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SALT LAKE CITY — The Phoenix Suns mascot, Gorilla, hit the floor during the game, and LeBron James Jr. is playing like his father. More fun stories from the world of sports in today’s From Left Field.
Phoenix Suns’ Gorilla slides onto the court during game action
The Phoenix Suns have had a season to forget. At over twenty games below .500, the Suns are one of the NBA’s worst teams. But every team has one shining moment each season — even for the bad ones.
On Tuesday night, the Suns had their season-defining moment…and it even didn’t involve one of their players.
During the fourth quarter of the Suns’ game vs. the Washington Wizards, something unexpected came sliding onto the court. No, it wasn’t a fan or even a rodent. It was a gorilla — OK, not a real gorilla — the Phoenix Suns’ mascot, Gorilla.
WATCH: Gorilla slide! Safe! 🔥🏀🤷🏼♂️👏pic.twitter.com/kbiLU2aH1R — Matt Rodewald FOX 10 (@Matt_Fox10) March 8, 2017
You may be asking yourself what was Gorilla thinking, sliding onto the court during game action. But upon further review, the video shows Gorilla slid because there was some sort of object on the court, later confirmed to be a drum stick.
closer look shows the Suns Gorilla grabbed an object that rolled onto the court pic.twitter.com/yMZSZuhB1g — Danny (@recordsANDradio) March 8, 2017
Naturally, the Suns lost the game. But Gorilla saved the day, and possibly a Wizards player from getting a twisted ankle.
Thank you, Gorilla. #Hero
Steph Curry hits a three while 2 Atlanta Hawks players argue
If your guarding Golden State Warriors star Steph Curry, you don’t take your eyes off him.
Someone should have reminded Atlanta Hawks players Dennis Schroder and Dwight Howard.
In the third quarter of the Hawks-Warriors game, Schroder and Howard decided the best time to argue is during the game. Howard’s pass to Schroder was off, and Dwight was not too pleased with Dennis. While the two argued, Schroder left Curry wide open who drained a three to give the Dubs the lead.
Curry drills 3-pointer, gives #Warriors lead over #Hawks as Howard, Schroder argue https://t.co/99FoGytrvz#NBApic.twitter.com/W4FxfMnpQi — CSN Warriors News (@CSNWarriors) March 7, 2017
Warriors went on to win the game, leaving Howard and Schroder to scratch their heads.
At the end of the video, notice Warriors head coach Steve Kerr laughing at the play.
LeBron James Jr.: Not your average 12-year-old basketball player
If Cleveland Cavaliers forward LeBron James is “The King” of basketball, then his son, LeBron James Jr., is “The Prince” of the court.
James Jr. has been a sensation for a while now. A highlights mixtape of his skills debuted in early 2015 and left many in awe of LeBron Jr.’s talent at then 10 years old.
Two years ago, James Sr. told CBS Detroit that his son already had offers from a number of colleges, which didn’t sit well with LeBron Sr., as he said colleges shouldn’t be recruiting 10-year-old kids. A year later, ESPN reported James Jr. had offers from Duke and Kentucky.
This week, a new highlights mixtape went viral, showing James Jr.’s skills, now at age 12.
Let’s just say LeBron Jr. is very, very good.
James Jr.’s passing, shooting and on-court awareness is similar to that of his father’s.
It’s safe to say expectations for LeBron James Jr.’s are high. To be fair, we shouldn’t say James Jr. will be just as good or even better than his father. But what we can say is that James Jr. is better than your average 12-year-old basketball player, and his future may be bright on the court.
