Is there a way David Stern can schedule Orlando vs. Oklahoma City every night? If not, can he at least just give us the Thunder seven nights a week? We can’t be alone when we say they get more exciting as the team gets better. Orlando combined with OKC last night for some serious fireworks … Behind spectacular games from Russell Westbrook (32 points, 10 rebounds, 13 assists) and Kevin Durant (36 points) — who abused whomever Orlando checked them with — the Thunder led throughout and answered every run the Magic tried to make. Dwight Howard (39 points, 18 rebounds) dominated, but it wasn’t enough as OKC won in a 125-124 shootout. Unluckily for the Magic, the two types of players they absolutely can’t defend are big, physical point guards and stretch forwards … Early in the game, Reggie Miller suggested the reason why the Thunder are so much further along than other young teams is because they have actual superstars rather than good players. Westbrook was a flat-out stud, scoring from 15 feet and in all night long, making Jameer Nelson look like Kevin Hart (short) and Gilbert Arenas look like Gilbert Gottfried (old and slow). Meanwhile, Durant went off for 16 points in the first quarter, then resurfaced later to make a floater over Howard and two free throws to ice the win … Though people have been wanting Dwight to get more mean for years, it is kind of odd to see him actually frustrated and yelling at teammates. He never used to be like that. It’s good in a way — developing that cliche “hard-ass” exterior makes it so the media can’t say you’re not a leader. But it just doesn’t seem like his personality … Howard should be ticked at his teammates, though. We’ve never seen a big man who is so good get so consistently ignored in the post and consistently receive the ball too late. There were four or five times last night when Howard had the seal in the lane and didn’t get the ball. When your best passes to the big man are spin-out lobs, something isn’t right. Even with his astronomical numbers, Howard could’ve done more damage …Read More >>
During the Miami/Denver halftime show, did y’all catch Kenny Smith doing his Charles Barkley impersonation? He was spot-on, constantly changing topics and never really finishing a complete thought, and stayed in character through the whole segment. GINOBILI! The Jet really showed commitment to his craft there … Quick question: If we are going by the Steve Nash MVP Theory — i.e., how far a team falls off without their star — shouldn’t LeBron James be handed his third MVP right now? … After injuring his ankle in last night’s loss to the Clippers, James sat out and had to watch Miami get stomped out by nearly 30 points against the Nuggets. The back-to-back game is no excuse; if either team should’ve been listless and discombobulated, it was the Nuggets, who have held up pretty well despite knowing their best player wants to ditch … Miami mailed this one in. Halfway through the second quarter, Ty Lawson went right through the Heat defense for a layup, then stole the inbounds pass, took a shot, missed, got his own rebound over Erick Dampier and found J.R. Smith (28 points, 8 threes) for a trey … It was mentioned throughout the night, but Denver is a handful for anyone when they are completely healthy. If Carmelo (21 points) were to go from the Nuggets to the East Coast, does he deserve any hate? Isn’t it always about winning? … Remember when people were excited about Mike Miller being in Miami? They must not have watched him play these past two years … There was one other game Thursday, but all of 17 people watched the Wolves beat the Wizards. Kevin Love had another huge night (35 points, 11 rebounds) in a Minnesota win … The Wolves couldn’t even have the spotlight in their own state, as the Minnesota Golden Gophers owned the headlines in college basketball last night after upsetting 8th-ranked Purdue. With their best player (Trevor Mbakwe) benched at the beginning for disciplinary reasons, Minnesota leaned on Blake Hoffarber‘s 26 points and a defense that didn’t give up a score in the final three minutes … In another national TV game, a lot of people finally saw what all the Renardo Sidney fuss has been about. We’ve been up on Renardo’s talent and potential since the kid was in 8th grade, and in Mississippi State’s win over rival Ole Miss, he put it all out there: 24 points on a combination of threes, mid-range fadeaways, and strong buckets at the rim. And there were a handful of scoring chances Sidney missed due to miscommunication with teammates or simply bad bounces. A few more games for Sidney to get in-sync with star point guard Dee Bost (25 pts, 8 asts, 3 stls), and Mississippi State will be a problem for any team in the country … We’re out like Mike Miller’s game …
