Welcome to The Rundown! Today, I talk about the top stories from around the league, pick my Player of the Night and make my predictions for tonight’s action.
Devin Booker drops 46 on the 76ers
Devin Booker is the one reason I felt like the Phoenix Suns were going to be just fine after trading away Eric Bledsoe. We know he’s going to be an elite scoring guard, and if you don’t believe me, I refer you to last season, when he dropped 70 points. Last night, he had another lights out performance, dropping 46 points on the Philadelphia 76ers. It’s a good sign for Phoenix that Book can show up and score big when needed, as Ben Simmons, JJ Redick and Joel Embiid all had big games last night. He has become the main piece on the Suns team, and he has become one of the bright young players in the NBA today.
Kyrie and Giannis duel in Boston
In a battle of potential MVP candidates, Giannis Antetokounmpo and Kyrie Irving had themselves a scoring battle as the Bucks visited the Celtics in Boston. The Greek Freak and the Bucks have lost a little bit of their steam from the start of the season, but we know Antetokounmpo is capable of making big plays and leading his team to victory. That said, Kyrie Irving can do the same. Giannis went for 40, and Irving went for 32 as the Celtics came out on top. Before the season, everyone was ready to write off the East, and even though the top two teams are out west (Houston and Golden State), the Eastern Conference still has fun little matchups like this to look forward to.
Warriors make an impressive comeback, but lose Stephen Curry
Without Anthony Davis on the floor, the Pelicans came out last night looking to make a statement, as they jumped out to a big lead led by Jrue Holiday (34 points) and E’Twaun Moore (27 points.) That said, when you have the Warriors down, you have to keep them down, a task that has seemed almost impossible over the last three years. Led by their Big 4, the Warriors came back from the deficit to come out on top for a double digit win. It’s not all good news though, as Stephen Curry is out for at least two weeks with a sprained right ankle. Curry, who had numerous issues with his ankles early in his career, gave fans quite the worry, as the video of the injury made it look a lot worse than it was. Of course, this is Golden State we’re talking about, so I’m not worried about them winning games over that span. They still have Kevin Durant and Klay Thompson to carry the scoring load, and Draymond Green has been called the heart and soul of this group on numerous occasions. The only thing I’m worried about is the fact that this could potentially rule out Curry for the Warriors Christmas Day game against the Cleveland Cavaliers, a game we always prefer everyone to be healthy during. But other than that, this gives Steph a chance to heal his injured finger as well as his ankle, so it’s very possible Curry can come back on a completely different level after his ankle heals.
Player of the Night
Devin Booker – 46 PTS, 8 REB, 53.1% FG, 5 of 8 from three in win VS 76ers
Predictions
Kings-Cavaliers
Cavaliers
Bulls-Pacers
Pacers
Hawks-Magic
Magic
Mavericks-Celtics
Celtics
Grizzlies-Knicks
Knicks
Warriors-Hornets
Warriors
Pistons-Bucks
Bucks
Nuggets-Pelicans
Pelicans
Heat-Spurs
Heat
Timberwolves-Clippers
Timberwolves
That’ll do it for today’s Rundown! Come back tomorrow, where we’ll discuss the top stories from around the NBA.