The Age of Parity: A 2023 NBA Postseason Recap
Have you ever seen one of those rankings of which professional sports league has the best postseason? Usually the NHL or MLB playoffs top the list, due to their unpredictable natures, and the NBA almost always ranks at the bottom. I’m as diehard of an NBA fan as anyone, but I’ve had a hard time arguing against this sentiment. Since LeBron made "The Decision" in 2010 and teamed up with Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh in Miami, the playoffs have carried a sense of inevitability for an entire decade. After the breakup of the Heat, the Warriors dynasty emerged, while LeBron formed another powerhouse team in Cleveland, extending his streak of 8 consecutive Finals appearances. The NBA playoffs reached their lowest point in history when Kevin Durant joined the Warriors in 2017. We all watched, hoping that someone could somehow defeat this seemingly invincible team. It wasn't until Kevin Durant suffered an Achilles injury in the 2019 Finals that anyone managed to do so.
This isn’t to say there haven’t been incredible NBA playoff stories in recent history. Dirk’s career coronation with the Mavericks in 2011. The Spurs achieving basketball nirvana in 2014. Lebron’s unimpeachable 3-1 comeback in 2016. Kawhi’s legacy-defining 2019 title run with the Raptors. But these moments stood out because they defied the expectations that we had become conditioned to anticipate. More times than not in the 2010s, the playoffs unfolded exactly as predicted, featuring excellent execution but lacking major surprises or upsets.
Then the league underwent a significant transformation in the 2019-2020 season. The global pandemic changed the structure of the season in unprecedented ways, but something more subtle happened beneath the surface. On paper, the formula looked familiar, with yet another arms race amongst the league’s superstars. Anthony Davis joined Lebron on the Lakers, Kawhi and Paul George teamed up on the Clippers, and Kevin Durant formed a super-team in Brooklyn after leaving the Warriors. Yet in the past 4 years, only the Lakers have reached the NBA Finals from that group.
The team the Lakers defeated in the 2020 NBA Finals was a 5th seeded Miami Heat team, who were driven by their under-the-radar acquisition of Jimmy Butler in the prior offseason. The following season saw even greater parity, with Milwaukee defeating Kevin Durant’s favored Brooklyn team in the 2nd round and winning their first championship in 50 years. On the other side of the bracket, the Phoenix Suns made their first Finals appearance since 1993. Even last year’s Finals between the Warriors and Celtics looked like a heavyweight matchup on paper, but the Celtics started the season 18-21 and the Warriors were a 3 seed.
In many ways, these trends of uncertainty have culminated during the 2023 NBA Playoffs. The top-seeded Milwaukee Bucks were eliminated in the first round. The second round featured matchups between lower seeds (5th vs. 8th and 6th vs. 7th). The conference finals included both a 7th seed and an 8th seed. The 8th-seeded Miami Heat made the NBA Finals. The Denver Nuggets reached the NBA Finals for the first time in franchise history and won their first championship. If the previous 3 seasons didn’t make it evident, this postseason signals that we’ve entered the NBA’s era of parity, and the playoff product is thriving because of it. Combining that parity with elite performances by star players and you get a consistently important sports experience. Are we really going to act like a Florida Panthers vs. Vegas Golden Knights Stanley Cup Final holds the same historical relevance as what we’re seeing in the NBA?
With the NBA’s ascent into the upper-tier of postseason products, let’s take a broader perspective on the 2023 NBA Playoffs. I will focus on one key number that encapsulates each team's postseason performance (excluding play-in teams) and provide some general insights on future trajectories heading into next season.
First Round Exit Division
Brooklyn Nets
The Stat: 36.2%
The Brooklyn Nets stuck out like a sore thumb this postseason. The early season dominance of Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving carried them to the 6th seed, but those two players were wearing different uniforms by the end of the season. Despite solid performances from Mikal Bridges (23.5 pts/5.3 rebs/4.0 assists) and Cam Johnson (43% 3PT shooting) in Round 1 vs. the 76ers, this team never stood a real chance of advancing. Their main deficiency? They had absolutely nothing to offer on the glass.
Brooklyn’s defense allowed the Sixers to secure offensive rebounds on 36.2% of their missed shots over the course of their 4-game sweep. The Indiana Pacers ranked last in this metric during the regular season at 30.7%. On the offensive end, the Nets only managed to corral 16.1% of their potential offensive rebounds, much lower than the league-worst rate of 21% by the Dallas Mavericks in the regular season. In total, the Nets lost the offensive rebounding battle 53-23 in the series. Surprisingly, it wasn't Joel Embiid who caused the most damage, but Paul Reed with 17 offensive rebounds in just 66 minutes played, followed by P.J. Tucker with 11 and Tobias Harris with 9.
Brooklyn wasn’t only overmatched in terms of talent. They were physically outclassed. While the Nets can be satisfied with the results of the KD trade, they need to address the team's lack of size and toughness to return to the playoffs next season.
Cleveland Cavaliers
The Stat: 16.8%
In a postseason where we lost a 1-seed and 2-seed in Round 1, the Cavs were the biggest disappointment relative to regular season performance. With the second-best net rating in the league during the regular season, many, including myself, considered them a potential sleeper for the Finals. Instead, they got cooked by Jalen Brunson and allowed Josh Hart to grab approximately 10,000 offensive rebounds in a Round 1 loss to the Knicks. Even with home court advantage going in, it wasn’t a competitive series.
Why did Cleveland fail to carry their regular season success into the playoffs? For starters, they were a below average rebounding team in the regular season, which Mitchell Robinson and Josh Hart were happy to exploit. Cleveland performed even worse than Brooklyn on the defensive glass, allowing the Knicks to grab 39.6% of their missed shots during the series But more surprising was the Cavaliers’ sloppy offensive execution. They had the highest turnover rate among playoff teams at 16.8%, surpassing the regular season's sloppiest team, the lowly Houston Rockets, with a 16.3% rate. Unlike their rebounding futility that carried over from the regular season, this was a team that protected the ball for most of the season, with a 13.7% rate that ranked 11th in the league.
It was a disappointing conclusion to a promising season for Donovan Mitchell and Darius Garland, as they combined to commit 37 turnovers in only 5 games. Josh Hart and Immanuel Quickley also deserve credit for their defensive disruption against Cleveland's star duo. However, the future remains bright for this young Cleveland team, with Mitchell and Garland aged 26 and 23, respectively. The best version of this team will likely feature the 21-year old Evan Mobley as its star player. Enduring setbacks in the playoffs is part of the learning process on the path to success. If they focus on improving their wing depth (Caris Levert and Isaac Okoro aren’t cutting it come playoff time) and continue to build around their 3 core players, deeper postseason runs will come in the future.
Milwaukee Bucks
The Stat: 60.6%
When a 1 seed loses to an 8 seed, the response from NBA fandom is inevitably heightened. A loss of this magnitude has to mean that the Bucks choked, that they lacked mental toughness, that they were frauds. But the reality is more nuanced. Just two seasons ago, they showcased their resilience by overcoming a 2-0 deficit in the NBA Finals to become champions. How can a team capable of such toughness crumble in the opening round like this? The answer lies in the inherent unpredictability of basketball, where shooting fluctuations play a significant role, even if we prefer our fabricated psychological narratives.
While strategy and talent undoubtedly play crucial roles in the NBA, the proliferation of 3-point shooting has emerged as a significant equalizer in the modern game. The Heat’s upset over the Bucks exemplified this trend, showcasing how an underdog can flame-throw their way over a superior opponent. Throughout the series, the Bucks allowed a staggering 60.6% effective field goal percentage (which weighs the value of 3-point shots vs. 2-point shots), with the Heat shooting an impressive 45% from beyond the arc. To put this into perspective, Kevin Durant had a regular season effective field goal percentage of 61.4%, including a 40.4% accuracy from 3-point range. When your entire opponent shoots like Kevin Durant for a series, you’re probably going to lose, regardless of any talent advantages you may possess.
The Bucks led the NBA in regular season effective field goal percentage allowed at 52%, but had no answer for Miami’s hot streak. Jrue Holiday, widely acclaimed as the best perimeter defender in the league, was completely destroyed by Jimmy Butler, who shot an impressive 56.5% from the field and 64.3% from beyond the arc when matched up against him. This was a painful, historic setback for the Bucks. A 2nd title for this group would have major implications for the legacy of their core players. With Jrue Holiday turning 33, Khris Middleton approaching 32, and Brook Lopez at 36, the lingering question is how much time do they have left to pursue it?
Memphis Grizzlies
The Stat: 47.3%
Serious question: without Steven Adams and Brandon Clarke to clean up the frequent bricks this team produces, which teams in the postseason could the Grizzlies have defeated? I’ll give them the benefit of the doubt against the Nets and Hawks. The Timberwolves? Maybe. I’d have favored the Cavs, Kings, Warriors and Knicks over the Grizzlies. I’d have penciled in the remaining field over them after watching their wretched shooting performance against the Lakers in Round 1.
Their 47.3% effective field goal percentage would have ranked significantly lower than the Houston Rocket’s league-worst rate of 51.7%. As a team, they managed only 31.2% shooting from beyond the arc in the series. Dillon Brooks, notorious for his attempt to trash talk one of the greatest players in history, shot a mere 23.8% from 3-point range. Although Ja Morant performed well from the perimeter, he found his drives to the rim thwarted by Anthony Davis. Davis erased the entire city of Memphis from human history in this series, as evidenced by the shooting percentages of key players when matched up against him:
Jaren Jackson Jr.: 30% on 30 field goal attempts
Ja Morant: 37% on 27 field goal attempts
Desmond Bane: 21.4% on 14 field goal attempts
I’m not giving up entirely on the Grizzlies moving forward, considering none of their core three players have reached the age of 25. But this series brings forth significant doubts about their potential. You have to hit shots in the postseason, and their offense hasn’t proven up to the task. Oh, and their star player is dealing with some things off the court..
Atlanta Hawks
The Stat: 58.4%
The Atlanta Hawks were exactly who we thought they were in the 2023 NBA Playoffs. They possess the offensive firepower to compete with any team, and Trae Young's clutch performances can be astonishing. But they lack the personnel to guard a fire hydrant. Only the Bucks, who were done in by exceptional shooting, allowed a worse effective field goal percentage than the Hawks’ 58.4% in the playoffs. Unlike the Bucks, Atlanta struggled with defense throughout the regular season too, ranking 22nd in eFG% allowed.
Trae Young deserves much of the criticism— Derrick White torched him with impressive shooting splits of 54.2% from the field and 46.2% from beyond the arc. The more disappointing performances came from De’Andre Hunter and John Collins, who should be capable of defending athletic wing players. Instead, Jaylen Brown annihilated Hunter, shooting 68% from the field when matched up with him, and Collins struggled to stay in front of Tatum or Brown throughout the entire series.
What is the path for Atlanta to become contenders? They pushed their chips in for this season when they acquired Dejounte Murray. Trading Trae Young is unlikely, considering they believed in him so deeply on draft night that they traded Luka Doncic for him. This isn’t a bad team by any means, but it’s a worse fate to be stuck in the middle— unable to contend while also lacking the means to acquire valuable draft picks and build for the future.
Minnesota Timberwolves
The Stat: 21.7%
After watching Denver rampage through the playoffs, the T-Wolves actually played them pretty competitively in hindsight. Aside from a Game 1 blowout, they kept every game within single digits and almost stole Game 5 to extend the series. Anthony Edwards was a revelation, averaging an impressive 31.6 points, 5 rebounds, and 5.2 assists in the series. Yet aside from these positives, there's a lingering sense of regret over the Timberwolves' decision to trade for Rudy Gobert, potentially jeopardizing their future.
Consider this: despite having two 7-footers in their starting lineup, the team's offensive rebounding rate ranked 15th (of 16 teams) in the playoffs at 21.7%. While they could attribute their 26th-ranked regular season offensive rebounding percentage to Towns' injury absence, no such excuse applies to the playoffs. Even though they were matched up with Jokic, one of the best rebounders of all time, their offseason strategy was to build around size and overpower their opponents. The results are in, and the outcome shows that this strategy has made no discernible impact whatsoever.
Paying a significant amount for a center the team didn't necessarily require is one thing, but not effectively leveraging the advantage you paid for is another. It's possible that the issue isn't solely strategy, but rather a lack of postseason-level toughness from Gobert and Karl-Anthony Towns. If that's the case, it becomes challenging for Minnesota to recover from this setback, even if Anthony Edwards continues to evolve into a superstar. Were this to continue, it’s only a matter of time before he starts looking for greener pastures.
Sacramento Kings
The Stat: 17
For Kings fans, this season should bring excitement despite the disappointment of blowing a 2-0 lead in Round 1 against the Warriors. Making their first postseason appearance since 2006, a 17 year drought, the Kings showcased some electrifying performances against the defending champions. De'Aaron Fox and Malik Monk displayed fearlessness in crucial moments, while rookie Keegan Murray impressed, signaling a promising future. Sabonis was disappointing, but most players are when matched up with Draymond Green.
Interestingly, Sacramento’s defense outperformed their offense on a per-possession basis during the postseason. Despite boasting the top-ranked offense in the regular season, they ranked 12th in playoff offense against Golden State. Their high scoring output was the product of a frenetic pace and high free throw rate, rather than shooting efficiency. Defensively, they weren't an elite unit, but they held their ground and ranked in the middle of the pack in the postseason.
In summary, there’s room for improvement after getting their first real taste of the postseason. Their players are capable of shooting more efficiently, and with better luck in the playoff seedings, they won’t draw the defending champs in the first round next time. I don’t foresee another long playoff drought for this group.
Los Angeles Clippers
The Stat: 80
I don’t really know what to say about the Clippers at this point. If you’re not expecting the worst for this franchise, you haven’t been paying enough attention. Kawhi Leonard and Paul George played a combined 80 minutes in this series. Russell Westbrook played 192 minutes on his own. Devin Booker and Kevin Durant played 216 and 219 minutes each. Before Kawhi was taken out by injuries, he was averaging 34.5 pts/6.5 rebs/6 asts. That’s legitimate best player in the world production, but his consistent setbacks since 2020 are disheartening. His fate may never change at this point.
The Clippers made the necessary moves to construct a contending roster, but when your two star players can’t reliably play on a night-to-night basis, it might be time to hit the reboot button. We may be left wondering what could have been for the Leonard/George duo when it’s all said and done.
Second Round Exit Division
Philadelphia 76ers
The Stat: 20.2
Philadelphia, oh Philadelphia, it's like déjà vu year after year. And this time, everything seemed aligned. Joel Embiid, at the peak of his career coming off a long-awaited MVP award. The 1-seed stumbles in Round 1. They gain a 3-2 lead on a vulnerable Celtics team in Round 2. And still they falter, yet again.
Once again, Joel Embiid dominated in the regular season, but has it ever carried over to the playoffs? He averaged 33.1 points per game in the regular season and dropped to 23.7 points per game in the playoffs. Such a substantial decline is unacceptable for a leader of a team with championship aspirations. I’m sympathetic to the fact that he was battling a knee injury in the Celtics series, but his team needed him to take over on offense, and he didn’t deliver.
There are clear issues within the organization's infrastructure. While I can't speak to the locker room dynamics, and if there’s a lack of toughness at play, the numbers highlight a broken offensive strategy. During the regular season, the Sixers led the league in free throw rate with 25.1 attempts per 100 possessions. In the playoffs, that number dropped to 20.2 free throw attempts per 100 possessions. That may seem like a small drop-off, but a 20.2 FT rate would have ranked 22nd in the regular season. When Embiid and Harden’s grifting isn’t rewarded to the same degree in the playoffs, the entire offense falters (10th in pts/poss in the playoffs). Relying on the whims of the whistle is not a sustainable path to postseason success.
Harden appears to be heading towards an exit from the team, raising questions about how long Joel Embiid will remain content without a reliable co-star. The Process could be rounding the final corner.
New York Knicks
The Stat: 16.3%
Not all second-round exits are created equal. Although Sixers fans are undoubtedly disappointed with the conclusion of their season, Knicks fans can find solace in the overall success of their team. Surprisingly, their second-choice free agent acquisition, Jalen Brunson, proved to be the missing piece they needed, overshadowing their initial target Donovan Mitchell. Even with Julius Randle battling injury and struggling the entire postseason, they were able to advance to Round 2 and put up a fight against the Heat.
Their defense and physicality stood out throughout the postseason. The same Miami Heat team that rampaged through the East with red hot 3-point shooting shot only 31% from 3 against the Knicks. It’s the offense that held this Knicks unit back. Randle’s struggles and the lack of reliable perimeter shooting aside, they were just plain sloppy. They had a 16.3% turnover rate in the playoffs, ranking 15th among all playoff teams. In the regular season, their 13.1% turnover rate was the league’s 5th best. If they had taken better care of the ball against Miami, where they lost the turnover battle 82-58 in the series, they might have been the team to expose Boston in the conference finals.
This Knicks team wasn’t constructed to contend this year, but they came pretty close anyways. That’s a good sign for a revitalized franchise in an incredible basketball market. Historically, we've grown accustomed to the Knicks being associated with marquee free agents only to strike out on them. But if they start making contact after establishing legitimacy once again? Watch out.
Phoenix Suns
The Stat: 55.3%
While the Suns featured Devin Booker and Kevin Durant, it became pretty evident in the first round that this team didn’t have the pieces to win it all this year. Turns out when you have two of the 5 best isolation scorers in the world, your offense will be effective, but they often relied on hero ball tendencies. With a full offseason to develop chemistry and cohesion, they’ll have a chance to be even better on that end next season— a terrifying proposition for their opponents.
The main issue this season was the team’s inability to defend. Struggling against Nikola Jokic is one thing. Allowing Russell Westbrook to be revitalized is another. I understand why they made the Kevin Durant trade, but you can’t overlook the pieces they were forced to give up. Mikal Bridges has been a Defensive Player of the Year candidate, and Cam Johnson brought size and competitiveness on the perimeter that they sorely lacked. The Suns rated 5th in the regular season in effective field goal percentage allowed, largely due to the contributions of those players prior to the trade.
During the playoffs, the Suns allowed their opponents to have a 55.3% effective field goal percentage, highlighting their defensive struggles. Losing their depth forced them rely too heavily on Booker and Durant to do it all, and their defense dropped precipitously in the playoffs. The lack of size on the wing resulted in Booker frequently defending much larger players like Michael Porter Jr., which had predictable negative outcomes (Porter shot 10/19 and 6/10 from 3 when guarded by Booker). Perhaps most disappointing was DeAndre Ayton’s performance. 2 years ago, he was praised as a Jokic stopper when Phoenix swept Denver in the 2021 playoffs. Not so much this time around. Ayton struggled to contain Jokic, who shot 58% from the field and 43% from 3 when guarded by him. As promising as the Suns offense can be next season, the Western Conference now runs through Denver’s buzzsaw of an offense. Until they make the massive personnel changes to handle that reality, I don’t envision this team getting over the hump.
Golden State Warriors
The Stat: 34.7%
For the past decade, the Golden State Warriors have been better than any team I’ve ever seen at shooting the basketball from long distances. So prolific were they in this regard that they hadn’t lost a Western Conference playoff series since 2014— until this year. I believe they lost, not because of the Draymond punch and its alleged impact on team chemistry, but because of their inability to convert the shots we have become accustomed to seeing them make.
In an up-and-down regular season, the Warriors still shot 39.1% from 3-point land. We all thought they at least had their fastball. But in the 2023 postseason, their 3-point shooting dipped to 34.7%. Let's compare this to their historical postseason performances:
2022: 38.1%
2019: 38.4%
2018: 36.2%
2017: 40.9%
2016: 40.1%
2015: 37.9%
2014: 37.4%
2013: 39.8%
Get the point? It's worth noting that Anthony Davis and the Lakers' defense effectively closed off the paint, forcing the Warriors' perimeter players to operate in tight spaces. It’s not a complete fluke that they struggled shooting. But we’ve seen the Warriors make impossible shots for years, and the magic didn’t materialize this time. For this reason, I'm still not ready to advocate for a complete overhaul of the team. Klay Thompson may have shown signs of decline, but he has the ability to heat up in the postseason next year. Oh, and they still have that Steph Curry guy, who looked pretty great this season.
Don’t count these guys out yet.
Conference Finalist Division
Los Angeles Lakers
The Stat: 95.2
It's unusual to say this about a 7th seeded team that reached the conference finals, but the Lakers maintained a similar identity during their postseason journey as they did in the regular season. Anchored by the best defensive player in the league in Anthony Davis, their defense was smothering throughout their playoff run. They humiliated Memphis and limited the Warriors to their worst playoff shooting performance in almost a decade. Although they ultimately fell victim to the remarkable offensive firepower of the Denver Nuggets, there's no shame in that outcome.
What hindered the Lakers in both the regular season and playoffs was their lackluster half-court offense. In the regular season they ranked 19th in the league in half-court offense, averaging 98 points per 100 possessions. In the playoffs that dipped even further to 95.2 points per 100 possessions in the half court. It didn’t cost them against an abhorrent Memphis offense or a sloppy Warriors team, but trying to keep pace with a flawless Denver offense came down to half-court execution late in games, and this team was never going to succeed in that scenario. Lebron James can only do so much when their lineup always had one of these 3 players on the floor:
D’Angelo Russell: 49.5% effective field goal percentage in the playoffs
Dennis Schroder: 46.1% effective field goal percentage in the playoffs
Jarred Vanderbilt: 45.8% effective field goal percentage in the playoffs
The Lakers made a valiant effort to salvage what initially appeared to be a disastrous season. However, even with Lebron James and Anthony Davis, it feels like this particular roster reached its maximum potential during the 2023 postseason.
Boston Celtics
The Stat: 38%
Speaking of maximized potential, I don’t feel like the 2022-23 Boston Celtics were a prime example of it. What a roller-coaster this Celtics team was. Storming back from a 3-0 deficit in the conference finals, only to get crushed in Game 7 on your home floor is a great way to encapsulate their season. The “mental toughness” phrase gets thrown around a lot with this team, but I don’t believe it’s a lack of spirit that prevented them from getting over the top this season. If anything, their resilience and fighting spirit have been their most admirable qualities, allowing them to battle back from series deficits over and over again.
Consistency remains the Celtics' biggest challenge. One night they’re hitting all their 3s, igniting their defensive energy and making them seem unstoppable. And then you have nights like Game 7 against Miami when their shots won’t fall, their defensive intensity wavers, and their offense collapses into a chaotic mess better fit for a high school gym. Apart from their miraculous win in Game 6, they struggled to overcome poor 3-point shooting throughout the playoffs. Their 2023 postseason record when shooting above or below 38% from 3:
When shooting above 38% from 3: 9-2
When shooting below 38% from 3: 2-7
The Celtics' success hinged too heavily on their shooting performance. When the shots were falling, they showcased their elite capabilities. When they weren’t, the losses felt inevitable. For a roster that prides itself on versatility, they appear to lack the dimensions to win with multiple styles of play. It's hard not to sense a flaw within their infrastructure, and now management faces the challenge of identifying and addressing this flaw without compromising the team's potential. A crucial decision looms with Jaylen Brown, a talented secondary star who displayed notable weaknesses (like, say, dribbling the basketball) that contributed to their collapse against Miami. As for the coaching situation, they’ve chosen to invest in Joe Mazzulla as the head coach, even after the Celtics' defense regressed significantly compared to last season under Ime Udoka.
I predict many sleepless nights in Brad Steven’s future.
Runner-Up Division
Miami Heat
The Stat: 37.8%
Miami's memorable run to the Finals won't soon be forgotten. From Jimmy Butler's heroic performances against Milwaukee in Round 1 to their stunning victory over the Celtics in a road Game 7, they defied expectations once again. As we all know, most team’s level of play drops in the playoffs. Even the most successful teams are a little less efficient scoring the ball compared to the regular season. That’s the nature of facing the best teams and the best players over and over again for 2 months.
News flash: The Miami Heat didn’t get the memo. Their offense actually improved compared to the regular season:
Offensive Rating increased to 114.6 (from 113.3 in the regular season)
Effective Field Goal Percentage rose to 53.6% (from 53.1%)
Turnover Rate decreased to 12.4% (from 13.9%)
Enough has been said about Erik Spoelstra’s head coaching greatness, but these numbers speak volumes. The Heat consistently raise their level of focus and precision during the moments where it’s supposed to falter. That’s how they win. But there’s one thing Spoelstra can’t control, even as the league’s premier tactician: his team’s ability to make shots.
Miami ranked 27th in 3-point percentage in the regular season at 34.8%. In the playoffs, they shot 37.8% from 3, 3rd overall amongst all playoff teams. Combine their poise with a hot streak like that and we nearly witnessed the unlikeliest NBA champion in the history of the league. Alas, their performance finally regressed in the Finals (34.3% from 3), preventing them from achieving the improbable.
Looking ahead, the future of the Miami Heat holds endless possibilities. It’s possible they land another superstar and extend their window of contention, and it’s possible they fall out of the playoffs entirely. One thing is certain: if they do make the postseason again, no team will want to face them. They’ve earned that distinction until the end of time.
Championship Division
Denver Nuggets
The Stat: 52.9
Speaking of postseason excellence, let's talk about the Denver Nuggets, our newly crowned first-time champions! Even with Nikola Jokic’s ascent the last few seasons, I remained skeptical of their championship potential. It had nothing to do with doubting Jokic’s ability, and everything to do with them being, well, the Nuggets. With one dominant postseason run, that narrative has been wiped away forever. Instead of associating them with anonymous futility, I’m now wondering if they’ll become this decade’s version of the Tim Duncan Spurs!
Denver's performance over the past two months has been nothing short of phenomenal. They boasted a 16-4 record in the playoffs, equivalent to a 66-win pace in the regular season. Their offensive rating rose from 118.3 in the regular season (5th in the NBA) to 120.1 in the playoffs. They led the playoffs in 3-point shooting at 38.6%. Their turnover rate dropped from 14.5% in the regular season to 11.9% in the playoffs. Even their defense, largely seen an achilles heel heading into the playoffs, transformed into a relative strength! They ranked 4th in defensive efficiency in the playoffs with a 111.0 rating compared to 114.6 in the regular season. Any doubts regarding Jokic's defensive prowess in the playoffs were answered.
This championship title goes beyond Jokic alone. Murray proved to be an exceptional sidekick, Aaron Gordon was an absolute tank, Michael Porter Jr. had flashes of shooting brilliance, and Kentavious Caldwell-Pope and Bruce Brown can play for my team any day. But let’s talk about the historic nature of what Jokic just did. He’s the first player ever to lead the playoffs in points, rebounds, and assists. This performance earned him a place in Bill Simmons’ “50 Club”- a list of players who averaged over 50 total points, rebounds, and assists while making the Finals.
Since 1974, when the league had only 17 teams, only Jokic in 2023 and LeBron in 2018 have achieved membership to this exclusive club. Jokic's score of 52.9 even surpasses the peak performance of LeBron during his time with the Cavaliers. Most of the seasons on this list are from the '60s, when rebounding numbers were inflated due to pace and lower shooting efficiency.
It’s plain and simple: in the modern era of basketball, only 2 players have been equipped with the all-around skill set to join this club, and Jokic is one of them. There is now no doubt that Nikola Jokic is one of the greatest basketball players of all time. If you’re in the latter half of the Top 10, it may be time to start sweating at night, because I don’t see this man stopping any time soon.
*All stats courtesy of basketball-reference.com and cleaningtheglass.com