The Athletic NBA Daily
Sixers Direction + What's wrong with the Rockets? | Slam N Jam
Sat, 15 Feb 2025
Andrew Schlecht and Alex Speers discuss the week of NBA Basketball, Who will win the MVP of the All Star Game, fun stats about Christian Braun and DeMar DeRozan, Nate Robinson's kidney transplant, trade deadline fallout and more. Then they are joined by Kelly Iko of the Athletic to discuss the Houston Rockets, their recent struggles, and how they will build their team in the near future. Then the boys play a fun edition of Andrew vs. the Beat, a trivia game where Andrew is pitted against a beat writer.Host: Andrew Schlecht and Alex SpeersWith: Kelly IkoExecutive Producer: Andrew SchlechtAudio/Video Editor: Jake Kleinberg Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Chapter 1: What are the top NBA stories this week?
Well, Andrew, our top story this week was the continued fallout from the Luka Doncic trade since last week. NBA fans have waited for any new piece of information that would provide a believable explanation for why this happened. Instead, every new detail that comes out just adds to its absurdity. This week, the two involved stars played for their new teams for the first time in Dallas.
Anthony Davis put up a 14-8-3 in the first quarter. of his first game in a Mavs uniform, leading Dallas to a 116-105 win over the Rockets. Unfortunately, this trade needs to repeatedly slap us in the face to remind us how bad it was, and so of course Davis got hurt during the game on a non-contact play. And of course Davis is now week to week with an adductor strain.
During the Mavs' next game, multiple fans were ejected from the game for communicating fire Nico in various ways.
And it's probably also worth mentioning that new Mavs owner Patrick Dumont spoke for the first time after the trade, saying, quote, If you look at the greats in the league, the people you and I grew up with, Jordan, Bird, Kobe, Shaq, they worked really hard every day with a singular focus to win. And if you don't have that, it doesn't work. You shouldn't be a part of the Dallas Mavericks.
So in summary, instead of a fun conspiracy theory involving backroom deals with the league, the best explanation for the Luca trade a week later appears to be, I think these guys might just be stupid. As LeBron commented on Instagram, quote, when a clown moves into a palace, he doesn't become a king. The palace becomes a circus.
Meanwhile, in L.A., master negotiator and bad friend Rob Palenka introduced Luka to Lakers fans at a press conference, a game after LeBron had become the youngest and oldest player to score 40 points in a game. Lucas saw his first on-court action since Christmas in a 132 to 113 win over the Utah Jazz. The vibes were high, they were great. But how long would they last?
Well, first it was announced that the Mark Williams trade was being rescinded by the Lakers due to a failed physical. leaving the Lakers with a significant hole at center. And later in the week, in Luka's second game, against those same 12-win Jazz, the Lakers gave up 131 points in a 131-119 loss to Utah. Now, despite the loss, the Lakers remained comfortably in fifth in the Western Conference.
From two teams trying to establish good vibes after a big trade to a team trying to test the limits of bad vibes, let's check in on the Philadelphia 76ers. On Sunday, while Eagles fans were getting ready to watch their team win the Super Bowl, ESPN sideline reporter Lisa Salters let us know that MB thinks he may need another surgery on his troublesome knee.
It's time once again to play everyone's favorite game, have the Sixers finally pass the Chicago Bulls in the standings. No, somehow, still no. The Bulls scored 29 points in a half this week and are still a game and a half up on this pathetic Sixers team who entered the All-Star break in the midst of a five-game losing streak. And that streak has included losses to the Raptors without R.J.
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Chapter 2: What happened with the Luka Doncic trade?
Now, this is a funny stat that if Paul George was playing well, wouldn't seem significant at all. But Paul George is having a really bad season. He's averaging under 17 points per game, something he has not done over a full season since he was 21. He's only getting to the line two and a half times per game. And in general, just doesn't look anything close to the player.
We remember even as recently as last season with the Clippers in a loss to the Nets this week, a game without Embiid and Maxie. So a game where, you know, PG is going to have to step up to give the Sixers a chance.
Yeah.
Paul George scored two points. Two. And that sounds crazy, but what's crazier is that that's the second game this season that Paul George has scored two points. Prior to this season, the last time he scored two or fewer points was 2017. Andrew, is this already the worst contract in the league? He is a 34-year-old averaging under 17 a game who will be making 56 million three seasons from now.
Now, the good news for Sixers fans, depending on your mood, is that the Sixers have moved into a tie for sixth with the Nets in the reverse standings. Which, as of right now, would give them a 34.8% chance of keeping their pick. If they won the tie, it would go up a little bit more. Now, there was a report that just came out. We're recording on Thursday night.
That Paul George has been dealing with these, like... really uh bothersome injuries like just like small little injuries throughout the season um so you know you hope if you're a Sixers fan you hope that like this is just kind of the season from hell for everyone everyone yeah and that
With a summer because they're not going to be playing in the playoffs with a full summer to like rest and recover. Paul George can come back next season and start to look like the player you were expecting to get. Maybe this is just like an injury, weird fluke season. But man, it's rough right now.
Yeah, I mean, that's literally their only option because you look at the guys that they have. I mean, their only true tradable player is Tyrese Maxey right now as a guy that you can go get good value for. They're actually in this weird spot where you can't reset. You just can't do it. You can't even do it. I mean, they have $100 million between Dwell Embiid and Paul George that you cannot trade.
No, you got to ride it out and you got to pray that you get this pick because one thing Daryl Morey has been good at, he has been good at drafting, got Jared McCain last year. If they get a top six pick that could potentially change everything.
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Chapter 3: How are the Philadelphia 76ers performing?
So you said it's been the first four seasons?
Yeah, as a Rocket. Yeah.
They have to play a lot. It's like kind of the thing. Mm-hmm. first four seasons and what's the number again 2100 so you said 2100 rebounds yeah okay i don't think i don't know why i keep 25 a year yeah that's a hard one i don't really it's not capella just didn't play enough he's like a guess in my head but i just don't think he played enough to start his career With the Rockets.
There's another guy in my head that I don't want to say yet because I don't know if he played enough in his first four years to do it. I don't know. I'll say Capella, but I don't think that's right.
Andrew, that is incorrect. Kelly, you have a chance to steal for one point. Yao Ming. Also incorrect, someone since Yao Ming. It was Luis Scola. No.
I totally forgot Scola. Dang. Oh, my God. Luis Scola. I'm down by one. You're down by one.
Two questions left. You can take four or seven. Give me seven. Give me seven. All right, question number seven.
I'm begging you, Andrew.
As of Thursday afternoon, Dylan Brooks led the league in personal fouls. If he ended the season as number one on that list, it would actually be the third time in his eight-year career that he has led the league in personal fouls. Name one other player who led the league in personal fouls over the last eight years. So Dylan Brooks did three of those eight years.
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