What to watch in the NBA this week: Celtics-Cavs, Doncic vs. Dallas, new-look Warriors
The first weekend back from the All-Star intermission was a generally good hang. Luka Dončić had his first signature showing as a Los Angeles Laker. Tyrese Haliburton went Harlem Globetrotter on Saturday night. OKC and Minny put on a show in primetime, and the Detroit Pistons played meaningful basketball games. We can dig it.
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This week's schedule is loaded, with a half-dozen national TV looks and some sneaky bangers on League Pass. We broke down some matchups below in a format befitting Oscars week.
In the words of Bill Murray in the original Space Jam (1996): 'Here's how I see it!'
Tuesday, 10 p.m. ET, TNT
Best Supporting Hooper: Max Christie. He was understandably overshadowed amid the most stunning superstar swap in league history, but the third-year wing is really coming on strong at Dallas' reconstruction site. Christie started 25 times with the Lakers, serving as a respectable 3-and-D plug-and-play option. But he's leveling up with the Mavs, averaging over 15 points in 32 minutes across his first eight games. He's up to the 97th percentile in points per shot attempt on Cleaning the Glass and has soared beyond his career assist rate. Christie is still 21 years old, and the good vibes are bountiful. 'When you talk about defense and me being tasked with the point of attack or the best perimeter player, if I set the tone on the guy to start, it just trickles down into everybody else,' he told The Athletic's Jovan Buha in a December Q&A.
Best Original Game Plan: JJ Redick. LA's noogie of the Denver Nuggets was wholly impressive. The hosts at Mile High lost by 23 points and snapped their nine-game winning streak. The otherwise-otherworldly Nikola Jokić was held to his worst game of the season. JJ Redick flashed some inspired coaching here, sticking 6-foot-8 Rui Hachimura on the mountainous three-time MVP. Hachimura was a gravelly irritant, checking Jokić all around the half-court and denying ball entry in the post. Redick admitted that he couldn't sleep in anticipation of this game plan. He nailed it Saturday night.
Wednesday, 7 p.m. ET, FDSN, NBCS, League Pass
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Best Source Material: 'The Town' (2010). For real, the Joe Mazzulla program is working. If the team's lead strategist wants to watch Ben Affleck rob Fenway Park multiple times a week, well, how can we non-Ball Knowers possibly protest? Neither loud nor surprising, the defending champs are still having an excellent season thus far. Everyone appears to have bought into the title defense; egos are fully sublimated. That December mini-lull has been casually brushed aside, and Kristaps Porziņģis has been reintegrated. Boston starts the week third in net rating and top-five on both offense and defense.
Best Director: J.B. Bickerstaff. Detroit has averaged 18.8 wins per season in the past half-decade. Wipe the screen off and collect yourself if necessary. It's really been that bad. Maybe the cure for societal loneliness is rooting for the competent, super-endearing Pistons, who are winners of seven straight. Since the New Year: an 18-8 record, seventh in plus-minus and net rating. Bickerstaff is getting so much out of his veteran journeymen (Malik Beasley, Tim Hardaway Jr.) and has shepherded the ascents of the youth (Cade Cunningham, Jalen Duren, Ausar Thompson). The Pistons are now on pace for their first finish above .500 since 2015-16.
Wednesday, 7 p.m. ET, ESPN
Best Documentary Feature: Whatever this 2024-25 Sixers season is. Perhaps Philly is giving us one huge exercise in horror-noir. It's increasingly sad and uncomfortable for a group with championship aspirations just a few months prior. Joel Embiid is clearly not healthy. The 76ers lost at home to the Bulls by 32 points Monday night.
Best Returning Hooper: Mitchell Robinson. Fair or not, the hopes of a sudden clampdown in New York will be pinned to the seven-footer returning from ankle surgery. The Knicks' offense is Finals-worthy; the defense is absolutely not, as evidenced by last weekend's blowout losses to Cleveland and Boston. Tom Thibodeau's team has the league's worst defensive rating this month. Robinson is expected to join the rotation this week, a much-needed mood booster from a sobering few days on the floor. This iteration is certainly fun but far from elite, incongruent with a front office that gave up five first-round picks to compete at the highest plateau. From The Athletic's James Edwards III:
'The weekend reaffirmed what was already out there: the Knicks aren't there yet. The issues start defensively, where the Knicks have continuously been up-and-down all season. New York's pick-and-roll coverage, poor communication in transition and inability to guard across the board puts them behind the league's best. And for a New York offense that has been upper-tier all season, it looks mortal against these championship contenders because they are capable of doing things the Knicks haven't been able to.'
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Wednesday, 9:30 p.m. ET, ESPN
Best Adapted Screenplay: Brian Wright. This was never going to be the Spurs' year. It's Victor Wembanyama's age-21 season, and the Western Conference is loaded with win-now competitors. The organization has taken a few wrenching health scares, such as Wemby's blood clots and Gregg Popovich's stroke. Yet time will not render this season fully lost because De'Aaron Fox has been installed as the long-term table-setter in silver and black. San Antonio has had a top-five assist rate and turnover ratio since the Fox move. The eight-year veteran is only 27 years old and has ample time to acclimate to his new digs. GM Brian Wright did his thing here.
Best Supporting Hooper: Amen Thompson. The rangy second-year is unassumingly fifth in defensive win shares this season. He's ahead of stalwarts like Rudy Gobert, Evan Mobley, Jaren Jackson Jr. and Dyson Daniels. Thompson has been playing with elasticity and fearlessness on the other end, putting up around 16 points, 10 rebounds and five assists since becoming a starter. He may only be a 'supporting' hooper for so long:
NASTY AMEN THOMPSON CROSS & POSTER 😤 pic.twitter.com/Gnb64KcF3I
— Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) February 4, 2025
Thursday, 7 p.m. ET, FDSN, NBC Sports Bay Area, League Pass
Best Music: 'Only Wanna Be with You,' Hootie and the Blowfish (1994). Let Jimmy Butler sing to his heart's content. The arrival in Golden State has clearly galvanized Stephen Curry and Draymond Green. 'This team all year has been kind of like, 'Man, we're right there, but can't quite get over the hump.' But there's a reason that you feel like you're right there but can't quite get over,' Green told The Athletic's Marcus Thompson II and Sam Amick. 'And the reason I think we all thought we couldn't quite get over was because there was a missing piece. That piece isn't missing anymore. That piece is him.' The Warriors look renewed, but there's still much ground to make up if they hope to avoid the play-in.
Thursday, 8 p.m. ET, TNT
Best Lead Actor: Nikola Jokić. The singular Serbian talent is somehow having the best stretch of his NBA career. He hits this week ranking:
Jokić is the league's Daniel Day-Lewis: He's won the top individual hardware three times, seems almost bored by his prodigiousness and will absolutely drink your milkshake.
Best Editing: Doc Rivers. Milwaukee staved off disaster warnings with an inspired (if cosmetic) run for the NBA Cup. The All-Star break relieved them of an uninspired 4-7 stretch. Basketball Reference has them with the lightest strength of schedule to date. The random sequencing of this season has somewhat obscured a wildly underwhelming campaign.
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Friday, 7:30 p.m. ET, ESPN
Best Picture: The East-leading Cleveland Cavaliers. With the best offense in the sport, the best record in the conference and the best attendance at the gates, this Cavs season has been a feel-good story in the province of Steven Spielberg or Nora Ephron. The core is intact and under contract for the next three seasons. From The Athletic's Jason Lloyd:
'The Cavs' previous championship era, believe it or not, more closely resembles the model the league was trying to extinguish of hastily assembling stars in one market. LeBron James returned, the Cavs got lucky in the lottery, swung a big trade for Kevin Love and poof! A four-hour parade on a 100-degree day. As a reference point, the Cavs would've been considered a second-apron team under these current rules during James' final three years in Cleveland. These Cavs have grown together much more organically. They will reach repeat offender status on the luxury tax scale, regardless of the aprons, for the first time after the 2028-29 season.'
Best Production Design: The Boston '3-party.' There's been a whirring carousel of complaints and grievances around modern basketball's 3-point reliance. No matter the validity of it all, these Celtics have the numbers to justify their style. The reigning champs are No. 1 in 3s made and attempted … and that has them winning games (third-best record in the league) without sacrificing integrity (fifth in defensive rating and defensive rebounding rate). Boston is ignoring the noise and sticking to its beliefs.
Friday, 8 p.m. ET, FDSN, MSG, League Pass
Best Cinematography: 'Friday Night Knicks.' We don't know if New York harbors a title contender just yet, but we definitely know it has a championship-level presentation. The Knicks are a League Pass delight for many reasons — Mike Breen's eternal elegance, Walt 'Clyde' Frazier's velvet wardrobe and linguistic innovation, and Madison Square Garden's overall historic aura. But regional Knicks games are particularly sublime on this day of all days, thanks to Robert Randolph and the Family Band's 'Friday Night Knicks' jam. Christen your weekend appropriately:
Best New Hooper: Jaylen Wells. The 39th pick in last spring's draft is leading his rookie class in win shares and starts for the West's second-winningest team. Only Jaren Jackson Jr. has played more minutes for the 37-20 Grizzlies this season. Wells is averaging 14 points in his last four games and drilled four 3s in Cleveland on Sunday.
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Friday, 10 p.m. ET, ESPN
Best International Feature: Ivica Zubac's career year. The old-school Bosnian big man has charmingly muscled his way to the best NBA run of his nine-year career. It's always fun to see a veteran player commit to steady improvement, especially in less-glamorous departments like post passing, paint defense and boxing out. Zubac is averaging over 15 points and 12 rebounds, anchoring a Clippers defense that's fourth in scoring against.
Best Casting: Rob Pelinka. Yeah, landing a 25-year-old Luka Dončić to play the 'Lakers' next generational global superstar' role was a good move.
(Photo by Ronald Martinez / Getty Images)
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39 minutes ago
Red Sox trade Rafael Devers to the Giants in a blockbuster deal
BOSTON -- The Boston Red Sox traded slugger Rafael Devers to the San Francisco Giants on Sunday in a deal that could shake up pennant races on both coasts. San Francisco sent right-hander Jordan Hicks, lefty Kyle Harrison, outfield prospect James Tibbs III and minor league righty Jose Bello to Boston for the 28-year-old designated hitter, who had bristled at his demotion from third base this year. The Giants are two games back of NL West-leading Los Angeles after losing 5-4 to the Dodgers on Sunday night. Harrison was on his way to the bullpen to warm up for Sunday's start when he was called back to the clubhouse and informed of the trade. Reliever Sean Hjelle was told about 30 minutes before first pitch that he would start. 'Yeah, it was a lot, and it was late, but you know what? This is something we really needed,' Giants manager Bob Melvin said. 'To get a guy like Devers … there's a lot you have to give up for him, but this fits us perfectly. It's a power left-handed bat, a guy that can go the other way and hit for power in our ballpark. I mean, it's tailor-made for us, so kudos to the front office to swing this.' A three-time All-Star who signed a 10-year, $313.5 million contract with the Red Sox in 2023, Devers is batting .272 with 15 homers and 58 RBIs in 73 games, including a solo shot in Boston's 2-0 victory over the New York Yankees on Sunday that completed a three-game sweep. But his relationship with the team began to deteriorate when the team signed Gold Glove third baseman Alex Bregman during spring training and asked Devers to move to DH; he balked before agreeing to the switch. When first baseman Triston Casas sustained a season-ending knee injury, the Red Sox approached Devers about playing the field and he declined, saying the front office ' should do their jobs ' and look for another player. A day after Devers' comments to the media about playing first, Red Sox owner John Henry, team president Sam Kennedy and chief baseball officer Craig Breslow flew to Kansas City to meet with Devers and manager Alex Cora. The situation became more difficult when Bregman sustained what the team called a significant right quadriceps injury on May 23. 'Everybody around the league, I think, was paying attention to that. When any team is having some kind of drama like that, with a player like Devers — he basically was the face of the franchise," San Francisco shortstop Willy Adames said in an on-field interview during the ESPN broadcast. Buster Posey, a seven-time All-Star who took over as San Francisco's president of baseball operations in September, said he reached out to Craig Breslow, Boston's chief baseball officer, about two weeks ago. Trade talks picked up momentum over the past few days. Posey and Melvin declined to address what position Devers would play in San Francisco — "That's a conversation for myself, Bob and Zack (general manager Zack Minasian) to have with him," Posey said — but they are convinced Devers' bat will have a significant impact on a lineup that has produced only 16 homers from the left side this season. 'We're excited about adding one of the best hitters in all of major league baseball to our lineup,' Posey said. 'We're obviously taking on a lot of dollars, but there's a belief that adding a guy like this puts us in a good position keep winning ballgames, get into the playoffs and try to win a World Series, which is our ultimate goal.' The Red Sox have won five out of six against the rival Yankees over the last two weekends to improve to 37-36, but they are still fourth in the AL East, 6 1/2 games behind division-leading New York. Devers was 20 when he made his major league debut with the Red Sox in 2017. He helped the Red Sox win the 2018 World Series and led the team in RBIs for five consecutive seasons from 2020-24. He has finished in the top 20 in voting for AL MVP five times. The Giants have lacked slugging since Barry Bonds hit 45 homers in 2004; they are the only team in the majors who have not had a batter hit 30 homers since then. Devers has hit at least 30 homers in three different seasons. 'It's tough losing (Harrison and Hicks) … but we're getting a guy back who changes the lineup, who's probably a top-10 hitter in baseball every year,' Giants pitcher Logan Webb said. 'Any time you add a player of that caliber, I think you give yourself a chance every day. I don't know where he's gonna hit, but I don't think it really matters. The guy's a stud, plain and simple. I'm excited about it.' Devers is not the first Red Sox All-Star to be traded away: The team sent Mookie Betts to the Los Angeles Dodgers before the 2020 season in a salary dump -- just a year after he won the AL MVP award and led Boston to a franchise-record 108 wins and its fourth World Series title since 2004. But the Devers deal is perhaps most reminiscent of the 2004 midseason shakeup when Boston traded disgruntled shortstop — and fan favorite — Nomar Garciaparra. The Red Sox went on to win the World Series that year, ending their 86-year championship drought. The acquisition of Devers is the latest big move by Posey, 38. He signed Justin Verlander to a $15 million, one-year contract in January and Adames to a $182 million, seven-year deal in December. Harrison, 23, is 9-9 with a 4.48 ERA and 178 strikeouts in 39 games for the Giants over three seasons. Hicks, 28, was 5-12 with a 4.83 ERA and 139 strikeouts in 42 games over two seasons. Tibbs, 22, was the 13th overall pick in last year's draft; he is hitting .246 with 12 homers and 32 RBIs in 57 games for Single-A Eugene of the Northwest League this season. Bello, 20, is 1-0 with a 2.00 ERA in eight games for the Giants' rookie league team in Scottsdale, Arizona.
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Baseball and bloodlines lead Don and Preston Mattingly to the same place on Father's Day
This Father's Day comes with a bit of an edge for Preston Mattingly and his dad. The Phillies are trying to sweep the Blue Jays: the son looking to best the father. Blue Jays coach Don Mattingly has been looking up to the executive suite at Citizens Bank Park this weekend and seeing his son Preston, who became general manager of the Phillies last fall. 'Preston has always loved sports,' said proud papa Don in an interview for the current episode of 'Deep Left Field,' the Star's baseball podcast. 'One of those kids that wakes up in the morning and has (ESPN's) 'SportsCenter' on and all that kind of stuff. He's been around not just this game but sports in general, and loves it. To see him doing well is really good.' Having a father who was not just successful in the game but a borderline Hall of Famer gave Preston a leg up, no question. But the Mattingly name can be a heavy one. When your nickname is Donnie Baseball, that comes with certain expectations for the progeny. Mattingly saw that when his three older sons were playing. Preston is the middle child from Mattingly's first marriage. 'I was out of the game for a while and going to (Preston and older son Taylor's) games,' said the Jays' third-year bench coach. 'I felt for them. When they were playing baseball, I think the parents and other people think: Oh, he supposed to be good, he's supposed to be this. They don't allow them just to play.' Preston said he doesn't remember people treating him any differently as the son of a New York Yankees legend, but looking back he can see it. 'Obviously being who he is, people probably look at me a little bit differently,' said the 37-year-old GM. 'But he was always great in letting me be myself and do my own thing. Never forced me or any of my brothers to play or do anything, and so with that there was no added pressure. Anything other people put on us externally, nothing came from him or my family.' But Preston played anyway. Drafted 31st by the Los Angeles Dodgers in 2006 — two years before his father became the team's hitting coach — the younger Mattingly got a million-dollar bonus and played six seasons in the minors (never reaching Double-A) before returning to school and playing college basketball at Lamar University in Beaumont, Texas. Preston stayed in touch with Logan White, who was the scouting director with the Dodgers when he was drafted and had since moved to the San Diego Padres. 'He was kind of in-between, like what he was going to do,' said Don, who was managing the Miami Marlins at that time. 'He came down to spring training with me for about a week and then San Diego called to interview him.' Preston picked up the story. 'I flew out to Arizona (to the Padres' spring training facility) and met with (White) and some of the members of the front office and they offered me a job. I started in scouting and worked my way into different various front-office roles ... It was more just getting my feet wet and understanding the ins and outs and ebbs and flows of the front office. It was very indicative early on that it was something I wanted to do because I just love that side of the game, too.' Nearly a decade later, Preston Mattingly has his own team to run in Philadelphia, while his father (drafted 493rd by the Yankees in 1979) is in his 47th season in professional baseball. The senior Mattingly, having played with Ken Griffey Sr. for the first five years of his career, remembers Ken Griffey Jr. running around the Yankees clubhouse and believes kids learn baseball through osmosis. 'Being around the game, they see what it looks like,' Mattingly said of all the big-league juniors. 'They know how these guys talk, they're not intimidated by players. I'm going into the Yankees clubhouse as a 20-year-old, I'm scared halfway to ... don't know what to do. He's been getting autographs from guys since he was six years old hanging around the locker room.' It helps, being born into the game. The Blue Jays know this well, and have even made bloodlines part of their development strategy over the past few years. Vladimir Guerrero Jr., Bo Bichette and Daulton Varsho are current Jays whose fathers were big-leaguers. Vladdy's was a Hall of Famer, while Bichette and Varsho's dads (Dante and Gary) combined to play 22 seasons in the majors. The Jays recently t ook two out of three from the Phillies at the Rogers Centre, while Preston watched his dad from the suites above. 'The passion he has for helping players, that's always been the biggest thing,' said the Phillies GM. 'He never lost sight of how hard the game is — even how great a player he was — and just shares that passion for helping players achieve the goals and dreams they want to achieve.' On Father's Day in Philadelphia, the dad will be looking up at his son. 'I'm pretty impressed, honestly,' said the Jays coach. 'He's good with people, which you have to be. He's good with all the numbers and everything, all the technology today ... but still, there's a human side, and I think he's got a pretty good balance of that.'
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SF Giants send message in obtaining Rafael Devers from Boston Red Sox
1 of 5 | The San Francisco Giants acquired All-Star infielder Rafael Devers on Sunday through a trade with the Boston Red Sox. File Photo by John Angelillo/UPI | License Photo June 16 (UPI) -- The San Francisco Giants sent their clubhouse a major message by pulling the trigger on a blockbuster trade for Boston Red Sox All-Star infielder Rafael Devers, shortstop Willy Adames said. "I feel like it sends a message out there that we are going to compete," Adames said of the trade. "We are going to do whatever it takes to try to come over here and win the division." Adames made the comments on the ESPN broadcast of the Giants' 5-4 loss to the Los Angeles Dodgers on Sunday in Los Angeles. Giants players got word of the trade 15 minutes before the game at Dodger Stadium. The Giants agreed to send left-handed pitcher Kyle Harrison, right-handed pitcher Jordan Hicks, outfielder prospect James Tibbs III and right-handed pitching prospect Jose Bello the Red Sox in exchange for the three-time All-Star. The Giants (41-31) sit in second place in the National League West, two games behind the division-leading Dodgers (43-29). They also are in second place in the National League Wild Card race, which includes the Philadelphia Phillies (42-29) and San Diego Padres (39-31), among others. Harrison was set to start against the Dodgers on Sunday, but was called back while he was on his way to the bullpen and informed he had been traded. The three-year veteran has a 1-1 record with a 4.56 ERA through eight appearances this season. Harrison, 23, was a third-round pick by the Giants in the 2020 MLB Draft. He went 9-9 with a 4.48 ERA through his first 39 career appearances. Hicks, 28, went 1-5 with a 6.47 ERA over his first 13 appearances this season. The seven-year veteran holds a 16-33 record with a 4.23 ERA over 254 career appearances. The Giants have the third-worst batting average .232 in the National League. They totaled the fourth-most strikeouts (614) in the National League and are tied for 19th in MLB for home runs (70). "We needed a bat like him," Adames said of Devers. "Obviously, to get him, everybody in the clubhouse is thrilled." Devers hit .272 with 15 homers and 58 RBIs through his first 73 games this season. He led the American League with 56 walks. The nine-year veteran hit .279 with 215 home runs over the first 1,053 games of his career. "This is something we really needed," Giants manager Bob Melvin told reporters. "There's a lot we had to give up to get him, but this fits us perfectly. It's a power left-handed bat, a guy that can go the other way and hit for power at our ballpark. It's tailor-made for us. Kudos to the front office to swing this." Devers, 28, signed a 10-year, $313.5 million pact with the Red Sox in 2023, but the relationship experienced turbulence this off-season when he was asked to move from third base to make way for recently acquired infielder Alex Bregman. He initially said he would not move into a designated hitter role, but eventually relented and changed positions. Devers then told the Red Sox that he also would not play first base after a void formed at that position due to Triston Casas' season-ending knee injury. Devers appeared in 951 games at third base for the Red Sox through the first eight years of his career. He was their designated hitter for all 73 of his appearances this season. He is expected to fill in at designated hitter and third base for the Giants. Giants All-Star third baseman Matt Chapman is on the injured list because of a right hand injury he sustained during a win over the Atlanta Braves on June 8 in San Francisco. Casey Schmitt filled in at third base for the Giants on Sunday, but fouled a ball off his ankle and left the game early. Dominic Smith and Wilmer Flores served as the Giants' respective first baseman and designated hitter. Smith started 11 games at first base this season. Flores appeared as a designated hitter 63 times and at first base four times this season. Giants president of baseball operations Buster Posey said Devers' position with his new team will be discussed internally. "That's a conversation for myself, Bob and [general manager] Zack Minasian to have with him," Posey told reporters, according to The Giants will host the Cleveland Guardians (35-35) at 9:45 p.m. EDT Tuesday in San Francisco.
