Basketball Intelligence For 2/16/25
Today's Best NBA Reporting And Analysis
*FEATURE OF THE DAY*
Josh Hart : everyone’s favorite Knicks guard
Abe Beame, SBNation
TEAM-SPECIFIC
ATL: Dyson Daniels: Appreciating the Great Barrier Thief
Austin McCall, Great Barrier Thief
BKN: Killian Hayes: One more step towards redemption
Scott Mitchell, Nets Daily
BKN: What to make of a Nets season that doesn’t make any sense?
Lucas Kaplan, Nets Daily
BOS: Jayson Tatum is on a tear
Jacob Issenberg, Celtics Blog
Guarding Jayson Tatum is a nightmare for opposing teams: how they attempt to slow him down
CLE: Max Strus staking claim to Cavs’ fifth starting spot – even amidst De’Andre Hunter’s ‘fantastic’ first impression
Chris Fedor, cleveland.com
CLE: Which team is the Cavs' biggest playoff threat besides Boston?
Chris Fedor, cleveland.com
The Knicks have the firepower, No. 2 in offensive rating this season, and are loaded with capable wing defenders — Josh Hart, OG Anunoby and Mikal Bridges. But can they keep up from outside and solve a perceived math problem? New York is 19th in made 3s, 27th attempts and fifth in percentage.
Don’t discount Milwaukee. Currently fifth in the East with a 29-24 record, the Bucks have a pair of almost-victories against Cleveland this year, with two of their defeats totaling just three points. They are borderline top 10 at both ends. They rank sixth in made 3s and second in percentage. Can play a 5-out style stretches the Cavaliers’ defense. Just added Kyle Kuzma. And have one of the league’s most potent duos — Damian Lillard and Giannis Antetokounmpo
Orlando can’t shoot. Indiana will have problems on defense. The Pistons aren’t ready yet. Miami has been mediocre. The Sixers are a mess. The Hawks, once a sneaky threat, have been sliding since Jalen Johnson’s season-ending injury.
It feels like the conference is a four-team race — Boston, Cleveland, New York and Milwaukee.
CLE: How the NBA never saw this Cavs team coming
Terry Pluto, cleveland.com
At the All-Star break, the Cavs Core Four has missed a grand total of 11 games due to injury/rest. It breaks down like this: Allen (0), Garland (2), Mitchell (3) and Mobley (6).
Last season, the Core Four combined to miss 89 games! Here’s the breakdown: Mobley (32), Mitchell (27), Garland (25) and Allen (5).
DAL: Kyrie Irving, Mavericks haven’t let February chaos sink their season
Christian Clark, The Athletic
DAL: New Mavericks CEO Rick Welts has a ‘superpower.’ Will it help fans move past Luka trade?
Brad Townsend, Morning News
DAL: The Tragedy and Farce of Luka Dončić’s Trade
Louisa Thomas, New Yorker
DAL: Danté Exum could be a big winner of the Luka Dončić trade
Ayush G, The Pick And Roll
DET: Through hard work, tragedy, Pistons’ Cade Cunningham has earned All-Star moment
Coty Davis, Detroit News
GSW: Draymond Green on the state of the NBA: It’s ‘boring,’
Tim Reynolds, AP
Green talked about a recent Golden State game against LeBron James and the Los Angeles Lakers, and how it was “refreshing” to go against a thinker like James — who is notorious for finding weaknesses and exploiting them.
“Every possession is some type of chess move,” Green said. “You don’t get that today in the NBA, often. ... You don’t just get that on a regular basis. It’s just who can run faster, who can hit more 3s, it’s no substance. I think it’s very boring.”
GSW: How the Jimmy Butler trade affects the GSW roster, this season and beyond
Eric Apricot, Dub Nation HQ
GSW: Stephen Curry says he'd like more public information on how NBA refs are graded
Jack Maloney, CBS Sports
HOU: Why the Rockets have hit a wall and how they can reset after All-Star break
Kelly Iko, The Athletic
LAC: Kawhi Leonard is back: LeBron James and Luka Dončić are cool. I'll take the other team in LA
Tom Haberstroh, The Finder
LAC: All-Star James Harden helped fill leadership void for Clippers
Janis Carr, OC Register
With the departure of Paul George and the delayed start to Kawhi Leonard’s season, the Clippers needed someone to step up and future Hall-of-Famer Harden has done so on and off the court
LAC: James Harden returns to All-Star level
Dan Woike, LA Times
LAL: How will Luka Dončić fit, and what’s the plan at center?
Jovan Buha, The Athletic
MEM: How Jaren Jackson Jr. Inspired Grizzlies’ Remarkable Turnaround
Mark Medina, Athlon Sports
MIN: Anthony Edwards: wielding a jump shot that has changed his game
Chris Hine, Star Tribune
The accuracy of his outside shots determines the effectiveness of his off-the-dribble plays, and stats since December show a dramatic gain
MIN: Terrence Shannon Jr. leads unlikely youth charge as Timberwolves stun Thunder
Jon Krawczynski, The Athletic
NOP: Pelicans' VP David Griffin candid in assessment of team's season thus far
Rod Walker, The Advocate
The Pelicans have started 30 different starting lineups this season. On average, that equates to a different starting lineup every other game. Of the five players who started on opening night, only one (CJ McCollum) will play another game for the Pelicans this season. Murray (Achilles) and Herb Jones (shoulder) are out with season-ending injuries. Brandon Ingram and Daniel Theis were both traded at the trade deadline. Zion Williamson, who missed the opener but played in the second game, has only played in 18 of the 55 games this season.
“Now we sit here in unprecedented times in terms of the amount of player salary we've lost due to injury,” Griffin said. “And at the same time, that doesn't absolve anyone of the mistakes we've made and of the issues that we have to address moving forward. Now, we've talked in the front office quite a bit about the fact that no harm really befalls you as a franchise unless you fail to get better and fail to react to the things that lay bare all of your shortcomings.”
NOP: CJ McCollum delivered another masterpiece, Pelicans enter All-Star break with a win
Rod Walker, The Advocate
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