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Los Angeles Lakers – The Torn Achilles Complication
Getting off the floor with a win didn’t seem like such a happy occasion for the Los Angeles Lakers, who might have gotten a step closer to securing a spot in the NBA playoffs, but along the way lost Kobe Bryant, who is probably going to be out for a very long time with a probable Achilles tendon tear. Forget about the rest of the season and the playoffs – at his age, this could be something that ends a career.
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Houston Rockets – Jeremy Lin Loses Fourth Quarter Shots to James Harden
While going with your best scorer is usually a pretty good idea in crunch time, making the same obvious choice a defense is prepared for again and again, which in the case of the Houston Rockets means giving the ball to James Harden instead of Jeremy Lin, results in a terrible offensive performance and a loss that could have easily been avoided.
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Los Angeles Clippers – Same Two Guys Responsible for Everything
As the season winds down and the Los Angeles Clippers are trying to somehow improve their standing in the Western conference, it’s evident that a shift has been made in what matters and needs to happen in order for them to win – while most of the season it was about the bench unit being the difference, later on and entering the playoffs, it’s all about Chris Paul and Blake Griffin playing their best basketball all game long.
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New York Knicks – Carmelo Anthony & J.R. Smith Thrive Against Terrible Defenses
With their winning streak ending and confidence probably slightly hurt, the New York Knicks needed a terrible defense to make Carmelo Anthony and J.R. Smith feel good about their selfish way of playing basketball again, and luckily enough, the right team came along to do the trick.
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Miami Heat – LeBron James Back to Humiliating Rivals
While an 8 point win isn’t exactly a humiliation, LeBron James, Chris Bosh and Dwayne Wade weren’t about to ruin a chance to finally clinch a season series against their biggest rivals, getting a lot of help, or actually being helpful to Ray Allen and Rashard Lewis, who surprisingly, or not, took a lot of load off the tired legs and shoulders of the Big Three.
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Oklahoma City Thunder – What Need to Happen So They Finish First in the West
Getting a convincing win over the Golden State Warriors means that the Oklahoma City Thudner inched a bit closer towards securing the number one spot in the Western Conference, which means home court advantage until the NBA Finals, if they get that far, for the first time since leaving Seattle, although they still need a couple of things to happen first.
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Chicago Bulls, a Team No One Wants to Meet in the NBA Playoffs
If a seasonal sweep over the New York Knicks isn’t all the proof you need, I’m not sure what will be. The Chicago Bulls are unpleasant on the eyes, but they get the job done, despite all of the injuries. Carlos Boozer does a better job than most would like to admit. Luol Deng does a little bit of everything all night, every night, while Jimmy Butler is one of the more pleasant surprised to find out about this season. And then there’s Nate Robinson, who forgets sometimes that he isn’t supposed to play like the best player in the NBA.
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Los Angeles Lakers – Kobe Bryant Doesn’t Have Anything Left to Give
The way things are going now, the Los Angeles Lakers will get into the playoffs thanks to Kobe Bryant simply feeding into something deep within him to play the entire 48 minutes, which nearly wasn’t enough against a team in semi-tank mode, losing nine consecutive games and playing four rookies in the starting lineup.
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Los Angeles Clippers – Chris Paul & Blake Griffin Take Them Further Than Ever Before
It seems that with each win, the Los Angeles Clippers set another record or milestone in the underachieving franchise’s history, having to thank the ping pong ball that brought Blake Griffin to the team, followed by the trade that allowed the even more important Chris Paul to arrive, making them feel, for the first time ever, that anything less than a conference semifinal in the NBA playoffs will be a huge disappointment.
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Denver Nuggets – Corey Brewer Leads a Team More Resilient Than Ever
There are quite a few differences to the 2013 version of the Denver Nuggets that make them likely to do better than in recent seasons, one of them being the arrival of Andre Iguodala, doing pretty much anything that’s required of him on both ends of the floor. The other is the depth assembled, still showing despite the injuries, led once again by Corey Brewer.