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This run is not going to last forever. Trail Blazers (17-14, LW 14). We don’t celebrate Damian Lillard‘s greatness enough — and his commitment and loyalty to the city. That did change a little this past week when, with a couple of free throws Monday night, Lillard passed Clyde Drexler to become the all-time leading scorer in Trail Blazer history.
Stephen Curry is out the next few weeks with a left shoulder injury. Andre Iguodala is out with a left hip injury. Andrew Wiggins is out with a right adductor strain. This is the second night of a back-to-back, so Klay Thompson is out. Donte Divincenzo and JaMychal Green both sat out last night with non-COVID illnesses.
Player to watch: Jordan Poole
Before the season, on September 18, 2019, Joseph Tsai acquired the full ownership of the Nets from Mikhail Prokhorov. On March 7, 2020, Kenny Atkinson resigned as the Nets' head coach and was replaced by Jacque Vaughn on an interim basis. The team’s schedule also includes 11 back-to-back sets.
The Nets play their first nationally televised game of the season during that early home stretch when they host the Houston Rockets on Friday, Nov. 1. That is one of 12 games currently scheduled to air on either ESPN or TNT. It’s tough when everyone’s chasing after you. The margin for error is thinner, teams give you their best shot every night, and getting back to the top of the mountain becomes even harder.
Big Test: How Nets Are Approaching A Strenuous Stretch Ahead
Durant has been playing at a historic pace and has been sensational in every aspect of the game. He’s a matchup nightmare for everybody, and if he plays, Jonathan Kuminga will have the unenviable task of guarding the two time Finals MVP. Former No. 6 overall pick Mo Bamba may be the Magic’s greatest trade chip… League executives expect Orlando to hold out for a protected first-round selection or a late first-round pick to part with the 24-year-old rim presence. This is not a deterrent — if the price of landing an All-Star level player is a second-round pick, teams will factor it into the cost of doing business and happily pay it.
Even during their best days, the Warriors tend to be a bit loose with the basketball. They had the second highest turnover rate in the NBA last season and usually found themselves in the bottom half of the league in turnovers more times than not since 2014. Without Curry to cover for those mistakes, ball possession has become even more important. They have the second highest turnover rate in the league this season and since Steph’s injury against the Indiana Pacers on December 14, have coughed it up 19 percent of the time they’ve had possession. That’s a bad brew and something they’ll have to cure ASAP. Brooklyn will look to get easy baskets in transition and make the young Warriors pay for every mistake they make.
Nets shoot for fifth straight win in Toronto
Typed comments will be lost if you are not signed in. The Nets have 11 back-to-backs this year. The first one takes place at the start of November when the Houston Rockets visit on the first of the month, then Brooklyn visits Little Caesars Arena to play the Detroit Pistons on November 2. The Nets have three back-to-backs in January and March. The Nets will not be featured on the Christmas Day slate of games, though the Knicks will come to visit on December 26.
A game preview of the matchup between the red hot Brooklyn Nets and the injured and struggling Golden State Warriors. Keep an eye on the Magic on the trade market heading into the Feb. 9 trade deadline — and on the court, where they have become dangerous. Phoenix finally looked like it was getting back on track having won three in a row, and then came an ugly loss to the reeling Wizards, a game that saw Deandre Ayton and Monty Williams arguing on the bench .
HIGHLIGHTS FROM OUR WEEKLY NEWSPAPERS
The Warriors have to figure out what they have in James Wiseman. Through a combination of injuries, NCAA ineligibility and poor play, Wiseman has barely played any professional basketball in the past three years. Since turning pro in 2020, Wiseman has only played 1300 minutes combined in the NBA and the G-League.
The last two weeks have included a favorable schedule that included a season-long seven-game homestand and a handful of matchups against bottom-tier opponents. Sure, Brooklyn took care of business and has won 10 of their last 11 games , but a big test can change all. Overall, the Nets will have hot and cold stretches of the season. When evaluating the team, it’s important to not only take wins and losses into account, but also consider the quality of competition.
But the Magic also have a lot of veterans on the roster — Terrence Ross, Mo Bamba, R.J. Hampton — and that could see the Magic as sellers at the trade deadline, something Jake Fisher talked about at Yahoo Sports. What is the evidence the Knicks tampered with Brunson? How about the multiple reports the sides had agreed to terms before free agency officially opened?
Then there was Knicks executives William “World Wide Wes” Wesley and Allan Houston, as well as forward Julius Randle, sitting courtside for a Mavericks-Jazz playoff game in Dallas . The Knicks are laughing about that all the way to the No.6 seed in the East . Brunson is averaging 20.8 points and 6.2 assists a game, has been the steady floor general the Knicks need and has played like an All-Star. DeRozan finished with 28, Zach LaVine had 22 and Nikola Vucevic 20 as Chicago picked up its second straight win on the road after dropping 7-of-9 overall. Trae Young led the Hawks with 34.
It is a little heavier in New York, which Durant knew before picking the Nets in the summer of 2019. Irving has always been a lightning rod for criticism because he seems to invite and incite it, at times. DETROIT — There’s only silence around the Brooklyn Nets after they’re eliminated from the playoffs, or if the New York Knicks are a bigger mess — or the time before a trade demand. The Warriors (15-16) had a breakout performance of their own Sunday night in Toronto, but it wasn’t from reigning Finals MVP Curry, who missed his second straight contest with a left-shoulder injury.
Starting on Friday, Los Angeles has 7-of-8 on the road. As mentioned before, the long exam begins with Golden State on Wednesday night. The Warriors will come to Barclays Center for the second game of a New York back-to-back.
In the NFL, where there are only 16 games and teams play each division opponent twice, strength of schedule can make a much bigger difference. U.S. Virgin IslandsGeorgiaThe Nets entered the draft holding two first round picks and one second round pick. The team used their 17th overall pick to draft Nickeil Alexander-Walker, who was sent to the Atlanta Hawks in the Allen Crabbe trade. With the 27th pick, the Nets selected Mfiondu Kabengele, who was traded to the Los Angeles Clippers in exchange to draft rights of Jaylen Hands, and used the 31st pick to draft Nic Claxton.
Around the league vultures are circling, hoping that Masai Ujiri decides to blow this thing up at the trade deadline and make some deals, but history suggests whatever the league expects him to do he will do the opposite. Christmas came to the Pacers last summer when they drafted Bennedict Mathurin, who looks to be a star they can put next to Tyrese Haliburton in the backcourt and have something to build around. Golden State’s Christmas gift is on backorder and will not arrive until mid-January, when Stephen Curry’s shoulder heals and he can return to the court.
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