Latest news with #Thunder-PacersNBAFinals
Yahoo
27-06-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Hawks rumors: Atlanta actively looking to ‘capitalize' on $25 million trade exception
The post Hawks rumors: Atlanta actively looking to 'capitalize' on $25 million trade exception appeared first on ClutchPoints. The Atlanta Hawks' season finished in underwhelming fashion. As general manager Onsi Saleh prepares for his second offseason in Atlanta, the team will start trying to improve their roster. According to rumors, the Hawks have made it clear that Trae Young is not going anywhere. He and Jalen Johnson formed an effective duo before the wing went down with injury. Saleh is on the hunt for players to complement them. Advertisement One of the biggest assets that Atlanta has this summer is a $25 million trade exception. According to Stein Line insider Jake Fischer, the Hawks are planning to use the exception they received in the Dejounte Murray trade to net them another star. 'Sources say Atlanta, meanwhile, is actively exploring ways to capitalize on a $25 million trade exception it still possesses as a vestige from last summer's Dejounte Murray trade to New Orleans,' Fischer said. 'Hawks in play for some potential sign-and-trade scenarios once the offseason begins' That is good news for an Atlanta fan base that has not seen their team make the playoffs since 2023. While the trade exception cannot be used to sign a free agent outright, the Hawks are still in good position. Sign-and-trade candidates around the NBA include names like Naz Reid, Julius Randle, and Jonathan Kuminga. All three of those players would be upgrades for Atlanta. However, Saleh needs to pick the one that fits best alongside Young and Johnson. Advertisement Ironically, one of the Hawks' top offseason targets is still playing. Indiana Pacers center Myles Turner is near the top of the Hawks' and other teams' list of potential additions. How he plays in Game 7 of the NBA Finals and the games result could have a big impact on his future. In the meantime, Atlanta needs to make the most of the $25 million exception they got in exchange for Murray. They could try to bring in another guard that fits better than Murray did, but they are spoiled for options. Saleh faces a big decision in his first summer as the Hawks' full-time general manager. The moves he makes this summer will go a long way in determining just how successful next season is. Related: Dyson Daniels gets real on Thunder-Pacers NBA Finals Related: Atlanta Hawks' perfect outcome for No. 22 pick in 2025 NBA Draft
Yahoo
24-06-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Bulls, Billy Donovan working on contract extension
The post Bulls, Billy Donovan working on contract extension appeared first on ClutchPoints. The Chicago Bulls are currently reportedly in the works on a possible contract extension with head coach Billy Donovan, as per NBA insider Marc Stein. Donovan has been the Bulls' head coach since the 2020-21 season, and the front office is clearly a strong believer of his coaching acumen that they appear to be ready to commit to him for the foreseeable future despite less-than-stellar results over the past few seasons. Advertisement Donovan has only coached the Bulls once into the playoffs, back in the 2021-22 season. That was a memorable year for Bulls fans, as that was the first season of the Lonzo Ball-DeMar DeRozan-Zach LaVine-Nikola Vucevic core. They sat in the top half of the Eastern Conference for a good chunk of that season, only to fall off after Ball suffered a serious injury that would keep him out for over two years. As a result, the Bulls fell off in 2022, entered the playoffs as the sixth-seed with 46 wins, and then proceeded to get knocked out by the Milwaukee Bucks in the first round of the playoffs. Since then, Donovan's team has failed to make it to the playoffs, falling short in the play-in tournament for each of the past three seasons. Nonetheless, the Bulls front office clearly trusts Donovan to be the man to take them back to playoff contention. For what it's worth, Donovan has done as well of a job as anyone considering the roster the team has given him. They also hit their stride towards the end of the 2024-25 season, and Donovan seems to thrive more when coaching a young team on the rise. Moving forward, the Bulls will be looking for huge developments from the likes of Josh Giddey, Matas Buzelis, and Coby White, and they will look to supplement this young core further with the 12th overall pick of the 2025 NBA Draft. Bulls believe in Billy Donovan Jonathan Hui-Imagn Images The Bulls front office is very much a huge believer in Donovan. This contract extension possibility comes in the aftermath of their decision to reject the New York Knicks' attempt to get the two-time National Championship-winning coach to interview for their vacant head coaching job. Advertisement Donovan's best season as a coach came during the 2019-20 season, when he placed third in the Coach of the Year voting. He helped steer an Oklahoma City Thunder team that many thought were destined for the bottom of the standings into the playoffs, and it's clear that his best attribute as a coach is taking teams that are a bit undertalented to places far greater than many believed they could reach. Related: Bulls' Matas Buzelis reacts to Thunder-Pacers NBA Finals Related: Ranking the top 3 Nikola Vucevic trade destinations
Yahoo
24-06-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Exclusive: Shai Gilgeous-Alexander's dad gets brutally honest on Thunder-Clippers trade
The post Exclusive: Shai Gilgeous-Alexander's dad gets brutally honest on Thunder-Clippers trade appeared first on ClutchPoints. OKLAHOMA CITY — The Oklahoma City Thunder are NBA champions and just completed of one of the most incredible rebuilds in NBA history going from contender to lottery team, then back to a contender in just six seasons. All this could not have been done without 2025 NBA Finals MVP Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and the Los Angeles Clippers. Advertisement Gilgeous-Alexander, once thought to be the next big thing for the LA Clippers, was shockingly traded in July 2019 in a deal that set the Thunder up for years to come. His father, Vaughn Alexander, believed it would be perfect for his son. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander's dad sounds off on Clippers trade When the Clippers traded Shai Gilgeous-Alexander to the Oklahoma City Thunder in July 2019, it was a major package for then-superstar Paul George, but it was also a deal that would secure the free agency commitment of Kawhi Leonard. The way the Clippers — and the rest of the league — viewed it was a deal that brought in the reigning NBA Finals MVP and the third place-finisher for MVP voting in exchange for a young guard and an absolute haul of draft picks that probably wouldn't matter if the Clippers were as successful as they hoped they would be by the time those picks were used. Advertisement But Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and his family had grown accustomed to Los Angeles, a new setting around a veteran group of players and experienced coaching staff. 'When it first happened, we were a little [disappointed],' Vaughn Alexander told ClutchPoints in an exclusive sit-down interview during the Thunder-Pacers NBA Finals. 'Like, obviously you get traded out of a place that you're relaxed and you're comfortable in. It's LA. The weather is hot, you got girls, everything. We'll be loving it, right? But then after a while, you start to think, 'Wait a minute.' Because at first you're like, 'Wait, I got traded. I love this place.' But then when you're really sitting down and thinking about it. I think it was Summer League where we sat down and thought about it. I was like, 'Shai, this is your chance to shine, bro. This is it. This is destiny. That's what God wants for you,' number one.' In addition to the lifestyle changes, Gilgeous-Alexander was presented with an opportunity to go to a well-run organization in the Thunder that would make him the centerpiece of their franchise. While other members of his draft class were given the runway to play through mistakes and learn from them, Gilgeous-Alexander was on a Clippers team with a lot of veteran guards with no clear path to consistent minutes given Doc Rivers' coaching style. 'Number two, I said, 'What's going on in LA?'' Vaughn Alexander continued to ClutchPoints. ''Yeah, you like it. It's hot, girls, all that. But really and truly, bro, they're not letting you be you. Collin Sexton is dropping 22 points a night. Deandre Ayton is doing his thing, playing 40 minutes, you know what I'm saying? Everybody in your draft class was being the man because they were all playing on bad teams where they got drafted early and high in the draft and they had to play through it.' Advertisement 'But we were on a good team or a fairly good team with veterans. Lou Williams, Avery Bradley, Tobias Harris, right? So they had to bring him into it. They tried to bring in Shai in slowly just because he was a rookie when I was like bro, you know me. I was like, 'Yo, let him play right away. He's ready now. Look what he did in Kentucky. Stop this, he's a point guard. Patrick Beverley is not a point guard. Avery Bradley is not a point guard. Lou Williams is not the point guard. Who's your point guard on the team? No, tell me, Doc. Who is your point guard?'' Shai Gilgeous-Alexander finished his rookie season sixth in Rookie of the Year voting having played all 82 games. He averaged 10.8 points, 2.8 rebounds, 3.3 assists, and 1.2 steals in 26.5 minutes per game of his rookie campaign. But, again, given the veteran presences on the team, Gilgeous-Alexander wasn't given the runway to be 'The Man,' which is what his father believed he needed to showcase his full potential. In his first season with the Thunder following the trade, Gilgeous-Alexander upped his averages to 19.0 points, 5.9 rebounds, 3.3 assists, and 1.1 steals in 34.7 minutes per game. Advertisement 'They didn't want to play him as a point guard,' Vaughn Alexander added. 'Yeah, you make him bring up the ball, but then he runs to the corner. So nobody really knew who Shai was. You could see the talent. They loved him. The guys loved him. Doc knew who he was. Patrick Beverley knew who he was because they were playing his ass in practice. But when you guys were really using him in the game, you're using him as a 'bring up the ball, get us into our sets and just go in the corner and stand up.' 'So now when you go to OKC, Shai, I'm like, 'Yo, guess what's about to happen, Shai? When you think about it, you're about to be Shai. You're about to be Shai from when you were 17 or 18 years old at Kentucky. You're about to be that Shai. And that's when the world's going to get to know you. You don't go from 10 points a game to 19 points a game by working on your jump shot in the offseason. Yeah, I believe you get better, but not in those increments. You could already do that. Now you're just allowed to. You got let go.'' From there, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander has increased his scoring average nearly every season to the point where he was the league's leading scorer in 2024-25, averaging 32.7 points in addition to his other stats of 5.0 rebounds, 6.4 assists, 1.7 steals, and a block in 34.2 minutes a night. The Clippers have had some unfortunate luck stand in the way of their NBA championship aspirations, and now Shai Gilgeous-Alexander has led the Thunder to a championship six years after the deal was made. This franchise is also set up for the long haul thanks to the Clippers trade that changed everything. Related: The 11 1st-round picks Thunder still have after winning 2025 NBA Finals Related: Thunder star Jalen Williams' wholesome gesture after NBA Finals win
New York Post
21-06-2025
- Entertainment
- New York Post
Mark Titus rips ESPN for ruining NBA Finals with too much Stephen A. Smith: ‘This guy's awful'
It's apparently open season on Stephen A. Smith. Barstool's Mark Titus teed off on the polarizing ESPN personality and also ripped the company for making its coverage of the Thunder-Pacers NBA Finals too Smith-centric. 'I would have zero problem with anything Stephen A. Smith is saying or doing if he wasn't on NBA Finals broadcasts,' Titus said on 'Mostly Sports with Mark Titus and Brandon Walker' on Thursday. 'The fact that ESPN has appointed him to be one of the voices you hear when you tune into the NBA Finals, that's the only problem I have. 'You're allowed to talk s–t. … If you try to avoid the Stephen A. bulls–t, and you're like, 'You know what I want to do? I love basketball so I want to watch the two best basketball teams compete for the highest honor in professional basketball.' If you choose to do that, you're going to get Stephen A. in your face. And you're just like, 'God damn, this guy's awful.' I almost forget it because I don't watch all the other s–t he does.' 3 Mark Titus wants less Stephen A. Smith during NBA Finals coverage. @MostlySportsTitusandWalker/YouTube Smith has been a popular punching bag in recent weeks with a seemingly never-ending stream of controversies. Michelle Beadle and Cody Decker ripped him for taking their radio slot at Sirius XM. Kevin Durant, Dave Portnoy and Pacers fan trolled him for playing Solitaire during the NBA Finals, only for Smith to later say, 'Kiss my ass.' And Smith now has gone to war with the city of Memphis and superstar Ja Morant after he claimed free agents don't want to play in Grind City because its unsafe. 3 Stephen A. Smith working during an NBA Finals broadcast. NBAE via Getty Images Former ESPN host Jason Fitz ripped Smith for those remarks, while Morant questioned why Memphis is being discussed during the Finals. The Memphis comments provided the entry point for Titus and his co-host, Brandon Walker, to riff on Smith. 'Stephen A. has appointed himself God? Is he God now?' Walker said. Titus responded: 'Yes, he's appointed himself God.' He then said it's 'crazy' how Smith will rip players in a confrontational manner. 'It's not just like him saying it, it's like him threatening,' Titus said. 'He's threatening everybody at all times, it's crazy. It's crazy. It's motherf–king crazy.' 3 Stephen A. Smith is hard to miss on ESPN. NBAE via Getty Images Titus is not the first person to call out ESPN for leaning too much into Smith, with some criticizing the Worldwide Leader for showing him at games and even sometimes his arrival to venues. Even Thursday's Game 6 featured Smith and his daughter, Samantha, getting plenty of screen time ahead of the Pacers fighting to extend their season. Smith will be front and center again Sunday night when the Thunder host the Pacers for Game 7, with Oklahoma City installed as a solid favorite.
Yahoo
20-06-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Tyrese Haliburton has ‘every intention' of battling through injury in Game 6
The post Tyrese Haliburton has 'every intention' of battling through injury in Game 6 appeared first on ClutchPoints. It is do or die for the Indiana Pacers as they trail 3-2 to the Oklahoma City Thunder in the NBA Finals. Their chances of forcing a Game 7 will, in part, depend on the health of Tyrese Haliburton, who sustained a strained right calf following their Game 5 loss on Monday. Advertisement However, Haliburton isn't giving in and plans to play in the critical Game 6 on Thursday night in Indianapolis, per The Pat McAfee Show. 'Tyrese Haliburton has every intention of playing tonight,' ESPN NBA writer Shams Charania said to McAfee. 'He's fully intending to be out there tonight.' Up to this point, Haliburton has been the Pacers ace. He is averaging 15 points, 7.2 assists, and 6.2 rebounds per game against the Thunder. Already, Haliburton established a place in NBA lore with his Game 1 buzzer-beater that shocked everyone. During this postseason, Haliburton averaged 18. 6 points, 9.3 assists, and 5.8 rebounds per game over a 20-game stretch. Advertisement His ability to perform in the clutch has garnered praise, as well as echoes of Reggie Miller from the past. There is no question that he is a valuable presence for the Pacers, and there would be no better clutch moment than rallying his team to the title. So, will he be helping or hurting? The risks and rewards of Tyrese Haliburton in Game 6 In addition to rising to the occasion, Haliburton is a dynamic playmaker and leader for the Pacers. He can get the best out of his players, and his being on the floor helps provide a boost in confidence. As a playmaker, his ability to create opportunities for his teammates and himself is a significant factor in the Pacer's success. Advertisement Plus, the hometown crowd at the Gainbridge Fieldhouse can play a role in getting him to be at his best. On the other hand, he could run the risk of further injury, the Thunder's offense could take advantage of his hobbled status, and his overall play could be significantly limited. Related: Dyson Daniels gets real on Thunder-Pacers NBA Finals Related: Stephen A. Smith sends warning to NBA even if Pacers lose Finals
