The Beginning

Was anyone really watching, anyway?
This was the throwaway NBA Las Vegas Summer League.

You may have not noticed, but that ripple you felt in the space-time continuum was The Beginning.

Yes it was.

Be afraid.
Be very, very afraid.

Championships may not be the end here; it's too early to tell. But, the NBA has been warned. The Lakers are coming for you! The Beginning is now!

We'll just focus on the final play. We don't have time to review how a Laker star went from fumbling passes away in the first quarter all the way to just taking over a non-winnable game in the fourth. We can't talk about Larry Nance, Jr. and how he was in every nook and cranny of the stat sheet. He had at least a few of every single positive stat. Steals? Check. Blocks? Check. Dunks? Check. Three-pointers? Check. Mid-range? Check. Oh, and did we say that when guarded by Nance, Jr., future (no doubt) superstar Ben Simmons was a turn-over-can't-even-get-in-the-paint machine? We can't do justice to the 19 year old from across the pond that is underweight, outclassed, and still looks smooth as silk even when he has a bad game. And we just can't talk about Brandon Ingram and how even though he had a poor game, he still looked smooth as silk and managed to get some important buckets down the stretch. 

Yes, there is too much Kool-Aid to hand out to everyone. But, we want to just share this small shot  glass with you: the final shot.

Here is what happened: the 2nd year NBA player who was defending Russell and had given D'Lo fits all first half had suddenly become D'Angelo's whipping boy. Crossover; bucket. Crossover; pick and roll dunk. Pick, seal, mid-range; cash. Step back three; splash. Ok. Ok. Defense could have been better and that easy layup at the end shouldn't have happened. No problem. Game winner? Done.

The response after the shot?

1. Y'all saw who runs on the court to bump D'Lo in victory? JC. Here's the view from JC's own cell phone video... you can tell the split second that The Beginning happens. The ripple.
2. You saw D'Lo's dad run onto the court and hug him. He knows The Beginning is upon us.
3. Did you see Jim Buss react? Here it is. He knew it was The Beginning. He felt the jolt.
4. You'll see at the end of the video that D'Angelo walks off the court towards the stands. Here's the follow up. Clearly, D'Lo is well aware of the chain of events that will have preceded and will follow this event. Look closely who D'Lo is gesturing to; front row at the far left is sitting the mastermind mad scientist emperor and grand designer, Emperor Mitch.

Using calibrated filtered lenses, the exchange between D'Lo and Mitch is rendered below:

Prepare yourselves, Earth.
It has begun.