Alexander could score 50, shackled by efficiency and blowout wins. One week later, it's been required of the Thunder star. Twice.  But in a loss? That felt unfathomable. Incomputable. Illegal.

A two-person race where everyone picks their side and digs in, slinging spirited pleas, peppering propaganda and shouting down from an ivory tower at anyone who

This stretch of January around Martin Luther King Jr. Day is usually peak evaluation time in the NBA front-office world. It’s one of the milestone points where teams will have full-staff pow-wows and talk things out,