NOH @ ATL: Just as I wrote off Eric Gordon for health reasons, he scored 27 points to spark a big road victory. Greivis Vasquez had his first career triple-double (21 PTS, 12 AST, 11 REB) as the future Pelicans shot 52%; Robin Lopez (17 PTS, 8 REB, 3 AST, 3 BLK) was excellent all night and Ryan Anderson (19 PTS, 8 REB) hit four 3-pointers. The Hawks gave up a 20-4 run in the third quarter and never recovered. Josh Smith (23 PTS, 8 AST, 6 REB, 2 STL, 2 BLK) didn’t let contract issues or trade rumors bother him, and Jeff Teague (21 PTS, 9 AST) was 4-of-6 from beyond the arc, but Al Horford (12 PTS, 6 REB) has had better games.
SAS @ DET: Finally, the absence of Tim Duncan (knee) and Manu Ginobili (hamstring) caught up with the Spurs. Tony Parker (31 PTS, 8 AST) did everything he could, and Danny Green hit five more 3-pointers, but the Pistons wanted this one more. Greg Monroe (26 PTS, 16 REB, 5 AST, 2 STL) was dominant up front, and I was wrong about Brandon Knight (24 PTS, 5 REB) being too small to play SG. It also helped that chronic underachiever Charlie Villanueva played his best game if the year — 21 PTS, 8 REB, 2 BLK in 33 minutes off the bench. With rookie Andre Drummond sidelined for the next few weeks by a stress fracture in his lower back, Charlie V might be worth owning in some formats.
ORL @ CLE: When he needs to, Kyrie Irving (24 PTS, 8 AST, 6 REB) can take over a game. Last night, four of his teammates scored in double figures as the Cavs put up 119 points. Marreese Speights (18 PTS, 5 REB) missed ten shots but was 12-for-12 at the line, and Tristan Thompson (16 PTS, 5 REB) played just 27 minutes, as the Cavaliers now have a bench, thanks to Memphis. Arron Afflalo (23 PTS, 4 REB, 3 AST) made a surprise return from his calf injury for the Magic, Nikola Vucevic (25 PTS, 13 REB) was very good and rookie Andrew Nicholson (21 PTS, 8 REB) looks like the starting PF for a while.
PHO @ OKC: No contest and no surprise. Garbage time came very early, as Suns coach Lindsey Hunter pulled four of his starters after six minutes of the third quarter. That hurt the scoring averages of Kevin Durant (21 PTS, 6 REB, 4 AST) and Russell Westbrook (17 PTS, 6 AST, 5 REB) but shared the wealth among some of the Thunder’s defensive specialists and bench players. Goran Dragic (19 PTS, 6 AST) was respectable and Michael Beasley (25 PTS, 7 REB) is at his best in meaningless situations.
LAC @ MIA: Exactly as we thought. Chris Paul (3 PTS in 19:36) and Blake Griffin (13 PTS in 24 minutes) were able to play, but aren’t exactly at full speed yet. Chauncey Billups (7 PTS, 4 AST in 16:26) also returned after missing more than two months with a foot injury. If you own Eric Bledsoe (7 PTS, 6 REB, 4 REB) it was a nice run, but it’s coming to an end. LeBron James (30 PTS, 6 AST, 5 REB) led the Heat; Dwyane Wade (20 PTS, 7 AST, 6 REB, 4 STL) looked pretty good for a sick guy and they didn’t miss Chris Bosh or Ray Allen, who were out with the flu.