SPURS GONNA SPURS
: Just a few days ago, Tony Parker said publicly what every Spurs observer already knew: he hasn't been the same since coming back from his hamstring injury. On Sunday against Chicago, though, Parker appeared to be back to his normal self. He went off on the Bulls for 32 points on 13-for-19 shooting in a 116-105 win, getting into the lane at will and making San Antonio's offense look like a work of art.
In Parker's postgame television interview, he said that he is feeling better. It showed.
I love Tim Duncan's reaction to that move so much that I just had to make it a Vine. Just let this loop:
As for the aforementioned artful offense, two plays in particular stand out. Watch Parker and Manu Ginobili patiently play off each other, with Parker setting up Ginobili for a wide-open 3:
And almost immediately after that, LOOK AT ALL OF THE PASSING. This just has to be demoralizing for the defense.
At one point in the third quarter, Parker scored 15 straight Spurs points. It was a team effort, though, with Kawhi Leonard adding 20, Ginobili 16 and Patty Mills 15 (in 16 minutes).
San Antonio outscored Chicago 35-9 in fast break points, which should give you a general idea of how this game played out. The Spurs have now won five straight games, including the first three of this six-game homestand. Everything seems pretty peachy:
WEIRD
: For the first time in his career, Tim Duncan didn't make a single field goal. He went 0-for-8. It was his 1,311th game. I doubt he cares too much about that.
PAU POW
: Another big statistical game for Pau Gasol: 23 points on 9-for-16 shooting, plus 15 rebounds and two blocks. Guarding him in the post is not easy.
LIVING AT THE LINE
: Bulls forward Nikola Mirotic made all nine of his free throw attempts, and he finished with 19 points. He's averaging 10 FTA per game in March, which is so important for Chicago's offense with Derrick Rose, Jimmy Butler and Taj Gibson out of the lineup.
SNEAKY KAWHI: Leonard had three steals, including this one on Mike Dunleavy that led to an easy dunk. How many humans have the ability to pull this off? Just a special talent.
PHOTO OF THE DAY : That Leonard dunk.
MANU MANEUVER: Ginobili is a joy in transition. A joy, I say.
POINT NAZR: For seven weird and wonderful minutes, Nazr Mohammed appeared to be everywhere. Entering the game, the backup center had 13 total points this season. This time, though, the ball kept finding him near the basket, and he wound up with eight points on 4-for-4 shooting. He also had one assist, and it was a memorable one:
I, FOR ONE, WELCOME OUR NEW OVERLORD: Stephen Curry doing things with a basketball is my favorite show on TV.
If you'd prefer to watch it over and over forever, here's a Vine:
The Warriors won 106-98 but this was really a blowout. The Clippers went on an 10-0 run in garbage time to make the final score look more respectable. For Golden State, even against good teams, scoring often seems too easy.
Aside from that ridiculous play, Curry was relatively quiet -- the leading scorers were Draymond Green (23 points), Klay Thompson (21) and Shaun Livingston (21).
BEST INTERVIEW IN THE LEAGUE: Draymond Green was bumped by Dahntay Jones while he was doing his postgame television interview.
Draymond Green then talked for nearly two minutes about Dahntay Jones bumping him during his postgame television interview.
When Draymond Green speaks, you listen.
So much gold.
SHAAAAAUN LIVINGSTON: It was fun to see him bully Austin Rivers around, and the Warriors went to that matchup many times.
No, I totally didn't put that video in here just because of Mark Jackson saying, "Take that and tell your daddy I say hi." Of course I didn't.
Livingston, by the way, warrants some attention when he's driving coast to coast.
COACHING : Steve Kerr was mic'd up, and the following exchange between him and Marreese Speights is a great use of that feature.
BIG DIVE BY BIG BABY: Glen Davis really hustled for this loose ball, and he wasn't pleased when he got called for a foul. Poor Big Baby.
LET'S WATCH STEPH AGAIN : Here's Curry with a killer crossover on Chris Paul. Who else is making Paul jump like that to contest an off-the-dribble 3-pointer?
Paul looks silly here, but he was playing with full effort all game and just made a little mistake. He needs more help, though. Come back soon, Blake Griffin.
LINE OF THE NIGHT - RUSSELL WESTBROOK: Another triple-double for the masked man, who has done it five times in the last six games. The line: 30 points, 17 (!) assists, 11 rebounds, four steals, one block, 9-21 FG, 11-13 FT. Just silly stuff.
(Westbrook had nine turnovers, but let's not pick any nits here.)
DUNK OF THE NIGHT: DeMar DeRozan's stringing some good games together now, including a 24-point, nine-rebound performance in OKC. The best of those two points? A huge dunk in transition in the final minute:
Kyle Lowry's still not himself, but there were some encouraging signs from the Raptors here. The ball movement was better for stretches, and they put up 35 points in the second quarter. They couldn't contain Westbrook in the end, though, and Serge Ibaka was brilliant on both ends. Still, Toronto has lost three in a row and eight of nine. And it has the Spurs up next on the road. Ruh roh.
AIR JORDAN : Lakers rookie Jordan Clarkson is getting a lot of playing time as a starting point guard, and he showed off his athleticism in the open court:
HE HAVE IT ALL : Monta Ellis scored 26 of his 31 points in the second half and led the Mavs to a 100-93 comeback victory. Hard to feel great about a win against these Lakers, but Dallas has to be happy to have Chandler Parsons back in the lineup, Al-Farouq Aminu changing games on defense (six steals!) and Ellis piling up points.
HOW COULD YOU BE MOE HARKLESS: Maurice Harkless played a season-high 30 minutes (after getting a DNP-CD on Friday) for the Magic and played a big part in their 103-98 win over the Celtics. Here he is hanging on the rim after a baseline dunk:
And, in what was perhaps the biggest play of the game, he stole a pass intended for Isaiah Thomas, went the other way and dunked again. Harkless had 14 points, seven rebounds, three assists, three steals and a block.
THIS IS PROMISING: As well as getting some production out of Harkless, Orlando got a lot from its young backcourt. Elfrid Payton and Victor Oladipo both played 42 minutes -- a bit much, maybe? -- and combined for 41 points, 17 rebounds, 12 assists and only four turnovers.
SUPER BASS-O-MATIC: How about this line from Brandon Bass? Nineteen points, 17 rebounds and five assists. That's some good Bass.
REGJACK!: Pistons point guard Reggie Jackson will dunk on somebody every once in a while.
The good news: Jackson had 25 points, seven assists and seven rebounds against Charlotte. The bad news: Detroit lost 108-101, and is now 23-39 on the season and 12th in the East. It once looked like Stan Van Gundy was going to get this group in the playoffs, but that's looking tougher now -- Indiana and Miami are tied for eighth at 28-34.
The Hornets, meanwhile, are half a game in front of the Pacers and Heat, holding onto the seventh spot. Mo Williams had 21 points and nine assists, his seventh 20-plus-point game for Charlotte.
HEY THE JAZZ ARE PRETTY GOOD: Utah has had a soft schedule lately, but seven wins in nine games is something. The Jazz have become an excellent defensive team, and they looked like a good offensive team in their 95-88 win in Brooklyn. Time to pay more attention to them, and let's not be surprised when they're much better next season.
