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Enjoyers—the second half of the season is underway! We’re LITERALLY only one night in, and it seemed like every game was down to the wire. Jaren blocked Joel, Joel blocked Ja, and Kessler blocked everyone! We’re so happy to talk hoops with you again—let’s get after it.

Today’s Lineup

A Philly Thrill 🎢: The Sixers win in chaotic fashion against Memphis…

Smooth Jazz 🎶: Lauri and Walker Kessler outlast Shai…

The Joker laughs at Cleveland 🤣: Denver snatches a road win despite Mobley Mania...

Before we begin, a quick quiz:

PrizePicks

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For tonight’s games, we have Kristaps Porzingis popping off against his former team, Quentin Grimes splashing treys, and Miami Heat defense doing what it does best against Jrue Holiday.

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Last Night’s Action

Sixers escape in gritty win over Grizzlies, 110-105

Simply put, this was one of the best regular season games of the year. There were some AWESOME moments, like Jaren Jackson Jr absolutely stuffing Joel Embiid at the rim and Embiid blocking Ja Morant into the next dimension. And Desmond Bane was the bane of Philly, scoring 21 of his 25 points in the first quarter. This is what Enjoy Basketball is all about!

For Philly, James Harden scored 31 and The Process himself asserted his dominance with 27 points and 19 rebounds. The final two minutes were so chaotically fun, with crazy blocks, turnovers, dunks, and a roaring Philadelphia crowd. We’ll let you see for yourself:

Box Score

Jazz soothe crackling Thunder, 120-119, in last-second OT win

What. A. Game. Folks, this one was close for all 53 minutes! Regulation ended when Walker Kessler tied the game up at 106 apiece with four seconds left and then saved the game with his 7th block of the night! The game was ultimately settled when the two heroes of the day exchanged free throws. Both Lauri Markkanen (43 points) and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (39 points) were inspiring today; the two first-time All-Stars both played like bonafide All-NBA players.

With twelve seconds left in overtime, SGA drew contact and sunk two free throws to take the lead. But with four seconds left, Markkanen got fouled on a three and made a trio of go-ahead free throws. A last-second SGA jumper barely rimmed out, and Utah clawed out the well-earned win.

Box Score

Nuggets nix Cavaliers 115-109 as Jokic and Mobley duel

The league’s #1 offense took on the #1 defense as the Nuggets (42-18) beat the Cavaliers (38-24) in a tight road matchup. Michael Porter Jr seemed to hit every shot and ended with 25 points, while Nikola Jokic recorded his 22nd triple-double of the year. To those accusing The Joker of stat-padding: Denver is 22-0 when the MVP records a triple-double. Wow.

Evan Mobley was incredible for the Cavaliers, scoring 15 of his 31 points in the third quarter as he attacked the paint, defended the rim, and posterized MPJ on a putback! Unfortunately, Mobley had 0 points in the fourth (on just 2 shot attempts—c’mon Cleveland!) and the Cavaliers’ blades became dull. Still, seeing him hit 2-4 3PT and attack the basket with conviction has us excited for the next decade of the monstrous Mobley!

Box Score

Wendell’s buzzer beater beats Pistons 108-106

Tonight, Wendell Carter Jr reminded all of us why our middle school coach went on and on about finding your man to box out! With the game tied up, Wendell tipped a missed Paolo Banchero layup back in and sent the arena into a frenzy! Winning players make winning plays.

Jaden Ivey led Detroit (15-45) with 25 points in one of his better performances of the year. Meanwhile, Orlando (25-35) remains one of our favorite League Pass teams, with the likes of Carter Jr, Banchero, and Franz Wagner offering nothing but pure Enjoyment.

Box Score

Boston inches by Indiana 142-138 in OT

Now this is peak Enjoy Basketball. In a back-and-forth contest, the Celtics (43-17) prevailed against the Pacers (26-35) in an epic overtime victory. Jayson Tatum faced just a little more defense than what he saw in Sunday’s All-Star Game, but still managed to drop 31 points in the winning effort. For Indiana, Tyrese Haliburton (22 points, 14 assists) was admirable for most of the game, while the stretch shooting of Myles Turner (career-high 8 3PT made) made Pacers fans rejoice and Rob Pelinka bite his nails.

Box Score

Lakers roll Warriors 124-111 as Beasley shines

Without Steph, the Warriors (29-30)… are not good. The Malik Beasley-led Lakers, however, are very good. LA’s newest 3-and-D weapon is *chef’s kiss*, as Beasley drained 7 of 11 three’s tonight for 25 points en route to a Lakers (28-32) win, despite underwhelming performances from LeBron and Anthony Davis. Eight Lakers scored in double figures…when’s the last time that happened?

Box Score

A new addition helps Toronto beat New Orleans 115-110

The Raptors (29-31) prevailed over the Pelicans (30-30) in a battle between two very talented .500 teams. We can’t believe high-seeded teams will (probably) have to face each of them in a Round 1 playoff series! The Great White North led for most of the game, and Pascal Siakam’s 26 points staved off a New Orleans comeback led by Brandon Ingram (36 points). And Jakob Poeltl seems like a great re-addition to the Raps! The Austrian big man posted 21 points and a career-high 18 boards to win the third of his 4 games with Toronto.

Box Score

Mavs smash Spurs 142-116 in debut of Luka/Kyrie duo

The dynamic duo of Luka Doncic (28 points, 10 assists) and Kyrie Irving (23 points, 6 assists) won their first game together in the blue and white while putting up the most points the Mavericks have scored all season. Dallas (32-29) clobbered San Antonio (14-46) in a 142-116 shootout. Meanwhile, the Spurs—historically the NBA’s most successful team—have lost a franchise-record 15 games in a row. (Wemby would look great in grayscale!)

Box Score

Kings conquer Portland 133-116

The Kings (33-25) cruised to a win over the shorthanded Trail Blazers (28-31) behind 31 points from De’Aaron Fox and a Domantas Sabonis triple-double. Sacramento looked like a well-oiled machine tonight, dismantling Portland without Damian Lillard, Anfernee Simons, and Jerami Grant, but shoutout to Nassir Little (26 points)!

Box Score

Film Friday

It’s time to put on our old-man basketball-nerd glasses and talk about the most underrated offensive skill: moving off the ball. A player can be a terrific shooter, but he won’t get open looks at the NBA level unless he’s masterful at creating space off of cuts, screens, and changes in direction.

If we zoom in past the generational dribbling and finishing ability, Steph Curry is an artist when it comes to creating space for himself. Is he the best shooter ever? Yes. Does it help that he’s also an off-ball movement GOAT? Absolutely.

Curry seems to run around like a chicken 🐔 with its head cut off, but he’s perfected the art of reading an off-ball defender and using it to his advantage. Just take a look:

Want to get some more minutes on your high school team? Move off-ball. Want to get a few free bucks in your rec league? Call for pindown or backdoor screens. Want to appreciate basketball on a deeper level than the average fan? Watch Steph and learn.

Frozen Moments

• Damian Lillard wrote a FIRE verse while stuck on a plane for 7 hours.

• Check out the highlight tape of DraftExpress’ projected #1 pick in 2024.

• Reggie Jackson hit a loooong shot in his first game as a Nugget!

Good Reads

The NBA Odds Machine - Zach Kram (The Ringer)

Fresh NBA Playoff Predictions and Championship Odds - Grant Hughes (Bleacher Report)

Kings’ Keegan Murray On Pace To Break Wild NBA Record - Kenneth Teape (NBA Analysis Network)

What We’re Enjoying

Alerts Daily: Get the latest news about the sneakers you see on & off the court. Never miss another release with their FREE 6x weekly newsletter.

C’mon Ref! Taylor Stein put together a tool on WhistleStats.com that lets you see how often referees benefit your favorite team—and how often they do them dirty!

Signing Off

That’s a wrap! Only one day back into NBA hoops and we already had some insanely close games. If today’s newsletter taught you anything, it should be to Trust the Process like Embiid, hustle hard like Wendell, and make free throws like Lauri… okay, maybe that metaphor broke down. Have a good day!

-Conor Geelan

Trivia Answer: Donovan Mitchell hit 187 three-pointers in his 2017-18 rookie year, the most in any rookie season ever! The previous record was held by Damian Lillard, who sank 185 threes in his 2012-13 rookie campaign.

Before you go…