NBA recap (Nov. 17th): Portland loses to Brooklyn

The NBA only had three games on tap for Thursday night. Here’s a rundown of the results with some pointers that NBA fans and bettors should be taking away.

Brooklyn beat Portland by 2 on Thursday

The Brooklyn Nets continued to be difficult to predict. After losing by 32 to the Sacramento Kings earlier this week, the Nets waltzed into the home of the team in the western conference with the best record. Brooklyn took away a 2-point victory, defeating the Portland Trailblazers 109-107.

There were some things to note with some of the players. Firstly, Jusuf Nurkic was questionable for the game but he played 25 minutes for Portland. Secondly, Ben Simmons actually had a good game for the Nets. He scored 15 points, grabbed 13 rebounds, and had 7 assists. If the Nets keep getting that kind of production out of him, then they will be tough to beat.

However, Kevin Durant and Royce O’Neal continued to log way too many minutes for their long-term interests. They played 39 minutes and 37 minutes respectively in the game. If they keep that up, then don’t be surprised if they start to pick up at least minor injuries.

Sacramento beats San Antonio 130-112

The Sacramento Kings kept up their winning ways on Thursday night. After starting the season 0-4, the Kings are now 8-6 on the campaign. In their most recent game, they handed the San Antonio Spurs a 130-112 defeat. The Spurs, conversely, have really calmed down lately. They are now 6-10 after a 5-2 start.

Keegan Murray missed the game with a back issue for the Kings. De’Aaron Fox scored 28 points and had 8 assists. He also went +36 in the game for point differential.

Kawhi Leonard starts for LA Clippers

The Los Angeles Clippers defeated the Detroit Pistons on Thursday night. They will be happy about that and they will be happy that Kawhi Leonard started the game and logged 25 minutes. However, he was limited in his effectiveness, scoring just 6 points while grabbing just 5 rebounds. Leonard did have the best point differential in the game as he was a game-high +26.

Ivica Zubac was huge in the game. The seven-footer matched his season high for rebounds with 18. No other player in the game managed double digits.

Further reading: the Jazz host the Suns on Friday.