San Francisco Chronicle - (Sunday)
It’s clear sailing for Warriors as others struggle
It’s a terrible thing to get stuck, whether your car breaks down or your mind goes blank. The Warriors have some issues, centered around health and rotation complications, but they see a clear-cut path to glory. They are not stuck, a fate holding several teams in a vise grip of anxiety.
Russell Westbrook had what Lakers head coach Frank Vogel called “a hell of a game” Friday night as the Lakers got past Orlando, but the fullseason scouting report says Westbrook can’t shoot, defend, operate in a halfcourt offense or control his turnovers, which makes him a $44 million mistake and likely untradable. Vogel, who felt compelled to bench Westbrook for the last four minutes of a tight game (and eventual loss) Wednesday night against Indiana, is under fire less than two years after winning a title. Anthony Davis could be the savior, but only if he returns from his knee injury with a burning intensity and teams with the ageless LeBron James to elevate this poorly constructed roster.
For the crosstown Clippers, it’s bad enough to lose their two best players — but they have no idea when Kawhi Leonard (knee) and Paul George (elbow) will be available. Every playoff blueprint is crafted in pencil, with the knowledge that today’s rotations eventually will have little meaning.
The 76ers aren’t quite a title contender but they’re having all sorts of fun, with Joel Embiid at the forefront of MVP discussions and Seth Curry adding a deadly midrange game to his long-distance threat. All the while, pouty
Ben Simmons remains idle while President Daryl Morey tries to figure out a trade. It makes sense that Morey would hold out for a blockbuster, but does he really want to waste Embiid’s fabulous season when he could get something of value for Simmons?
As for the Brooklyn Nets, “They must be on the road — get the popcorn out,” Dennis Scott enthused as NBA TV showed the highlights of the Nets-Spurs game Friday night. That’s true; things do look promising when Kyrie Irving is in the lineup. At home, where the unvaccinated Irving isn’t allowed to play — get out the year-old potato chips. And good for ESPN’s Kendrick Perkins, telling it like it is: “The guys in that locker room, they’re soft,” he said this week. “Especially Kevin Durant and James Harden .I don’t want to hear, ‘Kyrie’s a grown man, gotta respect his decision.’ No. They should be saying, ‘Look here, man, this is what’s going on.’ ”
More All-Star picks
Last week we made a case for Draymond Green and Andrew Wiggins as Western Conference All-Stars, with Green a worthy choice to start. If it breaks down to six backcourt players on a 12-man roster, go with Stephen Curry and Ja Morant as the starters. Morant has been just that good, phenomenally entertaining in Memphis and blossoming as a leader. Personal picks for the other four: Devin Booker, Chris Paul, Luka Doncic and Shai GilgeousAlexander, having a tremendous season in OKC. … Easy calls for the Eastern frontcourt starters: Embiid, Durant (if healthy) and Giannis Antetokounmpo, backed by Jimmy Butler, Jayson Tatum and Charlotte’s Miles Bridges, with apologies to Domantas Sabonis, Jarrett Allen and probable Rookie of the Year Evan Mobley. … In the backcourt, start DeMar DeRozan (he’s listed as a guard) and Trae Young, and make certain LaMelo Ball is on the team; he’s a show this game can’t afford to miss. Rounding it out:
Zach LaVine, Fred VanVleet and the spectacularly quick Darius Garland, really making a difference in Cleveland. Just can’t see the need for the up-and-down Harden, who’s about as exciting as a man vacuuming his bedroom. … The legend of Klay Thompson: Embiid scored 50 points in just 27 minutes, 3 seconds Wednesday night against Orlando, but it’s not the record for the fewest minutes on court for a 50-plus game in the shotclock era (1954 on). Thompson had 52 points in 26:33 against Chicago in October 2018, the night he scored his singlegame record 14 3-pointers. Klay also ranks third on this list: 60 points in 29:03 against Indiana in December 2016. …The Warriors feel it can’t be too long before the misfiring Thompson resurrects his shooting touch. The rest of the league definitely can wait.
Get ready for a very hollow Winter Olympics in Beijing (Feb. 4-20). Fearing travel risks, China’s restrictive entrance requirements during a coronavirus surge and the prospect of infected staffers having to spend weeks in oppressive quarantine, NBC will not send any of its broadcasting teams to the Games. Mike Tirico is scheduled to be there as the host, but he’ll leave for Los Angeles in time to work the Feb. 13 Super Bowl for NBC (whether he’ll return is uncertain). Crews for the various sports will be working off computer screens with a 13hour time difference at the network’s facility in Stamford, Conn. … Virus-related apprehension in that environment is hardly limited to the media; there are reports of some very nervous athletes, as well. … The Australian Open is moving along nicely without Novak Djokovic, and through all the incompetence displayed on both sides of that dispute, it’s stunning to consider that Djokovic was willing to thoroughly disrupt the tournament
every day he was in the draw. Other players’ stories and achievements would be shoved into the background. There would be tension, at the very least, between Serbian fans and Australians in the stands and in the streets. It would be an absolute delight to see a man with some compassion and common sense, Rafael Nadal, win that event. (Nadal was due to play Andrew Mannarino in the fourth round Saturday night.) … If Djokovic persists with his mission of ignorance, there’s no guarantee he’ll be able to play the French Open. A vaccine law passed in Paris last Sunday will require people to have a certificate of vaccination to enter public places such as sports venues, restaurants, cafes, cinemas and long-distance trains — no exemptions.