With the first half of the NBA season coming to a close, this week we highlight a Time Lord-fueled Celtics ascent, leakiness from the Knicks, a quiet Kyrie Irving development to monitor and Oscar-level acting from two NBA All-Stars.
1. The Boston Celtics are, finally, who we thought they were
The most interesting thing in NBA defense over the last 20 games has been Ime Udoka's semi-radical decision to slot his shot-devouring center -- Robert Williams III, Lord of Time -- on wings away from the ball. The next-biggest Celtic -- Al Horford in Boston's starting five, sometimes Grant Williams, Jayson Tatum or Jaylen Brown in smaller looks -- takes the other team's main screen-setter, and switches everything.