- Coach of the Year finalist Chris Finch is “clearly the right coach” for the Timberwolves, argues Patrick Reusse of The Star Tribune. As Reusse writes, many media members picked the Suns to defeat the Wolves in their first-round matchup after Phoenix went 3-0 against Minnesota during the regular season. But Finch has pushed all the right buttons thus far as the Wolves hold a 2-0 lead behind a suffocating defense and perhaps the best game of Jaden McDaniels‘ career.
Timberwolves big man Naz Reid has been named the NBA’s Sixth Man of the Year for the 2023/24 season, the league announced on Wednesday evening (via Twitter).
A former undrafted free agent, Reid averaged 13.5 PPG, 5.2 RPG and 0.9 BPG on .477/.414/.736 shooting in 81 games this season (24.2 MPG).
Reid is the first player in Timberwolves franchise history to win the Sixth Man award, per a team press release.
The 24-year-old was a major reason why Minnesota didn’t skip a beat when Karl-Anthony Towns was sidelined with a knee injury late in the season. The Wolves went 14-6 without Towns and 56-26 overall, good for the No. 3 seed in the West.
The voting was remarkably close (Twitter link via the NBA). In fact, it was the smallest margin between first- and second-place finishers since the current voting format was implemented 21 years ago, according to the league (via Twitter).
Reid finished with 45 first-place votes, 39 second-place votes and 10 third-place votes for a total of 352 points. Runner-up Malik Monk had the exact same number of second- and third-place votes, but finished with two fewer first-place votes for 342 total points.
Kings guard Monk appeared in 72 games this season for Sacramento, all off the bench. He averaged 15.4 PPG, 2.9 RPG and 5.1 APG on .443/.350/.829 shooting in 26.0 MPG.
Bucks big man Bobby Portis, who finished third in Sixth Man voting last season, finished a distant third again in ’23/24, receiving 81 total points. He averaged 13.8 PPG and 7.4 RPG on .508/.407/.790 shooting without missing a game this season for Milwaukee (24.5 MPG).
Clippers wing Norman Powell (65 points) and Hawks guard Bogdan Bogdanovic (40 points) finished fourth and fifth in voting, respectively. No other player received more than three points.
Powell actually received the most third-place votes of any player, but fewer first- and second-place votes than Portis, which is why he finished behind Milwaukee’s forward/center.
Jose Alvarado, Russell Westbrook, T.J. McConnell, Jonathan Isaac, Jaime Jaquez, Tim Hardaway Jr., and Bojan Bogdanovic all received at least one vote.
Timberwolves forward Jaden McDaniels had arguably the best game of his four-year NBA career on Tuesday vs. Phoenix, posting 25 points, eight rebounds, and three assists. The Wolves outscored the Suns by 24 points in the 41 minutes he played and were outscored by 12 points during the seven minutes he was on the bench.
As Jon Krawczynski of The Athletic writes, McDaniels has waited all year to shine on this sort of stage after feeling as if he let down his teammates last spring by punching a wall after the regular season finale, breaking his hand and ending his season. The young forward didn’t realize when he went to hit a canvas awning out of frustration that there was a concrete wall behind it, but still felt embarrassed about the injury — and distraught that he wasn’t available to help his club in the playoffs.
“I was sick just watching them play (vs. Denver in last year’s first round),” McDaniels said. “I just felt like it would have been different if I got hurt playing, trying to battle. Just hurting myself, I felt selfish.”
The incident didn’t dissuade the Timberwolves from investing long-term in McDaniels, who signed a five-year, $131MM rookie scale extension in the fall. But he has still been waiting all year for the opportunity to redeem himself in the postseason — through the first two games against Phoenix, he’s well on his way to delivering on that goal.
“His activity’s been on another level so far in two games,” head coach Chris Finch said of McDaniels.
Here’s more on the Wolves:
- McDaniels’ strong play in the series vs. Phoenix certainly hasn’t escaped the notice of Suns head coach Frank Vogel, who suggested before Game 2 that his team needs to prepare a plan of attack for the defensive standout. “He’s outstanding,” Vogel said, per Jerry Zgoda of The Star Tribune. “His length, his athleticism, his quickness, his speed. He’s a great defensive player. We have to make sure we attack him the right away.”
- Despite appearing likely to win his fourth Defensive Player of the Year award this spring, Rudy Gobert was voted in The Athletic’s player poll as the NBA’s most overrated player. No one within the Wolves’ organization feels that way though, according to Jon Krawczynski of The Athletic, who suggests that Gobert’s intensity and attention to detail are key reasons why the club didn’t lose three straight games all season. “There’s a difference between being the reason you win and being the reason you don’t lose,” Finch said. “And Rudy is the reason we don’t lose. He doesn’t let us lose these games. He’s been this way all season. He’s an incredible floor raiser and he just brings it and he knows when the team needs him to do this the most. That’s one of the many reasons he’s so valuable for us.”
- ESPN’s Tim MacMahon published a similar feature on Gobert this week, exploring why the French center seems to rub so many of his fellow NBA players the wrong way — and why that no longer bothers Gobert.
- Speaking to Taylor Rooks of TNT Sports (Twitter video link), Anthony Edwards expressed a belief that he and Karl-Anthony Towns are the NBA’s top duo. If the Wolves advance to the second round, they’d likely be on track to square off against another duo that believes it’s the league’s best: Nuggets stars Jamal Murray and Nikola Jokic.
A mediation session regarding the Timberwolves‘ ownership dispute between Glen Taylor and a group led by Marc Lore and Alex Rodriguez has been scheduled for May 1 in Minneapolis, sources tell ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski.
Lore and Rodriguez had agreed to a succession plan that would see them gradually buy into the Timberwolves before taking over majority control of the franchise this year. They previously purchased a 36% stake in the team and had been prepared to buy another 40% before Taylor announced last month that he was nixing the deal and retaining majority control of the Wolves.
Taylor claimed at the time that the deadline in the purchase agreement had passed without Lore and Rodriguez making their final payment, while Lore and Rodriguez insisted that they had the capital on hand and were awaiting NBA approval.
The incoming ownership group indicated that there was language in the purchase agreement that should give them a 90-day extension to secure that approval from the league, and expressed confidence that they’ll eventually gain majority control of the franchise.
Within an in-depth look at the ownership dispute, Joe Pompliano of Huddle Up says that if the mediation process doesn’t result in a resolution, the matter will be heard by a three-person arbitration committee — one member of that committee would be picked by Taylor, one would be chosen by Rodriguez and Lore, and the third would be mutually agreed upon by the two sides.
If the issue still isn’t solved at that point, it would go to court. Pompliano suggests Taylor, who would be on his “home turf” and previously served as a senator in Minnesota, would feel as if he had the advantage in that situation. However, sources close to the situation who spoke to Pompliano feel that the battle will eventually end with Lore and Rodriguez taking over majority control.
Here are a few more items of interest from Pompliano’s report:
- The 36% stake that Lore and Rodriguez purchased so far has come entirely out of Taylor’s initial 70% share, rather than the remaining 30% controlled by about a dozen minority stakeholders. Some of those minority owners have been “looking for liquidity for years” but haven’t been able to cash out yet due to the nature of the purchase agreement, per Pompliano.
- Because Lore’s and Rodriguez’s shares so far have come entirely out of Taylor’s portion of the team, his stake would have fallen to 34%. However, Taylor “quietly” purchased a 2.96% share from limited partner Bill Sexton to ensure that he retained control of more of the team (37%) than Lore and Rodriguez (36%). According to Pompliano, there are questions about why Taylor would do that unless he was preparing to retain majority control of the team and nix the sale agreement.
- Pompliano hears from sources that Minnesota’s hiring of Tim Connelly as president of basketball operations and the trade for Rudy Gobert were spearheaded by Lore/Rodriguez and received resistance from Taylor, which A-Rod has suggested in recent media interviews (Twitter video link).
- Pompliano confirms reporting from Wojnarowski that Lore and Rodriguez submitted a payroll projection for next season that came in below the projected luxury tax line. However, Pompliano hears that this is “relatively normal,” and that many team owners submit lower projections before revising them later — especially if the club has postseason success.
Lakers forward Jarred Vanderbilt, who hasn’t played since February 1 due to a right midfoot sprain, is targeting a Game 3 return, a source familiar with the situation tells Dave McMenamin of ESPN.
According to McMenamin’s source, Vanderbilt has been ramping up his workouts in the past couple weeks and had one of his most intense on-court sessions yet on Monday. His availability on Thursday will be determined based on how his body responds to that increased intensity.
As previously reported, Lakers big man Christian Wood (left knee surgery) is also aiming to make it back for Game 3 vs. Denver. It remains to be seen how much the team would use Vanderbilt and Wood – and how effective they’d be – following long layoffs. Still, given that they’re in a 2-0 hole against the Nuggets, head coach Darvin Ham and the Lakers will likely welcome all the help they can get as they look for a way to beat the defending champions.
Here are a few more injury updates from around the NBA:
- Clippers forward Kawhi Leonard (knee inflammation) is considered questionable to play in Game 2 vs. Dallas on Tuesday, writes Ohm Youngmisuk of ESPN. Leonard took part in Monday’s practice, though head coach Tyronne Lue described it as a walk-through session with no contact.
- Bucks star Giannis Antetokounmpo (calf strain) went through a “pretty good, brisk workout” on Sunday, then had a “maintenance day” on Monday, per head coach Doc Rivers (story via Jim Owczarski of The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel). While Antetokounmpo appears to be making some progress in his recovery, he’s listed as doubtful to play in Game 2 vs. Indiana on Tuesday.
- Magic guard Jalen Suggs was carried off the court in the first quarter of Monday’s Game 2 with what appeared to be a significant left knee injury, but he was able to return and play for most of the second half, according to Tom Withers of The Associated Press. Suggs, whose injury was initially diagnosed as a left knee strain, expects to remain available going forward. “I’m good,” he said. “I was able to finish. It will be cool to get back home and get treatment for a couple of days. We play Thursday at 7 p.m. and I’ll be ready.”
- Timberwolves forward Kyle Anderson was able to practice on Monday, tweets Jon Krawczynski of The Athletic, but he’s listed as questionable for Tuesday’s game due to a right hip pointer. Suns wing Grayson Allen is also considered questionable to suit up for that contest after spraining his right ankle in Game 1, tweets Gerald Bourguet of PHNX Sports.
Mavericks guard Luka Doncic, Thunder guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Nuggets center Nikola Jokic were revealed on Sunday as the finalists for the Most Valuable Player award, according to the NBA (Twitter link).
Doncic led the league in scoring (33.9 points per game) and finished second in assists (9.8) while also grabbing 9.2 rebounds per contest. Gilgeous-Alexander led the Thunder to the top seed in the Western Conference by averaging 30.1 points, 5.5 rebounds, 6.2 assists and 2.0 steals per contest. Jokic, who is widely considered the favorite to win his third MVP trophy, averaged 26.4 points, 12.4 rebounds and 9.0 assists per night.
The NBA also announced the finalists for six other postseason awards. Here are the finalists for all of those awards:
Most Valuable Player
- Luka Doncic, Mavericks
- Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Thunder
- Nikola Jokic, Nuggets
Sixth Man
- Malik Monk, Kings
- Bobby Portis Jr., Bucks
- Naz Reid, Timberwolves
Defensive Player of the Year
- Bam Adebayo, Heat
- Rudy Gobert, Timberwolves
- Victor Wembanyama, Spurs
Most Improved Player
- Tyrese Maxey, Sixers
- Alperen Sengun, Rockets
- Coby White, Bulls
Note: Sengun appeared in just 63 games but was eligible for award consideration based on the season-ending injury exception described in our glossary entry on the 65-game rule.
Coach of the Year
- Mark Daigneault, Thunder
- Chris Finch, Timberwolves
- Jamahl Mosley, Magic
Rookie of the Year
- Chet Holmgren, Thunder
- Brandon Miller, Hornets
- Victor Wembanyama, Spurs
Clutch Player of the Year
- Stephen Curry, Warriors
- DeMar DeRozan, Bulls
- Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Thunder
Anthony Edwards scored 33 points in leading the Timberwolves to a convincing Game 1 victory over Phoenix, and he got to tell his basketball hero all about it, writes Baxter Holmes of ESPN. After sinking a three-pointer late in the third quarter, Edwards pounded his chest as he had an animated, one-sided conversation with Kevin Durant (video link). It was a dream come true for Edwards, who grew up cheering for Durant.
“I think everybody here knows that’s my favorite player of all time, so that was probably one of the best feelings ever in my whole life,” Edwards told reporters.
The Wolves hope today’s rout sends a message about their approach to the playoffs being eliminated in five games last season. They also got some revenge for last Sunday, when they were embarrassed by the Suns and missed a chance to claim the No. 1 seed in the West.
“These guys came here and whooped us in our home court in the last game of the season and were giggling and laughing,” Edwards recalled. “(Bradley) Beal, he told our coach that he doesn’t think we play hard enough — and he was right. (Chris) Finch didn’t like that. He came in the next day and was like, ‘Man, you’ve got guys on the other team telling me that y’all don’t play hard enough for me.’ And he was totally right.”
There’s more from Minnesota:
- The Timberwolves’ edge off the bench was evident in Game 1, particularly from Nickeil Alexander-Walker, observes Jim Souhan of The Star Tribune. The reserve shooting guard had a career-best playoff performance with 18 points and registered the highest plus-minus rating of anyone with a +28. His four steals also set a franchise playoff record for a bench player. He and Naz Reid shifted the momentum and helped to erase the lead the Suns held after the first quarter. “Those guys have been so big for us all year,” Finch said. “They have so much confidence no matter what role they’re playing or where we need them. We need those guys to produce, and tonight they did a great job.”
- Kyle Anderson was declared out for the game after suffering a hip pointer in the second quarter. There’s no word on his status for Tuesday’s Game 2.
- At age 36, Mike Conley is hoping for at least one more long playoff run before the end of his career, per Jerry Zgoda of The Star Tribune. Although Conley has played for several good teams, he hasn’t reached the conference finals since 2013. “I told the guys that, selfishly, do it for me, man,” Conley said. “Help me out. Meet me at my level right now because I don’t got long. Y’all got forever, it feels like.”
The pool of bonus money for NBA playoff teams this season will be worth approximately $33.7MM, according to Kurt Badenhausen and Lev Akabas of Sportico, who say the figure represents a 25% increase over last year’s total playoff bonuses.
The top six teams in each conference earn bonuses based on their regular season records, while the 16 playoff teams will also receive a chunk of money from the playoff pool, increasing the value of their payout with each series win. That bonus money will be divvied up among the players on each club’s roster.
Teams eliminated in the play-in tournament won’t be able to claim any of the playoff bonus money.
The breakdown for 2024’s playoff pool money is as follows:
Regular season achievements:
- Best record in NBA (Celtics): $844K
- No. 1 seeds in each conference (Celtics, Thunder): $739K each
- No. 2 seeds (Knicks, Nuggets): $591K each
- No. 3 seeds (Bucks, Timberwolves): $443K each
- No. 4 seeds (Cavaliers, Clippers): $361K each
- No. 5 seeds (Magic, Mavericks): $280K each
- No. 6 seeds (Pacers, Suns): $198K each
Postseason achievements:
- Teams participating in first round (all 16 playoff teams): $453K each
- Teams participating in conference semifinals (eight teams): $552K each
- Teams participating in conference finals (four teams): $923K each
- Losing team in NBA Finals: $3,692,000
- Winning team in NBA Finals: $8,549,000
A team that makes a deep playoff run would be entitled to more than one of the bonuses listed above.
For example, if the Celtics were to win the championship, their payout from the playoff pool would be worth a total of nearly $12.1MM — that amount would include their bonuses for posting the NBA’s best record, claiming the East’s No. 1 seed, making the first round, making the conference semifinals, making the conference finals, and winning the NBA Finals.
The Team USA men’s basketball program has determined 11 of its 12 roster spots for this year’s Paris Olympics, per Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN.
Woj suggests that the final roster opening could remain open for a while. Sources inform Wojnarowski that Hall of Famer Grant Hill, Team USA’s managing director, is waiting for a July training camp and some Las Vegas exhibition games before finalizing that 12th spot.
10 of the 11 players were honored as All-Stars this season, while the 11th was a key two-way force on the 2021 gold medal-winning team, which is officially considered the 2020 Olympic team.
Here are Team USA’s 11 players:
- Bam Adebayo, C, Heat
- Devin Booker, G, Suns
- Stephen Curry, G, Warriors
- Anthony Davis, F/C, Lakers
- Kevin Durant, F, Suns
- Anthony Edwards, G, Timberwolves
- Joel Embiid, C, Sixers
- Tyrese Haliburton, G, Pacers
- Jrue Holiday, G, Celtics
- LeBron James, F, Lakers
- Jayson Tatum, F, Celtics
So far, three NBA teams – the Lakers, Celtics, and Suns – will feature multiple U.S. Olympians.
Warriors head coach Steve Kerr, serving again as the leader of Team USA this summer, will have just one current familiar face in All-Star point guard Curry, who will be making his Olympic debut. Among the other players listed, four others will be making their debuts with the program on this stage: reigning league MVP Embiid and young All-Star guards Edwards and Haliburton.
As Woj notes, 35-year-old Durant is one of just two players to have won three gold medals in Olympic history, along with future Hall of Fame forward Carmelo Anthony. James is playing in his first Olympics since 2012. James and Anthony were also members of Team USA the last time it didn’t win gold at the tournament, in 2004.
Thunder head coach Mark Daigneault has won the Michael H. Goldberg award for the 2023/24 season, according to Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN, who reports that Daigneault has been named the National Basketball Coaches Association’s Coach of the Year.
This award, introduced in 2017 and named after longtime NBCA executive director Michael H. Goldberg, is voted on by the NBA’s 30 head coaches, none of whom can vote for himself.
However, it isn’t the NBA’s official Coach of the Year award, which is voted on by media members and is represented by the Red Auerbach Trophy. The winner of that award will be announced later this spring.
J.B. Bickerstaff (Cavaliers), Chris Finch (Timberwolves), Joe Mazzulla (Celtics), and Jamahl Mosley (Magic) also received votes from their fellow coaches for this year’s NBCA award, per Wojnarowski.
Daigneault, who is just 39 years old, has overseen the rebuild in Oklahoma City since 2020. After winning just 22 games in his first year on the job, the Thunder increased that total to 24 in 2021/22, 40 in ’22/23, and 57 in ’23/24. That 57-25 record this season made the Thunder the improbable No. 1 seed in the West in their first trip to the playoffs during Daigneault’s tenure.
As Wojnarowski points out, Oklahoma City was one of just two NBA teams this season – along with Boston – to finish in the top five in both offensive and defensive rating. The Thunder’s 118.3 offensive rating ranked third in the NBA, while their 111.0 defensive rating was fourth.
The NBCA Coach of the Year award has frequently been a bellwether for the NBA’s Coach of the Year honor, which bodes well for Daigneault. In five of the seven years since the award’s inception, the winner has gone on to be named the NBA’s Coach of the Year.