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Game plans · Tuesday, November 24

How each team beats its opponent. Where to attack, and what to take away.

Plan any matchup

Based on 2025-26, with the current roster
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Raptors at Spurs

How the Raptors beat the Spurs

  1. Key scorerKey scorer: Victor WembanyamaWembanyama (25.0 points per game): best at the rim (75% on 389 shots, league 66%), worst from midrange (39%, league 42%).
  2. AttackAttack midrangeThe Raptors shoot 44.1% from midrange (6th), and the Spurs allow 42.5% there (22nd of 30).

How the Spurs beat the Raptors

  1. Key scorerKey scorer: Kawhi LeonardLeonard (27.9 points per game): best in the paint (55% on 339 shots, league 44%), worst from above the break (38%, league 35%).
  2. Take awayTake away the rim31.2% of Raptors shots come at the rim (8th most) and they make 67.7% (7th). The Spurs defense there ranks 5th (62.7% allowed).
FG% by zone. Offense rank: 1st = best shooting. Defense rank: 1st = lowest FG% allowed, 30th = most.
ZoneTOR offenseSAS defenseSAS offenseTOR defense
At the rim67.7% (7th)62.7% (5th)67.1% (12th)66.0% (15th)
Paint43.6% (20th)42.5% (7th)45.7% (10th)44.5% (19th)
Midrange44.1% (6th)42.5% (22nd)43.6% (7th)39.8% (7th)
Corner 338.6% (13th)34.6% (1st)38.9% (12th)38.6% (14th)
Above-the-break 334.1% (23rd)35.4% (19th)34.4% (20th)33.7% (2nd)

Matchups on Tue, Nov 24

3 games
  • Pistons at Magic7:00 PM ET

    How the Pistons beat the Magic

    1. Key scorerKey scorer: Paolo BancheroBanchero (22.2 points per game): best from the corners (44% on 52 shots, league 39%), worst in the paint (35%, league 44%).
    2. AttackAttack the rim36.0% of Pistons shots come at the rim (3rd most), and the Magic allow 67.5% there (21st of 30).

    How the Magic beat the Pistons

    1. Key scorerKey scorer: Cade CunninghamCunningham (23.9 points per game): best from midrange (49% on 174 shots, league 42%), worst at the rim (61%, league 66%).

    Based on 2025-26, with the current roster

    Full preview →Full plan
  • Celtics at Wizards8:00 PM ET

    How the Celtics beat the Wizards

    1. TempoSlow it downThe Celtics play at 94.2 possessions per 48 minutes (30th in pace), the Wizards at 100.8 (5th). Make it a half-court game.
    2. AttackAttack the rimThe Celtics shoot 70.5% at the rim (2nd), and the Wizards allow 68.5% there (26th of 30).

    How the Wizards beat the Celtics

    1. TempoPush the paceThe Wizards play at 100.8 possessions per 48 minutes (5th in pace), the Celtics at 94.2 (30th). Run and make them keep up.
    2. GlassFinish possessions: box outThe Celtics grab 29.2% of their misses (6th) and the Wizards rank 30th on the defensive glass (70.2%).

    Based on 2025-26, with the current roster

    Full preview →Full plan
  • Mavericks at Nuggets10:00 PM ET

    How the Mavericks beat the Nuggets

    1. Key scorerKey scorer: Nikola JokicJokic (27.7 points per game): best from midrange (57% on 109 shots, league 42%), worst from above the break (37%, league 35%).
    2. AttackAttack the paint21.5% of Mavericks shots come in the paint (8th most), and the Nuggets allow 45.3% there (22nd of 30).

    How the Nuggets beat the Mavericks

    1. AttackAttack the paintThe Nuggets shoot 48.4% in the paint (2nd), and the Mavericks allow 45.5% there (24th of 30).
    2. AttackAttack midrangeThe Nuggets shoot 44.8% from midrange (3rd), and the Mavericks allow 42.7% there (23rd of 30).

    Based on 2025-26, with the current roster

    Full preview →Full plan
How this works

Each plan is a short list of rules applied to both teams' season numbers. Every item shows its numbers and ranks out of 30 so you can check it. At most 5 items per team, the biggest edges first.

  • Attack: a shot zone where the team is good (top 10 in FG% or in share of its shots) and the opponent's defense there is bottom 8 in FG% allowed (bottom 10 if that finds fewer than 2).
  • Take away: the opponent's favorite zone (top 5 in share, top 8 if fewer than 2 qualify) where they are also efficient (top 10 FG%), with the team's own defensive rank there.
  • Target: of the opponent's 5 most-used lineups, the one that allows the most points per 100 possessions, with at least 100 possessions and at least 3 points worse than the team's own defensive rating. All 5 players must still be on the team.
  • Key scorer: the opponent's top scorer on the current roster (100+ shots). Best and worst zones compare his FG% with the league average there (50+ shots per zone). A side lean shows only when he has 60+ shots on each side and a gap of 6+ points. Left and right are as our shot charts draw them (rim at the bottom), and shots at the rim are left out of the side split.
  • Tempo and glass: a pace gap of 2+ possessions per 48 minutes; offensive rebounding, defensive rebounding and turnovers when one team is top 5 and the other bottom 5 (widened to 8 when fewer than 2 edges show up).

Data: team zones come from every counted regular season shot (made and missed; backcourt heaves left out; left and right corner 3s combined). Defense zones use the shots each team allowed. Lineups come from our play-by-play lineup stints. Before a team has played 10 games this season, its plan uses last season's numbers with today's roster, and lineups that no longer exist are skipped.

What it cannot see: there is no tracking data, so no defender distance, individual matchups or play types (pick and roll, isolation, post ups). Team zone numbers include every player a team used, even ones who have left. Injuries and rest are not in the plan, and season numbers can hide a recent change in form.