With the win tonight, the Raptors are into the NBA Cup Quarterfinals.

Great nights for all the starters + Mamu, but extra shoutout to Ja’Kobe Walter and Jamal Shead.

Walter was a great connective piece and is such a ball hound.

For Shead, he was a dog on D and 10 assists in 19mins is cracked.

Turns on Toronto Raptors in-season tournament game:

a man wearing a purple shirt is talking into a microphone and says do i look nervous . ALT: a man wearing a purple shirt is talking into a microphone and says do i look nervous .

#4Nations

Jordan Binnington in any meaningful game in TD Garden:

He was easily on of the best signings of the off-season - especially at that price.

Compared to other off-season moves, this ranks in the Caruso -> Thunder, Atkinson -> Cavs, sort of realm for me.

There are likely a few reasons this happens, none of which being the silver bullet.

A) NBA skill dev. programs are better than youth/college
B) Players that don't immediately thrive need specific, actionable areas of impact to grow early on to stick
C) More reps = more skill
D) Shooting ages well

Glad to see I'm not the only one seeing what I'm seeing!

Atkinson's new offensive scheme has entirely revitalized what looked to be a stagnating offense.

Great analysis from @jaredweissnba.bsky.social

As a footnote on the shooting:

There is also data to support the idea that shooters improve throughout their careers, and when you’re 6’1 - shooting is pretty necessary in 2024.

We’re likely witnessing a career-length improvement of all three.

He’s had increases in TS%, Win Shares, OBPM nearly every year, despite a consistent usage%, while limiting TO’s.

Based on the shot chart though, it looks to be:

A) the game itself changing.
B) him improving his shot selection.

As something of an epilogue, I'll never stop being amazed at the changing of league shot charts in the last decade.

See - Tyus Jones rookie season and this season (as per
@nbastatmuse.bsky.social :

All of this, plus his absurd Assist-to-Turnover ratio (39.7) makes him the perfect no-nonsense point guard for a team with a surplus of stars.

The Suns are only 11-8 so far, but they look way better than their record.

To think that this guy signed the minimum is crazy to me.

🧠 What do you think?

The Suns look like a different team this year, despite having very little time with their stars together.

They needed a traditional point guard to structure their offense.

Tyus fits the bill.

He doesn't need the rock to contribute. If they can cover him on defense, they'll be laughing.

But perhaps his most underrated attribute is as a cutter & mover.

Steph has made a name for himself as a track star, and Tyus has been taking notes.

I'd like to see him expand this, because he's an exceptionally efficient guard despite a low 16% usage rate on a roster with 3 stars.

So why is he so effective at the rim then, shouldn't the defense go under the pick?

That's where his best counter is: 3-point shooting.

He's shooting 39.3% from deep, including over 47% from above the break to the left - his favourite location above the break.

Defenses have to respect the jumper.

Speaking of the PnR, 56% of his at-rim finishes come that way, with the remainder nearly all coming off turnovers.

He uses the PnR so frequently that defenses almost always assume that's what he'll be doing - but his quickness enables him to make lazy defenses pay, like in this clip.

Well to start, Tyus has a seriously deep bag of tricks, with a hefty allotment of counters - but no skill outshines his floater.

He has one of the best floaters in the association, making his shot diet from 6-10' nothing to sneeze at as well... and it's particularly nasty out of the Pick & Roll.

kermit the frog is driving a car and says really ? Alt: kermit the frog is driving a car and says really ?

It's Tyus Jones, believe it or not.

Jones shoots an insane 79.4% at the rim, despite being just 6'1.

Not Embiid. Not Joker. Tyus frickin' Jones.

So what gives?

If you had to guess, which player would lead the NBA in FG% at the rim (within 5ft or less) - minimum 25mpg?

Seriously, who would you guess?

Seems as if I may have accidentally jinxed the Cavs with my previous thread...

Did you know that more often than not NBA Champs are almost always top 5 in either OffRat & DefRat and are often top 5 in both - just something to keep an eye on.

🤔 What do you think?

Are they going to win 70 games? No. But they’ve taken a step, and are going to win more than the 48 wins they had last year.

With the east in utter shambles, another conference finals is looking very well possible…

Are they a hot team? Yes. Shooting splits tell the story that they’re due for some regression.

But they’re still near the top of the league in shot quality, the defense looks legit, and they have the 9th easiest schedule to go.

Their balanced offensive & defensive attack has paid dividends early…

Adding energy & playmaking off the bench that they haven’t had since 2022.

Perhaps most importantly:

Kenny Atkinson has helped turn this group into a well oiled machine. They force teams into difficult shots, and score at will due to their high efficiency decision-making…

Evan Mobley has continued his defensive development, and has increased his FT% to 84.4%(!) with larger volume.

Donovan Mitchell has looked MVP calibre on offense, shooting his best ever rate from deep.

Even a guy like Ty Jerome has contributed enormously in the former Rubio role…

On defense, they’re top 10 in PTS/POS, Foul Rate, and Turnover Rate - they’re forcing teams in to difficult shots at the end of the shot clock.

There are a few factors as to why Cleveland looks so different this year compared to last...

a basketball player wearing a cavs jersey celebrates a basket ALT: a basketball player wearing a cavs jersey celebrates a basket

What makes the Cavaliers so great thru 19 games?

Balance ⚖️

They’re dominating teams on offense. They rank top 5 in Pts/100, point differential, turnovers, and Eff FG%.

They’re taking quality looks at the rim and from 3 more than anyone - Atkinson has moved the GS strategy east…