Top Stories

• Celtics blow lead to Cavs

• Sengun schools Wemby

• Suns blow lead, beat Nuggets in OT

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Games of the day

Last Night’s Top Games! (link to the box scores of every game from yesterday)

Boston’s league leading 11-game win streak was snapped after blowing a 22-point 4th quarter lead to the Cavs. The trend of players outscoring whole teams continued, but this time it was Boston who was outscored 20-17 by DEAN WADE of all people. It was an uncharacteristic collapse from the Celtics who have been head and shoulders above the rest of the league all year. It’s also an interesting game for Cleveland, who last game lost to the Knicks without any of their big 3, but then go on to beat the best team in the NBA at full strength. That’s why you watch the games, because there’s no such thing as a sure thing in the NBA.

Alperen Sengun went NUCLEAR against Wemby and the Spurs, setting multiple career highs. He ended the night with 45 points, 16 rebounds, and 5 steals, doing all of this while primarily matched up with arguably the best shot blocking Center in the league. Wemby still finished the night with 7 blocks, but only had 10/11 with 6 turnovers. Sengun is the first player we’ve seen directly matched up with Wemby to give him the work and not get a serious statline dropped against him too, but Sengun is that good. He easily could’ve been an All Star this year, but the Rockets have been horrible and that killed his chances. Expect him to have a few appearances by the end of his career though.

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League News

Around the League

• LeBron James and Jaylen Brown have been named Players of The Week for Week 19.

• A pair of title contenders in the Western Conference had a all out battle last night. For most of the game, KD and the Suns were in control, up until the 3rd quarter. Trailing 77-55 early in the third, Denver went on a furious comeback to turn what was looking like a rout into a thriller. Kentavious Caldwell-Pope hit a go-ahead 3-pointer with 1:30 remaining, followed by a Jamal Murray basket to make it 102-99. Then Kevin Durant, who at that point was 0-7 in the 4th, hit a HUGE 3 to tie the game. He shot that from his favorite spot, just ask LeBron and the Cavs. Jokic missed a shot to win at the buzzer, and in OT Beal and Durant outscored the Nuggets themselves to win the game.

• Injury Updates: Russell Westbrook (hand) underwent surgery and is expected back by the playoffs. Scottie Barnes (hand) underwent surgery and will be out 4 weeks. Trae Young (hand) had surgery and will be re-evaluated in 3 weeks. Dyson Daniels (meniscus) will be re-evaluated in 2 weeks. OG Anunoby (elbow) will miss 2+ weeks. Jarred Vanderbilt (foot) will miss “several weeks”. Joel Embiid (torn meniscus) will be out for 1-2 months. Julius Randle (shoulder) will be out 2-3 more weeks. Desmond Bane (ankle) will miss 2-4 weeks. Marcus Smart (finger) will be out 3 weeks. Gabe Vincent (knee) will be out at least 3 more weeks. Mitchell Robinson (ankle) underwent surgery and will be out 2-5 weeks. Tari Eason (leg) had surgery and will be out for the season. Patrick Williams (foot) had surgery and will be out for the season. Zach LaVine (foot) underwent surgery and will be out for the season. Robert Williams underwent knee surgery and will be out for the season. Ja Morant had surgery on a torn labrum and will miss the rest of the season. We wish all these guys speedy and successful recoveries.

Front Office Moves

• Isaiah Thomas signed with the Utah Jazz G-League affiliate in hopes to return to the league. The Free Agent market is still deep with vets like Kemba Walker, Nerlens Noel, Dwight Howard, Rudy Gay, Blake Griffin, Tyreke Evans, Austin Rivers, Montrezl Harrell (he’ll be out for a few more months), and John Wall ready to contribute to winning or to mentor young guys. Joe Harris, Victor Oladipo, and Killian Hayes were all cut or waived by their teams and are available to be signed. There are a few younger names on the market, like Kai Jones (yikes), Kevin Porter Jr (yikes again), Sharife Cooper, and Darius Bazley.

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NBA MVP Race

1. Nikola Jokic, Denver Nuggets

Last ranking: No. 1

Season stats: 25.8 ppg, 12.3 rpg, 9.3 apg

His case: Four-straight triple-doubles propelled four consecutive victories for Denver headed into Thursday’s win against Miami. Nuggets coach Michael Malone passed off to Jokic some well-earned hardware Wednesday after the two-time MVP bolstered his triple-double with three steals.

He recently joined Westbrook as the only players since 1997-98 to post a triple-double before the fourth quarter in at least four consecutive games. All told, Jokic is spearheading Denver’s push to seize the West.

2. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Oklahoma City Thunder

Last ranking: No. 2

Season stats: 31.2 ppg, 5.6 rpg, 6.5 apg

His case: The battle between rookies Chet Holmgren and Victor Wembanyama caught all the eyeballs, but Gilgeous-Alexander remains the real headliner, despite OKC falling to the Spurs.

The 25-year-old continues to drop 30 points like it’s nothing. He’s now up to seven straight 30-point outings, and his 44 games with 30-plus points leads the NBA.

3. Giannis Antetokounmpo, Milwaukee Bucks

Last ranking: No. 3

Season stats: 30.6 ppg, 11.2 rpg, 6.3 apg

His case: We’re starting to see Milwaukee settle in under new coach Doc Rivers, and we can’t diminish Antetokounmpo’s role on the team. The two-time MVP is putting together his best shooting month of the season and he’s draining a career-high from the field by a longshot.

The Bucks have a long way to go to catch Boston for No. 1 in the East, but second place is within reach.

4. Jayson Tatum, Boston Celtics

Last ranking: No. 5

Season stats: 27 ppg, 8.5 rpg, 4.9 apg

His case: Yes, the Celtics are loaded. But teams gear up every night to shut down Tatum, and he consistently finds ways to lead Boston to victories. We listed the statistical credentials above and mentioned the fact Boston owns a sizeable lead in the Eastern Conference standings.

5. Luka Doncic, Dallas Mavericks

Last ranking: No. 4

Season stats: 34.4 ppg, 8.8 rpg, 9.7 apg

His case: Sorry Mavs fans, but the standings matter. The NBA’s leading scorer, Doncic dropped a 30-point triple-double (his 11th of the season) Wednesday on his 25th birthday to pace a 136-125 win at Toronto.

We understand he’s scored 25-plus in nine straight games. But flashy highlights and massive numbers aside, Doncic needs to lift Dallas out of Play-In Tournament territory to climb near the top of this list.

The next five

6. Domantas Sabonis, Sacramento Kings (Last ranking: T-6)
7. Donovan Mitchell, Cleveland Cavaliers (Last ranking: No. 8)
8. Anthony Davis, Los Angeles Lakers (Last ranking: No. 10)
9. Kawhi Leonard, LA Clippers (Last ranking: T-6)
10. Kevin Durant, Phoenix Suns (Last ranking: No. 9)

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Fantasy Leaders

Sengun went NUCLEAR last night

Overtime Thoughts

Hoopgrids

Hoopgrids is a daily basketball trivia game. You cross match each category to find a player that fits both. The rarer the player, the lower the score. The goal is to get the lowest rarity score possible.