Coming into college, Romeo Langford was a five-star recruit and the second-ranked shooting guard in the country. At New Albany High School in his hometown, the Indiana native decided to play all four years there instead of choosing the prep school route. Langford’s natural ability to score the ball and make plays for others garnered
Boston Celtics
Paul Pierce’s famous “wheelchair” moment will forever be an iconic memory in NBA Finals history. But now we know the real deal behind it, and it’s nasty. Paul Pierce had one of the most iconic moments in NBA Finals history when, in 2008, he went to the locker room in a wheelchair, only to come
The 2019 NBA Draft is rapidly approaching. It is now a mere 19 days away and, as is often the case, a lot is left to be sorted out in the final three weeks. While all teams must make a final decision on each of their picks in the draft, there are a few decisions
After the Boston Celtics bowed out of the playoffs Wednesday night, it was pretty clear who Terry Rozier called out. Roughly a year ago at this time, despite being without Kyrie Irving and Gordon Hayward, the Boston Celtics were preparing for the Eastern Conference Finals. But a 116-91 loss to the Milwaukee Bucks has them
The Bucks beat the Celtics in convincing fashion in the Eastern Conference semifinals. Even after an alarming Game 1 blowout loss at home, Milwaukee asserted itself as the superior team. Giannis Antetokounmpo’s MVP play as well as Mike Budenholzer’s top-notch game planning gave the Bucks the edge they needed to avenge their postseason defeat against
With the NBA’s post-season in full swing and historic playoff games being played almost nightly, there are some storylines to watch as the race to a championship unfolds. Here are a few things to watch, especially if some of the ongoing series don’t play out as some had hoped when the season started some seven
Milwaukee controlled its Game 5 blowout of Boston from end to end behind a galvanized team effort. The Bucks move onto the Eastern Conference Finals while Kyrie Irving probably played his final game as a Celtic. Only 11-of-249 teams dug themselves out of a 3-1 hole in NBA playoff history. That total wouldn’t grow to
With the NBA’s post-season in full swing and historic playoff games being played almost nightly, there are some storylines to watch as the race to a championship unfolds. Here are a few things to watch, especially if some of the ongoing series don’t play out as some had hoped when the season started some seven
32 college football players destined to be future first round NFL Draft picks by Jordan Alexis Kyrie Irving totally quit on the Celtics, the Lakers are a laughingstock, a guy catfished everyone into thinking he was a first round NFL Draft pick. Kyrie Irving had a bad case of senioritis Kyrie Irving knew his time
The Bucks firmly took control of their series with the Celtics, battering them in the paint and winning Game 4 decisively. After Game 1, it seemed like the Celtics might have found a strategy to slow down Giannis Antetokounmpo. Al Horford played fantastic defense and the rest of the team was dialed in, packing the
MIAMI, FLORIDA – APRIL 03: Marcus Smart #36 of the Boston Celtics in action against the Miami Heat at American Airlines Arena on April 03, 2019 in Miami, Florida. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the
BOSTON – APRIL 14: Former Boston Celtics great and Hall of Famer John Joseph “Hondo” Havlicek was honored on the anniversary of his immortal steal by Celtics by Robert Epstein. Wycliffe Grousbeck and Steve Pagliuca are also pictured. The Boston Celtics took on the Toronto Raptors at TD Garden. (Photo by Barry Chin/The Boston Globe
Giannis Antetokounmpo had his best game of the series, finally finishing in the paint and camping out at the free throw line, as the Bucks took Game 3 from the Celtics. The Bucks seem to have regained some of their identity and mojo after that discouraging Game 1 loss to the Celtics. Game 3, the
The Milwaukee Bucks made some key adjustments and put on a 3-point shooting clinic to bury the Boston Celtics in Game 2. The 3-point shot has helped elevate the Bucks all season long and, in Game 2, their shooting built like a wave, eventually cresting and washing away the Celtics in a crucial third quarter.
By the end of the night, the NBA’s postseason second round will be officially set — first from 30 teams to 16 and soon just nine shall remain. Throughout the regular season — and for much of the last two years, actually — the biggest, most important question has been repeatedly asked ad nauseam: Can
The Celtics stealing Game 1 from the Bucks was a surprise. Doing it by shutting down Giannis Antetokounmpo was shocking. Things looked dire for the Bucks early in the first half of Game 1. Giannis Antetokounmpo was struggling to get buckets inside and the 3-pointers weren’t falling. Boston led by nine at the end of
By the end of the night, the NBA’s postseason second round will be officially set — first from 30 teams to 16 and soon just nine shall remain. Throughout the regular season — and for much of the last two years, actually — the biggest, most important question has been repeatedly asked ad nauseam: Can
It’s easy to overlook Zhaire Smith considering he missed 76 games in what should have been his rookie season. But overlooked and unimpactful are very different things. And it’s hard to argue the potential impact Smith can have on the basketball court. In college, Smith was a reliable contributor in his lone season at Texas
Previewing the second-round series between the Milwaukee Bucks and Boston Celtics with shot charts, assist maps, offensive style charts and expected win probabilities. Shot charts The Milwaukee Bucks took no time in dispatching the Detroit Pistons, who were without a healthy Blake Griffin for the entirety of the series. As evidenced in the point per
INDIANAPOLIS, IN – APRIL 19: Gordon Hayward #20 and Kyrie Irving #11 help up Terry Rozier #12 of the Boston Celtics during Game Three of Round One of the 2019 NBA Playoffs against the Indiana Pacers on April 19, 2019 at Bankers Life Fieldhouse in Indianapolis, Indiana. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees
INDIANAPOLIS, IN – APRIL 21: Kyrie Irving #11, and Gordon Hayward #20 of the Boston Celtics hi-five each other during Game Four of Round One of the 2019 NBA Playoffs against the Indiana Pacers on April 21, 2019 at Bankers Life Fieldhouse in Indianapolis, Indiana. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by
The Boston Celtics used a late run to power themselves to a 2-0 series lead over the Indiana Pacers. After one of the ugliest games in recent playoff memory, Game 2 between Boston and Indiana felt at times like a complete reversal of Game 1 — and still, neither team managed more than 1.07 points
BOSTON, MA – APRIL 14: Jayson Tatum #0 of the Boston Celtics drives to the basket in the second quarter during Game One of the first round of the 2019 NBA Eastern Conference Playoffs against the Indiana Pacers at TD Garden on April 14, 2019 in Boston, Massachusetts. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and
In this latest edition of Basketball Insiders’ “Fixing” series, we’re going to take a look at the one team that arguably has the least fixing to do: The Sacramento Kings. Just saying that feels so unordinary knowing the Kings’ reputation. In a season that had no shortage of surprises, the Kings’ sudden uprise ranks among
Previewing the first-round series between the Boston Celtics and Indiana Pacers with shot charts, assist maps, offensive style charts and expected win probabilities. Shot charts In the chart below, Jayson Tatum’s shots (as of April 4) are displayed in terms of relative density by distance. The shot areas are broken up as less than eight
Last year in this space, we introduced a metric called Wins Above Age-Derived Expectation, or WAADE. It measures exactly what it sounds like: how many more wins an NBA team actually gets than you would have expected them to based on their minutes-weighted age. In introducing the metric, we highlighted several teams that stood out
If Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving team up in free agency this summer, they’re shaping up to be a highly dysfunctional star duo. By most accounts, it’s inevitable Kevin Durant will be leaving the Golden State Warriors in free agency this offseason. Kyrie Irving professed a commitment to the Boston Celtics at one point, but
This season has not gone the way the Boston Celtics were hoping but anything can happen in the playoffs. The Celtics were expected to be one of the best teams in the Eastern Conference. After last year’s run to the Conference Finals, it was assumed that a healthy roster and another year of development for
As franchises have been eliminated from postseason contention, Basketball Insiders started to diagnose their ailments and offer future plans of attack. Unfortunately, it may take a whole lot more than that to fix the New Orleans Pelicans. The Pelicans, who now find themselves in a unique circle of basketball misfortune, had a frustratingly inconsistent campaign
For the past two weeks, Basketball Insiders has taken a look at the teams who have been eliminated from playoff contention and what they should do in order to get themselves back into the playoffs. Next up in the series is the team with the stickiest situation of all the eliminated teams – the Memphis