With one of the most exciting,
breathtaking, scrutinized regular seasons in the history of the National
Basketball Association (NBA) in the books, only six days remains before the
entre of the season, the NBA Playoffs. Before that four teams in Eastern and
Western Conference respectably will battle it out for the final two Playoff
spots in the fourth annual NBA Play-In Tournament, presented by SoFi. It begins
with the Western Conference on Tuesday night.
Western Conference (Tuesday Apr. 16, 2024:
TNT)
(8) Los Angeles Lakers vs. (7) New Orleans
Pelicans
(47-35) (49-33)
Season Series: Lakers won 3-1 (1-0
In-Season Tournament)
What separates talented players from those
that are legendary is their ability to handle their business when the lights
are at the brightest. On Sunday afternoon the boys from “Hollywood,” who have
two such great players added another shining moment of brilliance in the gym of
team and their headliner who once again wilted under the bright lights of a big
moment in one’s career. The two squads meet up once again in “The Big East” to
open the 2024 Play-In Tournament and a chance to punch their ticket to the
postseason for a First-Round date with the defending NBA champions from the
“Colorado Rockies.”
On Sunday afternoon in front of a national
television audience, the Los Angeles Lakers, NBA champions in 2020 flashed
their veteran muscles and took down New Orleans Pelicans 124-108 on ESPN.
It was their 11th win in their
last 14 games to close the season to capture the No. 8 Seed and be just one
victory away from punching their postseason ticket. This is on the heels of
going just 22-23 since winning the inaugural In-Season Tournament (123-109)
Dec. 9, 2023 versus the Indiana Pacers (ABC).
The Lakers, who led by as many as 26 were
led by dynamic duo of LeBron James, who continues to be a marvel at age 39 in
NBA Season No. 21 and fellow perennial All-Star Anthony Davis, who thanks to
good health for majority of this season continues to silence his critics.
James, a four-time NBA champion and four-time
Kia MVP was at his absolute best with on
both sides of the hardwood with 28
points, 17 assists, and 11 rebounds with five steals on 13/17 from the field.
It was James’ 27th
double-double on the season, including his fifth triple-double on the season
and 112th career triple-double (5th NBA History).
The four-time Finals MVP got the Lakers up
and running in the opening half with eight first quarter assists. In the second
quarter, he got into the scoring column with 13 points in the period with five
boards and five assists, and two steals on 6/10 shooting to compile a
double-double in the opening half with 13 points, a career-high for a half of
13 assists and six rebounds on 6/12 shooting.
“Just try to put the ball on time and on
target for either jump shots or guys at the rim,” James said after the win. “Just
trying to be very efficient with my play.”
Davis, who the Pelicans drafted No. 1
overall in 2012 led the Lakers with 30 points and 11 boards with two steals on
13/17 from the floor, registering his 64th double-double for the
season.
The man affectionately called “The Brow” got
things started in the first quarter with 14 points on 7/10 shooting and had 18
points and six rebounds on 9/12 shooting in the opening half.
Davis and James finished things off in the
final period scoring 11 and 10 points respectably in the final period. James
went 3/5 from the floor and a perfect 5/5 from the foul line in the final
period, while Davis was 3/4 from the field and also was a perfect 4/4 at the
charity stripe in the final period.
“I just want to win. So, whatever the
game present itself for me to be,” James said. “I am a Swiss army knife. I’ve
got to do it all on the floor, but none of it is predetermined.”
Davis did leave in the closing minute of
the final period walking gingerly to the locker room holding his lower back and
said after the victory that his back “locked up” when he was shoved behind in while
in the air. But said postgame that his back ailment was “nothing concerning.”
“No doubt that I’m going to play,” Davis
added about playing in the Play-In tilt on Tuesday night at the Pelicans. “Get some
treatment, keep it loose, just see how I feel over the next 24-36 hours and be
ready.”
Along with the stellar performances by
Davis and James, the Lakers got 20 points on 8/12 from the field from Austin
Reaves, including 3/7 from three. D’Angelo Russell added 19 points on 5/10 from
three-point range. Rui Hachimura scored 11 with seven rebounds.
The Lakers performance on Sunday at the
Pelicans was reminiscent of how they dominated the boys from “The Big Easy” in
the NBA In-Season Tournament Semifinals back on Dec. 7, 2023, where the Lakers
won in dominant fashion 133-89.
In leading by as many as 44 in that contest, the Lakers outscored the Pelicans 104-59 the final three quarters after trailing 30-29 after the first quarter.
The Lakers in that contest outrebounded
the Pelicans 59-42 (NOP 12-11 Off. Rebounds). They shot 54.7 percent from the
floor (47/86 FGs) and 17/35 from three-point range. They had 31 assists on 47
made field goals. They outscored the Pelicans 52-46 in the paint and 23-12 in
fastbreak points. They also turned 12 Pelicans turnovers into 19 points.
They had the same level of dominance on
Sunday at the Pelicans the Lakers did shooting 55.2 percent from the floor (48/87
FGs), including 11/29 from three-point range and a solid 17/18 at the foul
line. The Lakers were even on the glass with the Pelicans (39-39). Had 32
assists on 48 made field goals. They dominated the Pelicans, outscoring them
68-42 in the paint; 19-15 in fastbreak points; and forced 19 Pelicans
turnovers, which included 12 assists, that they turned into 27 points.
As great of a performance it was for the
Lakers, it was another example of the Pelicans, who were coming off a four-game
home winning streak, following four straight defeats at home to close a six-game
homestand.
The Pelicans’ headliner Zion Williamson in
perhaps the biggest game of his young professional career in that In-Season
Semifinal versus the Lakers shrunk in the moment scoring just 13 points in 26 minutes on 6/8
shooting and was an abysmal 1/6 at the foul line.
Williamson was just as abysmal on Sunday
with just 12 points with eight rebounds, and eight assists with two steals and
four turnovers on 4/13 from the field.
“I think I was just being too passive if I’m
being honest. I don’t think I was super aggressive the whole game,” Williamson
said after the loss on Sunday.
“They got whatever they wanted in the
paint. They dominated us in the paint.”
That Dec. 7, 2023, loss setback to the Lakers,
the Pelicans other two headliners in All-Star Brandon Ingram and CJ McCollum
stunk up the joint each scoring just nine points each on 4/13 and 4/14 shooting
respectably.
The Pelicans in that Dec. 7, 2023, defeat
shot just 35.8 percent (34/95 FGs) and just 7/31 from three-point range and
were just 14/20 at the foul line.
After leading 30-29 after the opening
period were outscored 38-24 in the second quarter to trail 67-54 at the half
and then were outscored 43-17 in the third quarter to trail 110-71 after three
quarters.
The Pelicans did not have it right from
the start on Sunday versus the Lakers trailing wire-to-wire, getting railroaded
in the second quarter getting outscored 40-29 in the second quarter to trail
70-53 at the half.
Ingram, who returned from a 12-game
absence with a left knee contusion scored 13 points with five boards in 23
minutes.
McCollum led the Pelicans on Sunday with 25
points and seven assists on 9/19 from the field and 4/9 from three-point range.
Herbert Jones scored 18 with five rebounds and two steals, going 4/7 from
three. Larry Nance, Jr. scored 13 with six boards off the bench. Trey Murphy
III scored 11 with two steals on 3/6 from three. Jose Alvarado scored 10.
The loss dropped the Pelicans to the
Play-In Round. If they had won on Sunday, they would have clinched the No. 6,
and final guaranteed Playoff spot in the Western Conference.
“They punched us right in the mouth and
they kept going,” Pelicans head coach Willie Green said after the loss. “We let
a really good opportunity slip away.”
The winner of Tuesday’s Play-In tilt will
clinch the No. 7 spot in the West and will face the defending NBA champion
Denver Nuggets as the No. 2 Seed.
Conventional wisdom says how the Lakers
played on Sunday at the Pelicans that they will get it done and get their
chance of avenging last season’s four-game sweep in the Western Conference
Finals against the Nuggets.
The dynamic duo of LeBron James and
Anthony Davis with a Playoff spot hanging in the balance will bring their best
to the hardwood in New Orleans on Tuesday night. The Lakers’ chances of
clinching the No. 7 spot will be even higher if they get strong performances
from D’Angelo Russell, Austin Reaves, and Rui Hachimura.
The Lakers also know that they do not
expect a cakewalk like they had at the Pelicans on Sunday and that they need to
be ready for the forceful play that the Pelicans will bring to the hardwood at
the Smoothie King Center on Tuesday evening.
“Tuesday’s game is going to be extremely
hard, extremely difficult, extremely physical,” James said. “I’ve always known
that, when you play a playoff series—and look at this like a two-game series—if
you win that first game, a team has multiple days to kind of sit on that feeling
or sit with that taste in their mouth of defeat.”
“So, they’re going to be extremely ready
for us and we have to come in with the same sense of urgency that we had the
previous game.”
To put how the Lakers have fared when
Russell has played well for them this season, the Lakers were 15-3 when he
scored 25 or more.
For the Pelicans to punch their postseason
ticket for the second time in the last three seasons, they need Zion Williamson
to play to the level where he dominates scoring wise in the paint and that he
is backed up by Brandon Ingram, and CJ McCollum.
“I don’t have to explain it,” Williamson
said of the challenge the Pelicans face on Tuesday night versus Lakers. “We all
know the Play-In Tournament, the layout. We’ve just got to handle business.
Easier said than done, but it’s what we’ve got to do. We’re grateful for the
opportunity.”
It will also help the Pelicans if they get
off to a good start and they can maintain a lead if they get it.
The Pelicans during the regular season
were 45-11 when they were ahead at intermission and 47-9 when they were up
after three quarters. When they Pelicans were down at intermission were just
4-20 and were just 2-2 when tied at the half. When they were behind after three
quarters, the Pelicans went 0-22 and were just 2-2 when tied after three
quarters. On top of that, the Pelicans were just 14-15 in clutch games (games
with five points in the last five minutes of fourth quarter/overtime), and blew
14 double-digits leads, tied for the third most in “The Association.”
Even with that, Coach said basically on
Monday the Pelicans simply have to be the more forceful squad and come with the
right focus and aggressive mindset to win on Tuesday night.
“We have to come back with the right
mentality,” Coach Green said. “They were the aggressors. We have to be the
aggressive team. We have to be the more physical team. We have to keep them out
of our paint and make them take contested shots and rebound the ball.”
“They played with a ton of force. They
came out right away. At least for the first half, they punched us right in the
mouth and kept going.”
The good news for the Pelicans as well as
the Lakers is that the loser of this contest in the No. 8 versus No. 7 tilt is
that they will have another opportunity to make the Playoffs taking on the
winner of the No. 10 versus No. 9 tilt between the Kings and Warriors on Friday.
(10) Golden State Warriors vs. (9)
Sacramento Kings
(46-36) (46-36)
Season Series: Warriors won 3-1 (1-0
In-Season Tournament)
Last season, the four-time NBA champions from
the “Bay Area” and their Pacific Division rivals up California’s Interstate-80 played
an epic seven-game series. That epic series was capped by historic scoring
performance by a two-time Kia MVP. This season, both squads have had their
struggles, especially the upstarts from California’s capital city from last
season whose closed the regular season poorly and lost two keys guards dropped
them from the running in the guaranteed Playoff spot to now having to win two
games in the Play-In Tournament to reach the Playoffs for a second straight
season. As for the four-time champs, their strong finish to this season has them
in position to get back to the Playoffs or see their reign as the NBA’s current
dynasty conclude.
Last season, the Sacramento Kings were the
Cinderella story of “The Association” as they registered 48 wins, winning their
first Pacific Division title since 2002-03 and were the No. 3 Seed in the
stacked Western Conference. They battled the four-time champion Golden State
Warriors tooth-and-nail winning Game 6 at the Warriors to force Game 7 back
home. The Kings hung tight with the Warriors until the second half where
two-time Kia MVP Stephen Curry scored a Game 7 record 50 points on 20/38 from
the field and 7/18 from three-point range in leading the Warriors to a Game 7
win.
The Kings were 41-30 and in contention for
the No. 6 and final guaranteed Playoff spot in the Western Conference with 11
games left. At 44-31, they were right on the cusp of avoiding the Play-In being
just one game on the loss side behind the Pelicans at the start of April. A 2-5
finish to this season, which included losing streaks of two and three games
dropped the Kings to the No. 9 spot in the West and having to now win two games
just to make their second straight postseason appearance after an NBA-record
16-year absence.
Along with dropping five out of their
final seven games to close the season, the Kings will enter this postseason
without a starter and the leading candidate for Kia Sixth Man of the Year.
Back on Mar. 18, 2024 in the Kings’ 121-111
overtime win versus the Memphis Grizzlies, they lost starting guard Kevin
Huerter late in the first quarter to a left shoulder injury when he made
contact with Grizzlies’ guard Desmond Bane sending him to the floor.
Huerter, who came over from the Atlanta
Hawks last off-season underwent season-ending surgery to repair that torn
labrum in his shoulder.
To make matters worse, 11 days later in
the Kings’ 107-103 loss to the Dallas Mavericks (NBATV) lost leading candidate
for Kia Sixth Man of the Year Malik Monk to a right knee injury after perennial
All-Star guard of the Mavericks Luka Doncic landed on him on a drive to the
hoop. Monk left the game and did not return. Monk, who the Kings signed in free
agency in the summer of 2022 and will be an unrestricted free agent this
offseason was diagnosed with a sprained right MCL, which is expected to keep
him out 4-6 weeks. That means that if Monk is going to play anymore in 2024 it
will be if the Kings make a deep postseason run.
For that to happen, the Kings will have to
take care of business on Tuesday night versus a Warriors squad that they have
had thrilling, nail-biting encounters against this season.
Outside of the Warriors 122-114 victory
Oct. 27, 2023 (ESPN), the last three contest the Interstate rivals played
against one another were one-point decisions. The first one went to the
Warriors 102-101 when Klay Thompson hit what ended being the game-winning
jumper with less than one second left for the 102-101 victory versus the Kings on
Nov. 1, 2023.
At the close of the November 2023, the
Kings won their In-Season Tournament bout versus the Warriors 124-123 when Monk
capped a 24-point comeback hitting a fadeaway jumper with seven seconds left that
advanced the Kings to the quarterfinals of the In-Season Tournament.
The Kings evened the season-series with
another thrilling one-point triumph, this time on the Warriors home floor
134-133 Jan. 25, 2024 (TNT) thanks to the go-ahead dunk by All-Star Domantas
Sabonis with 22 seconds left. That game-winner by Sabonis is not possible if
not for the performance by former Warrior Harrison Barnes, who scored a
career-high of 39 points on 14/24 shooting, including 7/12 from three-point
range.
The Kings, who won their regular-season
finale (121-82) Sunday versus the Portland Trail Blazers see this moment of
having to win two games in the Play-In Tournament to punch their postseason
ticket as an opportunity while those on the outside and even their vociferous
fanbase as a monumental collapse where they stand one loss away from not making
the Playoffs after being there a season ago. That is what head coach Mike Brown
touched on following the Kings 135-123 loss last Thursday night versus the Pelicans
(TNT).
“We all should be embracing this. 100
percent for sure guys, I want to freaking win and trust me, I go home and bang
my head against the wall just like everyone else in that locker room on these
losses,” Coach Brown said in reference to some of the losses the Kings have
suffered this season against sub .500 teams and to teams they led by
double-digits against.
“But I’m excited about it. I’ve embraced
it. If we could’ve finished in sixth, I would have wanted that more than
anything else or fifth (place). But at the end of the day, this is where we are
and let’s freaking go get it and let’s learn and grow from it and see what
happens at the end of the day. But I’m excited about any opportunity to play in
the postseason.”
The good news for the Kings is that they
will go into this Play-In Tournament led by their dynamic duo of All-Stars
De’Aaron Fox and Domantas Sabonis, who had remarkable seasons.
Fox, the reigning Kia Clutch Player of the
Year averaged 20-plus points per game for the fifth straight season. A season
ago, Fox proved he can be the head of a winning team leading the Kings to the
Playoffs in his sixth NBA season.
His running mate Domantas Sabonis put
together perhaps the best season of his career but one of the best all-around
seasons in NBA history. For the second straight season, he led the NBA in
rebounds per game at 13.7, which was also a career-high to go along with 19.4
scoring average and a career-high 8.2 assists (6th NBA).
Sabonis, who set a career-highs of 65
double-doubles and 14 triple-doubles, registered a league-leading 77
double-doubles and 26 triple-doubles. From Dec. 2, 2023 to Apr. 9, 2024,
Sabonis register 62 consecutive double-doubles, a new NBA record since the
1976-77 NBA/ABA merger.
Even with the stellar seasons that Fox and
Sabonis had, they did not make the All-Star team this past season and for much
of this season were seen as good players but not championship level players
because of how the Kings have slid from the top of the West a season ago to now
having to make the Playoffs through the Play-In.
This chance the Kings have to have to win
twice to make this postseason is an opportunity for Fox and Sabonis to show
their doubters that they can rise to the moment when it is called upon to do.
It also provides an opportunity for the
Kings supporting cast of the aforementioned Barnes, who helped the Warriors win
their first of four titles in 2015, Keegan Murray, Davion Mitchell, Keon Ellis,
and Trey Lyles to show that they can rise to the moment as well.
“It’s exciting,” Mitchell said after the
win versus Trail Blazers. “We get to get a little payback for last year. We
know they’re going to come here with energy. It’s a home game. We know it’s
going to be loud. It’s going to be physical. I think we are ready for it.”
One team that has been ready for big
moments in big games over the past decade-plus has been the Golden State
Warriors.
This season however, head coach Steve
Kerr’s squad has had to navigate through a lot this season. They had to
navigate two suspensions of their heart-and-soul of their team in perennial
All-Star Draymond Green of five and 12 games because of chocking fellow
perennial All-Star center of the Minnesota Timberwolves Rudy Gobert and for
hitting in the head starting center of the Phoenix Suns Jusuf Nurkic. They had
to deal with the shooting slump of one half of their “Splash Brothers”
backcourt in Klay Thompson, to the point where they decided back in January to
bring him off the bench. Then there was the untimely death of beloved assistant
coach Dejan Milojevic.
On the court, the Warriors played the most
clutch games in the league during the regular season, 47 in total, going just
23-24 in games that were within five points in the final five minutes of the
fourth quarter/overtime.
Those ups-and-downs were a part of the Warriors
19-24 start to this season. Those ups-and-downs brought them closer together
enough that they finished the season going 27-12 the next 39 games, including a
10-2 mark their last 12 games, which also consisted of a 4-1 mark to close the
regular season.
The one constant for the Warriors has been
two-time Kia MVP Stephen Curry, whose continued marksmanship from three-point
range and ability to perform in the clutch especially this season has the
Warriors’ dynasty still alive.
During the Warriors run of winning four
titles in six Finals appearances over the past 10 seasons, their mantra was
“Strength In Numbers.” That was referencing the supporting cast of the likes of
Shaun Livingston, Matt Barnes, Maurice Speights, Andrew Bogut, ZaZa Pachulia,
and many others that complimented Curry, Thompson, and Green, and now Suns
perennial All-Star forward Kevin Durant.
When the Warriors won it all in 2022, it was the likes of Jordan Poole, and current Warriors in Andrew Wiggins, Gary Payton II, and Kevon Looney that were the difference in helping the Warriors win their fourth title. This season, Wiggins and Looney have struggled mightily, and Payton II has missed time this season because of injury.
What has helped the Warriors be in
position to make the Playoffs through the Play-In this season has been the
emergence of Jonathan Kuminga and the steady improvement of rookies Brandin
Podziemski and Trayce Jackson-Davis is how the Warriors went 9-2 to close this
season, holding off a late season charge by the Houston Rockets to earn the
last Play-In spot in West.
The Warriors know that at this time of the
year, it is all about bringing your best to the table. The Warriors, led by
their “Core Three” of Stephen Curry, Klay Thompson, and Draymond Green are
primed to get through this Play-In Tournament. Get back to the Playoffs and see
how things unfold.
“We just got to win,” Green said.
"When this team’s back is against the wall, I like how this group shows
up.”
History though is not on their side when it
comes to the Play-In because in 2021, they lost at the Lakers and versus the
Memphis Grizzlies in overtime and saw their season conclude without reaching
the postseason. They hope this appearance in the Play-In Tournament has a
different outcome because a loss on Tuesday night at the Kings could bring a
conclusion to not just this season but possibly the team as we have known them.
“We have a really good connection on this team, good chemistry, guys pulling for each other. So I’ve got a good feeling about what’s ahead,” Coach Kerr said after the Warriors 123-116 victory in their regular season finale versus the Utah Jazz. “I think we still have a chance to do something special. Now, obviously, it’s NCAA Tournament, we’ve got to get out of the first weekend here, win the first two and get to the First Round, but we have a shot, so we’re excited about that.”
Information, statistics, and quotations
are courtesy 4/12/2024 “Locked On Kings: The Sacramento Kings Are On The Edge
Of Disaster,” Locked On Podcast Network With Matt George of ABC 10 News In
Sacramento; 4/16/2024 www.nba.com story: “Zion
Williamson Learns From Mistakes As Play-In Tournament Stage Awaits,” Michael C.
Wright; https://www.nba.com/game/lal-vs-nop-0052300121;
https://www.nba.com/game/gsw-vs-sac-0052300131;
https://www.nba.com/game/nop-vs-lal-0022301230;
https://www.espn.com/nba/recap/_/gameid/401585826;
https://www.espn.com/nba/recap/_/gamid/401585828;
https://statsdmz.nba.com/pdfs/20231207/20231207_NOPLAL_book_pdf;
https://www.espn.com/nba/boxscore/_/gameid/401607493;
https://ww.nba.com/game/lal-vs-nop-022301195;
and https://statsdmz.com/pdfs20240414/20240414_LALNOP_book.pdf.
