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Is there a better time to be a basketball fan than right now? March Madness just kicked off with a BANG (more on that later) and the NBA season is coming down to the wire as teams fight for playoff seeding and play-in spots. Let’s talk about it, shall we? 🤝

Today’s Lineup

Last Night’s Action

Nuggets slice and dice Knicks in 113-100 win

A thirty-point triple-double from Nikola Jokic (30 PTS, 14 REB, 11 AST)? A great secondary scoring night from Michael Porter Jr (31 PTS)? Impossibly crafty playmaking from Jamal Murray? Yup, this was a classic win from the Denver Nuggets, who seem to be reminding everyone exactly why they’re the reigning champs and a legit threat in the Western Conference come playoff time.

Magic roll by Pelicans 121-106 in battle of first-overall picks

Neither of them led their teams in scoring, but we knew this matchup between former first-overall picks Zion Williamson (20 PTS, 7 REB) and Paolo Banchero (20 PTS, 11 AST, 10 REB) was gonna be a good one. P5 recorded his triple-double (just the second of his career) in just three quarters, helping lead the Magic to victory alongside a solid shooting night from Trey Murphy (21 PTS).

Elsewhere around the Association…

• Career-high alert! Despite the loss to the red-hot Rockets, Ayo Dosunmu posted a career-high 35 points, draining five of six three-point attempts in the process.

• If Luka (34 PTS, 9 REB, 8 AST) doesn’t get a triple-double, did he really even play? Kidding. He and the Mavericks took Utah down by 16 despite 20 from Lauri Markkanen and Collin Sexton.

• Richaun Holmes (16 REB) wiped the glass clean and Kyle Kuzma (31 PTS) shot the ball well as the Wizards beat the Kings in a game that surely would’ve been a 16 seed-1 seed upset in March Madness.

Check out all of last night’s box scores HERE.

Wednesday Night Notes

• It’s hard to make a ROTY statement with Wemby on the scene, but Chet Holmgren did just that against the Jazz. 35 points, 14 rebounds, and this monster jam over Taylor Hendricks? This dude is special.

• The Celtics put the Bucks away for their seventh straight win thanks to some clutch 4Q scoring and a great game on both ends from Jayson Tatum (31 PTS, 8 REB, 3 STL, 2 BLK).

• At this point, Domantas Sabonis is just getting ridiculous. Not only is he just a few triple-doubles away from tying Larry Bird for 10th all-time, but he reached a triple-double in just 26 minutes during Wednesday’s win over the Pistons. Insanity.

• Despite the Warriors pouring it in on offense and getting the twenty-point win over Memphis, GG Jackson (35 PTS, 7 3PM) led all players in scoring. That’s an impressive feat when Steph, Klay, and GG’s former AAU coach Chris Paul are on the court: ⬇️

See all of Wednesday’s box scores HERE.

Enjoy-ing the Madness

Everyone knows we usually focus on professional basketball, but that doesn’t mean we can’t also Enjoy some college hoops as well! And especially during this time of year, because nothing compares to March Madness. Let’s go over a few of our favorite moments from the first day of madness yesterday: ⬇️

#14 Oakland stuns #3 Kentucky: There are upsets you predict, and then there those you didn’t see coming. And we definitely didn’t think that Oakland’s Jack Gohlke would hit ten threes in a 32-point performance that lifted the Golden Grizzlies over the heavily-favorited Wildcats. This is March, people!

#5 Gonzaga refutes storylines, does away with #12 McNeese: Speaking of “upsets you predict”, Gonzaga must have seen a few too many brackets with McNeese in the Sweet 16. They dominated Will Wade’s Cowboys from start to finish and ended up winning by 20. Guess this Cinderella story was over before it even started 😕.

#11 Oregon’s Couisnard drops 40 in win over #6 South Carolina: And in one of the best individual performances of the night, senior Oregon guard Jermaine Couisnard put up 40 points on 64%/55%/100% efficiency to help the Ducks upset the Gamecocks. Fun fact: Couisnard transferred from SC to Oregon just a few years ago…

Three in the Key

Signing Off

Did you know we have a second newsletter called Out Of Bounds? Every other Sunday, we talk about the off-the-court business, culture, and fashion aspects of the basketball world. It’s only available to people who’ve used their custom link down below to refer this newsletter to a friend, so make sure to do that if you want to be included in this Sunday’s edition. Talk soon! ✌️

-Austin Zeglis