NBA Lottery Karma Rankings, Jaylen’s Future, and a Blistering Wolves-Spurs Series With Nick Wright

Bill Simmons and Nick Wright unpack the Boston Celtics' Game 7 collapse against Philadelphia, Jalen Brown's signals of discontent, the Minnesota Timberwolves' physical assault on San Antonio in their series opener, LeBron James' playoff dominance amid Ringer rankings gripes, and Simmons' annual NBA lottery karma rankings ahead of Sunday's drawing.

Celtics' Loss, Mazzulla's Strategy, and Brown's Future

The Celtics, despite 65 regular-season games without Jayson Tatum, faltered in Game 7 without a clear plan from coach Joe Mazzulla. Simmons highlights Mazzulla's poor record as a heavy favorite outside the 2024 title run—plus-500, plus-900, and plus-1,000 odds in losses—and questions lineup choices like Vucevic guarding Maxey. They over-relied on threes (53 attempts in Game 2), ignored closeouts on Maxey, and failed to prioritize two-point leads in crunch time, such as six straight one-point possessions in the fourth. Brown, Finals MVP two years ago, streamed on Twitch post-loss, calling it his "most fun" season despite the flameout and Tatum's Achilles injury. This, plus earlier joy without Tatum, suggests he wants his own team. Trade ideas center on a three-team deal: Boston sends Brown plus picks to Atlanta (who include Milwaukee's pick); Milwaukee gets Brown; Atlanta takes Giannis, fitting with Trae Young and Jalen Johnson. Boston's $28 million trade exception absorbs sal