Before the attention turns to playoff-bound teams, some performances stand alone for players who stood out in the last full month of the regular season.

Los Angeles Lakers star LeBron James had a simple response to critics who think it's not possible for a team to win an NBA championship after a blockbuster midseason trade. "Well, they're wrong," James said with a laugh at the 27:15 mark in the Season 2 debut of the Mind The Game podcast. "They're wrong."

Dru Smith, Josh Christopher, Isaiah Stevens, and Keshad Johnson have all moved up to the main Heat roster from the NBA G League squad. They have filled the gaps of all the missing players well and played big minutes for Coach Spoelstra.

Just weeks after Duke cut down the nets at Spectrum Center, claiming a second ACC Tournament championship in three seasons, the Charlotte Hornets and Utah Jazz took the court, littered with former Blue Devils stars in a battle of lottery hopefuls — both well within reach of landing Duke superstar Cooper Flagg in June’s NBA Draft.

Four teams have punched their ticket to the semifinals of the NCAA Tournament, each with an intriguing NBA Draft prospect on their roster.

Timberwolves scuffle, sources tell ESPN: – Isaiah Stewart: 2 game suspension – Donte DiVincenzo: 1 game suspension – Ron Holland: 1

Kevin Garnett on blood clots in the NBA: I hope that the league … I'm not saying they're withholding information or none of that but they really got to do a deep dive on this. This is three, four players that's happened to in this year. You didn't hear about this last year, I didn't hear about this two years ago.

Flagg leads three Duke players in the top 15 of Adam Finkelstein's mock draft after the first round of the NCAA Tournament

One is for postseason seeding, as teams jockey for positions and the all-important top-six spots in each conference that guarantee a first-round appearance. The other is for lottery odds, as teams have been aggressive tanking their way to the bottom this season in hopes of landing the No.

Their recent win exemplifies resilience; despite trailing at halftime, the team rallied, driven by camaraderie and collective effort. James Harden highlighted the importance of winning their next four games to solidify their playoff chances and avoid the dreaded play-in tournament.