Good morning. The Lakers are so hilarious.
That and much more in Monday’s long NBA newsletter.
Good morning.
First, a quick word of thanks to all our subscribers and regular readers. You all make Good Morning It’s Basketball possible, and to be honest GMIB is loads of fun to put together. So thank you.
Let’s basketball.
SHOOTAROUND BACK! Paul Flannery’s Sunday Shootaround is back. This episode is focused on Kevin Garnett, who is going out on his own terms. Check back for Flannery’s Viewing Guide on Monday on SB Nation NBA.
KNOCK KNOCK: Who’s there? Killer Klay. Mr. Thompson inked a max extension on Friday, exploded for a league-high 41 on Saturday and did this piece of business to Robin Lopez on Sunday. Golden State is one of four unbeaten squads and looks like a real contender three games in. And a lot of it is because Klay looks to have taken a leap. Terrifying!
SPEAKING OF LEAPS ... DeMarcus Cousins was a monster in the Kings’ win over the Clippers Sunday.
LANCE MEME ALERT: He photobombed Derek Fisher pretty good.
ALL YOUR SCORES: Want to know what happened Sunday? Our NBA Scores hub can help.
A QUICK WORD ABOUT THE REPLAY CENTER: It has seemingly made replay reviews take longer. I don’t really understand why we have a replay center in New Jersey if referees are still going to spend two minutes look at basic plays. How I hope the current issues are just the league working out the kinks and that we’ll soon see some time savings.
THE WESTBROOK ERA: Shoals on the quick end to the Golden Age of the Thunder.
INTERESTING: Marc Spears talked to Kobe about whether he thinks about asking for a trade to a contender. It’s real interesting to hear Kobe talk about loyalty and fighting through hard times ... especially in the context of 2007.
LEBRON’S NEW POWER: Woj on the power LeBron now exerts over Cleveland and the league. Some great lines on Mark Jackson in there, too.
QUESTIONS NOT TO ASK KOBE: “How are you feeling about the Lakers’ 0-4 start?“
BWAHAHAHA: In one of the sideways possessions that has contributed to the 0-4 start, the Lakers were busy huddling while Blake Griffin was dunking on them.
ALSO GETTING PAID: Ricky Rubio landed a big deal. Alec Burks, too. In all, nine 2011-12 rookies signed early extensions, a record.
SPEAKING OF RICKY ... I enjoyed Zach Harper’s thoughts on that contract.
JUST CRUEL: Goran Dragic pranked his teammates with a large dinosaur in the arena. I just love how Archie Goodwin squares up like he’s about to drill the dino in the jaw. This is probably going to become a sports psych analysis at some point.
THE COMEBACK: Seerat Sohi on Anthony Bennett’s rejuvenation.
AND FOR THE THIRD REBOOT OF THE HULK, WE’LL HIRE ... Josh McRoberts, who ripped his jersey on Sunday!
MYSTERIES OF THE UNIVERSE: How in the world are the Thunder remaining competitive?
CAREFUL THERE, LARRY! After a jumpball, Larry Sanders got twisted up and almost scored on the wrong basket.
STOP IT, BILL WENNINGTON: You’re not allowed to broadcast games in creepy clown masks. No.
PRINCE ON SNL: You already clicked, didn’t you?
HELP: Jim Cavan is a really nice dude and good basketball writer. His infant son Rett is sick and the family needs some help. If you can, please do.
Happy Monday. See you next time.
