TEAM-SPECIFIC

ATL: Hawks move to eighth in the East after downing Nets
Lauren Williams, AJC

ATL: Dyson Daniels unlocking more tools
Lauren Williams, AJC

BOS: Celtics’ ‘young wolves’ continue to impress Jaylen Brown despite late loss to Thunder
Jay King, The Athletic

DET: How Detroit’s New Bad Boys climbed from the NBA’s cellar to rule the East
Lee Escobedo, The Guardian

DET: 7 Pistons (but not Cade Cunningham) score in double figures vs 76ers
Omari Sankofa II, Free Press

LAC: Kawhi Leonard is reminding the Clippers exactly why they risked it all to get him
Oliver Fox, Fansided

LAL: Lakers peaking at the right time, beat Bulls for another win
James H. Williams, USA Today

The rest of the team-specific stories as well as leaguewide and draft-related stories follow for paid subscribers.

Also be sure to check out part one of today’s newsletter from this morning: (https://www.basketballintelligence.net/p/basketball-intelligence-for-31326 )

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FEATURES OF THE DAY

Inside Shai Gilgeous-Alexander’s record-breaking night — the beauty, elegance and sheer joy of his game
Kelly Iko, Yahoo Sports

Unsung NBA heroes
David Thorpe, True Hoop

TEAM-SPECIFIC

BKN: Muscular dystrophy took his mobility. His voice carried him to the Hall of Fame
Andrew Marchand, The Athletic

BOS: The Celtics had a chance to beat the defending champs, but Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and the Thunder took this one
Adam Himmelsbach, Boston Globe

BOS: Jaylen Brown opens up on NBA officiating, flopping
Gary Washburn, Boston Globe

BOS: CELTICS-THUNDER: What Worked, What didn’t work and what worked better than expected
Sherrod Blakely, Full Court Press

CHA: How Charles Lee is getting the best out of LaMelo Ball, Hornets’ young core
Roderick Boone, Charlotte Observer

DAL: Mavericks top Grizzlies in battle of teams jockeying for NBA draft lottery positioning
Mike Curtis, Morning News

DAL: Daniel Gafford regains his footing despite season-long ankle injury
Mike Curtis, Morning News

DEN: 5 Reasons The Nuggets Came Back From 20 To Defeat Spurs
Eddie Bitar, Fadeaway World

DEN: Nuggets rally from down 20 to beat Spurs
Bennett Durando, Denver Post

IND: First impressions of Ivica Zubac
Caitlin Cooper, Basketball She Wrote

IND: Zubac, Slawson deliver solid home debuts for Pacers in loss to Suns
Tom Lewis, Indy Cornrows

LAC: Clippers have been dialing up their defense during recent run
Janis Carr, OC Register

LAL: Luka Doncic scores 51 points as surging Lakers rout Bulls in LeBron’s return
Thuc Nhi Nguyen, LA Times

LAL: Observations: Game 66 vs Bulls
Iztok Franko, digginbasketball

Luka Dončić is still kind of good at basketball.

Listening to the countless media voices bashing him over the last few weeks, or looking at the NBA MVP Ladder where he dropped to sixth place, one could think Dončić is having a terrible season and his team is struggling. Thankfully, the games are still played, and that is the place where Dončić continues to do his magic.

MIL: Bucks’ superb Ousmane Dieng trade has produced rare outcome
Dalton Sell, Behind The Buck Pass

MIN: Timberwolves are primed for major offseason changes if current trajectory continues
Eamon Cassels, Dunking With Wolves

NYK: The Secret to KAT’s Resurgence
Jonathan Macri, Knicks Film School

OKC: Inside Shai Gilgeous-Alexander’s record-breaking night — the beauty, elegance and sheer joy of his game
Kelly Iko, Yahoo Sports

OKC: Shai Gilgeous-Alexander sets the record as Thunder outlasts Celtics
Justin Martinez, The Oklahoman

ORL: Magic still trying to master their toughest opponent: Themselves
Philip Rossman-Reich, Orlando Magic Daily

SAC: The hidden side of Russell Westbrook: NBA’s most hostile interview is also its kindest teammate
Stephen Noh, Sporting News

SAS: How De’Aaron Fox Found ‘His Stride’ at Right Time
Matt Guzman, Sports Illustrated

WAS: Coulibaly Leads Wizards Offense in Overtime Loss to Orlando Magic
Kevin Broom, Bullets Forever

Leaguewide and draft-related stories follow for paid subscribers

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TEAM-SPECIFIC

CHA: The Who, What, When, Where, Why And How Behind The Hornets’ 180 On Defense
Sam Perley, hornets.com

CHA: GAMENOTES: Hornets vs. Kings
Owen Watterson, Every Hornets Boxscore

CLE: Game Night Observations: Porous Defense, James Harden’s Scoring and More
Danny Cunningham, The Inside Shot

CLE: Donovan Mitchell urges NBA to make coaches’ challenge rule change
Chris Fedor, cleveland.com

CLE: The Cavs’ defensive identity crisis isn’t improving. Could it be the system?
Chris Fedor/Ethan Sands, cleveland.com

DEN: Nuggets blow out Rockets and find their missing rhythm
Patrick Saunders, Denver Post

DEN: Cam Johnson trying to ‘hoop and have fun’ amid strange season
Bennett Durando, Denver Post

‘I think sometimes, he’s trying to make perfect plays, instead of just making the play that is right there in front of (him),’ Nuggets coach David Adelman said

DEN: Christian Braun contributes on both ends in Nuggets’ big win over Rockets
Vinny Benedetto, Denver Gazette

HOU: Rockets mauled by Nuggets as wheels come off in second half
Varun Shankar, Houston Chronicle

LAC: Kawhi Leonard’s 45 powers Clippers’ record-setting night
Justin Russo

LAC: Kawhi Leonard, surging Clippers crush Timberwolves
Janis Carr, OC Register

LAL: The Lakers’ improved defense could shape their playoff push. Can they sustain it?
Law Murray, The Athletic

The rest of the team-specific as well as leaguewide, draft-related and (Day Two) BAM stories follow for paid subscribers

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TEAM-SPECIFIC

ATL: Hawks down Mavericks to grab NBA’s longest active winning streak
Lauren Williams, AJC

ATL: Kuminga fits Atlanta’s scheme perfectly; But are the non-transition moments good enough?
Sam Vecenie, Game Theory

BKN: Til Next Season, Egor; Nets Fans Barely Got to Know The Real You
Steve Lichtenstein

BOS: 4 Takeaways From The Celtics Loss To The Spurs
Adam Taylor, The Celtics Chronicle

CHA: Hornets Charge Back From 19 Down To Nip Portland
Sam Perley, Hornets.com

CHA: GAMENOTES: Regular Season Game #66 vs Blazers
Owen Watterson, Every Hornets Boxscore

CHA: ‘Character win’ in Portland shows these aren’t Hornets of old
Roderick Boone, Charlotte Observer

CHA: PODCAST: Sacramento Kings vs Charlotte Hornets Preview
Ray LeBov/Nick Agar-Johnson/Eamon Cassells, Kings Weekly Podcast

CLE: Two superstars, two passing styles: Harden vs. Mitchell, inside the Cavs’ offense
Ethan Sands/Jimmy Watkins, cleveland.com

DEN: As they get healthy, Nuggets are hoping to discover their true identity
Shaun Powell, NBA.com

GSW: Warriors’ Kerr reiterates he wants NBA to cut down season; says quality of play would improve
Nick Friedell, The Athletic

GSW: Warriors’ playoff picture gets murkier after Ls to Jazz, Bulls
Evan Webeck, California Post

HOU: The Rockets’ fatal flaws are likely to be exploited in the playoffs
Eamon Cassels, Fansided

The rest of the team-specific stories as well as leaguewide and draft-related stories and a special section on the BAM game follow for paid subscribers

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Ray and Nick bring Eamon Cassels of FanSided on the show to discuss the remarkable season of the Charlotte Hornets, and some possible parallels between them and the Sacramento Kings. They begin by talking about the Hornets’ season as a whole and their mid-season turnaround, before focusing on four key Hornets pieces in that turnaround: Moussa Diabaté, and the rookie trio of Kon Knueppel, Ryan Kalkbrenner, and Sion James. Then, they talk about the impact of the new Hornets on Charlotte star LaMelo Ball and discuss the work of Hornets head coach Charles Lee in depth. They wrap up with a discussion of how lessons from the Hornets’ turnaround might apply to the Kings and their plans going forward.

Ray and Nick bring Eamon Cassels of FanSided on the show to discuss the remarkable season of the Charlotte Hornets, and some possible parallels between them and the Sacramento Kings. They begin by talking about the Hornets’ season as a whole and their mid-season turnaround, before focusing on four key Hornets pieces in that turnaround: Moussa Diabaté, and the rookie trio of Kon Knueppel, Ryan Kalkbrenner, and Sion James. Then, they talk about the impact of the new Hornets on Charlotte star LaMelo Ball and discuss the work of Hornets head coach Charles Lee in depth. They wrap up with a discussion of how lessons from the Hornets’ turnaround might apply to the Kings and their plans going forward.

TEAM-SPECIFIC

BOS: How good do the Celtics need Jayson Tatum to be? Scouting Boston rookie Hugo Gonzalez
John Hollinger, The Athletic

CLE: Game Night Observations: James Harden’s Third Quarter Takeover and Important Role Players
Danny Cunningham, The Inside Shot

CLE: Harden’s decision-making genius could define the Cavs’ title hopes
Ethan Sands, cleveland.com

CLE: Even from the bench, Max Strus showed why the Cavs need him — especially against the Celtics
Ethan Sands, cleveland.com

DEN: Shai Gilgeous-Alexander hits game-winner to spoil Nuggets’ dramatic 4-point play
Bennett Durando, Denver Post

DEN: Shai Gilgeous-Alexander seals Thunder win over Nuggets
Vinny Benedetto, Denver Gazette

The rest of the team-specific stories as well as leaguewide & draft-related stories follow for paid subscribers

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AROUND THE LEAGUE

We have a legitimately crazy playoff race in the East
Tom Ziller, Good Morning It’s Basketball

Three Things I Noticed on League Pass: Start Your Engines
Jared Dubin, Last Night, In Basketball with Tom Haberstroh

Healthy Jayson Tatum makes Boston a TOP TIER contender – Tom’s Title Tiers #21
Tom Haberstroh, The Finder

Should Bucks hope for lottery? Are Hornets for real? An Eastern Conference Play-In roundtable
Tony Jones/Eric Nehm/Josh Robbins, The Athletic

NBA Power Rankings: Spurs, Knicks, Celtics get A’s for season’s third quarter
Law Murray, The Athletic

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander nears Wilt’s record, Kon Knueppel’s ROY case and more
Sam Amick, The Athletic

TEAM NEWS

ATL: Jalen Johnson surges in fourth to help Hawks down 76ers for sixth straight win
Lauren Williams, Atlanta Journal-Constitution

BOS: Jayson Tatum starts strong, Jaylen Brown carries load as Celtics beat Cavs
Zack Cox, Boston Herald

BOS: Jayson Tatum turns in 20-point performance as Celtics dominate contender Cavaliers on the road
Adam Himmelsbach, The Boston Globe

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LEAGUEWIDE

The three most likely teams in each conference to win this season’s championship
Melissa Rohlin, California Post

NBA Playoff Picture: Updated Probabilities and Biggest Storylines Impacting the Standings
Blake Silverman, Sports Illustrated

THE DRAFT

NBA mock draft
Michael Chandler, The Score

Scouting report: Caleb Wilson wants to destroy you
Christopher Kline, Fansided

How will Caleb Wilson’s season-ending injury impact his NBA draft stock?
Kevin O’Connor, Yahoo Sports

Kingston Flemings and Chris Cenac Jr.: Scouting Houston’s five-star freshmen
Derek Parker, Sports Illustrated

NBA Draft sleepers
John Hollinger, The Athletic

TEAM-SPECIFIC

ATL: Can Dyson Daniels unlock his shooting?
Ayush G, The Pick And Roll

BKN: Nets Development Didn’t Take A Night Off In Shocking Comeback At Detroit
Steve Lichtenstein

BOS: Tatum starts rough, finds groove in 15-point return
Jamal Collier, ESPN

BOS: With Jayson Tatum back, the Celtics have defied the NBA’s laws of physics
Jared Weiss, The Athletic

CHA: Grant Williams: The Hornets’ most overlooked veteran is doing the heavy lifting
Eric Smith, Swarm & Sting

CHA: Hornets’ Xs&Os
Tony Miller, A Quick Timeout

CHI: Bulls coach Billy Donovan wants focus to stay on the now
Joe Cowley, Sun*Times

CHI: The Bulls bet on Josh Giddey. So why is the approach to their (supposed) star so haphazard?
Julia Poe, Chicago Tribune

CHI: Can Dillingham revive his career with the Bulls?
Joel Lorenzi, The Athletic

DET: Skidding Pistons drop their third straight
Hunter Patterson, The Athletic

GSW: Gui Santos used to carry mops to practice. Now he’s living the NBA dream
Nick Friedell, The Athletic

GSW: Porzingis explains why has ‘peace of mind’ after return from illness
Joseph Dycus, Mercury News

GSW: Porziņģis returns to Warriors’ lineup after 6-game absence
Nick Friedell, The Athletic

GSW: Porzingis returns, but undermanned Warriors fall to Thunder
Sam Gordon, SF Chronicle

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TEAM NEWS

BOS: 5 Tatum-Based Takeaways
Adam Taylor, The Celtics Chronicle

BOS: Kings quietly gifted Celtics the NBA’s best value contract
Cal Durrett, Hoops Habit

BOS: Jayson Tatum returns, shifting the balance of power in the East … and beyond
Shaun Powell, NBA.com

BOS:

LAL: Luka Doncic joins elite Lakers company with 44-point effort in win over Pacers
Broderick Turner, Los Angeles Times

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