20 Second Timeout

Lindy's Pro Basketball 2025-26 is on Sale Now

When Lindy's Pro Basketball appears in stores you know that the NBA season will soon begin. The 2025-26 edition of Lindy's Pro Basketball has 30 team previews, plus nine feature stories: "Scopin' the NBA" (David Friedman and Roland Lazenby recap major off-season stories), "Flagg Sidesteps Comparisons" (D.J. Siddiqi discusses the 2025 number one overall draft pick), "The NBA Gets Defensive" (Michael Bradley dissects Oklahoma City's championship-winning defense), "J-Drip" (Roland Lazenby profiles Jalen Williams), "Keeping the Faith" (Lyn Scarborough recounts the faith journey of A.J. Griffin), "NBA Report Card" (Roland Lazenby grades each team's off-season moves), "A Look Ahead" (Carl Berman scouts the 2026 NBA Draft), "NBA Fantasy Guide" (Mike Ashley provides advice for fantasy basketball enthusiasts), and "A Look Back" (Lazenby recalls the 1995-96 season when the Chicago Bulls went 72-10 en route to winning the first championship of their second "three-peat").

In addition to contributing to "Scopin' the NBA" for the first time--I submitted the pieces about the Player Participation Policy, Junior Bridgeman's legacy, Oklahoma City's pressure defense, and Gregg Popovich's retirement from coaching--I wrote eight team previews and sidebar articles this year: Dallas Mavericks, Golden State Warriors, New Orleans Pelicans, Oklahoma City Thunder, Portland Trail Blazers, Sacramento Kings, San Antonio Spurs, and Utah Jazz. My sidebar articles discuss, respectively, the Mavericks' historic tendency to make risky player moves, the Jimmy Butler enigma, Saddiq Bey's comeback attempt, Alex Caruso's defense, Toumani Camara and the Dayton connection to the NBA, the Kings' poor record since 2006, Gregg Popovich's legacy/Mitch Johnson's burden, and Utah's front office keeps it all in the Ainge family.

This is the 17th year that I have contributed to Lindy's Pro Basketball dating back to 2005 (with interruptions for the 2011 lockout, my law school attendance in 2014-15, and 2020 because Lindy's Pro Basketball was not published in the wake of COVID-19). As always, I am grateful to Roland Lazenby for providing the opportunity to contribute to Lindy's Pro Basketball, and I am proud to be associated with the finished product.

If you do not see the magazine in any stores in your area, you can order a copy online. 

Selected Previous Articles About Lindy's Pro Basketball:

Lindy's Pro Basketball 2024-25 is on Sale Now  

Lindy's Pro Basketball 2023-24 is on Sale Now  

Lindy's Pro Basketball 2022-23 is on Sale Now 

Lindy's Pro Basketball 2021-2022 is in Stores Now 

"Forever Mamba" Pays Tribute to Kobe Bryant 

Look for Lindy's Pro Basketball 2019-20 in Stores Now 

Lindy's Pro Basketball 2018-19 Is Available Now 

Lindy's Pro Basketball 2017-18 is on Sale Now

Labels: Dallas Mavericks, Golden State Warriors, Lindy's Pro Basketball, New Orleans Pelicans, Oklahoma City Thunder, Portland Trail Blazers, Roland Lazenby, Sacramento Kings, San Antonio Spurs, Utah Jazz

posted by David Friedman @ 11:37 PM

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Dwight Howard, Carmelo Anthony, and 2008 "Redeem Team" Headline Nine Member 2025 Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame Class

The Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame Class of 2025 includes nine inductees (eight individuals plus one team), with six inductees having NBA ties: Carmelo Anthony, Dwight Howard, Danny Crawford, Mickey Arison, the 2008 Team USA squad (the "Redeem Team" that beat Spain in the Olympic gold medal game), and Billy Donovan (an NBA head coach for 10 seasons who is being inducted based on his accomplishments as a college coach, capped off by leading Florida to NCAA titles in 2006 and 2007). The other three inductees are women's players Sue Bird, Sylvia Fowles, and Maya Moore.

Howard may be one of the most underrated players of the past 25 years; it is baffling that he was not included on the NBA's 75th Anniversary Team. Howard earned five straight All-NBA First Team selections (2008-2012), won five rebounding titles (2008-10, 2012-13), and captured three Defensive Player of the Year awards (2009-11). The only centers with more than five All-NBA First Team selections are Kareem Abdul-Jabbar (10), Shaquille O'Neal (eight), Wilt Chamberlain (seven), Hakeem Olajuwon (six), and George Mikan (six). The only players with more rebounding titles than Howard are Wilt Chamberlain (11), Dennis Rodman (seven), and Moses Malone (six). Only Dikembe Mutombo, Ben Wallace, and Rudy Gobert won more Defensive Player of the Year awards (four each) than Howard. Howard made the All-NBA Team for eight straight seasons and then he averaged at least 13.5 ppg and at least 10.5 rpg in each of the next four seasons after that run. As a 34 year old reserve, he averaged 7.5 ppg and 7.3 rpg while anchoring the paint for the 2020 L.A. Lakers as they won the "bubble title."

Howard said that when he was 10 he told his father that he would be the number pick in the NBA Draft, and his father "believed in me as much as I did, but you wanted me to commit to it. I wrote down my goals and I placed them above my bed, along with my cross. And you helped me work to achieve those goals, day after day. Look how life works. Pops, Mom, your son is in the Hall of Fame." Howard thanked Robert Parish, one of his four Hall of Fame presenters. Parish was his grandmother's favorite player, and Howard recalled that during his rookie season Parish helped him and was "one of my biggest inspirations."  

Next, Howard recognized several Hall of Famers who inspired him but were not able to attend the ceremony. Bill Russell, who passed away in 2022, wrote the book Russell Rules, which Howard said "allowed me to understand the game at a whole different level. That book taught me about leadership and the importance of staying committed to my goals." Howard noted that Dikembe Mutombo, who passed away in 2024, "motivated me to challenge and battle for every shot." Howard praised Kareem Abdul-Jabbar as "My GOAT," and described him as the only player in NBA history who had "two Hall of Fame careers"--first as Lew Alcindor, and then as Kareem Abdul-Jabbar. Howard said that Dennis Rodman is one of his favorite players and "the greatest rebounder ever." 

Howard then turned his attention to his other three Hall of Fame presenters, thanking Dominique Wilkins "for inspiring me," and describing Patrick Ewing as not only a coach but also a mentor. Shaquille O'Neal and Howard have engaged in some verbal sparring over the years, and Howard described those disputes as "sibling rivalries." Howard said that he and O'Neal are now "brothers in this fraternity of basketball."

Howard said that The Little Engine That Could "was my favorite book and my greatest inspiration. Like that little engine that could, I used to repeat to myself 'I think I can.' Eventually, it became, 'I know I can.'"

Howard and then-Orlando Coach Stan Van Gundy did not always see eye to eye when they worked together, but Howard stated that he would not have become a Hall of Famer without Van Gundy pushing him: "There is no Dwight Howard without Stan Van Gundy. You taught me what it means to stay ready."

After acknowledging his teammates from the 2008 Olympics and the 2020 Lakers, and his wife and children, Howard concluded, "You only die once but you live every day." 

Mickey Arison, inducted as a Contributor, bought controlling interest in the Miami Heat in 1995, and under his leadership the team became one of the NBA's model franchises with three NBA titles (2006, 2012, 2013) and seven Eastern Conference titles (2006, 2011-14, 2020, 2023). One of Arison's key moves was hiring Pat Riley to run the basketball operations (Riley also coached the 2006 championship team). Arison's presenters were Pat Riley, Dwyane Wade, and Alonzo Mourning. Arison called Hall of Fame selection "the highest honor" in the sport, but noted that it was not an honor that he had ever sought. He said that during the time that he has owned the Heat, his plan has been simple: "Do right by south Florida, and build a winner."

The best NBA referees do their jobs without calling attention to themselves. For 32 years, Danny Crawford was at the pinnacle of NBA officiating. He was selected to work in the NBA Finals--the top honor for an NBA official--in each of his final 23 seasons, and in 30 seasons overall. Some referees are hot-tempered in general, and other referees seem to hold grudges against certain teams or players, but when Crawford officiated a game you had confidence that he would keep matters under control without becoming the center of attention and without letting any personal feelings get in the way of objective officiating. 

Crawford delivered a brief, prerecorded speech. He called induction "an incredible honor," and he thanked David Stern and Adam Silver for their leadership of the NBA and for providing him the opportunity to be an NBA referee. He gave a special thank you to "fellow Hall of Famer Darell Garretson, who taught me how to referee at the highest level." Crawford appeared on stage, presented by Isiah Thomas and Tim Hardaway.

It is easy to forget how far USA Basketball had fallen after the Dream Team's triumphant 1992 romp to Olympic gold in Barcelona. Team USA finished sixth in the 2002 FIBA World Championship, an embarrassing performance by the country where basketball was invented. Team USA struggled to get a bronze medal in the 2004 Olympics. Team USA's bronze medal performance in the 2006 FIBA World Championship meant that Team USA had to earn qualification into the 2008 Olympics. In The Real Story Behind Team USA's Losses in Previous FIBA Events, I explained that Team USA needed to improve defensively and to create better team chemistry. The addition of Kobe Bryant and Jason Kidd to the roster in 2007 solved both problems, and Team USA dominated the 2007 FIBA Americas Cup--Team USA's first gold medal in any FIBA event since 2003--before Team USA won Olympic gold in 2008. The 2008 gold medal-winning squad is known as "The Redeem Team," and is the 14th team to be inducted in the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame. Both Dwight Howard and Carmelo Anthony played for that team.

Jerry Colangelo, the USA Basketball managing director who assembled the "Redeem Team," called that time the highlight of his basketball career. Colangelo recalled that he had just two conditions when David Stern asked him to run USA Basketball: he requested total control of the selection of coaches/players, and an unlimited budget. Colangelo said that Stern did not like the idea of an unlimited budget, but Stern went along with it after Colangelo vowed that he would raise any needed funds by finding sponsors. Colangelo also provided a great tribute to George Raveling, who recently passed away. Colangelo said that Raveling always wanted to be called "coach," that he spoke with Raveling multiple times per week, and that Raveling was a mentor to many people in the basketball world.

LeBron James said that Kobe Bryant was the 2008 team's "missing link that we needed in order to regain the dominance with Team USA" because Bryant "brought a sense of seriousness to the team. He made us lock in. We knew, once he joined, that he was going to be committed, we couldn't be doing nothing half-assed. Kobe wasn't going for that, so it made myself, CP, Dwade, Melo, we locked in even more because we wanted to show him that we could get to that level as well." James' statement is a tacit--or not even that tacit--admission that prior to Bryant joining Team USA the squad was not fully locked in and committed to doing what needed to be done to win at the highest level. Remember that at that time, Dwayne Wade was the only player from that younger generation who had won an NBA title (Bryant already had won three). Bryant's pivotal role on the "Redeem Team" should never be minimized or forgotten. 

Team captain Jason Kidd, who spoke with characteristic modesty about his role, provided essential leadership and mentoring not just for young point guards Chris Paul and Deron Williams but for the entire squad.

Coach Mike Krzyzewski called winning the 2008 Olympics "the best moment of my coaching career."

The next inductee, Billy Donovan, is perhaps best known to younger fans as an NBA head coach but he was honored primarily for his outstanding 21 year college coaching career during which his teams made 14 NCAA Tournament appearances and four Final Fours while claiming back to back NCAA titles (2006-07). He is one of only four men to win an NCAA title as a coach and appear in the Final Four as a player. Donovan was presented by Rick Pitino and Maurice Cheeks. Donovan said, "Faith and belief have been incredibly powerful in my life, and it's not been the faith and belief in myself but it's been the faith and belief that others have had in me when there was really no sign or evidence to have faith." Donovan credited Pitino's "belief, faith and confidence in me" for helping him become the player and coach that he became. He said that he and Cheeks have worked together for nine years and that Cheeks' knowledge as an NBA All-Star, NBA champion, and Hall of Fame player have been invaluable. Donovan spoke of his steep learning curve as a young NBA coach fresh from the college ranks, and mentioned how much Cheeks helped ease that transition.

A lot has been said and written about Carmelo Anthony, and this is not the time or place to revisit all of that. He has vocal detractors and ardent supporters. I don't believe in false praise, nor do I believe in unfair criticism. Anthony has accomplished more than most people who ever play basketball. As a freshman, he led Syracuse to an NCAA title; as a professional, he established himself as a lethal one on one scorer. Ultimately, basketball is a team sport, and individual greatness in a team sport is defined by elevating your team to championship contention: he did that in college, but he did not do that in the NBA. Anthony never played in the NBA Finals and he reached the Conference Finals just once in his 19 season NBA career while posting a 3-13 career playoff series record; any player who wins an NBA title posts more playoff series victories in one year (four) than Anthony had in nearly two decades. Read that sentence again, and consider that Shai Gilgeous-Alexander won more playoff series in 2025 than Carmelo Anthony won in 19 NBA seasons!

In Revising the NBA's 50 Greatest Players List, Part VI, I summarized Carmelo Anthony's place in pro basketball history: "Even in his prime he was not a great all-around player. He was a championship player in college who regressed in terms of having a championship mentality in the NBA, which is unusual. Most NCAA champions who have the necessary physical talent to excel in the NBA--which Anthony obviously does--hone the championship habits that they formed in college, but Anthony did not. He was never the best player at his position, he played for talented teams that did not seriously contend for the championship, and he resisted when his coaches tried to guide him toward having more of an impact on winning." For those reasons, I do not consider Anthony to be one of pro basketball's 50 or 75 greatest players--even though he was selected to the NBA's 75th Anniversary Team in 2021--but it is clear that he without question earned first ballot Hall of Fame selection after a career filled with high level accomplishments at the collegiate, professional, and international levels." 

Anthony was presented by Dwyane Wade and Allen Iverson. Anthony gave a very powerful speech, describing poetically how he overcame the doubters and deprivations of his youth by staying focused on his vision of what he could become. He declared, "Tonight I don't just step into the Hall of Fame. I carry with me the echoes of every voice that ever told me I couldn't. I walk with the shadows of every alley, every cracked court, every empty plate. I stand for the dreamless, the doubted, the dismissed, for every soul still trapped in the places I broke free from, from Red Hook to Myrtle Avenue." He said that his father "left this world too soon but you never left me." Anthony added, "Your name is my name. Your spirit walks with me in every step I take." He praised his sister Michelle for being his protector and for believing in him "when I didn't even know how to believe in myself." He thanked his mother for teaching him, "Love is action. Sacrifice is quiet. Faith is louder than fear," and he told her, "You are my hero."

He concluded with a message to his children:

Your father isn't perfect, but he is proof--proof that struggle doesn't mean surrender. Proof that the road can be rough and still lead to glory. And so again I say to every child listening, they will tell you to be realistic. I say be relentless. They will say you are dreaming too big. I say dream louder. They will try to label you, box you in, count you out, but remember statistics don't measure heart. They don't account for fight. They don't see the storm that built you. You were made for more. You are more than possible. You are inevitable. 

Selected Articles About Basketball Hall of Fame Induction Ceremonies:

Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame Inducts 13 Member 2024 Class, Including Vince Carter and Jerry West (Class of 2024) 

Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame's 2023 Class Includes Dirk Nowitzki, Dwyane Wade, and Gregg Popovich (Class of 2023)

Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame's 2022 Class Includes NBA Players Lou Hudson, Tim Hardaway, and Manu Ginobili (Class of 2022)  

The Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame Welcomes 15 New Members and Honors Bill Russell a Second Time (Class of 2021)

Kobe Bryant Headlines the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony (Class of 2020) 

The Basketball Hall of Fame Welcomes A Diverse Class of 12 Inductees (Class of 2019)

Thoughts and Observations About the 2018 Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame Enshrinement Ceremony (Class of 2018)

Reflections on the 2017 Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame Enshrinement Ceremony 

Reflections on the Basketball Hall of Fame Class of 2016 

Bobby "Slick" Leonard Remembers the ABA During his Basketball Hall of Fame Speech (Class of 2014)

The Basketball Hall of Fame Belatedly Welcomes Roger Brown (Class of 2013)

Reflections on the 2012 Basketball Hall of Fame Class 

The A-Train Makes an Overdue Arrival at the Basketball Hall of Fame  (Class of 2011)

Labels: 2008 Team USA, Basketball Hall of Fame, Billy Donovan, Carmelo Anthony, Danny Crawford, Dwight Howard, Jason Kidd, Jerry Colangelo, Kobe Bryant, Mickey Arison

posted by David Friedman @ 5:21 AM

4 comments

Analyzing the Media Storm Surrounding the L.A. Clippers

I deliberately left the words "accusation" and "scandal" out of this article's title because I don't know if the L.A. Clippers violated the NBA's salary cap rules. You don't know, either, even though you may think that you do. The only things that we know are (1) there is a media storm surrounding the L.A. Clippers, and (2) the NBA is investigating the Clippers for a possible violation of the league's salary cap rules. 

Unless you avoid all media outlets and social media outlets--which may not be the worst way to live--you are aware that podcaster Pablo Torre accused the L.A. Clippers and their majority owner Steve Ballmer of circumventing the NBA's salary cap rules by arranging for Kawhi Leonard to be paid $28 million by a sustainability startup called Aspiration for an allegedly "no show" job that involved no work (feel free to insert a joke about Leonard also not working at his main job due to load management).

Torre was armed mainly with anonymous sources speaking about a stack of documents allegedly pertaining to the business dealings, bankruptcy proceedings, and federal prosecution for fraud of Aspiration. Joe Sanberg, Aspiration's founder, pleaded guilty to two counts of wire fraud for his role in a $248 million scam. "This so-called ‘anti-poverty’ activist has admitted to being nothing more than a self-serving fraudster, by seeking to enrich himself by defrauding lenders and investors out of hundreds of millions of dollars," Acting United States Attorney Bill Essayli said Aug. 21 in a statement. "I commend our law enforcement partners for their efforts in this case, and I urge the investing public to use caution and beware of wolves in sheep's clothing."

It is not clear at this point if the Clippers were victims of Sanberg's fraud--as they assert--or if they were using Aspiration to funnel money to Leonard while circumventing the NBA's salary cap rules. Legally, it does not matter how things "look" or how a podcaster and his podcasting buddies present things; the only thing that matters legally is evidence. 

It is fascinating to listen to non-lawyers talk about legal issues. An anonymous source speaking on a podcast is not presenting evidence from a legal standpoint; a person testifying under oath or a person submitting a sworn affidavit is presenting evidence.

So, not only do we not know for sure the facts concerning the relationships that may or may not exist among the L.A. Clippers, Kawhi Leonard, and Aspiration, we also do not know the legal significance of such relationships.

It is wise to reserve judgment about the credibility and motives of the anonymous sources interviewed on a podcast sponsored by "The Athletic," which is owned by The New York Times. The New York Times has been a shady organization in a variety of ways for a long time, including treating writers shabbily, and refusing to apologize after falsely accusing three Duke student athletes of rape. Torre assures everyone that he has total editorial independence, notwithstanding the funding he receives from The New York Times. It must be just a fortunate coincidence that Torre happened to break such a big story in the first edition of his podcast after his partnership with "The Athletic"/The New York Times was formalized; there is no doubt that Torre and "The Athletic"/The New York Times are not motivated at all by such crass concerns as money or clicks, and that they live by a credo consisting of truth, justice, and defending the sanctity of the NBA's salary cap rules.

The Clippers have issued two statements of denial. In the second statement, they termed allegations against the team "absurd" and declared, "There is nothing unusual or untoward about team sponsors doing endorsement deals with players on the same team. Neither Steve nor the Clippers organization had any oversight of Kawhi's independent endorsement agreement with Aspiration. To say otherwise is flat-out wrong."

All we have for sure right now is a media storm generating clicks, page views, ratings, and social media activity. That is not to say that there is no substance here; the NBA will investigate the assertions, and make a determination regarding whether the L.A. Clippers circumvented salary cap rules. The NBA's announcement of the results of that investigation is news; Torre's podcast and the ensuing media storm is what Daniel J. Boorstin called a "pseudo-event" in his seminal book The Image. Boorstin described what constitutes a pseudo-event (p. 11):

1) It is not spontaneous, but comes about because someone has planned, planted, or incited it. Typically, it is not a train wreck or an earthquake, but an interview.

2) It is planted primarily (but not always exclusively) for the immediate purpose of being reported or reproduced...The question "Is it real?" is less important than, "Is it newsworthy?"

3) Its relation to the underlying reality of the situation is ambiguous...

4) Usually it is intended to be a self-fulfilling prophecy...

Torre could have presented to the NBA privately the information that he found. If the NBA determined that the Clippers had violated rules, that announcement would have been a news event--but a debut podcast sponsored by a legacy media outlet and expected to deliver a big attention-grabbing splash is not a news event: it is Torre talking about something less from the standpoint of "Is it real?" and more from the standpoint of "Is it newsworthy?" or how much attention it will bring to Torre and his new partnership with "The Athletic"/The New York Times.

As part of the media firestorm, Mark Cuban--once the majority owner of the Dallas Mavericks, now one of the team's minority owners--blasted Torre, and stated that Steve Ballmer is way too smart to participate in the type of scheme that Torre described. My first thought about Cuban's statement is that it is absurd: our prisons are full of people who thought that they were too smart, too wealthy, or too powerful to be caught, let alone punished. If there is substance to the allegations then Ballmer will need a much more robust defense than "I'm too smart to do something that stupid." My second thought is that Cuban's seemingly off the cuff outburst--which may not be as off the cuff as it seems--is a dream come true for Torre and "The Athletic"/The New York Times, providing yet another pseudo-event for talking heads to discuss. 

The fact that none of the people who are pontificating publicly about this topic actually know for sure what happened will not stop Torre and other media members from profiting from all of the attention that they are receiving. 

My first instinct was to not write about this at all until the NBA announces its findings, but the situation reminds me so much of Boorstin's brilliant insight about pseudo-events that I could not resist making that connection. The Image was published in 1961, and it is as timely and relevant now as it was over 60 years ago.

If it can be proven that the Clippers violated salary cap rules, then the punishment should be swift and harsh--but we live in a society that is governed (or supposed to be governed) by the principles of innocent until proven guilty, and the accused has a right to confront his accusers under oath. This is not a matter of public safety that Torre had to publicize far and wide to save lives; this is a pseudo-event that may subsequently prove to be a legitimate news story--and that may prove to be as false as the accusations that The New York Times published about the Duke lacrosse players. 

Labels: Aspiration, Joe Sanberg, Kawhi Leonard, L.A. Clippers, New York Times, Pablo Torre, Steve Ballmer, The Athletic

posted by David Friedman @ 1:11 AM

2 comments

George Raveling: Pioneering Basketball Coach

George Raveling--who starred as a player at Villanova before successful coaching stints at Washington State, Iowa, and USC--passed away yesterday at the age of 88. Raveling was inducted in the College Basketball Hall of Fame in 2013, the same year that he received the John W. Bunn Lifetime Achievement Award from the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame (the Hall's highest honor other than induction). Raveling was inducted in the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame as a Contributor in 2015. After Raveling passed away, Michael Jordan issued this statement: "For more than 40 years, he blessed my life with wisdom, encouragement, and friendship. He was a mentor in every sense and I'll always carry deep gratitude for his guidance. I signed with Nike because of George, and without him, there would be no Air Jordan."  

Raveling led Villanova to NIT appearances in 1959 and 1960, and he was selected by the Philadelphia Warriors in the 1960 NBA Draft but he did not play in the NBA. Instead, Raveling became an assistant coach at Villanova. Raveling not only provided security at Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.'s famous "I Have a Dream Speech" in 1963, but after Dr. King delivered the speech he gave a printed copy of the speech to Raveling. Raveling donated the copy to Villanova in 2021. 

Raveling joined Lefty Driesell's staff at Maryland in 1969, thus becoming the first Black coach in the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC).

In 1972, Washington State hired Raveling as head coach, and he became the first Black coach in the Pacific-8 (Pac-8) Conference (the conference is now the Pac-12). Raveling guided the Cougars to the NCAA tournament in 1980, the school's first NCAA Tournament appearance since 1941. He was the UPI Pac-8 Coach of the Year in 1976, the Pac-8 Coach of the Year in 1976 (shared) and 1983, and the runner-up for the AP's national Coach of the Year award in 1983.

Raveling then moved on to Iowa, leading the Hawkeyes to a pair of NCAA Tournament berths (1985, 1986). He was an assistant coach to Bobby Knight for the 1984 Team USA squad that won Olympic gold, and he was an assistant coach to John Thompson for the 1988 Team USA squad that won Olympic bronze (the last time Team USA was comprised entirely of college players). 

Raveling coached USC from 1986-1994, winning the Kodak National Coach of the Year award (1992), the Basketball Weekly Coach of the Year award (1992), and the CBS/Chevrolet National Coach of the Year award (1994). On September 25, 1994, his jeep was blindsided in a collision, and Raveling suffered nine broken ribs, a fractured pelvis, a fractured clavicle, and a collapsed lung. He was just 57 years old, but he retired from coaching to focus on his lengthy rehabilitation program. Raveling finished with a 335-293 career record in 22 seasons, including six NCAA Tournament appearances and five 20-win seasons. He had a losing record in his first season at each of the three schools that he coached, and he had a winning record in his last season at each of those three schools.

After he returned to health, Raveling worked as a basketball analyst for CBS and Fox Sports, served as the Director for International Basketball for Nike, and authored several books. His most recent book (published in 2025), What You're Made For, distills a lifetime of wisdom into chapters such as "To Be a Trailblazer" and "To Serve Others." Raveling's 2013 conversation/interview with Hubie Brown is a master class of basketball--and life--wisdom, and is essential viewing.

Labels: Dr. Martin Luther King, George Raveling, Hubie Brown, Iowa, Michael Jordan, Nike, Olympics, USC, Villanova, Washington State

posted by David Friedman @ 11:22 PM

1 comments

Legalized Gambling Poses a Significant Threat to NBA Specifically and Sports in General

During a recent appearance on the "One Night With Steiny" podcast, Brooklyn Nets forward Michael Porter Jr. offered a candid assessment of the negative impact that legalized gambling has had on the NBA specifically and sports in general: "The enjoyment of the game isn't for the game anymore. It's so that people can make money. In reality, way more people are losing money than making money." 

Porter Jr. mentioned a specific problematic scenario: "Think about it, if you could get all your homies rich by telling them, 'Yo, bet $10,000 on my under this one game. I'm going to act like I've got an injury, and I'm going to sit out. I'm going to come out after three minutes.' And they all get a little bag because you did it one game. That is so not OK, but some people probably think like that. They come from nothing, and all their homies have nothing." This scenario is not only plausible; it has already happened: Porter Jr.'s brother Jontay was banned for life from the NBA for violating the league's gambling policies because he feigned an injury so that his co-conspirators could win an "under" bet based on his statistics for a specific game. 

Porter Jr. suggested that sports betting should be restricted to in-person wagering in Las Vegas, and he concluded, "The whole sports gambling entity...it's bad and it's only going to get worse." 

The issue it not merely that legalized sports betting opens up a Pandora's Box of cheating possibilities; the way that sports betting is being marketed is also problematic: the leagues, their betting provider partners, and the media outlets that cover sports are all relentlessly promoting not just sports betting but the riskiest, least favorable types of sports betting. It is challenging enough to correctly handicap the outcome of a game, but the prop bets and the parlay bets are structured in a way that favors the house significantly. Think about it this way: these betting providers did not become big, highly successful businesses by paying out a lot of winners on prop bets and parlay bets--and the reason for that is that the odds of the bettor winning such bets do not match up with the payouts provided, which means that in the long run even if a few bettors get lucky these bets are sucker bets that are lining the pockets of the betting providers.  

It does not take a genius to figure out that widespread, legalized sports betting will lead to a host of problems, including but not limited to (1) an increase in the number of families ruined by compulsive gamblers betting way beyond their means, (2) an increase in the number of games that are fixed or that at least have some kind of point shaving/stat shaving, (3) an increase in hostility directed by losing bettors toward athletes whose play caused the bettors to lose, and (4) decreased confidence in the legitimacy of sports results because of the assumption that players and/or officials either bet on the games or were bought by people who bet on the games. You used to have to actively seek out opportunities to wager on sports; now, legalized sports betting is advertised and promoted throughout sports broadcasts, and is readily available on your mobile device. 

For the above reasons and more, U.S. professional sports leagues consistently opposed the legalization of sports betting, but the leagues changed their tune when they realized how much money they could make by partnering with betting providers; the leagues went from actively lobbying against the legalization of sports betting to actively lobbying for sports betting to be legalized. NBA Commissioner Adam Silver went from opposing legalized sports betting to writing Op-Ed pieces supporting legalized sports betting--and he made that transformation not because he has the best interest of society or individual bettors on his mind but because he heard the cash register ringing.

In 2018, the U.S. Supreme Court paved the way for widespread legalization of sports betting by ruling that the federal ban on sports betting was unconstitutional; therefore each state can determine whether to ban sports betting within that state. Sports betting is now legal in 38 states.

Jimmy "the Greek" Snyder is credited--or blamed--for making sports betting a mainstream activity, so it is worth noting that at the height of his fame in 1980 he publicly opposed widespread legalization of sports betting:

Gambling should be made difficult for the average man. It should be something he budgets to do once or twice a year. Vegas was best when it was hardest to reach.

You see, it isn't the two or three percent, the house edge, that beats you. Otherwise, people would only lose two or three percent, and so what? It's the psychology. A guy goes to a casino. He wins $500, he's ecstatic. He goes home, buys his wife a present, springs for a night out. Fine. Now he goes back. This time he loses $500. O.K., altogether he's even. But does he quit $500 down the way he did $500 up? No. He takes another $500 out of the bank. And now he's pressing, so he blows that and borrows $500. Now he's out $1,500, and this is a guy who only makes 20 to 25 grand a year. He goes home, gets into his wife's checking account. 

This is what happens when gambling is too accessible. Everybody gets hurt but the casino. The guy can't buy the new summer suit or the new shoes for his wife. He lets the tune-up go. The stores are hurt, the restaurant, the gas station. This is the kind of stuff you'll start to see soon at Atlantic City.

And if they legalized sports betting, the little guy would be just as dead. We'd find a way to beat you. Right now, if we—me, anybody—tried to bet more than $50,000 on any game, we'd have a hard time. And when you only got $50 riding, you can't pay enough to fix a game. Put a pencil to it. But with legalized gambling, there'd be so much money bet you could get down a million or more on one game. So now it's worth it to pay for a fix, isn't it? And that's easy. You don't need the quarterback. Just gimme the center. Gimme the referee. All I'd need is one offside at the right time. You don't even need to get a guy to throw it for you. Suppose we just pay a big star $50,000 to stay home with the flu? Nobody ever thought of that before, did they?

The leagues and the betting providers would push back by arguing that they closely monitor suspicious wagering activity and that if sports betting were illegal it would still take place but it would be unregulated--and it is in their interest to push back, because they are making tons of money: they are the "casino" now and, as Snyder noted, "Everybody gets hurt but the casino."

It may sound like a great idea to legalize vices and then regulate/tax them. We are running a nearly nationwide experiment of this concept not only with sports betting but also with marijuana (which could be the topic of a separate article). The problem is that the damage caused by vices ripples out, and impacts innocent people who did not partake in the vice but are now suffering the consequences, ranging from games being rigged to being injured or killed by a marijuana-impaired driver. It is true that too much regulation or regulation that is too strict can backfire; we learned that with Prohibition. It is also true that too little regulation can lead to negative consequences for society as a whole.

Legalized sports betting is just one aspect of a larger societal shift; we are reshaping society to value instant gratification, instant wealth, and instant fame. This is not healthy or sustainable collectively or individually. It may be 15-20 years before the impact of widespread legalization of sports betting is fully evident and better understood, but Snyder's concerns were correct, have already been validated to some extent, and will be validated to a much greater extent in the future. 

Labels: Adam Silver, gambling, Jimmy "The Greek" Snyder, Jontay Porter, Michael Porter Jr., NBA

posted by David Friedman @ 1:53 AM

3 comments

Epidemic of Entitlement Plagues Pro Basketball

I have been a basketball fan as long as I can remember, and I imagine that I will always be a basketball fan, but the sense of entitlement worn like a proud badge by many modern pro basketball players is difficult to fathom or accept. There are many examples, but I will cite just three.

The first example is from a recent podcast during which DeMarcus Cousins reflected on his time as Nikola Jokic's teammate, and noted that Jokic indicated that he might retire early instead of signing a contract with a total value of $300 million. Cousins advised Jokic that retiring early would be crazy, and that even if Jokic did not want to play he should just sign the deal--for guaranteed money--and then "just get fat at worst." Cousins' mentality makes it clear (1) why he washed out of the NBA at just 32 years old, and (2) why it often seems like many players are more focused on making money than earning money: players likes Cousins think that they are entitled to be paid as opposed to thinking that they have a responsibility to earn the money that they are paid.

The second example is from the WNBA. At the 2025 WNBA All-Star Game, players wore t-shirts bearing the phrase, "Pay Us What You Owe Us." The NBA has a majority ownership interest in the WNBA and fully subsidizes the WNBA, which has lost money in every single year since it was founded 28 years ago. The WNBA's losses averaged around $10 million per year prior to 2023, but leapt to around $50 million in 2024. A quip making the rounds is that WNBA stands for Welfare National Basketball Association. Perhaps the WNBA's players should chip in to pay the league for the opportunity to be on TV and thus become well known enough to get endorsement deals, because without the WNBA most people would have no idea who many of these players are. Much like Cousins thinks that NBA players are entitled to be paid without making any effort to stay in shape, WNBA players think that they are entitled to huge paychecks even though the business that hired them is losing money. 

The third example involves the NBA and the WNBA. After demanding to be paid money that they have not earned, the WNBA players laughed and giggled their way through an uncompetitive 2025 WNBA All-Star Game. In that regard, they are following the example of the NBA, a league whose All-Star Games have degenerated from must-see TV to unwatchable farces.

Perhaps there have always been athletes with an overgrown sense of entitlement, but the problem seems to be more widespread than before. 

The way that far too many modern athletes focus on being entitled as opposed to earning respect contrasts markedly with the attitude displayed by the man who was for many years the face of pro basketball: Julius Erving. In 1984, near the end of his Pantheon-level career, Erving explained how he perceived his place in basketball history:

I'd say I've had an effect in three main areas. First, I have taken a smaller man's game, ball-handling, passing, and the like, and brought it to the front court. Second, I've taken the big man's game, rebounding, shot-blocking, and been able to execute that even though I'm only six-foot-six. What I've tried to do is merge those two types of games, which were considered to be separate—for instance, Bill Russell does the rebounding, Cousy handles the ball—and combine them into the same player. This has more or less changed the definition of what's called the small forward position, and it creates a lot more flexibility for the individual player, and, of course, creates a lot more opportunities for the whole team. The third thing I've tried to do, and this is the most important thing, is to make this kind of basketball a winning kind of basketball, taking into account a degree of showmanship that gets people excited. My overall goal is to give people the feeling they are being entertained by an artist—and to win.

You know, the playground game … refined.

Note how much thought Erving put into how he played the game, and how much work he did to hone his craft. Note, also, that he considered it his responsibility to help his team win while entertaining the fans. Erving laid the groundwork for non-centers like Magic Johnson, Larry Bird, Michael Jordan, Kobe Bryant, and LeBron James to become MVPs and become leaders of championship teams, two roles that before Erving were predominantly filled by centers. 

I have long argued that Erving is underrated by commentators who do not know or understand basketball history. The example that Erving set about how to think about the game and the responsibility--not entitlement--of being a professional athlete is one that modern players should learn about and emulate.

Labels: DeMarcus Cousins, Julius Erving, NBA, Nikola Jokic, WNBA

posted by David Friedman @ 8:50 PM

11 comments

Cooper Versus Bronny is Strictly an Off-Broadway Event, Not a Broadway Feature Show

ESPN and other media outlets promoted Cooper Flagg's summer league debut game with a level of breathless hype just a notch or two below that accorded to an NBA Finals game--but this was equivalent to treating an off-Broadway play as if it were a Broadway feature show. It is understandable that fans may be interested to see how the number one overall draft pick performs, and it is natural for media outlets to relentlessly seek ratings/clicks/view/likes. However, the attempt to market Cooper Flagg's debut as some kind of battle royale versus Bronny James is ludicrous.

Cooper Flagg will immediately be an impactful player in the NBA, and there is good reason to believe that he will eventually be at least an All-Star; he is not fighting for a roster spot, nor will he spend a minute in the NBA G League. He will have to adjust to the physically, speed, and strength of NBA players, but he will be playing rotational minutes from day one.

In contrast, as a rookie last season, Bronny James scored 62 points in 181 minutes on .313 field goal shooting. He made 21 field goals and committed 13 turnovers. His season high was 17 points, which was the only time he scored in double figures; he failed to score in 13 of his 27 games. Bronny James is only in the NBA because his father is LeBron James, who has been the de facto general manager of the L.A. Lakers since joining the team in 2018 (although that may change in the wake of the Luka Doncic trade and the Buss family selling the team to owners who may not want James to continue to serve as player/GM).

Flagg may have 62 points in his first three NBA games, and he may average 17 ppg for his rookie season, never mind scoring 17 points in just one game. It will be shocking if he has 13 games during which he does not score a point.

Neither player shined in this overhyped summer league game, during which the Dallas Mavericks defeated the L.A. Lakers 87-85 after Flagg blocked DJ Steward's layup attempt, pushed the ball in transition, and found Ryan Nembhard for what proved to be the game-winning corner three pointer. Flagg finished with 10 points on 5-21 field goal shooting, six rebounds, four assists, three steals, and one blocked shot in 32 minutes. James had eight points on 2-8 field goal shooting, two rebounds, and two assists in 21 minutes. Neither player shot well, but Flagg showed that he can create shots for himself and for others; casual fans often underestimate how difficult it is to even get a shot off against NBA players. James' regular season single game career-high for field goal attempts is 10, but it is easy to picture Flagg averaging at least 10-12 field goals attempt per game in the regular season right now. 

There is rarely a prospect who is a sure thing. No one can say for sure if Cooper Flagg will be an all-time great, an All-NBA player, an All-Star, or just a solid pro--but based on what he has already shown at Duke and with USA Basketball, it would be surprising if he is not at the very least an NBA rotation player for a long time. In contrast, it would be surprising if Bronny James becomes an NBA rotation player any time soon, if at all. Flagg is playing in the summer league to practice running an offense and to get used to NBA defensive rotations, while James is playing in the summer league to try to earn an NBA roster spot and avoid being sent back to the NBA G League, which is where most players with his skill set and scant collegiate and NBA production play.

Labels: Bronny James, Cooper Flagg, Dallas Mavericks, ESPN, L.A. Lakers, LeBron James

posted by David Friedman @ 4:47 PM

0 comments

Frank Layden Coached With a Smile and Left the Fans Smiling

Frank Layden, who passed away on July 9, 2025 at the age of 93, was the second Utah coach in Jazz history after the franchise spent its first five seasons based in New Orleans. The Jazz did not post a winning record or make a playoff appearance in New Orleans, nor did they do so in their first four Utah seasons--but they went 45-37 and reached the second round in their fifth Utah season (1983-84), which was Layden's second full season on the Jazz bench. That year, Layden won the Coach of the Year award, the Executive of the Year award, and the J. Walter Kennedy Citizenship award--a trifecta that is unlikely to ever be matched, as only a handful of other people have won even two out of those three awards, much less won two of them in the same year. 

After his great success in 1984, Layden led the Jazz to four more playoff appearances in the next four seasons before suddenly retiring with an 11-6 record in the 1988-89 season. When he retired from coaching, Layden said, "I think America takes all sports too seriously. Sometimes in the NBA, you feel like a dog. You age seven years in one. The pressure in the NBA is intense. It's time to have my time." Two-time NBA scoring champion (1981, 1984) Adrian Dantley was Utah's best player during most of Layden's time with the Jazz, with John Stockton arriving in 1984-85 (but not becoming a full-time starter until 1987-88) and Karl Malone arriving in 1985-86 (but not becoming an All-Star until 1988). Layden returned to the bench in 1998 for a brief stint as the coach of the WNBA's Utah Starzz before retiring from coaching for good, citing his desire to "enjoy life."

Layden posted a 277-294 record as an NBA head coach, which is not bad considering the condition of the Jazz franchise when he took over. Layden had a strong basketball pedigree dating back to his time as a player at Niagara, where he was a teammate/roommate of the legendary Hubie Brown. Layden served as an assistant coach for Brown with the Atlanta Hawks before joining the Jazz. 

However, Layden will be remembered for more than his basketball acumen or his won/loss record. He had a jovial personality, and he would banter good-naturedly with fans, one time asking a heckler if he paid for his seats. Layden explained that he could accept barbs from paying customers but not from the "freebies."  Layden co-hosted two NBA blooper tapes with Hall of Fame broadcaster Marv Albert.

It seems like a lot of the characters and quirky personalities of the game like Frank Layden have been replaced by "quants" (I call them "stat gurus") who are long on spreadsheets and short on one-liners. There is a place in basketball for analytics and data (properly utilized), but there is also a place for subjectivity and just good old fashioned fun--and Layden understood that.

Labels: Adrian Dantley, Frank Layden, Hubie Brown, John Stockton, Karl Malone, Niagara, Utah Jazz

posted by David Friedman @ 2:02 AM

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Rockets Acquire Kevin Durant From Suns in Exchange for Dillon Brooks, Jalen Green, and Six Draft Picks

The Houston Rockets acquired Kevin Durant from the Phoenix Suns in exchange for Jalen Green, Dillon Brooks, the 10th overall pick in the 2025 NBA Draft, and five second round draft picks, but the transaction will not become official until July 6 when the NBA's new year begins*. Last season, the Rockets earned the second seed in the Western Conference with a 52-30 record before losing 4-3 in the first round to the Golden State Warriors; the Rockets were strong defensively, but they ranked just 21st in the league in field goal percentage (.455), and they shot .446 from the field in their playoff loss to the Warriors. The Rockets expect Durant's elite scoring and solid playmaking to provide a major boost to their anemic offense.

There is no disputing Durant's talent and productivity. The 2014 regular season MVP and two-time NBA champion/two-time NBA Finals MVP (2017, 2018) is a four-time regular season scoring champion (2010-12, 14) and five-time playoff scoring champion (2011, 2013-14, 2016, 2019) who ranks eighth in ABA-NBA regular season career points (30,571) and seventh in ABA-NBA playoff career points (4985). Durant owns the sixth highest ABA-NBA career regular season scoring average (27.2 ppg) and the fourth highest ABA-NBA career playoff scoring average (29.3 ppg). Durant, who turns 37 in September, averaged 26.6 points, 6.0 rebounds and 4.2 assists in 62 games last season while becoming the ninth member of pro basketball's 30,000 point club. The future Hall of Famer has averaged at least 25 ppg while shooting at least .500 from the field and at least .400 from three point range for three straight seasons, the longest such streak in ABA-NBA history.

Despite Durant's success, he has rarely seemed happy--let alone content--during his long and distinguished career. He fled Oklahoma City for Golden State in 2016 after leading the Thunder to game seven of the 2016 Western Conference Finals versus the Warriors, and then he orchestrated a move to Brooklyn in 2020 after winning two championships with the Warriors.  

After Durant forced his way from Golden State to Brooklyn, I discussed his perpetual dissatisfaction:

There is a clear pattern here. Durant never feels happy or satisfied, no matter how much those around him cater to his needs and his expressed wants. The Thunder built their team around Durant, but he left; the Warriors embraced Durant from day one, built their team around him, but he left despite having the most successful all-around seasons of his career. Durant's comment that Golden State could not "alter anything in my basketball life" is odd, unless he values his individual honors and achievements over team success: he did not obtain ultimate team success until he joined a team that had already won a title just two years before he arrived...

Durant may win multiple titles in Brooklyn, or he may not win any titles. He may reestablish himself as an elite player after missing a full season due to a significant injury, or he may never return to his old form. Based on past experience, though, one thing seems certain: he will not be happy--and that is sad. 

Durant played just 129 games in three seasons with the Nets before forcing his way to Phoenix, where he played just 145 games in three seasons. Durant enjoyed his greatest team success in Oklahoma City and Golden State, and he has had very little team success since leaving the Warriors. Between 2011 and 2019, Durant played in the Western Conference Finals six times, played in the NBA Finals four times, and won two titles; his Warriors reached the 2019 Western Conference Finals but he did not play due to injury, returning for one game in the 2019 NBA Finals before rupturing his right Achilles, causing him to miss the rest of the 2019 NBA Finals plus all of the 2019-20 regular season. Since leaving the Warriors, Durant has not reached the Conference Finals, he has advanced past the first round just twice, and he missed the playoffs last season. His post-Golden State resume includes a 2-4 playoff series record, and a 10-18 record in playoff games, including being on the wrong end of two first round sweeps.

It is understandable why the Rockets believe that acquiring Durant will improve their chances to win a title; they are already a big, physical, defensive-minded team, so adding a two-time champion who is an elite scorer seems to make their roster complete--but Durant has only made deep playoff runs when he was 30 or younger and playing alongside a dynamic, MVP-caliber guard (first Russell Westbrook, then Stephen Curry). Durant is seven years removed from his last deep playoff run, and the Rockets do not have--and do not seem likely to acquire--a dynamic, MVP-caliber guard.

Barring significant injuries, the Rockets are likely to win more than 50 games, and they should not lose again in the first round--but, beyond that, their future is less clear. Drama and discontent follow Durant, so it is premature to assume that the Rockets are a lock to reach the 2026 Western Conference Finals. The best case scenario is that Durant's efficient shooting opens up the floor for Alperen Sengun, Amen Thompson, and Fred VanVleet and that Durant is willing to buy in to Houston's gritty defensive style--but the worst case scenario is that within two years Durant is unhappy yet again and forcing his way out of town.

* July 7, 2025 update: The Durant trade has been consolidated into a record-setting seven team trade, with these terms, per NBA.com:

The Rockets receive:

Kevin Durant

Clint Capela

The Suns receive:

Jalen Green

Dillon Brooks

Khaman Maluach (No. 10 overall)

Rasheer Fleming (No. 31 overall)

Koby Brea (No. 41 overall)

Daequan Plowden

2026 second-round pick

2032 second-round pick

The Nets receive:

2026 second-round pick

2030 second-round pick

The Warriors receive:

Alex Toohey (No.  52 overall)

Jahmai Mashack (No. 59 overall)

The Hawks receive:

David Roddy

2031 second-round pick

Cash 

The Lakers receive:

Adou Thiero (No. 36 overall)

Cash 

Timberwolves receive:

Rocco Zikarsky (No. 45 overall)

2026 second-round pick

2032 second-round pick

Cash

Labels: Brooklyn Nets, Dillon Brooks, Houston Rockets, Jalen Green, Kevin Durant, Oklahoma City Thunder, Phoenix Suns

posted by David Friedman @ 3:00 PM

14 comments

Thunder Outlast Pacers to Win Game Seven, 103-91

The Oklahoma City Thunder outscored the Indiana Pacers 56-43 in the second half, transforming a one point halftime deficit into a 103-91 game seven win to capture the NBA championship. The Pacers outrebounded the Thunder 45-40 and shot slightly more efficiently from the field, but the Thunder attacked Pacers' ballhandlers on the perimeter and took advantage of extra possessions by scoring in the paint; the Thunder forced 23 turnovers that they converted into 32 points while committing just eight turnovers that the Pacers converted into 10 points, and the Thunder outscored the Pacers in the paint, 40-26.

As is often the case in game seven showdowns, two high octane offenses struggled to score efficiently. The Thunder averaged 120.5 ppg in the regular season while posting a 68-14 record with the best point differential in NBA history (12.9 ppg), but in game seven they barely cracked the 100 point barrier while shooting 35-87 (.402) from the field, including 11-40 (.275) from three point range; the Pacers averaged 117.4 ppg in the regular season while ranking third in field goal percentage (.488), but in game seven they fell well short of 100 points while shooting 29-70 (.414) from the field, including 11-28 (.393) from beyond the arc. 

Three point shooting is supposed to be of paramount importance in today's NBA, but the Thunder took the title despite shooting 71-206 (.345) from three point range in the NBA Finals. Defense, rebounding, and paint presence are often the most important factors in game seven, which is why the 1998 Chicago Bulls beat the Indiana Pacers in game seven of the Eastern Conference Finals despite Michael Jordan shooting 9-25 from the field and why the 2010 L.A. Lakers beat the Boston Celtics in game seven of the NBA Finals despite Kobe Bryant shooting 6-24 from the field. A team that defends well and plays hard can survive a poor individual shooting performance by a star.

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander scored a game-high 29 points, dished for a game-high/playoff career-high 12 assists, grabbed five rebounds, blocked two shots, and had just one turnover. He shot 8-27 from the field, but his scoring and playmaking accounted for more than half of the Thunder's points. By continuing to shoot even though his field goal percentage was not great, Gilgeous-Alexander put pressure on the Pacers' defense; the worst thing for a team in a big game is not when the team's star shoots 8-27, but rather when he shoots 4-14, because a passive star player is much easier to guard than an active star player: when a star player aggressively attacks the defense that forces the defense to react by sending help, which opens up scoring opportunities and offensive rebounding opportunities for the star's teammates, secondary but important effects that are not tracked well or even understood by many "stat gurus" who focus on what they define as "efficiency" without giving sufficient consideration to other factors. 

During the NBA Finals, Gilgeous-Alexander averaged 30.3 ppg, 4.6 rpg, 5.6 apg, 1.9 spg, and 1.6 bpg with shooting splits of .443/.242/.914, earning the Bill Russell NBA Finals MVP and becoming the first player to win the scoring title, regular season MVP, and NBA Finals MVP in the same season since Shaquille O'Neal (2000). He is just the fourth player in NBA history to win the scoring title, regular season MVP, and the championship in the same season, joining Kareem Abdul-Jabbar (1971), Michael Jordan (1991-92, 1996, 1998), and Shaquille O'Neal (2000).

Jalen Williams shot poorly from the field (7-20), but he made critical contributions with 20 points, four rebounds, four assists, two steals, and just one turnover. He had a game-best +13 plus/minus number. Chet Holmgren anchored the defense in the paint, setting an NBA Finals game seven record with five blocked shots while also scoring 18 points on 6-8 field goal shooting and grabbing eight rebounds. The Thunder improved to 3-1 in this series with Isaiah Hartenstein in the starting lineup; he had seven points, a team-high nine rebounds, and four assists. Gilgeous-Alexander, Williams, and Hartenstein were the only three Thunder players who had an assist. Alex Caruso and Cason Wallace each scored 10 points off of the bench.

The biggest story for the Pacers was that Tyrese Haliburton, the team's primary playmaker and clutch shot maker, fell to the court with a non-contact lower right leg injury at the 4:55 mark of the first quarter and was unable to play the rest of the way. He had already scored nine points on 3-5 field goal shooting, and even though the Thunder led 18-16 when Haliburton left the game it is fair to wonder how the game might have proceeded if Haliburton had stayed healthy. Haliburton's injury not only impacted game seven and this series but it could have implications for the balance of power in the Eastern Conference if he misses most or all of next season.

Bennedict Mathurin stepped up in Haliburton's absence, scoring a team-high 24 points and grabbing a game-high 13 rebounds in 33 minutes off of the bench. Pascal Siakam added 16 points but shot just 5-13 from the field. T.J. McConnell contributed 16 points on 8-13 field goal shooting in 28 minutes off of the bench, but he also had a game-high seven turnovers; he scored 12 points on 6-7 field goal shooting in eight minutes in the third quarter, but had just four points on 2-6 field goal shooting in his other 20 minutes of action, which highlights a point that I made in my game five recap: just because a bench player has a brief productive stretch that does not mean that if his playing time is extended he will continue to score at that same per minute rate; there are reasons that bench players are bench players and starters are starters, including conditioning, and ability to match up with various players/defensive schemes.

The Pacers took an 11-6 lead to start the game in a closely contested first quarter featuring three lead changes and four ties with neither team leading by more than five points. After Haliburton's injury, the Pacers seemed to be inspired while the Thunder seemed to be complacent and tentative. The Pacers outscored the Thunder 26-22 in the second quarter to build a slim 48-47 halftime edge as the Thunder shot 4-18 (.222) from three point range in the first half.

In the third quarter, the Thunder ramped up the defensive pressure--forcing eight turnovers that they converted into 18 points--while not committing a single turnover, and shooting a respectable 5-13 (.385) from beyond the arc. The Pacers were still behind by just four points, 70-66, at the 3:54 mark of the third quarter, but the Thunder closed that stanza with an 11-2 run to enter the fourth quarter with an 81-68 lead. McConnell scored the Pacers' final 12 third quarter points, but down the stretch in the third quarter it became evident that the Pacers could not deal with the Thunder's defensive pressure.  

The Thunder led by as many as 22 points in the fourth quarter before the Pacers made one final push to slash the margin to 96-86 with 2:16 remaining, but the Thunder went on a 6-1 burst to remove any doubt; the Pacers may be the comeback kings, but the Thunder are a historically dominant team, particularly at home: the Thunder set a single season playoff record with a +259 point differential at home, and their only two home playoff losses--game one of the NBA Finals versus Indiana, and game one in the second round versus Denver--were on buzzer beaters. With this win, the Thunder improved to 19-2 after a loss (regular season and playoffs combined), the best such single season mark in NBA history.

The Thunder went 84-21 overall during the regular season and playoffs combined, tied with the 1996-97 Chicago Bulls (84-17) for the third most wins all-time, trailing only the 2015-16 Golden State Warriors (88-18, but lost in the NBA Finals), and the 1995-96 Chicago Bulls (87-13). It should be noted that the NBA expanded the playoff format in 1983-84 (adding a best of five first round series to the three existing best of seven series) and in 2002-03 (extending the first round from best of five to best of seven), so before those years teams did not have the same opportunities to win 84-plus games. The Thunder are the second youngest team to win an NBA title, trailing only the 1977 Portland Trail Blazers--a squad that provides a cautionary tale, as they never returned to the NBA Finals after injuries ended Bill Walton's brief tenure as the sport's best player. On paper, it looks like the Thunder are well positioned to contend for championships for the next several years, but in practice it is very difficult for a team to win multiple titles; there have been just four repeat champions since the Michael Jordan-Scottie Pippen Chicago Bulls notched a pair of three-peats in the 1990s: the 2000-02 L.A. Lakers, the 2009-10 L.A. Lakers, the 2012-13 Miami Heat, and the 2017-18 Golden State Warriors.

Labels: Bennedict Mathurin, Chet Holmgren, Indiana Pacers, Jalen Williams, Oklahoma City Thunder, Pascal Siakam, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, T.J. McConnell, Tyrese Haliburton

posted by David Friedman @ 10:07 AM

9 comments

Pacers Rout Thunder 108-91 to Force a Seventh Game in Oklahoma City

The Indiana Pacers fell behind 10-2 to the Oklahoma City Thunder at home in game six before outscoring the Thunder 62-32 the rest of the first half en route to a dominant 108-91 victory to tie the series at 3-3. The game was not as close as the final score may suggest; the Pacers led by as many as 31 points in the second half, were ahead by 25-plus points for substantial portions of the second half, and their fourth quarter lead did not drop below 20 points until the final 1:18. The Pacers outrebounded the Thunder 46-41, and forced 21 turnovers that they converted into 19 points while only committing 11 turnovers that the Thunder converted into 13 points. Those extra possessions were a major factor in a game during which both teams shot worse than .420 from the field. Another significant factor was that the Pacers shot 15-42 (.357) from three point range while holding the Thunder to 8-30 (.267) three point shooting; the Pacers did not shoot great, but the Thunder's terrible long range shooting was too much to overcome when the Thunder also lost the possession game by a wide margin. 

The Pacers shot 0-8 from the field to start the game, and they shot just 8-25 (.320) from the field in the first quarter, but they already led 28-25 after the first 12 minutes because they launched four more field goal attempts than the Thunder while making five first quarter three pointers and holding the Thunder to just one first quarter three pointer. As is often the case in the NBA, the first quarter set the tone for the game: the Pacers were the aggressors, the Pacers attempted more field goals, and the Pacers made timely three pointers while the Thunder misfired from beyond the arc. 

In today's NBA featuring volume three point shooting and fast-paced play, a 22 point halftime lead is not insurmountable, but what killed the Thunder is that they did not score from the 1:46 mark of the second quarter until 6:57 remained in the third quarter, a nearly seven minute drought during which the Pacers expanded their advantage from 58-42 to 70-42; the Pacers were not burning up the nets by scoring 12 points in seven minutes, but failing to score at all while already trailing by double digits signaled that this was just not the Thunder's night. 

The Pacers are a better and tougher team than I realized. It would have been easy to fold after losing game five in convincing fashion versus a team that is justifiably considered the favorite, but the Pacers showed resolve not seen from some teams that are more highly touted. The balanced Pacers attack featured six double figure scorers who each had between 10 and 20 points. Obi Toppin, the pride of the University of Dayton, led the Pacers with 20 points in 23 minutes off of the bench. He also had six rebounds, a game-high four treys, and two steals. Andrew Nembhard added 17 points, four assists, and three steals. Pascal Siakam had 16 points, a game-high 13 rebounds, and three assists. Tyrese Haliburton did not seem to be unduly hampered by his much-discussed calf injury, finishing with 14 points, five assists, two steals, and just one turnover; he had a game-high +25 plus/minus number, and he made those who suggested that he should be benched look quite foolish. T.J. McConnell provided an important spark off of the bench with 12 points, nine rebounds, a game-high six assists, and a game-high four steals that matched the entire Thunder team's output in a category that they are used to dominating.

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander led the Thunder with 21 points on 7-15 field goal shooting. He had four rebounds, two assists, and no steals or blocked shots, a marked contrast with his 31 points, 10 assists, four blocked shots, and two steals in the Thunder's game five win. In game six, Gilgeous-Alexander logged a "Harden" with more turnovers (game-high eight) than field goals made (seven). Jalen Williams followed up his 40 point game five masterpiece with just 16 points in game six. Chet Holmgren had four points on 2-9 field goal shooting, plus six rebounds, no assists, no steals, and no blocked shots. 

If the Thunder lose this series, they will rue falling behind 2-1 after inexplicably putting Cason Wallace in the starting lineup in place of Isaiah Hartenstein during the first three games. The Thunder went 45-8 during the regular season when Hartenstein started, and they went 12-4 in the playoffs with Hartenstein as a starter prior to the NBA Finals; the Thunder are now 2-1 in the NBA Finals with Hartenstein as a starter, and 1-2 when he did not start. The lineup change did not have a discernible impact on game six, but the larger point is that if the Thunder had deployed their regular starting lineup in each of the first five games they may have won the series at home in game five instead of being pushed to a seventh game.

The Thunder's effort level and efficiency from opening tip until final buzzer indicated that their players had the attitude that this was not a must win game because they will have game seven at home. The Thunder are 18-2 after a loss during the regular season and playoffs, so they have good reason to be confident, but Tex Winter often said, "Everything turns on a trifle": in game seven, a turned ankle, a bad call, or a funny bounce of the ball could change the game, the series, and the way that both teams are remembered. Game to game momentum in a series does not exist, because the next game is played in a different arena under different circumstances beginning with a 0-0 score, not a double digit lead for the winner of the previous game--but momentum within a game can exist, and can decide a series in game seven.

However, even though the underdog has a puncher's chance once a series reaches a seventh game, the reality is that the home team wins NBA game sevens over 74% of the time. The Thunder are in control of this series until proven otherwise, and the Thunder have demonstrated that blowout losses do not impact their confidence or their level of play. In the second round, the Thunder lost to the Denver Nuggets 119-107 in game six, and then the Thunder won game seven, 125-93. After taking a 2-0 lead in the Western Conference Finals, the Thunder lost to the Minnesota Timberwolves 143-101, and then the Thunder won the next two games to close out the series. 

The Pacers' dominant win will almost certainly inspire a lot of overreaction, which is a staple of NBA coverage (and sports coverage in general). Regardless of any hype to the contrary, a blowout Thunder win is the most likely game seven outcome, followed by a close Thunder win; a blowout Thunder win may seem unimaginable now in the immediate wake of the Pacers' dominant game six performance, but game six will be a distant memory when the comfortable and confident Thunder race out to an early game seven lead. A close Pacers win is possible but unlikely, and a blowout Pacers win at Oklahoma City is very unlikely barring unusual circumstance (injuries, foul trouble, or early ejections). 

Labels: Indiana Pacers, Jalen Williams, Oklahoma City Thunder, Pascal Siakam, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, T.J. McConnell, Tyrese Haliburton

posted by David Friedman @ 2:05 AM

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Thunder's One-Two Punch Knocks Out Pacers in Game Five

Jalen Williams scored a playoff career-high 40 points, and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander added 31 points to lead the Oklahoma City Thunder to a 120-109 win versus the Indiana Pacers in game five of the NBA Finals. The Thunder seized a 3-2 advantage, and put the Pacers behind in a series for the first time in the 2025 playoffs. Williams is the third youngest player with three straight 25 point games in the NBA Finals since the 1976 ABA-NBA merger; the only two younger players to accomplish that feat in that time period are Shaquille O'Neal and Kevin Durant. The 24 year old Williams is also the fifth youngest player to score at least 40 points in an NBA Finals game, trailing only Magic Johnson (20 years old in the 1980 NBA Finals), Rick Barry (three times in 1967 as a 23 year old), Russell Westbrook (23 years old in 2012), and Jerry West (23 years old in 1962).

The Thunder's one-two punch is usually Gilgeous-Alexander followed by Williams, but in this game reversing the order proved to be very effective. Williams shot 14-25 from the field while also contributing six rebounds, four assists, and one steal in 35 minutes. He had just one turnover. Gilgeous-Alexander shot 9-21 from the field, dished for a game-high 10 assists, logged a game-high four blocked shots, and swiped two steals in 38 minutes. Gilgeous-Alexander has produced 12 games this postseason with at least 30 points and at least 10 assists, breaking the record of 11 formerly held by Michael Jordan and LeBron James. Gilgeous-Alexander had three turnovers, which is an acceptable number given his high usage as a scorer/playmaker. Williams and Gilgeous-Alexander attacked the paint, and that enabled them to repeatedly draw fouls: Williams shot 9-12 from the free throw line, while Gilgeous-Alexander connected on 13 of his 14 free throw attempts. 

Aaron Wiggins (14 points, five rebounds in 22 minutes off of the bench) and Cason Wallace (11 points, four steals in 17 minutes off of the bench) were the only other Thunder players who scored in double figures, but when the top two players combine for 71 points not much other offensive support is needed. Chet Holmgren scored nine points, grabbed a game-high 11 rebounds, and blocked three shots, so he made a positive impact despite shooting just 4-15 from the field. Lu Dort added nine points, eight rebounds, three assists, and two steals, while Alex Caruso scored just two points on 1-8 field goal shooting but was a defensive menace with four steals and one blocked shot.

Pascal Siakam led the Pacers with 28 points on 9-15 field goal shooting while also snaring six rebounds, dishing for five assists, poaching three steals, and blocking two shots, but he had six of the Pacers' 23 turnovers. T.J. McConnell scored 18 points on 8-14 field goal shooting in 22 minutes off of the bench while also accumulating four rebounds, four assists, and two steals. He had the Pacers' second best plus/minus number (+4), and he had 13 third quarter points as the Pacers outscored the Thunder 34-28 in that stanza to trim the Thunder's 59-45 halftime lead to 87-79. Bennedict Mathurin scored seven points and had a team-high eight rebounds, and he posted the team's best plus/minus number (+6) despite shooting  just 2-11 from the field. Tyrese Haliburton, who has repeatedly saved the Pacers with big shots in clutch moments, had a scoreless first half on 0-5 field goal shooting before finishing with four points on 0-6 field goal shooting, seven rebounds, and a team-high six assists in 34 minutes. He was limited by a right calf injury but--as Pacers' Coach Rick Carlisle correctly noted during his postgame remarks--many players are limited by injuries at this stage of the season. 

The Thunder scored 32 points off of Indiana's turnovers while conceding just nine points from their 11 turnovers, and those extra possessions enabled the Thunder to prevail despite shooting just 40-94 (.426) from the field while also losing the rebounding battle, 50-45. The Pacers led the Thunder in points in the paint (48-42) and second chance points (21-17), but the combination of the Thunder's relentless defensive pressure with the dynamic scoring/playmaking of Williams and Gilgeous-Alexander decided the outcome.

The Thunder led for the final 44:52 of the game, and built the margin to 18 (56-38) at the 2:29 mark of the second quarter. McConnell's fantastic third quarter helped the Pacers to chip away, and the Pacers pulled to within two points (95-93) after Siakam hit a three pointer at the 8:30 mark of the fourth quarter. The Thunder then went on an 18-4 run to seal the game and, most likely, the series; during that crucial stretch, Williams scored eight points and Gilgeous-Alexander scored five points. 

Oklahoma City probably would have already won the series if Thunder Coach Mark Daigenault had not blundered by changing his starting lineup prior to game one, inserting Cason Wallace in place of Isaiah Hartenstein; the Thunder lost that game and trailed 2-1 before Daigneault went back to the starting lineup that posted a 45-8 regular season record and a 12-4 record in the playoffs. The Thunder won game four after putting Hartenstein back in the starting lineup and are now 2-0 in this series with the starting lineup that carried them to most of their wins in the regular season and the playoffs. Hartenstein's game five numbers--four points, eight rebounds, four assists--are not gaudy, but the goal is to win games, not to be "analytically correct." With Hartenstein in the starting lineup, all of the Thunder's players are in their natural and accustomed roles, which enabled the Thunder to not only build a 29-17 first quarter lead but to also withstand the inevitable Indiana comeback. 

Just at it would be wrong to evaluate the Thunder's starting lineup change based solely on the numbers posted by Hartenstein or Wallace outside of the larger context of the team's overall play, it would also be wrong to assert that Carlisle erred by not giving McConnell more minutes at Haliburton's expense in game five. McConnell is a bench player who performs best against bench players while his minutes are maintained within a certain range. Call it the "Trevor Ariza effect." Carlisle explained after game five that he managed McConnell's late game minutes based on McConnell being fatigued and making some errors that seemed to be a result of that fatigue. A "stat guru" might argue that because McConnell scored 18 points in 22 minutes he would have scored 36 points in 44 minutes, but that is not how NBA basketball works; if McConnell had played 22 more minutes it is much more likely that his turnovers and missed field goals would have increased than that his point total would have doubled. 

"Stat gurus" focus too much on per minute and per possession statistics without understanding or acknowledging other factors, and that faulty, limited way of conceptualizing the game leads "stat gurus" to make flawed assertions, such as declaring that Manu Ginobili was just as good as Kobe Bryant, which is demonstrably false for a variety of reasons, including the difference between being a player who logs heavy minutes as the number one option versus being a player who logs limited minutes while often playing against bench players. Understanding that difference is one reason that I correctly predicted that James Harden would not lead a team to the NBA Finals as a number one option even though he was efficient as the third option for the Kevin Durant-Russell Westbrook Thunder team that reached the 2012 NBA Finals. 

Talking about "adjustments" and substitution patterns is one way that commentators attempt to sound well-informed even when they lack foundational knowledge about the NBA game. The reality is that the best "adjustment" is playing harder. Coaches usually have good reasons for their substitution patterns, based on their observations of their players in practices and in games. The Hartenstein-Wallace change is an unusual example of a coach outsmarting himself--probably based on some "stat guru" feeding him nonsense about the supposed advantages of using a small lineup against Indiana--and it is fortunate for the Thunder that Daigenault was not too stubborn to reverse course before the Thunder fell into a 3-1 hole.

Labels: Indiana Pacers, Isaiah Hartenstein, Jalen Williams, Oklahoma City Thunder, Pascal Siakam, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Tyrese Haliburton

posted by David Friedman @ 2:02 PM

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Grit and Poise: Thunder Outlast Pacers to Reclaim Homecourt Advantage

The Indiana Pacers led the Oklahoma City Thunder 86-76 with less than a minute remaining in the third quarter of game four of the NBA Finals, but the Thunder outscored the Pacers 35-18 the rest of the way--including 12-1 in the final 3:20--to win 111-104 and reclaim homecourt advantage. The series shifts back to Oklahoma City on Monday night tied 2-2 after the Pacers led 1-0 and 2-1. This was the Thunder's second lowest scoring total in a win in the 2025 playoffs; they lost five of their previous six playoff games when they scored less than 112 points, but they are 12-1 in the 2025 playoffs when they score at least 112 points. The Thunder improved to 5-0 following a loss in 2025 playoffs.

The Thunder cruised through most of the 2024-25 regular season and went 12-4 in their first 16 playoff games, but beating the Indiana Pacers in the NBA Finals has been a tough challenge for the Thunder, who displayed a lot of grit and poise to come from behind to win on the road versus a team that has thrived in games that are close late in the fourth quarter.

The Thunder prevailed by outscoring the Pacers 50-36 in the paint after being outscored 50-48 in the paint in their game three loss. The Thunder also outrebounded the Pacers 43-33 while holding the Pacers to 34-80 (.425) field goal shooting. We are often told that range shooting and spreading the floor are essential for teams to be successful in today's NBA, but the Thunder won despite shooting just 3-17 (.176) from three point range because size matters in the NBA, and because controlling the paint is a major factor for a championship contender. 

The biggest change that Thunder Coach Mark Daigneault made--literally and figuratively--was reinserting Isaiah Hartenstein in the starting lineup after replacing him with Cason Wallace in the first three games of this series. The move back to Hartenstein may not have seemed to help the Thunder when the Pacers jumped out to a 24-15 first quarter lead, but going back to the lineup and player rotation that enabled the Thunder to be a dominant team during the regular season and first three rounds of the playoffs paid dividends as the Thunder wore down the Pacers the rest of the way. Wallace's minutes have decreased from 33 in game one to 23 in game two, 24 in game three, and 19 in game four. Hartenstein's minutes have been fairly consistent--17, 22, 18, 21--but the Thunder won the two games when he played at least 20 minutes and lost the two games when he played less than 20 minutes. Daigneault tried to be clever by changing his starting lineup for the first three games and that move backfired, but he deserves credit for recognizing his mistake before it was too late to salvage this series.

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander scored a game-high 35 points on 12-24 field goal shooting and 10-10 free throw shooting, including 15 fourth quarter points. He had no assists, but sometimes the most effective way for a team's best player to impact winning is to accept the burden of scoring even when the defense is tilted against him. Instead of insisting on making the "right" play, Gilgeous-Alexander made winning plays by putting the ball in the basket when the game was up for grabs. He has scored 131 points in this series so far, the third most points scored by a player in the first four NBA Finals games of his career, trailing only Rick Barry (165) and Allen Iverson (141). Jalen Williams often initiated the offense while Gilgeous-Alexander played off of the ball, and Williams finished with 27 points, seven rebounds, and three assists. Alex Caruso contributed 20 points and a game-high tying five steals in 30 minutes off of the bench. Chet Holmgren powered his thin frame to 14 points and a game-high 15 rebounds. 

Pascal Siakam led the Pacers with 20 points and a game-high tying five steals while also grabbing eight rebounds, but he shot just 6-15 from the field. Nine Pacers played in this game, and Siakam was one of just three with a positive plus/minus number (+7, best on the Pacers). Tyrese Haliburton scored 18 points and had a game-high seven assists but he also had a game-high five turnovers. Obi Toppin scored 17 points and snared seven rebounds in 29 minutes off of the bench, but he had a game-worst -15 plus/minus number. 

The Thunder became accustomed to easy, pretty wins during their dream regular season and for two of the first three rounds of the playoffs, but the NBA Finals have been a series of battles that are testing--and forging--the championship mettle of both teams. If the Thunder keep Hartenstein in the starting lineup, don't make any silly rotation changes, and use their size to dominate the paint then they have a great chance to prevail in game five to move to within one win of an NBA title.

Labels: Alex Caruso, Cason Wallace, Chet Holmgren, Indiana Pacers, Isaiah Hartenstein, Jalen Williams, Obi Toppin, Oklahoma City Thunder, Pascal Siakam, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Tyrese Haliburton

posted by David Friedman @ 2:09 AM

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Pacers Ride Big Fourth Quarter to Beat Thunder, Take 2-1 Series Lead

The Oklahoma City Thunder jumped out to a nine point first quarter lead, but the Indiana Pacers erased that deficit with a huge second quarter, and then used a big fourth quarter to outlast the Thunder, 116-107, to take a 2-1 series lead. The Thunder are renowned for forcing more turnovers than they commit and then pouncing on those extra possessions to score easy baskets, but in this game the Pacers scored 21 points off of 19 turnovers while giving up 14 points off of 14 turnovers. The Pacers also outscored the Thunder in the paint 50-48, and the Pacers had 17 fast break points compared to just 10 for the Thunder. The Pacers' bench outscored the Thunder's bench, 49-18. It is worth emphasizing that the Thunder changed their starting lineup before this series began--going small by inserting Cason Wallace in place of Isaiah Hartenstein--while the Pacers quite logically stuck with what has worked for them throughout the playoffs. 

Role players tend to play better at home than on the road, and this game provided further evidence supporting that notion. Bennedict Mathurin scored a game-high and playoff career-high 27 points in 22 minutes off of the bench. His +16 plus/minus number was the second best in this game behind his teammate Obi Toppin (+18), who had eight points, six rebounds, and two blocked shots in 28 minutes off of the bench. T.J. McConnell became the first player in NBA Finals history with 10 points, five assists, and five steals off of the bench, posting a +12 plus/minus number in 15 minutes.

The Pacers' two big name starters made major contributions. Tyrese Haliburton scored 22 points, collected a game-high 11 assists, and grabbed a team-high nine rebounds. Pascal Siakam authored a strong all-around game with 21 points, six rebounds, four assists, and no turnovers in 32 minutes. 

Jalen Williams led the Thunder with 26 points on 9-18 field goal shooting. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander had a rough game by his lofty standards, finishing with 24 points on 9-20 field goal shooting along with eight rebounds, four assists, and a game-high six turnovers; he had just set the record for most points scored in a player's first two NBA Finals games (72), breaking Allen Iverson's mark by one point. Chet Holmgren added 20 points and a game-high 10 rebounds, but he shot just 6-15 from the field.

The Thunder lost in the second round of the playoffs last year because they had a small team that could be pushed around in the paint, and that is why they acquired Hartenstein, who started 53 of the 57 regular season games that he played this season before starting each of the Thunder's first 16 playoff games. The Thunder went 45-8 in the 53 regular season games that Hartenstein started, and they went 12-4 in the 16 playoff games that he started. Hartenstein has now come off of the bench in each of the first three games of the NBA Finals, and the Thunder are 1-2 in those games. I don't know or care what the "advanced stats" say, but the statistic that matters most--wins and losses--speaks loudly, screaming, "If it ain't broke, don't fix it."    

Prior to this game, Hartenstein led the Thunder in playoff field goal percentage (.619) and he ranked second in playoff rebounding (7.9 rpg). Rather than matching down to the Pacers by playing small, the Thunder would be better served by using their size to their advantage. 

The problem is not just that the Thunder went small, but that they went small in a demonstrably ineffective manner. Wallace had a -15 plus/minus number in the second quarter when the Pacers outscored the Thunder, 40-28. Instead of enjoying a double digit halftime lead, the Thunder trailed by four, 60-56. The Thunder won the third quarter 29-20 with Hartenstein playing five minutes and Wallace playing less than one minute. The Thunder lost the fourth quarter 32-18 with Wallace playing five minutes (-9 plus/minus number) and Hartenstein playing three minutes (-6 plus/minus number).

This is not meant to suggest that Hartenstein and Wallace are the two most important players in this series. The point is that players are creatures of habit and repetition, as are teams; changing the starting lineup for no good reason prior to the start of the series sends a message--to both teams--that the Thunder don't think that they can win the series by doing the same things in the same way that they did to reach the NBA Finals. The impact of who is playing with whom has a ripple effect throughout the roster, and sows unnecessary uncertainty, as players wonder if they will be the next ones whose roles are changed/reduced.

The Pacers deserve full credit for playing well, and for outplaying one of the most dominant regular season teams in NBA history, but there is no getting around the fact that the Thunder's starting lineup change is a major story in this series. It is not too late for the Thunder to salvage their season and win this series, but time is running short: in NBA playoff history, teams that take a 2-1 series lead go on to win the series nearly 80% of the time, but the Thunder overcame a 2-1 deficit versus the Denver Nuggets to win the series, 4-3. Hartenstein started all seven games in that series, averaging 11.0 ppg and 8.7 rpg while shooting .590 from the field. His size and productivity made a difference in that series, and they could make a difference in the NBA Finals as well.

The good news for Thunder fans is that game to game momentum is a myth; each game in a playoff series is a separate event that starts with a 0-0 score. However, matchups and matchup advantages matter, and the team that wins the series is the team that best exploits its advantages while hiding/minimizing its disadvantages; the Thunder's size advantage will not matter if Coach Mark Daigneault refuses to exploit it.

Labels: Bennedict Mathurin, Cason Wallace, Indiana Pacers, Isaiah Hartenstein, Oklahoma City Thunder, Pascal Siakam, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, T.J. McConnell, Tyrese Haliburton

posted by David Friedman @ 1:56 AM

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