NBA News Today: Steph Curry crowned social media king, Nate McMillan addresses retirement plans, and more
Golden State Warriors superstar point guard Steph Curry has been crowned the NBA’s most-viewed player on social media for 2022.
In other news, Atlanta Hawks coach Nate McMillan has addressed recent reports that he is considering resigning.
On that note, here is the latest news from around the NBA as of Jan. 2, 2023.
Steph Curry crowned NBA’s social media king
The NBA recently shared its most popular players based on total views across social media platforms in 2022. In first place was Steph Curry with 485 million views. Curry was followed by high-flying Memphis Grizzlies All-Star point guard Ja Morant in second place with 351 million views. In third place was LA Lakers star forward LeBron James with 268 million views, over 200 million views behind Curry.
According to the @NBA, here are the top-10 most viewed players across the league's social media platforms ⤵️ https://t.co/rpCDGznJ54
Steph Curry, of course, had a very successful 2022 that included him winning his fourth NBA championship and first Finals MVP. He was also having an MVP-caliber season this season before going down with a shoulder injury on December 14. So Curry's first-place ranking just provides a reminder that he remains one of the most prominent faces of the NBA, even at age 34.
Curry is averaging 30.0 points, 6.6 rebounds, 6.8 assists, 1.0 steal and 5.0 3-pointers per game on 50.0% shooting this season.
Nate McMillan addresses retirement plans
Amid Atlanta’s recent struggles, The Athletic recently reported that Nate McMillan is considering stepping down as coach of the Hawks before the season ends. However, according to McMillan, there is no basis to the report as he is still focused on helping the Hawks win this season. Here's what McMillan said:
“We have a race to prepare for. We’re trying to get our guys healthy and make a run another run at the playoffs, but the things that were reported, look, I’m here to coach this year, and I’ve talked to (governor) Tony Ressler many times, and our goal is to make the playoffs. And that’s what I’m working towards."
McMillan added that he has never even spoken to the journalist who reported on his situation:
“I read that article briefly. I’ve never spoke to that reporter before. I think the last two weeks he’s written a couple of articles with some sources in our organization that are making some comments about me and some things that I’m saying and doing."
Finally, McMillan added that he will talk to his family after the season ends in regards to his future plans to continue coaching:
“Look, at the end of the year, I’ll do as I’ve always done. I’ll talk with my family and see if that flame, that fire, to continue next season, but that’s the end of the season. All of us think about retiring, but that’s at the end of the season. We’re going to move past that, that story.”
McMillan, aged 58, is in the middle of his third season with the Hawks. He took over as interim coach in 2021 and led the Hawks to the 2021 Eastern Conference Finals. This led to him receiving a four-year contract to become Atlanta’s full-time coach during the 2021 offseason.
The Hawks then disappointed last season, finishing as the eighth seed and losing 4-1 to Miami in the first round of the playoffs. However, expectations were heightened entering this season following their acquisition of All-Star guard Dejounte Murray from San Antonio in the offseason.
Unfortunately, for Hawks fans, the team has once again disappointed so far as they are just 17-19 and ninth in the Eastern Conference. Overall, McMillan is also now just 60-58 since signing his four-year contract in 2021.
Luka Doncic makes more NBA history
Luka Doncic and the Dallas Mavericks defeated the San Antonio Spurs 126-125 on Saturday night. Doncic led Dallas with 51 points to go along with six rebounds, nine assists, four steals and one block on 62.1% shooting.
The win marked the Mavs’ sixth straight and helped them improve to 21-16 and fourth in the Western Conference. In the process, Doncic also made some NBA history for his elite performances over his last five games.
Doncic became the first player in NBA history to record at least 225 points, 50 rebounds and 50 assists over a five-game stretch. Doncic’s five-game stretch included three games with 50-or-more points over the past week, one of which was his historic 60-point, 21-rebound triple-double versus New York.
Three 50+ point games in his last 5.
Most 40+ point games in Mavs history.
First player EVER to total 225+ PTS, 50+ REB, and 50+ AST over a 5 game span.
Luka Magic is in full effect. https://t.co/VJnBp9o2j9
Over his last five games, Doncic is averaging 45.6 points, 11.2 rebounds and 10.2 assists and 2.4 steals per game on 59.8% shooting.
For the season, Doncic is now averaging 34.2 points, 8.7 rebounds, 8.9 assists and 1.7 steals per game on 51.1% shooting.
Also read: Jason Kidd cuts a concerned figure as Luka Doncic drops third 50-piece in six games to secure a win
Eric Gordon vents frustrations with rebuilding Houston Rockets
Houston Rockets veteran sharpshooter Eric Gordon is in his seventh season for the Rockets. The 34-year-old has experienced a lot of success in Houston over the years. This includes him being a key part of the James Harden-led Rockets team that almost made the NBA Finals in 2018.
However, the Rockets have since entered a rebuilding phase over the last few seasons and traded away all of their long-time veterans except Gordon. As a result, Gordon’s frustrations appear to be boiling over with the struggling Rockets.
Gordon was recently asked by a reporter if the Rockets have improved at all since last year. He then gave a very short but honest answer:
“There’s no improvement.”
Eric Gordon asked about #Rockets improvement from when the season started:
"There's no improvement." https://t.co/WWB8Gf3wdI
Houston is just 10-26 and 15th in the Western Conference. This puts them on track to win around 22 or 23 games this season. Considering that the Rockets finished last season with the worst record in the NBA at 20-62, Gordon’s comments appear to be pretty justified.
Gordon is averaging 11.2 points, 2.0 rebounds, 2.4 assists and 1.8 3-pointers per game while shooting 40.8% shooting and 34.4% from three this season. Given his veteran experience, he remains a viable trade target for contending teams in need of shooting.
Rival NBA teams having difficulties negotiating trades with Phoenix
Despite all their injuries and the season-long holdout of veteran forward Jae Crowder, the Phoenix Suns still haven’t made a move to fortify their roster. According to ESPN’s Brian Windhorst, this is because the Suns have been tough negotiators thus far:
"A few things on the Jae Crowder front. Number one: The Suns have a very high standard when it comes to doing transactions.
“They have had very good transactions under James Jones … It's challenging to do trade business with the Suns, teams will tell you that. There are some teams where you see them make a lot of trade transactions, the Suns are not one of them, and that's played out with Jae Crowder."
Windhorst then went in-depth on what kind of trade talks Phoenix has had involving Crowder:
"On the Jae Crowder front, one the issues is that there isn't a straight-up trade the Suns have liked for him, so they've tried to do these three-team trades … They may have to lower their standard."
The Suns still have until the Feb. 9 NBA trade deadline to find the right deals. However, as Windhorst mentioned, they may have to lower their expectations in order to do so.