NBA Daily Notes: The Celtics crush the Pacers; Top fantasy picks for January 10th
Welcome to another day of the NBA 2018-19 season. Yesterday, we had 10 games to watch and we have just four games to review tomorrow.
Let's analyse some of the meaningful performances from the last night, results of the matches and the top players to look out for in the matches tomorrow.
Wednesday's recap:
- Philadelphia 76ers 106-123 Washington Wizards
- Indiana Pacers 108-135 Boston Celtics
- Atlanta Hawks 100-116 Brooklyn Nets
- Milwaukee Bucks 116-109 Houston Rockets
- Cleveland Cavaliers 124-140 New Orleans Pelicans
- San Antonio Spurs 86-96 Memphis Grizzlies
- Phoenix Suns 94-104 Dallas Mavericks
- Orlando Magic 93-106 Utah Jazz
- Chicago Bulls 112-124 Portland Trail Blazers
- Detroit Pistons 100-113 Los Angeles Lakers
Highlights:
1. Giannis Antetokounmpo (Milwaukee Bucks): 27 points, 8-16 FG, 21 rebounds, 5 assists, 1 steal and 3 TOs.
2. Anthony Davis (New Orleans Pelicans): 38 points, 11-17 FG, 13 rebounds, 7 assists, 2 steals, 4 blocks and 1 TO.
3. Donovan Mitchell (Utah Jazz): 33 points, 12-21 FG, 4 rebounds, 7 assists, 1 steal and 2 TOs.
Lowlights:
1. DeMar DeRozan (San Antonio Spurs): 9 points, 4-15 FG, 5 rebounds, 4 assists, 1 steal and 4 TOs.
2. Deandre Ayton (Phoenix Suns): 6 points, 1-7 FG, 5 rebounds, 1 assist, 1 steal, 1 block and 3 TOs.
3. Evan Fournier (Orlando Magic): 1 point, 0-8 FG, 1 steal and 1 TO.
Wednesday's takeaways:
1. The Washington Wizards played the Philadelphia 76ers in a back to back game, but this went the Wizards way, 123-106.
The Boston Celtics defeated a weary Indiana Pacers 135-108, thanks to an all-round show from the Celtics. The Brooklyn Nets beat the Atlanta Hawks in a close game which got out of hand later, with the Nets winning 116-100.
2. The blockbuster game of the night was the Milwaukee Bucks taking on the Houston Rockets, with the Bucks winning, 116-109. The Cleveland Cavaliers were blown off the court by the New Orleans Pelicans, 140-124.
The San Antonio Spurs lost in a low scoring game, to the Memphis Grizzlies, 86-96. The Dallas Mavericks ended their losing streak by beating the Phoenix Suns, 104-94.
3. The Utah Jazz faced the Orlando Magic in a game which the Jazz won without many problems, 106-93. The Portland Trail Blazers went up against the Chicago Bulls, with the Blazers coming out on top, 124-112.
In the final game of the night, the Los Angeles Lakers won their 2nd game in a row without LeBron James, beating the Detroit Pistons, 113-100.
Thursday's games:
- Boston Celtics @ Miami Heat
- Los Angeles Clippers @ Denver Nuggets
- Oklahoma City Thunder @ San Antonio Spurs
- Detroit Pistons @ Sacramento Kings
PG - Russell Westbrook (Oklahoma City Thunder)
The Oklahoma City Thunder have been having an exceptional season this year. They are fighting for the top seed in a very competitive Western Conference and are currently third with a 25-15 record.
They have lost form of late, winning just five of their last 10 and are on a two-game losing streak, something Russell Westbrook will be hoping they can get over soon.
Westbrook has come under criticism of late, after his shooting has been exceptionally poor this season but has still managed to average a triple-double this season.
He is averaging 21 points per game, along with 10 assists and just under 11 rebounds per game this season.
In the loss against the Minnesota Timberwolves, 119-117, Westbrook had a really good game, scoring 25 points, off 50% shooting from the field, along with a huge 16 assists, 5 rebounds, a steal and 2 big blocks.
It was not enough to get them a win last time around, but the Thunder will be hoping his form sticks and he will be able to continue playing like this tomorrow against the San Antonio Spurs.
Alternate pick: De'Aaron Fox (Sacramento Kings)