NBA News Today: Kendrick Perkins compares Kawhi Leonard's constant unavailability to Kyrie Irving's absences, Mavs fall to Pelicans after Luka Doncic misses potential game-winner
Former 14-year NBA veteran-turned-ESPN analyst Kendrick Perkins has called out LA Clippers superstar forward Kawhi Leonard following his lack of availability for the Clippers.
In other news, the Dallas Mavericks lost a heartbreaker to the New Orleans Pelicans following a missed game-winning buzzer-beater from superstar guard Luka Doncic.
On that note, here are the top news stories from around the NBA as of Oct. 26, 2022.
Kendrick Perkins calls out Kawhi Leonard's lack of availability
The LA Clippers decided to hold superstar forward Kawhi Leonard out of their Tuesday night matchup against the OKC Thunder. The Clippers listed the reason as knee stiffness in the same knee that Leonard previously suffered a torn ACL which kept him out last season.
Leonard is also expected to miss the Clippers and Thunder’s Thursday night rematch. Many fans have been understanding of the decision given Leonard’s extensive injury history. However, ESPN NBA analyst Kendrick Perkins wasn't very considerate.
Perkins argued that Leonard should not be rested so early on in the season. He also suggested that Leonard should be criticized the same way that Kyrie Irving was when he missed time over the past few seasons:
“Come on now! Kawhi has been out entire damn year… why in the hell is he sitting out tonight and they didn’t play yesterday?! We gotta keep the same energy we were doing with Kyrie! Carry on…”
Come on now! Kawhi has been out entire damn year… why in the hell is he sitting out tonight and they didn’t play yesterday?! We gotta keep the same energy we were doing with Kyrie! Carry on…
Irving played a total of just 103 games over his first three seasons with the Brooklyn Nets between 2019 and 2022. However, aside from injuries, Irving has also missed time due to personal reasons, including for his refusal to get vaccinated against COVID-19 last season.
Meanwhile, Leonard’s absences have been strictly related to health maintenance and load management during his time with the Clippers.
Clippers coach Tyronn Lue further explained the decision to rest Leonard prior to their game against the Thunder. Lue stated that Leonard even wanted to play in the game:
"After shootaround, he experienced some stiffness in his knee. And so we want to be cautious, make sure we're doing the right thing by him, even though he wanted to play. We just thought it wasn't smart. He can be mad at us if he wants to but just not smart right now."
So, it looks like Perkins’ criticisms of Leonard are mostly unjustified. The Clippers lost their Tuesday matchup versus the Thunder 108-94. As a result, they have now fallen to 2-2 on the season. However, Clippers fans would much rather see Leonard stay healthy for a potential title run rather than have him play through early-season pain.
Mavs fall to Pelicans after Luka Doncic misses potential game-winner
The shorthanded New Orleans Pelicans pulled off an impressive 113-111 win over the Dallas Mavericks on Tuesday night. The Pelicans were without three starters in Zion Williamson, Brandon Ingram and Herb Jones. That didn’t stop them from performing, though, as New Orleans relied on a balanced team effort.
Eight of the nine players that played for the Pelicans ended up scoring in double digits. Second-year NBA forward Trey Murphy III led the team with 22 points on perfect 8-for-8 (100%) shooting.
Meanwhile, Mavericks superstar guard Luka Doncic led all scorers with 37 points, along with 11 rebounds and seven assists on 16-for-30 (53.3%) shooting. But as great as Doncic was, he ended up missing his game-winning 3-point attempt at the buzzer.
Following the loss, the Mavericks have now fallen to a disappointing 1-2 record. Meanwhile, the Pelicans continued their hot start to the season and now sit tied for the third-best record in the NBA at 3-1.
The Mavs will now look to get back to .500 on the road against the Brooklyn Nets on Thursday. The Pelicans will also look to improve to 4-1 on Friday on the road against the Phoenix Suns.
Marcus Smart passes Ray Allen on Celtics’ all-time 3-point list
Boston Celtics guard Marcus Smart achieved two career milestones during Monday night’s 120-102 loss to the Chicago Bulls.
In the first quarter, Smart knocked down a 3-pointer to pass Celtics' legendary sharpshooter Ray Allen for fourth place on the franchise’s all-time 3-point list. The shot marked the 799th triple of Smart’s NBA career.
Following his next 3-pointer, a first-half buzzer-beater, Smart then reached 800 career 3s. In doing so, he joined Celtics legend Paul Pierce (1,823), Antoine Walker (937), and Jayson Tatum (839) as the only Celtics players with 800 3s.
It's worth noting that Marcus Smart has shot just 32.1% from 3 on 4.8 attempts per game over his 524 career games with Boston. Meanwhile, Ray Allen shot 40.9% on 5.4 attempts a game in only 358 games for the Celtics.
Nonetheless, it’s still an impressive accomplishment for Smart, whose offensive ability was consistently questioned early on in his NBA career.
Brooklyn Nets reportedly rank dead last in NBA season ticket sales
According to a recent report from the New York Post, the Brooklyn Nets currently rank dead last in the NBA in season ticket sales. The demand for Nets season tickets is down by even more than 30% from last season, according to the report.
For the 2022-23 NBA season, Nets billionaire owner Joe Tsai’s franchise has sold around 5,500 season tickets. Considering the Nets arena, the Barclays Center, has a 17,732-seating capacity, this is a pretty concerning total for the franchise.
The report states that the Nets had around 8,000 to 9,000 season ticket sales last season. So the team’s popularity has taken a steep decline over the past year. This comes after the team has gotten relatively healthy too, with stars Kevin Durant, Kyrie Irving and Ben Simmons all currently playing.
The Nets reportedly declined to comment on the report. However, a source close to the team did not dispute the figures. Instead, they reasoned that the team relies more on same-day ticket sales for revenue, rather than season tickets.
Overall, the Nets currently rank in the middle of the NBA in ticket revenue due to charging more per seat than smaller market teams. Still, the overall lack of popularity for a team looking to contend is quite troubling.
LA Lakers list Russell Westbrook as doubtful against Denver
LA Lakers point guard Russell Westbrook has been listed as doubtful for Wednesday’s road game against the Denver Nuggets due to a sore hamstring. According to the LA Times, Westbrook attended practice on Tuesday but didn't participate. However, he did travel to Denver with the Lakers.
If Westbrook is unable to play, Austin Reaves, Kendrick Nunn, Juan Toscano-Anderson and Troy Brown Jr. are all candidates to start.
Russell Westbrook and the Lakers have gotten off to a terrible start so far this NBA season. Through three games, Westbrook is averaging just 10.3 points, 6.7 rebounds and 4.3 assists. He is also currently shooting just 28.9% from the field and 8.3% from 3.
The Lakers are 0-3 after shooting just 25 for 118 (21.2%) from beyond the arc so far. So whether Westbrook plays or not, the Lakers are going to need to shoot a lot better if they hope to knock off the Nuggets.