Five significant NBA stats in final stretch: Defense rules for Knicks, Donovan Mitchell's pace, more

Some relevant numbers for the Cavs, Pelicans, Knicks, Magic and a certain rookie in Texas

Less than a month remains in the NBA regular season and if this is when teams are supposed to round into form, then only a handful of them can feel particularly good about themselves. Between all the injuries (Minnesota, almost every relevant team in the East) and inconsistency (Dallas, Phoenix, Clippers, among others), it's OK to be a bit confused about the state of things right now.

So let's zoom out. Instead of trying to make sense of a hot or cold streak that might be meaningless, here are five stats that seem significant for the stretch run.