NBA
FULL NBA Review From April 26, 2021
See the full NBA Game Reviews from Monday, April 26, 2021 with entertaining highlights, interesting facts, valuable takeaways, and more!
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The two longest active winning streaks in the NBA were both shut down on Monday night, as well as the team with the best record in the last 12. Washington, who came in with the second-longest winning streak, lost a high-scoring thriller despite 45 points from Bradley Beal to San Antonio behind a double-double from DeMar DeRozan. The hottest team coming into the night, New York, watched their halftime lead slip away to Phoenix, breaking their nine-game win streak after CP3 took over down the stretch.
LAC, 11-1 over their last 12, got blown out by New Orleans. Minnesota, unlike most teams this season, has seemed to figure out Utah. They’ve now beaten them three times this season after their 1-point victory on Monday. Sacramento got the job done against Dallas without their leading scorer, De’Aaron Fox. The LA Lakers’ late rally lifted them to a road win over Orlando. Chicago pieced together an impressive fourth quarter to see them through as victors in Miami despite Jimmy Butler‘s best efforts.
Detroit defended their home court, cooling off the recently hot Atlanta squad. A strong second half from Toronto allowed them to secure the victory over Cleveland. Michael Porter Jr. went off for 31 points in Denver, where they demolished Memphis. In the most lopsided matchup of the night, Philadelphia handed OKC their 14th loss in a row, tied for the worst ever in their franchise.
Here are the best NBA highlights, facts, performers, and takeaways from April 26th, 2021:
San Antonio Spurs (146) vs. Washington Wizards (143) [OT]
[Highlights] SPURS (-135) d. WIZARDS (+115) 146-143 (OT) [SAS -2.5 | o230]
[Highlights] @TIMBERWOLVES (+395) d. JAZZ (-500) 105-104 (GW-FG) [MIN +10 | u227]
[Highlights] @KINGS (+211) d. MAVERICKS (-250) 113-106 [SAC +6.5 | u226]
[Highlights] SUNS (-145) d. @KNICKS (+127) 118-110 [PHX -2.5 | o215.5]
[Highlights] BULLS (+198) d. @HEAT (-240) 110-102 [CHI +6 | o206]
[Highlights] LAKERS (-689) d. @MAGIC (+513) 114-103 [PUSH -11 | o208.5]
[Highlights] @PISTONS (+152) d. HAWKS (-175) 100-86 [DET +4 | u216.5]
[Highlights] @RAPTORS (-771) d. CAVALIERS (+559) 112-96 [TOR -11.5 | u212.5]
[Highlights] @PELICANS (+102) d. CLIPPERS (-119) 120-103 [NOP +1.5 | u228.5]
[Highlights] @NUGGETS (-175) d. GRIZZLIES (+154) 120-96 [DEN -4 | u229]
[Highlights] @76ERS (-1060) d. THUNDER (+711) 121-90 [PHI -13.5 | u219.5]
This is the greatest month of triple-doubles by 1 player ever
Bradley Beal is quickly cementing himself as the greatest scorer in Wizards history
Despite the loss, the Jazz have something to celebrate today after a fantastic season so far
D-Rose and Julius Randle have been huge sparks for New York’s success this season
CP3. UNREAL. 🤯 pic.twitter.com/l1ukL2duO1
— NBA TV (@NBATV) April 27, 2021
Chris Paul puts the game away from deep at MSG! pic.twitter.com/x288QBb1nn
— NBA (@NBA) April 27, 2021
Ja showin' off the moves 😯 pic.twitter.com/pIAn3d0TmZ
— NBA TV (@NBATV) April 27, 2021
Chuma Okeke dropped the hammer 🔨 pic.twitter.com/JP8IAU8dp6
— NBA TV (@NBATV) April 26, 2021
Mike Conley steps back and sinks the go-ahead triple!@utahjazz 104@Timberwolves 103
— NBA (@NBA) April 27, 2021
5.9 to play on NBA LP pic.twitter.com/1rIMdCAbaK
D-Lo hits the late go-ahead bucket! 👀 pic.twitter.com/ocaVX765hX
— NBA TV (@NBATV) April 27, 2021
WILLIE CAULEY-STEIN. OH MY. 😳 pic.twitter.com/nvEACEKuhO
— NBA TV (@NBATV) April 27, 2021
Highlights] F DeMar DeRozan, SAS (W v.WSH): 37 PTS (12-23 FG | 0-0 3P), 10 AST, 2 REB, 0 BLK, 0 STL, 2 TO
[Highlights] PG Dejounte Murray, SAS (W @WSH): 25 PTS (12-23 FG | 0-1 3P), 5 AST, 17 REB, 0 BLK, 3 STL, 1 TO
[Highlights] G D’Angelo Russell, MIN (W v.UTA): 27 PTS (10-16 FG | 7-12 3P), 12 AST, 2 REB, 1 BLK, 0 STL, 3 TO
[Highlights] SG Bradley Beal, WSH (L v.SAS): 45 PTS (20-37 FG | 0-4 3P), 1 AST, 3 REB, 0 BLK, 0 STL, 0 TO
[Highlights] F Michael Porter Jr., DEN (W v.MEM): 31 PTS (12-19 FG | 3-6 3P), 2 AST, 7 REB, 1 BLK, 1 STL, 2 TO
MPJ IS THE NBA’S MOST IMPROVED PLAYER AND A FUTURE MVP CANDIDATE
Michael Porter Jr. attended the University of Missouri for one year before entering the draft. MPJ was picked 14th overall by Denver despite only playing in three games and making just 10 shots in his entire collegiate career. Additionally, he was selected this high with the knowledge that he would likely miss his entire first season in the NBA as he recovered from a back injury, however that didn’t stop Denver from making Porter Jr. a lottery pick due to his sky-high ceiling that he’s starting to scratch the surface of.
Despite being out for almost a year in college, and missing an additional season once he got in the league, MPJ was still rated highly on plenty of team’s draft boards and is showing why that was the case this season. In his second season with Denver, he is averaging 18.2 points per game, while shooting an efficient 54% from the field and 44.3% from deep. A lot of the attention has been given to teammates Nikola Jokic and Jamal Murray for their fantastic seasons, however, with Murray out for the foreseeable future, it’s now MPJ’s time to shine.
Regardless of what teammates are healthy or not, Porter jr. has been a key reason why Denver sits top-four in the fierce Western Conference. MPJ has started 43/50 games he’s played in and is getting 31.1 minutes per game as he proves he can be durable throughout a full NBA season. His numbers have increased in every major category since last season and he’s shown dramatic improvement from his restricted rookie season. If he stays healthy, MPJ has the skillset to become an MVP candidate in the future, and his significant increase in production should make him the Most Improved Player this year.
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