Basketball Intelligence For 4/8/26
The day's best basketball news and analysis.
FEATURES OF THE DAY
Louisville guard Mikel Brown Jr. set to enter 2026 NBA draft
Marc J. Spears, Andscape
No Way in Hell They Wanna See Us
Dillon Brooks, The Player’s Tribune
As WNBA free agency starts, a question for every team
Sabreena Merchant, The Athletic
AROUND THE LEAGUE
Ranking the 2026 NBA non‑playoff teams most likely to make the postseason next season
Sam Quinn, CBS Sports
Combo Guards, Unlocking the Value
Jonas Plaut, The Cap Crunch
It is important to define what a combo guard is. Let’s start with the most straightforward definition, which derives from Cleaning the Glass: “A combo splits time between point guard and shooting guard.” On the surface, while seemingly simple, this definition hints at the underlying complexity of the combo guard archetype. This is a group of players with skillsets that overlap multiple “traditional” positions and who cannot easily be penciled into a single role. These are players who sit between definitions, often lacking prototypical wing size or the full-time playmaking profile of a primary guard, yet who can contribute across both domains.
David Thorpe’s contenders
Henry Abbott/ Coach Thorpe, TrueHoop
NBA News and Rumor Roundup 4/8/2026
Jacob Sutton, JSutt Hoops
OG Anunoby, Derrick White highlight our All-Perimeter Defense First Team
Fred Katz, The Athletic
What NBA players, coaches and execs are saying about tanking
Anthony Slater, ESPN
NBA Power Rankings: Did your team meet or miss its season expectations?
NBA Insiders, ESPN
TEAM NEWS
ATL: The Hawks Didn’t Rebuild — They Reinvented Value
Con Brennan, Wait For The Screen


