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At this point, the Lakers will take every win they can get, as they simply have found the Thunder to be the puzzle they cannot solve no matter what. And after the game, head coach JJ Redick lauded his team for getting up good enough looks to the point of winning “expected score”. “We won expected score so it was good enough to win,” Redick said, via Oh No He Didn't on X (formerly Twitter).
Hoop Informatics: The Nuggets had the best offense during the regular season with a 122.5 offensive rating The Nuggets have the second worst offense in the playoffs with an offensive rating of 105.6, better than only the Pistons CleaningTheGlass.com
Jeremias Engelmann: Most efficient rookie scoring games in NBA *playoff* history (minimum 25 pts) Richard Dumas, 25pts, 84% TS% Kareem, 33pts, 85% Thurl Bailey, 26pts, 88% --Dylan Harper, 27pts, 92% TS%-- Mitch Richmond, 26pts, 96% Daniel Gibson, 31pts, 99% Matt Maloney, 26pts, 105%
LIVE: Since 1996–97, no player has made more clutch-time field goals in the postseason than LeBron James (151). The closest? Kobe Bryant (104). Tonight… The King added another memorable moment to his resume 👑
Justin Russo: The 2026 Houston Rockets are the 2nd team in NBA history to go +60 in FGA and turn the ball over at least 10 fewer turnovers than their opponents during any 3-game stretch during the postseason. The other? The 2008 Utah Jazz. Also in Games 1-3 against the Los Angeles Lakers.
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Keerthika Uthayakumar: A maybe related fun fact: Nuggets had a better offensive rating on the road than they did at home this season. 120.7 at home, 121.7 on the road. It's the first time their offence had been more efficient on the road since 2011-12.
Jake Shapiro: Jamal Murray is the first player in tracked NBA history to hit three half-court shots in the same season. This is according to Basketball Reference's shooting data which begins in 1996-97.
John Schuhmann: Among the 8 teams that played on Saturday, the Lakers had... - The lowest expected FG% (44.6%). - The highest actual FG% (60.6%).
Derek Bodner: Since returning from the strained tendon in the pinky of his shooting hand, Tyrese Maxey is shooting just 22.5% on pull-up 3s. If the Sixers are going to have a chance, they need him to punish Boston's drop coverage. Thoughts on that, and more, below. 👇
Dean Oliver: Among players with 10+ passes for shots yesterday, LeBron had the 2nd lowest shot quality at 47%. His teammates outshot that, making 63% effective. (per GeniusIQ)
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Varun Shankar: Fun? stat: The Rockets are just the fourth team in NBA history and first since 1985 to lose a game where they took at least 27 more FGs + at most one less free throw than their opponent, per SportsRef. There's a Celtics game here from 1962 where they shot 29%.
Chris Fedor: Nobody on #Cavs guarded Brandon Ingram more than Dean Wade in Game 1. According to NBA.com matchup data, Ingram scored just 2 of his 17 points when guarded by Wade.
Basketball University: 2025-26 Lowest Pull-Up eFG% Among High-Volume Pull-Up Shooters... What stands out?
Dean Oliver: Kawhi Leonard was worth -8.3 net points in the second half, a half they lost by 13, with 5 tovs and just 20% usage. He was worth -6.9 in a game they lost by 5, a threshold loss. Draymond held him to ZERO pts in his HC matchup in the 2nd half (GeniusIQ).