// Almost all of the trade deadline attention is focused on Orlando, where the Magic have to figure out what they are going to do with Dwight Howard. D-12 is the top domino, and there could be a lot of residual movement if he is traded before next Thursday’s deadline. But there are also other trades being discussed that have absolutely nothing to do with the Magic; trades that would take second-echelon teams to the next level. Chris Sheridan, editor-in-chief of SheridanHoops.com, sees
Fantasy Spin: Tuesday March 6
Raja Bell returned to the Utah starting lineup, but “demoted” Gordon Hayward was terrific off the bench with 23 points on 8-11 shooting, plus 4 REB and 5 AST in 28 minutes. As the Jazz won, I’d expect the new rotation to continue, but Devin Harris left early with a sore knee. The Cavs were no match for Al Jefferson (25 & 13) and Paul Millsap (13 & 9) — they miss Anderson Varejao. In Other News GSW @ WAS: New starting
Trade talk: Swirl slows around Howard, Rondo; Blow up the Blazers?
While the swirl around Dwight Howard and Rajon Rondo has calmed down to something less than a tornado, it is picking up elsewhere, specifically around the Portland Trail Blazers. After a quick start that saw the Blazers win at Oklahoma City and briefly hold the best record in the Western Conference, Portland has fallen to 18-18 and is on the outside looking in at the playoff picture. The Blazers have movable parts – the expiring contracts of Raymond Felton ($7.5 million) and Marcus Camby
Fantasy Spin: Monday, Feb. 27
There will be better recaps of the All-Star game than mine, because the main fantasy takeaway is Kobe Bryant’s broken nose and Luol Deng falling on his already very sore wrist. Neither returned, but both are warriors who won’t miss many games, if any. Andrew Bynum was a surprise starter after having his knee injected two days earlier, and lasted just five minutes. We’re going around the league today, in alphabetical order. The string of numbers after each team is games
Tweet of the Day: Jamal Crawford
I think Baron Davis will play more second half..this is learning experience for Jeremy...playoff like atmosphere out there.
@JCrossover
Jamal Crawford
Spurs win streak ends at 11 as Duncan and Parker sit
The TV was turned off before 11 p.m., and the home office shut down for the night. Yes, the San Antonio Spurs were playing, going for their eighth straight road win and their 12th straight W overall. But truly, they weren’t going for it. Tony Parker and Tim Duncan were being rested by their coach on the second night of a back-to-back, Tiago Splitter and Manu Ginobili were out nursing injuries, and there is only so much Cory Joseph a man can endure. I
Tonight’s best game: Portland at LA Lakers
The Portland Trail Blazers visit Staples Center on Monday to play the Los Angeles Lakers, a matchup of teams whose personnel issues became quite public over the weekend. The Lakers (18-13) are coming off Sunday’s loss at Phoenix in which they were torn to shreds by the brilliance of point guard Steve Nash, while Derek Fisher and Steve Blake combined for two points in 47 minutes. The most recent trade talk involves Pau Gasol, and superstar Kobe Bryant would like to see
Tonight’s best game: Memphis at Portland
The Memphis Grizzlies have found their rhythm at the right time and take a seven-game winning streak into Portland to face the Trail Blazers in Tuesday’s best NBA game. Saddled with expectations after a strong playoff run a year ago, the Grizzlies stumbled to a 2-3 start, then lost low-post monster Zach Randolph for eight weeks to a torn MCL. But Memphis has not panicked and now leads the Southwest Division with a 10-6 mark. The Grizzlies are coming off a 91-90