Basketball Intelligence For 5/1/26
Today's Best NBA Reporting And Analysis
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 winners and losers
Brad Botkin, CBS Sports
CLE-TOR
3 things to watch in Cavs-Raptors Game 6
John Schuhmann, NBA.com
Five keys for the Cavaliers to close out the Raptors
Joe Vardon, The Athletic
LAL-HOU
Udoka balances intensity, patience as Rockets hope to stage historic comeback
Sam Amick, The Athletic
The Lakers let the Rockets believe. Now Game 6 becomes a mindset test
Law Murray, The Athletic
3 things to watch in Lakers-Rockets Game 6
Jeff Zillgitt, NBA.com
Marcus Smart says Lakers must ‘be willing to run through a wall’ in Game 6
Thuc Nhi Nguyen, LA Times
MIN-DEN
When it matters most, Timberwolves’ toughness comes through
Chris Hine, Star Tribune
Down four players, Timberwolves out-will Denver to win series
Jace Frederick, Pioneer Press
Timberwolves complete stunning upset of Nuggets in Game 6: Takeaways
The Athletic
Terrence Shannon Jr. provides the perfect response to Chris Finch’s challenge
Eamon Cassels, Dunking With Wolves
NYK-ATL
Is the Eastern Conference the Knicks’ to lose?
James Edwards III, The Athletic
Knicks defense put on clinic in Game 6 destruction of Hawks
Jared Schwartz, NY Post
Knicks deliver 51-point win over Hawks in Game 6
Peter Sblendorio, Daily News
Knicks make things look easy, send Hawks home in historic fashion: Game 6 takeaways
The Athletic
Hawks’ season comes to end after beatdown from Knicks
Lauren Williams, AJC
ORL-DET
3 things to watch in Pistons-Magic Game 6
Steve Aschburner, NBA.com
Magic still feel momentum heading to Game 6
Philip Rossman-Reich, Orlando Magic Daily
How Jalen Suggs channels his inner football player: ‘He puts his body on the line’
Josh Robbins, The Athletic
2 questions Pistons must answer in Game 6
Omari Sankofa II, Free Press
Magic Could Lean on Unexpected Defensive Move to Stop Cade Cunningham
Jalon Dixon, heavy.com
PHI-BOS
From 3-1 down to Game 7: How the Sixers shockingly flipped the series on Boston
Tony Jones, The Athletic
Can Celtics steady themselves? What needs to change as Game 7 looms
Chris Forsberg, NBC Sports
How the 76ers exposed Celtics’ drop coverage
Azad Rosay, Celtics Blog
Game 6 takeaways
The Athletic
10 takeaways from the Celtics forgetting who they are in Game 6
Azad Rosay, SBNation
The Sixers are clicking together at the right time, continuing an improbable run and pushing the Celtics to the brink in their first-round series
DeAntae Prince, The Inquirer
4 Reasons Celtics Lost Game 6 to Sixers
John Karalis, Sports Illustrated
Celtics get throttled by 76ers, and now it’s a fight to the finish
Adam Himmelsbach, Boston Globe
Another pathetic effort in a closeout game leaves Celtics on the brink of losing series.
Gary Washburn, Boston Globe
Sixers stars dominate Celtics in Game 6
Kyle Neubeck, All PHLY
SAS-MIN
Spurs vs. Timberwolves series preview and predictions: Victor Wembanyama faces his mentor
The Athletic
What to expect in Spurs-Wolves series
Steve Aschburner, NBA.com
LEAGUEWIDE
Have a Good Summer: Suns, Blazers, Hawks, Nuggets
Jared Dubin, Last Night In Basketball
TEAM-SPECIFIC
ATL: The Hawks’ best summer plans? Avoiding their past mistakes
John Hollinger, The Athletic
DAL: Mavericks 2026 Offseason Preview
Keith Smith, Spotrac
DAL: Flagg’s historic Rookie of the Year award has him primed to become a Mavericks icon
Brad Townsend, Morning News
NOP: Pelicans 2026 Offseason Preview
Keith Smith, Spotrac
PHX: Mat Ishbia’s Suns have continuity for the first time — and better yet, patience
Doug Haller, The Athletic
SAC: Ranking the Top Point Guard Options for Kings in 2026 NBA Draft
Logan Struck, Sports Illustrated
SAS: The Debrief: The Spurs’ 4-1 Series over Portland
Paul Garcia, The Spot Up Shot
WAS: What We Learned (And Didn’t) From the Wizards’ Exit Interviews
Con Brennan, Wait For The Screen
THE DRAFT
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
Kingston Flemings Interview
Ben Pfeifer
The slow, steady grind that’s made UCONN’s Tarris Reed Jr. into a top center prospect in the 2026 NBA Draft class
Rowan Kent, No Ceilings
Best Game Series: Jayden Quaintance Video Breakdown
Bryce Simon, Game Theory
Why AJ Dybantsa Isn’t ‘Easy Decision’ with No. 1 Pick
Paul Kasabian, Bleacher Report