NBA scores 2017: Grizzlies beat another West playoff team after trailing by double digits

Memphis knocked off the Rockets after trailing by 15, a week after overcoming a 24-point deficit vs. Golden State.

Jan 14, 2017, 1:00 PM UTC

NBA: Memphis Grizzlies at Houston Rockets

Jerome Miron-USA TODAY Sports

“We need to stop lying to ourselves. We’re not playing hard,” said a frustrated David Fizdale at the halftime of the Grizzlies-Rockets game.

That scene, as described to reporters after the game, is what Tony Allen credited for yet another comeback by Memphis on Friday. Just seven days after the Grizzlies overcame a 24-point deficit against the Golden State Warriors in a win, Memphis pulled the same comeback magic against the Houston Rockets. Down 70-55 at one point in the third quarter, the Grizzlies ended up with a 110-105 victory against yet another Western Conference competitor.

In this instance, Memphis had nearly wiped out that 15-point deficit by the time the fourth quarter started. When Troy Daniels made a pair of free throws with 11 minutes left in the fourth, it was the first time the Grizzlies led in the second half. Clearly, Fizdale’s blunt speech back in the locker room had an impact. Memphis led the rest of the game, with Daniels’ triple against his former team sealing the game.

Two double-digit comebacks against what had been the two hottest teams in the Western Conference of late doesn’t make a lot of sense, but neither do the Grizzlies. They’re a team that has consistently defied statistics with their clutch performances over the past decade, as illustrated in this excellent ESPN feature. It’s in large part how the Grizzlies have marched to a 25-17 record this year despite starting another season struck with injuries.

They’ve recently had a brutal five-game stretch against the West’s best teams, and they’ve come out of it with three wins anyway — beating the Warriors, the Rockets, and the Jazz with losses to the Clippers and Oklahoma City mixed in. That’s all you can really ask, and now they have an easier road coming up.

Memphis still rides and dies with its defense, which stands second-best in the league since the start of December. The steady inclusion of Daniels into the rotation has helped spark the offense with some additional shooting, and Chandler Parsons’ slow return to form is expected to keep that progressing in a similar direction. The Grizzlies have climbed a couple of points per 100 possessions in the six games since the new year started, for example. And even if they don’t get any higher than that, you can count on them pulling out a high percentage of games that are close with two minutes to go.

The fourth-seed Clippers hold a 2.5-game lead over Memphis, currently the No. 6 seed in the Western Conference. In other words, right now, the Grizzlies are on the outside looking in for home-court advantage in the first round. But they’ve already weathered the storm of injuries — an annual one for them, it seems — and now there are calmer waters ahead. (Every Grizzlies fan can furiously knock on the nearest wooden object.) Maybe there is a higher trajectory Memphis can reach.

Until then, be careful with leads in and around the city of Memphis. Don’t take a 15-point lead there, and certainly not a 24-point one. Fizdale’s bound to yell at you about it, and then the Grizzlies will come back and beat you.

Joel Embiid is leading the 76ers to the promised land

Or, at least, Embiid’s leading them to basketball decency, something we haven’t seen in ... a while.

With a 102-93 win against the Hornets on Friday, the 76ers have won five of their last six games. They’ve all been by 10 points or less, including three games decided by less than two points, but that still counts. Philadelphia hasn’t suddenly awakened as a basketball monster, but earning a few close wins is equally important.

Naturally, Embiid is leading the way. Ben Simmons may be on the way back soon, and that’s exciting. But as the 76ers look to start rising up in the Eastern Conference over the next few years, Embiid is still the most important piece of the puzzle. His game against Charlotte was one example: 24 points, 12-of-14 shooting from the free throw line, eight rebounds, three blocks and a game-high plus-23. His stats so far this season are another reason why we can’t stop talking about Philadelphia’s 7’3 phenom.

It’s almost hard to comprehend exactly what Embiid has done because his minutes have been purposefully restricted, and his team hasn’t exactly been lighting it up. But Embiid is so big and so skilled that the game comes easy for him. He’ll have games where he misses five threes and turns the ball over five times (that happened Friday), but there’s a palpable reason to be excited in Philadelphia thanks to him. Oh, and now he’s paying tribute to Triple H, so how can you dislike this man?

The 76ers will play in Washington on Saturday with a chance for their first four-game winning streak in three years. (The last streak stretched Dec. 29, 2013 to Jan. 4, 2014.)

The King in the Fourth did it again

Isaiah Thomas wasn’t just handed the best nickname in the NBA — he earned it.

He earned it with clutch shots all season long, and yet another on Friday, where he buried a frantic Hawks comeback attempt with this stepback fadeaway.

Thomas keeps doing this. He keeps dropping double digits in fourth quarters, and he keeps lighting up opponents regardless of who they put on him. His internal confidence is incredible, with Thomas actually waving off a Brad Stevens timeout on the final possession to go win the game himself. This is from a player who sees only two players ahead of him in the MVP race — and it’s that mindset that has him dominating pretty much anyone who tries to guard him this year.

We love it. All Thomas wanted was to be wanted, and now he is (and then some).

Russell Westbrook’s unfortunate quadruple-double

Welp. It wasn’t just the turnovers — Westbrook shot 7-of-23 from the field and the Thunder lost by 10 to the Timberwolves.

On the other hand, he’s still averaging a triple-double.

Hawks fans booed Al Horford in his return to Atlanta

Yeah, fans booing players who leave in free agency is a pretty normal thing, and no one (except Horford’s sister) will get too worked up about it. Still — the Hawks could have offered him more money, and they signed another free agent who played the same position before getting serious about his negotiations. He left town gracefully enough — he’s not responsible for some passionate comments from his dad — and I think the booing-the-returning-hometown-hero case is pretty weak here.