Basketball Intelligence For 8/9/24
Today's Best NBA Reporting And Analysis
TEAM-SPECIFIC
BOS: One-on-one with Celtics president of basketball operations Brad Stevens
Adam Himmelsbach, Boston Globe
DAL: How Klay Thompson could create space for Luka Dončić to have the season of a lifetime
Mette Robertson, Mavs Moneyball
Luka Dončić has never played with anybody as accomplished as a shooter as Klay Thompson, and it may be a game-changer for him.
DEN: Jamal Murray Needs To Be In Nikola Jokic's Orbit
Jack Tien-Dana, Real GM
While extending Murray would’ve been a no-brainer five months ago, the prospect of maxing him now seems freighted with risk. Injury-prone zero-time All-Stars don’t usually command big contracts. To wit, his run of lousy form has cast a pall over his prior accomplishments. As long as Murray was a killer in big moments, his so-so regular season output felt like a personal choice. It was almost charming, even, how he bided his time until it was time to unleash the beast. After these last few months, though, Murray’s mystique has been punctured. What if the reason Murray puts up Anfernee Simons-level stats is because he’s an Anfernee Simons-level player?
Still, while maxing Murray could be foolish, losing him would be disastrous. Crucially, Murray elevates the Nuggets from a good team to an elite one. Over their seven seasons together, Murray and Jokic have grown into the NBA’s greatest jam band. More than any other player, Murray has discovered how to harness Jokic’s unique genius. In the two-man game, they trade glances and impromptu feints until they pry open the defense. This is what makes Murray essentially irreplaceable: he emboldens the world’s best player to play at his best.
This is also what makes Murray somewhat limited. Years of playing with Jokic have encouraged a degree of learned helplessness.
HOU: 4 Questions the Rockets need to answer before the trade deadline
James Piercey, Space City Scoop
MIA: Preview: Can the Heat stun the basketball world again?
Adam Aaronson, Philly Voice
MIN: Chris Finch Has Interesting Options For His Rotations This Season
Charlie Walton, Zone Coverage
NYK: Jalen Brunson focused on winning, not money, but his next contract could be worth over $400M
Kristian Winfield, Daily News
ORL: Why Anthony Black deserves to be in the Magic's 2024-25 rotation
Elaine Blum, Orlando Magic Daily
PHI: Caleb Martin’s work ethic and ability to defy the odds fit perfectly with the City of Brotherly Love
Keith Pompey, The Inquirer
POR: 3 Key areas Blazers' Scoot Henderson must improve to reach NBA All-Star status
Reese Kunz, Rip City Project
SAS: The Spurs made the right call by not giving up on Julian Champagnie
JeJeGomez, Pounding The Rock
For a moment, it seemed like the Spurs would have to waive wing Julian Champagnie to fit their new additions. The math to acquire Harrison Barnes didn’t work without the former Kings forward waiving his trade kicker, worth $3.7 million. Luckily for San Antonio, he did.
Normally a player wouldn’t give up money for a guy who projects to be the fourth forward on the rotation, and a front office wouldn’t insist on it. The fact that it happened shows that the Spurs at the very least want a closer look at Champagnie, which seems like a smart move.
On the surface, Champagnie is not particularly impressive. He’s a solid athlete and, standing at almost 6’8 with shoes and a 6’10 wingspan, he has good size and length for the small forward position, but he’s not a freak of nature. He’s a career 37 percent shooter, which is just above the league average, and 93 percent of his shots were assisted last season, so he’s not a creator. He’s a good defender but not a stopper and he hasn’t spent much time on the opponent’s best scorer, with the Spurs relying on Jeremy Sochan for that job. So why was it worth it to keep him around? Fit, upside and contract.
LEAGUEWIDE
PODCAST: Western Conference Offseason Review
Ray LeBov/Nick Agar-Johnson, Kings Weekly Podcast
NBA summers of mindful development
David Thorpe, True Hoop
Successful skills begin with a blueprint
How New Salary-Cap Rules Limit Each NBA Team
Eric Pincus, Bleacher Report
Teams That Could Be Aggressive Sellers By the 2025 Trade Deadline
Dan Favale, Bleacher Report
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