We’re back!
All-Star Weekend is behind us, the 2015 NBA Trade Deadline has passed and the association has returned to putting on full slates of games. Not every team seemed to know that the regular season had resumed, but the action continued nonetheless.
Some teams haven’t missed a beat, proving so by putting forth outstanding performances against fellow contenders. Others appeared sluggish and out-of-sync after a long week away from competitive basketball.
This is how it all transpired on a wild night in the NBA.
1. In a clash between the top two teams in the Eastern Conference, only one showed up as the Toronto Raptors obliterated the Atlanta Hawks 105-80. Louis Williams shined with 26 points and a career-high seven 3-point field goals in 24 minutes and DeMar DeRozan posted 21 points and eight rebounds to lead the Raptors, while the Hawks shot just 33.0 percent from the field and went 8-of-38 from beyond the arc.
The Hawks have lost consecutive games for the first time since November 18, 2014.
2. Another battle of the Eastern Conference elite ended in a blowout as the Cleveland Cavaliers destroyed the Washington Wizards 127-89. LeBron James led the charge with 28 points, six assists, five rebounds and a steal in 25 minutes, and Kyrie Irving added 25 points and seven dimes, while John Wall led the Wizards with 18 points, nine assists, five rebounds, two blocks and a steal.
Cleveland’s gone 15-2 in its past 17 games.
3. Stephen Curry finished with 25 points, 11 assists, four rebounds and four steals as the Golden State Warriors picked up a 110-99 victory over the San Antonio Spurs. Klay Thompson added 20 points and Andre Iguodala had 14 on 5-of-8 shooting for the Warriors, while nine different players scored at least eight points for San Antonio.
Golden State is now tied with Atlanta at a league-best 43 wins.
4. Al-Farouq Aminu recorded 17 points, 12 rebounds, five offensive boards and two blocks to lead the Dallas Mavericks past the Houston Rockets 111-100. James Harden had 26 points, seven rebounds, five assists and two steals for the Rockets, while Devin Harris put up 17 points, seven assists, six rebounds and two steals for the Magic.
Dallas had lost three straight games to Houston before this win.
5. Andre Drummond took over with 18 points, 20 rebounds and nine offensive boards to help the Detroit Pistons get past the Chicago Bulls 100-91. Caron Butler and Greg Monroe both scored 20 points for the Pistons, and Jimmy Butler put up 30 points for the Bulls.
The win snaps the Pistons’ three-game losing streak to the Bulls.
6. It wasn’t pretty, but the Milwaukee Bucks pulled out an 89-81 victory over the Denver Nuggets. Khris Middleton scored 15 points and Jerryd Bayless recorded 11 points, eight assists, seven rebounds, one block and a steal for the Bucks, while Jusuf Nurkic posted 11 points, 15 rebounds, two assists, three blocks and two steals for the Nuggets.
The Bucks have won nine of 10.
7. Kevin Martin scored 28 points, Andrew Wiggins had 20 and Ricky Rubio dished out 12 assists as the Minnesota Timberwolves took down the Phoenix Suns 111-109. Gorgui Dieng added 15 points and 12 rebounds for the T-Wolves, while Markieff Morris scored 31 points and Alex Len put up 11 points, 10 rebounds and six blocks for the Suns.
Wiggins has 17 20-point games—the same number as the rest of the 2014-15 rookies combined.
8. DeMarcus Cousins posted 31 points, 15 rebounds, three assists, two steals and a block, and Rudy Gay had 28 points to lead the Sacramento Kings past the Boston Celtics 109-101. Avery Bradley finished with 28 points and Tyler Zeller tallied 22 points for Boston.
Cousins has nine games with at least 30 points and 15 rebounds since the start of the 2013-14 season. That ties Kevin Love for the most in the NBA.
9. Shabazz Napier scored a career-high 18 points and Mario Chalmers recorded 13 points, seven assists, six rebounds and an NBA season-high eight steals as the shorthanded Miami Heat took down the New York Knicks 111-87. Langston Galloway led the Knicks with 17 points and Dwyane Wade scored 12 points in 22 minutes after missing seven games with a hamstring injury.
New York falls to 0-14 without Carmelo Anthony.
10. Rodney Stuckey recorded a season-high 30 points before leaving with an injury as the Indiana Pacers pulled out a 106-95 victory over the Philadelphia 76ers. Luc Richard Mbah a Moute had 16 points and 10 rebounds for the Sixers, while C.J. Miles added 17 points and Luis Scola scored 16 in 23 minutes for the Pacers.
Rookie big man Nerlens Noel recorded 12 points, nine rebounds, four steals and a career-high nine blocks.
Bonus Facts
- Brook Lopez put up 22 points and 14 rebounds, and Deron Williams dished out 15 assists to lead the Brooklyn Nets to a 114-105 win over the Los Angeles Lakers.
- Gordon Hayward scored 20 points and Trey Burke put up 19 in a 92-76 Utah Jazz victory over the Portland Trail Blazers.
- Victor Oladipo finished with 22 points and Nikola Vucevic tallied 18 points and 13 rebounds to help the Orlando Magic get past the New Orleans Pelicans 95-84.
- Minnesota improves to 8-11 with Martin and 4-31 without him.