Stanchic going for fifty and he's got it. Welcome into NBA Pulse production of iHeartRadio in the NBA. I'm Sarahcustak, NBA analyst for the Yes Network, and today is Tuesday, December twenty sixth and from our incredible core group of NBA journalists, we're joined now by NBA dot Com senior
writer John Schumann. We made it through Christmas. We are headed into the new year, and we've got a fresh set of power rankings with the Boston Celtics staying in that number one spots, Minnesota Timberwolf still at number two, The Denver Nuggets, who won five straight, jump up from number five to the three spot. Oklahoma City is in number four. In Philadelphia rounds out the top five after being in the three spot last week, and Shoe I
want to get into those first. The Memphis Grizzlies. They are three to oh now with John Morant having returned, they're currently sitting in thirteen. Than the West they're eight and nineteen, and I think there's just a lot of questions of how much time has passed where they're sitting in the Western Conference, how much runway do they have left to potentially put themselves in playoff positioning or at
least that seven through ten spot. But they've got four big games coming up this week, a lot of big tests. What have you seen out of this Grizzlies group now that Morant is back?
Well? I mean, the three games with John Moran have been their best three game stretch of offense by a healthy margin this season, and they're went in Atlanta on Saturday was their most efficient offensive performance of the season, with the Morant and Desmond Bain combining for sixty seven points and seventeen assists between the two of them. Can we talk about that game winner against in New Orleans for a second half? Yeah, yeah, let's go I know, let's go hot. You did a podcast I think after.
That, but we did. We did so.
You know how like when most guys do a spin move when they leave their feet, they continue in the sort of the same direction that they spun right like, so he drove to his left, you know, drove with his left hand and then did a spin move on around his left shoulder back to his right. So you think that he's doing a spin move, and his momentum would take him and he continued toward his right and like do like a maybe a scoop shot or something around Herb Jones that who is his defender.
Right, that's gonna get ahead of Steve got a chance to win him in his return. Here Goes.
Expires count the basket and jummuets who is it for the Grizzlies. But as he he jumped and he jumped back to his left right like he didn't he did this quick spin move, but he didn't continue in that same direction. He left the floor and came back to his left, which is I don't know if I've ever seen anything like that before. It's it's kind of amazing, like instinct, I think, and also athleticism because like how
do you do that? And you see Herb Jones reach for the ball where it would be if John Morant was like continuing to his right, but instead Hees traveled back to his left in air and so Herb Jones basically swiped at air. And I think it was there's somebody behind him too, maybe Dyson Daniels who maybe had a chance to block the shot from behind, but I
think he wasn't expecting Morant to come back. It was just amazing and amazing play just because of like, I've never seen anybody do that with a spin move and then sort of come back the other way. I don't know if you.
Have no And I think just as body control everything about it, everything about it has impacted the game, and I think continues to show what an extraordinary, extraordinary athlete he is, first and foremost, but the impact that he has on winning and on his team and shoot. With that being said, in the Grizzlies too, have dealt with a ton of injuries, a lot of factors going into this one. But they're going to face a Denver Nuggets team.
I mentioned they've won five straight, the defending champs, but it feels like they are just clicking hidden all the right buttons. Obviously, a big part has been over week getting Jamal Murray back in the rotation, but they've had some key pieces, some young players continue to step up and really earn the trust of Michael Malone. What are you anticipating and looking for out of this matchup?
Oh, I think it's I think you got to start in the paint. I mean that's when when the Grizzlies are good, they're they're dominating the pain. In fact, Jah Moran and his three games is two for sixteen from outside the paint. Right, but he's average twenty points twenty point seven points per game in the paint, which would lead the league if you know, if he only if he played more than three games. And that's you know, I think that's where Denver strength is as well, especially defensively.
You know, they're gonna, you know, with their size, they're gonna protect the paint. You know, you saw it when they were in Brooklyn the other day. You know, Aaron Gordon with his size, the guy just like loves to bully guys under the basket, ducking in and ceiling against the you know, rotating defenders and stuff. So I think it's in the paint. It's it's it's Jokis versus Jaron Jackson, which is a great, great matchup in itself, and there's
Moran versus Jamal Murray. You know, the Nuggets have won five straight, as we said, you know, there was one blowout win, but the other four have all been close games, including that one in Brooklyn. But over that stretch, Jokic and Jamal ma are a combined ten for twelve in the clutch, which is pretty amazing. So yeah, I think that should be a fun, fun game to watch, one of four really good matchups that the Grizzlies have this week.
They start in New Orleans where they just won last week, and they're in Denver and they're in LA to play play the Clippers, hopefully Kawhi Leonard is back. You know, the Clips have lost too straight without Kawhi Leonard, but you know had won nine straight part of that. And then they're back home to play the Kings, who another great,
you know, really good Western Conference team. You know, they obviously there's a lot of season left, and we saw last year how the Lakers came back from a deep hole, you know, to come back and eventually reached the conference finals. So I think there's time for Memphis. You know, you never know what's going to happen over the next couple months. So but this is a this is a great week
for them. You know it's coming three and oh and then to come and have these four specific opponents is a great test.
Yeah, for sure. And they're still I mean they're playing this season without Steve and Adam Adams. Brandon Clark, I think isn't expected to come back from his Achilles injury till somewhere around the All Star break.
I think we could see Marcus Smart this week though for nice.
Yeah.
Yeah, so Marcus Smart interesting to watch. Speaking of a team, speaking of Marcus Smart, his former team that has been clicking and just putting up some crazy numbers on the offensive side, not only in terms of the production, but also the efficiency with it. Your number one team in the Power rankings of Boston Celtics, who had a one to twenty six one fifteen victory over the Lakers on their Christmas Day game yesterday. Their starters continue that starting
five continues to just be off the charts. You look at what they did in particular last night. No starter with less than eighteen points.
Holiday Porzingi slamp is good. Right now, Celtics are bawling the Lakers.
But how they've been playing together, shoo, give us some of the numbers that you've seen out of the Celtics team and why they continued to wow you in particular on that end of the floor.
Yeah, and this was just a ridiculous road trip. I mean, they lost in Golden State, blowing an eleven point fourth quarter lead, and they struggled in overtime in that game, two of the four games on their road trip, or two of the four most efficient games for any team this season. And in Sacramento they scored one hundred and forty four points on only ninety five possessions, which is
one hundred and fifty two per one hundred. Basically, it was the sixth most efficient game for any team in the twenty eight seasons for which we have play by play data. So it was a historically good game. And they followed that up with another incredible game against the Clippers. So and then you know, they go and play the Lakers and they're what are they up twelve zero in the first few minutes, So White, your.
Drive the floaters up. Porszingis throws down.
The follow twenty six points for Porzingis. It's a fourteenth points Celtic lad.
Yeah, they are an offensive machine, and it's not just about hot shooting. We know they shoot a lot of threes and they can get really hot. But you know, they committed just thirty five turnovers over those four games, eight point eight per one hundred possessions, which is like a microscopic rate. And they also grabbed a ton of offensive rebounds in three of those four games. So it's not just about shooting. They're they're they're taking care of
the ball. We know that in the past turnovers have been a problem for this team, and for them to be taking care of the ball as well as they are, that's great because one, it just gives them more opportunities to shoot. And we know they're a great shooting team with five guys who can space the floor, dribble and drive and kick out and you know, space the floor really well. And they you know, they're a machine as long as they're taking care of the ball. And that's what they've been doing.
On the other side of that, though, the Lakers, they have been struggling. How concerned are you with where the Lakers are at the trajectory of where they have been going, how they've been playing, and just how much Lebron James quite frankly, has been relied upon needed this early and this much in the season.
Yeah, he had another injury scare in that game on Christmas. Kate went down, No grabbed his knee and it's like, oh, because we know as good as they've been at times, it you know, it all falls apart if Lebron James and Anthony Davis aren't healthy. I mean, he could say the same thing for every team. But you know, we know that, you know, Lebron is about to turn thirty nine, I believe, and Anthony Davis has obviously had injury issues. You know, maybe it's just a post in season tournament slump.
You know, you know, we know that they got the ability to be a great defensive team. The offense just continues to struggle, you know. They you know, they switched out their starting lineup, put Jared Vanderbilt in in D'angela Russell's place, and that lineup just I mean it's tough, you know, Vanderbilt, Anthony Davis. You know, you're not going to get great spacing, great shooting. You know, Vanderbilt is zerover nine for three point range so far this season,
so you need shooting. Anthony Davis is starting to make some threes, but you still need a little bit of shooting to compliment their size. So I still think they're searching for answers in consistency. I think they still can be very very good. I just don't think they're at the top of the West or near the top of the West given their offensive struggles.
You talk about just the longevity of Lebron James, or I should say sustainability health all at him, Anthony Davis, both those guys averaging around thirty four, thirty five, thirty six minutes per game played. More than that. I know there was the thought of a some minutes restriction heading into the season. That certainly has not taken place, But we will see what happens with that Lakers team. How
the roster continues to look as the season passes. We head towards the trade deadline, but we're gonna take a quick break because we had some Luca magic. Why not Shoe on Christmas Day a fifty piece four Doncic. We'll get to that after this. Welcome back to Emmie, Paul Sarakustak joined, bye the great John Schumann and Shoe. We had a good one Dallas Phoenix one twenty eight one
fourteen win for the Mavericks. And not only did Luca have fifty points, which is always impressive, but a tremendous amount of efficiency fifteen to twenty five from the field, eight to sixteen from the three point line. He was perfect on twelve free throw attempts. And why don't you add in uh fifteen of this four steals, three blocks. He also had six rebounds. A tremendous game by Luca. Go to a driving on Luca block by Luca, doc to a push smaller defender und Up steps back.
And that's it.
I know you were just talking before watching some of the highlights here before we got started. What impressed you most about a performance? Like we've seen so many amazing games and performances by Doncic, but doing so on that stage against this Phoenix team on Christmas.
He just gets where he needs to go or wants to go, like he's He's not the fastest guy in the league, for sure, but he just, you know, has an innate ability to get into the paint and get to get to good spots. You know. One of my favorite things about him, and you see it also with some other guys like Jalen Brunson. It's not just like how they get into the paint, but it's like what they do after they get there, with their footwork and their sort of pump fakes, subtle pump fakes just to
get guys up in the air draw fouls. That's one of my favorite thing about Donjons and obviously, you know, when he gets to the paint, he can also spray out to shooters, and you know, if the MAVs shooters are making shots, then obviously they're a lethal offensive team. I think the bigger story, I mean, as incredible as fifty points on Christmas Day is, you know, the fourth ever fifty point game on Christmas Day is I think the bigger story out of that game is obviously the Suns,
who've lost nine of their last twelve games. They ranked twenty fifth offensively over that stretch, thirtieth in effective field goal percentage over that stretch. Kevin Durant and Devin Booker have been healthy for most of those games. Even if you look at they're minutes on the floor. Over that stretch, the Sons have only scored one hundred and fourteen points per one hundred possessions, which is below the league average.
And that's down from one hundred and twenty eight or one hundred twenty nine per one hundred prior to that. With those two guys on the floor. There were six and one in their first seven games with those guys together, and now you know they're just sort of average. You know, when those guys are available, and that's that's not good enough. Obviously, Like this was supposed to be the other contender in the Western Conference and they're now below five hundred. And
obviously they haven't had Bradley Beal. But the thing about having three stars is that you should still be pretty good when one of them is out right, Like, you know, you should still be pretty good when you have two of them, and they just haven't been. Durant has shot pretty well over this stretch, but other guys have not, including Devin Booker.
Yeah, and I think to your point about that of you know, if you have three stars, at least if two are playing, I think two. You look at the compilation of these three stars, all three have missed time, significant time. It stretches throughout the course of their career from injury. And also I just think that the chemistry. You know, Eric Gordon back in the starting lineup, he missed some time, had some comments about touches the other day.
But it really is such a top heavy team, so their ability to not only rely on the stars but figure out who else is going to give them points at different you know, junctures. And I also the last thing,
it was so evident having just seen this team. They're such a mid range heavy team with Booker and add and Bale I saw Bale you know obviously he's been out, but Kevin Durant sometimes too, even offensively, even if they're having an a fishing game, a lot of those shots are two point field goals are coming from the mid range. And sometimes even if those two players have a huge game, there's just not an not enough firepower.
They're fighting. They're fighting the mass a little bit right with with not shooting as many threes as their opponent.
Absolutely, and the West is tough, well shoe. As always, we appreciate your time. We'll look forward. Your power rankings are the best. They've got so much interesting interesting nuggets and facts and things about all these teams. So we will continue to read all your stuff and have a excellent rest of twenty twenty three, and we will see you again in the new year.
All right, Sarah. Thanks.
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