Welcome to Layup Lines, our daily NBA newsletter where we’ll prep you for a tip-off of tonight’s action, from what to watch to bets to make. Subscribe here to get it delivered to your inbox every weekday afternoon.
Charles Curtis here. I am a Knicks fan, in case you don’t frequently read my rants on the team I grew up rooting for.
So … I have not much too root for in the NBA postseason.
But a thought occurred to me while watching the Nets nearly take down the defending champion Milwaukee Bucks on Thursday: The East needs to be as chaotic as possible in the postseason.
And that means we need the Nets to win their play-in game(s) and be the toughest No. 7 or 8 seed for the top two teams.
The Heat are such a good team. But are they a lock to run the table in a conference where the top six seeds are separated by 4.5 games as of writing this? No way. The Nets, with Kyrie Irving playing both home and away games and Kevin Durant doing KD things, are as threatening of a team as there is in the East.
Oh I know I’m ignoring their defensive struggles — our Mike Sykes detailed those in his latest NBA power rankings.
But let’s have some fun here. What if the Nets get the No. 7 seed, take down the second seed and suddenly find themselves getting a certain player they acquired at the deadline to help with those defensive problems?
That’s right, I’m dreaming of Ben Simmons walking into the Eastern semis and changing everything. I WANT IT.
CHAOS!
On to tonight’s action.
The Tip-Off
Highlighting some NBA goodness from around the USA TODAY Sports network.
Should the NBA defensive player of the year be … Bam Adebayo? Yes, says For The Win’s Bryan Kalbrosky, and his argument (backed by stats, of course) makes complete sense. I’m buying into this:
Adebayo spends 11.7% of his defensive possessions guarding point guards, per BBall Index, which is a pretty high rate for a big man.
Additionally, he has been a more efficient defender than Smart in one-on-one opportunities (no matter the talent level or the opponent’s position) thus far. But opponents tend not to bother attacking the basket when he is on the floor. That is because, unlike Smart, Adebayo is also a fantastic rim protector.
Amazing.
One to Watch
(All odds via Tipico)
Suns (-7.5, -340) vs. Grizzlies (+260)
OK, I know Ja Morant isn’t playing this game. But the Grizzlies are so darn watchable even without him. I’m kind of curious if Memphis can put up a fight against the best team in the NBA. And that’s why I’m kind of leaning toward taking the points here!
Who’s in and out?
— A whole smattering of Bucks (Giannis Antetokounmpo, Khris Middleton, Jrue Holiday and Brook Lopez) are out against the Clippers. Bobby Portis time!
— Speaking of which: The Clippers are resting Paul George, Reggie Jackson, Nicolas Batum and Marcus Morris in that game. So, uh, Terance Mann time!
— De’Aaron Fox is out for the Kings against the Rockets.
Shootaround
— How will the Celtics adapt without Robert Williams III? Daniel Theis has some answers.
— JJ Redick addressed leaving the Greek Freak off his top-3 players list.
— Kevin Durant called out FS1’s Nick Wright and called him a “peasant.” That really happened.
