BBNBA: Johnson's 22 not enough to push past SGA, Thunder
Last night was a rough one for most of the former ‘Cats running around the association. Luckily for us, there’s more than enough guys to follow that a few made an impact on the court. Let’s dive in.
Thunder hold off Keldon Johnson and San Antonio
Just as everyone expected, when Shai Gilgeous-Alexander decided to have an off night against the Spurs, Jeremiah Robinson-Earl and Mike Muscala combined for 33 for Oklahoma City in the 99-94 win.
SGA just couldn’t seem to hit a shot last night, which happens. The lead guard ended up with 14 points on 5-16 shooting, 1-6 from deep. He did still have an impact by almost dropping a triple-double, finishing with eight rebounds and nine assists. It’s just one night; we learned very recently to trust Shai when he says that he’s that guy. Get him some real help and let’s watch this guy cook.
Speaking of others who desperately need help in the future, Keldon Johnson put up another impressive performance in the win. Johnson led the Spurs with 22 on 9-16 shooting while also grabbing six boards in the process. Keldon has now scored at least 16+ in three straight games. This may not end up being a good year for the Spurs as an organization, but Johnson seems primed to make a huge leap that gives intrigue to the future in San Antonio.
Kentucky Knicks falter against Cleveland
The Knicks are doing absolutely everything in their power to confuse America about how good they are as a basketball franchise. They will go out and convincingly beat both the 76ers and the Bucks with little trouble. Only to go out and get embarrassed by teams like the Magic, Raptors and the Cavs. Thibs, ya gotta figure it out man.
As it is most days when the Knicks run out on the court, they go as Julius Randle goes. Julius wasn’t exactly lighting it up, as it was more of an average night from the all-pro. Randle did his job and ended up with 19 points, seven rebounds and seven assists on 7-17 shooting from the field in the 126-109 loss to the Cavs.
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The struggles of the Knicks last night can more likely be found with RJ Barrett, who had his worst game of the season, shooting 3-13, after being scolding hot for a couple of weeks.
Immanuel Quickley tallied 12 points in 20 minutes as he still tries to get his shot back to form. Nerlens Noel had a couple buckets and six rebounds in 30 minutes off the bench. And yes, Kevin Knox got in the game for precisely one minute. All with John Calipari watching from the Madison Square Garden stands.
Bad night to be a favorite
The association was just a wild experience last night with more than a few heavy underdogs getting outright wins. Brad Beal and the *checks notes* 7-3 Wizards defeated the Bucks as Milwaukee still tries to figure out how to deal with the championship hangover. Beal poured in 30 on 14-22 from the field as Washington dropped the Bucks to 4-6 on the year.
Cole Anthony must’ve had some unknown lurking hatred towards the Utah Jazz. The second-year player went off for 33 points on 13-20 shooting, 5-10 from deep in the 107-100 win over the Jazz. Even though the Magic are still a bad team, they have a fun, weird collection of players who each excel at a specific aspect of basketball. If anything, they’re always interesting to watch. It also helps that Utah’s starters went a combined 6-27 from three in the game.
Statistics
| Player | Result | Points | FG (3PA) | Rebounds | Assists | Steals | Blocks | TOs | Mins | +/- |
| Keldon Johnson (SAS) | 99-94 L @ OKC | 22 | 9-16 (0-1) | 6 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 38 | -10 |
| Julius Randle (NYK) | 126-109 L vs. CLE | 19 | 7-17 (1-5) | 7 | 7 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 37 | -22 |
| De’Aaron Fox (SAC) | 94-91 L vs. IND | 17 | 7-19 (1-3) | 3 | 2 | 3 | 0 | 3 | 35 | -14 |
| Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (OKC) | 99-94 W vs. SAS | 14 | 5-16 (1-6) | 8 | 9 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 36 | 16 |
| Immanuel Quickley (NYK) | 126-109 L vs. CLE | 12 | 3-8 (2-5) | 1 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 20 | -4 |
| Eric Bledsoe (LAC) | 120-106 W vs. CHA | 7 | 2-5 (1-2) | 5 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 5 | 24 | -10 |
| Nick Richards (CHA) | 120-106 L @ LAC | 6 | 3-3 | 6 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 28 | -13 |
| Nerlens Noel (NYK) | 126-109 L vs. CLE | 5 | 2-2 | 6 | 0 | 3 | 3 | 2 | 30 | -4 |
| Kevin Knox (NYK) | 126-109 L vs. CLE | 0 | 0-0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | -2 |
| B.J. Boston (LAC) | 120-106 W vs. CHA | 0 | 0-0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| Isaiah Jackson (IND) | 94-91 W @ SAC | DNP- Knee | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – |
| Mychal Mulder (ORL) | 107-100 W vs. UTA | DNP – CD | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – |
| P.J. Washington (CHA) | 120-106 L @ LAC | DNP – Elbow | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – |
Today in the NBA
7:00: Knicks (Randle, Noel, Quickley, Knox) @ 76ers (Maxey)
8:00 (NBA TV): Nets @ Bulls
8:00: Timberwolves (Towns, Vanderbilt) @ Grizzlies
8:30: Pelicans @ Mavericks (Cauley-Stein)
9:00 Heat (Adebayo, Herro) @ Nuggets (Murray)
10:00: Hawks @ Warriors
10:00: Suns (Booker) @ Kings (Fox)
10:30 (NBA TV): Hornets (Washington, Richards) @ Lakers (Davis, Monk, Rondo)
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