Everybody Is Getting Blown Out!; Suns Lose Critical Game In Race For #1 Seed! 5.5.21
It’s a Wednesday night of NBA basketball and we have a busy night with 9 games on the schedule tonight.
Boston Celtics vs Orlando Magic (132-96)
It’s The Magic
This is about as easy of a win as you’re going to get. 32 for Walker, 27 for Tatum,18 for Fournier in his return, and 14 for Pritchard off the bench. Boston shot 53% from the field, hit 21 3’s, dominated. They led the whole way and led by as much as 36 at one point.
The Celtics move up into 6th in the East, tied with the 7th seeded Heat and 1.5 games behind the 5th seeded Hawks.
Orlando Magic
You’re the Magic. Simple as that.
Portland Trail Blazers vs Cleveland Cavaliers (141-105)
It’s The Cavs
Of the Blazers remaining games, this was one of the few easy ones. Business was taken care of, as the 2nd half was a utter blowout where the Portland built a 36-point lead. 6 guys were in double figures, even with no Norman Powell. 32 for Dame who seems to be healthy again. Double-Double for Nurkic and 10 for CJ. But the bench did it’s job once again.
18 points and 13 rebounds for Kanter, 16 for Melo, and 10 for Simons led the way for 70 bench points. Portland shot 58% from the field and 49% from 3, getting their 4th win in 5 games.
Portland stays at 7th but they are now just a 0.5 a game behind both the 6th seeded Lakers and 5th seeded Mavs. Portland better win that game against LA with no Lebron James on the floor.
Cleveland Cavaliers
It’s the Cavs, don’t expect too much.
Phoenix Suns vs Atlanta Hawks (103-135)
That Was Unexpected
The Suns haven’t gotten blown out a lot this season, so this was surprising. They just couldn’t stop the Hawks. Plain and simple. The Hawks shot above 60% from the field and 50% from 3, and the Suns didn’t exactly do that. Booker had 31 but Paul struggled and the bench was lackluster. I am going to call this a bump in the road, but with Utah winning, it’s a crucial loss in the race for the #1 seed.
With the loss, the Suns are now 1 whole game behind the Jazz in the standings for the #1 seed.
Offense
If only the Hawks were healthy. The Hawks offense was running on something else tonight because they were unstoppable. 63% from the field, 50% from 3, everything was clicking. 7 guys in double-figures and the Hawks led by as much as 34. Great win overall.
The Hawks are now just 0.5 games behind the 5th seeded Knicks. The Hawks are 23-10 under Nate McMillan.
Sacramento Kings vs Indiana Pacers (104-93)
Bagley and Defense
Marvin Bagley showed why he was the #2 overall pick in 2018 (although Luka would still be nice). Season-high 31 points and 12 rebounds, one of his best games of the year, certainly his best since returning from that hand injury. 23 points, 7 rebounds, 6 assists, and 6 steals for Delon Wright as a total of 5 Kings were in double-figures. Lead was at 20 at one point as this was domination while missing 3 key players. Good job.
The Kings?
Losing to the Kings, that’s a yikes.
Indiana is still 9th place, having a 0.5 a game lead on the Wizards who lost tonight.
Philadelphia 76ers vs Houston Rockets (135-115)
It’s The Rockets
Not much more needs to be said.
You Are The Rockets
This also means you are bad.
Washington Wizards vs Milwaukee Bucks (134-135)
Shootout
This was a back and forth affair but late the Wizards just couldn’t get stops. Pat Connaughton hit a couple of big 3’s and Brook Lopez had a putback. Even with that the Wizards could have won. A Bradley Beal 3 cut the lead to one with 5 seconds left. The Wizards got the steal but Garrison Matthews stepped on the baseline. Then the Bucks turned it over after the timeout and Garrison Matthews half-court shot did a Gordon Hayward Butler impression, just off. That’s a tough loss.
42 for Beal, 29-12-17 for Westbrook, the usual. But even with how good the Wizards have been playing, they are back as the 10th seed, 0.5 a game behind the Indiana Pacers who are 9th.
The Curse of the 40-point game strikes again. Bradley Beal had 17 40-point games since the start of last season. The Wizards are 2-15 in such games.
4 In A Row
When Pat Connaughton and Brook Lopez are saving the day when you have the 2x reigning MVP on your team, it’s weird, but it works. The Bucks offense was balanced without Khris Middleton on the floor and they’re lucky Garrison Matthews doesn’t have smaller feet otherwise they might have lost this game.
7 guys in double-figures, led by 29-5-6 from Jrue Holiday. 23-9-8 from Giannis, and 16 from Connaughton off the bench. The Bucks made 18 3’s compared to just 8 for the Wizards and they shot 54% overall. The Bucks have won their last 4 games and they are a game behind the reeling Nets for the #2 seed in the East.
Memphis Grizzlies vs Minnesota T-Wolves (139-135)
Shootout
It was just a back and forth affair of offense the whole game. Neither team could stop each other but Memphis prevailed thanks to two big 3’s from Desmond Bane in the final minute. The Grizzlies get another big win for the Western Conference play-in win.
6 guys were in double figures, led by Ja Morant who had 37 points and 10 assists on 56% shooting. 22 for Desmond Bane off the bench, 20 for Kyle Anderson, 16 for Brooks rounded out the scoring. Memphis shot 54% from the field and 48% from 3 on the night.
With the win, the Grizzlies move up to 8th in the West and have a 0.5 game lead on the Warriors.
A For Effort
The offense is there, we all know that. But defense is going to have to be addressed if this team wants to make the playoffs next year. But they certainly have the talent. Anthony Edwards tied a career-high with 42 points, 6 rebounds, and 7 assists. He shot 77% from the field (17/22) and was 8/9 from 3. He has been spectacular since the All-Star Break and is likely going to be ROTY.
22 from Towns and 22 from D-Lo who got put into the starting lineup. Hernangomez and Reid were in double-figures off the bench but the future is very bright for Minnesota.
Edwards is the first 19-year-old in NBA history to drop 40+ points and 5+ 3’s in a game. The top 5 includes Eric Gordon, Brandon Jennings, KD, and Lebron. Also the first rookie in NBA history with 40+ points, 8+ 3’s on 75%+ shooting in a game.
New York Knicks vs Denver Nuggets (97-113)
New York Knicks
After winning 12 of their last 13 games, this was an embarrassment. The offense was nonexistent and it was just ugly overall. The Knicks only have a 0.5 game lead on the Hawks as they cling onto the #4 seed in the East.
Denver Nuggets
Nikola Jokic had 24 points in the first quarter. The Knicks had 12. That about sums this game up. The Nuggets defense was on-point and they led comfortably for the entire game.
32-12-6 for Jokic, another stellar outing. 17 for MPJ and 16 for Campazzo. The surprise scoring came from Austin River, who hit 6 3’s off the bench and had 25 points. Denver was 27/33 from the foul line and shot just 38% from the field. They have remained good without Jamal Murray, looking more dangerous than you would have thought.
The Nuggets are back in a tie with the Clippers in the standings, meaning that they have the #3 seed.
San Antonio Spurs vs Utah Jazz (94-126)
5 In A Row
The Spurs have lost their last 5 games. They are now 1.5 games behind the 9th seeded Warriors and 1.5 games ahead of New Orleans.
Who Needs All-Stars
The Jazz have been very good without Conley and Mitchell. All most too good… Anyway, another big win. The Jazz now have control over the #1 seed, with a 1 game lead on the Suns. They still don’t have Mitchell back and Conley isn’t 100%. The Jazz have a deep playoffs run poised.
What Are Your Thoughts From The 9 Games Today? Leave A Comment Down Below!
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