Last night, the full-strength Clippers (sorry, Mason Plumlee!) lost to a Nuggets team missing its three best players playing on a road back-to-back, and it reinforced what I’ve been thinking all season: Paul George is the Clippers’ best player, and if that remains true, the Clippers are screwed. George is a fascinating character, as equally capable of thought-provoking musings and jaw-dropping dunks as foot-in-mouth gaffes and perplexing mistakes. And he’s spent a lot of time thinking — and talking! — about his ideal role on the Clippers. To ESPN, at the start of last season: “I’m the two. Kaw ..read more

Ryan Dunn is one of the best wing defenders in the country excelling in that role as a freshman in limited time. The 6’7, 208 lb wing out of Virginia is currently a Sophomore with a projected draft age of 21.5. At the time of writing this article, he is ranked #28 on our 2024 NBA Draft Big Board.  In this draft profile, we’ll break down Ryan Dunn’s strengths and weaknesses, and provide an outlook for his fit and role with NBA teams in need. Highlights The good  Offense Dunn is a good finisher around the basket and an excellent off-ball player. Shows ok shooting form and was suppose ..read more

MINNEAPOLIS, MN-The KAT Renaissance is upon us. Yes, you read that right. Yes, I am referring to the KAT you know. Karl-AnthonyTowns. Heading into the year with low expectations after an injury-riddled year this past season, he has far exceeded them and could now be a deciding factor for an NBA title contender.  His numbers show only a marginal increase in his traditional stats from the previous year: 22.0 points per game(PPG), 9.0 rebounds per game (RPG), and 3.0 assists per game (APG).  He is shooting 50.0% from the field, 40.3% from behind the arc with an effective field goal % of ..read more

Short post today as I’m traveling all week, but I’ve wanted to get something off my chest for a while now. Plenty of people out there seem excited about the In-Season Tournament (IST), but many, many more have shown skepticism or outright hostility to the idea. Why? What is the upside of not being excited about this? Maybe it’ll suck in the long run, but so far, it’s been objectively fun. We haven’t even hit the elimination stages, and it’s already seen great buy-in from players and coaches, had a few classic games, and been the source of several on-court brouhahas, most notably the absurd Kla ..read more

Welcome back to The Weekly 4-Point Play, our new weekly column highlighting four of the biggest and most exciting stories in the association. In case you missed it, Volume 3 is here. We are inching closer to that December 15th date where the majority of the league will be available to trade. Which is interesting because we might have had a trade request in the Windy City. We will be looking at how the Clippers might try to turn around a bad start to the James Harden era, head to the trade machine, and look at another potential superstar. And don’t let me forget about the Block Party of the We ..read more

Folks, thanks for being here! If you haven’t yet, please make sure to follow me on X/Twitter (@bballispoetry) and/or on Blue Sky (@basketballpoetry), and don’t forget to visit www.basketballpoetry.com for semi-weekly analysis like this. Thank you! RJ Barrett is off to a torrid start to the season, but we’ve seen this movie before. Barrett is human confirmation bias: even now, in his best season, it’s easy to see exactly what you want to see in Barrett. Has he really taken a leap this year, or is it simply an earlier-than-usual Barrett hot streak? I decided to lay out the case for and against B ..read more

Alexandre Dam Sarr, the 7’1 220 Big from France who played his high school ball at Overtime Elite has now been very, very good for the NBL’s Perth Wildcats. He is definitely the highest riser for me this year on the Big Board and in our Mock Draft. In this 2024 NBA Draft Profile, we’ll highlight the pros and cons of Alex Sarr’s game, as well as point out the best fits around the association. The Good First off, Sarr’s size is perfect. He’s tall enough to play some 5 but also mobile enough to guard 4s. With players like Mobley, Holmgren, Wembanyama, Davis and Antetokounmpo all blurring the line ..read more

Folks, thanks for being here! If you haven’t yet, please make sure to follow me on X/Twitter (@bballispoetry) and/or on Blue Sky (@basketballpoetry), and don’t forget to visit www.basketballpoetry.com for semi-weekly analysis like this. Thank you! Jalen Smith, adapting It’s probably marketing suicide to start with the Indiana Pacers’ backup center, but I am who I am. Jalen Smith isn’t anyone’s idea of a star. He won’t be on too many highlight reels, and he’s not likely to be a critical playoff piece. But he’s shown tremendous personal growth as a player this season in his new role on the team ..read more

Welcome back to The Weekly 4-Point Play, our new weekly column highlighting four of the biggest and most exciting stories in the association. In case you missed it, Volume 2 is here. We are starting to get into the thick of the NBA season. We are finding out how good (or not good) teams are and storylines are starting to develop. We will take a look at one of the best defensive players in the league as well as take a trip up north to look at a potential future superstar. And don’t let me forget about the Block Party of the Week. Let’s dive into it. Take us away Steph Curry! Role Player Spotli ..read more

The Chet Holmgren/Victor Wembanyama comparisons are inevitable. Both are rookies. Both are tall and so thin as to be two-dimensional. Both have untraditional skills for seven-footers, and both are fierce ballhawks on defense. But the details are decidedly different. Wembanyama carries the burden of being the guy for a San Antonio Spurs team at a talent deficit on most nights, and his usage proves it. The Spurs have quickly (and rightfully) made him the focal point of everything they do on both ends. They’re playing the long game. Chet has arguably a more difficult task, however. He has to fit ..read more