Beast of the Night: LeBron James finished with 41 points, 13 rebounds, eight assists, three steals, one block and two three-pointers made. He shot 65 percent (15-23) from the field, 69 percent (9-13) from the line and had four turnovers. This was a nice “bounce-back” game after having two relatively quiet games after his 51/11/8 game on Feb. 3. James has been a top-five fantasy player during the past month.
Lines for Discussion:
Lou Williams: 8-13 FG (62%), 3-4 FT (75%), 1 three, 20 Pts, 3 Reb, 3 Ast, 1 Stl, 2 Blk, 1 TO; Williams has been posting strong lines more often than not lately and continues to improve his numbers as the season wears on. He’s a great guy to target if you need help with points, threes and free-throw percentage.
Baron Davis: 8-16 FG (50%), 5-5 FT (100%), 4 threes, 25 Pts, 8 Reb, 8 Ast, 3 Stl, 2 TO; Davis carved up the Magic last night and posted one of his better lines of the season. His creaky body is always a concern, and given his strong play recently, owners who already have too many DNP risks on their roster should consider selling high.
Roy Hibbert: 8-14 FG (57%), 4-6 FT (67%), 20 Pts, 10 Reb, 1 Ast, 3 Stl, 1 Blk, 3 TO; He would’ve had an even bigger night if it weren’t for his foul trouble. Hibbert has bounced back since the coaching change for the Pacers and is a safe bet to be a steady player the rest of the way.
Serge Ibaka: 1-5 FG (20%), 4-6 FT (67%), 6 Pts, 14 Reb, 3 Blk, 3 TO; He was questionable before the game with injured ribs, which made this line extra sweet for his owners. Ibaka remains limited by his bench role and isn’t good for much more than blocks and inconsistent rebounds.
John Salmons: 7-18 FG (39%), 2-3 FT (67%), 1 three, 17 Pts, 6 Reb, 2 Ast, 1 Stl, 2 TO; Salmons returned to the starting lineup last night and had his best game since returning from being sidelined with a sore hip. His return to the starting five squashes the value of Carlos Delfino.
Waiver-Wire Watch:
Evan Turner: 8 Pts, 8 Reb, 7 Ast, 1 TO; Turner has become a decent player to consider in deeper leagues.
J.J. Redick: 12 Pts, 2 threes, 6 Reb, 1 Ast, 1 TO; Redick continues to be a decent option if you need threes and some points.
Ike Diogu: 18 Pts, 5 Reb; He’s been getting steadier minutes lately, though he doesn’t do much besides score and rebound every now and then. Monitor him in deeper leagues.
Josh McRoberts: 12 Pts, 3 Reb, 3 Ast, 1 Stl, 1 Blk, 1 TO; McRoberts doesn’t do a lot of anything, but does just enough of everything to be worth monitoring in deeper leagues.
Mario Chalmers: 16 Pts, 2 threes, 1 Reb, 2 Ast, 3 Stl; He recently hit a cold spell but should be worth a look if you need a point guard in a deeper league.
DeJuan Blair: 18 Pts, 12 Reb, 1 Stl, 2 TO; If you need help at center, Blair should definitely be considered.
Greg Monroe: 14 Pts, 13 Reb, 2 Ast; The same goes for Monroe.
Austin Daye: 10 Pts, 1 three, 6 Reb, 1 Ast, 1 Stl, 2 Blk; Daye has been putting up decent lines every now and then in recent weeks. He’s worth monitoring.
Chuck Hayes: 10 Pts, 13 Reb, 4 Ast, 5 Stl; If you need help at center, Hayes should be on top of your short list of candidates.
Injuries:
Kwame Brown (personal): missed Tuesday’s practice but expected to play tonight
Chauncey Billups (knee): MRI revealed nothing serious; monitor his status
Nene (illness): questionable tonight
Rudy Gay (toe): was a late scratch last night; check his status
Ronny Turiaf (ankle): out tonight
Raja Bell (personal): missed Tuesday’s practice but expected to play tonight
Paul Millsap (leg): missed Tuesday’s practice but is probable tonight
Yi Jianlian (ankle): out tonight
Dominique Jones (foot): out indefinitely
Roddy Beaubois (foot): went through his first full practice of the season Tuesday, could be a week away from returning
Nick Young (knee): should be ready to go tonight
Zach Randolph (ankle): check his status
For Tonight:
Blake Griffin and the Clippers visit Timofey Mozgov and the Knicks at MSG. Griffin finished with 44/15/7 in their last meeting. Mozgov, who is slated to start, got a face-full of crotch. The world is on edge to see what will happen tonight.
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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