Kyrie Irving Is Headed To Dallas

Good morning, Enjoyers! We'll get straight to the point: this was an outrageous weekend in the NBA. Thrilling games, monster scoring nights from surprise sources, and a league-altering blockbuster trade. We have so much to talk about. Let's get after it. 🫡

Today's Lineup

Luka ➕ Kyrie 🟰 Contender? Irving was dealt to Dallas on Sunday afternoon.

Steph Suffers Injury 🙏 Golden State's star will be out for the foreseeable future.

Unsung Heroes: He's providing a spark for the 🐺 - at his own pace, of course.

Wild Weekend Wrap-Up

Friday

Alexa, play "Coming Home" by Diddy, please. And tell Pacers fans it's okay to cut some onions right now. Kings All-Star Domantas Sabonis played his first game back in Indiana on Friday after being dealt to Sacramento last season. He was greeted with a pregame tribute video (very nice) and a 107-104 loss (not as nice.) Elsewhere, another 20+ point outing from Mikal Bridges (who is looking like a star lately) helped Phoenix secure a win against Boston.

Saturday

You thought a Nets vs. Wizards game without Bradley Beal, Kevin Durant, Kyrie Irving, and Ben Simmons would be uninteresting? Did you really fail to consider the possibility of a Cam Thomas (44 points) vs. Kristaps Porzingis (38 points) duel? We can't believe you...mood:

The underlying theme on Saturday night? The country of France, apparently! Nic Batum hit a three at the buzzer (on French Heritage Night at MSG!) to send the Clippers and Knicks to OT, where L.A. eventually pulled out a win. The French Quarter was feeling good as New Orleans snapped a ten-game losing streak by beating the Lakers thanks to 35 from Brandon Ingram. And finally, top-five jersey sellers in France Jimmy Butler (32 points) and Giannis Antetokounmpo (35/15/11) battled it out in Milwaukee, with the Bucks coming out on top. Shoutout to all our Enjoyers in 🇫🇷!

Sunday's Slate

Magic knock off Hornets 119-113

With this win, the Orlando Magic (22-32) have officially tied their win total from all of last season—and it's only February 6th! They got 20+ points from Paolo Banchero and Wendell Carter Jr, and outrebounded Charlotte 52-39-- they're big! In a less fun record-related stat, the Hornets (15-40) have now surpassed their loss total from last season ... and it's only February 6th 😔. Box Score

Cavs cruise past Pacers 122-103

Proof that the NBA is worth watching every night: there's always a chance that Jarett Allen will turn into Julius Erving as he did on Sunday. Cleveland (33-22) had a stiff-arm on Indiana (25-30) all game, despite Myles Turner's (27 &10) best efforts. Box Score

Raptors pull out gutsy 106-103 win in Memphis

Toronto (25-30) remains a mystery prior to Thursday's trade deadline. But there was nothing mysterious on Sunday as they got a solid road win at Memphis (32-21). Scottie Barnes played the hero with 13 points in the fourth quarter. He's still going to be a star, in case you were worried. Box Score

Unlikely heroes emerge in Knicks 108-97 win over Sixers

When RJ Barrett was a literal last-second scratch for the Knicks (29-26), Tom Thibodeau knew he'd need some other guys to step up in his absence. Enter Evan Fournier (17 points) and Miles McBride (14 points). Fournier--who's been mostly out of the lineup-- was ready when his name was called. Joel Embiid tallied 31 & 14 for the Sixers (34-18). Box Score

Murphy & McCollum help Pelicans throttle Kings, 136-104

Holy efficiency, Batman! It was the M&M show in the Big Easy as Trey Murphy (30 points, 9/11 FG) and CJ McCollum (24 points, 9/11 FG) used some sizzling shooting to help New Orleans (28-27) decimate a De'Aaron Fox-less Kings (29-23). Are the positive vibes back in NOLA after a couple of great wins this weekend? Box Score

Timberwolves take care of business against a team claiming to be the Nuggets, 128-98

IMPOSTER ALERT! A group of individuals pretending to be the Denver Nuggets (37-17) took the floor at Target Center in Minneapolis tonight. Okay, fine, it was the Nuggets, technically, but they were without Nikola Jokic, Aaron Gordon, Jamal Murray, and Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, which led to this beatdown from Minnesota (29-27). D'Angelo Russell paced the Wolves with 18 points and ten assists. Box Score

Kyrie's A Mav, Steph Sidelined

Well, that escalated very quickly. On Friday morning, Kyrie Irving told the Brooklyn Nets he wanted to be traded. On Sunday afternoon, he was dealt to the Dallas Mavericks for Spencer Dinwiddie, Dorian Finney-Smith, a 2029 first-round pick, and two future second-round picks. Phew. Now what? Well, Dallas finally got Luka Doncic a co-star. In theory, a Luka & Kyrie pairing can go toe-to-toe with any other superstar duo in the NBA—they just have to make sure that the notoriously unpredictable Irving is fully bought in. Also, expect Josh Green to become an absolutely vital part of this Mavericks team going forward—he might have to take over for Finney-Smith as the team's go-to wing-stopper. Can the third-year player be relied upon in big moments? And is Dallas ready to establish itself as an elite team in a wide-open West?

In Brooklyn, the "Big Three" is officially down to just one. However, the front office did a solid job of recouping assets for a player who was consistently a headache for the franchise. DFS is a superstar role player, and Dinwiddie returns to where his NBA career took off. Kevin Durant might be the Nets' only remaining star, but they have a seemingly unending list of productive role players surrounding him. Will Brooklyn make another move before Thursday's deadline? Do they still have enough talent around KD to make a real postseason run?

According to Shams Charania of The Athletic, Warriors superstar Steph Curry will miss "multiple weeks" with a leg injury he sustained on Saturday night, knocking him out of All-Star weekend and perhaps beyond. Here's to hoping for a speedy recovery from Steph.

Unsung Heroes

Every great team in the NBA needs a "connector"—someone who will make the right pass, cut, deflection, and shot when needed. As the T'Wolves try to lift themselves from a sluggish start into Western Conference contention, Kyle Anderson is playing the connector role perfectly. His moves don't jump off the page; for instance, this eurostep took about 18 seconds:

But Anderson's savvy as a passer (4.1 APG), defender (1.2 SPG), and occasional shot-maker (43.5% 3PT) has been the glue to a Wolves offense that's learned how to live without Karl-Anthony Towns. Anderson may not be Minnesota's "engine" on offense or defense—Anthony Edwards and Rudy Gobert claim those titles, respectively—but he's the steering wheel on both ends, providing direction and stability.

Frozen Moments

• Norman Powell drove and dunked all over Knicks All-Star Julius Randle 🫣

• Spurs rookie Malaki Branham has recorded a career-high in two straight games 📈

• Is Shai Gilgeous-Alexander the best IG caption writer in the NBA? 🤔

Good Reads

Don't Sleep on the Suns (at the Deadline or in the Playoffs) - Michael Pina (The Ringer)

Grant Hill and 9th Wonder have a Candid Conversation about Duke Basketball and its Relationship with the Black Community - (SLAM Magazine)

What We're Enjoying

Dead Space: Let's get freaky: the Dead Space remake is out now, and it's everything fans hoped it would be—and more. If you're too young to have played the original, here's your chance to dismantle some Necromorphs. And if you did play the original, well, there's a high chance you still want to dismantle some Necromorphs.

Signing Off

That's all, folks! Good luck to you all during trade deadline week. We hope your favorite player does not get dealt to your least favorite team. Always remember to be nice to yourself. Talk soon!

-Quinn Everts

Trivia Answer: The winner of the first-ever NBA slam dunk contest? Larry Nance! Great dunks run in the family, apparently.

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