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SAN FRANCISCO -- You don't want to be reductive, but a single, clutch play represents the danger that the Minnesota Timberwolves bring to any impending playoff matchup, should they get there. In the final seconds of the Wolves' crucial match up against the Warriors on Sunday, with Western Conference postseason positioning in the balance, Golden State had possession and a one-point lead with about a four-second differential between the shot clock and Game clock. Here's where the Wolves' unique diversity reveals itself. First, Stephen Curry gets past his defender and dribbles into the paint, but waiting right there for him is arguably the best rim protector in the game -- 7-foot-1 center Rudy Gobert. Curry understandably kicks the ball back out to Draymond Green, one of the smartest and most accomplished playmakers in the NBA for the past decade. Green meets his match, this time at least, with Kyle...

The NBA playoff and play-in races are heating up with just about a month to go on the schedule. Below is a comprehensive snapshot of where things stand entering play on Monday, March 6. This post will update daily throughout the remainder of the regular season, or until all seeds are clinched.  Reminder on how the play- in tournament works: No. 7 plays No. 8 and No. 9 plays No. 10. The winner of the 7-8 Game gets the No. 7 seed, while the loser plays the winner of the 9-10 Game for the  No. 8 seed.  READ: Eastern Conference Playoff Picture NOTE:  Our SportsLine model, developed by predictive data engineer Stephen Oh, simulates the entire season 10,000 times to produce the most unbiased and precise projections imaginable. WESTERN CONFERENCE 1. Denver Nuggets The Nuggets would have to go in the absolute tank to blow the No. 1 seed. With 18 games to play, they hold an effective seven-game lead over the No. 2 G...

Russell Westbrook has not been officially bought out of his contract by the Utah Jazz, who traded for him as part of a three-team deal on Wednesday. His decision on whether to ask for a buyout is expected to come soon. He is reportedly open to staying with the Jazz, but the wide belief is that he will ultimately move on.  If and when Westbrook decides to go the buyout route, ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski reported on Friday that the Chicago Bulls "could be a frontrunner " to sign him.  "If he gets out into the buyout market, there is significant interest in Westbrook," Wojnarowski said, via RealGM. "I think one team you got to watch and I think will be a frontrunner are the Chicago Bulls. Billy Donovan certainly coached Westbrook in Oklahoma City. If you go further down his bench, Mo Cheeks, Josh Longstaff... There is a staff of former OKC assistants who all had good relationships and w...

The Sacramento Kings and general manager Monte McNair have agreed to a contract extension to keep the Executive of the Year candidate in place for the next several years, according to ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski. The Kings are also working to finalize a new deal with assistant GM Wes Wilcox, who has worked closely with McNair to reshape the franchise over the past two years. McNair was hired in 2020 after longtime general manager Vlade Divac stepped down from his position. The position was one of the least desirable in the NBA . Sacramento has not made the playoffs since 2006, but that streak may now be coming to an end thanks to the work of McNair and Wilcox. While the pair have made several moves to help the Kings to ascend to the No. 3 seed in the Western Conference, three stand out as the ones that lifted the franchise back into contention: At last year's tra...

Approaching the trade deadline, the NBA 's MVP race is still wide open and the task of finding separation among so many high-level candidates continues to be a tall order. That said, Nikola Jokic is becoming the pretty universally accepted favorite to win this third straight, which hasn't happened since Larry Bird in the mid-eighties.  Below are my MVP rankings entering play on Monday, Jan. 23.  1. Nikola Jokic What I'm about to tell you might register as the most insane stat that you hear during this season that has been full of insane stats: Nikola Jokic has shot at least 50 percent from the field in all 41 Game s he's played this season. Over his last two MVP seasons, the most consecutive Game s he tallied without a sub-50 shooting effort mixed in was nine. Again, he's at 41 straight to start this season. Absolutely bonkers. And yet that's been the story of what is, at the moment, the mo...