The NBA is officially back! I’m not talking about practice games, but real games that mean something. We already have some fascinating storylines forming after only a week of seeding games. 

Who will secure the 8th seed in the Western Conference?

Can the 76ers sort out their on-court issues before the playoffs start?

Are the Toronto Raptors the 'smokey' for the championship and back to back titles?

In case you missed it, we have hand-selected the most interesting (and funny) stories over the last week.

Here’s your Weekly NBA Wrap.

To Kneel Or Not To Kneel

I feel sorry for those casual NBA players that only know a handful of players like Lebron, Simmons and Giannis. The jersey changes have made it pretty hard for fans to know who is on the court. Of the 350 players in the NBA, about 300 of them have decided to wear social justice messages on the back of their jerseys instead of their names.

The players and coaches have also decided to make a stand (pardon the pun) and ‘take a knee’ during the national anthem. However, some players and coaches have decided to stand instead including the Magic’s Jonathan Isaac, Miami’s Meyers Leonard and Spurs coach Greg Popovich. They have received some backlash on social media but Charles Barkley gave his take on TNT.... 

"If people don't kneel they're not a bad person"

Simple and fair.

‍

Book It

Remember when ESPN Analyst Stephen A Smith said that the Lakers should trade Kyle Kuzma for Devin Booker?

Well, that Devin Booker has led the Phoenix Suns to a 3-0 record since the NBA restart. He is averaging over 30 points and 5 assists across those three games. Oh yeah, he also showed up big when it counted against the LA Clippers by hitting the game winner. His shot was even more memorable because he hit it while being defended by both Paul George and Kawhi Leonard. Arguably the two best defenders in the league.

The referee even got hit with some friendly fire when the suns were celebrating.

Larry ‘Tomato’ Bird

It has been a challenging year and we sometimes need to cling to the smallest things to bring a smile to our faces.

But a tomato?

Twitter went crazy over a picture of a tomato that has an uncanny resemblance to Celtics Superstar Larry Bird. 

Can you tell which one is the real Larry Bird?

Kobe’s Work Ethic Was Unmatched

Last week, Los Angeles Lakers Assistant Coach Phil Handy shared his favourite Kobe story. In his first few weeks at the LA Lakers, Handy was asked by Kobe to meet in the gym at 5:45.

Handy explained “I show up at the gym at about 5:15 and I sat there and waited. 5:30, 5:45, 6:00, 6:15. I go home and come in the next morning. He comes barging out of the training room and he was like m*f* where you been? I was like bro I was here last night. No m*f*, I said 5:45 this morning!”

Kobe might be gone but these memories will live on forever.

RIP Kobe.

Another Game, Another Tattoo

In last week’s weekly wrap, we told the story of a Phoenix fan that agreed to get a face tattoo if Deandre Ayton was able to sink a three-pointer in the NBA bubble. Well, the twitter trolls were at it again this week. A fan promised to get a tattoo of Jarrett Allen on his back if the Nets scored an upset of the Bucks. It seemed pretty reasonable given Brooklyn are a shadow of themselves without players such as Kevin Durant, Kyrie Irving, Spencer Dinwiddie and Deandre Jordan. The Nets won 119-116.

Allen didn’t let this fan forget about it.

‍
Well played Jarrett.