There can be only one champion. Here’s how the ride on the championship bus looks today
David Thorpe, True Hoop
DEN 97, PHO 87
Jokic’s 39-point masterclass gives Nuggets 2-0 lead
Mike Singer, Denver Post
Jokić shows what an MVP looks like in Game 2 win
Tony Jones, The Athletic
The Suns’ Playoff Offense Is Playing in the Past
Rohan Nadkarni, Sports Illustrated
With or without Chris Paul, Suns need more from Kevin Durant and others
Doug Haller, The Athletic
The Nuggets 3-point defense was fantastic in Game 2
Ian Levy, The Step Back
Jokic dominated the Suns en route to critical Game 2 victory
Mike Shearer, Basketball Poetry
GSW-LAL
Can This Version of LeBron Lead the Lakers Past the Warriors?
Michael Pina, The Ringer
Don’t forget about Andrew Wiggins in Warriors-Lakers clash
Sam Amick, The Athletic
2 major questions Warriors must answer to beat Lakers
Jack Winter, Clutch Points
Pelinka defied critics and built a contender
Mirjam Swanson, OC Register
3 things Anthony Davis needs to do in Lakers vs. Warriors series
Robert Marvi, USA Today
Series Preview
Jovan Buha, The Athletic
Series Preview
Connor Letourneau, SF Chronicle
Series Preview
SF Chronicle
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PHI 119, BOS 115
Celtics’ hot start cools, and James Harden goes off for 45 as 76ers take Game 1
Adam Himmelsbach, Boston Globe
Harden willed the Sixers to steal Game 1 in Boston without Joel Embiid
Rich Hofmann, The Athletic
The Celtics caught a break with Joel Embiid out. They delivered a defensive debacle
Gary Washburn, Boston Globe
Evolutionary Harden
Jared Dubin, Last Night In Basketball
Celtics were prepared for Joel Embiid-less 76ers but still couldn’t stop James Harden
Jared Weiss, The Athletic
How one wild Tyrese Maxey sequence helped 76ers steal Game 1
Brian Windhorst, ESPN
Celtics’ defense — once their calling card — goes missing as Sixers stun in Game 1
Jay King, The Athletic
Game 1 loss highlights a notable weakness
Darren Hartwell, NBC Sports
Doc Rivers makes all the right moves to beat Boston without Joel Embiid
Marcus Hayes, The Inquirer
4 takeaways as Celtics suffer stunning loss
Brian Robb, Mass Live
Harden’s 45 points carry Sixers to Game 1 win
Kyle Neubeck, Philly Voice
Harden came through and the Sixers stole home court advantage
Mike Shearer, Basketball Poetry
MIA-NYK
How is Kevin Love able to throw long passes for easy points?
Fred Katz, The Athletic
Where things went awry for the Knicks in Game 1
Jonathan Macri, Knicks Film School
Kevin Love proves he can still be a low-key hero
Mike Vorkunov, The Athletic
How did Kevin Love become an excellent outlet passer? Love explains his unique skill
Anthony Chiang, Miami Herald
What went wrong for Cavs and Grizzlies, and how do they fix it?
John Hollinger, The Athletic
Top 100 Big Board: Wemby still No. 1; Taylor Hendricks among big risers
Sam Vecenie, The Athletic
Big Board 7.0
Christopher Kline, The Step Back
(Wembanyama is) probably the most unique prospect in modern NBA history. He’s everything the league currently values — length, dynamic shooting, defensive versatility, scalable offense — plugged into the most absurd physical frame one could think of. There aren’t too many holes in Wembanyama’s game. He’s an excellent movement shooter with what might be the first actually unguardable jumper. Despite his high center of gravity, he’s more than capable of negotiating tight spaces off the bounce and fluidly moving into his pull-up jumper. Slower defenders are vulnerable to straight-line drives. His length and touch make up for his lack of strength finishing inside. On defense, he just inhales shots in the paint and is too long to actually drive by. Even if you get a step on Wembanyama, he’s capable of channeling Mr. Fantastic to swat the ball from behind
Brice Sensabaugh’s scoring proficiency at Ohio State was near-unprecedented. But will the rest of his game hold him back?
Maxwell Baumbach, No Ceilings
Dereck Lively: Scouting Report
Adam Spinella, The Box And One
FOUR YEARS AGO TODAY: from the BI archives
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