Lakers superstar LeBron James tops TIME’s 2026 list of the 100 Most Influential People in Sports. The four-time MVP isn’t the only person affiliated with the NBA on the list, as Victor Wembanyama, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Jalen Brunson, Cooper Flagg, Stephen Curry, Mavericks president Masai Ujiri and Shams Charania of ESPN are also present.
Here are a few more odds and ends from around the basketball world:
- Eric Pincus of Bleacher Report lists his 10 biggest “flight risks” — the players most likely to change teams — in free agency. Four Lakers — Austin Reaves, Rui Hachimura, Deandre Ayton and James — are on Pincus’ list, as are Heat forward Andrew Wiggins and Sixers guard Quentin Grimes. Wiggins ($30.2MM) and Ayton ($8.1MM) both hold player options for 2026/27.
- While most player and team option decisions for next season are due by June 29, in some cases the deadlines are a little sooner, notes Brett Siegel of ClutchPoints (Twitter link). Trae Young (Wizards) and Kentavious Caldwell-Pope (Grizzlies), for example, have until June 23 to decide whether they want to pick up their lucrative player options, while the Clippers have until June 26 to determine what to do with their $16MM option on Bogdan Bogdanovic.
- Ten ESPN insiders have voted on their power rankings for 2026/27, with the Thunder, Spurs, Knicks, Celtics and Pistons comprising the top five. The Kings, Nets and Wizards are at the bottom end of the rankings.
