In Atlantic, Knicks rising while others sinking

Anybody want the Atlantic Division?

The Nets don’t want it. They would much rather have Dwight Howard, who paid a visit to “The Rock” on Wednesday night and got the full recruiting pitch.

In Orlando’s 108-91 road victory over New Jersey, Howard provided a complete showcase with 20 points, 17 rebounds and two blocks. He also made just 2-of-10 free throws and dropped below 50 percent (184-of-373) for the season.

Nets fans couldn’t care less about the incessant clanging. They cheered Howard, chanted his name and displayed posters of his face. Photos of the team’s new arena being built in Brooklyn were hung on the wall leading to Orlando’s locker room.

The Nets are among three teams to which Howard has said he would accept a trade, along with the Lakers and Mavericks. The Clippers could be a fallback option in a sign-and-trade next summer. He has said that current Nets Deron Williams and Anthony Morrow are players he would like to play with. And at All-Star Weekend in Orlando beginning Friday, he will get the full court press from one of the largest media contingents anywhere.

Brian Schmitz of the Orlando Sentinel has a sampling: “The clock is ticking louder on the Dwight Howard drama in Orlando, bound to grow noiser during the all-star break. Here’s the Howard Timeline, starting with Friday’s media session with the Eastern Conference all-stars: Friday, Feb. 24: Howard faces the national media and will be asked dozens of questions about his future. He can use this platform to say virtually anything, although it’s doubtful he delivers a bombshell to dampen the weekend. For the last few weeks or so, Howard has maintained that he isn’t thinking about the March 15 trade deadline, concentrating only on leading the Magic. The Magic say nothing has changed in his request to be traded. Saturday, Feb. 25: More player interviews. Chances are some rumor will emerge that he’ll be asked about. Sunday, Feb. 26: It’s the All-Star Game, usually a time for Howard to have fun and likely watch LeBron and D-Wade dominate the ball. It will be interesting to see if his East teammates make him the focal point, helping him to win MVP in his town. Howard also will be starting against Lakers center Andrew Bynum, a sidebar to what could be a surreal setting.”

Howard also has not ruled out remaining with the Magic, although that seems unlikely. Once All-Star Weekend is over, Magic GM Otis Smith has until March 15 to fish or cut bait on Howard. Here’s one scenario, and it’s a great read:

From Dave D’Alessandro of the Newark Star-Ledger: “Picture it: Dwight Howard, the trade deadline behind him, wearing a Nets uniform on March 16 in (of all places) Orlando. By that time, the Nets will be in the neighborhood of 13-31, with 21 games to make up a 10-game deficit in the race for eighth place, and everyone will tsk-tsk Howard for giving up a prime year of his life to watch the playoffs on TV. Except those folks in Orlando will be busy with other emotions as their team will be consigned to the dustbin of history. But then, the Nets rip off 14 out of 15, catch the Knicks in an epic encounter on April 18 at the Rock — seriously, reserve your seats now — and slingshot past them in the final week. Then they face the Miami Heat in the first round of the playoffs, and … that’s where we call our pharmacist and ask for a different sinus medication. We have no rooting interest here, but that scenario would be the last, Superman-charged hope of making the NBA relevant one last time before the Nets exit stage right. Truth is, we don’t know what to think about the timing of this anymore. Clearly, Orlando is best served moving Howard in the next 23 days, and getting any return — inadequate as it may be — may at least facilitate the rebuild that comes next.”

Back to the Atlantic Division, where the 76ers currently hold the top spot but aren’t playing like they want it.

A 93-87 loss at Houston was Philadelphia’s season-high fifth straight setback and included the sputtering offense and late-game shortcomings that have become customary during the slide. The Sixers are averaging 83.2 points during the skid and have faltered in the fourth quarter of losses to Dallas, Memphis and Minnesota.

Coach Doug Collins tried to keep things in perspective with a brief “State of the Sixers” address afterward.

From Bob Cooney of the Philadelphia Daily News: “There were some positive signs for the Sixers as rookie Nikola Vucevic played with an urgency he hasn’t had in several games and totaled a career-high 18 points to go with eight rebounds. … Another good sign was the Sixers ability to get the foul line as they made 21 of 27. In the previous two games they shot a combined 14-for-18. But now the team will limp into the break, a much-needed time away for everything. “I would think that everybody is going to need a break, I really do,” said Collins. “We’ve been on that fast track and I’ve been exceptionally happy with our guys. I know that we’re going through a little bit of a tailspin here right now. I think a combination of a brutal schedule, the fact that we’ve had some injuries, a lot of things have made it the perfect storm kind of thing. I don’t want to get lost the fact that our guys have worked their tails off right now and we’re on top of the Atlantic Division. I think if anybody would have said going into the break that we were going to be leading the Atlantic Division would you be happy with that, the answer is yes. But when you’ve lost some games it’s the taste in your mouth that you’re feeling right now. I think our guys do need a chance to get away, refresh themselves.”

What about the Celtics? By the look of it, they almost certainly don’t want the Atlantic. They are limping into the break with a five-game slide of their own after the Thunder displayed their afterburners in a 119-104 victory, jetting out to a huge lead with a 30-3 run and closing the game with an 11-2 spurt after the C’s fought back.

Afterward, Doc Rivers wanted to accentuate the positive.

From Mark Murphy of the Boston Herald: “Of course, the visitors trailed by 27 points early in the third quarter when clarity struck. But the fact that the C’s cut the deficit to six points, at 108-102, with 3:31 left is well worth noting. Add the suspended Rajon Rondo and the rehabbing Brandon Bass (knee) to what worked after halftime, and the Celtics might have the stuff to make a second-half run. In order to do so, the energy level needs to be where it was over the final two quarters last night. “I just loved the spirit,” coach Doc Rivers said. “I told them after the game, if we play like that in the second half of the season healthy, it’s going to be tough to beat us, anybody. Every once in a while you have a team-building game even though you lose, and tonight was a team-building game. I don’t like moral victories, but that was an absolute team-builder in our locker room tonight.”

This is Boston’s season thus far: three losses, four wins, five losses, wins in nine of 10, losses in seven of eight. Is overall health really the only cause for that extended stretch of bipolar play?

From Chris Forsberg of ESPNBoston.com: “Therein lies the biggest question of the second half: Can the Celtics actually get – and stay – healthy? That’s no small task considering Jermaine O’Neal (sprained right wrist) and Chris Wilcox (right adductor strain) were headed back to Boston for further evaluation, all while Celtics coach Doc Rivers suggested the team might be in the market for another big man if either of those injuries proves to be a long-term concern. Even if Boston gets bodies back, there’s no guarantee that anybody on this aging team will be able to stay healthy. Celtics players have already combined to miss a whopping 58 games due to injuries this season through 32 games — an average of 3.9 games per player on the 15-man roster.”   Here’s a reality check: Boston is a pedestrian 15-17 and clinging to the eighth spot in the East, which translates to a first-round date with Miami or Chicago. And there are no guarantees of that, either. The Celtics have to hold off the detritus of Cleveland (13-18) and Milwaukee (13-20) with a second-half schedule that has them playing 21 of 34 games on the road.

Hey, maybe the Knicks want the Atlantic. They’re the division’s only upwardly mobile team right now.

A 99-82 home win over severely shorthanded Atlanta was New York’s ninth in 11 games. The Knicks (17-17) are just three games behind the Sixers, having made up five games since Linsanity started less than three weeks ago.

And Jeremy Lin doesn’t have to score or play as much anymore. Carmelo Anthony is back and showing signs of cohesion with his point guard. And the bench has been fortified by the return of Baron Davis and the signing of J.R. Smith, who are developing their own chemistry.

From Jonathan Lehman of the New York Post: “Smith checked into the game for the first time with 5:02 remaining in the first quarter and the Knicks trailing 14-12. He had three steals in a one-minute span late in the quarter, and when he caught a 30-foot feed from Davis to drop off a reverse dunk with 7:44 left in the second, the home team had broken open a 38-20 lead. ”It’s going to be a nice little tandem that we have coming in, and nothing should drop off,” coach Mike D’Antoni said of the Davis-Smith backcourt pairing. “That’s not normal around the NBA to have two guys who can play the way they will play.” Davis spelled starting point guard Jeremy Lin for roughly seven minutes in each half, finishing with one point (0-for-2 on 3-pointers) and six assists in the latest step in his comeback from a long injury layoff.

The Nets, Sixers and Celtics all are headed to the All-Star break. The Knicks have one more game, Thursday’s highly anticipated showdown with the Heat in Miami. A win there – no small task – would nudge the Knicks above .500 for the first time since Jan. 12.

Elsewhere …

• In the Pacific, the Clippers lead the division at the All-Star break for the first time in their history after a 103-95 home win over the Nuggets. MVP candidate Chris Paul had a season-high 36 points and nine assists and Blake Griffin added 27 and 12 rebounds.
• The Lakers kept pace by holding on for a 96-91 road win over the Mavericks despite missing six straight free throws in the final minute – two each by Matt Barnes, Kobe Bryant and Pau Gasol. Dallas had a chance to tie after Gasol’s second miss but allowed Barnes to grab an offensive rebound. Don’t be surprised if Brendan Haywood has a conventional foul upgraded to a flagrant-1 by the league office.
• Joakim Noah had a triple-double with 13 points, 13 rebounds and 10 assists to lead the Bulls to a 110-91 home win over the Bucks, who have lost six of seven. The last Chicago center with a triple-double was Artis Gilmore, who had a monstrous 35 points, 15 boards and 11 blocks on Dec. 20, 1977.
• Buzzer Beater 1: Luke Ridnour’s rainbow runner at the horn capped a comeback from a 16-point fourth-quarter deficit and gave the Timberwolves a 100-98 home win over the Jazz. On a night on which Kevin Love scored just 10 points and Michael Beasley had two, Minnesota got a huge lift from J.J. Barea (22 points) and Ridnour (17).
• Buzzer Beater 2: Monta Ellis drained a jumper with one second remaining as Golden State ended a 13-game losing streak in Phoenix with a 106-104 win. The Warriors wasted an early 21-point lead and lost Stephen Curry (again), this time to a strained tendon in his right foot.
• The Pacers beat the Bobcats for the ninth straight time and second time in four days with a 102-88 road victory. Indiana is fifth in the East but has a better record than fourth-seeded Philadelphia, which leads the Atlantic Division. Charlotte has lost 18 of 19.
• The Kings salvaged the finale of their six-game road trip with a 115-107 win over the Wizards as Tyreke Evans and Marcus Thornton scored 22 points apiece and DeMarcus Cousins has 16 points and 16 boards. More important, Sacramento Mayor Kevin Johnson and NBA commissioner David Stern said they will meet during All-Star Weekend and try to hammer out an arena deal that will keep the Kings in the capital city. Stern’s deadline is March 1.
• How about those Hornets, who are 4-2 since a 2-23 stretch? New Orleans ended a run of three games in three nights with an 89-84 win at Cleveland. Mexican rookie Gustavo Ayon had a nice game for the Hornets with nine points, 17 rebounds and four assists. American rookie Kyrie Irving had a lousy game for the Cavs with six points on 2-of-13 shooting.
• Hey, maybe the last-place Raptors want the Atlantic. They ended a four-game skid with a 103-93 win over the Pistons that completed a 2-5 homestand.