A journalist won a Pulitzer Prize for "seemingly" breaking a
story. "Seemingly" is not what was demanded from Bob Woodward and Carl
Bernstein when they toppled Richard Nixon. "Seemingly" never has been a
qualifier in an industry that must be perfect.
But Pablo
Torre — who was wrong about Bill Belichick and Jordon Hudson at North
Carolina and wrong about NFL Hall of Famer Antonio Gates playing in a
rigged poker game — won the audio reporting award Monday for "seemingly" busting Steve Ballmer. The New Oxford American dictionary explains that "seeming" appears to be "real or true, but not necessarily being so." Yet the Pulitzer judges honored Torre for investigating "how the Los
Angeles Clippers seemingly evaded the NBA's salary cap rules by
funneling money to a star player through an environmental startup."
If the story turns out to be true, good for Torre, who went to
Harvard and greased Tony Kornheiser’s scalp on "Pardon the
Interruption." But if it is not true — and we won't know until league
commissioner Adam Silver says it is or isn't — I must ask what in the
name of hellishness the Pulitzer board was thinking. Sports media
usually are ignored for the major awards. Now, we have no idea if he was
correct on his podcast ("Pablo Torre Finds Out") or soon will be blown
up by the NBA's billionaires. Victims are erased by grand
investigations. Ballmer and his star player, Kawhi Leonard, are up and
alive.
I deliberately left the words "accusation" and "scandal" out of this
article's title because I don't know if the L.A. Clippers violated the
NBA's salary cap rules. You don't know, either, even though you may
think that you do. The only things that we know are (1) there is a media
storm surrounding the L.A. Clippers, and (2) the NBA is investigating
the Clippers for a possible violation of the league's salary cap rules.
Unless
you avoid all media outlets and social media outlets--which may not be
the worst way to live--you are aware that podcaster Pablo Torre accused
the L.A. Clippers and their majority owner Steve Ballmer of
circumventing the NBA's salary cap rules by
arranging for Kawhi Leonard to be paid $28 million by a sustainability
startup called Aspiration for an
allegedly "no show" job that involved no work (feel free to insert a
joke about
Leonard also not working at his main job due to load management).
Torre
was armed mainly with anonymous sources speaking about a stack of
documents allegedly pertaining to the business dealings, bankruptcy
proceedings, and federal prosecution for fraud of Aspiration. Joe
Sanberg, Aspiration's founder, pleaded guilty to two counts of wire
fraud for his role in a $248 million scam...
It is fascinating to listen to non-lawyers talk about legal issues.
An anonymous source speaking on a podcast is not presenting evidence
from a legal standpoint; a person testifying under oath or a person
submitting a sworn affidavit is presenting evidence.
So, not only
do we not know for sure the facts concerning the relationships that may
or may not exist among the L.A. Clippers, Kawhi Leonard, and Aspiration,
we also do not know the legal significance of such relationships.
It is wise to reserve judgment about the credibility and motives of the
anonymous sources interviewed on a podcast sponsored by "The Athletic,"
which is owned by The New York Times. The New York Times has been a shady organization in a variety of ways for a long time, including treating writers shabbily, and refusing to apologize after falsely accusing three Duke student athletes of rape.Torre assures everyone that he has total editorial independence, notwithstanding the funding he receives from The New York Times.
It must be just a fortunate coincidence that Torre happened to break
such a big story in the first edition of his podcast after his
partnership with "The Athletic"/The New York Times was formalized; there is no doubt that Torre and "The Athletic"/The New York Times are
not motivated at all by such crass concerns as money or clicks, and
that they live by a credo consisting of truth, justice, and defending
the sanctity of the NBA's salary cap rules...
All we have for sure right now is a media storm generating clicks,
page views, ratings, and social media activity. That is not to say that
there is no substance here; the NBA will investigate the assertions, and
make a determination regarding whether the L.A. Clippers circumvented
salary cap rules. The NBA's announcement of the results of that
investigation is news; Torre's podcast and the ensuing media storm is
what Daniel J. Boorstin called a "pseudo-event" in his seminal book The Image. Boorstin described what constitutes a pseudo-event (p. 11):
1) It is not spontaneous, but comes about because someone
has planned, planted, or incited it. Typically, it is not a train wreck
or an earthquake, but an interview.
2) It is planted
primarily (but not always exclusively) for the immediate purpose of
being reported or reproduced...The question "Is it real?" is less
important than, "Is it newsworthy?"
3) Its relation to the underlying reality of the situation is ambiguous...
4) Usually it is intended to be a self-fulfilling prophecy...
Torre
could have presented to the NBA privately the information that he
found. If the NBA determined that the Clippers had violated rules, that
announcement would have been a news event--but a debut podcast sponsored
by a legacy media outlet and expected to deliver a big
attention-grabbing splash is not a news event: it is Torre talking about
something less from the standpoint of "Is it real?" and more from the
standpoint of "Is it newsworthy?" or how much attention it will bring to
Torre and his new partnership with "The Athletic"/The New York Times.
It is important to be able to distinguish events from "pseudo-events" and to distinguish journalism from sensationalism. Media members--and consumers of media content/social media content--would do well to read The Image and learn from Boorstin's wise words:
Boorstin notes that the traditional expectation of news reporters was
that they would report on significant events that happened; if nothing
significant happened, "He could not be expected to report what did not
exist" (p. 8). Boorstin observes that in the twentieth century, the
expectation of what a news reporter should do shifted dramatically: "If
he cannot find a story, then he must make one--by the questions he asks
of public figures, by the surprising human interest he unfolds from some
commonplace event, or by 'the news behind the news'" (p. 8). Boorstin
adds, "Demanding more than the world can give us, we require that
something be fabricated to make up for the world's deficiency" (p. 9).
Boorstin calls these fabrications "pseudo-events," a neologism based on
the Greek word "pseudo," which means false.
The incessant
attempt to create news and excitement where no news and no excitement
exists can be observed in the ridiculous questions asked by many
reporters at basketball games, at the World Chess Championship, and at almost any press conference pertaining to politics or public affairs.
If the NBA's investigation of the L.A. Clippers finds that the Clippers did not violate any NBA rules then Torre and the Pulitzer Prize Board will look foolish--but even if the Clippers violated NBA rules, Mariotti is correct that it is premature to honor Torre for "seemingly" breaking a story.
76ers Make Magic Disappear, Chef Curry Cooks Clippers
The opener on the second night of NBA Play-In Tournament action featured two Eastern Conference teams that both did not meet expectations this season battling to secure the seventh seed. The shorthanded Philadelphia 76ers outlasted the offensively challenged Orlando Magic, 109-97. Tyrese Maxey led the 76ers with 31 points and six assists. Kelly Oubre Jr. added 19 points while shooting 5-10 from three point range, significant perimeter production considering that the Magic shot just 7-27 (.259) from beyond the arc. VJ Edgecombe contributed 19 points plus a game-high tying 11 rebounds as the 76ers held their own on the glass (only losing the rebound battle 41-40) despite being without the services of Joel Embiid, who is recovering from an appendectomy. Andre Drummond filled part of the void in the middle with 14 points, 10 rebounds, and a team-high tying three blocked shots off of the bench. Paul George had 16 points on 6-16 field goal shooting along with five rebounds and five assists.
Desmond Bane scored a game-high 34 points on 10-16 field goal shooting, but he did not have much help. Paolo Banchero, who is supposed to be Orlando's franchise player, scored 18 points on 7-22 field goal shooting while committing a game-high six turnovers. Anthony Black had a solid game off of the bench (13 points on 4-8 field goal shooting), but Franz Wagner did not do nearly enough (12 points on 5-11 field goal shooting), and Jalen Suggs (four points on 1-9 field goal shooting) misfired from all angles. It felt like anyone sitting courtside should wear a safety helmet to protect against Orlando's barrage of wildly missed shots, as the Magic shot 33-81 (.407) from the field. The first quarter set the tone for the entire game, with the 76ers
leading 28-24 after the first 12 minutes despite shooting just 10-25
(.400) from the field; the Magic shot 9-24 (.375) from the field. If you watched the game, you know that the quality of play did not improve--and if you did not watch the game you are probably not yearning for a detailed account of all of the missed shots. In TV parlance, if this were part of a highlight package it would be "score only."
Who would be silly enough to pick this lethargic, flawed Magic team to win a road game versus the 76ers? Oh, that would be me. In my defense, it's not like the 76ers are particularly impressive; they did not build a double digit lead against the Orlando Magical Bricklayers until the third quarter, so it will be interesting to see how the 76ers fare in a first round matchup versus the surprisingly good Boston Celtics. Meanwhile, the Magic have one last chance to make the playoffs if they beat Charlotte on Friday, but the Magic are not likely to find much success when confronted by Charlotte's size, stingy defense, and three point shooting. I still feel good about picking Charlotte to capture the eighth seed.
In the nightcap, Stephen Curry turned into the superhero known as Chef Curry and he cooked the L.A. Clippers with a game-high 35 points as his Golden State Warriors rallied from a 13 point fourth quarter deficit to post a 126-121 win. The Clippers, who started the season 6-21 before rallying to qualify for the Play-In Tournament, are now eliminated from playoff contention, while the Warriors must beat the Phoenix Suns on Friday night to claim the Western Conference's eighth seed. Kristaps Porzingis and Gui Santos scored 20 points each for the Warriors. Bennedict Mathurin led the Clippers with 23 points.
The Clippers jumped out to a 12-2 lead versus the Warriors, the only Play-In Tournament team with a losing record this season. The Warriors had lost nine games in a row to the Clippers in L.A. and seemed to be well on their way to a 10th setback--but then they authored their own 12-2 run to tie the score at 14 and that set the tone for the rest of the game: the Clippers repeatedly built double digit leads to seemingly take command before collapsing and letting the Warriors back in the game. The collapses largely correlated with Kawhi Leonard not being in the game: Leonard, who finished with 21 points on 8-17 field goal shooting, was the only Clippers' starter with a positive plus/minus number (+6); every other Clippers' starter had a plus/minus number of -7 or worse. The first half ended with Leonard driving coast to coast through Golden
State's entire team as if they were a bunch of elementary school kids,
culminating in a two-handed dunk, after which Leonard shook his head as
if to say, "You've to be kidding me if you think that is enough to even
slow me down." The Clippers led 61-53 at halftime.
Curry put on a vintage show in the third quarter, erupting for 16 points on 6-8 field goal shooting to single-handedly keep the Warriors in the game, but after Mathurin's two free throws pushed the Clippers' lead to 98-85 at the 9:53 mark of the fourth quarter the Warriors seemed to be running out of time and energy until Curry saved the day, along with timely 4-4 three point shooting from Al Horford and suffocating defense on Leonard by Draymond Green. Curry scored 11 fourth quarter points on 4-6 field goal shooting while posting a +15 plus/minus number in the final stanza, and the 39 year old Horford scored 12 of his 14 points in the fourth quarter. Green authored his typical "triple single" (seven points, team-high nine assists, six rebounds), had a 0 plus/minus number, and did not score in the fourth quarter, but he stole the ball from Leonard twice in the closing moments, and played a major role in holding Leonard scoreless in the fourth quarter until Leonard had a meaningless dunk with 16.9 seconds remaining.
L.A. coach Ty Lue was disgusted after the game (though he used a different phrase when asked to describe his feelings), lamenting "We had the game in our hands" but gave it away by making numerous "silly plays." Not surprisingly, Golden State coach Steve Kerr was thrilled with the result, and he thanked NBA Commissioner Adam Silver for creating the Play-In Tournament, noting that otherwise the Warriors' season would already be over--and that raises an interesting point, albeit not the point that Kerr wanted to make: over the course of the 82 game regular season, the Clippers won five more games than the Warriors, but because Curry and Horford got hot in the fourth quarter of one game the Clippers are eliminated while the Warriors have a chance to make the playoffs. Phoenix finished eight games ahead of Golden State during the regular season, but the Warriors can wipe out months of work by beating the Suns just once.
This format may work out great for Kerr, his team, and his team's fans this season, but the message that this sends is that the regular season does not matter--and this message, conveyed by the league office, team executives, and the players themselves in many ways during recent years, is how we have ended up with tanking, load management, and a league whose regular season is becoming increasingly unwatchable. Instead of the NBA having a great regular season, the NBA produces a mediocre regular season and hopes that some excitement in the Play-In Tournament and the playoffs will be enough to satisfy the fans who pay high ticket prices and streaming fees.
The Groaning and Grumbling About the NBA's 65 Game Rule is Unfounded
Media members, players, and fans are groaning and grumbling about the NBA's rule that a player must participate in at least 65 games to be eligible for most regular season awards, including regular season MVP. The main complaint is that it is somehow unfair that a player who misses at least 22% of the season (at least 18 games out of 82) is barred from winning the regular season MVP. It should be emphasized that this rule was collectively bargained and agreed upon by the NBA and the National Basketball Players Association.
The NBA's regular season has lasted 82 games since 1967-68, with the only exceptions being the lockout shortened seasons in 1998-99 (50 games) and 2011-12 (66 games), and the COVID-19 shortened seasons in 2019-20 (64-75 games) and 2020-21 (72 games).
In 1982-83--when Moses Malone and Julius Erving led the Philadelphia 76ers on a glorious, record-setting 12-1 playoff run culminating in a 4-0 NBA Finals sweep of the defending champion L.A. Lakers--39
NBA players played in all 82 regular season games, and Clemon Johnson
played in 83 regular season games (51 with Indiana, followed by 32 with
Philadelphia). An additional 22 players played in 81 regular season
games. Those numbers were typical for that era; in 1981-82, 42 players
played in all 82 regular season games, and three players played in more
than 82 games, while an additional 21 players played in 81 regular
season games.
It was a given during that era that MVP level
players rarely missed games. From 1967-82, the NBA regular season MVP
played in 81 or 82 games every year except for 1978, when 1977 NBA
Finals MVP Bill Walton captured the regular season MVP despite being
limited to 58 games due to injuries--and Walton was not "load managing":
he was legitimately injured. Erving won four regular season MVPs during
his ABA/NBA career; in those MVP seasons, he played in 84, 84, 84, and
82 games (the ABA regular season lasted 84 games). Malone won three
regular season MVPs during his ABA/NBA career; in those MVP seasons, he
played in 82, 81, and 78 games.
Playing all 82 games used to be a badge of honor for NBA players.
From 1983-98, every NBA regular season MVP played in at least 76 games, 11 regular season MVPs played in at least 80 games, and six regular season MVPs played in all 82 games. In the lockout shortened 1998-99 season, regular season MVP Karl Malone played in 49 of 50 games. From 2000-11, every NBA regular season MVP played in at least 71 games, and six of them played in 81 or 82 games. In the lockout shortened 2011-12 season, regular season MVP LeBron James played in 62 of 66 games. From 2013-2019, every NBA regular season MVP played in at least 72 games, and three of them played in at least 80 games. In the COVID-19 shortened 2019-20 season, regular season MVP Giannis Antetokounmpo played in 63 of 73 games. In the COVID-19 shortened 2020-21 season, MVP Nikola Jokic played in all 72 of his team's games. In the past three regular seasons, 2023 MVP Joel Embiid played in 66 games, 2024 MVP Nikola Jokic played in 79 games, and 2025 MVP Shai Gilgeous-Alexander played in 76 games.
The 65 game rule was not needed previously because (1) it was a given that players tried to play in as many games as possible, and (2) it was a given that the regular season MVP would play in the vast majority of that season's games. If the rule had existed in the past, the only MVP race that would have had a different outcome is 1978, when George Gervin would have won because Bill Walton would have been disqualified. I am fine with the voters choosing Walton--who dominated during the 1977 season (when he played in 65 games and finished second in regular season MVP voting) before dominating during the 1977 playoffs (leading Portland to the NBA title while winning the Finals MVP) and then dominating during the first part of the 1978 season before getting injured--but I would also be fine with the voters choosing Gervin based on Gervin playing at a very high level while participating in all 82 games.
The 65 game rule is needed now because (1) it is no longer a given that players try to play in as many games as possible and (2) the league, the players, and the MVP voters are so soft that without a firm rule in place an award for full season excellence might be given to a part-time player. Specifically regarding this season, it is unfortunate that several MVP caliber players may fall below the 65 game threshold, but if that happens then the MVP award should go to the best player who performed on a full-time basis. Contrary to the groaning and grumbling, that would not represent an injustice or some kind of dramatic break with history; it would maintain the correct way that MVP voting has consistently been done: a big part of being an MVP is being available for most of your team's games, and the voting trends from before the 65 rule game existed demonstrate this.
Kawhi Leonard is a good example. He is a two-time NBA Finals MVP (2014, 2019) because he was the best performer on the winning team while playing in every game of both of those series. It would have been illogical to give the Finals MVP to a player who missed several games in those series. During Leonard's 14 season career, he has played in at least 65 games four times (he still has a chance to reach the 65 game mark this season if he plays in at least nine of the Clippers' remaining 10 games). In those two seasons, he finished second and third in regular season MVP voting, and he won a Defensive Player of the Year award. His only other top five finish in regular season MVP voting happened in 2020, when he ranked fifth after playing in 57 out of 72 games. Leonard won the 2015 Defensive Player of the Year award in 2015 despite playing in just 64 games, but Draymond Green (who played in 79 games that season) had more first place votes (45-37). Under the current rule, Leonard would not have won the 2015 Defensive Player of the Year award, and that would have been a fair result: if you are not available to your team for a substantial portion of the season, then your "value" is diminished accordingly and it is difficult to argue that you are the "most valuable."
The 65 game rule is not harming any players because from a practical standpoint it is not eliminating from award consideration anyone who would have likely won an award based on the way that voting has been done historically. The rule merely codifies the unwritten rule that existed for decades and it does so in a way that emphasizes to players the importance of being available. Players get paid guaranteed money whether they play or not, but they should not be guaranteed consideration for awards during seasons when they miss a substantial number of games. The number 65 is no more arbitrary or punitive than any other number, and having a defined rule in place is a sad necessity considering how soft the NBA has become; the alternative would be a farcical situation in which a player is named MVP despite playing barely half the season.
The regular season MVP award is named after Michael Jordan, who played in all 82 games in four of his MVP seasons and who played in 80 games in his other MVP season; if the NBA gets rid of the 65 game rule and a player who plays in 50 or 60 games wins the regular season MVP then the award should be renamed for Joel Embiid or Adam Silver or perhaps the "Advanced Basketball Statistics Load Management MVP Award."
Anthony Edwards Crowned as All-Star MVP as Young American Stars Outlast Old American Stars and International NBA Stars
In the latest example of the the NBA's ongoing quixotic quest to make the All-Star Game meaningful again--or at least worth watching--for the fourth year in a row the league changed the All-Star Game format. This time, the All-Star Game was divided into four 12 minute games in a round robin tournament featuring three All-Star Teams: young American stars (Stars), old American stars (Stripes), and international stars (World).
Without getting bogged down in the various scenarios that could have occurred under the new rules, what actually transpired is that Stars beat World 37-35 in the first game, Stripes edged Stars 42-40 in the second game, Stripes defeated World 48-45 in the third game, and Stars routed Stripes 47-21 in the fourth game. The Stars' Anthony Edwards scored 32 points on 13-22 field goal shooting while playing 27 minutes in three mini-games. He received the 2026 Kobe Bryant NBA All-Star Game MVP
award--and he candidly admitted after the event that he did not fully
understand all of the rules for this year's format (he thought that the games were decided by the first team to score 40 points).
When the All-Star Game MVP does not understand all of the rules, perhaps the rules are too convoluted, or at least are not explained clearly enough to the players and the fans.
The first three mini-games were competitive and entertaining, which was a welcome change--but competing hard should be the minimum expectation for the world's greatest athletes on one of their league's biggest stages. World's Victor Wembanyama made it clear that he took the event very seriously, and Edwards later stated that Wembanyama set the tone for everyone else to follow. Wembanyama led both teams with 14 points (4-5 field goal shooting) and six rebounds in the first mini-game, which was tied 32-32 at the end of 12 minutes. Under the rules, the overtime would be decided by the first team to score five points, which Stars accomplished when Scottie Barnes drilled a three pointer after World's defense foolishly collapsed in the paint to give him a wide open shot. Wembanyama could not hide his disgust at his team's mental gaffe. Edwards led Stars with 13 points on 5-9 field goal shooting.
Jaylen Brown scored a team-high 11 points on 5-9 field goal shooting as Stripes beat Stars on a De'Aaron Fox three pointer at the buzzer in the second mini-game. Edwards (11 points on 5-8 field goal shooting) and Cade Cunningham (11 points on 4-6 field goal shooting) paced Stars.
The third game was the Kawhi Leonard show, as the L.A. Clippers' star poured in 31 points on 11-13 field goal shooting in his home arena as Stripes eliminated World. Wembanyama led World with 19 points on 6-8 field goal shooting.
In the final game, Tyrese Maxey paced a balanced Stars attack with nine points on 4-8 field goal shooting, while Edwards added eight points on 3-5 field goal shooting. Leonard played all 12 minutes in the final game, but he scored just one point while shooting 0-4 from the field as Stripes shot 8-31 (.258) from the field. Donovan Mitchell led Stripes with six points on 2-4 field goal shooting.
The post-game spin from many media outlets is that the 2026 All-Star Game was a great success because of the new format. I willingly concede that the first three mini-games included the most competitive basketball seen in the NBA All-Star Game in quite some time--but it also must be stated that the grand finale was difficult to watch. I am not sure if the older All-Stars became fatigued, disinterested after eliminating World, or both, but the four NBA champions on Stripes--LeBron James, Kevin Durant, Kawhi Leonard, and Jaylen Brown--shot a combined 4-22 from the field, including 1-13 from three point range. Stars shot 20-33 (.606) from the field as Stripes' defense was at least as bad as their anemic offense.
The NBA All-Star Game used to feature the best players doing what they do best in one full-length game with no gimmicks or special rules: Julius "Dr. J" Erving showcased his balletic moves, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar drained skyhooks, Magic Johnson made deft passes, and Isiah Thomas did ballhandling wizardry--and this took place while opposing players put up at least some defensive resistance. In the 1986 NBA All-Star Game, the teams combined to commit 50 fouls while attempting just 10 three point field goals. NBA teams averaged 25.2 fouls per game during the 1985-86 regular season, so 50 combined fouls is in line with that era's norm (teams are committing 20.1 fouls per game so far this season); the East's 139-132 win over the West in 1986 was not a defensive struggle, but the players took the ball to the hoop against resistance and the game at least resembled a real NBA game.
In yesterday's four mini-games, the teams combined to commit 23 fouls in more than 48 minutes of action, which is barely half the foul rate during the 2025-26 regular season. This is an improvement over six combined fouls in the three mini-games in the 2025 All-Star Game and three combined fouls in the 2024 All-Star Game, but let's not pretend that making minimal effort in three mini-games before producing a dud in the fourth mini-game is remotely close to what should be expected from the NBA's best players.
The sad reality for the modern NBA is that teams and players demand extraordinary incentives to play hard and try to win; a handful of teams play hard during the regular season because they believe that they have a chance to win the NBA title, but at least a third of the league's teams are actively tanking to try to improve their draft positioning and many other teams engage in "load management," which is a polite way of saying that they accept losing by not putting their best team on the floor every game. Star players sit out large numbers of games and then complain that they are not eligible to win postseason awards (because of rules that the NBA enacted to try to dissuade star players from sitting out so often).
Far too many NBA players chase every last dollar that they can receive on and off the court while not taking pride in perfecting their craft or even showing up for every scheduled game; there are a few exceptions to the trend, but in general the players seem to be more focused on making money than on making the game great, and it is not clear what--if anything--can be done to reverse this trend.
Michael Jordan had a "love of the game" clause included in his NBA contract to prevent the Chicago Bulls from limiting his participation in non-NBA games, including pickup games for which he was not paid anything; current NBA players do not even love the game enough to play hard all of the time when they are being paid tens of millions of dollars per year.
The contrast between Jordan's era and the modern era could not be more stark, or more sad.
"At least some of the players tried some of the time.
Sadly,
that is the best that can be said about the NBA's new All-Star Game
format featuring four teams playing a mini-tournament consisting of
games that are each an untimed race to 40 points. TNT's Charles Barkley,
Shaquille O'Neal, and Kenny Smith picked the rosters for three of the
four teams out of a player pool consisting of this year's 24 NBA
All-Stars. Barkley's Global Stars included players with an international
connection, O'Neal's OGs included veteran American players, and Smith's
Young Stars included young American players. Trae Young was selected by
Commissioner Adam Silver as a replacement for the injured Giannis
Antetokounmpo on the Global Stars, and Silver tapped Kyrie Irving to
replace the injured Anthony Davis on the OGs. LeBron James (OGs) and
Anthony Edwards (Young Stars) waited until the day of the game to decide
that they could not play, and thus no replacements were selected for
either of them. The fourth team, Candace Parker's Rising Stars, included
rookies and second year NBA players who won the Rising Stars event on
Friday night.
I've been following the NBA since the 1970s, and the
NBA All-Star Game used to be one of my favorite events, but recently it
has become something that I watch more out of a sense of duty than a
feeling of joy; during the 1980s, I loved watching the East's Julius
Erving, Larry Bird, Moses Malone, and Isiah Thomas compete against the
West's Magic Johnson, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, and George Gervin because the players had fun and showed off their individual skills while playing to win--but
in recent years the All-Star Game has featured various gimmicky formats
while the only thing the players competed at was showing who was least
interested in playing hard."
"The 2023 NBA All-Star Game
may have been not only the worst NBA All-Star Game ever, but possibly
the worst basketball game ever played by high level players--until the
2024 NBA All-Star Game sunk to a new low: the teams launched 168 three
point shots while attempting just five free throws as the Eastern
Conference All-Stars routed the Western Conference All-Stars, 211-186.
That is not competitive basketball, and it is unrecognizable compared to
what the All-Star Game used to be: in 1994, the East beat the West
127-118 in a game featuring a combined 60 free throw attempts but just
30 three point field goal attempts; there was no shortage of highlight
plays/moments but the most important thing is that the players competed.
During the wonderful 2024 NBA Legends Brunch,
Larry Bird praised today's players and made a request: "The one thing I
would really like to see is they play hard in tonight's
All-Star Game. I think it's very important when you have the best
players in the world together you've got to compete and you've got to
play hard."
Instead, the players disrespected themselves, the
sport, and the legends who built the game that provides them with the
opportunity to receive generational wealth. No one is expecting the
All-Star Game to resemble game seven of the NBA
Finals, but the refusal of the modern players to even pretend to want to
compete is sad...
We hear so much about how great Commissioner Adam Silver is, but it
appears that he is praised because he tends to let the players do
whatever they want, in contrast to his predecessor David Stern, who viewed himself as a caretaker of the sport as a whole.
Considering how little today's best players care about putting even
forth minimal effort, the NBA should get rid of not just the
All-Star Game but even the concept of being an All-Star: retain All-Star
Saturday Night (it could be renamed something else, like NBA Showcase
Saturday) and of course retain the Legends Brunch, but the All-Star Game
serves no purpose, and being selected as an All-Star in today's NBA has
no meaning. Only the awards given after the season matter, so let the
players grumble about having to play at least 65 out of 82 games--oh,
the suffering!--to be eligible to win those awards.
Here is
the challenge to Silver: fix the All-Star Game, or have the intestinal
fortitude to not only get rid of it but to publicly say that he is
getting rid of it because the players do not take it seriously enough to
deserve to have it and to receive the bonuses associated with being
selected for it."
"The
2023 NBA All-Star Game was not only the worst NBA All-Star Game
ever, but it may have been the worst basketball game ever
'contested'--and I use that word with hesitation--by high level players.
Denver Nuggets Coach Michael Malone, who coached Team LeBron, made this
statement after Team Giannis prevailed 184-175: 'It's an honor to be
here, and it's an honor to be a part of a great
weekend with great players, but it's the worst basketball game ever
played.' Malone also admitted that he has no idea how to fix the game.
The
NBA All-Star Game began its horrific slide to irrelevance several years
ago (see game recaps appended to this article for more details), but
yesterday the league's showcase midseason event descended to a nadir
from which there may be no recovery.
At its best, NBA basketball
is about the world's greatest athletes competing at a high level at both
ends of the court while working together to help their team win. At its
worst--and its worst was on full display last night--NBA basketball is
about players flaunting their individual skills without any connection
to team success while their 'opponents' step aside and watch instead of
competing on defense. The 2023 NBA All-Star Game was such an abomination
that it is difficult to decide which moment was the worst."
"How much has the All-Star Game devolved from an actual competition
featuring the league's best players to an exhibition of players
demonstrating individual skills devoid of competition or team play? Free
throws are a quick way to gauge physicality/defense. The 2022 All-Star
Game included eight fouls, four of which were called in the fourth
quarter, and Team LeBron shot 2-2 from the free throw line while Team
Durant shot 7-7 from the free throw line. This season, NBA teams average
a little over 21 free throw attempts per game, so it is obvious that
the All-Star Game featured few fouls, few free throws, very little
physicality, and token defense compared to a normal NBA game.
All-Star
Games used to be played much differently. In the first NBA All-Star
Game, the East beat the West 98-93 in overtime in 1954 with the East
shooting 36 of 44 from the free throw line and the West shooting 17-26
from the free throw line. In 1962, Wilt Chamberlain set an All-Star
single game scoring record (42 points) that stood for 55 years.
Chamberlain shot 8-16 from the free throw line, and his East squad shot
24-43 from the free throw line. The West, which won 150-130, shot 36-51
from the free throw line. Chamberlain's scoring record took place during
a competitive game, and the record stood until long after NBA All-Star
Games ceased to be competitive; his record is so exceptional that even
in an era during which it is much easier to score in All-Star Games only
two players have surpassed the standard that he set--and Curry did so
by making a bunch of uncontested three pointers.
For most of
All-Star Game history, players from both sides played hard, played
defense, and committed a normal amount of fouls. Things began to change
in 2007, when the victorious West only attempted nine free throws and
the East only attempted 13 free throws, a big decline from 24 and 28
respectively in the 2006 All-Star Game. The 2008 All-Star Game was more
of the same. Matters improved a bit during the next several All-Star
Games, but in 2014 the East attempted nine free throws and the West
attempted 12 free throws. Since 2014, single digit free throw attempts
per team have been the norm rather than the exception--and on the rare
occasion that a team has attempted more than 10 free throws most of
those free throw attempts have happened in the fourth quarter, when the
new scoring rules inspire (or shame) the All-Stars into playing some
defense."
"Giannis Antetokounmpo did not have the first perfect shooting
performance in NBA All-Star Game history--Hal Greer shot 8-8 from the
field en route to scoring 21 points and winning the 1968 NBA All-Star
Game MVP--but he set the NBA All-Star Game record for most field goals
without a miss (16), and he captured his first All-Star Game MVP by
scoring a game-high 35 points as his Team LeBron routed Team Durant,
170-150. Antetokounmpo played just 19 minutes, so he scored nearly two
points per minute. Most of Antetokounmpo's shots were lightly
contested--if not uncontested--dunks, but he also shot 3-3 from three
point range. Each team shot 3-5 from the free throw line as both teams
spent most of the game not even pretending to care about defense.
Perhaps the league and/or the players think that the fans want to see
uncontested dunks and wide open three pointers, but I think/hope that
true basketball fans want to see competition. A contested dunk is a
great play; an uncontested dunk is just performance art."
"After
three quarters, it seemed that the new NBA All-Star Game format had not
inspired many players from either team to even pretend to play at a
fraction of their full capabilities. Fortunately, the fourth quarter--a
race to 157 points based on adding 24 points (in honor of Kobe Bryant)
to the 133-124 lead enjoyed by Team Giannis over Team LeBron at the end
of the third quarter--featured high level play as both teams looked
fully engaged: Team Giannis' Kyle Lowry seemed to try to take a charge
on every defensive possession, players from both teams contested almost
every shot, and the level of physicality ramped up to top notch regular
season levels, if not even first round playoff levels.
It is mystifying that most NBA players seem to need external motivation
to play their best in the All-Star Game, but with a substantial portion
of the weekend's festivities dedicated to the memory of
Bryant--including naming the All-Star MVP award for him--it would have
been a travesty for the players to just sleepwalk through the entire
proceedings. Kawhi Leonard is a pioneer of the less than commendable
load management scourge, but at least he always plays hard when he is on
the court. Leonard scored a game-high 30 points on 11-18 field goal
shooting (including 8-14 from three point range), grabbed seven
rebounds, dished for four assists, and received the first Kobe Bryant
All-Star Game MVP Award as his Team LeBron won, 157-155."
"The All-Star Game sunk to such depths a few years ago that there were
even whispers that it might be discontinued. Instead, the league changed
the format from East versus West to a format in which the top two
vote-getters conduct a draft consisting of a pool of other All-Stars
selected by fans, coaches and media members. LeBron James faced off
against Giannis Antetokounmpo in this year's All-Star draft. Popular
consensus was that James, whose draft strategy seemed to be focused on
acquiring every major player who will be a free agent soon, got the
better of Antetokounmpo--but it did not look like that initially, as
Team Giannis led 53-37 after the first quarter and 95-82 at halftime.
Antetokounmpo scored a game-high 38 points on 17-23 field
goal shooting, including 10 dunks. He also had 11 rebounds and five
assists. He set the tone in the first quarter with 16 points.
Antetokounmpo's
Milwaukee teammate/All-Star teammate Khris Middleton added 20 points on
7-13 field goal
shooting, including 6-10 from three point range. Middleton scored 12
first quarter points.
To coin--or repeat--a phrase, it seemed like Team LeBron was in 'chill
mode' during the first half, but in the second half they exerted at
least some defensive effort and they rained down a barrage of three
pointers. Team LeBron outscored Team Giannis 96-69 in the second half
while shooting 22-49 from three point range. The teams combined to
attempt 167 three pointers during the game, compared to 108 two pointers
attempted.
Kevin Durant earned MVP honors by scoring 31 points on 10-15 field goal
shooting (including 6-9 from three point range) while also contributing
seven rebounds. He had 11 points on 4-4 field goal shooting in the
fourth quarter. Durant's Golden State teammate Klay Thompson finished
second on Team LeBron with 20 points on 7-16 field goal shooting (6-12
from three point range) and he had eight rebounds and four assists as
well."
"LeBron James scored a game-high 29 points on 12-17 field goal shooting,
grabbed a game-high tying 10 rebounds and dished eight assists as Team
LeBron defeated Team Stephen 148-145 in the first year of the NBA's new All-Star selection format;
instead of the traditional matchup featuring the Eastern Conference
facing the Western Conference, a team of All-Stars picked by LeBron
James faced a team of All-Stars picked by Stephen Curry. The NBA tweaked
the All-Star Game in the wake of several subpar All-Star Games,
culminating in last year's farce.
Before the 2018 All-Star Game, James already held the NBA All-Star Game
career scoring record (314 points) and yesterday he surpassed Julius
Erving (321 points) to set the record for most points scored in ABA and
NBA All-Star Games combined. Bob Pettit (1956, 58, 59, 62) and Kobe
Bryant (2002, 2007, 2009, 2011) share the record with four All-Star Game
MVPs each, while James joined Oscar Robertson, Michael Jordan and
Shaquille O'Neal as three-time winners; James previously earned the
All-Star Game MVP in 2006 and 2008."
"The Western Conference's 192-182 victory over the Eastern Conference is
without question the worst NBA All-Star Game that I have ever watched.
Other than the MLB All-Star Game that ended in a tie (and many NFL Pro
Bowls of recent vintage) it may be the worst major professional league
All-Star Game ever. When the reigning two-time regular season MVP
literally lies down on the court instead of attempting to play defense,
you know that the event has jumped the shark."
Cavaliers Take a Step Back By Swapping Garland for Harden
Two teams that have both fallen short of expectations decided that swapping former All-Star guards will solve their problems (or at least reduce their problems to a a more manageable size); the Cleveland Cavaliers seemed poised to be championship contenders this season after leading the Eastern Conference with 64 wins last season, while the L.A. Clippers had high hopes after pushing the Denver Nuggets to seven games in the first round of last season's playoffs--but the Cavaliers are clinging to the Eastern Conference's fifth seed while the Clippers started the season 5-16 before getting rid of Chris Paul and are now battling for the Western Conference's 10th seed (and final Play-In Tournament berth).
Cleveland sent Darius Garland and a 2026 second round draft pick to L.A. for James Harden. Harden's signature move is his step back--which was called a travel when the NBA at least loosely enforced the traveling rule and which bears little resemblance to the step back moves perfected by Adrian Dantley, Larry Bird, and Dell Curry--and that is a fitting description of this move for the Cavaliers: a step back.
On paper, Harden looks like the superior player. He has averaged 24.1 ppg and 7.3 apg in his 17 season NBA career. Harden is an 11-time All-Star who has received eight All-NBA Team selections (including six First Team nods).
He has finished in the top five in regular season MVP voting six times,
including winning the 2018 award. During his seven year NBA
career, Garland has averaged 18.8 ppg and 6.7 apg while shooting .453
from the field. He is a two-time All-Star (2022, 2025) who has never
made the All-NBA Team or received a regular season MVP vote.
The Cavaliers rank 11th in defensive field goal percentage but just 28th in defensive three point field goal percentage. The Cavaliers rank 13th in rebounding, fifth in scoring and eighth in field goal percentage. Last season, the Cavaliers led the NBA in scoring while ranking second
in field goal percentage, sixth in rebounding, third in defensive field
goal percentage, and 13th in defensive three point field goal
percentage. Those numbers--and the eye test--demonstrate that this season the Cavaliers have fallen off in terms of rebounding, overall defense, and perimeter defense while maintaining their status as a top offensive team; thus, the Cavaliers need to add players who are tough, physical, and mobile to bolster their paint presence and their shaky perimeter defense. Harden does not help the Cavaliers in any of their areas of need. He will throw some flashy lob passes to big men Evan Mobley and Jarrett Allen, but his overdribbling will not help overall offensive continuity and will make it difficult to play him alongside All-Star Donovan Mitchell, the team's primary scorer and ballhandler. Harden is a stout, physical defender when switched on to big men in the paint, but he is an awful perimeter defender whose lackadaisical effort at that end of the court will put a lot of pressure on Mobley and Allen to clean up his mistakes and blown assignments.
Harden is 10 years older than Garland, the largest age gap in an All-Star for All-Star trade in NBA history. The Cavaliers made a win now move with a player who has not won before and is unlikely to be a key contributor to a team focused on winning now. There are two consistent themes throughout Harden's career:
It is not logical for the Cavaliers to assume, believe, or hope that
acquiring Harden improves their chances of advancing past the second
round of the playoffs for the first time since 2018. I
can write the template for the Cavaliers' 2026 elimination game loss
now, and after the game I can fill in the blanks around the words "James
Harden disappeared" and "James Harden scored just xxx second half
points."
Harden has been more available and durable than Garland, but that availability and durability do not matter much when Harden disappears in the games that matter the most. The Clippers understand that they are not winning the 2026 NBA championship, and that it will be an uphill battle for them to even win one playoff series, so it is logical for the Clippers to get younger while avoiding dealing with Harden's large contract, moody attitude, and annual playoff collapses. If Garland becomes a dependable second option and playmaker alongside Kawhi Leonard--who has played at an MVP level for the past few weeks--then the Clippers can retool for next year; if Garland cannot get healthy or does not mesh well with Leonard, he is young enough and talented enough that the Clippers can trade him either in exchange for players who fit alongside Leonard or to stockpile draft picks if the Clippers choose to pull the plug on the Leonard era.
Addition by Subtraction: Clippers Add Wins After Subtracting Chris Paul From the Roster
Prior to this season, the L.A. Clippers signed Chris Paul, who previously played for the team from 2011-2017. Paul is often called the best leader in the NBA, but there is a difference between being a great leader and being a productive individual player. In his prime, Paul was a very productive individual player--averaging 19.1 ppg, 10.2 apg, 4.3 rpg, and 2.3 spg from 2008-2017--but this season he averaged just 2.9 ppg on .321 field goal shooting in 16 games before the Clippers sent him home. The Clippers went 4-12 in those games, and they were 5-16 overall this season with Paul on the roster.
The Clippers have gone 18-9 since parting ways with Paul. Some commentators suggested that the Clippers scapegoated Paul for
problems that were not his fault, but the team's record demonstrates
that neither Paul's on court productivity nor his interactions with
coaches and teammates helped the team win. I have never understood the
rational basis for calling a player in a team sport a great leader if
that player's teams have never won anything. Paul has not appeared in a
playoff game since 2023, and he has advanced past
the second round of the playoffs twice in 21 NBA seasons.
The Clippers' slow start was not entirely his fault, and it is possible that the Clippers might have played better down the stretch even if they had not gotten rid of Paul--but the larger points are (1) it is clear that whatever Paul did during his cameo with the Clippers this season did not make the team better, and (2) the Clippers did not miss Paul after cutting ties with him.
The Clippers' leader is Kawhi Leonard: he sets the tone with his work ethic, and he sets the pace with his high level play. The Clippers are 19-16 with him this season and 4-9 without him. In December 2025, Leonard averaged 29.8 ppg, 7.4 rpg, and 3.9 apg with shooting splits of .490/.360/.963, and then he averaged 27.5 ppg, 5.5 rpg, and 3.7 apg with shooting splits of .491/.408/.873 in January 2026. Leonard is playing at an MVP-caliber level, and he has lifted the Clippers from the bottom of the standings to contending for a spot in the Play-In Tournament. Leonard leads by example as opposed to scolding teammates and shouting at referees, but his resume includes winning two NBA Finals MVPs while leading two different teams to NBA titles (San Antonio in 2014, Toronto in 2019). Leadership should be assessed by results, not histrionics.
Analyzing the Media Storm Surrounding the L.A. Clippers
I deliberately left the words "accusation" and "scandal" out of this article's title because I don't know if the L.A. Clippers violated the NBA's salary cap rules. You don't know, either, even though you may think that you do. The only things that we know are (1) there is a media storm surrounding the L.A. Clippers, and (2) the NBA is investigating the Clippers for a possible violation of the league's salary cap rules.
Unless you avoid all media outlets and social media outlets--which may not be the worst way to live--you are aware that podcaster Pablo Torre accused the L.A. Clippers and their majority owner Steve Ballmer of circumventing the NBA's salary cap rules by
arranging for Kawhi Leonard to be paid $28 million by a sustainability startup called Aspiration for an
allegedly "no show" job that involved no work (feel free to insert a joke about
Leonard also not working at his main job due to load management).
Torre was armed mainly with anonymous sources speaking about a stack of documents allegedly pertaining to the business dealings, bankruptcy proceedings, and federal prosecution for fraud of Aspiration. Joe Sanberg, Aspiration's founder, pleaded guilty to two counts of wire fraud for his role in a $248 million scam. "This so-called ‘anti-poverty’ activist has admitted to being nothing
more than a self-serving fraudster, by seeking to enrich himself by
defrauding lenders and investors out of hundreds of millions of
dollars," Acting United States Attorney Bill Essayli said
Aug. 21 in a statement. "I commend our law enforcement partners for
their efforts in this case, and I urge the investing public to use
caution and beware of wolves in sheep's clothing."
It is not clear at this point if the Clippers were victims of Sanberg's fraud--as they assert--or if they were using Aspiration to funnel money to Leonard while circumventing the NBA's salary cap rules. Legally, it does not matter how things "look" or how a podcaster and his podcasting buddies present things; the only thing that matters legally is evidence.
It is fascinating to listen to non-lawyers talk about legal issues.
An anonymous source speaking on a podcast is not presenting evidence
from a legal standpoint; a person testifying under oath or a person
submitting a sworn affidavit is presenting evidence.
So, not only
do we not know for sure the facts concerning the relationships that may
or may not exist among the L.A. Clippers, Kawhi Leonard, and Aspiration,
we also do not know the legal significance of such relationships.
It is wise to reserve judgment about the credibility and motives of the
anonymous sources interviewed on a podcast sponsored by "The Athletic,"
which is owned by The New York Times. The New York Times has been a shady organization in a variety of ways for a long time, including treating writers shabbily, and refusing to apologize after falsely accusing three Duke student athletes of rape.Torre assures everyone that he has total editorial independence, notwithstanding the funding he receives from The New York Times. It must be just a fortunate coincidence that Torre happened to break such a big story in the first edition of his podcast after his partnership with "The Athletic"/The New York Times was formalized; there is no doubt that Torre and "The Athletic"/The New York Times are not motivated at all by such crass concerns as money or clicks, and that they live by a credo consisting of truth, justice, and defending the sanctity of the NBA's salary cap rules.
The Clippers have issued two statements of denial. In the second statement, they termed allegations against the team "absurd" and declared, "There is nothing unusual or untoward about team sponsors doing
endorsement deals with players on the same team. Neither Steve nor the Clippers organization had any oversight of
Kawhi's independent endorsement agreement with Aspiration. To say
otherwise is flat-out wrong."
All we have for sure right now is a media storm generating clicks, page views, ratings, and social media activity. That is not to say that there is no substance here; the NBA will investigate the assertions, and make a determination regarding whether the L.A. Clippers circumvented salary cap rules. The NBA's announcement of the results of that investigation is news; Torre's podcast and the ensuing media storm is what Daniel J. Boorstin called a "pseudo-event" in his seminal book The Image. Boorstin described what constitutes a pseudo-event (p. 11):
1) It is not spontaneous, but comes about because someone
has planned, planted, or incited it. Typically, it is not a train wreck
or an earthquake, but an interview.
2) It is planted
primarily (but not always exclusively) for the immediate purpose of
being reported or reproduced...The question "Is it real?" is less
important than, "Is it newsworthy?"
3) Its relation to the underlying reality of the situation is ambiguous...
4) Usually it is intended to be a self-fulfilling prophecy...
Torre could have presented to the NBA privately the information that he found. If the NBA determined that the Clippers had violated rules, that announcement would have been a news event--but a debut podcast sponsored by a legacy media outlet and expected to deliver a big attention-grabbing splash is not a news event: it is Torre talking about something less from the standpoint of "Is it real?" and more from the standpoint of "Is it newsworthy?" or how much attention it will bring to Torre and his new partnership with "The Athletic"/The New York Times.
As part of the media firestorm, Mark Cuban--once the majority owner of the Dallas Mavericks, now one of the team's minority owners--blasted Torre, and stated that Steve Ballmer is way too smart to participate in the type of scheme that Torre described. My first thought about Cuban's statement is that it is absurd: our prisons are full of people who thought that they were too smart, too wealthy, or too powerful to be caught, let alone punished. If there is substance to the allegations then Ballmer will need a much more robust defense than "I'm too smart to do something that stupid." My second thought is that Cuban's seemingly off the cuff outburst--which may not be as off the cuff as it seems--is a dream come true for Torre and "The Athletic"/The New York Times, providing yet another pseudo-event for talking heads to discuss.
The fact that none of the people who are pontificating publicly about this topic actually know for sure what happened will not stop Torre and other media members from profiting from all of the attention that they are receiving.
My first instinct was to not write about this at all until the NBA announces its findings, but the situation reminds me so much of Boorstin's brilliant insight about pseudo-events that I could not resist making that connection. The Image was published in 1961, and it is as timely and relevant now as it was over 60 years ago.
If it can be proven that the Clippers violated salary cap rules, then the punishment should be swift and harsh--but we live in a society that is governed (or supposed to be governed) by the principles of (1) innocent until proven guilty, and (2) the accused has a right to confront his accusers under oath. This is not a matter of public safety that Torre had to publicize far and wide to save lives; this is a pseudo-event that may subsequently prove to be a legitimate news story--and that may prove to be as false as the accusations that The New York Times published about the Duke lacrosse players.
Nuggets Overwhelm Clippers in Second Half of 120-101 Game Seven Rout
The L.A. Clippers led 26-21 after the first quarter, but trailed 58-47 at halftime and then collapsed in the second half as the Denver Nuggets won game seven 120-101 to advance to a second round matchup versus the Oklahoma City Thunder; the final score obscures the fact that the Nuggets led 103-68 with 8:49 left in the fourth quarter before calling off the dogs. The Nuggets became the first team to have six players each score at least 15 points in a seventh game. Aaron Gordon led the way (22 points), followed by Christian Braun (21 points), Nikola Jokic (16 points), Jamal Murray (16 points), Russell Westbrook (16 points), and Michael Porter Jr. (15 points). Jokic led the Nuggets with 10 rebounds and eight assists, while Westbrook contributed five rebounds, five assists, and a game-high five steals.
Kawhi Leonard scored a team-high 22 points on 6-13 field goal shooting, but he did not impact the game across the board the way that he usually does, finishing with five rebounds, two assists, two blocked shots, and a game-worst -33 plus/minus number. James Harden, the All-Star guard who is supposed to be the team's reliable second option, had seven points on 2-8 field goal shooting and a -29 plus/minus number; his game-high 13 assists were not nearly enough to make up for not only his poor shooting but his refusal to shoot in an elimination game: the game was still within reach at halftime, but the game was out of reach after Harden scored 0 points on 0-2 field goal shooting while playing all 12 third quarter minutes. Leonard had eight points during the third quarter.
Before digging into the details of yet another pathetic performance to add to Harden's horrific elimination game resume (which now includes a 3-13 won/loss record since he fled Oklahoma City after the 2012 season), we will give credit to the Nuggets. Each Denver starter had between 11 and 16 field goal attempts, and Westbrook provided a critical energy boost during his 27 minutes off of the bench; the 2017 regular season MVP is not the first or second option on a regular basis at this stage of his career but--unlike many players who struggle to accept a lesser role when doing so becomes a necessary reality--he is a team-first player who embraces with enthusiasm his current role as a player who provides hustle, scoring, playmaking, rebounding, and defense off of the bench. The Nuggets took a double digit lead into halftime in large part because Westbrook had 10 points, three assists, two rebounds, two steals, and no turnovers while playing all 12 minutes in the second quarter. When Westbrook rebounded his own missed free throw and scored in traffic at the 3:10 mark of the second quarter, I thought about how stupid it sounded when Amin Elhassan and Zach Harper giggled their way through a segment on their radio show while asserting that Westbrook is a stat padder who obtains easy rebounds from complicit teammates. Westbrook is not a stat padder; he is an energetic game-changer: that play sparked a 9-4 run to close the first half, and set the stage for Denver's third quarter avalanche that ended the game and the series.
Westbrook is not a perfect player and he is the first to admit that, but he never cheats the game, his teammates, or the fans: he plays hard, and his basketball IQ is underrated; after the game, Christian Braun--who drew the primary assignment of guarding Harden--mentioned that Westbrook's knowledge of the Clippers' offensive sets in general and Westbrook's knowledge of Harden's tendencies in particular were invaluable to him.
If you love watching basketball being played the way that it is supposed to be played, then you have to love Westbrook; you may not root for him if he is on the opposing team, but you have to respect his approach to the game.
The emotional exclamation point for Denver's win happened after Westbrook stole the ball and delivered an uncontested fastbreak dunk at the 6:53 mark of the fourth quarter to put Denver up, 107-76. Westbrook hung on the rim for an extended period, and did not care at all about the ensuing technical foul; during the stoppage of play, Westbrook exchanged high fives with Denver fans while very emphatically telling the Clippers' fans in the crowd to go home. One got the sense that Westbrook was not only sharing joy with Nuggets' fans while talking trash to Clippers' fans but that he was also letting out a lot of pent-up energy directed toward both of his former teams in L.A.--not just the Clippers, but also the Lakers and the sycophantic media members who unfairly made him a scapegoat even though knowledgeable analysts like Hubie Brown praised Westbrook during his time with the Lakers.
James Harden is the exact opposite of Russell Westbrook: Westbrook keeps himself in shape all of the time, plays hard, accepts his role, and focuses on doing with high energy whatever his team needs him to do, while Harden is often out of shape, often does not give maximum effort, pouts if he does not like his role, and disappears like clockwork when his team needs him most, as if he looks at his Gucci and knows that in clutch moments it is "time to get ill."
Harden has said that he does not play in a system because he is "The System." His biggest fan, Daryl Morey, insists that Harden is a better scorer than Michael Jordan. Look up delusional in the dictionary, and you should see those two statements as prime examples.
Nuggets-Clippers was the most closely contested first round series this year--Golden State-Houston is the only other series to even reach a seventh game, to be played on Sunday night--but game seven turned into a blowout because it is difficult for a team featuring Harden in a first option or second option role to overcome his propensity to disappear when it matters most: if a player who is expected to score 12-15 points only scores 6-10 points, his team can overcome that, but if a player who is expected to be a dominant scorer who draws double teams instead just disappears then there is no way for his team to overcome the huge gap between expected production and delivered production. Very few players are capable of filling the first or second option role on a championship contending team, and Harden is not one of those players, as I noted 12 years ago after Harden fled Oklahoma City instead of accepting a third option role behind Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook.
Harden is not the only reason that his teams have lost so many elimination games, but he is the biggest reason because of his overall approach to the game: if the purported leader is out of shape, does not play hard, and shrinks in big moments then his teammates are going to follow that example in one or more ways. Leonard, who is candid if dry during his press conferences, admitted that the Clippers' game seven effort was disappointing.
Westbrook lifts his teammates' energy, and Harden deflates his teammates' energy.
At least Leonard went to the post-game press conference. Harden left the arena without speaking to the media, which is not the first time that he has done this after a crushing loss, and is yet another example of how ill-suited he is to the role of being a franchise's best player or second best player; a leader does not shirk responsibility for a loss, and speaks to the media even if he knows that there will be uncomfortable questions.
Jamal Murray poured in a game-high 43 points, Nikola Jokic had a modest (by his lofty standards) triple double (13 points, 12 assists, 10 rebounds), Aaron Gordon scored 23 points on 7-11 field goal shooting, and Russell Westbrook had 21 points off of the bench as the Denver Nuggets dismantled the L.A. Clippers 131-115 to take a 3-2 series lead. Westbrook showed no ill effects from the foot injury that forced him to miss Denver's game three win. The Nuggets jumped out to a 17-6 first quarter lead, never trailed, and were ahead by as many as 22 points before settling for a 16 point victory margin.
Ivica Zubac scored a team-high 27 points on 11-15 field goal shooting, Kawhi Leonard had a near-triple double (20 points, 11 assists, nine rebounds), and Bogdan Bogdanovic added 18 points off of the bench for the Clippers, who melted down in front of their fans who thought that they showed up for a party, not a funeral.
All of the main players for both teams showed up--except for one: James Harden, a member of the NBA's 75th Anniversary Team, was his team's sixth leading scorer in this game. This is deja vu all over again for the Clippers, who are learning that there is at least one other certainty in life besides death and taxes: James Harden disappearing in game five of a 2-2 series. Last year, the Clippers entered game five versus the Dallas Mavericks tied 2-2, and they exited game five trailing 3-2 after a 123-93 loss during which Harden had a triple single (seven points, seven assists, four rebounds) while shooting 2-12 from the field (a frigid February "concert tour") and delivering his trademark "Harden" (a game during which a player has more turnovers than field goals made) with two field goals made and four turnovers. This year, Harden scored 11 points on 3-9 field goal shooting with five assists, four turnovers, and a game-worst -16 plus/minus number, achieving the rare (except for him) feat of logging a "concert tour" field goal percentage and a "Harden" in the same game.
Game five winners in a 2-2 series go on to win the series 81.3% of the
time, so it is fair to say that game five of the Denver Nuggets-L.A.
Clippers series was the biggest game of the season for both teams. Of course, game six is an even bigger game for the Clippers, because if they lose that game then their season is over with a first round exit, a sad finale for a squad that many "experts" lauded as a potential Western Conference Finals participant before the playoffs began.
Daryl Morey compared Harden favorably to Michael Jordan, but in fact Harden is the anti-Jordan: when Jordan played in a pivotal playoff game you knew that he would be very efficient and productive and his team would most likely win, but when Harden plays in a pivotal playoff game you know that he will be inefficient and unproductive and his team will most likely lose. Harden's elimination game resume provides a blueprint for what the Clippers should expect in game six; last year in game six, Harden scored 16 points on 5-16 field goal shooting as the Mavericks ended the Clippers season with a 114-101 defeat.
The Phoenix Suns built a 14 point first half lead, fell behind by 10 points with just 6:13 remaining in the fourth quarter, and then rallied to beat the L.A. Clippers 116-113 in overtime, spoiling the Clippers' home opener in Steve Ballmer's new arena. Kevin Durant led Phoenix with 25 points while also posting a team-high seven turnovers. Bradley Beal scored 24 points on 8-12 field goal shooting, and poured in seven of the Suns' 13 overtime points. Devin Booker had a quiet game (15 points, six assists) by his lofty standards. Tyus Jones did an excellent job in his debut as the team's starting point guard, finishing with 11 points, a game-high tying eight assists, and no turnovers. The Suns squandered many late leads last season due to poor execution down the stretch, so slotting Jones in as the starting point guard is meant to solve that problem, and if this game is any indication then that plan will work out well.
This game was a microcosm of James Harden's career: he filled up the boxscore with empty calories, and he disappeared when it mattered the most. Harden's game-high 29 points, game-high 12 rebounds, and game-high tying eight assists will make every "stat guru" drool, but it is worth noting not only that Harden had a -4 plus/minus number but also when and how he accumulated his numbers, because the great Bill Russell used to emphasize during his time as a CBS commentator the importance of when a player puts up his numbers. Harden was a no-show in the first half with four points on 2-11 field goal shooting as the Suns built a 47-39 halftime lead, forcing the Clippers to expend energy playing from behind. Then, he erupted for 16 points on 5-9 field goal shooting in the third quarter as the Clippers outscored the Suns 35-25 to take a 74-72 lead heading into the fourth quarter. In the fourth quarter with the game up for grabs, Harden had eight points on 3-7 field goal shooting with a team-worst -7 plus/minus number.
The Clippers led 99-90 with 3:52 remaining in the fourth quarter, and then Harden did his thing: he missed a 30 foot three pointer, he missed a floater, he turned the ball over, he missed a layup, and he fouled Durant on a three point play that gave the Suns the lead for the first time in the fourth quarter. Harden then tied the game with a stepback jumper and gave the Clippers a brief lead by hitting a pair of free throws before Durant's fadeaway knotted the score at 103 with 21.2 seconds remaining. Harden missed a floater that could have won the game, and in overtime he did not score a point or deliver an assist. Harden once said that he is not a system player but he is "The system" and that is true if he means that he is "The system" for falling behind early, squandering late leads, disappearing in overtime, and putting up "concert tour" field goal percentages in playoff games.
Unfortunately for the Clippers, their hopes will ride or die with Harden, because two-time NBA Finals MVP (2014, 2019) Kawhi Leonard is out indefinitely with a knee injury. It is becoming increasingly evident that the issue with Leonard is not so much that he is intentionally engaging in load management but that rather he just cannot stay healthy.
In contrast, the Suns have a much sounder foundation, as they are relying on two-time NBA champion/NBA Finals MVP Durant, supported by Booker and Beal, who are excellent as the second and third options respectively. The Suns replaced Frank Vogel, who is an excellent coach, with Mike Budenholzer, who led the Milwaukee Bucks to the 2021 NBA title.
Harden’s Concert Tour Starts on Schedule, Ends Clippers’ Season
Kyrie Irving (30 points, six rebounds, four assists, one turnover) and Luka Doncic (28 points, 13 assists, seven rebounds) led the way on Friday night as the Dallas Mavericks beat the L.A. Clippers 114-101 to advance to the second round of the playoffs. My forthcoming preview of the Oklahoma City-Dallas series will discuss in more detail how well Doncic and Irving performed versus the Clippers, but because the Clippers have "gone fishing" (as the TNT crew puts it) and will not be seen again until next fall this article will focus on yet another "team nobody wants to face" that everybody should want to face.
One unavoidable and sad headline for the Clippers is that Kawhi Leonard just cannot get right physically. Since leading the Toronto Raptors to the 2019 NBA championship, Leonard has had one healthy playoff run (during which the Clippers lost to the Denver Nuggets in game seven in 2020, with Leonard shooting just 6-22 from the field). Leonard missed the last six of the Clippers' 19 playoff games in 2021, missed the entire 2022 season due to injury, missed the last three of the Clippers' five playoff games in 2023, and missed four of the Clippers' six playoff games in 2024. He turns 33 next month, but he seems to have 45 year old knees: Leonard has not played at least 70 games in a regular season since 2016-17. There is no logical reason to believe that he will ever be healthy enough to lead a team on an extended playoff run.
The Clippers' second option is Paul "I call myself Playoff P" George. You can count on one thing from Playoff P: in more than half of his playoff series, he has shot .420 or worse from the field. He was his reliably unreliable self in 2024 versus the Mavericks, shooting .411 from the field, including 6-18 (.333) in game six and 4-13 (.308) in game five.
The best thing that happened to minimize the damage to Playoff P's reputation is that the Clippers signed James Harden to be the starting point guard and be the third scoring option.
This year, Harden disappeared in game five versus the Mavericks and he scheduled a 5-16 concert in game six, scoring just 16 points as the Mavericks wrecked the listing Clippers. With Harden running the show, the Clippers shot .415 from the field, including .258 from three point range. The "stat gurus" rave about Harden's efficiency and insist that we should not rely on the "eye test." So--without even describing all of the ways that Harden ruins an offense and destroys team chemistry--we can just look at his individual numbers and his team's numbers and understand that it is very unlikely that he will ever be the best player (or second best player or third best player) on a legit championship contender. This was not an outlier performance, either--this is yet another line added to Harden's pathetic elimination game resume, which also includes nine points and five turnovers for Philadelphia in a 112-88 loss to Boston last year (that one will be hard for even Harden to top, but I believe that he can do it).
When the best player is out, the second best player disappears, and the third best player disappears, it is not surprising that a team loses. No further explanation is needed (but credit should be given to what Dallas did well, and as noted above, I will discuss that in an upcoming article).
However, I can hear the peanut gallery shouting, "But, but, but, what about Russell Westbrook? How can we blame this whole fiasco on him? The Lakers did it, so why can't the Clippers do it, too?"
There is no sugarcoating the reality that Westbrook did not post good numbers versus the Mavericks; he averaged playoff career-lows across the board—including 19.0
mpg, barely half his career average. A third of his field goal attempts were three pointers, well above his career norm.
It is worth remembering that in last year's playoffs--his first with the Clippers, after joining the team in midseason in the wake of the Lakers shipping him out and trashing his reputation--Westbrook averaged 23.6 ppg, 7.6 rpg, and 7.4 apg. Then, Westbrook played well at the start of this season before the Clippers traded for Harden. The Clippers slumped after Harden arrived, then played better after Westbrook volunteered to be the sixth man so that Harden could dribble the basketball until it was as flat as a pancake as the starting point guard. Westbrook broke his left (non-shooting) hand on March 1, had surgery, and came back in just three weeks. We regularly hear about LeBron James' ankle and other assorted ailments, and there are always injury alibis provided for Anthony Davis and Joel Embiid--but the fact that Westbrook is playing with a recently broken hand is never mentioned. Broken hand recovery time is typically at least two months, which means that the best case scenario is that Westbrook's hand is just now rounding into form--assuming that his injury was typical and that he did not reinjure it during the past five weeks. Whether due to injury or the design--or lack thereof--of the Clippers' offense, Westbrook spent much of the Dallas series camped out behind the three point line. To put it mildly, that is not a skill set strength for Westbrook, who is at his best on the move to the hoop with the ball in his hands. Of course, with Harden and George taking turns monopolizing the ball and bricking shots, there is not much room for Westbrook to get touches on the move.
Again, there is no denying that Westbrook was not productive versus the Mavericks--but it is burying the lede to focus on the fourth option who is playing with a recently broken hand instead of focusing on the chronically injured first option, and the disappearing acts performed by the second and third options.
Speaking of the invisible men, Playoff P has a player option after being tied for the NBA's seventh highest salary in 2024. Some "experts" suggest that the Philadelphia 76ers should use their salary cap space to bring in Playoff P for $50 million per season--and what team does not need a 34 year old with a long history of playoff underperformance? All the 76ers need after signing Playoff P is to bring in Chris Paul, "the best leader in the NBA." Paul's tremendous leadership was fully evident when the Golden State Warriors finished 10th out of 15 teams in the West before losing in the Play-In Tournament.
Harden was a bargain last season, ranking a mere 28th in salary. He is a free agent, and it will be interesting to see who ponies up $30 million or more per season to get an up close view of the full concert tour.
Doncic Shines, Harden Disappears as Mavericks Rout Clippers 123-93 to Take 3-2 Series Lead
"Lookin' at my Gucci, it's about that time."--Beastie Boys, "Time to Get Ill"
Like clockwork, James Harden looked at his Gucci in a pivotal game five and decided it was time to get ill, producing a "Harden" and a "concert tour" in the same contest: more turnovers (four) than field goals made (two)--the "Harden"--and a field goal percentage that looks like a concert tour date (2-12 for an ice cold winter performance). Harden had a game-worst -25 plus/minus number, and his triple single (seven points, seven assists, four rebounds) sealed the L.A. Clippers' fate at home as the Dallas Mavericks ran, jumped, and dunked to a 123-93 win, the worst margin of defeat in Clippers' playoff history. Paul George scored 15 points on 4-13 field goal shooting, and his game-high 11 rebounds were not nearly enough to make up for his anemic scoring, particularly with Kawhi Leonard out due to injury and Harden invisible due to being Harden.
Luka Doncic dominated for Dallas, scoring a game-high 35 points on 14-26 field goal shooting while also dishing for a game-high 10 assists. He outscored George and Harden combined in game five, which is enormously important because the game five winner in a series tied 2-2 goes on to take the series more than 80% of the time. Doncic scored almost as many second half points (20) as George and Harden scored in the entire game combined (22). Doncic has led the league in playoff scoring in each of the past two
seasons, and even though he is hobbling around with various injuries he
is still averaging 30.2 ppg versus the Clippers.
Maxi Kleber added 15 points off of the bench, while Kyrie Irving and Jaden Hardy scored 14 points each.
The Mavericks' excellence under pressure is the main story--along with the reality that Jason Kidd is an underrated coach--but Harden's horrific play must not be ignored. I've been saying it for a decade, but it seems like no one listens and no one learns: no team with James Harden in a key role is going to win a championship--and if you liked game five Harden, wait until you see elimination game Harden.
It was hilarious to watch people get so excited when Harden played reasonably well earlier in this series. Harden was selected to the NBA's 75th Anniversary Team, so there is a responsibility and an expectation for him to play well during playoff games. Keep in mind that Harden was selected over Chris Bosh, Adrian Dantley, Alex English, Artis Gilmore, Dwight Howard, Bernard King, and Tracy McGrady (among others).
It should surprise no one that with the series on the line Harden fell apart, because he has done this over and over and over again.
Harden looked at his Gucci, and he knew it was about that time.
Harden being Harden should not obscure the fact that the self-proclaimed "Playoff P" entered the chat as well. Paul George might be Harden's long lost cousin, because they have the same playoff DNA: when all the chips are down, they fall down. George shot .420 or worse from the field in nine of his 18 playoff series prior to 2024, and he is hovering just above .420 in this series heading into a win or go home game six. In his three playoff games when his team faced elimination since joining the Clippers, George has shot 6-15 (.400), 5-15 (.333), and 4-16 (.250), so it will be fascinating to watch Harden and George work their game six magic on Friday night in Dallas.
"A work of art contains its verification in itself: artificial, strained concepts do not withstand the test of being turned into images; they fall to pieces, turn out to be sickly and pale, convince no one. Works which draw on truth and present it to us in live and concentrated form grip us, compellingly involve us, and no one ever, not even ages hence, will come forth to refute them."--Alexander Solzhenitsyn (Nobel Lecture)
"The most 'popular,' the most 'successful' writers among us (for a brief period, at least) are, 99 times out of a hundred, persons of mere effrontery--in a word, busy-bodies, toadies, quacks."--Edgar Allan Poe
"In chess what counts is what you know, not whom you know. It's the way life is supposed to be, democratic and just."--Grandmaster Larry Evans
"It's not nuclear physics. You always remember that. But if you write about sports long enough, you're constantly coming back to the point that something buoys people; something makes you feel better for having been there. Something of value is at work there...Something is hallowed here. I think that something is excellence."--Tom Callahan
