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Welcome back to another day of the NBA 2018-19 season. Four games were played yesterday, and we have nine more games to look forward to tomorrow.
Let us get into it and review the games that happened yesterday and preview the games that are going to take place tomorrow.
Thursday's recap:
1. Los Angeles Lakers 111-126 Houston Rockets
2. Los Angeles Clippers 87-125 San Antonio Spurs
3. Chicago Bulls 91-97 Orlando Magic
4. Dallas Mavericks 89-99 Phoenix Suns
Highlights:
1. James Harden (Houston Rockets): 50 points, 14-26 FG, 10 rebounds, 11 assists, 2 steals and 6 TOs.
2. TJ Warren (Phoenix Suns): 30 points, 11-17 FG, 3 rebounds, 3 assists and 2 TOs.
Lowlights:
1. Lauri Markkanen (Chicago Bulls): 7 points, 2-10 FG, 5 rebounds, 1 steal, 1 block and 1 TO.
2. Chris Paul (Houston Rockets): 14 points, 3-10 FG, 1 rebound, 9 assists, 3 steals and 2 TOs.
Thursday's recap:
1. The Los Angeles Lakers took on the Houston Rockets in a highly anticipated matchup, and the Houston Rockets came out on top, 126-111. In the other great game, Los Angeles Clippers took on the San Antonio Spurs and the Spurs came out with a blowout victory, 125-87.
2. The Chicago Bulls faced the Orlando Magic and the Magic won the game in a tough contest, 97-91. In the last game of the day, the Dallas Mavericks lost to the Phoenix Suns, 89-99, which was surprising considering the sort of run the Phoenix Suns were on.
Tomorrow's matches:
1. Atlanta Hawks @ Boston Celtics
2. New York Knicks @ Charlotte Hornets
3. Washington Wizards @ Brooklyn Nets
4. Indiana Pacers @ Philadelphia 76ers
5. Milwaukee Bucks @ Cleveland Cavaliers
6. Miami Heat @ Memphis Grizzlies
7. Oklahoma City Thunder @ Denver Nuggets
8. Toronto Raptors @ Portland Trail Blazers
9. Golden State Warriors @ Sacramento Kings
Let us now take a look at the best picks for each position:
PG 1 - Russell Westbrook (Oklahoma City Thunder)
The Oklahoma City Thunder have started the season really well and are currently 3rd in the Western Conference, just 0.5 game behind the Denver Nuggets and the Golden State Warriors. They have a 17-9 record and have gone on a 7-3 in their last 10 matches.
One of the players who has pushed them forward this season, has been their star guard, Russell Westbrook.
In the last game for the Thunder, they hit a roadblock as they lost to the New Orleans Pelicans, with Anthony Davis putting up some monster numbers. In that game Westbrook did not put up his usual triple double numbers, scoring 20 points, with 7 assists and only 4 rebounds.
He is currently having a triple double season again, averaging 22 points, 10 rebounds and 10 assists per game.
Alternative pick: Stephen Curry (Golden State Warriors)
PG 2 - Kyle Lowry (Toronto Raptors)
The Toronto Raptors are currently the best team in the Eastern Conference, leading the table with a record of 23-7, and ahead of the 2nd placed Milwaukee Bucks by 3.5 games. They're currently on a 7-3 run in their last 10 games and have been without Kawhi Leonard for their last 2 games, both wins over the Los Angeles Clippers and the Golden State Warriors.
One star who was out of sorts for a while but seems to have got into his groove again is their point guard, Kyle Lowry.
In the last game against the Golden State Warriors, Lowry scored 23 points and dished out 12 assists. He also had 5 rebounds in the game and managed 3 steals too.
It certainly looks like Lowry's mini-slump has ended. He is averaging 14 points and 10 assists this season along with 4 rebounds.
Alternative pick: John Wall (Washington Wizards)
SG 1 - C J McCollum (Portland Trail Blazers)
The Trail Blazers had a good start to their season, but now things have become a little topsy-turvy for them. They're currently 9th in the Western Conference with a 15-13 record, and have won just 3 of their last 10 games.
They've been playing badly of late and will look to get out of this rut against the Toronto Raptors. They lost their last game against the Memphis Grizzlies, 92-83, but one player who had a really monstrous game was CJ McCollum.
McCollum has been in sparkling form of late, dropping a huge 40 points against the Grizzlies. He kept the Blazers in the game while both Lillard and Nurkic failed to get going.
McCollum has averaged a great 22 points per match, along with 4 rebounds and almost 3 assists per game as well. With the Blazers going up against the Raptors, who are in fine form, they will require McCollum's form to continue.
Alternative pick: Victor Oladipo (Indiana Pacers)
SG 2 - Bradley Beal (Washington Wizards)
The Washington Wizards have been a terrible team in the 2018-19 NBA season; they're currently 10th with an 11-17 record. They have a 5-5 record in the last 10 matches and will look to improve on that with a win over the Brooklyn Nets tomorrow.
One player who was been putting up some elite numbers over the course of this season, has been Bradley Beal. With or without their star guard John Wall, Beal is the engine running this team.
Over the course of this season, Beal has averaged 23 points per game with more than 4 rebounds and 4 assists. He also has been an elite defender, getting more than a block and a steal per match. Given his 3 point shooting ability, he has proven to be a player who can do it all.
In the last game against the Boston Celtics, Beal scored 22 points, had 7 rebounds and also managed 4 assists in the overtime loss. Look for him to continue his great run against the Brooklyn Nets.
Alternative pick: Jamal Murray (Denver Nuggets)
SF 1 - Paul George (Oklahoma City Thunder)
As we read in one of the previous slides, the Oklahoma City Thunder are having a great start to their season. They are currently 3rd in the Western Conference, with a 17-9 record, and are on a 7-3 run in their last 10 games.
One player who is having an All Star start to his season has been the Oklahoma City Thunder forward Paul George.
PG13 had agreed to an extension this summer with the Thunder, making everyone wonder why he would sign up to play with Russell Westbrook, who is widely considered to be a selfish player. But Westbrook's injuries plus a change in the way he plays have helped out George's game a lot.
He is scoring 24 points per game on an average, along with 8 rebounds and 4 assists. In his last game against the Pelicans, George had 25 points, 11 rebounds and 5 assists. He also managed to get 2 steals and a block, underlying his elite defensive abilities.
Alternative pick: Bogdan Bogdanovic (Sacramento Kings)
SF 2 - Kevin Durant (Golden State Warriors)
The Golden State Warriors are looking somewhat menacing again, winning 4 of their last 5 games and improving to a tied 1st place with the Denver Nuggets and a 19-10 record. But they had an uninspiring loss against the Toronto Raptors in their last game, when Steph Curry and Klay Thompson just couldn't get it going from beyond the arc.
The only scorer on that night was the ever reliable Kevin Durant.
Durant has been having a really good season through the first 29 games. He is averaging a huge 29 points per game with more than 7 rebounds and 6 assists per game as well.
In the last game against the Raptors, Durant was the only player playing well, scoring 30 points, with 7 rebounds and 5 assists. He seems to be in peak form for the Warriors and should be kept in your roster every night the Warriors play.
Alternative pick: Kawhi Leonard (Toronto Raptors)
PF 1 - John Collins (Atlanta Hawks)
The Atlanta Hawks are having a really bad season, just as they were expected to. They have just 6 wins out of a possible 27 this season, settling for the 14th spot in the Eastern Conference. Worse still, they've won just one of their last five matches and face the Boston Celtics in another tough game.
Trae Young had become the face of the team at the start of the season. But John Collins has now returned, and he has started playing like a really good basketball player.
Collins has been tearing it up since his return from an ankle injury; he's almost averaging a double double this season, with more than 18 points per game and 9 rebounds as well.
In his last game against the Dallas Mavericks, he scored 20 points and grabbed a massive 17 rebounds as well. His defensive numbers will get better as the season progresses, but his game already looks very encouraging.
Alternative pick: Jaren Jackson Jr (Memphis Grizzlies)
PF 2 - Marcus Morris (Boston Celtics)
The Boston Celtics have been in really good form of late, going on a 7-game win streak. They are 5th in the Eastern Conference with a 17-10 record, and have been on an 8-2 run in their last 10 matches.
In their previous game against the Washington Wizards, the Celtics managed to win in overtime, 130-125.
Due to a bunch of injuries to their stars as well as role players, Marcus Morris is getting an extended time on the floor. And he is making the most of it.
In the last two games Morris has exploded, scoring 31 points and 4 rebounds against the Pelicans, then following it up with a 27 point, 9 rebound performance against the Washington Wizards.
The Celtics go up against the Hawks tomorrow, where a bunch of starters might get another opportunity to rest. That would give Morris another chance to show his offensive game.
Alternative pick: Giannis Antetokounmpo (Milwaukee Bucks)
C 1 - Myles Turner (Indiana Pacers)
The Indiana Pacers were without their star guard Victor Oladipo due to a knee injury, and at the beginning of that stretch they were seriously falling off. But they eventually got it back together and are currently holding on to the 4th place with an 18-10 record.
The Pacers are currently on a 7-3 run and will look to keep it going against the Philadelphia 76ers. In Oladipo's absence, they looked for someone else to take on the offensive load, and Turner was up for the challenge.
Turner has been really good in the past few games, averaging 17 points per game, 10 rebounds and also 3.5 blocks this month, which is elite level production. In the last game against the Milwaukee Bucks, he scored 23 points and had 7 rebounds along with a huge 3 blocks.
Turner is trending upwards, to say the least. And with Oladipo on a minutes restriction for a few games, Turner will look to continue with his strong performances.
Alternative pick: Serge Ibaka (Toronto Raptors)
C 2 - Nikola Jokic (Denver Nuggets)
The Denver Nuggets have been in really good form, and are currently on top of the Western Conference along with the Golden State Warriors. They are 18-9 for the season and on a 8-2 run as well in their last 10 games.
In their previous match against the Memphis Grizzlies, they won a tough game 105-99. But injuries have been a really big hindrance to their bright start this season.
Gary Harris, Paul Millsap and Will Barton have all gotten injured during the season. But one player who is keeping it all together is their star player, Nikola Jokic.
Jokic has started the season off really well, scoring 17 points a game and grabbing almost 10 rebounds per match as well. He is also an elite playmaker, something that is almost never seen in a big man, and he is averaging more than 7 assists per game.
In his previous game against the Grizzlies, Jokic scored 27 points, with 12 rebounds and 6 assists. He also had 2 steals to go with that, making him a great asset to own each night.
Alternative pick: Joel Embiid (Philadelphia 76ers)
Guess the Lakers players!
