A couple more days have passed inside the NBA’s bubble in Orlando and every team there has now had a chance to get their first scrimmage done and out of the way. So what have the players been up to during this time? We’ll be taking a look at the top storylines from the last 48 hours.
The Return of Woj…
It’s been a few weeks now since ESPN insider Adrian Wojnarowski responded to a senator in an email with profane language. NBA fans all around were filled with joy to
see Woj make his return to their Twitter notifications, even if the news being delivered was of the negative nature. It was announced that Indiana Pacers’ all-star forward Domantas Sabonis will miss the rest of the season with a significant foot injury, a big hit for the Pacers which may be enough for them to also choose to hold out their top player Victor Oladipo in order to give him more time to rehab from his past surgery. Either way, it’s good to have Woj back delivering updates from around the league.
Ben Simmons Using a Sports Psychologist…?
Basketball is back and Ben Simmons might finally be making an advancement on his shooting problems. Plenty of comments and jokes have been made over the past couple of seasons about Simmons and his unwillingness to shoot threes, but you have to give him credit for what appears to be a strong gameplan to change that. After attempting two and making one during the 76ers’
first scrimmage Friday, news came out about an interesting angle that the young star has been using in order to try and fix his shooting woes. Apparently, Simmons has been seeing a sports psychologist, as he feels that he can make the shot, yet when the time comes he simply does not feel comfortable shooting from deep. This is a story that should be closely monitored by fans across the league though, because if Ben Simmons is able to figure it out, there’s no reason he can’t be a top player in the NBA.
Lou Williams Leaves the Bubble…
There have already been a number of players who have left the NBA’s bubble for various reasons and that’s perfectly fine. Things happen and player’s shouldn’t have to be held accountable by fans for their reasons of leaving. With that being said, people were quick to get jokes and hot takes off after rapper Jack Harlow posted a picture to his Instagram story of him with Los Angeles Clippers’ guard Lou Williams. It was then reported that the picture was taken “awhile a go” and soon after, Williams took to Twitter to air his side of the story.
It was later announced that Williams was indeed attending a funeral type service for his father and that he would be back in the bubble soon. But, this whole situation serves as yet another reminder that the players are people too, and sometimes there are in fact things bigger than basketball that happen in their lives. Us fans need to continue to keep this in mind before reaching judgements on the decisions of the players.
Yes, Andre Roberson is Still an NBA Player…
It had been 30 months since Oklahoma City guard Andre Roberson had been on an NBA court in real action after a significant knee injury. It recently was announced that he came close to retiring due to the sheer amount of rehabbing that he had gone through, including multiple setbacks that required even more surgeries and more rehab. Luckily enough, Roberson had all of Oklahoma City urging him to progress and get back to playing and he was one of the players who was probably more welcoming of the season suspension. Not only did it give him more time to heal but Roberson’s now in a place where everyone else has to get their feet back underneath them. In the Thunder’s first bubble scrimmage, Roberson logged 12 minutes where he accumulated five points, two rebounds, a steal, and a block while also making a three, which to me may be the
most important thing from this performance because if there was one thing he was not known for prior to his injury, it was his shooting ability. If Roberson can come back as even a similar defensive specialist to what he was and with an added shot, Thunder fans can get really excited for what he could have to offer in the playoffs.
Kyle Kuzma’s Birthday…
To end on a more lighthearted note, Los Angeles Lakers’ forward Kyle Kuzma just turned 25 years of age. To help celebrate while he is in the bubble, Kuzma’s current girlfriend, Canadaian model Winnie Harlow, flew a plane over the Disney resort with a sign congratulating him for the
milestone. A nice gesture but this also served as a reminder to fans how much more likely it is for Kuz to get a 10 off the court than he is to give you 10 points off the bench. (Although I will admit, at the time of me writing this he currently has 25 points and seven rebounds on 10 of 13 shooting including five of seven from three so who knows, maybe 25 is his year.) Either way, the Lakers are most certainly going to want to see more of this down the stretch from who many consider the team’s third scoring option.
As I’ve said before, these are just scrimmages. The intensity continues to ramp up little by little and it will only be a matter of time before we have playoff basketball to enjoy. I, for one, can not wait.
-Noah Kokkinos
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