Credit: Bozeman Daily Chronicle
Darren & Vic's Takes: NBA Week 23
Published: Monday, April 13, 2026
by Darren Worrell and Victor Lisboa
A new week means it’s time for a new edition of Darren & Vic’s Takes, where Darren Worrell and Victor Lisboa recap the games that earned their undivided attention.
Darren: San Antonio Spurs vs Denver Nuggets
The San Antonio Spurs and Denver Nuggets have been two of the best teams this season, with the Spurs firmly in control of the number two seed in the Western Conference at 60-19. They have been led by MVP candidate Victor Wembanyama, who’s averaging 24.8 points per game and 11.5 rebounds.
But it is not just him doing everything. The entire team is doing its job, with seven other players scoring in double figures. They have a style of play that is very hard to stop, even when some of their star players are out.
Victor Wembanyama injured himself back on April 6 in San Antonio’s win against the Philadelphia 76ers, when he collided with Paul George and then bumped into his own teammate Keldon Johnson, causing him to miss the second half of that game.
Wembanyama has played 64 games this season, and he still needs to play one more game to still be in contention for the Most Valuable Player award and defensive player of the year's award as well. So, hopefully, he can return soon for his team.
The Denver Nuggets, on the other hand, have been having a solid season too. They are currently in third place in the Western Conference, but they do not have that locked up as the Lakers are one game behind them.
They still have work to do, but that should not undermine the great season they are having led by another MVP candidate Nikola Jokic, who is averaging a triple double: 28 points per game, 12 rebounds and 10.9 assists.
This game marked the second time the two teams played against each other, with the Nuggets coming away with the win back on March 12 by a score of 136-131. This one was a dog fight all the way until the end.
This game was a little old, but right from the beginning the Spurs got off to a great start from three with Devin Vassell knocking down a couple of threes and the Spurs found themselves with an early lead.
Jokic and Murray kept the Nuggets within striking distance, but San Antonio was on fire from everywhere on the court. Wemby was in foul trouble, and a lot of questionable calls summed up the remainder of the first half. The Spurs were up 72-65 heading into the half time break.
In the second half, fans saw a duel between Jokic and Wembanyama. Jokic brought the Nuggets right back into the game with his ridiculous shot making ability on what seemed like every possession.
The ball somehow found its way into Wembanyama’s hands. However, in the last six seconds, Wemby had a chance to win the game, but he missed it and the game went to overtime.
In overtime it was the Nuggets who had the last laugh as the two-man game with Jokic and Murray proved too much to overcome. It did go back and forth for the final minute, but De’Aaron Fox missed a big shot, and Jokic hit the floater, and the Nuggets were up by four.
Wemby couldn't hit the three and at that point the game was all but over. Jokic finished with 40 points and Wemby finished with 34 in one of the best battles of the year.
Victor: Boston Celtics vs New York Knicks
We are now at the very tail end of the regular season, with the playoffs approaching next week. The Celtics remain secured at the two seed, and the Knicks have one game ahead of the Cavaliers and hold the tiebreaking advantage. This makes for a likely and intriguing matchup in the second round between the Knicks and Celtics, assuming they fend off their first round foes.
Jaylen Brown was out for this game with Achilles' soreness and the Knicks had all of their starters healthy for this one, giving them the advantage. Mikal Bridges always seems to go on spurts throughout games, where he does not always appear present, but ends up going on a run.
Bridges started off the game for New York, scoring seven points off three baskets to build the momentum early on.
Boston had Neemias Queta starting, with Nikola Vucevic coming off the bench, typically splitting minutes. This provides them with good depth but presents different challenges.
This, however, allowed both Karl-Anthony Towns and Mitchell Robinson to take advantage of the boards. Jalen Brunson and OG Anunoby combined for 16 in the first half, with both going 2-5 from three in the half.
Pritchard and Tatum combined for 25 in the first half. Jayson Tatum tore the Achilles tendon in his right foot, on May 12, 2025, in game four of the semi-conference finals against these same New York Knicks.
His return back in March, from a fan’s perspective, is nothing short of spectacular. Most players need an entire season to recover and usually return with rust. However, Tatum hasn’t signaled one bit that this injury affected his ability.
In 16 games played, he’s averaging 21.8 ppg, 10 rebounds per game, along with 5.3 assists, on 41% shooting, (32.9% from three). The score was 54-53 going into halftime, with the Knicks up by one.
In the second half, one player from each team really showed out with their shooting and turned it a bit into a three-point contest. The second-year guard out of Creighton Balor Scheierman came into the game ready to fire from a distance.
He’s been shooting just at the brink of 40% from three-point range, (39.7%) to be exact. For New York, Josh Hart became the hero of the second half, as it seemed like him and Scheierman had their own mini in-game contest.
This game would have very likely had a much different script with a healthy Jaylen Brown, but nonetheless, the Knicks now have a 3-1 advantage in the season series, as they won this one 112-106.
Scheierman ended the game with 20 points, finishing 6-7 from three. Josh Hart led all Knicks scorers with 26 points and finished shooting 5 of 7 from distance.
Of course, three of these games were played without Tatum. However, it will be interesting to see this year's results, if we see a rematch of this series in round two. That does it for the regular season. Stay tuned for the playoffs starting next week!
Darren Worrell and Victor Lisboa can be reached at darren.worrell@student.shu.edu, victor.lisboa@student.shu.eduPosted in: sports,