Uncategorized

Bill Russell v. Tom Heinsohn and the 1956-57 ROY

by

With the recent passing of the great Bill Russell, I was thinking about his beginning.  Though he was an instant star, Russell did not win Rookie of the Year.  Let’s do a moderate dive into how this happened and whether it should’ve happened. It’s clear that the Olympics robbed Russell of the ROY.  Russell missed several months of his rookie year because he was playing in the 1956 Olympics in Sydney and did not debut with Boston until December 22, 1956, 24 games into the … [Read more...] about Bill Russell v. Tom Heinsohn and the 1956-57 ROY

The KD/Kyrie Drama Examined

by

Have you ever had one of those dreams where your goal is to complete a task and, each time you get close, some weird happenstance prevents the completion?  This dream is the Kevin Durant-Kyrie Irving Nets in a nutshell.  They were a KD toe away from a possible title last year and now both stars want out after a disaster of a season in 2021-22.  Brooklyn was close to accomplishing greatness but seems to be ending in failure.  The public consensus seems to be that Kyrie is … [Read more...] about The KD/Kyrie Drama Examined

2021-22 NBA Finals Preview

by

Celtics/Warriors is a particularly interesting matchup for the NBA Finals on many levels.  Let’s breakdown some of the facts that caught my attention…. Ancient History Between Celtics and Warriors It has little relevance to the current squads but the Celtics and the old Warriors had quite an interesting rivalry while Wilt Chamberlain was with the Philly/Golden State franchise.  Wilt had little luck actually beating Bill Russell during that time but here’s the breakdown of their … [Read more...] about 2021-22 NBA Finals Preview

Miami/Boston and ECF Game 7s

by

1.            We’ve Got a Game 7!: While these payoffs have had some fun moments, we haven’t really had any epic series.  The two Game 7s we have had (Boston/Milwaukee and Dallas/Phoenix) were blow outs.  I’m moderately hopeful that tonight’s Boston/Miami Game 7 could get us the epic Game 7 we all want a la Milwaukee/Brooklyn last year.    What should we expect from a Game 7 here?  Well, the series has been a … [Read more...] about Miami/Boston and ECF Game 7s

Barnes/Mobley And The Closest ROY Votes Since 2002-03

by

Today, Scottie Barnes won the Rookie of the Year over Evan Mobley in the closest vote in over 20 years.  According to the NBA, Barnes received 378 voting points and Mobley got 363 (the current voting format gives 5 points for a first place vote, 3 points for a second place vote, and 1 point for a third place vote).  The closeness of the vote and the reference to historically close votes has inspired me to do a moderate dive into the vote and other close ROY votes. Was there any … [Read more...] about Barnes/Mobley And The Closest ROY Votes Since 2002-03

Should We Tweak the Play-In?

by

Is the play-in game bad for the NBA?  Not too many people have directly said that it is.  In fact, Draymond Green called the concept “lit.”  The result of the Western Conference play-in, however, reveals a potential issue.  The 36-46 Pelicans made the playoffs over the 42-40 Clippers, when New Orleans was helped a bit by the Clipps losing Paul George to a particularly poorly timed case of COVID.  Injuries/COVID are facts that all teams have to deal with at all … [Read more...] about Should We Tweak the Play-In?

©2025 Hoops Analyst // Website by Webstuff