Well it’s that time of year where we get to eat all day and not watch basketball. Kind of a win/lose for all of us NBA fanatics right ? We get to eat good food but have to settle for football.
Looking on to what this NBA season has turned into, it’s been a historic one. We haven’t seen a season like this in a long time and it’s about time I can actually share what I’m thankful for.
Celtics and Lakers are top teams in their conferences: growing up these two teams were all over headlines. Now we see the Lakers (#1) and Celtics (#2) playing great basketball and that rivalry that was always there is back and looks to better than ever.
January 20th will be the first time we see this matchup and I get goosebumps just thinking about it. Being that kid from Boston (even though I’m a Hawks fan) it feels good to know that the rivalry is alive again.
Carmelo Anthony is back: The league wouldn’t be the same without Melo In it. In just five games Melo has put up a solid 16.6 points, 5 rebounds, 1.8 assists on 45% from the field.
To be more clear about how much of an impact Melo has made in Portland I’ll break it down for y’all:
- Melo is shooting the best he’s shot in five years- 45% overall: 37% 3pt 49% 2pt
- He has a plus/minus of +5.4 the best we’ve seen since I’m his whole career. His other career best was +4.6 when he was with Denver
- Managed to start all five games thus far as he was told he was a bench a player for the past two years
Overall, it seems like the Trailblazers value Melo and are utilizing him to the best of their ability. Glad to see another guy from the ‘03 draft class still active
Luka Magic: I missed seeing the Mavericks contend the last few years and have to hand it to Mark Cuban. He’s assembled one of the greatest and youngest NBA talents in a long time. Luka Doncic is someone we will be talking about for a very long time.
Doncic at 20 is leading a franchise to an 11-6 start in a grueling Western Conference. I could post stars all day about how he’s the first to do this, the first to do that, but he’s all over the headlines this year and his play has been speaking for itself.
Here’s what he said about losing to the Clippers two nights ago:
“I was feeling sad yesterday,” he said. “Not feeling great. I was pissed. I went straight home. You just have to get through it. When we lose a game like this and I have a bad game, I feel like I let everybody down and I want to be alone”. (Dallas Morning News)
Do we ever hear this kind of talk nowadays? This is what makes Luka special and I’m thankful to have a player who shares such passion for the game of basketball and cherishes every win and is humbled by every loss.
The Golden State Warriors: Making my 8th seed prediction look distinct at this point, the Warriors have been a shocking 4-15 to start the season out and I couldn’t be happier of their demise. From a fan standpoint, Golden State has ruled the league with an iron fist for years, so I apologize if I’m excited that has come to an end.
Obviously I’m not happy that Steph, Klay, D’Lo, and Green are all inactive, but we all have to be thankful about Eric Paschall.
Paschall is averaging 17 points and 5.4 rebounds and has notched two 30+ outings and two 25+ outings on 14 games played. The 23 year old rookie out of Villanova is filling a lot of shoes at the moment as he is trying to keep the Warrior’s head above water.
If you are a Warriors fan and need to find something to be thankful for, then Eric Paschall is it!
Andrew Wiggins is playing like his draft stock: I don’t know what has happened to Wiggins this season, but something just clicked. He seems more in tune with the game, is creating better looks for himself, and is in control of his play.
Shooting 47% on 20 shots a game, Wiggins is a huge reason why the Timberwolves are 10-8 and seeing a positive record.
If he can keep up this level of play and with Karl Anthony Towns averaging 26 and 12, this young duo could cause some havoc later in the season. The Timberwolves are not a team you want to see in a first round playoff matchup.
NoLimitJumper Staff: Lastly, I would just like to thank my whole team here at NLJ for their continuous hard work and dedication to making this brand something special. Please if you haven’t already show some support to the writers below:
Try to enjoy that good food even though basketball isn’t on!