Shai Gilgeous-Alexander Maintains Sizable NBA MVP Straw Poll Lead Over Victor Wembanyama
OKC의 Shi Gilgeous-Alexander가 MVP 설문 조사에서 1위를 유지하고 있습니다. Victor Wembanyama는 2위로 올라섰네요. 1순위 표를 88표 받아 압도적인 상황입니다.
Apr 3, 2026 7:07 AM
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander continues to lead the NBA Most Valuable Player straw poll with 88 first place votes ahead of Victor Wembanyama who has moved up into second place. Nikola Jokic, Luka Doncic and Jaylen Brown round out the top-5 in that order.
Wembanyama, who has been openly lobbying to win the award, had 63 second place votes and eight first place votes while appearing on every ballot. Jokic received only three first place votes while Doncic received none in the poll.
Ten players received votes in the final MVP straw poll conducted by ESPN's Tim Bontemps and there were only two fourth place votes total for anyone outside the top-5 showing how solidified the top-4 is in the race.
Cade Cunningham was ruled ineligible for the voting with him now certain to not meet the 65-game minimum, while Anthony Edwards became ineligible after the voting. Doncic now sits at 64 games played, but suffered a hamstring injury in Thursday's loss by the Los Angele Lakers to the Oklahoma City Thunder.
Straw Poll Results
1. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (88 first place, 9 second place, 3 third place votes)
2. Victor Wembanyama (8 first place, 63 second place, 19 third place, 9 fourth place, 1 fifth place vote)
3. Nikola Jokic (3 first place, 20 second place, 52 third place, 23 fourth place, 1 fifth place vote)
4. Luka Doncic (6 second place, 24 third place, 59 fourth place, 8 fifth place)
5. Jaylen Brown (1 first place, 2 second place, 2 third place, 7 fourth place, 68 fifth place votes)
6. Kawhi Leonard (1 fourth place votes, 15 fifth place votes)
7. Donovan Mitchell (1 fourth place, 5 fifth place votes)
8. Tyrese Maxey (1 fifth place vote)
8. Jalen Brunson (1 fifth place vote)
8. Anthony Edwards (1 fifth place vote)
Luka Doncic Leaves Loss To Thunder With Strained Hamstring, Will Undergo MRI On Friday
LAL의 Luka Doncic가 OKC 전에서 왼쪽 햄스트링 부상을 당했습니다. MRI 촬영을 할 예정이라고 하네요.
Apr 3, 2026 1:38 AM
Luka Doncic left the Los Angeles Lakers' 139-96 loss to the Oklahoma City Thunder due to a left hamstring strain.
Doncic is scheduled to undergo an MRI on Friday.
Doncic initially appeared to tweak the hamstring late in the first half. Doncic then tweaked it again in the third quarter after planting his leg while dribbling.
Doncic, who missed four games in February with a left hamstring strain, was able to walk off the court on his own.
The guard had 12 points, six assists, and seven turnovers in the game.
Doncic averaged 37.5 points, 8.0 rebounds, and 7.4 assists in March and was named Western Conference Player of the Month.
Kon Knueppel Leads NBA Rookie Of The Year Straw Poll Over Cooper Flagg
샬럿의 Kon Knueppel이 올해의 신인 설문 조사에서 넉넉한 점수 차이로 Cooper Flagg를 제치고 1위를 달리고 있습니다.
Apr 3, 2026 7:26 AM
Kon Knueppel leads Cooper Flagg in the NBA Rookie of the Year race by a comfortable margin in a straw poll conducted by ESPN's Tim Bontemps with 80 first place votes compared to 20 for the Dallas Mavericks franchise player.
Flagg entered the season as a comfortable Rookie of the Year favorite and largely met expectations, but Knueppel has had a historical season as the Charlotte Hornets have surged into the play-in picture. Knueppel is averaging 18.8 points, 5.4 rebounds and 3.4 assists while shooting 43.1 percent on 8.0 three-point attempts per game.
VJ Edgecombe of the Philadelphia 76ers is in third place in the poll.
Rookie of the Year Straw Poll
1. Kon Knueppel (80 first place, 19 second place, 1 third place votes)
2. Cooper Flagg (20 first place, 79 second place, 1 third place votes)
3. VJ Edgecombe (2 second place, 92 third place votes)
4. Dylan Harper (5 third place votes)
5. Derik Queen (1 third place vote)
Jalen Duren, Pistons Both Say They Want Long-Term Deal In Offseason
디트와 Jalen Duren 양측 모두 이번 오프 시즌 장기 계약을 맺기를 원한다고 합니다.
Apr 2, 2026 10:10 PM
Jalen Duren and the Detroit Pistons both say they want a long-term partnership despite failing to reach a contract extension by the deadline last October, making the 22-year-old center a restricted free agent this summer. Both sides insist the impasse was purely a business matter.
"I mean, it was what it was," Duren said. "I think it's tough because there is a business aspect to it. Like I said, I would love to be a Piston for life. It was nothing personal. Nothing I took personal with the organization or anything. It was just business. They felt one way, I felt another. And at that moment we couldn't come to an agreement."
General manager Trajan Langdon echoed that sentiment from the organization's side.
"We want him to be a Piston for life, too," Langdon said. "It had nothing to do with what he had or hadn't done."
The contract situation looms over what has otherwise been a breakthrough season for Duren. He made his first All-Star team in February and is posting career highs across the board, averaging 19.5 points on 64.7 percent shooting and nearly 11 rebounds per game. He ranks among the frontrunners for the league's Most Improved Player award.
Duren has also shouldered the offensive load during Cade Cunningham's eight-game absence due to a collapsed lung, averaging 23.4 points, 10.5 rebounds and 1.8 assists while guiding Detroit to a 6-2 record. The Pistons clinched the Central Division title Tuesday and sit atop the Eastern Conference with six games remaining.
Cunningham and Duren have built one of the league's most promising young duos, traveling together to Italy last summer and deepening a bond that traces back to their AAU and USA Basketball days. Duren has drawn comparisons to the Julian Edelman-Tom Brady dynamic in terms of his deliberate investment in building chemistry with his star teammate.
With the playoffs approaching as the East's top seed, Duren's focus remains on the present despite the unresolved contract situation.
"I just want this team to use its full potential," Duren said. "I want to come out of this season thinking, 'Yeah. We did everything that we wanted to do.'"
Jock Landale Out At Least Two Weeks With High Ankle Sprain
혹스의 Jock Landale이 발목 부상으로 최소 2주 결장이 예상됩니다.
Apr 2, 2026 5:21 PM
Jock Landale sustained a right ankle injury during the fourth quarter of Wednesday night’s 130-101 win by the Atlanta Hawks at the Orlando Magic. Landale has been diagnosed with a right high ankle sprain and will be re-evaluated in approximately two weeks.
Landale will miss at least the remainder of the regular season and an initial play-in game if the Hawks don't finish as at least the sixth seed.
In 69 games this season, Landale is averaging 10.6 points and 5.7 rebounds in 22.1 minutes.
LeBron James Says He Might Have Pulled An 'Eli Manning' If Grizzlies Won 2003 Lottery
LAL의 LeBron James는 만약 2023년 로터리에서 멤피스가 자신을 뽑았다면, 자신은 Eli Manning이 그랬던 것 처럼 멤피스에서 뛰기를 거부했을 것이라 말합니다. 거기에 멤피스가 Nashville로 이전해야 한다고 이야기 하네요.
Apr 2, 2026 5:12 PM
LeBron James suggested he may have refused to play for the Memphis Grizzlies had they won the 2003 NBA Draft lottery, comparing a hypothetical holdout to Eli Manning's refusal to suit up for the San Diego Chargers in the 2004 NFL Draft.
"Their only chance was in 2003 if they would've won the lottery to get me," James said. "And I might've pulled an Eli Manning and not shown up."
The Cleveland Cavaliers won the lottery in 2003 and selected James, where he remained until exiting to the Miami Heat during his 2010 free agency. The Grizzlies jumped up from sixth to second, but their draft pick still went to the Detroit Pistons as it was only top-1 protected. Memphis, who was represented on the dais by Jerry West, lost out on the opportunity to select Dwyane Wade, Chris Bosh or Darko Milicic.
The comments came during a April 2 appearance on the "Bob Does Sports" YouTube channel, where the Lakers star was discussing the difficulties of NBA travel before setting his sights on Memphis.
James did not stop at the Manning comparison as he also called openly for the Grizzlies to relocate to Nashville.
"Memphis on a random ass Thursday," James said. "I'm not like the first guy to even talk about it in the NBA. We all, like, 'You guys have to move. Just go over to Nashville. You got Vanderbilt over there, you got the NASCAR, you got a stadium. Don't they got a hockey team? Like, they've got everything."
James joins a growing list of prominent voices pushing the same narrative. J.J. Redick apologized in 2023 after the topic surfaced on his podcast. Draymond Green called for the move on his own podcast in March. ESPN's Stephen A. Smith has drawn repeated backlash from Memphis residents for similar remarks, recently suggesting Nashville could land a team through NBA expansion.
The relocation debate remains deeply contentious in Memphis.
