Fun Facts & Red Flags - March 7
Happy tankathon weekend to those who celebrate (no one celebrate please)
It’s Friday! I have Raptors/Jazz & Heat/Timberwolves tonight & then Raptors/Wizards & Heat/Bulls tomorrow night. Please pray for my basketball watching eyes.
Atlanta Hawks
29-34 record (8th in the East)
20th in offence (111.8), 20th in defence (114.4), 21st in net rating (-2.5), 20th in eFG% (53.7)
Last few: W at MEM, L vs. MIL, W vs. IND
Let’s start off with a Trae Young fun fact. Young has 78 assists & 21 turnovers over his last 6 games – including 29 assists & 5 turnovers in his last 2.
Fun fact: Young has recorded 15+ assists in 14 games this season, the most by a player in a single-season since Russell Westbrook in 2020-21. Only three players have done it more times in a season since 2006-07 – Steve Nash, Chris Paul & Rajon Rondo.
Boston Celtics
45-18 record (2nd in the East)
2nd in offence (119.2), 5th in defence (110.2), 3rd in net rating (9.0), 5th in eFG% (56.1), won 3 straight
Last few: W vs. DEN, W vs. POR, W vs. PHI
Since losing back-to-back games for just the first time this season, the hospital Celtics have won 3 straight. Porzingis & Holiday have missed 5 of the last 6 games. Tatum was out on Wednesday, Brown was out on Thursday night.
Payton Pritchard & Derrick White combined for 19 threes on Wednesday night, the first game in NBA historywith two different players making 9+ threes.
Fun fact: Celtics have the 3rd easiest remaining schedule in the NBA & with 19 games left, they’ve only seen their starting-five of Tatum, Brown, White, Porzingis & Holiday play together in 20 games this season.
Brooklyn Nets
21-41 record (11th in the East)
27th in offence (108.5), 23rd in defence (115.1), 26th in net rating (-6.7), 26th in eFG% (51.5), lost 6 straight
Last few: L at SAS, L vs. GSW
Brooklyn came out of the games with a 22-5 run on Thursday night against the Warriors – they’ve lost 6 straight after their 7-2 stretch.
Fun fact: a different player has led the Nets in scoring in each of their last 6 games.
12 different players have recorded a 20-point game for the Nets this season, tied for 4th most in the NBA.
Charlotte Hornets
14-47 record (14th in the East)
29th in offence (106.4), 19th in defence (114.2), 28th in net rating (-7.8), 30th in eFG% (49.8), lost 8 straight
Last few: L vs. GSW, L vs. MIN
Terry Rozier’s performance on Wednesday night brought me back to this quote & then had me looking at the Hornets’ record over the past few seasons.
Red flag: Charlotte is 62-163 since the start of the 2022-23 season. They’ve had a winning record once since they last made the playoffs in 2016 & they haven’t made it past the first round since 2002.
Chicago Bulls
25-38 record (10th in the East)
18th in offence (112.1), 26th in defence (116.2), 23rd in net rating (-4.2), 11th in eFG% (54.9)
Last few: L at IND, L vs. CLE, W at ORL
The Bulls are stuck in purgatory again & it’s not all their fault this time. They’re 10th in the East STILL, a spot they’ve held in every day of 2025.
Fun fact: Bulls are 10-20 in 2025 but they haven’t moved from 10th. They have a 3.5 game lead for 10th even though they’ve lost 9 of 12 games.
Cleveland Cavaliers
52-10 record (1st in the East)
1st in offence (122.2), 7th in defence (111.0), 2nd in net rating (11.2), 1st in eFG% (58.6), won 12 straight
Last few: W vs. POR, W at CHI, W vs. MIA
Cleveland is on yet another historic win streak & have now won 12 straight for the 3rd time this season. They’re 1 of 2 teams in NBA history with three 12+ game win streaks in a season, joining the 2006-07 Mavs. They clinched a playoff berth on March 5th, just 62 games into their season.
Fun fact: Cavs are 10-0 with De’Andre Hunter in the lineup. The league’s best offence has taken another step forward, but this time it’s on the defensive end. Cleveland was allowing 111.7 points per 100 possessions until the trade, 8th in the NBA. They’re holding teams to 107.6 points per 100 since then, 3rd in the NBA.
Dallas Mavericks
32-31 record (10th in the West)
11th in offence (114.2), 14th in defence (113.8), 16th in net rating (0.4), 13th in eFG% (54.8), lost 3 straight
Last few: L vs. SAC, L at MIL
Dallas might be having the worst season of any team in NBA history. Do I have some sort of factual/data-based confirmation of this? No, but I think we can all agree that they angered the basketball gods.
Red flag: 11 players played at least 100 minutes for the Mavs over their Finals run last season.
Only 1 of those players is potentially available to play for the Mavs ahead of their game against the Grizzlies. Dante Exum, who made his season debut on January 31st.
If Exum & Martin are unavailable tonight, the Mavs will have 8 healthy bodies.
Denver Nuggets
40-22 record (3rd in the West)
3rd in offence (119.1), 16th in defence (113.9), 5th in net rating (5.2), 2nd in eFG% (57.4)
Last few: L at BOS, W vs. SAC
Nuggets are 3-2 since their loss to the Lakers on February 22nd & Nikola Jokic has only led the team in scoring once in five games.
It seems the Lakers showed the league a blueprint on guarding Jokic.
Fun fact: Jokic is averaging 15.0 FGA in his last 5 games down from 19.7 FGA in his 50 games before the loss to LA. It could be a blessing in disguise though – the last time Jokic was taking under 15 shots a game, it was 2022-23 & the Nuggets won a championship. If this stretch forces the Nuggets’ supporting cast to be more consistent, it’s a win.
Detroit Pistons
35-28 record (6th in the East)
14th in offence (113.8), 11th in defence (112.1), 14th in net rating (1.7), 12th in eFG% (54.8)
Last few: W at UTA, L at LAC
Fun fact: Cade Cunningham scored 37 points on Wednesday against the Clippers, his 17th 30-point game of the season.
He had 18 30-point game last season & the Pistons lost 15 of them. They’re 8-9 when he scores 30+ points this season.
Golden State Warriors
35-28 record (6th in the West)
15th in offence (113.5), 8th in defence (111.5), 11th in net rating (2.0), 21st in eFG% (53.1), won 3 straight
Last few: W at CHA, W at NYK, W at BKN
The Warriors are 10-2 in the Jimmy Butler era (10-1 when he plays!). They’ve had a pretty light schedule as of late though – 6 of their last 7 games have been against the Hornets (x2), Magic, Nets, Sixers & Mavs.
Fun fact: Steph Curry is averaging 30.4 points over the last 15 games, 3rd most in the NBA. He’s averaging 34.8 points over the last 5 games.
Curry had 40 points & 7 threes on Thursday night against the Nets, the 69th time he’s had 40+ points & 5+ threes in a game in his career. That’s 2nd most in NBA history, 1 off James Harden’s 70 such games.
Houston Rockets
38-25 record (5th in the West)
16th in offence (113.3), 3rd in defence (109.6), 7th in net rating (3.7), 27th in eFG% (51.3)
Last few: L at OKC, L at IND, W at NOP
Houston is 1-3 in their last 4 games & their only win came against the tanking Pelicans. They won by 12 points despite shooting 44.4% at the line, the worst FT% in a win by any team since the Nuggets in 2023.
Red flag: Rockets are shooting 47.7% at the free throw line & 30.5% from three over the last 2 games. They’ve missed a total of 23 free throws over the last 2 games.
Indiana Pacers
35-26 record (5th in the East)
8th in offence (115.2), 18th in defence (114.2), 15th in net rating (1.1), 3rd in eFG% (56.5)
Last few: W vs. CHI, W vs. HOU, L at ATL
Pacers played without Tyrese Haliburton on Thursday night, just the 2nd game he’s missed this season. They’re 0-2 without him.
Fun fact: Pacers have a 108.8 offensive rating with Haliburton off court since January 1st. They have a 121.8 offensive rating with him on.
A 108.8 offensive rating would rank 25th in the NBA since January 1st.
L.A. Clippers
33-29 record (8th in the West)
19th in offence (111.9), 4th in defence (109.7), 10th in net rating (2.2), 16th in eFG% (54.1)
Last few: L at LAL, L at PHX, W vs. DET
Clippers have lost 6 of their 8 games since the All-Star break. They went into the break 6th in the West & now their 1.5 back of 10th.
Red flag: James Harden scored 50 points on Wednesday against the Pistons & the Clippers needed all 50 points to secure an 8-point win.
Bonus fun fact: there’s been 5 fifty-point games since February 1st. Steph Curry & James Harden have 2 of them.
L.A. Lakers
40-21 record (2nd in the West)
9th in offence (114.5), 13th in defence (112.5), 13th in net rating (2.0), 10th in eFG% (55.4), won 8 straight
Last few: W vs. LAC, W vs. NOP, W vs. NYK
Lakers’ 8-game win streak is their longest since the 2019-20 season – the year they won their 17thchampionship. They’ve won 20 of their last 24 games, 18 of their last 21, 14 of their last 16 & are 8-2 with Luka Doncic in the lineup.
In 11 games since Doncic made his Lakers’ debut on February 10th, Los Angeles has played a total of 44 minutes with both LeBron James & Luka Doncic off court. 44 of a possible 533 minutes.
Fun fact: Doncic & James scored or assisted on 96 of the Lakers’ 113 points in their OT win against the Knicks on Thursday. Only 17 points were scored without their direct involvement. Lakers always had either player on court on Thursday night.
Memphis Grizzlies
38-24 record (4th in the West)
6th in offence (117.7), 10th in defence (112.1), 4th in net rating (5.6), 8th in eFG% (55.6), lost 4 straight
Last few: L vs. ATL, L vs. OKC
Memphis has lost 4 straight for the first time this season & now they’ve lost 8 of their last 11 games.
Grizzlies own the 3rd worst defensive rating in the league over the last 11 games & it’s only bound to get worst with Jaren Jackson Jr. out of the lineup with an ankle sprain.
Red flag: Memphis has allowed 120+ points in 3 straight, the 2nd time they’ve done so this season.
Grizzlies have lost 8 of the last 9 games that they’ve let an opponent score 120+ points.
Miami Heat
29-32 record (7th in the East)
21st in offence (111.8), 12th in defence (112.2), 17th in net rating (-0.5), 18th in eFG% (53.8)
Last few: L vs. NYK, W vs. WAS, L at CLE
Because I want to be kind, we don’t need to talk about Terry Rozier again today.
Miami is 6-9 since February 1st, despite Bam Adebayo playing the best basketball of his season. They’re averaging just 108.1 points since then, 5th fewest in the NBA. Miami must do something about their offence over their last 21 games because it’s a hard watch late in games.
Heat have a 119.6 offensive rating in the first half since February 1st, 8th in the NBA. They have a 102.6 offensive rating in the second half, 29th in the NBA. Even worse, their 92.6 ORTG in the 4th is 5.3 points per 100 worse than they team with the 2nd worst 4th quarter offence.
Fun fact: Bam Adebayo is averaging 22.6 points on 56.3% shooting in 14 games since February 1st, including shooting 38.6% from three & 76.6% at the rim in that span. Adebayo was shooting 68.2% at the rim through his first 45 games this season.
Milwaukee Bucks
36-25 record (4th in the East)
13th in offence (114.0), 9th in defence (111.7), 9th in net rating (2.2), 4th in eFG% (56.3), won 4 straight
Last few: W at ATL, W vs. DAL
Bucks have won 4 straight, including a 30-point win against the cursed Mavs on Wednesday night.
Fun fact: Bucks started the season with a 2-8 record but their 34-17 record since is tied for 5th best in the NBA.
Giannis & Dame are one of two duos averaging 25+ points this season (excl. Luka & LeBron).
They’ve scored 25+ points in 22 games this season – Bucks are 18-6 in those games.
Minnesota Timberwolves
35-29 record (7th in the West)
12th in offence (114.1), 6th in defence (110.7), 8th in net rating (3.4), 15th in eFG% (54.6), won 3 straight
Last few: W at PHX, W vs. PHI, W at CHA
Timberwolves have won 3 straight & only one player is listed on their injury report – Rudy Gobert as questionable.
They have the 4th easiest remaining schedule in the NBA & 11 of their last 18 games are against teams with a losing record. With Gobert set to return, I’m curious of how their offence & (spacing) will change to accommodate him.
Fun fact: In 9 games with Gobert out, Wolves had a 117.5 offensive rating, They had a 113.5 offensive rating with him available.
New York Knicks
40-22 record (3rd in the East)
5th in offence (118.2), 17th in defence (114.0), 6th in net rating (4.2), 6th in eFG% (56.0), lost 2 straight
Last few: W at MIA, L vs. GSW, L at LAL
New York had won their last 10 clutch games before they lost to the Lakers in overtime on Thursday night & they’re now 16-8 in the clutch.
Captain clutch, Jalen Brunson scored or assisted on 18 of the Knicks’ 23 points in the 4th & OT before he left the game with his ankle injury on Thursday night. He’s scored 145 points in the clutch this season, tied for most in the NBA.
Red flag: New York is 17th in offensive rating since February 1st, after owning the league’s 2nd best offence over the first few months of the season. They have a 8-6 record since then – 7-1 in clutch games & 1-5 otherwise.
Knicks started a 5-game West Coast Road trip on Thursday night.
Oklahoma City Thunder
51-11 record (1st in the West)
4th in offence (118.4), 1st in defence (105.9), 1st in net rating (12.5), 9th in eFG% (55.5), won 5 straight
Last few: W at SAS, W vs. HOU, W at MEM
OKC has won 5 straight, they still own the best defensive rating in the NBA & SGA is as consistent as ever.
Thunder started Chet Holmgren & Isaiah Hartenstein together on February 7th against the Raptors & have now done so in 7 games this season. They’re 6-1 when the two 7-footers start together but there are still some kinks to work out with their defence when they’re on court together.
Red flag (not really, it’s OKC): Thunder have a 120.5 defensive rating in 114 minutes with Holmgren & Hartenstein on court, considerably higher than their 105.9 defensive rating on the season. Opponents are shooting 39.3% from three with the two on court since Feb 7th.
Orlando Magic
29-35 record (9th in the East)
28th in offence (107.6), 2nd in defence (109.4), 18th in net rating (-1.8), 29th in eFG% (50.4), lost 5 straight
Last few: L vs. TOR, L vs. TOR, L vs. CHI
Orlando is sliding down the standings faster than I can keep up with to be honest. Magic were 3rd in the Easton December 14th, then tied for 6th in the East on January 29th. In just 37 days, they dropped from 6th to 9th.
Red flag: Magic have lost 5 straight, including 3 straight to the Raptors & the Bulls. They went 1-6 on a 7-game homestand, a homestand that Paolo Banchero & Franz Wagner played every game of. Orlando is 6-13 since Franz Wagner returned to the lineup.
They’re 2nd in defensive rating on the season but they have an abysmal 122.3 defensive rating over this 5-game losing streak.
Sacramento Kings
32-29 record (9th in the West)
7th in offence (115.8), 15th in defence (113.8), 12th in net rating (2.0), 14th in eFG% (54.6)
Last few: W at DAL, L at DEN
Sacramento snapped a 4-game win streak with a questionable loss to the Nuggets on Wednesday.
Fun fact: Doug Christie’s Kings have a 109.2 defensive rating since the All-Star break, 5th best in the NBA.
They allowed 132 points against the Warriors in the first game out of the break but they’re holding teams to 101.2 points in the last 5!
Toronto Raptors
20-42 record (13th in the East)
26th in offence (109.8), 24th in defence (115.4), 25th in net rating (-5.6), 22nd in eFG% (52.9), won 2 straight
Last few: W at ORL, W at ORL
I’d like to admit that I was wrong. We all knew what the Raptors schedule looked like to close the season but I didn’t believe there was enough talent on the roster to make tanking a hard task. Breaking news, there is.
With Gradey Dick, Ochai Agbaji, Jonathan Mogbo & Jamison Battle out, Head coach Darko Rajakovic closed their game against the Magic with Jamal Shead, Ja’Kobe Walter, A.J. Lawson, Orlando Robinson & Jared Rhoden. Rookies Shead & Walter were the longest tenured Raptors on the court in clutch time on Tuesday night.
Red flag: Raptors have the easiest schedule of any team in the NBA & if they want to stick with their timeline, they need a top-5 pick in this draft.
Jakob Poeltl may be their magic tank lever (Raptors are +36 with him on, -43 with him off in the last 3 games), but they’re gonna need to push some more buttons to make sure they maintain top-5 odds.
Utah Jazz
15-47 record (15th in the West)
22nd in offence (111.3), 30th in defence (118.5), 27th in net rating (-7.2), 19th in eFG% (53.8), lost 3 straight
Last few: L vs. NOP, L vs. DET, L at WAS
Utah is pulling the most unethical tank of the season, I think. There’s been lots of “injury managements” on their injury reports, something I don’t think they need to do with how their schedule looks coming up.
Red flag: there were a combined 16 players listed out in the Jazz’ tankathon battle against the Wizards on Wednesday.
I’m just saying, the basketball gods are watching.
Washington Wizards
12-49 record (15th in the East)
30th in offence (105.7), 28th in defence (117.7), 30th in net rating (-12.0), 28th in eFG% (51.2)
Last few: L at MIA, W vs. UTA
The Wizards are 3-2 in their last 5 games!!! They’re tanking, but they’re doing it a little more ethically than the Jazz are.
Fun fact: Wizards are 3-3 with Khris Middleton in the lineup. Since the All-Star break, they’re *outscoring * opponents by 8.9 pts per 100 with him on court. They’re being outscored by 14.5 points per 100 with him off court.