🏀 And Then There Were Eight...

🚨 BREAKING: the In-Season Tournament is a success. We just spent a random Tuesday night in late November nervously watching the NBA and doing highly advanced arithmetic. And isn’t that what sports is all about? Isn’t it? We’re not crazy… right?

Today’s Lineup

🏀 Last Night’s Action: Malik Monk hit an INSANE shot to help fuel this newfound Kings-Warriors rivalry…

🏆 In-Season Tournament: Group play is over, so which eight teams are moving on to the knockout round?

💡 NBA History Spotlight: This “Tiny King” was the points and assists champ in 1972-73…

Last Night’s Action

The In-Season Tournament (IST) group stage is complete! We’ll catch you up on last night’s most important matchups and then go over who’s moving on to the knockout round. ⬇️

• With an impossible fading jumper as time ticked down, Malik Monk beat the Warriors and punched Sacramento’s ticket to the IST Quarterfinals! The Kings stormed allllll the way back from down 24 behind De’Aaron Fox’s 29 points—this was a perfect example of how the IST can make random November games into meaningful matchups!

• Milwaukee clinched home court advantage in the IST Quarterfinals with a tight win over the Heat. Giannis and Dame combined for 65 points, but it was Khris Middleton who went god mode down the stretch to seal the win. Shoutout to Bam Adebayo for the assertive 31-point double-double sans Jimmy! 🫡 

• In perhaps the least athletic but most offensively skillful duel of the year, Luka Doncic (41 points) and Alperen Sengun (31 points) gave us a dual 48-minute highlight reel in the Mavs’ 121-115 win over Houston. Catch the game’s best plays here: ⬇️

• Timberwolves vs. Thunder was a clash between two of the most fun teams in the league right now, and Minnesota prevailed 106-103 despite Anthony Edwards’ injury. Rudy Gobert was everywhere defensively and Troy Brown Jr. hit two dagger shots in the final minutes!

• Julius Randle’s 25-point, 20-rebound performance crushed the LaMelo-less Hornets 115-91. Mitchell Robinson continued to be a Goliath with six blocks, two steals, and five offensive rebounds as the Knicks won by enough points to sneak into the IST Quarterfinals!

And then there were eight! The four teams who made the quarterfinals of last year’s playoffs and this year’s In-Season Tournament are the Boston Celtics, the Los Angeles Lakers, the Phoenix Suns, and the New York Knicks. We also love to see that some young offensive firecrackers—the Pacers, Kings, and Pelicans—earned spots as well. And then there’s Milwaukee, who doesn’t fit into either of those categories. But we hear they have some decent basketball players regardless… 🤷‍♂️

Monday Night Notes

ICYMI, here’s what happened to begin the week:

• Portland prevailed over the Pacers 114-110 thanks to a tough game-clinching floater from Malcolm Brogdon (24 points). Jerami Grant also poured in a smooth 34, which helped his $160 million contract look a little more tradable…

• Reggie Jackson and DeAndre Jordan combined for 56 points to lead the shorthanded Nuggets over the loaded Clippers 113-104. Jordan looked like his prime Lob City self out there—we’re still a little confused, but we love it! 😂

• Zion and Brandon Ingram combined for 51 points, but Keyonte George (19 points) slammed home the Jazz’s 114-112 win over New Orleans.

• Led by Joel Embiid’s monstrous 30-point triple-double, Philly clobbered the Lakers by 44 points—the biggest margin of defeat in LeBron’s career. 😮

NBA History Spotlight

Throughout the past decade, heliocentric guards like James Harden, Russell Westbrook, and Luka Doncic have dominated with their ability to drop buckets and dimes. But way back when, Nate “Tiny” Archibald was doing the same thing to an even greater extent. He remains the ONLY player to ever lead the entire NBA in points and assists—on both a per-game and total basis.

In 1972-73, Archibald averaged 34.0 points (2719 total) and 11.4 assists (910 total) for the Kansas City-Omaha Kings. He sped up and slowed down games at will, navigating through defenses with his exceptional dribbling and athleticism. The only players to even approach Archibald’s legendary season are Trae Young (who led the league in total points and total assists in 2021-22) and Oscar Robertson (who led the league in points per game and assists per game in 1967-68).

Despite Archibald's individual brilliance, the Kings finished with a 36-46 record and Tiny’s less-than-tiny season didn’t ultimately equate with success. Still, he displayed a to-this-day unmatchable display of offensive firepower. Tiny Kings stand up! 👑

Three in the Key

• Is this the EuroLeague play of the year?!?! 🤩 

• Ausar Thompson broke out the acrobatic jelly… 🍇 

• We’re DYING at this Minnesota mascot’s performance. 😂

What We’re Enjoying

We loved this trend that went viral a couple days ago on X/Twitter. Scroll through the replies to see other examples of what happens when you ask ChatGPT to make something “more _____”. 🔥 

Signing Off

We hope your happiness is as big as Wemby and your sorrows are as Tiny as Archibald. Have a good one, friend! 😁✌️

-Conor Geelan

Trivia Answer: Isiah Thomas (the Pistons one) never led the NBA in scoring! Wilt Chamberlain and his 702 total assists won the title in 1968, one year before the league began awarding stat titles to the highest average instead of the highest total.

Before you go…