buckets

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take detroit’s 5-year, $200m fully guaranteed offer, or play this season on the $9.6m qualifying offer and become an unrestricted free agent in 2027. what should he do? if duren takes the qualifying offer and then gets the full 4-year max from another team next summer, he’d make roughly $198.8m over the next five years, still less than the $200M detroit is guaranteeing him today and he’d be risking an entire season of injury or a down year to get there. duren has reportedly felt disrespected throughout negotiations and wants out of detroit. the pistons also reportedly removed the weight clause that had become a major point of tension, and the current $200m offer is fully guaranteed with no weight-related provisions.

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seven years after entering the nba zion williamson is still waiting to play his first playoff game. asked at media day where he feels he is in his career, zion said, “i’m not where i want to be. i’m just not where i need to be, where i want to be.” the former no. 1 pick has made two all-star teams, but injuries have interrupted so much of his career. he’s played 276 regular-season games and missed 278, including the entire 2021-22 season (yes, that’s more games missed than played). although new orleans finished 26-56 and missed the playoffs last season, zion played 62 games, the second-most of his career. he also acknowledged his part in the team falling short: “i take my responsibility in that; i definitely hold myself accountable.” staying on the floor more often was progress, and at 26, he still has plenty of time to right the ship 💪 (via will guillory)

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who should start at guard for the trail blazers? damian lillard, ja morant and jrue holiday all have a legitimate case. according to the athletic, the expectation right now is that lillard and morant will open the season together, but coach micah nori acknowledged that the fit isn’t perfect. both are smaller guards who have never been known for their defense, while holiday gives portland more size and one of the best perimeter defenders in basketball. from a pure lineup standpoint, starting holiday next to either dame or ja probably gives the blazers more balance and lets the other star guard run the second unit. the problem is everything that comes with asking an all-star to come off the bench, especially for micah nori, a first-year head coach on a one-year deal. the guard room is even more crowded than that. portland also has scoot henderson and shaedon sharpe, two young guards who still need real minutes and development reps. nori still said he’ll “probably” start lillard and morant to begin the season, but figuring out how to divide those backcourt minutes could be one of portland’s biggest challenges all year. what’s the right move?

(via the athletic)

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cooper flagg has gained 23 pounds since the beginning of his rookie year 💪 flagg entered his first nba training camp at 205 pounds. one year later, he’s up to 228. he also says he’s now around 6’10” without shoes. and it comes after a historic rookie season. the no. 1 pick averaged 21.0 PPG (led all rookies) and won rookie of the year. he became the youngest player in nba history to score 50 with his 51-point game against orlando, and earlier became the first 18-year-old ever to score 40.

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on “hot ones” luka doncic said the toughest place he’s ever played was a euroleague playoff game vs panathinaikos. this is what he was talking about @EuroLeague

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do u like ur team’s city jersey this year? 🤔 @Just Jack

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blazers fans: welcome to the yang hansen fan club @FIBA Basketball

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“i’m closer to lebron than you are to me” - brian scalabrine

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knicks players shared their hottest take… who do you agree with? 🤔

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jalen duren is officially on a 5-year, $200 million deal with detroit, so here's how his salary this season actually looks like next to some of the league’s other bigs. assuming standard 8% annual raises commonly found in nba contracts, duren’s $200M deal would most likely start at $34,482,759 next season.

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22-year-old lebron was moving like a supercar 😳 @FIBA Basketball

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karl-anthony towns’ dad hasn’t forgotten how things ended between KAT and jimmy butler in minnesota. butler arrived in minnesota in 2017, but the relationship between him and the wolves’ young core eventually fell apart. after requesting a trade, butler’s final months with the team became one of the biggest stories in the nba, with the infamous practice blowup and plenty of criticism directed toward towns after butler left. for years after that, KAT was constantly questioned for his personality, toughness and whether he could be one of the best players on a championship team. towns mostly stayed out of the public back-and-forth, while his dad said it was difficult watching people tear his son down from the outside. now KAT has the ring, and his dad clearly hasn’t forgotten any of it. “jimmy ain’t got no championship. karl bypassed him.” (via jon krawczynski)