Can Anybody Stop The Nets?; Trae Young Dominates Spurs In OT! 4.1.21
It’s the start of a new month of NBA basketball and we have 7 games on the schedule today.
Philadelphia 76ers vs Cleveland Cavaliers
Here Comes Embiid
The 76ers may have lost the #1 seed in the East but they are getting Joel Embiid back this weekend after he missed a lot of time with that knee injury. It’ll be good for Philly as guys like Ben Simmons (2/11 in this game), aren’t exactly cut out to be the #1 option. Philly becomes a contending team with Embiid back.
Rebuild
Rebuilding
Washington Wizards vs Detroit Pistons
Hope Fading
The Wizards better learn magic and fast. They need Bradley Beal back and a few miracles to make the playoffs.
Winning
Winning, a rarity in Detroit.
Charlotte Hornets vs Brooklyn Nets
Charlotte Hornets
When Jeff Green makes more field goals in the first quarter (5) than you entire team does (4), it’s not a recipe for success. The Hornets fell behind early despite it being just Irving for Brooklyn. They were taking bad shots and Brooklyn just bombarded them early and often to build a 30-point lead at times and the Hornets were never even close in this game. The difference in talent is still steep even without KD, Harden, and Griffin.
Scary Hours
This team is scary. While KD is off jawing with actors, Harden and Griffin out with injury, this team is beating good teams by 30. Imagine what they can be when fully healthy, just so many weapons. And it’s not like Irving did anything great in this game, he had 15-11-8. But the support has been great.
21 from Jeff Green who had more first quarter field goals than the entire Hornets team. 17 from Landry Shamet off the bench and TLC added 15. I definitely think the Nets are the best team in the league and I find it hard to believe anybody can beat them when fully healthy. Scary hours indeed.
Oh yeah, a “washed” LaMarcus Aldridge did this in his Nets debut:
11 points, 9 rebounds, and 6 assists with 2 steals. This team is going to murder teams when fully healthy.
Golden State Warriors vs Miami Heat
Golden State Warriors
The Warriors just could never take a lead in the 2nd half. They started off very slow offensively but recovered nicely. The game was always close but the Heat always had an answer. Curry had 36 points and 11 rebounds, Wiggins added 23, and Draymond had 16-10-8. The Warriors shot 41% from 3 but they had 20 turnovers. The Warriors played pretty good all things considered, but turnovers killed them in this game.
Victor Oladipo, Did Nothing
Victor Oladipo didn’t exactly leave a mark in his Heat debut. 2/8 with just 6 points in 23 minutes. He did have 2 steals but he didn’t do a whole lot. Not like Miami needed him. 22-6-8 from Butler, 19-8-6 from Adebayo, 21 from Robinson, and 20 from Herro. The scoring came in bunches for Miami for once. Duncan Robinson and Tyler Herro have been playing better lately and Oladipo should help solidify the scoring. Let’s see if the Heat’s offense can pair with their defense and end this season strong.
Orlando Magic vs New Orleans Pelicans
Wendell’s 2nd Chance
Wendell Carter Jr is going to have a rebound in Orlando. 21 points and 12 rebounds in this game, this might be the 2nd chance he needs. The Magic were solid but the Pelicans not having their 3 best players helped them a bit.
Day Off
Without Zion, Ingram, and Lonzo, I didn’t expect much in this game. Bit Nickeil-Alexander Walker kept them in this game. He scored 5 straight to end the 4th quarter and force OT. He finished with 31 points and he got solid contributions. 17 from newly acquired James Johnson, 14 from Bledose and Hart. But it wasn’t enough in the end. Just get healthy Zion, Ingram, and Zo.
Atlanta Hawks vs San Antonio Spurs
Hail Trae Young
Through 3 quarters, Trae Young had just 6 points. It wasn’t a good showing for him but the Hawks had the lead. Over the 4th quarter and two overtimes, Young went off. After two Trae Young free throws, the Hawks led by 4 with 39.5 seconds left. They got a stop and the game was seemingly over. But Kevin Huerter turned it over and that led to a Dejounte Murray and-one. A DeMar DeRozan mid-range jumper tied the game and Trae Young’s floater for the win bounced out and we headed to OT. In the first OT, Young was responsible for every single point:
Assist for Capela dunk
3-pointer
Mid-Range jumper
Floater
All 9 of the first OT points came from Young. But a Rudy Gay 3 with under a minute to-go tied the game and the Hawks didn’t get a shot up at the end, so we played another 5 minutes. The 2nd OT was more of the same for Young.
Young Alley-Oop to Capela
Floater
Bogdanovic Layup (assist)
3-pointer
Layup
After that layup the Hawks led by 6 with 1:18 to go. But 5 straight Spurs points cut the Hawks lead to one. With under 30 seconds to go, Young worked his magic. He got right to the rim and found an open Gallinari in the corner. Gallinari faked the pass and drilled the dagger 3 to give the Hawks the win.
If you were counting, all 24 4th quarter points came from Young. 22 of his 28 points came in the 4th quarter + 2 OT’s. Young had 28, but Capela also had 28 points, 17 rebounds, and 5 blocks. He had been the perfect counterpart to Trae Young. Bogdan Bogdanovic has been picking up the pace lately as he also had 28 points, 5 rebounds, and 5 assists.
But again, all the credit in the world goes to Trae Young.
Damn You Trae Young
The Spurs will never forget what Trae Young did to them on April Fool’s, 2021.
Denver Nuggets vs LA Clippers
Nuggets Starting 5 Is Awesome
With the addition of Aaron Gordon, the Nuggets starting 5 is very good. First let’s start with AG. Gordon had 14 points, 6 rebounds, and 6 assists, with 5 combined steals and blocks. He was very good on both ends and has fit like a glove in Denver.
Will Barton might be a little trigger happy but he still had 19 points. MPJ continues to stay hot with 20 points, Jokic didn’t do much for once this season and Murray added 23 points and 8 rebounds. You have offense all around and Jokic is a masterful maestro who can run the show. Gordon is their only really good defender but nobody else except maybe MPJ is a liability. After seeing what AG has done in Denver, it’s clear that the move they made at the deadline was the right one and I don’t think it’s impossible for Denver to have another deep playoff run.
Urgency
Another problem that has carried over from last year’s disaster. This team comes out with no energy. The Nuggets stomped on them early and they were dominating. The Clippers really only got into the game in the 4th. But as soon as they cut into the lead Denver responded and it was too little too late. I don’t get why this team is so inconsistent. They have talent that should be able to hang with Denver and yet they don’t. It’s just frustrating to see the same mistakes that team from the last year make carry over to this season.
What Are Your Thoughts From The 7 Games Today? Leave A Comment Down Below!
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