NBA Player News

With Jimmy Butler, Bam Adebayo, Tyler Herro, and Kyle Lowry all sidelined, there was no shortage of scoring opportunities for the available Heat players. Oladipo took full advantage, with the 30 points being a season-high. It wasn’t enough to keep the Heat out of the play-in tournament, as they’re locked into the 7-seed and will host Atlanta on Tuesday. Oladipo was one of three Heat reserves to score in double figures, with Jamal Cain (12/7/1/1/1 with one 3-pointer) and Omer Yurtseven (10/6/2/0/1 with two 3-pointers) being the others.

Saturday’s series finale will be the fourth consecutive game that Mitchell has missed since straining his right calf during Game 3 of the Western Conference Finals. Jalen Williams (hamstring) is also out for Game 7, which means the Thunder will once again lean heavily on Jared McCain. Alex Caruso and Isaiah Joe also have added importance due to the absences.

After missing Games 3, 4 and 5 of the Western Conference Finals, J-Dub made his return to action in Thursday’s Game 6. The forward came off the bench and looked like a shell of himself in the 10 minutes that he played. With Ajay Mitchell (calf) also out, Jared McCain will remain in the starting lineup. After scoring 20 points in Game 5, McCain was limited to 13 in Game 6.

Robinson will be available to face either the Spurs or Thunder, and he’ll play with a brace on his hand. New York relies on Robinson for his rebounding and elite defense, so this is certainly a welcomed update for Knicks fans.

Fox missed the first two games of the series with an ankle injury and hasn’t looked 100 percent since returning. While he’s played through injury, his point totals and field goal percentages have declined in all four games he’s played in this series. Fox had 15 points in Game 3, 12 in Game 4, nine in Game 5 and five in Game 6. He’ll likely need to break this trend and score more than five points in Game 7 on Saturday if the Spurs are going to advance to the NBA Finals.

Williams had a rough go of it in his first action since Game 2 of this series. The 25-year-old small forward had one point in 10 minutes and was -18. Williams was clearly playing at less than 100 percent and giving the Thunder what he could. Coach Mark Daigneault said after the game that the Thunder will see how Williams feels about playing Game 7.

Harper’s 18 points in 22 minutes off the bench were absolutely crucial for the Spurs in Game 6. The 20-year-old guard scored more points than any individual player on the Thunder. Harper continues to impress with his play in the playoffs as he’s played beyond his years. Saturday’s Game 7 on the road will surely be his most difficult test yet.

Gilgeous-Alexander’s 15 points were his lowest total all season long and his -28 was his worst since last year’s conference finals. He was 6-of-18 and missed all five of his three-point attempts. Gilgeous-Alexander wasn’t able to bounce back in the second half as the Thunder lost the third quarter 32-13. He’ll need to bounce back in Game 7 on Saturday if the Thunder are going to repeat as Western Conference Champions.

Wembanyama said in his postgame interview that the Spurs haven’t done anything yet. He means that the Spurs haven’t won the series yet, but San Antonio played a nearly flawless Game 6 just to stay alive in this series. The Spurs led wire-to-wire and dominated from the outset, winning the first quarter 35-22. Coming out of halftime, they outscored the Thunder 32-13 in the third quarter. Wembanyama’s 28 points were a game-high. He and the Spurs will play in the NBA’s 160th Game 7 on Saturday.

Williams hasn’t played since injuring his hamstring in Game 2 of the series. He was questionable again for Game 6, but was ultimately ruled in. Jared McCain had 20 points in Game 5 and will start again. Williams won’t start and it’s unclear how many minutes the Thunder might allow him to play off the bench.

Federal prosecutors say Rozier, who played 10 seasons in the NBA, took a roughly $100,000 “bribe” to exit early from a March 2023 Hornets game so a group of sports gamblers could win bets on his props. A lawyer for Rozier denied that he was paid to change his performance. In the game in question, Rozier played 10 minutes, had five points and two assists. He last played for the Heat during the 2024-25 season and was placed on immediate leave following federal indictments last year.