Mavericks have trade interest in Jrue Holiday, Lonzo Ball and Chris Paul

Anticipation is building that Chris Paul could be on the move again this offseason even though his time as a Spur as a mentor to Victor Wembanyama and a young team overall was an unabashed success. The reality now, though, is that San Antonio acquired De’Aaron Fox in February and just watched Stephon Castle assemble of a Rookie of the Year season. Since winning the May 12 draft lottery, San Antonio has likewise attempted to convey a desire to rival teams that it intends to keep the No. 2 overall pick in next month’s draft to select Rutgers’ Dylan Harper. With or without Harper in the Alamo City next season, it is difficult to see how there would be room in the Spurs’ backcourt next season. -via marcstein.substack.com / May 26, 2025

Gilgeous-Alexander joined other teammates behind Thunder forward Chet Holmgren during his postgame interview airing in China. Once that interview was over, Gilgeous-Alexander ducked under a protective tape courtside to hug and kiss his wife before dapping a smiling Paul, who apparently had his old teammate thinking he wasn’t attending the game. “You just lied in my face now,” Gilgeous-Alexander told Paul with a smile. “Who?” Paul said. -via Andscape / May 23, 2025

Paul enjoyed sitting courtside watching his former teammates, Gilgeous-Alexander and NBA All-Defensive first-team selection Luguentz Dort, get recognized for their greatness. “It means everything to be here,” Paul told Andscape. “You see Lu finally make his first all-defensive team. And getting to take this game in with [Gilgeous-Alexander’s wife], I’m happy for him.” -via Andscape / May 23, 2025

Jorge Sierra: Jalen Brunson passed all these players in playoff scoring tonight: Adrian Dantley Jerome Kersey Jrue Holiday Charles Oakley Dick Barnett Rik Smits Dave DeBusschere Michael Finley Shawn Kemp Shawn Marion He’s No. 117 all-time now. -via Bluesky / May 21, 2025

The Celtics’ precise determination to keep their various veterans is difficult to calculate so soon after the defending champions’ Round 2 exit to the Knicks in six games and the devastating loss of Jayson Tatum to an Achilles rupture, but the early projections in circulation suggest Boston is more apt to make Jrue Holiday available via trade this offseason than Derrick White. Most rival teams continue to regard Kristaps Porziņģis as the most movable Boston vet thanks to the Latvian big man’s $30.7 million expiring contract. Porziņģis, though, managed to exceed 20 minutes in only one of the Celtics’ games in the New York series because of a perplexing energy-sapping illness that has plagued him since March. -via marcstein.substack.com / May 19, 2025

Bobby Manning: Holiday: “I think it was a lost opportunity because we lost.” Said he thinks #Celtics had best team in the league. pic.x.com/dfKgiD7Q7R -via Twitter @RealBobManning / May 17, 2025

Lonzo Ball: “It’s not really pressure, because what are you really doing as a kid? I was just hooping and going to school. And we were in Chino—ain’t really sh*t to do out there. It’s just land. Sadel Curry-Lee: “I don’t even know where that is.” Lonzo Ball: “Cows and just hills and… It’s a farm.” -via YouTube / May 20, 2025

Lonzo Ball: “For sure. If you have a good organization that’s behind you and letting you heal, that’s huge. Like—shout out to the Bulls for that. When I was going through it, a lot of teams could’ve just pushed me to the side and been like, ‘whatever.’ But they stuck with me the whole way. Having a good team behind you helps a lot, for sure.” -via YouTube / May 20, 2025

Lonzo Ball: “Yeah… man, honestly, when I was in LA, I wasn’t really doing much. When I was on the road, my vets basically told me I had to stay in the room.” Cam Brink: “Really?” Lonzo Ball: “Yeah. So I wasn’t doing much. That’s why I’m in the room now. It was just some vet stuff. They’d say, ‘You can’t come out tonight,’ and I’d be like, ‘Alright, I didn’t want to go with y’all anyway.’” -via YouTube / May 20, 2025