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A trio of nailbiters

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League News

• Lauri Markkanen and Bam Adebayo have been named Players of The Week for Week 12.

• NBA All Star Voting for 2023 is now open! Click here to do your daily vote.

• The Sixers and the Nuggets faced off in their first of two matchups the season, and it was an absolutely incredible game. Both MVPs finished with outrageous statlines, Embiid dropping 41/10/7 and Jokic dropping 25/19/3. Both players were the hub of their teams offense, but Embiid had the scoring and playmaking advantage last night. These games between top candidates tend to have a considerable effect on the MVP race itself, so all eyes will be on this game and their next matchup on January 27th. Who’s your pick for MVP, The Process or The Joker?

• In other news: Phoenix came back to win from being down 19 in the last 8 minutes of the game against Sacramento, Joel Embiid told Nikola Jokic that he’s the best player in the league, and the Clippers won a thriller against the Thunder.

• Injury Updates: Desmond Bane (ankle) will miss 6 weeks. Marcus Smart (finger) will be out 6 weeks. Tyrese Haliburton injured his hamstring, and will miss 2+ weeks. Chris Paul underwent surgery on his left hand and will miss 4-6 weeks. De’Andre Hunter (knee) will be out at least 2 weeks. Gabe Vincent (knee) will be out 4-6 weeks. Darius Garland (jaw) and Evan Mobley (knee) will both be out for at least 2 weeks. Mitchell Robinson (ankle) underwent surgery and will be out 8-10 weeks. Ben Simmons (nerves) will miss 2+ weeks. Robert Williams underwent knee surgery and will be out for the season. Ja Morant had surgery on a torn labrum and will miss the rest of the season. We wish all these guys speedy and successful recoveries.

Trade News

• The Detroit Pistons traded Marvin Bagley lll, Isaiah Livers, and a 2nd round pick to the Washington Wizards for Danilo Gallinari and Mike Muscala. The Bulls are looking to move Zach Lavine and possibly DeMar DeRozan. The Knicks signed and waived Taj Gibson in the span of a week. The Pacers are signing James Johnson because they clearly don’t want another Giannis Incident. Look for more moves sooner than later with veterans like Malcolm Brogdon looking to be moved in the coming weeks.

• The Golden State Warriors are reportedly looking to clean house. Everyone not named Steph Curry is available for trade, and they’re hoping to be be able to move on from Andrew Wiggins and acquire “an offensive minded 7 footer.”

• The Free Agent market is still deep with vets like DeMarcus Cousins, Isaiah Thomas, Dwight Howard, Rudy Gay, Blake Griffin, Tyreke Evans, Austin Rivers, Montrezl Harrell (he’ll be out for a few months), and John Wall ready to contribute to winning or to mentor young guys. There are a few younger names on the market, like Kai Jones (yikes), Kevin Porter Jr (yikes again), Sharife Cooper, and Darius Bazley.

NBA MVP Race

1. Joel Embiid, Philadelphia 76ers

Last week’s ranking: No. 1

Season stats: 34.6 ppg, 11.8 rpg, 6.0 apg

His case: Injuries are inevitable, and the league’s new rules mandating participation could derail Embiid’s candidacy before Philadelphia even reaches the All-Star break. For Embiid, that’s probably just fine as he and the third-place Sixers are eyeing a title over individual awards.

The big man currently averages career-highs in points, field goals made (11.6), free throws made (10.2), free-throw percentage (88.2%), assists (6.0), steals (1.1) and plus-minus (plus-9.1).

2. Nikola Jokic, Denver Nuggets

Last week’s ranking: No. 2

Season stats: 25.5 ppg, 11.8 rpg, 9.2 apg

His case: Jokic is gaining ground on Embiid and would probably be No. 1 right now if Denver didn’t lose two of its last three games going into Friday’s win against New Orleans. The Nuggets are now 4-3 in their last six games.

But Jokic is doing his part, averaging a blistering 79.7% from the field over that span and 80% from 3-point range (he’s attempted just five 3-pointers) with 1.3 steals and 1.3 blocks.

3. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Oklahoma City Thunder

Last week’s ranking: No. 3

Season stats: 31.4 ppg, 5.9 rpg, 6.3 apg

His case: Gilgeous-Alexander led Oklahoma City to its largest margin of victory (62 points) in franchise history with 31 points on 11-of-15 shooting Thursday in just 21 minutes. In their 139-77 win against the Blazers, the Thunder became the first team since the Spurs in 1993 to shoot 50% or better in 10 straight games.

The 25-year-old has averaged 33 points per game on 61% shooting in his last 10 outings.

4. Luka Doncic, Dallas Mavericks

Last week’s ranking: No. 5

Season stats: 33.6 ppg, 8.1 rpg, 9.1 apg

His case: The 24-year-old has dropped fewer than 31 points just once since before Christmas, but the workload has taken a toll. Doncic missed Thursday’s 128-124 win against the Knicks with a sprained right ankle.

Currently ninth on the NBA’s all-time triple-doubles list (62), Doncic forms one of the league’s most formidable backcourt duos with Kyrie Irving, who lately has shouldered more of the scoring burden.

5. Giannis Antetokounmpo, Milwaukee Bucks

Last week’s ranking: No. 4

Season stats: 31.2 ppg, 11.5 rpg, 5.9 apg

His case: No doubt, Antetokounmpo and the Bucks demolished Boston on Thursday. The two-time MVP contributed 24 points and 12 rebounds against a gassed Celtics team that had outlasted Minnesota one night earlier in an overtime thriller.

Milwaukee had lost four of the previous five — all with Antetokounmpo racking up monstrous numbers. Still searching for consistency, the Bucks need the veteran’s leadership just as much as his production.

THE NEXT FIVE:

6. Jayson Tatum, Boston Celtics (Last week: No. 6)
7. Domantas Sabonis, Sacramento Kings (Last week: No. 8)
8. Anthony Davis, Los Angeles Lakers (Last week: No. 9)
9. Tyrese Haliburton, Indiana Pacers (Last week: No. 7)
10. Kawhi Leonard, LA Clippers (Last week: unranked) 

🏀Highlights🏀

The highlights from the top games of the night!

Overtime Thoughts

HoopGrids

Hoopgrids is a daily basketball trivia game. You cross match each category to find a player that fits both. The rarer the player, the lower the score. The goal is to get the lowest rarity score possible.

All Star 2023