The Boston Celtics dominated the Philadelphia 76ers in their first of two preseason matchups, a 38-point rout. This was our first look at most of the Celtics’ top players, with Jayson Tatum, Paul George, Derrick White, Payton Pritchard, Mitchell Robinson, Neemias Queta, and Sam Hauser all making their pre-season debuts and what a debut it was.

Joe Mazzulla isn’t one to tip his hand, but it’s no secret that gaining extra possessions is a core tenant in his basketball philosophy. That’s going to come through two main sources: crashing the offensive glass and an active defense. The extra possessions were found in abundance during Saturday’s victory.

Paul George was responsible for a good chunk of them, a promising display of what he can bring to this new iteration of the Celtics. He came away with a team-high five steals, tied with Baylor Scheierman. From the jump, it was easy to see how locked in PG was defensively, especially for a preseason game.

George’s defense looked completely effortless. He wasn’t flying up and down the court or hounding defenders all 94 feet. He kept things nice and simple, relying on good positioning, and years of experience as one of the league’s premier defenders.

Three of PG’s steals came from reading the passing lanes with active hands. He led the team with six deflections, and the ones which resulted in Boston gaining possession all sparked fastbreaks, two of which the Celtics were able to convert to easy buckets.

An underrated aspect of Paul’s defense is, ironically enough, his offense. Being able to convert defensive stops into transition buckets by reading the floor and pushing the ball up the court will be an invaluable addition to a team that ranked dead-last in both fastbreak points and pace last season. Boston was also towards the bottom of the league (26^th) in turnovers forced per game at just 12.9, something they’ll be looking to remedy this year.

George wasn’t solely an off-ball specialist in Saturday’s game. He also had a Jrue Holiday-esque strip which led to a dunk of his own.

Even when he wasn’t the one to come away with a steal, he heavily influenced the Celtics’ defensive possessions to wreak havoc. He was extremely connected with his teammates, and incredibly active as well. Whether a play results in a stop or not, his defensive tenacity will wear down opposing players, especially with his versatility, being able to shut down stars and role-players alike. Tatum went as far as to call George Boston’s “defensive playmaker” alongside Scheierman.

Keep in mind, we’re still just talking about a preseason game. I wouldn’t expect Paul to average 5 steals a night over the course of the year, but if he maintains this level of activity, Boston’s defense will be hard to beat.

That night, Mazzulla said George takes things to another level defensively. “Great instincts. Great technique. Great positioning. It’s something he takes pride in and I think is very contagious,” he added.

And before Tuesday’s practice, Joe gave some encouraging words about Paul’s health. “He’s had a tremendous training camp from a physical standpoint… He’s in great shape. He feels great from that standpoint.”

PG certainly showed us that he’s moving well and ready to work. Now, we’re just under a week away from Boston’s regular season opener. It won’t be long until we can stop dreaming about what this team can accomplish and start seeing the results speak for themselves.

Editor’s note: this is the first piece from new staff writer Joey Walraven. He’ll be contributing to our site’s coverage. Please give him a warm welcome as we’re excited for him to join our team at Peachtree Hoops.

Jalen Johnson was having his best year of his young career in 2024-25 before a torn labrum sidelined him remainder of the season. Many analysts viewed his absence as one of the most consequential in the entire league. Despite only playing 36 games and starting in all of them, Johnson was enjoying career highs in points, rebounds, and assists.

With the increase in both responsibility and production, the former first-round pick was slated for a big 2025-2026 campaign. In the midst of the Trae Young fiasco, which included unfortunate injuries and palpable tension between the Hawks and their star guard, Johnson became the focal point of the offense and saw himself molded into the best player on the Hawks’ roster.

Only missing ten games, averaged 22.5 points, 10.3 rebounds, and 7.9 assists per game, which were all career highs. Johnson also increased his three-point percentage, which increased the floor spacing for the Hawks and made them a more dynamic offense. With Young’s absence, who served as the team’s facilitator, Johnson molded himself into a true point forward, which led him to being tied for the second most triple-doubles in the league.

Johnson’s quantum leap was accompanied by a litany of accolades, which included being voted to both the All-Star team and Third Team All-NBA. Both honors were also career firsts.

Despite the improvement, the postseason was not quite as kind to Johnson. In the lone series against the eventual NBA Champion New York Knicks, the first time all-star struggled to establish the same dominance, as all the numbers he set career highs in took a substantial drop, especially his three-point efficiency, as he shot 29% for the series.

Johnson acknowledged his trouble during the team’s media day and vowed to improve his performance, stating, “the first month and a half, two months after the season, [all I watched] was film from that Knicks series. Just [seeing] how I can learn and grow from that. Because at the end of the day, I want to win championships.”

Part of Johnson’s playoff struggles derived from what seemed to be a form of a basketball identity crisis. Though he was the team’s best player and leading scorer, it seemed his deference to his teammates, namely CJ McCollum and Nickeil Alexander-Walker, ultimately interfered with his ability to find his rhythm in the game and execute the same effectiveness he did throughout the entire season.

There were several points late in the season where the Hawks were forced to depend on McCollum and ‘NAW’ and were unable to get production from their lone All-Star. Johnson’s peak as a scorer will come when he is depended less upon as a facilitator and is able to focus the bulk of his energy on putting the ball through the net.

Former Houston Cougar Kingston Flemings with the eighth pick in this year’s draft will be an ideal candidate to lower some of the ball handling and facilitating responsibilities from Johnson. The transition to being a scoring dominant weapon will continue to improve the Hawks’ offensive versatility, and ultimately being a more dynamic unit once the playoffs arrive.

While Johnson is certainly a more than capable defender, it’s certainly an area where he can have some improvement. The addition of Luguentz Dort to the Hawks certainly removes the burden from Johnson to be a defensive staple, especially when pairing with defensive stalwarts Dyson Daniels and Alexander-Walker. Johnson admitted the three will be a problem for the league, stating the league could “pick their poison” for which member of their three-headed monster will cause nightmares for opposing teams.

Ultimately, for Jalen Johnson to maximize his potential, he has to play like he knows he is the team’s number one option. While scoring support from his teammates is obviously a requirement, he has to be the guy the Hawks funneling their winning plays through.

With the additions of support in terms of playmaking, perimeter play, and defense, the Hawks have the ingredients to unleash a deadly recipe on the NBA as Johnson continues to mold himself into one of the league’s best young stars. With his proven ability to improve in each year, if Johnson accepts the challenge to being his team’s undisputed alpha dog, not only will the Hawks make noise in the playoffs, but Jalen Johnson will find himself in the midst of MVP talks.

This came across on Instagram.

A cool collection of photos and stats surrounding Keldon Johnson, the 2026 NBA Sixth Man of the Year. The photos, most from his ranch, were the subject of many articles written after KJ invited some members of the media out to his ranch for an afternoon.

“Keldon Johnson, at home.

Keldon Johnson has been the Spurs’ unofficial DJ since his rookie season, when Patty Mills handed him the aux and told him to play Mariah Carey. He still runs the music before games off a giant speaker with a worn-out Spurs logo, and the playlist makes room for “Party in the U.S.A.” and “A Thousand Miles.”

In 2025–26, he broke Manu Ginóbili’s franchise record for points off the bench. The two are also the only Spurs to win Sixth Man of the Year.

The boots came with the land. “Ever since I got a ranch, it’s the everyday attire,” he told NBC. The pond on the property was recently expanded to fit a small boat and stocked with koi, bass, crappie and catfish.

Photography: @joshhuskin / L’Équipe; @jaredweissnba / The Athletic.
NBA photography: @imago.images”

Originally, I thought it was a magazine layout and when I looked up “Hoopsciety” I found their YouTube channel which featured this video on Gregg Popovich and Victor Wembanyama:

It is incredible to relive Wemby’s timeline in San Antonio since draft night. His time with Pop. His first two season ending with injury. His defensive stats. And then the exposiveness of his third season. The dominance and maturity leading to his unanimous Defensive Player of the Year, Western Conference Finals MVP, and his first Finals appearance.

The Spurs have such high expectations for themselves this season, it will most surely be a year to follow the Silve & Black.

Tewo more preseason games and less than a week until the season opener against the Oklahoma City Thunder.

Go Spurs Go!

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Jett Howard probably wasn’t a name you had penciled in as a Maverick before the offseason began, but here we are. The Mavericks signed the former 11th overall pick in the 2023 draft to a two-way contract this summer after three seasons in Orlando. The 6-foot-8 wing never quite found his footing with the Magic, but his role grew last season, when he averaged a career-high 5.5 points in 12.6 minutes per game while shooting 37.2% from three and 94.9% from the free-throw line. Those aren’t numbers that pop off the page, especially for a lottery pick. But Orlando drafted him 11th for a reason, and Dallas brought him in for a pretty obvious one: The guy can shoot. On a Mavericks roster that needs players who can space the floor around Cooper Flagg and Kyrie Irving, that skill alone gives Howard a path to minutes. The question is whether he can do other things well enough to stay on the floor.

Big question

Can Jett Howard become more than a shooter? It’s that simple. The Mavericks don’t need him to come in and average 15 points a night. Dallas has plenty of players who will have the ball more than him. What they need is someone who can punish defenses when they decide to load up on Flagg, Irving, or another primary creator. Howard shot 37.2% from three last season on 2.6 attempts per game. Those numbers aren’t spectacular, but they’re respectable enough to force defenses to think about him.

Dallas doesn’t need him to be a star, but be a guy Dusty May can rely on to get a bucket when you need one. It also wouldn’t hurt to do other little things. Run around screens. Make the extra pass. Attack a hard closeout. Move without the ball. Compete defensively. If Howard can do those things consistently, a two-way contract will start looking like a pretty useful piece. If he can’t, he won’t log many minutes.

Best case scenario

Howard shoots the lights out and makes his way into the rotation. The Mavericks have several young, athletic players, but they also desperately need shooting. Dallas’ 2026-27 roster is packed with players 25 or younger, and Howard fits the team’s broader youth movement almost perfectly.

The best version of Howard isn’t a high-volume scorer. It’s a 6-foot-8 wing who can come into a game, immediately provide spacing, and knock down three or four shots without needing the offense designed around him. And there is something intriguing about putting a player like that next to Cooper Flagg. If Flagg develops into the offensive engine Dallas expects, defenses will collapse on him on plenty of possessions.

Howard’s job would be simple: find an open spot and make them pay. If he can also become a competent defender, things get really interesting. That’s the path to Howard playing 10 to 15 minutes a night instead of spending most of the season in the G-League. And considering he was the 11th pick just three years ago, I’m not ready to completely give up on the idea that there’s more here than what Orlando showed.

Worst case scenario

Howard becomes a shooting specialist who doesn’t shoot enough. A 37.2% three-point shooter sounds good until you remember that Howard only attempted 2.6 threes per game last season. His career three-point percentage is just 32.6%, so it’s fair to wonder whether last year’s improvement was a real step forward or simply a small sample.

And if the shot isn’t falling, what else is he giving you? He’s not a creator. He’s also not going to overwhelm opponents physically, even for his size. That leaves very little margin for error. The Mavericks already have plenty of players fighting for wing minutes. Max Christie, Zaccharie Risacher, Naji Marshall, Santi Aldama, Morez Johnson Jr., and others are ahead of Howard on the depth chart in some capacity. If Howard wants real minutes, he’ll have to separate himself from the rest of the pack with his shooting stroke. If he doesn’t, onto the G League he goes.

Season goal

Become too good for the two-way contract. Be the shooter you were last season, but with more volume when you’re in. I don’t expect him to become a regular part of the rotation immediately. But 10-15 games where Howard consistently looks like a rotation NBA player could make him a useful weapon. A simple stretch where he’s knocking down open threes, making smart cuts, and holding his own defensively should keep him on the floor. If he can do that, the Mavericks will have to figure out a way to keep him around. And honestly, that’s a pretty good season for a 23-year-old who is trying to revive his NBA career.

Overall

I like this gamble. Howard is exactly the type of player Dallas should be taking a chance on right now. He was once a lottery pick; he’s still only 23, and he has one skill that will always have value in the NBA: shooting. The Mavericks officially signed him to a two-way contract in July after his best statistical season in Orlando. Now he gets a fresh start. A little new scenery can go a long way.

He appeared in 133 games over three seasons, but only averaged 11 minutes per game for his career and never started a game. Dallas probably won’t hand him a ton of minutes either. But the opportunity is different. The Mavericks are trying to build around Cooper Flagg, and that means finding players who complement him.

Shooting matters. Size matters. And if Howard can put those things together, there’s a role for him. No one expects Howard to suddenly become the second coming of Klay Thompson, but there’s a reasonable chance Dallas gets more out of him than Orlando did. And if he can turn 37% three-point shooting into something closer to 40% while becoming a reliable team defender, the Mavericks may have found a very useful rotation piece hiding on a two-way contract. That’s worth taking a swing on.