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If you missed Cooper Flagg’s dunk the other day, hurry up and catch it!
It’s NBA basketball: Cavs and Thunder play in an epic game
I’ve been in Scotland for almost two weeks, and last night’s game between the Cleveland Cavaliers and OKC Thunder started at midnight here. My plan was to watch the first half, get some sleep, then watch the second half in the morning, then open my laptop and write out this section.
After the first 24 minutes of this game, I knew I wouldn’t be able to sleep until the game was over. Will the 15-game winning streak hype that we basketball geeks have been promoting carry over to the home of the 10-game winning streak? It was delivered, and then some. The 32-4 Cavs defeated the 30-6 Thunder, 129-122, in some of the best basketball I’ve seen in a decade. Yes, it’s true. If you haven’t seen it yet, go back and enjoy. Here are four takeaways from the great matchup.
Basketball was great! For about an hour and a half, it felt like the lead changed hands every time they had possession. The Thunder’s top defense was dismantled. The Cavs’ grand plan was dissected. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Evan Mobley played as if a loss would void their contracts. I already want them to do this. Cleveland’s big-to-big passing was elite. It’s no secret that Mobley is a great starter for the Cavaliers, but Jarrett Allen also showed talent as a playmaker. Every pick-and-roll felt like one of us was diving hard to the hoop and finding the other to cut the baseline for a lob or easy dropoff. The two combined for 13 assists. This showed how much the Thunder are missing Chet Holmgren. OKC’s role players were good, but not great. And the lack of interior size really hurt the Thunder. Isaiah Hartenstein had trouble defending the pick-and-roll and then the rim. They needed him or Chet. (According to OKC’s original injury schedule, Holmgren’s status should be reevaluated in the coming weeks.) There can’t be a lull against Cleveland’s shot-making. For about 45 minutes, the Thunder did a great job of matching Cleveland’s historically great offense. But OKC was stagnant for about two minutes, which was enough for the Cavs to shut it down. The Cavs had seven players score in double figures, five players had four or more assists, and Cleveland had 36 assists on 47 shots. I need a cigarette.
And we won’t have to wait long for the rematch next Thursday in OKC.
The Last 24: Another Mock Draft SZN
🙏 LA fires impact NBA. Kawhi Leonard sat out last night’s Clippers-Nuggets loss because he was with his evacuated family, but the league said it is monitoring the situation for tonight’s Hornets-Lakers game. Click here for live updates.
🕰️ Jimmy Butler can’t be rushed. Sam Amick explains that the Heat can be patient here.
🏀 New Mocks! Sam Veceny has updated his latest mock draft, and Ace Bailey seems to be the most polarizing. where will he go?
🏀 Make a deal. Marcus Thompson said the Warriors need to make deals to strengthen their roster. You have to do that.
📺 Don’t miss this match tonight. Houston Rockets vs. Memphis Grizzlies, 8pm ET, League Pass. These two teams are currently competing for the second seed in the West.
📺 Great test. Minnesota Timberwolves vs. Orlando Magic, 7pm ET on NBA TV or Fubo (free trial). The Wolves are looking for their identity, and the Magic have one. Good matchup for both teams.
Scott Wachter/Imagine Images
Shooting Concerns/Concerns 🎭: Is Jokic the best 3-point shooter?
Here at The Bounce, we’re looking for anomalies in 3-point shooting, for better or worse. We want to highlight some really great and perhaps amazing skills (up until they hit 25 points). I also want to check on players who are really struggling and suggest different ways of attacking them.
Therefore, we are opening a new section titled “Concerns/Concerns Regarding Shootings.” Here are two examples of great cinematography and two examples of mind-boggling flaws. (Statistics provided by NBA.com/stats)
Shooting oops!
Did you know that Nikola Jokic leads the NBA in 3-point percentage? It’s not even about barely qualifying. Big Honey (a much better nickname than Joker) is converting 47.3 percent of his 4.8 attempts per game.
Jokic’s previous career best was 39.8 percent on 3.7 attempts. He’s shooting a ridiculous 52.3 percent on catch-and-shoot 3-pointers. The tallest players to lead the league in 3-point percentage were Steve Novak and Matt Bonner, both 6 feet 10 inches tall. Jokic is 6 feet 11 inches tall. Luke Kennard currently ranks second in the NBA at 45.3 percent. He led the NBA in 2022 and 2023.
Boston’s Peyton Pritchard is leading the charge for Sixth Man of the Year honors, but he’s also one of the most dangerous catch-and-shoot players.
Pritchard has shot 42 percent on 8.3 attempts per game over his career and ranks third in catch-and-shoot 3-point shooting at 47.6 percent. Of the top 50 players in catch-and-shoot attempts, only Karl-Anthony Towns (48.2) has a better shooting grade. In Celtics wins, Pritchard has completed 51.4% of those attempts.
Trouble with shooting…
Unfortunately for Jaylen Green, he gave us our first Shooting Woe. That’s because so far this season, he’s been an almost incomprehensible pull-up 3-point shooter, shooting just 29.7 percent on 4.6 shots per game.
In his first three seasons, he shot 33.4 percent there. Of the 31 players with at least 100 pull-up 3-point attempts, only CJ McCollum (29.0) is worse. Green was last among players with at least 200 pull-up jumpers, with an effective field goal percentage of 40.1.
And while Trae Young has been playing very good basketball for most of this season, his jump shot has fallen short. His 34.0 percent shooting percentage from deep is the third-worst of his career, but what’s shocking is how poorly he shoots from wide open.
Young ranks second in wide-open 3-point attempts with 171, but makes just 33.9 percent. In his first six seasons, he knocked down 40.1 percent of them. Cam Thomas is better at close 3-point shooting (40.0) than Young is at shooting wide-open attempts. Just terribly bad.
State of the East: Is the conference just a two-horse race?
The biggest attraction for me during the Adam Silver era was the emphasis on equality in the NBA. I don’t really believe in the concept of equality in basketball. There are two reasons for this. 1) I think it must be very difficult to develop winners and develop sustainable winners. 2) The history of the league shows it at its best. The sacred era occurred during the dynasties.
I say this because there aren’t many participants in the East right now who are likely to win the conference. And the Boston Celtics own the rights and could be in the midst of long-term ownership in the conference. Let’s break everyone up into tiers and look at the entire eastern states like we did in the west on Tuesday.
Tier 5: Move your team website to Tankathon
The Nets (13-24) are now just beginning to accept their fate of chasing that powerful lottery ping pong ball. They traded away Dennis Schroder and Dorian Finney-Smith. And there are multiple teams interested in acquiring Cam Johnson. Two separate long losing streaks (7 games and 11 games) took a toll on the Raptors’ campaign (8-29). However, Scottie Barnes missed a lot of time and Immanuel Quickley only played in six games. Will they move Jakob Poeltl? The Hornets (8-27), another East team on a long losing streak (eight and 11), may not employ tanking in Charles Lee’s first season. He is trying to establish a new style and culture. The Wizards (6-29) are on pace for 68 losses. Of the current 29 people, 26 were in double digits. They are on pace for 63 double-digit losses. The record is 58 by the Dallas Mavericks in 1992-93. We support you, Wiz!
Layer 4: Where are youth movements headed?
The Pistons (19-18 👀) are only going back this far because they don’t know where else to put them. They’ve been playing good basketball from the beginning under JB Bickerstaff, especially on defense. It just amplifies how bad the Monty Williams era was. They’re heading in the right direction, but I can’t believe they can get past the play-ins. The Bulls (17-20) have a difficult decision to make at the deadline. Will they keep Nikola Vucevic (and maybe Denver’s Zach LaVine?) for the deadline and commit to a full youth movement? Chicago loses a first-round pick (to San Antonio) if it falls outside of the top 10.
Level 3: Excellent on paper
The Heat (18-17) are currently requesting a trade for Jimmy Butler due to financial reasons. We can count them in a moment, but first let’s see how things play out for Butler. They get no benefit from using tanks. The Hawks (19-18) are exactly what they would have us believe. For years, they underperformed compared to the amount of talent they had on their roster. I’m trying to agree. Not only are Philadelphia fans tired of hearing about whether the 76ers (15-20) are healthy, but I’m also tired of talking about it all the time. Unfortunately, this team will always be sitting there until something changes in the playoffs.
Tier 2: Healthy Threat
Looking at how the Bucks (19-16) have been since their win in Las Vegas, I’m really starting to believe in the curse of the cup. We need to see them stay healthy for a long time with Khris Middleton. The Pacers (20-18) are heading in the right direction, and if they play like this on offense, they’ll be dangerous again in the playoffs. Avoid if possible. Two of the next three games will be against Cleveland. The good news for the Magic (22-16) is that Paolo Banchero will reportedly return to the court soon. Orlando is definitely a first-round matchup to avoid if you’re aiming for a title.
Tier 1: Beast of the East
Yes, I would put the Knicks (25-13) in the top tier. Their defense has been really good lately, and their offensive execution has been ridiculous. They can beat anyone in the playoffs. The Celtics (27-10) are still the champions, and their best is probably better than anyone else’s. We’re witnessing a truly historic season for the Cavs (32-4), but they’ve had such an underwhelming record that we’ll dismiss them until we see them perform in the playoffs. would be difficult. they are legal.
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(Top photo: Jason Miller/Getty Images)
