So it’s not just for the Trail Blazers and the Fire. You need a state-of-the-art arena here.”
Warriors Notes: Kuminga, Melton, DeMarco, Hield
Warriors forward Jonathan Kuminga has played fewer than 10 minutes in the past eight games in which he has been active, not seeing the court at all in seven of those contests. Asked after Monday’s win over Brooklyn about Kuminga’s potential path back into Golden State’s regular rotation, head coach Steve Kerr suggested there’s no easy answer.
“It’s tough because he’s not really a short-minute player,” Kerr said (Twitter link via Sam Gordon of The San Francisco Chronicle). “I played a bunch of guys eight, 10 minutes. JK is a guy who needs his rhythm. He’s not like a Gui (Santos) or Pat (Spencer) who’s going to come in and just fly around and play with great energy for four minutes and come out. He needs some rhythm.
“He always has to stay ready. There’s a pathway there, but right now, it’s not there. But things change quickly in the NBA.”
Although Kuminga got off to a solid start this fall after a protracted restricted free agency battle with the Warriors, he quickly fell out of the starting lineup before being removed from the rotation entirely. It seems more likely than ever at this point that he and the team are headed for a mid-season split.
Here’s more on the Warriors:
- While Kuminga won’t become trade-eligible until January 15, veteran guard Gary Payton II became eligible to be dealt as of Monday, and guard De’Anthony Melton and center Al Horford will follow suit this Thursday, per our list of unique trade eligibility dates for 2025/26.
- Of course, there’s no indication that the Warriors have any interest in trading Melton. In fact, Monte Poole of NBC Sports Bay Area suggests the 27-year-old looks capable of being a defensive closer who can finish games for Golden State. Through Melton’s first nine appearances following an ACL tear, the team has a remarkable +17.4 net rating and 105.5 defensive rating during his 171 minutes of action. The veteran guard still isn’t playing back-to-backs, but he has gotten up to 24 minutes in each of his past two outings. “I talked to him yesterday in Toronto and he said his body’s feeling really good,” Kerr said on Monday. “It’s a good sign. Hopefully, we’ll get to a point this season where he’s able to play back-to-backs but for now we’re being cautious.”
- Monday’s game in Brooklyn was Chris DeMarco‘s last as a Warriors assistant before he takes over as the head coach of the WNBA’s New York Liberty (Twitter link). “What a strange day for him to come to his new arena, go to his new office, come back to our locker room, help us play and try to win…and then that’s it,” Kerr said (Twitter link via Brian Lewis of The New York Post). “He’s staying here. Its surreal.”
- Warriors sharpshooter Buddy Hield is averaging a career-low 17.6 minutes per game this season and has been in and out of the rotation as of late. Hield – who was traded at the deadline in 2017, 2022, and 2024 – knows he’ll be involved in trade speculation again this season and he’s ready for it, Gordon writes for The San Francisco Chronicle (subscription required). “I feel like everybody’s trying to be fake GM … trying to see what’s best for their team,” Hield said. “I know whatever comes, comes. I can’t control that. I’m happy to be in this league. It’s a great league. If something like that happens, I’ll be ready.”
And-Ones: European League, Morant, FIBA Hall Of Fame, Lewis
The NBA and FIBA will begin talking to prospective teams and ownership groups in January in their next move toward forming a new European basketball league, according to Aris Barkas of Eurohoops. The organizations issued a press release Monday morning announcing their intentions.
Along with permanent spots in the league, teams are being promised “a merit-based pathway” to qualify on an annual basis either through FIBA’s Basketball Champions League or an end-of-season qualifying tournament. The league plans to align its schedule with domestic league and national team schedules, allowing players to appear in international tournaments without conflict.
The release also promises that the NBA and FIBA will devote financial support to the development of “Europe’s basketball ecosystem.” That includes domestic leagues, club team academies and the existing programs operated by the NBA and FIBA to develop players, coaches and game officials.
“Our conversations with various stakeholders in Europe have reinforced our belief that an enormous opportunity exists around the creation of a new league on the continent,” NBA commissioner Adam Silver said. “Together with FIBA, we look forward to engaging prospective clubs and ownership groups that share our vision for the game’s potential in Europe.”
Here are more odds and ends from around the basketball world:
- Grizzlies guard Ja Morant is investing in European basketball through his Catch 12 company, according to Michele Nespoli of Sportando. Morant has purchased a stake in EuroStep Ventures, a holding company that controls the Levallois Metropolitans. The French team received tremendous international exposure due to Victor Wembanyama before he entered the NBA draft.
- Mavericks legend Dirk Nowitzki is part of FIBA’s 2026 Hall of Fame class, which includes seven players and one coach, Eurohoops relays. Hedo Turkoglu and Wang Zhizhi are other members of the class with NBA ties, while Sue Bird was a star in the WNBA. The induction ceremony will take place April 21 in Berlin, Germany.
- Referee Eric Lewis was reinstated this week as a G League official, possibly giving him a path back to the NBA, per Marc J. Spears of ESPN. Lewis retired suddenly in 2023 after violating the NBA’s social media policy by having a Twitter burner account. The account, which was deleted, frequently responded to negative posts about Lewis and other officials. “I got chill bumps right now thinking about it,” Lewis said. “I’m excited about earning people’s trust back, getting back to the work and getting back to the game. What was always the plan when this came about was trying to get back to the NBA.”
Southwest Notes: Irving, Zion, Borrego, Rockets
Brett Siegel of Clutch Points wrote on Friday that it “truly seems” as if Mavericks point guard Kyrie Irving will be able to return from his ACL tear at some point in January. However, head coach Jason Kidd said this week that there’s still no specific timeline for Irving as he works his way through the rehab process, writes Grant Afseth of Dallas Hoops Journal.
“There’s no schedule still,” Kidd said. “He’s just still doing the things he’s supposed to… He’s in a good place. He’s rehabbing. That’s the only update I can really give you — that he’s in a good place and he’s doing everything he’s supposed to.”
Irving tore his left ACL on March 3 and underwent surgery to repair the injury on March 27. Next weekend will represent the nine-month mark since that procedure, so the window for Irving’s potential return could open in the coming weeks.
Still, it’s not uncommon for an ACL tear to sideline a player for a full year or even longer than that, and the Mavs will certainly take a cautious approach with the 33-year-old — especially since the team currently sits outside the top 10 in the West.
We have more from around the Southwest:
- Pelicans forward Zion Williamson has come off the bench in each of his first two games back from an adductor strain and spent the final 17 minutes of Thursday’s comeback overtime win over Houston on the sidelines. The decision – and the victory – felt significant, according to William Guillory of The Athletic, who suggests it could be interpreted as a sign of the team taking steps toward a future in which Williamson isn’t the top priority.
- With the Pelicans riding a three-game winning streak, Rod Walker of NOLA.com (subscription required) contends that head of basketball operations Joe Dumars should remove the interim tag from head coach James Borrego — or at least place him high on the short list of candidates to coach New Orleans beyond this season. Pelicans swingman Trey Murphy III lauded Borrego for “igniting” the team, while forward Saddiq Bey also had high praise for the interim coach. “He’s made some helluva adjustments,” Bey said. “In the game, scout and when we are going through shootaround. He’s a great mind on both ends of the floor and we really trust him.”
- Tilman Fertitta‘s Rockets ownership group is engaged in “substantive” talks with the Connecticut Sun about the possibility of purchasing and relocating the WNBA, sources tell Alexa Philippou and Ramona Shelburne of ESPN. A group led by Celtics minority owner Steve Pagliuca previously reached a tentative agreement with the Sun to move the franchise to Boston, but the WNBA effectively blocked that deal, and there’s a belief the league would prefer to see the team move to Houston, per Philippou and Shelburne.
- In a feature story for ESPN.com, Michael C. Wright takes a look at how veteran forward Kevin Durant has meshed with the Rockets‘ young duo of Alperen Sengun and Amen Thompson, as well as the ongoing development of the chemistry between Sengun and Thompson.
Blake Griffin, Joe Johnson Among Hall Of Fame Nominees
Former NBA standouts Blake Griffin and Joe Johnson are among the noteworthy first-time nominees eligible to be inducted into the class of 2026, the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame announced in a press release.
For women’s hoops, ex-WNBA stars Elena Delle Donne and Candace Parker are also eligible for the first time, and both two-time MVPs are likely shoo-ins to be enshrined on August 14. Coaches Kelvin Sampson, Bruce Pearl and Mike D’Antoni, the latter of whom is technically in the “contributor” category, are among the other first-time nominees.
Returning eligible candidates include Mark Few, Doc Rivers, Amar’e Stoudemire and Shawn Marion.
The finalists will be selected on February 9, while the 2026 class will be unveiled on April 4.
The No. 1 overall pick in the 2009 draft, Griffin was sidelined for his first professional season due to a left knee injury, which eventually required surgery. He made a triumphant return in 2010/11, winning the Rookie of the Year award and earning the first of six All-Star berths.
Griffin, 36, was named to five All-NBA teams over the course of his 13 active years in the league. Injuries continued to be an issue, however, particularly at the end of his career.
Johnson, 44, was the 10th overall selection in 2001. He played parts of 18 years in the NBA, making seven All-Star appearances and earning one All-NBA nod in 2009/10.
Celtics Notes: Chisholm, Brown, White, Christian
Bill Chisholm was something of an underdog when the Celtics unexpectedly put the franchise up for sale in the weeks following their 2024 NBA championship, Adam Himmelsbach of The Boston Globe writes in an in-depth profile of the team’s new owner (subscription required).
As Himmelsbach outlines, there was initially hope within the organization that Celtics minority owner Steve Pagliuca, who already owned about 20% of the franchise, would take over majority control of the team, and there were doubts about Chisholm’s ability to raise the necessary capital. But when it became clear that the group of potential buyers didn’t include anyone who could easily outbid Chisholm, he became more confident about his odds.
“It felt like if there’s a unicorn out there, if a Jeff Bezos is in the mix, forget it,” Chisholm said. “But I just didn’t hear that. It was like, ‘I like my chances here.’ The (Pagliuca) thing was a wild card, obviously.”
Chisholm grew up as a Celtics fan and impressed governor Wyc Grousbeck and other team executives with his genuine passion for the team. More importantly, Chisholm’s bid for the franchise came in about $100MM higher than the next-closest offer. It was also $500MM above Pagliuca’s bid, though that offer was fully funded.
The Celtics ultimately decided to go with Chisholm and reached a deal in March of 2025, which included an agreement that he would have until December 31 to fully fund the transaction. Chisholm spent the next few months working the phones to bring in minority investors and raise the capital necessary to finalize the deal, which was officially approved by the NBA’s Board of Governors in August.
The new Celtics owner told Himmelsbach that he would have had to pay a break-up free worth “several hundred million dollars” if he hadn’t fully funded his bid — he’s relieved that it ultimately wasn’t an issue.
“That was my biggest calculated risk of the whole deal,” Chisholm said. “I wouldn’t say it was irresponsible, but it was a risk.”
We have more on the Celtics:
- Celtics wing Jaylen Brown racked up 34 points on Monday vs. Detroit but also missed seven free throws in a game the team lost by seven points. He shouldered the blame for the defeat, as Jay King of The Athletic writes. “I’ve got to do better to get my team over the hump,” Brown said. “In my mind, I didn’t have my best game tonight, so that’s on me. Especially in the fourth quarter, just some mindset plays. Foul. Staying down on the shot fake. Had a turnover in the fourth and then just too many missed free throws. Just mentality-wise, mindset-wise, I needed to be more for my team. I wasn’t tonight.”
- Informed of Brown’s post-game comments, guard Derrick White said his teammate was being too hard on himself, according to King. “I think that’s kind of what makes him special,” White said on Monday. “He had 30-something (points) and still wants to do better for us, and so that’s what makes him special. He’s probably his toughest critic, and we know that he’s going to bounce back and continue to do special things for us. And so, obviously, this loss isn’t on him. It’s on all of us, and we got his back, but that’s just kind of the guy he is in this and why we love playing with him.”
- Jarell Christian, the general manager of the Celtics’ G League affiliate in Maine, is leaving the team to become an assistant coach for the WNBA’s Seattle Storm, reports Michael Scotto of HoopsHype (Twitter link). Christian has past coaching experience, having held assistant positions at multiples colleges, in the G League, and with the Wizards. He also spent one year as the head coach of the Capital City Go-Go (2018/19) and another coaching the Maine Celtics (2021/22).
- As the Celtics prepare for trade season, Brian Robb of MassLive.com takes a look at the assets available to the team, where Boston stands in relation to the tax and apron lines, and what the club’s goals should be. Finding another true center figures to be a top priority for the Celtics, who will also likely assess whether it makes sense to try to duck out of the tax, Robb writes.
Laurene Powell Jobs Selling Stake In Wizards’ Parent Company
Billionaire executive Laurene Powell Jobs is selling her stake in Monumental Sports & Entertainment, the Wizards‘ parent company, according to Scott Soshnick and Eben Novy-Williams of Sportico.
Powell Jobs, the widow of Apple co-founder Steve Jobs, has deals in place with two separate buyers. One is Qatar Investment Authority (QIA), a Qatari sovereign wealth fund, while the other is Arctos Partners, a private equity firm.
It’s unclear what percentage of Monumental Sports & Entertainment each of those two buyers will take on in their respective transactions, per Soshnick and Novy-Williams. Powell Jobs reportedly assumed control of about 20% of the company when she bought in back in 2017, but she sold part of her stake in 2022.
According to Sportico, the enterprise is being valued at $7.2 billion in the sale. To be clear, that valuation doesn’t just apply to the Wizards, but to the entirety of Monumental Sports & Entertainment’s holdings — the company also controls the NHL’s Washington Capitals and the WNBA’s Washington Mystics, as well as Capital One Arena and Monumental Sports Network.
When Sportico published its latest NBA franchise valuations in October, the Wizards came in at $4.78 billion, making the NBA franchise the most valuable asset in Monumental’s portfolio.
QIA previously bought a 5% stake in Monumental in 2023, according to Soshnick and Novy-Williams, who note that the deal made the group the first sovereign wealth fund to directly invest in a major U.S. sports team. Arctos, meanwhile, has stakes in several franchises across U.S. sports, including the Warriors.
Ted Leonsis remains the controlling owner of Monumental and the Wizards. Other minority shareholders, per Sportico, include billionaire Jeffrey Skoll entrepreneur, BET co-founder Sheila Johnson and Washington Nationals owner Mark Lerner.
NBA Will Decide On Expansion In 2026, Silver Says
At a press conference prior to the NBA Cup championship game, commissioner Adam Silver said the league would determine at some point in 2026 whether it will add a pair of domestic expansion teams, according to Joe Vardon of The Athletic.
As Tim Bontemps of ESPN writes, Tuesday evening marked the first time Silver has given a timeline for a decision on expansion since he first broached the possibility ahead of the 2020/21 season.
“I’d say in terms of domestic expansion, that is something we’re continuing to look at,” Silver said. “It’s not a secret we’re looking at this market in Las Vegas. We are looking at Seattle. We’ve looked at other markets, as well. I’d say I want to be sensitive there about this notion that we’re somehow teasing these markets, because I know we’ve been talking about it for a while.
“As I’ve said before, domestic expansion, as opposed to doing a new league in Europe, is selling equity in this current league. If you own 1/30 of this league, now you own 1/32 if you add two teams. So it’s a much more difficult economic analysis. In many ways, it requires predicting the future.
“I think now we’re in the process of working with our teams and gauging the level of interest and having a better understanding of what the economics would be on the ground for those particular teams and what a pro forma would look like for them, and then sometime in 2026 we’ll make a determination.”
While Silver mentioned the NBA has looked at several possibilities, he clarified to Vardon after the press conference that the league is primarily focused on the cities of Las Vegas and Seattle, which have long been viewed as the frontrunners for potential expansion.
“I think Seattle and Las Vegas are two incredible cities,” Silver said, per Bontemps. “Obviously we had a team in Seattle that had great success. We have a WNBA team here in Las Vegas in the Aces. We’ve been playing the summer league here for 20 years. We’re playing our Cup games here, so we’re very familiar with this market.
“I don’t have any doubt that Las Vegas, despite all of the other major league teams that are here now, the other entertainment properties, that this city could support an NBA team.”
Silver also discussed several other topics on Tuesday, Bontemps adds, including the ongoing WNBA negotiations for a new collective bargaining agreement, Chris Paul‘s acrimonious exit from the Clippers, and the number of injuries around the league.
After the press conference ended, Silver suggested the NBA Cup final might be held at different venues going forward, per Jason Jones of The Athletic. The first three in-season tournament championship games were held at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.
“We’ve loved our experience in Vegas,” Silver said in an appearance on the NBA on Prime pregame show. “We’re talking with Amazon Prime about whether it makes sense to maybe go to some unique locations for the final game. They’ve suggested, for example, some storied college arenas. So we’re just looking at other ways to do this.”