Have you ever been sitting around the water cooler and been thrust into a sports conversation (specifically about the NBA)? Has your boss asked you what your thoughts are about a team's rotations or how a player specifically is playing? Yes you watch the games, but as a casual observer it can be tough to feel like you can add value to the conversation by just restating the obvious. You want to be able to impress people with your knowledge about games from the night before and I am here to help with that!
I am here to help you impress those around you with your knowledge. I want to start running a helpful post where every day or so I explain a couple important things from NBA games the night before that I feel like can help you add value to the basketball conversations you want to take part in. This isn't just spewing analytics at people, but these are actual things you can note and conclusions you can come to by watching the games and understanding basic statistics. I call this: "Everyday NBA Takes".
I am not hand-feeding you takes to steal, but I can help point you in the right direction of what you should say or what should have been a big take away from the night before. That way if you feel confused after a game ended or you weren't sure what made the biggest difference in the outcome of the game, I can help you so that you don't feel lost or confused in the conversation at work or among friends who just want to discuss the NBA.
So, before I get into the games from 12/10, a few background factors I need to establish first. First, not every team will be covered every single day. On nights like last night, not every game was important and thus not every game needed to be discussed (I am specifically thinking about the the Jazz 9 point loss to OKC on the road). Second, I also hope to include some big picture things to think about with regards to the outcome of each game played. I don't want to simply give you a recap of each game, but reasons as to why that outcome matters in the grand scheme of the season. Finally, I'll also include a few highlights you can reference or mention to make it seem like you really understand what you're talking about. My goal is that, hopefully with enough reading and practice, you will be knowledgeable yourself and you will no longer need my help to break down games in real time and then convey what you thought about them to others. Like your observations, I hope to get better as each day goes on as well.
NBA Games from 12.10.18.
Okay fine, one takeaway from the Jazz and Thunder. The Thunder are first in the West now and seem to be perfectly okay after than 0-4 start to begin the year.
Wizards at Pacers.
Takeaway: the Wizards continued their losing and are seemingly inching closer and closer to trading either Wall or Beal as December 15th approaches (on December 15th, players who were signed in the offseason can be traded).
Hot take you could add about the Pacers: This was probably Turner's best game of his career! He hasn't lived up to his expectation this season, but he sure proved how talented he is tonight.
Kings at Bulls.
Note about De'Aaron Fox: he looks like the game has finally slowed down for him and he has unbelievable control over the offense. His shot looks better and he sparked the Kings second half comeback against the Bulls who refuse to win basketball games for the rest of this year.
Magic at Mavericks.
Luka Doncic is really good. Just say that take and everyone will agree with you. No one will be brave enough to disagree with a take that Luka Doncic is the best rookie this year.
Value Added Element: What has really helped lead the Mavs to their early season success (besides Luka) is the superb play of their bench. While they're only 14th in the league in scoring overall, they have the 5th best FG% in the league and and the 10th best defensive rating. If they ask what defensive rating is, then tell them it's a combination of every major defensive statistic and basically says how good each team is at defense.
Side Note: In case you do not have a good basketball take or I did not bring up your team, just tell everyone you watched Monday Night Football instead since this Monday's matchup was between two defensive juggernauts both fighting for a playoff spot. If they ask you about that game, then say that this Seattle team, while it's easy to compare them to the Legion of Boom, is actually different because their personnel makes more plays than the Legion of Boom did. All the LOB did was hold and play overtly physical.
Suns at Clippers.
The Suns finally won a first quarter! The Suns' bench also helped keep them in the game and they almost squeezed one out against the best team in the West!
Specific play you can reference: That was a tough charge call with Patrick Beverly in OT, but I think the ref made the right call there.
T-Wolves at Warriors.
Opinion to have: I like that Dario Saric player (pronounce his name Sharic so that everyone knows you know how to pronounce his name) and I think the Wolves need to give him more minutes. As long as you pronounce his name correctly you can then say anything and you'll have credibility.
Heat at Lakers.
Observations: the Lakers looked sloppy all game and played lazy on defense until the last two minutes of the game. A few years ago the Lakers would have lost a game like this by 15-20. But because they have LeBron, he can make up for so many of their mistakes.
Fun fact: This is the last time Wade and LeBron will ever face each other and LeBron won the all-time series tonight with a 16-15 record.
Heat facts: The Heat bench really spurred the Heat in this game and they all do a great job of cutting/playing off the ball.
Interesting thing of note: Who would have thought on Wade/LeBron's last matchup, Kyle Kuzma and Justice Winslow would steal the show with a shootout of their own?
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