fBasketballBlog

Pierce is no April Fool. (Flickr/Keith Allison)

[Read the full post at DimeMag.com]

Beast of the Night: Paul Pierce finished with 21 points, 11 rebounds, seven assists, one steal, one block and a three-pointer last night against the Spurs. He shot 50 percent (8-16) from the field, 80 percent (4-5) from the charity stripe and had two turnovers. Pierce has exceeded expectations by averaging top-20 numbers throughout the season. He’s a candidate to see some rest at the end of the season, so his owners should keep a watchful eye on that.

Lines for Discussion:
Rajon Rondo: 11-20 FG (55%), 0-2 FT (0%), 22 Pts, 5 Reb, 14 Ast

Glen Davis: 8-12 FG (67%), 16 Pts, 8 Reb, 1 Ast, 1 Stl

Andrew Bynum: 6-9 FG (67%), 6-8 FT (75%), 18 Pts, 13 Reb, 3 Ast, 2 Blk

Waiver-Wire Watch:
Peja Stojakovic, J.J. Barea

Injuries:
John Wall (suspension): will serve his one-game suspension tonight

Nenad Krstic (knee): he’ll have an MRI Saturday; monitor his status

Al Horford (ankle): says it’s “real sore;” monitor his status

Shaquille O’Neal (Achilles): expected to play Sunday or Tuesday

Joel Przybilla (knee): out for the rest of the season

Shaun Livingston (back): doubtful tonight

Tyrus Thomas (knee): ditto

Stephen Jackson (hamstring): ditto

Arron Afflalo (hamstring): game-time decision tonight

Monta Ellis (ankle): could be a high ankle sprain; monitor his status

Roy Hibbert (knee): should be fine, but keep an eye out for any unfavorable updates

Elton Brand (illness): didn’t practices Thursday; monitor his status

Jose Calderon (hamstring): the shutdown watch begins; day-to-day for now

Raja Bell (foot): questionable tonight

Devin Harris (hamstring): ditto

Nick Young (knee): out tonight

For Next Week:
4 games: BOS, CHA, CHI, CLE, DEN, DET, LAC, LAL, MIL, NJ, NY, OKC, PHO, SAC, TOR, WAS
3 games: ATL, DAL, GS, HOU, IND, MEM, MIA, MIN, NO, ORL, PHI, POR, SA, UTA