Run it Back! NBA Week in Review - Week 14

Untitled project from SquadCast === thepeachbasket_1_01-26-2025_111350: [00:00:00] Week 14 of the 2024 25 NBA season is over, which means it's time to run it back. This is Run It Back, NBA week in review. I'm Jose Salviati, editor at thePeachBasket.net, and this is the show where we recap the week that was in the NBA and then highlight the marquee matchup for the week to come. We start like we always do with the only objective overall top 10 NBA power rankings. You can read more about how we get to these rankings and see the entire list at thePeachBasket.net. Let's take a look at the top 10 at the conclusion of week 14. Now before we do, we need to call out that the Orlando Magic have dropped out of the top 10 this week. They continue to struggle with injuries and it finally caught up with them. That means we have a newcomer. In the top 10, and they are the Minnesota Timberwolves. They enjoyed a two in one week in week number 14 to move up two spots to number 10. Welcome to the elite top [00:01:00] 10 Minnesota Timberwolves. The currently in Paris, France, Indiana Pacers were one and one this week. That saw them drop one spot from number eight last week to number nine this week. this week. The LA Clippers were a respectable 3 2 in week number 14, but it wasn't enough to keep them from dropping one spot. They moved from number 7 to occupy the number 8 spot in week number 14. Number 7 belongs to the New York Knicks. They were a perfect 3 0 in week 14, which saw them move up two spots from number 9 last week. The Denver Nuggets come in at number 6, holding steady for the second week in a row after a 3 1 week. Number 5 spot is all Memphis. The Grizzlies were perfect in week number 0 and pretty much own number 5. This is their 8th week in a row at the number 5 spot. [00:02:00] The Boston Celtics appear to be struggling a bit. but they still enjoyed a three in one week in week number 14, and that was enough to keep them at number four for the second week in a row. At number three are the Houston Rockets. They were two in one in week number 14 and enjoyed the number three spot for the second week in a row. Coming in at number two, again, for the second week in a row, are the suddenly struggling Cleveland Cavaliers. They had a losing week in week number 14, going one and three, but they stay at number two, looking up at The Oklahoma City Thunder. OKC was 2 1 in week 14 and held on to the top spot for the second week in a row. That's the objective. Top 10 list for week number 14. If you want to see where all 30 teams land, including your own, please make sure to check out TheBeachBasket. net. Now let's shift our focus to the players. These are the [00:03:00] best to do it by average in week number 14 of the 2024 25 NBA season. These are the best by average in shooting, rebounds, assists, blocks, steals, points, and game score. Shea Gilgis Alexander was the points leader averaging 37. 3 points per game in week number 14 to lead everybody. That includes a career best 54 point outburst against the Jazz this week. His teammate Isaiah Joe was the top sniper. He played one game a week, number 14 and made eight three point shots to lead everyone. You can see why the Thunder are so good. Shay and Kate Cunningham both played three games a week, number 14, and both averaged 12. 3 total field goals made to lead Everyone. Dam Monte Saboni was a monster on the boards again for the Sacramento Kings. His 17 rebounds on average over his four games played led to everyone. In week 14. The top offensive rebounder was Utah [00:04:00] Jazz Walker. Kessler. He averaged 6.7 while Saboni was the best defensive rebounder at 12.8. And when we get to assists, man, it doesn't seem fair. But the best assist man is a sensor, the best center in the game, the best. player in the game. Nikola Jokic averaged 12 assists over his four games played to lead everybody. It just doesn't seem right. The top rim protector in week 14 was Donovan Klingon of the Portland Trailblazers. He sent back four shots in his one game play to lead the association. The Great Barrier Thief is back. Dyson Daniels played four games in week number 14 and took 3. 5 possessions away from the other team to lead everyone in week number 14. And the top game score this week, or the past week, week 14, goes to that guy in Denver, Nikoli Okic. His game score of 32 led everyone. Now, as we look ahead to week number [00:05:00] 15, there's one interesting inter conference matchup between the Houston Rockets and the Boston Celtics. Former Celtics coach and current Rockets coach Ime Udoka returns to Boston for the first time since he was kind of unceremoniously let go. I mean, there were reasons behind it, but yeah, let's call it unceremoniously let go. He has his Rockets playing great basketball while the Celtics have hit a bit of a bump in the road. Doka will no doubt no doubt have his team ready to play and maybe hoping for a little redemption on the parquet floor. He's playing down. He's saying he's not sentimental. You know, it's just another game. I don't know. I think it's going to be kind of interesting and a fun game to watch in week number 15. Now, when we look up trending NBA news as we look ahead to week number 15. A few things pop up including LeBron's 21st All Star Game nod, the new All Star Game format, and Cooper Flagg's dominance of late making the 2025 [00:06:00] NBA draft more and more interesting, but let's focus on the All Star Game format because it's, It's kind of interesting. The game itself, the All Star Game, has definitely had a viewership problem, just like the NBA as a whole. Since 2000, the average viewership for the All Star Game has been 7. 67 million people, according to Sports Media Watch. Now, that's the average over the last 25 years, 24 years. Now, the high in that span of time was 13. 1 million that watched in 2002. In 2023, that number was only 4. 59 million, the lowest over that span of time. So the NBA had to do something. They had to. Less and less people watching the game. That's what they did. They're calling it a reimagining of the All Star Game. So this is what we're going to have in 2025, just a couple of weeks. The NBA All Star Game will feature a mini tournament with four teams in three games. Two teams will meet in one semi final [00:07:00] and the other two will meet in another. The winning teams from game one and two will advance to face each other in the championship game. For each game, the winner will be the first team to reach or surpass 40 points or Elam ending, which I think is kind of cool. It makes the game kind of fun. So I think we're gonna see maybe less of the, you know, the, the, the, the. Logo shots in the dunks, at least when the game gets in the thirties. Winners are going to want to win, and the All Star game is full of winners. The 24 NBA All Star selections will be divided evenly. But that, that'll make up three teams, right? With the rosters drafted by TNT's Inside the NBA commentators, and honorary general managers, Barkley, O'Neal, and That will make up, like I said, three teams, but they need a fourth. The fourth team will be the winning team from the championship game of the Castro Rising Stars. First and second league, our second year players, as well as G League standouts. That's [00:08:00] kind of cool. The honorary GM for that team will be Candace Parker. So you've got Team Shaq, Team Barkley, Team Kenny, and Team Candace. Now, I appreciate that the association is doing this. I appreciate that they're, they're making changes. They're, they're taking risks. They had to and, and they just did it and I appreciate that. On the surface, to me, this seems pretty cool. Whenever you put competitive people in something and call it a tournament, the juices start flowing, man. You want to win. Competitive people want to win, no matter what the tournament is. The all star game in its past format, it's grown flat and not at all competitive. Adding this wrinkle, at least now, should motivate players to compete. I think we're going to see, certainly when the scores get to the 30s, knowing you have 40 to win, you're going to see basketball. You're going to see some shots blocked. [00:09:00] You're going to see some competitive games. And I think that's all we want as fans of the game. And I think it'll be very interesting. And I'm pretty confident the viewership is going to reflect that. We'll see, but I'm, optimistically excited about it. That's it. Week number 14 of the 2425 NBA season is in the books. Join us again next week after week number 15 when we once again run it back.