Live and in person, I was at the Staples Center last night to witness Michael Redd’s 45-point outburst against the Lakers, helping the Bucks pull the upset, 109-105. Redd shot 16-30 from the field, including 5-9 from behind the arc, and finished with eight rebounds, five assists and four steals. He has developed into (arguably) the best pure shooter in the league and has passed Manu Ginobili on my list of the best second round picks of the last 20 years. Meanwhile, Kobe led the Lakers with 27 points, but shot just 7-23 from the field and seemed none too happy about Redd’s explosion at his team’s expense. As a longtime Bucks fan and Laker-hater, it was a great, great night – objectivity be damned.
The win puts the Bucks at 5-9, but their record is a bit deceiving. Even though the season is young, Andrew Bogut, Bobby Simmons and Charlie Villanueva have all missed time due to injury, but they’re able to join Redd and Mo Williams for some consistent action, the young Bucks should improve and make a playoff push in the second half of the season.
The Nets lost at home to the Bobcats, 96-92. I’m starting to see a trend in the New Jersey box scores. Vince Carter, Richard Jefferson and Nenad Krstic all score over 20, while no other player hits double figures save Jason Kidd, who constantly seems to flirt with a triple-double. The point? There isn’t one…I’m just sayin’.
The other surprise score was Toronto’s 94-77 win against the Hornets. In fairness, NO/OKC was missing David West and Peja Stojakovic, who missed the game due to injury.
