OKC Reborn, LA in Flux, and the Long Shadow of the Achilles Injury
10 things about the NBA.
First things first: have you seen the Johnny Furphy dunk? I got excited about it. It’s what we need to see. Dunks like that should be worth double at Summer League. But I can’t tell if it was the greatest Summer League dunk of all-time or if the face from Noa Essengue made it seem like it was more than it was? Probably somewhere in between. He’s also from Australia so we also share that. Maybe I am biased but damn it was fun to watch, right? Thought so.
Here are 10 things about the NBA.
“Micro aggressions” and “dinner-snub” are two keywords that help explain the Lakers transition from Lebron to Luka. The Lakers are clearly rebuilding around Dončić. And at 40, it’s the beginning of the end for LeBron in L.A. He won’t go quietly. Here’s the long form explainer from ESPN’s Ramona Shelburne and Brian Windhorst. Now, does he have his eyes on the Cavs? Watch this space. “Nothing LeBron does is a coincidence," said one source who knows him well.
“This is a tough one. Ten years. Just your professionalism, your dignity, your class, the way you handled yourself, the way you mentor your young teammates. And of course the championship contributions that you’ve made. Year after year.” Golden State Warriors coach Steve Kerr on Kevon Looney after 10 seasons.
Tom Haberstroh’s reporting, along with Pablo Torre and Amin Elhassa, has peeled back some layers on the federal investigation on Malik Beasley’s gambling-related irregularities. It started with a random tweet from a user FreeMoose_NBA and they were able to link Beasley to that user and Jontay Porter who has been banned for life. It’s a wild rabbit hole.
Speaking of Jontay Porter: “I started looking at money in my trading account like it was a video game. I don’t panic too much if I lose some. It’s just numbers on a screen.” Game Over, Toronto Life.
Oklahoma, a small NBA market, won their first Championship this year. The Economist reports: “It’s an on-court sports accomplishment”, says the city’s mayor, David Holt, of its first big-league title. But it is also “a prism through which to see the progress of our city”. Thirty years after the Oklahoma bombing that killed 168, the city is eager to reinvent itself as something other than a domestic terror attack.
“The image of Clark burying absurd three-pointers off the dribble and on the run—as she did in that game against the Sun, and as she had done three days before in a win against the defending champions, the New York Liberty, who had previously been undefeated—is one of the most inspiring things in all of sports. And the media and online chatter that surrounds Clark is one of the most depressing.” The Caitlin Clark Rules, New Yorker.
The Ben McLemore sentencing of 100 months for being found guilty of raping and sexually assaulting a 21-year-old woman is yet another sad story that shines a light on the mental health and education still needed for NBA players.
Nikola Jokić has now moved into 7th place in the all-time MVP Shares. This Reddit thread breaks down what this means and the issue with how voting has evolved.
Game 7 of the NBA Finals were marred by the Tyrese Haliburton Achilles injury. This Globe and Mail report said there were seven Achilles tendon ruptures, almost double the historical average. Basketball has sped up. There are more false-step stresses. It could be a pivotal moment for the NBA’s health strategy.
“That might be one of the worst games of my life,” Flagg said. “But we got the win, so that’s what really matters to me. My teammates, they held it down. They did what they had to do.” Cooper Flagg showed flashes in summer league debut, The Athletic.
Last Word: Buddy Hield thought Maximus Meridius from Gladiator, the movie, was a real person. Come on, man.