[ad_1]
The Washington Wizards were up one against the Miami Heat with 6.6 seconds to go. John Wall defended Dwyane Wade well — Wade ended up in an isolation clear-out on the left side. Wade settled for a tough fading turnaround, shooting with just less than 4 seconds left.
That left plenty of time for Markieff Morris to fail to box out (as seen above), allowing Kelly Olynyk to slide in to grab the offensive rebound and get a lay-up for the lead with 0.2 seconds left. Heat win. Wizards lose.
This is fitting: Morris is one of Washington’s better defenders, but the team always seems to lack a certain attention to detail and focus. Wall, Bradley Beal, and Otto Porter are incredibly talented. This should be an Eastern Conference powerhouse. But losses like this are not rare for the Wizards. There’s just a certain lack of care embedded in the roster.
But hey, at least Dwight Howard should be back from his butt injury soon.
(Miami, we’ve got to talk about that play call …)
Scores Galore
Bulls 108, Sixers 127
Heat 113, Wizards 112
Lakers 119, Blazers 128
Schedule Check
Friday recommended menu:
Celtics at Raptors, 8 p.m. ET, ESPN
Jimmy Butler vs. Nice Minnesota Fans, 8 p.m. ET, League Pass
Pacers at Bucks, 8:30 p.m. ET, League Pass
Warriors at Jazz, 10:30 p.m. ET, ESPN
Saturday recommended menu:
Raptors at Wizards, 7 p.m. ET, NBA TV
Spurs at Blazers, 10 p.m. ET, League Pass
Rockets at Lakers, 10:30 p.m. ET, ESPN
Sunday recommended menu:
Warriors at Nuggets, 8 p.m. ET, League Pass
Rockets at Clippers, 9 p.m. ET, NBA TV
Full weekend schedule.
Links Galore
LeBron James’s Lakers debut was upstaged by Nik Stauskas’s triumphant return to the Pacific Coast. WATTBA. LeBron did start the night with a couple of thundering dunks, but L.A.’s defense has a looooot of room to grow. Meanwhile, Zito Madu writes about the difficulties that stem from playing with LeBron.
(If you’re an East Coaster or international with normal sleep habits, here’s what you need to know about LeBron’s debut.)
Kirk Goldsberry diagrams LeBron’s evolving offensive arsenal.
LeBron once hated Southern California. What changed? Scott Cacciola investigates.
MARKELLE FULTZ HIT A THREE! GO BIRDS.
The few players who played with both Jordan and LeBron speak on what it was like.
The G League announced a plan to offer elite prospects $125,000 contracts starting in 2019-20 to join that enterprise instead of committing to a college program. Ricky O’Donnell points out four big problems with the plan. Natalie Weiner points out how the move underscores the low salaries WNBA stars earn. Here are some more answers to key questions about the select contracts.
Wonderful reported piece by Michael Pina on the proudest Knick, Enes Kanter.
Paul George says that if the Pacers hadn’t traded him to the Thunder, he would have signed with the Lakers this summer. If you believe it, that’s a strong argument for teams to trade for stars on rentals if they think they can convince them to stay. Attention all teams chasing Jimmy Butler …
Did you see or write a piece that should be in Links Galore? Send it to me! tziller at gmail.
Does Anthony Davis finally have a really legit, stable supporting cast?
This isn’t basketball, but Hanif Abdurrraqib is one of my favorite writers on the planet, and an excerpt from his forthcoming book on A Tribe Called Quest has been released, so I’m sharing with you.
Ricky O’Donnell writes that the Bulls have no plan, no goal, and little hope. Other than that, everything is great.
What if MJ had stuck with baseball?
And finally: my favorite current thing in basketball is Boban Marjanovic casually dunking without jumping. He looks like an Athenian hero when he does it. It’s wonderful.
Be excellent to each other.
Source link
