Mandakranta Bhattacharya

Tyrese Haliburton drove past Giannis Antetokounmpo and banked in a layup with 1.3 seconds left in overtime, lifting the Pacers to a 119-118 win over the Bucks in Game 5 of the 2025 NBA Playoffs on April 29. Indiana erased a seven-point overtime deficit with an 8-0 run. Andrew Nembhard hit a corner 3-pointer, then stole the inbound pass to set up the comeback. The Bucks, playing without Damian Lillard (Achilles), committed back-to-back turnovers in the final 30 seconds. Haliburton, who had struggled late in regulation, delivered in the final seconds. His layup capped one of the Pacers’ most dramatic…

According to a report released on Monday, the Phoenix Suns have quietly scouted Indiana’s star center, Myles Turner, as part of their offseason plans. NBA insider Jake Fischer says Phoenix “has done some background work” on a Myles Turner trade (along with Celtics big Kristaps Porziņģis). They search for a floor-spacing center and seek a landing spot for Kevin Durant. The buzz comes amid ongoing Durant trade speculation and Phoenix’s commitment to build around Devin Booker. Phoenix’s interest in Turner is rooted in roster fit. Turner stands tall at 7 feet and packs a punch as the league’s top three-point…

The Orlando Magic swooped in and snagged guard Desmond Bane from the Memphis Grizzlies on Sunday, in a huge Father’s Day swap. ESPN insider Shams Charania initially broke the news of the deal, noting Orlando ships Cole Anthony, Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, and four future first-round picks. Magic President Jeff Weltman confirmed the move Monday morning. Jeff Weltman spoke with Mike Bianchi and gave some insight into the blockbuster trade that went Desmond Bane to Orlando on Father’s Day. Check out some of his quotes from the interview. pic.twitter.com/Mc44QjNwPd— Orlando Magic HQ (@OMagicHQ) June 16, 2025 Orlando’s bench boss Jamahl Mosley and…

The NBA scouts and discovers talent wherever it may be in the world, and Serbia has long been something special in the cosmos of basketball, offering stars who are a particular ray of light on the N.B.A.’s international stage. Here, we delve into the Serbia NBA players list to highlight some of these exceptional talents. Serbia-born NBA players have a strong crop of players in 2024-25. The collection of Serbia players isn’t just the NBA champions, though; it’s also the up-and-coming young talent that entered the league through the draft. Meanwhile, Serbian players still control the league for talent and international heritage. Here…

When the NBA regular season wraps up in mid-April, playoff-bound teams enter a short but crucial break. The week between the last game and Game 1 is a blend of rest, recovery, and preparation.  Staff review NBA substitution strategy to optimize player rotations during games. Coaches give their players downtime while their staff dives into evaluation reports. As Golden State’s Steve Kerr explained after the Warriors’ season finale, the team was “idle Wednesday” as “we have a good film to watch,” and those extra days off “allowed us to get our feet on the ground” for the playoffs. Every authorization…

When an NBA team drafts a player, that team earns exclusive NBA draft rights to sign him. Many international prospects are drafted but remain overseas to develop. In practice, if the team does not immediately sign the player, it can retain those rights indefinitely (usually by extending a qualifying contract offer each year). This is often called “draft-and-stash”. For example, Chicago acquired Nikola Mirotic’s draft rights in 2011, and he didn’t arrive in the NBA until 2014. Similarly, Philadelphia held Dario Saric’s rights after drafting him in 2014 and only signed him two years later. These cases highlight how NBA…

Teams plan their draft strategy well in advance. The 14 teams that missed the playoffs are entered into the Draft Lottery. The rest of the draft order is set by win-loss record. This means a struggling team can move ahead through luck: in the 2025 lottery, each of the three teams with the worst records had about a 14% chance at the first pick. After the lottery, teams alternate picks based on their standings. Overall, the draft is how teams with cap space and rosters need to build for the future. NBA Draft Format & Structure The NBA Draft format…