We’re back with who’s hot right now in the NBA – the six best players in the NBA in recent weeks heading into the all-star break.
LeBron James, Cleveland Cavaliers
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The Cavs reach the All-Star break as the best and hottest team in the league with 13 straight wins, led by (once again) the hottest player in the league right now who by accident is also the best player in the league – LeBron James. For about a month now James has been on an absolute tear, scoring over 30 points in 13 of his last 17 games, and currently on his last four, including a 47 points, 8 rebounds, 8 assists and 5 steals performance against the Knicks last weekend. Not impressed (it’s the Knicks)? LeBron had another great performance against Howard and the Magic last night, scoring 32 points with 8 rebounds and 13 assists in Cleveland’s 115-106 win. Our bet? All-Star MVP this weekend, MVP in the end of the season. Finals MVP as well? Too soon to tell, but it’s tempting.
Chris Bosh, Toronto Raptors
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He was here last month, but Bosh and the Raptors aren’t stopping, winning eight of their last nine games and are currently fifth in the East (29-23). Bosh’s numbers last seven games – 27.3 points, including two 35+ games and 13.6 rebounds per game, including four consecutive 15+ rebounds games. He’s not going to be a threat on Kobe or Lebron’s MVP award this season but he continues to show he is the best power forward in the league right now and maybe able to lead Toronto towards a successful playoff run.
David Lee, New York Knicks
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Finally, someone we didn’t have last month and also, he plays for a pretty bad team, the spectacular New York Knicks (19-32, 11th in the East). Lee made a late arrival to the All-Star game, with Iverson extending his leave due to personal issues. Lee might be on a messed up team, but he deserves his place on the Eastern roster. Last eight games (6 losses, by the way) – 24 points and 11.4 rebounds, with his numbers each month so far this season.
Kevin Durant, Oklahoma City Thunder
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Back to more familiar territory and another player carrying his fantastic season into February. Durant’s Thunder are 6th in the West with a 30-21 record, en route to the first playoff appearance since moving from Seattle. Now, this is how hot Durant has been for the last month – since January 9, through 16 games, Durant has scored under 30 points only 3 times, and never less than 28. Yes, maybe even better the LeBron lately. Right now, the Thunder are on a six game winning streak, with Durant scoring 33.3 points, grabbing 8 rebounds per game, including a monster 45 points-11 rebounds performance against the Warriors to close out January.
Dwight Howard, Orlando Magic
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After a sort of unstable period till mid January, it seems like Howard and the Magic are picking up the pace and their level of play. Howard, the NBA’s double-double king, is averaging 21.3 points and 13.8 rebounds in the last 10 games with the Magic going 7-3 in them. More impressive is Howard’s double double streak, currently standing on 15 games, since January 15.
Amare Stoudemire, Phoenix Suns
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The starting center for the West All-Star team had a rough patch in mid January, but has bounced back in his last six games, with the Suns going 5-1 (currently 7th in the West with 31-22) and Amare averaging 26.2 points and grabbing 11.6 rebounds in his last five games. Maybe the best news regarding Amare and the Suns is him staying healthy and playing all of the teams 53 games, his entire game total from last season.