The
month of December is the time in which St. Nick is looking down above us and
decides who has been naughty; whose been nice and whose been an absolute
scrooge. In the nice category, a.k.a. the good, last season Eastern Conference
runner up has gotten back on track after an up and down beginning, while in the
Western Conference a team that was on the outside of the playoff picture last
spring is sitting real pretty thanks to great health of their dynamic duo. Also
a future Hall of Famer and past champion moved up another notch on the NBA’s
all-time scoring list passing a three-time title winner. In the naughty
category, a.k.a. a team that just two years ago was on the way up, but their
Sun has not been rising lately and after good beginning, things have not been
buzzing for Carolina’s team. The scrooge of December, a.k.a. the games on
Christmas Day. Here is the holiday edition of The Good, The Bad and The Ugly of
December in the NBA.
The
Good
Striking
Thunder
With
a new leader on the sideline and the return of 2014 NBA Most Valuable Player
rejoining his All-Star running mate, the Oklahoma City Thunder (24-11) had slow
start out of the gates.
The
month of December, two-time NCAA champion head coach at University of Florida
Billy Donovan and the dynamic duo of Kevin Durant (26.6 ppg-3rd NBA,
7.4 rpg, 4.6 apg, 51.7 FG%, 41.1 3-Pt.%) and Russell Westbrook (25.3 ppg-5th
NBA, 6.7 rpg, 9.5 apg-3rd NBA, 2.5 spg-Leads NBA), who were
named Western Conference co-players for December 2015 got it going in December
going 13-3, which included a six-game winning streak from Dec. 6, 2015 to Dec.
16, 2015 and a three-game winning streak to close out 2015.
A
big reason for the surge by the Thunder that has them third in the West
standings behind the Spurs (30-6) at No. 2 and the West leading defending champion
Golden State Warriors (32-2) has been better effort at the defensive end.
Last
month, the Thunder only allowed the opposition to hit the century mark just
four time, but the last three came in succession to close out the month. The
Thunder did come through those three straight contest with victories at
Chesapeake Energy Arena versus the Denver Nuggets (12-23) 122-112 on Dec. 27,
2015; versus Milwaukee Bucks (14-22) 131-123 Dec. 29, 2015 and versus on New
Year’s 2015 Eve versus Phoenix Suns (12-25).
On
Dec. 8, 2015 the Thunder trounced the Memphis Grizzlies (19-17) in their gym
125-88.
Durant
lead the way with 32 points, 10 rebounds, six assists and three steals going 11
for 14 from the field, including 4 for 5 from three-point range. Westbrook had
13 points, 16 assists, and five boards going 5 for 7 from the field.
Starting
forward Serge Ibaka had 17 points on 8 for 15 shooting. D.J. Augustin had 13
points off the bench. Guard Dion Waiters had 12 points off the pine and
starting shooting guard Andre Roberson had 10 points.
The
Thunder shot 56 percent from the field, 50 percent from three-point range (13
for 26); out-rebounded the Grizzlies 46-33; out-scored them 56-46 in the paint;
had 23 fast break points; recorded 11 steals and scored 24 points off 16
Grizzlies turnovers; registered 31 assists and held the Grizzlies to 40.7
percent shooting.
The
Thunder really showed how capable they are on both ends of the court in two
matchups last month against the struggling Los Angeles Lakers (8-27).
The
chewed them up and spit them out on Dec. 19, 2015 with a 118-78 victory, their
largest margin of victory so far this season.
Durant
had 22 points and eight boards on 7 for 13 shooting in just 30 minutes and
Westbrook had 13 points, 11 assists on 5 for 11 from the field in just 22
minutes.
The
supporting cast was great as backup center Enes Kanter had 19 points on 8 for
13 shooting and 14 rebounds. Ibaka had 12 points and seven rebounds. Waiters
had 11 points and six boards. Morrow and starting center Steven Adams had 10
points each.
The
Thunder shot 54.8 percent from the floor and held the Lakers to just 34.9 percent
shooting. They out-rebounded the Lakers 56-32; had 28 assists to the Lakers 14
and outscored them 50-26 in the paint.
Even
with the change of venue to the Staples Center in Los Angeles, CA, the result
was still the same. The Thunder took the Lakers to the cleaners in their gym
120-85 on Dec. 23, 2015 thanks to a 35-15 third quarter.
Westbrook
lead the way with 23 points eight boards, eight assists and two steals, going
10 for 19 from the field. Durant had 21 points, seven boards, five assists and three
blocks going 7 for 9 from the floor.
The
supporting cast was great again as Ibaka had 17 points, seven boards and two
blocks. Kanter had another double-double off bench against the Lakers with 16
points, 11 rebounds and two blocks and Roberson had 15 points, seven rebounds,
two steals and four blocks.
The
Thunder shot 53.7 percent from the floor and held the Lakers to 36 percent
shooting. They out-rebounded the Lakers 61-35, including 19-12 on the offensive
glass. The Thunder had 23 assists to the Lakers 19; blocked 13 shots; outscored
the Lakers 27-7 in fast break points and 76-32 in the paint.
Along
with a commitment to playing consistent defense, the Thunder high level of play
is a result of having consistent balance at the offensive end where the
supporting cast of Ibaka (13.7 ppg, 6.8 rpg, 2.5 bpg-3rd NBA), Kanter (11.6
ppg, 7.7 rpg), Anthony Morrow, Augustin and Waiters (9.5 ppg) are contributing
in the scoring column. It shows that Durant and Westbrook can make the players
around them better, making them an even more dangerous team.
If
the Thunder have plans on contending in the West and for a title this season,
they cannot have what happened on Christmas Day, when they lost versus the
Chicago Bulls (20-12) 105-96.
Durant
and Westbrook scored well with 29 and 26 points respectably, but while Durant
shot a solid 11 for 21 from the floor, Westbrook was just 9 for 23 and both
respectably shot just 1 for 6 and 1 for 7 from three-point range.
Kanter
was the only other Thunder player in double-figures with 14 points along with
13 boards.
The
Thunder shot just 38.5 percent from the field, including 6 for 24 from three-point
range. They were out-rebounded 53-48, allowing the Bulls to get 16 offensive
boards; had just 20 assists and were outscored 56-48 in the paint.
The
Thunder have shown they can have balance on offense and can play lockdown
defense. They must do it consistently if they want to be in the same sentence
as the Warriors and Spurs as title contenders and Durant and Westbrook have to
lead the way.
Soaring
Hawks
Last
season was the best in the history of the Atlanta Hawks (21-14) and they made
it all the way to the Eastern Conference Finals, but were swept by the
Cleveland Cavaliers (23-9). Coming into this season, the question was last
season a flash in the pan or are they a serious contender.
In
the early stages of this season, the defending Southeast champions were like
the stock market, one point they were up winning seven of their first eight
games and the next they were down losing 11 of their next 18 contest.
After
a tough 100-88 loss versus the Miami Heat (21-13) that dropped their record to
14-12, the Hawks rattled off six straight wins from Dec. 16, 2015 to Dec. 26,
2015.
The
front end of the streak was a 127-106 win versus the Philadelphia 76ers (4-33),
where the Hawks shot a season high 61.5 percent from the field, including going
10 for 21 from three-point range. They had 32 assists; recorded 11 steals and
scored 30 points off 24 Sixers’ miscues; outscored the Sixers 58-42 in the
paint and blocked seven shots.
Five
Hawks scored in double figures led by forward Paul Millsap with 21 points
hitting 6 for 7 from three-point range. Starting lead guard Jeff Teague had 18
points. Center Al Horford had 17 points and so did Teague’s understudy Dennis
Schroder, who also had seven assists off the bench. Backup center Tiago
Splitter had 10 points.
One
of the big reasons the Hawks were the toast of the NBA a season ago is that
they played a brand of basketball that placed an emphasis on the team, which
third-year head coach Mike Budenholzer adopted from his time with Spurs that
made them champions on five occasions.
They
a solid shooting team from the field and three-point range. They played solid
defense and they had an uncanny ability to find the open man and getting great
shots on offense.
While
they are in the middle of the pack in terms of defense giving up 100.4 points
per contest, ranking just 15th in the NBA, they are 3rd
in the NBA in assists per contest at 25.1 and 10th in scoring per
contest at 101.9.
They
played much better defense in defeating the New York Knicks (16-19) at Phillips
Arena the day after Christmas 117-98, as the Hawks held the Knicks to 35 points
in the second half. The Hawks outscored the Knicks 27-12 in the third quarter
after surrendering 32 and 31 points in the first and second periods.
Millsap
was great again with 22 points, seven rebounds, seven assists and three steals.
Horford had 19 points, six boards, seven assists, two steals and two blocks.
Mike Scott had 18 points off the bench on 7 for 8 shooting. Teague had 17 points
and Schroder had 10 points, six assists and two steals.
The
Hawks had 33 assists; recorded 13 steals and scored 26 points off 23 Knicks
turnovers; outscored the Knicks 62-32 in the paint, 18-5 in fast break points
and registered 33 assists.
When
you take a closer look at this season’s version of Hawks compared to a season
ago, they are different.
At
small forward, they had DeMarre Carroll, who gave them perimeter shooting and
defense on the perimeter. He along with his magnificent talents are now with
the reigning Atlantic Division champion Toronto Raptors (21-15), who he signed
with as a free agent. The starter at the three spot this season is Kent
Bazemore (12.8 ppg, 4.6 rpg, 46.9 FG%, 42.4 3-Pt.%), who has been solid on both
ends and the return of Thabo Sefolosha has given the Hawks another wing player
who can guard people.
Going
forward for the Hawks to reach the heights they were a season ago, they need
sharp shooter Kyle Korver (9.5 ppg, 42.5 FG%, 36.3 3-Pt.%) to regain the touch
he had a season ago, where he shot 48.7 from the floor and 49.2 percent from
three-point range, the second highest of his 12-year career. They also need
Splitter, who the Hawks acquired over the summer from the Spurs to be a
presence on the glass for a team that was dominated by the Cavs last spring.
The
anchors for the Hawks in Millsap (18.3 ppg-Leads team, 8.9 rpg-Leads team, 1.9
spg-Leads team), Horford (15.4 ppg, 7.1 rpg), Teague (15.5 ppg, 5.8 apg),
Korver, Scott, Schroder (10.5 ppg) and Sefolosha (7.2 ppg) are as good as any
eight-man unit. Are they better than the Cavs, Bulls, Miami Heat and Raptors?
That remains to be seen.
Nowitzki
Passes Shaq
In
his 17-year career, future Hall of Famer Dirk Nowitzki went from a rookie that
many projected to be a bust to an MVP, a NBA champion, one of the best players
in Dallas Mavericks’ history and one of the greatest foreign players to ever
play in the NBA. On Dec. 23, 2015, he achieved another milestone.
With
22 points on the aforementioned night at the Brooklyn Nets, Nowitzki passed
future Hall of Famer and current NBATV/NBA on TNT analyst Shaquille O’Neal into
6th place on the NBA’s All-Time Scoring List and helped lead the
Mavs (19-15) to a 119-118 overtime win. Nowitzki has scored to date 28,685 in
his career with the Mavericks, who are now 2-0 in overtime this season and now
are 5-3 on the back end of back-to-backs.
Nowitzki
(17.2 ppg-Leads team, 6.7 rpg, 45.9 FG%,
38.8 3-Pt.%) after the game to NBATV’s Matt Winer, Dennis Scott and Greg
Anthony that this accomplishment was not something that was on his mind at that
moment, but it was on trying to help the Mavs get a victory after falling at
the Raptors (21-14) 103-99 one night before.
“You
try to focus on the game,” Nowitzki said. “What’s going on out there? Focus on
the next possession. On the next basket and that’s how I approach these games.”
To
understand the amazing ability of how Nowitzki has been able to score the
plethora of points he has in his career, he has 1,627 three-pointers in his
career, hitting 38.3 percent from distance; made 10,101 shots overall from the
field at a rate of 47.5 percent and hit 6,956 free throws at a 87.9 percent
clip.
In
the case of the man he passed into fifth place in O’Neal, one of the most
dominant inside scorers in NBA history, he made 11,330 field goals, at a 58.2
percent clip; made just one three-point field goal in his career in 22 chances
and shot just 52.7 percent from the free throw line (5,935 of 11,252).
Nowitzki’s
greatness can be traced back to the hard work he puts in during the season and
in the off-season and that has made him who he is today, one of the greatest to
ever play the game in the NBA and overseas.
The
Bad
Dark
Days in Phoenix
Two
years ago, the Phoenix Suns under new head coach Jeff Hornacek won 48 games and
seemed like a team on the rise in the West. They have fallen fast since then
and it has only gotten worse.
The
Suns (12-25) began Dec. 2015 with four straight defeats from Dec. 1 to Dec. 6.
In the middle of the month, they had an okay stretch winner four of their next
seven games, but after a 104-88 win versus the New Orleans Pelicans (11-22) on
Dec. 18, 2015 the Suns have lost nine games in succession and the three of the last
four have been by 20 points or more.
If
that was not the icing on the cake for the Suns issues, they lost their
starting point guard Eric Bledsoe (20.4 ppg-Leads team, 6.1 apg-Leads team, 2.0
spg-Leads team, 45.3 FG%, 37.2 3-Pt.%) for the remainder of this season after sustaining
a torn meniscus in his left knee back on Dec. 26, 2015 in the Suns 111-104 loss
versus the Sixers. He had surgery last week and will be out the remainder of
the season.
To
add insult to injury, talented forward Markieff Morris (10.5 ppg, 4.7 rpg), who
has been a distraction ever since the team traded his twin brother Marcus this
past off-season to the Detroit Pistons, he has been an issue on and off the
court. In recent days, Morris was suspended for two games by the Suns after
throwing a towel at coach Hornacek during a game. That incident cost the former
Kansas Jayhawk $145,455.
It
has gotten to the point that Suns’ owner Robert Sarver took his frustrations
with one of the team’s building blocks to the press.
“My
whole view of the millennial culture is that they have a tough time dealing
with setbacks, and Markieff Morris is the perfect example,” Sarver said. “He
had a setback with his brother in the off-season, and he can’t seem to recover
from it.”
It
is hard to believe that just two years ago, the Suns seemed to be a team with a
bright future, no pun intended. Today, they seem to be sinking fast and there
seems to be no life raft to rescue them anytime soon.
The
only hope now for the Suns is that they can trade Morris before the trade
deadline in February. The likes of forward T.J. Warren (11.4 ppg), center Alex
Len (6.6 ppg, 5.7 rpg), guard Brandon Knight (19.6 ppg, 5.3 apg) and rookie
guard Devin Booker (7.0 ppg, 48.9 3-Pt.%) can help make something of what is
left of this season for themselves and for the team. Also, Sarver and GM have
to decide if Hornacek is the man to lead this team going forward after the
season.
One
change the organization has made is they promoted former NBA guard Earl Watson
and Nate Bjorkgren to assistant coaches to help Hornacek on the bench and
showed the door to veteran assistants Mike Longabardi and Jerry Sichting.
Non-Stinging
Hornets
After
a disappointing season a year ago, the Charlotte Hornets went in a different
direction this off-season to improve their team for this season.
The
team added Jeremy Lin (11.9 ppg) to backup starting lead guard Kemba Walker
(19.3 ppg-Leads team, 4.9 apg, 1.8 spg-Leads team). They acquired the likes of
forward Nicolas Batum (16.3 ppg, 6.5 rpg, 5.2 apg, 37.0 3-Pt.%), center Spencer
Hawes, guard Jeremy Lamb (11.3 ppg, 46.5 FG%) and they drafted center Frank
Kaminsky III with the No. 9 overall pick out of Wisconsin in the June 2015
draft.
After
a slow start, the Hornets gained traction in early December with four straight
wins from Dec. 5, 2015 to Dec. 11, 2015. After two straight setbacks following
those four consecutive wins, they garnered a 109-99 overtime win over the
surging Raptors on Dec. 17 to bring their mark to 15-10.
After
that victory, the Hornets lost four out of their next six games and currently
are on a four-game losing streak.
Two
big reasons why the Hornets are at the .500 mark currently is that they are
struggling at the defensive end, where they rank just 14th in the
league at 100.4 points allowed.
They
surrendered over 100 points during their current losing streak and on the six
occasions they have allowed the opponent to hit the century mark in December
2015, they have gone 0-6.
When
they held the Boston Celtics (19-15) under 100 points back on Dec. 12, 2015,
they lost 98-93, thanks to being outscored 60-51 in the second half after
allowing the C’s to score just 38 points in the first 24 minutes.
The
other issue for the Hornets has been the play of their starting center Al
Jefferson (12.5 ppg, 6.1 rpg, 48.2 FG%), whose has been playing below his
career numbers of 16.9 points and nine rebounds per contest.
In
the early part of last month, Jefferson, who is in the final year of a
three-year $41 million contract received a five-game suspension by the league
without pay for violating the NBA/NBPA (National Basketball Players
Association’s) Anti-Drug program.
“I
just feel so low right now for every little boy and every little girl who looks
at me as somebody they look up to,” Jefferson, who has played in just 19 games
so far this season said an hour before the Hornets contest versus the Heat back
on Dec. 9, 2015. The Hornets won that contest 99-81.
“For
me to make mistakes like this, it’s not cool. It’s not cool for them and it’s
not cool for me. That kills me more than anything.”
To
make matters worse, the Hornets to scoring threat in the low-post will be on
the mend for about six weeks after undergoing arthroscopic knee surgery to
repair a tear in the lateral meniscus in his right knee.
Without
their low-post scorer and their do-it-all forward in Batum, who has been
shelved the last two games because of a bad toe, the Hornets are in the need of
spark and after losses versus the Thunder 109-90 this past Saturday night and
at the defending champion Warriors 111-101 to start a four-game West Coast
trip, they need it in a hurry.
The
good news if there is any, two out of those three games are winnable at the
Suns this Wednesday and at the Nuggets this Sunday.
The
Ugly
A
Bust on Christmas Day
Christmas
Day is when the NBA takes center stage. This is where teams on the rise, last
season’s NBA champion or contenders in the East and West play on this day. It’s
a time for all those watching at home with family and friends to see the best
be at their best, especially the stars. While Dec. 25, 2015 had its moments, it
overall was a below par.
The
first contest between the Pelicans at the Heat on ESPN and while the game was
close and went into overtime, the Heat pulled the game out 94-88.
While
All-Star Anthony Davis shined for the Hornets with 29 points, 15 rebounds and
four steals and three blocks, he barely got any help from his teammates as Ryan
Anderson and Eric Gordon were the only other players in double-figures with 18
and 16 points respectably.
All-Star
forward Chris Bosh led the Heat with 30 points and 10 boards. Fellow All-Star
Dwyane Wade had 19 points, six boards and four assists.
The
second contest between the Bulls at Thunder on ABC started great, but despite a
final score of 105-96 in favor of the road team, the Bulls controlled the game
from start to finish as Butler led the way with 23 points, six boards and four
steals. Pau Gasol had 21 points, 13 rebounds, six assists and two blocks.
Derrick Rose had 19 points and Taj Gibson had 13 points and 10 boards.
Even
though Durant and Westbrook had solid numbers, they did a poor job of getting
their teammates involved in the offense and they were stagnant the entire game
despite outscoring the Bulls 28-19 in the four quarter.
The
back end of the double-dip on ABC featured last season’s matchup in The Finals
between the Cavs at the defending champion Warriors.
The
game had excitement, drama and gritty defense. The one it lacked was scoring
and consistent offensive flow with neither team scored 30 points in any quarter
and they each respectably were held to 31.6 percent and 41.0 percent shooting
from the floor.
Four-time
MVP LeBron James led all scorers with 25 points to go along with nine boards,
but shot just 10 for 26 from the field. Forward Kevin Love had 18 rebounds, but
scored just 10 points going 5 for 16 shooting, including 0 for 5 from
three-point territory.
All-Star
guard Kyrie Irving, who playing just his third game of the season because of
surgery he had to repair the knee cap he injured in Game 1 of The Finals back
in June 2015 had 13 points, but shot just 4 for 15 from the field in 26
minutes.
For
the Warriors, forward Draymond Green led them with 22 points, 15 rebounds,
seven assists and two blocks. The “Splash Brothers” of reigning MVP Stephen
Curry and Klay Thompson had 19 and 18 points respectably, but shot just 6 for
15 and 6 for 16 respectably from the field and a combined 2 for 8 from
three-point range. Guard Shaun Livingston had 16 points off the bench going 8
for 9 from the floor.
In
the interstate Texas matchup between the San Antonio Spurs (30-6) versus Houston
Rockets (17-19) also was a defensive struggle that was courtesy of the home
team as they held the Spurs to a season-low 84 points in winning 88-84.
The
Rockets held the Spurs to just 40.9 percent from the field and to just 25
percent (5 for 20) from three-point range.
All-Star
James Harden led the Rockets with 20 points and nine assists, but shot just 7
for 21 from the field, including 2 for 6 from long distance. Terrence Jones had
14 points off the bench and Jason Terry had 12 points off the pine. Dwight
Howard had 11 points and 12 rebounds for the Rockets who won despite shooting
43.2 percent from the floor.
The
Spurs were paced by Kawhi Leonard who had 20 points and eight boards. LaMarcus
Aldridge had 18 points and nine rebounds and perennial All-Star Tim Duncan had
a double-double of 13 points and 11 rebounds.
The
night cap of Christmas Day NBA action was the battle of Los Angeles between the
Clippers (22-13) versus Lakers (8-27).
It
was the Clippers who were the better of the two tenants of the Staples Center
as they have been in the last seven times and made it eight with a 94-84 win.
The
game was not that close as the Clippers took an 85-57 lead into the fourth
quarter, but the Lakers outscored the Clippers 27-9 in the final stanza thanks
to the play of the Laker reserves, but the Clippers held on to win.
We’ve
had to do that before,” All-Star guard for the Clippers Chris Paul, who had 23
points and six assists said after the game. “But it’s not about the starters
having to come back in. It’s about us as a team closing games out and we have
to get better at that.”
J.J.
Redick had 14 points. Jamal Crawford had 13 points for the Clippers and so did
All-Star Blake Griffin, who also had 12 rebounds and seven assists. DeAndre
Jordan had nine points and 14 rebounds.
Playing
in his NBA record 16th game and final game on Christmas Day, Lakers
future Hall of Famer Kobe Bryant had 12 points in 26 minutes. Bryant, who
announced back on Nov. 29, 2015 that he will retire at season’s end, his 20th
in the league scored 395 points on Christmas Day, breaking the old record of
377 back in 2012 that was held by Hall of Famer Oscar Robertson. He sat out the
last two Christmas Day contest the Lakers played in because of injury
“I’m
just very, very thankful to be able to play this many games on Christmas,”
Bryant, whose team’s record is 6-10 on Christmas Day when he has played said
after the game. “Growing up and watching the Bulls and Knicks and all those
great games on Christmas Day, having been part of this for so many years has
been cool.”
I
have seen better games played on Christmas Day. While there were some exciting
moments and the superstars did shine for the most part, the games were never in
doubt and that is what really put a damper on this day. It lacked drama and
offensive flow. Well there is always next year.
The
one good thing that did come out of this, the world got a chance to see one of
the best ever play on Christmas Day for the last time in five-time NBA champion
Kobe Bryant, even if he is a shell of himself in terms of his skills.
Information,
statistics and quotations are courtesy of www.espn.go.com/nba/standings/statistics/teams/player/schedule/_/date/20151225; 12/14/15 1:30 a.m. edition of “NBA
Tonight” on ESPN 2 with Cassidy Hubbarth and Bruce Bowen; espn.com piece from
Jan. 4, 2016 “Suns’ Robert Sarver blames team’s woes on Markieff Morris,
culture” from ESPN senior writer Marc Stein and “The Associated Press;”
espn.com piece via “The Associated Press” on Dec. 9, 2015 “Hornets’ Al Jefferson
gets 5-game ban for violating anti-drug program; espn.com piece via “The
Associated Press” on Dec. 30, 2015, “Al Jefferson expected out 6 weeks after
arthroscopic knee surgery; 12/24/15 6
a.m. NBATV’s “Gametime” presented by KIA with Matt Winer, Dennis Scott and Greg
Anthony.
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