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Jock Landale's First start for the Phoenix Suns

 Jock Landale Gets a start for the Phoenix Suns vs the Sacramento Kings

With the starters out to rest as the preseason closes out for the Phoenix Suns, the bench got some extra minutes moving into the starting lineup. 

Jock Landale made the most of the opportunity and put up a solid stat line of 17 points, 8 Rebounds, 3 assists, 3 steals and 3 Blocks. 

With the increased playing time and role in the game, Jock showed his ability to knock down the open 3, find a deep seal and finish in the paint. One of the biggest takeaways for the Suns was his ability to play both sides of the ball, with the three steals and three blocks! Which lead to transition baskets. Jock also made the right passes and never looked to force the action, just letting the game come to him. 

He also put the clamps on Domantas Sabonis on multiple occasions, keeping him to 9 points and 10 rebounds. You could see his enthusiasm for the defensive end, getting fired up after making a defensive stop when Sabonis tried to go one on with him inside the pain. 

Check out his Highlights below: 

Adelaide 36ers vs Tasmania Jackjumpers

When I saw Daniel Johnson starting back from Injury I was worried for my Tassie pick.
But I was still pretty confident, Rashad Kelly and Milton Doyle are two of the best imports in the league. I hate the disrespect the media gives the JackJumpers. They have probably the best coach in the competition now that Rob Beveridge and Brian Goorjian have left, and he picks strong teams with less money. Kelly and Doyle look to be two of the best value picks in the league.

1st quarter

Josh Magette drops a 3 to get he Jackjumpers (JJ's) going. 

And then a Milton Doyle 3, then a steal and another 3 by Magette and its a Time out from Adelaide. Dream start for the JJs  0-9 8:42.

Adelaide get things going as Craig Randall forces it inside for a nice floater and rights the ship for the first Adelaide bucket.  

Doyle has a big block on Cleveland and it looks like Tassie didn’t like being such heavy underdogs.
Milton Doyle just keeps hitting shots and Tassie are rolling 4-18. 5:22 1st Quarter.

 Kelly gets in on the action as he just forces his way to the rim, and goes through Franks 6-20 

Josh Magette puts up one of his long bombs and he finally gets one to go but the turns around and drops another on!!! With a Step back near the half way line 6-27 2:45!

Randall has a nice soft floater inside to finally keep the offence going for Adelaide! Tassie still played very good D as he gets to go having to take it one one against the defender.

But Milton Doyle pulls out a 360 spin on the spot and hits the J To close the quarter 10-32!

Josh Magette had  14 points 4/5 from 3 in the first Quarter!
8 offensive rebounds from the JJ's

2nd Quarter

Antonius Cleveland gets scoring started for Adelaide and hopefully its a better start this quarter for the 36er.
And Tassie starts cold, as they can’t hit multiple wide open 3s to start!

The 36ers play some much better Defence to open the quarter and Randall starts dropping shots as he drops a bomb 19-34 7:40.

Sunday Dech is also great addition. He is such an underrated player, he hits shots and plays great D.
Adelaide are rolling as they launch their comback 23-34. Tassie struggling to get it up the floor let alone near the basketball. 36ers start playing lock down D. 

Fabian Krslovic pushes it o the rim to steady the ship again for the JJ’s and Get the And one.

But Josh Magette is still on fire to hold a firm lead 25-50 at the midway point of the quarter.

Robert Franks has a strong play inside as he just dominates Jack McVeigh and lays it in then, drops the ball on McVeigh on the ground! Statement play by Franks 27-40. The refs give a Tech to Franks and one shot for McVeigh. Soft. Let them play.
 
Isaac White contributes some good minutes for the JJs to keep their offence going with 5 quick points.

Anthony Drmic and Mitch Mccarron get a block each the Mccarron pushes it in transition and throws the no look pass to Drmic! Great play to close the half 37-51.

3rd quarter  

 Josh Magette gets a steal and fast break layup to open scoring for the JJs. 

And then a Doyle drive extends the lead 37-56 with another good start to the half for the JJ's.
Franks open scoring for 36ers with a jam in an open lane 7:30

Then a Antonius Cleveland steal and monster jam in transition may just lift the 36ers. 41-57

36ers getting o boards and were staying in it 44-58 with 4:15 in the quarter.

The game started getting heated between Mccarron and Magette. A foul on Magette and its a coaches challenge. I love it. bu its unsunccessfull as Maggette did the initial foul and Mccarron gets away with the retaliation push. Good officiating! You ll never hear me say that again.

Adelaide are a fast break quick offence team. Jack jumpers have the opposite idntity as a team. They slow it down, move it through hands and find shots. Then they slow them down on D!

Tassie miss two free throws: Code word is FEED. Go get the free cheeseburgers South Australia. And they’re still down 14, 44-58 with 4 min left in the quarter. 

Craig Randall dropped a bomb from way out and the lead was down to 11 for the JJ's.
But a Kelly mid range jumper closes the quarter and Adelaide are right back in it, down 13 headed into the final quarter.

4th Quarter:

Turnover from both teams to open the quarter, both teams upped the defence again.

Jack white opened scoring with a pair of free throws and then a 3 ball for the JJ's.
And for the 36ers Drmc drives to the basket for the and 1 one play. 56-71
O board and Adelaide hanging around. 60-71 8:00  and Mccarron had a no look behind the head pass to franks under the basket for easy layup, Time out JJ’s!

Jarred Weeks drops a Jumper and 36ers can’t get within 10! as the lead is back out to 13. and it really breaks the run for the 36ers.

And then the JackJumpers get a couple of steals and the lead is back out to 20.! Tassie were not gonna fold. 60-80 6:20.

Weeks Drops back to back 3s! 65-88 He was killing it 4;45 left in the game That’s the final knock out punch. It was game over from here.

In one worrying note Milton Doyle takes a seat with 3:30 and a bit of a limp! Game 2 in the round he might be a bit sore. 

The game was over but both teams closed it out with a couple of nice highlights. Kelly had a Monster Jam with the and one in transition.
And in the last play of the game Kai Sotto found good post position and had a nice over the head lay in as the game closed out 72-97.

Game over the JackJumpers walking away with the W 72-97. 

Gotta say I called it in this one. I hope some people cleaned up on those odds. Great play by The Jackjumpers, they threw the big punch in the 1st quarter and took some good fight back, but were too good in the end.

NBL23 Round 3 Tips

 

NBL23 round 3

Date.

Time.

Home Team

Away Team

Venue

Thu 13 Oct

19:30 AEDT

Adelaide 36ers

Tasmania JackJumpers

Adelaide Entertainment Centre

Fri 14 Oct

19:30 AEDT

Sydney Kings

Cairns Taipans

Qudos Bank Arena

Fri 14 Oct

21:30 AEDT

Perth Wildcats

Melbourne United

RAC Arena

Sat 15 Oct

17:30 AEDT

Adelaide 36ers

Illawarra Hawks

Adelaide 36ers

Sat 15 Oct

20:00 AEDT

SE Melbourne Phoenix

NZ Breakers

John Cain Arena

Sun 16 Oct

14:00 AEDT

Melbourne United

Tasmania JackJumpers

John Cain Arena

Sun 16 Oct

16:00 AEDT

Brisbane Bullets

Sydney Kings

Nissan Arena

Mon 17 Oct

19:30 AEDT

Illawarra Hawks

NZ Breakers

WIN Entertainment Centre

Last week I went six from eight in my tips after a rough week one. Let's hope I can keep a good run going. Early season is always the most difficult especially with all these rotation changes from injuries and players coming back/going down. It has been hard for teams to really find form and create an offensive and defensive game plan. Now with Adelaide coming back, it will great to see where they sit after that amazing shooting display in the states.

Game 1: 

Adelaide 36er vs Tasmania JackJumpers

After the 36ers took down the Phoenix Suns in the NBA preseason, Adelaide should be an easy pick against the middling Tasmania Jackjumpers. However I'm going against the trend and tipping Tasmania to get the win here. The 36ers may still be without Daniel Johnson who was a key figure in the Suns win and was injured near half time, and if the JackJumpers can play lock down D on Craig Randall then I can see them walking away the winner. However if the 36ers play like they did against the Suns no one in this league can beat them. That shooting display will be tough to replicate, especially if they are without the inside presence of DJ. Watch out for Rashad Kelly to have a big game. 

Tasmania by 6

Game 2: 

Sydney Kings Vs Cairns Taipans

Sydney should roll through Cairns to continue their unbeaten start to the season. Cairns would have to be shooting the lights out to walk away with this win. However after the thrashing the Wildcats gave Cairns last week at home, I cant seem them getting the upset here. 

Sydney by 18

Game 3:

Perth Wildcats vs Melbourne United

Melbourne united easily handled the Perth wildcats in the preseason Blitz but as we have seen, those games have counted for nothing with teams resting players and no one able to hit a shot during the Blitz. 

From the current form of both teams you gotta go with Perth at home. I feel Melbourne could play well and still probably lose. 

Perth by 6. 

Game 4: 

Adelaide 36ers Vs Illawarra Hawks

Adelaide at home against the Hawks will be another game where their form from Friday should really be the tell for this tip. The Hawks lost an import in Justin Simon going down with a torn meniscus and that is a big hole to fill. From an in the dark tip, Ill take Adelaide to win it, finding form after a game one upset from Tassie. 

36ers by 5. 

Game 5: 

SE Melbourne Phoenix Vs New Zealand Breakers

The Phoenix should have some returning players this week, with Ryan Broekoff and Zhou Qi coming back into the lineup. Playing at home I think it will be closer then the bookies are predicting, with a couple of unpracticed players in the starting lineup for Phoenix. I would not be surprised for the Breakers to pull off the upset but Ill stick with the Home team.  

Phoenix to win by 3

Game 6: 

Melbourne united vs Tasmania Jack Jumpers

Melbourne will need to put up a big game at home after a rocky start to the season. Tasmania are solid team but playing In Melbroune with a hungry Melbourne team with some imports potentially playing for their year. Ive got Melbourne to take the home the W. 

Melbourne by 8

Game 7: 

Sydney Kings vs Brisbane Bullets

This is a must win for Brisbane who have had possibly the toughest start to the season going 0-3 taking on the Perth Wildcats, Sydney Kings and a tough overtime loss to the Tasmania Jackjumpers all in away games. Brisbane Coach James Duncan's job could be on the chopping block if this losing streak continues. but playing against the in form and number one team Sydney Kings it will certainly be a tough night for the hot and cold Bullets. 

The smart money will still be on the Kings but ill pick the Bullets to take the home upset and get the win. They have had a long road trip and should be pumped to play at home. Tyler Johnson found form in Tassie and caddie kicked his game into gear against Perth. If Sobey can get hot and they look to use the post, Brisbane should find form. 

Brisbane to win by 6

Game 8: 

Illawarra Hawks Vs New Zealand Breakers

So early in the season these middling teams are the hardest to pick. I think with the Hawks losing Justin Simon and the Breakers losing Tom Abercrombie both have injured players however I feel Simon is the bigger loss for the team. Also the breakers are used to playing away games after playing all last year in Australia. Ill go the breakers to get the win after a tough loss to the Phoenix. 

New Zealand by 5

Jack White first bucket in the NBA and Jock Landale Alley oop

Jack white made his NBA preseason Debut

Jack White made his NBA preseason debut today for the Denver Nuggets today when they took on Jock Landale and the Phoenix Suns. 

 

Jack White finished with 1 rebound and 2 points in 5 minutes of action. He bricked his first two free throws but followed it immediately up with this nice play.

Jock Landale put together a good showing for the Phoenix suns and in 21 minutes finished with 10 points, 6 rebounds and 1 assist. Here's a nice steal by Jock which leads to a fast break and he gets the alleyoop finish! 

The Denver Nuggets went on to win in an exciting finish as both benches battled it out with Phoenix walking away the Victor  107-105

NBL23 Round 2 team take-aways

Key takeaways from Round 2 NBL23

With round two finished, here are some key takeaways from each team going into Round 3. 

After writing off my Blitz impressions on each team I had a better week of Picks going 6/8 for the round and only missing the Brisbane VS Tasmania game and Perth vs Cairns picks. 

Sydney Kings

What can be said about the Sydney Kings other than they are looking like the out and out favourites this year! With two players as possible MVP candidates in Xavier Cooks and Derrick Walton Jnr. Just look at the that dunk! Both players displayed their ability to just take over for Sydney, and took turns on offence to shut out the Brisbane bullets in the fourth quarter and then just roll over Melbourne United. Xavier Cooks is playing the best I have seen through his career. He is attacking the basket and taking over games for large portions. Derrick Walton Jnr looks like he can do it all for Sydney, with stellar playmaking skills and getting open shots to all their players, to attacking the basket and dropping shots. He is looking like the best new player of the season. Then when you have DJ Vasiljvic open to bomb from outside and Justin Simon attacking the rim, the Sydney Kings will be tough to beat. If one player is having an off night, as with DJ being streaky to start the season, they have plenty of weapons to keep their offence ticking. 

Cairns Taipans

Cairns as it looked in preseason would be a streaky hot shooting team. If they're hitting their shots they will get some good wins against good teams, but if their shots are off they are ugly to watch as seen when Perth rolled them. They will be a hard pick all season until we see how consistent they can be from deep. After shooting the lights out against Tasmania DJ Hogg went cold and could not hit a shot against Perth as the Wildcats absolutely rolled them. More shots do not always mean more buckets. 

Melbourne United

A well rested united squad were steamrolled by the Sydney Kings this week with 4/5 starters only putting in single digit scoring each. Melbourne were looking the goods in preseason and maybe it was just a rough night but it has not made me confident about this Melbourne squad. They won they're first game in overtime against the breakers but until we see more games they are looking shaky. They're results this week will really show where they stand on the board playing Tasmania and Perth. Their imports more then any other I think will be on the chopping block with the salary Melbourne have at their disposal. 

Brisbane Bullets

Brisbane have started the season 0-3 in the season and the team must be disappointed. They have at times looked like a playoff team and at others a cellar dweller. The Bullets have had a tough start playing good teams away from home, with their easiest game against the Tasmania Jackjumpers who themselves started 0-3 and were hungry for a win playing at home. They really look like they need to establish they're play style with what everyone thought would be heavy post play team is barely seen. Tyler Johnson has been hot and cold with pushing his play in the game. At times he will force his will and attack the basket and others not barely be seen on the court. 

Brisbane did get Jason Cadee going against the Sydney Kings and he really balled out for awhile after 0 points in game 1. Brisbane really need Sobey and Cadee shooting well to play well as a team. They can not solely rely on Baynes and Johnson to carry them against these stacked rosters in Sydney, Perth etc. And they need to go inside more often. Find Baynes and Froling for more post touches and watch the offence develop as the double team comes and they find the open shooter. They played well like this in the preseason but its barely been seen so far in regular season. Why? I don't know, maybe its too easily predicted and with Fiba defence the help is to quick to find the open shooter. Will we see a coach change sooner then we see an import sent home this year? 

Tasmania JackJumpers

Tasmania look like a solid team. After going to the finals last year they could not be expected to start at the top, but as last year, I think they will have a strong 2nd half of the season with the coach and play style they utilise. Which is heavy on the defensive end and this will become stronger as the season progresses and the team learns all of Scott Roths defensive rotations. As the team really starts to gel and the imports find their time to take over they should be a solid team that can stand toe to toe with any team out there. That said it might be a slower start to the season. I do like their imports and McVeigh can shoot from anywhere but if they are having an off night the Jackjumpers will certainly have some tough losses. 

Melbourne Phoenix 

Melbourne got its first win of the season off an amazing display from Kyle Adnam but I cant see him shooting that well every night. They then went on to drop their next two games against the New Zealand Breakers and Cairns Taipans. I was not confident with the Phoenix going into the season but mostly due to missing players from injury which have still not returned. Apparently that may change this week with the possibility of Ryan Broekhoff and ZouQi returning to the line up in the next game and Gary Brown possibly the week after. Im still not very high on them at least until Brown is back and we see how they play as a team with the new starters onto the team. 

New Zealand Breakers 

The Breakers are looking solid but like Tasmania may get better as the season progresses. They look to still be establishing their play style and with some young players they may need some time to find the their feet before putting up some big wins. William McDowell White will be a great floor general when he can find where his team-mates want the ball. 

Adelaide 36ers

Adelaide did what no other NBL squad has been able to in history by taking down the Phoenix Suns! they put on an absolute shooting clinic to take an unprecedented win. However they did turn around and get absolutely rolled by the Oklahoma City Thunder. Was it just a hot shooting night or are Adelaide about to return and roll through to the top of the NBL. Im not sure but Craig Randall looks like he can put up big numbers on any night. They may not start as well as others are expecting until Daniel Johnson returns to the lineup, but when fully healthy I can see them going toe to toe with Sydney. This is CJ's team and they look good!

Perth Wildcats

The Wildcats are looking stronger and stronger with every game they play. Bryce Cotton is balling out night in and night out, but their role players are stepping up to contribute everywhere, and put them in the top 2 to start the season. Luke Travers is playing excellent D and is everywhere, while Todd Blantchfield was absolutely on fire in this 350th game of this career. Brady Manek and Teshawn Thomas are contributing both inside and from the perimeter. The Wildcats look to have a well rounded team that has been made for Bryce Cotton to continue to be the MVP calibre player he is. At this stage in the season its a two horse race with Sydney and Perth the standout teams. Thomas did go down with an ankle injury but missing him and Corey Webster did not hamper their ability to beat down the Cairns Taipans. They may have some difficulty to overcome losing them and I will be interested to hear when they are back. Against stronger defensive teams they may struggle until they both return to the lineup. 

Illawarra Hawks

The Hawks have a had a tough start to the season matching up against some strong teams with their only win against the SE Melbourne Phoenix. The Hawks are looking a little shaky without Brian Goojian at the helm and after losing Justin Robinson with a torn meniscus the Hawks may have a tough run the next few games until they find a replacement. Tyler Harvey will have to be playing his best to keep them in the hunt this week. 

Pelicans Rookie Aussie, Dyson Daniels injured in preseason game

 Dyson Daniels rolled ankle against San Antonio Spurs preseason

Dyson Daniels rolled his ankle early in the preseason match against the San Antonio Spurs. The New Orleans Pelicans went on to win the game but Daniels was forced to leave the game early after only 20 seconds of court time.

The team has "no updates right now" from Pelicans Coach willie Green after the game. 

Daniels rolled the same ankle in his first summer league game in Las Vegas earlier in the year and was out for the rest of summer league. This new injury could put him out for the rest of Preseason and possible part of the start of the season. 

In his first two preseason games Daniels was averaging, 10.5 points, 6 rebounds, 4 steals and 3 assists and 1 block, and was having a strong presence on defence and as a playmaker off the bench. 

Lets hope its a quick recovery and not an ongoing issue with the same ankle being injured. The Pelicans will face the Miami Heat on Wednesday as their preseason preparation continues.