BKN NOTES
Los Angeles Lakers forward LeBron James on May 11 during game 4 of the second round of the NBA Playoffs in Los Angeles.
Jun 8, 2026; New York, New York, USA; San Antonio Spurs forward Victor Wembanyama rebounds the ball against the New York Knicks on Monday during game 3 of the NBA Finals at Madison Square Garden in New York.
LeBron James told Time magazine that he believes he is the greatest basketball player of all time.
When asked the age-old question of who is the GOAT in the NBA, James embraced his own name.
"I'm not taking nobody over me," he told Time in a profile published Monday. "There's no question."
James, however, admitted the NBA has other all-time greats, namely Hall of Famers Michael Jordan, Kobe Bryant, Earvin "Magic" Johnson, Larry Bird and Shaquille O'Neal, among others.
"But I think Mike will say the same thing," James said. "Rest his soul, Kobe will say the same thing. Magic will say the same thing. Bird will say the same thing. Shaq could say the same thing. The late great Wilt (Chamberlain), Kareem (Abdul-Jabbar). I don't think none of us are going to take somebody else.
"If there's a general manager and he's eyeballing all of us on a baseline, with the No. 1 pick, it's gonna be hard not to take me, champ."
James, 41, just completed his record-setting 23rd NBA season, and the league's all-time leading scorer is heading into unrestricted free agency.
"It's up to the mind," James told Time about whether he will suit up next season or retire. "Where the mind goes, the body will lay. When I'm not in love with getting to the arenas on game days five hours before to start my preparation, if I'm out of love with getting to practice 2 1/2 hours beforehand, then I know I'll be done. Because then I'm going to start cheating the game."
James averaged 20.9 points, 7.2 assists and 6.1 rebounds this season with the Los Angeles Lakers. The 22-time All-Star, four-time league MVP and four-time NBA champion is the all-time leader in games (1,622) and points (43,440).
Wemby won't get flagrant-1 for shove
San Antonio Spurs star Victor Wembanyama won't receive a retroactive flagrant foul for a play in Game 3 of the NBA Finals, league officials told multiple media outlets Tuesday night.
Wembanyama shoved New York Knicks guard Jalen Brunson in the first quarter of the Spurs' 115-111 win on Monday. The NBA admitted referees missed a foul call on the incident, but the league won't step in to assess Wembanyama a flagrant-1 foul.
Without a whistle on Wembanyama, play continued with San Antonio on offense.
A replay review appeared to show Brunson, who was on defense and working through a screen on the play, making initial contact with his left hand and grabbing a fistful of Wembanyama's jersey, prompting the retaliatory push. With his own left hand, Wembanyama aggressively shoved Brunson in the upper back and neck area, sending him toward the floor.
The NBA rulebook deems "unnecessary contact" a flagrant-1 foul, because it goes beyond the actions warranting a common foul.
Had Wembanyama been given a flagrant-1 for the play, he would not have been subject to a suspension. However, the Spurs big man would have been skating into Game 4 on thin ice.
Wembanyama has already received two penalty points for a flagrant-2 foul in Game 4 of the Western Conference semifinals against Naz Reid of the Minnesota Timberwolves.
Monday was most viewed G3 this century
Monday night's Game 3 NBA Finals between the San Antonio Spurs and the New York Knicks was watched by almost 24 million people, the highest-rated NBA Finals Game 3 this century.
ABC and ESPN, which broadcast the game, say the 23.8 million people who tuned in to watch the game is the most for an NBA Finals Game 3 in 28 years. The last time the third game of the Finals had more viewers came in 1998 when Michael Jordan and the Chicago Bulls were closing in on their second three-peat.
Game 3 of this year's NBA Finals is also the most-watched program on broadcast television since Super Bowl 60, when 125.6 million viewers watched the Seattle Seahawks defeat the New England Patriots.
San Antonio's 115-111 win, which cut New York's series lead to two games to one, peaked at 26.3 million viewers at 11:15 p.m. ET.
The highest-rated NBA Finals game of all-time remains Game 6 of the 1998 NBA Finals, when Michael Jordan sank a game-winning jumper with 5.2 seconds left, giving the Bulls an 87–86 victory over the Utah Jazz for the franchise's sixth championship. That game on NBC was seen by 35.89 million viewers.
Knicks cancel Game 4 watch party
Party's over — at least for the Knicks' Watch Party outside Madison Square Garden that was scheduled for Game 4.
Knicks owner James Dolan called off Wednesday night's watch party, blaming New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani and NYC Police Commissioner Jessica Tisch for security restrictions that were placed on the area surrounding the Garden, and for the event itself.
"We're not even putting up the screens," Dolan said Wednesday afternoon during a radio interview with WFAN.
Dolan and Madison Square Garden weren't happy with the city limiting the party to 999 people, and that it would be a ticketed event.
"We're not about 999 people," Dolan said on WFAN. "We're about millions of people."
Mamdani responded, saying Madison Square Garden requested a permit for the watch party at those numbers and that the city approved it.
Before Monday’s Game 3, fans were told to arrive at least two hours before tip-off to allow time for various security checkpoints, including a TSA-style magnetometer often seen in airports. The screening sites returned Wednesday.
Security measures also were in place for areas outside Madison Square Garden on Monday and Wednesday.
