A busy NBA night had the Utah Jazz get closer to the playoffs while humiliating the Los Angeles Lakers, the Atlanta Hawks push the Chicago Bulls even further away from reaching the postseason and the Oklahoma City Thunder carrying on with their winning streak while enjoying another Russell Westbrook triple double.
Brooklyn Nets 99 Miami Heat 110: The Heat hold on to their fourth spot with a nice little win that was never really in doubt. Dwyane Wade was at his best with 30 points and 9 assists. Hassan Whiteside added 27 points and 8 rebounds off the bench. Brook Lopez led the Nets with 26 points.
Oklahoma City Thunder 119 Toronto Raptors 100: The Thunder aid the Cavaliers by shaking the Raptors off their back, while picking up their 8th straight win. Russell Westbrook got his 16th triple double (26 points, 11 rebounds, 12 assists) while Kevin Durant scored 34 points, in what looked like shooting practice for the Thunder. DeMar DeRozan led the Raptors with 19 points.
Atlanta Hawks 102 Chicago Bulls 100: The do-or-die week for the Bulls begins with a loss that might take the wind out of their sails. Their fourth loss to Atlanta this season, as a furious comeback rally couldn’t help, with Jeff Teague knocking down two free throws with six seconds left to clinch the win. Teague led the Hawks with 26 points, Derrick Rose led the Bulls with 20.
San Antonio Spurs 101 Memphis Grizzlies 87: The Spurs, in garbage time mode got 31 points from LaMarcus Aldridge, back in a lineup that also included Kyle Anderson, Boban Marjanovic, Andre Miller and Danny Green. Patty Mills scored 17 points off the bench, Vince Carter finished with 14 for the Grizzlies.
Phoenix Suns 116 Minnesota Timberwolves 121: Two teams going nowhere, but at least they’re fun to watch. Brandon Knight and Devin Booker each scored 30 points for the Suns, but Andrew Wiggins scoring 32, supported by 27 from Karl-Anthony Towns and a 17 points, 11 assists night from Ricky Rubio, the Suns couldn’t do more than make it a tight finish.
New York Knicks 91 New Orleans Pelicans 99: The most notable moment of the game? A fan rushing from the stands to hug Carmelo Anthony. The rest? Anthony scoring 22 points for the losers, Jrue Holiday finishing with 22 points for the winning side.
Dallas Mavericks 97 Denver Nuggets 88: A big win for the Mavs who stop a losing streak and are now tied with the Houston Rockets for 8th in the West, at least going by record. Dirk Nowitzki was awful (4-for-17 from the field) but seven different players scored in double figures, including 18 for J.J. Barea. Will Barton finished with 23 points.
Los Angeles Lakers 75 Utah Jazz 123: A humiliating moment for the Lakers in a season filled with them, while the Utah Jazz take another step towards making the playoffs. Rodney Hood scored 30 points and abused Kobe Bryant, while the Lakers had some weird plus/minus numbers, like Bryant finishing with a -43, scoring 5 points on 1-for-11 from the field.
Sacramento Kings 93 Portland Trail Blazers 105: The Kings were without Cousins and Rondo, so Seth Curry led them with 21 points and Omri Casspi finished with 18. Not enough against the Blazers, led by 21 points from Alan Crabbe while the Lillard-McCollum tandem took a backseat on this ride.
Boston Celtics 90 Los Angeles Clippers 114: The C’s slip back in the race for the third and fourth seeds in the East. Six players scored in double figures, including Austin Rivers with 16. Chris Paul had 13 points, 14 assists and 3 steals. Isaiah Thomas led the Celtics with 24 points.
Eastern Conference Standings
| # | Team | W | L | PCT | GB | GP |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Cleveland Cavaliers | 52 | 21 | .712 | – | 73 |
| 2 | Toronto Raptors | 49 | 24 | .671 | 3.0 | 73 |
| 3 | Atlanta Hawks | 45 | 30 | .600 | 8.0 | 75 |
| 4 | Miami Heat | 43 | 30 | .589 | 9.0 | 73 |
| 5 | Boston Celtics | 43 | 31 | .581 | 9.5 | 74 |
| 6 | Charlotte Hornets | 42 | 31 | .575 | 10.0 | 73 |
| 7 | Indiana Pacers | 39 | 34 | .534 | 13.0 | 73 |
| 8 | Detroit Pistons | 39 | 35 | .527 | 13.5 | 74 |
| 9 | Washington Wizards | 36 | 37 | .493 | 16.0 | 73 |
| 10 | Chicago Bulls | 36 | 37 | .493 | 16.0 | 73 |
| 11 | Orlando Magic | 30 | 43 | .411 | 22.0 | 73 |
| 12 | Milwaukee Bucks | 30 | 44 | .405 | 22.5 | 74 |
| 13 | New York Knicks | 30 | 45 | .400 | 23.0 | 75 |
| 14 | Brooklyn Nets | 21 | 52 | .288 | 31.0 | 73 |
| 15 | Philadelphia 76ers | 9 | 65 | .122 | 43.5 | 74 |
Western Conference Standings
| # | Team | W | L | PCT | GB | GP |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Golden State Warriors | 66 | 7 | .904 | – | 73 |
| 2 | San Antonio Spurs | 62 | 12 | .838 | 4.5 | 74 |
| 3 | Oklahoma City Thunder | 52 | 22 | .703 | 14.5 | 74 |
| 4 | Los Angeles Clippers | 46 | 27 | .630 | 20.0 | 73 |
| 5 | Memphis Grizzlies | 41 | 33 | .554 | 25.5 | 74 |
| 6 | Portland Trail Blazers | 39 | 36 | .520 | 28.0 | 75 |
| 7 | Utah Jazz | 37 | 37 | .500 | 29.5 | 74 |
| 8 | Houston Rockets | 36 | 38 | .486 | 30.5 | 74 |
| 9 | Dallas Mavericks | 36 | 38 | .486 | 30.5 | 74 |
| 10 | Denver Nuggets | 31 | 44 | .413 | 36.0 | 75 |
| 11 | Sacramento Kings | 29 | 45 | .392 | 37.5 | 74 |
| 12 | New Orleans Pelicans | 27 | 46 | .370 | 39.0 | 73 |
| 13 | Minnesota Timberwolves | 25 | 49 | .338 | 41.5 | 74 |
| 14 | Phoenix Suns | 20 | 54 | .270 | 46.5 | 74 |
| 15 | Los Angeles Lakers | 15 | 59 | .203 | 51.5 | 74 |