KAT is most improved in my heart in maybe all of hoops in my lifetime. Genuinely hated watching him play 5 years ago. Now it's hard not to root for him.

Lively's been fantastic protecting the rim in these first few mins. Good to see him get up some. Still looks totally out of sync offensively lol

Not really sure how Brandon Williams got that offensive rebound but alright

I know the Cavs are shorthanded but the Rockets staving off their comeback has been impressive. Houston is just working Sengun's gravity in the post, as a screener for Durant and Thompson, or just hunting mismatches for himself. Cavs tried zone to no avail. Houston shot them out of it. Good win.

Man this is a *rough* night for ol' Nurk lol I'm sorry Utah fans. Heinous viewing experience.

Couldn't ask for a better return game from LeBron. Obviously so valuable as an offense facilitator with Luka off the floor, and he's surviving on defense. It's Utah and tbf he's gotten abused by George a few times but he'll play into better shape. Big question is how huntable he is for better teams.

Classic "we're gonna take the game seriously now" quarter from the Lakers. Defensive intensity on another level for the last 6 mins of the 3rd.

The petulance persists (of course) but Luka's defensive effort and body language has been a lot better since the 1st. Feels like a game he'll either get ejected from or foul out of though. He is consumed by hatred tonight and doesn't take the Jazz seriously enough to direct it at them.

Ayton has had a really good 3 qtrs so far. Defending the rim well (Utah is just on fire outside the paint), active on the offensive glass, timing his rim runs well, running the floor without hesitation.

This Keyonte George heater is something vicious man. These deep shots look absolutely certain to drop every time.

Worst Luka quarter I've watched so far this season. Awful body language. Loose with the ball. Petulant. Low-effort defense. Not taking his opponent seriously. It's rare his bad traits outweigh the productivity but they scream at you when they do.

I can't really take Harrison Barnes seriously since he posted that AI gospel music video of himself

I hope Coward works out for Memphis man. That fanbase catches too many strays for Ja's foolishness. Their loyalty isn't shameful and it'd just be cool for them to land someone who can carry that city's mantle with more grace.

Would really like for Fox to have driven hard there and drawn contact for the 2 for 1 instead of chuck a 3. He had a lane.

I just flipped on Grizzlies @ Spurs and Kelly Okynyk is out here wearing hiking boots looking like a giant zookeeper

How to consume basketball

The thing I say out loud most often is "you're fine and you need to chill" to my dog

Bwill gassing up Coop 🥺

AD is such a goofball for that Packers jersey man lol. There are fun goofballs and there are dumb goofballs I say we ship the latter to Milwaukee. I'll take Myles Turner, Cole Anthony, & whatever 1st round pick they can dig out from between the cushions in their back seat.

That Shaedon Sharpe off the dribble 3 from the top of the key with like 19 on the shot clock was a horrendous shot lol set the Mavs tf UP to win this game (we're tryna lose, dog!). He deserved to get stuffed at the rim for that smh.

The two most encouraging aspects of Cooper Flagg's game for me are 1. Looks for contact going to the rim without neglecting to get off a quality shot. He also does not hesitate to do it in the clutch, with some success. 2. Looks quite comfortable guarding 2-4 and holds up against most 1s.

The radical left won't even let you email Jeffrey Epstein 1,670 times and have Thanksgiving w him and write mysterious creepy letters to him and have a prolonged 20+ yr relationship w him in which Epstein himself said he was your closest friend w/o being weird about it.

Bwill Christie Naji Coop Lively Lineup gonna hittt assuming Kidd doesn't play with our feelings

I will infect you with sportyceps

Coop looked good ✅ Lost likeshit ✅ 🎟️🤞😎

Brandon Williams is fun in some similar ways to JJ Barea offensively. Fearless/decisive driver with a sneaky quick first step, high variance playmaker possession to possession, willing shooter off the catch. He barely survives on defense bc of the size but def competing out there. Big fan.

Cissé fouling out 🥲

Way more smiles on the bench tonight, all game. Great to see. The gloom was noticeable.

Not gonna let this PJ shoulder sprain get me down, just hope it's not a serious rehab. If we lose hella games this year, all for the best. Lotto baby.

I won't be able to catch the Mavs until the 2nd half tonight but it's the most excited I've been to watch them since the Finals run. Feels good.

I knew Michael Finley could never. Legend.

The only players I'm interested in keeping on the Mavs medium-long term are Cooper Flagg Dereck Lively PJ Washington Max Christie Naji Marshall Literally everyone else is on the block and Christie/Marshall are expendable if needed. Davis, Klay, Kyrie, and Gaff are priorities to move. okay BREAK.

"Why yes, Anthony does have availability today. Now tell me, how many first round picks do you have?"

I really do miss the Quentin Grimes experience

Ngl the Sixers being fun to watch is such a huge change in the NBA from the last like...5 years lol. The Embiid era was...not my cuppa.

If I had Patrick Dumont's ear, I would tell him 1. Be patient in the GM search. Full process. Be transparent. Seek advice outside the current org. 2. Schedule a few 'MFFL Nights' at *marquee* home games, for which a large portion of tix are free for locals. 3. Reach out to Dirk. Humble yourself.

I'll always love hoops but it occurs to me today how much less I liked hoops since the Luka trade. Nico off the board is like taking a hot shower on the first frigid day of winter. Gonna stay in here a few extra mins. NBA games are gonna *hit* tonight.

Coop won't say it but I know he's breathing a sigh of relief today.

Ay shouts to all the Mavs fans, even the ones who played themselves and jeered Luka on the way out fronting for the idiot who engineered this embarrassment. I mean that. I'm happy for all of us. And I don't begrudge anyone's response to shock. We might still be awful for awhile but there is light.

I know Luka is cracking open a sixer and firing up the hookah today and that's wonderful.

The Mavs org is gonna take some well-deserved haymakers for this debacle, and I am watching closely how they respond to it. Real accountability is falling on the sword publicly, apologizing to fans, and empowering well-respected basketball people to right the ship in short order. No more fuck shit.

The most frustrating part of the whole Nico saga is that the Mavs org spent 8 months living and selling a delusion in which they were simply carrying out Nico's vision post-trade. While I am pleasantly surprised he's been fired this soon, it still reeks of fear and impulsivity, not a steady hand.

I'm gonna take this entire next 24 hrs to sigh in relief and celebrate on some 🎶ding dong🎶 shit but the 🐘 in the room is that we have 0 reason to believe Dumont or anyone w/ power in the Mavs org has a clue how to move forward after this. Fans forced him to fire Nico. We can't run the team for him.

The Nico Harrison "defense wins championships" memes will live forever. I have never seen someone tarnish their sports legacy in such a sudden, emphatic way.

I know AD is sick today and I don't care at all. Sorry, dog. This ain't on you but we must proceed without you.

Okay sick, now do some due dilly on a sane GM replacement, trade AD & Klay before the deadline, and tell Kyrie his return timeline is on him, then tell him he can return two weeks after that.

Putting one up in the AIR today 😮‍💨 finally a glimmer of hope.

Halleluka. Firing Nico Harrison was never the only thing that needed to be done but it was always the first. No other way to rebuild trust. I'll take this as the first positive Mavs data point since the trade, and long overdue.

The Gafford/Cissé combo is honestly reckless as hell, these mfs just launching after every block lol it's fun to watch don't get me wrong but they're on the floor every other leap, stresses me out.

Really nice slip out of that curl toward Gafford from Coop for 3. Barely got the shot off but it was in rhythm and totally created from his movement off the ball. Super clean footwork.