A weekend's worth of NBA intel
As we close in on the draft and free agency, leaguewide chatter about potential moves is intensifying
The question posed during a recent Spotify Live NBA chat room session was so good that it's still on my mind nearly a week later:
Who is the most prominent player likely to switch teams this offseason?
I fumbled for the answer when I was asked on the spot, but I've since borrowed the excellent framing of the question in question for use when I speak with representatives from other teams.
The name most cited when I ask …
This is an excerpt from my latest NBA column. To read it all and receive full access to all of my work, please click the link or the orange button to subscribe.
On the rise
Earlier this season, I wrote about former Houston Rockets second-round pick Chinanu Onuaku because I had just spent time with Hall of Famer Rick Barry at All-Star Weekend ... and because Onuaku is the only active professional player I know of who shoots his free throws underhanded like Barry did.
An update: Don't be surprised to see those underhanded free throws again in the NBA in the future given how much noise Onuaku made in Israel this season.
Onuaku won Israeli Winner League MVP honors with Bnei Herzliya and is now …
One year old! (Almost!)
As I mentioned Friday, I'm closing in on a major personal milestone. On June 25, right between the NBA Draft and the start of free agency, this Substack will have been in operation for a full year.
I struggle to believe it when I say it, write it or read it. Year 1 went so fast and proved as invigorating (and educational) as I had hoped.
I knew things were going to be tricky at the site launch, because I had to serve out two weeks' notice at The New York Times before I could actually start writing on July 12, 2021. But I recently published my 200th post as Year 1 draws to a close, after it had been originally suggested to me to aim for 100 posts annually.
I feel a deep sense of responsibility to deliver the quality and density of coverage that my amazingly loyal audience deserves and I am so, so grateful for the tremendous support you've been providing for me to cover the league as an independent journalist. We are building a real community here — and I know Year 2 will be even better now that I have developed a better handle on the content that works the best.
Those who subscribed right from the inception of The Stein Line — 🙏🙏🙏 — will soon be receiving their renewal notices via email. I hope you will continue on this journey with me by reupping for Year 2 — for all the news, rumbles, opinion, storytelling, historical perspective, truth-telling and, most of all, NBA coverage that puts the reader first always.
You know what I'm going to say next in my Norman Dale voice ...
I love you guys.
This is an excerpt from my latest NBA column. To read it all and receive full access to all of my work, please click the link or the orange button to subscribe.
Dot Dot Dot (🏀🏀🏀)
🏀 Every time I'm asked in a Spotify Live session about Myles Turner's future in Indiana, I pass along what I've repeatedly heard: The Pacers are hopeful about Turner's long-term prospects in Indiana after trading away Domantas Sabonis. Yet I'm told there is a scenario I need to add to the range of possibilities for Turner as he heads into an offseason expected to feature …