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Today’s Lineup

🎉 Happy birthday to Tim Duncan and Mercury forward Satou Sabally! 🎉

Playoff Update

Knicks hold on for 118-116 win over Detroit, take 2-1 series lead

In Detroit’s first home playoff game since 2019, the Knicks reminded Pistons fans why experience matters.

Jalen Brunson (30 PTS, 9 AST, 7 REB) was the main catalyst for New York’s success last night, starting the game slow but finishing strong. And during his lackluster start, it was the rest of New York’s top four—KAT (31 PTS, 8 REB), Mikal (20 PTS, 7 REB, 3 STL), and OG (22 PTS, 2 STL)—that kept the Knicks’ offense humming and did enough on defense to neutralize Cade Cunningham (24 PTS, 11 AST, 7 REB, 4 STL).

Tim Hardaway Jr.’s red-hot shooting (24 PTS, 7-12 3PM) kept Detroit in this game all the way down to the final seconds, but the Knicks’ ability to stay mistake-free was crucial down the stretch. Every time the Pistons gained a little momentum—which, to Detroit’s credit, happened a lot—the Knicks hit a big three or made back-to-back stops and pushed them down again.

Shout-out to the fans at Little Caesars Arena, because this felt like a legitimate playoff atmosphere in a city that hasn’t felt that for years. It was a back-and-forth affair that got pretty physical—we can’t wait for Game 4. ⏰

Jalen Green’s 38 helps Houston even series at 1-1 with 109-94 win over Golden State

Earlier this month, we talked about how Jalen Green embracing a leadership role with the Rockets had been crucial to their regular season success. Now, we’re seeing that concept work in the postseason too.

Green (38 PTS, 6 AST, 3 STL) sunk eight three-pointers in an explosive offensive effort that powered the Rockets to a dominant win over Steph Curry (20 PTS, 9 AST) and the Warriors. Houston led from wire to wire, as mediocre production from Golden State’s options down the roster allowed Green, Alperen Sengun (17 PTS, 16 REB, 7 AST), and the rest of this young Rockets squad to grab the franchise’s first playoff win since 2020.

NOTE: an on-court collision sidelined Jimmy Butler in the first quarter, leaving the Warriors without Steph’s “Robin” for the rest of the game. He was able to shoot his free throws, but he’s expected to be unavailable for Game 3 with a pelvis contusion—here’s hoping we see this Jimmy again real soon.

Elsewhere around the NBA…

• After Scotty Pippen Jr. (28 PTS, 6-10 3PM) and the Grizzlies opened up a 29-point first-half lead over OKC, the Thunder pulled off an INSANE comeback to beat Memphis 114-108 and take a dominant 3-0 series lead. Chet Holmgren’s shooting (24 PTS, 5-10 3PM) was especially instrumental in getting the Thunder back in the game in the second half, but OKC’s other two usual suspects—SGA (31 PTS, 8 AST) and J-Dub (26 PTS, 6 REB, 5 AST)—were active too. Pippen replaced Ja Morant, who left the game in the first half after a mid-air collision with Lu Dort.

• With Jayson Tatum sidelined, Jaylen Brown (36 PTS, 10 REB, 5 AST) and the Celtics beat Orlando 109-100 on Wednesday to protect home court advantage and take a 2-0 lead in their series. Paolo impressed with 32 PTS, 9 REB, and 7 AST of his own, but it wasn’t enough against the stacked C’s. Onto Orlando!

• Last time, it was just Kawhi Leonard (21 PTS, 11 REB); this time, it was everyone else. In the first playoff game at the new Intuit Dome, James Harden (20 PTS, 9 AST) led the Clippers’ supporting cast in a 117-83 rout of the Nuggets, with Norman Powell (20 PTS) and Nic Batum (12 PTS, 4-6 3PM) getting in on the fun and L.A. leading by as many as 34. A Jokic triple-double (23 PTS, 13 AST, 13 REB) wasn’t enough for the Nuggets, who now find themselves down 2-1 with a Game 4 in Los Angeles up next. 

• After a big first quarter from Miami’s Tyler Herro (33 PTS, 6 REB, 5 AST), the Cavaliers remembered who they were: a 1-seed playing an 8-seed. Cleveland turned the jets on, took the lead late in the 1Q, and held onto it for the rest of the game. A dagger of a fourth quarter from Donovan Mitchell (30 PTS, 6 REB, 6 AST, 7-10 3PM) sealed it as the Cavs beat Miami 121-112: 2-0, Cleveland.

Film Friday: DPOY Edition

Congratulations to your 2024-25 Defensive Player of the Year, Cleveland’s Evan Mobley!

Last night, Mobley became the first Cavalier to ever win DPOY, securing the award over fellow finalists Draymond Green and Dyson Daniels. After making the All-Defensive Team and being a finalist for this award in 2023, this was more than overdue for a lethally versatile defender.

The award made us go rewatch some of his tape from this season, and we took away three big things about his successful case for the league’s highest defensive honor.

1. He doesn’t fit the traditional “dominant rim protector” DPOY archetype—Mobley excels in the paint and on the perimeter.

Being able to guard 1-5 is a phrase that’s thrown around a lot, but Mobley is one of those guys it really applies to. He was fifth in the league this year in contested three-point shots per game (3.2), all while averaging a block and a half and imposing his will as an elite rim protector. That versatility is evident when you know that the Cavs ranked 7th in defense with Mobley on the court, but only 17th with him on the bench.

2. Mobley is fully settling into a “free safety” role with Jarrett Allen behind him.

With Allen holding down the five, Mobley thrived this season as a rover—reading passing lanes, switching when he needed to, and cleaning up mistakes. That kind of vision and basketball IQ was especially useful given his athleticism and size—the impending doom of Mobley’s 7’4” wingspan stunted opponents’ offenses and was a huge reason why Cleveland finished third in opponent field goal percentage (45.4%).

3. He’s a clean, smart, effective player who very rarely makes mistakes.

When you watch Mobley operate, it’s not just the box score items that are so impressive—it’s how rarely he’s in the wrong spot or doing the wrong thing. The only player in the NBA to record at least 1.5 blocks and fewer than 2.0 fouls per game this season, Mobley is both one of the the best and most disciplined defenders in the league. Congrats on the award, Evan!

Three in the Key

Signing Off

Playoff basketball never stops, and neither do we. We’ll be back in your inbox on Monday, when we might know who the first few squads advancing to the conference semifinals are. Peace! ✌️

Austin Zeglis