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Miami Heat – Finally Something Easy
This hasn’t been the easiest of seasons for the Miami Heat. The expectations of a three-peat with a squad that’s growing older, and more for LeBron James to burden than before. The team needed an easy win for a change, and got just that from the Detroit Pistons, winning 110-78 with James pulling off his first triple double of the season.
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Los Angeles Clippers – Ruining Playoff Dreams for Others
Following a rough loss on the road to a bad team, the Los Angeles Clippers needed to bounce back, and through a huge game from Chris Paul and some impressive fourth quarter heroics from everyone, they got by the Dallas Mavericks with a 109-103 win, also sending the Mavs, at least for now, out of the top 8 in the West.
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Portland Trail Blazers – LaMarcus Aldridge Makes it All Better
The Portland Trail Blazers needed something to spark them back into life as we get closer to the playoffs. Playing against the struggling Atlanta Hawks and winning 100-85 is always good for the record, but getting LaMarcus Aldridge back after seven games is even more important.
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Houston Rockets – Jeremy Lin & James Harden Not the Story This Time
The Houston Rockets are going through very good stretch at the moment thanks to a soft schedule. James Harden is playing some very good individual basketball, notching a career triple double, while Jeremy Lin got some extended minutes thanks to Patrick Beverley going down. But the story this time was something else, as their 120-98 win over the Philadelphia 76ers meant an NBA record of consecutive losses was tied, and will probably be broken over the weekend.
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San Antonio Spurs – The Never Ending Streak
Slowly and always a bit under the radar, the San Antonio Spurs are amassing the longest winning streak we’ve seen this season after a 108-103 victory over the Denver Nuggets, getting the best we’ve seen out of Tim Duncan in a while, joined by the usual partners in crime Tony Parker and Manu Ginobili, serving as assistant in this case.
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Indiana Pacers – A Step Towards Home Court Advantage
Having home court advantage, among other things, means you get NBA referees on your side. The Indiana Pacers enjoyed plenty of that preferential treatment to come away with the 84-83 win over the Miami Heat, even though Paul George struggled keeping up with LeBron James.
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New York Knicks – The Interchanging of Streaks
The ending to this season for the New York Knicks is one weird roller coaster ride that goes from losing to winning streak. So what now? Well, a great shooting night for both Carmelo Anthony and J.R. Smith led them to a 107-99 win over the Sacramento Kings, but it really doesn’t mean anything.
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Los Angeles Lakers – Some Teams Have a Worse Defense
There’s nothing left for the Los Angeles Lakers to do but wait until summer arrives. Meanwhile, facing a New York Knicks team that wants this season to last but aren’t good enough to make it happen, they get to break some scoring records, win 127-96 and get big nights from Xavier Henry and Nick Young.
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Oklahoma City Thunder – Kevin Durant Can Learn From Dirk Nowitzki
There isn’t too much love going around between the Oklahoma City Thunder and the Dallas Mavericks. For the first time since winning their NBA title, the Mavs won the regular season series, culminated by a great scoring duel between Dirk Nowitzki and Kevin Durant, which the German won in overtime 1289-119.
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New York Knicks – Kissing the Playoffs Goodbye
The beginning of a new streak, a losing one this time, points to the true identity of the 2014 New York Knicks. A bad defensive team with a mentally weak group that was able to look good for short spurts during the season because of focus, effort and momentum. But when things don’t go their way early, embarrassing losses like the 127-96 one to the Los Angeles Lakers happen.