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USA Today
21-05-2025
- Sport
- USA Today
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander isn't the free throw merchant you think he is
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander isn't the free throw merchant you think he is Welcome to Layup Lines, For the Win's basketball newsletter. Subscribe here to get it delivered to your inbox every Monday, Wednesday and Friday. Have feedback for the Layup Lines Crew? Leave your questions, comments and concerns through this brief reader survey. Now, here's Prince J. Grimes. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander is slowly climbing up the list of the NBA's most polarizing players. The funny thing about it is he's doing it without ever really talking much. He's not a big personality or someone who draws a lot of attention off the court. He seems to just go to work, do his job and go home. Yet, it's what he does while at work that has NBA fans completely divided on the league's soon to be announced MVP. Tuesday night's Game 1 of the Western Conference Finals was a perfect example why. Gilgeous-Alexander led the Oklahoma City Thunder to a 26-point win over the Minnesota Timberwolves by scoring a game-high 31 points to go with nine assists and three steals. But 11 of those points came from the free throw line where he had 14 attempts -- twice as many as the next-closest player, Anthony Edwards. Thus, the reason Gilgeous-Alexander is increasingly becoming known as a foul or free throw "merchant." Some fans really can't stand how crafty he is in drawing fouls and doing what they consider to be flopping to get to the line. Here's the thing, though, he might not be the free-throw merchant people think he is. While it's true Gilgeous-Alexander gets to the line a lot -- he has the second-most attempts behind Giannis Antetokounmpo each of the last two years -- his 9.2 attempts per game this postseason don't rank very high historically. According to research by Tom Haberstroh, Gilgeous-Alexander's 110 attempts over 12 playoff games actually ranks just 406th all-time. It's a point Amin El-Hassan made on the Dan Le Batard Show, with research that said SGA's absolute best season in terms of free throws attempted per 100 possessions ranked outside the all-time top 30. More research from FS1's Danny Parkins showed SGA has never been the NBA's leading free-throw shooter despite leading the NBA in drives per game in five straight years. Gilgeous-Alexander's ability to get to the line shouldn't be understated, but it isn't as extraordinary as people make it out to be. So, why are so many people turning on the 26-year-old's style of play? Even if Gilgeous-Alexander isn't historically great at drawing fouls, he does get to the line more than a lot of his peers -- and he's incredibly crafty in the ways he gets there. The way SGA forces the action puts referees in a tough spot where they feel they have to blow the whistle. Which is part of the problem. Sometimes they get it wrong. But that's not Gilgeous-Alexander's problem, and quite honestly, more players could take notes. The same people mad at SGA for actually getting into the lane and seeking contact should be more frustrated that one of the most athletically gifted players in the NBA, Edwards, attempted almost as many three-pointers as the entire OKC starting lineup Tuesday. As a team, Minnesota shot 51 threes (and only made 11). It's a page straight out of the Boston Celtics playbook, which so many teams are copying today. When teams are shooting that many threes, it's no wonder why it's so odd to see a player shooting as many free throws as Gilgeous-Alexander. We might not know what a foul looks like any more. Pacers vs. Knicks will be spicy The latest chapter in the rivalry between the Indiana Pacers and New York Knicks will be written in this year's Eastern Conference Finals, and the first page begins with tonight's Game 1. After last year's seven-game series in the second round, the rematch has a chance to go the distance again and either team could ultimately come out on top. FTW's Mike Sykes came up with three reasons why each team could ultimately win, and you'll absolutely want to check these out. One reason for the Pacers is that they have the best offensive rhythm in the NBA: "A whopping 68.9 percent of the Pacers' buckets are assisted on in these playoffs. A lot of that starts with Tyrese Haliburton, who is arguably the best passer in the NBA. But it isn't just Tyrese — each player at each position for Indiana can grab a rebound and push the pace after a miss on defense or bring the ball up quickly after a make before the defense is completely set. It's a team filled with advantage-creators, which is extremely hard to deal with." One reason for the Knicks is that Jalen Brunson is awesome: "Brunson has been generally awesome for the Knicks in this postseason as the straw that stirs the drink for the team. But where he's shone the most is in the fourth quarter, where his team has desperately needed him to come through the most. Brunson currently leads the playoffs in fourth quarter points and clutch points, according to Underdog Sports. It's not particularly close." I can't wait for this one. Shootaround
USA Today
07-05-2025
- Sport
- USA Today
Jimmy Butler will need to be more Superman than Batman in Steph Curry's absence
Jimmy Butler will need to be more Superman than Batman in Steph Curry's absence Welcome to Layup Lines, For the Win's basketball newsletter. Subscribe here to get it delivered to your inbox every Monday, Wednesday and Friday. Have feedback for the Layup Lines Crew? Leave your questions, comments and concerns through this brief reader survey. Now, here's Prince J. Grimes. Buddy Hield didn't want to claim Robin. After the Golden State Warriors beat the Minnesota Timberwolves on Tuesday, even after Stephen Curry left the game early with a hamstring injury, Hield and Jimmy Butler took the postgame podium to answer questions about how they were able to win Game 1 of their second-round playoff series. And Hield didn't want to own the title of Robin to Butler's Batman. "I'm Batman today," Hield joked. "I saved the day. He's still Robin." It was funny. The kind of moment that shows why Butler and Hield have the best comedic chemistry of any teammates in the NBA. But like any good joke, it had a lot of truth in it. Because Hield was right. He isn't a Robin. Without Curry, the Warriors don't have one. One of the best No. 1 options in league history, Curry hurt his hamstring in the second quarter and missed the rest of the game. On Wednesday, the Warriors announced the injury as a Grade 1 strain that will sideline him for at least a week, which means he'll miss games two through four of the series, at minimum, and potentially return for Game 5 next Wednesday. Though obviously a bummer, it's the best possible news they could've hoped for. They gave themselves cushion by stealing Game 1 on the road behind 24 points from Hield and 20 from Butler. But what Hield gave them isn't sustainable. He's a career 15-point scorer who averaged 11.1 points this season, which ranked fifth on the team behind Curry, Butler, Jonathan Kuminga and Brandin Podziemski. He's not a Robin, he's just a really good role player. That's why it won't be enough for Butler to simply fill the shoes of Golden State's injured Batman - because he won't have a consistently reliable No. 2 option like Curry did with himself. Butler will have to be Superman. He'll have to do a lot of the heavy lifting on his own. Luckily for the Warriors, it's a role he's very familiar with. PHONE BOOTH MALFUNCTION: Hield accidentally wore the wrong game shorts Butler is only two years removed from carrying an arguably less-talented Miami Heat roster to the NBA Finals -- and he did it twice in four years. The Warriors are only asking him to do it for a series -- albeit a difficult one against another Superman-like player, Anthony Edwards. And Butler will still have a solid cast of role players to help, including Draymond Green, Podziemski and yes, Hield. If Butler can rise to the occasion like he has so many times in the past, the Warriors have a chance to pull off an incredible upset as +165 underdogs at BetMGM. If not, they don't stand a chance at winning a series they were never expected to win to begin with. Road teams are dominating the 2nd round Golden State wasn't the only team to pull off an upset in their second-round opener. Rather, they continued a trend of dominance for the road teams, which are now 5-0 this round. That undefeated record includes the Indiana Pacers taking each of their first two games against the Cleveland Cavaliers to flip the series odds completely in their favor. UNDERRATED: Tyrese Haliburton is devastatingly slept on It's the first time in NBA history all four road teams won the first game of the conference semifinals, but as my buddy Bryan Kalbrosky wrote, we shouldn't expect this underdog streak to continue much longer... "While the road teams are actually 6-0 since Sunday (when the Warriors defeated the Rockets and the Pacers defeated the Cavaliers) in another historic oddity, this is not expected to continue for the underdogs." ...because the Celtics, Thunder and Timberwolves are all still favored to prevail in their series. Read more from Bryan about what we've seen so far and what we can expect next. Shootaround
USA Today
26-03-2025
- Entertainment
- USA Today
LeBron James' interview with Pat McAfee was most direct LeBron we've ever heard
LeBron James' interview with Pat McAfee was most direct LeBron we've ever heard 'Stephen A Smith is on a Taylor Swift tour run right now 😂😂 He completely missed the whole point.. He got personal with it and it's my job to not only protect my own household but also all the players' @KingJames #PMSLive — Pat McAfee (@PatMcAfeeShow) March 26, 2025 Welcome to Layup Lines, For the Win's basketball newsletter. Subscribe here to get it delivered to your inbox every Monday, Wednesday and Friday. Have feedback for the Layup Lines Crew? Leave your questions, comments and concerns through this brief reader survey. Now, here's Prince J. Grimes. Over the years, LeBron James has developed a bit of a reputation for being passive-aggressive. Whether fair or not, people have taken his cryptic tweets about teammates and sometimes-coded language through press conferences as a sign of how he always communicates. To his credit, James hasn't really responded to the many public critiques about himself over the years. He seemed to always take stuff in stride while continuing to be one of the greatest basketball players we've seen. However, over the last few months, that's been slowly changing a bit. From James' pushback against the direction of the NBA -- "it's a lot of [expletive] threes being shot" -- to his confronting Stephen A. Smith over coverage of Bronny James, we've been seeing a more direct LeBron than in years past. That continued Wednesday with his surprise hour-long appearance on the Pat McAfee show. It's not that we learned much new about James, who's been covered as thoroughly as any athlete over the last 20 years, but it was certainly the most layered we've seen him be in the public eye. He wore his emotions on his sleeve about certain topics in a way we haven't seen before, he was funny, and he was sometimes downright mean. Really, he said some wild things during this convo, and it made for several awkward moments considering at least two of his targets work for the network that broadcasted the interview. *Note: The video contains NSFW language* The laugh he let out when McAfee mentioned Smith's name let you know exactly what time James was on, too. "He's on a Taylor Swift tour-run right now," James said of Smith's endless commentary of their confrontation. "I know he's going to be happy as hell -- he's going to be smiling from ear-to-ear when he hears me talking about him again," James continued after explaining the root of his issue with Smith. James said of ESPN Insider Brian Windhorst, who wrote two books about James, "This guy says he's like my [expletive] best friend. These guys are just weird." *Note: The video contains NSFW language* We thought you and Windy played together in High School @KingJames 😂😂 #PMSLive — Pat McAfee (@PatMcAfeeShow) March 26, 2025 I'm sorry, what? What did Brian Windhorst ever do to anyone to deserve that stray. And it didn't end there. He also weighed in on Pat Riley's handling of Jimmy Butler and Heat affairs, and how "The Decision" gave his biggest critics a lane to tarnish his image. He even not-so-subtly accused the NBA of rigging the 2003 draft lottery for him to end up in Cleveland. "During the lottery drop, Cleveland got the No. 1 pick?," James asked. "I just don't think that was a -- what a coincidence. Let's just keep LeBron home... I understand the assignment guys." LeBron: 'Listen man…during the lottery…Cleveland got the #1 pick? I just don't think that was 😆 what a coincidence huh? OMG. 'Let's keep LeBron home' You know what? Patrick Ewing to the Knicks, you know, Derrick Rose to the Bulls. Like, I understand the assignment guys…' — New York Basketball (@NBA_NewYork) March 26, 2025 James isn't the first person to question the authenticity of his draft, and we can't be sure he has inside information on what actually happened, but the fact he has doubts and we're only just now hearing about it is stunning. Adam Silver and the league office probably weren't too happy to hear that. This was no doubt James at his most unfiltered, and the biggest question coming out of it is why? Why was he so forthcoming about so many different things? Why on that platform? Why now? Was this all simply to promote his new podcast? Was it to spite Smith on his very own network? Or was this just his latest (and greatest?) attention grab? Whatever the reason, people are eating it up. If his mission was to get us talking, mission completed. The Mavericks texted FTW their Luka Doncic plans By now you've surely heard about the group chat involving a bunch of Trump administration top officials and a journalist who wasn't supposed to be there while the group clumsily discussed war plans. Well, FTW's managing editor Charles Curtis let us in on a little chat secret of his own: he was in the group chat when the Mavericks discussed their Luka Doncic trade plans. "The world found out shortly before 12:15 a.m. Eastern time on February 2 that the Dallas Mavericks were sending Luka Doncic to the Los Angeles Lakers. I, however, knew two hours before the Shams bomb exploded that a trade might be coming. The reason I knew this is that Nico Harrison, the GM of the Mavericks, had texted me the trade plan at 11:44 p.m. The plan included precise information about the trade, the package and timing. This is going to require some explaining." Please, go read this hilarious tale of what happened next. You won't regret it. Shootaround
