The Hottest Teams In The NBA Are WHO?

Good morning Enjoyers! Is it just us, or was that one of the craziest sporting weekends ever? There seemed to be something incredible happening basically every waking moment. In the NBA, things were wild as usual. We have no time to waste, so let's dive in!

ALSO, we're almost sold out of the Enjoy Mini Hoop! If you haven't gotten yours yet, this could be your last chance. As the weather gets colder, the Mini Hoop is the best way to keep working on that post game...

Newsletter Preview

Devin Booker Goes Nuclear: The Suns' superstar was this close to setting a new mark for most points scored in an NBA game this season.

EB Roundtable: You all created some incredible "letter" teams. What does that mean? Find out below...

Who's Hot? A few teams that won't surprise you, and a few teams that definitely will.

Highlights From Friday & Saturday

Friday

Who are these Knicks? Where did this version of Quentin Grimes come from? The answer to both of those questions remains a mystery (but Knicks fans definitely don't mind.) Grimes has been huge during the Knicks' win streak, which was at six after Friday's win over Chicago. Julius Randle looks confident. RJ Barrett has strung together some solid games. The vibes might be back ... Speaking of hot teams, Orlando is growing up right before our eyes. Their gutsy 117-109 victory over Boston on Friday was their fifth straight! Franz Wagner and Paolo Banchero led the way. Squidward meme. Elsewhere, Donovan Mitchell dropped 41 as Cleveland beat Indiana, and the Lakers stomped the Nuggets, but it came at a cost; Anthony Davis was bothered by an early foot injury that limited him to playing just 17 minutes.

Saturday

Okay, we were joking at first when we asked the NBA to just let the Suns and Pelicans play 82 times a year, but would anyone really be mad at it? Their third meeting in just nine days was—you're not going to believe this—an absolute banger. Down 24 in the third quarter, Phoenix stormed all the way back to win 118-114. Leading the show was ... this guy:

That's a whole lotta' buckets. Does the NBA have a budding rivalry on its hands? We can only hope. Staying out West, Kawhi Leonard moved quite well in his first regular season 30-piece in over 18 months, and it was beautiful to see. Apparently, the theme of Saturday was "I just want to remind everyone that I can still hoop" because Kemba Walker also scored 30-plus (and sent the game to OT) for the first time in what feels like forever, though Dallas was edged out by Cleveland in the end.

Sunday's Slate

Banchero scores 31, Orlando wins sixth straight in 95-92 victory over Boston

One of the hottest teams in the NBA is... the Orlando Magic? That's right! After falling to 5-20 on December 5th, Jamahl Mosley must have given an Al Pacino in Any Given Sunday-level speech because since then, his young Magic (11-20) have gone 6-0. They've beaten some solid teams in the process, most recently the Celtics (22-9). Twice! Orlando is no longer a "scheduled win" for anybody.

Box Score

Brunson, Randle step up late as Knicks knock off Pacers, 109-106

Another one of the hottest teams in the NBA is ... the New York Knicks? When did we enter Bizzarro NBA World? Honestly, it's kind of fun here. Jalen Brunson and Julius Randle were both clutch down the stretch Sunday, helping sink the Pacers (15-16). These Knicks (17-13) do not mind making it ugly, which actually makes them more fun to watch.

Box Score

Jordan Poole drops 43 as Steph-less Warriors stomp Raptors, 126-110

Golden State (15-16) will need a lot of this from their complementary guys in the near future while they attempt to tread water without their superstar. Jordan Poole was in attack mode all day. Toronto (13-17) just can't seem to get fully healthy.

Box Score

Big days from Durant and Irving help Nets fend off feisty Pistons, 124-121

Speaking of hot teams, the Brooklyn Nets are now 10-1 since November 27th and 19-12 on the season. There always seems to be some sort of fanfare surrounding them, but for the past few weeks, Brooklyn has just been a basketball team—a very, very good one. 43 points from Kevin Durant and 38 from Kyrie Irving helped BKN scrape past the Pistons (8-24).

Box Score

Minnesota beats Chicago 150-126 as Bulls forget that playing defense is an option

The Bulls (11-18) offensive stats look pretty dang good from this game. They shot over 50%, made 16 three-pointers, and got 20-plus points from Zach LaVine, DeMar DeRozan, and Nikola Vucevic. Unfortunately, they also let Minnesota (15-15) shoot 66% (???) from the field and make 23 three-pointers. Did anyone watch this game? If so, can you confirm that Chicago was actually on the court whenever Minnesota had the ball? Thanks.

Box Score

Nikola Jokic posts outrageous statline as Nuggets beat Hornets 119-115

It doesn't really matter what you do defensively against Nikola Jokic. His 40-27-10 triple-double in Denver's (18-11) win on Sunday is simply one of the most ridiculous statlines in recent memory. The Big Honey seemed to be conserving himself a bit on the offensive end to start the season: not anymore. He's operating at an MVP caliber once again. Charlotte falls to 7-23, but LaMelo Ball has looked great!

Box Score

Chaos Ball reigns supreme as Lakers beat Wizards 119-117 in crazy finish

Ah, yes. The oldest play in the book: almost turn the ball over in a tie game with less than ten seconds left only to regain possession and find a wide-open player right under the hoop for a game-winning dunk. LeBron James ran it to perfection! The Lakers (13-16) are slowly-but-almost-surely clawing their way back from the gutters of the Western Conference. Washington (11-20) is heading in the opposite direction.

Box Score

EB Roundtable

Gather 'round, gather 'round. We're back with another installment of EB Roundtable, and this is a fun one. We asked you to make a squad of players who share your first initial. We started…

And you took it from there. Which letter is bringing home a championship?

Okay, "D" is making an impressive case right out of the gate. The offensive firepower everywhere on the court is just silly, and The Admiral is protecting the paint? The D's are a highlight machine. Spacing might be a minor issue, but vibes will not be a problem whatsoever.

This is far and away the greatest passing lineup of all time, right? The court vision from Luka, Larry, and LeBron will have camera operators down horrendously while trying to keep up with where the ball is being thrown. Before anyone realizes what's happening, Larry "Grandmama" Johnson is dunking on someone's head. This team is shattering every assist record known to man.

G's out of nowhere! This might be the most underrated initial team right here ... just as long as they're playing in George Mikan's era (AKA pre-three-point line.) This team has three hall-of-famers, one future hall-of-famer, and their one non-HOFer is still one of the most talented scorers ever. G's are tough.

Latest Basketball News

Steph Sustains Injury: Who turned the injury slider up to 100 for this season? Whoever it was: not cool. Steph Curry will miss a "few weeks" with a shoulder injury; on the (minuscule) bright side, it looks like he will not need any surgery.

NBA Is International Again: For the first time since January 2020, a regular season NBA game was played outside of US soil. The Miami Heat and San Antonio Spurs played in Mexico City on Saturday, with the Heat coming out on top 111-101. Will the NBA eventually expand to Mexico?

Good Reads

Each Orlando Magic Player's Top Strength Through Team's First 30 Games This Season - Josh Cohen (Magic Team Site)

On T.J McConnell, the nuances of play-calling, and petty pageantry - Caitlin Cooper (Indy Cornrows)

What We're Enjoying

Herbert by Ab-Soul: After six years, Ab-Soul is back. The Carson, California rapper has returned with a potent album full of vulnerability, introspection, and wordplay that will make your head spin.

Blowback, Season 3: Need a history lesson? The third season of the Blowback podcast takes a deep, deep dive into everything related to the Korean War. The 10-episode season was released to the public a few weeks ago.

Signing Off

If you were wondering, an NBA team made up of "Q" names would probably go 0-82. But don't worry, we're tanking for Qictor. Also, make sure you tell yourself "good job" this week. Trying your best is all you can do!

P.S.: Keep an eye out for a BIG announcement in Wednesday's newsletter. I've said too much! Talk soon.

-Quinn Everts

Trivia Answer: Shockingly, Andre Drummond never recorded a 30-rebound game!

Trivia Question: Only ONE player in NBA history went to high school in the state of Vermont. Who is it?