Basketball Intelligence for 11/29/23
Stein's scoop on Mark Cuban, In-Season Tournament chaos, and so much more!
TEAM STORIES
ATL: Atlanta Hawks fall to Cleveland Cavaliers as Donovan Mitchell shines
Joe Schmidt, Peachtree Hoops
BOS: When it came time, Celtics coach Joe Mazzulla pulled out all the stops to advance in In-Season Tournament
Gary Washburn, Boston Globe
Mazzulla spent the final period feverishly coaching his team to avoid losing the fourth by 7 or more points. He left his starters in until the final minutes. He intentionally fouled poor free throw shooter Andre Drummond to reduce the Bulls’ chances of scoring 2 points on possessions. He turned into a mad scientist because what appeared to be a slim possibility of advancing prior to opening tip became real once the Celtics dominated the first three periods.
“Once it got to [the fourth quarter[, and their possessions were 0.0 points per possession because they missed two free throws, that stuff gets me excited,” Mazzulla said. “Lower points per possession on defense, the process toward winning, finding small ways to try and win, those things are cool.
BRK: Nets beat Raptors but are eliminated from NBA In-Season Tournament on point differential
Evan Barnes, Newsday
CHI: It's as if Billy Donovan is coaching for his next job, not this one
Your Friendly BullsBlogger, BlogABull
CHI: Chicago Bulls coach Billy Donovan irked by hacks to Andre Drummond. 3 takeaways from an In-Season Tournament blowout.
Julia Poe, Chicago Tribune
CHI: For Bulls, everything that could go wrong is and that’s on Artūras Karnišovas
Darnell Mayberry, The Athletic
CLE: Cavalier Conclusions: Cleveland finds spark with small-ball lineup
Jackson Flickinger, Right Down Euclid
CLE: The Spin: Cavs Wear Hawks Down With Paint Presence, Balance In 128-105 Win
Spencer Davies, Cavs Insider
DAL: Sources: Mark Cuban has deal in place to sell a significant stake in the Dallas Mavericks to the family of Las Vegas billionaire Miriam Adelson
Marc Stein, The Stein Line
Sources say that Cuban, who bought the team from Ross Perot Jr. in January 2000 for a purchase price of $285 million, has agreed to sell what is believed to be a majority stake in the club to the Adelson family based on a franchise valuation of less than $4 billion. In Forbes’ most recent compilation of NBA franchise values at the start of the season, Cuban’s Mavericks were listed at $4.5 billion — seventh-highest in the league.
The uncommon structure of the agreement, mind you, figures to hold far greater appeal to Cuban than making a deal at a higher franchise valuation, since this deal appears uniquely poised to allow him — for the foreseeable future — to function with the same hands-on ownership style that he has employed for nearly 24 years.