Welcome to the Basketball Hangover. NBA Playoff Basketball is afoot!
LeBron James came out in flames against Portland on Saturday.
(PHOTO CREDIT: Joe Murphy/Getty Images.)
I mean, geez. I just mentioned that Kawhi Leonard is possibly the best player in the NBA right now. I also said that, at any given day, LeBron James could still be that guy.
He certainly proved it against Portland in Game 3. Which is really weird considering what he did in Game 1. I guess 23 points, 17 rebounds, and 16 assists was not enough of a line to convince people. Geez.
LeBron was quiet with 10 points in Game 2 but the Lakers won by like a bajillion points so that’s all right. In Game 3, though? He asserted himself as THE dog on the court.
Well, you know what I mean.
But he was aggressive from the start. He was keeping up with C.J. McCollum and Damian Lillard‘s scoring in the first half. Bron scored 22 in the first half.
Bron scoring meant it opened up a lot of opportunities for others. Anthony Davis especially got going as he scored 23 in the second half (29 total). Portland was known for their fourth quarter comebacks as of late but no such thing happened here. LeBron kept being aggressive and he ended with a 38-12-8 line. Ridiculous. 17th season. 35 years old.
That’s why the Lakers were one of the favorites. LeBron James can still do this late in his career. And they have a Top 10 player in Davis. While he’s not as admittedly as cerebral as LeBron, he is so talented that whatever else doesn’t matter. And if the supporting cast gets going, that is a tough team to beat.
The Lakers are #1 seed for a reason, guys.
Bullet Passes
Carmelo Anthony scored 13 of his 20 points in the third. I’m sure it drove a lot of analysts mad but I enjoyed his midrange madness in that quarter.
Nick Nurse of the Toronto Raptors won NBA Coach of the Year. It wasn’t really close in the voting:
I already talked about how the Raptors are just so so good. Nurse gets a lot of credit for that.
And one more thing, here’s Nurse getting interviewed by the Inside The NBA Crew as well as some surprises along the way:
(VIDEO CREDIT: NBA on TNT.)
That was so cool.
The Bucks are back, I guess. They slaughtered the Magic early and it pretty much wasn’t a game by the second quarter. The deer led by as many as 34 points in the game.
Also, Giannis Antetokounmpo went for 35-11-7 if you want to argue about who is the best in the game today. Don’t you guys got anything better to do?
The Pacers were only down, 114-112, with about two minutes left. But aside from a Malcolm Brogdon three that didn’t matter, the Pacers didn’t score again. Funny enough, the Heat didn’t score another field goal as all they did was draw fouls and make their foul shots.
Brogdon had a hell of a game, though. 34-7-14!
The Heat had 6 players in double figs. Balance!
Once James Harden fouled out, it was like the Rockets became a G-League team. They only scored three points in overtime (a Danuel House three). And since Russell Westbrook was still out, there wasn’t much playmaking the Rockets could do. By the way, Harden had 38-7-8. So many big performances on Saturday. The Thunder extend the series by, at least, a game.
Today, Kobe Bryant would’ve turned 42. So here’s a video of what he did best on the court.
(VIDEO CREDIT: House of Highlights.)
Still surreal that he’s gone. Also, miss you, Gigi.
NBA Playoff Scoreboard
Game 3: #1 MIL 121 vs #8 ORL 107 (MIL leads series, 2-1)
Game 3: #4 IND 115 vs #5 MIA 124 (MIA leads series, 3-0)
Game 3: #4 HOU 107 vs #5 OKC 119 (OT) (HOU leads series, 2-1)
Game 3: #1 LAL 116 vs #8 POR 108 (LAL leads series, 2-1)
Watch This Play
Davis hurts the rim and all the Blazers.
He makes it look easy.
( 📺: ABC) pic.twitter.com/ZiY7HOhaeY
— Los Angeles Lakers (@Lakers) August 23, 2020
The Lakers need more of that from the Brow.
Hope everyone stays safe in the Bubble.
Rey-Rey is on Twitter at @TheNoLookPass.
TNLP on FaceBook.