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Melo Happy Returns
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Melo scores 38 in return
Carmelo Anthony hit 16-of-26 shots and a 3-pointer for 38 points to go along with two boards, two assists, two steals and a block in a win over Portland on Thursday. Melo has had a knack this season of going off while sitting on fantasy benches. He had 32 points and nine boards in his first game back from a three-game absence with an elbow injury on Dec. 28, and blew up for 45 points and 11 rebounds on Dec. 10 in a week when the Nuggets played just two games. He was suspended for his previous game, so it's possible he was on some benches last night, despite the three-game week.
J.R. Smith started at shooting guard with
Kenyon Martin out, but it sounds like the job could be his for the rest of the season. When asked if Smith would start the rest of the way, coach George Karl said "I'm not signing that contract, but I will say yes to the question." My question is, if Smith is good enough to start now, why hasn't he been in the job all year? K-Mart is questionable for Friday with back spasms. However, it sounds like rest is the only thing that's going to fix the problem, so he could sit for a few. This should mean good things for
Chris Andersen, but he managed just five points and five rebounds, but did block four shots last night.
CP3 goes off, Josh Howard goes out
Chris Paul hit 10-of-18 shots and a 3-pointer to score 27 points, and added 15 assists, four boards and a steal in a win over the Mavericks. Few things would have been easier to predict last night than CP3 torching
Jason Kidd.
Peja Stojakovic was out on Thursday with a back injury, but is hoping to play on Saturday vs. the Thunder.
Josh Howard left last night's loss due to his left ankle injury after scoring just seven. I was absolutely shocked that he played through it on Wednesday (and posted a great line), but was not surprised at all by him leaving last night's game. Ankle injuries and Howard just don't mix, and he is usually a very slow healer. He missed 11 straight games with what was thought to be a mild sprain of the same ankle earlier in the season, and there's nothing more frustrating than your guy being listed as "day-to-day" for 11 straight. I'm not saying he's going to miss 11 games this time, but I'm not going to hold my breath for his return.
Amare out for playoffs
Amare Stoudemire will miss the rest of the season and the playoffs after eye surgery to repair a detached retina. His doctor says Amare's injury is just as serious, if not more so, than ankle or knee surgery. I knew he wouldn't play again in the regular season, but the fact he's already been ruled out of the playoffs is pretty scary. Hopefully his career is not threatened by it.
GSW got 99 problems and a Biedrins is one
Andris Biedrins is now expected to miss Friday and Saturday's games after leaving the Warriors to attend to a family matter. He was going to be benched for Friday's game anyway, but the fact he also isn't likely for Saturday is potentially devastating news. I could easily make some joke about Nellie starting Biedrins anyway, but I guess we can't blame him for this one.
Monta Ellis is said to still be pretty peeved with the Warriors stemming from his $3 million fine and the fact the team could still void his contract if they want. An anonymous source says that Monta has been doing the following things because he's unhappy:
Packed a ton of luggage for the leave that started last Thursday
Skipped Friday's team photo
Is consistently late to shootaround and practice
Only participates in team huddles if he's actually in the game
Mumbles about wanting to be traded when he becomes frustrated
His agent, Jeff Fried, says he'll rejoin the team on Sunday, meaning he could play again on Wednesday. However, we'll have to see what transpires between now and then.
Kelenna Azubuike and
Anthony Randolph are questionable for Friday vs. the Pistons. Buike has a back injury and Randolph has strained groin.
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Granger, Clippers still hurting
The Pacers and Clippers meet on Saturday and
Danny Granger is still not ready to return from a foot injury. He's not moving well in practice and has essentially been ruled out until at least Tuesday. The Pacers may not need him to beat the Clippers, but it would be nice to see him on the court again.
Travis Diener is also iffy with a chest issue.
The Clips are still pretty banged up, with
Marcus Camby recovering from another migraine and
Zach Randolph still iffy due to his seriously ill father in Indiana.
Eric Gordon is expected to return from a shoulder injury, but I'd leave him on the bench until you see him play again.
Ricky Davis is out indefinitely with tendinitis in his knee, while
Chris Kaman is out for the weekend, but could play Tuesday vs. the Cavaliers.
And don't call me Shirley
Chris Bosh is not happy with Shaquille O'Neal right now, after Shaq called Bosh the "Rupaul of big men." Bosh said he didn't think it was funny, expected more professionalism from the veteran and that he isn't going to get into a war of words with Shaq. In addition, Shaq didn't take kindly to Stan Van Gundy calling him a flopper, and has since described Van Gundy as a front runner, said his whole career has been a flop and that all the players hate him. Good times.
Gallinari's back still not right
Danilo Gallinari's back injury is still not fully healed, but he's playing through it. The Knicks will probably ask him not to play for the Italian National Team this summer and he could even skip Summer League just to rest his back. Gallinari has shown some signs of life lately, scoring a career-best 17 on Wednesday, but still isn't a must-own in most leagues.
KG not expected any time soon
Kevin Garnett is not expected back from his knee injury for at least another week, but the Celtics are going to drive the car like they're taking a newborn baby home from the hospital for the first time. In other words, they're going to be very cautious with him and there seems to be a pretty good chance he could be somewhat useless the rest of the way. But even if that's the case, you still can't just cut KG at this point unless you're in a smaller league and there are some solid choices available on the wire.
Bell a go tonight
Raja Bell, who continues to play through a nasty shoulder injury, said he will give it a shot tonight after sitting out the last two practices with the injury.
Garcia should play Sunday vs. Pacers
Francisco Garcia, dealing with a painful injury to his right ring finger, expects to play against the Pacers on Sunday.
Beno Udrih remains day-to-day with a sprained foot as we await word on test results.
Yi struggling to find minutes
Yi Jianlian is struggling to get minutes for the Nets due to inconsistency after his return from a broken finger, in addition to the Nets fighting to make the playoffs. Believe it or not,
Jarvis Hayes is the best fantasy forward in Jersey right now.
Bulls injury report
Tyrus Thomas skipped Thursday's practice with a hip strain but should play tonight against the Bucks. It sounds like it would take a miracle for
Luol Deng to play through his leg injury tonight, while
Tim Thomas is iffy with his left knee injury. If he's out, he'll have missed three straight, while Deng will also miss his third in a row.
No Good-en
Drew Gooden is now with the Spurs, but he won't play tonight against the Wizards. It sounds like it's more a situation of letting him get comfortable than it is that his groin injury that will keep him out
</TD></TR><TR vAlign=top><TD class=subHead vAlign=top colSpan=3>K-Mart questionable for Friday vs. Jazz </TD></TR><TR vAlign=top><TD class=vaLabel colSpan=3>Kenyon Martin - F - DEN - Mar. 6</TD></TR><TR><TD vAlign=top colSpan=3>Kenyon Martin, who has struggled with back injuries for the past week and missed Thursday's game, is questionable for Friday's matchup against the Jazz.
