Category: NBA

Talk about a tale of two halves! I’ll be honest, as halftime approached, I was comforting myself with the argument that this game represented an unfortunate but understandable stumble for a young, inexperienced team that was still coming off a critical Game 3 win without its superstar. It certainly wasn’t an ideal scenario, but I kept telling myself that this would be another one of those playoff scars that ultimately leads to winning.

Fortunately, my insincere, grasping rationalizations quickly gave way to delight, as the Spurs narrowed a 15-point deficit to just four via a 2-and-a-half minute burst early in the third. To their credit, Portland did not immediately crumble after this onslaught, as the remainder of the quarter was a back-and-forth affair that ended with the score knotted up at 74. The Blazers continued to keep things close for several minutes in the fourth; however, by the middle of the quarter San Antonio had a double-digit lead that continued to grow as the game drew to a close.

In pulling off this comeback, the Spurs became the only team in NBA playoff history to win a game by 15+ after being down by 15+ at half. As you might imagine, a performance like this produces some wild stats, as we will discuss below:

Note: Now that we’ve moved into the postseason, the reference period used for grading changes from the set of regular season games since 2012-2013 to the set of postseason games since 2012-2013. Unless otherwise noted below, this set DOES include play-in games. As of the end of April 26, 2026, this group include 1,151 games.

Factors that decided the game

• This is one of those games in which the overall box score obscures wild variation in play for both teams over the course of the game. Of course, the factors discussed here are still completely valid, but it is important to note that essentially all of the Spurs’ key advantages were built in the second half.
• San Antonio invested heavily in stocks (steals + blocks) in this game, logging 22 as a team to Portland’s 11. That Blazers total is unspectacular but perfectly respectable; unfortunately for them, Wemby matched it by himself.
• The Spurs’ stifling defense produced a turnover margin of -5, which helped them build a FGA edge of +7. However, another reason that San Antonio attempted more field goals is that they fouled more often and at worse times, giving Portland a +6 advantage in FTA.
• The Blazers’ notable edge at the free throw line (+5 FTM) was completely swamped by the Spurs’ massive advantage from the field, which was partly driver by volume but mostly the result of big margins in FG% (+9.43 percentage points) and 3P% (+10.17 percentage points). As a result, San Antonio made 11 more shots, four more threes, and outscored Portland by 26 from the field.

Rare Box Score Stats

• I mentioned above that Victor had 11 stocks in this game (seven blocks and four steals). Only seven other players have met of surpassed this total in a true playoff game (i.e., no play-in contests) since the start of the 1996-1997 postseason.
• The Spurs’ team total of 22 stocks is not nearly as rare a feat, but still far from common. In the 1,151 postseason games since 2012-2013, a stock total of 22+ has happened 30 times, including 22 times for winners and eight times for losers. That’s about once in every 39 contests, or a bit more than twice per postseason.
• This was just the 19th postseason contest since 2012-2013 in which a winning team had an assist margin of +12 or more while having no more than 26 assists.
• In the 2,380 true playoff games played since the start of the 1996-1997 postseason, this game marked just the 29th time that any team (winner or loser) recorded 10+ blocks as a team while no more than three members of that team had a block. Furthermore, it is was just the 21st time in the same period that 9+ players on one team had at least one steal.

What are Team Graded Box Scores?

Very briefly, these box scores grade winner-loser differentials for basic box score statistics, with the grade being based on the winning team’s differential relative to other NBA winners during a defined reference period. Think of it like a report card for understanding how a given winner performed relative to other winners. The reference period used runs from the start of the 2012-2013 season to the latest date of play, including only games in the same season category (i.e., regular season and playoff games are not compared to each other).

Data Source: The underlying data used to create these box scores was collected from Basketball Reference. In all cases, the data are collected the morning after the game is played. Although rare, postgame statistical revisions after data collection do occur and may affect the results after the fact.

The Phoenix Suns are down 3-0 to the Oklahoma City Thunder in the first round of the NBA Playoffs. No NBA team has ever come back from losing the first three games of a series, and Phoenix hasn’t played like they’d have a chance to change that record.

With Game 4 tonight, here are the questions we want your thoughts on for Week 27 as the Suns face elimination:

Could the Suns steal Game 4 by getting hot from deep?

Phoenix hasn’t particularly shot the three-ball well this series, hitting just 33% of their triples. One way the undermanned and less talented team can steal a game in the series is by getting hot from deep; it’s how the seven-seeded Philadelphia 76ers beat the Boston Celtics in Game 2 of their series: Philly went 19/39 from three in their win.

With Phoenix missing their starting center for the entirety of the series so far, the team has been forced to play small, opting for more spacing on the floor, including playing forward Haywood Highsmith at the center spot to help with spacing.

Is the key to victory in Game 4 a hot shooting night?

Assessing Devin Booker’s performance

Devin Booker has been limited by the Oklahoma City defense, averaging nearly six points less per game than he did in the regular season, on worse efficiency from three and the field. With lengthy and versatile defenders like Lu Dort, Alex Caruso, and Cason Wallace, the Thunder have made it their mission to make sure that anyone but Booker can beat them, and they’re doing so. Both Jalen Green and Dillon Brooks are averaging more shots per game during the series and are averaging more points per game, consequently.

With Mark Williams out, Phoenix’s inside/out game is not as strong as it was during the season, also prohibiting the team’s top ball handlers’ ability to operate on offense, but being the Suns best player and leader, should more be being asked of Booker?

Would a sweep be a disappointment?

The Suns have been heavy underdogs in every game during their first round series. If they do lose and get swept by the defending champions, does that make the team’s playoff run a disappointing one? Or should this have been expected. The Thunder had the best record in the league, came into the playoffs winning 18 of their last 21 games, while the Suns came into the series with less rest and dealing with multiple injury to key players.

Has this series gone as you expected it to go?

On the Suns’ plate this week

Game 4 is tonight at the Mortgage Matchup Center. If they lose, their season is over, if they win, they’ll head back to OKC for Game 5. If they get to Game 6, it’ll be on Friday, while Game 7 would be Sunday. Tonight’s game is on Peacock and NBC.

When the Dallas Mavericks selected Cooper Flagg last June, the franchise was saved, but there were still questions about Flagg’s upside.

Those questions were answered, as Flagg had one of the best scoring seasons for a teenager ever, and left no doubt about his future.

Season Review

Flagg’s season started off poorly, as he averaged just 15.5 points in the first 15 games. He looked uncomfortable and rushed, with no go-to moves.

These problems were only exacerbated by the truly awful two-big lineups the Mavericks were relying on, with multiple non-shooters always clogging the paint.

But it wouldn’t take long for Flagg to find his rhythm, as after the bad start he proceeded to average 23 points, 5 assists, and 7 rebounds over his last 51 games.

These stats show the biggest reason for optimism regarding Flagg, which is his superhuman ability to improve. At the beginning of his lone college year at Duke Flagg was seen as a mainly defensive prospect with some connective offensive tools. By the end of that season Flagg had become Duke’s de-facto point guard and lead ball handler.

And somehow he kept improving this year, even as the team around him crumbled. It started with his gigantic improvement as a ball-handler, allowing him to get to his spots much easier. But the biggest improvement was his touch around the rim, which was seen as a weakness before the draft. This touch has become his best weapon, as his floaters are already some of the best in the league.

He even found a new level in April, with step-back threes becoming part of his repertoire.

Flagg also rewrote the record books for players his age. Flagg became the youngest player in the league history to score: 30, 40, and 50 points, as well as being the first teenager to have multiple 40 point games.

This type of scoring production

All in all, Flagg showed consistent effort and buy-in all year, with the circumstances of the team never really affecting him, and his winning mentality never wavering.

Best Game

It is very hard to pick Flagg’s best game, with there being multiple generational performances. You could easily make a case for his 51 point explosion against the Magic, or his near 45 point triple double against the Lakers.

But to take a page out of Ryen Rusillo’s book, I’ll zag against the obvious.

My pick for Flagg’s best game was his 33 point, 9 rebound, 9 assist performance against the Denver Nuggets.

This game is far from Flagg’s best statistical outing, but it was maybe his most impactful. Not only did the Mavericks win this game, but it was against a bona-fide contender that was trying to win.

Flagg was amazing all night, with his three ball dropping all game, including a clutch-time three over multiple defenders.

He was also incredibly efficient, nailing 14-21 from the field and only having two turnovers.

This was also one of his best playmaking games of the season, as he consistently leveraged his downhill scoring to create opportunities for others.

My pick for his second best game would have to be his 45 point game against the Lakers.

Contract Status

Flagg will be entering year 2 of his 4 year, $62.7 million contract he signed last year.

Looking towards the future

Now that Flagg’s rookie season is over, what does he have to do to reach the level of a true superstar?

In my opinion, the most important improvement Flagg has to make is his shot selection. Flagg often settled for long mid-range jumpers over three pointers last year, leading to some of his poor efficiency.

Flagg only attempted 3.5 three point shots a game, accounting for just 20% of his total shots on the year. There were many moments throughout the season where defenses simply ignored Flagg from behind-the-arc, which made his paint finishing that much harder.

Shooting more threes, with hopefully more efficiency, should make Flagg nearly ungradable in almost any situation, forcing defenses to bend to his gravity.

Besides shooting, Flagg could also stand to attempt more free throws, as his Free Throw Rate was .29, which is slightly above average. Obviously this isn’t bad, but comparing it to other stars it lags behind. Shooting more free throws would help to ease the difficulty of his shot diet, and get more easy points.

But all of this doesn’t really matter if Mavericks do not build a smarter team around Flagg.

The spacing of last year’s team was a disaster, with Flagg always dealing with stacked paints. Having Kyrie Irving back will help to ease this issue, but it does not solve it. The Mavericks should prioritize adding this offseason, and hopefully give Flagg the space he needs to dominate.

Grade: A+

There’s no other grade that makes sense for Cooper Flagg.

Flagg exceeded any expectations as a scorer and shot creator, while simultaneously showing off incredibly impressive playmaking.

Detractors might point to his below-average efficiency, or disappointing advanced metrics; however, these issues can mostly be explained by the team around him.

Flagg was able to succeed in the most dire possible circumstances, and with the addition of a top 10 pick, Kyrie Irving and a hopefully healthy Dereck Lively II, he should be poised for a historic second season.

In Monday’s Brotherhood Playoff Action, RJ Barrett and Brandon Ingram helped lead Toronto past Cleveland, 93-89. Mason Plumlee and San Antonio took care of Portland, 114-93. Jayson Tatum and Boston smacked Philadelphia around, 128-96. Finally, Luke Kennard and Los Angeles fell to Houston, 115-96.

Ingram had 23 for Toronto, while Barrett finished with 18 points and 8 rebounds. Neither shot well, with Ingram hitting 6-23 while Barrett was slightly better at 8-22.

Rookie Tyrese Proctor got a DNP for the Cavs.

Plumlee got in for 2 minutes for the Spurs but didn’t put anything in the box score.

For his part, Tatum racked up 30 points, 11 assists, and 7 rebounds to pace the Celtics.

And for JJ Redick’s Lakers, Kennard finished with 7 points, 3 rebounds, and 2 assists.

On Monday, we’ll see Paolo Banchero and Orlando take on Detroit, Oklahoma City try to eliminate Phoenix, and Denver and Minnesota in the nightcap.

• Barnes, Ingram score 23 points apiece as Raptors beat Cavaliers 93-89 and tie series at 2-all
• Raptors’ defence overcomes poor shooting in improbable Game 4 win
• Darko Rajakovic Makes RJ Barrett Statement After Toronto Raptors’ Game 4 Win
• “She lit me up”: Brandon Ingram Jokingly Regrets Remarks on Girlfriend GloRilla About Adjusting to Early Tip-Off Schedule
• Brandon Ingram experience continues to test Raptors fans’ patience in the playoffs
• Celtics’ Jayson Tatum shares uplifting message for injured Donte DiVincenzo
• Jayson Tatum pledges support for Wolves guard after Achilles tear
• Amen Thompson’s insane athleticism leaves Luke Kennard with no chance in Rockets-Lakers
• JJ Redick reveals strategy behind Luke Kennard’s monster Game 1 performance vs. Rockets
• Lakers news: Luke Kennard’s clap back at critics who demanded more aggression
• Luka Doncic injury update: JJ Redick communicates latest on Lakers Superstar as return beckons

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PHILADELPHIA — Payton Pritchard is sitting at his locker, his ankles submerged in ice.

“I need another win on the way home,” he says, grinning.

Neemias Queta chuckles and shakes his head.

Pritchard, after all, is just a few minutes removed from the best individual playoff game of his six-year NBA career, a 32-point, 5-assist masterpiece that saw him drain 6 three-pointers, including a ridiculous end-of-first-quarter buzzer-beater.

But, with the Celtics’ 128-96 Game 4 win over the Philadelphia 76ers in the rearview, he’s already begun to think about his next conquest, which will come on the plane ride home. That’ll be a victory in the team’s plane-ride game of Catan, which Pritchard, Queta, Ron Harper Jr, Jordan Walsh, and Derrick White all regularly partake in.

The first time I heard Pritchard talk about Catan was a month ago, when he crashed my pregame interview with Hugo Gonzalez about the team’s obsession.

Gonzalez had been carrying a Catan board in several Celtics social media posts, so I mistakenly assumed he was passionate about the game (“I am the Catan hater,” Gonzalez clarified emphatically, explaining it was his rookie chore. “I am the Catan hater.”)

Pritchard, always one of the chattiest Celtics in the locker room, wanted to make sure I knew that he won more than anyone else on the roster.

That he was the ultimate Catan competitor.

That, really, the rest of them were just battling for second place.

“I’m the best,” Pritchard told me, explaining that Walsh sucked. “It’s more of a strategy game, more mental to it. You’ve got to be better.”

During that interview, in which Pritchard’s demeanor appeared hilariously serious, I tried my best to suppress a smile.

I just might be talking to the most competitive person in the world, I thought to myself.

Four weeks later, at the Xfinity Mobile Arena, Pritchard yells at Reggie Miller, who is announcing Game 4, after each one of his made baskets.

“Reggie is my man,” he said afterwards. “It’s just a friendly banter. I get going off that, and I probably use it to my advantage to get going even more. I don’t even know. I black out in those moments, so I don’t really know what I say at times. But it helps.”

Jaylen Brown says he doesn’t know what it is that Pritchard is yelling, either, but he laughs at the question.

“Whatever it is, tell him to keep doing it.”

Four days before that, Pritchard felt he had let the team down

After the Celtics’ 111-97 Game 2 loss on Tuesday night, Pritchard was bummed out.

In the loss, he attempted 8 shots — making just two — and finished the night with just 4 points, 13 less than his season average.

“I was definitely very disappointed after Game 2,” Pritchard said. “Felt like I was kind of a shell of myself. Bad decisions. Shot making wasn’t great.”

“I did not give the game what it needed, or my team, and it hurt us.”

It was time to turn the page.

On the flight to Philadelphia, Pritchard took care of business: he handily beat his teammates in the plane ride Catan game, a reality that Derrick White conceded at shootaround on Friday.

Then, with the series back on the road, Pritchard was back in his element, in a hostile environment, faced with a whole sea of 76ers fans he could talk trash to.

In Game 3, the tides began to turn. He hit 5 three-pointers, including a massive one with just over a minute to play that gave the Celtics a five-point lead.

He claims he doesn’t remember what he said after that shot, though the words were flowing.

”I probably blacked out in that moment,” he said. (I’m honestly still not sure if Pritchard truly can’t remember what is that he’s bellowing after these big-time shots, or if he just knows that he can’t repeat it).

Still, though Pritchard said that Game 3 was a step in the right direction after a lackluster Game 2, he emphasized after that one that it still wasn’t his best.

He had another gear to reach.

Two days later, he reached it, pouring in 13 first-quarter points, and another 14 in the third quarter, en route to Sunday’s career night.

“When you get in that flow stage, it’s the rhythm: how you’re dribbling, the moves you can get to, the shot making,” Pritchard said afterwards.

It’s a feeling that he’s — intentionally — used to: “In my workouts, I try to hit that on the daily, so then when I get in the games, it’s a regular thing.”

Game 4 served as Pritchard’s ultimate bounce-back

Pritchard’s best game of the series came on a night when Jaylen Brown and Jayson Tatum both struggled in the first half, combining for just 13 points on 4-17 shooting.

Brown didn’t score until the second quarter. Tatum started the game 1-8.

Still, the Celtics led by 16 points after one quarter, and never looked back.

“It’s a luxury to have a guy like that, that can score with the best of them, coming off the bench on your team,” Tatum said.

Brown felt that, two nights after he and Tatum combined to score 27 of the team’s 29 points, the 76ers made a concerted effort to take the ball out of their hand.

“They wanted to take away me getting to my spots, and also, JT — and make us play on the backside,” he said. “And we made the right rim read in the seam. Our bigs made the right plays, and then our shooters punished them, and then once you see a couple go down, it’s open from there. I thought we just did a good job of just trusting our system. And then everything took care of itself.”

On Sunday, Pritchard attempted 21 shots, his most attempts in a month. He’s only reached that number 7 times all year.

But, there’s a direct correlation between his shot attempts and the team’s success: The Celtics were 9-10 (47.4%) this season when Pritchard took less than 11 shots, and they were 45-15 (75%) when he took 11 or more shots.

“We’re at our best when he’s aggressive,” Joe Mazzulla said.

Mazzulla makes sure that the former Sixth Man of the Year knows that, too.

“He’s definitely in my ear all the time about being aggressive, especially since the playoffs have come around. He wants me to be in attack, and to be able to touch the point,” Pritchard said. “When you’re hearing your coaches say that — that gives you the ultimate freedom.”

And ‘free’ is a pretty good way to describe how Pritchard played on Sunday.

He beat the end of the first quarter buzzer with a wild three-pointer and drew a shooting foul at the end of the third quarter. Gonzalez, Harper Jr., Baylor Scheierman, and the rest of the Celtics bench watched it all unfold in disbelief, chuckling to themselves at the shotmaking display.

Scheierman typically watches Pritchard play with a grin.

From my vantage as someone who’s been around this team almost every day this season, it’s long felt like the two have something unique in common: a seemingly unshakeable confidence that is rare even in the NBA, this belief that they’re destined to be on the court, a swagger, a showmanship.

Everyone is confident at the pro level — that’s how they got here — but Scheierman and Pritchard seem to be on another level.

After Pritchard’s 32-point masterpiece, I asked Scheierman if he felt that was an accurate representation, if he could confirm my perception that he and Pritchard were uniquely competitive.

He grinned. He agrees.

“We’re both just super confident in our abilities,” Scheierman said. “And I think that comes from being maybe under-looked, overlooked throughout our careers, and maybe just [playing] with a chip on our shoulder, just wanting to go out there and just kind of put on a show every night.”

All of Pritchard’s teammates are familiar with his almost ridiculous level of competitive spirit at this point.

“I’ve known P since we was in high school, same high school class,” Tatum said. “Obviously, he’s a better version of himself, but he’s always been that competitive. Doesn’t back down from anybody. Always takes on a challenge.”

They also know him as one of the most relentlessly hard-working people.

“The work ethic speaks for itself,” Brown said, “and when you see someone put in the work behind the scenes, moments like this are all the better.”

“He’s a gym rat,” Tatum said. “That’s one thing that is consistent and constant about him always, is he is always gonna be in the gym, working on his game, working on his craft, trying to get better. It shows in moments like tonight.”

On Saturday, a day before his monster Game 4, I asked Pritchard where his Game 3 three-pointer ranked as far as big shots made in his Celtics tenure.

He was reluctant to herald it as one of the biggest because he wanted it to be followed by many more.

“I knew it was a big shot,” Pritchard said. “It was needed in the moment. But, hopefully, I can hit more like that.”

A day later, amid the heater of all heaters, that line felt prescient.

Today the Iceman turns 74.

That doesn’t seem possible, but it’s true.

He moved here in 1974 in after being traded to the San Antonio Spurs by the Virginia Squires. This was in the final years of the ABA.

Soon after the trade, Gervin became eligible for the NBA draft and was chosen 40th overall by the Phoenix Suns, but he turned down the NBA to stay with the Spurs. Two years later, the ABA and NBA merged, bringing Gervin into the NBA.

Gervin brought an offensive flair the Silver & Black that revolutionized the Spurs game. He was their centerpiece elevating them as contenders. He played with the Spurs until 1985, making the postseason for all but one year.

In his final NBA season, he was traded to the Chicago Bulls. He played one season alongside a young Michael Jordan, then moved to playing in Italy with Banco di Roma, Continental Basketball Association Quad City Thunder, and TDK Manrese in Spain before retiring in 1990.

After retiring, Gervin returned to San Antonio as a community leader, creating safe spaces for underprivileged children. In 1991, he established the George Gervin Youth Center.

The following year he rejoined the San Antonio Spurs, this time as an assistant coach. He served for two years while David Robinson was the centerpiece of the Spurs, the mantle being passed as Gervin worked with the next player to revolutionize the franchise.

At the first Spurs playoff game since 2019, George and his sister Barbra Gervin-Hawkins were honored on the court in recognition of the 30th anniversary of the George Gervin Academy.

30 years in the community after retiring from basketball. And The Iceman chose to stay here in San Antonio. A reminder that this community embraces its players, part of the reason you can see George Gervin walking through a furniture store, or David Robinson sitting next to you in a Mexican restaurant, or bump into Bruce Bowen at H-E-B, or Monty Williams coaching high school ball, or see Tim Duncan, Manu Ginobili, and Gorgui Dieng watching a Spurs game, or Tony Parker on the front row, or Fabricio Oberto or Boris Diaw returning for a visit.

The community embraces them, the crowds love them, and they had great years here.

And if we’re really being honest, it started with Gervin. He came in with his winning smile, and his pinache and simply took over. He set the tone that brought the leadership of David Robsinon and Tim Duncan, and now Victor Wembanyama.

It started over fifty years ago.

That doesn’t seem possible, but it’s true.

Happy birthday, Iceman. I hope it is an epic day.

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The Hawks (2-2) had a listless Game 4 loss on Saturday meaning they’ve now squandered the home court advantage they picked up with their clutch win in Game 2.

Certainly, there have been some disappointing performances from an individual player perspective. But let’s zoom out a tad and focus on a trio of tactics the Hawks as a team could (and in my opinion should) address.

These three adjustments could be instrumental if the Hawks are to go at least 2-1 in the next two or three games and advance.

Punish New York for going under screens

The Knicks have consistently soft switched or bump switched most screen actions all series long. But even when they have fought through screens, they have pointedly navigated under a majority of these actions no matter the ball handler.

Their biggest goal has been to cut off drives into the paint at all costs.

One solution: take what the defense gives you. Empower your better three-point shooters into taking step back threes.

It may seem like keeping the ball moving and putting the defense in rotation is the move, but in reality, their usual offense hasn’t generated enough good looks in the halfcourt to this point.

The Hawks were 11th in the NBA in the 2025-26 season in three-point attempt rate (3PAr) — with 42.9% of their field goal attempts coming from behind the arc. Little has changed in the playoffs — fifth among the 16 teams at a 41.8% 3PAr.

Of course, they hit 37.1% of attempts from deep in the regular season, but that mark is down to 32.6% through four playoff games.

I will admit self-creating three-point attempts at volume is a bit of uncharted territory for these Hawks. In the regular season, they were 27th in the percent of unassisted threes made (9.1%), but they’ve had to double that rate in the playoffs. Of course, adding CJ McCollum — still one of the best self-creators around — for this late season run obviously altered that distribution some.

It may sound silly, but the unassisted three-point rate still isn’t high enough. Beyond McCollum, you would of course trust Alexander-Walker (who is largely scuffling, alas) and Vincent with those sorts of attempts.

But the elephant in the room is how disappointing Jalen Johnson has been this series. He could really benefit from launching instead of driving into traffic.

Here’s what it should like — an example from Game 3. After the screen-the-screener action, Josh Hart’s first instinct is to dive under the Onyeka Okongwu screen. It’s a great look for Jalen Johnson:

But on this possession, despite Dyson Daniels sealing off both defenders to the inside for an open wing step back or sidestep attempt, Johnson tries to beat all-world defender OG Anunoby off the dribble. He just never had the angle to get to the rim considering his All-Defensive First Team-caliber matchup:

Johnson and Alexander-Walker have to keep letting the three-ball fly as soon as they see this coverage in my mind. Otherwise, you’re playing right into New York’s hands.

Put Jalen Brunson in action from the opening tip

Clearly, Jalen Brunson provides little resistance as a defender. And yes, the Hawks have been diligent in attacking him late in close games.

But they need to step it up even more. It’s time to target Brunson relentlessly starting from 12:00 in the first quarter.

This particular line of logic is pretty straightforward. If you start wearing down Brunson from the beginning of the game, you get the benefits of both compromising New York’s defense and the exhaustion of his energy defending instead of attacking.

Overall, the Hawks have done a solid enough job on Jalen Brunson so far this series. He’s averaging 25.5 points per game but on a 52% true shooting — six points lower than his regular season mark.

After averaging 9.6 assists and 3.4 turnovers per 100 possessions in the regular season, he’s at 7.1 and 4.8 per 100 respectively during this series.

But Brunson has scored 10.5 points (on 58% true shooting) in the first quarter of these playoffs, the most of any NBA player who has played at least two postseason games. He has also played all 12 minutes in three of those first quarters.

The Hawks should expect this minutes allocation for Brunson the rest of the series and put him constant action on offense. Maybe he wears down by the end of the game. Maybe he picks up two — or even three — early fouls.

Atlanta has struggled with starting slowly so far. The Hawks have found themselves down at least six points at the end of the first quarter in three of the four playoff games so far.

Digging out of early holes every game is just not a recipe for success. It’s time to take the kiddie gloves off and be ruthless.

Make Karl-Anthony Towns a driver

Towns is obviously a gifted big man scorer — maybe one of the most skilled ever. So far this series, Towns is cooking the Hawks to the tune of 21 points per game on a blistering 72% true shooting percentage.

The shooting range speaks for itself, and he’s also got a soft touch near the rim. But still, the Knicks have received a lot of criticism for his offensive usage during his two-year stint in New York.

Or maybe his play style is just harder to incorporate into a team setting than it seems on the surface.

A big gap in his game is the combination of ineffective driving mixed with poor passing vision. Towns’ drives are often grindingly slow, and they rarely create significant separation to generate an uncontested look.

Towns not being able to get up a clean shot over Gabe Vincent, almost a full foot shorter than him, is pretty problematic:

Quite simply, he’s a poor passer out of double teams and drives. In the 2025-26 regular season he passed on just 18.8% of his 499 drives this season. And he was the league leader in offensive fouls committed — often driving straight into already set defenders.

Among the 102 players with at least 400 drives this regular season, Towns passed out of them the second-fewest percentage of driving possessions (18.8%) behind only Dillon Brooks.

So far on 20 drives this series, he has passed out of just one of them according to the NBA’s tracking stats.

The Hawks need to do their work on him both early and late. Early, in the sense that you can’t let him get low post position for easy shots and foul-drawing — especially given how few big men the Hawks have available.

But the late piece is critical.

Solutions? For one, Atlanta needs to make sure to go over inverted screen actions and trail drives when ‘KAT’ is the trigger man.

For two, close out on his pick-and-pop game as hard as humanly possible. From Game 4, Okongwu and Johnson scramble their coverage communication. After the pop to the corner, Okongwu can do a lot more to force ‘KAT’ to drive baseline towards help:

Why send him baseline? Because he has too many drives that end like this:

And finally, let Towns start his dribble before crowding him with a double team, preferably from the low man. The Knicks have been reluctant to play Towns at the four, so any pass into the restricted area behind the low man would be for a non-lob threat (so, not Mitchell Robinson).

None of these three tweaks are a panacea, of course. If the Hawks’ two leading scorers, Johnson and Alexander-Walker, don’t get it together soon, the above may not matter.

But there are still opportunities to squeeze out advantages in your favor from a Knicks team that, frankly, looks very beatable.

How Steph Curry and Draymond Green complicate Steve Kerr's Warriors decision originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area

It won’t be easy for Steve Kerr to walk away from the Warriors, if that is what he decides to do. It will be even more difficult to leave behind Steph Curry and Draymond Green.

Golden State’s longtime coach, who currently is deciding whether or not he wants to return for a 13th season for the 2026-27 NBA campaign, recently sat down for a Q&A interview with The New Yorker’s Charles Bethea, where he was asked about a myriad of topics, including, and perhaps most notable to Warriors fans, his future with the organization.

“This is a really interesting situation, and I’m very respectful of the organization and their place in the universe right now,” Kerr said when Bethea stated he sounds like someone who wants to return. “And I know how this stuff works. Most coaching runs just last a certain amount of time, and then it’s best for everybody to move forward. And what we have to figure out is whether now is that time, because what complicates it is we still have Steph [Curry] and Draymond [Green].”

Kerr repeatedly has stated he never wants to walk away from Curry, and after the Warriors’ season-ending loss to the Phoenix Suns in the NBA play-in tournament on April 17, Kerr reiterated that while stipulating that “all the stuff has to be aligned and right” in regard to his and Curry’s contracts.

While Kerr’s contract expires this offseason, Curry’s expires next offseason, and the superstar guard has expressed a desire to work out another extension this summer. Green has a $27 million player option this offseason and will be an unrestricted free agent next summer as well.

Both Curry and Green also have stated that they believe they each have multiple years remaining in the NBA, which means neither are likely to retire at the end of their contracts next offseason and align their departures with Kerr’s if he were to return for another season.

“I don’t want to abandon those guys,” Kerr added. “If Steph and Draymond were retiring this year, I think this would be an easy decision: we all go out together and the organization takes their new path. But it’s not that easy because I think Steph’s going to play another couple of years and I think we can still do some good things together. But these are all conversations that will happen in the next week or two and we’ll figure it out. And whatever happens, it’s going to end well. I know that, because it’s too important not to.”

It’s uncertain what Kerr will decide to do, however, NBC Sports Bay Area’s Warriors insider Monte Poole reported last week that barring renewed faith, Kerr is not expected to return as coach. And while the discussions still are ongoing, ESPN’s Anthony Slater reported Thursday that Kerr has not made a final decision and that the earliest he might do so will be this week.

Whatever decision he makes certainly will not be easy.

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Jonathan Kuminga credits Draymond Green for defensive instincts in playoff game originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area

Jonathan Kuminga didn’t have the greatest ending to his time in Golden State, but he did pick up some valuable lessons along the way.

The Hawks and the Knicks are facing off in the first round of the NBA playoffs, and Kuminga had a pivotal play on the defensive end down the stretch in Atlanta’s Game 2 win in New York. When asked about having the presence of mind to nudge his teammate into a better position, he credited his old teammate, Draymond Green.

“I’m going to give my praise to Draymond,” Kuminga claimed. “Growing up around him, watching him … I’d seen him do that so many times. He’s one of the best at doing things like that.”

The heads-up play propelled the Hawks to a 107-106 victory against New York, tying the series at 1-1.

Since joining Atlanta, Kuminga has become a valuable role player, averaging 12.7 points and five rebounds per game. His basketball IQ has improved tremendously as well.

“It’s just instinct,” Kuminga said, per The Athletic’s John Hollinger. “I watched Draymond do it; it’s little things that don’t go on the [stat] sheet that help you.”

Kuminga struggled to find playing time with the Warriors towards the end of his five-year run. Head coach Steve Kerr credited his questionable rotation choices to a lack of spacing when the 23-year-old would enter the game. Since joining the Hawks, Kuminga is only shooting 30.9 percent from beyond the arc, but he continues to impact the game in other ways.

Averaging above 25 minutes per game, Kuminga is growing into a player the Hawks can count on in his fifth year. The sky is the limit for Kuminga. His athleticism and length make him an asset whenever he’s out on the floor.

If he can continue to develop his jump shot, Kuminga has the potential to become an All-Star caliber player. He possesses all the intangibles, including the defensive instincts that were instilled in him during his time with the Warriors.

The former Warrior gives credit where credit is due; Green is one of the best teachers when it comes to defense. Kuminga wasn’t always in the rotation with Golden State, but he was always paying attention to the defensive clinic Draymond displayed on a nightly basis.

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The ABA and the NBA merged in 1976, and one of the big reasons was Julius Erving.

The ABA never really had any national television exposure, but everyone knew who Dr. J was. The afro, the kneepads, the dunks…everyone understood that he was a phenomenon, and that, once the 1976-77 season started, fans would get to see a lot of the Doctor.

He was traded to the Philadelphia 76ers after the merger, and that team was insane.

Aside from Erving, it had George McGinnis, a ball-dominant power forward, World B. Free, and Darryl Dawkins. They also had Doug Collins, Henry Bibby, Caldwell Jones, and Kobe Bryant’s dad, Joe, but the first four players really were the ones who drew the most attention, although at 6-6, Collins was an unusually tall guard for the day.

Philly got to the NBA Finals, where they met Bill Walton and the Portland Trail Blazers.

That series would be framed as a traditional NBA team vs. one that was more ABA-ish.

Portland ultimately won the championship 4-2, thanks largely to Walton’s exceptional brilliance, but before the series turned, the Sixers were up 2-0, and America got to see Erving’s brilliance up close and personal.

In this video from the first game, Erving makes six dunks, and all of them are stunning.

Fans quickly learned that everything they said about Erving was true. He was an incredible talent.

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Sixers' series vs. Boston not so ‘out of character' through four games originally appeared on NBC Sports Philadelphia

The Sixers have been here before.

Fresh off of humiliating losses, they’ve shown the ability to respond with dramatic improvement. It was natural for Sixers head coach Nick Nurse to highlight that recent history with his team one game from first-round playoff elimination following a 128-96 home Game 4 defeat Sunday night to the Celtics.

“We’re going to have to dig into the film,” Nurse said. “Same as Game 1. I just told them again, way out of character. Played another about as bad as we can play game. That’s two out of four in this series. Played very well in the other two and we’ve got to go back to playing very well quickly. Got to go get one.”

Nurse’s point is valid, but the 2025-26 Sixers now have 87 games that count under their belt, including a play-in tournament win over the Magic. They’ve had stable themes in many of their losses. 

The Sixers have flashed alluring defensive potential late in close games but otherwise been mediocre on that end. The team’s offense has relied heavily on Tyrese Maxey and Joel Embiid’s individual shotmaking. Opponents regularly take and make more three-pointers. The Sixers concede heaps of demoralizing offensive rebounds. Their bench is often badly outscored by the other second unit. 

Some of the numbers are likely familiar to hardcore fans by now. According to Cleaning the Glass, the Sixers ranked 27th during the regular season in defensive rebounding rate, 23rd in both three-point frequency and three-point accuracy outside of garbage time. The Sixers were 27th in bench points per game and in the middle of the NBA pack for both offensive rating and defensive rating. The team’s net rating was minus-0.1 during a season that wasn’t light on blowout losses.

All those flaws have popped up vs. the Celtics. And, beyond the details, nights with unsatisfactory effort and focus haven’t been rare this year.

“It just didn’t seem like any matchup could guard anybody 1-on-1 tonight,” Nurse said. “We had them pushed out, bottled up, physical and really off rhythm for a couple of games and there was none of that tonight. I’m just not sure. I don’t know why we couldn’t block out better or rebound better or move better on defense. We just seemed a half-step behind energy-wise. 

“Whatever it was, we were a half-step behind on everything. … It felt a little bit like Game 1. All of a sudden, we’d jump out of character really (quickly). That’s hard to watch and hard to explain, too.”

Embiid played Sunday, willing his way back on the court after undergoing an appendectomy on April 9. He was the Sixers’ most productive player, posting 26 points, 10 rebounds and six assists. The Celtics still might have won if Embiid scored 50. 

Maxey ended up with 22 points and six assists, but he only attempted three field goals in the first half and was oddly peripheral for much of the night. 

“That can’t happen,” Maxey said. “That’s on me. That absolutely can’t happen. That’s unacceptable by me. I was playing within the flow of the game and it kind of just happened that way. It wasn’t meant to happen that way, but that’s on me. … We can’t win basketball games with that happening and I take full responsibility on that one.”

Embiid certainly agreed with Maxey’s sentiment, saying the Sixers need their All-Star guard to be aggressive from the start of the game. VJ Edgecombe also acknowledged he “definitely turned some down I should’ve shot” after scoring six points on 2-for-9 shooting. 

Perhaps the most uncharacteristic aspect of the Sixers’ performance was just how extreme their problems were with Embiid.

Over the years, the seven-time All-Star big man has tended to cover up the Sixers’ issues simply by being on the court. The Sixers went 24-14 with Embiid available this regular season. 

Of course, the Embiid who played in Game 4 had protective wrapping under his jersey and around his abdomen. Outside of anything related to basketball, Embiid had a worrisome health ordeal. 

“It started in San Antonio,” he said. “Stomach started hurting. I’ve never had stomach pain before, but I thought I ate something bad. … I thought it was a stomach virus or something. I started feeling it during the game and that night. And then the next day, we had practice. … I was going to take it easy during practice because it was pretty bad, but we had a good conversation with the team about what we needed to do. I kind of wanted to send a message, go out there and practice really hard. 

“By the time I got back to the hotel, it just kept getting worse and worse and worse. That night before the (Rockets) game, I didn’t want to bother these guys because they were sleeping. But it got to the point where I couldn’t sleep. I was up until 4 in the morning.

“I was like, ‘Yeah, I need help.’ … You can’t even walk. So that’s why I had to tell them, ‘Something is very wrong here.’ I don’t like the hospital and all those MRIs and CT scans, but it got to a point where it was really bad. … That’s when we had to go to the hospital and found out what was going on.”

Even though he sat for the final 5 minutes and 31 seconds of garbage time, Embiid logged 34 minutes.

The Sixers’ play was dismal for the majority of that time. 

“They just moved us around, pushed us around offensively and defensively,” Maxey said. “Guys got to whatever spot they wanted to get to, no resistance, and that’s absolutely unacceptable. That’s not our brand of basketball that we play. … I think they kind of just walked to their spots and got whatever they wanted. 

“Then we got put in a position where we thought we should over-help. This is not a team you can really over-help on, so you really have to guard your yard.”

Game 5 will be here soon enough. 

“I hate to say it, but we’ve got to wash it,” Maxey said. “We’ve got to let it go right now because it happened. We’re down 3-1 and we’ve got a game on Tuesday. Our season’s on the line, so we’ve got to play (desperately). If that doesn’t make you desperate …”

In some ways, the Sixers would love to stay true to character in Game 5. Their season is also in a dire spot because they’ve played a characteristic first four games against the Celtics. 

Why did the Brooklyn Nets select Egor Dëmin at #8 in the 2025 NBA Draft?

“I think the first and foremost was the IQ. We loved how he played the game, how he moved the ball, involved his teammates. He saw one, two plays ahead. Obviously the size for position, you know, is great, when you’ve got a 6’8” combo guard, point guard. He can play off the ball too, it’s really good. I think we enjoyed watching him at BYU, and then we had multiple opportunities to see him in Brooklyn up close and personal, getting to meet him. I think his defense is great, how he guards pick and roll. So, there’s a lot of attributes there.”

Sean Marks, speaking to reporters just after the first round concluded, gave us the laundry list of attributes that made the Russian guard their target at #8. He did not mention outside shooting.

Alas, a few minutes later, Marks was asked directly about Dëmin’s 3-point shot: “I think we saw flashes of what he can do over the course of the year, specifically the shooting. And I think shooting would be the easy thing to say, ‘hey, they can improve in shooting.’ I think that’s a skill that you can improve over time, you know, being diligent on that. I think there was a lot of other attributes in respect to Egor and why we wanted him … You know, I never want to pencil him into ‘hey, you’re going to fit in this little box.’ To me, it’s exciting to see what he does. I suspect the shooting is going to continue to improve, but he showed us out here at HSS that he can absolutely shoot the basketball.”

Dëmin started his BYU career on a hot streak, hurt his knee in mid-December, and never regained his form. Per Synergy Sports, he scored 0.78 points per jumper in his lone NCAA season, a 24th percentile mark across Division I basketball. He finished the year 27.3% from deep. Dëmin was more efficient than that in his pre-NCAA career — mostly with Real Madrid — and the Nets weren’t the only ones impressed by his pre-draft workouts…

Well, Dëmin shot 38.5% from deep in his rookie year on over 12 attempts per 100, unprecedented volume and efficiency for a teenager in the NBA. In fact, only nine teenagers have ever taken at least ten treys per 100 possessions, and nobody has made more than Dëmin…

Dëmin turned 20 years old on March 3, but by then, he was already ruled out for the remainder of the season with plantar fasciitis. Sure, he’s only taken 322 total threes in his career and didn’t shoot well on the few middies he took, but his jumper is off to a flying start at the NBA level. They all feel like they’re going in, he’s not afraid to take big ones, and those numbers don’t lie. Dëmin’s shooting is the biggest positive any Nets rookie displayed in 2025-26.

It seems unfair to Brooklyn’s scouting department to term their belief in Dëmin’s shooting a “leap of faith,” but it’s jarring just how important it’s become. Nearly 72% of Dëmin’s shots this season were threes. Per Synergy, nearly 60% of his shots were catch-and-shoot looks. Given his play at BYU, where he led a top-5 offense in Division I basketball on heavy pick-and-roll usage, I understand why Marks initially mentioned so many of Dëmin’s other attributes. But we’re still waiting for those to pop.

My favorite Dëmin plays are passes like this…

The Nets suddenly have a 5-on-4 advantage thanks to a gamble that didn’t go NOLA’s way, Egor feels Zion Williamson rotating toward the rim, and boom, a fastball to the opposite corner. Williamson doesn’t have much interest in closing out on Powell, but this is an encouraging example of Brooklyn’s belief that high-level passing will play all over the court, even if Egor never becomes much of a primary ball-handler.

To that end, it was interesting to hear the #8 overall pick admit that he felt his role changed once he started sharing the backcourt with Nolan Traore.

In the midst of answer about his adjustment to the NBA during his exit interview, Dëmin said: “Being a rookie who has an opportunity to start as a starting point guard — which is even probably more responsibility than later on when Nolan would get on the court and I started playing more of a wing — I think that’s something that gave me a lot.”

Dëmin’s usage did dip slightly after the calendar flipped to 2026, around the time the two rookies were consistently starting in the backcourt together. I thought that was more due to Egor’s own limitations as a ball-handler, particularly compared to his catch-and-shoot ability, and/or him growing fatigued during a long NBA season, especially with plantar fasciitis.

Again, he just turned 20 years old. He will improve. Dëmin even limited these types of turnovers as the season progressed…

…but high hips and a lack of wiggle limit his effectiveness inside the arc.

One obvious goal is to live in the weight room; Dëmin has talked about packing on muscle since last summer. It may not solve all his problems on offense, but it should help him bring the ball up court and say, hold defenders in “jail” in the pick-and-roll. The question is how much some extra muscle will help his drives to the rim.

On these plays, Cade Cunningham (an extreme example) doesn’t bowl over his defender with a shove or shoulder, but crucially, he can dribble through contact…

Dëmin takes long, sweeping strides at 6’9”, but he can’t extend his dribble right now. That explains, in part, the lack of rim-finishing and ties into the most fascinating area of his game: the playmaking.

Egor Dëmin averaged 3.3 assists and 1.7 turnovers per game this season, nothing too crazy. He rarely tried to finish through multiple defenders, occasionally a bit conservative (and frustrating for fans) with his scoring, but he did create a ton of catch-and-shoot opportunities for teammates. Who knows how many assists Dëmin would have had if Noah Clowney and Nolan Traore and Terance Mann were league-average 3-point shooters?

That being said, in 52 games, Dëmin had just 57 assists that led to buckets at the rim. And after skimming through all of these assists on Synergy, there weren’t a ton of high-level reads to create these layups. I thought he missed a few of these admittedly tough plays this season…

Was Dëmin’s playmaking hampered by his plantar fasciitis? By a general lack of opportunity to drive downhill, which should be mitigated by muscle gain? How valuable is his kick-out passing for an offense that wants to shoot plenty of 3-pointers? Is his playmaking graded on an unfair curve based on the scouting reports coming out of BYU? Were his passing numbers at BYU juiced by regimented pick-and-roll reads?

These are all valid questions without easy answers. I don’t believe Dëmin’s lack of driving was entirely responsible for a lack of playmaking flashes, but there’s a balance somewhere. I’m excited to watch Dëmin up the aggression next season, and hopefully make some more complex reads.

His frame should help him see over defenders; likewise, he met expectations defensively in 2025-26 season, largely due to his positional size. Sean Marks emphasized this when Dëmin was drafted, and watching him post decent deflection/steal rates despite a lack of athleticism was encouraging. Of course, Dëmin occasionally got bodied down low and struggled to change direction, particularly on closeouts…

Collin Murray-Boyles was drafted one spot after Egor Dëmin, at #9 overall by the Toronto Raptors last June. This April, CMB has burst onto the scene by playing a tremendous playoff series against the Cleveland Cavaliers…

Egor Dëmin did not have a bad season. His 3-point shooting was utterly remarkable, and he had a real chance to make Second Team All-Rookie had he not been sidelined with plantar fasciitis in late February. While I’ve questioned just how talented of a playmaker he really is, the flashes were there as a teenager, and Dëmin’s size, feel, work ethic, and shooting will likely combine to make him a positive regular-season player moving forward, particularly on offense.

But watching these NBA Playoffs, I can’t help but worry about Dëmin’s ultimate ceiling while seeing a player like CMB, who has tremendous feel but also unteachable strength, thrive. Pardon the cliché, but the postseason, as disparate from regular-season ball as it has ever been, demands extreme physicality and explosion. It demands ball-handlers who can create offense from thin air and navigate traffic. This may not be a Dëmin complaint as much as it is a Nets front office complaint, a group that, under Sean Marks, has often faded physicality and explosion.

Dëmin can shoot the rock, and for that, the Nets deserve credit. He will be but 20 years old in his sophomore season, with ample opportunity to improve under an ideal head coach in Jordi Fernández. In any case, it appears Brooklyn selected a functional rotation player with the #8 overall pick, no small feat. But next season, we’ll have to see more besides impressive outside shooting.

That being said, Egor Dëmin has more charisma than he knows what to do with. For any flaws he night have, it’s tough not to believe in him.

“It feels safe,” said Dëmin of his current situation. “I would say. I just — I know exactly where I’m going to be. I know exactly what I’m going to be doing, and I know exactly what type of timing throughout the summer I’m going to have, right? So it kind of gives me confidence in my development, and that’s why I think this summer is probably one of the most important summers in my life.”

The Cleveland Cavaliers didn’t get the reputation of being playoff failures overnight. They’ve earned it through years of falling short in the biggest moments.

Although their first-round series with the Toronto Raptors isn’t over by any stretch, Game 4 showed all the telltale signs of what has plagued this team in previous postseason runs: lack of toughness, poor rebounding, the offense falling apart, and an inability to close out tight games.

Cleveland was up eight with just under five minutes to play, but once again couldn’t seal the deal. The offense got stagnant, Donovan Mitchell couldn’t make the one play he needed to, and the defense didn’t stay in front of a Raptors team that was having a historically bad shooting day.

This all culminated in a 93-89 loss. The series now shifts back to Cleveland tied at two.

Mitchell’s lazy eight-second violation in the final minute epitomizes this era of Cavs basketball.

One basket might’ve put the game away, but they couldn’t get the ball over the timeline.

Mitchell didn’t show any urgency at first. He tried to walk the ball up before Scottie Barnes applied token pressure in the backcourt. This wasn’t a trap or anything. James Harden wasn’t being covered; he was leisurely taking his time up the court as well.

Then, Mitchell saw that time was an issue, but he made the mistake of running to the sideline and right into where Harden was aimlessly standing. He had to double back, although at that point, he only had one second to get it over the line.

Toronto pounced.

Jamal Shead sensed the moment. He dove over the half-court line, forced Mitchell back, and poked the ball free. It was a heads-up play from a guy willing to do whatever it took to get the job done.

Shead’s effort isn’t what made this play possible. Instead, it was Cleveland’s lack of focus in the biggest moments — the thing that has come to define this era of basketball.

When we think of this core group, we don’t remember the big playoff wins — because outside of Game 7 against the Orlando Magic (a series the Cavs should’ve won in five) and the Game 2 victory over a sleepwalking Boston Celtics team in ‘24 — there haven’t been any. Just a steady stream of fourth-quarter collapses against teams they’re more talented than on paper.

Same story. Different year. Same result.

The Cavs are 4-10 in road playoff games in the Mitchell era. And if you take out two victories over a 37-45 Miami Heat team last season, they’ve only defeated two road playoff opponent that were over .500 despite being in their fourth year together. Just two.

This was Cleveland’s best chance to steal a road game. The Raptors were shooting as if they had Raptor-proportioned arms, going 4-30 (13.3%) from three. This wasn’t the case of the Cavs making incredible contests on these shots. Instead, it was just one of the worst shooting performances you’ll see from an NBA team.

The Cavs — who have been an elite offense since trading for James Harden — couldn’t get anything going. Their star guards couldn’t shake free of Toronto’s bigger wings, and Cleveland’s bigs couldn’t capitalize on the size advantage they did have. This led to a stagnant offense, the same one we’ve seen in the previous three postseason runs for this core.

Mitchell’s teams have consistently lost in the playoffs, but he’s generally scored well in the biggest defeats.

He hasn’t advanced to the conference finals, yet he’s also one of the best playoff scorers in league history. Those two facts would lead you to believe that Mitchell has just been stuck on teams that aren’t talented enough to win or that he’s run into bad luck. There’s been instances of both things being true, but there’s something much bigger at play as well.

The best playoff players can beat teams in a wide variety of ways. No matter how good you are, your opponent will inevitably figure out how to take away what you do best. The ones who can adjust to those adjustments and still impact winning are the most successful. This is why well-rounded players are rewarded more in the playoffs.

Mitchell is well-rounded, but only as a scorer. He’s not a plus defender, isn’t a good playmaker for others considering how much he has the ball, and isn’t disruptive away from the play. This leaves a one-note player whose effectiveness is tied completely and solely to his scoring.

When the scoring isn’t there, as it wasn’t in Game 4 when he went 6-24 from the field, there aren’t many ways he can impact winning outside of just being a decoy for others. But again, that isn’t as impactful as it could be since Mitchell doesn’t do much off-ball.

Can you win with someone like that as your best player? So far in Mitchell’s career, the answer has been no. And if that answer doesn’t change this postseason, is an undersized scoring guard that will be on the wrong side of 30 by the start of next season worth a super-max extension? That’s something the Cavs will have to decide in the summer.

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Harden continues to struggle with the Raptors’ length. After carving them up through the first two games of the series, he’s registered more turnovers than field goals in both contests in Toronto. This included coughing it up seven times on a day the Cavs couldn’t get anything going toward the basket.

The Cavs have become a one-dimensional jump shooting team during their worst playoff failures in the last four years. Harden was supposed to help that by getting downhill and force-feeding Evan Mobley and Jarrett Allen. That hasn’t happened.

The pick-and-roll game has completely dried up. Toronto simply switching that action has kept the Cavs from even trying to get downhill. Instead, they’re using guards to screen to create open three-point looks. That’s fine as a counter, but it can’t be used as a substitute altogether.

The Raptors’ defense looks impenetrable because they’ve never had to collapse. Rotating out to a shooter on the perimeter isn’t the same as scrambling inside. The Cavs should have talented enough offensive weapons to create and exploit mismatches. At the very least, they did in the first two games of the series.

Jarrett Allen needs to be better.

I asked head coach Kenny Atkinson if they need to do a better job of getting Allen involved when he has RJ Barrett matched up with him before Game 3. Atkinson said they did, but he also pointed to there being other ways to be impactful against a mismatch. This includes being used in the dunker’s spot to clean up misses or finish lobs.

Theoretically, those would be a good way to use Allen. It just hasn’t happened in a meaningful way.

In the last two games, the Raptors haven’t been punished in any meaningful way by putting a smaller player on Allen. The Cavs generated second-chance opportunities, and Allen did record six offensive rebounds in Game 4, but that hasn’t moved the needle.

In February, Allen was aggressive in punishing smaller defenders whenever he got an opportunity to do so. That simply isn’t happening anymore, even when he gets a 6’1” guard matched up against him.

You can’t take away everything from your opponent in the postseason. You have to make concessions and dare certain players to beat you if it means you can better defend something else. The Raptors are conceding mismatches to Allen whenever he wants them. However, neither the Cavs nor Allen has any interest in taking advantage of it.

With seemingly every button the Raptors have pressed, they’re both having their cake and eating it too.

Scottie Barnes is running circles around Evan Mobley.

There’s no doubt as to who the best player in the series has been on both sides of the ball — let alone in this rivalry from the 2022 Rookie of the Year race.

Barnes has showcased a versatility as a scorer, defender, rebounder, and passer that has made him far and away the most valuable player on either team. Having an incredibly high motor helps as well. That all stands in stark contrast with Mobley, who still needs the perfect environment to be his most impactful self.

Mobley was phenomenal in Game 2. He was punishing mismatches and doing a great job of being a distributor whenever the defense rotated over to help. That effectiveness has waned. The Raptors have been better at sending late help at Mobley and walling him off before getting too deep into the post. This has thrown off Mobley’s timing and made him only effective at really going after Jakob Poeltl.

As is a theme with the Cavs, the lack of versatility from Mobley has limited his effectiveness. When his best skill is taken away by his opponent, he doesn’t have enough counters to turn to.

Barnes, on the other hand, can seemingly do whatever he wants. No matter who the Cavs put on him, he’s getting to his spot on the floor. And once there, he has the skills to hurt them with the shot, pass, or getting to the rim.

That versatility shows up on the defensive end as well. Barnes’s ability to shut down actions from both guards and bigs has disrupted Cleveland’s entire flow.

Cleveland isn’t matching Toronto’s toughness either physically or mentally.

Physically, Toronto pushed Cleveland’s bigs and guards off their spots. They forced Mitchell and Harden into being outside shooters and limited Allen and Mobley to a combined 11 points on 16 shots. This allowed them to control the glass, the paint, and more importantly, the tempo of the game.

Mentally, the Raptors never let up. They were focused throughout the full 48 minutes on what they needed to do. Mental errors didn’t happen. And when things got tough, they dug down even deeper.

Basketball isn’t always won in the trenches, but it can certainly be lost there, as the Cavs have shown in previous postseason runs and did again in Game 4.

They’ve provided no reasons to believe in this team. The Cavs may still win the series and could be expected to do so with two of the possible three games at home. But we’ve seen this movie too many times before to believe that’s guaranteed.

They don’t deserve the benefit of the doubt now, or frankly, any time in the future as long as this core group is together. They’ve continually shrunk in the biggest moments, with their best players failing to rise to the occasion when they need them to.

Game 4 was just another entry in a long line of disappointments.

It’s on the Cavs to change the narrative. And if Sunday afternoon was any indication of things, they don’t seem willing enough to put in the effort to actually do so.

I was watching Game Three of the Los Angeles Lakers vs. Houston Rockets series. My wife — who’s usually more interested in the National Anthem and the arena timeout entertainment — watched two possessions and said, “Do these guys understand this isn’t football?”

In other words, someone who pays more attention to what Britt Waters is wearing instantly noticed the difference between Wizards basketball and playoffs basketball.

Nate Duncan and John Hollinger recently dedicated a podcast episode to assessing which players were likely to get “crucibled” — dropped from the rotation because of flaws that would get exposed by the intensity of postseason basketball. The assessment, of course, is not strictly about the athleticism, physicality, and mental focus (though it does include those factors) but the strategic as well.

In other words, if the opposing coaching staff looks at your guy and sees a target, your guy is going to get played off the floor.

As expected, former Wizards wing Corey Kispert has fallen victim to the postseason effect. Through his career in Washington, Kispert got significant playing time — 23+ minutes in every season except this one when he got 19.6. When he got traded to the Atlanta Hawks, he still got 18+. In the playoffs — 8.3 per game. His poor point-of-attack defense and lack of dimension to his game make it impossible to keep him out there much longer in a game with stakes.

So, with a hat tip to Duncan, Hollinger, and my wife, here’s a look at the Wizards and their likelihood of getting chased from the rotation if the team plays in truly competitive games next season.

Sure Things

These are guys I’m confident will be able to hold up to postseason rigors:

• Anthony Davis — Assuming he’s healthy enough to take the court, Davis has been one of the game’s best defenders for more than a decade. He’s an elite finisher around the basket who’s already been the second best player on a championship team.
• Alex Sarr — A busy and effective rim protector who can also defend switches with competence. Sarr’s offense was a bit hit or miss (his overall efficiency was below average), but he has post-up skills, acceptable finishing around the rim, and can step out and hit the long ball enough to make him a threat. He needs to get stronger (normal for a 21-year-old), but there’s no reason to think he wouldn’t hold up in a playoffs series.

Probably

These are guys I’m pretty confident are able to compete in the postseason, but I have some doubts.

• Trae Young — First in line to disagree with me on this would likely be Will Dawkins and the Wizards’ front office. On the offensive end, Young would be fine — even though the league literally made rules to put an end to his specific style of foul grifting. On defense, he’s been one of the absolute least effective defenders, ever. This makes him a target and a potentially big strategic problem for the Wizards.
• Kyshawn George — With George, I’m confident he’d hold up athletically. He won’t back down from physical play, and I think he has the skills to be good enough on offense. Why is he in the “probably” category? Excessive fouling and turnovers. Basically, the frequency of his mistakes is a potential problem that may render him unplayable in the postseason.
• Bilal Coulibaly — I have no doubt about Coulibaly on defense. His poor three-point shooting and tendency to disappear on offense could grind Washington’s offense to a halt, especially when opposing coaches elect to dare him to shoot.
• Justin Champagnie — I think I’m higher on Champagnie’s abilities than is the team’s coaching staff. I suspect they’re right — they see him in many more situations than I do. I still think he’s probably a player who’d be effective in a playoffs setting, though I do wonder about his relative lack of size.

Probably Not

• Bub Carrington — Good shooter with a solid mid-range game. He also doesn’t generate paint touches — even against regular season defense. And he coughs up the ball when pressured. Worse: Carrington is a woeful defender who plays much smaller than his measured 6-4 height. He’s someone the opposition would view as a target, which means he’s a prime candidate for getting played out of the rotation.

Maybe, Maybe, Maybe

• Will Riley — I liked some of what I saw from Riley last season, but I’d be lying if what he did down the stretch of games the team actively wanted to lose made me think he’s remotely close to being ready for the playoffs. Riley has height and potential, but he had trouble with regular season physicality. He’ll be a major target unless he gets much stronger. Force me to make a decision, and I’d put him in the “Probably Not” bucket for next season, with an eye towards bumping him into the “Probably” group in year three of his career.
• Cam Whitmore — This is based on two things: 1) athletic tools, and 2) he suffered a health problem and missed most of the season, so I just don’t know. IF Whitmore’s head is right. IF he accepts coaching, buys into the team’s system (on both ends) and gets the message that it’s okay to pass the ball sometimes, I could see him being a valuable player someday. If forced to make a call, I’d put him in the group that follows.

Nope

These are guys most likely to get chased by the NBA postseason crucible.

• Tre Johnson — Rookie who hopefully will improve. I think Johnson is a legit shooter. As a player type, he’s a lot more like Kispert than other elite shooters, which is to say he’s a major defensive target and he lacks dimension in his game.
• Jamir Watkins — A worse version of Coulibaly, which is to say — good defender who doesn’t shoot well enough or contribute enough offensively to get anything other than emergency minutes in the playoffs.
• Anthony Gill — Included here because he’s on the roster and was 10th in total minutes last season.
• Tristan Vukcevic — Good shooter with leaden feet and glacial reaction times on defense.

Players like Leaky Black, JuJu Reese, Jaden Hardy, and Kadary Richmond are more likely to end up training camp cuts or playing overseas and are not going to be part of a postseason rotation.

If you want to get super-optimistic, I can see a reasonable case to bump Young and George into “Sure Things.” I think Young has the better case than George, by the way. I don’t see an argument for moving up Coulibaly until he proves he can be enough of an offensive threat that he has to be defended.

I’d also listen to arguments about making Riley a “Probably” instead of a maybe. I’m not there yet myself, but reasonable minds can differ. I’d also listen on Johnson moving into “Probably Not” with Carrington for next because he’s so young and there’s a strong likelihood he’ll get better if he puts in the work on his body and his game. He could follow a trajectory similar to what I envision for Riley, though I suspect it could take him a bit longer because he’s smaller and there’s a bit less to his game than Riley’s.

Next up: Wizards performance ekgs. Performance ekgs are essentially season-long production trackers that help visualize how an individual’s performance trended throughout the season. Let me know in the comments who you want me to run first.

Victor Wembanyama made a triumphant return for the San Antonio Spurs to help them to the brink of a series victory in the NBA play-offs.

The France international missed game three against the Portland Trail Blazers after suffering concussion in the previous match on Tuesday.

But he was cleared to play on Sunday and scored 27 points as the Spurs won 114-93 in Portland to take a 3-1 lead in the best-of-seven series.

The NBA's defensive player of the year added 11 rebounds, seven blocks and four steals on returning and later admitted to being "very disappointed" with aspects of the NBA's concussion protocol.

"I won't get into the details," he said. "Ask me again at the end of the season."

The 22-year-old added: "I had lots of emotions before the game - excitement, frustration. I let it all out tonight."

The concussion protocol requires 48 hours of rest followed by a gradual return to physical activity and daily neurological tests.

A player must then be cleared by his team and the NBA's concussion programme director in order to resume playing.

De'Aaron Fox scored a game-high 28 points for the Spurs, who are second seeds in the Western Conference and can clinch the series back in San Antonio on Tuesday.

The Los Angeles Lakers can do the same as they return home on Tuesday, with the Houston Rockets having won 115-96 to prevent the Lakers sweeping the series.

Kevin Durant (ankle) missed his third game of the series for Houston but all five of their starters reached double figures, with Amen Thompson scoring a game-high 23 points.

Joel Embiid made his first appearance of the series for Philadelphia but could not prevent the 76ers losing 128-96 at home to the Boston Celtics.

Boston's Payton Pritchard scored 32 points off the bench - a career high for the play-offs - while Jayson Tatum claimed 30 points and 11 assists.

The Celtics, the Eastern Conference's second seed, now lead 3-1 and can clinch the series in Boston on Tuesday.

Brandon Ingram and Scottie Barnes each scored 23 points as the Toronto Raptors held on for a 93-89 win at home to the Cleveland Cavaliers.

The Eastern Conference rivals are now level at 2-2, with game five taking place in Cleveland on Wednesday.

• James leads Lakers to brink of play-off series win