NBA Week in Review: Drake jerseys, Matt Bonner talks vinyl and more

Does the NBA have too many alternate jerseys? How did Matt Bonner get into collecting vinyl records? The NBA Week in Review digs in.

Welcome to the NBA Week in Review, a look back at the week’s best offerings on and off the court. Today, we have Matt Bonner on video games, streaky three-point shooting and too many uniforms. Read last week’s review here.

Game(s) of the Week

The Pacers knocked off the Wizards with a team-record 19 three-pointers. Is there any more demoralizing way to lose when you’re a fan of the team like the Wizards? The Heat similarly fell victim to Detroit on Wednesday, with Anthony Tolliver raining threes as if he stole Steph Curry’s talents through Space Jam methods. Some nights, teams just catch fire, and you have to live with the C.J Mileses and Marcus Morrises of the world laying waste to your best laid plans. (It is also nice to see the East with some competent teams.)

Elsewhere, Monday’s Kings and Hornets game was outstanding. Frank Kaminsky was called out in these pages last week, but he hit a big three in overtime to keep the Kings in a state of perpetual dysfunction. Also, don’t look now, but the Hawks dropped 121 points on the Celtics on Tuesday. Seriously, don’t look, those uniforms and their court are honestly kind of ugly. 

• All-Grateful Team | The Fundamentals: Celtics | Warriors (16-0) make history

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You may have missed it on Thanksgiving, but 76ers center JahlilOkafor was involved in a pretty regrettable incident, fighting with people in the streets of Boston after leaving a night club (and a loss to the Celtics). As a good rule of thumb, you should never really punch anyone. In Okafor’s defense here, let’s just remember never to judge anyone by their worst moment as a 19-year-old. 

Tweet(s) of the Week

There’s no way Byron Scott owns any technology.

Wesley Johnson triple-double watch: just needs 10 more points, nine more rebounds and 10 more assists midway through 3rd

— Ben Golliver (@BenGolliver) November 26, 2015

Savage.

"ya momma said we can play in your room" #ThanksgivingWithBlackFamilies pic.twitter.com/Tes2oEdwjo

— The 14 Day Guru 🔥 (@coachlavish) November 24, 2015

Hope everyone had a great Thanksgiving!

Vine(s) of the Week

#https://vine.co/v/izLrHv0MnWV

Jason Kidd is about this. 

Rudy Gobert is having a rough couple weeks. 

And here’s a bonus gif of Stephen Curry doing the Carlton:

pic.twitter.com/g0y7Xv4bj3

— Friendly Bounce (@FriendlyBounce) November 20, 2015

Roundup

LeBron James criticized his teammates for their inconsistency ... Will Mike Conley re-sign with the Grizzlies next summer? ... The Celtics are defying the limitations of their roster ... Kevin Garnett is nuts, part infinity ... An Australian basketball fan pours a beer on Marcus Thornton, acts like nothing happened ... I wrote about Richard Jefferson re-inventing himself late in his career ... How the small-ball virus has affected the NBA. 

The Ben Golliver YouTube Corner

This is why the Raptors only let Drake do the starting lineups.

The Fashion Outlet

I gotta say, the Raptors' Drake uniforms are some of my favorite alternate kits in the game. But teams have too many alternate jerseys now. I’m sure every team wants to sell as many jerseys as possible, but this has to stop at some point. I don’t need so many throwbacks. I don’t need a new jersey on Christmas every single year (even though this year’s are dope.) Hopefully teams find a way to scale back on jerseys just a tiny bit in the next couple years. It used to be kind of a treat to see your favorite team wear their alternate, now it happens all the time. 

The One-Question Interview

Off the court only. This week, we dig into the archives with some never-before-seen material from Spurs forward Matt Bonner. 

Rohan Nadkarni: What are some of your favorite records you have on vinyl?

Matt Bonner: When I first started collecting vinyl, it was when I was on the Raptors, so '04–05, around there. Toronto has a ton of awesome record shops. I would go in and find these—I was mesmerized by album art. Vinyl records, the case they’re in is huge. What you put on that cover is really important. It’s really interesting to me what they put on all these records. You have to listen to the album the whole way through, you can’t skip songs. It creates an appreciation for the whole art of the album. Since then, if I get free time on the road, I’ll look up where the best record shops are on the road, and take 20–30 minutes to look through them. 

RN: What’s the one NES game you know you’re the best at? The one you know you could take any challenger in, and have no doubt you’ll win.

MB: [Immediately] Baseball stars.