Friday, February 21 was yet another day of critical results in the NBA. There were statement wins from rising forces, multiple players debuting with their new teams and a 44-point game that was spoiled by the general inadequacy of a disappointing team.
Here’s everything that you need to know about last night’s action.
1. It took some extra time, but the Orlando Magic defeated the New York Knicks 129-121 in double-overtime. Rookie guard Victor Oladipo finished with 30 points, 14 assists, nine rebounds and two steals, and Arron Afflalo scored 32 to lead Orlando to the win.
For the Knicks, Carmelo Anthony recorded 44 points and 11 rebounds for his second straight 40-point scoring outburst. With three 40-point and 10-rebound games in 2013-14, ‘Melo trails just Kevin Love, who has four.
2. Zach Randolph put up 21 points and 11 rebounds, and Marc Gasol tallied 17 and 10 as the Memphis Grizzlies took down the Los Angeles Clippers 102-96. Blake Griffin dropped 28 points and 13 rebounds, and Chris Paul put up 18 and 14 assists, but L.A. continued to struggle on the road.
Memphis is 18-6 since January 1 and an NBA-best 16-4 since January 10.
3. Markieff Morris scored 21 points and Ish Smith chipped in a season-high 15 as the Phoenix Suns took down the San Antonio Spurs 106-85. The Spurs shot just 34.9 percent from the field and 9.5 percent from beyond the arc, converting 2-of-21 from distance.
It’s the first time that the Suns have defeated the Spurs in Phoenix since April 13, 2011.
4. Despite scoring just 39 first half points, the Toronto Raptors managed to escape with a 98-91 win over the Cleveland Cavaliers. Terrence Ross led the charge with 20 points and Jonas Valanciunas added 18 and eight as the Raptors improved to 30-25.
Toronto is 23-13 since trading Rudy Gay. Amongst Eastern Conference teams, only the Indiana Pacers and Miami Heat have better records in that time frame.
5. Four separate starters registered double-doubles as the Detroit Pistons defeated the Atlanta Hawks 115-107. Greg Monroe posted 22 points and 15 rebounds, Andre Drummond had 20 points and 11 boards, Josh Smith put up 17 and 10, and Brandon Jennings finished with 12 points and 14 assists.
In the end, Detroit finished with 32 assists to 11 turnovers. That’s a formula for success on any given evening.
6. Al Jefferson put up 33 points and 10 rebounds as the Charlotte Bobcats defeated the New Orleans Pelicans 90-87. Anthony Davis countered with 18 points, 13 rebounds, four assists and four blocks, and Brian Roberts matched his career-high with 20 points, but the Pelicans fell short of the win.
It was Jefferson’s seventh 30-point game since January 25. That’s tied for the most in the NBA with Kevin Durant, Kevin Love and LeBron James.
7. Damian Lillard tallied 28 points and Wesley Matthews finished with 24 as the Portland Trail Blazers overcame LaMarcus Aldridge’s absence to defeat the Utah Jazz 102-94. Enes Kanter did all he could to sway the result by posting a career-high marks of 25 points and four assists with 10 rebounds, three blocks and one steal.
Kanter has three double-doubles in February. He had three in 2011-12 and 2012-13 combined.
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8. Dirk Nowitzki, Shawn Marion and DeJuan Blair combined for 65 points on 27-of-35 shooting to lead the Dallas Mavericks past the Philadelphia 76ers 124-112 on the road. Thaddeus Young put up 30 points, 13 rebounds, six assists and seven steals for Philly, but the Sixers suffered their 10th straight loss.
Young is the first player since Hakeem Olajuwon on March 10, 1987 to record at least 30 points, 13 rebounds, six assists and seven steals in the same game.
9. D.J. Augustin scored 22 points and Tony Snell dropped 20 as the Chicago Bulls earned a 117-89 win over the Denver Nuggets. Joakim Noah added 14 points, 11 rebounds, five assists, three blocks and a steal as Chicago continued to shine.
The Bulls have won five straight games and are 17-7 since January 1.
10. In their first game with their new team, Kent Bazemore scored a career-high 15 points and MarShon Brooks posted a season-high 14 to lead the Los Angeles Lakers to a 101-92 win over the Boston Celtics. Pau Gasol, Chris Kaman and Jodie Meeks each added 16 points for L.A., while Rajon Rondo dished out 11 assists for Boston.
Jordan Hill added 10 points and 12 rebounds for his eighth double-double of the season. He had seven career double-doubles entering 2013-14.
Bonus Facts
- Tonight was just the third time in the history of the illustrious rivalry between the Celtics and Lakers that both teams were at least 12 games below .500 at the time of a head-to-head meeting.
- Cleveland’s NBA-best six-game winning streak was snapped with its loss to Toronto.
- Andre Drummond finished with 20 points and 11 rebounds, but he also shot 0-for-8 from the free throw line. Only three other players have done that over the past 50 seasons: Wilt Chamberlain, Elvin Hayes and Shaquille O’Neal.
- Despite missing 16 games, Chris Paul leads all guards with 28 double-doubles. The next-best guard is Stephen Curry with 20.