It was an exciting weekend over in the NBA. As we are coming up to the All-Star break, it’s interesting to see which teams are finishing off strong, the first half of the season strong.
The Indiana Pacers took on the Boston Celtics on Friday night. Jason Tatum only had 9 points in this game as Kemba Walker scored
32 points. Although 4 out of the 5 starters for the Pacers were in double digit scoring, the Celtics narrowly took the W, 118-112.
The Pacers went on to play the New York Knicks the following night, and New York who is above .500 for the season, was able to keep Indiana in the losing column and scrape together a win 110-107.
The Celtics played the Washington Wizards, and whenever these two teams meet its a fiery exchange. This one did not disappoint, with Bradley Beal continuing his All-Star level play and dropping 46 points, but Jason Tatum had 31 points, and after going off in the 4th quarter, the Celtics won by 1 point, 111-110.
The New York Knicks continued winning on Sunday as they played the Detroit Pistons. Derrick Rose had 14 points against his former team, as the Pistons lost 109-90.
Before the Washington Wizards lost to the Celtics, they played the Minnesota Timberwolves on Saturday. Bradley Beal had an easy 34 points in this game and Russel Westbrook had a triple double cashing in 19 points, 14 rebounds, and 12 assists. The Timberwolves could not get back in the game and lost 128-112.
The Detroit Piston played the Sacremento Kings on Friday and although the Kings are also doing terrible this year, the Pistons couldn’t get a win against them either. The game went down to the wire with Detroit losing, 110-107.
Sacremento went on to play the hot Charolette Hornets on Sunday, and Lamelo Ball showed out with 24 points and 12 assists. P.J. Washington had 42 points and even with Gordon Hayward sitting out, the Hornets took the W 127-126.
Earlier in the weekend on Friday, the Charolette Hornets played the Golden State Warriors and Gordon Hayward only scored 12 points in this game and although three of the Hornets players had scored 20+ points, Stephen Curry dropped 29 points to win the game 130-121.
The Toronto Raptors who have been having a solid season, played the Houston Rockets on Friday, and the Raptors won by double digits. Victor Oladipo who was recently traded to the Rockets, has declined to extend his contract after the season, so he will become a free agent. He put his skills on display and scored 27 points, but the Rockets still lost 122-111.
The Rockets then proceeded to play against the Memphis Grizzlies on Sunday and they got blown out by 49 points. With Victor Oladipo sitting out the Rockets got smoked, 133-84.
The Memphis Grizzlies faced off against the Los Angeles Clippers on Friday and the game did not go their way. Kawhi Leonard scored 30 points while 6 other Clipper players scored double digits, and even though the Grizzlies didn’t have a bad game they got blown out 119-99.
The Clippers went on to face the Milwaukee Bucks on Sunday and the Bucks have been on fire. After coming out of their rough patch they’ve been playing a high level of basketball.l Giannis Antetokounmpo scored 36 points and grabbed 14 rebounds to put his team over the top as they won, 105-100.
The Utah Jazz, who have the best record in the league, played the Miami Heat on Friday. This game was a much need win for the Heat, and not only did Jimmy Butler outscore Donavan Mitchell 33 points to 30 points, he nearly got a triple double with 10 rebounds and 8 assists to help Miami beat the Jazz, 124-116.
The Jazz came right back the next night, hopping back into the winning column with a 15 point win over the Orlando Magic. Nikola Vucević scored 34 points, but it was not enough to stop the Jazz from winning, 124-109.
The Heat had a perfect weekend playing there Atlanta Hawks on Sunday, and even with Jimmy Butler sitting out this game, Trae Young scored an unusual 15 points along with 8 rebounds and 9 assists as the Hawks lost 109-99.
It was not the first lost of the weekend for Atlanta. In their Friday matchup against the Oklahoma City Thunder, Trae Young had another rough shooting night only scoring 17 points on 33% from the field. With six of the OKC players scoring in double digits, the Thunder won the game 118-109.
The Thunder had a 50/50 weekend because they went on to play the Denver Nuggets the following night and they lost. With Jamal Murray dropping 26 points and Nikola Jokić having a triple double with 19 points, 11 rebounds, and 13 assists the Nuggets blew out OKC, 126-96.
The Chicago Bulls faced the Phoenix Suns on Friday and this game was a solid matchup. Although the Bulls out rebounded the Suns, the Suns and more specifically Chris Paul who had 15 assists on the night, out assisted Chicago which led to the win 106-97.
The Phoenix Suns won both of their games over the weekend, taking on the Minnesota Timberwolves on Sunday. This game was an easy W for the Suns as they won, 118-99.
The Cleveland Cavaliers played the Philadelphia 76er’s on Saturday and this game went down to the wire in overtime. With Collin Sexton dropping 28 points and Darius Garland dropping 25 points, they were able to overpower Joel Embiid who scored 42 points and Ben Simmons who scored 24 points, as the Cavs won in OT 112-109.
The New Orleans Pelicans had tough loss against the San Antonio Spurs on Saturday. With it being a very tight game, the Spurs were able to stay ahead, and with DeMar DeRozan scoring 32 points over Brandon Ingram’s 29 points, the Pelicans lost 117-114.
The Brooklyn Nets who are still missing Kevin Durant due to a hamstring injury, were also missing Kyrie Irving on Saturday night. They faced off against the Dallas Mavericks who have been struggling for a win, and even though James Harden dropped 29 points, Luka Donćic had 27 points to help his Mavs garner a much needed W, 115-98.
The Los Angeles Lakers, after losing 4 games straight, won both of their games over the weekend. They first played against the Portland Trail Blazers and with Dennis Schroder back in the line-up and LeBron James having a near triple double with 28 points, 11 rebounds, and 7 assists, the Lakers won 102-93.
The Lakers went on to face the Golden State Warriors on Sunday, and surprisingly they were able to hold Stephen Curry to just 16 points. With 6 of the Laker players in double digit scoring, they won the game easily in a blow out 117-91.
The has been the Weekend Edition of Briefly In Depth.
Check back in Wednesday for the Mid Week Report.
Comments