Caris Levert made his mark on this game by scoring nineteen points in the second quarter alone. And by “made his mark”, I mean he literally left his mark on the game by using his ball sweat to create an outline of his nardal region on the game ball itself. There’s not much else to do at halftime other than listen to your coach yell at you even though he doesn’t even play basketball anymore, collect free hot dogs from the media room, and check the betting lines on your phone, so you might as well tamper with the game ball in a vulgar way.
The symbolism of taking “ownership” of the ball using scrote sweat was smart in theory, but LeVert only scored seven points in the second half, AND the Nets lost, so it didn’t have the real-world demoralizing effect on the 76ers that he hoped it would. He should have done something more concrete and less obscured by symbolism, such as knocking a drink out of Kenny Atkinson’s hand “by accident” in order to get the Sixers out of their rhythm. Or decking Ben Simmons right in that dumb Australian mug of his. Either of those two things, plus many other things, would have allowed LeVert to have a second half that more closely resembled the scoring clinic he held in the second quarter.
Questions for Nets fans: since your guard rotation is a bit crowded right now, do you think that LeVert, with his undeniable scoring ability but middling efficiency, is a future part of the BROOKLYN NETS CORE? Don’t worry if you don’t know yet. You’ve still got a year to figure it out.