Hard to believe there’s only about one month remaining in the NBA regular season, but here we are. Down the stretch come the horses, and they’re sorted realistically into three different categories: the front-runners for the title (top teams in each conference), those jockeying for playoff positioning and those trying to increase their lottery odds. All three groups, on their own, provide for an intriguing finish to the season. It’s when the groups intersect that outcomes become more predictable and, as games take place involving those in the third tier, troublesome for the league.

As the league office still struggles with the dirty “t” word, and the product around the league undoubtedly suffers throughout this stretch run of the season, a slippery slope emerges. This, and more, headline this week’s Coaching Clipboard:

1. Tanking, Meddling with Coaching Tactics and the League’s Biggest Issue

A few years ago, I attended a workshop from a group called Polarity Partnerships—an organization that trains on how to properly grapple with polarities: two ideas that are in direct contrast to each other but are intertwined. Polarities can be simple, like the push-and-pull between team and individual, change and stability, tradition and innovation or compassion and toughness. As a general leadership tactic and training one’s mind to wrestle with these dilemmas, the ideal solution to any polar relationship is to find the appropriate balance with which one can allow both viewpoints to coexist.

Today’s modern sports climate has a ton of issues that polarity thinking can help solve, but one in particular has stumped the NBA for seasons now: how to properly deal with tanking.

It’s a dirty word, one that the league has recently reaffirmed as best not to openly talk about. That doesn’t make the issue go away, nor does it make the ramifications of their own policies any less real. Essentially, the league must figure out how to find the appropriate balance between encouraging its franchises to remain competitive throughout the season for the sake of viewers while structuring rules that provide parity and help position teams that aren’t performing well to improve during the offseason.

Every major sports league in North America has a draft, where, in some form, the reverse order of the standings informs positioning, helping those at the bottom reap some sort of benefit that might help them in the future. All four sports leagues in the United States are struggling with the issue of tanking, but none more than the NBA as it aggressively pushes for its own growth in the national and international markets.

The league has sent a clear message over the last few years that purposefully trying to lose games runs counter to the integrity of the Association. Rightfully so, not only due to the immorality of losing on purpose, but also the financial consequences, especially in the wake of a new platform on legalized sports betting.

To its credit, the league has also taken a look at finding ways to go about discouraging tanking, and this year passed refined lottery odds that redistribute the odds more evenly amongst lottery teams, in theory making it less appealing than it currently is to be in last place. Numerous other platforms and proposals have taken root in the media and behind the scenes, but it appears the lottery system is here to stay.

As the NBA searches for balance between these two important poles (remaining competitive and creating parity), it must find a better way to legislate the climate that its own rules have created. We’ve seen Adam Silver and company take an active role in protecting the best interests of the league, a broad and bland defense for issues that don’t specifically have rules they like. They’ve fined teams for sitting players on nationally televised games, back-to-backs or the like. There were once rumblings of pressure from the powers-that-be to nudge Sam Hinkie out of his perch atop the Philadelphia 76ers’ basketball operations.

This week’s assertion, a memo to the Chicago Bulls warning them of making certain players inactive, was the tipping point for me. From a pure rules standpoint, yes, the NBA has given itself authority to make such a decision. The Board of Governors passed legislation this September, in conjunction with the new lottery odds, that gives the league the ability to fine teams for resting high-profile players, sitting several of them at once on the road, or choosing not to have them travel to road games. If it’s in the rules, it’s fair game to be adjudicated.

From a pure coaching perspective, it’s an unnecessary and frustrating development. The league is asserting itself as the ultimate decision-maker for how the Chicago Bulls make personnel decisions down the stretch of this season by forcing them to keep players like Robin Lopez and Justin Holiday active. Even acknowledging certain players are more instrumental to their team’s success is a slippery slope that hopefully Silver works harder not to slide down.

The point I’d make counter to the league is this: The Bulls gained a bad record this season because of their poor play, which occurred while Lopez and Holiday were in the lineup. What is to say that the team isn’t better without them, or that someone else deserves a chance? Chicago has no star players, nobody averaging more than 17 points per game and no hot names for whom fans on the road will gear up. Exactly what in the “best interest of the game” are the Bulls clearly violating?

If it’s the business of the league to tell teams who to play and when to play them, then coaching really isn’t an autonomous act for an organization. That’s incredibly frustrating for someone like Fred Hoiberg who is trying to spin the Bulls’ season as an opportunity for other players within the organization to expand their skills and gain valuable experience. He’s helping position the team to evaluate its young assets and see who it can count on. By squashing any voice Hoiberg might have, they’re discrediting his message and undermining his authority (or proving he doesn’t have it altogether).

The bottom line is this: The NBA caused tanking by the way it structured its rules, and it should live with those consequences. There is always value in each part of the season to a coach, and there should be to a team. Shame on the NBA for meddling in those affairs to this extent.

2. The Next Robert Covington

Part of the reason this time period is so important for teams near the bottom of the standings revolves around unearthing the next gem, the next guy who fell through the cracks but can be a legitimate threat in the NBA. Teams that are both competitive and cap-saddled usually lack the playing time or financial maneuverability to give meaningful minutes to guys by whom they’re intrigued.

When I think back to the “Process Sixers,” the guys that will come to mind first will be Robert Covington and T.J. McConnell, the undrafted players who were given an opportunity and improved greatly due to logging so many minutes. Neither will be a superstar for Philadelphia as they march toward the postseason, but both are incredibly important pieces for the future.

For a league so invested in the development and future of its G-League, it’s baffling they don’t promote finding gems like Covington more. Think of his story: He was in the then-D-League with the Rio Grande Valley Vipers, and Philadelphia poached him away. It gave him the opportunity, invested in him and now he’s making $62 million on his current NBA contract. If that isn’t a success story the league can be proud of, nothing is.

One guy following a similar trajectory right now is Chicago Bulls guard David Nwaba, whose name is still mispronounced more frequently than the word ‘data.’ He’s a bowling ball of a 6’4″ combo guard cut from the same cloth as Dwyane Wade athletically. Nwaba doesn’t take many three-pointers (only 28 in over 1,000 minutes, which makes up for just 10 percent of his attempts), but he knocks down enough open ones to avoid the label of a non-shooter. But when Nwaba comes barreling down the lane, look out.

He’s so long and active on the defensive end that the Bulls can play him against smaller wings and insert him in the lineups with two other point guards. Having speed and burst on offense with defensive versatility makes him a match made in heaven with coach Fred Hoiberg. He separates himself with his defensive aptitude, always hustling around the court and making plays with his activity. His arms are always moving, and he’s become a bit of a one-man break in transition:

Besides making an impact on offense in transition, Nwaba flies around in the half court on defense, showing a killer instinct to not let anyone score on his team when he can help it. Here he jolts to the rim from the weak-side corner once he recognizes Kemba Walker has toasted Kris Dunn:

It’s hard to believe that a year ago, Nwaba was a complete unknown getting burn for the Los Angeles Lakers’ G-League team, and now he’s positioning himself for a nice payday this summer. Several teams should come calling about him with a portion of their Mid-Level Exception. If Chicago is going to do its tank right, it’ll make sure to keep him around.

3. Milwaukee’s Wacky Pick-and-Rolls

Okay, so the return of Jabari Parker has been a slow re-acclimation to the rotation. He’s only playing 20 minutes per night,and has come off the bench through his first 13 games. It’s clear Milwaukee doesn’t want to overwork him, and easing him back into action has been an effective strategy for the club. The Bucks are only .500 since his return, but the film reveals a whole host of creativity about finally having another offensive weapon to play through.

Jabari gives the Bucks another ball-handler in the pick-and-roll, and another threat to score from anywhere on the floor. Bucks interim coach Joe Prunty, who has done a fantastic job since stepping in for Jason Kidd, has an entire arsenal of pick-and-roll attacks that utilize any combination of Giannis Antetokounmpo, Eric Bledsoe and Jabari, flipping them as screeners and ball-handlers. Parker appears to be the missing piece to exploit any way teams choose to guard Giannis (their primary threat) and Middleton (their next-best scorer).

At least that’s what one would glean from how Prunty is using Jabari. When he’s a ball-handler, the coach calls for early-offense ball screens set by the point guards, getting Jabari a switch near the sideline and allowing him to bully his way into the post:

More frequently, teams will choose to put athleticism on Giannis, leaving stiffer defenders to mark Jabari. That’s where this set below, the 4-5 ball screen, will be so effective. Parker calls for the ball just inside the top of the key, guards swirl in screens around him and Thon Maker clips Jabari’s defender. Putting two big-man defenders in a ball screen is almost always going to generate a quality shot:

There’s a lot to be encouraged about with Milwaukee over the last month. The Bucks had an outstanding come-from-behind win against the Philadelphia 76ers last week, in which their defense carried them in the second half and allowed for the creation of easy opportunities in transition. Jabari finished with 13 points, seven boards, two dimes and two steals while going 3-of-5 from outside. If it can get that type of efficiency out of the free agent-to-be in the postseason, Milwaukee will be in good shape.

Also, Middleton is averaging perhaps the quietest 20 points, five rebounds and four rebounds in NBA history. If the Bucks can find their sweet spot with Parker and nurse him back to full strength, they’ll be a team top seeds in the Eastern Conference desperately want to avoid.

4. More Westbrook, Fewer Wins?

During Tuesday’s broadcast between the Houston Rockets and Oklahoma City Thunder, the TNT production truck aired an interesting stat. When Russell Westbrook takes 17 or fewer attempts, the Thunder are 14-2; when he takes 18 or more, they are 22-25 (now 22-26 after the loss to Houston). It’s a simple stat, and it’s effective in delivering the narrative behind researching for the number: The more Westbrook chucks, the worse his team is.

What a brutal stat from TNT. pic.twitter.com/CzEtjrkbDR

— Thunder Heads 🎙 (@OKCThunderHeads) March 7, 2018

But simply settling on that number would be an example of conformation bias, the theory of only looking at data that affirms one’s point of view. There are many possible—and probable—explanations for the correlation between the Thunder’s record and Westbrook’s shooting. For example, in those 16 games that Westbrook has 17 or fewer shots, he’s playing only 32 minutes per game. In all other contests, he’s playing 36 minutes—his attempts-per-minute profile really isn’t changing that drastically.

When the team is better and jumps out to huge margins, Westbrook doesn’t have to exert himself, or even play many minute, in the fourth quarter. In those games, his attempts are going to dip. But his shots-per-minute profile in wins and losses doesn’t fluctuate greatly. It’s a classic example of twisting stats to tell a desired story.

There’s no mention that the Thunder are 13-5 in games where Westbrook has a triple-double this season, and no mention that they’re unbeaten when he makes 10 or more free throws. Nowhere does TNT acknowledge that in every Thunder loss where Westbrook takes more than 30 attempts, one of Paul George or Carmelo Anthony was absent from the lineup.

Rarely do I sympathize with a superstar player like Westbrook who seems to shake off every other player during crunch time. There’s a real issue in Oklahoma City when it comes to chemistry and cohesion amongst their dynamic trio. Westbrook may well have a hand in why things aren’t clicking for the Thunder. But a statistic that only tells part of the story isn’t enough to condemn him.

5. Flimsy Zach Collins

The 10th overall pick in last year’s draft, 7-footer Zach Collins has come on lately for the Portland Trail Blazers. He’s shooting a respectable 33 percent from deep on the year, but he’s upped his game of late. He’s knocking down 46 percent of his treys over Portland’s eight-game win streak and is starting to rebound more effectively. He snagged four on the offensive glass against the physical interior of the New York Knicks on Tuesday.

Still, Collins has experienced the ups and downs of being an NBA rookie and hasn’t carved out a consistent grip on backup minutes at the 5. A huge part of that: Collins is only shooting 42 percent from two-point range—an abysmal number for a 7-footer. Per Synergy statistics, he’s only 10-of-34 on post-ups this year, the vast majority of which have come on mismatches against smaller guards. Some of his attempts are embarrassingly off the mark:

That’s just one of several air balls in one-on-one situations against smaller defenders this season.

If Collins fails to punish meek point guards in the post off common NBA switches, then he’s probably going to be seen as a one-dimensional pick-and-pop big. Even though his outside shooting has been outstanding of late, the holes in his game on the interior are going to hold him back. Especially as the Blazers make a push for a top-three seed out West and look to advance through the postseason, the team might be best served getting backup production elsewhere in the interim.

6. Mo’ Joe Young

Give me mo’ Joe Young!

In the absence of Darren Collison over the last few weeks, the Indiana Pacers combo guard has performed admirably and been a solid jolt in their lineup. Young has been on a tear in his last 10 games, shooting nearly 50 percent from deep and sporting 12 assists to only six giveaways.

Seriously, NBA nerds like me love to see young (no pun intended) players perform well when they’re given a chance. It’s such a culture shock to go from being a top player on each team they’ve been on throughout their life to serving as a bench player. Young has handled himself well and done whatever the organization has asked.

Nothing beats hard work…

Unless otherwise noted, all stats are courtesy of Synergy SportsTech, NBA.com or basketball-reference and are current as of March 7, 2018.