WHY ELITE BIG MEN STILL RULE A GUARD-DRIVEN LEAGUE

A couple of months ago, I wrote about how the Los Angeles Lakers essentially gave up their frontcourt depth to stop Luka Dončić.

https://www.project-sydrified.com/the-luka-trade-in-defense-of-the-dallas-mavericks

That narrative, of course, got buried under the noise of Nico Harrison’s PR missteps—talking when he probably should’ve stayed quiet. Still, he earned a bit of redemption when he echoed an old truth: “Defense wins championships.”

It’s a classic basketball saying—passed down from sweaty pickup games to the grandest stages like the NBA Finals or the Olympics. It sits right up there with the foundational idea of having five core positions: point guard, shooting guard, small forward, power forward, and center.

As of this writing, five teams have advanced to the next round—and they all share a common denominator. Yes, Boston is married to the three-ball and most of these playoff squads love their slashers, but make no mistake: each one of them boasts two legitimate forces in the paint.

Take Cleveland—Evan Mobley and Jarrett Allen anchor their interior. Boston rolls with Kristaps Porziņģis and Al Horford, with Jayson Tatum able to flex across multiple spots. Indiana leans on Pascal Siakam and Myles Turner. OKC’s got a young tower duo in Chet Holmgren and Isaiah Hartenstein. And Minnesota? Rudy Gobert and Julius Randle absolutely dominated the Lakers to push the Timberwolves forward.

If only the Lakers had a guy like Anthony Davis manning the paint.

TOO MANY TRIPLES?

TEAM	RESULT	FGA	3FGA	3FGM	3FG%
BOSTON	4 TO 1	390	156	59	0.378
ORLANDO	1 TO 4	422	156	41	0.263
CLEVELAND	4 TO 0	342	175	77	0.440
MIAMI	0 TO 4	326	159	55	0.346
INDIANA	4 TO 1	437	183	72	0.393
MILWAUKEE	1 TO 4	439	190	72	0.379
MINNESOTA	4 TO 1	435	186	60	0.323
LA LAKERS	1 TO 4	394	194	68	0.351
OKLAHOMA CITY	4 TO 0	383	166	52	0.313
MEMPHIS	0 TO 4	347	138	42	0.304

Sure, playoff games are full of deep threes and flashy drives, but the real contenders either feast on high-percentage looks or stretch the floor because their big men give them that luxury. The paint still matters. Maybe now more than ever.