BBNBA: SGA furthers All-Star push

We’re living in strange times in the sports world. Tom Brady is competing for a second consecutive Super Bowl with a team not called the Patriots. The Atlanta Braves are World Series Champions. And, in the waning days of 2021, Olivier Sarr and Scotty Hopson are teammates — in the NBA.

How did we get here? Glad you asked. About last night…

Kings outlast SGA, depleted Thunder

No one ever thought that the Oklahoma City Thunder would be good this year. They’re rebuilding, and outside of Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, the OKC roster was sparse from the get-go. Still, we have to talk about the Omicron-gutted lineup that they trotted out in last night’s 117-111 loss to Sacramento. It’s not just bad, it’s shocking:

That’s right — amid a laundry list of no-name journeymen, Oklahoma City’s bench included both 32-year-old Hopkinsville native Scotty Hopson, who hasn’t played a game in the league since 2018, and a 22-year-old Frenchman named Olivier Sarr making his NBA debut. With Darius Bazley, Aleksej Pokusevski and others stuck in safety protocols, Sarr played nearly 12 minutes and scored four points. Welcome to the Association, Olivier!

Olivier draws the foul and earns his first career NBA points!@sarr_olivier | @okcblue ↔️ #ThunderUp pic.twitter.com/e9jXIBLhle

— OKC THUNDER (@okcthunder) December 29, 2021

As crazy as this situation is, the real story of this game is that the Kings are bad enough that they almost lost anyway. Granted they were missing a few players as well — and De’Aaron Fox is a little rusty after just emerging from the protocols himself — but this game was a mess.

The reason it was as close as it was in the end was Gilgeous-Alexander, plain and simple. The 23-year-old topped 25 for the fourth straight game with 33 points, including 15 in the final 12 minutes. Amid the steaming pile that is OKC, SGA is a diamond waiting to shine.

As I mentioned in Sunday’s roundup, he’s also one of a few former ‘Cats with a real shot of being selected for his first All-Star Game. Go vote for him right now and I’ll give you a high-five.

Herro stays hot, lifts Heat to victory

Needless to say, the Thunder aren’t the only team that’s been hit hard by the spread of Omicron. The Heat-Wizards contest on Tuesday had the distinction of having nearly as many players out as in; both teams were missing eight pieces from their respective rosters, forcing quite a few replacements to figure it out on the fly.

Still, one man not beholden to any figuring out is Tyler Herro. After receiving a questionable ejection in Sunday’s game, he came back with a vengeance in this one. Herro dropped a 20-piece in the first half alone, including 3-3 from outside:

20 piece in the first half? Boy Wonder at it again. 🔥 pic.twitter.com/0DkY6HqlsU

— Miami HEAT (@MiamiHEAT) December 29, 2021

Boy Wonder finished with a game-high 32 points, his highest total of the season so far. The Heat won 119-112. If you throw out the night he was tossed, he’s averaging a whopping 29 PPG over the last three games. MAKE HIM AN ALL-STAR!

Seriously, click that link, and I’ll dap you up high AND down low. I’m telling ya, you won’t find a better offer.

Mount Monk erupts again in Lakers win

Pretty much everything I just said about Herro can be echoed for Malik Monk, except for the high-five thing (that’s a one-time offer). Since returning from a two-week Covid absence, Monk has been red-hot, scoring 20+ in L.A.’s last two games. That includes a cool 25 in last night’s win over the Rockets, his second-biggest scoring output of the year.

The headlines from this one rightfully went to LeBron James and Russell Westbrook, who somehow both recorded triple-doubles. But it was against the Rockets, so does that really count? Anyway, Monk’s 25 were second on the team behind James, and nobody was replicating THIS:

Malik Monk should be a permanent starter pic.twitter.com/HSeGeJWsLk

— LakeShowYo (@LakeShowYo) December 29, 2021

The Lakers snapped a five-game losing streak with this win, the first since Anthony Davis‘ injury. His pre-injury play was much-maligned, but they need AD to get healthy if they want to get back into contention. No amount of triple-doubles is going to beat Golden State and Phoenix without him.

That is, unless Monk decides to go nuclear every night. That could work.

News & Notes:

• Immanuel Quickley (NYK) returned from a four-game absence in Tuesday’s win over the Wolves, scoring six points. Julius Randle added 13 and 15.
• DeMarcus Cousins (MIL) put up nine points and five boards in Orlando. His usage has gone down since Giannis Antetokounmpo’s return, but he continues to earn valuable minutes for the Bucks.
• Brandons Boston Jr. (LAC) and Knight (DAL) are the latest players to enter the NBA’s health protocols, per Woj. There are nine ‘Cats on the list as of Wednesday.

Here’s the full stat sheet from Tuesday’s action:

Today in the NBA:

7:00 – Knicks (Randle, Quickley, Knox, Noel*) @ Pistons (Diallo, Lyles*)

7:00 – Hornets (Richards, Washington*) @ Pacers (Jackson)

7:30 – Clippers (Bledsoe, Boston Jr.*) @ Celtics (Freedom*)

8:00 – Hawks @ Bulls

8:00 (NBATV) – Lakers (Davis*, Monk, Rondo*) @ Grizzlies

8:30 – Heat (Herro, Adebayo*) @ Spurs (Johnson)

9:00 – Thunder (SGA, Sarr) @ Suns (Booker)

10:00 – Jazz @ Trail Blazers

10:30 (NBATV) – Mavericks (WCS*, Knight*) @ Kings (Fox)

* – inactive