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Trae Young pretended to roll the dice on the Knicks logo at the end of the game. When Jalen Brunson was asked about it, she didn’t cry. He said, “To stop it, you just have to hit them.” Amen. 🫡 (See more on the Hawks below.)

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Ruthless finish

Warriors–Rockets has a controversial ending

The end of the NBA Cup showdown between the Rockets and Warriors ruined a completely ugly but competitive game. If not, this was one of the most physically demanding games the most physical game of the season. There were hard fouls. Major contact was ignored. Then, after Steph Curry missed a 3-pointer to give the Rockets a one-point lead, there was a scramble for the loose ball on the rebound.

Gary Payton II was on the floor and decided to pass to the middle of the field to avoid a turnover or a foul. Jalen Green dove to the ground to grab the ball, and Jonathan Kuminga immediately rushed to grab him for a jump ball. The whistle blew and the Warriors were shocked by the foul on Kuminga. How shocked? Check out your new Steve Kerr meme.

He’s pretty shocked! Dare I say, maybe even amazed? If you didn’t watch the game, this is the moment veteran referee Bill Kennedy said the foul happened. He said Kuminga pulled Green’s shoulder as he tried to get the ball:

Fouls often occur when fighting for a free ball, and that is borderline. I don’t think it’s a bad decision, but I don’t think it’s a good decision either. Especially when you ignore the time (3.5 seconds left), the score (Warriors’ lead 90-89) and the physicality allowed in the game. I would have given Green the timeout he tried to call and had the Rockets set up a play to try and win it on a final possession. To his credit, Green knocked down both free throws with ice in his veins before the Rockets got a stop and secured the win.

It was the Rockets’ first win over the Warriors SINCE BEFORE COVID shut down the world. That means 15 direct losses!

That’s right, the Rockets last defeated the Warriors on February 20, 2020. You saw how shocked Kerr was after the 91-90 loss. This was his quote:

“I have never seen a loose ball foul on a jump ball situation 80 feet from the basket with the game on the line. I’ve never seen that before. I think I saw it once in college 30 years ago. Never seen it in the NBA. This is… unreasonable. I don’t even understand what just happened.”

The Inside the NBA team criticized Steph for draining the 3-pointer with so much time left, but when he let it fly, he saw an open 3-pointer after stepping back against Dillon Brooks. I will adopt this look from Curry every time, regardless of the time. And ultimately, there’s nothing the Warriors can do about it now. The Rockets (17-8) held the Warriors (14-10) to 90 points, hitting free throws and blocking their final shot attempt. They face Oklahoma City (19-5) on Saturday in Vegas with a chance to reach the NBA Cup Finals.

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The last 24

Updates on the James family and more

💆 LeBron on a break? JJ Redick said the 39-year-old is taking some time off. We also have news from Bronny.

🏀 Make them respect it. Building Anthony Edwards’ new 3-point shot. A must read.

🩼 More Raptors injuries. Scottie Barnes will be out for several weeks with a severe ankle sprain. What’s next for Toronto??

📺 Don’t miss this game tonight. Pistons (10-15) at Celtics (19-5), 7:30 p.m. ET on NBA TV. Yes, this is probably the best game tonight.

📺 Or you could watch. Raptors (7-18) at Heat (12-10), 7:30 p.m. ET on League Pass. Things have been tough in Toronto and we’re looking for clues on the Jimmy Butler trade.

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CRACK CRACK!

NBA Cup date: The Hawks are the new Pacers

The Hawks’ turnaround couldn’t have come at a better time, as the franchise has largely seemed aimless since reaching the Eastern Conference Finals in 2021. Entering the NBA Cup showdown last night with a trip to Las Vegas and hundreds of thousands of dollars for each player, the Hawks had won six of their last seven games, including a couple of wins over the Cavaliers. The Knicks posed a major threat as the league’s best offense went up against the worst 3-point defense.

However, that is not the result. The Hawks (14-12) dominated the second half with defense and the combination of Trae Young and Jalen Johnson to secure their trip to Sin City with a 108-100 win. The defense improved significantly during the hot eight-game stretch. Their physical defensive style, enhanced by Dyson Daniels, took shape in the Hawks’ 34-18 third quarter lead, and they appear to be a team that can use that NBA Cup experience to pull themselves together.

Coming into last season, the Pacers were coming off a 36-46 season and were looking to improve on two disappointing seasons under Rick Carlisle. They were 10-8 when they seized their chance to travel to Las Vegas for the Final Four of the in-season tournament. They ended up making the finals and then continued their good play with a 47-35 record and an appearance in the conference finals (not to mention helped by the Pascal Siakam trade). The Hawks posted a 35-47 record last season and entered last night’s game with a 13-12 record. Now they have the chance to use this to prepare for the future path to success.

Young plays a more calculated and balanced game. Johnson was their second best player. De’Andre Hunter has been great since coming back from injury. And the Hawks play balanced basketball. We’ll see how Atlanta fares against Milwaukee in Vegas on Saturday, but the Hawks’ formula of entrusting their star point guard with a solid supporting cast reflects Indiana’s last season.

#WeMove 🎲🎲 pic.twitter.com/r2Fy7M5D9n

– Trae Young (@TheTraeYoung) December 12, 2024

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Front Office Rankings

Teams that need proof of trust

If you haven’t read the anonymous front office survey by Sam Amick, John Hollinger and Mike Vorkunov, what have you done? We dug into that yesterday by examining some of the surprising or notable teams that made the top 10 from the anonymous panel of 40 different team managers from across the NBA. But the more I looked into the survey, the more I wondered which teams these were not all receive votes for their outstanding performance in the front office.

There were nine different franchises that did not receive a single first, second or third place vote from their fellow leaders. I was wondering where these teams might fall by the wayside and if there is hope for their future. Let’s divide these teams into three different categories:

New front office, who is that? Hornets (7-17), Pistons (10-15), Trail Blazers (8-16)

The Hornets hired Jeff Peterson as executive vice president in March to turn things around, and we’ve seen a massive regime change in the organization from top to bottom. Peterson hired Charles Lee to coach the team, and you can already see progress being made in a short period of time. Trajan Langdon was hired by the Pistons as president of basketball operations to clean up what happened, and we’re already seeing great progress with his roster and the hiring of JB Bickerstaff as coach. Portland general manager Joe Cronin was hired to rebuild the Blazers back in May 2022, and he’s actually only been in the rebuild for a little over a year. We’ll see where Portland stands after next summer.

There is good hope for all three of these organizations.

Where are we going? Bulls (10-15), Kings (12-13), Hawks (14-12)

We talked in real time about the Hawks and their potential turnaround. Landry Fields has been in this position for about two and a half years and the Hawks could finally be shaping up to be a team to take seriously under Quin Snyder. Monte McNair got the Kings back into the playoffs, ending their longest losing streak in history, but since then they’ve stagnated a bit in the ever-improving West. Still, I liked his inclusion of DeMar DeRozan this summer. Bulls executive vice president Artūras Karnišovas has been running Chicago for four and a half years, and not much has changed. They’re finally welcoming a younger core, so maybe we can see some progress there.

I’m optimistic about the direction of the Kings and I’m starting to buy into the Hawks if that’s who they really are. It’s difficult to feel comfortable with the Bulls under Reinsdorf’s leadership – unless top player Michael Jordan returns.

Big money, big stars, big talk? Lakers (13-11), Pelicans (5-20), Suns (12-11)

The Lakers have struggled for years to place shooters around LeBron and Anthony Davis, and could finally witness Father Time facing off against the NBA’s all-time leading scorer. Their next step is to be the first NBA team to successfully build on AD. The Pelicans haven’t been able to make the Zion Williamson era work, but that’s more due to injuries than anything else. They have done well in attracting players and talent. The Suns sold the future for the Big Three in today’s CBA. It was risky, but James Jones has proven he’s a good GM.

In the end, the Lakers are always the Lakers, but we’ll see how the Suns and Pelicans fare if it doesn’t work out.

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(Top photo: Elsa / Getty Images )