Top 25 NBA Articles on Substack

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Jan 27

Variable Lottery Ticket Pricing: Cam Boozer

Evaluating the Top of the 2026 NBA Draft with Incomplete Information
Early Evaluation with Incomplete Information
Nik Oza ∙ 7 LIKES
Neural Foundry's avatar
Neural Foundry
Really solid framework for evaluating prospects underuncertainty. The Duke talent conundrum point is especially sharp, teams that can't optimize their rosters in-season aren't going to accurately signal a prospect's ceiling. I've wondered alot about how much weaker defensive metrics for versatile bigs reflect roster construction vs individual limitation, and the Ngongba/Brown context answers that nicely.
Daniel M's avatar
Daniel M
Re: Footnote 16--I completely agree, and I have been exploring how to capture the "big man assists" signal for defensive players while also adjusting for the offensive context appropriately. If anyone has ideas on how to do this for BPM 3.0, please let me know!

Episode 38. 1995 NBA All-Star Game Branding.

Phoenix 1995: The singular sports branding game that changed everything in event design.
Welcome to Sports Branding Episode 38: 1995 NBA All-Star Game - Phoenix, AZ.
Gameplan Creative ∙ 8 LIKES ∙ 2 RESTACKS
Neural Foundry's avatar
Neural Foundry
This case study nails what modern sport branding lacks. The cactus-inside-basketball instantly geolocated the event without needing voiceover or B-roll. I've been to events where thecity was just background filler, but here the design made Phoenix the protagonist. The bit about todays All Star logos being over optimized for feeds is spot on, everything's built for algorithmic distribution but nothing sticks emotionally anymore.

A Stat Boy Cannot Ignore This List!

At age 18 and 19 Cooper Flagg joins the immortals, but you are not ready for 45!
I saw a phenomenal statistical list and I must share it, as I am beholden to the vow I took decades ago: once a Stat Boy, always a Stat Boy. (Like a Marine.)
Tony Reali ∙ 10 LIKES
The AI Architect's avatar
The AI Architect
Really enjoyed the Nat F. Hickey deep dive. The fact that ages 33-34 show the lowest peak scoring numbers is fascinating and probably reflects when athleticism drops but experince hasn't fully compesated yet. Also the basketball-to-baseball pipeline story with Stan Musial is gold, turning a blown arm into one of baseball's all-time greats is the ultimate pivot story.
David S's avatar
David S
Nat played his only two games just days before his 46th birthday. Had he played again a few days later he would have joined Wilt with two spots on the highest scoring game by age list.

Little League Secures $7 Million Grant

🏈💰 The largest and most trusted source for youth sports business news
⚾ Little League International Secures $7 Million Grant From Easton Foundations for Facility Upgrades and Volunteer Programs
Youth Sports HQ ∙ 2 LIKES

Well, Well, Well It's The Consequences Of My Actions

Can you really avoid the consequences of your actions?
It’s 2023. Charles Bediako just finished his sophomore year playing basketball at the University of Alabama. His team is fresh off a first round upset in the NCAA tournament. He has a decision to make. Return to college or forgo his college eligibility to pursue a professional career in the NBA. He wasn’t seen as an NBA draft pick, but decided it was ti…
Scantron ∙ 5 LIKES ∙ 1 RESTACKS
Neural Foundry's avatar
Neural Foundry
Strong take on commitment and consequence. The Bediako case is a really interesting lens for this, especially the two-way contract limbo where guys are techincally pros but not really. The Palmer Luckey quote captures it well. Keeping options open becomes its own trap whe it prevents real investment in anything. I've seen this play out in tech careers where people optimize for optionality so hard they never actually build depth in one area, just bouncing between surface-level stuff.




Santi Aldama and the important intersection of size and skill

Santi Aldama is an adaptable basketball player that can do a bunch of different things on the floor, allowing interchangeability for the Grizzlies, and aligns with the NBA's biggest trends.
I’ve had this spiel for years about “position-less” basketball, beginning at the peak of powers for how the Warriors redefined basketball with Draymond Green moving down to the 5. Over the past decade, “position-less” basketball has evolved as the league has seen players with size come in with more skill. These bigs with a vast perimeter skillset were c…
Parker Fleming ∙ 6 LIKES ∙ 3 RESTACKS
Adam Amster's avatar
Adam Amster
aldama is such an important player for the grizzlies
he can play multiple positions, pass, defend the perimeter, and shoot.
I would love the Lakers to have a guy like that


The Ball and The Ballot

A new report explores how pro athletes vote, based on polling data.
By Carron J. Phillips
39 LIKES ∙ 7 RESTACKS
Merlin Dorfman's avatar
Merlin Dorfman
About Major League Baseball: Black participation used to be a lot higher. Today the leagues are heavily Latino, and Asian participation is growing. Many if not most of these groups are not citizens and thus don't vote. But they do have opinions about American politics.
Ma's avatar
Ma
Likely the white athletes are racist nazis like the rest of maga.


How Balenciaga Is Using Sports to Rehab Its Image

Plus, Nike introduces ACG into football, with its logo appearing on Inter Milan's new fourth kit and an accompanying collection.
Hi everyone, welcome back to SportsVerse, my twice-weekly newsletter that tells stories you can’t find anywhere else about the intersection of sports, fashion, business, and culture.
Daniel-Yaw Miller ∙ 25 LIKES ∙ 2 RESTACKS
Olivia Nielsen's avatar
Olivia Nielsen
Honestly, as someone who loves when luxe and sport come together, this collab was not it. Here’s my take: https://open.substack.com/pub/damecore/p/a-timeout-on-the-balenciaga-x-nba?r=726nt0&utm_medium=ios&shareImageVariant=overlay
BETC Group Newsletter's avatar
BETC Group Newsletter
left on friday