(Basketball news) The NBA welcomed its newest rookies to the league on Thursday night during the 2022 draft from Barclays Center in Brooklyn. There were some surprising selections with Orlando Magic acquiring Paolo Banchero as the top pick. While Jabari Smith of Auburn, who was widely expected to go as the first pick, but he was picked up at No. 3 spot by the Houston Rockets.

Draft night also experienced some trades as the Oklahoma City Thunder made a trade with the New York Knicks for the No. 11 pick and Ousmane Dieng for three future conditional first-round picks. In another draft-day trade, it saw the Detroit Pistons acquire No. 13 pick Jalen Duren and Knicks veteran point guard Kemba Walker in what was a three-team deal. The 76ers reportedly moved Danny Green and the No. 23 pick to the Grizzlies as part of a trade to acquire De’Anthony Melton, which indirectly strengthened their back court

1. Orlando Magic: Paolo Banchero, Duke

The Magic need some help on the offensive end, their team finished last season 28th in field goal percentage, 28th in free throws, 27th in offensive rebounding percentage and 23rd in turnovers. Paolo Banchero is a player who brings all these skills to the table and he can add versatility to the Magic’s offense with his physical attributes. He can pass, handle the ball, drive to the basket and finish with some solid footwork. In this draft he was easily the most NBA-ready player among the top five projected picks. Banchero stands at 6ft 10, he averaged 17.2 points on 47.8% shooting from the field, in addition to 7.8 rebounds, 3.2 assists and 1.1 steals in his only season at Duke and was coached by the legendary Mike Krzyzewski’ in his final season in charge..

2. Oklahoma City Thunder: Chet Holmgren, Gonzaga

Holmgren has immense potential to become an NBA All star with an impressive all-around skill set for a modern NBA big man nowadays. With his elite rim protection and shot-blocking, he fills an immediate deficiency in the Thunder squad; he acts as an interior defender. He has a versatile offensive game and has shown the NBA scouts that he can handle the ball pretty well, and also shoot from the three point line. Holmgren will need to add strength to reach his peak on offense, but the Thunder can give him time to develop behind their franchise players Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Josh Giddey.

3. Houston Rockets: Jabari Smith, Auburn

Jabari Smith was widely expected to be the No. 1 pick but instead was selected by the Houston Rockets at 3. He had only worked out for the Magic and the Oklahoma City Thunder in the recent tryouts. This season at the NCAA tournament, Smith averaged 42% on his 3-pointers (5.5 attempts), which could make him at the Rockets. At his size, he is difficult to defend and was subsequently the best defender at Auburn this season.

4. Sacramento Kings: Keegan Murray, Iowa

With the Sacramento Kings already having a point guard in place with De’Aaron Fox, the Kings bypassed Jaden Ivey and picked up Keegan Murray as he is an efficient wing scorer.  Murray, who improved significantly from his freshman to sophomore seasons, averaged 23.6 points, 8.7 rebounds and 1.9 blocks per game while shooting 55% from the field and 39.8% on 3-pointers. Murray at the age of 21, is the oldest player to get drafted this year and could have an immediate impact for Sacramento be off the bench or in the playing 5. Like Banchero, Murray is also a NBA-ready player

5. Detroit Pistons: Jaden Ivey, Purdue

Jaden Ivey only worked out for the Pistons and Magic in the tryouts. He uses his speed to get past the defenders, any NBA defender will have a  hard time slowing Ivey down in transition. He can explode into the lane similar to Ja Morant and has a similar playing style like him. He is the son of Niele Ivey, the women’s basketball coach at Notre Dame and a former women’s college champion herself. 

The list of first rounds picks are:

1. Magic: Paolo Banchero
2. Thunder: Chet Holmgren
3. Rockets: Jabari Smith Jr.
4. Kings: Keegan Murray
5. Pistons: Jaden Ivey
6. Pacers: Benedict Mathurin
7. Trail Blazers: Shaedon Sharpe
8. Pelicans (from Lakers): Dyson Daniels
9. Spurs: Jeremy Sochan
10. Wizards: Johnny Davis
11. Thunder (from Knicks): Ousmane Dieng
12. Thunder (from Clippers): Jalen Williams
13. Pistons (from Hornets): Jalen Duren
14. Cavaliers: Ochai Agbaji
15. Hornets (from Pelicans): Mark Williams
16. Hawks: AJ Griffin
17. Rockets (from Nets): Tari Eason
18. Bulls: Dalen Terry
19. Grizzlies (from Timberwolves): Jake LaRavia
20. Spurs (from Raptors): Malaki Branham
21. Nuggets: Christian Braun
22. Timberwolves (from Grizzlies): Walker Kessler
23. Grizzlies (from 76ers): David Roddy
24. Bucks: MarJon Beauchamp
25. Spurs (from Celtics): Blake Wesley
26. Timberwolves (from Mavericks): Wendell Moore Jr.
27. Heat: Nikola Jović
28. Warriors: Patrick Baldwin Jr.
29. Rockets (from Grizzlies): TyTy Washington Jr.
30. Nuggets (from Suns): Peyton Watson

Also read: Golden State Warriors clinch their 4th NBA Championship in 8 years

(Basketball news) The Golden State continued from where they left off before the All Star break as they destroyed the Portland Trail Blazers 132-95. For the Warriors, Stephen Curry had 18 points and 14 assists as Klay Thompson also had 18 points for the Warriors, the Warriors at the end of the match had 8 players in double digits scoring. For the Trailblazers, Anfernee Simons had 24 points for Portland as they had won four straight going into the break. With this result the Warriors improved their record to 43-17 and sit comfortably in second place in the Western Conference table.

'It was a good way to kind of come back from the break and establish ourselves on both ends of the floor,'' Curry said.

''Steph was brilliant tonight,'' Warriors coach Steve Kerr said. ''I loved his patience and the way he ran the team tonight. He played a beautiful game.''

''(Curry) has always been able to pass like this. His scoring is so good it can get overlooked sometimes,'' Thompson said.

''I thought they played hard and they played well, they just came up against a juggernaut,'' Billups said. ''They kind of took off on us there, they had 39 points in the second quarter, that really hurt us and we could never really recover.''

The Phoenix Suns won their 8th consecutive match against the Oklahoma City Thunder 124-104. For the Suns, Devin Booker had 25 points, 12 assists and a career-high six steals as Cameron Johnson and Mikal Bridges each scored 21 points for the Suns, who have won 19 of 20. For the OKC, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander led them with 32 points on his return as Rookie guard Josh Giddey, who had 15 points, nine rebounds and six assists. At this moment the Suns are the best team in the league by a mile and they are consistently winning matches for fun. With this result the Suns improved their record to 49-10 and sit on top of the Western Conference table.

''I thought Devin managed the game well,'' Suns coach Monty Williams said.

''I feel like we can only get better from this,'' Suns forward Jae Crowder said. ''Obviously, we've put ourselves in a position to have a cushion. But at the same time, we're playing for something. We're playing purposeful basketball each and every night.''

'Love playing with him,'' Giddey said. ''I think that chemistry is getting better and better over time. I think in a few years, we're going to be one of the best backcourts in the league. So growing with him is something I love doing.''

''The good thing is, we got that game out of the way,'' Williams said. ''I thought we had some rust in the pipes tonight, and we were able to get some of that out and get used to Book (Booker) playing some point.''

Also read: Team LeBron wins over Team Durant as Steph Curry won the Kobe Bryant MVP award

The other results were:

• Pistons 106 - 103 Cavs
• Nets 106 - 129 Celtics
• Timberwolves 119 - 114 Grizzlies
• Bulls 112 - 103 Hawks
• Kings 110 - 128 Nuggets

Tomorrow’s fixtures are:

• Pacers vs Thunder
• Magic vs Rockets
• Hornets vs Raptors
• Wizards vs Spurs
• Knicks vs Heat
• Timberwolves vs 76ers
• Suns vs Pelicans
• Jazz vs Mavericks
• Lakers vs Clippers
• Pistons vs Celtics
   

(Basketball news) The Charlotte Hornets only inflicted the Warriors their second loss of the season as they lost 106-102. Terry Roizer finished with 20 points which he scored all in the second half, Miles Bridges added 22 and LaMelo Ball added 21 in what was a total team performance from the Hornets. For the Warriors, Andrew Wiggins scored 28 points on 12 of 19 shooting and Steph Curry added 24 points and 10 assists in his annual homecoming game, the contest was tense as the lead changed hands 25 times but in the end the effort came up short. With this result Warriors stay on top of the Western Conference with a record of 11-2 and as for the Hornets they improve their record to 8-7.

Rozier said “This says a lot for our team and where we are headed, We are trying to go places and get our organization like theirs. This is a great step to where we think we want to go. I think it is more like the timing of the ball, I definitely wanted it because I had just turned the ball over and it was like everybody in the whole gym was looking at No. 3. I just wanted to try to make a play for our team and it worked out.''

The Lakers rallied back from an embarrassing loss against the Timberwolves to bounce back and win 114-106 against the San Antonio Spurs. Anthony Davis top scored with 34 points and 15 rebounds, Talen Horton Tucker making his season debut scored 17 points as Carmelo Anthony and Wayne Ellington both had 15 points each. The Lakers have improved their record to 3-3 since LeBron James was sidelined on Nov 4 because of an abdominal strain. Dejounte Murray had a triple-double for the Spurs with 22 points with 10 rebounds and 10 assists. Keldon Johnson scored 24 points. Murray's other triple-double came in the previous meeting against the Lakers. San Antonio lost for the fifth time in its last seven games and fell in the opener of consecutive games at Los Angeles.

Spurs coach Gregg Popovich said, “I was really happy with their effort. Too many turnovers tonight against those guys, but we never gave in. They kept playing, they're getting better. They've got to keep their energy up.''

Lakers head coach Frank Vogel said about Horton-Tucker “We have a strong belief in that young man and what he can do on both sides of the ball. Obviously, when we get whole, we have a log of good choices, but he's going to be a big part of it”

Brooklyn Nets beat the Thunders 120-96 as Kevin Durant made himself at home again in Oklahoma City. Kevin Durant top scored with 33 points as the league's scoring leader made 9 out of 17 shots and had 8 rebounds, James Harden also chipped into the act with 16 points and 13 assists but the actual star of the show was Patty Mills scoring 29 points and a career high nine 3 pointers for the Nets. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander scored 23 points for the Thunder, and Lu Dort added 20. Oklahoma City had won four straight before losing today. With this result Nets improve their record to 10-4 in the Eastern Conference and are in second position behind the Wizards. 

Durant enjoyed his return and said, ''You think about the foundation and how you built yourself up as a pro, and this is definitely the spot for me. It taught me all about what it means to be a pro. The people here and the organization really guided me as a young player. That set the foundation for where I am today. There are a lot of great memories coming back, seeing a lot of people. It's good to see folks here and play in front of the crowd . I had a good time”

Durant added by saying, 'It's crazy how stuff happens. “You never thought when James got traded - I didn't know what the future would hold. For us to come back around on the same team as we got older is pretty sweet ... We helped build this thing. It's good to come in here and see what it is today”

The other results were:

• Hawks 120 - 100 Bucks
• Rockets 89 - 115 Suns
• Nuggets 124 - 95 Trail Blazers
• Clippers 90 - 100 Bulls

The fixtures for tomorrow are:

• Wizards vs Pelicans
• Cavaliers vs Celtics
• Knicks vs Pacers
• Hawks vs Magic
• Mavericks vs Nuggets
• Thunder vs Heat
• Lakers vs Bulls
• Trail Blazers vs Raptors
   

(Basketball news) New York Knicks continued their fine start to the NBA season as they beat the unbeaten Chicago Bulls 104-103, Kemba Walker again top scored with 21 points, RJ Barrett also added 20 points to hand Bulls their first loss this season. The victory wasn’t easy for the Knicks, it boiled down to the last possession after the Bulls went on a 12-0 run in the final minutes to nearly tie the score in the end. The Knicks literally had a 104-91 advantage with 3 minutes to play as DeMar DeRozan and Zach Lavine almost inspired a comeback, Zach Lavine top scored for the Bulls with 25 points but the major worry for the fans is that he tore his ligament in his left thumb.

New York coach Tom Thibodeau said, “Right now, we're still getting a feel for each other, every game we're getting better and better. I love the fact that everyone is sacrificing for the team and putting the team first. That's how you win big in his league.''

LaVine said, “It was a good game. It was our first real test and it came down to that last shot. We fought back. I just wish we got into it a little sooner where we could take a lead.''

Golden State Warriors suffered their first loss of the season after they lost to the young and spirited Memphis Grizzlies in overtime 104-101, this was a repeat of the play in game from five months ago that Grizzlies won 117-112 in overtime. Steph Curry scored 36 points but went scoreless in the fourth quarter and in overtime as Ja Morant and co took advantage of this and outscored their opponents. Ja Morant top scored with 30 points with 11-22 shooting, Desmond Bane scored 19 valuable points to snap a two match winless streak for Memphis Grizzlies.

Curry said after the match “The last two shots in regulation, the last one, the game-winner, looked good, those are two shots I'd take every day of the week. Overtime, I think I pressed a little bit, maybe settled a little bit, especially when I didn't have it going from 3, and not getting into the paint and getting my runners off, getting the ball moving. Little critical of myself on those last three shots.''

Miami Heat beat the Brooklyn Nets 106 - 93, Bam Adebayo top scored with 24 points and nine rebounds to better their record to 3 wins and 1 loss. Preseason favourites Nets haven’t had a good start to the season as Kevin Durant did his best with 25 points and 11 rebounds but in the end it was too much for him to do alone, a worrying sign for the Nets fan would be the slow start James Harden is off to as Kyrie Irving still remains unavailable.

Durant said, “I like how we're playing defense the last couple games, I like where our defense is trending. ... I feel like we're generating good shots. We're just (not) knocking them down. If we continue to generate good shots we'll put ourselves in good position”

Los Angeles Lakers suffered their third loss of the season to OKC as Shai Gilgeous Alexander scored 27 points to take them to a 123-115 win. The Oklahoma City Thunder were down by 26 points at one stage as they rallied from behind, this equaled the Thunders biggest comeback in franchise history, to subsequently this was also their first victory of the season.. Early on Westbrook and Anthony Davis dominated the proceedings as they scored 20 and 30 points respectively, Westbrook also managed his first triple double in a Lakers uniform before getting ejected in the final seconds.

Gilgeous-Alexander said Oklahoma City never considered giving up, ''It's a 48-minute game, Crazier things have happened. ... So we knew it was possible. I myself have come back from a deficit almost that big, so I knew it was possible. Just stay the course. Every game, every moment for the whole season.''

Also read: NBA: Lakers win back to back games as Warriors maintain their perfect start to the season

Other significant results were:

• Mavericks 104 - 99 Spurs
• Rockets 91 - 122 Jazz
• 76ers 110 - 102 Pistons
• Wizards 122 - 111 Hawks
• Bucks 108 - 113 Timberwolves

The fixtures to look for tomorrow are:

• Heat vs Hornets
• Nets vs Pacers
• Lakers vs Cavaliers
• Nuggets vs Mavericks
• Raptors vs Magic

 

(Basketball news) Lakers won their second match in a row over Spurs 124-121, Lebron James opted to sit out this game after he suffered a minor injury against the Grizzlies. Anthony Davis had 35 points and Russell Westbrook added 33 points and 10 rebounds to help the Lakers get an overtime win over San Antonio Spurs. Dejounte Murry recorded his fifth career triple double as it wasn’t enough for them to get over the line. Westbrook arguably had his best in a Laker uniform as he got the freedom to run the offence in the absence of Lebron James, Malik Monk also had a fine performance as he hit the game tying three with 58.6 seconds remaining, he finished the night with 17 points scoring 4 three pointers.

With this result the Lakers have two wins and two losses as the team finally looks to be playing to its full potential. Westbrook said post match, ”One thing the coach always emphasizes to us is togetherness. When [the Spurs] made a run, we stuck together. We locked in on our defensive principles, got some stops and made a run of our own and it made the ballgame.”

Frank Vogel commented after the match saying, “We just got more determined on the defensive end. I thought Dwight had some really great possessions, impacted plays at the rim, and getting some deflections and obviously, Russ was, I think huge during that stretch attacking the rim. He and AD both just had monster nights and we never lost belief, even when we were down, that we were going to win the game. We persevered and got a huge road win.”  

The New York Knicks continued their fine start to the season by 112-99 against the Philadelphia 76ers, new boys Kemba Walker and Evan Fouriner again lit up Madison square garden with 19 and 18 points respectively and in doing so they also helped snap out of a 15 game losing streak against the 76ers. The 76ers were again without Ben Simmons who is still looking to find a new franchise as Tobias Harris top scored in the game with 23 points. With this result Knicks improved their record with 3 wins and 1 loss and as for the 76ers they stayed on 2-2

Warriors continued their unbeaten start to the season by winning 106-98 against OKC as Curry top scored with 23 points but had to rally in the second half to get the victory. Steve Kerr’s side have been super clinical over the past week, winning comprehensively against good oppositions as Curry has been averaging close to 30 points a game. For OKC Shai Gilgeous Alexander top scored with 30 points on 11 of 19 shooting but it still wasn’t enough to get the much needed victory the franchise needs. With this result Warriors sit on top of the Western Conference with 4 wins out of 4, as for OKC they have lost all four matches.

Kerr after the match said. “We knew we were going to take him out midfirst, buy him a few minutes, hopefully do the same in the third, but I didn't feel comfortable doing that, we were still climbing uphill a little bit. We talked to the team in our meeting today at the hotel about exactly what to expect. This is a team that came in 0-3, they played Philly pretty tough in the fourth quarter (on Sunday) and the crowd was into it. They're NBA players. They're all great players or they wouldn't be in the league.''

Also read: NBA: Last years finalist Phoenix Suns lose to Denver Nuggets as both the Bulls and Knicks win

The other significant results were:

• Mavericks 116 - 106 Rockets
• Jazz 122 - 110 Nuggets
• Clippers 116 - 86 Trail Blazers
• Bulls 111- 108 Raptors

The fixtures to look forward to tomorrow are:

• Magic vs Hornets
• Nets vs Heat 
• Pelicans vs Hawks
• Raptors vs Pacers
• Celtics vs Wizards
• Bucks vs Timberwolves
• Thunder vs Lakers
• Clippers vs Cavaliers
   

The Chesapeake Energy Arena witnessed a record that hadn’t been broken since the 1985-86 season when the Lakers won their 7th successive game on the road. The reigning champions looked dominant throughout in what can only be described as a complete performance. The 36 year old Lebron James stood out from the pack with 26 points, 7 assists and 6 rebounds, despite the fact that he was almost a decade older than most Thunder players, showing his quality with five out of eight successful attempts behind the arc. Anthony Davis got 18 points and 7 rebounds and has been leading the charge for the Lakers from Houston to Oklahoma. Montrezl Harrell also dropped a defensive masterclass with 21 points and 6 rebounds in a space of 25 minutes. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander put up a spirited display for the Oklahoma City Thunder with 17 points, but couldn't influence the result that seemed destined for a Lakers win. The Los Angeles side will be facing the New Orleans Pelicans at Staples Center hoping to carry on their form and momentum to extend their winning streak to five.