The Trae Young era in Atlanta is coming to a crossroads with his free agency looming, no extension in sight, and a Hawks squad that looked better without him. Not sure who the ideal trade partner is due to the defense and off-ball concerns without being a championship #1

Damn that sucks for Toronto. Was reminiscent of that K-Love to Bron banked 3

Only three of the top ten most efficient offenses are in the top ten for 3's taken.

Raptors with RJ Barrett: 16-7 Raptors with RJ Barrett: 7-9 Unfortunately he went down with an ankle sprain last night. The Raptors have been a different team with him on the floor thanks to what RJ brings as a driver, transition threat, cutter, and closeout attacker.

Notable home vs road splits: - Knicks: 16-4 home | 7-10 road - Magic: 13-6 home | 9-11 road - Heat 13-6 home 7-12 road - Hawks 7-11 home, 12-10 road - Rockets: 11-2 home, 11-11 road - Warriors: 13-5 home, 8-13 road - Clippers 9-9 home, 6-14 road - Mavs: 10-10 home, 4-14 road

The Clippers 6-21 on December 18th. Since then, LA has an NBA best 10-2 record with the league’s 2nd best offense & 7th best defense. Prior to that, LA was 23rd on offense & 26th in defense. All of a sudden, the Clippers are 1 game back of the play-in.

Midseason Tiers: For me, this is a mix of current performance with playoff potential. I think any of the top 5 in the West is capable of a Finals run. OKC remains the favorite, but they certainly don't look unbeatable like they did a month ago. I'm less confident in the East.

This stretch was insane

I was skeptical of the All-Star game format but it was great. Difficult to blow teams out in a 12 minute quarter, though the OG's ran out of gas in the final one. It created three different crunch times.

Windows are never as long as you think in today's NBA. Whether it's injuries, egos, chemistry, declines, or financial decisions, keeping a core together is difficult.

Generating efficient shots absolutely matters, but winning the possession game can be equally important. The Celtics have mastered the math. They drill 3's, protect the ball, and crash the glass hard. Those last two pieces always have been keys to success.

Cooper Flagg is growing more comfortable by the game.

Deandre Ayton playing with consistent force and a high motor would be one of the better bigs in the league. That just hasn't happened on a regular basis since the Suns Finals run.