I write about the NBA for Bleacher Report and practice law in the Wild West.
Wyoming, USA
Joined July 2012
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Darius Acuff is currently second in the entire NBA in total field-goal attempts. The only player ahead of him has played one more game than Acuff has. And Acuff only has 67 points on his 73 shots.
I absolutely hate what happened to Jalen Williams tonight. So unfair at any moment, but especially after everything he fought through last season. I hope he can feel all the prayers tonight. There will be millions.
Austin Reaves shushing fans in Utah would make more sense if there weren’t so many Lakers fans there.
I think we have to reserve final judgment for the end of the season, when teams in the play-in range might tank to get into the lottery, but I think the early returns on the NBA’s new anti-tanking rules are encouraging. Definitely a little harder to find obvious blowouts on the schedule right now.
After a train derailed, spilled chemicals and forced an evacuation of Dillon High, head football coach Eric Taylor had his Dillon Panthers play a state semifinal game on a handmade field built in a cow pasture.
Nobody knows where or even when WNBA Finals Game 6 will be played despite a furious round of negotiations spilling into Sunday between the WNBA, NBA, Valkyries, Dream and Atlanta Hawks, sources told @alexaphilippou and @ramonashelburne: spr.ly/6015BH5Zyb
That’s why I threw the word “apparent” in that post. You don’t get to be the best basketball player in the world, which is what Jokić has been for six-plus years now, while being apathetic toward the sport. But there are stretches of regular-season games, particularly on defense, where he looks checked out. And I think the team, which is naturally filled with players who can’t coast as effectively as he does, sometimes follows. Year after year, the Nuggets’ point differential is worse than their talent level suggests it should be.
And most people are still judging individual NBA legacies like they’re being formed in those earlier eras.
The days of NBA teams progressing in a linear fashion, becoming contenders, then champions while contending every year until they get washed up and #FlabbyAndSick are done. It's the NFL now. A team can win a title and completely fall off the next season, go under their win total and/or fail to make it back to the conference finals.
It feels like a lot of people are having problems adjusting to this.
Power ranking tonight's NBA slate by potential entertainment value...
1. Pistons-76ers (potential Eastern Conference Finals preview, two undefeated teams)
2. Raptors-Timberwolves (great clash of styles with Minnesota's offense and Toronto's defense)
3. Grizzlies-Kings (should tell you how much I enjoy the Grizzlies right now)
4. Magic-Knicks (two "should be good" East teams in need of their first win)
5. Lakers-Jazz (LA's offense and the hope for a Peterson breakout)
6. Pacers-Nets (Haliburton's return tour, but the MPJ & Julius Show isn't moving me yet)
7. Clippers-Thunder (wipeout)
Andy Bailey retweeted
Nuggets rookie Trevon Brazile made winning play after winning play last night. Just look at this effort level on both offense and defense. 35th pick in the draft and already receiving MVP chants from fans in Denver.
This man is an incredible quote.
Yaxel Lendeborg on going to the line 12 times tonight which is something Jimmy Butler is particularly good at:
“Yeah, just seeing the way the NBA is, man, I guess a lot of fouls, a lot of free throws. So, I mean, I think I got to just adapt to what this is evolving to be. I’m going to learn all the sweep-throughs and all the bump and flops. Eventually, I’m going to get good at it and be able to shoot as many free throws as possible.”
My biggest criticism of Jokić (one I’ve expressed a few times over the years) is that his apparent apathy, which he’s good enough to get away with individually, may rub off on his teammates, who really can’t get away with it. Big part of games like tonight’s.
