Jaylen Brown’s words from his stream on Sunday: >“if you go back to when I signed, I had all the kids behind me and I announced that I want to build Black Wall Street, and I told y’all I was gonna commit and invest to the city and that’s what we did and that’s what I’m continuing to do even beyond that but I’m looking forward to expanding that out. I want other athletes to see that, I want other athletes to feel that. Because the people that are representing or the people that are around some of our most influential players are steering them away.

>They’re steering them away from being in their community, steering them away from helping the people in the situation they came from because there’s no benefit for these people that represent so they’re like pushing you away, it’s super weird. It take a real strong mind and some courage to even go against it, cause they labeled me and said I had a disease. They called me the smartest person in the room and all this type stuff for just trying to uplift my community and showing respect to the places I came from. That’s all I talked about since I was 18 years old is my community, where I come from, and how I can positively impact. Then they create these narratives saying I’m the smartest in the room, Colin Cowerd, to quote one of his sources, said I got a disease. Like these people are crazy bro.”

Kyle Kuzma’s tweet in response: >“i hear JB frustration but this ain't it.

>1 most handlers around players don't know the first thing about building a business. and that's on US. we put our people in positions of power they were never trained for and act surprised when it goes left. accountability starts in your own circle.

>2 "invest in your community" sounds good until you break down what it actually means. buying your cousin a barbershop isn't community investment, it's a bill you'll be paying forever. any real advisor will tell you that. It’s really only buying real estate commercially that makes sense…

>3 and let's be honest about scale. rebuilding black wall street was never and should never be on athletes. there's about 20 black billionaires in this country. have they ever sat at one table to do something massive? I’ll wait…..

>make great investments FIRST. stack real capital. then your second and third wave is when you do the massive things…with enough weight behind your name to pull the city, the state, real partners into it with you.”

Is this insane to yall? Imo this just shows how Global the game went, Basketball today is legit a global game second to Soccer worldwide in terms of player base...

https://www.instagram.com/p/Dct3Gr-mGMf/

Made this post due to stumbling upon the B-Roy, Oden, Aldridge squad of 2010-2011. Really felt like that squad was just "It" but the injury curse really just derailed what could've been a really good 3-4 year championship window. It's really sad to think about how many teams probably fall under this.

You can probably count as well the KD, Kyrie, Harden Brooklyn Nets on this too. Feels like that team was one of the most insanely cracked roster to never make an NBA final.

Unsure about any squad from below the 2010's tho. Like, Dwight's Magic probably could've made another deep playoff run assuming he never got hurt. The Celtics squad before KG went down (forgot which year was it).

Oh and maybe to put an example of a great ass squad that had off court issues - the Malice in the Palace Pacers were really favored to win that year no? Unsure about other squads like that one since the incident was just a one-of thing.

I've been watching some of the highlights and performances of the NBA bubble, and it makes me want to see that level of concentration and play again. That may only be possible in a sequestered setting.

1 - 2 weeks in an academy like setting consisting of a single game elimination tourney in a closed environment. Keeping the distractions, crowds, and media to a minimum, we could witness a greater parity of competition and the purest demonstration of skill.

The court designs are cool, and I think you do get some intriguing matchups in the current format. But since it plays out in the first part of the season and spaced between rounds, it gets hard to maintain the thrill of a tourney.

Background and Motivation:

I noticed that it's been a while since the Sixers had a white starter and wondered how common this was across the league.

Data and Methods:

I checked the GS (games started) column in the Per-Game table, on Basketball Reference's team-year pages, starting with the 2025-26 season and going backwards. For the purposes of this study, I counted a player as a starter for the season if they had at least 20 games started in the regular season.

Results:

The last time the 76ers had a white starter was JJ Redick in the 2018-19 season. The Knicks, Hawks, Wizards, and Spurs all had a white starter most recently in the 2023-24 season. The Pelicans last had a white starter in the 2024-25 season. The other 24 teams all had a white starter this past season.

Conclusion:

The Sixers' 7-year white starter hiatus is an outlier in the NBA. Peer review welcome if I missed someone or identified a player as white in error.

Appendix:

Atlantic Division:

• BOS: 2025-26; Payton Pritchard, Sam Hauser, Baylor Scheierman
• NYK: 2023-24; Donte DiVincenzo
• TOR: 2025-26; Jakob Poetl
• PHI: 2018-19; JJ Redick
• BRK: 2025-26; Egor Dëmin

Central Division:

• DET: 2025-26; Duncan Robinson
• CLE: 2025-26; Sam Merrill, Dean Wade
• MIL: 2025-26; AJ Green
• CHI: 2025-26; Matas Buzelis, Josh Giddey, Nikola Vučević
• IND: 2025-26; Jay Huff, Johnny Furphy

Southeast Division:

• ATL: 2023-24; Bogdan Bogdanović
• ORL: 2025-26; Franz Wagner
• CHA: 2025-26; Kon Knueppel, Ryan Kalkbrenner
• MIA: 2025-26; Pelle Larsson, Tyler Herro
• WAS: 2023-24; Deni Avdija, Corey Kispert

Northwest Division:

• OKC: 2025-26; Chet Holmgren
• DEN: 2025-26; Nikola Jokić, Christian Braun
• MIN: 2025-26; Donte DiVincenzo
• POR: 2025-26; Donovan Clingan, Deni Avdija
• UTA: 2025-26; Lauri Markkanen, Kyle Filipowski, Svi Mykhailiuk, Jusuf Nurkić

Pacific Division:

• LAL: 2025-26; Luka Dončić, Austin Reaves, Jake LaRavia
• PHO: 2025-26; Collin Gillespie, Grayson Allen
• LAC: 2025-26; Ivica Zubac
• GSW: 2025-26; Brandin Podziemski, Quinten Post
• SAC: 2025-26; Maxime Raynaud

Southwest Division:

• SAS: 2023-24; Zach Collins
• HOU: 2025-26; Alperen Şengün, Reed Sheppard
• NOP: 2024-25; Kelly Olynyk
• DAL: 2025-26; Cooper Flagg
• MEM: 2025-26; Jock Landale, Cam Spencer

If I could be one NBA player for a day, I'd choose LeBron James. I'd want to experience what it's like to play at the highest level, lead a team, and perform in front of thousands of fans. It would also be interesting to see how he balances basketball, training, family, and everything else he does off the court. Getting to experience a day in his life would be unforgettable.

I just watched the Kawai 1v1 the streetballer in china, and maybe I'm just high, but they need to change the ALL STAR game to a 1 on 1 tournament. This video was so fun to watch, and one of the players WASN'T even NBA level talent.. EAST vs WEST could be played like a tag team style deathmatch, where each win would count as a point for the respective conference. ALSO, no NBA players wants to lose 1 on 1, this could also solve the lack of competitiveness in the current the ALL STAR game

The NFL and NBA both get far more attention than the mlb and nhl but which of the two gets more. I think since it’s a 17 game season vs 82 game season so football games get more coverage cause the games more important but you would see clips and highlights of players like Wembanyama, LBJ, Luka and Steph get hundreds of thousands- millions of likes, far more than any NFL highlights

People always say modern players are more talented than players of the past, and that’s not necessarily true. The reason players weren’t doing hesi crossovers or double step back threes isn’t because they were completely incapable of it…I’m sure Jerry West or Pistol Pete back in the day could have done one or both of those moves had they had the incentive to learn them. The reason is because traveling and carrying were much more strictly enforced back then. You had to keep your palm above the equator of the ball at all times or it was a carry. Since there was no gather step, a double step back would have been considered a travel. Without the ability to freeze defenders with palmed crossovers or take extra steps, it was more difficult to score. And hand checking also made shooting threes not very viable for many players unless it was catch and shoot. Yes, there was no zone defense, which did make it easier to score, but all the other rules cancelled that out…

My point is, if the nba decided to start calling all obvious travels, carries, and moving screens, the nba would see a resurgence in post play & midrange shots and traditional point guards and a decline in small ball and deep threes. Crossovers would still exist but they’d resemble Tim Hardaway’s instead of Allen Iverson’s.

The nba feels that step backs threes and hesitation moves are more entertaining for crowds than drop step dunks and pull up deep twos so they likely won’t implement this for fear of temporary ref ball alienating their audience, but it would make basketball more versatile and equitable for defenders.

Edit:
I will concede that modern players are more SKILLED in general due to the league expecting everybody to be able to shoot threes and do faceup dribble moves and the prevalence of AAU and international play, but that’s different than talent, if older players had the incentive to learn those moves I’m convinced they could with enough time. And I wouldn’t necessarily say today’s players are more athletic naturally, they are better conditioned and in better shape due to modern sport science and exercise, but their athletic potential isn’t significantly higher, players like Shawn Kemp and Wilt Chamberlain were plenty athletic and I wouldn’t say Luka Doncic or Steph Curry are athletic freaks.

I think it would be really fun to see a format where the rules are randomly drawn, and allows fans to see players showcase talents that they are really known for.

The teams would return to a simple East vs West (but any two-team split would be fine).

A mish-mash of random rules would be placed in a hat and 3 are drawn at random. The rules would be stuff like:
3-point shots are worth 4.
Layups are worth 3.
Assisted buckets are worth an extra point.
Blocks are worth 2 points.
All shots are worth 1 point.
etc.
Fan write-ins for more ideas can be encouraged. Conflicting rules (if any) are discarded and replaced. Basic rules like traveling, carrying etc. cannot be changed (though arguably removing goaltending would be really interesting!).

Once the rules are picked, the coach/captain selects 5 players from their roster to represent their squad for that game. Game to 21 straight, no subs.

It'd be a best of 7 series of games. Players can't play in back-to-back games so teams have to go through their roster. That restriction is lifted for game 7, if it gets there.

Does this sound interesting?
What rules would you want to see?

All numbers from NBA.com tracking, which began tracking touches in 2013-14.

Brunson averaged 9.1 minutes of possession per game this postseason.

Highest playoff time of possession on a championship team since tracking began:

2026 Knicks, Jalen Brunson, 9.1

2020 Lakers, LeBron James, 8.0

2023 Nuggets, Jamal Murray, 7.9

2025 Thunder, SGA, 7.6

2015 Warriors, Steph Curry, 7.3

2016 Cavaliers, Kyrie Irving, 7.2

2014 Spurs, Tony Parker, 7.0

2021 Bucks, Jrue Holiday, 6.6

Only one player in the tracking era has reached the Finals with a higher time of possession than Brunson, which is LeBron James:

2018 LeBron (9.6) and 2015 LeBron (9.5), who lost to the Golden State Warriors each time.

For the Knicks, “Brunson Ball” has been normal for the franchise as they have been running it this way for years since Brunson arrived in NYC.

Brunson has led the playoffs in time of possession in three of the last four years:

(9.9) in 2023, (10.0) in 2024, and (9.1) in 2026. The exception was 2025, when he finished second at (9.2) behind Cade Cunningham (9.9).

Brunson has also led the regular season in time of possession the last three years, at (8.6) in 2024, (8.6) in 2025, and (8.0) in 2026. In his first year with the Knicks in 2023 he was third at (8.5), behind Luka at (9.1) and James Harden at (8.6).

If you’re wondering about touches, The highest touch total for a champion since tracking began belongs to Jokic in 2023 at 111.6. This postseason, Brunson was second at 95.2, behind Jokic’s 123.0.

Luka is the only other current player working at this volume across multiple years. His Finals run in 2024 came at (8.5). In 2022 he took Dallas to the Western Conference Finals at (9.7), with Brunson in that backcourt at (5.4).

So what is it about this Knicks team that makes a hyper on-ball offense work when it usually doesn’t?

Whenever two Porter Jrs. play one another, I propose the creation of the Porter Jr. Belt, which the winner gets to take home and proudly wear to future Porter Jr. matchups.

For a game to qualify as a belt match, both players must appear in the game. Playoff games count. Matches between two Porter Jrs. where neither is the current belt holder have no impact on the belt.

Kevin Porter Jr. is the current belt holder, having won this prized possession on February 25, 2026. He was also the inaugural belt holder, defeating Otto in the first-ever matchup between Porter Jrs. on October 30, 2019.

Belt history

Overall Porter Jr. records

Craig has the highest winning percentage in games where both Porter Jrs. played, belt and non-belt matches included. Kevin has never won a non-belt match, all 5 wins coming in belt matches.

Other interesting tidbits

• Sadly, Otto has never held the belt and did not participate in another belt match after the inaugural challenge.
• Throughout the history of the belt, Craig has held the belt for a cumulative 353 days, Michael for 794 days, and Kevin for 1,351 days and counting.
• Two Porter Jrs. have never both appeared against one another in the playoffs. Denver faced Golden State in the 2022 playoffs, but although Otto appeared in all five games, Michael missed the series because of a back injury.
• There have also been other Porter Jrs. in college basketball, but I could not find any instances of two Porter Jrs. playing one another:
  • Terence Porter Jr. played for Charleston Southern and Canisius between 2019 and 2024.
  • Damion Porter Jr. played for Tarleton State as a freshman last season.
  • Kareem Porter Jr. played for Division III Keene State as a sophomore last season.
• The next potential belt match is October 31st, with Craig and Cleveland challenging Kevin and Milwaukee.

Source: https://www.reddit.com/r/nba/s/1LJeEDR96f

Shai was coming off his 1st 30+ PPG (62% TS) season while making 1st Team All NBA

Trae averaged 25/10 on 57% TS and made the All Star team

Interesting how their careers have gone since this point

"I had this conversation with Dwight. He said, 'Man, I thought you didn't like me.' I said, 'Dwight, you wasn't paying attention. I love you. You did stuff that I couldn't do.' I wanted to make you mad."

"Because I contacted one of your teammates, Jamison. I was like, 'Is he soft?' He was like, 'No, he's not soft.' I was like, 'Okay. He's not soft. All right.'"

I wanted to get him so mad and so enraged that he played at a high level. But he didn't understand that. So a lot of times when I'm criticizing you as a player, it must mean I like you."

Is it more important to have one of the best players in the league, like a Shai, Giannis, Jokic, Curry etc

Or to have the best role players in the league like OG Anunoby, Aaron Gordon, Jrue Holiday, Derrick White, Caruso etc

Naturally you need both, but which is more important?

Yep , the new season can’t come quick enough at this point..

Been recently reflecting on the 2009-10 Charlotte Bobcats, and how underrated they actually were. The team had a solid nucleus of: Gerald Wallace, Boris Diaw, Stephen Jackson, Tyson Chandler, Raja Bell, Raymond Felton, D.J. Augustin, Nazr Mohammed, and Larry Brown at coach to top it all off. They won 44 games, which is already pretty solid, but I always forget that they were also the No. 1-ranked defense in the league that season. For a team without a traditional superstar, they had a pretty interesting mix of veterans, work horses and defensive specialists.

This is where Allen Iverson comes into the picture. I’ve always been somewhat of an AI truther. He’s not my favorite player ever, but I genuinely think he got done dirty in Detroit. The front office and coaching staff never really gave him a fair shake, and the whole situation just seemed doomed from the beginning. I know the stats don’t exactly make the case for him: he averaged around 17 points on 36% shooting in Detroit. But I think you have to look at the context. That was an Iverson who seemed completely checked out, had the coaching staff and front office against him, and was playing for a team where some of his teammates were still disgruntled over the sudden Chauncey Billups trade. It was just a terrible situation all around. Keep in mind, this was literally one year removed from him being top 3 in scoring , averaging 26 on 45% shooting, so I highly doubt he all of a sudden forgot how to play ball.

And that’s why I always wonder what would’ve happened if you took that version of Allen Iverson and just plugged him into the 2009-10 Bobcats. I’m not saying this is the 2001 version of AI. He obviously had his flaws by that point, and I’m not expecting him to suddenly come in and average 30. But just two years earlier, he was averaging 26 points on 45% shooting and was still an All-Star. He didn’t just completely lose the ability to play basketball overnight. And this wouldn’t have required a lofty trade to acquire him either. He was freshly waived from Memphis, so it would literally be plug and play. He knew Larry Brown’s system, and I believe at that point he and Larry Brown had already largely put their differences behind them. Personally, I’d probably start AI over Raymond Felton. Put him next to Crash, Stephen Jackson, Tyson Chandler, etc .. and that defense, and I think you have a really interesting team.

I honestly think the environment in Charlotte could’ve brought out a late-stage revitalized Iverson. I could see guys like Stephen Jackson & Crash, embracing him, and Larry Brown obviously knew exactly how to use him. Instead of asking Iverson to carry an entire offense, you have him as the scoring punch on a team that already had the No. 1 defense in the league. I could see him giving you 17, 18, maybe 19 points a game on better efficiency than what we saw in Detroit, simply because he’d actually be in a situation where he wanted to be there and had a defined role.
I think adding 4-5 extra wins on top of that 44 win team isn’t a completely crazy statement either. I’m not saying AI magically turns them into a championship team. They probably still aren’t an Eastern Conference favorite, and who’s even to say they would’ve gotten out of the first round? But I’ve seen crazier things happen. I could legitimately see that team now (with a now deeper bench with Felton acting as 6th man) turning into a 48-49 win team just by giving them another legitimate scoring option and someone who could create his own shot when the offense got stagnant. Now you’re talking about a team with the best defense in the league and an actual offensive weapon who could still take over stretches of games. That’s a pretty damn tough first-round matchup.

I know this is completely random, but this is one of my “what-ifs” I think about from time to time. Any of yall who watched the team around that time, let me know what you guys think.

About 50 days from the start of the regular season, stake your claim for this year’s breakout player right now. My vote is Matas Buzelis.

If maybe Wemby goes down early because of his size/age and Harper/Castle are just in their prime when Wemby is past his ?

1. United States

Stephen Curry
Anthony Edwards
Jayson Tatum
LeBron James
Anthony Davis

The US has so many I struggled if to put Brunson, Brown, or Haliburton here but ultimately decided that if healthy this is my starting five

2. Canada

PG — Shai Gilgeous-Alexander
SG — Jamal Murray
SF — Andrew Wiggins
PF — RJ Barrett
C — Zach Edey

I could potentially see Dillon Brooks here

3. France

PG — Nolan Traoré
SG — Bilal Coulibaly
SF — Zaccharie Risacher
PF — Victor Wembanyama
C — Rudy Gobert

4. Australia

PG — Josh Giddey
SG — Kyrie Irving
SF — Dyson Daniels
PF — Jock Landale
C — Rocco Zikarsky

5. Serbia

PG — Vasilije Micić
SG — Bogdan Bogdanović
SF — Nikola Jović
PF — Tristan Vukčević
C — Nikola Jokić

I could maybe see Serbia four just off Jokic

6. Germany

PG — Dennis Schröder
SG — Franz Wagner
SF — Tristan da Silva
PF — Isaiah Hartenstein
C — Maxi Kleber

I think this is the year that Rudy Gobert finally hits a three. There’s something about it, I can feel it in my Hylands.