Team Philly Beat Goodman League in Exhibition


Despite having Kevin Durant and John Wall on their side, Team Goodman could not take down the boys from Philly (who continue to be giant-killers during the NBA lockout.) Reports the Washington Times: “Despite a slow start, and a lot of missed shots, [John] Wall finished with 38 points on 16-of-28 from the floor. Team Philly led by as much as 20 points, and threatened to blow the game wide open, until the Goodman players made a dazzling comeback in the second half. The crowd, roughly 1,200 strong, greeted the D.C team with enthusiastic cheers at the long 3-pointers, alley-oop dunks and highlight-reel plays that have become standard in these games, but the Philly team pulled out the win, 174-167. ‘I’m disappointed we didn’t get the win,’ Wall said. ‘That’s the main thing. I’m all about getting the win.’ Wall and his fellow NBA players put on another tremendous performance, with Goodman League teammate Kevin Durant leading all scorers with 56 points on 15-of-28 shooting, and a perfect 18-of-18 from the free-throw line, and 8-of-19 from 3-point land. Matching Durant’s show-stopping performance for the visitors was Philadelphia 76er guard Lou Williams, who scored 53 points on 21-of-38 shooting, and was 7-of-18 from 3-point land. Even though Wall has a good time playing in these games, he admits these exhibition showcases aren’t exactly what he hoped he’d be competing in right now. ‘You get bored after a while,’ Wall said. ‘It’s fun to play, its fun to give people in the community the opportunity to see NBA players play, if they can’t see a real game in person, but after a while, you want to get back to real basketball.’ Wall’s is optimistic that a deal will get done, and the NBA lockout will end, but he’s also realistic about the situation the players find themselves in … Wall also addressed the comments made by teammate JaVale McGee, who spent some time at the Los Angeles players union meeting last week. McGee left early, and tweeted that some players seemed ready to fold, although most seemed ready to fight. McGee soon backed away from his comments. The Wizards point guard said he believed more players are united than those who are considering folding, and aren’t going to accept any deal the owners offer. ‘I think we’re going to stand firm at 53 [percent of Basketball Related Income]. That’s our number,’ Wall said.”