Plenty of surprises in NBA’s opening week.
As they say, Father Time is undefeated. But Vince
Carter, 39, is giving him a run for his money as the NBA’s oldest player.
Carter, the former Daytona Beach high school star and ex-Magic shooting guard, was assigned to guard Minnesota Timberwolves SG Andrew Wiggins, 21, late in the Memphis Grizzlies’ opening win. Crazy, huh?
Vince held the kid without a field goal during the final quarter.
I’d call that a Vinsanity defense.
Moving on to my other reactions to the NBA’s opening days: OKC PG Russell Westbrook was given the double-middle-finger salute – but not by departing teammate Kevin Durant this time. Just kidding. Actually, a Philadelphia 76ers fan named Richard Harkaway – a full-time urologist and part-time comedian – said Westbrook provoked him by making fun of his weight. Too bad Harkaway didn’t see fashionista Westbrook walk into the arena. He was wearing a kilt.
Well, the Wondrous Warriors won’t go 82-0. Golden State looked mortal in Durant’s grand opening. They were routed by the only team that could have beaten them by 29 – the San Antonio Spurs, the NBA’s forever formidable version of the New England Patriots.
The Warriors sacrificed size (Andrew Bogut) and bench depth to make room for Durant. But remember this: the Miami Heat Super Team of LeBron, D-Wade and Chris Bosh started the 2010-11 season at 9-8 in their first run.
Check out Pacers second-year PF Myles Turner’s line against Dallas: 30 points, 16 rebounds, four blocks. This is noteworthy for Rob Hennigan’s second-guessers who wonder why the Magic (and others) didn’t pick Turner (No. 11) in the 2015 draft, Orlando opting for stillstruggling SF Mario
Hezonja (No. 5). Selecting Turner would have spared
Victor Oladipo in the Serge Ibaka deal or stopped the Magic from overpaying Bismack Biyombo. No longer love-struck, GMs in an NBA.com survey left New Orleans F Anthony Davis for F Karl-Anthony Towns, citing Towns as the best young star now to build around. Maybe Davis felt neglected. He scored 50 points against Denver. But it wasn’t enough to win, which is why Pelicans fans should fear the next survey that tabs Davis as the best young star who’ll leave his team.
Who knew he could pass it, too? Playing point guard,
James Harden had 14 assists in the first half against the L.A. Lakers. He was nearly halfway to
Scott Skiles’ single-game NBA-record of 30 assists, but finished with 17. Skiles’ 1990 record set with the Magic figures to stand like
Joe DiMaggio’s 56-game hit streak.
That said, I wonder if Golden State PG Steph Curry can make a run at Skiles? Surrounded by Durant, Klay Thompson and Draymond Green, Curry could give his jumpshot the night off against, say, the Brooklyn Nets, and collect more dimes than an old pay phone.
For trivia buffs, Curry’s coach, Steve Kerr ,wasa teammate of Skiles with the Magic in 1992-93.
The Lakers found there is life after Kobe Bryant – and a lot more shot-attempts available. L.A. played its first game in two decades without Bryant and beat the Rockets in Luke Walton’s coaching debut.
Walton was a sparkling 40-4 heading into Friday. That’s if you count his 39 wins when he subbed for the ailing Kerr last season at Golden State. The league doesn’t.
This ‘n’ That
Former Winter Park High School G Austin
Rivers didn’t re-sign with the Clippers because it’s easier to play for his father,
Doc Rivers. “It’s the complete opposite. People who think that are [bleeping] idiots. It actually gets me angry. You can say it. ‘People are idiots.’ You can write that one down,” Austin told the Orange County Register. Austin did splurge after signing a three-year, $35 million contract. He bought his dream car, a $300,000 Ferrari, which he notes already has depreciated. “The Ferrari’s a dumb purchase,” he said…
A nice return on your investment: San Antonio F
Jonathan Simmons, who scored 20 points in the win against Golden State, had to pay a $150 registration fee in 2013 to try out with the DLeague Austin Spurs.Talk about pay-toplay. Simmons was told the Spurs had signed him while he was on a bus after playing a game in the Orlando Summer League… New York Knicks C
Joakim Noah on the Cavaliers ending the city’s title drought: “Congratulations to Cleveland, even though it’s not a vacation spot.”