Welcome to the Basketball Hangover. We jot down NBA and WNBA stuff mostly from last night that we want to talk about. Check it out.
Bridget Carleton (right) had a breakout game for the Lynx in their huge win over the New York Liberty.
(PHOTO CREDIT: Minnesota Lynx.)
We’ve had quite a few breakout games. Maybe this one might be the unlikeliest of them all thus far.
It’s not that Bridget Carleton couldn’t play. The Canadian was great in college; the former Iowa State Cyclone was the Big 12 Player of the Year in 2019. She’s second in career points with 2,142. So it’s not like she didn’t have game. It’s more about getting a chance to play.
Last season, Bridget barely got on the court. She was a second round pick by the Connecticut Sun. Then she ended up on the Minnesota Lynx later that season. In 8 total games in the 2019 WNBA season, she only played 40 minutes and only scored a three-pointer. Still, Lynx coach Cheryl Reeve liked her enough to keep her on the roster.
They already had lost Shenise Johnson and Karima Christmas-Kelly. And then Sylvia Fowles was a late scratch (her first missed game as a member of the Lynx!). So that gave Carleton, who had only played 10 minutes per game and scored a total of 10 points in four games, a chance. And she was expected to play big minutes.
Well, that changed everything. It was almost like the Liberty underestimated Carleton because she was able to get to her spots. She curled to get open jumpers. She was able to snake through the lane for some lay-ups. And she didn’t miss any three-pointers (sank all three). It was such an offensive showcase that it left us wondering why she wasn’t playing more.
Bridget Carleton finished with 25 points and 7 boards. She’s the third player in WNBA history to have, at least, 25 points and 5 boards in their first career start. The other two? The legendary Candace Parker and Carleton’s teammate, the Rookie of the Year Napheesa Collier (who was in that pic, by the way). That is fantastic company.
So I assume Carleton will be getting more minutes now for the Lynx, who are off to a surprising 4-1 in the Wubble. It shows you once again that all these players can play basketball. Sometimes, all they need is that one chance to show y’all how good they are.
Get it done, Bridget!
Bullet Passes
Help is on the way for the Lynx as Odyssey Sims has arrived at the Wubble and could start playing within the next week. Yes, the Lynx are 4-1 but they’ve been battling injuries, as mentioned. Sims would be a big help.
It is the daytime of August 6, 2020 and we got word about Ben Simmons, who left their game against the Wizards on Wednesday and did not come back.
Official diagnosis on Ben Simmons: Subluxation of the left patella, listed out and treatment options are currently being considered. https://t.co/aoSXS0XUjR
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) August 6, 2020
A subluxation (Google is your friend) is a dislocation. He’s out indefinitely for now and we’ll get word soon on the timeline. It sucks for the Sixers, though, and they already get so much crap about their medical staff as is.
The Lakers didn’t look so great against the Oklahoma City Thunder. And as of writing, LeBron James isn’t playing against the Rockets on Thursday night.
At this point, it’s about the Lakers getting healthy for the postseason (should we get there) and having some momentum. But even the latter doesn’t matter, sometimes.
So it’s hard for us to think about the games before the pandemic but the Raptors actually have the current longest winning streak right now. Before the season stopped, T-Dot (I’m so cool) had won four in a row. We add the three games from the bubble and they have now won 7 straight games.
I think they have a chance to repeat. I really do. They’re so scary.
I said on Wednesday that…
The Boston Celtics haven’t looked all that impressive in the bubble.
And then they smash the Nets by 34.
The Grizzlies make me sad. They’re 0-4 in the bubble and they have lost 5 straight overall.
Michael Porter, Jr. has weird thoughts about the pandemic but hey, he can ball. 37 points and 12 boards against the Thunder on Monday and then 30 points and 15 boards against the Spurs on Wednesday.
I have said before that he could be the Nuggets’ reserve weapon. This is getting a little scary.
Maybe the Las Vegas Aces might start to get it together. They defeated the Washington Mystics in a close one on Wednesday. They may not have Liz Cambage and Kelsey Plum this season but they did add Angel McCoughtry and still have A’ja Wilson, Kayla McBride, and Dearica Hamby. Also, they got Danielle Robinson back, who has been a steady guard in this league. I say “back” because she was drafted by the San Antonio Silver Stars. And we know that the Silver Stars moved to Las Vegas to become the Aces.
The Sparks are now 3-2 after defeating the Fever as they try to get back to where they were the first game of the season.
I thought about why the NBA games have back-to-backs going on. But at the same time, at least, they won’t have extra fatigue from traveling. That makes SUCH a huge difference.
NBA Scoreboard
MEM 115 (32-37) v UTA 124 (43-25)
PHI 107 (41-27) v WAS 98 (24-44)
DEN 132 (45-23) v SA 126 (29-38)
OKC 105 (42-25) v LAL 86 (51-16)
TOR 109 (49-18) v ORL 99 (32-37)
BRK 115 (32-36) v BOS 149 (45-23)
Double U Scoreboard
MIN 92 (4-1) v NY 66 (0-5)
LV 83 (3-2) v WAS 77 (3-2)
IND 75 (2-3) v LA 86 (3-2)
Watch This Play”
Look at this very fundamental play from the champions. Nice bounce pass from Bootleg Deron Williams (Fred VanVleet) to OG Anunoby for the reverse jam.
Makin’ it look easy pic.twitter.com/J1FK8xvmAx
— Toronto Raptors (@Raptors) August 6, 2020
The champs continue to roll.
Stay safe, Bubble and Wubble occupants!
Rey-Rey is on Twitter at @TheNoLookPass.
TNLP on FaceBook.