Basketball Intelligence For 4/26/25
The Magic's use of their hands is anything but slight, Miami goes frigid against Cleveland, the Thunder mercy-kill the Grizzlies, and more...
*FEATURE OF THE DAY*
Indulgence
Katie Heindl, Basketball Feelings
TEAM NEWS
BOS: Celtics need to fight … any urge to retaliate against Magic
Chris Forsberg, NBC Sports Boston
BOS: The Celtics Succession Plan Remains Murky
Ben Horney, Front Office Sports
It’s not just that the deal has yet to be approved. The transition of power itself remains murky.
Grousbeck plans to continue overseeing team operations through the 2027–2028 season, and there’s unresolved family drama that reportedly contributed to the decision to sell. Plus, the current transaction structure may be against the NBA’s private-equity ownership rules.
And no matter what, the Celtics will owe an unprecedented $270 million in taxes when the Finals are over.
CLE: Cavaliers just answered a crucial question about their legitimacy as contenders
Maxwell Ogden, King James Gospel
CLE: What is the one word for the Cavs right now?
Terry Pluto, Cleveland.com
CLE: Soft? Not these Cavaliers, who destroyed Heat in Game 3 amid trash-talking battle
Joe Vardon, The Athletic
The Cavs have struggled in the previous two playoffs in these Game 3s on the road, losing to both the Knicks and last year to the Magic in embarrassing fashion. They have also been in the Miami area since Thursday evening. Laugh if you must, but a team with less focus, playoffs or no playoffs, gets drilled in this game after two nights out on South Beach. It’s not like it was beneath a more veteran Cavs team to go to a party city (Toronto) up 2-0 in a playoff series and promptly lose the next two after getting too lose with its free time (remember, before Game 6, then-coach Tyronn Lue having to remind his players that it was, in fact, a business trip). The current Cavs absolutely deserve brownie points for not letting Miami’s shores get the better of them.
CLE: Cleveland Cavaliers Dominate Miami Heat 124-87, Lead Series 3-0
Danny Cunningham, The Inside Shot
DAL: Defense can win championships, but the Mavericks have the wrong personnel
Austi Veazey, SI.com
DEN: Aaron Gordon saves Nuggets with buzzer-beating dunk in Game 4
Ramona Shelburne, ESPN
DEN: How the Nuggets almost blew Game 4 against the Clippers, and how Aaron Gordon saved them at the end
Sam Quinn, CBS Sports
DEN: Aaron Gordon saves Nuggets' season with incredible buzzer-beating alley-oop
Ben Handler, Nugg Love
DEN: Nuggets vs. Clippers: 3 takeaways from Denver's dramatic Game 4 win
Vinny Benedetto, The Denver Gazette
GSW: What we learned as Steph wills Warriors to Game 3 win vs. Rockets
Daltin Johnson, NBC Sports bay Area
GSW: Behind ‘Batman' Steph, Warriors prevail without his ‘Robin' in Game 3
Monte Poole, NBC Sports Bay Area
GSW: Without Jimmy Butler, Buddy Hield, Gary Payton II step up for Warriors in win over Rockets
Evan Webeck, The Mercury News
BI: Butler became the third Warrior this season to suffer a pelvic injury, joining Jonathan Kuminga and Stephen Curry.
GSW: Steph Curry carries Warriors without Jimmy Butler to Game 3 win over Rockets
Sam Gordon, San Francisco Chronicle
Baskets were hard to come by at first.
Houston’s trapping, blitzing defense limited Curry to four first-quarter shots — and Golden State to one field goal during an eight-minute stretch in the first and second quarters — as the Rockets secured a 37-24 lead behind 13 first-quarter points from VanVleet.
Then Curry’s offensive aggression increased to the tune of 13 second-quarter points. He explained afterward “there was kind of a moment in the second quarter where I had to get a little bit more assertive and not let the double teams and traps take me out of possessions.”
GSW: Warriors find unlikely hero late to secure huge win despite Jimmy Butler absence
Peter O’Keefe, Blue Man Hoop
HOU: Warriors 104, Rockets 93: How Golden State took series lead despite Jimmy Butler's absence
Danielle Lerner/Matt Young/Greg Rajan, Houston Chronicle
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