Yes, the NBA season is halfway over. So what games have been the best so far this season, find out below. There has been a ton of great finishes and buzzer beaters.
1.Derrick Rose game winning shot and the Bulls block Kobe Bryant’s last shot
The NBA season started off with a bang on Christmas day when the Bulls visited the Lakers. The game came down to the final seconds, one start rose to the occasion and the another missed the last shot.
The Lakers were up 1 and had the ball out of bounds but on the inbounds play the Lakers threw the ball away. So with 20 seconds left in the game the Bulls had the chance to take the lead.
To no surprise Derrick Rose had the ball in his hands the whole time. With about 10 seconds he drove past Derrick Fisher and hit the runner in the lane to give the Bulls a one point lead with 5 seconds left.
Just like Rose was the go to guy for the Bulls Kobe Bryant was the same for the Lakers. Bryant got the inbounds pass and drove right to the basket but the Bulls block his shot to win the game. Luol Deng was also a star for the Bulls he blocked the last shot and came up with the big steal late.
2.Kevin Love hits the game winning three at the buzzer to beat the Clippers
The Minnesota Timberwolves and the Los Angeles Clippers are probably the two best improved teams in the NBA. The Clippers thanks to the trade of Chris Paul, and the Timberwolves because of rookie Ricky Rubio. In a game in January these teams went down until the final second.
With the Clippers leading by three with 20 seconds left in the game Rubio hit a three to tie the game at 98. On the next possession the Clippers run the clock down but Chauncey Billups missed a layup with one second left the Timberwolves then called a timeout.
Then it was time for the real star of the Timberwolves Kevin Love to take over. Love is double double machine at power forward but he can also shot the three. That is exactly what happened Love got the ball at the top of the circle and hit a three pointer as time expired to give the Timberwolves the three point win.
“Coach set up a great play for us. How I was that open, I don’t really know, but I got a good look at it and I hit it,” Love said. “I tried to hold up my hands as soon as I shot it, because it felt great when it left my hands. I knew it was in.
3.Kevin Durant deep three beats the Mavs
Just when it looked like the defending NBA Champions Dallas Mavericks, were going to get their first win of the season, Kevin Durant broke their heats.
Newly acquired Vince Carter hit a three pointer; on a pass from Dirk Nowitzki to give the Dallas Mavericks a 102-101 lead over the Oklahoma City Thunder with 1.4 seconds left.
Then Durant stole the show. He hit a 35 foot buzzer beating three pointer that gave the Thunder the win. The Thunder are now 4-0 on the season.
I really expect big things from the young Thunder team this season. I predicted that the Thunder would win the Western Conference and that Kevin Durant would win MVP of the NBA.
“I just tried to shoot a good one,” Durant said. “I’m just glad I made it, man. I’m glad I made it.”
4.Miami Heat win on James outbounds alley oop lob to Wade
Back in December the Heat won two close games back to back. Dwyane Wade hit the game winning shot to defeat the Bobcats. The same happened the next game, as Wade hit the game winning shot as the Heat beat the Minnesota Timberwolves 103-101.
Thanks to a Wade Corner jumper the Heat lead by 1, then with 8 seconds left the Timberwolves hit 1 of 2 free throws to tie the game at 101. The Heat now had the ball on the sideline outbounds with 6 seconds left.
With LeBron James taking the ball out; Wade run off a couple picks and headed to the basket. Wayne Ellington started out guarding Wade but he switches off to Ricky Rubio. However, Rubio is a little late and leaves Wade wide open to the basket.
James than throws a lob pass to Wade who catches the ball and lays up the game winner on the alley oop. “We stole it,” James said. “And D-Wade, that’s two game-winners back to back, right? Good for him. I like it.”
5.Jeremy Lin’s hits game winning three to beat the Raptors
The legend of Jeremy Lin just keeps on growing and growing. Despite not having his best game; he came up big in the last couple minutes of the game and hit the game winning shot to give the Knicks the 90-87 win over the Raptors.
Knicks center Tyson Chandler pulled down an offensive rebound with about 20 seconds and right away got the ball into Lin’s hands. Lin stood out by the half court letting the clock run down then with about 5 seconds he made his move. He dribbled a couple times and pulled up for a three pointer which he nailed with .5 seconds left on the clock. Lin hit the shot over Jose Calderon.
Lin was not having his best game but when it came to the 4th quarter he was money. For the game he had 27 points, 12 of those came in the 4th quarter. Lin also had 11 assists and 8 turnovers.
The Knicks closed the game on a 13 to 1 run. I explained Lin’s game winning play above but he also made the play to tie the game at 87 with about a minute left. Lin drove to the basket made the shot and got fouled and finish the three point play.
Lin’s thoughts after the game.
“(Calderon) was trying to push me left,” Lin said. “He was giving me a little bit of space. I just tried to take it down as low as I could. I figured it’s probably not going to be possible to get to the basket with the help that they had.”
“I’m thankful that the coach and my teammates trust me with the ball at the end of the game,” he said. “I like having it at the end of the game. I’m just very thankful.”
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Tags: Chicago Bulls, Derrick Rose, dwyane wade, Jeremy Lin, Kevin Durant, Kevin Love, Lebron James, Miami Heat, Minnesota Timberwolves, NBA, New York Knicks, Oklahoma City Thunder
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