Good morning. Happy NBA Playoffs Eve.
That and more in Friday’s NBA newsletter.
Good morning. Let’s basketball.
GINORMOUS PLAYOFF PREVIEW: We have a big fancy playoff preview commandeered by Mike Prada, who has fascinating notes on all 16 teams. Check it out. (You can also get to the individual team previews via this link.)
THE MEASURE OF THESE CELTICS: Paul Flannery with a deep dive into Brad Stevens, the roleplayer-heavy Celtics and how they made this playoff run actually happen.
A SEASON UNLIKE ANY OTHER: Bethlehem Shoals eulogizes Russell Westbrook’s epic season.
BLUE CHIPS: Jonathan Abrams has an excellent oral history of the failed dynasty of the 1990s Orlando Magic. I was a young teen when Penny joined Shaq, and while I was a Kings fan, I was really interested in that Magic squad. I think everyone of my generation was astounded by Shaq’s combination of size and athleticism at that stage, and tossing such a cool, odd player like Penny with him was just ... uh, magic. That Lil’ Penny ad campaign (culminating in the “No Diggity” video) was something else, too.
HGH TESTING HERE: The NBA and players’ union finally reached a deal to start testing for HGH. The penalties are massive (20 games on first positive test, 45 on second, ban on third). That will be rolled into next season’s standard testing program. Suspicious that Johnny Salmons retired when he did, no?
KERR’S GOLDEN PLAN: Ramona Shelburne digs in to figure out how Steve Kerr adapted the styles and tactics of all the coaching greats he played for.
AT LEAST HE’S HONEST: Lionel Hollins straight up says that he doesn’t think the Nets have any advantages over the Hawks. What’s he supposed to say?
PRETTY CUT AND DRY: If you shot well on threes this season, you were pretty likely to make the playoffs. This is how Nik Stauskas goes No. 7 in a draft.
C’MON WHY ARE YOU LYIN’? Kevin Durant, Russell Westbrook say they will not watch the playoffs after being knocked out. Riiiight.
RYAN KELLY’S BEARD REALLY IS A PROBLEM: Zach Lowe caps the regular season with 35 things he does and does not like.
SLIGHTLY WORRISOME: NBA on ABC regular season ratings continue to stink unless LeBron is playing. ABC really has failed to turn its Sunday broadcasts into An Event. Part of it might be that they don’t even start the Sunday broadcasts until January to avoid NFL battles, and part of it is that they and the NBA choose bad games. I mean, League Pass doesn’t really have enough subscribers to hurt network television, does it? It’s a pickle.
Happy Friday. We’ll back back tomorrow morning and all postseason. See you next time.
