The NBA served up quite a feast this past weekend — a smorgasbord of stellar performances, head-scratching moments, and everything in between that makes pro basketball such a compelling spectacle as we head toward the 2024 playoffs.
Take James Harden’s Saturday night masterpiece against the Mavericks. The Beard might not be the scoring machine he once was (his three-point shooting has been, let’s say, temperamental lately), but man alive, did he put on a clinic in LA’s 135-104 demolition of Dallas. While going a modest 1-for-4 from downtown, Harden flipped the script and reminded everyone why he’s still one of the game’s elite puppet masters — dishing out 14 dimes while dropping 29 points on 10-of-19 shooting.
What made the performance particularly special wasn’t just the numbers. It was how Harden adapted when the long-range shots wouldn’t fall. Rather than forcing up bricks from beyond the arc (something plenty of stars might’ve done), he orchestrated the Clippers’ offense like a seasoned conductor working with his favorite orchestra.
Meanwhile, over in Sacramento — where the Kings have been quietly building something special this season — Domantas Sabonis continued doing Domantas Sabonis things. His near triple-double (27 points, nine boards, seven assists) in the Kings’ 120-113 win over Cleveland doesn’t tell the whole story. The real kicker? He shot 11-of-15 against one of the league’s most intimidating frontcourts. Not too shabby for a Sunday night’s work.
But perhaps the most fascinating storyline emerged from Oklahoma City, where Shai Gilgeous-Alexander experienced something that hadn’t happened to him in, well, forever. In the Thunder’s surprisingly lopsided 126-99 loss to the Lakers, SGA didn’t attempt a single free throw — breaking a 78-game streak that had become one of the league’s most remarkable ongoing narratives.
His response? Pure class.
“I don’t know. I didn’t get fouled, and I don’t think that necessarily needs to change,” he said after the game, showing the kind of perspective that’s made him one of the league’s most respected young stars. “I don’t think we lost because I didn’t shoot free throws, and I’m all about trying to win.”
The Thunder’s rough night (watching the Lakers rain threes like they were playing NBA 2K, going 22-of-40 from deep) highlighted some growing pains for this young squad. Coach Mark Daigneault, though, kept it real in his post-game comments. “What’s important now and in the playoffs is fundamentals,” he noted, cutting through the noise. “You’re still going to have to guard the ball, they’re still going to have to guard the ball.”
As we inch closer to the postseason, these performances tell us something about the beautiful unpredictability of the NBA. Sometimes your go-to move isn’t there. Sometimes the shots don’t fall. And sometimes — just sometimes — the game forces you to show a different side of your basketball personality.
That’s what makes the league such compelling theater as we head into the final stretch of the regular season. Whether it’s Harden finding new ways to dominate, Sabonis bullying elite big men, or SGA handling an off night with veteran poise, the NBA’s best continue to prove that greatness isn’t just about what you can do — it’s about what you can do when Plan A goes out the window.
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