All the need-to-know info from Thursday’s slate.
Long Limbs, Long Range
Ben Simmons racked up a triple-double (12 points, 13 rebounds, 15 assists), Joel Embiid put up 33 points, and Philadelphia climbed back from a 16-point deficit to tie the battle of the Young and Promising in the final minute. Impressive.
Brandon Ingram erased all of that.
B.I. for the win! #LakeShow pic.twitter.com/lm1i6mOwiJ
— Los Angeles Lakers (@Lakers) December 8, 2017
Ingram hit just one previous 3-pointer, in the first quarter, before releasing that deciding one; to quote The Ringer’s Matt James in Slack, “Ingram wants the big shot almost as much as Lonzo [Ball] doesn’t want it.” Ball had an open look earlier in the shot clock, but dealt it. And for a rookie as allergic to making shots as he is immune to bad passes, who can blame him?
Let’s get back to Ingram and his 7-foot-3 wingspan:
Brandon Ingram throws down a reverse jam pic.twitter.com/JZyIZbQdUt
— BALLGOD (@godballgod) December 8, 2017
Three weeks after losing to the Sixers in Staples, the Lakers got revenge on Philly’s home court, 107-104.
Josh Jackson Hammered the Polish Hammer
Josh Jackson.. pic.twitter.com/uK0D2er1Ul
— AZ Finest Mixtape (@AzFinestMixtape) December 8, 2017
Not the Kind of Bench Support the Wizards Need
Which member of the @WashWizards are you at parties? pic.twitter.com/HfiTvUjA5W
— Def Pen Hoops (@DefPenHoops) December 8, 2017
Not Mad At High-Scoring Brad
Big-Game Bradley Beal returned on Thursday, finishing with a game-high 34 points to carry Washington past Phoenix, 109-99. It marked the Wizards’ seventh straight game without John Wall, who is dribbling (!) —
John Wall now dribbling into pull-up jumpers. pic.twitter.com/PTjpNe1oD2
— Candace Buckner (@CandaceDBuckner) December 8, 2017
— but still has no expected return date. Beal put up a career-high 51 points on Tuesday against the Blazers, but in the five games before that, he floundered: Beal shot 35.6 percent from the field, hit 3s at a Tony Allen rate, and averaged nearly nine points less than he had the rest of the season.
Here’s to Big-Game Brad—you’re a hell of a lot better than 30.4-percent-from-3 Brad.
Bradley Beal beats the 3rd Quarter buzzer!
— NBA (@NBA) December 8, 2017
He has 30 PTS at the start of the 4th. pic.twitter.com/0eJEMNrEpJ
The Holidays Just Got Awkward
Nets guard Spencer Dinwiddie finished on Thursday with five points. Eh. Two of those five were clutch; he blew past an OKC defender and pushed the lead with less than two minutes to go. Nice. Brooklyn beat OKC, 100-95. Cool. The guy he left behind for the bucket was Andre Roberson. OK? Dinwiddie’s girlfriend, Arielle Roberson, is the sister of Andre Roberson. Yikes—enjoy the family holiday, Spence.
Hey, Big Head
Guess who? #NBAMexicoGames pic.twitter.com/XcxbvjML96
— Brooklyn Nets (@BrooklynNets) December 8, 2017
Joel Embiid and a Fan
Point God With a Side of Nutmeg
Chris Paul just son’d Burks #Rockets
— Def Pen Hoops (@DefPenHoops) December 8, 2017
(Via @clippittv) pic.twitter.com/Eb57bfoPUg