And-Ones: Mills, Presti, Cunningham, Jaquez

April 25, 2022

Nets guard Patty Mills has won this season’s Sportsmanship Award, according to a league press release.  The annual award is designed to honor a player who best represents the ideals of sportsmanship on the court.

Each NBA team nominated one of its players for the award and current players selected the winner from the list of six finalists. Bam Adebayo, Mikal Bridges, Darius Garland, Jeff Green and Jaren Jackson Jr. were the other finalists.

We have more from around the basketball world:

  • Thunder GM Sam Presti is a proponent of an in-season tournament, Joe Mussatto of The Oklahoman notes, saying it shows the league is “thinking big picture.” Presti called an in-season tournament “necessary to have a better business and a better game in the future.” He feels that it would appeal to a non-traditional or younger fan base as well as improve competitive parity.
  • Overtime Elite has landed the top recruit in ESPN’s Class of 2024. Naasir Cunningham told ESPN’s Jonathan Givony about his reasons for joining Overtime Elite, which was confirmed in a press release. “This is best place for me to develop as a player, while getting the right education to fall back on at the same time,” the 6’7” Cunningham said. “Overtime built a relationship with my family and I, which was a big factor in trusting them with my future.” Cunningham will be the first player to decline a salary by OTE, which should preserve his eligibility to play college basketball after graduating from high school.
  • While many players are testing the draft waters, some prominent prospects have chosen to return to college. Sports Illustrated’s Jeremy Wood looks at five such players, including UCLA’s Jaime Jaquez and UConn’s Jordan Hawkins.