PORTLAND, Ore. — For the first time in his career, CJ McCollum knows what the opposing locker room inside the Moda Center looks like.

McCollum was a member of the Portland Trail Blazers for the first 8 1/2 seasons he was in the NBA. After being dealt at the deadline, he’s now a member of the New Orleans Pelicans and with his new team in town to face his old one, things were a little different Wednesday morning.

“It’s weird, man,” McCollum said of being in Portland as a visitor. “Some of the setting in which you operate is just unique. … It’s a part of the game. I’m looking forward to getting to the game tonight.”

McCollum said he was able to sleep in his own bed last night. Although his wife, Elise, and his young son were in New Orleans last week, it was the first time he was able to see his dog since the trade.

It was all a touch of home, even though he’s about to try and defeat his former squad. And that squad will look a little different with former teammates like Damian Lillard and Jusuf Nurkic out for the game.

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“Yeah, not as fun,” McCollum said about not having to face those guys. “Won’t be as fun. They’ll be back eventually though.”

Since the trade, McCollum has thrived in his role as lead guard with the Pelicans. In 19 games, McCollum is averaging 25.9 points, 6.5 assists and 4.9 rebounds — all of which would be career highs if they were over the course of the season.

McCollum said the situation in New Orleans is “exactly how I thought it would be.”

“It was a team I kind of zeroed in on and they obviously zeroed in on me,” McCollum said. “I knew what I signed up for and what I was going to be asked to do, and I’m doing it. They held up their end of the bargain as well. I’m happy to be in this situation.”

McCollum said he’s looking at Wednesday’s game as the “final closure” for the this chapter. He said while he had some closure when he first left after talking with teammates, tonight will help.

“I had conversations and was able to talk to some of my teammates and obviously I still talk to them to this day,” McCollum said. “I talked with the staff. It’ll be good to see Chauncey, talk about our teams. Talk about our football teams. Just kind of catch up and get back to business. Get the win and get outta here.

“This is the final step. You know this is going to happen at some point. But it’s good that it’s happy emotions opposed to the opposite. I like to call it a happy breakup. One where you’re not bitter at your ex.”

The game comes at an important time for New Orleans, which is battling with the San Antonio Spurs and the Los Angeles Lakers in the play-in race in the West.

The Pelicans are one game up on both teams and in ninth place. New Orleans has the eighth-easiest schedule over the last seven games, including two against fading Portland and one against the Lakers on Friday in Los Angeles.

The Lakers have the third-hardest schedule and the Spurs have the fifth-hardest schedule over their last seven games.

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The top of the NBA’s Eastern Conference couldn’t be much more compact.

Entering Tuesday’s action, four teams — the Miami Heat, Milwaukee Bucks, Boston Celtics and Philadelphia 76ers — were within a single loss of one another.

And, in serendipitous timing, all four were set to face off, with the Bucks playing in Philadelphia on Tuesday, followed by the Heat and Celtics squaring off in Boston on Wednesday — a 24-hour span that could have delivered a pair of Eastern Conference semifinal previews.

Let’s look at one key question surrounding each of the conference’s top four teams as they prepare for the playoffs, and how each storyline played out in two high-level matchups.

The results — a pair of close, competitive games with Milwaukee and Miami both winning on the road — only whet the appetite for what should be a scintillating spring full of playoff action in the East.

NBA Future Power Rankings: Predicting best, worst franchises

Is Lowry Miami’s playoff X factor?

When Heat coach Erik Spoelstra was asked whether Kyle Lowry‘s do-it-all performance in Miami’s win against the Celtics on Wednesday night was indicative of the kind of performances the Heat expected when they signed him last summer, Spoelstra smiled.

“Look, we’ve been on the other side of it,” Spoelstra said. “There were many years that I just really did not like Kyle Lowry, because he was such a thorn in our side.”

Spoelstra pointed to the seven-game series between the Toronto Raptors and Miami in the first round of the 2016 playoffs, which Lowry’s Raptors won.

“As that series got deeper, the better he played in clutch moments,” Spoelstra said. “You can’t define it by an analytic or a number or a playcall … he just knows how to make winning plays.”

Lowry made all sorts of them Wednesday. He finished with 23 points (6-for-12 from 3-point range) and eight assists in 36 minutes. He played his usual brand of in-your-face defense despite collecting four fouls down the stretch.

“That’s just a great luxury to have a Hall of Fame point guard who can choreograph your offense but also take on big challenges defensively on the other end,” Spoelstra said.

It’s been an up-and-down season during Lowry’s first in Miami after nine seasons with the Raptors, particularly because he has missed chunks of time to deal with personal matters. After a rocky week that saw Miami relinquish three fourth-quarter leads and get pummeled at home by the Brooklyn Nets, this performance was vintage Lowry.

Coming into Boston, which had been the hottest team in the league over the past two-plus months, and winning a back-and-forth game was a perfect elixir to wash away the ugly moments of last week.

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In last year’s lopsided first-round sweep to Milwaukee, the Heat were exposed as a team that needed another playmaker. Adding Lowry gave them a guard who could helm their offense, remain part of the Heat’s defensive identity and provide the kind of offensive jolt he gave Miami on Wednesday inside TD Garden.

“I think having a real live point guard that’s a pass-first guy who has of late, ‘Screw pass-first, I’m going to score first.’ … That’s good,” Jimmy Butler said. “I miss Goran [Dragic] like hell, I like handling the ball, Tyler [Herro] likes handling the ball.

“But having a guy like Kyle that’s telling everybody where to go, knowing how to get everyone the ball. … Yes, we needed Kyle Lowry.”

How will Boston adjust to life without its anchor?

In Boston’s first test without Robert Williams III, who will be sidelined at least four weeks after meniscus surgery, the results were a mixed bag.

The bad: Heat center Bam Adebayo controlled the game. In a reminder of what Adebayo did to Boston in the 2020 East finals, he finished with 17 points, 12 rebounds and eight assists. It wasn’t a coincidence that he was a plus-12 in 33 minutes, and Al Horford, who struggled to 6 points on 2-for-6 shooting, was minus-14 in 34 minutes. Grant Williams, meanwhile, was 2-for-7 from the field, and missed all three of his 3-point shots in his first start in place of Williams alongside the rest of Boston’s usual starting lineup of Jayson Tatum, Jaylen Brown, Marcus Smart and Horford.

Meanwhile, Daniel Theis finished with 15 points on perfect 6-for-6 shooting in 17 minutes.

It’s a reminder of the varying skill sets Boston must now utilize to match Williams’ impact at both ends of the court.

“We feel confident with the three bigs, [and] the versatility that they have,” Celtics coach Ime Udoka said. “It’s not the same as Rob from the shot-blocking perspective, but a lot of the similar things he was doing on- and off-ball, they’re very capable of.”

Williams certainly could’ve helped in trying to contain Adebayo Wednesday, even as a help defender. And, perhaps more glaringly, he could’ve given Boston a boost offensively with his ability to both create vertical spacing as a lob threat and create easy shots when it mattered most — Boston shot 6-for-22 in the fourth.

“It’s definitely an adjustment not having Rob here,” Horford said. “We have to find ways to be effective and we have to find other ways to score.”

Even if fully healthy, the red-hot Celtics were bound to lose a game or two. Their 24-4 stretch through Sunday’s win over Minnesota — the game Williams injured his knee — wasn’t likely to carry forward at that clip. Still, Wednesday’s game was a reminder of the difficulties this team will face navigating the East playoffs with their defensive anchor off the court.

Splash Mountain is back: Could Lopez unlock the best version of the Bucks?

The Bucks have spent virtually the entire season with Brook Lopez, their starting center, watching in street clothes. He’s only played in eight games — seven coming in the last three weeks — after undergoing back surgery on Dec. 2.

Tuesday night was an important test. How would Lopez, matching up against arguably the league’s biggest and toughest center to cover, Philadelphia’s MVP candidate Joel Embiid, hold up over the course of the game?

The answer, it turned out, was quite well.

Lopez played 29 minutes and scored 17 points for Milwaukee — 11 of which came all in a row to open the second half for the Bucks. More importantly: Lopez went 4-for-9 from 3-point range, helping create some of the space on the court for Giannis Antetokounmpo – he finished with 40 points, 14 rebounds, six assists, a steal and three blocks, including the one that won the Bucks the game — to operate.

That Milwaukee is 14th in the league in defense this season with Lopez, one of the league’s best (and biggest) interior defenders mostly watching as a spectator, is not a shock. The part of Lopez’s game that is forgotten, however, is how he can break the court wide open for Giannis & Co.

It’s rare for a guy of Lopez’s size (7 feet, 282 pounds) to be able to shape the game at both ends. And while he’s not Milwaukee’s most important piece — or even their third — the Bucks looked like a team ready for the playoffs Tuesday with him on the court.

Wednesday, March 30
Heat at Celtics, 7:30 p.m.
Suns at Warriors, 10 p.m.

Sunday, April 3
Mavs at Bucks, 1 p.m. (ABC)
Nuggets at Lakers, 3:30 p.m. (ABC)

All times Eastern

And for a team that has spent much of the season playing a combination of Antetokounmpo and Bobby Portis at center, getting another 30 minutes of high-level, big-man play made everything else fall back into the places they were so effective for the Bucks during last year’s championship run.

On a night when there were plenty of reasons to smile for the Bucks, Lopez’s return and his effectiveness, might have been the biggest of all.

Will MVP-level Harden make more appearances for Philly?

After Tuesday night’s loss, 76ers coach Doc Rivers said he and Harden had spoken at length that morning about needing the guard to get back to being the scorer he was with the Houston Rockets, rather than operating as the distributor he was with the Brooklyn Nets.

And, after playing arguably his best game as a 76er — 32 points, five rebounds and nine assists in 37 minutes in the loss to Milwaukee — Harden felt it was a step in the right direction.

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“I’m trying to get it right,” Harden said. “I’m trying to be the best James Harden I can be. And I’m trying to make sure that I’m doing the things necessary to help my team win.

“[Rivers] just told me, to sum it all up, to just go out there be you. And that was kind of my mindset today and it felt good to have that confidence from Doc.”

The 76ers need the best James Harden he can be — because that’s the version they hoped they were acquiring from the Nets at the trade deadline. And, while Harden has had moments of brilliance – he’s averaging 23.0 points, 9.8 assists and 7.4 rebounds in 15 games as a Sixer — he has failed to consistently play to the type of MVP-level Philadelphia hoped for.

For example: Of the 133 players who have attempted at least 200 layups or dunks this season, only three are shooting under 50% from the field: the Orlando Magic‘s Cole Anthony, the Utah Jazz‘s Nickeil Alexander-Walker and Harden.

But Tuesday night was a vintage performance for Harden. He went 5-for-7 from inside the arc, had the step back working (he went 4-for-10 from 3) and got to the free throw line 12 times. More importantly, he made short work of Milwaukee’s experiment of having Wesley Matthews start the game guarding him. In the closing minutes, it was defensive stopper Jrue Holiday — not Matthews — checking Harden.

If Philadelphia can get that version of Harden on a nightly basis over the next few months, he will form the partnership with Embiid that the 76ers need to make a deep playoff run.

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WACO, Texas — Baylor standout freshman Kendall Brown and point guard James Akinjo both announced Wednesday they are entering their names into the NBA draft.

The players revealed their decisions individually on their social media accounts.

Akinjo still had another season of eligibility at Baylor, where he transferred last year after leading Arizona in scoring in his only season with the Wildcats. He began his college career at Georgetown.

Brown, a five-star recruit whose dad is a former Harlem Globetrotters player, averaged 9.7 points and 4.9 rebounds a game while starting all 34 games for the Bears. He is projected to be the No. 25 pick in ESPN’s latest mock draft.

“I feel so fortunate for all that I’ve experienced this season at Baylor University! We accomplished so much as a team and grew together,” Brown said in part in a statement posted on his Twitter account.

Akinjo ranked ninth in the Big 12 averaging 13.5 points a game, and led the conference with 5.8 assists per game.

In an Instagram post, Akinjo said he had decided to pursue his dream and enter the NBA draft after talking it over with his family. He said he planned to hire an agent.

“Thank you to the Baylor coaching staff for welcoming me into the program, to my teammates for helping me get better every day,” part of Akinjo’s post read.

Brown and Akinjo became starters after joining a Baylor team that was coming off a national championship last season.

The Bears were the No. 1 seed in the East Region this season and lost in overtime in the second round of the NCAA tournament to Final Four team North Carolina. Baylor overcame a 25-point deficit in the second half and tied the score on Akinjo’s second three-point play in the final 1:48 of regulation.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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PORTLAND, Ore. — For the first time in his career, CJ McCollum knows what the opposing locker room inside the Moda Center looks like.

McCollum was a member of the Portland Trail Blazers for the first 8 1/2 seasons he was in the NBA. After being dealt at the deadline, he’s now a member of the New Orleans Pelicans and with his new team in town to face his old one, things were a little different on Wednesday morning.

“It’s weird, man,” McCollum said of being in Portland as a visitor. “Some of the setting in which you operate is just unique. … It’s a part of the game. I’m looking forward to getting to the game tonight.”

McCollum said he was able to sleep in his own bed last night, which was nice. Although his wife, Elise, and his young son were in New Orleans last week, it was also the first time he was able to see his dog since the trade.

It was all a touch of home, even though he’s about to try and defeat his former squad. And that squad will look a little different with former teammates like Damian Lillard and Jusuf Nurkic out for the game.

2 Related

“Yeah, not as fun,” McCollum said about not having to face those guys. “Won’t be as fun. They’ll be back eventually though.”

Since the trade, McCollum has thrived in his role as the lead guard with the Pelicans. In 19 games, McCollum is averaging 25.9 points, 6.5 assists and 4.9 rebounds — all of which would be career highs if they were over the course of the season.

McCollum said the situation in New Orleans is “exactly how I thought it would be.”

“It was a team I kind of zeroed in on and they obviously zeroed in on me,” McCollum said. “I knew what I signed up for and what I was going to be asked to do, and I’m doing it. They held up their end of the bargain as well. I’m happy to be in this situation.”

McCollum said he’s looking at Wednesday’s game as the “final closure” for the this chapter. He said while he had some closure when he first left after talking with teammates, tonight will help.

“I had conversations and was able to talk to some of my teammates and obviously I still talk to them to this day,” McCollum said. “I talked with the staff. It’ll be good to see Chauncey, talk about our teams. Talk about our football teams. Just kind of catch up and get back to business. Get the win and get outta here.

“This is the final step. You know this is going to happen at some point. But it’s good that it’s happy emotions opposed to the opposite. I like to call it a happy breakup. One where you’re not bitter at your ex.”

The game comes at an important time for New Orleans, which is battling with the San Antonio Spurs and the Los Angeles Lakers in the play-in race in the West.

The Pelicans are one game up on both teams and in ninth place. New Orleans has the eighth-easiest schedule over the last seven games, including two against fading Portland and one against the Lakers on Friday in Los Angeles.

The Lakers have the third-hardest schedule and the Spurs have the fifth-hardest schedule over their last seven games.

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MESA, Ariz. — Andrew Vaughn feared the worst when he got hurt making a diving catch for the Chicago White Sox on Sunday. Same for his team, which is looking for the slugger to play a key role this year.

They’re all feeling much better now.

Vaughn was diagnosed with a hip pointer, and he could return to game action in one to two weeks. The No. 3 overall pick in the 2019 amateur draft ditched his crutches Tuesday and took some swings Wednesday.

“As soon as I dove, I landed on my hip,” Vaughn said. “Thought I was fine. Got up, wiggled around a little bit. Took that first step and it kind of gave out. My mind went to the worst thought. I’m up walking and I feel pretty good now.”

While Vaughn is feeling much better, the White Sox are preaching caution. Asked about Vaughn taking some swings, manager Tony La Russa cracked: “Looked like me, that’s not good.”

“The reports were that we dodged a severe bullet,” La Russa said. “But I think he’s going to have some soreness and just got to go reasonably slow with him.”

Vaughn, who turns 24 on Sunday, was a first baseman when he played college ball at the University of California. But he started working in left field after Eloy Jimenez got hurt during spring training last year.

The White Sox are looking for a regular right fielder this season, so Vaughn was playing that position when he landed on his right hip while making a play on Hanser Alberto‘s line drive during a 9-0 exhibition win against the Los Angeles Dodgers. He had to be carted off the field.

“It’s kind of like the worst charley horse you ever had,” Vaughn said. “It just sticks around and it’s kind of lingering. But it’s going away. Have a lineman hit you with his helmet, that’s what I’ve been told it feels like.”

Vaughn has been working with White Sox coach Daryl Boston on his outfield defense, and he has noticed an improvement.

“It’s become more natural, it really has,” he said. “Not doing it for forever until last year really, just being comfortable with D-Bo working out there. Actual game reps help the most.”

Vaughn was among the top college hitters in the 2019 draft. He batted .376 with 50 homers and 163 RBIs in 160 games over three seasons with the Golden Bears.

He made his White Sox debut a year ago, showing signs that he might be able to add another impact bat to the team’s deep lineup. He hit .318 with nine homers and 25 RBIs during one 44-game stretch, but he struggled at the end of the season.

He had been looking good this spring, batting .467 (7 for 15) with a solo homer.

“I made some minor adjustments at the plate,” Vaughn said. “Kind of locked myself down to the ground a little better and been feeling really good.”

With the White Sox planning on going slowly, Vaughn likely won’t be ready in time for Opening Day on April 8 at Detroit. La Russa could go with Adam Engel or Leury Garcia in right depending on the matchups, and Adam Haseley was acquired in a trade with Philadelphia on Tuesday.

Haseley was selected by Philadelphia with the No. 8 overall pick in the 2017 amateur draft. He has appeared in 72 games in center field, 35 in left and 19 in right.

“He’s a left-hand talent. Anxious to get him in here and see what he looks like,” La Russa said.

Vaughn, for his part, is balancing wanting to play with making sure he’s ready when he returns.

“Sooner rather than later, that’s my goal,” he said. “It’s all on feel and just gotta go day by day and see how it goes.”

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PORTLAND, Ore. — For the first time in his career, CJ McCollum knows what the opposing locker room inside the Moda Center looks like.

McCollum was a member of the Portland Trail Blazers for the first 8 1/2 seasons he was in the NBA. After being dealt at the deadline, he’s now a member of the New Orleans Pelicans and with his new team in town to face his old one, things were a little different on Wednesday morning.

“It’s weird, man,” McCollum said of being in Portland as a visitor. “Some of the setting in which you operate is just unique. … It’s a part of the game. I’m looking forward to getting to the game tonight.”

McCollum said he was able to sleep in his own bed last night, which was nice. Although his wife, Elise, and his young son were in New Orleans last week, it was also the first time he was able to see his dog since the trade.

It was all a touch of home, even though he’s about to try and defeat his former squad. And that squad will look a little different with former teammates like Damian Lillard and Jusuf Nurkic out for the game.

2 Related

“Yeah, not as fun,” McCollum said about not having to face those guys. “Won’t be as fun. They’ll be back eventually though.”

Since the trade, McCollum has thrived in his role as the lead guard with the Pelicans. In 19 games, McCollum is averaging 25.9 points, 6.5 assists and 4.9 rebounds — all of which would be career highs if they were over the course of the season.

McCollum said the situation in New Orleans is “exactly how I thought it would be.”

“It was a team I kind of zeroed in on and they obviously zeroed in on me,” McCollum said. “I knew what I signed up for and what I was going to be asked to do, and I’m doing it. They held up their end of the bargain as well. I’m happy to be in this situation.”

McCollum said he’s looking at Wednesday’s game as the “final closure” for the this chapter. He said while he had some closure when he first left after talking with teammates, tonight will help.

“I had conversations and was able to talk to some of my teammates and obviously I still talk to them to this day,” McCollum said. “I talked with the staff. It’ll be good to see Chauncey, talk about our teams. Talk about our football teams. Just kind of catch up and get back to business. Get the win and get outta here.

“This is the final step. You know this is going to happen at some point. But it’s good that it’s happy emotions opposed to the opposite. I like to call it a happy breakup. One where you’re not bitter at your ex.”

The game comes at an important time for New Orleans, which is battling with the San Antonio Spurs and the Los Angeles Lakers in the play-in race in the West.

The Pelicans are one game up on both teams and in ninth place. New Orleans has the eighth-easiest schedule over the last seven games, including two against fading Portland and one against the Lakers on Friday in Los Angeles.

The Lakers have the third-hardest schedule and the Spurs have the fifth-hardest schedule over their last seven games.

Read More