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The Best of the Day: April 28th, 2021
See the best of the day in sports from April 28, 2021 including DC putting on a dunk contest vs. LAL, Westbrook making history, and more!
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The ‘Best of the Day’ is a daily PSO original series showcasing the most significant stories, highlights, and facts going on in the land of the NFL, NBA, & MLB every day. Get a recap on EVERYTHING that happened on 4/28 here.
The Washington Wizards returned to their recent winning ways with a win over the Los Angeles Lakers Wednesday night. The Wizards were led by Russell Westbrook, who made history with another triple-double, along with several explosive dunks from key role players. Also, injuries to star players this season have significantly altered seeding with the postseason around the corner, Denver outlasted New Orleans thanks to another fantastic performance from Nikola Jokic, and PSO revealed its latest scouting report on generational TE prospect Kyle Pitts.
Here is the best of the day from April 28, 2021:
DC held a dunk contest vs. LA as Westbrook’s historic triple-double season continued
Two days after seeing their eight-game win streak come to an end, the Wizards got back to their winning ways by taking down the Lakers 116-107 on national TV. Washington was once again led by their dynamic backcourt duo of Russell Westbrook (18 PTS, 18 REB, 14 AST) and Bradley Beal (game-high 27 PTS). Westbrook recorded his 30th triple-double of the season, the third time he’s hit that mark during his 12-year career all other players have combined for two such seasons in history.
Russell Westbrook last night:
— Justin Kubatko (@jkubatko) April 29, 2021
✅ 18 PTS
✅ 18 REB
✅ 14 AST
It was his 30th triple-double of the season. Westbrook owns three of the five seasons in NBA history in which player has recorded at least 30 triple-doubles, and he is the only player with multiple such seasons. pic.twitter.com/ke6GcWavJY
Russell Westbrook has tied Oscar Robertson for the most career seasons (5) with 600+ REB & 600+ AST in NBA history https://t.co/enIGRxshM1
— Pro Sports Outlook (@PSO_Sports) April 29, 2021
Russell Westbrook now has the most wins while recording a triple-double ever.
— Pro Sports Outlook (@PSO_Sports) April 29, 2021
Full top-3 list: https://t.co/eZtkDWsXhN
However, their two stars weren’t the only ones who put on a show vs. the reigning champs. Rui Hachimura, Chandler Hutchison, and Daniel Gafford all threw down thunderous dunks for the Wizards. Gafford in particular, has had quite the impact since being acquired from the Bulls in a trade earlier this season.
RUI HACHIMURA PUT ‘EM ON A POSTER 😤 pic.twitter.com/DKzF52qmVU
— NBA TV (@NBATV) April 29, 2021
Chandler Hutchison, MY GOODNESS 😱 pic.twitter.com/NT4RgoBQDh
— NBA TV (@NBATV) April 29, 2021
DANIEL GAFFORD 😳 pic.twitter.com/KZTy7tfvIN
— NBA TV (@NBATV) April 29, 2021
In the 13 games that Gaford has played with DC, the Wizards own an impressive 11-2 record. Coming off the bench, Gafford has excelled on both ends of the floor, and is dwarfing his numbers across the board from his two seasons in Chicago. He is averaging career-highs in PTS (10.6), REB (6.0), STL (0.8), and BLK (2.0) while averaging the most playing time of his career (17.8 MPG). Although it’s only a small sample size, the early returns from the former second-round pick appear very promising for a Wizards team looking to both win now and build for the future with several key young players.
Related: Stories of the Day
STAR PLAYER INJURIES ARE PILING UP AND SIGNIFICANTLY ALTERING PLAYOFF SEEDING
In a 10-game slate of NBA games on Wednesday night, stars like LeBron James, Kawhi Leonard, Trae Young, Gordon Hayward, LaMelo Ball, and De’Aaron Fox were all inactive, and each of their teams lost. Some of these games were blowouts, so it is hard to say that their teams would’ve won with them on the court, but these are all difference-making players and their absences were truly felt. With playoff implications on the line, surely the games wouldn’t have gone the same way if they were able to lace them up.
All of these injuries piling up recently clearly affected the games tonight, and are altering the playoff seeding as well. Pretty much all of these teams who played without stars Wednesday night are in playoff or play-in position. Obviously, these teams were missing their key players for only one night in some examples, but it can hurt them in the coming weeks too. It can very well lead to the teams falling down the standings, allowing for healthier teams to catch them and give them a shot at playoff contention or higher seed.
Players like LeBron James who are more seriously injured have it worse than ones who are more just hurt and have been in and out of lineups without missing too many games in a row. James will likely head almost right into playoff basketball, which is far more exhausting than the regular season and to go into that after a long absence is a tough thing to do. The severity and duration of these injuries to star players are going to be very impactful on the final seeds and are going to play a major factor in this year’s postseason matchups.
COLORS KEY | FULL LAKERS OUTLOOK
Related: NBA Takeaways of the Day
DC held a dunk contest vs. LA
RUI HACHIMURA PUT ‘EM ON A POSTER 😤 pic.twitter.com/DKzF52qmVU
— NBA TV (@NBATV) April 29, 2021
Chandler Hutchison, MY GOODNESS 😱 pic.twitter.com/NT4RgoBQDh
— NBA TV (@NBATV) April 29, 2021
DANIEL GAFFORD 😳 pic.twitter.com/KZTy7tfvIN
— NBA TV (@NBATV) April 29, 2021
Related: NBA Highlights
PG Russell Westbrook, WAS (W v.LAL): 18 PTS (7-16 FG | 1-3 3P), 14 AST, 18 REB, 0 BLK, 2 STL, 2 TO
#PlayersOfTheDay (4/28/21): G Russell Westbrook, WAS
— Pro Sports Outlook (@PSO_Sports) April 29, 2021
TOP FACTS:
- Most wins (132) w/ a triple-double in NBA history
- 3 seasons w/ 30 triple-dubs, All others combined = 2
- Tied for most seasons (5) w/ 600+ REB & 600+ AST
KEY STATS:
18 PTS, 18 REB, 14 AST, 2 STL, 2 TO, 7-16 FG https://t.co/vDj01ieYhJ
Related: Players of the Day
New Orleans Pelicans (112) vs. Denver Nuggets (114)
[Highlights] @NUGGETS (-164; $10.74) d. PELICANS (+142; $8.77) 114-112 [NOP +4 | u230]
Related: Games of the Day
Related: Facts of the Day
PSO Scouting Report: TE Kyle Pitts (Florida) by Ricky Eisenbart
PSO breaks down Florida TE Kyle Pitts’ future outlook and how his game will translate to the next level in the NFL
Kyle Pitts' NFL Scouting Report:
— Pro Sports Outlook (@PSO_Sports) April 28, 2021
Physical Tools: A+
Game Film: A
Production: ??
Risk: ??
Overall: ??
FULL evaluation: https://t.co/SaNXFxAHZG
Related: Latest PSO Posts
DATE: April 28, 1990
SIGNIFICANCE: Boston Celtics set an NBA Playoff scoring record with 157 PTS that still stands as the record today
April 28, 1990: Boston #Celtics set an NBA Playoff scoring record with 157 PTS in their victory over the New York #Knicks that still stands as the record today
— Pro Sports Outlook (@PSO_Sports) April 28, 2021
pic.twitter.com/1zK7io2Zu4
Related: Significant Sports History
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