NBA Player News

Tuesday’s Play-In tournament matchup was not an official playoff game, but it was the Warriors fans’ official introduction to Butler as a postseason weapon. While he did not record the best free-throw percentage, racking up 18 attempts cannot be ignored. Butler has added a needed dimension to the Warriors on both ends of the floor, especially offensively. His ability to work out of the post and get to the foul line will be vital in the playoffs, which the Warriors will begin on Sunday in Houston in a 2/7 matchup.

KAT made the most important bucket of the night from long distance to give the Knicks a 94-93 lead in the fourth quarter. The star big man has bounced back in a big way after scoring just 10 points in Game 2. He’s made nine of his previous 14 shots from beyond the arc and will look to continue stretching the floor with his sharpshooting in Game 5.

Brunson had an injury scare in the third quarter but was crucial in the final frame when his team secured a comeback victory. The star point guard scored 15 points in the fourth quarter to help New York edge out Detroit in a low-scoring contest. He’s scored at least 30 points in every game of the first-round series.

Brunson is back on the hardwood after spending the final two minutes of the third quarter in the locker room with an ankle injury. He checked back roughly two minutes into the fourth quarter and will look to fuel his team’s comeback.

Brunson appeared to tweak his right ankle in the closing minutes of his team’s Sunday matchup with the Pistons. He returned to the bench ahead of the fourth quarter and appears poised to make his return to the contest.

Robinson has overcome his illness and will be available for Sunday’s game against the Pistons. It’s unclear if he’ll be able to carry his usual workload, so there’s still a chance Precious Achiuwa could take on a minor role off the bench.

Robinson’s status for Sunday is still up in the air. The Knicks big man has provided some key rim protection and rebounding off the bench, but is dealing with an illness. Precious Achiuwa could enter the rotation if Robinson isn’t good to go to wrap up the weekend.

Stewart is set to miss his third straight playoff game on Sunday. The backup center’s knee isn’t recovering quickly, so Paul Reed should continue to pick up the slack as a bench contributor in Game 4.

While Brooks was the lone Rockets starter to shoot at least 50 percent from the field in Game 3, he struggled with foul trouble throughout. The veteran defender would pick up four fouls in the first half and foul out with 3:47 remaining and the Rockets trailing by four. Houston would go on to lose by 11, falling behind the Warriors two games to one. With Fred VanVleet and Jalen Green (9/6/5/1 with one three-pointer in 39 minutes) being inconsistent scorers, any production the Rockets receive from Brooks will be welcome. Game 4 is on Monday.

VanVleet led the Rockets in scoring on Saturday. However, as was the case on many occasions during the regular season, the field goal percentage left something to be desired. A 37.8 percent shooter during the regular season, VanVleet is 11-of-40 in this series. Simply put, that is not good enough if the Rockets are to knock off Golden State. Houston will look to even the series with a win in Game 4 on Monday night.

After victimizing the Warriors in the first two games of the series, Sengun was held in check Saturday night. Golden State’s decision to start Quentin Post meant the Rockets’ center had to contend with more size at the start of the game, and he struggled. Making matters worse was Sengun’s 1-of-6 night from the foul line. A 69.2 percent foul shooting during the regular season, that’s going to be an area of difficulty for Sengun, but he can’t be as poor as he was on Saturday. Now trailing two games to one, the Rockets will look to even the series on Monday.