It feels hopeless & unfair when your team loses badly. But guess what: it happens to everyone. This feed is proof that your team's not singularly cursed.
Denver lost at home by double digits to the 19-42 OKC Thunder.
OKC was without 17ppg scorer Lu Dort. Also didn't have top assist man Josh Giddey, or for that matter Mike Muscala, Kenrich Williams, Jeremiah Robinson-Earl, Derrick Favors, Ty Jerome.
#itsnotjustyourteam
#itllbeok
The whole pt of this acct is "it happens to errbody," but Memphis is literally the 1st team ever to lose an NBA Cup game after being up double digits.
They blew an 11pt lead early, then coughed up a 100-90 lead in the final 3min of regulation. Counting OT, the Pdx run was 14-0.
Denver needed a win to keep pace with Dallas, and got the Raptors at home without OG and FVV. They led by 8 in the final quarter, but got outscored 31-11 on their own court down the stretch. They now trail by Dallas by 2 in the loss column, plus the Mavs own the tiebreaker.
Well, it happened. The Clippers were up by TWENTY-ONE in the fourth at home (although the road team didn't exactly have to travel far)... before LeBron and Lakers took over. It was a 34-8 run, LeBron had 19 in the largest 4th quarter comeback of his career.
Last night, the Kings had a
#notjustyourteam
type of loss as they blew a 20pt lead to the Nuggets. Tonight, roles reversed. Denver led by 19 and still had a double-digit advantage almost midway through the 4th. Then they ran out of gas. Sac never led until the final minutes.
Clips fans, you knew this tweet was coming...
A 21-point second-half lead just evaporated, even on a night when Khris had light duty. Their collapse (51-29 in favor of the Bucks over the final 19.5 minutes) included an 0-for-9 finish. Yikes.
The Raptors were 8.5-point favorites against a Jazz team that just traded three rotation vets AND was without Jordan Clarkson. They barely trailed all night, and still had a 13pt lead with 5 minutes to play.
But Utah closed on a 22-4 run... *IN* Toronto.
The Blazers blew a double-digit lead @ home to the Thunder. They had a late 9-point lead after a Simons 3, but then they surrendered a 33-9 OKC run. How hot did OKC get? Technically that was a clutch game (3-pt game at the 5:00 mark) and yet at 1:41 the Blazers made garbage subs.
The Celtics were up 28 against the struggling Nets in a game they arrived to as 10.5-point favorites. I think you know how this ends, though: with a 44-point swing, as the Nets stunned the Celtics... *IN* Boston, even.
The Pels led by 17, lost it, built up a second lead of up to 11, and lost it. They got outscored 39-20 over the final 10 minutes, in a game where Boston was without 3rd leading scorer Kristaps Porzingis.
The Rockets also led big at home: up to 16 over the Thunder. OKC cut it to a manageable 5 by halftime, and even after the Rockets built it back up to 9, the Thunder dropped the hammer with a 16-2 surge and then put it away later with an 8-0 run and a 9-0 run.
The Grizz were at home against a sub-.500 team, had Bane back, & were 5.5-point favs. But they gave up 3 different double digit leads: a 12-pt early lead got erased before half, an 11-pt margin got wiped out in one 11-0 swoop, then they led by 10 again before losing to Portland.
The Mavs lost at home to the 22-22 Hawks after leading by 10. They had 64.5% true shooting as a team but just couldn't get stops. Teams are 176-17 (.912) this season when shooting that well.
San Antonio led by as many as 16 while visiting fellow cellar-dweller Detroit. They also never trailed in OT1 and led in OT2 up until they gave up an 11-0 run to the Pistons.
On Sunday, the healthy Celtics got blown out by the Pacers, who were playing without Myles, Lance, and TJ McConnel (TJ Warren still out for the season, too). 20-41 Indy shot 51.5% from three against the defense-minded Celtics, who are fighting for a top-4 seed.
*rolls up sleeves*
*cracks knuckles*
*stretches neck muscles*
Here we go. Nobody coughed up a huge lead, fell in major upset, lost to a skeleton crew or otherwise snatched defeat from the jaws of victory tonight, but when it happens -- and it WILL happen -- we'll be ready.
The Wolves blew a 13-point lead and a double-digit cushion in the second half, but we'll go easy since they were down a pair of star bigs and playing AT Milwaukee, where Giannis dropped 43 & 20.
The Heat losing at home to the hard-tanking Spurs, previously 7-18, automatically qualifies for this feed, even before accounting for the fact that the Heat fell from ahead in the 4th or that Jakob Poeltl and Jeremy Sochan sat.
Both Denver and Memphis lost at home to projected lottery teams. The Pistons even did it without Cade/Saddiq/Stew. But at least each team's fans can take solace is knowing that they weren't alone.
#notjustyourteam
Not a
#notjustyourteam
night for Boston in the normal sense: no big blown lead, for example. But we're also here to remind you that teams occasionally just have clunkers. The SGA-less, 15-21 Thunder just ran away from the Cs. Started w/ a 40-21 2nd, but the lead ballooned to 37.
The Pels, after a 23-0 seconds quarter run, led at home by 24 (!!) to a Grizzlies squad that got back one superstar was still down several key bodies, and the lead was still in double figures in the fourth quarter. But Memphis runs of 11-0 and later 10-0 shocked the home team.
The Pels were up 13 in Cleveland, in a game Donovan Mitchell had to leave with groin troubles. They still held onto a 7pt lead in the late 3rd quarter, but then gave up a 23-2 surge to the starless Cavs.
Have rarely seen a collapse as spectacular as OKC letting Dallas reel off a literal THIRTY-ZERO RUN, but they they still got the road W so we won't judge too harshly.
Similar story for Utah, who led by 16 (& by 11 late) before a 20-9 Blazers run forced OT, where Utah prevailed.
OK, on to Friday, 🧵-style.
The Clips led by 12 early, and then over the ensuing 14 minutes they were outscored to the tune of --this is NOT a typo-- 58-18. They never got back in it and remain winless in the Harden era, with 3 road losses by an average of 13.0.
The Nuggets were up 18 at home as 9.5-point favorites against the Magic, who were without tons of guys. But then they allowed Orlando a 41-point 3rd quarter on 75% shooting, followed by their own anemic 4th to stumble at home to the Zombie Magic.
Chicago led 60-39 in Cleveland, but let it slip away, and then lost the gamble on a "foul up 3" call when Donovan Mitchell scored as part of a 71-point (!!!) night, the most since Kobe's 81 (2006). Bulls then got blitzed 15-4 in OT.
Love how the NBA makes such a celebration out of MLK Day. Great opportunity to reflect on the progress we've made all the progress left to make to realize the vision of great men and women like Dr. King.
So with that, let's talk about which NBA teams crapped the bed today... :)
'Twas just before Christmas in Charlotte NC,
The Hornets led the champs and a 2-time MVP.
A 16-4 run put the road team ahead,
But Charlotte kept fighting and after halfitme they led!
Then came another surge: Denver's 25-1
At that point it seems, the poor Hornets were done.
Orlando shocks another playoff team: Minnesota went to the Happiest Place on Earth hoping to pull within 1.5 games of
#6
Denver, but instead the league-worst Magic -- without Gary Harris -- won by 8.
Wolves led by 18, too. Yikes.
Did the Mavs really just get swept in a home-and-home against the previously 23-51 Hornets, despite being favored by 16 in Dallas and 12.5 in the road game? And despite Charlotte being eliminated from playoff contention and the Mavs badly needing wins?
Yes. Yes they did.
Let's start our look around the NBA's pain scale by stopping in Dallas, where the Mavs were SIXTEEN-point favorites. Yeah, 16! And yet they led exactly once: at 2-0. After that, the 23-51 Hornets just smoked the Mavs, even with their guys back.
Minnesota (still no KAT/Gobert) led by 10 in the second half and never trailed after intermission until the final minute. They fall to 2 games below .500 after losing two straight to division foes in the final minute.
Oh Bulls. You Bullsy, Bullsy Bulls. They led by 19 at home but then immediately gave up a 23-4 run. Then they had a chance to tie it up late but instead coughed the ball up.
Oh Lakers... they led by 14 at home over a Sabonis-less Kings team, and then fought back from a 14-pt deficit later, just to lose down the stretch.
Check out this game chart... almost like a mirror image.
Finally tonight: the Pels. New Orleans saw a 38-point swing in their disfavor. Their 20-point lead from the mid-2nd period got slowly whittled down until it was gone halfway through the 3rd, then the champs just kept piling on as they notched the 18-point win.
How many games have a 42-POINT SWING?! Not that many. But the Blazers led Golden State by 23 points, but led a Steph-less Warrior squad not just claw back, but actually blow them out in the end. GSW led by 19 before winning by 18.
The Knicks had the Sixers on the ropes, with a 13-point lead early and then a separate 12-point lead after halftime. They were -23 over the last 18 minutes.
The 34-35 Hawks beating the 48-22 Grizz qualifies as a
#notjustyourteam
type of loss for Memphis -- especially since All-Star Trae Young didn't play. John Collins also remains out, but that didn't stop the Hawks from leading by as many as 23 against a team fighting for a 2 seed.
Both teams blew double-digit leads tonight in Moda Center, but one was at home, up 25 after halftime, and facing a 21-25 team down an 8-time All-Star. Blazers allowed the AD-less Lakers to make things close again with a 31-10 push, then close the deal in clutch.
TSN's guys just pointed out that the Raptors led for more than 44 of the 48 minutes in Denver, including by as many as 10 points, and by up to 8 in the fourth quarter. Some, uh, Scott Foster stuff happened late though and they lost touch in the final minute.
The Hornets were double-digit favorites when they hosted the 14-46 Pistons on Sunday, and led for most of the fourth quarter.
Detroit's only lead in overtime lasted exactly 0.0 seconds, as Kelly Olynyk's baseline game-winner passed through the net after time had expired.
Uh oh, some Friday night blown leads coming your way... we'll start in Cleveland, where the Cavs led by 10 with three minutes to go before finding themselves on the wrong end of a 16-2 run on the way to a loss at the hands of the Thunder
I pretty much specialize in blown leads and losses to zombie teams or when highly favored.... but Boston going from 8 down to 33 down without scoring a point is, uh, something.
Both
#8
teams here on Play-In Friday lost by giving up big leads at home to teams w/ worse records.
#8
Cleveland led most of the way, including by 14 early, lost by 6 to
#9
Atlanta.
#8
LAC led by 13 in the 4th quarter, but fell by 4 to
#9
New Orleans.
The Pistons being on this feed is weirdly a sign of progress: at least it means they were leading! They were up 20 at home, but then gave up a 13-0 run, then later a 22-1 run, then two fourth quarter 9-0 runs. Yikes.
Jazz led by as many as 12, and had a double-digit lead 110-100, with 8 minutes left. They gave up that lead to the Steph-less, Dray-less, Wiggins-less Warriors.
BUUUUT...
GSW then had a 4pt lead w/ :13 left and managed to cough it up with missed FTs and two last-minute TOs.
The Kings gave up a 20-point home lead on the way to a loss to the Gordon-less Nuggets. (In fairness, no Sabonis for Sac.) Denver was +27 from the mid 2nd quarter on.
The Grizz being down 21 in the 1st against a Nugget team w/o Jamal and MPJ is its own kind of
#notjustyourteam
night. Especially since Jokic was relatively quiet with 13 points, and Ja had 35 w/ 10 dimes. Sorry Grizz fans, as this feed can attest, everybody has head scratchers.
Thunder too... it was a 22-point home lead for OKC. But they gave up a 15-0 Pels run right before half, and then later on New Orleans had another 10-0 spurt that doomed the Thunder to a
#njyt
type of loss.
Wow,
#notjustyourteam
headquarters has been quiet because of holiday and family obligations, but Knicks-Mavs shook us awake.
NYK led by 5-12 throughout, including BY NINE WITH 33.9 SECONDS LEFT in regulation. They coughed it up with a 12-3 Dallas run, lost in OT.
The Jazz, finally healthy, were on a rest advantage and facing the Warriors without Steph, Klay, Wiggins. They led by 12, and held several different double-digit leads, but let it slip away as the Warriors get multiple 10-0 runs, including one in the 4th.
Warriors didn't have Steph, Dray, Klay, Otto, Iggy or Wiseman in Miami, but took down the No. 1 Heat by 14 points. Along the way, Miami coughed up an 11-point lead and even had drama between their best player and their elder statesman. At home, no less.
A Hornets squad missing several regulars was able to erase several deficits in Washington. The Wiz blew most of a 12-point lead, then built it back to 16 just to blow it, then led by 12 and later 10 before a final 25-6 Hornets run.
LAC led big at home vs. Denver w/ no Jokic or Murray. They went up by 11 early, but promptly gave up a 12-0 run, then later they built another 11-point lead just to give up a 15-2 run in the 4th w/ their stars on the court. Part of a 36-16 4th qtr collapse by 5.5-pt favorites.
Atlanta had a 15-0 run in Miami to go up 11 on the Jimmy-less Heat. But then they immediately gave up that lead with an 11-0 run, part of a larger 21-6 Heat spurt, and the Hawks would never lead again as Duncan Robinson poured in 21 during the 4th qtr alone.
The Suns (no KD/Ayton) led big in Sacramento, and then De'Aaron Fox even left early to boost the visitors' odds. But then a 28-5 collapse in the 3rd quarter doomed them to play from behind. They did make it close down the stretch, but in the end the beam was lit.
Memphis led by 14 against the 15-48 rockets, but wound up losing by 11. See, even the darling Grizzlies aren't exempt from the
#itsnotjustyourteam
nights. They were 10.5-point favorites, and had a chance to tighten their grip on
#2
.
The Clippers' home lead only reached 7, but their night gets enshrined in
#NJYT
history mostly for the way they allowed a 10-0 run to the Jokic-less Nuggets and just never hit back after that. (No PG, but Kawhi's 24-8-4 wasn't enough to get them past a team down an MVP.)
The Pels (no Zion, still no CJ) led by as many as 13 in Utah, & still were up by double figures with 12:01 to go. But even without Markkanen & Clarkson, the Jazz came rocking back. Starting with a Sexton layup at the 3Q buzzer, the Jazz closed 39-23 to win w/o their 2 top stars.
Somehow I totally forgot to tweet the Dubs' fall from grace: up 16 at home against the champs, they then allowed a 20-4 surge to knot things up at halftime. Another 14-0 Nuggets run created some distance for Denver, who won the second half 58-42.
All Atlanta had to do to pull even with Charlotte for
#9
in the East was beat the 19-53 Pistons, but... well, you know where this is going. Detroit busted things open with a 23-0 (!!) third-quarter run, and Atlanta stayed 10th despite entering the game as 5-pt favs.
Oooh, ooh, we got one! The Suns led by 12 going into the final frame, but then allowed a 19-3 Lakers run, part of a 28-11 4th quarter as LeBron and the other Angelinos ran right past them for the win. (No Beal or Book, though.)
'Twas Christmas in Canada, Barnes was so scary.
22 in the first, making Utah un-merry.
A 17-point lead Scottie helped the Raps forge,
At home, and the Jazz were without rookie George.
But just like the night before, Toronto went cold,
Minus-20 in the 4th; oh man, they got rolled.
The Warriors never trailed in the third or fourth quarters in Boston and their lead got up to 11. But they let the Cs make it close with a 7-0 4th quarter run, and then allowed another 8 straight points in overtime.
I think you know it's coming, Clipper folks...
LAC was up 19 on the Lakers, and maintained a double-digit lead well past halftime. But then the Lakers surged as LeBron rested. A 13-point Clipper lead disappeared in just over 4 minutes, then the King returned to power the OT win.
The Celtics had already seen an 11-point lead vanish before halftime in Orlando, but then went up again by 12 in the second half, only to immediately surrender a 17-0 Magic run. Then the Magic, with no Carter or Fultz, mind you, would put the Cs away with a later 12-0 spurt.
The Hawks were hosting a 12-34 Hornets squad (still without LaMelo) and thus were EIGHT-point favorites. They led by 19 just after the break, but they let is slip in a disastrous third quarter that included a 31-15 Charlotte surge.
They STILL by up to nine in the 4th, but lost.
Uh oh, Detroit. You're next:
Pistons led by 18 at home against the rebuilding Blazers. But Shaedon Sharpre's big second half (26!!) allowed Portland to flip the script. Blazers by 9.
Time for another season of commiserating about blown leads, upsets, and general sadness.
We begin with the Wolves who were 8.5-point favorites at home against the lotto-protected Jazz and led by 17 early... but then lost in OT.
'Twas so close to Christmas there by the Bay,
And Portland was up big, with no Wiggins or Dray.
Up by 11 with the Dubs down some guys,
The Blazers had plans of a Christmas surprise.
But alas, the home team in the end won the day:
A 15-3 run and then Golden State pulled away.
The Hawks (ca-caw!!) built up a 20-point home lead, but then got outscored by 33 over the next 17 minutes. Even thought they were able to whittle away at Indiana's 13-point cushion, they let Buddy Hield singlehandedly outscore them 8-2 in the final 90 seconds.
HP getting us started... Indy led by 14 against a team with no KD, Kyrie, Ben, Royce, Warren, Claxton, Curry, Harris. That's a combined 2,881 NBA starts and 20 All-Star games that didn't play.
And yet the Pacers coughed it up. Cam Thomas explodes late (21 in 4Q) & Indy loses.
The big one tonight was the nightcap: Cs led by NINETEEN, and even after they blew that, their 11-0 3Q run put them in front for virtually the entire 4th. In fact, they only trailed in the final frame after THT's game-winner, dropping Boston to even in the L colum w/ Philly.
The Jazz, fighting for a top-3 seed, were up 15 on the 25-41 Spurs who had lost 5 of 6 games.
The Spurs close 38-21 over the final 10 minutes to stun the Jazz and get Pop a historic win. Good for Pop... bad, bad loss for the Jazz.
Another blown Jazz lead? Another blown Jazz lead.
Utah was up 16 w/ the ball at just over 7 to go, then allowed 18 straight GSW points to drop a game
@inpredict
had them at 99.6% to win. 11 straight empty Jazz trips in a game that could have given Utah homecourt in the playoff.
The Suns didn't blow a lead because they never had one, trailing wire-to-wire at home against a struggling Hawks team. "One of them games," said DeAndre Ayton. Don't worry, big fella. Everybody has 'em.
Brooklyn blew a 10-point home lead tonight, too. As soon as they went up double digits, Milwaukee surged to the tune of 18-3. They wasted another big night (45) from Cam Thomas, and missed the chance to topple the Bucks on Dame's 5-for-15 night.
It's been a few days (and trade week games are weird on their own anyway), but let's look around at a healthy Friday slate that included a few "What happened?!?!?" type of losses... 🧵
The Raps have had a few of these...
Tonight, they led practically the whole way in Minny, including by 18 just before half and by 14 in the 4th. They led 122-110 with under 8 to play, and then got outscored 18-4 by a KAT-less, Gobert-less Wolves team. Oh, Canada.
The Mavs were 8.5-point favorites against a Pacer team that came in 27-35. But the Mavs lost for the fifth time in six games when they allowed Indy to pull away in the 4th.
The biggie today was Sacto blowing a 21-point lead at home to the Sixers without Harden and Embiid. Philly had a 55-23 advantage over a roughly 17-min stretch.
Sac shot better from the field, took & made more FTs, and turned the ball over just 8X (to Philly's 15)... but lost.
Also, trailing by 28 just 8 minutes in is its own kind of "what the hell just happened" type of thing. But sorry, Pistons fans, I can't necessarily tell you that happened to anybody else. (It probably has at some point.)
The Hawks led by 16 in Houston against the 3-14 Rockets. So yeah, that probably should have been a win. They were 7-point favorites, but couldn't hang onto the big lead, and gave Houston their 4th win of the year.
The Bucks were favored by 12 and led by 14 at home against the 31-38 Pacers... but somehow managed to let Indy flip the game upside down, even without Haliburton and Mathurin. Check out this very abrupt game flow chart:
Next we're coming for Toronto... but first we have to point out that in the same game, Chi went from 19 up to 11 down in one fell swoop. A 33-3 run!
That run + a later 18-4 run put Tor up 17, but then they collapsed! A 22-5 Bulls run forced OT, which the Raps lost on a late 3.
That's it for this poet, but not before saying
That Doncic & Dallas also were playing.
In fact, Luka gave us a gift oh-so-nifty.
The Slovenian guard dropped a holiday 50!
They too lost a big lead, but got back ahead,
To topple the Suns and send this bard to bed.
#merrychristmas
The Nets led most of the way at home against lottery-bound Portland, including by 10 in the late third quarter. But after a 4th quarter Blazer run of 23-8 put the visitors up 7, Brooklyn was frankly fortunate to even force an OT -- in which they gave up another 15-4 surge.
The Mavs led early by 20 and still had a 10-point lead in the final quarter... but went scoreless for nearly 4 minutes and lost in the final minute. They were at home, and the Cavs were without Mitchell, Garland and Mobley.
Orlando, your turn. The Magic led by 15 multiple times at home, and led by 11 as late as 6:54 in the third. From that point on, Dallas outscored them 54-28. Don't worry, Central Florida, you're not alone.
Denver led by 13 after halftime against the Knicks. Then they gave up a 10-0 run and an 8-0 run almost back to back, and lost for the fifth time in 6 outings.
The Celtics gave away a 19-point lead in the span of about 6 minutes. The Bulls (no Lonzo Ball) then built a 23-point lead (42 point swing) before winning by 18.
With the Wolves losing, the Nuggets needed only to beat the 33-45 Spurs at home to clinch a playoff spot. And SA's leading scorer, Dejounte Murray, didn't play.
Sound like a
#notjustyourteam
set up? It is. The Murray-less Spurs blew out the Nuggets in Denver, by 19.
Someone in OKC-Phx is going to lose after leading big... either the home team after being up 13, or the top-seeded Thunder after leading by 24 and getting stunned by a 36-6 run. Stay tuned.
The Warriors with another
#notjustyourteam
-style loss: they led by 10 in Detroit, where they were 7.5-point favorites. But they got outscored by 29 (!!) over a 13-minute span and never recovered.
The Wolves are trying to climb out of the play-in themselves, and had a home game against the 34-44 Wiz, who aren't playing for anything and who were w/o Beal, Kuz, Bryant, Neto & others. But you know where this is going: Wiz pulled away for a blowout win in Minnesota.
In a battle between decimated teams, the Wolves (sans KAT, Gobert) gave up separate leads of 11 and 10 and lost on a missed buzzer shot the sub-.500 Jazz (sans Lauri, Olynyk).