Welcome to the Basketball Hangover. I write about what’s happening in the NBA daily, even when COVID has ravaged the league.
Chris Paul has officially assisted 10,000 shots.
(PHOTO CREDIT: Rick Scuteri/AP.)
Chris Paul continues to add to his resume that is soon to be a first-ballot Hall of Fame. He is the sixth player ever to surpass 10,000 assists. Take a look at this short list:
(Data from Basketball Reference.)
That is a who’s who of playmakers right there. It’d be a miracle for him to get to the #1 spot that John Stockton occupies but there is a chance he could catch Jason Kidd if he plays about three or four more seasons in a starting role. And there are no signs of him slowing down even in his 16th season.
You can say what you want about Chris Paul but there’s a reason he’s referred to as the Point God. The guy just turns his team into a threat everywhere he goes. Yeah, he’s never made the NBA Finals but only one team wins that every year. Just because he hasn’t won a championship doesn’t mean he’s not a winner. He’s won plenty of games over his illustrious career.
And the thing is… he’s got the Phoenix Suns back in contention again. And the team has been on an 11-year playoff drought. Paul doesn’t get all the credit; after all, this team famously swept the summer bubble in Disneyworld. But he did help take this team to the next level. Maybe the whole team is still too young and inexperienced to win it all but who are we to doubt Chris Paul?
And while the James Harden Houston Rockets never made the Finals, either, Chris Paul took them to the brink. They were up, 3-2, against the mighty Golden State Warriors in 2018. It was too bad that Paul wasn’t available for Games 6 and 7 when he had a bad hamstring. This is one of the biggest what-ifs in recent memory.
Anyway, Chris Paul isn’t done yet but we have to give props to him for getting 10K assists. But I’m sure he’d rather have the ultimate prize, which is the NBA Championship. And you know what? That’s how good Chris Paul is: he even has the Phoenix Suns, reminding you that they haven’t made the postseason since 2010, fighting for it. This could be his biggest accomplishment yet.
(Oh, yeah. He helped make the Los Angeles Clippers legitimate contenders, too. See? He’s done so much!)
Bullet Passes
Now we’re to the point where the Toronto Raptors may never win a game this season. The trade rumors are getting louder for Kyle Lowry, despite their denials of it. The one that may come true may be for Norman Powell, who has become a consistent scoring threat the last two seasons.
Denver and Portland both took Ls on Sunday but that 40-point thrashing Dallas gave the Blazers certainly stands out more. Sometimes, you just have those nights.
Okay. Houston MAY never win a game this season. Their skid is up to 20 GAMES. They are now seriously threatening the record for longest losing streak in NBA history. The longest in-season skid is 26, which is owned by the 2010-11 Cavs and the 2013-14 Sixers. There is a 28-game losing streak that went across 2014-15 and 2015-16 for the Sixers. Good grief, that was an excruciating process.
Blake Griffin made his debut for the Brooklyn Nets. And he dunked for the first time in 15 months. That must be the smell of being on a good team.
Boston got a win after Jaylen Brown made 10 threes. They really really needed that W.
LaMelo Ball could be out for the rest of the season with a fractured right wrist. That’s so awful considering he’s been the frontrunner for Rookie of the Year. Speedy recovery to Ball.
NBA Scoreboard
Mar. 21, 2021
Watch This Play
Bam Adebayo did something really bad to Domantas Sabonis.
BAM ADEBAYO IS DESTROYING THE PACERS. 🤯🔥 pic.twitter.com/dLKAVk03US
— House of Highlights (@HoHighlights) March 21, 2021
I wish Sabonis challenged that better. Instead, he got pied in the face.
Everyone, please take care of yourselves during this pandemic. And that goes for everyone involved with the NBA as well.
You can find Rey-Rey on Twitter at @TheNoLookPass.
You can also check out Rey-Rey’s podcast, Rey-Rey Is Fundamental, for more basketball content and, really, whatever else.
R.I.P. Nala.