Basketball Intelligence Newsletter

With a resounding Game 1 win over Philly, the Knicks are dominating postseason basketball games like no team in NBA history. Can this possibly be real?

The Sixers’ latest blowout loss, Jalen Brunson goes for blood, and more from 137-98 Game 1 dismantling
DeAntae Price, The Inquirer

OKC-LAL

The Thunder Will Take the Noise as a Compliment
Logan Murdock, The Ringer

Deandre Ayton is winning with the Lakers, and he loves that you’re watching
Dan Woike, The Athletic

Deandre Ayton is key to Lakers upset vs. Thunder
Broderick Turner, LA Times

Lakers’ X-factor against Thunder is … Luke Kennard
Melissa Rohlin, California Post

THE PLAYOFFS: ROUND ONE

The NBA’s Gap Between Great and Gone Has Never Been Smaller
Howard Beck, The Ringer

What Got You Here Won’t Get You There
Chris Gunther, Charting Hoops

The Problem With “Takeaways”
The Parquet Poet

DET-ORL

everything orlando had ran through one calf
bang!

franz wagner missed 48 regular-season games and three playoff games, and the magic never survived either absence.

Detroit grit prevails again 23 years later
Juri Bilcich

LEAGUEWIDE

Draft Lottery reform is wonderful and long overdue
John Hollinger, The Athletic

TEAM-SPECIFIC

CHI: Is new Bulls executive Bryson Graham prepared for big-market, small-organization Chicago?
Jon Greenberg, The Athletic

DAL: John Poulakidas ready to establish himself in the NBA
Joe Henricksen, Chicago Sun*Times

DAL: Inside the Mavericks’ hiring of Masai Ujiri
Marc Stein, The Stein Line

Note: Here is a link to the April interview referenced in this story: Patrick Dumont offers rare interview

ORL: Magic president: No reason to ‘dismantle’ team despite loss
Ohm Youngmisuk, ESPN

ORL: Magic’s first big offseason decision is its heart
Philip Rossman-Reich, World R Squared

THE DRAFT

Who deserves lottery luck? This is how the drawing will play out if justice is served.
Ricky O’Donnell, SBNation

New 2026 NBA Mock Draft
Jonathan Wasserman, Bleacher Report

Ranking 2026 NBA Draft Lottery Teams Most Desperate for No. 1 Pick
Dan Favale, Bleacher Report

Sacramento Kings
The Sacramento Kings need a face-of-the-franchise prospect more than anyone else, and it’s not all that debatable.
The Nets not having control over their 2027 first-rounder gives them a peripheral case, but playing in Brooklyn, they can hold out hope for free-agent victories unavailable to other squads. That includes the Kings.
Domantas Sabonis is the closest this roster gets to a top-15 guy, and he’s more of an any-given-season All-NBA candidate rather than a perennial staple. His limitations on defense and even, to a lesser extent, on offense also require you to flesh out the rest of the core in ultra-specific ways.
Crossing your fingers for Keegan Murray to become pillar material is a fool’s errand. The odds of him reaching his peak have diminished over the past couple of seasons, and even if he hits it, his pinnacle looks something like a complementary offensive player who can play lockdown defense.
All the cap space in the world wouldn’t change anything for the Kings. Not that it matters. They don’t have any. They need to cut costs just to avoid the luxury tax.
Sacramento isn’t winning any trade wars, either. It has control over all of its own first-rounders with the exception of 2031 (swap) but is too far from contention to transact its way to the mountaintop. You could add Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Victor Wembanyama or Nikola Jokić to the meat and potatoes of this core, and it still wouldn’t sniff the inner circle of title hopefuls.

Dillon Mitchell Scouting Report
Ersin Demir, NBA Draft Newsletter

Today’s BI is dedicated to the memory of Adrian Smith

Former Kentucky star, NBA veteran Adrian Smith dies at 89
Associated Press

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Basketball Intelligence For 5/4/26

Basketball Intelligence — Mon, 04 May 2026 15:38:24 GMT

Game 1 Keys to Victory
Jeff McDonald, Express News

How can the Timberwolves beat Victor Wembanyama and the Spurs? It’s all about defense
Chris Hine, Star Tribune

THE PLAYOFFS: ROUND ONE

10 lessons from strange Round 1, impact on semifinals
Zach Kram, ESPN

Cavs’ and Pistons’ survival, Joel Embiid, 3-1 comebacks turned the East on its ear
Joe Vardon, The Athletic

CLE-TOR

4 takeaways
Jeff Zillgitt, NBA.com

Cavaliers finally wear down weary Raptors in Game 7 win
The Athletic

Game 7 Observations: Jarrett Allen’s Dominance, a Growing Mental Toughness and The Other Guys
Danny Cunningham, The Inside Shot

Jarrett Allen won back Cleveland’s trust
Caleb Crowley, King James Gospel

Cavs weren’t great, but they handled the relentless Raptors
Jason Lloyd, The Athletic

Player Grades: Cavs vs Raptors Game 7 - Role players get the job done
Tony Pesta, Fear The Sword

Tobias Harris Round One Offensive Performance vs Orlando Magic
Bryce Simon, Motor City Hoops

DET-ORL

Pistons showed grit in series comeback. Did they unlock a new level for the future?
Hunter Patterson, The Athletic

4 takeaways
Steve Aschburner, NBA.com

Pistons complete 3-1 series comeback against Magic
The Athletic

Cade Cunningham takes huge superstar step by saving Pistons from first-round upset
Brad Botkin, CBS Sports

Big changes coming in Orlando? For Magic, everything’s on table after a playoff collapse
Josh Robbins, The Athletic

MIN-DEN

How to dominate Jokic and Murray
Ben Taylor, Thinking Basketball

NYK-ATL

Knicks learned vital lessons in first round of NBA playoffs, just as they did a year ago
Fred Katz, The Athletic

PHI-BOS

Evaluating how the Celtics blew the series vs. the 76ers
Chad Finn, Boston Globe

TEAM-SPECIFIC

BOS: Top 3 Priorities for Boston Celtics During 2026 NBA Offseason
Dan Favale, Bleacher Report

BOS: Reflecting on a rare Celtics season where the glass is both half full and half empty
Trevor Hass, Celtics Blog

DEN: Nuggets 2026 offseason preview
Bennett Durando, Denver Post

HOU: Why the Rockets’ season ended with a thud
Ramona Shelburne/Tim MacMahon, ESPN

HOU: The Rockets have no shortage of questions about their future
Kelly Iko, Yahoo Sports

HOU: Rockets’ Top 3 Priorities During 2026 NBA Offseason
Dan Favale, Bleacher Report

OKC: Cason Wallace receives major recognition many associate with Victor Wembanyama
Zane Gelphman, Thunderous Intentions

ORL: Magic fire Jamahl Mosley
Tim Reynolds, AP

PHX: Another Challenging Summer for the Suns - 2026 Offseason Preview
Yossi Gozlan, Third Apron

TOR: The Raptors got exactly what they needed from the playoffs — clarity
Eric Koreen, The Athletic

TOR: The Raptors may be eliminated, but 2025-26 was everything the franchise needed from it
Louis Zatzman, Raptors Republic

TOR: The hearts were there but the legs gave out in Game 7 loss
Dave Feschuk, Toronto Star

UTA: Finally, a draft lottery Jazz fans can feel good about
Sarah Todd, Deseret News

THE DRAFT

Best Game Series: Tarris Reed Jr. Video Breakdown
Bryce Simon, Game Theory

LEAGUEWIDE

NBA offseason: Draft, free agency, trade targets for eliminated teams
Bobby Marks, ESPN

Today’s BI is dedicated to the memory of Alfrederick Hughes

Loyola great Alfredrick Hughes, a 1985 All-American, dies at 63
Chicago Sun*Times

Basketball Intelligence For 5/3/26

Basketball Intelligence — Sun, 03 May 2026 17:06:45 GMT

THE PLAYOFFS

PHI-BOS

The Celtics had no idea how to handle Joel Embiid in this series, and those flaws were exposed the most in Game 7
Gary Washburn, Boston Globe

Embiid leads the Sixers to an accomplishment decades in the making
Tony Jones, The Athletic

4 game 7 takeaways
John Schuhmann, NBA.com

The Celtics were on top of the world. Then, the season ended in heartbreak
Noa Dalzell, Celtics Blog

What Happens When You Don’t Disrupt Joel Embiid
Con Brennan, Wait For The Screen

76ers charge back from 3-1 series hole, eliminate Celtics in Game 7: Takeaways
The Athletic

Tyrese Maxey made Philly’s historic upset possible
Ben Golliver

VJ Edgecombe shines again at TD Garden, sending his terrific rookie season to the playoffs’ second round
Gina Mizell, The Inquirer

For this season’s Celtics, nobody expected anything — until they expected everything
Jay King, The Athletic

How the Celtics’ greatest strength all season was wiped out by the Sixers
Sherrod Blakely, Full Court Press

Celtics lose Game 7 to the 76ers, 109-100, to bring promising season to an abrupt end. Here’s how the game unfolded.
Boston Globe

76ers take series, 4-3
Kelly Dwyer, On Hoops

DET-ORL

Resilient Pistons set sights on Game 7 after digging out of 3-1 series hole
Hunter Patterson, The Athletic

3 things to know in Magic-Pistons Game 7
Steve Aschburner, NBA.com

3 keys to success for Pistons in Game 7
Omari Sankofa II, Free Press

3 Things to Watch
Philip Rossman-Reich, Orlando Magic Daily

History not on Magic’s side in Game 7 at Detroit, but belief is still there
Jason Beede, Orlando Sentinel

LAL-HOU

How Deandre Ayton, Marcus Smart helped Lakers oust Rockets
Law Murray, The Athletic

Lakers shockingly unlocked Deandre Ayton in a way others only dreamed of
Tyler Watts, Fansided

Lakers’ defensive buy-in propelled them to second round of NBA playoffs
Khobi Price, California Post

NYK-ATL

Why Jalen Brunson uses an iPad during games
James Edwards III, The Athletic

OKC-LAL

What to expect in Thunder-Lakers series
Jeff Zillgitt, NBA.com

PHI-NYK

Knicks-76ers preview
The Athletic

SAS-MIN

How a pickup game between teen Victor Wembanyama and Rudy Gobert foretold greatness
Mike Finger, Express News

TOR-CLE

Where Donovan Mitchell finds his drive: His grandmother’s kitchen
Mirin Fader, The Athletic

3 things to know in Raptors-Cavaliers Game 7
Jeff Zillgitt, NBA.com

Cavs need to get aggressive before it kills the season
Caleb Crowley, King James Gospel

Are the Cavs simply showing the NBA who they are?
Chris Fedor/Jimmy Watkins, cleveland.com

TOR: Raptors look to exceed all expectations in Game 7
Michael Grange, Sportsnet

Team- Specific and draft-related stories follow for paid subscribers

Basketball Intelligence For 5/2/26

Aaron Bollwinkel — Sat, 02 May 2026 16:30:52 GMT

FEATURES OF THE DAY

the cost of forever
bang!

Who’s to blame for Rockets’ embarrassing first-round exit, and what comes next after a disastrous season?
Sam Quinn, CBS Sports

RJ Barrett’s epic shot echoes another legendary Raptors moment
Eric Koreen, The Athletic

TEAM NEWS

ATL: Three Thoughts From Atlanta Hawks Exit Interviews: Why Onsi Saleh Has the Right Plan Moving Forward
Jackson Caudell, SI.com

ATL: Hawks eye the future with increased fervor following playoff collapse
Lauren Williams, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution

BOS: A Switch Got Flipped
Adam Taylor, The Celtics Chronicle

BOS: Philadelphia 76ers vs. Boston Celtics Game 7: What to look for in latest chapter of historic rivalry
Kurt Helin. NBC Sports

CLE: The Cavaliers had no business losing Game 6. Now comes a nerve-wracking Game 7
Joe Vardon, The Athletic

CLE: Cavs find new way to collapse in Game 6 overtime loss to Raptors
Jackson Flickinger, Fear the Sword

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Basketball Intelligence For 5/1/26

Basketball Intelligence — Fri, 01 May 2026 18:01:14 GMT

FEATURES OF THE DAY

Have a Good Summer: Suns, Blazers, Hawks, Nuggets
Jared Dubin, Last Night In Basketball

Why the Timing is Bad to Start the 3-2-1 Lottery
Yossi Gozlan, Third Apron

The NBA lottery reform is good, actually
Mike Shearer, Basketball Poetry

THE PLAYOFFS

Recapping Thursday’s Game 6s
Dustin Brewer, HOOPS

NBA playoff win…

Basketball Intelligence For 4/30/26

Basketball Intelligence — Thu, 30 Apr 2026 18:30:48 GMT

THE PLAYOFFS

Five first-round trends
Zach Kram, ESPN

Western Conference first-round takeaways
ESPN

Recapping Wednesday’s Game 5s
Dustin Brewer, HOOPS

BOS-PHI

3 things to watch in Celtics-76ers Game 6
John Schuhmann, NBA.com

The Celtics’ Biggest Problem Right Now Is the Disappearance of On…

Basketball Intelligence For 4/29/26, Part Two

Basketball Intelligence — Wed, 29 Apr 2026 20:27:25 GMT

THE PLAYOFFS

For J.B. Bickerstaff and Jamahl Mosley, being ‘family’ doesn’t matter during NBA playoffs
David Aldridge, The Athletic

BOS-PHI

Joel Embiid cancels out Jaylen Brown, Jayson Tatum in 76ers’ Game 5 win: ‘He carried us’
Tony Jones, The Athletic

Celtics add to their reputation as a team that loves to make things hard on itself
Jay King, The Athletic

LAL…

Basketball Intelligence For 4/29/26

Aaron Bollwinkel — Wed, 29 Apr 2026 18:25:07 GMT

FEATURES OF THE DAY
Exits: A light hostage situation
Mike Richman, Basketball Feelings

For J.B. Bickerstaff and Jamahl Mosley, being ‘family’ doesn’t matter during NBA playoffs
David Aldridge, The Athletic

Spurs back in this game
Kelly Dwyer, Kelly Dwyer on hoops

Control Tower KAT Has Unlocked the Knicks’ Ceiling
Michael Pina, The Ringer

TEAM NEWS

ATL: Winners and Losers From the Atlanta Hawks Disappointing Game Five Loss to The Knicks
Jackson Caudell, SI.com

ATL: Curtain starting to fall on Hawks’ playoff run
Lauren Williams, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution

ATL: Hawks fixing ‘deep’ damage caused by trusted exec, leader says
Rosie Manins, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution

BOS: Joel Embiid helps 76ers stave off elimination in stunning Game 5 win over the Celtics
Adam Himmelsbach, The Boston Globe

BOS: 4 takeaways as Celtics lose to 76ers in Game 5 after stunning fourth quarter collapse
Brian Robb, Mass Live

CLE: 4 Keys for Cavs in Game 5 vs. Raptors: What happened to the pick-and-roll?
Jackson Flickinger, Fear the Sword

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Basketball Intelligence For 4/28/26

Basketball Intelligence — Tue, 28 Apr 2026 16:56:04 GMT

THE PLAYOFFS

The first round so far
Henry Abbott/David Thorpe, True Hoop

The NBA rookie trio of Dylan Harper, VJ Edgecombe, and Collin Murray-Boyles are leveling up their games in meaningful ways during the 2026 NBA Playoffs
Nathan Grubel, No Ceilings

1(ish) stat explaining each first-round series
Mike Shearer, Basketball Poetry

Recapping Monday’s Games
Dustin…

Basketball Intelligence For 4/27/26

Basketball Intelligence — Mon, 27 Apr 2026 17:54:15 GMT

THE PLAYOFFS

2026 NBA playoffs: Key questions, ranking first-round series
ESPN

Sunday’s winners and losers
CBS Sports

NBA Panic Meter Power Rankings: Which teams should be most concerned about the first round — and the future?
Ben Rohrbach, Yahoo Sports

ATL-NYK

How Dyson Daniels, Hawks’ guard from Down Under, turned his game upside down
John Hollinger, The Athle…

Basketball Intelligence For 4/26/26

Basketball Intelligence — Sun, 26 Apr 2026 16:53:55 GMT

THE PLAYOFFS

The NBA playoffs are a battle of attrition
Jace Frederick, Pioneer Press

BOS-PHI

3 things to watch in Celtics-Sixers Game 4
John Schuhmann, NBA.com

Sixers’ playoff newcomers getting ‘invaluable’ experience in first series against Boston
Gina Mizell, The Inquirer

The Celtics’ support of Derrick White is unwavering -- and for good reason
Bobby Krivit…

No Weak Stuff Podcast

Basketball Intelligence — Sun, 26 Apr 2026 14:28:17 GMT

Ray is joined by Nick Agar-Johnson and Nathan Grubel, each from No Ceilings, to discuss the 2025-26 NBA Rookie Class. They start out with an in-depth discussion of Mavericks rookie Cooper Flagg, before discussing the other four players on Nathan's All-Rookie team from his recent No Ceilings story. Then, they talk about Maxime Raynaud and Cedric Coward, …

Basketball Intelligence For 4/25/26

Aaron Bollwinkel — Sat, 25 Apr 2026 15:44:27 GMT

FEATURES OF THE DAY
Don’t Make The Tiny Man Dribble While Everyone Else Stands Still
Giri Nathan, Defector

game’s about a bucket*
IRIS, irisketball

TEAM NEWS

ATL: Soaring to a series lead
Juri Bilcich, Sportstape Chronicles

ATL: Unlikely duo of CJ McCollum, Jonathan Kuminga has Hawks positioned to upset Knicks
John Hollinger, The Athletic

In a game that contained multitudes, Atlanta’s C.J. McCollum who scored 23 points and made the go-ahead basket with 12.7 seconds left, while Jonathan Kuminga was the bench savior with 21 points and rugged defense on Karl-Anthony Towns.
If you think this was unlikely when the series started, go deeper and consider how improbable it all seemed at midseason. McCollum was toiling in anonymity for a tanking Wizards team, while Kuminga was racking up DNPs in a Warriors system that didn’t fit him.
McCollum and Kuminga were Atlanta’s returns on the midseason trades of Young and Porziņģis. McCollum has been the playoff hero for Atlanta, putting the Hawks ahead for good in both of their wins while averaging 27 points across the three games, and repeatedly roasting Knicks’ All-Star Jalen Brunson in the process.

BOS: 6 Reasons Boston Celtics Held On To Beat Sixers in Game 3, Including Surprising Plays
John Karalis, SI.com

BOS: How slumping Derrick White delivered winning play for Celtics in Game 3
Zack Cox, Boston Herald

BOS: When Jayson Tatum took over Game 3 against the 76ers, it’s easy to forget that he was away for so long
Gary Washburn, The Boston Globe

BOS: Jayson Tatum buries the 76ers late as Celtics take Game 3: 8 takeaways
Tom Westerholm, Boston.com

BOS: ‘All of those things mattered’: Inside Neemias Queta’s breakout with Celtics
Chirs Forsberg, Celtics Insider

DAL: Planting the Flagg
Jonas Plaut, The Cap Crunch

GSW: Understanding the Warriors Complicated Summer Ahead - 2026 Offseason Preview
Yossi Gozlan, Third Apron

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Basketball Intelligence For 4/24/26

Basketball Intelligence — Fri, 24 Apr 2026 17:37:59 GMT

FEATURES OF THE DAY

‘An ugly concussion’: Leading neuroscientist weighs in on Victor Wembanyama’s brain injury and NBA protocols
Tom Haberstroh, Yahoo Sports

PODCAST: 2025-2026 NBA Rookies
Ray LeBov/Nathan Grubel/Nick Agar-Johnson, NO WEAK STUFF

THE PLAYOFFS

NBA playoffs winners and losers: Nikola Jokić’s rare struggles headli…

Basketball Intelligence For 4/23/26, Part Two

Basketball Intelligence — Thu, 23 Apr 2026 18:39:49 GMT

THE PLAYOFFS

CLE-TOR

Why the Raptors’ biggest adjustment could make things worse for Toronto
Chris Fedor/Jimmy Watkins/Ethan Sands, cleveland.com

Could leaving Cavs role players open actually be Toronto’s best Game 3 strategy?
Chris Fedor/Jimmy Watkins/Ethan Sands, cleveland.com

DET-ORL

‘Special’ Cade Cunningham shines as Pistons even series vs. Magic
Coty Davi…

Basketball Intelligence For 4/23/26

Basketball Intelligence — Thu, 23 Apr 2026 16:28:02 GMT

FEATURES OF THE DAY

Jalen Brunson is causing two huge problems for the Knicks, and only one is solvable
Eamon Cassels, Fansided

2026 NBA Draft Data: Introducing Creation Score, Off Ball Gravity, Stopper Score, and Translation Score
Tyler Metcalf, No Ceilings

THE PLAYOFFS

Recapping Wednesday’s Games
Dustin Brewer, HOOPS

Scoring is…

Kings Weekly Podcast

Basketball Intelligence — Thu, 23 Apr 2026 13:56:24 GMT

Nick and Ray discuss the recent 2026 NBA Draft lottery news for the Kings, some ex-Kings currently active in the NBA Playoffs, and wrap up with song title picks to describe the Kings’ 2025-26 season. They open with the news from Monday that the Kings lost the coin flip with the Utah Jazz for the 2026 NBA Draft, with the Kings ending up with the fifth-be…