Jason Kidd-Knicks
The Knicks and Mavericks coach Jason Kidd share "mutual intrigue," according to Brian Windhorst of ESPN. New York is expected to request permission to interview Kidd, according to Marc Stein.
Kidd would be a marquee hire. Doc Rivers, Rick Carlisle, Erik Spoelstra and Steve Kerr are the only active coaches with more regular-season and playoff wins than Kidd. Kidd, who guided Dallas to the 2024 NBA Finals, is the only coach from the last two Finals potentially available.
That said, Kidd landed just Nos. 23 and 18 in John's and Nate's latest coach rankings. Kidd has repeatedly caused turbulence for his teams, including getting into this dalliance.
If the Mavericks can get assets for letting him out of his contract, they ought to at least consider it.
New York Knicks
The Knicks firing Tom Thibodeau after making the conference finals was not unique.
The Knicks firing Tom Thibodeau after making the conference finals without having a clear successor lined up is far more exceptional.
Maybe New York has known all along Jason Kidd is coming and the reporting is just behind. But at this point, it seems safe to say the Knicks don't know who will coach them next.
The only previous team that made the conference finals and fired its coach without a clear succession plan appeared to be the 2004 Lakers.* They went weeks between Phil Jackson's exit and hiring Rudy Tomjanovich, with Heat president Pat Riley, Duke coach Mike Krzyzewski and North Carolina coach Roy Williams believed to be Los Angeles' top three choices.
*I count coaches who weren't welcomed back or were forced out as fired, even if they technically had their contract expire or something similar.
The eight other teams that fired their coach coming off a conference-finals berth appeared to have their replacement already set:
2022 BOS: Ime Udoka to Joe Mazzulla
2013 MEM: Lionel Hollins to Dave Joerger
2008 DET: Flip Saunders to Michael Curry
2005 DET: Larry Brown to Flip Saunders
2003 DET: Rick Carlisle to Larry Brown
1998 CHI: Phil Jackson to Tim Floyd
1989 CHI: Doug Collins to Phil Jackson
1971 LAL: Joe Mullaney to Bill Sharman
Really speaks to the eagerness the Knicks had to move on from Thibodeau. This wasn't about getting the next guy. It was about shedding Thibodeau.
Giannis Antetokounmpo
League personnel are less convinced Giannis Antetokounmpo will actually become available, according to Brian Lewis of the New York Post.
Coupled with Jim Owczarski of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reporting weeks ago Antetokounmpo would stay with the Bucks, it seems more likely than not Antetokounmpo won't get traded this summer.
Milwaukee's situation is still dire. Antetokounmpo's window to request a trade is still open.
But momentum is pointing toward Antetokounmpo's loyalty being the crucial factor of the offseason.
Atlanta Hawks
It sure sounds like Hawks general manager Onsi Saleh – named Landry Fields' replacement as Atlanta also announced a search for a team president – will run the team's front office.
Salah is hiring executives (Pelicans' Bryson Graham and 76ers' Peter Dinwiddie) to report to Salah, according to Shams Charania of ESPN. Per Charania, "any potential president hire" will be made to complement Saleh.
So, the Hawks could still hire someone above Saleh to run basketball operations. But why saddle that new lead executive with a larger staff he or she might not want?
Either Saleh will be the lead executive or this is backward.
Darius Garland
Darius Garland will miss at least 4-5 months following toe surgery, the Cavaliers announced. That timeline extends into next season.
Garland really labored through the injury in the playoffs. Cleveland will need him healthy to achieve the team's suddenly far-loftier goals.
Game 2
Teams that lost Game 1 at home in last 30 NBA Finals are now 5-0 in Game 2:
2025 : OKC over IND by 16
2022: GSW over BOS by 19
2013: MIA over SAS by 19
2004: LAL over DET by 8 (OT)
2001: LAL over PHI by 9
The only one of those teams that lost the series did not win Game 2 in regulation, the 2004 Lakers.
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander
Gilgeous-Alexander surpasses Allen Iverson, who scored 48 and 23 points in his first two Finals games – a total of 71 – in 2001.
Just nine players have scored more in Games 1 and 2 of a Finals period:
Jerry West: 94 points in 1969
LeBron James: 83 points in 2015
Shaquille O'Neal: 83 points in 2000
LeBron James: 80 points in 2018
John Havlicek: 80 points in 1969
Michael Jordan: 78 points in 1992
Shaquille O'Neal: 76 points in 2002
Michael Jordan: 73 points in 1993
Cliff Hagan: 73 points in 1961
Tyrese Haliburton
Haliburton had two assists and three turnovers in an Oct. 27 loss to the 76ers, his only worse assist-to-turnover game of the season.
Indiana Pacers
The Pacers still haven't had a 20-point scorer in this series – which isn't as big an outlier as I would've expected.
The 2013 Heat – with LeBron James, Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh! – didn't have a 20-point scorer until Game 4 of the 2013 NBA Finals. Miami fell behind 2-1 (winning Game 2 with Mario Chalmers the team's top scorer) then won the series in seven.
Game 2, Jeremiah Fears
Watch Nate and Danny analyze Game 2 and give their Jeremiah Fears scouting reports:
-Dan Feldman