Is There A Rivalry In The NBA Right Now?
Throughout NBA History, there have been some historic rivalries. Bill Russell vs Wilt Chamberlain. Magic vs Bird, Kobe vs Shaq, and KD vs Lebron. There have been some great rivalries throughout the NBA. But we don’t have a clear rivalry in the NBA right now, so which rivalry will become the main one for the future?
There are a lot of potential rivalries, and I will be going over a few of them in order to find the one that has the potential to be great.
Damian Lillard vs Russell Westbrook
Dame and Russ had one of the best rivalries in the NBA last season. The two have been two of the best point guards in the league for a while, and they are both at the top-tier of the league. But their 2019 playoff series alone was incredible. Lillard of course torched Westbrook, capping it off with a 50-point Game 5 victory, ending with a 37-foot game-winner in the face of PG. For the series, here were Lillard’s averages:
33.0 points and 6.0 assists with 2.4 steals. He shot 46% from the field and 48% from 3. He had an offensive rating of 118, and a defensive rating of 105 (net rating of +13).
Lillard was absolutely incredible in this series. He was 8-12 from 30+ feet in this series alone. And, here were the stats for Westbrook in this series:
22.8 points, 8.8 rebounds, and 10.6 assists, adding 1.0 steals. He shot 36% from the field and 32% from 3. He had an offensive rating of 98 and a defensive rating of 111 (net rating of -13).
Westbrook was horrible in this series, and this rivalry kind of died because of the gap between Lillard and Westbrook. It is clear that Dame is the better player as of right now, and the beef between the two seems to have settled. Westbrook moved on to Houston, and their matchups during the 2020-21 season didn’t give us much. Here were their stats head-to-head this season.
Lillard in 4 games: 24.5 PPG, 8.0 RPG, 9 APG with 1.0 SPG. He shot 38% from the field and 31% from 3. Lillard had an average of 109 offensive rating and a 109.25 defensive rating. This gave him a net rating of -0.25. But Lillard went 3-1 in these 4 games.
Westbrook in 4 games: 28 PPG, 9.0 RPG, 9.0 APG with 1.5 SPG. He shot 44% from the field and 25% from 3. He had an average offensive rating of 112 and a defensive rating of 108. This gives him a net rating of +4.
But while Westbrook was statistically better, Lillard still got 3 wins. And at the end of the day, that’s all that mattered, These two didn’t exchange much during the season, one small, isolated incident in January. But other than that, this beef is likely dead. Lillard devastated Westbrook in the 2019 NBA Playoffs, and I doubt that anybody can dispute that Lillard has won this rivalry.
Damian Lillard vs the Clippers
Damian Lillard sure gets into a lot of beefs. This one occurred in the bubble, our first ever bubble beef. The Clippers were one of the championship favorites entering the bubble, and the Blazers were trying to sneak into the playoffs although their chances were slim. The Blazers faced off against the Clippers on August 8th, a must-win for the Blazers. The Clippers took the game in a more relaxed tone as neither Kawhi or Montrezl Harrell were playing. And the Clippers put in their substitute players in the 4th quarter.
But the game remained close until the end, where Damian Lillard was at the free throw line with 18.0 seconds left. If he made both, the Blazers got the lead and likely the win. With two misses, the Blazers would likely lose. Lillard missed the first one short, and the Clippers bench erupted like it was the funniest thing ever. Among the culprits were Marcus Morris, Patrick Beverley, and Paul George. Lillard missed the 2nd free throw as well, and the game-tying 3 late, and the Blazers lost a game that they should have won.
But what happened after the incident really turned up this beef. Beverley and George took some shots at Lillard after the game, and Lillard clapped back. The Blazers made the playoffs as the 8th seed, something that Paul George said wouldn’t happen. The Blazers lost like they should have in the first round, but the Clippers self-destructed even harder.
The Clippers had a lot of pressure, especially PG-13, who needed to show everybody that he was worth 6 first round picks. He was not as the Clippers blew a 3-1 series lead against the Nuggets, and Dame was having all sorts of fun.
But I do think that this beef is mostly over, just because nothing has happened since. The Clippers burned out, and Dame got the last laugh. But this beef will like be born and die in the bubble, and will not resurface in the 2020-21 season.
Jamal Murray vs Donovan Mitchell
The Jamal Murray and Donovan Mitchell rivalry came out of nowhere. These two have been some of the better guards in the NBA over the past couple of seasons, and they both have bright futures in the NBA. But during the 2020 NBA Playoffs, both of these guys exploded and they have birthed a new rivalry. Here is how things unfolded.
Jamal Murray signed a 5-year extension during the offseason, and he needed to show that he was worth it during the regular season. And he kind of disappointed in the regular season.
Murray averaged 18.5 points while shooting 46% from the field and 35% from 3. Murray added 1.1 steals per game. He had an offensive rating of 112 and a defensive rating of 113 (net rating of -1).
Murray didn’t make a huge jump this season, and it was disappointing. He didn’t seem to finally use all of his potential as his 2019-20 regular season was almost identical to his 2018-19 season. But in the 2020 playoffs, we got the Jamal Murray we all wanted to see.
Donovan Mitchell has turned himself into one of the premier shooting guards from the moment he stepped into the league. He is one of the best scorers, and the franchise player for the Utah Jazz. He turned himself into an All-Star and is a top-5 SG in the league. During the regular season, Mitchell put up these numbers:
24.0 points while shooting 45% from the field and 37% from 3. Mitchell also averaged 1.0 steals. He had an offensive rating of 110 and a defensive rating of 111, giving him a net rating of -1.
Mitchell was excellent this season, and he will be a great player in this league for a long-time.
The Nuggets and Jazz played 3 time during the regular season, but Jamal Murray didn’t play in 2 of them. So I think that we’ll get right into their legendary playoff series. We’ll go through each game, and breakdown this epic battle.
In Game 1, Donovan Mitchell scored just 2 points in the first quarter, but had 19 in the first half, keeping the Jazz in the game. Jamal Murray had 14 points for the Nuggets on 5/8 shooting in the first half. Mitchell continued to be red hot from the field, adding 10 points in the 3rd and Utah led by 5 entering the 4th. That’s when things get interesting. Mitchell scored 22 of his team’s 32 in the 4th, trying to keep the Jazz afloat. Jamal Murray had 10 points and 2 big 3-pointers to help Denver force OT.
And in OT, the Nuggets bullied the Jazz, winning the OT period 20-10. Mitchell had 6 in OT, giving him 57 for the game. Murray added 10 points and 2 more big 3-pointers to give Denver the Game 1 victory.
In Game 2 Mitchell had 30 points and the Jazz rolled the Nuggets to tie the series. Murray struggled as he scored just 14 points.
Game 3 was more of the same as Utah again rolled over the Nuggets. Mitchell had 20 points, but Murray only managed 12.
Now down 2-1, the Nuggets needed some kind of spark. They would get one out of Murray as he scored 18 points in the first half, but he was just getting started. Murray hit 5 3’s in the 4th, scoring 21 of Denver’s points. But it wasn’t enough. Murray finished with 50 points, but Denver still lost. Donovan Mitchell matched Murray step-for-step as he had 51 points of his own. Mitchell had 22 of his points in the first half, and added 18 points in the 4th, including 9/10 from the free throw line.
Now the Jazz had taken a 3-1 series lead and Mitchell looked unbeatable. Jamal Murray played excellently, but it wasn’t enough. Now sit back, and watch these two battle for the next 144 minutes.
In Game 5, it wasn’t the Mitchell of the Murray show. It was the Jokic show as he scored 21 points in the first quarter. Mitchell and Murray were relatively quiet, combining for 22 points in the first half. But in the 3rd quarter, Murray came alive with 17 points on 70% from shooting. And Murray capped it off with 16 more in the 4th quarter, on 88% shooting. Murray finished with 42 points, and the Nuggets took Game 5, making it a 3-2 series lead for Utah.
Game 6 was another intense battle. Murray and Mitchell both started off hot as they both had double-digit scoring by the 2nd half. Murray scored more in the 2nd, finishing with 25 points in the first half. Murray cooled in the 3rd and Mitchell scored 13 to get the Jazz back in the game. And the 4th quarter was epic. Murray was 5/5 from 3, and had 21 points in the 4th. Mitchell was 4/6 from 3, and had 17 points in the 4th. But Murray’s barrage was too much and Denver won Game 6, tying the series at 3-3.
Murray finished Game 6 with 50 points on 71% shooting and Mitchell had 44 points on 56% shooting.
Game 7 was a lot different. It was much more defensive and Murray and Mitchell didn’t score much. The Nuggets won a nail-biter, ending a wildly entertaining series.
Here were the two’s averages during the series:
Murray: 31.6 points, 6 rebounds, and 6 assists. 55% from the field and 53% from 3. Offensive Rating of 138 and Defensive Rating of 124 (net rating of +14). All in 38.1 minutes per game.
Mitchell: 36.3 points and 5 rebounds with 1.0 steals per game. 53% from the field and 52% from 3. Offensive Rating of 128 and Defensive Rating of 121 (net rating of +7). All in 37.7 minutes per game.
These two went crazy, and this rivalry isn’t over. These two are very talented and very competitive. It isn’t an ugly beef such as Lillard vs the Clippers, but more of a talent rivalry. These two will meet up a lot over the course of their careers, and hopefully we get more playoff series between the two. But this rivalry could be one of the better ones that we’ve had in a while.
What Is The Best Rivalry In The NBA Right Now? Leave A Comment Down Below!
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