Are The Hornets For Real?; Murray Crumbles Under Pressure Again! 3.13.21
It’s another day of NBA action and we have 8 games on the schedule today.
New York Knicks vs OKC Thunder
A Rare Sighting Of Offense
The Knicks started off slow but even without D-Rose their offense was very good. RJ Barrett had a career-high 32 points and 5 rebounds on 12/21 shooting. He looked comfortable shooting from distance and his slashing was very good. It’s good to see him playing like this, as he had put up 20+ points in 4 of the last 5 games. Julius Randle was also good in his game, getting a triple-double with 26-12-12. He was back in All-Star form after an ugly game in Milwaukee.
Bullock was excellent defensively with his pressure and Burks and Quickley were solid off the bench. The Knicks offense and defense were both good in this game as even without D-Rose they were fine. They’ll need this type of scoring and shooting (40% from 3) to win more games.
OKC Thunder
No SGA, no comment.
Detroit Pistons vs Brooklyn Nets
Detroit Pistons
This game was somehow close which is nice. Might have something to do with Blake Griffin on the opposing bench. The Pistons trailed for most of this game but took a lead in the 4th. But the Nets are just too good, too much for most teams and especially the Pistons. 4 starters were in double figures and 5 overall for the Pistons. Decent effort, but this was to be expected.
How Was This Close?
The Nets have been playing their best basketball of the year without KD. But this game shouldn’t have been as close as it was. The Nets could never really pull away and they lost the lead in the 4th but James Harden helped the Nets hang onto their lead and give them another win. Harden got another triple-double, and the support was solid with guys like Shamet and Jordan stepping up. The Nets have been on a roll as they are now 26-13 on the year. With the Embiid injury to Philly, now might be their chance to get that #1 seed.
Toronto Raptors vs Charlotte Hornets
Mercy Rule
Without 3 starters again, Toronto stood no chance. Even with 3 starters they would have gotten beat. The Raptors just got jumped on. Charlotte hit 11 3’s in the first quarter and before you knew it the game was a blowout. A bad 3rd quarter ended any chances at a comeback as the 4th was all garbage time. Nobody played that great as Toronto hasn’t started off the 2nd half of the year well.
I’m Not Used To Charlotte Being Good
The Hornets dominated this game. 44 points and 11 3’s in the first quarter, en route to a blowout win. This Hornets core is very good. Lamelo had 23-9-6 on 7/11 shooting. He’s been amazing. Devonte Graham had 17 off the bench and Monk added 16. If Graham can do this off the bench, then maybe Charlotte can find value with him. Rozier was also solid as the Hornets have been very good this year, their young core fitting very well together. Charlotte is above 0.500 as the playoffs seem more and more like a reality for the Hornets.
Milwaukee Bucks vs Washington Wizards
How Was This Close?
No Beal for the Wizards. And this game was close. The Bucks defense was awful throughout this game and they barely came out with the win. Can’t say I’m surprised because they have a terrible coach. Giannis got a big triple-double to lead the way for the Bucks. Middleton and Holiday were poor, as both of them have been sub-par lately. The bench was solid but the defense continues to have it’s struggled.
At Least You Tried
Without Beal, this game shouldn’t have been close. However the Wizards managed to stay in the game. Westbrook and Hachimura each had 19 in the first half and it was really only in the 4th where Washington had problems scoring. The 3’s were falling and it’s a good performance from Washington despite the loss. Westbrook hit 5 3’s and had a 42-point triple-double. Hachimura had 29 himself. Again, good performance but the outcome was to be expected.
Sacramento Kings vs Atlanta Hawks
Still Disappointing
In the battle of two young disappointing teams, the Kings continued to do what they do best. Disappoint. The first quarter was very good for the Kings. Shots were falling and they were getting whatever they wanted. After that it was all Hawks. The offense slowed down in the 2nd with just 18 points and the defense went back to normal. They were outscored by 21 in the 2nd, and 7 more in the 3rd as they just couldn’t keep up with Atlanta. ‘
Fox plays very well against the Hawks and that trend continued as he had 32-7-6 on the night. The frontcourt combined for just 23 points. Holmes had 20 and 12. The bench has been awful recently as Tyrese Haliburton has been on a minutes restriction. This team is a mess and they need changes if they they want to go places.
A Little Less Disappointing
Since getting Nate McMillan as the head coach the Hawks have won 4 in a row. Perhaps Lloyd Pierce was the problem. The Hawks offense started off slow and they fell behind early. That changed after the 2nd quarter. The bench led by Rondo got things going and the Hawks outscored the Kings by 21 in the 2nd. Outscoring the Kings by 7 more in the 3rd put the game out of reach as the Hawks have been playing much better.
Young had 28 points and 9 assists with only 5 points from the free throw line. Capela had 24 and 14 on the night as he dominate down low. Collins had 16, Gallo had 15 off the bench. The Hawks have been playing better and that’s without Hunter, Reddish, and Bogdanovic. Well, Bogdanovic is back but he has been terrible this season. Maybe the Kings gave him up for a reason.
I think that the Hawks can be good. They have played well under McMillan and they have talent. While their free agent signings have been awful they still have a good team. Paying Gallinari $20+ million, Bogdanovic getting a big contract, and guys like Rondo and Dunn haven’t done much of anything. This team is still in the playoff hunt and they hope they can get healthy so they can sneak into the playoffs.
Portland Trail Blazers vs Minnesota T-Wolves
Need Rebounding
This game wasn’t supposed to be this close, but Portland came out with the win. The Blazers real problem was rebounding in this game, but they eventually overcame that to get the win. In the first quarter, things were going to plan. Damian Lillard got tot he rim and set up teammates constantly. The 2nd quarter offered more resistance but the Blazers still lead easily. Things would get tougher in the 2nd half. In the 3rd the T-Wolves were racing down the floor and dominating the offensive glass. Portland was outscored by 10 and lost their lead. Things were looking bleak in the 4th but then Portland got going. A couple of Dame jumpers helped Portland keep the lead and a Melo dime for the Jones Jr. dunk sealed the win. It sure wasn’t pretty, but the Blazers got the win.
Dame had 24 points and 14 assists as he was quiet, doing mostly passing in this game. Melo had 24 off the bench as he moved in front of Hakeem on the all-time scoring list. The Blazers bench was very good, and that’s a huge help. Enes Kanter was very good. He had 20 points and 11 rebounds, most of his points thanks to dimes from Dame. Kanter made things tough for Towns and he played well. Jones and Roco continue to play well as Portland got a much needed win.
Portland needs these two games at Minnesota to both be wins. They played well in this game. The shooting was poor but that doesn’t happen often. The bench was good and the defense was solid. The rebounding was awful as Portland doesn’t have a backup big right now. Portland had 32 rebounds and the T-Wolves had 53, with 19 offensive rebounds. The Blazers might need some more rebounding with the deadline coming up, or they can hope that they can get healthy. But with them having a very tough schedule, they desperately need size.
Promising
This is when the T-Wolves can look promising. They have talent and they used it in this game. They played very well in the 2nd half as they were relentlessly attacking and crashing the boards. But the T-Wolves are still the T-Wolves. Their defense is just so bad. But they looked good at times.
Edwards was solid and he did what he did best, attack. Towns was good with 34 points and 8 rebounds as he got back to what he was before injuries slowed him down. Nowell and Reid continue to be such a good bench combo. I like the pieces on this team. Towns, Edwards, Beasley, Nowell, Reid, Russell, and McDaniels are all solid. If they can stay healthy and get some defense they have something. They will continue to suck this year, but they have some good pieces.
Dallas Mavericks vs Denver Nuggets
The Mavs Look Scary
The Mavs have been playing their best basketball of the year, and they dominated this game. They just sucked the life out of Denver. After a close first quarter, Dallas dominated the 2nd quarter. Their defense against everybody except Jokic was good and their shooters were hitting shots. Doncic and Porzingis were very good and Dallas led at the half. The 3rd was more of the same. Other guys got involved and the defense just suffocated Denver. Denver made a feeble attempt at coming back, but Dallas won this game handily.
Porzingis was hitting his 3’s, going 10/15 overall with 25 points. Luka had 21 points and 12 assists as he was very good per usual. Josh Richardson was 4/5 from 3 and had 20 points, one of his best games this year. Jalen Brunson led the bench as it was a good, well balanced scoring night for the Mavs.
The Mavs defense is what really surprised me here. They started of the year very good defensively, however they slipped back down to the bottom-10. But in this game they were great. Dorian Finney-Smith dominated his matchup with Jamal Murray. They held the Nuggets bench down very well as it was a very good performance. The Mavs have slowly gotten back into the West playoff picture as they are now 20-17 on the year. Watch out for Dallas.
Murray Crumbles Under Pressure
In the last two games Dillon Brooks of Memphis and Dorian Finney-Smith of Dallas has been pressuring Murray full-court. To say the results have been working is an understatement as Murray has been awful. This leaves Jokic without a reliable 2 and hoping that others step up. The results weren’t pretty. After a good first quarter, things slowed down. With no Murray the offense wasn’t great and the Mavs were getting cooked. In the 3rd Denver just kind of gave up as Dallas just imposed their will. Very disappointing loss against a Western Conference team that is creeping up on Denver.
Jokic had 26-9-11 as he continues his MVP campaign. Despite dealing with foul trouble, MPJ was 7/9 from the field with 23 points. The problem is he is so bad defensively. Doncic was targeting him with either the pass or the drive and it worked for often than not. Barton was also solid with 23 but there was nothing else. Murray was 4/16 and the bench did literally nothing.
The Nuggets are wildly inconsistent because of Jamal Murray. Before this loss, Murray and company had been rolling as Murray had found his stride. But he’s been awful in the last two games as defenses have been putting pressure on him. He’s been crumbling to say the least. Denver has been getting production from guys like MPJ and Barton recently, but without Murray this team is likely not getting to another WCF. They need Bubble Murray or something close to that to achieve that goal.
Indiana Pacers vs Phoenix Suns
Pacers Win In Levert’s Return
Caris Levert made his debut with Indiana and despite being on the 2nd night of a back-to-back, the Pacers had more energy in this game. In the first quarter things were close but the same couldn’t be said about the 2nd quarter. The Pacers defense was swarming the Suns, getting right up into them. They went on a run and took a lead. The 3rd was more the same. Swarming defense that led to transition scores. The Suns tried to comeback but it was too little too late as the Pacers get a much needed win.
Malcolm Brogdon had 25 points and Sabonis got another triple-double as this duo has been playing much better recently. Turner was a force down low and Caris Levert looked pretty good. Obviously some rust but having another shot creator helps Indiana. Doug McDermott was excellent in this game. It was just backdoor cut after backdoor cut as he had 22 off the bench.
This is how Indiana has to play, with energy. Offensively they have weapons and they looked good when they pushed the pace. Caris Levert gives them another shot creator and pure scorer. The defense can be like this. They have to get into people and they have good defenders. I really liked how the Pacers played in this game and if they want to be successful, they have to play this way more often. But a very, very good win against the hottest team in the league.
No Energy Suns
The Suns are a very good team but they just had no energy. The Pacers swarming pressure defense got to them and by the time they got some energy it was far too little too late. After a good first quarter the offense stalled in the 2nd. The Suns were sloppy and the Pacers made them pay, opening a lead. After halftime where the Suns had a chance to rally the troops, it was more of the same. Outscored by 15 in the 3rd essentially put the game away as Phoenix couldn’t comeback.
Booker was inefficient for once, Ayton was good but again he just isn’t aggressive down low. He doesn’t use his size and athleticism at all. Bridges was solid but CP-3 struggled scoring. Saric and Nader were solid but the energy just wasn’t there on either end for half the game. And that really killed the Suns.
The Suns have to play with energy every single game if they want to be very good. They have a great team but that goes nowhere if you don’t come to play. Deandre Ayton has to learn some things because he just plays like he’s small. He doesn’t go up when he has position. The defense has to be better, especially on backdoor cuts. Doug McDermott made an example of them with multiple backdoor cuts. Obviously teams are bound to have bad games and with how good the Suns have been playing, this doesn’t change my mind about them. But this definitely wasn’t a good showing for one of the best in the West.
What Are Your Thoughts From The 8 Games Today? Leave A Comment Down Below!
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