'%20x='0'%20y='0'%20height='100%25'%20width='100%25'%20%0A%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20xlink%3Ahref='data:image/jpg;base64,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'%3E%3C/image%3E%3C/svg%3E)
Welcome to another day in the NBA 2018-19 season, There are 9 games to talk about today as well as 10 games that happened yesterday. Let us look at some meaningful performances from yesterday and talk about them.
Friday's recap:
1. The Indiana Pacers 112-90 Orlando Magic
2. The Denver Nuggets 107-113 Charlotte Hornets
3. The Detroit Pistons 111-117 Philadelphia 76ers
4. The Sacramento Kings 129-110 Cleveland Cavaliers
5. The Brooklyn Nets 106-105 Toronto Raptors
6. The Chicago Bulls 114-112 Oklahoma City Thunder
7. The New Orleans Pelicans 103-107 Memphis Grizzlies
8. The San Antonio Spurs 133-120 Los Angeles Lakes
9. The Miami Heat 115-98 Phoenix Suns
10. The Milwaukee Bucks 95-105 Golden State Warriors
Highlights
1. Jimmy Butler (Philadelphia 76ers): 38 points, 13-27 FG, 6 assists, 6 rebounds, 3 steals, 1 block and 0 TOs.
2. De'Aaron Fox (Sacramento Kings): 30 points, 12-16 FG, 12 assists, 2 rebounds, 3 steals and 1 TO.
3. Kawhi Leonard (Toronto Raptors): 32 points, 10-21 FG, 5-6 3pt FG, 3 rebounds, 4 assists, 4 steals, 1 block and 3 TOs.
4. DeMar DeRozan (San Antonio Spurs): 36 points, 11-20 FG, 8 rebounds, 9 assists, 2 blocks and 1 TO.
Lowlights
1. Torey Craig (Denver Nuggets): 0 points, 4 rebounds and 6 fouls in 19 minutes.
2. Kyle Lowry (Toronto Raptors): 3 points, 1-8 FG, 1-7 3pt FG, 11 assists, 1 steal, 1 block and 5 TOs.
3. Jaren Jackson Jr. (Memphis Grizzlies): 3 points, 1-4 FG, 1 block, 2 TOs and 4 fouls in 15 minutes.
4. Kevin Durant (Golden State Warriors): 11 points, 3-14 FG, 1-6 3pt FG, 8 rebounds, 6 assists, 1 steal, 7 TOs.
Friday's takeaways
1. The Indiana Pacers had an easy win over the Orlando Magic, with Bojan Bogdanovic having a huge 26 points in 28 minutes, leading them to 112-90.
The Sacramento Kings were powered by a 30-point, 12-assist performance by De'Aaron Fox, taking them to a relatively easy 129-110 win over the Cleveland Cavaliers. Alec Burks had a huge game for the Cavaliers, scoring 22 points along with 9 assists and 7 rebounds as well.
The Miami Heat had an easy win over the Suns, with Bam Adebayo replacing Hassan Whiteside at Centre and he grabbed that opportunity with both hands, scoring 22 points and 10 rebounds.
2. There were a bunch of close games that ended with some unexpected results. The Charlotte Hornets beat the Denver Nuggets 113-107, powered by a 21-point Kemba performance and a bench boost by Malik Monk (16 points) and Tony Parker (19 points).
The 76ers beat the Pistons 117-111, powered by a huge 38-point Jimmy Butler game, given that Embiid was resting. Blake Griffin tried his best to give the 76ers a fight, scoring 31 points.
The Memphis Grizzlies overcame a tough New Orleans Pelicans, 107-103 and finally the San Antonio Spurs took their revenge and won in a come from behind win over the LA Lakers, 133-120.
3. The Brooklyn Nets beat the Toronto Raptors in overtime, 106-105. Powered by a great performance from D'Angelo Russell, who scored 29 points in 32 minutes and Spencer Dinwiddie off the bench getting 17 points and 8 assists.
The Chicago Bulls also grabbed a huge win over the Oklahoma City Thunder, 114-112. Lauri Markkanen came up huge towards the end of the game, making plays for the team, including scoring the go-ahead bucket. He scored 24 points and grabbed 7 rebounds as well.
The final game of the day featured the Golden State Warriors who beat the Milwaukee Bucks, quite easily in the end. Even though Kevin Durant did not show up, 20 point performances by both Klay and Steph along with a 15 point game for Iguodala was enough to overcome a misfiring Bucks team as well, who just had Giannis reach 22 points and 15 rebounds.
PG 1 - Damian Lillard (Portland Trail Blazers):
The Portland Trail Blazers are having a rough time of late. Apart from their win over the Phoenix Suns in the last game, they have lost all of their 3 games before that, against teams who are all looking to get to the playoffs this season. They suffered a close loss to the Denver Nuggets, 113-112, and the Dallas Mavericks, 111-102.
They lost by a huge margin to the Spurs, 131-118 but are looking to get their season back on track now. They are currently 14-11 for the season, going 4-6 for the last 10. If there is one thing that the Blazers can take away from this, it is the consistent level of performances that Lillard has been dishing out.
Lillard has been averaging 27 points per game, along with 6 assists and 5 rebounds per game. He has been shooting a career-high 20 shots per game, at a 44 percent clip. He scored a nice 25 points and dished out 8 assists in just 28 minutes in the win over the Suns and should look to keep this going against the Minnesota Timberwolves.
Alternative pick: Mike Conley (Memphis Grizzlies)
PG 2 - De'Aaron Fox (Sacramento Kings):
The Sacramento Kings have been a really big surprise this season and are currently sitting on the 8th spot, with a 13-11 record and are on a 3-game winning streak. They won their last game yesterday, in a big win over the Cleveland Cavaliers, 129-110. They face the Indiana Pacers in a back to back contest.
The last time they played them this season, the Kings won 111-110 in a close match. Their success is down to most of their rookies and sophomores taking a leap. But their most standout player has got to De'Aaron Fox.
He is in early conversation for the Most Improved Player of the year, after making a huge leap in his game compared to his rookie season. He is scoring almost 18 points per game, to go with 7.7 assists and 4 rebounds per game also.
He has had a triple-double this season and has been shooting at 47 percent from the field. In the last game against the Cleveland Cavaliers, Fox scored 30 points and had 12 assists. Look for him to have another big match against the Pacers.
Alternative pick: Kyrie Irving (Boston Celtics)
SG 1 - Bradley Beal (Washington Wizards):
The Washington Wizards are probably one of the teams everyone expected in the top 6 of the Eastern Conference this season. They had just traded for Dwight Howard, who makes their frontcourt very formidable. Bradley Beal having a career year last season was a very big positive and John Wall finally being fit for the new season was a big relief.
It was all coming together for the Wizards. But the Wizards seem to have imploded, with a lot of infighting and rumours making the team falter to an 11-14 record to start the season. They have been playing well of late, going on a 3.game winning streak and will look to continue it against the Cleveland Cavaliers tomorrow.
With Wall missing the last game and is touted to miss the game tomorrow too, The Wizards are going to count on Beal a lot more. In the win over the Hawks in their last game, Beal exploded, scoring 36 points, grabbing 6 boards and dishing out 9 assists in 42 minutes.
His 3-point shooting has been really bad to start the season but that will come back up soon enough. He is too good a player to be shooting badly for long and look for him to have another huge stat line if Wall does not suit up for the game against the Cavaliers.
Alternative pick: Zach LaVine (Chicago Bulls)
SG 2 - Tim Hardaway Jr. (New York Knicks):
The New York Knicks have been playing really badly for the past few seasons and this one is no exception. They have been without their star player, Kristaps Porzingis. They currently lay 12th, with an 8-18 record and currently are on a 2 game losing streak. The only proven scorer left on their team is Tim Hardaway Jr and when he performs, the Knicks tend to do well in that game and score a few points.
Hardaway has been having a career year, averaging over 22 points per game this season, on 40 percent shooting. He is a volume shooter for the Knicks now that Porzingis is not there to take up the bulk of the shots. He is a decent defender and manages to get you steals in some games.
In the last game against the Celtics, which they lost 128-100, Hardaway managed to score a respectable 22 points in 33 minutes. He should again be their go-to scorer against the Brooklyn Nets and look to continue his form.
Alternative pick: James Harden (Houston Rockets)
SF 1 - LeBron James (Los Angeles Lakers):
The Los Angeles Lakers seemed to have found their footing in the league. They have been good in the last 5 games, having only lost 1 game, that too their most recent game, against the San Antonio Spurs last night, 133-120.
They are on a 7-3 run in their last 10 games and the rest of the Lakers are learning how to play with LeBron James and it's showing on the court now. He has started taking more shots for himself rather than be a distributor this season and it shows.
He has been averaging 33 points per game in his last 3 games, going with 8 assists and almost 7 rebounds. He is also been in good form as a defender, averaging almost a block and a steal each game.
His career average for points has also gone up to almost 29 per game, as he is taking almost 20 shots per game now. In his last game, he scored 35 points with 8 rebounds and dishing 11 assists as well. He also had 2 steals in that game and should be one of the first players on your roster.
Alternative pick: Josh Richardson (Miami Heat)
SF 2 - Danilo Gallinari (Los Angeles Clippers):
The Los Angeles Clippers have been a huge surprise this season in the Western Conference. Nobody expected them to perform like they have this season, especially with how stacked the West has been. They are currently in 3rd place, with a 16-8 record and have gone on a 7-3 run. They lost their last game to the Memphis Grizzlies, 96-86. The Clippers have had a perfect blend of youth like Shai Gilgeous Alexander and Montrezl Harrell and veterans like Tobias Harris, Lou Williams and the player in the spotlight for tomorrow, Danilo Gallinari.
This season, Gallinari has been playing really well, averaging 19 points per game, to go with 6 rebounds per game as well. He is shooting at 44 percent from the field but most importantly, almost 48 percent from the 3-point line, which is a career high for him. He is playing against the Miami Heat, who have been very streaky to start the season.
Alternative pick: Juan Hernangomez (Denver Nuggets)
PF 1 - Lauri Markkanen (Chicago Bulls):
The Chicago Bulls have just recently parted with their head coach for 4 years, Fred Hoijberg and replaced him with one of their coaches, Jim Boylen. They were underperforming this season with the amount of young talent they had, players like LaVine who had taken a leap this season.
But a huge number of injuries limited them this season and they ended up 13th in the East, with a 6-20 record. They had lost Dunn, Portis, Valentine, Markannen to a host of different injuries, with the last one just coming back recently. They seem to be playing better now, having beaten the Oklahoma City Thunder, 114-112 just last night.
It's only been 3 games since Lauri has returned, but he has already started playing like he has missed no time at all. He has had to split his minutes a little with Jabari Parker but that doesn't seem to have affected his production. He is averaging 18 points per game along with 7 rebounds in the last 3 games.
He is taking almost nine 3-pointers per game right now and also is playing like a good defender, averaging 2 steals and a block per game. His next game is against the Boston Celtics in a back to back, which will be an interesting proposition for him.
Alternative pick: John Collins (Atlanta Hawks)
PF 2 - Tobias Harris (Los Angeles Clippers):
As we read in one of the previous slides, The Clippers have been on a great 7-3 run in their last 10 games and have a great 16-8 record to start the season. They also lost their last game against a gritty Memphis Grizzlies defence which had made the life of the Clippers miserable, holding them to their season lowest 86 points. But the rest of the season has been a rousing success and a huge part of that has got to be their star player, Tobias Harris.
Harris had a bad outing last time out, only scoring 7 points and grabbing 13 boards as he was in foul trouble throughout the match. In the games before that, he been very efficient and consistently scoring in the 20s.
Harris is having a career year, averaging 21 points per game to go with 8.5 rebounds. He seems to have taken a massive step up in his performances for the Clippers this season and making the most of it. They go up against another gritty team in the Miami Heat, which should be an interesting game.
Alternative pick: Jaren Jackson Jr. (Memphis Grizzlies)
C 1 - Karl Anthony Towns (Minnesota Timberwolves):
The Minnesota Timberwolves had one of the worst starts since Towns had joined the team. Jimmy Butler had a very negative impact on the team after asking to be traded in the pre-season.
They had lost a lot of games with him on the court and Towns was not playing like himself. Since Butler was traded to the 76ers for Dario Saric and Robert Covington, The Wolves have gone on an 8-3 run too and their defensive rating has skyrocketed. Towns himself has started playing like an All-Star too.
In his last game against the Charlotte Hornets, KAT, as he is called, scored a mammoth 35 points and pulled down 12 boards as well. He was a menace at the rim, swatting a team-high 6 shots and also getting 2 steals.
For the season, he is averaging a great 21 points per game, along with 12 rebounds and almost has 2 blocks per game too. His stats seem a bit down compared to the player he was, but now with the Butler saga behind him, He and the Wolves face off against a struggling Blazers who would want to get it right and it is time for KAT to shine.
Alternative pick: Clint Capela (Houston Rockets)
C 2 - Tristan Thompson (Cleveland Cavaliers):
It is no secret that since LeBron James moved on to the Los Angeles Lakers in the offseason, the Cleveland Cavaliers have been bad. Really bad. Losing Kevin Love to injury also didn't seem to help their cause. But what it has done is given them a purpose at least.
The prediction for them this season was to finish somewhere between the 8th and the 10th spot given that Love was still an elite player. But now, they are in the tank mode. They are giving Sexton all the time he needs to get used to it and he is doing really well as a scorer at least.
They have traded George Hill to the Milwaukee Bucks and Kyle Korver to the Utah Jazz, showing that they are going for one of the top picks next season. The Cavaliers are 5-20 this season and lost their last game yesterday to the Sacramento Kings.
One player who seems to have benefited from all of this is their centre, Tristan Thompson. His outlook was really bad for this season but then injuries have given him the role of the secondary scorer and the primary rebounder on the first unit.
He is averaging almost 12 points and 12 rebounds per game to start this season. In the game against the Kings, he was poor, scoring only 4 points and grabbing just 6 boards. But in 3 games before that, he has gotten an elite 17 points and 17 rebounds per game.
The Cavaliers face the Wizards next, who do not have a good frontcourt at all and Thompson can take an advantage of that.
Alternative pick: Marc Gasol (Memphis Grizzlies)
Guess the Lakers players!
