The Celtics finished first in Net Rating ahead of the Cavaliers, who jumped up from 13th last season and 28th as recently as 2021. Read more »

Whether the Raptors try to regroup with what they have or make a rebuilding step backwards will have a lot to do with how difficult they think the battle is to win, and whether it's even worth fighting while the Bucks and Celtics peak. The Knicks, ever-beleaguered, are just happy to be where they are; as they should be. Read more »

The Raptors play in a way that emphasizes their length. They appear in your imagination as a mass of adolescent sycamores with limbs like an interstate highway system. Read more »

The Suns jumped from 30th in the NBA in Net Rating in 17-18 to 29th to 18th in 19-20 to third last season and first in 21-22. Read more »

DeMar DeRozan has come into his power like the sun showing up in the eye of a hurricane, there all along but waiting, patiently, for the circle of fortune to form up around him. Read more »

DeMar DeRozan wasn't LeBron and he wasn't Kawhi, and he also wasn't Tim Duncan when he reached the Spurs. He quietly improved nonetheless and turned into one of the most overlooked playmakers in the NBA. Read more »

The Jazz jumped from ninth in Net Rating last season to first in 20-21. Read more »

Kyle Lowry was a nomad for most of his 20s, being dealt is nothing new to him, but his career represents an inversion of the typical star's arc. Read more »

Whether or not Kyle Lowry is traded will depend not on sentiment, but on whether or not the Raptors and another team agree that doing so is beneficial to the future of both teams. Read more »

On the 76ers and Celtics hoping for a breakthrough, the Nets figuring out what they'll be with Durant and Irving, Toronto running it back without their center vets, and the Knicks embarking a different type of rebuild. Read more »

The Raptors, with everything else more or less fixed, will be as extraordinary as Pascal Siakam is. Read more »

Toronto took two steps back when Kawhi exited, but still flourished, nearly every player on the roster improving to compensate for a loss they couldn't totally overcome. They did their job; they'll realize that once this fresh failure stops smarting. Read more »

Both the Raptors and Kawhi himself, though separated by the breadth of a continent, have something at stake, a chance to assert that they were the truly indispensable part of last year's triumph and win back-to-back chips. Read more »

We look at the trajectory of every team in the NBA in terms of how they rank in the category. Read more »

On the Celtics retooling with Kemba Walker, Brooklyn getting a pair of superstars, the Knicks' Plan B, Philadelphia supersizing their roster, and the Raptors keeping the title momentum going without Kawhi Leonard. Read more »

Vince Carter wasn't everything Toronto wanted him to be, but he was its first love. Like a lot of first loves, he was both singular and not enough, an unclipsable unit of measurement unto himself. Read more »

With so much turnover this offseason, and another exciting draft class, teams had lots and lots to say. Read more »