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This Joel Embiid Statline Doesn't Even Look Real

Plus, Darius Garland tries to win a game by himself, and Unsung Heroes zeroes in on the Pacific Northwest

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Get Caught Up: Start your week off right with a recap of all the best NBA moments from the past three days. Spoiler alert: there were lots of them.

New Portland Forward Delivering On Both Ends: Jerami Grant has been everything the Blazers hoped for so far.

You're not going to believe this, folks ... but the NBA was great this weekend. The good basketball just keeps on coming, and we simply can't get enough. Follow close, dear Enjoyers, as we traverse the highs and lows (but mostly highs) of another fun hoops weekend. But first...

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The Best Of Friday & Saturday

Friday

How do you think it feels when Steph Curry gets into that zone? That full-on supernova, NBA Street Gamebreaker, transcendent state of basketball playing? Probably pretty good! He achieved that state on Friday night, scoring 18 of his 40 points in the fourth quarter as the Warriors survived a near triple-double from Donovan Mitchell (29 points, ten rebounds, nine assists) to beat the Cavs.

Departing Oakland, let's hop on I-5 South for about 400 miles until we arrive at Crypto.com Arena, where we'll find De'Aaron Fox (32/12/7) and Domantas Sabonis (21/10/6) really starting to mesh. The Kings beat the Lakers 120-114, and Sacramento has won five of their last seven after a rocky start.

In the northeast, Boston appears to be a force once again. The C's handily took down a hot Denver team, 131-112, as Jayson Tatum--in a shocking twist--scored a lot of points. 34, to be exact. The Knicks got back to .500 in their quest to be Thanos' favorite team, and the Timberwolves fell to 5-8 with a 114-103 loss in Memphis. Slow starts aren't uncommon for teams that add an All-Star level player like Rudy Gobert, so you have to figure that Chris Finch and company will smooth things out as the season chugs on.

Saturday

Jayson Tatum has now scored 77 points in the last 24 hours. He's probably still scoring baskets as we speak. Someone let him know the game is over! In Brooklyn, the Nets won their fourth game in five tries behind 27 points from Kevin Durant; the Sixers rode a monster 42-point, 10-rebound, 6-assist, 2-block, 2-steal night from Joel Embiid to beat the Hawks 121-109, and the Heat got season-highs from Max Strus (31 points) and Gabe Vincent (20 points) as they spoiled LaMelo Ball's season debut and sent the Hornets to their eighth straight loss. Luka Dončić did otherworldly things, as he does.

Sunday's Slate

Thunder (6-7) 145, Knicks (6-7) 135: The Knicks and Thunder came into the season with very different sets of expectations, but have identical records through 13 games. Is either team happy about that? Probably not. A season-high 26 points from Cam Reddish was no match for the 61 points, 15 rebounds, and 20 assists that OKC got from Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Josh Giddey.

Wizards (8-6) 102, Grizzlies (9-5) 92: The Grizzlies didn't have the services of Ja Morant and Desmond Bane in this game, but you still have to beat who's in front of you; Washington did just that behind 25 points from Kristaps Porzingis and 21 from Deni Avdija. Four wins in a row for the Wiz, who have quietly had some impressive moments this season.

Timberwolves (6-8) 129, Cavs (8-5) 124: The Wolves needed a win in the worst way, and they got it thanks in part to a 30-piece from D'Angelo Russell. Minnesota was able to hold off a furious comeback attempt from what appeared to be five separate Darius Garland's, because there's no way just one person was dominating that thoroughly. DG had 27 points in the fourth quarter and single-handedly gave the Cavs a chance in this game by hitting shot after shot. "Locked in" doesn't even describe it. Garland finished with 51, and joined some pretty elite company in the process:

Nuggets (9-4) 126, Bulls (6-8) 103: When you think of the NBA's elite shooters, does Michael Porter Jr. come to mind? Well, if he doesn't yet, he probably will soon. 31 points on 11/16 from the field and 6/9 from deep for the 24-year-old. Denver is locked in right now.

Sixers (7-7) 105, Jazz (10-5) 98: Where do we start? What can possibly be said? Nothing, really, so as a disclaimer, none of the adjectives used in this recap will do justice to the game Joel Embiid played on Sunday night (although sensational, breathtaking, otherworldly, and incomparable all come to mind.) 59 points. 11 rebounds. Eight assists. Seven blocks. +25 in a seven-point win. 19-28 FG, 20-24 FT. A nearly perfect basketball game. Doc Rivers said he’s “never seen a more dominating performance when you combine defense and offense.” If you watched the game, you’ll be hard-pressed to disagree with Doc. If you didn’t … do yourself a favor:

​​Kings (6-6) 122, Warriors (5-8) 115: The Sacramento Kings are a good basketball team. Read that again. Then let it sink in. Embrace it! Sacramento is now 6-2 in their last eight games after beating Golden State on Sunday night. Domantas Sabonis made his presence felt on the glass, vacuuming in 22 rebounds to pair with his 26 points and eight assists. De’Aaron Fox’s All-Star consideration tape gets a little longer every time he hits another clutch jumper.

Lakers (3-10), Nets (6-8): For most of the season thus far, Anthony Davis has looked like a very good NBA player. On Sunday, he looked like the dominant two-way superstar that he's been in years past, posting 37 points and 18 rebounds. He should do that more. Lonnie Walker IV chipped in 25 points of his own, and the Lakers broke a five-game losing streak.

Unsung Heroes

Welcome to the third edition of Unsung Heroes, where we highlight NBA players who don't mind doing their work in the shadows!

Jerami Grant has quickly become a fan favorite in Portland. The ninth-year forward is bringing a combo of wing scoring and defensive versatility that Portland has lacked for years, and his contributions on both ends have been instrumental in the Blazers' 9-4 start. His ability to create for himself while stretching the floor from the wing spot (46% from three-point range) adds an extra dimension to Portland's offense while also taking some weight off of their dynamic scoring guards, Damian Lillard and Anfernee Simons. Grant has been exactly what Portland hoped he'd be when they traded for him in July. A free agent this summer, his future in the Pacific Northwest is uncertain; but for the time being, he's a perfect fit in the Rose City.

He's also hit clutch shot, after clutch shot ... after clutch shot.

Good Reads

Can The Warriors Be Two Teams At Once? - Rob Mahoney (The Ringer)

Former Pasadena Muir star Jacque Vaughn is right coach for Nets - Mirjam Swanson (OC Register)

Enjoy NYC Tee

In case you missed it, Enjoy Basketball just dropped a limited quantity of the Enjoy NYC Tee! Go grab one HERE because they're going quick!

Signing Off

Have a great week! If you're looking for a sign to start that thing you want to start, here it is. Don't think about what people will say, just go for it. You'll be happy you did! Talk soon.

-Quinn Everts

Trivia Answer: The only player taller than 6'7 in the top 10 for career 3-pointers made? LeBron James! The King just recently passed Paul Pierce for 10th on the list.

Trivia Question: What current NBA player has an exotic animal collection that includes snakes, geckos, and bearded dragons?