We’re back with more awards! As a reminder: these awards are for the third quarter only, which I’m defining as from Jan 10th, 2023, through…
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Michael Shearer
Michael Shearer is an NBA obsessive who writes to answer the questions he has about the league. You can follow him @bballispoetry. He also is a contributing writer for Fansided at Hoops Habit and writes a free NBA analytical newsletter at basketballpoetry.com that goes out every Tuesday and Friday.
Four Numbers To Watch Down The NBA’s Stretch Run
19.6 19.6 is the number of midrange (10-19 foot) jumpers that Devin Booker, Chris Paul, and Kevin Durant average per game. For reference, only the…
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In Praise of the Washington Wizards
There isn’t a team in the league as quickly dismissed by NBA pundits as the Washington Wizards. Critics snicker at the Wizards’ willingness to forego…
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2023 NBA All-Star Saturday Night Preview: Skills Competition, Three-Point Competition & Dunk Contest Predictions
The rosters are set. Tickets are booked. Controversies are brewing. Weird substitutions are happening. And we’re just talking about the three-point contest! All-Star Saturday is…
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The League’s Wildest Shot Charts in 2022-23
The shot chart is one of the niftiest and most useful tools in basketball analysis. Invented by ESPN’s Kirk Goldsberry, a former professor of geography…
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Grading the 2023 NBA Trade Deadline
Remember those halcyon days when it looked like the trade deadline would be chill? “There aren’t enough sellers,” people claimed. Well, it turns out that…
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Who won (and who lost) the Kyrie Irving trade?
We just heard about the Kyrie trade demands on Friday, but the Nets moved swiftly to unload the problematic shooting guard. The Mavericks called and…
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Looking Back At Last Year’s Trade Deadline
Last year’s trade deadline was a doozy, with a massive number of important trades happening all across the league. Even though grading trades when they…
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The New Year Brought Back The Old Gobert
Writing several basketball articles per week, I’ve come to appreciate the finer things in life — like easily sortable statistics. I draw numbers from a…
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NBA All-Star 2023: Eastern Conference Starter & Reserve Picks
The All-Star starters will be released on Thursday, and the coaches will select the reserves shortly after that. Picking All-Star teams every year is a…
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The NBA’s Top Assist Combinations
I’ve been watching a lot of Denver Nuggets basketball recently, and I was struck, once again, by how often Nikola Jokic can find Aaron Gordon…
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How much is Zone Defense used in the NBA in 2022-23?
*Data per Synergy Sports and Cleaning The Glass as of the morning of Jan 17, 2023* About this time last year, I did a deep…
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3 Underrated NBA Players in 2022-23
“Underrated” is a subjective term. When I peer through the keyhole of the universe’s door, I can only see a certain slice of people’s opinions…
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Q2 NBA Awards
It seems like we were handing out trophies for first-quarter awards just yesterday, but it’s that time again! We’re at the halfway point for most…
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Nic Claxton’s Game Has Grown With His Muscles
Before Wednesday’s loss to the Chicago Bulls (who, weirdly, are 6-1 against Eastern heavyweights Boston, Brooklyn, and Milwaukee, and 11-20 against everyone else), the Nets…
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Context Is Overrated
Donovan Mitchell dropped 71 points last night, forcing me to shelve my column about the Brooklyn Nets (12 straight wins!) until at least Friday, at…
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4 Stats Explaining the Knicks’ Win Streak
The Knicks’ eight-game win streak finally gave up the ghost against the reeling Toronto Raptors, but it may have saved some jobs. On December 3rd,…
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Kawhi And The Clippers Are Waking Up
The Los Angeles Clippers are used to lurking in the shadows. Despite Ballmer’s limitless Microsoft money, despite having two of the biggest names in the…
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Every Would-Be Contender’s Biggest Flaw
We have two clear frontrunners in the NBA title race in Boston and Milwaukee. After that, there’s a jumble of teams trying to convince themselves…
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One of these rookies will win a playoff game
This year’s rookie class doesn’t quite have the highs of last year’s crop (Paolo excepted). But unlike in most years, players are filling essential roles…
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