Basketball Intelligence Newsletter

Basketball Intelligence Newsletter

Basketball Intelligence For 8/7/26

Today's Best NBA Reporting And Analysis

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Basketball Intelligence
Aug 07, 2026
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LEAGUEWIDE

What Makes a Successful NBA GM, Head Coach and Star Player in 2026?
Wes Goldberg/Mo Dakhil/Mike Shearer/Jared Dubin, Real GM Radio

The 10 Best Offseasons
David Aldridge, The Athletic

NBA power rankings after wild offseason moves
Lorenzo Reyes, USA Today

From Knicks (1) thru Nets (30)

The Most Fascinating Storylines in the West
Royce Webb, 5x5

2026 NBA free agency rankings: Who’s left on the market after LeBron James’ deal with the 76ers?
Sam Quinn, CBS Sports

The 5 most interesting potential 2027 NBA free agents
Dan Devine, Yahoo Sports

The NBA’s Most Overpaid Players at Each Position
Grant Hughes, Bleacher Report

Zach LaVine, Sacramento Kings: $49 million

That Zach LaVine had to settle for picking up his $49 million player option says everything about his market value. Despite the Kings telling him he isn’t a long-term piece of the puzzle and expressing no interest in an extension, he had to opt in because no other team was going to come remotely close to his current annual salary in free agency.

LaVine is a brilliant three-point shooter, sitting at 39.1 percent on 6.0 attempts per game for his career. But he is among the league’s worst defenders at either guard spot, has never been confused for a facilitator and has a negative on-off differential in 10 of his 12 NBA seasons.

He’s a sixth-man shooting specialist being paid like a sure-fire All-Star

Updates on the biggest remaining NBA free agents
ESPN

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