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Chicago Bulls – Streak Comes to an Abrupt, Painful End
After picking up seven consecutive wins and every superlative along the way, the Chicago Bulls inexplicably shut down at home against the Brooklyn Nets, losing 96-82 after a horrific shooting performance from both Derrick Rose and Jimmy Butler.
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Cleveland Cavaliers – No LeBron James and the Losses Keep Coming
Playing without LeBron James, the Cleveland Cavaliers managed to keep things close but nothing more as they lost 109-101 to the Atlanta Hawks, putting more pressure on head coach David Blatt which has a never ending list of problems, which now includes Kevin Love suffering from back problems.
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Chicago Bulls – Jimmy Butler Rises Above the Ugliness
Despite an UGLY fourth quarter and dropping a huge lead to the Indiana Pacers, the Chicago Bulls came through with another win, 92-90, thanks to Jimmy Butler hitting the game-winning 3-pointer and C.J. Watson missing a wide open shot from the corner as time expired.
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Los Angeles Lakers – Jeremy Lin Breaks Out, Kobe Bryant Terrible as Always
The return of Kobe Bryant did show a less selfish version of himself but not necessarily a better one, ruining it for Jeremy Lin, Nick Young and his teammates as the Los Angeles Lakers lost for the third straight time and sixth in seven games, this time to the red hot Phoenix Suns.
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Houston Rockets – James Harden Sometimes Does More Bad Than Good
The San Antonio Spurs, amid the injuries and all the losses, found a way to end their losing streak against the Houston Rockets with an emotional and much needed 110-106 win. Their opponents got the normal output from James Harden and Dwight Howard, but maybe moving Josh Smith into the lineup wasn’t such a good idea.
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Dallas Mavericks – Dirk Nowitzki & Chandler Parsons Thrive in Small Ball
Playing as a center suited Dirk Nowitzki very well in the absence of Tyson Chandler, and together with Chandler Parsons formed a very dynamic and difficult to stop duo as the Dallas Mavericks beat the Oklahoma City Thunder 112-107, enjoying the awful performance from Russell Westbrook.
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Cleveland Cavaliers – LeBron James Never Thought It’d Be This Bad
For the second time this month the Cleveland Cavaliers get blown out at home, this time by the Detroit Pistons, as LeBron James put on one of his worst performances in recent years while the absences of Kyrie Irving and Anderson Varejao proved to be way too much for their teammates to handle, and things might not get better for a while.
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Chicago Bulls – Derrick Rose & Jimmy Butler Keep Destroying Everybody
The Chicago Bulls ruined the homecoming for Anthony Davis, led by Derrick Rose and Jimmy Butler to make it a sixth consecutive win, beating the New Orleans Pelicans 107-100.
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Toronto Raptors – Kyle Lowry Is Currently Better Than Chris Paul
Despite injuries and other problems, the Toronto Raptors look like a team that’s going places, led by Kyle Lowry in another terrific performance from the point guard, outplaying Chris Paul in a 110-98 win on the road against the Los Angeles Clippers.
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Los Angeles Lakers – Byron Scott Can’t Coach, Jeremy Lin Misses Opportunities
The Los Angeles Lakers weren’t as close to winning as the 102-98 score might suggest. The Dallas Mavericks were better for most of the game, but things got closer in the fourth quarter with Jeremy Lin playing a big part in that. If only his scoring on the day was as good as his passing.