Basketball Intelligence for 6/12/24
The Finals, Jerry West, Charles Lee, and more
PODCAST
Did the NBA's changes cause all these playoff injuries? w/ James Herbert, CBS Sports
Ray LeBov/Mike Shearer, Basketball Intelligence
NBA FINALS
The Dallas Mavericks have levers to pull in this NBA Finals -- and they need to pull all of them
Zach Lowe, ESPN
What is a medial retinaculum? Explaining Kristaps Porzingis' injury as Celtics hope to get big man back
Jack Maloney, CBS Sports
"I'm just not as good as the other people" -- Power-ranking the postgame quotes
Mike Shearer,
Are We Missing the Forest for the Trees With Jayson Tatum?
Michael Pina, The Ringer
It’s the kind of contradiction that makes boiling down Tatum’s importance more nebulous than it should be. He’s either lucky to be surrounded by so much talent, or he’s the primary reason Boston wins as consistently as it does. He’s simultaneously underrated and overrated, graded on a sliding scale with impossibly high standards. With so much success and disappointment on his (very long) résumé, the contextual parameters that make analyzing Tatum’s value a bit less complicated are often ignored. Without them, criticism and praise tend to veer outside the lines of rational thought, with each side heaping exaggerated claims upon the other.
3 things to watch for in a must win Game 3 for the Mavericks to catch the Celtics in the NBA Finals
Jordan Brodess, Mavs Moneyball
Can Kyrie Irving crack Celtics’ code? Mavericks’ NBA Finals hopes depend on it
Tim Cato, The Athletic
Celtics’ transition 3s against Mavs: How they get them and why it’s important
Law Murray, The Athletic
When it comes to making a defense uncomfortable, the Celtics pose challenges that the Mavericks were off the hook with for most of the postseason: The Clippers don’t catch and shoot 3s, the Thunder don’t pull up for 3s and the Timberwolves don’t run. The Celtics do all of those things and more, like when Pritchard stole points by launching an end-of-quarter transition 3 from half court in Game 2.
The Mavericks’ weak point: Luka’s defense
David Thorpe,