Pro Basketball Talk on NBC Sports podcast

There is no easing into the NBA season. One week into the grind we have Stephen Curry with a fractured hand (on a block/charge play worth discussing), which is bad news but clarifies the path forward in Golden State. Joel Embiid and Karl-Anthony Towns are suspended (this was recorded before the news came down, but we discuss situation). And the first week saw surprises — players such as Trae Young...

Who will take home the NBA MVP hardware this season: Giannis Antetokounmpo? James Harden? Stephen Curry? What about Rookie of the Year? Can anyone top Zion Williamson? What would it take for Ja Morant or anyone else to get into the conversation. Finally, what team will hoist the Larry O'Brien Trophy at the end of the season? Will it be a team from Los Angeles? What about Philadelphia? Milwaukee? C...

What are the odds that one of the teams from Los Angeles is in the NBA Finals? Could the Utah Jazz surprise the Lakers and Clippers, returning to the Finals for the first time since Stockton and Malone? Is it Denver's turn to step up? James Harden and Russell Westbrook in Houston's turn? Maybe Damian Lillard and CJ McCollum? The NBA's Western Conference really is the Wild West this season where an...

Last season the Utah Jazz won 50 games and looked like a team on the rise with Donovan Mitchell and Rudy Gobert leading the way. This summer Utah may not have landed the biggest names, but it had one of the best summers of any team trading for Mike Conley and getting Bojan Bogdanovic in free agency. The Jazz are now a well rounded team with an elite defense and multiple shot creators who can make...

It's easy to select James Harden or Stephen Curry with a high pick in your NBA Fantasy basketball draft, but who are the sleepers to grab in the later rounds? When do you spend a pick on Russell Westbrook in Houston or D'Angelo Russell in Golden State? After Karl-Anthony Towns, who are the centers you can trust to get you points? Tommy Beer of NBC Sports' Rotoworld, and one of the authors of their...

There's a new sheriff in town in Washington, Tommy Sheppard has taken over as GM, but the big question remains: What's the plan? Trade Bradley Beal and go all-in on a rebuild? Or, re-tool on the fly and try to build around Beal? The latter seems to be the goal, Beal is not available in a trade and he wants to stay to try and get a supermax contract extension, Chase Hughes of NBC Sports Washington...

Kevin Durant is gone, switching coasts. Also gone are some of the veterans — Andre Iguodala, Shaun Livingston — that provided depth and continuity. Even gone is Oakland, with the Warriors moving into the brand new Chase Center in San Francisco this season. Everything feels different with the Golden State Warriors, but write them off at your own peril. They still have Stephen Curry and Draymond Gre...

Despite the fact that some of the best NBA players chose to sit out this World Cup — Anthony Davis, James Harden, Damian Lillard — as did the next tier of guys (Bradley Beal, Kevin Love), this was still a talented USA Basketball roster that was the tournament favorite. Then they got bounced by the French in the quarterfinals — Team USA will not even medal. What went wrong? Kurt Helin of NBC Sports...

What is the NBA going to look like in five years? Who will be the game's best players? The All-Stars, the guys on the cover of 2K24, the guys with signature shoe deals? As a fun summer project, the NBA team at NBCSports.com pulled out our crystal balls and tried to project forward who would be the 50 best players in the NBA in five years — in the summer of 2024. In this episode, Dan Feldman and Ku...

What is the NBA going to look like in five years? Who will be the game's best players? The All-Stars, the guys on the cover of 2K24, the guys with signature shoe deals? As a fun summer project, the NBA team at NBCSports.com pulled out our crystal balls and tried to project forward who would be the 50 best players in the NBA in five years — in the summer of 2024. In this podcast, Rob Dauster from N...

LeBron James & Anthony Davis. Kawhi Leonard & Paul George. James Harden & Russell Westbrook. The wildest, most roller coaster summer ended up leaving the NBA looking like a real-life version of NBA Jam with elite duos all over the league. Not just the guys who changed teams, but returning combos such as Stephen Curry & Draymond Green or Nikola Jokic & Jamal Murray or Joel Embiid & Ben Simmons. Kur...

Kawhi Leonard will tip the balance of power in the NBA with his decision. Torn Achilles or not, Kevin Durant has suitors lined up around the block to give him max money — and he may not meet with any of them. Will Jimmy Butler take the fifth year with the Sixers? Will Philly put that on the table for Butler, and what about Tobias Harris? Is Kemba Walker really headed to Boston or is Michael Jordan...

Zion Williamson went No. 1, as he should. The Pelicans got the guy who could turn that franchise around (and maybe save the NBA in New Orleans). Ja Morant to the Grizzlies and R.J. Barrett to the Knicks at No.2 and 3 were expected and solid picks. But after that, in a flat 2019 NBA Draft, things got weird. Gonzaga's Rui Hachimura to the Wizards at No. 9 was a surprise, but not as big Cameron Johns...

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Kurt Helin was joined by the host of the College Basketball Talk podcast, Rob Dauster, for a thorough breakdown of the NBA draft. The two walk through every single pick in the first round of the draft, talking through team needs and which players fit those needs. The first ten picks are broken down over on the College Basketball Talk feed -- you can find that here -- while the final 20 picks are r...

The Golden State Warriors are looking to add to their legacy as one of the most dominant teams of an era in NBA history. The Toronto Raptors are in their first Finals ever but led by a guy who already has one Finals MVP trophy. The NBA Finals are here and it's a fascinating matchup. When does Kevin Durant return and how much does he change this series if and when he does get on the court? What abo...

Will Kyrie Irving stay in Boston? If not, what is Plan B? Is Jimmy Butler back in Philadelphia next season? If he is will Tobias Harris be back? What are the next steps to turn Denver into a contender. Kurt Helin of NBC Sports and Keith Smith of Yahoo Sports break down those three teams recently turned out of the playoffs. They also start off talking about teams actually in the playoffs, particula...

Toronto controlled the tempo when it mattered and — thanks to Kawhi Leonard — ground out a 7-game win against Philadelphia, but can they do the same thing against Milwaukee? Does Portland even stand a chance against Golden State? Does Durant missing the start of this series open the door even a little? Probably not on that last question, but Kurt Helin and Dan Feldman break down both NBA Conferenc...

Watch the Game 7 coming up between Portland and Denver and you will see a few players — Seth Curry for the Blazers, Torrey Craig for Denver — contributing for their teams, guys who were not highly sought after lottery picks, they weren't drafted at all. How does a guy like that get noticed? How does a player not drafted in the first 45 (if at all) get the attention of a team, make a Summer League...

Giannis Antetokounmpo and the Bucks adjusted, Kyrie Irving and the Celtics can't score, and suddenly the Bucks are in charge up 3-1 and seem headed to the next round — this is the most clear cut, and still maybe the most interesting series of the second round. Then there is the back-and-forth series between Philadelphia and Toronto — where Kawhi Leonard has been otherworldly — that seems destined...

Boston vs. Milwaukee. Philadelphia vs. Toronto. Houston vs. Golden State. The first round of the NBA playoffs had plenty of emotion — just ask Damian Lillard and Russell Westbrook — but it was short, with very possibly only one series going at least six games. The second round? That's not going to be so quick, and it is filled with even matchups that present a lot of questions. Is this the Rockets...

Can Indiana upset Boston? What about the Thunder as they take on the shorthanded Trail Blazers? And who comes out on top when Houston and Utah face off? Steve Kyler of Basketball Insiders joins NBC Sports' Kurt Helin to talk the first round of the playoffs and the rash of fired coaches right as the season ended. They also talk about the Basketball 101 program, part of the Professional Basketball C...

James Harden or Giannis Antetokounmpo for MVP? Rudy Gobert or Paul George for Defensive Player of the Year? For the first time in more than a decade, is LeBron James not going to make All-NBA First Team? This year's NBA end of season awards have some challenging choices and debates, and Kurt Helin and Dan Feldman of NBC Sports get into all of them. And no, Hawks fans, Trae Young playing good for h...

It's being treated as a foregone conclusion: The Golden State Warriors will be the NBA champions. Again. A three-peat and four-in-five years. It probably should be, but is there any team in the Western Conference that puts some fear in the hearts of the Warriors? What about Milwaukee or Boston out of the East? Mark Medina, Warriors beat writer for the San Jose Mercury News and Bay Area News Group...

CJ McCollum was already out (maybe for the rest of the regular season) when Portland center and third-best player Jusuf Nurkic went down with a horrific leg injury. Where does that leave Damian Lillard and Portland heading into these playoffs? Have they become the team everyone else wants to face in the first round now? Beyond that, what happens this summer in Portland? Do they keep the core toget...