Welcome to Happy Hour AM! We’re here to recap the night that was in the NBA. Last night, The NBA named the rest of the All-Star roster after naming the starters last week.
EAST ALL-STARS
WEST ALL-STARS
The Night That Was:
Mavericks 110, Celtics 107
Luka Doncic (31 PTS, 10 REB, 8 AST) is unreal. The Celtics were down almost the entire 4th quarter. But they just wouldn’t go away. They kept battling back and made it a game.
Kemba Walker stepped up and hit some huge threes. Jayson Tatum displayed some incredible shot-making ability.
But you can’t help it when Luka turns into Luka Legend.
First, Luka hit a go-ahead 3 with 15 seconds left to put the Mavs up 107-105.
Jaylen Brown, who was fantastic in his own right down the stretch (29 PTS, 7 REB, 5 AST), came down the floor and hit an elbow jumper to tie the game.
Then Luka Legend decided to show up.
The Mavs are .500 for the first time in a month (15-15) and the Celtics are now UNDER .500 (15-16) and have fallen to 6th place in the East (Sorry Dunny.)
Cavaliers 112, Hawks 111
We’re talking Luka Legend…but what about LAMAR LEGEND?
Lamar Stevens is a rookie forward out of Penn State. He played 16 minutes and had 8 points in the game.
But he was ready for his moment as he drove and dunked all over the Hawks with 4 seconds left to help the Cavs snap their 10-game losing streak.
Collin Sexton was excellent once again for Cleveland (29 PTS, 5 AST).
Trae Young had a less than stellar game from the field (28 PTS on 9-27) and in the last moments of the game, passed to a teammate in the corner who had no time to even attempt a game-winning shot.
Warriors 114, Knicks 106
Fans returned to MSG just in time to watch the Stephen Curry show.
Steph following suit with other superstars in the league saved one of his best performances of the year for his trip to the Garden.
Curry (37 PTS, 6 REB, 6 AST) wasn’t as efficient as he usually is shooting the ball (9-22 from the field). But he was DEADLY from the three-point line (7-14 from deep).
The biggest play of the game though was a beautiful, acrobatic assist to Kelly Oubre JR. that sealed this hard-fought affair for the Dubs.
76ers 109, Raptors 102
Despite the score, this game really never felt that close.
The Raptors outscored the Sixers 37-30 in the 4th quarter but it wasn’t enough to get by as they dug themselves a hole in the first quarter.
The Sixers came out FIRING. They led 37-18 after one and got contributions from everyone on offense. They needed everyone because Toronto was able to contain Joel Embiid to one of his worst stat lines of the year (18 PTS on 3-13 from the field).
The Sixers can win in multiple ways. They can outscore you as they did against the Bulls Friday night when Embiid went off for a 50 piece. Or they can slow it down and lock you down as they did for most of this game against the Raptors.
Toronto battled in the 4th. They’re a proud, veteran team who isn’t just going to roll over for a team. But the Sixers are proving they can win important games and win them in multiple ways.
Nuggets 111, Trail Blazers 106
Enjoy Nikola Jokic giving Enes Kanter BUCKETS all game long. It was a long night for Kanter. But it’s a long night for a lot of guys who have to guard The Joker.
OTHER RESULTS:
Happy Hour Highlight of the Night:
Enjoy the brilliance of Luka last night. Stick around to watch the buzzer-beater one more time.
The Game of the Night Ahead:
Lakers @ Jazz
As we wrote yesterday, this is the start of an important stretch of games for LeBron and the Lakers. They have lost 3 straight since Anthony Davis went out with his injury.
In the next three games, they play the Jazz, Trail Blazers and Warriors. They need to figure out their offensive woes quickly or they are going to find themselves chasing to get back into the top 3 in the West for the rest of the year.
Hopefully, Dennis Schroeder (health and safety protocols) can return tonight to give them a boost.
For the Jazz? It’s a chance at another statement win over a great team. They have not been coming lightly in any of these matchups. These are the type of games that you should win if you want to be a true title contender.
The Lakers are beat up and LeBron can only carry so much offensively for them.
Well, LeBron can actually carry A LOT offensively. And now his back is against the wall. This should be a fun one.
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