I was blessed to be in the confines of State Farm Arena yesterday as the somber and sudden news of the passing of Kobe Bryant and Gianna Bryant broke. Locker rooms around the NBA were silent, solemn, and reflective, including Atlanta’s and Washington’s.
As a fan and in reverence of these marvelous athletes, it was the right place to be. To witness. To share.
Full of disbelief, tears, and memories of how many lives he touched not only in the NBA community, but transcending nearly every boundary in life and around the globe.
Vince Carter was gracious enough to spend some time sharing his memories with the media after the Atlanta Hawks put on a stupendous display of #MambaMentality and scored 152 points in a defeat of the Washington Wizards.
I’d like to share his sentiments with you …
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Houston Rockets 110
Denver Nuggets 117
One of Kobe Bryant’s favorite players donned his WhyNot0.3’s and his Rockets black No. 0 jersey and took the court after hearing the somber new of Bryant’s passing and scored 22 of his 32 points in the third quarter, but could not overcome a triple double by Nikola Jokic (his 37th career) as the Denver Nuggets defeated the Houston Rockets last night. Perhaps it was Russell Westbrook’s 10 turnovers that cost the Rockets another opportunity to move up in the Western Conference standings. James Harden did not play.
| ROCKETS (28-17) 6th in the West | NUGGETS (32-14) 4th in the West |
| Russell Westbrook 32 points – seven rebounds – seven assists – two steals – one block | Jerami Grant 25 points – four rebounds – three assists – one block |
| Eric Gordon 19 points – three rebounds – one assist – one steal – one block | Nikola Jokic 24 points – 11 rebounds – 12 assists – two steals |
| Ben McLemore 15 points | Michael Porter, Jr. 17 points – nine rebounds – one assist |
NEXT GAMES
Rockets at Jazz – Tonight
Nuggets at Grizzlies – Tuesday
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Toronto Raptors 110
San Antonio Spurs 106
The Toronto Raptors jumped out to a 37-21 first quarter advantage and never looked back as they defeated the San Antonio Spurs last night, though both teams felt defeated by the news of Kobe Bryant’s passing. The Spurs mounted a 55-47 comeback in the second half, but it wasn’t enough to win the game, despite seven players in double figures. Pascal Siakam had one of his best games since returning from injury with 35 points and eight rebounds to lead Toronto back up to second place in the Eastern Conference playoff chase, displacing the Miami Heat.
| RAPTORS (32-14) 2nd in the East | SPURS (20-25) 9th in the West |
| Pascal Siakam 35 points – eight rebounds – three assists – one steal | DeMar DeRozan 14 points – six rebounds – seven assists |
| Kyle Lowry 16 points – four rebounds – four assists – one steal | Derrick White 14 points – four rebounds – four assists – four blocks |
| Fred VanVleet 13 points – four rebounds – seven assists – four steals – one block | Dejounte Murray 13 points – six rebounds – two assists – one steal – two blocks |
NEXT GAMES
Spurs at Bulls – Tonight
Hawks at Raptors – Tuesday
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Washington Wizards 133
Atlanta Hawks 152
I was in the building at State Farm Arena last night and you knew this was going to be a special night when Trae Young took off his warm ups and was wearing No. 8 in honor of Kobe Bryant. Young, who was just getting to know and learn from his idol, and Bryant’s daughter Gianna being a big fan of Young’s – even sharing workout mentor Alex Bazzell – wanted to pay homage to Bryant by playing with a “Mamba Mentality” after absorbing the emotion of the news. Atlanta played like they were anything but the worst record in the Eastern Conference, scoring 152 points – 100 before 30 minutes had even elapsed. Atlanta even outrebounded the bigger Washington Wizards, and Vince Carter nobly shared warm memories of Bryant in the post-game presser.
| WIZARDS (15-30) 11th in the East | HAWKS (12-35) 15th in the East |
| Bradley Beal 40 points – three rebounds – six assists – one steal | Trae Young 45 points – six rebounds – 14 assists – one steal |
| Troy Brown, Jr. 19 points – three rebounds – two assists | De’Andre Hunter 25 points – three rebounds – two assists – one steal |
| #VFL Jordan McRae 12 points – seven rebounds – two assists – one steal – two blocks | Kevin Huerter 18 points – six rebounds – two assists – two steals |
NEXT GAMES
Hawks at Raptors – Tuesday
Wizards at Bucks – Tuesday
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Boston Celtics 108
New Orleans Pelicans 123
The host New Orleans Pelicans jumped out to a 62-42 first half margin and never had to worry about any Boston Celtics rally, because the boys in green weren’t coming back, not with Jayson Tatum out of the game. The Pelicans got their first win in the Zion Williamson era, despite the news of the day. Brandon Ingram threw down for 16 as the Pelicans ended a two game skid.
| CELTICS (30-15) 4th in the East | PELICANS (18-29) 12th in the West |
| Kemba Walker 35 points – five rebounds – four assists – two steals – one block | Jrue Holiday 25 points – six rebounds – five assists |
| Gordon Hayward 23 points – six rebounds – two assists – one steal | Zion Williamson 21 points – 11 rebounds – two assists – one steal |
| Jaylen Brown 20 points – two rebounds – one assist – one steal | J.J. Redick 17 points – four rebounds – one assist – one block |
NEXT GAMES
Pelicans at Cavaliers – Tuesday
Celtics at Heat – Tuesday
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Brooklyn Nets 97
New York Knicks 110
The news of Kobe Bryant’s death hit Kyrie Irving so hard, he couldn’t bring himself to play in the final Battle of the Boroughs of the 2019-20 season last night. The Brooklyn Nets lost without Irving’s presence, giving the teams a 2-2 split of the season series. The New York Knicks’ glut of forwards carried the load, with Julius Randle, Marcus Morris and Mitchell Robinson combining for 55 points, half of the Knicks’ final tally.
| NETS (19-26) 8th in the East | KNICKS (13-34) 13th in the East |
| Spencer Dinwiddie 23 points – four rebounds – five assists – one block | Julius Randle 22 points – 15 rebounds – one assist – one block |
| Taurean Prince 14 points – three rebounds – four assists | Marcus Morris 21 points – four rebounds – one steal – one block |
| Rodions Kurucs 12 points – three rebounds – two assists – two steals | Mitchell Robinson 12 points – five rebounds – one assist – two blocks |
NEXT GAMES
Knicks at Hornets – Tuesday
Pistons at Nets – Wednesday
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Los Angeles Clippers 112
Orlando Magic 97
A 31-20 third quarter by the Los Angeles Clippers erased the very competitive 54-52 first half between themselves and the host Orlando Magic. Of course, any game where Michael Carter-Williams is your leading scorer is going to likely be a loss. Carter-Williams has all but been on an NBA milk carton for the better part of his career. Same for Paul George this season, missing the last nine games with a hamstring issue. Orlando has lost five of its last six games.
| CLIPPERS (33-14) 3rd in the West | MAGIC (21-26) 7th in the East |
| Kawhi Leonard 31 points – 14 rebounds – seven assists – one steal – one block | Michael Carter-Williams 15 points – seven rebounds – eight assists |
| Montrezl Harrell 19 points – five rebounds – two assists – three blocks | Nikola Vucevic 13 points – six rebounds – five assists (fouled out) |
| Landry Shamet 19 points – three rebounds – three assists | Wes Iwundu 12 points – four rebounds – two assists |
NEXT GAMES
Magic at Heat – Tonight
Clippers at Lakers – Tuesday
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Phoenix Suns 109
Memphis Grizzlies 114
The Memphis Grizzlies are roaring once again, tearing off their second win in a row, and their eighth out of their last 10 games, which includes a portion of that seven game win streak. Ja Morant scored 14 of his 23 points in the fourth quarter, helping the Grizzlies affirm a win after taking a 30-18 first quarter cushion to net their 22nd win of the season and keep a bear hug on the eighth seed in the Western Conference.
| SUNS (19-27) 11th in the West | GRIZZLIES (22-24) 8th in the West |
| Devin Booker 36 points – two rebounds – five assists – one block | Ja Morant 23 points – five rebounds – eight assists – one steal |
| Kelly Oubre, Jr. 27 points – nine rebounds – three assists | Dillon Brooks 20 points – five rebounds – four assists – three steals – two blocks |
| Deandre Ayton 17 points – 15 rebounds – two assists – three steals – two blocks | Jaren Jackson, Jr. 20 points – three rebounds – one steal – two blocks |
NEXT GAMES
Nuggets at Grizzlies – Tuesday
Suns at Mavericks – Tuesday
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Indiana Pacers 129
Portland Trailblazers 139
Portland raced out to a nine point first quarter advantage. It grew to 10 by halftime, and then to 13 by the end of three. That was enough to stave off the Indiana Pacers in the City of Roses last night, as the NBA day came to a close with few game highlights eclipsing the somber news of the day. If you’re needing a fix for high scoring while James Harden misses 80 of his last 10 shots, look no further than Damian Lillard, who has scored 327 points over his last nine games, including almost half of that in his last three games – 50 last night, 47 against the Mavericks, and 61 against Golden State for 158 points.
| PACERS (30-17) 5th in the East | TRAILBLAZERS (20-27) 10th in the West |
| Jeremy Lamb 28 points – two rebounds – one assist – two steals – one block | Damian Lillard 50 points – six rebounds – 13 assists – one steal |
| Domantas Sabonis 27 points – 14 rebounds – 11 assists – one block | C.J. McCollum 28 points – one rebound – five assists |
| Doug McDermott 19 points – one rebound – one assist | Hassan Whiteside 21 points – 14 rebounds – one assist – six blocks |
NEXT GAMES
Bulls at Pacers – Wednesday
Rockets at Blazers – Wednesday
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MONDAY’S LINEUP
(All Times Eastern)
| 7 p.m.Cleveland Cavaliers Detroit Pistons Fox Sports Detroit | 7:30 p.m. Orlando Magic Miami Heat Fox Sports Florida | 8 p.m. San Antonio Spurs Chicago Bulls NBC Sports Chicago |
| 8 p.m. Sacramento Kings Minnesota Timberwolves NBC Sports California | 8 p.m. Dallas Mavericks Oklahoma City Thunder Fox Sports Southwest | 9 p.m. Houston Rockets Utah Jazz NBATV |
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Tracy Graven is a Senior NBA Analyst for BackSportsPage.com.
He has written the NBA, and done NBA radio, for the last two decades for HoopsWorld, Swish Magazine, and HoopsHype, the Coach Scott Fields Show and NBARadioShow.com, and is also tackling the NFL, NCAA, and will be pinch-hitting on some Major League Baseball coverage for BackSportsPage.
He’s spent 20 years in locker rooms in Orlando, Boise (G League), San Antonio, Phoenix, and Oklahoma City.
A corporate trainer by day, he currently resides in Tennessee.
Reach him on Twitter at @RealTMoneyMedia
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