Come on, Westbrook, Durant: Patch it up!
Darting here and there
We’re looking forward to NBA All-Star Weekend, but already weary of more Kevin Durant-Russell Westbrook melodrama. Good grief, this breakup is dragging out longer than Brad Pitt and Jennifer Aniston. Patch it up, fellas!
Here’s how resolution works. Westbrook goes on to win the MVP. Durant goes on to win his first NBA title. Both get paid exorbitantly regardless, live happily ever after. So simple.
Somehow, while he hasn’t offered any hints about how he’ll do it, we can envision Steve Kerr playing Durant-Westbrook peacemaker this weekend. If he pulls it off, he should be NBA Coach of the Year again. Should be anyway.
Warriors’ aggregate record prior to the AllStar break the last three years under Kerr: 137-22. That’s just shy of winning 9 out of every 10 games, and yes, feel free to keep pinching yourself.
There was something just a little hilarious about the guy with the third-most technical fouls in the league (Draymond Green, 11) being ejected over a foul dispute involving the guy with the most technicals (DeMarcus Cousins, 17).
Who’s No. 2? That would be Cousins’ former Sacramento teammate, Isaiah Thomas, who has 14 despite the remarkable season he’s having in Boston.
Most technicals by anybody in an NBA season? That would be the Babe Ruth of the T, Rasheed Wallace. He had 41 in one season, 317 for his career, two marks that will never be broken now that you face suspensions and lost pay starting at 16 techs.
Only 10 of Green’s technicals count toward a one-game suspension, because one was non-unsportmanlike for rimhanging. But he still only has five left to play with over the final 26 games with before it starts costing him, and the Warriors (fortunately, the T total doesn’t carry over into the playoffs).
The Warriors are sending plenty of people to New Orleans, but after watching the replay of the 2011 NBA Dunk Contest, it’s a shame JaVale McGee isn’t there, too. He got robbed that year, far more creative and dynamic than winner Blake Griffin, and his 88 jams this season merited him another shot.
Yes, Griffin dunked leaping over the hood of a car that year. But JaVale dunked while his head was somehow on the back side of the backboard. We’ve never seen that, before or since.
Oakland street ball legend Demetrius “Hook” Mitchell could actually jump over the top of cars and dunk (see it on YouTube), and he was 5-foot-9. Get out of here, Blake.
Our all-time dream dunk contest participants: Julius Erving, Larry Nance, Dominique Wilkins, Michael Jordan, Zach Lavine. Hard to comprehend Mitty’s own Aaron Gordon not winning this year after barely losing to Lavine last year.
Three-ball contest: Klay all the way.
Chris Cohan must have really enjoyed reading Forbes’ updated franchise values. Warriors up more than $2 billion since 2011? Even five years out, Cohan is still getting humiliated.
We get the clean slate concept with the 49ers, but running backs coaching mainstay Tom Rathman out of a job? First major misstep of the John Lynch/Kyle Shanahan era. Still time to fix it.
We’re back in a “can’t figure out the Sharks” phase. Five losses and 23 goals allowed in six games? Don’t want to hear the “but they got a point” rationalization, either.
New Raiders offensive coordinator Todd Downing’s challenge: 100 catches, 1,500 yards, double-digit touchdowns for Amari Cooper. Cooper has that in him, and Bill Musgrave didn’t get it.
Between the Raiders and 49ers, hard to believe we may not see a head-coaching change for the next several years. Combined, they’ve had 12 coaches since 2008.
Ah yes, the annual pitchers-and-catchers rite of spring, and in the case of the A’s, a whole new set of nametags.
The Giants won’t be getting the 2009 version of Aaron Hill (36 homers, 108 RBIs), but he did hit 10 homers last year between Boston and Milwaukee, which would have put him among the team leaders in San Francisco.
Finally, in the era of fake news, isn’t it nice to know it hasn’t crept into your sports section yet?