Daily NBA Fix: The Importance Of Attention To Detail

The Portland Trail Blazers didn’t have C.J. McCollum Wednesday night against the Los Angeles Clippers thanks to a ‘clerical error.’

The details of any sport are where the nerds get lost and the casual fan rarely appreciates. Attention to the smallest (and often very important) things are what keeps you from dropping your heels on a 3-point attempt and being out of bounds. Attention to detail prevents that.

Attention to detail also prevents you from having one of your best players, such as C.J. McCollum, not on the active list and instead having him unavailable to play against the Los Angeles Clippers. The Trail Blazers did just that on Wednesday.

"McCollum warmed up for the game in full uniform and was prepared to take the floor right up until lineups were announced in Portland. As he sat on the bench ready to come out, Allen Crabbe was announced instead.Reserve guard Luis Montero was apparently listed on the lineup card in place of McCollum, who is averaging 21 points, 4.4 rebounds and 3.7 assists in what has been a breakout season. Montero, however, did not get the memo, and sat on the bench in street clothes anyway. He was technically eligible to go in, while McCollum, fully dressed, was not."

He might have been helpful in the effort as the Clippers ended up winning 109-98 over the Trail Blazers. Details matter.

Detail doesn’t always appeal to subtlety, especially in the 121-115 shootout where the Cleveland Cavaliers defeated the Washington Wizards. Kyrie Irving and LeBron James combined for 66 points in two very different ways. Irving was 14-of-22 shooting for 32 points, 21 of which came in the fourthquarter. Being a point guard, we always tend to think of his game as finesse, subtle.

For LeBron, on the other hand, attention to detail is subtle, but that’s what allows him to operate like a bulldozer at full-speed. It’s hard to appreciate it sometimes thanks to the way he often makes things look effortless. It’s because of this people often have the insane idea that NBA basketball is lesser than college.

In college, few guys have the ability to dominate a game, and in the NBA, few have the ability to dominate like he does.

His critics will complain it’s because he gets the superstar treatment (as if their team’s superstar doesn’t get the same) because for them basketball is only at its highest level when there is a minimum of four passes on a possession as they mutter something about ball movement.

LeBron is more Magic Johnson than anything and it’s his attention to detail that allows him to dominate every facet of the game.

The Cleveland Cavaliers may have some challengers in the East, but if the NBA Finals are any indication, LeBron can carry a team on his own pretty well. As long as Irving and Kevin Love stay healthy, there is little reason to not expect a Finals rematch.

7-Footers Don’t Do Subtlety

No one would describe Hassan Whiteside‘s game as subtle. It’s about blocking shots and taking high-percentage shots close to the rim. Kristaps Porzingis learned up close and very personally with a pair of dunks over him during the meeting between the New York Knicks and Miami Heat Wednesday night. However, it was Porzingis and the Knicks that left with the 98-90 win.

Speaking of subtlety, and even though he led New York with 25 points, Carmelo Anthony is having one of his most well-rounded years in a long time with the Knicks, but might not start the All-Star game if you ask the Wall Street Journal’s Chris Herring.

Would be ironic if Melo doesn't get an All-Star start in year where he sets scoring aside to finally put together solid all-around game.
— Chris Herring (@Herring_NBA) January 7, 2016

In the NBA’s last release of the voting results, he stood in fourth place in the frontcourt behind LeBron, Paul George, and Andre Drummond.

Our Last Forced Effort With the Subtlety Theme

After missing one game with an toe injury, Kevin Durant scored 26 points and grabbed 17 rebounds in the Oklahoma City Thunder’s 112-94 win over the Memphis Grizzlies. Oklahoma City is 25-11 in the standings and in third place.

The Golden State Warriors are still rightly the biggest story at 33-2(!) as no one has ever had as great as start as they have, but Russell Westbrook and Durant have brushed off any of the early concerns critics had about their team.

More hoops habit: What are the 25 most dominant individual games in NBA history?

I don’t know why I was surprised to see them in third place, but they’ve certainly looked like one of the NBA’s best teams as of late.