Trubisky Benched & The NBA is in full swing!
Chapter 18 (mom made pizza rolls!!!)
What’s up everyone, welcome back to the latest edition of the YourFavoriteCasual newsletter. It’s been a while, but I’m very excited about today’s newsletter. We need to check in on a lot of action in both the NFL and NBA, so let’s jump in! I also want to note that the OKC Thunder are officially BACK (to contention) and perfectly recreated the “mom made pizza rolls” meme in the process.
Steelers State of Affairs
Oh man, what happened to the Steelers? After a 30-13 loss to the Indianapolis Colts, the Pittsburgh Steelers are now 7-7 on the year and are riding a 3-game losing streak. Even worse, head coach Mike Tomlin’s career record of never having a below .500 season is in major jeopardy. In a season that has been full of unfulfilled promises and disappointment, many Steeler fans (including myself) are starting to look at what changes will have to be made during the off-season to fix this mess.
There’s a lot of time between now and next season (I mean, there are still 3 games left for the Steelers haha), but I want to submit my opinion on how the Steelers should proceed at Quarterback (QB). With Mitchell Trubisky officially benched, the Steelers now turn to 3rd-string Mason Rudolph to complete their season (which is the NFL equivalent to “waiving the white flag”). There is much to say about the team’s 2nd-year starting QB Kenny Pickett, but with Pickett sidelined for the time being many are speculating if the organization should move on from him and try again through the draft.
I think the Steelers should “double down” on Kenny. Looking at the current NFL Draft prospects each of the top 3 QBs (who I will talk much more about during the offseason with my draft notes) are spectacular prospects that I would love to see in a Steeler uniform. The bad news is, that we won too many games to reasonably expect to draft any, and trading up would cost too many assets that the team already needs to help fix an abundance of holes on the roster.
If the Steelers were to instead use their first-round pick on one of the first-round Wide Receiver (WR) prospects I would be way more excited. Many of the best offenses in the NFL use 3 WRs as threats on the field to make the game easier for their QB. The Steelers have not had 3 legitimate WR weapons on the field at the same time since the Big Ben era. Adding another strong threat in the passing game will help spread the field and eliminate any doubt about whether Pickett is “the guy”. If Pickett struggles with a bolstered offense next year the Steelers will know to move on, but if Pickett succeeds with a new offensive coordinator and a multitude of weapons it will take much-needed pressure off of the defense and make the Steelers a valid playoff contender.
Thunder Corner
Oh wow, apologies for the long Steelers segment, I’ll try my best to make this Thunder Corner a quick one. The Oklahoma City Thunder aren’t doing me any favors though. The Thunder are currently 18-8 which is good enough for 2nd place in the West and it’s the 5th best record in the NBA so far! The vibes on the court are currently immaculate. This team continues to establish itself as a championship contender with each chance they get.
Shai-Gilgeous Alexander (SGA) is a Bonafide MVP candidate this season (even though he finished 5th place last year) and helped the Thunder cap off a statement victory over the defending champion Denver Nuggets 118-117 where he hit the game-winning shot (see video below).
The Thunder’s most recent victory came against the Los Angeles Clippers who entered the game with the NBA’s longest active winning streak at 9 games. Even though future Hall of Famer Kawhi Leonard sat out, the 134-115 victory was still impressive as Thunder legends Russell Westbrook, James Harden, and Paul George all returned to Oklahoma. The fans did give a large ovation to Westbrook specifically as he’s arguably the best player in their team’s history, but the new age of young Thunder players gave the fans plenty to cheer for as well. Check out this crazy play from Rookie of the Year frontrunner Chet Holmgren (who continues to make a case to make the All-Star game in his first year too).
What’s Going on Across the NBA…
Finally, I’m going to conclude today’s blog with the 3 biggest NBA news stories from this past week which all happen to have occurred in the Wild Wild West!
Ja Morant is back!!!
Temetrius Jamel Morant is back playing NBA basketball! After serving his 25-game suspension for conduct detrimental to the league (flashing a gun on Instagram Live… TWICE!!!), Ja was able to return to action and immediately helped the Memphis Grizzlies beat the New Orleans Pelicans in a matchup between the top two picks from the 2019 NBA draft. Morant posted a stat line of 34 points, 6 rebounds, 8 assists, and a game-winning buzzer-beater! Not bad for his first game back, now let’s see if he can carry Memphis into the playoff hunt. (here is the buzzer-beater too)
Draymond Green suspended indefinitely.
Golden State Warriors star Draymond Green has been suspended indefinitely by the NBA following an incident with Pheonix Suns center Jusif Nurkic. Green has already been in the headlines this season for the wrong reasons as these actions seem to continue. The struggling Warriors are currently in 11th place in the West and hope that Green will help them make a playoff push when he returns. In the meantime, please take two minutes out of your day to watch this compilation of Draymond Green on-court altercations that the NBA’s YouTube channel generously provided us.
Lauri Markkanen is officially on the trade block.
The Utah Jazz have finally reported that they are listening to trade offers for forward Lauri Markkanen. Markkanen, 26 years old, was an All-Star last season, and is the perfect stretch big for many teams (especially the Thunder!!!!!!!!). Standing 7 feet tall, and with his current resume, the struggling Jazz could shake up the status of the NBA contenders depending on what team they decide to trade him to (if they trade him at all).
Outro
Oh man, that was a long one (no comment). So much has been happening between the NBA and NFL and it’s tough to mention everything. As always thanks for sticking around, and if you enjoyed today’s newsletter, please leave a like and subscribe. Also, comment on what you think the Steelers should do with their first-round pick this year. Well that’s it from me, thank you, stay safe, and have a great holiday season!
-YourFavoriteCasual