Zach Lavine Dominates Late; Hornets Win Wild Sequence! 2.20.21
It’s a Saturday night of NBA hoops, and we have 5 games on the schedule today.
Golden State Warriors vs Charlotte Hornets
Golden State Warriors
Steph Curry didn’t play in this game, and Draymond Green missed the start of the 3rd but eventually returned. With all of that, this game was close because the Warriors were forcing turnovers and making the game very ugly and slow. They led by 10 with 4:44 left in the 4th, but it slipped away. The Warriors led by two, and there was a jump ball. The Hornets won it, and Draymond Green got two technicals. One for jumping on Hayward after the possession had been won and one for arguing. So Rozier tied the game at the free throw line with 2/2 free throws, and the Hornets got the ball. And then Rozier hit the game-winning jumper at the buzzer. Tough.
Charlotte Hornets
The fact that is took a bad double-tech and a Rozier game-winner to win against the short-handed Warriors. This Hornets team was very sloppy after a week off, and they should consider themselves lucky to be winning this game. Rozier was their only real scorer, as he was on fire and led their comeback and of course hit the game-winner. Rozier had 20 of the 33 Charlotte points in the 4th, as he was carrying this team. The Hornets had 24 turnovers, so they did their best to lose this game. But alas, a win is a win.
Miami Heat vs LA Lakers
Miami Heat
It wasn’t pretty, but the Heat needed this win against the very short-handed Lakers. In the first half, the Heat played very well. Kendrick Nunn was on fire, and the Heat were on fire from deep. They were dominating the first half, but the Lakers hit some 3’s late to close in. In the 3rd, the Lakers 3’s continued to fall and the Heat managed to stay afloat and hold their lead entering the 4th. And here’s where things got ugly. Both offenses came to a standstill, as the bucker were hard to come by. But it seemed Miami had won as they led by 4 with 12.4 seconds left. But LA scored, and then got the steal. With a chance to win, Alex Caruso missed the jumper and the Heat survived to improve to 13-17 on the year.
Kendrick Nunn had 27 points and 5 rebounds on 10/14 shooting.
Jimmy Butler had 24 points, 8 rebounds, and 5 assists on 8/20 shooting.
Bam Adebayo had 16 points, 10 rebounds, and 6 assists on 8/16 shooting.
Kendrick Nunn has been playing like he was last year, as he has been great lately and he really made the Lakers pay with his shooting. Butler and Adebayo both did a little bit of everything, as they usually do. The Heat defense was solid throughout, and while they nearly lost this game with their late turnover, they got a win. This road-trip is very important for the Heat, as it can give them some momentum. They are 3-3, and have one final game against OKC, a chance to give them a winning Western Conference road-trip.
LA Lakers
No Schroder and no AD again, I’m not holding too much against LA. Kuzma played ok, although he really didn’t shoot well after the start to the game. James only shot 7/21 from the field, 1/8 from 3. Harrell was very good off the bench, but the Lakers need better shooting. They have shooters, but shooting 29% from 3 and missing good looks consistently hurts them a lot. They need to shoot better, and having Schroder back helps with that, but they definitely need to shoot better to win. LA falls to 22-9 on the year.
Sacramento Kings vs Chicago Bulls
Sacramento Kings
No Barnes and Holmes, and of course the defense was bad. The Kings made this game somewhat close late, but Zach Lavine is a bad man. Until the Kings get healthy and get all their weapons back, they will continue to struggle. Bagley was good finally, Fox was solid, as were Haliburton and Hield. But again, offense has never really been the problem for them. Defense will always be the problem, and downfall for this team.
Chicago Bulls
Zach Lavine is a bad man. Like I mean, a really bad man. He just dominated the 4th, and made the Kings look stupid. He shot 75% from the field and finished with 38 points, a much better showing from yesterday against Philly. White and Temple were solid in the backcourt, but Thaddeous Young off the bench had 18 points. He has been a very good closer and bench piece for this team, as he brings that veteran experience. The Bulls shot 60% from the field, as they were excellent offensively. The Bulls are now 13-16 on the year, as they try and push for a play-in appearance.
Phoenix Suns vs Memphis Grizzlies
Phoenix Suns
Yeah, that was kind of easy.
Memphis Grizzlies
Yeah, about that defense. Memphis hasn’t been great lately, and I’ve said if they can’t play defense they are toast. This is what happened in this game. The Grizzlies couldn’t make a single 3-pointer, and they fell behind early and never recovered. This was a very bad loss, especially for a team hoping to make the postseason.
Portland Trail Blazers vs Washington Wizards
Portland Trail Blazers
This was a very frustrating game to watch. The Blazers just threw two quarters away, because they weren’t making open shots and their defense obviously wasn’t helping them, and they lost. In the first quarter, Portland couldn’t miss as they dominated Washington for 43 points in the first quarter. But then in the 2nd quarter Portland’s offense shut down and Dame couldn’t make anything as Portland produced just 12 points in the 2nd. Beal and Westbrook were killing them, and they lost the lead. But Dame came alive in the 3rd, spurring Portland to score 37 points and re-take the lead. They would just need to keep scoring to win. Sadly, that isn’t what happened. Portland was missing open shot after open shot, and the Wizards made them pay with some 3’s, and Portland couldn’t comeback. Portland’s 6 game win-streak is now over, as they are 18-11 on the year.
Dame had 35 points, 6 rebounds, and 12 assists on 10/30 shooting, 23 pts in 3rd.
Enes Kanter had 19 points and 13 rebounds on 8/12 shooting.
Gary Trent Jr. had 16 points on 6/16 shooting.
[Incoming Rant Alert]: Dame was getting to the rim and getting hit, but he just wasn’t making them. He was forcing shots when he wasn’t making them and played well for one quarter. Enes Kanter dropped a lot of easy rebounds, and missed some easy shots at the rim. Gary Trent missed a lot of open shots in the 4th. The Blazers bench has returned to being bad. Carmelo just chucks up shots and complains. Rodney Hood does nothing good, and Anfernee Simons was off. Very disappointing game on both ends for Portland, as they deserved to lose this game. Portland takes on Phoenix next.
Washington Wizards
Give credit to Washington, they played well. They were getting stops at crucial moments, and their backcourt fueled them to a win. In the first half, things were up and down. Early on Portland couldn’t miss and Washington’s defense looked like swiss cheese. Then Beal and Westbrook got going, combining for 38 points in the first half. The Wizards defense got stops, and the Wizards took the lead. But then Dame had 23 points in the 3rd, and the Wizards defense again lost them the lead. And then the 4th quarter was more good defense. The Wizards forced other Blazers to make shots, and they didn’t. The Wizards got out in transition, and hit some big shots. They deserved this win, as they improve to 10-17 on the year.
Bradley Beal had 37 points and 7 rebounds on 16/27 shooting.
Russell Westbrook had 27 points, 11 rebounds, and 13 assists on 11/17 shooting.
Rui Hachimura had 17 points and 7 rebounds on 5/12 shooting.
The Wizards have been playing with energy, and they’ve won their last 4 games. Bradley Beal is an All-Star starter for a reason, as he got whatever shot he wanted whenever he wanted it. Russell Westbrook was very good, not taking bait jumpshots and instead getting right to the rim. Hachimura was solid, but Robin Lopez led a very good defense for 2 quarters. They held Portland to 24 points in the 2nd and 4th quarters, a very impressive feat. The Wizards have got things going, and if they can play some defense, they are a scary team. Washington takes on the Lakers next.
What Are Your Thoughts From The 5 Games Today? Leave A Comment Down Below!
Follow My Instagram To Never Miss A Post: @hoopnotions
