SR – NBA Primetime Preview: Boston Celtics at Milwaukee Bucks

SR – NBA Primetime Preview: Boston Celtics at Milwaukee Bucks

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by | Jan 17, 2020 | Featured, NBA

For tonight’s TNT doubleheader starting at 8:15 p.m. ET, the first of two games will feature two of the top three teams in the Eastern conference going at it for four quarters for the second time this season as the Boston Celtics take a trip up north to do battle with the top-seeded Milwaukee Bucks in what may be the premier matchup of the week.

Giannis Antetokounmpo and his Bucks won’t forget the last time they went to war with the boys from Beantown, losing via a second-half collapse on October 30, in which Boston held the at-the-time best 3-point shooting team in the NBA (percentage-wise) to a season-low 31.5 percent, only dropping a combined 14 threes through two halves against this new-age Celtics squad still compact with talent ranging from all spots on the floor.

Even without Jaylen Brown, Boston found a way to counter the overwhelming height and wingspan of the Bucks back then with a massive 3rd quarter from the likes of the offensively-expanding skillset of a Jayson Tatum, who took enjoyment in drilling a stepback three at the top of the key right in the face of Khris Middleton and smacking Paul Pierce’s hand in jubilation after.

Kemba Walker finally got over his scoring slump that night as well, dropping 32 points in the Celtics’ 3rd win of the year in one of the stepping stones to their lengthy winning streak that lasted weeks, regardless of the team’s overall health deteriorating as they would go on to lose Gordon Hayward for nearly a month with a broken bone in his left hand. Yet as the season progressed, it looked and felt as if Milwaukee’s trajectory was on more of a climb than Boston’s.

Yes – the Celtics still own the third-best home record in the league with only four losses coming on the parquet, but that obviously isn’t applicable with their just “acceptable” 11-8 road record. What hurt’s Boston’s chances in being determined as a sportsbook favorite in tonight’s Eastern clash is that they’re still not at 100 percent and while that’s not completely unavoidable since this league becomes such a battle of attrition at this time of the year, Brad Stevens might be tasked with having to coach around the absence of Brown again who is, statistically, the team’s second-best defender behind his frontcourt cohort Jayson Tatum.

He sprained his thumb in a rare home loss to the talent-inept Pistons after dropping 24 points off 10-16 shooting, and his offensive input per contest is what has helped propel the C’s up to the conversation of the league’s most intimidating teams. Brown has averaged 20 points per game off 49 percent shooting and a solid 40 percent 3-point percentage, and without him, the Celtics are to rely (again) on the hot-and-cold scoring ability of Tatum who is putting up around 21 points a game off 42 percent shooting.

A few things to be examined in tonight’s Eastern showdown will be if, A) – the Bucks don’t brick away their free chances from behind the arc, like how they did the last time they faced the Celtics and, B) – how do the Celtics pack the paint, stop a team that’s leading the league in overall scoring margin, match their length, and prevent them from getting to the cup with ease behind current MVP and award candidate for this year’s selection in Antetokounmpo?

These questions and more are going to get answered succinctly in tonight’s TNT battle, tipping off at 8:15 p.m. ET.

Jan 17, 2020 No Comments
OKC’s Thunderous Comeback Comes Up Short Against The Raptors (130-121)

OKC’s Thunderous Comeback Comes Up Short Against The Raptors (130-121)

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by | Jan 16, 2020 | Featured, NBA

 

The Oklahoma City Thunder have been the comeback kids of the NBA this season. Tonight they almost pulled off a huge comeback as the Raptors had them down by 30 points at one point in the game. The Raptors had an answer for every Thunder run that would get them close in the game. The Raptors got back Marc Gasol tonight and Pascal Siakam recently after their injuries. It looked like they didn’t miss any beats as both combined for 36 points on the night. It was an all-around performance from the Raptors as they had 7 players in double figures on the night. Norman Powell had a huge night from the field shooting 9-11 for a team-high 23 points. Powell was able to hit on a lot of open opportunities that were given to him when the Thunder were doubling. The Raptors took advantage of the fact that Steven Adams only played 6 mins before getting sidelined. The Raptors were able to attack the paint for 62 points in there without a true rim protector. Without Adams and Noel, the Thunder leaned on Mike Muscala to give some big minutes throughout the game. The Raptors were making some tough shots all night and they capitalized on the Thunder missing a lot of open shots they usually make. The Raptors role players were able to come through for them in big minutes as OG Anunoby had 21 points on the night and made it tough on Terrance Ferguson after he switched off Pascal Siakam. The player that was able to carry the Raptors early in this game was Serge Ibaka as he finished with 15 points but 13 of those points were in the 1st quarter. Tonight the Raptors showed how deep they can be when everyone’s healthy and they didn’t even have Fred Van Fleet. Kyle Lowry was able to put in 17 points and 8 assists on the night. Kyle Lowry’s an amazing leader and he leads this team vocally and in most games as well. Kyle Lowry presented some problems for the Thunder tonight because he can get his shot off while creating for his teammates. Every time the Thunder got close enough to try and take the lead it was Norman Powell or Pascal Siakam that made a big shot to help them keep the lead. The Raptors were up by 30 points in this game and let the Thunder back in the game as they trailed by 3 points late in the 4th.

 

 

The Thunder lost this game but it shows how much heart this really has overall. OKC missed a lot of shots that they usually hit and you can tell it frustrated them early. The great thing about this Thunder team is the fact that they have the best leader in the NBA in Chris Paul. Every time this Thunder team gets down CP3 gets into his teammates and gives them the confidence to play to that higher level. Chris Paul didn’t have his best night in the stat sheet but he was able to make some plays defensively down the stretch that helped OKC get extremely close. Chris Paul finished with 16 points, 11 assists and 4 steals on the night. The tale of this game was the fact that OKC only hit 38% of their 3 pointers combined to 55% from the Raptors. Sometimes this team gets happy with the 3 pointers and it has backfired the last two home games that they were able to play. The Thunder were energized by the game that Dennis Schröder was able to bring to the table. Schröder finished the game with 25 points on the night and the Raptors didn’t have an answer for his first step. Dennis plays the game with a lot of energy and he used that energy to get steals while creating his own shots. The Raptors had no answer for Dennis Schröder tonight as they had Lowry guarding him and he was able to blow right by him. The Thunder guards of Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Dennis Schröder, and Chris Paul didn’t have their best night and it showed. Tonight Shai was able to finish with 21 points but he turned it on a little too late in the game. When Shai gets aggressive as he did in the 4th quarter he’s unstoppable, especially with that length. The Raptors were making sure they were able to take away the inside passage and tried to force them to shoot the 3 pointers instead. It seems like teams are slowly catching on to what the Thunder is trying to do but this team continues to fight. This Thunder team continues to fight and they’re exciting to watch because they play together. When the Thunder got in trouble throughout the game they were able to lean on Danilo Gallinari who’s been consistent all season long. Tonight Gallinari was able to go for 23 points on the night and had his shot working when it was needed. The Thunder fought back into this game and Danilo Gallinari was able to get it down to 3 points after his And-1 dunk. After that moment in the game, the Raptors were able to make some tough shots but the Thunder also put up some 3 pointers that didn’t go down. The NBA is a miss or make league and tonight it proved to be that way the last 3 minutes of this game as the Thunder dropped this one.

 

 

The Thunder will be back in action on Friday as they have Jimmy Butler and the Miami Heat coming into town. Jimmy Butler will be a handful to guard and the Thunder will need to be up to the challenge in order to get their 24th win before this back to back coming.

Jan 16, 2020 No Comments
SR – NBA Primetime Preview: Portland Trail Blazers vs. Houston Rockets

SR – NBA Primetime Preview: Portland Trail Blazers vs. Houston Rockets

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by | Jan 16, 2020 | Featured, NBA

It’s that time of the week again where we break down yet another second half of an ESPN doubleheader, and this time we’re taking it to H-Town to see Carmelo Anthony’s revenge tale that’s set to tell itself at 9:30 p.m. ET as the Houston Rockets look to defend their home court against a Portland Trail Blazers team that’s hungry for a win to get back in the Western Conference conversation.

We know the main storyline here that’s going to hog up all the tension in the Toyota Center this Wednesday night: the team that was supposed to be Carmelo Anthony’s final lifeline to an ailing NBA career who let him go last season just 13 games in is front and center to deal with the wrath of the new Blazers forward, who is still showing all prognosticators that keeping one of the game’s all-time elusive and efficient scorers on the home couch with a sturdy 16.3 ppg. off a 43.4 field goal percentage and a still astounding 39.4 three-point percentage at the tender age of 35 years young.

And for a team that’s actually inept at stopping frontcourts from running amuck in the 26-win Rockets, who are only 17th in the league in total defensive rating, Anthony might like the taste of licking his own chops in what should be a back-and-forth offensive showcase involving some of the league’s most elite playmakers in James Harden, Russell Westbrook, Damian Lillard, and CJ McCollum to backup Anthony’s already-provided star power in tonight’s Western showdown.

As this season traverses for the Rockets, they have won five of their last eight games and are looking to make it six in lieu of their impending three-game homestand that’ll involve the Lakers, Thunder, and Nuggets. Last night’s loss to the Memphis Grizzlies was one of those cheeky, “aww-the-rookie-got-us” kind of games that pop up on the record like small blemishes since, literally just hours before their loss to the confident Ja Morant and the new purveyors of grind in the young Grizzlies, the Rockets, more specifically James Harden, (the league’s leading scorer and the leading vote-getter in the Western all-star voting) just tore into the Timberwolves at home, and not even with their entire starting five on the floor as Clint Capela took the night off from a heel contusion.

That being said, they’ll still have their hands full in trying to keep the foot on the pedal against this Trail Blazers team that albeit hasn’t been all that great this year, now a full seven games under an even record. A gutsy grind-out win over the slumping Hornets may have been a small shot of momentum in Terry Stotts’ rotation and though they’ve entered a two-game skid, you just have to think that it’ll only be a matter of time until a team so adept at utilizing their exceptional skill pieces finally finds that spark to carry them into that space where they have a chance to make a playoff push.

Game two of this ESPN doubleheader takes place at 9:30 p.m. ET on ESPN.

Jan 16, 2020 No Comments
Sneaker Release Calendar 1/14-1/18

Sneaker Release Calendar 1/14-1/18

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by | Jan 15, 2020 | Featured, Sneaker Releases, Sneakers

This week is set to be an interesting week for sneaker releases. This week Nike is set to drop the DNA Series “87 x 91” which includes two iconic silhouettes, the Nike Air Huarache and the Nike Air Max 1, with palette swaps of one another’s legendary color-blocking. The PG 4 debuts a bubbly Gatorade collaboration and Kyrie brings in the Chinese New Year with the upcoming Kyrie 6. Jordan Brand is also bringing some interesting choices to the table with the dynamic Why Not Zer0.3 getting a classic Jordan colorway with the “Unite” colorway and the Jordan Women’s OG makes its first appearance since 1998. The big launches of the week, however, go to the Ivy Park x adidas collaboration which has been building steam for over a year and has made waves in the digital sphere recently with their impeccable influencer rollout. Let us know your favorite drop of the week. 

Nike

Kyrie 6 “Chinese New Year” 1/15

$130

 

DNA Series “87 X 91” Pack 1/15

$250

Kyrie 6 “Bred” 1/16

$130

Air Max 270 React ENG “Laser Blue” 1/16

$170

WMNS Air Max 270 React ENG “Eggplant” 1/16

$170

PG 4 “Gatorade” 1/17

$120

Jordan

Jordan WMNS OG 1/16

$140

Air Jordan 34 “White Iridescent” 1/16

$180

Why Not Zer0.3 “Unite”  1/16

$130

Jordan 1 Retro High OG “Black Satin” 1/18

$170

Adidas

Dame 6 “Hecklers” Glory Blue 1/18

Dame 6 “Hecklers” Core Black 1/18

Dame 6 “Hecklers” Shock Yellow 1/18

Dame 6 “Hecklers” Solar Red 1/18

$110

Ivy Park x adidas Nite Jogger “Ecru Tint/Grey” 1/18

Ivy Park x adidas Nite Jogger “Maroon/Solar Orange” 1/18

$160

Ivy Park x adidas Ultraboost 1/18

$200

Ivy Park x adidas Super Sleek 72 “ FTWR White/Maroon/Dash Grey” 1/18

$100

 

Jan 15, 2020 No Comments
SR – NBA Power Rankings: Week 13

SR – NBA Power Rankings: Week 13

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by | Jan 14, 2020 | Featured, NBA

As we enter the third week of competition in a league that’s beginning to further display its diverse parity amongst itself, the Memphis Grizzlies, who many predicted were going to be a few years out of making the postseason, are now eighth in the West and will crack the first 15 for the first time this season. Meanwhile, Utah is getting its bearings, now third in the West behind the Lakers and Nuggets. Milwaukee tips off this list (not to anyone’s surprise, of course) going 29-3 over the last eight weeks as we start yet another edition of this week’s Power Rankings.

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1. Milwaukee Bucks (35-6, Last Week’s Ranking: 1)

Milwaukee finished a four-game trip on the road with a 3-1 record last week, and still have two sub-.500 teams on the schedule coming up in the Knicks and Nets this week. On Thursday, a showdown between them and one of the only Eastern teams to knock them off this year in Celtics goes down on TNT, and it should be a good one.

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2. Los Angeles Lakers (32-7, Last Week’s Ranking: 2)

These Lakers still haven’t lost a game since Christmas day’s loss to the home rival Clippers, and yet this storied franchise isn’t scot-free of any drama whatsoever. Kyle Kuzma put on what felt like an audition for scouts across the league with a season-high 36-point performance against the currently playoff-seeded Oklahoma City Thunder without LeBron or Anthony Davis to fall back on.

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3. Boston Celtics (26-11, Last Week’s Ranking: 3)

The Celtics maintain their third spot in the weekly power rankings, but by a hair. They opened last week with an uncharacteristic loss to the Wizards and still couldn’t find the formula to defeat their dearest rivals in the Philadelphia 76ers even without Joel Embiid on the floor, now winless against Philly since April of 2019. Luckily, they snapped their winless skid with an overwhelming of the Pelicans, in which Jayson Tatum dropped a career-high 41 points against a Zion-less, Jrue-less, JJ Redick-less and Derrick Favors-less New Orleans squad.

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4. Denver Nuggets (27-12, Last Week’s Ranking: 7)

It’s like a tale of yin and yang with the Denver Nuggets, as told by last week’s narration. They earned a convincing 10-point win over the visiting Clippers on Sunday, but then go ahead and drop a head-scratcher to the Cleveland Cavaliers, now making their sixth loss of the season against a team with 15 or fewer wins on the year. With Charlotte, Golden State and Indiana on the list for their Week 13, can they get back on the winning ship before their second-place spot in the West is lost to the Jazz?

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5. Utah Jazz (27-12, Last Week’s Ranking: 9)

This marks the highest the Jazz have been spotted all season long for this power rankings list, and deservedly so. After spotting a 15-point lead to the Washington Wizards, the Jazz showed resolve and captured their ninth-straight win, and now are in prime position to take over the second spot in the Western rankings if they keep winning, and if the Denver Nuggets can slip in obtaining a positive result this week or in the upcoming weeks. Utah’s going to have to keep the foot on the pedal against Brooklyn, New Orleans and Sacramento this week though, if they want that to happen.

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6. Miami Heat (27-12, Last Week’s Ranking: 4)

Miami’s done a good enough job of beating those teams they were supposed to beat, but apparently that rule just forgot to apply itself in a weird road loss to the Knicks in the Garden, in which this team that’s in the top 15 of defensive rating in all of basketball gave up an unceremonious 124 points to one of the most depleted rosters in the league. These losses happen, but Miami better make sure L’s like these don’t multiply, especially for a team that’s fighting to stay in the top five in the East.

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7. Houston Rockets (26-12, Last Week’s Ranking: 6)

Houston stays put in this week’s rankings, due to a bad loss on somewhat of an emotional night in Russell Westbrook’s heartfelt return to Oklahoma City That doesn’t change the fact that they’ve persevered to win four of their last five since New Year’s Eve. Houston was able to quickly get back on track in a blowout win over the Wolves in which bench reserve Isiah Hartenstein racked up an impressive 17 points and 15 rebounds while starting big man Clint Capela sidelined with a right heel contusion.

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8. Los Angeles Clippers (27-13, Last Week’s Ranking: 5)

For the Clippers this season, whenever there are some steps being made toward high fortune, there’s concurrent misfortune and two, almost three, steps back from the Clippers meeting their expectations of being the most intimidating defensive team in the league. As a team, they’ve won three straight since this past Saturday, but have let their opponents score an average of 121.5 points per game in their last four outings.

Kawhi Leonard may have scored 30 against the second-seeded Nuggets this past Sunday, but they suffered another loss to a Western foe when they weren’t at full strength as Paul George aggravated his hamstring. They’re 14-4 whenever George and Leonard are on the floor together, but we don’t see the tandem play that much together with one or the other being hurt, or one of them deciding to take a load management night off.

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9. Toronto Raptors (25-14, Last Week’s Ranking: 8)

Barring a late collapse to the Spurs in a classic DeMar Derozan performance (that left Raps big man Chris Boucher “floored” with one of the sickest posters you’ll see all season) Toronto has ran the gauntlet and survived their injury woes that have kept out the likes of Marc Gasol, Pascal Siakam and Norman Powell for a multitude of weeks. They may have lost two of the last three in trying to keep the fortress together in waiting for their three floor-spacing forwards to return, but Nick Nurse has to be loving the position his Raptors are in, still sitting at fourth in the East.

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10. Philadelphia 76ers (25-15, Last Week’s Ranking: 13)

Philly rises four spots in this week’s rankings, thanks to a gut-check of sorts by beating the Celtics at home in lieu of Joel Embiid’s sudden hand muscle tear. Al Horford answered all skeptics who criticized the former all-star’s ability to play the small-ball brand of hoops that Brett Brown wanted him in his system to replicate, scoring a cool 17 points off 7-for-11 shooting and two three-balls. They were subsequently stomped by the Mavericks a night later, however.

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11. Dallas Mavericks (24-15, Last Week’s Ranking: 11)

Speaking of Dallas, in light of them beating the Sixers on Saturday to finish 3-3 on their six-game homestand, The Mavs travel to play the Golden State Warriors this week and then have to really pack their bags to play six of their next nine games on the road. Itis undetermined as to exactly what day Kristaps Porzingis will come back, now missing seven consecutive contests, but Head Coach Rick Carlisle’s said on Saturday it was “possible” that KP could return during the team’s upcoming road trip.

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12. Oklahoma City Thunder (22-17, Last Week’s Ranking: 10)

For the Thunder, only falling to five games over .500 instead of six (thanks to a 73-49 halftime deficit too magnanimous to overcome in a home loss to the Lakers without Anthony Davis or LeBron James) is well worth taking with pride. Coming into that trouncing though, the young Thunder were rolling, fresh off a beatdown handed to the Brooklyn Nets and an eye-opening 21-point victory over the Rockets in which they limited MVP favorite James Harden to a quiet 17 points. They’re still seventh in the West and have a duel against the slumping Timberwolves to look forward to on Monday night.

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13. Memphis Grizzlies (18-22, Last Week’s Ranking: 16)

As mentioned earlier, this is the first time this season that Memphis has cracked the top 15 on this list, this year. The core of Brandon Clarke, Jaren Jackson Jr., and rookie of the year (might as well just declare it, right?) Ja Morant are a combined 12-6 since Morant’s return to the floor from his back injury. Only the Lakers and Bucks have a better stretch of wins than them to start the new decade.

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14. Indiana Pacers (24-15, Last Week’s Ranking: 12)

It’s just a slew of good headlines coming into the phones and other media outlets of all Pacers fans and supporters alike this week, as this team that’s nine wins above .500 are only a half-game out of booting the Sixers out of fifth place in the East. To amp up the intensity even further, Indy is facing Philly on Monday night in front of their patrons inside the Bankers Life Fieldhouse. This team is getting healthy at the right time before the all-star break, and with Victor Oladipo’s official return on January 29th, Eastern teams may want to keep track of these Pacers who are materializing quickly into the postseason picture.

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15. Brooklyn Nets (18-20, Last Week’s Ranking: 14)

Good news: Kyrie Irving’s shoulder impingement didn’t require surgery after all, as the one-time champ and six-time all-star revisited the court Sunday night in a blowout win over the ailing Hawks. Irving talled a respectable 21 points, four boards, three assists, a steal and a lone three-ball. Bad news: they have the Jazz and Sixers up next, and the Nets are an average 13-9 against teams with a record above .500.

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16. San Antonio Spurs (17-21, Last Week’s Ranking: 17)

San Antonio jumps up a spot in this week’s rankings, mainly due to a huge come from behind win over the Eastern fourth-seeded Raptors in one of the most exhilarating games of the season. DeMar DeRozan must’ve been on cloud nine while going off against his old team, and not just for revenge purposes. Recently dubbed the NBA’s Western Conference Player of the Week, DeRozan dropped a smooth 25 points on a 7-for 12 night against the hobbled Raptors, and provided what may be the highlight of the season on second-year big Chris Boucher with an old, signature tomahawk punch at the rim off two with one hand.

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17. Orlando Magic (18-21, Last Week’s Ranking: 15)

Orlando may have shot out of the gate in going 4-1 over their last five games before succumbing to the Phoenix Suns on Sunday but have to really dig deep if they’re to get some good luck against the Lakers and Clippers this week, as they face both LA teams consecutively after getting a tune-up and early reprieve of sorts against Sacramento and Golden State to start the week.

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18. Phoenix Suns (16-23, Last Week’s Ranking: 23)

Kelly Oubre Jr. is doing the best he can to divert attention from main star Devin Booker this season in his first full year as a member of Phoenix’s organization, averaging a delectable 18.5 points, 6.4 rebounds, 1.6 assists and 1.5 steals per game as a starter. He put up 25 points, a career-high 15 rebounds, 3 pickpockets, two blocks and two threes in a do-it-all performance that led to a win over the Charlotte on Sunday.

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19. Portland Trail Blazers (16-24, Last Week’s Ranking: 19)

Portland shows little to no improvement on the defensive end, now with the sixth-worst defensive team rating in the NBA. They’ve lost nine of their last ten and many are wondering, is it time to break this thing apart and rebuild anew? Damian Lillard and Carmelo Anthony are giving their all to salvage what’s left of this season, averaging a combined 21.5 points per game when they’re on the floor together. They have Charlotte on Monday to start their 13th week of competition but then have to travel to play the Rockets, Mavericks, and Thunder all within the span of four days.

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20. Minnesota Timberwolves (15-23, Last Week’s Ranking: 22)

Things still aren’t looking up for the Timberwolves, who are still without Karl Anthony-Towns as he missed his 13th-straight game this past Saturday. On top of his knee injury, the T’Wolves’ all-star big man and former Kentucky Wildcat felt a little under the weather this weekend. The alarming statistic: Minnesota started off the year at 4-1 and are a combined 5-15 since the start of last month.

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21. Sacramento Kings (15-24, Last Week’s Ranking: 24)

Sacramento’s injury problems keep them distant from actually having a chance at being competitive as they are still waiting on Marvin Bagley III’s foot to completely heal. What’s worse: Bogdan Bogdanovic’s ankle is still sprained and he’s already been ruled out of Monday’s game vs. Orlando and Power Forward Richaun Holmes is still dealing with a sprained AC joint in his Shoulder that’ll keep him our for nearly a month.

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      22. Charlotte Hornets (15-27, Last Week’s Ranking: 20)

What started out hot, is now ice cold. Charlotte has lost their last four games, going a combined mediocre 2-10 in their last 12 contests. DeVonte Graham has played like an all-star and will probably be the second coming of what Kemba Walker was to the Queen City in a couple of years as per his efforts this season, but his lackluster efficiency has become a problem lately, only averaging 30 percent from the field in Charlotte’s last 15 games.

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23. New Orleans Pelicans (14-26, Last Week’s Ranking: 18)

The Pelicans have performed admirably in their past ten contests in winning seven of them, as Lonzo Ball has stepped up big. The former UCLA guard has contributed a stat sheet-stuffing 18.7 points, 7.1 rebounds, 8.1 assists and a steal in the Pels’ last seven games, all in favor of holding it down until his entire team (Zion Williamson, included) gets healthy so that they can at least get in position to challenge for a playoff spot.

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24. Chicago Bulls (14-26, Last Week’s Ranking: 21)

The Bulls received some tough news surrounding their second-year big man in Wendell Carter Jr., as the Bulls will be without him for what sounds like 4-6 weeks with a right ankle sprain. On the plus side, the Bulls may have something worth developing in second-round talent Daniel Gafford, who posted 14 points off 6-for-9 shooting and seven rebounds in Chicago’s win over the Pistons on Sunday.

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25. Washington Wizards (13-26, Last Week’s Ranking: 26)

Though the Wizards apparently lack any sense of ability to play competent defense, they have been playing hard against teams they are supposed to lose to and have come away with some venerable wins against some talented teams in both the Celtics and Nuggets. Bradley Beal returned to the lineup on Sunday and the fully-healthy Wizards almost beat the second-best team in the West with a close 127-116 loss.

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26. Detroit Pistons (14-26, Last Week’s Ranking: 25)

Blake Griffin underwent a potentially season-ending knee surgery, and by the look of things, this Detroit frontcourt is going to look indescribably dissimilar to it’s regular appearance, also due in part to Andre Drummond’s now eventual departure from the Motor City. At this point, the Knicks and Hawks have both made inquiries and the Pistons are still listening and taking calls from other suitors for the double-double machine known as Drummond, who is averaging 17.6 points, 15.9 rebounds and 2.6 assists per game off 53 percent shooting.

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27. Cleveland Cavaliers (12-27, Last Week’s Ranking: 29)

Though they shocked the Nuggets in Denver, Tristan Thompson’s 35 points on 15-for-20 shooting against the Pistons wasn’t enough as the Cavs lost to the Pistons after blowing an 11-point fourth quarter lead. Last week’s turmoil-filled sequence of events for the Cavs started with Kevin Love issuing a public apology for his in-practice and on-court behavior issues regarding his disgruntled attitude with his team, and the week ended with head coach John Beilein interpreting his use of the word “thug” by correcting those who said it, clarifying that he said his players were playing like a bunch of “slugs”. Yikes.

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28. New York Knicks (11-29, Last Week’s Ranking: 27)

The Knicks were able to shake off their losing skid with a rousing victory over the Miami Heat at home Sunday, as RJ Barrett and Kevin Knox (who the Knicks are so glad they finally got something out this year) combined for 40 points off only 18 shots. While Barrett scored 23 on 7-of-10 FGs and 8-of-10 FTs, Knox scored 17 on 6-of-8 FGs.

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29. Golden State Warriors (9-32, Last Week’s Ranking: 28)

Golden State drops a spot in this week’s rankings, but mainly due to their injuries at the guars spot. Luckily, D’Angelo Russell returned to action on Sunday and picked up where he left off, scoring 34 points off 12-of-24 shooting to go along with seven rebounds, five 3-pointers and four assists. Over his last seven appearances, DLo is averaging 28.7 points, 5.4 dimes and 4.7 triples.

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 30. Atlanta Hawks (8-32, Last Week’s Ranking: 30)

Make those four-straight losses for the Hawks now, who have dropped a combined 14 of their last 16. Trae Young is playing like he should be in the all-star game but was ruled out in a loss to the Nets on Sunday with a lingering hamstring issue.

Jan 14, 2020 No Comments