Milwaukee Bucks forward Giannis Antetokounmpo was named NBA Eastern Conference Player of the Week in week 2 after leading the bucks to a revenge win against the Toronto Raptors. Los Angeles Lakers forward Anthony Davis was named NBA Western Conference Player of the Week in week 2, his first POW as a Laker, after averaging 32 points and 13 rebounds in the past three wins for the Lakers. Derrick Rose returned to a standing ovation at the United Center Saturday night. Playing back in his hometown Chicago, Rose scored 23 points for the Detroit Pistons.
The Lakers had a great week, starting Tuesday in their 120-91 win over the Memphis Grizzlies. Anthony Davis' set several NBA and Lakers’ records in his 40-20 performance. 26 of Davis' 40 points came from free-throws, only missing one from the line.
Saturday night, the Los Angeles Lakers faced off against the Dallas Mavericks in potentially the game of the year so far. It was a battle of the triple-doubles in the 119-110 Lakers win over the Mavericks in overtime. Lebron James silenced the doubters with 39 points, 16 assists, and 12 rebounds. Luka Doncic also put up a tough battle with 31 points, 15 assists, and 13 rebounds.
But they did not stop there.
James and Doncic both returned to the floor Sunday and kept that same energy. The King followed up with another triple-double performance, scoring 21 points, 11 rebounds and 13 assists as the Lakers defeated the San Antonio Spurs 103-96, on the road.
As if one triple-double was not enough, Doncic also followed up with another in Sunday’s win against the Clevland Cavaliers, scoring 29 points, 15 assists, and 14 rebounds. This makes Doncic the 2nd player in NBA history to score 25 points, 10 rebounds and 15 assists in back-to-back games. With Doncic playing his best basketball, along with supporting players, Dallas is likely to replace the Warriors in the playoff run this season.
Kyle Kuzma returned to the court for the first time this season Friday night against the Mavericks. It was a quiet night for Kuzma, as expected, only scoring 9 points on 3-for-8 shooting from the field in a limited 19 minutes. Despite Kuzma not playing up to his full potential, the Lakers were still a force to be reckoned with. The Lakers have not lost since opening night, and are ranked 2nd defensively. Once Kuzma gets himself re-established in LA, the Lakers will be a scary sight for any opponent. Will the Lakers secure that No.1 seed in the west?
People are already questioning the Warriors abilities this season, and it looks like things just got worse for the Golden State. All-Star point guard Stephen Curry took a hard fall during Wednesday night’s game against the Phoenix Suns at the Chase Center.
Curry suffered a hand injury from a fall midway through the third quarter after colliding with Sun’s center, Aaron Baynes, on a drive to the basket. Curry immediately grabbed his wrist in pain while still on the floor. Curry was taken to the locker rooms for treatment and did not return for the rest of the game. The Suns took home the win 121-110.
The team confirmed Curry had broken his hand following the game. In the first four games, Curry is averaging 20.3 points per game, in a tough 1-3 start for the Warriors this season. This injury will make three of last season’s starters out due to injury. Klay Thompson is currently out, recovering from an ACL tear. Kevin Durant is also out, recovering from a torn Achilles tendon in Brooklyn.
Curry underwent a successful surgery Friday and is expected to be sidelined for at least three months for recovery. What will this mean for the Warriors? “Having him out is going to be tough for them to sustain,” Kevin Durant said. D’Angelo Russell is likely to obtain the minutes up for grabs, and lead the Warriors’ offense this season once he’s healthy. Russell sat out in Saturday’s loss to the Charlotte Hornets and is also ruled out for Monday’s game against the Portland Trail Blazers. Draymond Green was also sidelined in Saturday night’s game due to a sprained left index finger and will likely sit for the next few games.
The Warriors’ young players will need to step up if they even want a chance at playoffs this season with this injury plague spreading like wildfire. Will this season break the seven-season playoff streak for the Warriors?
Things heated up between the Philadephia 76ers and Minessota Timberwolves in Wednesday’s game at the Wells Fargo Center in Minnesota when a fight broke out between Karl-Anthony Towns and Joel Embiid. The 76ers led 75-55 towards the end of the third quarter and were on their way to remaining unbeaten this season.
The incident occurred after Joel Embiid double-teamed Karl-Anthony Towns leading to a Towns turnover. While the game advanced down the floor, the two remained in the backcourt tussling with one another. The two fell to the ground as teammates and coaches surrounded them attempting to break it up. Ben Simmons restrained Towns in a headlock, while Jeff Teague secured Embiid in a bear hug. Following the scuffle, the 76ers bench pumped up Embiid and he began throwing air punches. Towns was escorted by coaches back to the Timberwolves bench on the opposite end of the court.
Both players were ejected for the remainder of the game. After being ejected, Embiid made quite the exit, pumping up the crowd as he made his way to the tunnel. Embiid supposedly also received unfriendly hand gestures from Towns’ mother in the stands.
Only being the fourth game into the regular season, spectators were shocked to see things escalate so quickly between the two in the 117-95 76ers win. Post-game, the two took to social media to further trash talk one another, including pictures from the scuffle, meme references, and lots of clown and hat emojis.
Other players like Mike Scott and Josh Richardson joined in on the fun with posts of their own, and Charles Barkley called the altercation a “snuggle party.”
The NBA announced a two-game suspension for both Embiid and Towns. Ben Simmons escaped punishment from the restraints he put on Towns during the altercation. Despite the rumble, let’s not forget that the 76ers are playing exceptional basketball, both offensively and defensively. They are just getting started with a 5-0 record, but how long can they stay perfect?
The Miami Heat have certainly caught the attention of NBA fans starting the season with the second-best record in the league 5-1. With Jimmy Butler out the first three games on paternity leave, this gave some of the younger guys a chance to step up and take the ropes early.
Undrafted point guard Rookie, Kendrick Nunn is setting the pace for the Heat to start the season. In his first five games, Nunn has scored more points than any other player in their first five games with the Heat. Despite going undrafted, and being waived by the Golden State Warriors in 2018, Nunn came ready to play after signing a 3-year, $3.1 million deal over the summer with the Heat.
Nunn is not the only Rookie who came to play.
Tyler Herro started the first three games, scoring in double digits and proving why he belonged on the floor. The return of Jimmy Butler to the staring line-up Tuesday forced Herro to come off the bench, but that did not stop him. In his first two games off the bench, Herro averaged 23 points, shooting 56 percent from the field. His 29 point performance against the Hawks Tuesday night was the most scored points by a Heat Rookie since Dwayne Wade. Coaches are impressed by the maturity of Herro’s game and his ability to put pressure on the defense.
Nunn and Herro’s performances even earned praise from teammate Jimmy Butler, who sees a lot of himself in them.
After being overly criticized over the past year, Jimmy Butler made his highly-anticipated debut with the Miami Heat Tuesday and did not disappoint. Butler put up 21 points, five rebounds and two steals in his first appearance in the American Airlines Arena. After playing with numerous teams, Miami seems to be the perfect fit for Butler. But is Jimmy ‘Buckets’ their missing puzzle piece?
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