Fantasy Related But Good Info.........
Eleventh Hour
Monday's NBA action had it all. Meaningful games with some drama, blowouts with some amazing garbage time performances and, as usual, a ton of injury news. Let's try to blow through this in a reasonable amount of time so you can get back to work.
On Fire
J.R. Smith took over last night's win by hitting a team-record 11 3-pointers, just missing the NBA record of 12. The Kings'
Francisco Garcia wasn't playing along, constantly fouling Smith beyond the arc and playing intense defense. Smith's 11th three was a ridiculous heave with the shot clock expiring, but he never got a real chance to hit his 12th. Smith finished with a career high of 45 points as the Nuggets clinched the No. 2 seed in the West.
The Future
While
LeBron James and the Cavs were probably the NBA story of the night, I was more excited watching Warriors' big man
Anthony Randolph go off in a 30-point blowout loss to the Spurs. I swear he was playing point guard in the second half, bringing the ball up the court time after time, driving, dishing, hitting pull-up, 18-foot jumpers and basically playing like an all-star. Randolph finished with a career night of 24 points and 16 boards, and looks like a fantastic keeper option for next season. But there is one problem, and that's the fact that he plays for Don Nelson. I love Randolph and will be pretty high on him coming into next season, even if Nellie doesn't shut it down and head off to Maui once and for all.
The Best
LeBron James scored 37 points to lead the Cavaliers over the Pacers and to the best record in the NBA, securing home court all the way through the playoffs. This game was fun because LeBron and
Danny Granger were going at it, with Granger finishing with 38 points in the loss. Granger was iffy with his sore foot, but played through it. Hopefully he's good to go for Wednesday, while LeBron's owners have to pray he's not given that day off for rest.
I'm Back
Yao Ming returned from a foot injury with 22 points,
Kenyon Martin had 13 points and four boards after sitting with a back injury and
Devin Harris had 11 points and four rebounds in his return from a shoulder injury.
Deron Williams played through his oblique strain and had 17 points and nine assists and
Tim Duncan was back in limited minutes, finishing with 16 points and 13 boards in the laugher over GSW. I wish I could tell you what these guys will do in their final game of the season, but there's really no way to know.
I'm Gone
On the injury front, there was a ton of news last night. Most of the Orlando Magic starters were given the night off, including
Dwight Howard.
Marcin Gortat went off in his place with 10 points, 18 boards, one steal and one block, while
Hedo Turkoglu,
Rashard Lewis and
J.J. Redick were also out with injuries. Howard will get limited minutes on Wednesday against Charlotte, but I wouldn't count on seeing the other guys.
The following players left last night with injuries.
Mehmet Okur – hamstring – Questionable tonight.
Spencer Hawes – knee – Courtesy of a flagrant foul, I'm a bit concerned.
Antawn Jamison – ankle – This one may finally shut him down.
Paul Millsap had 19 points and 11 boards while filling in for Okur, and
Ike Diogu somehow hit 14-of-20 shots for the game of his life, finishing with 32 points and 11 boards with Hawes out.
The following player sat out last night's game.
Josh Howard – ankle – Sounds like he'll play Wednesday.
Zach Randolph – concussion – This one came out of nowhere.
Beno Udrih – ankle –
Bobby Jackson went off with 18 points, 12 dimes, four treys.
Keyon Dooling – calf –
Chris Douglas-Roberts started for him.
Luke Ridnour – baby – Potentially devastating, missed game out of the blue.
Jermaine O'Neal – knee – Probably done for regular season.
Jamario Moon – groin – Ditto.
Andrea Bargnani – heel – Sounds likely for finale.
Gilbert Arenas – knee – Hasn't been ruled in or out for finale.
Kevin Garnett won't play in the regular season due to his knee injury, but hopes to be able to play in Game 1 of the playoffs.
Tyson Chandler hopes to return from his ankle injury and play on Wednesday against the Spurs
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Loose Ends
The Hawks play the Heat tonight in a preview of their first-round playoff match up. The only problem is that neither team wants to reveal too much, so I doubt the starters get much run – especially for the Hawks. That said,
Marvin Williams is still trying to get back to form from a back injury, so I think he'll play. But the other starters are a roll of the dice tonight.
The Suns' starters all played pretty heavy minutes last night, despite Alvin Gentry hinting early that they wouldn't play too much in the second half. Hopefully you disregarded his words and played your guys. As for Wednesday's finale, it's anyone's guess how much the Suns will play.
Brook Lopez had 18 points and a career-high 20 boards for the Nets, while
Vince Carter added 17 points, six boards, five assists, two steals, four blocks and two 3-pointers last night. Vince hasn't shut it down yet, and I don't know why he wouldn't play in the finale. However, he was playing through a toe injury last night, so we'll have to keep an eye on his status.
Pops Mensah-Bonsu helped fill the void left by Bargnani with nine points, 12 boards and five steals, while
Shawn Marion and
Chris Bosh each posted lines of 25 points and 15 boards in the win over Washington.
Drew Gooden had 20 points and 15 rebounds for the Spurs last night, and it's easy to forget how good of a player he is. Unfortunately, it was probably too little, too late from DG.
Mike Conley had a career-high seven steals to go along with 12 points and six assists, and is looking like a nice keeper option. He is a big reason why I was able to hang on and win one of my leagues, although
Dwight Howard was the MVP of that team.
DeAndre Jordan had 16 points, 11 boards, three steals and three blocks for the Clippers, while teammate
Marcus Camby added 17 points, 10 boards and two blocks. I have no idea why or how Camby is still playing, but it's true.
Baron Davis put the nail in many of his owner's coffins with a stellar 1-of-13 shooting performance for three points and seven assists in another loss.
The Pistons blew a fourth-quarter lead and lost to the Bulls, assuring a date with the Cavs in Round 1. Congratulations, boys…and good luck with that.
The Rockets crushed the Hornets and need to win their final game to clinch the Southwest division. The Hornets were trying to lock up the No. 6 seed in the West, but didn't put up much of a fight. The Spurs, Rockets and Blazers are all tied for the No. three seed at this point, at least as far as record is concerned.
And if you get a chance to find a replay somewhere,
Jerryd Bayless had the dunk of the night on a one-handed alley-oop, but I'm not sure it made the highlight shows.
Greg Oden had 16 points and nine boards in the easy win. I don't think anyone is going to want to face the Blazers in the West, or the Bulls in the East right now.
And in case anyone still cares about Isiah Thomas, he's going to coach the Florida International Golden Panthers. Woo hoo! And Flip Saunders will replace Ed Tapscott in Washington next year.
Gilbert Arenas was not happy with Flip a couple years ago (back when "Hibachi" was all the rage), but I'm sure he'll get over it.
There are only three games tonight, and then we finish things up on Wednesday with 28 teams in action. Enjoy
