Enjoy Basketball: Danny Green gets his ring, LeBron eyes Curry as future teammate

Welcome to the second Friday edition of Enjoy Basketball!

We're already entering the last weekend of the regular season, how the time flies. It seems like just yesterday I was spreading my "Blazers are a sneaky candidate to win the West" agenda on Twitter and raving about the Larry Nance Jr. signing. Obviously, both of those takes panned out really well.

Anyway, that's all in the past now and we have an exciting slate of games to cover from last night, so let's not waste any more time and get right into it. 

Marcus Smarts' big night not enough to take down Giannis and Co

With Jayson Tatum out, this really seemed like a chance for the Bucks to put the beatdown on one of their strongest opponents in the east. But you gotta give credit to this Celtics team. They nearly road a rare dominating performance on the offensive side of the ball from Marus Smart to the victory. And huge props to Larry Bir- I mean Sam Hauser on his career-high in points tonight. 

Even though it was closer than they wanted, the Bucks still got the job done. Jrue Holiday may have had a tough time containing Marcus Smart on defense, but he matched his scoring point for point, including nine in the fourth quarter. Giannis chipped in with 29 points and 11 rebounds or, as his season stats would suggest, a below-average performance. The win moves them ahead of Boston in the Eastern Conference standings, which surprisingly might not be a good thing. The win sets Milwaukee up for a potential playoff rematch with the Kevin Durant-Kyrie Irving Nets. 

Number to remember: 37.4

Marcus Smarts' three-point percentage since Jan 1, nearly five percent higher than his career average. His jump in shooting efficiency has been a big part of Boston's offensive improvement over the second half of the season. While they may not have won last night, the Celtics still have won eight out of 11 when Smart knocks down four or more threes.

LaMelo dazzles in blowout win over Magic

It was another day at the office for the high-flying Hornets offense, who put up 125+ points for the 17th time this season. LaMelo Ball led the way as per usual with a near triple-double and his daily quota of at least one ridiculous highlight. He got help from his backcourt mate Terry Rozier who chipped in with 22 and Kelly Oubre had 16 off the bench. On the other side, Orlando struggled to find any sort of offensive consistency outside of Chuma Okeke and Franz Wagner, who combined to score 37.

But it was Montrezl Harrell who made the biggest mark on the game. The former sixth man of the year finished a perfect six-for-six from the field, had a +/- of +31, and, to top it all off, got ejected along with two Magic players in the fourth quarter. Truly a performance for the ages.

CJ McCollum lights up former squad, Pelicans win big over Blazers

I imagine it still must be pretty weird for CJ McCollum to go up against his long-time team, but it certainly didn't seem like he minded during a 33 point beatdown of the Portland Trail Blazers. The former Lehigh man filled up the stat sheet with 23 points, four rebounds, seven assists, and three steals. Larry Nance Jr. didn't want to miss out on beating up his former team either, finishing with 12 points in 17 minutes. He and the rest of the Pelicans bench were a big part of the victory, outscoring their Portland counterparts 66 to 45.

The Trail Blazers tanking continues to roll on unabated. Impressively, they managed to lose the game by so much despite having a higher field goal, three-point, and free throw percentage than the Pelicans. That's what turning the ball over 22 times and giving up 31 free throws will do to you.

Numbers to remember: 13-11

The Pelican's record since acquiring CJ McCollum from Portland. They were just 23-33 before his arrival.  

Edwards carries T-Wolves in win over Spurs

A classic Greg Popovich Spurs game, filled with ball movement and unselfish play, wasn't enough to push the Spurs to the win over the Minnesota Timberwolves. Eight different players scored in double figures, but their efforts were laid to waste by a monster performance from Anthony Edwards, who set a new career-high with 49 points. But it was clear from the closing moments that he wanted even more, leading to a comedic display of chucking that ended with him falling just short of the coveted 50 point barrier. Outside of Karl-Anthony Towns' 21 points, Edwards didn't get much help, with no other teammate scoring more than 11.

Despite the win, the Wolves have officially secured a date with the eighth-seeded Los Angeles Clippers in the play-in tournament. Whether they should even have to play in the play-in tournament since they're 5.5 games in front of the Clippers, 9.5 games clear of the Pelicans and 11.5 games ahead of the Spurs, is another question entirely.

Siakam and Trent Jr. torch 76ers in possible playoff preview

76ers fans' worries about being a bad matchup with this long and athletic Toronto team certainly weren't helped by this performance. Joel Embiid dominated as usual, but James Harden had a nightmare of a time trying to get any sort of separation against the Raptors defenders. The Raptors ran circles around the Sixers as the game wore on and took advantage of the extra possessions they got thanks to their +6 advantage both on the offensive glass and in the turnover margin. This was all despite an inspired shooting performance from Philadelphia, who shot 19 of 36 from beyond the arc. 

Plus, Danny Green finally received his 2019 championship ring! Only three teams and another championship too late. Green repaid his former team by dropping six threes on their heads. 

Number to remember: 0 

The number of thirty-five point triple-doubles in Raptors history before last night's performance by Pascal Siakam. His dominance over the latter half of the year has been spectacular to watch, as he's helped lead Toronto to the second-most wins in the league since Feb 1.

Nuggets get crucial win over Grizzlies, Jokic with historic night

Talk about a big win that went under the radar. A loss here would have put the Nuggets just one game ahead of the Timberwolves for the sixth seed in the West, and a loss in their next game might have sent them tumbling into the play-in tournament. But Nikola Jokic put all that to rest. His 35 points led the Nuggets, who also got strong performances from Aaron Gordon (22 pts) and Bones Hyland (16 pts, 7 last). Plus he wore a sick headband.

For the Grizzlies, they finally are starting to look a bit lost without Ja Morant. Without their star PG, nobody really stepped up to take on the primary scorer duties, leading to a pretty lackluster offensive performance that would have been even worse without a late fourth-quarter rally. Sevin Memphis players scored in double figures, but none had more than 14 points.

Numbers to remember: 2,000 - 1,000 - 500

Nikola Jokic became the only player in NBA history to score 2,000 points, grab 1,000 rebounds, and dish out 500 assists in a single season during the Nugget's win over the Grizzlies. It gives the reigning MVP another round of ammunition in his fight for this year's award with Joel Embiid and Giannis Antetokounmpo. 

Warriors pile on Lakers misery thanks to Klay's big game

Who better for the Warriors to run into to get back on track than a hapless Lakers squad who now have nothing to play for but draft position? The Dubs offense was humming all night (are 52/50/100 shooting splits good? I'm pretty sure they are) and it was a welcome sight to see Klay Thompson at the center of it all. The second splash bro has had an up-and-down return to the NBA but looked just like his old self with a breezy 33 points and six made threes. He got good support from Jordan Poole and Andrew Wiggins, who combined to chip in 36 points of their own.

On the Laker's end, there's not much to talk about besides solid games from Malik Monk (24 pts) and Dwight Howard (16 pts, 12 rebs). Except ... 

Number to Remember: 40

The number of points Talen Horton Tucker scored for the Lakers, giving him a better season-high than both Anthony Davis and Russell Westbrook. Maybe he still has some superstar potential in him yet.

Russell Westbrook to ... Charlotte?

Yeah, I really wasn't expecting this rumor either.

As Marc Stein reported on Thursday, league insiders increasingly see the Charlotte Hornets as a possible trade destination for Russell Westbrook this offseason. The former MVP took a lot of heat this season on an underperforming Lakers team and it makes plenty of sense that Los Angeles would look to flip him this summer. But why is Charlotte interested?

One possible explanation is their owner, who I'm sure none of you know of. Michael Jordan has long been a public supporter of Russell Westbrook, even saying he reminds him of his younger self back in 2016. The allure of being able to bring Brodie to his own team might be too much to pass up. Another (probably more logical) explanation is finances.  The Hornets may be looking to get off the Gordon Hayward contract, which runs all the way through 2023-24. Westbrook's contract, while significantly larger, expires at the end of next season, potentially leaving Charlotte with max-level cap space for the 2023 offseason.  

Does a Lamelo Ball-Russell Westbrook backcourt make much sense? Probably not. But would they make Charlotte an even more dynamic and exciting team? Absolutely.

LeBron James wants to join forces with Stephen Curry

The sheer thought of James and Curry teaming up is enough to make most NBA fans break out in a cold sweat. Arguably the two greatest players of the past decade, the duo have been heated rivals for years thanks to their epic clashes in a host of NBA finals.

But maybe that could all change soon. On an upcoming episode of "The Shop", James expressed interest in playing with the NBA's all-time three-point king.

"I love everything about that guy," said James. "When he get out his car, you better guard him right from the moment he pulls up to the arena. ... Swear to god. He's serious."

Curry, on the other hand, appears to be a bit cooler on the concept. When asked about James's comments during an interview with Bay Area station 95.7 The Game, he seemed to laugh off the idea. 

"He picked me the last two All-Star Games. I don't know if that suffices, but I'm good right now," said Curry. "Whenever you get the interest or curiosity of what it would be like to play with arguably an MVP-caliber dude like he is ... that's amazing. We can all live in that fantasy world

Adam Silver discusses play-in tournament, take fouls and more at press conference

NBA Commissioner Adam Silver gave quite a few interesting tidbits during his press conference after the Board of Governors meeting on Wednesday, including bringing up the possibility of some much-needed changes.

Fans of mediocre teams rejoice because it looks like the play-in tournament is here to stay. Silver said the league has been impressed with the tournament's impact, especially over the last month of the regular season.  "Teams are either jockeying to get into the play-in tournament itself or jockeying to get out of the play-in tournament with a locked-in sixth seed. We're pleased with it," said Silver.

Remember transition buckets? Fast breaks? You might not if you've been watching basketball this season thanks to the infamous take foul. But luckily for everyone, it appears the bane of enjoyable basketball's existence is heading out the door. Silver said the league is strongly considering putting a rule in place to discourage take fouls. The most likely approach will be to follow the steps already taken by the G-league. They recently implemented a take foul deterrent rule of their own that gives teams intentionally fouled in transition a conciliatory free throw and the ball.

For today's reads, I thought we could do with some uplifting stories of players learning to enjoy basketball (get it). Whether it's MarJon Beauchamp's winding journey to becoming a potential NBA lottery pick,  Kevin Love finding happiness playing basketball again, or Kelvin Torbert's incredible story of grit and perseverance, all these stories 

From nearly giving up basketball to dining with LeBron: Budding star MarJon Beauchamp’s journey to NBA Draft -- Joe Vardon (The Athletic)

Kevin Love Is Having Fun in Cleveland Again -- Chris Mannix (Sports Illustrated)

Legendary Flint basketball player hopes his story teaches people how to go “All In” -- Patrick Hayes (FlintSide)

After going 7-3 with last Friday's picks, including calling that Wizards upset over the Mavericks, I'm feeling pretty good about myself. Hopefully, I can be as reliable for you all this week so here goes nothing.

Milwaukee Bucks @ Detroit Pistons - 7:00 p.m. EST

While the Pistons have enough talent on the roster to beat a quality team from time to time, as they showed against Philadelphia last week, I don't think they quite have enough to do it on any sort of consistent basis. I could see them struggling here, especially coming off a poor showing against the Mavericks. As usual watch out for Cade Cunningham, it will be interesting to see what he can do against a premier perimeter defender in Jrue Holiday. For the Bucks, this game gets them a step closer to securing the second seed in the East and the guaranteed homecourt advantage through the first two rounds that comes with it. Milwaukee takes it.

New York Knicks @ Washington Wizards - 7:00 p.m. EST

The Wizards and Knicks both saw early-season playoff aspirations crumble to dust and now sadly find themselves playing some fairly meaningless games in April.  The Knicks looked great early in their last game against Brooklyn but had their usual collapse down the stretch to lose by 12. Look out for Obi Toppin in this one, he's scored in double figures in eight of his last nine games. The Wizards have had alternating incredible and terrible games over their last four, with wins by 32 and 18 and losses by 42 (yikes) and 15. After a loss last time out, I expect them to continue the pattern and win comfortably, led by another strong performance from Kristaps Porzingis.

Cleveland Cavaliers @ Brooklyn Nets - 7:30 p.m. EST

A possible play-in tournament preview, this game has some pretty big implications. Both teams are vying for home-court advantage as well as to stay in front of a surging Atlanta Hawks squad. The Cavaliers will be happy to have Evan Mobley back for this one. The rookie big man is projected to play after missing some time with a lingering ankle injury. The Nets come into this one with back-to-back double-digit wins, although neither was as convincing as the scoreline indicated. I have a feeling Mobley's return will give a serious spark to the Cav's defense, and with Kyrie Irving struggling with efficiency recently, I think they'll shake off their cold streak and get the win over Brooklyn.

Houston Rockets @ Toronto Raptors - 7:30 p.m. EST

This has the feeling of one of those late-season transactional games where everybody gets what they want. The Rockets have lost five in a row as they look to lock down the best lottery odds in the upcoming draft. On the other side, you have the Raptors looking to secure their spot as a top-five team in the Eastern Conference. I don't see Toronto having much trouble here, but if they do it will be because of Jalen Green and Kevin Porter Jr. The duo have combined to score 60+ points twice in the past two weeks. 

Atlanta Hawks @ Miami Heat - 8:00 p.m. EST

I really like how both of these teams have been playing lately. The Hawks have been a top ten team in basketball for most of 2022 and Trae Young is finishing off what will most almost certainly be an All-NBA campaign. They've won six of their past seven games and just locked up a play-in spot. Danilo Gallinari might be another guy to watch here, he's scored in double figures in all but two games since March 1st and is coming off back-to-back strong performances to start off April. Despite all that, I think Miami takes this one. They're riding a five-game winning streak, are fresh off locking up the #1 seed in the conference and have done pretty well guarding Trae this season.

Charlotte Hornets @ Chicago Bulls - 8:00 p.m. EST

This one just has the feeling of a fun game of basketball to watch no matter the result. Even though neither team has been that great recently, they both are capable of putting up big offensive numbers on any given night. Plus they have two of the most entertaining players to watch in LaMelo Ball and DeMar DeRozan. I'm gonna give this one to the Bulls mostly because of how poor the Hornet's defense looked against their two recent games against Miami and Philadelphia. They poured in a combined 188 points, making an already weak Charlotte defense look practically non-existent.

Portland Trail Blazers @ Dallas Mavericks - 8:30 p.m. EST

My Portland Trail Blazers might be getting thrown into the wood chipper with this matchup. They've won just two of their last 21 games, are coming off a back-to-back, and are going up against a Mavericks team who have a chance to steal the third seed from the Golden State Warriors. If you want to keep an eye out for anyone on this gutted Portland roster it should probably be Drew Eubanks. The former San Antonio Spur is playing some inspired ball as of late and is averaging 17 and nine over his past ten games. But still, I think the Mavericks will win big.

Phoenix Suns @ Utah Jazz - 9:30 p.m. EST

This top five Western Conference matchup features two teams headed in opposite directions. The Suns have already locked up the top seed in the conference while the Jazz appear to be one first-round exit away from breaking their team apart. Even still, I like Utah here, namely because Phoenix is more than likely going to rest key players in preparation for the playoffs. The Jazz have won their past two games, and rolling into the playoffs with a win against the top team in the West would be a much-needed boost to their confidence.

Oklahoma City Thunder @ Los Angeles Lakers - 10:30 p.m. EST

In the only tank battle of the night, the Lakers and Thunder square off for little more than lottery odds. While games like this may be the norm for the Thunder, it has to be especially disappointing for the Lakers who were expecting to be playing much more meaningful basketball this time of year. I think they take their anger out on the Thunder's ragtag late-season roster and get a win that comes far too late. 

Thanks for making it all the way through another one of my massive newsletters! (I'm trying to cut down my word counts I promise) Make sure not to stop tuning in as the playoffs roll around, we have some new exciting things planned for y'all. 

In the meantime, have a wonderful weekend and keep on enjoying basketball.

- Spencer Poole

Quick Trivia Answer: The answer to Wednesday's trivia question was Jae Crowder and the 7'6" legend himself Tacko Fall. They are the only two active NBA players to wear the number 99.

Trivia: Since the merger, only four players have ever averaged more than 25 points and ten assists per game in a single season. James Harden, LeBron James, Russell Westbrook, and which former player?