Basketball Intelligence For 5/22/26
Today's Best NBA Reporting And Analysis
THE CONFERENCE FINALS
Conference finals live video
Henry Abbott/David Thorpe, True Hoop
Thoughts on the Conference Finals
Jared Dubin, Last Night in Basketball
NYK-CLE
The Knicks just keep winning.
Jonathan Macri, Knicks Film School
The (Josh) Hart and soul of the New York Knicks
James Edwards III, The Athletic
Josh Hart-led Knicks shoot past Cavs, take 2-0 series lead
Vincent Goodwill, ESPN
Game 2 Observations: Results vs. Process, Mobley’s Involvement and Another Deficit
Danny Cunningham, The Inside Shot
Cavs’ daring defensive strategy backfires in Game 2 loss to Knicks
Chris Fedor, cleveland.com
Down 2-0, Donovan Mitchell has to rally his Cavaliers against the team he once worshiped
Shaun Powell, NBA.com
Knicks’ resurgent defense shuts down Cavaliers stars
Howie Kussoy, NY Post
Cavaliers dare Josh Hart to shoot, and he makes them pay as Knicks take 2-0 lead
Kristian Winfield, Daily News
SAS-OKC
Victor Wembanyama’s brilliance has NBA execs searching for his ‘kryptonite.’
Sam Amick, The Athletic
3 things to watch in Thunder-Spurs Game 3
Jeff Zillgitt, NBA.com
Caruso, Hartenstein and the Thunder’s championship blueprint
Tim MacMahon, ESPN
Stephon Castle is always up for the challenge
Marcus Thompson II, The Athletic
The Six Major Trends That Will Decide the Rest of Thunder-Spurs
Kirk Goldsberry, The Ringer
Thunder vs. Spurs looks set to be this generation’s Lakers vs. Celtics
Sam Amick, The Athletic
Game 3 preview: Three things to look for, including who is healthy
Kurt Helin, NBC Sports
The Thunder and Spurs are grappling over the future of basketball.
Danny Chau, The Ringer
Spurs need De’Aaron Fox in the worst way and Game 2 proved it
Mat Issa, Fansided
Wembanyama is shattering the NBA’s age curve
Ben Golliver, ESPN
The Thunder’s dirty tricks beat Spurs in Game 2, but it didn’t look anything like basketball
Ricky O’Donnell, SBNation
San Antonio’s steady third-string guard is ready to step up
Finn Kuehl, Air Alamo
BI Note: While with the Timberwolves, McLaughlin once had a league-record multi-game streak of a 56 to 1 turnover to assist ratio!!
Spurs shooting themselves in foot with how they’re attacking Shai Gilgeous-Alexander
Mark Nilon, Thunderous Intentions
Game 3 Keys to Victory
Jeff McDonald, Express-News
LEAGUEWIDE
NBA Player Tiers 2026: SGA, Wembanyama, Giannis and more stand above the rest in Tier 1
Law Murray, The Athletic
Free agent rankings: top 20 players for 2026
Bobby Marks, ESPN
The Rise of the GM, the Diminishing of the Coach
Omar Zahran, Medium
TEAM-SPECIFIC
DAL: 5 names to watch in Mavericks coaching search
Christian Clark, The Athletic
DAL: Lingering questions Mavs must answer: What’s next for Kyrie, leftovers on Kidd’s staff, more
Mike Curtis, Morning News
MIA: How helpful can Heat’s second-round pick in 2026 draft be?
Anthony Chiang, Miami Herald
MIA: Heat scouting path now turns to Greece (but no, not for Giannis)
Ira Winderman, SunSentinel
ORL: Rationalizing the Magic’s Long-Term Plan - 2026 Offseason Preview
Yossi Gozlan, Third Apron
ORL: Magic Season Recap: What Went Wrong - Lost identity
Philip Rossman-Reich, World R Squared
PHI: The Sixers’ team president search
Tony Jones, The Athletic
SAS: How Spurs roster age compares to NCAA champions, youngest teams to win NBA title
Daniel Chavkin, Sporting News
BI Note: Let’s not overlook the ABA Champion 73-74 Nets, still the youngest team to win a pro hoops title. Starters: Larry Kenon, Doctor J, Whopper Billy Paultz, Super John Williamson, Brian Taylor.
THE DRAFT
Post-combine mock
Adam Finkelstein, CBS Sports
Consensus Mock Draft
Ben Couch, NBA.com
A Scout’s Take: Baba Miller
Jamaill Hines, No Ceilings