What you missed while wondering what happens when architects play too much Tetris…
Dallas beating the Heat again — hey, have another team meeting! — is our game of the night.
Hawks 91, Magic 81: It’s going to take some time for the Magic to figure this all out. They started Jameer Nelson, Jason Richardson, Hedo Turkoglu, Brandon Bass and Dwight Howard, brining Gilbert Arenas off the bench. They looked like a team just thrown together, the Hawks looked like a team that has been together for a while.
One quick note on Arenas, who was 2-11 on the night: He is a player that falls into the Kobe Bryant corollary — the higher his shot attempts, usually the worse it is for the team because he is forcing shots. There seemed to be moments of that here. He and the Magic may well find a balance.
Wizards 108, Bobcats 75: The trade that sent Arenas out and brought Rashard Lewis in (Lewis did not play) seems to have energized the Wizards. Call it the Ewing Theory (as John Wall is still out and will be for at least another week) but there is something there.
Pacers 94, Hornets 93: When these two teams get together it is just going to be good. In this one there was 30 seconds left when David West’s old-school three pointer put the Hornets up two, followed by a James Posey three to put the Pacers up one with 16 seconds left. Then there was Chris Paul recognizing the double and hitting West again for a jumper that put the Hornets back up by one with 3.9 left. There was Danny Granger getting a good look, his shot rimming out and Michael Dunleavy being there for the game-winning tip in as the clock expired. These teams should play more often.
Jazz 101, Cavaliers 90: Welcome back Raja Bell, we missed you. He had 19 and was 5 of 6 from three.
Spurs 118, Suns 110: 40 was the big number for the Spurs in this one. As in they scored 40 points in the third quarter alone to pull away. Or they dominated inside as evidenced by the fact the Spurs grabbed the offensive rebound on 40 percent of their missed shots.
Gary Neal scored 22 points off the bench for the Spurs. Jared Dudley started for the Suns and had 27.
Trail Blazers 106, Bucks 80: The Bucks search for offense may have gone from desperate to futile with the news Brandon Jennings is out. The Bucks shot 38 percent on the night and floundered despite a good game from John Salmons (23 on 8-of-13 shooting). LaMarcus Aldridge had 29 for the Blazers.
Rockets 119, Warriors 112: Defense be damned, these two teams combined to score 77 points in the fourth quarter alone. Monta Ellis made fantasy owners happy with 44 points on 15 of 20 shooting, but the Rockets were just deeper.
Clippers 113, Timberwolves 90: Yes, there were a couple of the obligatory Blake Griffin dunks in this one. But what really had to impress is that he drew the double team from the Wolves and he recognized it and hit the open man leading to seven assists. They guy is more than just an athlete, he’s a basketball player.