Beast of the Night: LeBron James posted a sick line to the tune of 38 points, 11 rebounds, six assists, five steals, one block and two three-pointers. He shot 59 percent (13-22) from the field, 83 percent (10-12) from the free-throw line and had zero turnovers (in 41 minutes of play). Sure, the absence of Chris Bosh helped, but these sorts of nights are expected from the No. 1 fantasy stud in the land.
Lines for Discussion:
Kevin Durant: 12-21 FG (57%), 9-9 FT (100%), 5 threes, 38 Pts, 8 Reb, 3 Ast, 5 TO; On most other nights, this would’ve been worthy of “Best of the Night” honors. Durant has worked himself back into No. 2 shape this season, which is nothing to be ashamed of.
Nikola Pekovic: 6-12 FG (50%), 2-2 FT (100%), 14 Pts, 9 Reb, 1 Blk, 2 TO; Pekovic has cooled off lately, but the starting center job is wholly his. He’ll bounce back sooner than later.
Mo Williams: 7-14 FG (50%), 4 threes, 18 Pts, 1 Reb, 5 Ast, 3 Stl, 1 TO; Williams is getting a steady diet of minutes but has failed to take full advantage of them, mostly because of his struggles from the field. This kind of night should happen more often for him — should.
Tyreke Evans: 7-21 FG (33%), 4-4 FT (100%), 18 Pts, 6 Reb, 3 Ast, 3 Blk, 4 TO; It’s a small sample size, but in his two games as a starting small forward, Evans is averaging 15.5 points, 4.0 rebounds, 2.5 assists, 1.5 blocks and 3.5 turnovers, while shooting 33 percent from the floor.
Waiver-Wire Watch:
Kendrick Perkins: 4 Pts, 11 Reb, 1 Stl, 1 Blk, 1 TO; Perk has picked up his rebounding lately, but he remains just a borderline utility option in most leagues.
Luke Ridnour: 15 Pts, 2 Reb, 8 Ast, 3 Stl, 1 TO; Ridnour is a pretty valuable player to have on your bench in most weeks. Give him consideration if you need another guard.
Grant Hill: 20 Pts, 5 Reb, 2 Ast, 1 Blk, 1 TO; Hill’s a decent low-end all-around producer in deeper leagues.
Udonis Haslem: 11 Pts, 14 Reb, 1 Stl, 1 Blk; So long as Bosh is out, Haslem will be worth owning.
Injuries:
LeBron James (wrist): monitor his status for tonight
Chris Bosh (personal): he won’t play tonight
Deron Williams (foot): didn’t practice Thursday, but will play tonight
Russell Westbrook (ankle): monitor his status
James Anderson (back): day-to-day
Danny Green (stinger): monitor his status
J.J. Hickson (hip): day-to-day
Willie Green (back): questionable tonight
For Tonight:
Kobe Bryant will play his second game in a mask tonight, as the Lakers host the Kings. See how Evans fares at SF again.
For Next Week:
5 games: DAL
4 games: ATL, BOS, CHA, CHI, CLE, DEN, GSW, HOU, IND, LAC, LAL, MIL, MIN, NJN, NOR, NYK, OKC, ORL, PHI, POR, SAC, TOR, UTA
3 games: DET, MEM, MIA, PHO, WAS
2 games: SAS
Throughout the season, be sure to leave your questions, comments, concerns, trade offers, roster problems and more in the comments below.
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