What do the two have in common? Not much. However, whenever I see Marvin Bagley‘s name, I want to say it like it’s Marvin Bagel. I can’t say if that’s because I’m just hungry now or just always hungry, but the place is burning down if a player ever even remotely has a name that sounds like “cream cheese”. Regardless, if you were wondering why we’re going full breakfast mode, the Pistons and Wizards completed a trade this weekend, with Washington landing the aforementioned Bagel Bagley, Isaiah Livers and two seconds for Danilo Gallinari and Mike Muscala.
Despite this being a trade we should care very little about, there is at least a chance here that all names involved receive a bit more playing time and increase their value a bit. Both Gallinari and Muscala offer the Pistons something they’ve lacked so far, bigs that can stretch. And Wizards continue to signal that they will tank next year, landing players that have no problem doing just that. But yes, there would have been 100 less words on this if there weren’t just five games yesterday and a light NBA-news weekend…
But yes, to get to the games, Damian Lillard provided a very Damian Lillard experience, helping the Bucks just edge by the Kings 143-142 in overtime with the game winner and a 29/4/8 slash. Giannis also added a 27/10/10 triple-double.
The game itself had some spice, with Mike Brown whipping out some receipts at the post-game presser. This, of course, after getting ejected after arguing with the refs on a non-call. I only mention it for the pure entertainment value, especially in a post-Darko world. What’s fantasy if it’s not fun?
Just a heads up if it matters, with the trade deadline looming, transaction restrictions have been lifted from several notable players including Cameron Johnson, Miles Bridges, Coby White, Austin Reaves, Rui Hachimura, Tre Jones, and Kyle Kuzma, just to put out a few names that could be moved.
Michael Porter Jr. went 7-11 from three with a 25/8/5 along with Nikola Jokic providing a very casual 25/12/9 on 12-13 FG (Two of those points coming on the long assist from Aaron Gordon above). Honestly, I’ll always be too lazy to look it up, but I wonder how many near-triple-doubles like this he has total for a career?
Scoot Henderson almost got there too against the Suns, finishing 33/7/9 along with 3 steals on 31 field goals attempted! Just to put that into context, Henderson joined Anthony Edwards as the only 19-year-olds and under who have had 30+ field goals in a game. Scoot’s 35.5 FG% also is an interesting feat, in that 11 of the 15 rookies have taken more than 30 shots in a game with that percentage or under are in the Hall of Fame. Just sayin’…
Hide your Poole’s and Gobert’s! That’s right, Draymond Green is set to be back playing later today against the Grizzlies. And talking about Rudy Gobert…
Granted, the Clippers ended up losing a really close game, so Rudy (15/18 with four blocks) probably got the last laugh. But what this video clip of Rudy free throw attempt presupposes is, maybe he didn’t? Look, I’m not a huge Gobert hater, I find myself a very mid-hater to be honest, definitely way below a choke-hold, but I’m not above enjoying seeing him do stupid things on the court.
The game had some playoff spirit to it, and it was interesting to see how one of the hottest teams in the NBA would fare against the number one defense in the league. And that Timberwolves defense surely affected both Paul George (16 points on 5-19) and Kawhi Leonard (26 points on 9-19), who had clunky offensive games, one thing is for certain, Norm Powell is probably the fourth best player on this team right now. He finished the night with 24 points on 9-12 FG, along with 6-9 from three, a common effort that kept the Clippers in the game until the final seconds. The amazing ANT also finished with 33 points along with 9 rebounds and 6 assists.
Jay is a longtime Razzball everything who consumes an egregious amount of Makers Mark as a vehicle to gain wisdom and augment his natural glow. Living in the D.C. area, he also likes spending time visiting the local parks and feeding lettuce to any turtles he encounters, including Mitch McConnell.
