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2.7.18

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LAST NIGHT'S SCORES

Magic 116, Cavaliers 98Raptors 111, Celtics 91Hawks 108, Grizzlies 82Rockets 123, Nets 113Bucks 103, Knicks 8976ers 115, Wizards 102Thunder 125, Warriors 105Lakers 112, Suns 93

Written while listening to Illmatic by Nas. [

Spotify

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Apple Music

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Nas said, “I never sleep, because sleep is the cousin of death. Beyond the walls of intelligence, life is defined. I think of crime, when I'm in a New York state of mind." And the worst was never the same.

 Poor-Zingis and the Knicks are screwed   

Here’s what that happened yesterday, one time for your mind, one time:

• Kristaps Porzingis landed awkwardly on his left leg and tore his ACL. Utter heartbreak for New York. And to add insult to injury, Giannis jumped over 6-foot-6” Tim Hardaway Jr.:

• The Cavs scored just nine points in the fourth quarter and blew a 21 point lead to the Magic Jonathan Simmons, who dropped 34. They lost by 18 points.

• On top of that, the Cavaliers saga continues:

  • Reports show that Lebron ripped into two executives in a recent meeting.

  • Nobody wants JR Smith or Tristan Thompson in trade talks. Perhaps that has something to do with abhorrent contracts GM LeBron gave them?

• The Raptors crushed the Boston Celtics in a preview of a potential Eastern Conference Finals matchup.

• James Harden dropped a casual 36 points in Brooklyn.

Porzingis is a 7-foot-3 beanpole who only grabbed two more rebounds a game than Terry Rozier before he got hurt. Still a promising, young beanpole, but confronting what comes next for him is the last thing anyone from New York wants to do.

Blake and Detroit are suddenly fun again

When Stan Van Gundy acquired Blake Griffin in a blockbuster trade about a week ago, someone asked him if it was a good or bad trade.

“Well we just lost eight straight games, so we can’t get any worse.”

But he probably didn’t think things would go this well.

The Pistons are now 4-0 since Blake Griffin came to town, including some convincing wins against Cleveland, Miami and Portland. He has continued his strong offensive output (20 points, nine rebounds, six assists per game with Detroit), and Drummond’s 17 points and 17 rebound night hints at some chemistry. Exhibit A:

It’s only been four games and we’re not jumping on the hype train just yet, but Detroit is hopping again and that’s all that matters.

Wouldn’t you want to see the Pistons in the playoffs instead of the Heat or the Pacers?

• The Oklahoma City Thunder lost four straight, including a home loss to the Lakers, and then beat the Warriors in Oakland. They are back to being frustratingly inconsistent.

• The Mavericks embarrassingly misspelled their FRANCHISE ALL-STAR’S name on his jersey, the night he eclipsed 50,000 minutes:

• Joel Embiid surprised a local reporter on the streets of Philadelphia during the celebration of the Eagles' Super Bowl victory over the Patriots. That man is so damn charismatic.

• The Hawks gave Dwight Howard a tribute video when he only played there a year. Here’s the TNT crew’s priceless reaction.

• As if you couldn’t like Giannis any more, he saw a kid in the stands with a Big Baller Brand sweatshirt on and gave him his own hoodie to replace it.

• And basketball Gods are on his side (probably because he’s Greek):

• LeBron last night said he would never waive his no-trade clause.

• How the NBA could fix the playoffs [Tap Here]

• The end of Pete Maravich, a prisoner of his own skills

"The worst thing that can happen to a basketball player in the NBA, Bill Walton has said, is to be the best player on a losing team. Then the player will always be known around the league as a loser. Which is the story of Maravich, who now so desperately wants a ring."

             To read more from David Halberstam, Tap Here

• The Breakaway by S.I.’s Rob Mahoney, which attempts to profile a different subsection of the league with every episode. Here’s one on leadership, featuring Damian Lillard.

 A LOOK AHEAD Here are the must-see games of the week. 

Wednesday, 2/7

The Houston Rockets (39-13) visit the Miami Heat (29-25)7:30 PM EST 

The Minnesota Timberwolves (34-22) visit the Cleveland Cavaliers (30-22)8 PM EST - ESPN

Thursday, 2/8

Boston Celtics (39-16) visit the Washington Wizards (31-23)8 PM EST - ESPN