<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/bulls-news-nikola-vucevic-hilarious-question-after-zach-collins-acquisition');   ga('set', 'title', 'Bulls’ Nikola Vucevic has hilarious question after Zach Collins acquisition');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/02/Bulls-news-Nikola-Vucevic-has-hilarious-question-after-Zach-Collins-acquisition.jpg"></figure><h1>Bulls’ Nikola Vucevic has hilarious question after Zach Collins acquisition</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2025-02-03T13:04:21-08:00">February 3rd, 1:04pm</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2025-02-03T13:04:36-08:00">February 3rd, 1:04pm</time><address><a>Alex House</a>Alex House is a sports journalist who covers the NFL, NBA, and MLB for ClutchPoints. He grew up in a New York sports-heavy region in Connecticut and earned his journalism degree at the University of Rhode Island. His in-depth knowledge of two of the most passionate and raucous fan bases in the country gives him a truly unique writing voice.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">Chicago Bulls</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>The Chicago Bulls may finally be inching their way toward a rebuild after <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba-rumors-how-bulls-ownership-feels-zach-lavine-trade">trading Zach LaVine to the Sacramento Kings</a> in a deal that also sent De’Aaron Fox to the San Antonio Spurs. The team is incurring some cumbersome contracts in the form of Kevin Huerter and Zach Collins, but it is gradually moving itself out of No Man’s Land and into Tank Town. All eyes now turn to Nikola Vucevic.</p><p>Like LaVine, the 34-year-old center has been a strong presence on the rumor mill for the last couple of years. Chicago executive vice president of basketball operations Arturas Karnisovas has until Thursday’s Feb. 6 NBA trade deadline to find a practical deal. Vucevic is not conveying concern or frustration, however, and is instead <a href="https://x.com/nikolavucevic/status/1886473123131707835?s=46&amp;t=0VgLvCcpTsmLUyl6hpiIew" rel="noopener">using humor</a> to process Sunday’s big move.</p><p>Upon seeing the Bulls’ new name plate for Collins, he pondered something on social media. “Wonder if they just removed the 8 and Lavine and added Collins and 12, or did a whole new plate?” Vucevic said on X.</p><figure class="op-interactive"><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p dir="ltr" lang="en">Wonder if they just removed the 8 and Lavine and added Collins and 12 or did a whole new plate? <a href="https://t.co/EJl3IgVofX">pic.twitter.com/EJl3IgVofX</a></p><p>— Nikola Vucevic (@NikolaVucevic) <a href="https://twitter.com/NikolaVucevic/status/1886473123131707835?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 3, 2025</a></p></blockquote><p><script async="" src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></p></figure><h2><b>Will Bulls ship out Nikola Vucevic next?</b></h2><p>The two-time All-Star is alluding to an obviously impactful development with a lighthearted tone, downplaying the potential curiosity he might have regarding his future with the Bulls. Vucevic spent roughly four seasons with LaVine in Chicago, advancing to the playoffs in 2021-22 before suffering through injury-ravaged and futile campaigns. His standout 2024-25 season could facilitate an exit out of The Windy City.</p><p>Nikola Vucevic is averaging 19.9 points, 10.4 rebounds and 3.6 assists in 49 games this season. Where his potential boost in trade value lies most, though, is his tremendous offensive efficiency. He has a career-high 55.1 field goal percentage and is shooting a scorching 40.1 percent from 3-point range, displaying the type of floor-spacing ability that good teams could covet at the trade deadline.</p><p>Ergo, the Switzerland native might not get to spend much time with his new teammates. He is set to earn almost $21.5 million next season, in what is the final year of his contract. Following the eye-popping <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/lakers-news-shams-charania-reveals-initial-reaction-receiving-luka-doncic-trade-information">Luka Doncic-Anthony Davis deal</a>, the Los Angeles Lakers are <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba-rumors-lakers-center-targets-anthony-davis-luka-doncic-trade">in need of a new big man</a>. Karnisovas and the front office should have some options to consider in the coming days.</p><p>Until then, Vucevic and the Bulls (21-29) will do their best to get accustomed to Zach LaVine’s departure. They host the Miami Heat (24-23) on Tuesday night.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

Bulls’ Nikola Vucevic has hilarious question after Zach Collins acquisition

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/spurs-news-zach-collins-flips-off-ref-ejection');   ga('set', 'title', 'Zach Collins savagely flips off ref after ejection');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/Spurs-news-Zach-Collins-savagely-flips-off-ref-after-ejection.jpg"></figure><h1>Zach Collins savagely flips off ref after ejection</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2024-12-06T19:52:57-08:00">December 6th, 7:52pm</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2024-12-06T19:52:57-08:00">December 6th, 7:52pm</time><address><a>David Yapkowitz</a>David Yapkowitz is an NBA Associate Editor at ClutchPoints. He is a credentialed reporter based in Los Angeles who covers the NBA/WNBA, NCAA/NCAAW and boys/girls high school basketball.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">NBA</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>The San Antonio Spurs had a matchup against the Sacramento Kings on Friday, but they had to play the entire second half without backup big man Zach Collins who was ejected in the second quarter and did not hide his feelings towards the offending ref.</p><p>It wasn’t quite clear what Zach Collins did to get ejected, but he <a href="https://x.com/ClutchPoints/status/1865215330358038909" rel="noopener">did throw a gesture</a> towards the ref as he exited the court. He seemingly had words for the officials following a bit of physical play with Domantas Sabonis where Collins was called for a foul against Sabonis. He received two technical fouls in that span leading to the ejection. <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nuggets-news-russell-westbrook-fined-after-flipping-off-knicks">NBA players have been fined for similar gestures</a>, so a punishment from the league is certain to follow.</p><p>To that point, Collins had two points, two rebounds and one assist in only nine minutes. The Spurs ultimately fell to the Kings, 140-113, to drop them one game under .500 at 11-12.</p><p>This game was the third consecutive game for the Kings that <a href="https://x.com/BrendenNunesNBA/status/1865211350554959941" rel="noopener">saw an opponent ejected</a>, as per Brenden Nunes of Sactown 1140. During the Kings’ game against the Memphis Grizzlies earlier this week, <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/grizzlies-news-ja-morant-response-ejected-kings">Ja Morant was ejected</a> and had a similar reaction. In the game prior to that against the Houston Rockets, <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/rockets-news-ime-udoka-fiery-nsfw-rant-officials-after-emotional-loss-kings">both Ime Udoka and Tari Eason were ejected</a>.</p><h2><b>Zach Collins’ role with Spurs</b></h2><p>For the past four seasons, Collins has become a fairly reliable backup big man for the Spurs. The Spurs haven’t been very competitive during that span, having finished with a losing record the past three seasons. But this year, the team is in contention for a playoff spot in the Western Conference with Collins playing a big role.</p><p>Collins originally signed with the Spurs ahead of the 2021-22 season. Prior to that point, he had played three seasons with the Portland Trail Blazers who drafted him with the No. 10 overall pick in the 2017 NBA Draft via a draft day trade with the Kings. When he signed with the Spurs, he was coming off an ankle injury that caused him to miss the entire 2020-21 season.</p><p>This season, Collins had appeared in all 22 games for the Spurs coming into the Kings matchup. He had been averaging 6.2 points, 3.4 rebounds and 1.9 assists with splits of 47.5 percent shooting from the field, 34.3 percent shooting from the three-point line and 90.3 percent shooting from the free-throw line.</p><p>The Spurs have been a competitive team this season, powered by the arrival of Chris Paul and the continued development of Victor Wembanyama.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

Zach Collins savagely flips off ref after ejection

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);   ga('set', 'page', '/cavs-news-donovan-mitchell-hilariously-sounds-off-on-what-didnt-like-about-zach-collins-fight');   ga('set', 'title', 'Cavs star Donovan Mitchell hilariously sounds off on what he didn’t like about Zach Collins fight');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.cavsnation.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/Cavs_news_Donovan_Mitchell_hilariously_sounds_off_on_what_he_didn_t_like_about_Zach_Collins_fight_copy.webp"></figure><h1>Cavs star Donovan Mitchell hilariously sounds off on what he didn’t like about Zach Collins fight</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2024-02-04T16:50:42-08:00">February 4th, 4:50pm</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2024-02-04T16:50:42-08:00">February 4th, 4:50pm</time><address><a>Jackson Stone</a>Jackson Stone is a Mercer University senior from Atlanta on track to graduate with a BA in communications. A lifelong sports lover, Jackson joined ClutchPoints and Cavs Nation in 2023.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">Cavs News</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>On Saturday evening, Donovan Mitchell and the Cleveland Cavaliers improved to 31-16 on the 2023-24 NBA season with a resounding road win over the San Antonio Spurs. <a href="https://cavsnation.com/cavs-news-angry-donovan-mitchell-ejected-after-shoving-zach-collins" rel="noopener">Mitchell led the way</a> <a href="https://cavsnation.com/cavs-news-how-darius-garland-weight-after-losing-12-pounds-due-to-broken-jaw" rel="noopener">for the Cavs</a> with 31 points in the contest, continuing what has been an MVP stretch of basketball as of late for the All-Star guard.</p><p>One notable moment in this game occurred when Mitchell got into a bit of a skirmish with Spurs big man Zach Collins, ultimately resulting in both players being ejected from the contest.</p><p>After the game, Mitchell took to X, the <a href="https://twitter.com/spidadmitchell/status/1754008943636959660" rel="noopener">social media platform</a> formerly referred to as Twitter, to break down what he wished he had done differently during the heated altercation.</p><figure class="op-interactive"><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p dir="ltr" lang="en">I ain’t really like how I backed up 😂😂 <a href="https://t.co/4bsdD9NDDc">https://t.co/4bsdD9NDDc</a></p><p>— Donovan Mitchell (@spidadmitchell) <a href="https://twitter.com/spidadmitchell/status/1754008943636959660?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 4, 2024</a></p></blockquote><p><script async="" src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></p></figure><p>Donovan Mitchell has been playing arguably the best basketball of his career as of late, keeping the Cavaliers not only afloat but thriving during a recent string of injury absences, which are just now beginning to be shored up.</p><p>The Cavaliers are looking to bounce back after what was a brutal showing in the playoffs last postseason against the New York Knicks, in which Cleveland was unceremoniously dropped off in five games despite occurring on the heels of their best regular season this side of the LeBron James era.</p><p>A quick glance at the current standings would reveal that a rematch with the Knicks in this year’s playoffs is certainly a possibility, although there is still much to be resolved in the thicket of the Eastern Conference playoff picture, especially with over two full months to go until the playoffs actually begin.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

Cavs star Donovan Mitchell hilariously sounds off on what he didn't like about Zach Collins fight

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/spurs-news-zach-collins-doubles-down-donovan-mitchell-dust-up');   ga('set', 'title', 'Spurs’ Zach Collins doubles down on Donovan Mitchell dust up');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/Spurs_news_Zach_Collins_doubles_down_on_Donovan_Mitchell_dust_up_copy.webp"></figure><h1>Spurs’ Zach Collins doubles down on Donovan Mitchell dust up</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2024-02-04T11:04:10-08:00">February 4th, 11:04am</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2024-02-04T11:04:10-08:00">February 4th, 11:04am</time><address><a>Hector Ledesma</a>Hector Ledesma has been covering the Spurs in San Antonio since 2005, but he has been following them for even longer than that. An award-winning journalist born and raised in San Antonio, Hector has worked across all types of television and radio platforms. His work extends online and through social media (@HectorLedesmaTV) where he continues that work with ClutchPoints.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">NBA</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>The back and forth that led to the ejections of Cleveland Cavaliers star Donovan Mitchell and San Antonio Spurs center Zach Collins started with around a minute left in the Spurs 117-101 loss to the Cavs on Saturday night. It <a href="https://twitter.com/HectorLedesmaTV/status/1754006826868187629?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1754006826868187629%7Ctwgr%5E18de666468c75c556b0bc07e55279896ceb2d196%7Ctwcon%5Es1_&amp;ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fwp.clutchpoints.com%2Fwp-admin%2Fpost.php%3Fpost%3D2675442action%3Dedit" rel="noopener">continued</a> verbally after – and with words almost as sharp as elbows.</p><p>Cavs coach J.B. Bickerstaff called it “dirty a– play” on Collins’ part.</p><p>ClutchPoints asked the third-year Spur for his reaction to that criticism.</p><p>“Probably was,” Collins answered, confirming that the corresponding fine will be worth his actions.</p><figure class="op-interactive"><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p dir="ltr" lang="en">Spurs post-game</p><p>Asked Zach Collins about Coach JB Bickerstaff’s comments that the incident with Mitchell was a dirty play on Collins’ part…</p><p>Zach’s response:<br>“It probably was.”</p><p>Adds it’ll be worth the fine</p><p>Entire thought, including Zach’s description of what happened⬇️<a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Spurs?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#Spurs</a> <a href="https://t.co/HfD5X3OB8Z">pic.twitter.com/HfD5X3OB8Z</a></p><p>— Hector Ledesma (@HectorLedesmaTV) <a href="https://twitter.com/HectorLedesmaTV/status/1754006826868187629?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 4, 2024</a></p></blockquote><p><script async="" src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></p></figure><h2>Zach Collins details his altercation with Donovan Mitchell</h2><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/Key-San-Antonio-big-man-reveals-philosophical-Gregg-Popovich-coaching-secret.jpg"></figure><p>The confrontation between Collins and Mitchell <a href="https://twitter.com/spidadmitchell/status/1754008943636959660?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1754008943636959660%7Ctwgr%5E8d7b9e524866b98d78733bbbb43a95b43297e067%7Ctwcon%5Es1_&amp;ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fwp.clutchpoints.com%2Fwp-admin%2Fpost.php%3Fpost%3D2675442action%3Dedit" rel="noopener">came to a head</a> with 54.7 seconds remaining in the game, though the Spurs big man said it started a short time before.</p><p>“He went up for a lay up a play or two before and I was guarding him. That’s where I was supposed to be and he went up and clocked me with an elbow. I didn’t like it so I came down and hit him back and that’s when it got crazy,” the seven-year veteran, who missed an entire season while with the Portland Trail Blazers due to injury, detailed.</p><p>“He just hit me in the face,” Mitchell said. “I felt like it was dirty, so I just pushed him back. I knew I was probably going to get ejected, but it’s my second or third time getting ejected. If you push me, I push you back. That’s that.”</p><figure class="op-interactive"><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p dir="ltr" lang="en">I ain’t really like how I backed up 😂😂 <a href="https://t.co/4bsdD9NDDc">https://t.co/4bsdD9NDDc</a></p><p>— Donovan Mitchell (@spidadmitchell) <a href="https://twitter.com/spidadmitchell/status/1754008943636959660?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 4, 2024</a></p></blockquote><p><script async="" src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></p></figure><p>While both players were ejected, Collins was called for a flagrant 2 foul. That’s assessed when a player’s contact is deemed “unnecessary and excessive” and leads to an automatic ejection.</p><p>“The kid was upset at a play that happened before, and he retaliated. Donovan did what Donovan does, he stood up for himself. I understand the rule, but if a guy takes a cheap shot on you, again you should be able to protect yourself,” the fifth-year Cavaliers coach explained.</p><h2>Donovan Mitchell and Zach Collins</h2><p>Neither player mentioned any kind of previous history in discussing Saturday’s incident.</p><p>The Cavaliers, whose five-game win streak is currently tops in the NBA, controlled the contest throughout, leading the Silver and Black by five after the first quarter, 12 at the half, and 11 after three. The lead grew to as big as 26 in the second half of a win that improved their record to 31-16, which is good for third place in the Eastern Conference.</p><p>Mitchell poured in a game-high 31 points and dished out a team high seven assists against the 10-30 Spurs. With 28.2 points per game, the five-time All-Star again leads Cleveland in scoring this season.</p><p>Collins scored ten points and grabbed nine rebounds in his second game back after missing the previous three games with a right ankle sprain. The 26-year-old veteran has started 24 games this year, beginning the season in the starting line-up next to Victor Wembanyama. When the Spurs moved Wemby to play more minutes at center, Collins took on a reserve role. For the season, he’s averaging 12.1 points, 5.7 rebounds, and 3.1 assists per game.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

Spurs’ Zach Collins doubles down on Donovan Mitchell dust up

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);   ga('set', 'page', '/cavs-news-angry-donovan-mitchell-ejected-after-shoving-zach-collins');   ga('set', 'title', 'Cavs: Angry Donovan Mitchell ejected after shoving Zach Collins');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.cavsnation.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/Cavs_news__Angry_Donovan_Mitchell_ejected_after_shoving_Zach_Collins.webp"></figure><h1>Cavs: Angry Donovan Mitchell ejected after shoving Zach Collins</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2024-02-03T20:53:26-08:00">February 3rd, 8:53pm</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2024-02-03T20:53:26-08:00">February 3rd, 8:53pm</time><address><a>Christopher Smith</a>Christopher Smith is an Associate Editor and covers the Chicago Sky for ClutchPoints. The Aurora, IL native earned a degree in philosophy from Creighton University, where he also competed as a Division 1 Cross Country runner.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">Cavs News</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>The Cleveland Cavaliers continue to climb the Eastern Conference standings after a superb effort against the San Antonio Spurs. <a href="https://cavsnation.com/cavs-news-jb-bickerstaff-jarrett-allen-honest-take-on-evan-mobley-injury-return" rel="noopener">Evan Mobley a had</a> breakout performance. Moreover, Donovan Mitchell led the team in points, but Zach Collins got under his skin at the end of the game.</p><h2><b>Donovan Mitchell ends the Cavs game hot after an altercation with Zach Collins</b></h2><p>The Spurs had possession of the ball with 54 seconds remaining in the game when Collins gave Mitchell a hard push-off screen. Officials called Collins for a foul, but Mitchell took exception to the move and shoved the Spurs big man in <a href="https://twitter.com/BleacherReport/status/1753992735307018338" rel="noopener">a heated altercation</a>, as shown by Bleacher Report’s X account:</p><figure class="op-interactive"><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p dir="ltr" lang="en">Donovan Mitchell EJECTED after altercation with Zach Collins 😳 <a href="https://t.co/xLHOdC25Us">pic.twitter.com/xLHOdC25Us</a></p><p>— Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) <a href="https://twitter.com/BleacherReport/status/1753992735307018338?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 4, 2024</a></p></blockquote><p><script async="" src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></p></figure><p> </p><p>Mitchell was ejected from the game for the incident. Thankfully, it did not affect the outcome of the game, as the Cavs won 117-101.</p><p><a href="https://cavsnation.com/cavs-news-donovan-mitchell-sounds-off-viral-mentor-moment-pistons-jaden-ivey" rel="noopener">Donovan Mitchell ended</a> the night with 31 points, eight rebounds, seven assists, two steals, and two blocks. Meanwhile, Evan Mobley put on an impressive performance amid his return from injury. The 22-year-old put up 28 points and 10 rebounds.</p><p>Of course, Jarrett Allen continued his dominance with a 26-point-16-rebound double-double. It is great to see the young center continuing his success alongside Mobley. The rest of the NBA will cower in fear if the big-man duo continues their production.</p><p>Cleveland improved their record to 31-16, and the team sits third in the Eastern Conference standings. Cavs fans have plenty to be excited about as the team returns to full form.</p><p>The Cavaliers want to average their 2023 postseason exit with a deeper playoff run in 2024. The sky is the limit with the team’s combination of talent and hard work.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

Cavs: Angry Donovan Mitchell ejected after shoving Zach Collins

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/spurs-news-zach-collins-san-antonio-rejoice-breaking-18-game-losing-streak');   ga('set', 'title', 'Zach Collins, Spurs rejoice after breaking 18-game losing streak');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/spurs-news-zach-collins-san-antonio-rejoice-after-breaking-18-game-losing-streak.webp"></figure><h1>Zach Collins, Spurs rejoice after breaking 18-game losing streak</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2023-12-16T05:37:24-08:00">December 16th, 5:37am</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2023-12-16T05:37:24-08:00">December 16th, 5:37am</time><address><a>Hector Ledesma</a>Hector Ledesma has been covering the Spurs in San Antonio since 2005, but he has been following them for even longer than that. An award-winning journalist born and raised in San Antonio, Hector has worked across all types of television and radio platforms. His work extends online and through social media (@HectorLedesmaTV) where he continues that work with ClutchPoints.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">NBA</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>It is over. The San Antonio Spurs’ franchise record <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/spurs-news-victor-wembanyama-issues-stern-challenge-to-san-antonio-after-lakers-upset" rel="noopener">18-game losing streak ended</a> with a 129-115 win vs. <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/lakers-news-lebron-james-gets-painfully-honest-on-hits-spurs" rel="noopener">LeBron James and the Los Angeles Lakers</a>. Afterward, the Silver and Black didn’t hold any excitement back.</p><p>“S**t, we won. It’s fantastic. It was great. It was great,” Spurs center Zach Collins exclaimed.</p><p>“We’re going to keep working our a** off,” Spurs star Victor Wembanyama echoed. “It kind of felt like a playoff game to me. We have to feel good about it.”</p><p>“It’s good for us to get this worked out. I can’t even lie,” Spurs guard Devin Vassell said candidly.</p><p>“I could get used to this feeling,” Spurs forward Keldon Johnson declared.</p><p>That the streak buster came against one of <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/lakers-news-lebron-james-drops-ultimate-praise-on-spurs-special-talent-victor-wembanyama" rel="noopener">the greatest players ever</a> and a team that figures to compete in the West all season long made it a little bit sweeter.</p><h2><b>Knocking off LeBron and the Lakers</b></h2><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/Victor_Wembanyama_looks_for_another_great_performance_with_LeBron__Questionable__for_Friday.webp"></figure><p>The Spurs didn’t get a chance to face James on Wednesday night. The future Hall of Famer missed his second game of the season with a nagging calf issue. Anthony Davis led LA with 37 points in a 122-119 win.</p><p>Friday brought the inverse for the Lake Show’s 1-2 punch, although Los D’Angelo Russell (migraine) and Cam Reddish (knee soreness) joined Davis (left abductor) as inactives. Lakers regulars Austin Reaves, Rui Hachimura and Christian Wood helped carry the weight in Friday’s defeat.</p><p>“That’s a good group out there, that’s a tough team. For us to stay resilient even though we were up in the first quarter and they kind of bounced back,” Vassell said.</p><p>The Spurs never trailed. They built a 25-point second quarter lead that, though whittled down to four just before the half, reached 15 when Wembanyama hit a three-pointer with 8:53 left in the third and eventually grew back to 20 in the fourth quarter.</p><p>ClutchPoints asked Spurs forward Jeremy Sochan about withstanding those Lakers runs.</p><p>“It brings us all together even more, especially with tough times and runs, they’re going to happen. It’s not going to be perfect. Something’s going to happen in games, especially in the NBA. It’s important for us to stay together and stay confident,” Sochan answered.</p><h2><b>That winning feeling</b></h2><p>Zach Collins was completely honest about Friday’s victory.</p><p>“We forget what a normal win feels like, to be honest, man. Yeah, this is big. We know we’ve been trending in the right direction so nobody’s shocked as far as the players go,” the 26-year-old big man shared, “We just knew we had to catch a couple of breaks and make some more shots because we knew our defense was getting better so we feel good about it.”</p><p>Asked by ClutchPoints about his reaction as the clock wound down to zero, with his arms raised on the bench, Wemby confirmed it felt like the release of a month and a half worth of frustration.</p><p>“It’s not like I forgot about the feeling and, of course, I never want to lose again but it’s going to happen and we’ve got to enjoy these moments because this what I’m addicted to: winning. This is what I love and it’s what I live for so I have to show it.”</p><p>On this night, the Spurs had no trouble showing emotion.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

Zach Collins, Spurs rejoice after breaking 18-game losing streak

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/spurs-news-victor-wembanyama-zach-collins-react-to-starting-lineup-changes-amid-losing-streak');   ga('set', 'title', 'Spurs’ Victor Wembanyama, Zach Collins react to starting lineup changes amid losing streak');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/Victor_Wembanyama_Zach_Collins_react_to_starting_line-up_changes_amid_losing_streak_copy.webp"></figure><h1>Spurs’ Victor Wembanyama, Zach Collins react to starting lineup changes amid losing streak</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2023-12-11T06:42:43-08:00">December 11th, 6:42am</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2023-12-11T06:43:46-08:00">December 11th, 6:43am</time><address><a>Hector Ledesma</a>Hector Ledesma has been covering the Spurs in San Antonio since 2005, but he has been following them for even longer than that. An award-winning journalist born and raised in San Antonio, Hector has worked across all types of television and radio platforms. His work extends online and through social media (@HectorLedesmaTV) where he continues that work with ClutchPoints.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">Mini-Editorials</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>After two straight games of tinkering with the starting lineup for the first time this season outside of injuries, all indications point to the San Antonio Spurs going with Friday night’s starters again on Monday.</p><p>In a 121-112 loss to the Chicago Bulls that matched the <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/spurs-takeaways-franchise-record-tying-16th-straight-loss-vs-bulls" rel="noopener">Spurs’ longest-ever losing streak</a>, the team rolled out Victor Wembanyama, Devin Vassell, Keldon Johnson, Jeremy Sochan and Malaki Branham. Following the game, head coach Gregg Popovich gave a simple one word answer when asked if he’ll take another look at the lineup.</p><p>“Absolutely.”</p><h2><b>The Spurs’ shakeup</b></h2><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/3-Spurs-Takeaways-from-loss-to-Hawks.jpg"></figure><p>Off the heels of starting Zach Collins with Wembanyama, Vassell, Johnson, and Sochan at point guard through their first 19 games, barring injuries, of 2023-24, Popovich inserted Cedi Osman into the lineup on Wednesday at the Minnesota Timberwolves. It marked the first time Sochan, who played forward last year as a rookie, didn’t start when available this season. It also marked a 15th straight Spurs loss.</p><p>When asked about the reason for the change, Pop was again short, “It’s what we wanted to do.”</p><p>Like in that 102-94 loss in Minneapolis, the Silver and Black were again competitive two nights later vs. the Bulls when Sochan reentered the starting unit and Malaki Branham joined it, sending Collins to the bench.</p><p>“I thought we looked pretty good. Having more firepower coming off the bench is always going to help us take some relief off the starters,” Collins said, “Hopefully, this, spacing-wise, will work a little better.”</p><p>Branham, who started a couple of games last month because of injuries to others, echoed the sentiment.</p><p>“It looks pretty solid so far. I like Zach coming off the bench carrying that second unit. We’ve just gotta see how it plays out.”</p><p>Spurs rookie Victor Wembanyama sees the moves as a potential fix to third-quarter lulls.</p><p>“When our opponents are down at the half, of course, they’re going to have a reaction, but we’ve got to expect that every time because our first half was pretty solid, especially defensively,” Wemby said following a fifth home loss in which his team squandered a double-digit lead, “There’s ups and downs in a game, but we’ve got to get our downs less and less low.”</p><h2><b>Taking in the change</b></h2><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/San-Antonio-solidifies-Zach-Collins-partnership-with-Victor-Wembanyama-with-shiny-new-extension.jpg"></figure><p>The two Spurs players most affected by the latest change are probably Collins and Branham. The former had essentially served as the team’s starting center since Jakob Poeltl was traded in February. Branham had only started this season when regulars hadn’t been able to play.</p><p>“I always said, when you come off the bench, you don’t have the luxury of starting the game and getting into it fast, getting your body going, getting your mind into the game so you, kind of, just have to stay locked in coming off the bench from the jump even though you’re not in the game,” Collins said, “At the same time, play your game, be aggressive and bring energy off the bench. It takes a relief off the starters any time you can have a group to come in to extend the lead or hold the lead. That’s a win so that’s what we try to do.”</p><p>For Branham, the move is more about understanding a new role rather than whether he’s in the game at tip-off.</p><p>“It’s really position-less. Whoever gets the ball can really bring it up, so just really running my lanes and going from there,” the second-year first-round pick from Ohio State said. “I feel like me just evolving as a player each game. Whatever they need from me, I’m just going to try to get better if that makes any sense.”</p><p>Branham, Collins and the Spurs look to avoid setting a franchise record with a 17th straight loss when they visit the Houston Rockets on Monday.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

Spurs’ Victor Wembanyama, Zach Collins react to starting lineup changes amid losing streak

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/spurs-news-zach-collins-not-changing-approach-amid-struggles-im-going-to-keep-shooting');   ga('set', 'title', 'Spurs’ Zach Collins not changing approach amid struggles: ‘I’m going to keep shooting’');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/Spurs_news_Zach_Collins_not_changing_approach_amid_struggles_-__I_m_going_to_keep_shooting_.jpg"></figure><h1>Spurs’ Zach Collins not changing approach amid struggles: ‘I’m going to keep shooting’</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2023-11-27T22:42:16-08:00">November 27th, 10:42pm</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2023-11-27T22:45:41-08:00">November 27th, 10:45pm</time><address><a>Hector Ledesma</a>Hector Ledesma has been covering the Spurs in San Antonio since 2005, but he has been following them for even longer than that. An award-winning journalist born and raised in San Antonio, Hector has worked across all types of television and radio platforms. His work extends online and through social media (@HectorLedesmaTV) where he continues that work with ClutchPoints.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">NBA</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>San Antonio Spurs big man Zach Collins doesn’t need a reminder that he’s made just one of his last 11 attempts from 3-point territory. He might know, specifically, that he’s shooting 27 percent from beyond the arc this season. And he probably wouldn’t be surprised to hear that he’s taken more 3-pointers than two of the team’s best shooters in Cedi Osman and Doug McDermott, as well as it’s most versatile player off the bench Malaki Branham.</p><p>Despite all of that, don’t expect Collins to stop firing.</p><p>“<a href="https://twitter.com/HectorLedesmaTV/status/1729227474545111045?s=20" rel="noopener">I’m gonna keep shooting them</a>. I’ve worked too hard for this not to come balance back my way,” Collins told ClutchPoints on Monday.</p><h2><b>Zach Collins looking to recapture a mini groove</b></h2><p>The Gonzaga alum went through a stretch at the start of this month in which he hit at least 50 percent of the treys he took in four of five games, including a 3-for-3 performance in what turned out to be the Spurs’ last win, a 132-121 victory at the Phoenix Suns on November 2.</p><figure class="op-interactive"><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p dir="ltr" lang="en">Spurs practice</p><p>Talked with Zach Collins about his ‘4-5’ dynamic with Vic and how much it really matters considering the <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Spurs?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#Spurs</a> offense</p><p>Answer⬇️<a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/GoSpursGo?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#GoSpursGo</a><a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/PorVida?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#PorVida</a> <a href="https://t.co/exc20M570d">pic.twitter.com/exc20M570d</a></p><p>— Hector Ledesma (@HectorLedesmaTV) <a href="https://twitter.com/HectorLedesmaTV/status/1729227474545111045?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 27, 2023</a></p></blockquote><p><script async="" src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></p></figure><p>“I think I can do a better job of preparing for the shots, getting lower, using my legs. A lot them have been short,” the 6’11” center continued, “I’ve worked too hard. I’ve worked too much on my game to let something like this stop me from shooting so I’m going to keep dong it.”</p><h2><b>Finding a comfort zone with Victor Wembanyama</b></h2><p>Adjusting his 3-point shot form isn’t the only adapting Collins is doing on the court these days.</p><p><a href="https://clutchpoints.com/victor-wembanyama-takeaways-spurs-loss-defending-champion-nuggets" rel="noopener">Spurs star rookie Victor Wembanyama</a> played more at the center position than usual in Sunday night’s loss to the Denver Nuggets, sometimes matching up with two-time NBA MVP and last year’s Finals MVP Nikola Jokic.</p><p>When asked whether there was a <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/spurs-news-zach-collins-victor-wembanyama-partnership" rel="noopener">concerted effort to switch duties</a> with his 7’5″ teammate, Collins said it varied.</p><p>“It’s usually whoever has the mismatch, throw him under the rim. If we go into a double screen, if he wants to roll then I know I’m popping and vice versa type thing,” the big man added.</p><p>Though just 26 years old, Collins is seven years Wemby’s senior.</p><p>“We’re just playing off each other; realize that we can both do multiple things. We can both shoot, we can both go inside so just trying to read one another. If I see Vic running the floor, I’m hanging back a little bit because I know he’ll be under the rim,” Collins furthered.</p><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/spurs-news-victor-wembanyamas-crazy-ass-stat-line-has-devin-vassell-losing-his-mind.jpg"></figure><h2><b>Existing within the modern game</b></h2><p>Collins ranks fourth on the team at 14.1 points per game. His 6.3 rebounds per contest are second only to Wembanyama, as is his blocks per game average among nightly rotational players.</p><p>CluchPoints asked Collins if, in this day of “position-less” basketball, too much is made of who plays center and who plays power forward.</p><p>“That’s a good question. I think it goes back to who’s guarding us. If the five is guarding me – their biggest guy – then it changes things. If he’s guarding Vic, then maybe he turns into the guy running up into the screens and I’m spacing. I think it just depends on what the other team’s doing,” Collins responded.</p><p>There’s no doubt about what Zach Collins will keep doing, at least when it comes to getting a good look from beyond the 3-point line.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

Spurs’ Zach Collins not changing approach amid struggles: ‘I’m going to keep shooting’

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/spurs-news-san-antonio-solidifies-zach-collins-partnership-with-victor-wembanyama-with-shiny-new-extension');   ga('set', 'title', 'Spurs solidify Zach Collins’ Victor Wembanyama partnership with shiny new extension');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/San-Antonio-solidifies-Zach-Collins-partnership-with-Victor-Wembanyama-with-shiny-new-extension.jpg"></figure><h1>Spurs solidify Zach Collins’ Victor Wembanyama partnership with shiny new extension</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2023-10-22T10:06:26-07:00">October 22nd, 10:06am</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2023-10-22T10:31:52-07:00">October 22nd, 10:31am</time><address><a>Jack Winter</a>Jack Winter is a veteran NBA writer and editor based on the West Coast. He currently lives in Oakland, covering the last legs of the Golden State Warriors' dynasty.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">NBA</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>There will almost undoubtedly come a time when Victor Wembanyama is the San Antonio Spurs’ full-time center. As the <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/spurs-news-victor-wembanyama-full-video-game-on-stephen-curry-warriors-with-mind-blowing-1q" rel="noopener">rookie’s otherworldly preseason performance</a> gives way to his official NBA debut next week, though, the Spurs are <a href="https://twitter.com/wojespn/status/1716134420434780573" rel="noopener">doubling down</a> on his frontcourt partnership with veteran big man Zach Collins.</p><p>Collins has agreed to a two-year, $35 million contract extension with the Spurs, according to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski. The deal ties him to San Antonio through the 2025-26 season.</p><figure class="op-interactive"><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p dir="ltr" lang="en">San Antonio Spurs center Zach Collins has agreed on a two-year, $35 million contract extension, Mark Bartelstein of <a href="https://twitter.com/PrioritySports?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@PrioritySports</a> tells ESPN. Deal secures Collins through the 2025-2026 season. <a href="https://t.co/8fDlK5Tz0j">pic.twitter.com/8fDlK5Tz0j</a></p><p>— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) <a href="https://twitter.com/wojespn/status/1716134420434780573?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 22, 2023</a></p></blockquote><p><script async="" src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></p></figure><p>Collins signed a three-year, $22 million deal with San Antonio in the 2021 offseason following his injury-plagued tenure with the Portland Trail Blazers. The 25-year-old been healthy for the Spurs since returning from an ankle injury midway through 2021-22, establishing himself as a worthy starter at center next to Wembanyama during exhibition play over the last couple weeks.</p><p>Collins averaged 14.3 points, 6.3 rebounds and 4.8 assists per game during preseason action, shooting 57.9% overall and 35.7% on a relatively high volume of three-point attempts. He feasted on smaller defenders down low after switches, and just as importantly, provided additional rim-protection and physicality in the paint with Wembanyama largely checking wings and forwards, serving as a roamer defensively.</p><p>The two-way versatility of <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/spurs-news-zach-collins-victor-wembanyama-partnership" rel="noopener">Collins’ game makes him a seamless fit</a> next to the French wunderkind as he continues adding weight and getting comfortable with rigors of NBA play. Collins is no star, but his ability to stretch the floor and operation in dribble hand-offs while serving as the Spurs’ resident enforcer on the other end is a rare and increasingly valuable combination of attributes, traits that made him a lottery pick back in 2017.</p><p>The Spurs open the regular season on Wednesday against the Dallas Mavericks.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

Spurs solidify Zach Collins’ Victor Wembanyama partnership with shiny new extension

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/spurs-news-zach-collins-victor-wembanyama-partnership');   ga('set', 'title', 'Spurs’ Zach Collins envisions greatness in Victor Wembanyama partnership');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/Thumbs-7-1-1.jpg"></figure><h1>Spurs’ Zach Collins envisions greatness in Victor Wembanyama partnership</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2023-10-17T08:30:02-07:00">October 17th, 8:30am</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2023-10-17T08:36:08-07:00">October 17th, 8:36am</time><address><a href="https://joeymistretta.wordpress.com">Joey Mistretta</a>Joey Mistretta is a sports writer/editor who covers multiple sports. Notably, Mistretta covers baseball, basketball, and football, with an emphasis on MLB as a Lead Editor. He is originally from a small town in Southern California. Mistretta graduated college with a degree in broadcast journalism from Biola University.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">NBA</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>San Antonio Spurs big man Zach Collins is <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/spurs-news-victor-wembanyama-passing-versatility-get-major-zach-collins-assessment" rel="noopener">excited to play alongside</a> Victor Wembanyama. Collins believes his partnership with Wembanyama can lead to big things. The 25-year-old <a href="https://twitter.com/tom_orsborn/status/1714108357009690866" rel="noopener">recently explained his fit</a> alongside Wembanyama for the Spurs.</p><p>“Yeah, we want to make it work,” Collins said, via Tom Orsborn of the <i>San Antonio Express-News</i>. “We have to be able to compliment each other on the court. Inside and out is going to be big. The way he can finish inside, once he gets under the rim, keeps the ball high, no one is gonna be able to touch him or block the shot. Me, hopefully I can continue to make shots and that’s gonna open up everything for him down there too and vice-versa.</p><p>“Yeah man, I think it can be a match made in Heaven if we keep working at it.”</p><h2><b>Spurs: Wembanyama-Collins partnership </b></h2><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/Thumbs-8-1-1.jpg"></figure><p>The attention is going to be on Victor Wembanyama and understandably so. He’s a top-tier prospect with an extremely high-ceiling. Most people around the NBA world believe Wembanyama will be the next great NBA superstar.</p><p>However, San Antonio features an all-around intriguing core of players. Keldon Johnson, Jeremy Sochan, Devin Vassell, and Zach Collins are all talented and young players. Those players all seem to <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/spurs-news-keldon-johnson-speaks-having-victor-wembanyamas-back-during-rookie-season" rel="noopener">have Wembanyama’s back as well.</a></p><p>Collins has been in the NBA since 2017. He began his career with the Portland Trail Blazers before joining the Spurs prior to the 2021-22 season. 2022-23 was his breakout year in a way though, as he averaged 11.6 points per game on 51.8 percent field goal and 37.4 percent three-point shooting to go along with 6.4 rebounds per contest.</p><p>If Collins is able to make shots on a consistent basis like he stated, defenses will have to pay attention to him. That will only help Wembanyama throughout the 2023-24 campaign. The same can be said for the Spurs’ other players as well.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

Spurs’ Zach Collins envisions greatness in Victor Wembanyama partnership

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/spurs-news-victor-wembanyama-passing-versatility-get-major-zach-collins-assessment');   ga('set', 'title', 'Victor Wembanyama’s passing, versatility get major assessment from Spurs’ Zach Collins');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/Spurs-Zach-Collins-Victor-Wembanyama.jpeg"></figure><h1>Victor Wembanyama’s passing, versatility get major assessment from Spurs’ Zach Collins</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2023-10-08T05:58:44-07:00">October 8th, 5:58am</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2023-10-08T05:58:44-07:00">October 8th, 5:58am</time><address><a>Sam DiGiovanni</a>Sam DiGiovanni started at ClutchPoints as an associate editor in 2021 and became the site's Philadelphia 76ers beat reporter ahead of the 2022-23 season. He graduated from Marist College in May of 2022 and has written for TheKnicksWall.com and CenterFieldMarist.com in the past.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">NBA</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>The San Antonio Spurs got another look at Victor Wembanyama on the court at their intrasquad scrimmage. The French phenom continues to dazzle and make San Antonio feel great about its future.</p><p>The Spurs’ Silver &amp; Black open scrimmage gave fans a chance to see the top overall pick in action. Wembanyama’s team lost but the fans were <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/spurs-news-san-antonio-crowd-erupts-for-victor-wembanyama-at-open-scrimmage" rel="noopener">absolutely thrilled</a> to see him. He hit a few nifty shots and made some other plays that impressed the crowd and his teammates, including Zach Collins, who is projected to start <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/spurs-victor-wembanyama-center-position-decision" rel="noopener">alongside him in the frontcourt</a>.</p><p>Collins is quickly becoming <a href="https://x.com/tom_orsborn/status/1710815864084144271?s=20" rel="noopener">a fan of Wemby’s game</a> and how much he can do on the floor, according to Tom Orsborn of the San Antonio Express-News.</p><p>“It’s a lot of fun. He’s so versatile. I’m not just an inside guy. I can shoot, too, so, it’s kind of a back and forth: He runs the floor and I’ll hit him on the high-low, and vice-versa. So, there’s just a lot of things we can do with it,” Collins said, per Orsborn.</p><p>Collins noted that Wembanyama is a <a href="https://x.com/tom_orsborn/status/1710814844641817030?s=20" rel="noopener">slick and willing passer</a>, too. The Spurs’ future star has a fantastic feel for the game. While it may take time for the lanky teenager to get accustomed to NBA physicality, his ability to read the floor and willingness to share the ball will put him on a path to greatness.</p><figure class="op-interactive"><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p dir="ltr" lang="en">Victor Wembanyama showing off the handles and the court vision 😳</p><p>(via <a href="https://twitter.com/KellyIko?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@KellyIko</a>)<a href="https://t.co/jJyCIwLUN6">pic.twitter.com/jJyCIwLUN6</a></p><p>— ClutchPoints (@ClutchPoints) <a href="https://twitter.com/ClutchPoints/status/1710781973092835611?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 7, 2023</a></p></blockquote><p><script async="" src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></p></figure><p>“That’s just knowing the game and being a natural at it…And, he’s a willing passer,” Collins said, per Orsborn. “Half the battle is being willing to make that pass and he is willing. He’s fun to play with, that’s for sure.”</p><p>Wembanyama should be a two-way force for the Spurs as they look to become a playoff contender again. The super high expectations will be there but so will the San Antonio infrastructure to support him.</p><p>The Spurs’ first preseason game is Monday night against the Oklahoma City Thunder and their first regular-season game is Wednesday, October 25 against the Dallas Mavericks. Victor Wembanyama will have a target on his back as opponents look to take it right to the highly touted prospect.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

Victor Wembanyama’s passing, versatility get major assessment from Spurs’ Zach Collins

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/spurs-news-gregg-popovich-strong-zach-collins-stance-hints-at-2023-plans-amid-retirement-buzz');   ga('set', 'title', 'Spurs HC Gregg Popovich’s strong Zach Collins stance hints at 2023 plans amid retirement buzz');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/04/Zach-Collins-Gregg-Popovich-Spurs.jpg"></figure><h1>Spurs HC Gregg Popovich’s strong Zach Collins stance hints at 2023 plans amid retirement buzz</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2023-04-08T14:50:23-07:00">April 8th, 2:50pm</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2023-04-08T14:52:25-07:00">April 8th, 2:52pm</time><address><a>Quinn Allen</a>Quinn Allen is a freelance sports journalist and full-time editor for ClutchPoints. He specializes mainly in soccer, basketball, and baseball. When Quinn isn't producing content for CP, he's writing predictions across the European soccer and NBA world for bettors at Sports Betting Dime, one of the fastest-growing sports betting sites in North America.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">NBA</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>Will <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/spurs-gregg-popovich-admission-coaching-rebuild-after-tim-duncan-era" rel="noopener">Gregg Popovich</a> return to the <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/spurs-early-2023-nba-free-agency-targets" rel="noopener">San Antonio Spurs</a> for another season in 2023-24? It appears the answer is yes.</p><p>On Saturday, Coach Pop said big man Zach Collins will be the starter at the five next year, hinting at his plans to return to the Spurs bench.</p><p>“<a href="https://www.expressnews.com/sports/spurs/article/collins-start-center-2023-24-popovich-says-17886339.php" rel="noopener">He’s made it.</a> He’s going to be the guy at five for us,” Popovich said, via the San Antonio Express.</p><p>There have been some rumblings that Popovich could retire at the season’s end. He essentially shut down the rumors with his comments on Collins, who became the starter in San Antonio after Jakob Poeltl was traded to the Toronto Raptors, the team that drafted him.</p><p>Collins is averaging 11.6 points, 6.4 rebounds, and 2.9 assists per night for the Spurs while also shooting 37% from deep. Gregg Popovich applauded the former Portland Trail Blazer for improving his ability to shoot the triple:</p><p>“He’s playing with abandon now, for a long time, for months,” Popovich said. “He’s added the three-point shot to his game, he’s balanced better on the post, he’s playing good defense.”</p><p>Popovich first joined the Spurs organization in 1988 as an assistant before taking over as the head coach in 1996. During his time in Texas, the 74-year-old has won five NBA titles and captured Coach of the Year honors three times.</p><p>At this point, Coach Pop is just relishing the opportunity to help these young players learn the game and develop because, after all, San Antonio is a long way off from contending. He even voiced how much fun it was just helping the roster improve during the first full year of the rebuild <a href="https://www.si.com/nba/spurs/news/gregg-popovich-still-having-fun-coaching-rebuilding-san-antonio-spurs" rel="noopener">after Tuesday’s loss</a> to the Suns. Per SI:</p><p>“It’s fun coaching them,” Popovich said. “Obviously, it was going to be a tough night for them but their competitiveness was great. They got better after the first quarter. I think we were intimidated. Played very competitively, and executed pretty damn well against a very good basketball team. I was happy for them. I thought they did a good job.”</p><p>The NBA still needs Gregg Popovich around and it looks like he will be.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

Spurs HC Gregg Popovich’s strong Zach Collins stance hints at 2023 plans amid retirement buzz

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/nuggets-news-trae-young-clowns-zach-collins-for-altercation-after-michael-porter-jr-posterized-him');   ga('set', 'title', 'Trae Young clowns Zach Collins for altercation after Nuggets’ Michael Porter Jr. posterized him');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/Trae-Young-Michael-Porter-Jr.-Zach-Collins-Spurs-Nuggets-Hawks.jpg"></figure><h1>Trae Young clowns Zach Collins for altercation after Nuggets’ Michael Porter Jr. posterized him</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2023-03-10T22:06:52-08:00">March 10th, 10:06pm</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2023-03-10T22:06:52-08:00">March 10th, 10:06pm</time><address><a href="https://letterboxd.com/splooshpuhrty/films/by/your-rating/">Jedd Pagaduan</a>Loves Arsenal and the Los Angeles Clippers, so his loyalty can never be questioned. This guy has been through enough sports trauma for one lifetime.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">NBA</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>Being on the receiving end of a filthy, poster dunk is one of the occupational hazards of being a center in the NBA. Even the best rim protectors of all time, such as <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oVcSndz52DE" rel="noopener">Hakeem Olajuwon</a>, <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RmPduhZOLBU" rel="noopener">Dikembe Mutombo</a>, <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FNfufY9uRE0" rel="noopener">Mark Eaton</a>, and <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/pelicans-news-nba-world-reacts-to-zion-williamson-putting-rudy-gobert-on-a-poster" rel="noopener">Rudy Gobert</a>, have experienced the sting of getting dunked on. And that’s exactly what Atlanta Hawks star Trae Young thought after San Antonio Spurs center Zach Collins took exception to Denver Nuggets forward Michael Porter Jr.’s <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nuggets-news-michael-porter-jr-grabs-spurs-zach-collins-by-throat-before-both-players-get-ejected" rel="noopener">evisceration of him at the rim</a>.</p><p>Posting on his official Twitter account, Young <a href="https://twitter.com/TheTraeYoung/status/1634420866564882433" rel="noopener">mocked Collins for taking umbrage</a> to something the Spurs center should know is part of what he does for a living.</p><p>“Dude got mad he got dunked on😂.. It happens bruh!” Young wrote.</p><p>After Porter threw down a nasty, left-handed dunk right in Collins’ face, Collins took umbrage to an apparent taunt from the Nuggets forward. As a result, Collins blindsided Porter with a shove from behind, which escalated into a full-on fracas where the other Spurs and Nuggets players and coaches had to separate the two. The tussle led to both of their ejections.</p><p>Of course, no highflyer would ever dare challenge the rim-protecting ways of Trae Young. Remember when Ben Simmons decided to hand off the ball to Matisse Thybulle during the 2021 playoffs <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/hawks-news-trae-young-spooks-ben-simmons-on-wide-open-layup" rel="noopener">instead of throwing it down</a> right in Young’s grill?</p><p>Kidding aside, Collins is not the first player to take out his anger on the person who put him on a poster. In one of the most iconic plays of Shaquille O’Neal’s career, New York Knicks center Chris Dudley <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/lakers-news-shaquille-oneal-brings-up-savage-reminder-1999-battle-with-chris-dudley" rel="noopener">threw the ball</a> at the legendary Los Angeles Lakers center out of frustration, even yelling out an expletive in the process.</p><p>Meanwhile, other players even <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/mavs-news-luka-doncic-gets-brutally-honest-on-andrew-wiggins-vicious-poster-dunk-on-him" rel="noopener">simulate contact just to try and nullify</a> a thunderous poster slam. That is what Luka Doncic did in the 2022 playoffs after Andrew Wiggins took off and hammered down one of the nastiest dunks in postseason history.</p><p>Still, it’s not too difficult to see why Michael Porter Jr. <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nuggets-news-michael-porter-jr-sounds-off-on-getting-ejected-after-tussle-with-zach-collins" rel="noopener">felt hard done</a> by his ejection. After all, is it really his fault that Collins acted as the roadblock on his way to a loud, two points?</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

Trae Young clowns Zach Collins for altercation after Nuggets’ Michael Porter Jr. posterized him

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/nuggets-news-michael-porter-jr-sounds-off-on-getting-ejected-after-tussle-with-zach-collins');   ga('set', 'title', 'Nuggets forward Michael Porter Jr. sounds off on getting ejected after tussle with Zach Collins');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/Michael-Porter-Jr.-Zach-Collins-Spurs-Nuggets.jpg"></figure><h1>Nuggets forward Michael Porter Jr. sounds off on getting ejected after tussle with Zach Collins</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2023-03-10T21:07:23-08:00">March 10th, 9:07pm</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2023-03-10T21:07:23-08:00">March 10th, 9:07pm</time><address><a href="https://letterboxd.com/splooshpuhrty/films/by/your-rating/">Jedd Pagaduan</a>Loves Arsenal and the Los Angeles Clippers, so his loyalty can never be questioned. This guy has been through enough sports trauma for one lifetime.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">NBA</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>There might not be a more embarrassing play to be on the receiving end of than a nasty poster jam. And on Friday night, that’s exactly what happened to San Antonio Spurs center Zach Collins after Denver Nuggets forward Michael Porter Jr threw down a filthy off-hand dunk right in Collins’ face. Shortly thereafter, Collins took exception to Porter’s purported taunt and shoved him from behind leading to a fracas that <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nuggets-news-michael-porter-jr-grabs-spurs-zach-collins-by-throat-before-both-players-get-ejected" rel="noopener">resulted in both of their ejections</a>.</p><p>As a result, Michael Porter Jr. played in only 20 minutes, putting up seven points, one rebound, and one assist before heading off for the showers. Porter could have given the Nuggets a lift in their comeback efforts as they saw Nikola Jokic’s <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/spurs-news-san-antonio-stuns-nikola-jokic-nuggets-ends-the-jokers-insane-streak" rel="noopener">triple-double winning streak come crashing down</a> in a 128-120 defeat to the lowly Spurs.</p><p>Thus, it’s no surprise to hear disdain in Porter’s tone when he <a href="https://twitter.com/VicLombardi/status/1634405381588893697" rel="noopener">expressed his thoughts on his tussle</a> with Collins.</p><p>“I think it was pretty clear, what happened. He got dunked on. My back was turned towards him, you know what I mean? Man, get in my face,” Porter said, per Vic Lombardi of Altitude TV.</p><figure class="op-interactive"><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p dir="ltr" lang="en">MPJ on his first-ever NBA ejection. He’s still maaaad. <a href="https://twitter.com/nuggets?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@nuggets</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/AltitudeTV?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@AltitudeTV</a> <a href="https://t.co/UwnwJXqln8">pic.twitter.com/UwnwJXqln8</a></p><p>— Vic Lombardi (@VicLombardi) <a href="https://twitter.com/VicLombardi/status/1634405381588893697?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">March 11, 2023</a></p></blockquote><p><script async="" src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></p></figure><p>Porter then proceeded to explain the rationale behind his ejection despite being on the receiving end of the shove while doing so with an incredulous smile on his face.</p><p>“They said I put my hand on his neck. But that’s a natural reaction. He’s lucky he didn’t get hit being in my face like that. That’s a split-second reaction,” Porter added.</p><p>At the end of the day, the Nuggets forward believed that Collins did not need to blow what should have been an incredible highlight out of proportion leading to their ejections.</p><p>“I don’t think it had to get to that. I don’t have anything against the dude, but if you get in somebody’s face. Man, you know what I mean?” Porter said.</p><p>The Nuggets have now lost two straight games against teams with a below .500 record; with the playoffs looming, they will need to avoid falling into poor habits. But circumstances out of their control simply changed the way the game went tonight.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

Nuggets forward Michael Porter Jr. sounds off on getting ejected after tussle with Zach Collins

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/nuggets-news-michael-porter-jr-grabs-spurs-zach-collins-by-throat-before-both-players-get-ejected');   ga('set', 'title', 'VIDEO: Nuggets’ Michael Porter Jr. grabs Spurs’ Zach Collins by throat before both players get ejected');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/Capture.jpg"></figure><h1>VIDEO: Nuggets’ Michael Porter Jr. grabs Spurs’ Zach Collins by throat before both players get ejected</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2023-03-10T19:19:52-08:00">March 10th, 7:19pm</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2023-03-10T19:20:42-08:00">March 10th, 7:20pm</time><address><a>Angelo Guinhawa</a>Angelo Guinhawa is a basketball and soccer/football editor/writer. He uses his background in digital marketing to make sure you get to read his work. He has previously worked for FOX Sports PH and a number of reputable sports media outlets. If he's not writing or watching sports, he's likely scouring online for his next NBA card purchase.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">NBA</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>Denver Nuggets swingman Michael Porter Jr. and San Antonio Spurs forward Zach Collins got into a heated and physical altercation on Friday, leading to both players getting ejected in the game.</p><p>Midway through the third quarter, Porter absolutely embarrassed Collins with a nasty dunk and seemingly followed it up with a taunt. The Spurs big man certainly didn’t appreciate it and proceeded to bump the Nuggets swingman as he was running to the other side of the court. It then led to both players shoving each other.</p><figure class="op-interactive"><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p dir="ltr" lang="en">A fight erupts between Zach Collins and Michael Porter Jr. in the Spurs-Nuggets game 👀 </p><p>Both have been ejected from the game.<a href="https://t.co/T5Osku9RRK">pic.twitter.com/T5Osku9RRK</a></p><p>— ClutchPoints (@ClutchPointsApp) <a href="https://twitter.com/ClutchPointsApp/status/1634383635137671170?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">March 11, 2023</a></p></blockquote><p><script async="" src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></p></figure><p>Porter’s actions made a lot of buzz, though, as he was seen <a href="https://twitter.com/ClutchPointsApp/status/1634384277713321985" rel="noopener">grabbing</a> Collins by the throat as their scuffle started. Whether MPJ did it on purpose or by accident as he was trying to push away Collins, it’s definitely not a good look for the Nuggets rising star.</p><figure class="op-interactive"><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p dir="ltr" lang="en">Michael Porter Jr. and Zach Collins. 😳</p><p>(h/t <a href="https://twitter.com/BradeauxNBA?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@BradeauxNBA</a>)</p><p> <a href="https://t.co/Mda5zqd7xh">pic.twitter.com/Mda5zqd7xh</a></p><p>— Hoop Central (@TheHoopCentral) <a href="https://twitter.com/TheHoopCentral/status/1634384145865662465?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">March 11, 2023</a></p></blockquote><p><script async="" src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></p></figure><p>It remains to be seen if the NBA will take further action and punish Michael Porter Jr. and Zach Collins for their ugly fight. However, it won’t be a surprise if Adam Silver and co. address it considering the <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba-news-kevin-garnett-perfect-reaction-spike-in-fights-after-mo-bamba-austin-rivers-brouhaha" rel="noopener">number of scuffles</a> that have occurred around the league this 2022-23 season. It’s just becoming too common for the league, and so some actions might be needed.</p><p>Porter left the game after 20 minutes of play, making just seven points, one rebound and one assist in a rather uncharacteristic night for him. As for Collins, he made 10 points and had nine boards and three dimes in 21 minutes of action.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

2024-25 SEASON STATS
PTS	REB	AST	BLK	STL
6.3	4.4	1.7	0.5	0.5

2024-25 SEASON STATS
PTS	REB	AST	BLK	STL
6.3	4.4	1.7	0.5	0.5

Zach Collins news

Zach
Collins news