The Unrestricted Area Presented by Basketball Intelligence Ray LeBov

Once again, Ray LeBov and Mike Shearer speak with the godfather of modern NBA analytics, Dean Oliver.
Dean talks about the trade-off between offensive rebounding and transition defense, the existence of momentum, what he'd tell armchair analysts today, and his new book, Basketball Beyond Paper, in which he quantifies some of the ways to train and improve players (among many other things).
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BI’s Mike Shearer and Ray LeBov are joined by Alex Squadron, who recently authored a book called Life in the G: Minor League Basketball and the Relentless Pursuit of the NBA.
We talk about his season embedded with the Birmingham Squadron (no relation to Alex) and what he learned while covering the players, coaches, and staff during a uniquely tumultuous time. He describes the choice every G-Leaguer has to make between earning good money playing overseas or staying closer to their NBA dream, what his writing process was like, and why players should always, always double-check their bags before leaving on a road trip.
Check out the daily newsletter at www.basketballintelligence.net for all the best NBA stories hand-curated from around the web!

Basketball Intelligence's Mike Shearer (@bbballispoetry) and Ray LeBov (@RayLebov) speak with Bleacher Report's Andy Bailey (who authored a story suggesting these changes) and former Director of Officiating Ronnie Nunn about some potential rule changes the NBA could adopt to improve the game.

The conversation covers the feasibility of live-ball rebounds, the impact of fewer timeouts (and what refs are doing when teams are huddled up), a history of flopping, what should be done about block/charge calls, and the difficulties of getting to a 2-hour game. 
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Basketball Intelligence is joined by NBA analyst Seth Partnow and intellectual property expert Mike Kasdan to discuss the wild Knicks-Raptors lawsuit. It's a fascinating deep dive filled with legal and basketball nuances as they discuss trade secrets, how much of a competitive edge the Raptors could really gain, how common this is within the league, damages, and much more. 
Check out the daily newsletter at www.basketballintelligence.net for all the best NBA stories hand-curated from around the web!

Ray LeBov and Mike Shearer speak with the godfather of NBA analytics, Dean Oliver. He discusses why we're talking about defense wrong, his new book, how coaching is different than a front office role, Kristaps Porzingis' love of numbers, and how the four factors have changed over time.



Check out the daily newsletter at www.basketballintelligence.net for all the best NBA stories hand-curated from around the web!

Ray and Mike speak with The Box And One's Adam Spinella, the multitalented coach and scout. We discuss his favorite picks, his issues with quiet personalities being unfairly judged, an awesome Cam Whitmore story,  Anthony Black's shooting mechanic, second-round steals, and more!
Check out the daily newsletter at www.basketballintelligence.net for all the best NBA stories hand-curated from around the web!