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Yes, the Oklahoma City Thunder are now the margin of victory kings, setting the record last season and currently obliterating their own record. But on this date in 2021, the Thunder were on the wrong side of the largest margin of victory in league history. The Memphis Grizzlies beat them 152-79. It’s a real score. A 73 point victory. The Grizzlies bench dominated the entire Thunder 93-79.
Phoenix rises
How did the Suns make such a drastic change?
How good are the Suns? On Monday, Phoenix was in Los Angeles to face the Lakers, who have won seven in a row. Devin Booker left the game after 10 minutes with a groin injury. The gang was there for the Lakers – Luka Dončić, Austin Reaves and LeBron James played. And the Suns beat them.
Phoenix outscored the Lakers 65-46 in the second and third quarters and cruised to a 125-108 victory. The only drama of the fourth quarter was whether JJ Redick would leave LeBron in the blowout long enough to secure his 1,297th consecutive game of 10 or more points. He did, and the Lakers ran the offense through James until he got it.
The Suns (13-9) have now won 12 of their last 17 games. After starting 1-4, they look like a completely different team. They were supposed to be something of a joke this season after dumping Kevin Durant and Bradley Beal. Instead, they are at the heart of Western news.
In the first five games of the season, the Suns couldn’t score or defend. They were one of the seven worst offensive teams in the league because they couldn’t shoot or take care of the ball. Since this first week, the Suns have been in the top 10 in offense (10th) and defense (8th). Rookie head coach Jordan Ott has them playing inspired and aggressive basketball on both ends.
They force the second highest turnover rate outside of the Thunder. And for a team with a lot of interior issues, the Suns are top 10 in defensive rebounding. They also light you up at 3 points despite the loss of Durant and Beal. They’re sixth in 3-point percentage (37.7), and that’s with Booker and Dillon Brooks shooting a combined 31.7 percent from deep.
Collin Gillespie has become one of the best sixth men in the league. Everyone contributes. And there’s a totally different mindset from the team we saw last season. Even the team we saw a month ago.
Maybe Mat Ishbia was right? We can’t predict the Suns. We thought they would be contenders the last couple of years, and they sucked. We thought they would be bad this year and could play anyone.
The last 24
The NBA Cup has exhausted teams
🏀 Tired of traveling. The NBA Cup requires a lot of basketball at the start of the season. That a heavy load takes its tollwrites John Hollinger, and this may need to be remedied.
📈 Big jump. Law Murray’s latest Power Rankings are out! The Knicks take a big step forward.
🏀 Air balloon! LeBron James has seen it all in his career. But his reaction to Maxi Kleber’s missed layup seems new.
🚘 The trial begins. Denny Hamlin sues NASCAR and a defendant’s fans are dismissed from jury duty. This accused? Michael Jordan.
⛵ What an honor. Klay Thompson named his boat after his famous girlfriend. This is the SS stallion.
🎩 Magical act. Orlando avoided a chaotic loss to the Bulls, which continues to slide. Check the rest of Monday’s results.
🎧 Listening. Today’s “NBA Daily” details a upside down evening in the championship.
Stream the NBA on Fubo (try it for free!) and watch out-of-market games on League Pass.
Tanking Tuesday
Is a star point guard hiding in this draft class?
Point guard is probably the most saturated position when it comes to stars and impact players in today’s NBA. It might not necessarily be the most important, but we have so many stars at the lead guard position. It’s such a deep position that players like Ja Morant, Trae Young and LaMelo Ball are reportedly in trade discussions, and the reaction isn’t a real rush to want to acquire them.
This may suggest that unless there is a true star point guard in the upcoming NBA draft, your search should go elsewhere. I would not agree with this hypothetical assumption! There is a point guard in this draft who is very intriguing at the NBA level. Well, there could be several. But I’m just focusing on one today.
Kingston Flemings | PG | Houston | Freshman | 6 feet 4 inches
He’s only played eight games so far in his college career, but I love the way he attacks so much. John Hollinger wrote about him Monday after spotting him liveand I found this part very interesting:
“Fans will notice that Flemings is very right-handed, although opponents seem powerless to stop him from going that route once he gets a ball screen. I also have a few questions about his shot, and the shape will probably need some additional work. He doesn’t get a good arc on his ball, and it sometimes comes out with side spin, something more noticeable when watching him from the court before the game. Let’s just say I don’t think his 52.4% rating on 3 is durable all season.”
I couldn’t agree more with this sentiment. Flemings is very right-handed, and yet he is so quick, quick and creative to the rim that his body control takes over in every attacking situation. Yes, he needs to go a lot more left, but whatever physical advantage he has against screens or dribbles makes him impossible to cut off.
I don’t buy his 3-point jump success either. I really don’t like his shooting form, although it’s a bit better on catch-and-shoot opportunities. The placement of his hands is strange – it’s almost above the middle of his forehead.
And although Flemings has made more than half of his 3-pointers so far, I remind everyone of the Derrick Williams problem from 14 years ago. Do you remember him? Everyone freaked out that he jumped like a Greek myth and also hit 3-pointers, because he shot 56.8 percent from deep as a sophomore at Arizona. People started from a sample of 74 attempts. It’s tiny. The Flemings are 11 of 21 so far. It doesn’t mean anything.
However, he is quick to the basket, has great size for a point guard, and can really throw his passes all over the court. We could have another Jeremiah Fears situation with Flemings in the top 10.
