10 Takeaways after a dazzling night 2
Opening night was very satisfying. We had LeBron up to his usual tricks, Porzingis swishing threes, Damian Lillard exploding against the Jazz and the Spurs spoiling the Warriors' home debut with Kevin Durant.
Night two was better.
There was so much talent. So much excitement. So much drama.
1. The Heat are still good
Despite losing Chris Bosh, Dwyane Wade, Luol Deng and Joe Johnson this offseason, the Heat still came out with the victory. What may have been even more impressive was that they did so starting Luke Babbitt and Dion Waiters, two players who simply should not be starting games now or ever. The Heat won thanks to their "Big 3" of Hassan Whiteside, Goran Dragic and Justice Winslow. Whiteside was the best player of the game, effortlessly scoring 18 points, grabbing 14 rebounds and 4 blocks in just 31 minutes of action. I don't know why nobody gave this guy a chance when he was in his early 20s, fighting to remain in the league.
2. Poor Dirk and HOLY HELL MYLES TURNER
First of all, let's all pour one out for Dirk Nowitzki. Now 38-years-old, trying to extract a championship in his last years in the league, management has saddled him with Harrison Barnes and Wesley Matthews as the marquee signings of the past two summers. Mark Cuban is damn lucky that he has a warlock for a coach in Rick Carlisle, who could probably construct a top ten offense with mannequins. Dallas ultimately lost in overtime, thanks to Myles Turner obliterating them. The second year center put up a monster stat line of 30 points, 16 rebounds, 2 steals and 4 blocks on a ridiculous 13-19 shooting. Oh, and he also sunk a dagger three to put Dallas away for good. Turner is right at the forefront of an exciting new wave of big men in the league, including Karl Anthony-Towns, Anthony Davis, Joel Embiid, Nikola Jokic, Kristaps Porzingis and Andre Drummond. What a time to be alive.
3. Give it up for the Celtics, who barely beat the lowly Nets
The Brooklyn Nets might be the most depressing basketball team in the league. They have no talent, no picks and no hope of competence. Angry Nets fans may thank Billy King for their team's circumstance. The Celtics, who are poised to make noise in the playoffs, played down to the Nets' level. Brad Stevens' squad allowed the Nets to drop 117 points on them and hang in the game. Isaiah Thomas was his usual self, twittering around the court and notching an excellent stat line of 25 points, 6 rebounds, 9 assists and 2 steals. Prized free agent acquisition Al Horford however, scored a measly 11 points and 5 rebounds.
4. Jonas Valinciunas has arrived
It was supposed to be "his year" for the past 3 years he has been in the league. Still only 24-years-old, Valinciunas may be entering another level. He manhandled Andre Drummond in a 109-91 victory over the Pistons, to the tune of 32 points and 11 boards. Jonas seems to have discovered all the nuances of post moves now. He sports a wonderful pump fake around the basket, is disciplined with his spins and has sturdy footing. He also did a fantastic job of keeping the usually unstoppable Drummond off the glass. Throughout all of last season, Drummond only had 10 games where he did not get double digit rebounds. He only had 6 last night.
5. Hornets beat Bucks in one of most boring games of the night
The Hornets are the equivalent of the Chiefs in football. The Chiefs play a very conservative style. They only throw passes one yard in front of the line of scrimmage, they never throw deep bombs and they run the ball 2 out of every 3 downs. Yawn, but it gets the win. The Hornets employ tar-footed big men Roy Hibbert, Frank Kaminsky and Spencer Hawes, never take chances on offensive rebounds and are always back in transition to eliminate what would have been a fun ally oop. They did exactly that against the Bucks. Random thought: Roy Hibbert had 5 blocks for the first time since last October. That proves Steve Clifford can do anything.
6. Grizzlies prolong Timberwolves' coming out party
We all know there will be a distinct moment where the Wolves all of a sudden become unstoppable. That time...is not yet. The Grizzlies won despite starting James Ennis and Aaron Harrison, two players who should be clawing for roster spots, not starter minutes. Mike Conley did not quite live up to his "Highest paid player in the league" label, put he put up a respectable 24 points on decent shooting. The Wolves lost this game in the second half, where they were outscored by 13 points. Karl Towns had only 5 points in the second half as well.
7. Nuggets down Pelicans, but Anthony Davis steals the show
This game was a microorganism of Anthony Davis' entire Pelicans tenure. He puts up other-worldly numbers (50, 16, 5, 7 and 4), but his team ultimately emerges with the L. I mean, look who started alongside him: Solomon Hill, Omer Asik, Tim Frazier and E'Tuan Moore. Sounds like a failed rap band, not a quartet of group of NBA starters.
8. Thunder secure uninspiring win versus 76ers
In their first game in a murky post-KD world, the Thunder did secure the W. However, the way in which they got it, is uninspiring to say the least. The 76ers may be the worst team in the league, but they played the Thunder competitively right down to the wire, where the Thunder had to lean on Russell Westbrook's herculean effort (32, 12 and 9) to pull out victorious. Even though the 76ers lost, Joel Embiid played in his first regular season game and he displayed all the tools that a top 10 player possesses. In just 22 minutes of action, Embiid scored 20 points, gobbled up 7 boards and swatted 2 shots. He was silky smooth on offense, sporting a competent three-point shot and fadeaway jumper. He was also a menace on defense, where he used his unfair 7'7 wingspan and instincts to alter dozens of shots even if he only got his hands on two.
9. Kings down Suns in "switch to this channel while the Laker game is on commercial"
Besides DeMarcus Cousins and the occasional Willy Cauley-Stein monster dunk, the Kings are a snoozefest. This is a team that starts Ty Lawson, Kosta Kofus and Aaron Afflalo, three painfully uninspiring players. The Suns will still be awful this year, but at least they have an awesome base of young talent headlined by Devin Booker and his smooth-as-silk game.
10. Showtime is back
In their first game after Kobe's retirement, the Lakers came out swinging, and ultimately landed some punches en route to a very exciting win over the James Harden-led Rockets. Their winning formula: D'Angelo Russell started out the game as hot as a coal, the Julius Randle took the helm midway through the game and Jordan Clarkson brought them home, sinking some gut-twisting threes that clinched the game for LA. James Harden still went off, scoring 34 points and dishing a crazy 17 assists in his first game under a D'Antoni offense. Also, shoutout Metta World Peace for stepping in just to physically harass James Harden for a couple plays. He had 3 fouls in just 2 minutes.
Night two was better.
There was so much talent. So much excitement. So much drama.
1. The Heat are still good
Despite losing Chris Bosh, Dwyane Wade, Luol Deng and Joe Johnson this offseason, the Heat still came out with the victory. What may have been even more impressive was that they did so starting Luke Babbitt and Dion Waiters, two players who simply should not be starting games now or ever. The Heat won thanks to their "Big 3" of Hassan Whiteside, Goran Dragic and Justice Winslow. Whiteside was the best player of the game, effortlessly scoring 18 points, grabbing 14 rebounds and 4 blocks in just 31 minutes of action. I don't know why nobody gave this guy a chance when he was in his early 20s, fighting to remain in the league.
2. Poor Dirk and HOLY HELL MYLES TURNER
First of all, let's all pour one out for Dirk Nowitzki. Now 38-years-old, trying to extract a championship in his last years in the league, management has saddled him with Harrison Barnes and Wesley Matthews as the marquee signings of the past two summers. Mark Cuban is damn lucky that he has a warlock for a coach in Rick Carlisle, who could probably construct a top ten offense with mannequins. Dallas ultimately lost in overtime, thanks to Myles Turner obliterating them. The second year center put up a monster stat line of 30 points, 16 rebounds, 2 steals and 4 blocks on a ridiculous 13-19 shooting. Oh, and he also sunk a dagger three to put Dallas away for good. Turner is right at the forefront of an exciting new wave of big men in the league, including Karl Anthony-Towns, Anthony Davis, Joel Embiid, Nikola Jokic, Kristaps Porzingis and Andre Drummond. What a time to be alive.
3. Give it up for the Celtics, who barely beat the lowly Nets
The Brooklyn Nets might be the most depressing basketball team in the league. They have no talent, no picks and no hope of competence. Angry Nets fans may thank Billy King for their team's circumstance. The Celtics, who are poised to make noise in the playoffs, played down to the Nets' level. Brad Stevens' squad allowed the Nets to drop 117 points on them and hang in the game. Isaiah Thomas was his usual self, twittering around the court and notching an excellent stat line of 25 points, 6 rebounds, 9 assists and 2 steals. Prized free agent acquisition Al Horford however, scored a measly 11 points and 5 rebounds.
4. Jonas Valinciunas has arrived
It was supposed to be "his year" for the past 3 years he has been in the league. Still only 24-years-old, Valinciunas may be entering another level. He manhandled Andre Drummond in a 109-91 victory over the Pistons, to the tune of 32 points and 11 boards. Jonas seems to have discovered all the nuances of post moves now. He sports a wonderful pump fake around the basket, is disciplined with his spins and has sturdy footing. He also did a fantastic job of keeping the usually unstoppable Drummond off the glass. Throughout all of last season, Drummond only had 10 games where he did not get double digit rebounds. He only had 6 last night.
5. Hornets beat Bucks in one of most boring games of the night
The Hornets are the equivalent of the Chiefs in football. The Chiefs play a very conservative style. They only throw passes one yard in front of the line of scrimmage, they never throw deep bombs and they run the ball 2 out of every 3 downs. Yawn, but it gets the win. The Hornets employ tar-footed big men Roy Hibbert, Frank Kaminsky and Spencer Hawes, never take chances on offensive rebounds and are always back in transition to eliminate what would have been a fun ally oop. They did exactly that against the Bucks. Random thought: Roy Hibbert had 5 blocks for the first time since last October. That proves Steve Clifford can do anything.
6. Grizzlies prolong Timberwolves' coming out party
We all know there will be a distinct moment where the Wolves all of a sudden become unstoppable. That time...is not yet. The Grizzlies won despite starting James Ennis and Aaron Harrison, two players who should be clawing for roster spots, not starter minutes. Mike Conley did not quite live up to his "Highest paid player in the league" label, put he put up a respectable 24 points on decent shooting. The Wolves lost this game in the second half, where they were outscored by 13 points. Karl Towns had only 5 points in the second half as well.
7. Nuggets down Pelicans, but Anthony Davis steals the show
This game was a microorganism of Anthony Davis' entire Pelicans tenure. He puts up other-worldly numbers (50, 16, 5, 7 and 4), but his team ultimately emerges with the L. I mean, look who started alongside him: Solomon Hill, Omer Asik, Tim Frazier and E'Tuan Moore. Sounds like a failed rap band, not a quartet of group of NBA starters.
8. Thunder secure uninspiring win versus 76ers
In their first game in a murky post-KD world, the Thunder did secure the W. However, the way in which they got it, is uninspiring to say the least. The 76ers may be the worst team in the league, but they played the Thunder competitively right down to the wire, where the Thunder had to lean on Russell Westbrook's herculean effort (32, 12 and 9) to pull out victorious. Even though the 76ers lost, Joel Embiid played in his first regular season game and he displayed all the tools that a top 10 player possesses. In just 22 minutes of action, Embiid scored 20 points, gobbled up 7 boards and swatted 2 shots. He was silky smooth on offense, sporting a competent three-point shot and fadeaway jumper. He was also a menace on defense, where he used his unfair 7'7 wingspan and instincts to alter dozens of shots even if he only got his hands on two.
9. Kings down Suns in "switch to this channel while the Laker game is on commercial"
Besides DeMarcus Cousins and the occasional Willy Cauley-Stein monster dunk, the Kings are a snoozefest. This is a team that starts Ty Lawson, Kosta Kofus and Aaron Afflalo, three painfully uninspiring players. The Suns will still be awful this year, but at least they have an awesome base of young talent headlined by Devin Booker and his smooth-as-silk game.
10. Showtime is back
In their first game after Kobe's retirement, the Lakers came out swinging, and ultimately landed some punches en route to a very exciting win over the James Harden-led Rockets. Their winning formula: D'Angelo Russell started out the game as hot as a coal, the Julius Randle took the helm midway through the game and Jordan Clarkson brought them home, sinking some gut-twisting threes that clinched the game for LA. James Harden still went off, scoring 34 points and dishing a crazy 17 assists in his first game under a D'Antoni offense. Also, shoutout Metta World Peace for stepping in just to physically harass James Harden for a couple plays. He had 3 fouls in just 2 minutes.
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