The first Sunday of the NBA regular season consisted of five games, beginning with an afternoon game in Oklahoma City that turned into a laugher and a nightcap in Los Angeles that was headlined by Anthony Davis and LeBron James. The three games in between were all highly entertaining, but Monday’s Daily Dose begins with the game between Portland and Dallas due not only to the game itself but also an injury suffered by a key member of the Trail Blazers rotation.
After posting averages of 6.6 points, 4.2 rebounds, 0.9 assists, 0.9 blocks and 0.5 three-pointers per game last season, Zach Collins entered this season as the trendy pick of many to be a breakout player. Collins finished Sunday’s 121-119 win over Dallas with ten points, three rebounds, one assist and two 3-pointers in 24 minutes, but he was forced to leave early due to a left shoulder injury. Following the game it was revealed that Collins dislocated the shoulder, and he will undergo an MRI on Monday. Team doctors were able to pop the shoulder back into the socket, and the feeling was that being able to do so without much trouble bodes well for Collins moving forward. [[ad:athena]]
Should he have to miss an extended period of time, who would see an increase in minutes? Hassan Whiteside, who starts alongside Collins, played 26 minutes before fouling out and finished with six points (2-of-4 FGs, 2-of-2 FTs), 14 rebounds, one blocked shot and three turnovers. Beyond Whiteside, power forwards Anthony Tolliver and Skal Labissiere played a total of nine minutes against Dallas. Labissiere was the more productive of the two, scoring four points on 2-of-3 shooting with three rebounds. With Portland already down one big in Jusuf Nurkic as he works his way back from the broken leg he suffered last season, the Trail Blazers can’t afford to be without Collins for a significant amount of time.
Portland only went eight deep on Sunday, so it’s conceivable that Stotts could go with smaller lineups in order to steal extra rest time for Whiteside.
C.J. McCollum led the way offensively for Terry Stotts’ team, scoring 35 points (13-of-26 FGs, 8-of-8 FTs) with six rebounds, four assists, two steals, one three-pointer and two turnovers in 41 minutes. Entering Sunday’s game he made a total of 13 field goals in Portland’s first two games, doing so on 36 field goal attempts. McCollum led five double digit scorers for the Blazers, with Damian Lillard (five assists, three rebounds, one steal, one block and one three-pointer) adding 28 points, Rodney Hood (six rebounds, two steals, one block and three 3-pointers) 20 and the aforementioned Collins ten. Portland’s fifth double-digit scorer was Kent Bazemore, who finished with 11 points, five rebounds, one assists and one three-pointer in 30 minutes played.
Dallas went nine deep, with Luka Doncic and Kristaps Porzingis being the only Mavericks to play at least 30 minutes. Doncic played 38 minutes, scoring 29 points (8-of-22 FGs, 11-of-14 FTs) with 12 rebounds, nine assists, three steals, two 3-pointers and four turnovers. As for Porzingis, in 34 minutes he tallied 32 points (11-of-23 FGs, 7-of-10 FTs), nine rebounds, five assists, two blocks and three 3-pointers. Maxi Kleber added 14 points, six rebounds, three assists, one blocked shot and two 3-pointers in 25 minutes, with reserves Seth Curry and Tim Hardaway Jr. scoring 12 and 11 points, respectively. Curry and Hardaway combined to shoot 2-of-12 from three, with Curry responsible for both makes.
The production of those two guards kept the Mavericks within striking distance, as starters Delon Wright and Jalen Brunson combined to score 12 points. Wright, who scored eight of those points, was also responsible for five assists, two rebounds and two 3-pointers. Brunson accounted for four points, two rebounds, two assists and one three-pointer, shooting 1-of-6 from the field. Wings Dorian Finney-Smith and Justin Jackson played 29 and 18 minutes, with the former tallying six points, nine rebounds, one steal and one three-pointer.
Thunder 120, Warriors 92
Three days removed from being blown out at home by the Clippers, Golden State was on the receiving end of another beating Sunday afternoon in Oklahoma City. Stephen Curry was the only starter that played 30 minutes on the day, due primarily to the nature of the game (Golden State trailed by as much as 41) and the fact that D’Angelo Russell was ejected early in the third quarter. Curry shot 7-of-18 from the field and 7-of-7 from the foul line, scoring 23 points with eight rebounds, five assists, two 3-pointers and two turnovers in 30 minutes of action. As for Russell he played 22 minutes before taking the early trip back to the locker room, scoring just six points (3-of-10 FGs) with two assists and one rebound.
Three other Warriors joined Curry in double figures, with Draymond Green (five rebounds, two assists, two steals, one three-pointer and one turnover), Marquese Chriss (four rebounds, four steals, three assists and four turnovers) and Eric Paschall (three rebounds and one assist) scoring ten points apiece. With Kevon Looney still out due to the hamstring injury that he re-aggravated in the season opener, Chriss made the start alongside Green and Glenn Robinson III (three points, six rebounds, two steals and two turnovers) in the front court. Paschall and Omari Spellman were the only other available bigs, with Paschall playing 25 minutes and Spellman (nine points, eight rebounds, two assists, two steals, three blocks, one three-pointer and one turnover) 25.
After accounting for just one steal in the opener Spellman was much more productive with regards to the defensive stats, which will need to continue to be the case as the Warriors await the return of Looney and the debut of Willie Cauley-Stein (left mid-foot strain). At the very least the former will not play Monday night in New Orleans, while the latter worked out with the Warriors’ G-League affiliate in Santa Cruz on Saturday. No timeline has been given regarding full clearance for either player, but given the Warriors’ lack of options at center the sooner the better for both Looney and Cauley-Stein.
On the perimeter Golden State didn’t get much production from anyone outside of Curry. Jacob Evans scored four points and dished out one assist in his 18 minutes, missing all three of his field goal attempts. Jordan Poole (two rebounds, one assist, one steal, one three-pointer and two turnovers) and Damion Lee (three rebounds, one steal) scored six points apiece but did so while shooting a combined 2-of-14 from the field. Ky Bowman saw action once any suspense was removed, playing 12 minutes and finishing with five points on 2-of-8 shooting.
As for the victors, Dennis Schroder led five double-digit scorers with 22 points (9-of-13 FGs, 3-of-3 FTs) to go along with eight rebounds, six assists, four steals, one three-pointer and three turnovers in 25 minutes. He and rookie wing Darius Bazley (five points, seven rebounds, two assists, one three-pointer and four turnovers) were the only reserves to play more than 20 minutes, with Bazley playing 26.
The game being a blowout afforded Billy Donovan the opportunity to limit the minutes of his veterans. Chris Paul (ten points, three rebounds, two assists, one steal and two 3-pointers) played just 19 minutes, with Danilo Gallinari (21 points, one rebounds, one blocked shot, four 3-pointers and three turnovers) playing 22 and Steven Adams (eight points, nine rebounds, three assists and one turnover) 25. Fellow starters Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (19 points, nine rebounds, four assists, two blocks, one three-pointer and three turnovers) and Terrance Ferguson (13 points, four assists, two rebounds, three 3-pointers and one turnover) played 30 minutes apiece.
Nerlens Noel did a little bit of everything during his 15 minutes, scoring six points on 3-of-4 shooting with four rebounds, two assists, two blocks, one steal and one turnover. He, Abdel Nader (three points, two rebounds, one assist, one three-pointer and two turnovers) and Hamidou Diallo (eight points, one rebounds, one steal, one three-pointer and one turnover) joined the aforementioned Schroder and Bazley with double-digit minutes, as Nader played 12 minutes and Diallo 13. There isn’t a whole lot to take away from this one from a rotation standpoint due to the fact that it didn’t take long for the game to get out of hand.
Grizzlies 134, Nets 133 (OT)
A showdown between one of the NBA’s best point guards and a rookie who could be deserving of that label down the line was ultimately decided by a veteran who scored a total of six points on the night. Jae Crowder’s three-pointer as time expired gave Memphis the one-point win, but the duel between point guards Kyrie Irving and Ja Morant is what many will be talking about. Irving definitely put up good numbers, as he scored a game-high 37 points (11-of-27 FGs, 10-of-11 FTs) with seven rebounds, seven assists, two steals, one blocked shot, five 3-pointers and two turnovers in 34 minutes, but Morant was just as good.
Morant played 32 minutes, scoring 30 points (13-of-22 FGs, 3-of-4 FTs) with nine assists, four rebounds, one steal, one blocked shot (of an Irving shot that would have won the game in regulation), one three-pointer and six turnovers. While the turnover count was higher than one would want there’s no denying the impact that Morant had on the game, especially in the fourth quarter as he scored 17 points. And Crowder’s game-winner was assisted by Morant, giving Taylor Jenkins his first win as an NBA head coach.
As noted above Crowder scored just six points, shooting 2-of-5 from three, to go along with seven rebounds, five assists, two blocks, one steal and one turnover in 38 minutes played. Memphis’ other four starters scored in double figures, with Jaren Jackson Jr. (12 points, six rebounds, two blocks, one assist and two 3-pointers in 24 minutes) doing so despite fouling out and Jonas Valanciunas (16 points, 11 rebounds, four assists, two blocks, one steal and three 3-pointers in 20 minutes) doing so while on a minutes restriction. Dylan Brooks played 38 minutes, matching Crowder, and he shot 9-of-15 from the field in scoring 21 points with two rebounds, two assists, one steal and three 3-pointers.
Valanciunas’ minutes restriction has opened up more minutes for the Grizzlies’ reserves, and with Jackson dealing with foul trouble even more minutes became available in the fourth quarter and overtime. There were periods late when Kyle Anderson (13 points, four rebounds, two steals, two blocks and one assist) was serving as the de facto center, a position that he really isn’t physically equipped for. Anderson played 24 minutes, with fellow forwards Brandon Clarke (ten points, seven rebounds, two assists, one steal, one block and one turnover) and Solomon Hill (13 points, five rebounds, three assists, one three-pointer and one turnover) playing 26 and 24 minutes, respectively. Clarke was listed as questionable before the game due to back soreness.
As long as Valanciunas’ minutes restriction remains in place there will be minutes available for those reserve forward, especially when Jackson gets into foul trouble.
For the Nets the big change to the rotation occurred before the game began, as DeAndre Jordan replaced Jarrett Allen in the starting lineup. But that did not lead to much of a change with regard to how much the two centers played. Jordan played 23 minutes, matching his number from Friday’s win over the Knicks, accounting for six points (3-of-3 FGs), 12 rebounds, two blocks, one assist and one turnover. Allen checked in halfway through the first quarter and ultimately played 27 minutes, two more than he did Friday, and finished with 14 points (5-of-6 FGs, 4-of-4 FTs), 13 rebounds, one assist and two turnovers.
Jordan was the lone Nets starter that did not play at least 30 minutes on the night. Irving played 34, with fellow guards Caris LeVert (27 points, five assists, four rebounds, three 3-pointers and two turnovers) and Joe Harris (13 points, two rebounds, two assists, one steal, three 3-pointers and two turnovers) playing 39 and 37 minutes, respectively. And forward Taurean Prince played 30 minutes, scoring 12 points with six rebounds, two assists, two 3-pointers and four turnovers. Backup point guard Spencer Dinwiddie also hit the 30-minute mark, and while he finished with 16 points, eight assists, three rebounds, one assist, one block, two 3-pointers and one turnover Dinwiddie struggled shooting the basketball (3-of-13 FGs).
Garrett Temple (five points, two assists, one rebound, one steal and one block in 18 minutes), David Nwaba (two rebounds, one steal and one turnover in 14 minutes) and Rodions Kurucs (three points, three rebounds and two turnovers in 12 minutes) rounded out the ten-man rotation for Kenny Atkinson’s squad.
Timberwolves 116, Heat 109
After struggling to make shots on a consistent basis in Minnesota’s first two games of the season Andrew Wiggins had more success Sunday night, shooting 9-of-18 from the field and finishing with 25 points (16 in the final six minutes), six rebounds, four 3-pointers and three turnovers in 35 minutes played. Those four triples were made on ten attempts, and it’s a good sign for Wiggins that he continued to put those shots up despite his struggles in Minnesota’s first two games. He shot a combined 0-of-7 from beyond the arc in wins over Brooklyn and Charlotte, and in 2018-19 Wiggins shot 33.9% on an average of 4.8 attempts (a career-high) per game.
Wiggins was one of three Timberwolves starters that scored at least 21 points, with Karl-Anthony Towns adding 23 (8-of-21 FGs, 3-of-6 FTs) with 11 rebounds, four assists, two steals, one block, four 3-pointers and two turnovers and Jeff Teague 21 (5-of-8 FGs, 10-of-11 FTs). Teague also accounted for eight assists, one rebounds, one steal, one three-pointer and one turnover in his 31 minutes on the court. The fact that those three were productive kept Minnesota within striking distance going into the fourth quarter, as Robert Covington (ten rebounds, three assists, one steal, two 3-pointers and three turnovers) finished with 11 points and Treveon Graham (two rebounds, two assists and two steals) shot 0-of-5 from the field and failed to score.
Three of the five reserves Ryan Saunders used played at least 20 minutes on the night, with Jake Layman (six points, three rebounds, two assists, one steal and one turnover) playing 26 and Shabazz Napier (12 points, three rebounds, two assists, two steals, two 3-pointers and four turnovers) and Josh Okogie (eight points, six rebounds, two assists, two steals and one turnover) played 20 apiece. Noah Vonleh (eight points, three rebounds and one steal) and Jarrett Culver (two points, one rebounds, one assist and one turnover) played 13 minutes apiece to round out the rotation.
Miami once again played without Jimmy Butler, who is away from the team following the birth of his daughter. His absence opened the door for Kendrick Nunn, and to his credit the undrafted rookie has made the most of his opportunity. Nunn played 40 minutes Sunday night, shooting 9-of-17 from the field and 2-of-2 from the foul line and finishing with 25 points, four rebounds, two assists, two steals, five 3-pointers and four turnovers. That’s an increase of 11 minutes over what he played in Miami’s overtime win over Milwaukee Saturday night, and through three games Nunn is averaging 22.3 points, 3.3 assists, 3.3 rebounds, 2.0 steals and 2.0 turnovers per games.
His 67 points through three games are the most that an undrafted rookie has scored in his first three games in NBA history. Nunn’s minutes will decrease once Butler returns, but he has done enough to merit serious consideration for a spot in the Heat rotation once that time comes.
The other starter to play at least 40 minutes for the Heat was Justise Winslow, who played 43 one day after playing 41 minutes against Milwaukee. And Winslow shot the ball better in the second game of the back-to-back, making 8-of-17 from the field and 2-of-3 from beyond the arc. Winslow scored 20 points, double his total from Saturday, while also tallying eight rebounds, six assists, two blocks, one steal and four turnovers. While Tyler Herro (eight points, five rebounds, four assists, one steal, one three-pointer and five turnovers) and Bam Adebayo (13 points, nine rebounds, five assists, three blocks, two steals and three turnovers) played 35 and 32 minutes, respectively, Meyers Leonard (five points, three rebounds, one assist and one three-pointer) was limited to just 14.
Among the reserves Goran Dragic and Duncan Robinson played 27 and 23 minutes, respectively, with the latter shooting 8-of-12 from the field and finishing with 21 points, two rebounds, two blocks, one assist and one turnover. Chris Silva and Kelly Olynyk also reached double digits in minutes, with Silva playing 11 minutes and Olynyk 13. The Heat went nine deep in the second game of a back-to-back due to injuries and other absences, so it shouldn’t come as a surprise that Erik Spoelstra’s team appeared to run out of gas down the stretch.
Lakers 120, Hornets 101
Since losing their season opener the Lakers have won two straight, and on Sunday an in-game change to the rotation had a noticeable impact on the action. After playing Troy Daniels with the second unit in the first half Frank Vogel made a change after the break, instead going with Alex Caruso. While Caruso finished with just five points, two rebounds, one assist, one steal, one blocked shot and one turnover in 13 minutes, his presence was one of the reasons why the Lakers were able to go on a 15-2 run and pull away from the Hornets. Daniels played 12 minutes, scoring five points with one steal and one three-pointer.
The biggest reasons for L.A.’s success were Anthony Davis and LeBron James, with Dwight Howard among the key contributors off the bench. Davis shot 10-of-19 from the field and 6-of-6 from the foul line, finishing with 29 points, 14 rebounds, three assists, three blocks, one steal, three 3-pointers and five turnovers on 32 minutes. The double-double is the first for Davis as a Laker, and the 29 points are four more than his total in the season opening loss to the Clippers. But there was some concern after the game, as Davis departed for the locker room with just over two minutes remaining.
During his postgame interview session, the 6-foot-10 forward said that “there’s nothing wrong” with his shoulder. The Lakers return to action Tuesday night when the Grizzlies visit, so this is something to keep an eye on over the next two days.
As for James, he was highly deferential in the first half before being more assertive in looking for his shots during the fourth quarter. He finished with 20 points (7-of-14 FGs, 5-of-5 FTs), 12 assists, six rebounds, one steal, one three-pointer and four turnovers in a team-high 35 minutes. JaVale McGee was the third starter in double figures, as he tallied ten points, four rebounds, one assist and one steal in 16 minutes played. Combining with McGee to give the Lakers a needed presence at center was Howard, who in 23 minutes off the bench racked up 16 points (8-of-8 FGs), ten rebounds, four blocked shots, one assist and one turnover. By comparison, Howard had totals of five points, 13 rebounds, three assists, two steals and two blocked shots in his first two games of the season.
Quinn Cook (eight assists, three rebounds and two 3-pointers) and Kentavious Caldwell-Pope (two assists, one rebound, one steal and two 3-pointers) added 12 and ten points apiece, with the latter breaking out of an 0-of-11 slump (0-of-9 in the first two games) in the process. Los Angeles went ten deep Sunday, and an argument could be made that the rotation would have consisted of nine players had the Lakers not needed the spark that Caruso provided in the second half.
Charlotte, which plays the Clippers Monday night at Staples Center, went eight deep with Devonte’ Graham (28 minutes), Marvin Williams (17) and Malik Monk (14) being the reserves. Graham, who shot the ball very well in Charlotte’s first two games, struggled mightily Sunday night. He shot 1-of-13 from the field, finishing with nine points due to a 6-of-6 effort from the foul line. He also accounted for a team-high five assists, three rebounds, one three-pointer and one turnover. As for the other two reserves, Williams accounted for five points, two rebounds, one steal and one three-pointer while Monk was scoreless with one assist and one steal.
Miles Bridges led four starters in double figures with 23 points, shooting 8-of-17 from the field and 5-of-5 from the foul line, to go along with six rebounds, three assists, two 3-pointers and three turnovers in 27 minutes. Cody Zeller and Terry Rozier (six rebounds, four assists, one steal, three 3-pointers and three turnovers) added 19 apiece, with Zeller also responsible for 14 rebounds, three steals, three blocks, one assist and one three-pointer in 29 minutes. He had to leave the game briefly to receive some stitches above his left eye after taking an inadvertent elbow from Davis, but still managed to post his second double-double of the season.
Given what Charlotte’s rotation is right now, with Bismack Biyombo playing five minutes on Sunday and Willy Hernangomez two, Zeller is a safe play at the center position in most leagues. Dwayne Bacon added 15 points, six rebounds, two assists, one three-pointer and one turnover in 37 minutes played.
Monday’s Schedule (all times Eastern)
Indiana at Detroit, 7 PM
Chicago at New York, 7 PM
Orlando at Toronto, 7:30 PM
Philadelphia at Atlanta, 7:30 PM
Cleveland at Milwaukee, 8 PM
Golden State at New Orleans, 8 PM
Oklahoma City at Houston, 8 PM
Portland at San Antonio, 8:30 PM
Denver at Sacramento, 10 PM
Utah at Phoenix, 10 PM
Charlotte at LA Clippers, 10:30 PM
