Vic's Night Caps - NBA Week 12/1 and 12/2

Published: Monday, December 9, 2024

by Victor Lisboa

Welcome back to Vic’s Night Caps, where I’ll provide recaps of our friend Darren’s weekly NBA takes. This week, he highlighted and made predictions on four matches between Monday Dec. 1 and Tuesday Dec. 2. Let’s take a look at the action this past week and how he did. 
 
First, we have Monday’s Key Games...  

Miami Heat vs. Boston Celtics (Rematch of last year’s Eastern Conference First Round) 
This was first reunion of these two teams since the conclusion of the first round of the playoffs last season, where the Celtics won the series 4-1. It was a rough series for the Heat, who had been in the NBA Finals the year prior.  

The Heat came in at 9-10, and the Celtics at 17-4. Miami was short-handed, with no Jimmy Butler, Nikola Jovic, or Kevin Love. Meanwhile Boston was without Porzingis, who is dealing with a left ankle rehab.  

Miami scored the first seven points of this game before starting to get cold, as the Celtics took the lead over early in the second and didn’t look back. Jaylen Brown had a game high 29 points followed by Jayson Tatum’s 18 points and 11 rebounds, but it was Payton Pritchard who was the spark plug off the bench. He went for 25 points and hit a third quarter buzzer beater to give Boston a 22-point lead. Tyler Herro scored 19, but went 2-10 from three, as the Heat shot a collective 23 percent from long distance.  

Darren predicted an eight-point Celtics victory, citing their depth advantage. But Boston took the victory by a substantial score of 108-89.

Los Angeles Lakers vs. Minnesota Timberwolves (The Battle of the West) 
Darren cited this as “the matchup of contrasting styles and generations” The Lakers are a top-heavy team reliant on their veteran superstars to play at a high level, with inconsistent bench production. The Timberwolves are a team who plays through their young superstar, defensive anchor Rudy Gobert, as they’ve tried to mesh with their new star forward Julius Randle.  

The Lakers came into the game at 12-9, and the Timberwolves came in at 10-10. Both teams kept it close in the first half, but it appeared the Lakers started to show their age and inconsistency in the second half, shooting a total of 19.4 percent from three on 31 attempts. The Lakers also had more turnovers and conceded more points from them, adding to their deficit.  

D'Angelo Russell had 20 points on 75 percent shooting, but Davis and James combined for 22 points on a combined 8-30 from the field, perhaps a sign of fatigue coming off a back-to-back. Anthony Edwards had a bad night for the Wolves, only scoring eight points on 3-13 shooting. However, Naz Reid, Donte DiVincenzo, and Nickeil Alexander-Walker combined for 41 off the bench.  

Darren predicted an 11-point victory for the Lakers, but it appears fatigue may have gotten the best of them. The Timberwolves won 109-80. 
 
Tuesday’s Key Games

Orlando Magic vs. New York Knicks (The Surprise Team vs. the Contenders)  
Darren stated that the Magic have arguably been the biggest surprise of the season, winning their prior 12 of 13 games. They are a young vivacious team who have taken the league by storm since their run into the playoffs last year, when they obtained the fifth seed but lost to the Cavaliers in seven games.

The Knicks are still trying to secure their identity and consistency after the blockbuster trade of swapping Randle for Karl-Anthony Towns. As a result, Towns may be having his best season; he’s second in the league in rebounds per game.

The key matchup to watch was Franz Wagner vs Jalen Brunson. Wagner led all scorers with 30 points, as he continuously has an impressive all-around statline to begin the season with. Brunson had 21 points on 8-15 shooting, but it was Towns who had another impressive night. He helped lead the Knicks with a 23-point 15-rebound double-double performance.

Darren predicted a tight battle, with the Magic edging out the Knicks by 2. Yet the Knicks stars, as well as Miles McBride with 18 points off the bench, led the Knicks to a 121-106 victory 
 
Golden State Warriors vs. Denver Nuggets (The Battle of Experience)

The winners of the last two NBA championships before 2024 came face-to-face in a Western NBA Cup battle. At 36 years old, Steph Curry hasn’t shown many, if any at all, signs of slowing down. He’s still at an MVP level, averaging 22 points, 5.4 rebounds, and 6.5 assists per game across the board. Nikola Jokic is having yet another MVP season, averaging a triple-double with over 31 points, 13 rebounds, and 10 assists per game. This matchup was truly a battle of the superstars.

Denver’s halfcourt presence and size helped keep the Warriors shoot under 50% under 32% from three. The Warriors were able to win the rebounding battle, but the Nuggets shot near 50% from three and were aggressive in the paint; they were +13 in FTM, and +14 in fast break baskets.

Jamal Murray had a crucial steal with about 20 seconds to go, which prevented the Warriors from a go-ahead or game-tying shot attempt. Jokic led all scorers with 38 points, 10 rebounds, and six assists. Murray added 12 points on the night, and Michael Porter Jr. totaled 22. Curry led Golden State with 24 points and 11 assists, with Gary Payton and Moses Moody combing for 24 points off the bench.  

The stars showed out and executed an excited and tight game for NBA Cup play. Darren predicted a six-point victory for the Nuggets, 111-105, and he was close with the margin number. The final was 119-115, with the Nuggets taking a four-point victory.  

Victor Lisboa can be reached at victor.lisboa@student.shu.edu. 

 

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