Houston Rockets

The Indiana Pacers did not buckle under immense pressure to perform one of their best basketball games of the season and force a Game 7 back in New York on Day 28 of the 2024 NBA Playoffs on Friday night.
The Pacers outplayed and outhustled the Knicks, who have dominated them on the boards the entire series. It didn&rsquo;t help the Knicks that they were without energizer Josh Hart for the majority of the game due to abdominal soreness.&nbsp;
After the Minnesota Timberwolves defeated the Denver Nuggets yesterday, we now get two Game 7&rsquo;s on Sunday. The two best words in sports.&nbsp;
Check out our recap here:

The Indiana Pacers did not buckle under immense pressure to perform one of their best basketball games of the season on Friday.

2024 NBA Playoffs Day 28 Recap: Indiana’s resilience gets them a Game 7

Coby White scored 24 points and the short-handed Chicago Bulls rallied past the depleted Mavericks 115-112 on Friday night, eliminating Dallas from play-in contention a year after the club reached the Western Conference finals.
Dallas coach Jason Kidd said before the game an &ldquo;organizational decision&rdquo; was made to limit Luka Doncic to the first quarter while sitting fellow All-Star Kyrie Irving and four other regulars before the club was eliminated from the postseason.
Despite the move, the Mavericks led by double digits when Markieff Morris scored 13 points in the second quarter and rookie Jaden Hardy hit a half-court shot to beat the halftime buzzer for a 67-54 lead.
Neither Morris nor Hardy played in the second half, and a lineup filled mostly with players who spent the season at the end of the Dallas bench lost the lead but kept the game close.
McKinley Wright IV's layup got Dallas within a point with 39 seconds left before Dalen Terry scored on an alley-oop dunk from White with 23 to go.
Theo Pinson missed a potential tying 3-pointer for Dallas, which had three more attempts at a tying 3 in the final seconds.
The loss clinched the 10th seed and final play-in spot in the Western Conference for Oklahoma City.
Irving was out for right foot injury recovery. The others sitting with him were Tim Hardaway Jr. with left ankle soreness, Maxi Kleber for right hamstring injury recovery and Josh Green and Christian Wood for rest.
The Bulls sat their top two scorers in DeMar DeRozan and Zach LaVine, but they are already locked in to the 10th seed in the East. Patrick Williams scored 23 points, and Nikola Vucevic had 20 points and 10 rebounds.
Doncic, who scored 13 points, ended up playing a few seconds into the second quarter on a night when the Mavericks paid tribute to his home country of Slovenia.
Keeping Doncic in was an apparent attempt to get him an ovation after Kidd suggested before the game it would be the 24-year-old superstar's final action of the season. The move didn't work because fans didn't seem aware and therefore didn't cheer.
Kidd said the decision was made by owner Mark Cuban and general manager Nico Harrison to rest most of the regulars. Dallas entered the game tied with Chicago for the 10th-worst record in the NBA.
If the Mavericks have a top-10 pick in the draft in June, they get to keep it. If the pick is 11th or lower, it goes to the New York Knicks as final payment for Dallas' trade to acquire Kristaps Porzingis in 2019. Next month's draft lottery will determine the final order.
Wright joined Doncic and Morris with 13 points to lead the Mavs.
SCORING RACE
Doncic's limited action in most likely his last game of the season should clinch the scoring title for Philadelphia's Joel Embiid. Doncic is at 32.4 points per game to Embiid's 33.1. The Sixers' MVP candidate is probably finished for the regular season with his team locked in to the third seed in the East.
UP NEXT
Both teams are at home for their regular-season finales Sunday. The Bulls play Detroit. The Mavs face San Antonio.

The short-handed Bulls rallied past the depleted Mavericks 115-112 on Friday night, eliminating Dallas from play-in contention.

Mavericks fall to Bulls, eliminated from play-in race

DALLAS (AP) &mdash; Dallas is sitting Kyrie Irving and four other regulars against Chicago in a game with draft implications and with the Mavericks facing postseason elimination if they lose.
Fellow All-Star Luka Doncic will play Friday night with the franchise paying tribute to his home country of Slovenia. But coach Jason Kidd said the 24-year-old superstar would only play the first quarter, and suggested his season would be over after that.
The sudden switch from the Mavericks came two days after Doncic and Irving led a rally to a 123-119 victory over Sacramento. The win kept Dallas in the mix for the final spot in the Western Conference play-in tournament a year after the Mavs reached the West finals.
A day after that victory, Oklahoma City beat Utah, meaning the Mavs would have to win their last two while the Thunder would have to lose to Memphis for Dallas to get the 10th seed. The Grizzlies could be locked in to the second seed in the West before the regular-season finale Sunday.
&ldquo;Things change,&rdquo; Kidd said. &ldquo;Understanding as an organization, they made this decision. But we still have to be professionals, go out there and put our best foot forward, who can play.&rdquo;
Irving is out for right foot injury recovery. The others ruled out are Tim Hardaway Jr. with left ankle soreness, Maxi Kleber for right hamstring injury recovery and Josh Green and Christian Wood for rest.
The Bulls are locked into the 10th seed for the final play-in spot in the East and will be without Zach LaVine for left knee injury management and DeMar DeRozan and Patrick Beverley for rest. Alex Caruso will play despite foot soreness, with coach Billy Donovan saying his minutes would be monitored.
Dallas&rsquo; decision to rest five rotation players comes with the Mavs and Bulls tied for the 10th-worst record in the NBA at 38-42.
Dallas gets to keep its first-round pick if it&rsquo;s in the top 10. If it is 11th or lower, it goes to the New York Knicks as part of Dallas&rsquo; trade to acquire Kristaps Porzingis in 2019. The draft lottery next month will determine the final order.
Kidd said he wasn&rsquo;t part of the discussion for a decision that essentially pulls the plug on the season before the Mavs were eliminated. But the coach said he agreed with it.
In a wide-ranging discussion with reporters before the victory over the Kings, owner Mark Cuban suggested the Mavs simply weren&rsquo;t good enough and took responsibility for the personnel decisions that left them with a losing record a year after finishing 52-30 and fourth in the West.
Dallas was solidly in the playoff picture when it made the blockbuster trade with Brooklyn for Irving in February, giving the Mavs two All-Star starters for the first time in franchise history.
The big move didn&rsquo;t provide the spark the club hoped. Irving and Doncic have a 5-11 record together, and the Mavs entered the Chicago game at 9-16 since Irving&rsquo;s debut.
&ldquo;Understanding this is a situation we&rsquo;re in, that the organization has made a decision to change,&rdquo; Kidd said. &ldquo;So we have to go by that. And the guys that are playing are going to go out and try to play to win. You&rsquo;ve got to be pros. You can&rsquo;t cheat the game.&rdquo;

Dallas is sitting Kyrie Irving and four other regulars against Chicago despite the fact that their playoff hopes are still alive.

Mavericks sit Kyrie Irving, 4 others with playoff hopes still alive

WASHINGTON (AP) &mdash; Nikola Jokic had 31 points and 12 rebounds as the Denver Nuggets shook off a slow start and beat the short-handed Washington Wizards 118-104 on Wednesday night.
Michael Porter Jr. added 21 points and Jamal Murray had 17 for Western Conference-leading Denver. Trailing by two points af halftime, Murray was also among those with emotional words for the Nuggets.
&ldquo;We needed that,&rdquo; Jokic said of Murray&rsquo;s words. &ldquo;And we know what we needed to do. Because the postseason is going to be really short if we play like we played in the first half.&rdquo;
The Nuggets went 15 for 32 from beyond the arc and finished a season-high five-game trip with three wins.
The trip began with a loss in Toronto that was the last setback in a season-worst four-game slide.
&ldquo;Every team in the NBA, I think, has had that bad run,&rdquo; Jokic said. &ldquo;Hopefully it&rsquo;s done for us and we survive it. And hopefully we&rsquo;re going to play better now.&rdquo;
Kristaps Porzingis scored 25 points for the Wizards, who were without three-time All-Star guard Bradley Beal due to left knee soreness.
Deni Avdija added 16 points for Washington, which lost its fourth straight. Washington entered the game in 12th place in the East and 2 1/2 games back of Chicago for the final play-in spot.
Beal had played 31 minutes and scored 16 points in Tuesday&rsquo;s 122-112 loss at Orlando. Forward Kyle Kuzma (right ankle) also missed a second straight start.
&ldquo;It&rsquo;s frustrating of course, but we can&rsquo;t control the circumstances,&rdquo; Wizards coach Wes Unseld Jr. said &ldquo;It&rsquo;s just more, how do we respond to the circumstances? That to me is more important. It&rsquo;s an indication of who we are collectively and individually.&rdquo;
Neither team led by more than six before halftime. Denver opened up a 21-point lead after outscoring Washington 39-16 in the third quarter.
The Nuggets began the period hitting their first four shots &mdash; three from beyond the arc &mdash; and ended it with an 8-0 spurt, punctuated by Bruce Brown&rsquo;s running dunk followed by Jeff Green&rsquo;s corner 3 with 0.3 seconds left.
&ldquo;We cared, finally,&rdquo; Denver coach Michael Malone said. &ldquo;I challenged our guys in a big way at halftime. The way we played in that first half, that can&rsquo;t be who we are.&rdquo;
TIP-INS
Nuggets: Finished the season 8-7 on the road against Eastern Conference teams while improving to 19-18 in their travels overall. ... Jokic had seven assists, falling three short of his 29th triple-double this season. ... Murray had eight assists and six rebounds.
Wizards: Shot a season-worst 4 of 26 (15.4%) from beyond the arc. ... Jordan Goodwin scored 12 points and was the only other Washington player in double figures. ... Beal missed his 23rd game of the season and his first since a Feb. 6 home loss to Cleveland. Coach Wes Unseld Jr. said pregame that Beal is day to day.
HINT OF HOME
Wednesday felt slightly more like home two Nuggets.
Green hit two of his three 3-point attempts and finished with 11 points off the bench in the same building where he used to star for the Georgetown Hoyas. Jokic enjoyed support from a sizable Serbian fan presence, with the Wizards even hosting folk dancers of his home country&rsquo;s tradition at half.
&ldquo;I mean I love it,&rdquo; Jokic said. &ldquo;I always say the Serbian fans are probably the best fans in the world. Our language, our energy, our flags. I love it.&rdquo;
UP NEXT
Nuggets: Begin a three-game homestand Saturday against Milwaukee.
Wizards: Host San Antonio on Friday.

Nikola Jokic had 31 points and 12 rebounds as the Nuggets shook off a slow start and beat the Wizards 118-104 on Wednesday.

Nikola Jokic scores 31, Nuggets pull away from Wizards 118-104

MEMPHIS, Tenn. (AP) &mdash; Jaren Jackson Jr. scored 28 points, including a key layup with 17 seconds left as the Memphis Grizzlies defeated the Dallas Mavericks 112-108 on Monday night in Ja Morant&rsquo;s first game back with the team after an eight-game league suspension.
Santi Aldama added 22 for Memphis and Desmond Bane finished with 17 as Memphis won its sixth in the last seven.
Kyrie Irving led the Mavericks with 28 points, but missed all eight of his shots in the fourth quarter as Memphis outscored Dallas 29-12 in the period.
Morant did not dress for the game but was on the Memphis bench, coming out to a hearty ovation from the fans just before tipoff. The NBA assessed the suspension after a video from a Denver-area strip club earlier this month showed Morant brandishing a gun.
Meanwhile, the Mavericks were again without leading-scorer Luka Doncic, who missed his fifth game with left thigh soreness.
That left the Dallas offensive surge to Irving, picked up in a trade deadline deal, along with Christian Wood, who scored 20.
Dallas built its lead to 16 points in the third quarter, but Memphis crafted a 24-7 run in the fourth, and the game settled into an exchange of leads for both teams.
The game was tight through the first half with seven ties and three lead changes before the Mavericks carried a 60-57 lead into halftime, led by 20 points from Irving. The third quarter belonged to Dallas, stretching lead to 96-83 as Hardy scored 10 in the stanza, while the Mavericks shot 62%.
TIP-INS
Mavericks: While Doncic missed his fifth game with a left thigh strain, it marked the eighth time in 17 games since acquiring Irving at the trade deadline that one or both of the All-Stars has been out. ... Davis Bertans&rsquo; 3-pointer in the second quarter was the 800th of his career.
Grizzlies: Dillon Brooks picked up a technical foul for taunting after a dunk. It was his 18th of the season, and per league rules, he will be suspended for Wednesday&rsquo;s game against Houston. ... Memphis is 11-2 against the Southwest Division, with the only losses coming to Dallas and the New Orleans Pelicans.
UP NEXT
Mavericks: Host Golden State on Wednesday night.
Grizzlies: Play the first of consecutive home games against Houston on Wednesday night.

Jaren Jackson Jr. scored 28 points, including a key layup with 17 seconds left as the Grizzlies defeated the Mavericks.

Jackson scores 28 as Grizzlies rally late to defeat Mavs

CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. (AP) &mdash; Kihei Clark may never top his biggest highlight in Virginia basketball lore, but having the 5-foot-10 point guard in the No. 10 Cavaliers&rsquo; lineup could certainly give him another chance.
In 2019, during an Elite Eight battle with Purdue, the then-freshman chased down a tapped-out missed free throw well past the midcourt line, wheeled around and fed Mamadi Diakite for a buzzer-beating jumper that sent the game into overtime. The Cavaliers won, then went on to earn the first national championship in program history.
&ldquo;The Shot&rdquo; was only possible because of &ldquo;The Pass.&rdquo;
Now in his fifth season, Clark is taking advantage of an extra year of eligibility to climb several of Virginia&rsquo;s career lists and possibly lead them on another deep tournament run. He&rsquo;ll continue that pursuit on Saturday when the Cavaliers (14-3, 6-2 Atlantic Coast Conference) play at Wake Forest (14-5, 6-2).
Clark on Wednesday moved to the top of the Cavaliers&rsquo; career victories list for players with 111, one more than Diakite. His 65 ACC wins are also the most in program history.
Those milestones, and others, almost didn&rsquo;t happen. After last season, Clark posted a farewell message to Virginia fans on Twitter, then changed his mind.
With Reece Beekman seemingly poised to take over the lead role in the Cavaliers&rsquo; backcourt, coach Tony Bennett knows Clark&rsquo;s value.
&ldquo;A guy his size doesn&rsquo;t get to where he is without having a fierce side of him, a competitor, and he wants to win. And that&rsquo;s what he&rsquo;s done most of his career but he&rsquo;s still coachable,&rdquo; Bennett said. &ldquo;It&rsquo;s good to have him back for sure. I&rsquo;m glad he made that decision.&rdquo;
Bennett often uses bigger guards to play in the high post, though he&rsquo;ll use Clark there, too, and gives him lots of playmaking freedom.
&ldquo;You sometimes want some of your better decision-makers or guards in that high post &hellip; I thought he had a real nice game,&rdquo; Bennett said after winning at Georgia Tech 74-56.
&ldquo;He had command of his game. Sometimes you watch somebody and they have command of their game, and he just had it when he was in the lane, the decisions he was making,&rdquo; Bennett said.
Virginia Tech&rsquo;s Mike Young saw it firsthand in a 78-68 loss on Wednesday night.
&ldquo;He&rsquo;s waiting on you,&rdquo; Young said, recalling several passes Clark made in the lane on his way to a season-high 20 points and five assists. &ldquo;He is waiting for somebody to blink.&rdquo;
Young will face Clark one more time when Virginia goes to Blacksburg. Other coaches have used the postgame handshake lines to share their admiration.
&ldquo;I told him last year after we played him in Harrisonburg, I told him he&rsquo;s one of my favorite players to watch in college, and I thought that was the goodbye. And then sure enough, he comes back this year,&rdquo; said James Madison coach Mark Byington after Virginia&rsquo;s win this year in which Clark had 18 points and seven assists. &ldquo;So I told him this time ... &lsquo;Look, I better never see you in college basketball again.&rsquo;&rdquo;
Florida State&rsquo;s Leonard Hamilton said after getting beat 62-57 that Clark is &ldquo;almost flawless as a point guard ... and he&rsquo;s one of those guys that don&rsquo;t come along very often.&rdquo;
&ldquo;I told him as I shook his hand, &lsquo;I&rsquo;ll be glad when you go.&rsquo;&rdquo; Hamilton said. &ldquo;He smiled.&rdquo;
Clark has appreciated the kind words.
&ldquo;Obviously, you&rsquo;re doing something right if they don&rsquo;t want to play against you,&rdquo; he said.

Clark on Wednesday moved to the top of the Cavaliers’ career victories list for players with 111, one more than Mamadi Diakite.

Kihei Clark making history for No. 10 Virginia — again

MILWAUKEE (AP) &mdash; Rui Hachimura had 26 points, Kristaps Porzingis scored 22 and the Washington Wizards defeated the short-handed Milwaukee Bucks 118-95 on Sunday night for their season-best fifth consecutive victory.
The scuffling Bucks played without Giannis Antetokounmpo, who sat out due to left knee soreness. Antetokounmpo is averaging 38 points and 14.6 rebounds over his last six games, which included a 43-point, 20-rebound effort in Friday night&rsquo;s win over Minnesota that snapped Milwaukee&rsquo;s four-game losing streak.
Jrue Holiday also missed the game with an illness, and Khris Middleton sat out for the eighth consecutive game due to right knee soreness.
Daniel Gafford had 17 points for the Wizards (17-21), who weren&rsquo;t at full strength, either. They played without leading scorer Bradley Beal, who is dealing with left hamstring soreness.
Bobby Portis led Milwaukee with 19 points and 10 rebounds. Jevon Carter had 14 points and Grayson Allen added 13 points and eight assists.
Washington led 34-17 after the first quarter, paced by Gafford&rsquo;s 13 points, as the Wizards exploited a two-center lineup with Bucks big man Brook Lopez benched early on with foul trouble. Milwaukee shot 26% overall and just 3 of 14 from long range in the period, while the Wizards connected on half of their shots.
The Wizards led by 26 in the second quarter and held a 68-50 advantage at halftime. Washington shot 57.4% in the first half, while Milwaukee connected on just 34.6% of its shots.
Washington remained easily in control throughout the second half as the cold-shooting Bucks failed to mount any sustained runs.
TIP-INS
Wizards: F Taj Gibson sat out a second consecutive game with left groin soreness. &ldquo;We don&rsquo;t want to push it to the point where this could be something that would last much longer than it should,&rdquo; coach West Unseld Jr. said. &hellip; Gafford, who came in averaging 7.1 points per game, scored Washington&rsquo;s first eight points. &hellip; Washington had 72 points in the paint.
Bucks: G George Hill also missed the game due to illness. &hellip; Joe Ingles was assessed a first-quarter technical foul after exchanging words with Porzingis, who also received a technical. &hellip; Milwaukee lost for just the fourth time in 19 home games this season.
UP NEXT
The teams face each other again Tuesday night in Milwaukee.

Rui Hachimura had 26 points, Kristaps Porzingis scored 22 and the Wizards defeated the short-handed Bucks 118-95 on Sunday night.

Wizards cruise past short-handed Bucks 118-95

DALLAS (AP) &mdash; Luka Doncic scored 32 points, Tim Hardaway Jr. had 16 of his 26 points in a huge third quarter for Dallas and the Mavericks beat the Los Angeles Lakers 124-115 on Sunday.
Christian Wood added 30 points and tied a career high with seven assists as the Mavericks finished off a celebration of Dirk Nowitzki's statue unveiling by winning just the second Christmas Day home game in franchise history.
Dallas took its first lead during a 51-point third quarter, the highest-scoring quarter on Christmas in NBA history and a league-best this season. Golden State and Orlando have each had a 50-point quarter.
LeBron James scored 38 points, one shy of his season high, and the Lakers led by 12 early in the third before the Mavericks took over.
Wood started the surge with a 3-pointer, and Dallas was within one when Doncic had a chance to challenge James at the rim but passed to Hardaway for a corner 3 and the first Dallas lead at 65-63.
The Mavericks, who scored just 43 points in the first half and trailed by 11 at the break, didn't slow down from there.
Doncic, who had six of his nine assists in the quarter, hit three free throws after a foul and a technical against Russell Westbrook, Hardaway scored inside and out and Wood converted a three-point play to break the 50-point mark.
Hardaway was 4 of 5 from deep in the third as Dallas went 9 of 13 as a team and shot 72% overall.
The Lakers scored the first nine points of the fourth quarter to trim a 19-point deficit to 10, but LA couldn't get the deficit back under 10.
CHRISTMAS CELEBRATION
Dallas lost its other Christmas Day home game 11 years earlier when Nowitzki was the face of the franchise, and the Mavericks were coming off their only championship. Miami won 105-94 in an opener for the lockout-delayed 2011-12 season.
REPRIEVE FOR DONCIC
Doncic was called for his sixth foul on a charge against Austin Reaves with 3:50 left, but the call was reversed on replay. Reaves was assessed a blocking foul, and Doncic made both free throws. Doncic had nine rebounds.
TIP-INS
Lakers: James' seven-game run of at least 30 points is the longest active streak in the NBA. ... Westbrook scored 17 points, and Reaves had 16.
Mavericks: G Kemba Walker missed a second consecutive game for injury recovery on his left knee. Walker went unsigned the first six weeks of the season. The 32-year-old has a history of knee issues in recent years. ... Dallas also was without G/F Dorian Finney-Smith (right abductor strain), G Josh Green (right elbow sprain) and G Frank Ntilikina (left knee soreness).
UP NEXT
Lakers: At Orlando on Tuesday. LA swept the two-game series last season.
Mavericks: Jalen Brunson returns to Dallas with the Knicks on Tuesday. Brunson was drafted in the second round the year Doncic went third overall (2018) and thrived as his sidekick before signing with New York in free agency. The Mavs won the first meeting in New York this month.

Luka Doncic scored 32 points, and the Dallas Mavericks beat the Los Angeles Lakers 124-115 on Sunday.

Doncic, Mavs top Lakers 124-115 to celebrate Nowitzki statue

CLEVELAND (AP) &mdash; Jarrett Allen&rsquo;s dunk with 2:01 remaining in overtime gave Cleveland a 100-99 victory over the Dallas Mavericks on Saturday night, keeping the Cavaliers unbeaten in five OT games this season.
Allen outjumped two defenders to grab a lob from Darius Garland, then slammed home the ball over Christian Wood for the final points in the five-minute session. Kemba Walker had opened OT with a 3-pointer to give Dallas a 99-96 lead.
&ldquo;It was a character win because we just didn&rsquo;t have it tonight,&rdquo; Cavaliers coach J.B. Bickerstaff said. &ldquo;But that wasn&rsquo;t an excuse for the guys. They went out and picked it up defensively, which you&rsquo;ve got to do when your shots aren&rsquo;t falling.&rdquo;
The Mavericks had three opportunities to take the lead in the last minute, including Wood&rsquo;s 30-footer as time expired. Frank Ntilikina was stripped by Donovan Mitchell and Walker&rsquo;s jumper landed between the backboard and the rim on the other two.
Mitchell scored 25 points and Darius Garland had 18 points, seven rebounds and 12 assists for Cleveland, which has the best home record in the NBA at 14-2. Allen added eight points and 15 rebounds, and Evan Mobley had 17 points and eight rebounds.
&ldquo;Nights like this, it&rsquo;s all mental, so you&rsquo;ve got to fight real deep and find that energy,&rdquo; said Mobley, who scored 10 points in the fourth quarter. &ldquo;But we got the stops we needed at the end.&rdquo;
Four-time All-Star guard Walker, who signed with Dallas on Nov. 29, had 32 points and seven assists over 42 minutes in his third game. Wood had 26 points and 14 rebounds, and Hardaway scored 13 points.
Dallas forced OT on Walker&rsquo;s driving layup with 3.5 seconds left in the fourth, tying the score at 96-all. After Mitchell was called for an offensive foul with 0.7 ticks left, Tim Hardaway Jr. missed a half-court shot at the buzzer.
Dallas was without its starting backcourt of Luka Doncic (right quadriceps strain) and Spencer Dinwiddie (right knee maintenance), and center Dwight Powell (left thigh bruise). Doncic is the second-leading scorer in the NBA at 33.0 points per game.
&ldquo;You have to have a next-man up mentality -- and we had a lot of next men up tonight,&rdquo; Mavericks coach Jason Kidd said. &ldquo;This is the hardest part of our schedule, but we&rsquo;re professionals and we&rsquo;re here.&rdquo;
The Cavaliers are 2-0 on their longest homestand of the season, a six-gamer that runs through Dec. 26. Cleveland is allowing a league-low 104.8 points per game.
Both teams were on the second half of a back-to-back set. The Cavaliers beat Indiana 118-112 at Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse, while the Mavericks did not check into their downtown Cleveland hotel until 3:37 a.m.
TIP-INS
Mavericks: Walker made his first start since Feb. 16 with the Knicks against Brooklyn. Walker, whose career scoring average is 19.4, is with his fourth team in five years. &hellip; G Josh Green (right elbow sprain) and F Maxi Kleber (right hamstring tear) were inactive, and F Davis Bertans (illness) did not play. &hellip; Dallas lost to the Cavaliers for the second time in four days, dropping a 105-90 decision Wednesday.
Cavaliers: F Lamar Stevens (right knee soreness) was unable to play. Stevens started the previous eight games, averaging 6.6 points and 5.9 rebounds. &hellip; Mobley appeared in his 100th NBA game. The second-year pro is one of 11 players in league history to surpass 1,400 points, 800 rebounds, 200 assists and 150 blocks while shooting better than 50% from the field in his first 100 contests.
UP NEXT
Mavericks: At Portland on Monday night.
Cavaliers: Host Utah on Monday night.

Jarrett Allen’s dunk with 2:01 remaining in overtime gave the Cavaliers a 100-99 victory over the Mavericks on Saturday night.

Cavaliers beat Mavericks 100-99 in OT on Jarrett Allen's slam

DALLAS (AP) &mdash; Donovan Mitchell said he was thankful, in a strange way, for the playoff loss to Dallas last season because it helped send him to Cleveland.
The smile said there might have been a bit more adrenaline flowing for the first meeting since then.
Mitchell scored 34 points facing Luka Doncic and the Mavericks for the first time since his final game with Utah last April, and the Cavaliers rolled to a 105-90 victory Wednesday night.
The Jazz lost to Dallas 98-96 at home in Game 6 of the first round in the Western Conference, then Mitchell switched to the East as the centerpiece of a blockbuster offseason trade that vaulted the Cavaliers into the conversation of title contenders.
&ldquo;It could have been anybody,&rdquo; Mitchell said. &ldquo;I think for me it&rsquo;s just understanding at the end of the day, they&rsquo;re kind of the reason I&rsquo;m in Cleveland. So I&rsquo;m thankful I&rsquo;m here. I&rsquo;m glad to be here.&rdquo;
Cleveland had slipped a bit after a strong start, thanks in part to eight losses in the past nine road games, including a surprising defeat at San Antonio to start a two-game Texas swing.
The Cavs found a fix with a 17-0 run in the first half, and now gear up for a season-high six in a row at home, where they are 12-2, starting with Indiana before seeing Dallas again Saturday.
&ldquo;What we do, when we do it right, travels,&rdquo; Cleveland coach J.B. Bickerstaff said. &ldquo;Defense goes everywhere. With us, our defense sets the tone for everything else we do.&rdquo;
Doncic scored 30 points and had the Mavericks within nine late in the third quarter and midway through the fourth.
Mitchell answered Dallas' fourth-quarter surge with a 3-pointer, and the Cavs led by at least 10 the rest of the way.
Mitchell was 13 of 20 overall and 6 of 9 from 3 as the Cavs shot 53%.
Lamar Stevens scored 18 points and was part of a strong defensive first half that limited Doncic to 4-of-13 shooting as Dallas shot 35% and trailed by 19 before the break against one of the NBA's best defenses.
&ldquo;You could look at the subs. You could look at a lot of things,&rdquo; Dallas coach Jason Kidd said. &ldquo;I just think that we just couldn't get in sync. We just couldn&rsquo;t put the ball in the basket.&rdquo;
Cleveland big men Jarrett Allen and Evan Mobley had 14 points apiece and limited Doncic's ability to get to the rim, a key facet for the NBA's scoring leader.
&ldquo;They have a pretty big team,&rdquo; said Doncic, who finished 9 of 23 and was held below his averages with five rebounds and six assists. &ldquo;And a great team.&rdquo;
Christian Wood scored 20 points for Dallas.
COUNT TO FIVE
Darius Garland, who scored 12 points, finished the third quarter with three free throws to get Cleveland's lead back to 15. The third freebie was a technical because Dallas had four players on the court coming out of a timeout used for an unsuccessful challenge on Doncic's foul of Garland.
TIP-INS
Cavaliers: Cleveland had four consecutive road wins as part of an 8-1 start. Five straight road losses followed. ... Caris LeVert scored 11 of the Cavs' 13 bench points as Cleveland went just eight deep before emptying the bench in the final two minutes. ... Mobley had seven rebounds and six assists.
Mavericks: G Josh Green missed a third consecutive game with a right elbow sprain, and F Maxi Kleber was out for the second time in three games. Kleber had a sprained right knee this time after right foot soreness kept him out Saturday at Chicago. ... Doncic set a franchise record with a 35th consecutive game with at least 20 points.
&nbsp;
More AP NBA: <a href="https://apnews.com/hub/nba">https://apnews.com/hub/nba</a> and <a href="https://twitter.com/AP_Sports">https://twitter.com/AP_Sports</a>

Donovan Mitchell scored 34 points and the Cavaliers rolled to a 105-90 victory over the Dallas Mavericks.

Mitchell leads Cavs to 105-90 win over 2022 playoff foe Mavs

It's admittedly fun to ride the small-sample-sized wave of early NBA seasons.
We've already witnessed 58 individual 30-plus-point performances in eight days of action from dozens of different players. The Utah Jazz and Portland Trail Blazers are tied with the Memphis Grizzlies atop the Western Conference standings. And early breakout games have dotted the league's landscape, making fans of all 30 teams (well...) hopeful for what could be on the horizon.
But while it's encouraged to enjoy success in the moment, as analysts, how do we temper expectations and forecast the future? Some players are bound to return to earth, while for others, this first week might truly be the start of something special.
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Here are five players who have caught fire so far, and whose environments make sustaining these heat waves a plausible reality:
LAURI MARKKANEN, UTAH JAZZ
We start with everyone's favorite "What the heck is happening right now?" team in the Jazz, who are 4-1 despite being a projected basement-dweller/Victor Wembanyama suitor/whatever you'd like to tactfully call a bad basketball team.
Markkanen is leading the charge in the box score with his 22.0-point, 8.8-rebound, 3.0-assist per-game averages. Two of those would be career highs (he averaged 9.0 rebounds per game in 2018-19), and his 64.2% two-point clip would be a career best by far. That's also despite him canning just 24.2% of his threes.
Markkanen turned heads at the end of the summer with his <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/6-players-who-stood-out-from-eurobasket-2022-lauri-markkanen-alperen-sengun-lorenzo-brown-sasha-vezenkov-dzanan-musa-simone-fontecchio" target="_blank" rel="noopener">EuroBasket onslaught for Finland</a>. We saw the 25-year-old in a primary scoring role during the tournament, and that's sort of translated to Utah. Markkanen's usage rate (22.6%) and drives per game (6.0) are his highest figures since 2018-19. He's making a stunning 68.4% of his shots when he drives to the basket &mdash; bound to recede, but definitely a positive sign when you look at the above footage.
And yet! He's also been used creatively without having to be individually creative, as highlighted by Mat Issa:
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Reason #1: Lauri Markkanen (cont.) And while he has made some strides as a self-generated scorer, he's doing a lot of his damage playing off of his teammates as a shooter, roller, and cutter. 71 of his 86 shot attempts (82.6%) have come off 2 dribbles or less. <a href="https://t.co/xrAUBCbGGm">pic.twitter.com/xrAUBCbGGm</a>
&mdash; Mat Issa (@matissa15) <a href="https://twitter.com/matissa15/status/1585651902473068544?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 27, 2022</a></blockquote>

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Regardless of how the Jazz progress as a team, Markkanen is going to be a featured player barring any sort of trade. He's also an easy bet to return to form as a perimeter shooter. Markkanen currently sports a 29.2% clip on catch-and-shoot threes; he typically hovers around 35%.
There's no one standing in the way of Markkanen leading the Jazz in shot attempts, and he's shown signs that he can take on such a responsibility.
TREY MURPHY III, NEW ORLEANS PELICANS
A literally perfect, 22-point, 8-for-8 shooting effort from Murphy helped the Pelicans win a game against the Dallas Mavericks without Zion Williamson, Brandon Ingram and Herb Jones. The second-year forward is shooting a lights-out 68.4% from long range and re-establishing himself as a premier young shooting talent in the league.&nbsp;
However, it's been his aggression attacking closeouts that has really helped Murphy propel his offensive game forward.
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We all know Trey Murphy is an amazing shooter. But him attacking closeouts like this is going to make him incredibly deadly <a href="https://t.co/AmJd9RiGfw">pic.twitter.com/AmJd9RiGfw</a>
&mdash; Shamit Dua (@FearTheBrown) <a href="https://twitter.com/FearTheBrown/status/1585139430259855360?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 26, 2022</a></blockquote>

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<a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/trey-murphy-iii-wants-to-announce-presence-new-orleans-pelicans-zion-williamson-brandon-ingram" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Murphy explained to me this summer</a> that he's really worked on anticipating and absorbing contact. That showed up in NBA Summer League, and it's manifesting so far as you can see in the above clips. Murphy is only 3-for-8 on driving attempts so far, but that's already better than his abysmal 21.4% rate as a rookie. He's also been one of the most frequent transition finishers in the NBA, and is even averaging a league-best 1.92 points per possession in transition.
New Orleans hasn't gotten out and running too much, but they project as a team that can capitalize on fast breaks. Murphy is an improved at-rim finisher and can always leak out for threes. It makes him yet another unique weapon for the Pelicans' offense.
JAYLEN NOWELL, MINNESOTA TIMBERWOLVES
Want to talk about a dark-horse candidate for Sixth Man of the Year? Nowell is putting up 16.2 points in just 21.8 minutes per game for the Timberwolves and has effectively filled Malik Beasley's spot in the rotation. The 23-year-old is knocking down just 32.1% of his threes, but he's a proven threat from distance who I expect to improve.
Mark Schindler has been all over the Jaylen Nowell breakout for practically the entire calendar year, so both deserve their flowers:
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Jaylen Nowell Hooper <a href="https://t.co/kIKFnyToFn">pic.twitter.com/kIKFnyToFn</a>
&mdash; Mark Schindler (@MG_Schindler) <a href="https://twitter.com/MG_Schindler/status/1584985123782811648?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 25, 2022</a></blockquote>

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The third-year guard is prolific in the short-mid-range areas like above; this year, he's made a ridiculous (and unsustainable) 62% of his total mid-range looks. But he's been trading some of those shots in and getting even closer to the basket. Per Cleaning the Glass, Nowell's short-mid-range shot frequency has dropped by 12%, while his at-rim rate has climbed by 13%. That's a great sign since he's a capable scorer in both zones.
Nowell's per-game scoring average is fourth among NBA players with multiple games off the bench. The three in front? Christian Wood (a probably eventual starter), Bennedict Mathurin (a rookie and probable eventual starter) and Keegan Murray (same boat as Mathurin). It's entirely plausible that by the end of the year, this three-level bucket-getter emerges as a leading contender for the Sixth Man of the Year award.
NICK RICHARDS, CHARLOTTE HORNETS
A third-year center and former second-round pick, Richards has grinded away as a reserve for a Hornets team desperately in need of stopgaps in the frontcourt. Through four contests, he's averaging 13.0 points and 7.8 rebounds per game on a crisp 71.4% field goal clip (all twos).
According to Second Spectrum, Richards has either grabbed an offensive board or tipped one to a teammate on two-thirds of his offensive rebound chances &mdash; tied for fourth-best in the NBA among high-volume rebounders.
Within that pristine field goal percentage, Richards is 8-for-9 in scoring chances as a roll man. Now, we're really digging into some small samples here. But he's shooting 78% at the rim in total, which lines up with 75% from last year, and some of the plays look promising. Nothing too crazy, but Richards has finished with soft touch and some power over two of the better interior defenders in the league in Clint Capela and Jakob Poeltl:
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Richards' success is the most extreme small-sample-size bet in this notebook. He just has barely seen an NBA floor, so even looking at past seasons gets sketchy. I'm optimistic for two reasons: Charlotte has an obvious hole he is filling at center, and the team has some elite guard playmakers in LaMelo Ball and Terry Rozier who he can work off of.
DEVIN VASSELL, SAN ANTONIO SPURS
Like Markkanen and the Jazz, Vassell and the Spurs are unburdened by expectations, which hopefully gives them the freedom to experiement throughout the season. Fans of the 2020 No. 11 pick have waited for Vassell's glimpses of pull-up prowess and overall scoring to coalesce, and 2022-23 might be the year.
Vassell is putting up 19.8 points, 5.0 rebounds and 4.5 assists per game while firing threes at a career-high volume (8.3 per game) and efficiency (39.4%). The long-range marksmanship has come and gone in waves, and yes, it's probably too early to assume Vassell has fully arrived as a pull-up powerhouse.
However, there's still a lot to love about his start &mdash; especially that assist number.
Vassell's 19.6% assist rate more than doubles either of his prior two seasons, while his 5.2% turnover rate is actually a career-low. There are 72 NBA players averaging more than 8 drives per game this season; Vassell's 15.9% assist rate on drives ranks ninth.
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He's not some highlight-reel passer, but Vassell displays some really impressive floor vision. He can enter a drive in attack mode and still have the wherewithal to monitor how the defense shifts and how his own teammates get open.
Vassell is off to a shaky start as a driving scorer &mdash; he's made just 28.6% of said shots &mdash; but he has a past history with better efficiency. I bank on that returning, and, coupled with his improving vision and enticing perimeter scoring, Vassell could really terrify opposing defenses as a young playmaking engine.
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THE OUTLIERS (a.k.a. other random interesting numbers I found in the void):
<ul>
<li>Bennedict Mathurin has been electric as a rookie for the Indiana Pacers, and if you're wondering why his start feels unusually great, that's because it is:</li>
</ul>
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Bennedict Mathurin is only the fifth NBA player since 1980 to score at least 72 points in his first three career games&mdash;and the first since 1995: Isiah Thomas Dominique Wilkins Michael Jordan Jerry Stackhouse Bennedict Mathurin
&mdash; Zach Kram (@zachkram) <a href="https://twitter.com/zachkram/status/1583998848946827265?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 23, 2022</a></blockquote>
<ul>
<li>Synergy's Todd Whitehead has posted a ton of these starting lineup visualizations on his Twitter, and this one in particular caught my eye:</li>
</ul>
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17 teams in the league had 2 or 3 "homegrown" starters in their opening game last week. 6 teams had 4. 3 teams had 0. There are 8 players who made their NBA debut with the Lakers who are starting for somebody else this year, more than any other team. <a href="https://t.co/Kl9Qg0Oa0j">pic.twitter.com/Kl9Qg0Oa0j</a>
&mdash; Todd Whitehead (@CrumpledJumper) <a href="https://twitter.com/CrumpledJumper/status/1584621844522729472?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 24, 2022</a></blockquote>

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<ul>
<li>This week's check-in on the Los Angeles Lakers (technically missing one game, but they shot 26.7% as a team, so I doubt this visual changes much):</li>
</ul>
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Dorktown: Los Angeles Lakers! <a href="https://t.co/c3JvICgyJm">pic.twitter.com/c3JvICgyJm</a>
&mdash; Secret Base (@secretbase) <a href="https://twitter.com/secretbase/status/1584584367283654662?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 24, 2022</a></blockquote>

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Lauri Markkanen, Devin Vassell and Nick Richards are among the players Ethan Fuller believes can sustain their early success.

NBA Stats Notebook: 5 players who can sustain their early breakouts

France sent a message on its way to grabbing a spot in the EuroBasket championship game and a showdown with Spain.
Guerschon Yabusele scored 22 points, and France rolled past Poland 95-54 in the semifinals of the European championships on Friday.
&ldquo;We just played our basketball,&rdquo; Yabusele said. &ldquo;We were really good on defense and we were really aggressive. We made everything hard for them.&rdquo;
The 41-point margin was the largest ever in a EuroBasket medal-round game played under the current tournament format, one more than 40-point wins posted by Croatia over Greece in the 1993 bronze-medal game and by the Soviet Union over Poland in the 1967 semifinals.
Elle Okobo and Evan Fournier each had 10 points in a rare easy one for France, which had outscored opponents by a total of 11 points in its first seven games of the tournament &mdash;&nbsp;<a class="paragraph-link" href="https://apnews.com/article/sports-france-poland-italy-71f01c5c88ed542aa26ad87ce9151f9b" target="_blank" rel="noopener">plus won each of its last two contests in overtime,</a>&nbsp;benefitting in both from missed free throws in the final moments by Turkey and Italy.
"We started the game with will and determination,&rdquo; France coach Vincent Collet said. &ldquo;That is what made the difference.&rdquo;
Next up for France: Spain, which defeated host Germany 96-91 in Friday&rsquo;s other semifinal. The gold- and bronze-medal games are Sunday.
It&rsquo;ll mark the fifth time in the last six EuroBaskets that either Spain or France has won gold; the exception was 2017, when Slovenia prevailed. It&rsquo;ll also be a rematch of the 2011 EuroBasket final, where Spain topped France.
&ldquo;We worked really hard to put ourselves in this position,&rdquo; said France center Rudy Gobert, who had six rebounds and three blocks. &ldquo;Now we&rsquo;ve got one more game to go. When we started preparations, the goal was to win the gold medal and now we&rsquo;re in position to make it happen. So, one more game.&rdquo;
Playing for gold represents the latest big chance for France, which captured its last major crown by winning EuroBasket in 2013. Since then, the French have won two bronzes at the World Cup (2014, 2019), a bronze at EuroBasket (2015) and silver at the delayed Tokyo Olympics that were contested in the summer of 2021.
Every stat Friday showed France&rsquo;s dominance. It shot 62%, compared with 32% for Poland. France held a 40-21 edge in rebounding, a 22-9 edge in points off turnovers and a 40-16 advantage from points in the paint.
&ldquo;Like a lot of games in this tournament, it could go south, it could go north,&rdquo; Poland coach Igor Milicic said. &ldquo;This game went south.&rdquo;
A.J. Slaughter and Michal Michalak led Poland &mdash; which made the semifinals by upsetting defending champion Slovenia 90-87 on Wednesday &mdash; with nine points apiece. It was Poland&rsquo;s third loss of the tournament, all coming in blowouts. The others were a 30-point defeat to Finland and a 29-point loss to Serbia in the group stage.
&ldquo;We tip our hats off to France,&rdquo; said Slaughter, a Kentucky-born guard who helped Western Kentucky to upset wins as a No. 12 seed in both the 2008 and 2009 NCAA tournaments. &ldquo;They played a really good game tonight. ... But we still have our heads high. We still have a medal game on Sunday. We&rsquo;ll come back, play with pride and see if we can leave here with a medal.&rdquo;
SPAIN 96, GERMANY 91
Lorenzo Brown scored 29 points, and Spain used a 13-0 run in the fourth quarter to rally past host Germany in the second semifinal.
Germany led by 10 points late in the third quarter, before Spain took over. Juancho Hernangomez scored seven of his 13 points in the game-deciding run, one where Spain turned a 77-70 deficit into an 83-77 lead with 4:04 remaining.
&ldquo;I cannot find the words to congratulate my players,&rdquo; Spain coach Sergio Scariolo said. &ldquo;Probably this medal is the least expected, but to me, the most satisfactory. Built upon hard work, togetherness, team basketball, defensive effort, desire to overcome our limits ... and guts in the fourth quarter.&rdquo;
It was Spain&rsquo;s fifth consecutive win at the tournament, the last four of them coming by 10 points or less.
&ldquo;When you bring intensity to the game, anything can happen,&rdquo; said Usman Garuba, who had a team-high seven assists for Spain.
And it was Brown&rsquo;s highest-scoring game of the tournament, plus more than doubled his per-game average entering Friday; he was averaging 13.4 points in Spain&rsquo;s first seven games.
Dennis Schroder led all scorers with 30 points for Germany, but managed only two points in the fourth quarter. Franz Wagner and Andreas Obst each scored 15 for Germany, while Daniel Theis added 10.
&ldquo;The energy was amazing out there,&rdquo; Brown said. &ldquo;I don&rsquo;t think that crowd came to play tonight. Felt amazing from the jump. I felt like our guys felt amazing from the jump as well. Schroder came out, playing unbelievable, finished the game unbelievable as well. But it just took a lot of guts from our end.&rdquo;
Germany coach Gordie Herbert said losing momentum early in the fourth quarter was key.
&ldquo;We had a tough five, six minutes,&rdquo; Herbert said.
EuroBasket ends Sunday, and from there, Schroder is headed to Los Angeles. The agency that represents him, Priority Sports, said Friday that Schroder &mdash; who has averaged 21.6 points and 7.3 assists per game at EuroBasket &mdash; agreed on a $2.6 million contract with the Lakers for the coming season.

France sent a message on its way to grabbing a spot in the EuroBasket championship game and a showdown with Spain.

France tops Poland, Spain beats Germany in EuroBasket semis

Back. Forth. Back. Forth.
The Miami Heat want to see that pattern continue. The Boston Celtics hope to break that trend. And the team that prevails Wednesday night will be one game away from the NBA Finals.
The Eastern Conference finals has been nothing more than a series of mood swings, with matters set to resume with Game 5 on Wednesday in Miami. The top-seeded Heat and second-seeded Celtics are knotted up at two games apiece; the Heat rallied in the second half to take <a href="https://apnews.com/article/miami-heat-boston-celtics-nba-sports-jimmy-butler-5b5681ec485608add59e6eb15f24ee9f">Game 1,</a> Boston used a huge first-half run to respond and win <a href="https://apnews.com/article/boston-celtics-miami-heat-nba-sports-07cae0349b8cf097f37d7b4ba1a08e8f">Game 2,</a> Miami answered back in <a href="https://apnews.com/article/miami-heat-boston-celtics-nba-sports-jimmy-butler-c3b24c22ddc72b729933c338e2bf9581">Game 3</a> and the Celtics romped in <a href="https://apnews.com/article/miami-heat-boston-celtics-nba-sports-payton-pritchard-ed61092632890921ad8955f047a9c3c7">Game 4.</a>
&ldquo;It&rsquo;s not surprising,&rdquo; Boston coach Ime Udoka said Tuesday. &ldquo;Two teams that are always going to fight, not really beat themselves, give themselves a chance. I&rsquo;ve known Miami and (Heat coach Erik Spoelstra) for a while now and that&rsquo;s the epitome of who they are &mdash; toughness. Both teams have matched that energy coming off of losses, and now it&rsquo;s our turn to react better to a win.&rdquo;
The Celtics &mdash; even without defensive player of the year Marcus Smart, sidelined again, this time with a sprained ankle &mdash; left no doubt in Game 4, running out to an 18-1 lead to open the game and never coming close to giving up control.
Miami&rsquo;s starters combined for 18 points in Game 4 &mdash; yes, combined, the lowest such total for a starting five in a playoff game in at least 40 years. The Heat were without Tyler Herro because of a groin issue, Jimmy Butler didn&rsquo;t look right (though insisted he was) after missing half of Game 3 with knee soreness, and Kyle Lowry, Max Strus and P.J. Tucker combined to shoot 1 for 17.
It was ugly. But Spoelstra, somehow, still sees beauty in how the series has gone.
There hasn&rsquo;t been a lead change since the first quarter of Game 2; Boston grabbed control of that game and never let go, Miami took a huge early lead in Game 3 and held on late but never ceded the lead entirely and the Celtics took a stranglehold on Game 4 from the opening seconds.
&ldquo;What you&rsquo;re looking at is a great series,&rdquo; Spoelstra said. &ldquo;It&rsquo;s 2-2. You have to embrace that and come together, and hopefully this competition brings out the absolute best in all of us.&rdquo;
Game 5s, in a tie series, are always swing games. When a series is knotted at 2-2, the Game 5 winner in a best-of-seven series ultimately prevails 82% of the time.
&ldquo;It&rsquo;s kind of like a new series,&rdquo; Boston&rsquo;s Jayson Tatum said. &ldquo;Best of three.&rdquo;
FOUL MOODS
Boston took 40 more free throws than Miami in Games 3 and 4 combined; the differential was 24 in Game 4 alone. The issue is aggression (or lack thereof), Butler said. &ldquo;I think we have to be more of a forceful-type team, getting into the paint, not shying away from contact and playing from the inside out,&rdquo; Butler said. &ldquo;Whenever we do that and not shoot as many jumpers, we might get fouled a little bit.&rdquo;
QUARTER SCORES
The Celtics have lost three quarters and two games in this series. Of the 16 quarters so far in this matchup, the Celtics have won nine and tied four others. The two quarters that hurt Boston the most are obvious: the third quarter of Game 1 (Miami winning 39-14 to turn that game around) and the first quarter of Game 3 (Miami winning 39-18 to set the tone for that win). The other quarter that the Heat won was meaningless, with Miami outscoring Boston 30-26 in the fourth of the Game 4 blowout.
2-2 HISTORY
The Heat are 9-6 all-time in best-of-seven series that are tied after four games, including 1-0 this season after beating Philadelphia in the East semifinals. The Celtics are 34-13 in best-of-sevens that are 2-2 going into Game 5, also 1-0 this season &mdash; after losing Game 5 to Milwaukee in the East semifinals but winning the final two games of that series.
ODDSMAKERS SAY
Boston is favored by 1.5 points in Game 5 as of Tuesday, <a href="https://sportsbook.fanduel.com/navigation/nba">according to FanDuel Sportsbook.</a> That could change, of course, based on injury news and other variables. Miami is 4-1 outright as a home underdog this season and has been favored in 35 of its last 36 home games entering Wednesday.
INJURIES
The Heat are waiting to see if Herro can play in Game 5, and have been dealing with Butler (knee), Lowry (hamstring), Tucker (ankle), Strus (hamstring) and Gabe Vincent (hamstring) being at least mildly limited in recent games. Smart is still trying to get the soreness out of his sprained ankle, and Celtics center Robert Williams III &mdash; who has been slowed in this series by ongoing recovery from knee surgery &mdash; said he emerged from Game 4 without significant issues.

The Eastern Conference finals has been nothing more than a series of mood swings, with matters set to resume with Game 5.

Heat, Celtics now in a best-of-three to decide the East title

Back injuries are incredibly common in professional sports, particularly in the NBA. But just because they&rsquo;re common does not make them easy to overcome &mdash; and Ben Simmons can attest to that.
Simmons is a big, dynamic playmaker whose defensive versatility and speed set him apart from the vast majority of guards in the NBA. And, right or not, the Brooklyn Nets were relying on Simmons to contribute in their first-round playoff series against the Boston Celtics.
After a number of reports suggested a Simmons comeback was imminent, we now know that was not meant to be.
The media didn&rsquo;t help, as rumblings surfaced that Simmons was pain-free following a practice and could return to the team as early as Game 3. Simmons didn&rsquo;t help his case either, and at one point beckoned to ESPN's Nick Friedell to film him <a href="https://twitter.com/YahooSports/status/1515377280129806340?s=20&amp;t=dhtvXHosNXvt8FuOZ4T1kg" target="_blank" rel="noopener">dunking the basketball</a> after a recent practice.
We don&rsquo;t necessarily know why Simmons didn&rsquo;t play in the Nets&rsquo; first-round series. Maybe he suffered a setback, or maybe he wasn&rsquo;t as healthy as we were led to believe. Per The Athletic's Shams Charania, his mental health <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/shams-ben-simmons-did-not-return-because-of-mental-block" target="_blank" rel="noopener">was also a major factor</a>.
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But while reports about his potential availability misled many of us, <a href="https://rahulshahmd.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Dr. Rahul Shah</a>, a world renowned, board-certified orthopedic spine surgeon, cautioned against getting too excited from the very start.
&ldquo;Simmons received a shot a few weeks ago,&rdquo; Dr. Shah told BasketballNews.com in a Zoom interview in late March. &ldquo;If you&rsquo;re not seeing him practice, warming up with the team, 3-on-3s &mdash; if he&rsquo;s not doing that, you can be pretty certain he&rsquo;s not getting the relief he needs.&rdquo;
We last saw Simmons on the floor in the 2021 Eastern Conference semifinals, but he sat out of this season's training camp in hopes of pressuring the Philadelphia 76ers to trade him. The Sixers didn&rsquo;t relent... at least not quickly.
Simmons' hold-out cost him 54 games (and approximately $20 million, over which he filed a grievance in early April), and on Feb. 10, he was finally traded to Brooklyn.
As mentioned earlier, Simmons dealt with mental-health issues for the entirety of the 2021-22 season and possibly longer. It was initially <a href="https://twitter.com/ramonashelburne/status/1491841027153412096?s=20&amp;t=johir1tYZUwQ_s5HLqg4-Q" target="_blank" rel="noopener">reported by ESPN&rsquo;s Ramona Shelburne</a> that Simmons &ldquo;will continue to work with his therapist to get mentally ready to play in Brooklyn.&rdquo; But there was no mention of a back injury &mdash; at least not initially.
One of the main challenges in understanding where Simmons was in his recovery as of a week ago was that the injury wasn&rsquo;t proactively reported. Even Nets head coach Steve Nash seemed unclear on his status for much of the time following the trade.
Nash referred to Simmons&rsquo; back injury as &ldquo;a little soreness&rdquo; in late February. In mid-March, he had &ldquo;extremely high hopes&rdquo; that Simmons would return in the regular season. But in late March, Nash finally conceded that &ldquo;someone&rdquo; had reported that Simmons had a herniated disc.
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Was Nash being intentionally coy? Or was he truly unaware of the extent of Simmons&rsquo; back issues?
It&rsquo;s worth mentioning that Simmons has a mostly uneventful injury history as it relates to his back. The most recent occurrence was when he missed nine games with a nerve impingement in February 2020, but there have been no reported complications since.
Something clearly happened between June 2021 and February 2022.
<a href="https://rahulshahmd.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Dr. Shah</a> told BasketballNews.com that herniated discs typically require three-to-six months for a full recovery. Could Simmons have really injured his back after being traded? Or just before?
It&rsquo;s possible, but not relevant.
Regardless of when it happened, we can probably blame Simmons' hold-out for much of it. Training camp and the preseason are important to warm up for a relatively long season. Getting back into shape after skipping training camp and preseason and missing months of a season is nearly impossible &mdash; even for someone as athletic as Simmons.
Even worse, Simmons&rsquo; injury could have long-term implications for the Nets.
With Simmons having received an epidural shot in mid-March, Dr. Shah walked BasketballNews.com through the process and timeline of a typical recovery from a herniated disc.
&ldquo;Shots are one step before surgery, and that&rsquo;s why Simmons was having shots,&rdquo; Dr. Shah explained. "If that doesn&rsquo;t work, why not? It can be because it&rsquo;s the wrong problem, but it can also be that more has to be done. Typically, with surgery &mdash; when you go to that area &mdash; you identify where the disc is pressing on that nerve. You go in and basically trim down the area; you just remove a small portion. But if you&rsquo;re torquing on that area, there&rsquo;s a chance that more disc can come out.
&ldquo;So, you want to limit risk as much as you can. You want to always take the least amount of risk, but sometimes it&rsquo;s not enough. This operation is very effective but there is a 5-to-15% chance of more disc coming out in the future.&rdquo;
Dr. Shah also explained that, while surgery is generally successful, the risk it presents leads many people to try rehab and shots first.
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&ldquo;People return to twice as many games and play for twice as long with the surgery than without it,&rdquo; Dr. Shah explained. &ldquo;But there is a risk with it. And that&rsquo;s why most people don&rsquo;t go with it immediately.
&ldquo;So, for Ben Simmons, the likelihood of him needing this kind of surgery is probably reasonable, maybe 60% or 70%. And the real question is, &lsquo;Can he return back and play at the highest level with the shot?&rsquo; If he can&rsquo;t, you have your answer.&rdquo;
While the Nets&rsquo; season is done, Simmons could have decisions to make that will directly impact his ability to play next season. Granted, Simmons&rsquo; mental health is at least equally important as his physical health, especially to him; but if Simmons&rsquo; is to be successful, his back must be healthy.
According to the Mayo Clinic, a diskectomy &mdash; a surgical procedure to remove the damaged portion of a herniated disk in your spine &mdash; requires at least 6-to-8 weeks of recovery time. For context, Dwight Howard was expected to miss <a href="https://www.reuters.com/article/us-basketball-nba-was-howard/wizards-howard-says-hes-pain-free-after-surgery-idUSKCN1OI2K4" target="_blank" rel="noopener">2-to-3 months</a> following a microdiscectomy in late 2018, and Mike Dunleavy was projected to miss <a href="https://www.si.com/nba/2015/09/25/chicago-bulls-mike-dunleavy-back-surgery-injury-update" target="_blank" rel="noopener">8-to-10 weeks</a> in 2015 following the same procedure.
Simmons and the Nets have about five months until the start of training camp. So, while he technically has some time, Simmons should make a decision regarding how he'll proceed sooner than later.
In a recent <a href="https://hoopshype.com/lists/nets-rumors-kyrie-irving-kevin-durant-ben-simmons-steve-nash-bruce-brown-nicolas-claxton/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">HoopsHype podcast with the Daily News' Kristian Winfield</a>, Mike Scotto said the Nets hope Simmons can guard an opposing team&rsquo;s best player on any given night, regardless of position. In other words, in a given (hypothetical) week, Simmons will be expected to guard the likes of LeBron James, Ja Morant, Luka Doncic, Giannis Antetokounmpo and more.
That is a very tall task for any player, but it&rsquo;s downright impossible if said player has a lingering injury &mdash; especially in his back. And given what was given up to get Simmons to Brooklyn (and the fact that most teams around the league want nothing to do with him at the moment), the Nets have to hope he'll bounce back to his old self.&nbsp;
It might seem crazy, but Ben Simmons is still only 25. He truly could have a decade or more left in the NBA. Hopefully he's able to overcome all of his challenges &mdash; physical and otherwise.
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Dr. Rahul Shah says there was a 60-70% chance that Ben Simmons needed back surgery in late March. Could the Nets have known?

Ben Simmons' Brooklyn no-show was more predictable than we thought

LeBron James broke them all out &mdash; the fadeaway jumper, the fly-through-the-lane shot, some signature dunks, one over former teammate and friend Kevin Love, the patented pregame chalk toss.
Back home, in front of the fans who know him almost like family, James showed he's still the game's most dominant force.
James scored 38 points, notched another triple-double and sparked memories of his time in Cleveland, leading the Los Angeles Lakers to a 131-120 win Monday over the Cavaliers, who had a horrid defensive night.
It was James' only visit home this season &mdash; other than the All-Star Game last month &mdash; and the star from Akron thrilled fans who have followed him since he was a boy. He added 10 rebounds and 12 assists for his 105th career triple-double and sixth this season.
&ldquo;I&rsquo;m all out of words,&rdquo; Lakers coach Frank Vogel said. "I don&rsquo;t have any more. He was in control, had an all-time dunk on his old teammate &mdash; his old friend, which I&rsquo;m sure they enjoyed and will talk about. What a hell of a night.&rdquo;
James played 11 seasons in two stints with the Cavs, who are trying to get back to the playoffs for the first time since he left in 2018. The 37-year-old said playing in front of a Cleveland crowd will always bring out his best.
&ldquo;They&rsquo;ve seen pretty much my whole life in basketball,&rdquo; he said. "Either seen me or heard about it, who is this kid from 40 minutes south of here playing ball at age 9, 10, 11 , 12? Who is this LeBron kid? And they either drove down to see me or saw me when I came to Cleveland and played in AAU tournaments and seem me play in high school games in the Cleveland area, so they&rsquo;ve seen me for almost 30 years, since I picked up a basketball.
"That's the difference between this arena and every other arena in the world.&rdquo;
James is trying to keep the Lakers in the postseason picture in what to this point has been a disappointing season. They're ninth in the Western Conference, but as long as they have James, they've got a shot.
He has heard all the narratives about the Lakers &mdash; too old, too hurt and too disconnected &mdash; and can't be bothered.
&ldquo;None of that stuff matters to me,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;I&rsquo;m having a blast playing the game of basketball. Once I leave the arena, I leave it there. I&rsquo;m really having the time of my life right now. I&rsquo;m working through it and we&rsquo;re working through it and that&rsquo;s all that matters.&rdquo;
Russell Westbrook, who has had a poor season, had 20 and 11 assists, and D.J. Augustin added 20 points, making all six 3-pointers.
&ldquo;There is nothing better than shutting people up,&rdquo; Westbrook said.
Darius Garland scored 29 and added 17 assists for Cleveland, which came in leading Toronto by one game for the No. 6 spot in the East. The Cavs will play the Raptors on Thursday night.
Cleveland coach J.B. Bickerstaff was angry with how his young team performed.
&ldquo;We got caught up in the show," Bickerstaff said. "We allowed this moment to overtake us. You ask yourself were we really competing to win or were we just a part of it? I think tonight we were mostly just a part of it.&rdquo;
James scored five points as the Lakers opened the fourth quarter with a 12-2 run to go up by nine. Cleveland was still within striking distance when James, as he has done so many times to so many teams before, put the Cavs away with a thunderous dunk and jumper in the final 2:34.
After his postgame TV interview, James left slapping hands with fans on his way to the locker room.
James improved to 17-1 in games against the Cavs. He has averaged 29.6 points against Cleveland &mdash; his most against any opponent.
The four-time MVP and champion was cheered from the moment he ran onto the floor for warmups. He received a huge ovation during player introductions and again in a first-quarter timeout when the Cavs saluted him for becoming the No. 2 scorer in league history.
James waved, patted his heart, put his hands together as if in prayer and bowed toward the Cleveland fans.
He was just getting started.
TIP-INS
Lakers: Stanley Johnson scored all 12 of his points in the fourth. ... Anthony Davis, out since Feb. 16 with a foot sprain, got in an extended pregame workout on the floor. It's still unclear when &mdash; or if &mdash; he'll back back this season. ... G Talen Horton-Tucker (left ankle sprain) sat out for the second time in three games.
Cavaliers: All-Star center Jarrett Allen (broken finger) missed his eighth straight game. Allen is second in the NBA with a .677 field goal percentage and has enough makes to qualify for the season-ending leaders &hellip; G Rajon Rondo (sprained ankle) and F Dean Wade (knee soreness) were inactive for their fifth games in a row.
UP NEXT
Lakers: Host Philadelphia on Wednesday night.
Cavaliers: Visit Toronto on Thursday night.

LeBron James scored 38 points and notched another triple-double as the Lakers beat the Cavaliers 131-120 win on Monday night.

Home cookin': LeBron James leads Lakers over Cavs in Ohio return

DeMarcus Cousins, starting in place of ailing Nikola Jokic, scored a season-high 31 points and the Denver Nuggets bounced back from a loss to beat the struggling Houston Rockets 116-101 on Friday night.
Jokic, the reigning MVP, was held out because of a non-COVID-19 illness.
Cousins, a midseason acquisition by the Nuggets following his release by Milwaukee, found out he was starting for Jokic during the pre-game shootaround.
&ldquo;I was trying to take the best shots, trying to make the right play every possession,&rdquo; Cousins said. &ldquo;I play the game the right way. It was very satisfying and it&rsquo;s even better when you have a coach that believes in you, an organization that believes in you and teammates that have your back. That&rsquo;s all I&rsquo;ve been searching for on this journey. I&rsquo;ve found that right now and like I said earlier, I&rsquo;m going to leave everything on the floor.&rdquo;
JaMychal Green and Jeff Green each added 14 points apiece as Denver shook off a loss to Oklahoma City on Wednesday night for its seventh win in eight games.
Will Barton had 11 points, hitting two 3-pointers to pass JR Smith as the Nuggets&rsquo; career leader with 769.
Christian Wood had 22 points for Houston, and Jalen Green added 18. The Rockets have lost 12 straight.
Barton hit two 3-pointers a minute apart late in the third quarter to break the mark. The Nuggets called a timeout during their ensuing possession and Barton&rsquo;s milestone was flashed on the scoreboard, bringing the crowd to its feet with a roaring ovation that Barton acknowledged with an appreciative wave of his arms.
&ldquo;It was a surreal moment,&rdquo; Barton said. &ldquo;It&rsquo;s something you dream of as a kid, to one day make history at the biggest stage."
Cousins added a 3-pointer and a pair of free throws around a jumper by Garrison Mathews in the final 1:16 of the third period and Denver took a 17-point lead into the final quarter. &ldquo;They had the lead the whole game,&rdquo; said the Rockets&rsquo; Eric Gordon. "This is a game where you&rsquo;ve got to come in here and take it from them. You&rsquo;ve got to disrupt their rhythm somehow. Of course we&rsquo;re in the game but it&rsquo;s a different kind of energy and effort to really try to win the game and we just didn&rsquo;t have that tonight.&rdquo;
Cousins&rsquo; dunk, one of several that he had in the game, put the Nuggets up 103-89 with 4:43 left and Denver maintained a double-digit lead the rest of the way. Cousins was taken out of the game with just under two minutes remaining and got a hug from coach Michael Malone and an ovation from the crowd.
TIP-INS
Rockets: G Dennis Schroder missed a second consecutive game with a sprained right ankle. &hellip; Former Nuggets star Kenyon Martin was on hand in the stands to watch his son, Kenyon Martin Jr., play for the Rockets. &hellip; Houston has only seven wins in 34 road games.
Nuggets: G Austin Rivers also was ruled out of the game because of a non-COVID-19 illness. &hellip; F Zeke Nnaji remains sidelined due to bilateral knee soreness. &hellip; Cousins&rsquo; previous season high was 22 points against Dallas on Dec. 23 while with Milwaukee. &hellip; Denver swept its season series with the Rockets 3-0.
UP NEXT
Rockets: Host Memphis on Sunday night.
Nuggets: Host New Orleans on Sunday night.

DeMarcus Cousins, starting in place of ailing Nikola Jokic, scored a season-high 31 points.

Cousins leads in Jokic's absence, Nuggets beat Rockets

PHILADELPHIA (AP) — Joel Embiid had a triple-double of 40 points, 14 rebounds and 10 assists along with a highlight-reel jam, and the Philadelphia 76ers beat the Cleveland Cavaliers 103-93 on Saturday night.
The Sixers are awaiting the debut of James Harden, who was acquired before the trade deadline.
Tyrese Maxey added 16 points for Philadelphia, which has won both games since Thursday’s blockbuster trade that sent disgruntled Ben Simmons to Brooklyn for Harden.
Harden arrived in Philadelphia on Saturday, and 76ers general manager Daryl Morey posted a video on social media of his airport embrace with the three-time NBA scoring champion. Harden was evaluated by the team’s medical staff on Saturday, but not present at the arena for the game. Fans cheered loudly when a video showing Harden highlights, which ended with him in a photoshopped 76ers jersey, was posted on the video screen for the second straight night.
Embiid’s first-half dunk also got plenty of play on the big board. The 7-foot MVP candidate brought the house down with 1:47 left in the first half with a one-handed throw-down over Jarrett Allen that had fans – and even players – putting their hands to their heads.
He posted a picture of the dunk on his social media accounts.
“It was crazy, it was cool,” Embiid said. “I was finally able to make my dreams come true.”
Embiid finished 11 of 22 from the field, including 4 of 5 from 3-point range, and made 14 of 15 free throws. He has scored at least 25 points in 31 consecutive games.
Darius Garland scored 27 points to lead Cleveland.
The already electric atmosphere in Philadelphia created by Embiid’s presence and nightly “M-V-P! M-V-P!” chants is going to ramp up even more when Harden takes the court, which could be as early as Tuesday’s home game against Boston. Philadelphia also plays Thursday at Milwaukee before a hiatus for the All-Star break.
“He’s going to make the game easy for all of us, especially me,” Embiid said. “I don’t get a lot of easy shots. I have to work for most of them. I hope he’s going to make my game easier.”
The 76ers looked good without Harden against upstart Cleveland, which entered the contest one game back of first place in the Eastern Conference but played catch-up all night.
Philadelphia came out firing, making 11 of its first 14 shots, to double up the Cavs, 30-15 in the early going. The Cavs did manage to go up two points in the third quarter, but Embiid was just too much and Philadelphia pulled away during crunch time.
“Every team that is in front of you, you always want to see where we’re at,” Embiid said. “Good to get this first one in and see how we compare to them.”
The defeat was a good lesson for the Cavaliers, according to coach J.B. Bickerstaff.
“The intensity at which you’re going to have to play at in order to compete with teams like this,” he said. “It was a clear message from the beginning of the game the intensity they were coming with. These are the tests we talk about and these are the lessons we have to learn. It’s a matter of playing with force and playing with speed.”
RIVERS ON HARDEN
Sixers coach Doc Rivers spoke to Harden on Saturday, but didn’t have a timetable for his debut with the 76ers, saying it would depend on his health. Harden missed four straight games before the trade with a hamstring injury.
Once healthy, Rivers is excited to get the former NBA MVP on the court. In their conversation, Rivers wanted to put Harden at ease and wanted to let him know the importance of working together in the hopes of winning the franchise’s first title since 1983.
Rivers said Harden would enter the lineup when healthy, even if it means he doesn’t have any practice time with the 76ers.
TRAINER’S ROOM
Cavaliers: Lauri Markkanen (sprained ankle) missed his 10th in a row, but looked fluid while working out by himself before the game. … Garland played for just the second time in the last seven. He’s been battling lower back soreness.
76ers: Rivers said the team’s medical staff wasn’t concerned about Embiid’s right wrist, which was wrapped after Friday’s 100-87 win over Oklahoma City. Embiid played with tape on his right wrist. The Philadelphia star grabbed at his lower back after being fouled by Allen with 1:52 left in the second quarter, but clearly was fine when he dunked five seconds later.
TIP-INS
Cavaliers: This was the first of four meetings between the Eastern Conference contenders. They’ll play March 4 in Philadelphia and March 16 and April 3 in Cleveland. … Caris LeVert, playing in his third game since being acquired from Indiana on Sunday, scored 11 points. … Fell to 17-13 on the road.
76ers: Paul Millsap, also acquired from the Nets along with Harden, was in attendance and received a warm reception when shown on the video board. … Improved to 16-12 at home. … Embiid has played six in a row after a one-game rest on Jan. 31 that followed 21 consecutive contests.
UP NEXT
Cavaliers: At Atlanta on Tuesday.
76ers: Host Boston on Tuesday.
___
More AP NBA coverage: https://apnews.com/hub/NBA and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports
765 words

Joel Embiid had a triple-double of 40 points, 14 rebounds and 10 assists along with a highlight-reel jam, and Philadelphia beat Cleveland 103-93.

Embiid's dunk, triple-double highlight 76ers' win over Cavs

Tommy Beer is back with his latest version of BasketballNews.com's NBA Power Rankings. To read last week's version, <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/nba-power-rankings-suns-remain-redhot-bucks-continue-to-climb" target="_blank" rel="noopener">click here</a>.
The Denver Nuggets are red-hot, thanks primarily to the MVP-caliber play of Nikola Jokic, while the Brooklyn Nets have gone ice-cold, losing 11 of their past 17 games.&nbsp;
1. Phoenix Suns (40-9) &harr;️ Last Week: 1&nbsp;
With their victory over the San Antonio Spurs on Sunday night, the Suns became the first team in the league to reach the 40-win plateau. In the process, they guaranteed themselves the Western Conference's best record going into the All-Star break, which means head coach Monty Williams will coach the West in Cleveland later this month. And <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/are-the-suns-somehow-flying-under-the-radar" target="_blank" rel="noopener">as valuable as soon-to-be All-Stars such as Chris Paul and Devin Booker have been</a> this year, Phoenix has received surprisingly solid contributions from mid-season signing Bismack Biyombo, who is averaging 14.1 points and 10.4 rebounds over the Suns' last seven games. Phoenix is undefeated, a perfect 12-0, in the 12 games Biyombo has appeared in this season.&nbsp;
2. Golden State Warriors (38-13) &harr;️ Last Week: 2 
Steph Curry had been ice cold (at least by his standards) over the first 15 games the Warriors played in January and the first three quarters of Golden State's game vs. the Houston Rockets on Monday night. But in the final frame, Steph played like Steph, scoring 21 points in the fourth quarter to lead the Warriors to their sixth consecutive win. "We've seen Steph do that a million times," head coach Steve Kerr said after the game. "It was bound to happen even though it's been a couple of weeks or whatever. Not surprising, but fun to see him shake free and have a game like he did." &nbsp; 3. Memphis Grizzlies (35-18) &harr;️ Last Week: 3
Ja Morant poured in 37 points and Desmond Bane scored a career-high 34, but it wasn't enough to knock off the Philadelphia 76ers on the road Monday night. Remarkably, it was the seventh straight game with at least 30 points for Morant. That's the longest such streak in Grizzlies franchise history. During this seven-game span, Ja is averaging 35.4 points (while shooting over 50%), 7.3 assists, 7.1 rebounds and 2.1 three-pointers.&nbsp;
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-theme="dark">
The <a href="https://twitter.com/sixers?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@sixers</a> got the win in OT while Tyrese Maxey &amp; Ja Morant both dropped 30+points in their duel!<a href="https://twitter.com/JaMorant?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@JaMorant</a>: 37 PTS, 5 REB, AST<a href="https://twitter.com/TyreseMaxey?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@TyreseMaxey</a>: 33 PTS, 8 AST, 4 BLK <a href="https://t.co/Fcgh05taaI">pic.twitter.com/Fcgh05taaI</a>
&mdash; NBA (@NBA) <a href="https://twitter.com/NBA/status/1488512620630061060?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 1, 2022</a></blockquote>

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4. Philadelphia 76ers (31-19) ⬆️ Last Week: 9
With MVP-contender Joel Embiid resting&nbsp; Monday night vs. Memphis, the Sixers needed Andre Drummond and the rest of the squad to step up. And that's just what they got. Drummond racked up 16 points and 23 rebounds, Tobias Harris scored 31 and Tyrese Maxey pumped in a season-high with 33 points to go along with 8 assists, 4 blocks and 3 assists in the impressive overtime win over the Grizzlies.
5. Miami Heat (32-19) ⬇️ Last Week: 4
Miami was extremely shorthanded in its loss to the Boston Celtics on Monday, forced to play without Jimmy Butler (toe), P.J. Tucker (knee) and point guard Kyle Lowry (personal). The Heat, who still have five contests left on their arduous six-game road trip, plays in Toronto on Tuesday, the second night of a back-to-back. &nbsp;
6. Chicago Bulls (31-18) ⬆️ Last Week: 8
The NBA announced last week that DeMar DeRozan will be a starter in this year's All-Star game. It's the first time a Bull has been a starter since 2017, and will mark DeRozan's fifth appearance as an All-Star. On the season, he's averaging 26.4 points per game (his highest scoring average since 2016-17) and is the only player in the league averaging over 25.0 points while making less than one three-pointer per contest.
7. Denver Nuggets (28-21) ⬆️ Last Week: 12
The Nuggets are rolling right now. They've won five consecutive contests (tied for their longest winning streak this season), including starting their current six-game road trip with four straight victories. During this five-game streak, Nikola Jokic is somehow averaging a triple-double (27.0 points, 12.4 rebounds and 10.0 assists) despite logging fewer than 33 minutes a night.
8. Cleveland Cavaliers (31-20) ⬇️ Last Week: 6
The Cavs were embarrassed Sunday in Detroit and were missing Darius Garland due to a sore lower back on Monday, but Brandon Goodwin stepped in and stepped up, finishing with a career-high 21 points in a win over the Pelicans. Cleveland trailed by 10 points in the final frame, but came back to secure a much-needed victory over New Orleans.&nbsp;
9. Milwaukee Bucks (31-21) ⬇️ Last Week: 5
The Bucks lost 2 of the 3 games they played last week, and their only victory was a home win over the struggling New York Knicks. Sunday's loss to the Nuggets in Milwaukee was particularly disheartening, as Denver humiliated the home team 136-100. The Bucks will look to get back on track Tuesday in Minnesota.&nbsp;
10. Dallas Mavericks (29-22) &harr;️ Last Week: 10
The Mavs had won 3 of 4 (and 7 of 9) before suffering a disappointing loss to the Magic in Orlando on Sunday. The defeat can't be pinned on Luka Doncic, who stuffed the stat sheet with 34 points, 12 rebounds and 11 assists. It was the 43rd triple-double of his career, moving him into a tie for 10th-most triple-doubles in NBA history, which is incredible considering the kid is just 22 years old.&nbsp;
11. Utah Jazz (30-21) ⬇️ Last Week: 7
The Jazz, who have lost 9 of their last 11 games, received devastating news Monday. The team confirmed that Joe Ingles will miss the remainder of the 2021-22 season (and a chunk of the 2022-23 season) after an MRI revealed he tore the ACL in his left knee. Ingles, who was the runner-up to teammate Jordan Clarkson for the NBA Sixth Man of the Year Award last season, is in the final year of a $13 million contract.&nbsp;
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12. Brooklyn Nets (29-20) ⬇️ Last Week: 11
The Nets have lost four games in a row, and things don't get any easier moving forward; they have four games left on their West Coast road swing, which resumes Tuesday night in Phoenix. In the 17 games they've played dating back to Dec. 30, Brooklyn is just 6-11. That's the third-worst record in the Eastern Conference, behind only the Magic and Indiana Pacers.&nbsp;
13. Charlotte Hornets (28-23) &harr;️ Last Week: 13
The Hornets are 2-3 over their past five games, and even in their wins, they have been porous defensively. The Hornets allowed their opponents to score at least 113 points in each of those five contests.&nbsp;
14. Toronto Raptors (25-23) ⬇️ Last Week: 17
The Raps have registered two extremely impressive victories over the past few days. On Saturday, they outlasted the Heat in an epic three-overtime slugfest in Miami, and then beat the red-hot Hawks in Atlanta on Monday night.&nbsp;
15. Boston Celtics (27-25) ⬆️ Last Week: 16
The C's took advantage of a banged-up Heat team Monday, beating Miami by 30 points. It was Boston's fourth victory in their last five games. Jaylen Brown is averaging 29.0 points, 7.0 rebounds and 3.5 made treys over his last four contests. &nbsp;
16. Atlanta Hawks (24-26) ⬆️ Last Week: 20
Playing without Trae Young, who was sidelined by a right shoulder contusion he suffered on Sunday, the Hawks had their seven-game winning streak snapped Monday night. Delon Wright was inserted into the starting lineup but struggled, shooting just 1 of 7 en route to 4 points, 7 assists and 4 rebounds.
17. Minnesota Timberwolves (25-25) ⬇️ Last Week: 14
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-theme="dark">
back on track. KAT - 31 pts. / 11 reb. / 10 ast. / 2 stl. Jaden - 22 pts. / 2 reb. / 4 ast. Ant - 15 pts. / 3 reb. / 4 ast. / 1 stl. J-Mac - 12 pts. / 1 reb. / 4 ast. / 4 stl. Jaylen - 10 pts. / 1 reb. / 5 ast. TP - 10 pts. / 7 reb. / 1 ast. / 2 stl. <a href="https://t.co/YP46pW4vjL">pic.twitter.com/YP46pW4vjL</a>
&mdash; Minnesota Timberwolves (@Timberwolves) <a href="https://twitter.com/Timberwolves/status/1488003858261413890?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 31, 2022</a></blockquote>

<script src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js"></script>

After losing back-to-back games on Thursday and Friday (at Golden State and Phoenix), Karl-Anthony Towns got the Wolves back on track Sunday, erupting for 31 points, 11 rebounds, 10 assists (vs. just a single turnover) and 2 steals in the Timberwolves 20-point victory over the Jazz. It was KAT's second career triple-double. Jaden McDaniels also chipped in 22 points (on perfect 9 of 9 shooting), 4 assists and 3 treys in 27 minutes off the bench.&nbsp;
18. Los Angeles Lakers (24-27) ⬇️ Last Week: 15
It was reported over the weekend that LeBron James underwent an MRI that revealed general swelling in his knee. James has missed each of the Lakers' past three contests due to the injury and is expected to miss more. With L.A. having lost each of the three games LeBron sat out last week, it will be very interesting to see if the team can stay around .500.&nbsp;
19. Los Angeles Clippers (26-27) ⬆️ Last Week: 21 
On Monday, the Clippers wrapped an eight-game road swing with a loss to the Pacers in Indiana; however, the Clippers went a respectable 4-4 on the trip. They now return home to host the Lakers and Bucks later this week before embarking on another three-game road trip.
20. Washington Wizards (23-26) ⬇️ Last Week: 18
The Wizards are riding a five-game losing streak and are staring down the barrel of a brutal back-to-back. They have to play the Bucks in Milwaukee on Tuesday and the surging Sixers in Philly on Wednesday. Oh, and the Wiz will be without their best player, Bradley Beal, who is nursing a sprained left wrist.
21. New York Knicks (24-27) ⬇️ Last Week: 19
On Monday, the Knicks snapped a three-game losing skid by beating the Sacramento Kings in MSG. Quentin Grimes chipped in 14 points off the bench in the victory and played very well on the defensive end. The rookie is averaging more than 24 minutes a night over New York's last four games, as he has secured a spot in coach Tom Thibodeau's rotation due to his impressive, all-around skill set.&nbsp;
22. Portland Trail Blazers (21-30)&nbsp;&harr;️ Last Week: 22
Larry Nance Jr. has been sidelined since Jan. 6 due to right knee inflammation, but head coach Chauncey Billups told reporters over the weekend that Nance "is progressing every day" and "getting better." However, Billups said there is still no firm timeline for Nance's return.&nbsp;
23. New Orleans Pelicans (18-32)&nbsp;&harr;️ Last Week: 23
Brandon Ingram has been sidelined five straight games due to a right ankle sprain, and the Pelicans have lost each of the last four contests he's missed. There is a possibility he returns to action Tuesday night when New Orleans travels to Detroit.&nbsp;
24. San Antonio Spurs (19-32) ⬆️ Last Week: 26
Despite playing without Derrick White (rest), Dejounte Murray (left knee contusion) and Jakob Poeltl (low back soreness) Sunday in Phoenix, the Spurs hung tough with the Suns. In fact, they had a 12-point lead in the fourth quarter before Phoenix sprinted past them at the finish. Murray has been playing at an incredibly high level this month, averaging 22.9 points, 10.1 assists and 9.4 rebounds over his previous 10 games.&nbsp;
25. Indiana Pacers (19-33) ⬇️ Last Week: 24
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Isaiah Jackson had 26 points and 10 rebounds in his first NBA start. It's so easy for him to be productive just by embracing rolling hard and playing above the rim. Important to note that he made a three too <a href="https://t.co/HOqDJ77DL7">pic.twitter.com/HOqDJ77DL7</a>
&mdash; Wilko (@wilkomcv) <a href="https://twitter.com/wilkomcv/status/1488372533673951235?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 1, 2022</a></blockquote>

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Domantas Sabonis entered the COVID-19 health and safety protocols on Monday afternoon. However, the Pacers were still able to beat the Clippers that night, thanks mainly to a breakout performance from rookie Isaiah Jackson. With Goga Bitadze (foot) and Oshae Brissett (right ankle soreness) also sidelined, Jackson made his first career start and responded with 26 points, 10 rebounds and 2 blocks.
26. Sacramento Kings (18-34)&nbsp;⬇️ Last Week: 25
The Kings have lost seven in a row, and Monday's loss to the Knicks in New York was their 12th straight defeat on the road. It's been two months since their last road victory, which came on Dec. 1. De'Aaron Fox (sore left ankle) has missed each of Sacramento's last four games, but head coach Alvin Gentry said Monday that Fox is "feeling much better" and is "not concerned" about the injury being a long-term issue.&nbsp;
27. Oklahoma City Thunder (15-34)&nbsp;⬆️ Last Week: 29
Thunder fans got some bad news over the weekend when it was announced that Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, who suffered a right ankle sprain Friday against the Pacers, will be out at least through the All-Star Break.&nbsp;
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28. Detroit Pistons (12-37) &harr;️ Last Week: 28
Cade Cunningham missed all 10 of his field-goal attempts and was scoreless in the first half of Sunday's game vs. the Cavs. However, Cunningham put the Pistons on his back after halftime, scoring 19 points over the final two quarters to lead Detroit to an impressive victory over Cleveland. He finished the win with 10 rebounds, 10 assists (vs. just 2 turnovers) and 3 steals.
29. Orlando Magic (11-40) ⬆️ Last Week: 30
The Magic have won 3 of their last 4, with two of their most impressive victories of the season coming on successive Sundays (wins over the Bulls and Mavs). Franz Wagner poured in 18 points to help beat Dallas, including the clutch layup in the final minute. Over his last five games, Wagner is averaging 19.2 points and 4.0 assists while shooting a scorching 61.3% from the floor, 41.7% from downtown and 93.8% from the free-throw line
30. Houston Rockets (14-36) ⬇️ Last Week: 27
Christian Wood did his part, tallying 24 points, 13 rebounds, 2 assists, 2 steals, and a block on Monday vs. Warriors, but it wasn't enough to knock off Golden State. The Rockets' loss to the Warriors was Houston's fourth consecutive defeat and their 11th in a row at home.
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Tommy Beer checks in with an installment of BasketballNews.com's NBA Power Rankings.

NBA Power Rankings: Nuggets and 76ers on the come up, Nets sliding

If there&rsquo;s one thing the Brooklyn Nets aren&rsquo;t short on, it&rsquo;s basketball talent. For the team, that&rsquo;s a good thing.&nbsp;
For Paul Millsap personally? Not so much.
Now in his 16th year, after just 24 games in Brooklyn, the 36-year-old veteran big man is looking for a new opportunity.&nbsp;
Since he signed on in Brooklyn last summer, the Nets have seen Nicolas Claxton and Day&rsquo;Ron Sharpe become reliable role players and LaMarcus Aldridge return from retirement. Meanwhile, 32-year-old Blake Griffin has maintained his place in the rotation, effectively leaving Millsap as the odd man out.&nbsp;
Of the five, he averages the fewest minutes per game (11.3 &mdash; a career low) and is the only one who hasn&rsquo;t started a single contest. Considering his pedigree, his unhappiness should come as no surprise.&nbsp;
Millsap effectively lost his job with the Denver Nuggets after the team acquired Aaron Gordon, and he chose to sign with Brooklyn because the team was perceived to have a shallow front court.&nbsp;
Surprisingly, though, it is Millsap who has drowned in the rotation.
With the NBA&rsquo;s Feb. 10 trade deadline approaching, there are a few teams which could both afford Millsap the opportunity to play meaningful minutes and contend for a championship. Whether the Nets trade him or buy him out, Millsap will eventually find a new home this season. If he&rsquo;s fortunate, it&rsquo;ll be with one of these clubs&hellip;
Milwaukee Bucks
After starting 70 games for the NBA champion Bucks last season, incumbent starter Brook Lopez hasn&rsquo;t appeared in a game since October. Currently recovering from back surgery, the Bucks are hopeful that Lopez can return before the playoffs begin, but as of now the team is rather thin up front.
Bobby Portis has filled in admirably since Lopez has gone down, and he&rsquo;s played well enough as a starter for head coach Mike Budenholzer to wonder whether Portis should retain the starting job even after Lopez returns. On the season, Portis is shooting a remarkable 41.4% from three-point territory. Although it&rsquo;s an appreciable decrease from the 47% he shot last season, that he&rsquo;s come close to maintaining his proficiency is an accomplishment, considering he&rsquo;s taking nearly twice as many attempts per game (4.5 this season compared to 2.4 last season).
It&rsquo;s not difficult to imagine a scenario where Millsap is able to give coach Budenholzer some minutes up front, especially considering the gaping hole that&rsquo;s been left in the team&rsquo;s rotation with Lopez&rsquo;s injury.
Phoenix Suns
Over the past 15 years, one of the constants in the NBA is that Chris Paul is going to find a way to maximize the players and the talent around him. We&rsquo;ve seen it since CP3 was suiting up in New Orleans, and we&rsquo;ve seen it most recently with Bismack Biyombo.&nbsp;
Unfortunately for the big man, Biyombo&rsquo;s career story &mdash; at least before arriving in Phoenix &mdash; has mostly been one about unfulfilled expectations. He was not re-signed by the rebuilding Charlotte Hornets after his contract expired last season and went unsigned for the first-half of this season.
Because of injuries to Deandre Ayton and JaVale McGee, the Suns found themselves with a need in the frontcourt and, without fail, Biyombo has experienced quite the resurgence. Through nine games in Phoenix, he is averaging what would be a career-high 10.8 points per game on 70.2% shooting from the field. He&rsquo;s benefited greatly from playing alongside Paul, as well as with units that share the ball and play relatively fast.
According to Basketball-Reference.com, approximately 67% of Biyombo&rsquo;s field goal attempts come within three feet of the basket, with another 30% coming from 3-10 feet.&nbsp;
In other words, he&rsquo;s excelled by providing the team with an inside presence that the Suns are sorely missing without Ayton, and it&rsquo;s conceivable that Millsap could provide a similar interior offensive presence.&nbsp;
Dallas Mavericks
After hovering around .500 for the early part of the season, the Mavericks are 10-3 in 2022. Both Luka Doncic and Kristaps Porzingis have missed a fair share of games this season, but recent reports suggest that the Mavericks &mdash; who want to continue to build around their duo &mdash; are open for business.&nbsp;
In recent weeks, there have been reports citing Myles Turner and Dennis Schroder as players the Mavericks have some level of interest in, but Turner recently suffered a stress reaction in his left foot that may sideline him until after the trade deadline.
To make matters worse, Tim Hardaway Jr. fractured the fifth metatarsal in his left foot and is expected to be out for an extended period of time. Millsap won&rsquo;t necessarily help absorb any of the available minutes in the Mavericks&rsquo; backcourt, but he would help the team by providing another serviceable body who can help replace the 14.2 points per game they&rsquo;ll lose with Hardaway out of the lineup.
Along with Porzingis, Dorian Finney-Smith, Dwight Powell and Maxi Kleber have played most of the available big man minutes for Jason Kidd&rsquo;s team. It&rsquo;s difficult to imagine Millsap, even at 36 years old, not being able to provide value to a front line featuring those three.&nbsp;
With Turner potentially off the board and Hardaway on the shelf, Dallas will certainly have to find help elsewhere, especially with the team finally beginning to click after its season got off to a rough start.
Chicago Bulls
Patrick Williams was lost for the season back in October, and in January the Bulls have had players dropping like flies.&nbsp;
Zach LaVine only missed five games and returned to the lineup on Monday night after suffering a minor left knee injury, but neither Alex Caruso nor Lonzo Ball were as fortunate. Ball and Caruso will each miss the next 6-8 weeks, with Derrick Jones Jr. out for a similar time frame. Meanwhile, Nikola Vucevic is battling left knee soreness.
The Bulls need bodies, and it would help if they happened to be big.
Enter Millsap.
Although there probably won&rsquo;t be many shots available for Millsap, he would provide immediate help to a Bulls front line that ranks 28th in the league in rebounds.
DeMar DeRozan has spent some time at power forward for Chicago this season, which isn&rsquo;t ideal. DeRozan &mdash; who has slowed down in recent weeks after being mentioned among MVP candidates earlier this season &mdash; would be better served by having another big in the lineup.
Although Chicago will be without Ball and Caruso for the foreseeable future, the team will need another big body or two if it hopes to challenge the likes of Milwaukee and Brooklyn for the Eastern Conference. Millsap could help.
Utah Jazz
Rudy Gobert and Hassan Whiteside have proven to be a formidable tandem patrolling the paint for the Jazz, and they&rsquo;ve also proven that a team can still find success in today&rsquo;s NBA by playing traditional big men.
Although Millsap wouldn&rsquo;t provide the same spacing as Bojan Bogdanovic or Rudy Gay, he would provide the team with some needed insurance in the event that Gobert or Whiteside went down for an extended period of time.&nbsp;
Aside from the fact that Millsap began his career in Utah, he would also facilitate some offensive balance for the team &mdash; according to NBA.com, the Jazz score 38.6% of their points from three-point territory, which ranks third in the league. With respect to points scored in the paint, they rank 16th, with just 42.4%.
Millsap still possesses a back-to-basket game and could help Utah in one of the areas they need to improve.
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Moke Hamilton examines some of the teams that should take a close look at acquiring Paul Millsap from the Nets.

Five teams that could benefit from a Paul Millsap trade

Tommy Beer is back with his latest version of BasketballNews.com's NBA Power Rankings. To read last week's version, <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/nba-power-rankings-memphis-grizzlies-jump-into-the-top-3" target="_blank" rel="noopener">click here</a>.
The Memphis Grizzlies are tied for second-most wins in the Western Conference, and the Cleveland Cavaliers are tied for the second-most wins in the East. Just like we all predicted back in October, right?&nbsp;
1. Phoenix Suns (34-9)&nbsp;⬆️ Last Week: 2
Devin Booker put on a show Monday night, pouring in a season-high 48 points to go along with 6 rebounds, 5 assists, 3 steals and bo turnovers in the Suns' victory over the San Antonio Spurs. It was Phoenix's fifth straight victory on the road and the team's 34th overall win this season &mdash; three more than any other team in the league.&nbsp;
2. Memphis Grizzlies (31-15) ⬆️ Last Week: 3
Memphis had its 11-game winning streak snapped Friday by the Dallas Mavericks, but got right back in the win column Sunday courtesy of a dominant victory over the Chicago Bulls. Ja Morant had 25 for the Grizz, as did Desmond Bane. While Morant has been lavished with praise nationwide, it seems Bane continues to fly under the radar. But, make no mistake, he's been crucial to Memphis' recent success. Over the team's last 15 games, Bane is averaging 20.9 points, 4.7 boards, 3.5 made treys (on 44.5% shooting) and 1.4 steals.&nbsp;
3. Golden State Warriors (31-12) ⬇️ Last Week: 1
Dealing with a myriad of injuries, the Warriors have hit a rough patch and have lost 3 of their last 4 games. Golden State announced Sunday that Draymond Green will miss at least the next two weeks due to left calf tightness and a lower back ailment. Stephen Curry was unable to play Sunday after injuring his right hand Friday night. However, Steph only experienced minor soreness and is expected to play Tuesday against the Detroit Pistons.
4. Miami Heat (28-16)&nbsp;⬆️ Last Week: 6
The Heat, who have been winning even while missing some of their key starters, welcomed back Bam Adebayo in Monday's win over the Raptors. Bam, who had missed 22 games due to a thumb injury, registered 14 points, 9 rebounds and 2 assists in 32 minutes. "You can see his energy out there," Miami coach Erik Spoelstra said of Adebayo after the game. "He makes us different." Another player that makes the Heat different is Jimmy Butler, who finished with 19 points, 10 assists and 10 rebounds on Monday. It was his ninth triple-double as a member of the Heat.
5. Chicago Bulls (27-14)&nbsp;⬇️ Last Week: 4
The Bulls were forced to play without Zach LaVine (left knee), Lonzo Ball (left knee soreness) and Alex Caruso (foot, conditioning) in Sunday's loss at Memphis. Fortunately, head coach Billy Donovan said that Caruso would practice both Monday and Tuesday, and that Chicago coaches and doctors would then decide if he is ready to return. Donovan also noted that Ball flew back to Chicago to have the knee looked at by a specialist.
6. Cleveland Cavaliers (27-18) ⬆️ Last Week: 10
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Darius Garland continued his late All-Star push yesterday: 22 Points 6 Rebounds 12 Assists 2 Steals 10/19 FG 2/5 3PT +6 In 36 minutes of action Vs the Brooklyn Nets.<a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/LetEmKnow?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#LetEmKnow</a> <a href="https://t.co/01kUQXgvDe">pic.twitter.com/01kUQXgvDe</a>
&mdash; Mack Perry (@DevaronPerry) <a href="https://twitter.com/DevaronPerry/status/1483420265065459715?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 18, 2022</a></blockquote>

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Darius Garland was named the Eastern Conference Player of the Week after leading the Cavs to an NBA-best 4-0 record last week (with all four victories on the road against Western Conference opponents) while averaging 20.5 points, 6.0 rebounds and 12.8 assists. As an encore, Garland racked up 22 points, 12 assists, 6 rebounds and 2 steals in Monday's 114-107 win over the Nets.&nbsp;
7. Utah Jazz (29-15)&nbsp;⬇️ Last Week: 5
Utah's loss to the Lakers on Monday night in Los Angeles was the Jazz's fifth defeat in their last six games. Fortunately for Utah, they return home Wednesday to take on the Houston Rockets and then have another winnable home game Friday, when they host the Pistons. &nbsp;&nbsp;
8. Milwaukee Bucks (27-19) ⬇️ Last Week: 7
The Bucks have surprisingly dropped 4 of their last 5 games, including a disappointing loss to the struggling Atlanta Hawks on Monday, in which Milwaukee blew an 11-point lead with less than nine minutes to play. Jrue Holiday has missed each of these five contests due to left ankle soreness.
9. Brooklyn Nets (27-16)&nbsp;⬇️ Last Week: 8
Kevin Durant injured his knee in the second quarter of Saturday's victory over the New Orleans Pelicans. KD underwent an MRI on Sunday and was diagnosed with a sprained left medial collateral ligament (MCL). The team announced Durant is "expected to return to full strength after a period of rehabilitation." According to ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski, there is "optimism within the organization" that KD will be able to return to action after a 4-to-6-week rehab period. Kyrie Irving stepped up and delivered 27 points, 9 assists and 7 rebounds on Monday in Cleveland, but Brooklyn still lost to the Cavaliers.&nbsp;
10. Dallas Mavericks (25-19) ⬆️ Last Week: 12
In Monday's victory over the Oklahoma City Thunder, Luka Doncic had 20 points, 12 assists, 11 rebounds, 3 steals and 3 blocks. It was the 41st triple-double of his short career, which is one more than the other 349 players who have ever played for the Mavericks combined.&nbsp;
11. Philadelphia 76ers (25-18) ⬇️ Last Week: 9
The Sixers had won 9 of 10 before getting buzzed by the Washington Wizards in D.C. on Monday afternoon. Philly was playing without defensive specialist Matisse Thybulle; the team announced Sunday that Thybulle underwent an MRI, which revealed a sprained right shoulder. He'll miss at least one week.&nbsp;
12. Charlotte Hornets (24-20)&nbsp;⬇️ Last Week: 11
LaMelo Ball was unable to play on Monday vs. the New York Knicks, but with Miles Bridges lighting up the 'Bockers, Charlotte didn't need its young point guard. Bridges had just one point less (22) than the entire Knicks team in the first quarter. He finished with a career-high 38 points to go along with 12 rebounds, 5 assists, 5 triples, a steal, a block and just one turnover. Bridges is the sixth player this season to record a career-high against the Knicks at Madison Square Garden.
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13. Denver Nuggets (22-20) ⬆️ Last Week: 14
Nikola Jokic once again did all he could Sunday night vs. the Jazz, registering a 25-point, 15-rebound, 14-assist triple-double, but it wasn't enough to push the Nuggets past Utah. It was his ninth trip-dub this season (tying him with Russell Westbrook for the league lead) and the 66th of his career.&nbsp;
14. Washington Wizards (23-21)&nbsp;⬆️ Last Week: 17
Kyle Kuzma was at it again on Monday, tallying 15 points, 16 rebounds, 4 assists and 3 blocks in a win over the Sixers. Over the Wizards' past 10 games, Kuz is averaging a whopping 24.1 points, 12.1 rebounds, 3.4 assists and 1.6 treys while shooting 53.4% from the floor.&nbsp;
15. Toronto Raptors (21-20) ⬇️ Last Week: 13
Despite Monday's loss to the Heat, the Raptors have reached the season's midpoint with a 21-20 record. It's the eighth time in the last nine years they have had a winning record halfway through the season. The only exception was last season, when they were forced to play all their "home" games in Tampa.&nbsp;
16. Boston Celtics (23-22)&nbsp;⬆️ Last Week: 19
Despite falling behind by 18 points in the first half to New Orleans on Monday afternoon, the Celts came all the way back to beat the Pels by 12. Jayson Tatum led the way for Boston, scoring 21 of his 27 points in the second half. It was the Cs' fifth win in their last six games.&nbsp;
17. Minnesota Timberwolves (21-22)&nbsp;⬇️ Last Week: 16
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Karl-Anthony Towns takes it STRONG to the rack 💪<a href="https://t.co/EsFMiFNZHl">pic.twitter.com/EsFMiFNZHl</a>
&mdash; Timberwolves Nation (@TWolvesNationCP) <a href="https://twitter.com/TWolvesNationCP/status/1482904126078218242?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 17, 2022</a></blockquote>

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After beating up on the shorthanded Warriors Sunday night (thanks to a 26-point, 11-rebound double-double courtesy of Karl-Anthony Towns), the Wolves have won 5 of their last 7 games. However, they head to New York on Tuesday and are in the middle of a stretch where they play 12 of 15 games on the road.
18. Los Angeles Lakers (22-22)&nbsp;⬇️ Last Week: 15
Frank Vogel was coaching for his job on Monday vs. Utah, <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/frank-vogels-job-in-jeopardy-nearly-fired-after-lakers-loss-to-nuggets" target="_blank" rel="noopener">according to</a> Bill Oram and Sam Amick of The Athletic, who reported that Vogel "narrowly avoided being fired" after the Lakers' embarrassing 37-point loss to Denver over the weekend. The Lakers beat the Jazz, but it sounds like the team's head coach is most certainly on the hot seat.&nbsp;
19. Los Angeles Clippers (22-23)&nbsp;⬇️ Last Week: 18
The Clippers got a much-needed victory Monday over the Indiana Pacers thanks to a surprising, season-high 32-point explosion from Nicolas Batum (who scored all 32 of his points after halftime) and 26 points from Reggie Jackson. Remarkably, that was the Clippers' last home game until Feb. 3. L.A. will begin a brutal eight-game road trip Wednesday night in Denver. &nbsp; 20. New York Knicks (22-22) &harr;️ Last Week: 20
With the Knicks riding a three-game win streak, the N.Y. fanbase was excited coming into Monday's matinee matchup with the Hornets. However, the Knicks crashed back down to earth, as the Hornets blew them out of the building. Still, the Knicks getting beat by a better team shouldn't be shocking. Of the Knicks' last 11 wins, 10 have come against opponents with losing records.&nbsp;
21. Atlanta Hawks (18-25)&nbsp;&harr;️ Last Week: 21
Heading into Monday's game vs. Milwaukee, the Hawks hadn't won at home since Nov. 22. Atlanta was able to snap its 10-game home losing skid in impressive fashion, knocking off the defending champs, despite playing without starters Bogdan Bogdanovic (sore right knee) and Clint Capela (sprained left ankle). Onyeka Okongwu <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/is-onyeka-okongwu-ready-for-more" target="_blank" rel="noopener">stepped in and stepped up for the Hawks</a>, tallying 12 points, 8 rebounds and 3 blocks on Monday.
22. Portland Trail Blazers (18-25)&nbsp;&harr;️ Last Week: 22 
The Blazers finally welcomed back CJ McCollum to the lineup on Monday after their star shooting guard missed six weeks of action due to a collapsed lung (and the birth of his son). McCollum logged 26 minutes in Portland's victory over the Orlando Magic, racking up 16 points, 2 assists and a rebound. Despite being seven games under .500, the Blazers have a two-game lead over the Sacramento Kings for the 10th seed in the Western Conference.
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23. Sacramento Kings (18-28) ⬆️ Last Week: 24
Tyrese Haliburton, who had been playing at a remarkably high level of late, entered the league's health and safety protocols over the weekend and could not play Sunday vs. Houston. Marvin Bagley (right shoulder soreness) was also ruled out. Richaun Holmes (protocols/conditioning) did return to action after an eight-game absence, but logged just 15 minutes in the Kings' loss to the Rockets.&nbsp;
24. San Antonio Spurs (16-28)&nbsp;⬆️ Last Week: 25
Jakob Poeltl played one of his best all-around games of the season in Monday's loss to the Suns, tallying 23 points (on 9 of 12 shooting), 14 rebounds, 4 assists and 2 blocks in 30 minutes. Over the Spurs' last 12 games, 'Jak is averaging 13.0 points, 10.7 rebounds and 1.5 blocks. The Spurs may also get big man Zach Collins (left foot) back by the end of this month. On Monday, Collins tallied 8 points and 3 blocks in 19 minutes in his 2021-22 G League debut with Austin.
25. New Orleans Pelicans (16-28) ⬆️ Last Week: 27
The Pels had won two in a row at home before getting beat in Brooklyn on Saturday and falling to Boston in Beantown on Monday. New Orleans will close out its three-game East Coast road trip Thursday vs. the Knicks at MSG.
26. Indiana Pacers (15-29)&nbsp;⬇️ Last Week: 23
Myles Turner sat out Monday due to a sore left ankle and was joined on the sidelines by Malcolm Brogdon (sore right Achilles tendon) and Jeremy Lamb (sore left knee). Earlier Monday, it was <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/report-mavs-blazers-wolves-knicks-lakers-hornets-targeting-myles-turner" target="_blank" rel="noopener">reported</a> that the Pacers "are seeking two first-round picks or a promising young player and a first-round pick" in exchange for Turner. However, the team announced Tuesday that Turner is dealing with a stress reaction in his foot, which will sideline him for at least two weeks. With Indiana now 14 games below .500, it seems safe to assume the organization will make a significant move before the trade deadline next month.&nbsp;
27. Oklahoma City Thunder (14-29)&nbsp;⬇️ Last Week: 26
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what&rsquo;s understood doesn&rsquo;t need to be explained‼️<a href="https://twitter.com/shaiglalex?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@shaiglalex</a> | <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/NBAAIIStar?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#NBAAIIStar</a> <a href="https://t.co/AK8iLzJ1It">pic.twitter.com/AK8iLzJ1It</a>
&mdash; OKC THUNDER (@okcthunder) <a href="https://twitter.com/okcthunder/status/1483283153758396427?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 18, 2022</a></blockquote>

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OKC has outscored its opponents by a total of 6 points over their past five games. However, the Thunder are just 1-4 in those five contests, as their one win was a 21-point blowout of the Nets, while their four losses were by 4, 4, 5 and 2 points, respectively.&nbsp;
28. Houston Rockets (13-32) ⬆️ Last Week: 29
Christian Wood had another solid performance in Houston's victory over the Kings on Sunday, tallying 23 points, 14 rebounds, 3 assists, 3 triples and 2 steals. After a minor midseason slump, Wood has posted impressive numbers in 2022. Over the Rockets' last seven games, he is averaging 21.4 points, 8.7 boards, 2.1 treys and 1.6 steals, while shooting 54% from the floor and 41.7% from downtown.&nbsp;
29. Detroit Pistons (10-32) ⬇️ Last Week: 28
The Pistons registered their two most impressive wins of the season last week, beating the Jazz by double-digits and then romping the Raptors, 103-87. Over the four games Detroit played last week, rookie sensation Cade Cunningham averaged 19.0 points, 5.0 assists and 2.3 triples, while shooting 51.7% from the floor, 42.9% from behind the arc and 87.5% from the charity stripe.&nbsp;
30. Orlando Magic (8-37)&nbsp;&harr;️ Last Week: 30
Orlando has lost 12 of its last 13 games, including eight in a row at home. It's been more than six weeks since the Magic won a game at Amway Center. Encouragingly, Jalen Suggs has been more efficient offensively since returning from a thumb injury. Over the Magic's past three games, the rookie guard is averaging 12.7 points, 5.0 boards and 4.0 dimes while shooting 58.6% from the floor.&nbsp;