NBA Player News

They traded up to get him on draft night but had to let someone go. His $510,000 salary would have become guaranteed had they not released him.

Wagner is still officially listed as questionable with a right calf strain. It’s not looking good for the 24-year-old forward’s availability, though. Wagner missed shootaround Wednesday morning and Banchero told reporters the team doesn’t expect him to play. Jamal Cain, Anthony Black and Tristan da Silva are all candidates to pick up minutes with Wagner expected to be out.

Wagner left the Magic’s Game 4 win after scoring 19 points in 24 minutes with a right calf strain and didn’t return. The 24-year-old small forward is officially questionable for Game 5 against the Pistons on Wednesday. Wagner hasn’t been ruled out, but his lack of participation in shootaround isn’t a good sign. If Wagner sits, Jamal Cain, Anthony Black and Tristan da Silva are all candidates for increased minutes.

Charania reports that even if the Lakers advance to face the Thunder in the second round of the NBA Playoffs, Dončić is expected to remain out to begin the series. While the 27-year-old point guard has done on-court work, he hasn’t progressed to full scrimmages yet, according to Charania. Dončić’s return was described by Charania as a slow path, which also doesn’t inspire confidence for a speedy recovery. He last appeared in a game for the Lakers on April 2.

Fox fell one assist shy of a double-double, but he was still able to make a big impact on offense. He was quiet in the first three games of the series, but he got things going on offense over the last two, with averages of 24.5 points, 8.0 assists and 3.0 triples while shooting 61.3 percent from the floor. It is good to see him figure things out before the second round, which will be against either the Nuggets or the Timberwolves, depending on how that series finishes.

Wembanyama didn’t do much scoring in this game, but he was still able to make a monster impact. He dominated that glass and continued to swat plenty of shots; over the final two games of this series, Wemby recorded 13 blocks. Clearly, the concussion doesn’t seem to be bothering him, and with this series over, he’ll get some extra time to get back to full strength before the second round beings. They’ll await the winners of the Nuggets-Timberwolves series.

Champagnie got off to a hot start, scoring 14 points in the first half alone. He didn’t contribute much after the break, but he was still able to have a strong night, which was enough to help the Spurs secure the win and advance to the second round. This was Champagnie’s first double-digit outing of the postseason, which was a nice boost, though he likely won’t continue to produce to this level consistently.

Avdija enjoyed a breakout season, which led to his first All-Star appearance. He also guided the Blazers back to the playoffs for the first time since 2021, though that season has now come to a close. He was red-hot entering the playoffs, but the top-tier Spurs defense made things difficult for him, which limited his production. Avdija was selected in the fifth round in Yahoo! leagues, but it will likely take an earlier selection to nab him in fantasy drafts next season.

It has been a few seasons since Williams was playing a full-time role, but he is a player that can make a massive impact in limited minutes. That was on full display in this series, and while it wasn’t enough for the Trail Blazers to pull the upset, he is clearly still a valuable player. He’s set to be a free agent this summer, which will be a complex situation, given his injury history. Wherever he ends up, he’ll likely make a big impact on a value contract.

Henderson’s first playoff appearance had some good moments but ended on a sour note. Through the first three games, he averaged 23.3 points and 4.0 triples, which had many people thinking he was finally showing some of the potential that made him the No. 3 pick in 2023. However, he was held scoreless in Game 4, and while he was able to get some points on the board in this one, he was benched for the end of the game and limited to 17 minutes. Henderson is still only 22 years old and has plenty of time to figure things out, but he’s going to have to make a major leap heading into next season to convince the Blazers he’s still an important part of their future.

Anunoby has been excellent all series, and he has made his presence felt on both ends of the floor. He has averaged 20 points, 9.0 rebounds, 1.4 steals, 1.2 blocks and 2.6 triples while shooting 56.9 percent from the floor through the first five games, which includes a double-double in both Games 4 and 5. He should continue to make a massive impact in Game 6 on Thursday as the Knicks look to close out the series.