LAC @ CLE: In their third game without Kyrie Irving (knee), the Cavaliers were no match. Jamal Crawford (24 PTS, 3 REB, 2 STL) was the game-high scorer off the Clippers’ bench, while Chris Paul (11 PTS, 15 AST) and Blake Griffin (16 PTS, 11 REB, 3 STL) got their double-doubles in limited minutes. Dion Waiters (17 PTS, 6 AST) led Cleveland, Tristan Thompson (15 PTS, 12 REB) was solid and C.J. Miles (16 PTS, 6 REB, 3 STL) got hot off the bench, but they never threatened.
DAL @ BRK: Never say die. Dirk Nowitzki (20 PTS, 8 REB) refused to lose, Vince Carter (20 PTS, 4 REB) was sharp and O.J. Mayo added 17 points as the Mavs kept their playoff dream alive. Deron Williams (24 PTS, 4 REB, 4 STL) had only two assists and committed seven turnovers for Brooklyn, while Brook Lopez (19 PTS, 9 REB) didn’t dominate the paint as much as I expected. Joe Johnson returned from a sore heel with a modest 11-point, 6-assist effort. Chris Kaman (8 PTS, 4 REB, 3 STL) has started the last two games at C for Dallas and could be in line for more minutes.
GSW @ BOS: That wasn’t a bad encore for Stephen Curry — 25 PTS, 6 AST — but he made only six of 22 shots, showing the fatigue of three very tough road games in four nights. David Lee returned from his 1-game suspension with a double-double (10 PTS, 19 REB) but sixth man Jarrett Jack was just 1-for-9 and the Warriors shot 34% against the Boston defense. Paul Pierce (26 PTS, 8 REB, 4 AST) did enough to make up for seven turnovers, and Jeff Green (18 PTS, 5 REB) bounced back after a couple of quiet outings.
DET @ NOH: This game didn’t matter a bit in real life, but it was entertaining and featured some nice fantasy lines. Greivis Vasquez (25 PTS, 9 AST, 4 REB, 2 STL) was outstanding, Eric Gordon scored 21 and Ryan Anderson (19 PTS, 13 REB) made the most of a spot start, as Anthony Davis (shoulder) didn’t play. Jason Smith, whose fantasy value was in deep leagues only, is out for the year with a torn labrum, so the Hornets are shorthanded up front. We liked Brandon Knight (22 PTS, 4 REB, 3 AST, 2 STL) and Greg Monroe (27 PTS, 10 REB, 3 AST) for Detroit and they came through; others didn’t do quite enough.
ATL @ PHO: There was one big “if” on my prediction, and the Hawks definitely did not maintain the intensity of their previous four wins. Al Horford was very good — 20 PTS, 7 REB, 4 AST, 3 STL, 2 BLK — but Josh Smith shot 2-for-11 and had as many turnovers (5) as points, while Jeff Teague (6 PTS in 21 minutes) had one assist and four TO. Phoenix got a solid start from Goran Dragic (19 PTS, 6 AST, 3 STL) and 58 points from their bench. Jermaine O’Neal (12 PTS, 5 REB) was better than starter Marcin Gortat (2 PTS in 20 minutes) and newest Sun Marcus Morris (16 PTS, 5 REB, 2 STL) hit four 3-pointers.
CHA @ UTA: No Al Jefferson? No problem. Enes Kanter (23 PTS, 22 REB) played the game of his life. Paul Millsap (ankle, new baby) also sat out, but his replacement Derrick Favors (8 PTS, 7 REB) fouled out in just 21 minutes, which meant Kanter played a whopping 44:23. The least-bad Bobcat in this embarrassing defeat was Byron Mullens (12 PTS, 7 REB) and the Jazz reserves just kept pulling away in garbage time, with rarely-used Jeremy Evans (14 PTS, 9 REB, 2 BLK) putting up season highs in several categories.