NBA Weekly Recap 7: ‘A Black Eye’
Recapping the biggest stories from the last week of NBA action
As the holiday season fast approaches, I wanted to take a quick second to talk to you.
Firstly I appreciate all of you who come to The Press Box for your favourite sports related content. It’s a pleasure for all of us to do what we do, and we hope we can continue doing so. Second, I wanted to apologize for some of the inconsistencies in my posting schedule. Life has been getting busier on my end and I was not able to get back to writing until now. I thought about adding in some additional stories here, but I feel the time for them has come and gone. All the stories I would have highlighted have already been discussed and analyzed at length, so to avoid repeating the same talking points I will not do that. From now on, I am going to aim to post my weekly recaps every Sunday. Hopefully this schedule works better and is less difficult to coordinate with my other responsibilities. Thank you for your understanding and continued support. It means the world.
With that said, let’s go over some of the biggest stories from the last few days of the NBA regular season.
Another Crown for King James
The NBA’s first in-season tournament officially concluded on December 9th. Personally I still see the concept as having little value. To me the in-season tournament consisted of regular season games with special titles. As currently constructed I don’t see the concept lasting long. That being said, it is poetic that the inaugural victors would be led by a man who has been the face of the league for over two decades by this point.
On December 9th, LeBron James would be one of the driving forces responsible for the Los Angeles Lakers’ 14-point victory over the Indiana Pacers. Over the years we’ve been spoiled by James’ performances on the court, to the point that a 24 point, 11 rebound showing feels like standard fare. The fact that the current version of LeBron, who is largely past his prime, can still perform at this level is as absurd a feat as any. And yet his showing wasn’t even the most spectacular of the night. That crown (no pun intended) goes to Anthony Davis, who showed out with an absurd 41 points and 20 rebounds double-double, as well as 4 blocks in 41 minutes. This game served as a reminder that despite criticisms regarding his durability and consistency, when Anthony Davis is at his best he is one of the best players in the entire league, if not the best. Austin Reaves also played a key role in this episode of ‘The Lakeshow,’ scoring 28 points off the bench.
Ultimately, I’m not going to harp on the in-season tournament too much. Because ultimately, it gave us some intriguing matchups. Perhaps in the future, the concept will be refined and made more interesting. Maybe it’ll be shortlived. Regardless, I tip my hat in congratulations to the Los Angeles Lakers, and the latest feather in the cap of one of the greatest players this game has ever seen.
Brooks’ Revenge
“I never want to lose to Memphis ever in my career.”
That is what Dillon Brooks has been quoted as having said in regard to anytime he plays his former team. He has openly stated that he wants to come out on top everytime he faces the Grizzlies to, “Let them know they made a mistake.” Whether you love him or hate him, thus far Brooks has lived up to his hopes.
December 15th would mark the third time Brooks and the Rockets have faced the Memphis Grizzlies thus far, and the third time Brooks has beaten his former team. The 103–96 result came in no small part thanks to the heroics of a man frequently touted as the ‘villain of the NBA.’ You gotta love the irony. Brooks led the team in scoring with 26 points, 24 of which he would sink in the second half of the game. The rest of the Houston Rockets chipped in as well, providing a balanced offensive approach. Slowly but surely, a game that wasn’t even close got closer and closer, until late in the third quarter when Houston would finally take its first lead of the game and never look back. What at one point was a 17 point deficit for Houston would end up as a 7 point victory for Brooks and Co.
If you had told me prior to the start of the season that Houston would be in the hunt for playoff contention while Memphis would be floundering, I wouldn’t have believed you. Yet here we are. Full credit to the Rockets for not accepting futility. It seems that Dillon Brooks has brought that gritty, ‘never say die’ attitude with him to Houston. For a player that was lambasted, ridiculed, and dispensed from a championship contender to a bottom-feeder, this has to feel especially good. I’ve never been the biggest Dillon Brooks or Houston Rockets fan, and I’m certainly not going to act like one now. Jumping on the bandwagon has never been my style. But from Canadian to another, all I have to say is to Dillon Brooks and the Rockets is…
Houston, the league might have a problem.
The Draymond Green incident
It feels like we’re caught in a loop.
Over and over the same sequence of events recurs, to the point that I feel like I’m developing a case of insanity that grows more frustrating every time I see it play out.
On December 12th, The Goldenstate Warriors faced the Phoenix Suns in what was a down-to-the-wire game. The margin of victory was a mere three points. Down 13 points with just under four minutes to go, the Warriors mounted a masterful comeback and made it a one point game with under twenty seconds to play. Ultimately a pair of key freethrows by Devin Booker would put the game out of reach for the Warriors. This game was a joy to watch (and a potential cause of white hairs for Suns fans). There were so many storylines and takeaways from this one game, from the fact that all but one of the Warriors’ bench players scored double digit point totals in comparison to Phoenix who relied heavily on their starters, to the fact that both teams shot nearly identical percentages from everywhere but the freethrow line, to the Booker-Curry matchup being a potential ‘changing of the guard’ moment one day.
Sadly, all of these were overshadowed by the continued troubles of Draymond Green, who in the third quarter would be ejected after striking Jusuf Nurkic during an attempted inbound. In the aftermath of the game, Green was given an indefinite suspension, the terms of which are not yet official. In his defense, Draymond claimed that it was unintentional and Nurkic has not displayed any ill will towards Green. Be that as it may, the fact is that Draymond’s history is firmly against him.
Draymond Green has been one of the most frustrating characters in the years-spanning saga of the NBA. He is certainly a captivating character, especially when playing the role of antagonist. Many people inside and outside of the league state that he is an essential piece to the Warriors. That he is the ‘glue guy.’ That he’s the ‘heart and soul’ of the Warriors. That he’s not so bad. And I don’t think he’s completely terrible either. But he is immensely frustrating. He has been involved in so many incidents like this that you start to question how much of it is accidental or merely coincidence. If a player constantly finds themselves harming opposing players, kicking them where the sun doesn’t shine, stepping on them when they fall, and putting players in chokeholds, at some point you have to wonder if some of the blame rightly falls on them. And that’s not talking about the indefensible moments, like the infamous Jordan Poole incident. The fact that Draymond continuously finds himself embroiled in controversy and does seemingly next to nothing to avoid being in the wrong place at the wrong time leads people like me to skeptical whenever he passes off these issues as ‘completely accidental.’ The Warriors this year have not been very good. According to stats like win-loss, Goldenstate isn’t that much worse when Green isn’t playing versus when he is. He has never been an offensive powerhouse, and with age his defensive impact as waned. Couple that with his issues and I feel confident that the Warriors are asking themselves the same questions many of us fans are asking ourselves:
Is Draymond Green worth the headache?
There comes a time when the past has to be let go to make room from the future. When holding on to cherished memories is detrimental. It’s been an amazing era for the Goldenstate Warriors. I can see how the front office may feel that they absolutely cannot let go of Curry, Klay, or Draymond, if not for any other reason than the fact that these three have been the tentpoles that have held the franchise up for years. Steph has still been amazing. Klay is good albeit not as great as he once was. But Draymond seems to be becoming more of an hindrance than an asset to the team if they want to continue winning. They may claim that Draymond is better than I give him credit for, and that he’s in that position like other veteran players of the past who’ve devoted their entire careers to one franchise and as such feel un-movable. Personally though, if it were up to me?
I’d probably start making some calls…
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And that concludes this weekly recap of NBA action. What stories did I miss? Do you have different viewpoints on the ones I did? Share all your thoughts in the comments. If you enjoyed this piece, follow me on Medium and subscribe to my email list so you get notified every time I post. Also if you would like to support the independent work I do here and get some extra reading material, consider becoming a patron at https://www.patreon.com/HMShaikh . Thank you, and stay blessed!
