Top 15 Kicks Worn During Week 9 of NBA Season

Top 15 Kicks Worn During Week 9 of NBA Season

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by | Dec 24, 2019 | Featured, NBA, Sneakers

Week 9 in the NBA saw the debut of two anticipated sneakers – one in a Protro form, and one in a brand new silhouette altogether. It was no surprise to see DeMar DeRozan as the one who got to debut the Nike Kobe 5 Protro “Chaos” on court. DeRozan’s Kobe line runs deep and he can always be seen rocking one Kobe model or another. Russell Westbrook debuted his new Jordan Why Not Zer0.3 model, in a fittingly loud and vibrant color scheme. Westbrook’s third signature shoe is his lightest yet and comes with a mid-foot strap and an aggressive looking midsole pattern.

Lebron James hit the court in arguably his best player exclusive colorway of his 17’s yet. There’s just something about how good purple and yellow look against a black background. A staple in the weekly top 15 countdown even wore mismatched shoes for one of his games this week. P.J. Tucker absolutely shut the list down by wearing a college P.E. that is nearly impossible to obtain. Two players sported some colorful New Balance OMN1S’s, with neither player being named Kawhi Leonard. One point guard was even brave enough to rock some classic Nike basketball kicks that are nearing 17 years old! View our Top 15 Kicks Worn During Week 9 below to see which athletes wore which shoes and to see where they rank.

 

 

15. Q4 Sports The Specialist “Dodgeball” Custom – Langston Galloway – Detroit Pistons (done by @andr3wtl)

 

     

 

 

14. Jordan XXXIV “Snow Leopard” – Kemba Walker – Boston Celtics

 

     

 

 

13. Nike Hyperdunk OG “Blackout” & “Philippines” – De’Aaron Fox – Sacramento Kings

 

     

 

 

12. New Balance OMN1S P.E. – Montrezl Harrell – Los Angeles Clippers

 

     

 

 

11. Nike Kobe 1 Protro Undefeated Orange Camo (Phoenix) – Marcus Morris – New York Knicks

 

     

 

 

10. Jordan XIII “CP3” (Away) – Montrezl Harrell – Los Angeles Clippers

 

     

 

 

9. Nike Zoom Freak 1 P.E. – Giannis Antetokounmpo – Milwaukee Bucks

 

     

 

 

8. Nike Kobe 5 Protro “Chaos” – DeMar DeRozan – San Antonio Spurs

 

     

 

 

7. New Balance OMN1S “Spurs” – Dejounte Murray – San Antonio Spurs

 

     

 

 

6. Nike Zoom Flight 2K3 – Isaiah Thomas – Washington Wizards

 

     

 

 

5. Jordan Why Not Zer0.3 – Russell Westbrook – Houston Rockets

 

     

 

 

4. Nike Kobe 8 Elite “Superhero” – Shai Gilgeous-Alexander – Oklahoma City Thunder

 

     

 

 

3. Nike Kobe 5 “Lower Merion Aces” (Home & Away) – Montrezl Harrell – Los Angeles Clippers

 

     

 

 

2. Nike Lebron XVII P.E. – Lebron James – Los Angeles Lakers

 

     

 

 

1. Jordan XIII “Oregon” P.E. – P.J. Tucker – Houston Rockets

 

     

 

 

 

 

 

 

Dec 24, 2019 No Comments
SR – NBA Power Rankings: Week 10

SR – NBA Power Rankings: Week 10

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by | Dec 24, 2019 | Featured, NBA

So…things are getting interesting at the top of the rankings list, aren’t they?

The Lakers, fresh off despondently dropping two straight games to the Milwaukee Bucks and Denver Nuggets, are finally out of the top three teams on this list, and for various reasons that involve more than just a scoring slump. LA’s first loss on their slide was to the Bucks, and MVP frontrunner Giannis Antetokounmpo’s career-high five threes and 34 points in the season’s most anticipated game. But, more problems have arisen with these Lakers that surround a sudden ailment of their most integral piece.

The health of LeBron James is coincidentally, and eerily, at risk. Remember, around the holidays last year was the time that LeBron knelt in agony with a groin tear that not only sidelined him for almost two months but ended the Lakers’ chance at reaching the postseason with the Lakers, subsequently marred with other injuries to other parts of their offensive attack of course.

But now, lightning might strike twice on Tinseltown’s team due to some bad history and reoccurrences from last year. Though LeBron is probable for Wednesday’s war on Christmas against the Clippers, pessimism and a hint of paranoia is allowed in this instance because the Lakers are taking a chance at running the real risk of re-injury to the best player on the planet in an extremely meaningful midseason game.

Across the league spectrum, the Milwaukee Bucks are just manhandling every team that puts a foot in their path. This is the best team in the game right now, and they showed up and showed out against a Lakers team that initially was perceived to tightly contest the Bucks in last Thursday’s TNT duel on primetime television. LeBron and Anthony Davis may have combined for 57 points, but it felt at times like their scheduled heroics were nowhere to be found and a perimeter-favoring offense was held to just 34 percent shooting from deep and 46 percent overall from the field in a 111-104 road loss.

The rest of the league saw some fireworks happen with other teams either getting over the sub-.500 hump, while other teams rose to the occasion in some huge comebacks to beat their opposition. Let’s get into where these other 28 teams place in this week’s Power Rankings ahead of the five-game slate of all-day Christmas Basketball, shall we?

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1. Milwaukee Bucks (27-4, Last Week’s Ranking: 1)

As Philadelphia on St. Nick’s Day approaches on their schedule, Milwaukee’s looked dominant and unstoppable with convincing wins against the Lakers, as mentioned, the Knicks and Pacers during their two-game homestand and visit to the Garden this week. Their defense and offense are top-tier, Mike Budenholzer’s spacing is downright scary, Giannis is the lock to win the Most Valuable Player award, and on top of all that, their schedule is the most wonderful gift of all, as ten-straight teams that aren’t above .500 prepare to face the buzzsaw that is the Milwaukee Bucks in the next two weeks.

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2. Boston Celtics (20-7, Last Week’s Ranking: 9)

It’s a next-man-up approach for Brad Stevens and his Celtics, as he’s been forced to scavenge through the Celtics depth to find viable parts to compile other offensive pieces with Gordon Hayward being out. Fortunately, the play of the Celtics’ new big three has filled the gap. Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown are playing like All-NBA talents, and deservedly so are playing as if they are awaiting All-Star honors.

It’s as if the Celtics losing to the Sixers is a good luck charm, as the team finds a way to kickstart winning streaks after losing to Philadelphia. Since taking their first home loss to those Sixers just a week ago, the trio of Walker, Tatum, and Brown combined for 82 points in a road win against the Luka Doncic-less Mavs and then beat the Hornets and Pistons by double digits just nights later.

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3. Los Angeles Lakers (24-6, Last Week’s Ranking: 2)

LeBron’s been critical of load management recently after a reporter asked for his take on whether players should be given rest periods even if they’re uninjured. He was reportedly experiencing groin discomfort and opted to take a night off instead of facing the Nuggets, who absolutely humbled the Lakers as they suffered their sixth loss of the year. LBJ and AD have been putting up consistently impressive numbers but the possibility of dropping four straight with the Clippers up next on Wednesday cannot be of allowance if the Lakers want to keep their No. 1 spot in the West.

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4. Los Angeles Clippers (22-10, Last Week’s Ranking: 4)

Turbulence has been the deal for the Clippers’ streak of recent outings, as they are 2-3 in their past five games. That’s including a blown lead to the Rockets on Thursday night and a surprising loss to the impressive Oklahoma City Thunder. Some of that is because of their choppy lineups as they rest players (load management skeptics, step right up!) and additionally deal with injuries.

Sunday’s loss to Oklahoma City featured yet another fourth-quarter blown lead, as the Thunder clamped up Paul George and Lou Williams. What was more egregious was their defensive insufficiency, letting Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and the rest of OKC score at will on the other end while Kawhi Leonard and Patrick Beverley sat. Last night’s loss was probably just a buffer for their stars, as they will be healthy enough for Christmas Day against the Lakers.

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5. Toronto Raptors (21-8, Last Week’s Ranking: 10)

Pascal Siakam, Marc Gasol, and Norman Powell have been out for a while but in Nick Nurse’s world, that apparently doesn’t matter as they’ve won five straight wins, the fifth being the exclamation point to their winning streak as a 30-point comeback against the Mavericks was completed in which Kyle Lowry scored 32 points, and 20 individual 4th quarter points in a 47-point 4th quarter for the Raptors. Lowry and Fred VanVleet’s usage is going to skyrocket this week, averaging a combined 37.8 points per game as the team’s second (Lowry) and third (VanVleet) best scorers.

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6. Miami Heat (21-8, Last Week’s Ranking: 6)

The Heat had a bit of an up-and-down week by losing to the Grizzlies on the road, but ended it strongly with a statement win over the Philadelphia 76ers on the road, ending Philly’s 14-game undefeated streak at home to start the season while also avenging their embarrassing loss to the Sixers the last time they played in the Wells Fargo Center. Bam Adebayo continues to put it together, averaging 15.6 points and 10.6 rebounds per game off 57.5 percent shooting. He was arguably the best player on the floor in Philly last week, scoring 23 points off 9/16 shooting.

His development is running parallel to Miami’s ability to string together quality wins, and with the Jazz and Pacers coming up next, there’s more room for growth in his game as we near the end of December and enter the new year.

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 7. Houston Rockets (21-8, Last Week’s Ranking: 7)

Russell Westbrook and James Harden are finally finding middle ground in creating that optimal offensive gameplan that’s beneficial for the both of them. Even more, Westbrook is finally out of that shooting slump that captivated him for more than a month, averaging 29.3 points on 50.7% shooting in his past seven games. He dropped 40 on one of the most defensively intimidating teams in the NBA in the Los Angeles Clippers last week, and if that mark improves, the Rockets benefit from his newfound stroke. They’re 9-1 when Westbrook makes at least 50 percent of his field attempts (that only loss was because of a Nemanja Bjelica-Kings buzzer-beater) and that record should rise since Houston is facing three teams who have a sub-.500 record this week.

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8. Denver Nuggets (20-8, Last Week’s Ranking: 11)

The Nuggets managed to blowout the Lakers on their Staples Center floor, but that was without LeBron playing. Still, the win was eye-opening for a lot of prognosticators who were starting to look past the Nugs as contenders due to their early-season mishaps. They took over in a dominant second half while it looked as if the LeBron-less Lakers were to keep pace with the Nugs, and their balance was on full display as they had six players in double figures.

The Nuggets may have finally woken up, and their position on this list may be starting to rise back to where it was at the beginning of the season due to their six-game winning streak.

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9. Philadelphia 76ers (21-10, Last Week’s Ranking: 3)

So after a 14-0 home streak, the Sixers dropped two straight against the Heat and Mavericks on primetime television. Before that, they were slapped by 20 points last Sunday, and have dropped 2 of their last three games. To quote Joel Embiid, the Sixers really might be “playing scared”, slipping back into their mid-November lulls that saw the quartet of Embiid, Ben Simmons, Tobias Harris, and their new acquisition Al Horford struggle mightily.

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10. Dallas Mavericks (19-10, Last Week’s Ranking: 8)

The Mavericks have put up the best fight they could have without Luka Doncic, but they finished an average (but expected) 2-3 3 with the MVP candidate on the bench. During their road trip, they found a way to knock off both the Bucks (ending their 18-game winning streak) and Sixers (giving them their second-straight home loss) all before losing at home to the Celtics and on the road in Toronto (blew a 30-point lead). San Antonio, Golden State and another trip to Los Angeles to play the Lakers await the Mavs as they try to piece together a respectable record as they wait for Doncic to get healthy.

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11. Indiana Pacers (20-10, Last Week’s Ranking: 5)

Indiana has won five of their last six contests (their lone loss was to the Bucks, who I doubt anyone is stopping right now) and have been one of the most dangerously quiet teams in the entire league. They were able to defeat the LeBron James-Anthony Davis led Lakers at home, and with all their success two things are in their favor: they’re getting healthier with Victor Oladipo’s season debut probably occurring in the new year, and they rank in the top six best defensive teams in the NBA.

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12. Brooklyn Nets (16-13, Last Week’s Ranking: 12)

Though they’re only a three games over .500 which isn’t much to hoot and holler over, Kenny Atkinson’s rotations and success he’s generated from his lineups that include the likes of soon-to-be all-star selectee Spencer Dinwiddie should be deemed worthy of coach of the year honors, as he’s had to navigate through missing Kyrie Irving, Wilson Chandler, Kevin Durant, Caris LeVert and now David Nwaba, who’s going to miss the rest of the season with a ruptured Achilles. Now a starter in the absence of Irving, Dinwiddie has astoundingly averaged 37 points in their last three games, as the Nets went 2-1 in that duration.

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13. Utah Jazz (18-11, Last Week’s Ranking: 13)

The Jazz has had a relatively easy stretch of games, winning six of their last seven games against teams with losing records. Although Mike Conley is still experiencing difficulties with his hamstring (again), it seems that Joe Ingles has earned the right to be reinserted into the Jazz’s starting lineup. But, that Jazz rotation needs to show some improvement if their record is to mirror that of the West’s most elite and efficient squads.

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14. Oklahoma City Thunder (15-14, Last Week’s Ranking: 17)

To all who predicted and debated in favor of the Thunder’s increasingly heightened chances to score a playoff spot: I’m listening, and I agree. Last week, the Thunder experienced unprecedented territory with perhaps three of the franchise’s greatest comebacks and four-straight wins, finally a game over .500 for the first time this year.

Since last month – November 29th to be exact – OKC has gone 9-3, and have been playing team basketball while Dennis Schroeder looks as if he’s returning to his former self when he was in Atlanta. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander had never reached 30 points in a single night up until this past week, as the young Canadian second-year guard out of Kentucky managed to accomplish the feat twice (scored 32 in consecutive games against the Suns and Clippers).

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15. Portland Trail Blazers (14-16, Last Week’s Ranking: 20)

The losing skid for the Blazers finally came to a halt last week, with Portland having a 4-0 stretch against some low-quality competition. Damian Lillard and crew have taken some of those games for granted, paying for it in the end after not taking their gifts of easy scheduling seriously, though that hasn’t been the case in the last couple of weeks as Portland has gone 5-1 in their last six games. Speaking of Lillard, he’s back to his old All-Star self, averaging nearly 31 points per game off 41 percent shooting.

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16. Sacramento Kings (12-17, Last Week’s Ranking: 14)

The Kings got both Marvin Bagley III and De’Aaron Fox back for their first game back in the starting lineup together since late October against the Memphis Grizzlies last week but lost on the road to Ja Morant’s squad. About 18.6 points, 6.7 assists and 3.9 rebounds amount as the averages for Fox in his 10 games this season.

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17. Charlotte Hornets (13-20, Last Week’s Ranking: 18)

Barring a forgettable loss to the Celtics and a heartbreaking two-point loss to the Cavaliers, Devonte Graham is making the case that he’s a serious All-Star participant with his averaged 19.3 points and 40.5 percent shooting from beyond the perimeter. Beside him is the suddenly spectacular play of Malik Monk. In their most recent stretch of games, he’s put up a solid 10.3 points per game off 53.3 percent shooting and 41.7% from deep, all while coming off the bench. In the lone win against Sacramento, Monk scored 23 points, grabbed 10 rebounds and handed out 4 assists.

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18. Orlando Magic (11-17, Last Week’s Ranking: 16)

It’s not like the Magic are a really bad team, it’s just that they just can’t beat good teams, if that makes sense. They’ve lost six-straight games against teams that made the playoffs last year, but at the same time they’ve played some solid defense, just two spots on the outside of the ten most defensively efficient teams in the NBA. The problem is that, even with such an offensive repertoire in pieces like Nikola Vucevic, Evan Fournier and Markelle Fultz, they have difficulty in scoring the basketball, only combining for 105.0 ppg. per 100 possessions.

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19. Chicago Bulls (12-19, Last Week’s Ranking: 23)

The Bulls are on a run, and from winning four of their last six games, Jim Boylen is starting to figure out his minute distribution situation and is monitoring the usages of other parts of the team like Lauri Markkanen to compliment their leader on both ends of the court, Zach LaVine. In this six-game stretch, the former UCLA guard has posted up averages 29.0 points, 3.5 made 3-pointers and 6.5 made free throws per game. These Bulls haven’t just beaten simple competition either; chart wins over the Clippers and Pistons as part of their winning streak.

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20. San Antonio Spurs (11-17, Last Week’s Ranking: 22)

This week, the Spurs get to face off against rookie phenomenon Ja Morant and the Memphis Grizzlies on Monday night, as they are looking to get back on the winning track while letting DeJounte Murray return to his old form. He’s played decent basketball, only averaging 14.3 points, 5.8 rebounds, and 4.8 assists. It’ll take some time for Murray to get his footing and while he is struggling on defense (owned the team’s worst plus-minus as SA was outscored by 45 points whenever he was on the floor during their 2-2 stretch), the Spurs have the chance to get some quality wins against some near sub-.500 teams in the Doncic-less Mavericks and Pistons this week.

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21. Phoenix Suns (11-18, Last Week’s Ranking: 15)

DeAndre Ayton’s return to the starting lineup hasn’t really been that significant, as with and without him the Suns have dropped six-straight losses. He came back last Tuesday and scored 18 points while grabbing 12 rebounds, but has missed the past two games because of an ankle injury.

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22. Memphis Grizzlies (11-19, Last Week’s Ranking: 24)

Without Ja Morant, the Grizzlies were able to scratch and claw out a reputable 6-6 record in the month of December despite the absence of Ja Morant. To replace his productivity was the play of Jaren Jackson Jr. who decided to play more aggressively on both ends of the floor, averaging nearly 21 points per game and shooting around 40 percent from downtown this month. What’s more impressive is that he’s taking more than seven threes a game, since his confidence is rapidly growing in his willingness to keep putting the rock up from deep.

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23. Detroit Pistons (11-19, Last Week’s Ranking: 19)

The health of Blake Griffin and the durability of his knee is of serious concern for the Pistons, because without him leading the charge for the Pistons’ nightly attack, they’re a very one-dimensional team. Yes, Derrick Rose, Luke Kennard and Andre Drummond account for 50% of the points scored on a nightly basis but before Griffin was taken out because of his knee problems last week, Detroit was compiling a respectable 5-2 overall record with the former All-Star and first-overall pick out of Oklahoma on the floor.

Since then, Detroit has lost four straight games by an average of 15 points. He is day-to-day in tending to that knee, but with the Sixers and Spurs up next on the schedule, this could turn from bad to worse for the Pistons.

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24. Minnesota Timberwolves (10-18, Last Week’s Ranking: 21)

The freefall that the T’Wolves were still on from two weeks ago poured into last week, as Minnesota has lost 10 straight games with an atrocious defense that ranks 21st in the entire NBA. They give up an average of 122 points per game and to make matters worse, they’re missing Karl Anthony-Towns due to a knee sprain that’s kept him in street clothes for three games.

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25. Washington Wizards (8-20, Last Week’s Ranking: 25)

The Wizards defense continues to be the most substantial pitfall of a team that’s offensively complete thanks to the consistent and red-hot scoring of Davis Bertans and Bradley Beal. They haven’t held an opponent under 110 points since the beginning of the season and just look like complete doormats for above-.500 teams that encounter these Wizards. The future is still bright for such a young roster, for the impending return of John Wall floats above DC’s team as his comeback will occur next year.

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26. Cleveland Cavaliers (8-21, Last Week’s Ranking: 27)

The Cavs have seen a smidge of success from their youthful core of Kevin Porter Jr. and Collin Sexton in two-straight wins over the Hornets and Grizzlies, but almost lost Kevin Love to one of the nastiest near-posters NBA fans may have ever seen had it gone down as Ja Morant nearly jumped over Love from the free throw circle in last week’s win over Memphis. Jordan Clarkson could be one of the names moved before the trade deadline, as he quietly put together a 33-point performance in the win.

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27. New York Knicks (7-23, Last Week’s Ranking: 29)

Miami and Milwaukee whooped up on the Knicks this past week, but have gone an optimistism-raising 3-3 under new interim head coach Mike Miller. They were able to beat the Hawks by 23 on the Garden floor, but lost by a combined 36 points to Milwaukee and Miami. The “Battle of the Boroughs” is coming up against the Nets this week, though many speculate the expected result of that one already with how the Knicks have struggled on defense, ranking 26th in the league in terms of total defensive efficiency.

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28. New Orleans Pelicans (7-23, Last Week’s Ranking: 26)

Luckily, the 13-straight losing streak finally came to an end against the Timberwolves for the Pelicans. As the worst losing skid in franchise history was finally abolished last week, the pipe dream of a playoff spot for a team so stocked with talent at just about every position suffered the same fate. Jrue Holiday is getting traded, and that’s more of an eventuality than a rumor. Worst of all, Zion Williamson’s debut is the only thing to look forward to for Pels fans and executives, and that may not happen this year either. Looks like JJ Redick’s career-long streak of making the playoffs is ending abruptly, to his chagrin.

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29. Golden State Warriors (6-24, Last Week’s Ranking: 29)

The Warriors stay put in this week’s power rankings. The only positive thing to look forward to in the Bay is the impressive play of rookie Forward Eric Paschall, who is averaging a steady 15.4 points 4.9 rebounds and 1.7 assists per game even after cooling off from his early-season fast start. Still, he’s putting up around 12 points this month while taking fewer shots a game.

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30. Atlanta Hawks (6-24, Last Week’s Ranking: 30)

Trae Young is doing his part, while the rest of the Hawks are struggling, big time. The second-year guard has dropped 40 points this season in four games, and has scored 30 points in 16 of them. One positive: John Collins returns from his 25-game suspension Monday night against the Cavaliers.

 

Dec 24, 2019 No Comments
OKC Ruins Paul George’s Return Beating The LA Clippers (118-112)

OKC Ruins Paul George’s Return Beating The LA Clippers (118-112)

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by | Dec 23, 2019 | Featured, NBA

Paul George was coming back to Oklahoma City to play the team that he left this offseason via trade. It was never but love for Paul George when he hit the court in Oklahoma City. A lot of the media were wondering how Paul George would be received by the OKC fans. Well, tonight in the return of Paul George the fans were cheering him and the OKC Thunder even had a little tribute clip played for PG-13 as well. The OKC Thunder were a true class act and the fans followed that until the game started so they can cheer the home team. The Thunder came out slow in this game against the Clippers as they were able to dominate in the paint very early. The play of Harrell and Zubac was making it tough on the Thunder int he interior. On the night Harrell had 18 points and was able to be very physical in the paint. The Clippers made it an added effort to set the tone early and it was working. Paul George was able to get his game going in that first half and this is something that the Thunder are used to seeing from the past. Paul had his whole package on display as he was hitting 3 pointers, driving to the lane, and he was able to create space with his smooth crossover/jumper. The Thunder had Terrance Ferguson on Paul George all night and he was able to make it tough on PG-13 on some shots. Ferguson was able to slow down Paul George in the 2nd half and it won’t come up on the stat sheet but he was able to make him work for everything. Paul George was able to score at will in the 1st half and the 2nd half he didn’t get the chance to get open looks. While Paul George wasn’t able to execute to the level he wanted too in that 2nd half he had back up. Since the Clippers were without Patrick Beverley and Kawhi Leonard they had Lou Williams starting. Lou Williams was able to carry the LA Clippers in scoring as he’s been the microwave on the offensive end for them. Lou Williams finished with 22 points on the night but his crafty offense and smooth jumper weren’t enough to pull this one out for the Clippers. The Clippers had 5 scorers in double figures but they weren’t enough to get the job done tonight as the Thunder were able to come back from an 18 point lead.

 

The Oklahoma City Thunder came into this game with comebacks of 26, 24, and now 18 points. This Thunder team is very scrappy and they have a lot of talent that people sleep on. The Thunder team has been able to make the opposing teams pay and it starts with the play of their three guards. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Chris Paul, and Dennis Schröder. Tonight was the night that Shai wanted to let his former team and teammates know that they shouldn’t have got rid of him. Tonight Shai was able to score with his scoop and also he had his fadeaway jumper working. When Shai plays with this type of confidence on any given night I feel like he makes it tough on any defense. Tonight Shai was able to match his career-high in points with 32 again after posting that against the Suns. The second-year player is quickly emerging as a star in this league and a player that teams will have to gameplan for now. The way that Shai has played on both ends of the floor including tonight against the Clippers has been special. Shai has made some big plays on the defensive end that has led to his offense and creating others. The confidence that he’s playing with right now has been spilling over and you can tell he’s been in a zone. Shai had a three-pointer that he hit right in front of the Clippers bench and he made sure they knew he made it. When Shai plays with his type of style and confidence like calling for the ball because he knows that he has the matchup he’s a problem. The length from Shai was able to make it tough for Paul George and others to defend him on the night. Another player that was able to make things possible for the Thunder to get this victory was Dennis Schröder. When Dennis comes into the game he gives this team a big jolt in energy on both sides of the floor. The way that Dennis plays the game is very slithery and his first step is extremely quick. Dennis is showing everyone what he’s able to do with the minutes and opportunity and he’s been the main source of offense for the Thunder this year. Schröder was in the zone tonight and the Clippers had no answer for him from the inside and outside. When Dennis gets into a zone where the 3 pointers and midrange are working it’s tough to stop this team. The Thunder are now above .500 on the season as they’re 15-14 after beating the Clippers tonight.

The Thunder will look to get to 16 wins on Thursday as they have the Memphis Grizzlies and Morant coming back into town.

Dec 23, 2019 No Comments
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander’s Career High 32 PTS Help OKC Beat Phoenix (126-108)

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander’s Career High 32 PTS Help OKC Beat Phoenix (126-108)

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by | Dec 21, 2019 | Featured, NBA

The Oklahoma City Thunder has been labeled the “Comeback Kids” after the last couple of games. Tonight against the Phoenix Suns they made sure there wasn’t going to be a comeback needed. From the opening tipoff, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander was attacking the rim with aggression. It was one of those nights that you could tell you were about to see something special. Shai was able to get the offense started as he was creating his jumper and was very crafty at the rim. The Thunder plays with a different type of swagger when Shai gets his offense going from the start of the game. The Phoenix Suns tried putting Devin Booker and Ricky Rubio on Shai throughout the night and it didn’t matter. Shai was 13/18 from the field on the evening and put this team on his back for a career-high 32 points. When Shai plays with this type of aggressiveness it opens up the floor for his teammates as well. The fact that Shai can beat you inside and outside has opposing teams confused on how to guard the second-year guard. The Suns had no answer for the Thunder tonight as OKC had 6 players in double figures. Shai has emerged as a player that teams have to gameplan for and just as much as the Suns tried he had an answer. Shai has patented his scoop layups and they have been something that teams can’t defend at all. The play of Shai Gilgeous-Alexander had the Thunder in cruise control as they were able to throttle the Suns.

 

 

Another player that helped the Thunder get this victory was Danilo Gallinari as he finished with 22 points on the night. After the half, it seemed as though the in-game DJ kept playing the “Gallinari” theme music every couple of possessions. The 3rd quarter was owned by Gallinari as he came out the gate with 11 points. The Thunder in the past never had a clear cut sharpshooter outside of a star that you can depend on to knock down 3 pointers. This season Danilo Gallinari has been able to help the Thunder outshoot teams like they did the Suns tonight. The Phoenix Suns had no answer for the shooting of Gallinari and it seemed like the perimeter defense was nonexistent at times in this game. The NBA 6th Man of the Year award won’t be decided until June but it’s very clear to the Phoenix Suns and the NBA that Dennis Schröder is the front runner right now. Every time that Dennis Schröder comes into the game he’s been instant offense and tonight that was no different. Schröder finished the game with 24 points and was giving the Suns fits on the defensive side. This season and tonight Dennis has shown opposing defenses his whole bag of tricks from the floater to his flashy layups. The play of Dennis has helped this team to the 14-14 record that they have now. After tonights win the Thunder are finally at .500 on the season and will be looking to get above .500 against Paul George’s Clippers on Sunday.

 

 

The Phoenix Suns were flat out the gate in this game against OKC and it didn’t get better throughout the night. The Suns did get their star Devin Booker back from his forearm injury and it showed as he was a little rusty. On the night Devin Booker had 18 points as he usually gives the Thunder problems on the perimeter. Booker was one of the bright spots for the Suns who weren’t able to hit anything on second-chance opportunities on the night. The Suns have now lost 5 games in a row and tonight didn’t help with their morale at all. Ricky Rubio was also playing as good as he used too vs OKC when he was in Utah. Rubio finished with 24 points on the night to lead the Suns and it just wasn’t enough to get the job done against the Thunder tonight. The Suns had 5 players in double figures but it wasn’t enough to beat the OKC Thunder who have developed a nice home stretch.

 

 

Dec 21, 2019 No Comments
SR – NBA Primetime Preview: Dallas Mavericks Vs. Philadelphia 76ers

SR – NBA Primetime Preview: Dallas Mavericks Vs. Philadelphia 76ers

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by | Dec 21, 2019 | Featured, NBA

Friday always calls for NBA action, and what better way to end the week with than an ESPN primetime doubleheader for all NBA fans to enjoy. The star power is slightly depleted but don’t sleep on tonight’s matchup between the Mavs and Sixers at 8 p.m., ET since these Mavericks are no easy out when they’re without their scoring maestro Luka Doncic who, before his injury was putting up some historically unprecedented numbers at the mere age of 21.

And that is no reason for the Mavericks to cry or lament over their string of recent unfortunate events not so ever in their favor. They’re an official 1-1 without Doncic, showing absolute moxie against two intimidating Eastern title contenders in the Bucks and Celtics consecutively.

While they were able to successfully keep a diminutive lead over the then-streaking Milwaukee Bucks who had, before Monday’s loss, won 18-straight games following a corner three buzzer-beater from Utah’s Bogdan Bogdanovic on November 8, Kristaps Porzingis and crew didn’t have enough in the tank to pry his Mavs over the visiting Boston Celtics. They gave everything they had but couldn’t survive the Kemba Walker-Jayson Tatum show in the second half as the rim looked as if there existed a titanium seal atop the rim.

Rick Carlisle’s offensive strategy gets even more tedious to mash together in the third game of Doncic’s absence, now that they’re up against the sixth-best defensive team in the NBA that is stifling and annoying on the perimeter, something that will be a thorn in the side of Carlisle’s Mavs all night considering that a majority of their offensive sets (and really, overall offensive effect) are all run through the perimeter. Other scorers like Tim Hardaway Jr. and Jalen Brunson can certainly help to counter that, but it will be up to Kristaps Porzingis to weather the storm that is Joel Embiid since the two seven-footers will be matched up for about 95% of the game.

They’re well aware of each other’s dually-enriched acumen on both sides of the floor due to their knowledge of duking it out when KP was a Knick, so this marks the first time the two centers see each other with Porzingis playing in a different uniform and new system.

As it goes for the 20-9 Sixers, they’re 14-1 inside the Wells Fargo Center and had all the chances to make it 15-0 had it not been for some stops against the Miami Heat, and better shot selection from behind the arc from a currently underwhelming Al Horford in the games final minute after a missed pair of free throws.

Philly has lost two in a row but should fare well against the undersized Mavericks with a quartet of physical specimens, led by the expert-described “best center in the NBA” in Joel Embiid. 6’10 Ben Simmons is occasionally mocked and criticized for his limited offensive shot selection, but he is still averaging 14.4 points per game, 8.1 assists and 6.7 rebounds per contest, just a couple marks shy of the numbers that earned him Rookie of the Year honors in 2018.

As a team, their defense can be sticky, allowing the fifth-fewest points per game in the league. Also, and understandably, their rebounding is outstanding, grabbing nearly six more boards per game than their opponents.

The thing about these Mavericks though: through 28 games, they have a road record of 10 wins and two losses (thanks to Doncic tearing up a quarter of the league this year, of course) but historically stumble against the Sixers, as they haven’t gotten a positive result in the City of Brotherly Love dating back to last year, dropping their last three visits to Philadelphia.

Let’s see if that bad streak ends tonight under the bright lights of primetime.

Dec 21, 2019 No Comments
SR – NBA Primetime Preview: Houston Rockets Vs. Los Angeles Clippers

SR – NBA Primetime Preview: Houston Rockets Vs. Los Angeles Clippers

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by | Dec 20, 2019 | Featured, NBA

The gift that just keeps on giving is TNT Thursday Night Basketball, as game two of this star-packed doubleheader features another blockbuster showdown featuring a team in Tinseltown in the Clippers defending their home court against the dangerous Houston Rockets at 10:30 p.m. ET on TNT.

The 21-7 Clippers face these 18-9 Rockets for the third time this season, and now it looks as if they’ll have the perfect defensive gameplan to at least slow down offensive supernova James Harden, now that Harden has to worry about dueling against both superstars the Clippers picked up in this offseason.

You know the drill about these Clippers anyway. Now from adding Patrick Beverley, who is now 100 percent recovered from a concussion he suffered a week ago against Toronto, it’s the same lineup as follows, repackaged and all: two superstars in Kawhi Leonard and Paul George, three ex-Rockets in PatBev, Lou Williams, and Montrezl Harrell, and three solid rotation players in Ivica Zubac, Mo Harkless and Landry Shamet.

As it goes for Houston, this is yet another opportunity to earn another win against the two-way juggernaut the Clippers are perceived to be. These two teams have split their two-game series apiece, though it looks like the Clips have the clear and conspicuous advantage on paper. This means not that the Rockets can expect this as a loss, though. Both games that the Clips and Rockets have played have been particularly close, and with James Harden standing in rarified air as a scorer with his 38.9 ppg. (only he and Wilt Chamberlain have touched the 40-point average mark in the entire history of this league), expect this one to probably be around the same speed.

It’ll be compelling to watch if the Clippers can limit Harden’s trips to the FT line, considering that Harden has averaged six free throws per game (surprising, isn’t it?) after averaging closer to 14 a game earlier this year. it’ll also be interesting to see if Russell Westbrook can have himself a get-back game against the Clippers (he’s averaging 22.8 ppg., off 42.6 percent shooting and 22.8 percent three-point shooting), considering that he had his worst game of the season against these Clippers. They’re better now that they have their two all-stars on the floor together, so the 2017 MVP certainly isn’t deserving of an easier challenge.

Tip-off is set to occur shortly after the conclusion of Lakers/Bucks on TNT.

Dec 20, 2019 No Comments