An eye test may tell you one thing, but the numbers tell a different story. Let's take a look at one standout statistic from each playoff series.
(1) Boston vs. (8) Miami
-8.3% – Jrue Holiday's usage rate this season was just 16.1%, the lowest mark of his career and down from 24.4% in 2022-23. This (-8.3%) was the largest decline by a wide margin among the 209 players who played at least 1,000 minutes in each of the last two seasons. The two-time All-Star took on a small role in the starting lineup with his new team, and it worked out well for both him and the Celtics. go deeper.
(2) New York vs. (7) Philadelphia
24.5% — The Knicks have made 24.5% of their shots this season within the final six seconds of the shot clock, according to Second Spectrum tracking. This is the highest rate in the league by a wide margin, with the Sixers ranking him second at 22.6%. In his two series of last year's playoffs, Philadelphia made 30.8% of his shots within his last six seconds of the shot clock. Go deeper.
(3) Milwaukee vs. (6) Indiana
56% – The Pacers allowed their opponents to shoot 56% from inside the paint. This was the best opponent percentage in the league by a wide margin. Indiana limited the opponent's 3-point shots, but considering that they allowed a lot of shots near the basket and finished 24th in defensive efficiency, the strategy didn't work out very well. The good news is that they've improved in their ability to defend shots in the paint (55.4%), ranking them 16th defensively over the past five weeks compared to before (59.3%). Go deeper.
(4) Cleveland vs. (5) Orlando
9.2% – The Magic shot 58.7 percent from inside the paint (11th), but shot 49.5 percent from outside the paint (28th). This (9.2%) was the largest such difference in the league. The Magic have ranked in the bottom 10 offensively for 11 straight seasons, with a lack of perimeter shooting being their biggest issue. Go deeper.
(1) Oklahoma City vs. (8) New Orleans
41% — The Thunder received 41% of their regular-season minutes from either rookies (23%, third-highest) or second-year players (18%, eighth-highest), the fourth-highest percentage in the league. None of the other seven teams where rookies or second-year players played at least 25% of their minutes made the playoffs. go deeper.
(2) Denver vs. (7) Los Angeles Lakers
18-15 – Three-point shots mean the least in this series. The Nuggets were the only team this season with a winning record (18-15) in games that came from a three-point deficit. The Lakers, on the other hand, had the most wins from deep (23-29). Denver (35.2%) and Los Angeles (35.8%) ranked 30th and 28th, respectively, in 3-point shooting percentage, and those rates were even lower through three regular season games (32.9% and 31.0%). meeting. Go deeper.
(3) Minnesota vs. (6) Phoenix
64.8% — The Timberwolves (in 41 road games*) allowed their opponents to shoot only 64.8% from the restricted area or from 3-point range. It was the lowest opponent percentage in the league, as Minnesota forced opponents from the 3-point line and had the Defensive Player of the Year favorite manning the paint. Forcing opponents to take the least efficient shots on the floor (between the restricted area and the 3-point line) is a big reason why the Timberwolves boast the league's No. 1 defense by a wide margin. Go deeper.
(4) LA Clippers vs. (5) Dallas
8.4 — Excluding the last two games (in which they rested Luka Doncic and Kyrie Irving), the Mavs averaged 8.4 points per 100 possessions after the trade deadline (plus-8.3, second-best) and before the trade deadline (plus-8.3, second-best). -0.1, an improvement over the second best). 17th). This was the league's biggest improvement by a wide margin, and the even bigger improvement was on defense, where the Mavs ranked 22nd before the deadline and 5th between the deadline and the last two games. Go deeper.
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John Shuman is a senior statistical analyst at NBA.com. You can email him here or find his archives here. Follow him on X.
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