The 2026 Made-Up NBA Awards With Zach Lowe

April 5, 2026

AI Summary

5 min read

Bill Simmons and Zach Lowe open by dissecting the season's best game—a Spurs-Nuggets overtime thriller on Amazon Prime, pitting Victor Wembanyama against Nikola Jokic in a rare center duel evoking the league's early eras. Wembanyama dominated stretches with post-ups and blocks, including an unprecedented out-of-bounds line-drive attempt late; Jokic countered with body work, hooks, and a yelping overtime turnaround. Aaron Gordon's 41 minutes of versatile defense and Cam Johnson's timely shots helped Denver rally for a needed statement win, while San Antonio controlled most of the game before fading in OT. Both see it as a "good loss" for the Spurs, exposing De'Aaron Fox's adjustment struggles amid Wemby's rise and the backcourt trio's ball-sharing questions. Stefan Castle impressed as a fearless third-best player on the floor.

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What you'll learn

1 (01:28) **Spurs-Denver Game of the Year Recap** - Hosts rave about Wemby-Jokic OT thriller as top sporting event
2 (02:46) **Wemby Evolution and Spurs Concerns** - Wemby gaining alien intelligence; fatigue in OT after 30+ mins raises durability questions
3 (07:14) **Nuggets Power Win and Elite Tier** - Denver grinds out road W despite trailing; Cam Johnson, Christian Braun step up sans Watson
4 (10:06) **Stephon Castle All-NBA Case** - Bill pushes Castle for 3rd team; Zach grants permission amid fallen stars like Scotty Barnes
5 (11:34) **65-Game Rule Chaos** - Luka at 64 games eyes appeal (Slovenia birth); Booker hits 64 with sub-10 min games disqualifying
6 (16:45) **Lakers Injury Timelines** - Skepticism on 4-6 week Reeves/Luka outs; trust ~1 month missing first round
7 (18:17) **West Playoff Picture Shifts** - OKC biggest winner via easier path; Lakers depleted, Houston-MIN tiebreaker April 10

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Show Notes

The Ringer’s Bill Simmons is joined by Zach Lowe LIVE on Netflix to react to the Nuggets-Spurs OT game before discussing the Lakers' injuries (0:32). Then, they give out their 2026 Made-Up NBA Awards (23:28).

Host: Bill Simmons

Guest: Zach Lowe

Producers: Chia Hao Tat, Eduardo Ocampo, and Chris Wohlers

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