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Week 8 Rewind: 10 things to know from the past 7 days in the NBA

Curry chasing history, Durant scores 51, Z-Bo in the rafters, plus much more from the past week.

Brian Martin, for NBA.com

Kevin Durant scored an NBA season-high 51 points in Brooklyn’s win over Detroit on Sunday.

1. Steph Curry on the precipice of history

Curry Watch got into full swing over the past week as Stephen Curry inches closer and closer to breaking Ray Allen’s record for most career 3-pointers made. Curry was 16 triples away from the record when the Warriors hosted the Blazers in their final home game before a five-game road trip. It’s a measure of Steph’s greatness that knocking down 16 3s in a game was not out of the question so he could break the record at home. He finished with six treys that night, and followed it up with three more in a loss to his brother Seth and the Sixers in Philadelphia on Saturday.

Curry closed out Week 8 just seven 3-pointers shy of breaking the record. He gets his first crack at it tonight in Indiana (NBA TV, 7:00 ET) before a date with the Knicks on Tuesday (TNT, 7:30 ET) at Madison Square Garden – the site of Curry’s third-highest scoring game of his career (54 points).

2. KD scores an NBA season-high 51 points

Curry held the top scoring mark of the season (50 points on Nov. 8) until Sunday when former teammate Kevin Durant dropped 51 in Brooklyn’s 116-104 win over Detroit.

It was Durant’s highest scoring game since Nov. 29, 2018 when he also scored 51 in a win over Toronto during his time with Golden State. Durant has seven career 50-point games – the fifth most among active players – a list headlined by Durant’s current teammate James Harden.

  • James Harden: 23
  • Damian Lillard: 12
  • LeBron James: 12
  • Stephen Curry: 10
  • Kevin Durant: 7

3. LeBron 5th to reach 100 triple-doubles

LeBron James has posted a triple-double in two of his last three games – his first two triple-doubles of the season. The first came on Dec. 9 at Memphis (20 points, 11 assists, 10 rebounds) and made LeBron just the fifth player in NBA history to reach 100 career triple doubles, joining teammate Russell Westbrook, Oscar Robertson, Magic Johnson and Jason Kidd. Three days later he did it again, this time in a win over Orlando (30 points, 11 rebounds, 10 assists).

However, LeBron did not lead the league in triple-doubles this week; that honor belongs to Nikola Jokic, who posted three triple-doubles in four games to give him five for the season (tied with Russell Westbrook for the most in the NBA) and 62 for his career (tied with James Harden for seventh-most all-time, behind Wilt Chamberlain and the five players in the 100 triple-double club mentioned above.

4. Z-Bo honored by the Grizzlies

On Saturday in Memphis, the Grizzlies retired the No. 50 worn by Zach Randolph – one of the pillars of the Grit N’ Grind Grizzlies – making him the first player in franchise history to receive the honor. Rather than hanging a No. 50 jersey in the rafters, the team unveiled a platinum plaque with the No. 50 as if he scored a No. 1 hit on Grindhouse Records.

If you haven’t seen it yet, take five minutes and watch this tribute video narrated by Ice Cube – an outstanding look at Randolph’s impact in Memphis both on and off the court.

5. Posters and blocks

Almost every week, we highlight the poster dunks from the past seven days in our weekly rewind. And there’s a few to highlight from Week 8 as well. But let’s also take a moment to appreciate the defenders that don’t make the business decision to avoid the poster, the ones that contest every dunk attempt, knowing they will either get a great block or likely get mocked for being posterized, but don’t shy away from the moment.

First, the dunks:

Now, the blocks:

6. Zion suffers setback

Unfortunately, it wasn’t all good news in Week 8 as the Pelicans announced that Zion Williamson has experienced a “regression” in his surgically-repaired right foot, which will further delay his return to the court. At this time, there is no timeline set for Zion’s return; the Pelicans have only said that “additional updates will be provided as warranted.”

7. Isaiah Thomas joining G League

Switching to some good news, it is being reported that Isaiah Thomas is set to sign with the G League and participate in this weekend’s G League Showcase in Las Vegas. The two-time All-Star is seeking a return to the NBA after his career was derailed by a hip injury.

8. NBA getting in the Christmas spirit

The five-game Christmas Day showcase is less than two weeks away and features some marquee matchups, including the third meeting of the season between the Suns and Warriors – the teams with the top records in the league.

  • Atlanta at New York (ESPN, Noon ET)
  • Boston at Milwaukee (ABC, 2:30 ET)
  • Golden State at Phoenix (ABC, 5 ET)
  • Brooklyn at Los Angeles (ABC/ESPN, 8 ET)
  • Dallas at Utah (ESPN, 10:30 ET)

The NBA debuted its latest NBA lane spot this week, and also took a look at the the history of NBA games on Christmas Day. And after you open your presents on Christmas morning, make sure to give your favorite NBA players a gift by voting for them to be an NBA All-Star as voting tips off Christmas Day for the February contest in Cleveland.

9. Weekly stats leaders

For games played Dec. 6-12, minimum 2 games played

  • PTS: Kevin Durant (BKN): 35.3 ppg over 3 games
  • REB: Clint Capela (ATL): 16.0 rpg over 2 games
  • AST: Kyle Lowry (MIA): 11.7 apg over 3 games
  • STL: Marcus Smart (BOS) and Robert Covington (POR): 3.0 spg over 3 games each
  • BLK: Clint Capela (ATL) and Hassan Whiteside (UTA): 2.0 bpg over 2 games each
  • 3PM: Stephen Curry (GSW): 5.3 3PM over 3 games

10. Plays of the week

 

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