Ivica Zubac Becomes Shaquille O'Neal

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Psst...hey...hey...it's time to wake up! You've been sleeping since 4 PM on Thursday when you ate like seven pounds of turkey and mashed potatoes. No judgment, don't worry. But you missed a lot of great basketball, and we have to talk about it! So get up, do your stretches, drink some water, and let's catch you up on yet another great weekend of hoops.

Newsletter Preview

A Weekend Of Buckets: This weekend consisted of one 30-point performance after another ... and almost a 30-rebound performance, too. Catch up on everything you missed!

Unsung Heroes: This role player is contributing to the Kings' surprising start--in more ways than one.

Wemby Is Otherworldly: The projected 2023 #1 pick is dominating in France.

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Highlights From Friday & Saturday

Everywhere you looked on Friday night, someone was getting a bucket.

Jerami Grant shot at least 100 free throws en route to a career-high 44 points. Okay, he shot 28 free throws, but that's still a league-high this year and a franchise record. (We told you he's been great!) Anfernee Simons had his own monster game with 38 points as the Blazers broke a four-game losing streak by beating the Knicks 132-129. Trae Young & Dejounte Murray combined for eighty-three real-life points, but Atlanta still lost to the young Rockets. Number two overall pick Jabari Smith Jr. posted his second straight 20-point game; he's slowly but surely settling in at the NBA level.

You know when a team is "supposed" to be good, and then they are good, so we kind of just ignore them because they're doing what we expected of them? Well, that seems to be what's happening with the Boston Celtics. After an impressive win versus the Kings, and another Jayson Tatum 30-piece, the Celtics improved to 15-4.

Saturday

Deandre Ayton, have a weekend! After setting a season-high with 28 points on Friday, his encore on Saturday was even better. Ayton was as aggressive as he's ever been, simply bullying the Jazz with 29 points and 21 rebounds in a tight Phoenix win. In San Antonio, LeBron James set his season-high with 39 points on the second night of a back-to-back after not playing for over two weeks. Witchcraft. SORCERY!

Elsewhere in The Lone Star State (That's Texas ... just in case you were unaware), the Rockets won their second straight for the first time this season thanks to 28 points from Jalen Green and 21 points, 19 rebounds, and seven assists from the always electric Alperen Sengun.

Sunday's Slate

Nets top Blazers 111-97

Seth Curry Revenge Game? The former Blazer (who had some really fun moments in the PNW) torched Portland with 29 points on 7-10 from deep Sunday afternoon, helping the Nets (10-11) to victory. The Blazers (11-9) continue to struggle without Damian Lillard because ... duh.

Box Score

Zubac has career game in Clippers 114-100 win over Pacers

 Shaquille O'Neal dominated in this one, posting ... huh? Oh, apparently that was Ivica Zubac out there, not Shaq. Well, then, Ivica Zubac posted 31 points, 29 REBOUNDS, and three blocks! Seriously! An absolute whale of a performance from one of the NBA's more underrated big men. He was this close to a 30-30 game, too. Los Angeles (12-9) outlasted Indiana (11-8).

Box Score

Warriors stay hot, defeat Timberwolves 137-114

Reports of the Warriors' (11-10) demise may have been premature. Winners of five of their last six and seven of their last ten games, Golden State is now officially "rolling." They went 20-47 from deep in this game against Minnesota (10-10) and dished out 36 assists. Put up those numbers every game, and you'll probably win a lot. There's some advanced analytics for you.

Box Score

Martin & Adebayo lead Heat to 106-98 win In Atlanta

Caleb Martin has transcended simply being a product of the Heat player development system. He's a very good NBA player, and he scored 20+ points for the third straight game--all Heat (10-11) wins. 32 points from Bam Adebayo and a triple-double from Tyler Herro helped as well. A halftime performance from Goodie Mob wasn't enough to will Atlanta (11-9) to victory.

Box Score

Celtics simply don't like losing, so they don't; beat Wizards 130-121

The Celtics (16-4) have lost two games this month. Most of their wins haven't even been particularly close, either. Jayson Tatum didn't play in this one, so it was up to Jaylen Brown to shoulder Boston's offensive load. He did just that--scoring 36 points. Washington (10-10) got 30 points from Bradley Beal.

Box Score

Mitchell, Mobley lead Cavs to 102-94 win in Motor City

Donovan Mitchell might just be a 30 PPG scorer this season. We're leaving the early days of the season behind, where inflated statistics are common. But as we prepare to enter December, Mitchell just keeps scoring, and scoring, and scoring. 32 for Spida on Sunday, as the Cavs (13-7) have regained their mojo. A bright spot for the (5-17) Pistons? Alec Burks (17 PPG, 43% 3PT) has been fantastic since he made his season debut a few weeks ago.

Box Score

Shake leads skeleton of Sixers to another win, 133-103 over Orlando

Welcome to the Shake Milton Show, folks. The former SMU Mustang has been a revelation in the absence of guards Tyrese Maxey and James Harden. Philadelphia (11-9) is doing more than just "staying above water" while they wait for their stars to return; they're playing with some fire, now 6-2 in their last eight games after thrashing Orlando (5-15).

Box Score

Morant, Brunson battle as Memphis tops New York 127-123 in MSG

There is precisely one player in the NBA who would even think to attempt a 360-degree layup with twelve seconds left when his team is down by one. That player is Ja Morant. It didn't work, but ... he still deserves some kudos for trying, right? Ja ended with a 27/10/14 triple-double, the fifth of his career. He and the Grizzlies (12-8) survived a brilliant fourth quarter from Jalen Brunson (30 points, nine assists) as the Knicks move to 9-11.

Box Score

Grayson Allen shines as Bucks topple Luka, Mavs 124-115

Giannis and Luka both had good games, but the show was stolen in this battle of superstars by Grayson Allen, who went 7-8 from downtown and 8-10 overall, scoring 25 points to help the Bucks (14-5) beat the Mavericks (9-10). Allen also pitched in five assists, two steals, and a block. Brook Lopez continues to deny entry into the paint for anyone brave enough to try, adding four more blocks of his own. The Mavericks (9-10) are officially in a slump.

Box Score

Unsung Heroes

Every upstart team needs a fiery, spirited microwave scorer who comes off their bench and provides instant offense. The Kings have been one of the surprises of the NBA season--currently tied for sixth place in the Western Conference--and they've found that firecracker role player in the form of Malik Monk. After a career year in Los Angeles in 2021-22, Monk made the 400-mile trek up California and signed a two-year deal with the Kings, where he's continued his strong play.

Monk has always been known for his scoring. That hasn't changed this season, as he's averaging over 13 points per game while playing just over 22 minutes a night. He's posted three 20-point outings, including a season-high 27 just last Wednesday. In addition to his scoring, though, Monk has really been able to showcase his passing skills in Mike Brown's offense, which involves frequent ball movement. Monk's assist numbers have never done justice to his abilities as a distributor, and he's averaging a career-best 4.1 assists per game this year, including six games where he's dished out 5+. Monk has proven himself to be an essential piece for the Beam Team.

Latest Basketball News

Victor Wembanyama Is Beyond Generational: The legend of Wemby just keeps growing. The 18-year-old phenom is now leading the LNB Pro A league in France in points and rebounds. A 30-point, 15-rebound, two-block performance on Saturday just further solidifies him as one of the best basketball prospects we have ever seen.

Good Reads

The Real Life Diet of Kyle Kuzma, Who Had His Chef Create His Own Version of DC Mumbo Sauce - Gerald Flores (GQ Sports)

The Prospect Chemistry Of Marcus Sasser - Corey Tulaba (No Ceilings)

Signing Off

We hope you feel rested and rejuvenated after the long weekend. Have a great week, watch a lot of basketball, and take a deep breath every once in a while. Life can get crazy. You're doing a great job. Talk soon!

-Quinn Everts

Trivia Answer: The two players who shared Rookie of The Year honors in 1999-2000? Elton Brand and Steve Francis! If you're too young to remember Steve Francis, get to YouTube immediately.

Trivia Question: