NBA Daily Digest: WCF Game 6 Tonight, Robinson Injured, Rozier Charged
WCF Game 6 tips tonight in San Antonio (OKC leads 3-2). Mitchell Robinson broke his right pinkie finger with no timetable ahead of the NBA Finals. Federal prosecutors added bribery charges against Terry Rozier. NBA owners approved a new anti-tanking draft lottery format 29-1.
The Western Conference Finals reach their decisive stretch tonight in San Antonio, where the Spurs need a win to force a Game 7 and keep Victor Wembanyama's first championship run alive. Meanwhile, the Knicks are already dealing with a new injury concern as they wait for their Finals opponent, federal prosecutors added serious new charges against Terry Rozier, and NBA owners overhauled the draft lottery system.
WCF Game 6: Thunder vs. Spurs, 8:30 PM ET (NBC/Peacock)
Oklahoma City holds a 3-2 series lead and can clinch a return trip to the NBA Finals with a win tonight in San Antonio. The Thunder are 5-1 on the road this postseason, with their only road loss coming in Game 4 of this series.1
The series' defining tension comes down to Wembanyama's shotmaking consistency. In the two games San Antonio won, Wembanyama averaged 14.5 shot attempts within five feet of the basket and shot 69 percent on those attempts. In the three OKC wins, he averaged just 5.3 such attempts. When he drifts to the perimeter, the Thunder can contain him. When he plays through contact in the paint, the Spurs become nearly impossible to stop.1
Alex Caruso has been the Thunder's most surprising contributor: he's averaging 17 points per game in the Western Conference Finals, well above his playoff average entering this series, with four of his eight highest-scoring playoff games coming in this matchup.
The Spurs will also be missing a strategic advantage from Game 5: Wembanyama was officially warned by the NBA after skipping the mandatory postgame media session — a distraction the team will want to leave behind.
Injury report: OKC guard Ajay Mitchell (calf) remains out. Forward Jalen Williams (leg) is questionable. Jared McCain, who averaged 20 points in his first career playoff start last game, is expected to start again if Williams sits.
| Game | Winner | Score | Series |
|---|---|---|---|
| Game 1 | Spurs | Spurs win 2OT | SA 1-0 |
| Game 2 | Thunder | OKC win | Tied 1-1 |
| Game 3 | Thunder | 123-108 | OKC 2-1 |
| Game 4 | Spurs | Spurs win 2OT | Tied 2-2 |
| Game 5 | Thunder | 127-114 | OKC 3-2 |
| Game 6 | Tonight | 8:30 PM ET, SA |
Knicks: Robinson out with broken finger before Finals
Center Mitchell Robinson (C, New York Knicks) suffered a broken right pinkie finger and has no timetable for return, according to ESPN's Shams Charania.2 Robinson played 18 minutes in New York's Game 4 closeout win over Cleveland, finishing with 8 points and 10 rebounds.
The timing is rough: the Knicks just swept the Cavaliers to reach the Finals for the first time since 1999, and now their starting center is unavailable for an undetermined stretch. Robinson averaged 5.3 points and 5.5 rebounds in 14.2 minutes per game this postseason. His absence puts more pressure on Karl-Anthony Towns and Isaiah Hartenstein to absorb frontcourt minutes.
NBA Finals Game 1 is scheduled for June 3 at Madison Square Garden, where the Knicks will host the winner of tonight's Thunder-Spurs series.
Terry Rozier: new federal charges allege $100K bribe
Federal prosecutors filed two new charges Thursday against Terry Rozier (SG, Miami Heat), alleging he agreed to a $100,000 bribe to manipulate his own performance in an NBA game.3
According to the superseding indictment, Rozier told co-defendant Deniro Laster in early 2023 that he would exit a Charlotte Hornets game by faking an injury. Laster then passed the information to bettors who wagered more than $258,000 on Rozier's statistical totals to come in under posted prop lines. Rozier played just nine minutes in the March 23, 2023 game against New Orleans before leaving, finishing with 5 points, 4 rebounds, and 2 assists. The indictment says Rozier agreed to accept $70,000 after the payoff dropped because he pulled in 4 rebounds rather than fewer.
The new charges are sports bribery and conspiracy to commit honest-services wire fraud, with the NBA and the Hornets named as victims.
Rozier was originally one of six men charged in October. Co-defendant Marves Fairley pleaded guilty Thursday. Former NBA player and assistant coach Damon Jones also previously pleaded guilty in the case. Rozier's attorney, Jim Trusty, called the new charges "a desperate attempt to try to convict him" and said the superseding indictment supports their pending motion to dismiss.
Draft lottery reform: no more tanking incentives (starting 2027)
The NBA's Board of Governors approved sweeping changes to the draft lottery Thursday in a 29-1 vote, with only Memphis opposing the measure. The new format takes effect with the 2027 draft and expires after 2029, aligning with the current collective bargaining agreement's opt-out date.4
The NBA Draft Lottery display — owners approved a new structure to reduce tanking incentives 4
Key changes:
- Expanded field: The lottery grows from 14 to 16 teams, adding both 8-seeds from the play-in round.
- 3-2-1 ball distribution: Teams ranked 4th through 10th worst get 3 ping-pong balls each; the 3 worst records get only 2 balls (a reduction from the current system); play-in 9/10-seeds get 2 balls; play-in 7/8 losers get 1 ball.
- No back-to-back No. 1 picks: Teams cannot hold the top pick in consecutive years, and no team can land a top-five pick in three straight years.
- Pick floor for worst teams: The three teams with the worst records cannot fall below the 12th overall selection, regardless of lottery results.
- League discipline authority: The NBA gains power to reduce lottery odds, adjust draft positions, and impose fines for teams found to be intentionally losing.
The goal is to reduce incentives for teams to lose games late in the season. Whether the structural changes actually change behavior — given that teams can still benefit from being bad, just somewhat less so — is a debate the league is apparently comfortable leaving unresolved for now.
Around the league
- Hawks: Atlanta gave GM Onsi Saleh a promotion and contract extension Thursday.5
- Lakers: Los Angeles laid off more than a dozen business-side employees as part of an internal reorganization.6
- Celtics: Boston head coach Joe Mazzulla was named NBA Coach of the Year.7
Tonight's slate
| Time (ET) | Matchup | Series | TV |
|---|---|---|---|
| 8:30 PM | Thunder at Spurs — WCF Game 6 | OKC leads 3-2 | NBC/Peacock |
References
- 1ESPN WCF Game 6 preview
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- 2ESPN
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- 3ESPN: Rozier federal charges
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- 4ESPN: NBA lottery reform
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- 5ESPN: Hawks GM extension
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- 6ESPN: Lakers layoffs
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- 7ESPN: Mazzulla CoY
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