🏀 It's The Best Time Of Year For NBA Fans

The NBA is treating its fans to a flurry of action right now. [View in browser]( [FOX SPORTS INSIDER WITH MARTIN ROGERS] In today’s FOX Sports Insider: The NBA is treating us to a flurry of action that will have an immediate impact on what the league is going to look like over the next few years ... we take a look at Obi Toppin’s rise to greatness ... and Annie Agar treats us to a hilarious video titled “If The Masters Had a Zoom Call." The NBA is treating us to a spirited flurry of action right now, the kind of activity that fans love most. No, not playoff games, rivalry games, All-Star Games or any other kind of games – just the eternal and frenetic cycle of moving chairs that forms its own game within the game. In a pair of win-now moves squarely aimed at trying to persuade Giannis Antetokounmpo to cement his talents to Milwaukee, rather than take them off to higher-profile (and possibly sunnier) climes, the Bucks are reportedly poised to trade for New Orleans’ Jrue Holiday and Sacramento’s Bogdan Bogdanovic. “I like what both guys add,” [FOX Sports NBA analyst Chris Broussard said](. “The Bucks have a chance to win it all but you can’t pick them just based off this move.” Meanwhile, buzz around James Harden reportedly turning down the chance to become the league’s first $50 million per year player and instead seeking to form a superteam with Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving in Brooklyn has the chatter-sphere ablaze, too. [STORY IMAGE 1] “At this point, money, it’s not that it’s meaningless to James Harden but it’s close to it,” [First Things First’s Nick Wright said on FS1](. “The only thing left for him is a championship. He’s got the MVP, he’s got the scoring title, he’s got the assists title, but he has been to one Finals.” Such things are discussed so greatly, yes, more than most actual games, because they have so much immediate impact on what the NBA is going to look like over the next few years. The big moves, the ones that are made with the true intention of trying to sway the dynamics of a fight for the title, are the ones that really grab us. Antetokounmpo and Harden fit squarely into that category. In some ways, the burst of movement has served to overshadow the NBA Draft, which will take place on Wednesday, virtually and remotely. And yet it is worth remembering that the draft is a huge part of why this is the time when the wheels start spinning and the moving trucks get ready. Draft capital is, in some ways, more valuable in the NBA than actual cash. Every team has an insane amount of dollars, most have the willingness to aim big and all have the requirement to spend by minimum salary regulations. [STORY IMAGE 2] Virtually every big trade you can think of had a bevy of picks as part of it. That appears to be the case with Holiday, it certainly was with both Anthony Davis coming to the Lakers and Russell Westbrook to the Rockets and you can bet your beard that Houston would want a mountainous, years-long stockpile of them before considering letting Harden go. And draft value is more clear, present and tangible right now than at any other time. Offering up a draft pick is a somewhat vague concept with to-be-determined worth if you extend it in January. Here, now, there is a clearer picture of the type of asset someone might be able to parlay it into. This year’s draft has been a game in itself – the waiting game. The worst of the wait is naturally for the players involved, young men who dreamed of a moment that feels like the culmination of a journey but is actually, in the best-case scenario, the start of one. With the draft positioned back from June to November, Anthony Edwards, the presumptive top choice, has been waiting to show what all the fuss is about. He is waiting to honor the memory of his beloved mother and grandmother who were lost to cancer, and waiting to prove if he can, like many say, be a new version of Harden. [STORY IMAGE 3] LaMelo Ball is waiting and the NBA has been waiting for him. Remember when his father LaVar was the biggest and loudest personality in sports for a hot minute, with every latest outburst newsworthy fodder? Back when we were first introduced to the concept of Big Baller Brand and all it entailed, LaMelo was a skinny, 5-foot-10 freshman at Chino Hills (CA) High School. Now, he’s 6-foot-8, with professional experience in Australia behind him, and more Instagram followers than most NBA All Stars. “I’m my own man, he’s his own man,” Ball said recently, referring to his father. “He has his opinions, I have mine. I feel like I can play on any team, and do good anywhere I go.” A bunch of others, including former Memphis center James Wiseman, Israel’s Deni Avdija and Dayton’s Naismith Award winner Obi Toppin will be waiting for their name to be called, and hoping that the wait isn’t too long. The revelation that Wiseman has not spoken to the Minnesota Timberwolves suggests they already know what they are doing with the top pick, with Edwards the likeliest recipient. [STORY IMAGE 4] Yet don’t be surprised if there are some more twists to come. Minnesota’s pick remains in trade play and so is the one that immediately follows it. We all forgot about the Golden State Warriors this past season, but remember that Steph Curry and Klay Thompson are back and that the team holds the No. 2 pick. With Milwaukee having made their big play and Brooklyn lining up theirs, it is possible that the next blockbuster trade might involve one of those selections. Minnesota might have something up its sleeve. The last time the No. 1 choice was traded, the Timberwolves ended up with Andrew Wiggins in a deal that sent Kevin Love to Cleveland. This year won’t go down as the most loaded draft class we have seen, but it is certainly an interesting one and offers extra fascination given the times we are in. The Lakers are the team everyone is chasing but big moves are afoot, and unless there is a sudden shift in how NBA teams do business, the draft and its assets are going to be heavily involved. There is a lot going on because this is when the NBA really cranks into life. Its fan base can’t get enough of it because it is the season after the season, and the game within the game. [STORY IMAGE 5] Here’s what others have said ... Jeremy Woo, Sports Illustrated: “The compressed nature of this offseason, with the trade moratorium lifting Monday, the draft on Wednesday, and free agency opening Friday, has created a massive transactional crunch for the entire league. At this point, everything is connected and has to be treated as such.” Shannon Sharpe, Undisputed (on Bucks trading for Jrue Holiday): “Giannis should be elated, this is what he needed. Sometimes you have to change in order to hope the partner stays. There is no guarantee, you just know if you don’t change, he or she is leaving., They have done everything they can to convince Giannis to stay.” Kevin Wildes, First Things First: “I think if James Harden goes to Brooklyn, they win the championship. I’ve been shocked in the last few days by the amount of people saying it doesn’t work … we just know they are going to win the championship. The tricky part here is the narrative needs to switch on James Harden if this moves. I think we’re seeing a huge narrative shift around what people think or the one way people think Harden can play.” [IN OTHER WORDS] - Obi Toppin was a lanky player who lacked confidence when he arrived at Mt. Zion Prep. He has developed into a star and one of the top prospects in the NBA Draft. [Jerry Bembry of The Undefeated]( tells the story of Toppin’s rise to greatness. - As the 2020 college football season rolls on and the month of December approaches, [Sports Illustrated’s Pat Forde]( breaks down the five games that will help decide who advances to play for conference championships. - Anthony Edwards is a projected top-three pick in Wednesday’s NBA Draft. How he got here, so close to realizing his dreams, is a story marked by unimaginable loss. [ESPN staff writer Alex Scarborough]( writes on the pain and promise of Anthony Edwards. [THE INTERNET IS UNDEFEATED] [THE INTERNET IS UNDEFEATED]( Annie Agar was at it again this week, this time with a must-see video captioned “If The Masters had a Zoom call.” Check out this video, as Agar takes on the role of several of the world’s best golfers who competed in the Masters this past week. She impersonates Bryson DeChambeau while wearing a Puma-branded Hogan cap and making a protein shake, which is outstanding. She impersonates Phil Mickelson in his KPMG hat talking into a microphone that isn’t turned on, which is hilarious. However, the best is when Agar impersonates Dustin Johnson and his love for the sandwiches at the Masters. This is so clever and so well done. Take a bow, Annie! [VIEWER'S GUIDE] Akron at Kent State (ESPN, 8 p.m. ET) Teon Dollard and the Akron Zips take on Dustin Crum and the Kent State Golden Flashes. NBA Draft Preview Show (ESPN2, 9 p.m. ET) An inside look at the upcoming 2020 NBA Draft, where the Minnesota Timberwolves hold the top pick. Back To School (@CFBonFOX Twitter) Dean Blandino and Mike Pereira break down the muffed snap/blocked punt special teams TD for Oregon State and Army's failed trick-play attempt against Tulane. [BET OF THE DAY] [BET OF THE DAY] Odds provided by [FOX Bet]( 2020 NBA Draft: First Draft Pick LaMelo Ball: -167 Anthony Edwards: -110 James Wiseman: +900 Who will be the first pick in the 2020 NBA Draft? That is the burning question heading into Wednesday’s draft, and as of now, there is no clear answer. All signs point to it coming down to three players: LaMelo Ball, Anthony Edwards and James Wiseman. The Minnesota Timberwolves currently hold the top pick, and it is likely that speculation about whether or not they will keep that pick will continue right up until the draft begins. FOX Bet has Ball listed at -167, Edwards listed at -110 and Wiseman at +900. Edwards has been the name that is most consistently listed at No. 1 in mock drafts, but Minnesota could keep us guessing right up until Adam Silver appears on our TV screen to make the announcement. Sit back, relax and enjoy one of the most exciting nights of the year for NBA fans! [WHAT THEY SAID] “Be led by your dreams not by your problems.” — Roy Williams [FOLLOW FOX SPORTS] [Twitter]( [Facebook]( [YouTube]( [Instagram]( Download FOX Sports App: [Fire TV]( [Roku]( [Google Play]( [App Store]( [Fire TV]( [Roku]( [App Store]( [Google Play]( Also available on these devices: [fireTV | AppleTV | ROKU | Google Chromecast | XBOX ONE | SAMSUNG Smart TV] [fireTV | AppleTV | ROKU | Google Chromecast | XBOX ONE | SAMSUNG Smart TV] Trademark & Copyright Notice: ™ and © 2020 Fox Media LLC and FOX Sports Interactive Media, LLC. All rights reserved. Please do not reply to this message. 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