Breaking Down the Biggest Recent Games in the Northwest
Image from Canis Hoopus
How did each Northwest team do in their most important game in the last two weeks?
Last week was a big one for every team in the Northwest Division. Each squad had an important matchup throughout the week that really displayed where they stand amongst their peers in the standings. Let’s take a look at the biggest takeaways from each game and team in the Northwest.
Image from Yahoo Sports
Oklahoma City Thunder 102, Minnesota Timberwolves 97
Wow. Talk about a good game. Each team came into the game with full health and going into the game, had split the season series one apiece. Minnesota came out of the gates a bit shaky, and it took them until the third quarter to lock in defensively. They settled in nicely though, limiting the top-tier Thunder offense to 17 points in the period and carried a nine point advantage into the fourth quarter. Down the stretch, however, the Timberwolves stalled on both ends, allowing for Shai-Gilgeous Alexander and Jalen Williams to orchestrate a comeback. Even so, Anthony Edwards, a likely All-Star starter, had a chance to tie the game when he drew a foul on a three-point attempt with 3.1 seconds on the clock. Edwards shocked everyone and uncharacteristically missed all three attempts from the line, securing the win for the Thunder. Edwards is shooting 83.8% from the charity stripe on the season, so this is an anomaly, but Minnesota’s inability to shut the door gives Chris Finch cause for concern as the Wolves look to maintain their position at the top of the West.
The Thunder have made it a point to play a majority of their bench this year, but this game saw four of their five starters play over 30 minutes, with only one bench player, sharpshooter Isaiah Joe, logging over 20. They needed to lean on the starters to win the game, sure, but Mark Daignault has stood firm in his belief of the bench, particularly in rookie Cason Wallace and Jaylin Williams. Many, if not all, playoff teams shorten their rosters when the time comes, but the Denver Nuggets showed last year that teams that can play a longer bench to spell their starters are likely to find success.
Image from SLC Dunk.
Utah Jazz 126, Houston Rockets 127 (OT)
The Jazz continue to hover around the .500 mark as we enter the second half of the season, but this loss is a good snapshot of the inconsistent play they’ve shown throughout the year. They turned the ball over 17 times to the Rockets’ seven, shot better than Houston from the field and the line and out-rebounded and out-passed them. And yet, this game went into overtime and a game-winning attempt by Jordan Clarkson failed to find the bottom of the net. The fact that the Jazz are led by Jordan Clarkson(31 years old) and Lauri Markkanen(26 years old), but also have interesting young players in Walker Kessler, Ochai Agbaji and Keyonte George puts Danny Ainge in a complicated spot as the trade deadline approaches. Do you send out young players to try to snag a star and chase a playoff berth this season or do you sell high on Clarkson and Markkanen to stockpile future draft picks?
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Denver Nuggets 102, Boston Celtics 100
The Celtics entered this game undefeated at home, starting out the season by winning 20 straight at TD Gardens. The potential Finals preview didn’t disappoint and Denver’s dynamic duo of Nikola Jokić and Jamal Murray showed out, dropping 34 and 35 points, respectively. Even so, a balanced scoring effort from the Celtics’ starting five helped Boston stay close and Jayson Tatum had a chance to send the game into overtime. The shot missed, however, and the Nuggets were victorious. Fans have been skeptical about Denver this season, expecting dominance from the defending champs, but with this win, the Nuggets showed they are still the team to beat in the entire NBA, led by one of the best two-man attacks in the last decade.
Image from Blazer’s Edge
Portland Trail Blazers 118, Indiana Pacers 115
In the first season of a rebuild, teams tend to focus on the smaller things and making small improvements as they hunt for their next franchise players. In this game, Portland showed that they might not be so far away from competitiveness as fans think they are. They held the best offense in the NBA to ten points lower than their season average and were able to keep up with Tyrese Haliburton and new Pacer Pascal Siakam throughout the game. Jerami Grant scored 37 points and Malcolm Brogdon contributed 30 of his own in the win. One curious and potentially concerning note from this game; the Blazers played almost their entire starting lineup over 30 minutes, with the only exception being Matisse Thybulle at 28. This would not be concerning if top pick Scoot Henderson was included in that, but he only played eight minutes. Winning is great, but Henderson’s development might be hindered if this continues.
