Seemingly out of nowhere, on September 1st, 2022, the basketball world received news that the Utah Jazz’s star guard Donovan Mitchell will be sent to the Cleveland Cavaliers.
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Cleveland receives:
Donovan Mitchell
Utah receives:
Collin Sexton
Lauri Markkanen
Ochai Agbaji
3 first-round picks
2 pick swaps
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Basketball fans were unsure if the Jazz were set on rebuilding around Mitchell or having a complete overhaul of their roster, which has now been made clear with the 25-year-olds departure. But with one question answered, another is presented, “Who won this trade?”
It would seem that the simple answer here would be that the Cavs won the trade, having a big-time name like Donovan Mitchell join upcoming talent in Darius Garland and Issac Okoro. But it isn’t as one-sided as many may see. Although the Utah Jazz has gone into a “rebuild” mode, it goes without saying that they still have a number of pieces to work with. Sexton and Markkanen will be joining Bojan Bogdanovic and Sixth Man of the Year winner Jordan Clarkson, with other recent additions made like Malik Beasley and Talen Horton-Tucker. Yes, the Jazz more than likely need some time to get things on track, but in regards to the long-term, find themselves in a solid position.
Photo Credit: NBA Analysis Network, (Photo by David Dow/NBAE via Getty Images)
We are now what is merely moments away before the tip-off of the 2021-2022 NBA Finals, and what a journey it has been to get to this point in this time. After a tough Game 7 win over the Miami Heat, the Boston Celtics find themselves up against who other than the Golden State.Warriors.
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The matchup here is a particularly interesting one, with one of the most winningest teams in league history competing against one of the most winningest teams within the last decade. It is here where we will discuss the keys to victory in this series and consider who will be lifting the championship trophy once the dust settles. There is a plethora of things that go into a playoff series for each respective team: initial offensive/ defensive strategies going into it, individual matchups, and the quarter to quarter and game to game adjustments that’ll be made as the series progresses.
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First and foremost, looking at both rosters, there’s very much some similarities but at the same time just as many differences. Both rosters have role players who are very much capable of contributing on both sides of the ball, but at the same time the Celtics have much more of a positionless basketball approach with their rotation where as the Warriors have a bit more definition in regards to who fits into what position for the most part. Looking at this matchup we get a bit of a “when an unstoppable force meets an immovable object” sort of situation, with the Celtics defense being ranked as one of the best in the league as well as the Warriors having one of the most free flowing and effective offenses.
Some of the things that this series boils down to is what will be more difficult for either team, the Warriors scoring on the Celtics in the half-court, or the Celtics shutting down the Warriors while on defense. Although it sounds rather redundant, realistically speaking the Celtics have had major defensive schemes set up by the Coach Udoka and staff per series and that is definitely no different going into this matchup starting tonight. The Celtics have taken pride in being able to defend teams, shutting down their offensive sets in order to make things easier for themselves on the other end. So one of the big “ifs” in this series is whether or not the Celtics can string together some big stops on some of the best shooters this league has ever seen.
Assuming that both teams’ superstars are healthy, it is safe to say that their performances are jot be just about what we’d expect from them, and where the X-Factors lie are amongst other role players: Andrew Wiggins and Jordan Poole for the Warriors, and Al Horford and Robert Williams III for the Celtics. Each of these players have shown to be vital pieces in these playoffs in multiple facets of the game, where Wiggins and Poole have been shining through with shot creating and scoring, where as Horford and Williams have shown time and time again the effectiveness of what a big can bring to both sides of the ball. Unfortunately a question mark falls upon the health of Rober Williams III, having missed a handful of games leading up to this point in time, as the same can be said for Celtics guard Marcus Smart. As basketball fans we can only hope that both rosters will have a healthy series, knowing just how taxing it can be.
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The list of keys to this series is one that truly can be discussed for hours on end which in truth is something to be very excited about. Few saw both teams having the potential to win it all this season, but with solid top to bottom rosters, great coaches and staff, and some all-time talents on both sides, we as basketball fans are in for an interesting set of games to come. Although it seems like every game won’t be too one sided, personally it seems difficult to bet against good defense and grit. And with that being said
Boston Celtics in 6.
Game 1 of the 2021-2022 NBA Finals starts today at 9PM EST on ABC.
‘ The Atlanta Hawks officially punched their ticket alongside the Brooklyn Nets following the third-annual NBA Play-In Tournament, and now the stage is set for 2021-2022 NBA Playoffs. The first set of games are only hours away, with the Jazz and Mavericks tipping off at 10:00 a.m. on ESPN.
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82 games have come and gone seemingly in a flash, with 16 teams still standing only one thing is for certain: NBA fans worldwide will be heavily invested in the emotional rollercoaster that is the NBA Postseason.
For the Eastern Conference, eight teams are officially in contention for their respective conference and ultimately the NBA Championship with the Atlanta Hawks having claimed the eighth seed in a spectacular win against the Cleveland Cavaliers.
With all that being said, we’ll now get into each series, weighing in potential win conditions as well as our own predictions on how the respective series’ will play out.
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No. 1 Miami Heat (53-29) vs. No. 8 Atlanta Hawks (43-39)
Despite being the first seed this year with some solid momentum going into this series, the Miami Heat have their work cut out for them seeing the Atlanta Hawks in the first round considering that last year’s Playoffs saw the Heat making a first round exit while the Hawks making it as far as the Eastern Conference Championship. Of course things are very much different this time around, having roster changes on both sides, but this series feels more equal than most may think. We can expect the Hawks to go into this with a similar scrappy, team based approach as to last year, as well as many outstanding performance from the likes of Trae Young, and it’s up to the Miami defense to make life as difficult as possible for him. On Miami’s side, we can expect Jimmy Butler and Bam Adebayo to give it their all every second they’re on the floor, but a big X-Factor for the Heat is in none other than Tyler Herro. Herro has become a household name in Miami, providing a good amount of offense for the team, which can hopefully translate into the postseason.
Prediction: Miami beats Hawks 4-2
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No. 2 Boston Celtics (51-31) vs. No. 7 Brooklyn Nets (44-38)
In an interesting role reversal of last year’s matchup, the Brooklyn Nets find themselves facing off once again against the Boston Celtics, but this time as the seventh seed to Boston’s second, when a year before these teams were in eachothers’ position. Unlike the previous match-up however, this series feels much more even than before. After what was a rocky start to the season, the Celtics have seemingly pieced things together at the right time, allotting themselves solid positioning in this year’s Playoffs, with their young core in Jayson Tatum, Jaylen Brown, and Marcus Smart leading the way. Unfortunately for the Celtics, however, is the loss of Robert Williams III, who recently underwent surgery for a meniscus injury, who will be out 4-6 weeks, and is set to return in an indefinite amount of time, which is a detriment for Boston considering that Williams has been the epitome of a defensive anchor for this team all season. This doesn’t by any stretch of the imagination mean that the Celtics are doomed, but only means that the rest of the roster need to be prepared to play on both sides of the ball against a Nets team that can be very dangerous if you let them get into a groove. With Tatum having an exceptional season that garnered some MVP conversation, we can expect an amazing series with him going up against Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving. Although the Nets had some inconsistency throughout the regular season, that doesn’t take away the fact that they have two of the best offensive players in the league on one team. And although we can expect a large amount of the scoring load to be on their shoulders, their role players are going to be one of the biggest keys if they plan on getting far into the postseason, let alone the first round. Nevertheless it feels like this series is going to be one that is remembered for quite some time.
Prediction: Boston beats Brooklyn 4-3.
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No. 3 Milwaukee Bucks (51-31) vs. No. 6 Chicago Bulls (46-36)
The defending NBA Champions set out on their journey to go back-to-back with their first series against the Chicago Bulls. Giannis Antetokounmpo has shown even more development to his game, shooting the 3-pointer at a sub-40% clip, which has made teams that much more confused on how to guard the 2021 Finals MVP. Additionally, with household Bucks name in Bobby Portis having a spectacular season, as well as the other additions to their roster this season, the Bucks have created a lot of floor spacing for their big 3 to operate freely and get to their spots and make the right play. The Bucks are certainly no strangers to Playoff basketball, and have been playing so all season which is why it’s exciting for them to go up against a Bulls team that haven’t seen the Playoffs in some years now. However, this Bulls roster is comprised of some players that have some Playoff experience and even a handful of NBA Champions, but as a collective are fairly green. Bulls’ Forward Demar DeRozan has had a standout season this year, allotting himself some MVP conversations and hopefully alongside Zach LaVine can make a run in the Playoffs.
Prediction: Milwaukee beats Chicago 4-1.
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No. 4 Philadelphia 76ers (51-31) vs. No 5. Toronto Raptors (48-34)
Despite a bit of a turbulent season regarding the whole Ben Simmons situation, the Sixers have managed to put together a solid season up to this point, and now with James Harden in the picture, have high hopes for the team. Joel Embiid has had an MVP caliber season, and is currently in contention in winning the award which to his credit, he has been the very backbone of this organization throughout its hardships. The talent this organization has is up there with some of the best in the league, but can fall very short at times. Although it’s hard to bet against said talent, it’s equally as hard to bet against an under the radar team like the Raptors. Many suspected the Toronto Raptors to be in a rebuild of sorts, now that another piece of their 2019 Championship roster in Kyle Lowry made his exit to the Miami Heat, but they’ve managed just fine, earring the fifth seed. The Raptors have gathered quite a talented roster themselves, many players who seemingly have gone overlooked. Gary Trent Jr. for example seems to have found his stride in Toronto alongside Siakam and VanVleet. Although many may think that this series seems rather one-sided, I personally believe it will not be as easy as one might expect.
With the breaking news of the Harden-Simmons trade simmering down, and the recent news of Simmons getting his season debut in Brooklyn in the near future, we reflect on the wins-losses/ pros-cons for each team and their newest acquisitions.
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Trade Overview
Brooklyn receives:
Ben Simmons
Seth Curry
Andre Drummond
Two-First Round Picks
Philadelphia receives:
James Harden
Paul Milsap
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Brooklyn Nets
It comes as no surprise that the Nets had a roster that was comprised of offensive firepower, and with the new pickups they got from this trade may fill in some of the gaps that the Nets needed some improvement in. Seth Curry is a solid addition into the Nets’ rotation, joining the likes of Kyrie Irving, Patty Mills, Cam Thomas, and recently signed Goran Dragic filling out the guard positions. In regard to what the Nets seemed to be missing, is where Andre Drummond and Ben Simmons come into play. The defensive prowess and rebounding ability of these two players will become crucial as the we progress towards the post-season, as the Nets are currently 14th in rebounds per game. However, the most interesting part of this trade for the Nets was clearly Ben Simmons. Although it is unknown at this time just how the HC Steve Nash and the Nets organization plan on utilizing Simmons and his abilities, they do have some options in regard to doing so. Simmons may find himself returning to his role of playing as a 6’10 PG, or perhaps another approach they could take is filling him in a Giannis Antetokounmpo-esque role, where he isn’t necessarily the primary ballhandler anymore, but more so focuses his energy on playing the inside, defense, rebounding, and making the right pass when necessary. This would truly alleviate some of the pressure and mitigate some of the struggles that Simmons had during his tenure with the Sixers when it came to him shooting the ball.
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Philadelphia 76ers
The Sixers are currently in an interesting place where there’s a lot of up-side with their acquisition of James Harden, especially standing in 3rd in the East, but like anything there is the slight chance of their efforts ultimately causing an overall net loss. The organization have seemingly been doing just fine without Simmons in the rotation, giving Tyrese Maxey the nod and having him as the starting PG for the team. With James Harden and Paul Milsap now in the mix, it will surely take some time for the chemistry to build between these two and the rest of the roster. One can only hope that this transition is as seamless as can be, knowing that if things were to go wrong, they could definitely slip in the standings in a very tight Eastern Conference. However, there isn’t too much short-term issues that may come for the Sixers organization, but over time. There certainly has been a stigma surrounding Harden since his time with the Rockets, of him essentially “giving up” if ever he is in a situation he is displeased with. The media will tell you that Harden “forced his way” out of Houston, and basketball fans saw a difference in Harden’s demeanor as time progressed during his stint in Brooklyn. As much as we all want to believe that Harden is finally happy with his situation in Philly, there’s always the lurking thought in the back of all of our minds that history may choose to repeat itself if the Sixers come across too much trouble on their journey to a championship.
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Overview
Truth be told, one can’t say just yet who won and who lost in this blockbuster trade, especially considering that neither player has even played a single minute on their new teams. It remains to be seen if these are the perfect situations for both players respectively, knowing that there are far too many variables that go into judging the quality of a player. However, in time as the season pushes on, we can only hope to see the players involved in this trade flourish and continue on their paths to contending for an NBA Championship.
As we all know by now, the NBA season is a long and grueling one filled with many storylines, both ups and downs for all organizations. So with this in mind consider this a TL;DR version if you missed anything thus far into the season.
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We’re about 14 games in per team at this point, and with that the standings don’t match up to what most fans quite expected.
Surely no one really expected the first seeds of each conference to be occupied by the Warriors and the Wizards but as we all know with the NBA, anything is possible. Both teams have stormed out of the gates, putting the rest of the league on watch as two teams that either didn’t make the Playoffs or made an early exit in the Playoffs perform so well in the beginning stages of the 75th season. Other teams that have also exceeded expectation would be the Cavaliers, currently holding the 4th seed in the East. The rest of the teams would either be performing where most expected or underperforming entirely.
As previously stated, in this league with ups, there’s the ever so unfortunate downs. A handful of teams have been struggling, and without getting into too much detail the teams are listed as followed:
Clippers- No Kawhi, Player Inconsistency
Lakers- Questionable Player Health, Player Inconsistency
Trailblazers- Lillard slightly pivoted to more of a facilitator role
Sixers- Questionable Player Health, Adjusting to no Ben Simmons
Hawks- Player Inconsistency
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Moving passed team performances, we shift towards the individuals who’ve been standing out so far this season.
Anthony Edwards (Timberwolves)- 24.1pts, 6.4reb, 3.3ast
Tyler Herro (Heat)- 21.5, 5.6reb, 3.7ast
Miles Bridges (Hornets)- 21.5pts, 7.3reb, 3.5ast
Jonas Valanciunas (Pelicans)- 19.6pts, 13.5reb, 2.7ast
Cole Anthony (Magic)- 19.5pts, 6.9reb, 5.2ast
As the season progresses it should be expected for these things to be subject to change, and we’ll be updating you along the way. We’re still near the preliminary stages of the NBA Season, but still having 60 plus games to go, anything is bound to happen.
