fBasketballBlog

Thank God the season wasn't killed. (Flickr/ShuttrKing|KT)

Beast of the Night: Kevin Durant was big again Monday night, finishing with 31 points, eight rebounds, four assists, two steals, one block and three three-pointers. He shot 53 percent (10-19) from the floor, 89 percent (8-9) from the free-throw line and had just one turnover. Durant is averaging a sick 29.3 points, 8.7 boards, 3.5 assists, 1.5 steals, 1.3 blocks and 1.8 threes in 12 games so far this month, making him the runaway No. 1 fantasy player in February.

Lines for Discussion:
Derrick Rose: 8-18 FG (44%), 5-9 FT (56%), 2 threes, 23 Pts, 5 Reb, 6 Ast, 4 TO; the All-Star break should give his body even more time to fully heal, so even if his owners missed out on him this week, they have good reason to be excited for his second half of the season

Deron Williams: 10-22 FG (46%), 10-12 FT (83%), 8 threes, 38 Pts, 4 Reb, 6 Ast, 1 Stl, 3 TO; since Feb. 11, Williams has been a top 10 fantasy beast

Jeremy Lin: 7-18 FG (39%), 5-6 FT (83%), 2 threes, 21 Pts, 7 Reb, 9 Ast, 4 Stl, 3 TO; the stat line was impressive, but if you watched the game you know Lin didn’t have that same quickness and pop in his step; Lin’s owners should hope Baron Davis stays healthy enough to give Lin ample time each game for rest going forward

Dirk Nowitzki: 10-24 FG (42%), 5-5 FT (100%), 1 three, 26 Pts, 16 Reb, 1 Ast, 1 Stl, 2 Blk, 1 TO; since Feb. 3, Diggler has been his studly self, putting up top 10 numbers

Tim Duncan: 7-14 FG (50%), 6-6 FT (100%), 20 Pts, 7 Reb, 3 Ast, 1 Stl, 1 Blk, 1 TO; Duncan has been a top 15 asset this month

Andre Miller: 0-8 FG (0%), 5-6 FT (83%), 5 Pts, 6 Reb, 12 Ast, 1 Stl, 1 Blk, 4 TO; Miller will be a bit more relevant if Ty Lawson misses time

Mo Williams: 8-16 FG (50%), 6 threes, 22 Pts, 1 Reb, 1 Ast, 3 TO; despite his poor shooting from the field, Williams remains an appealing fantasy asset, thanks to his 14/3/3 potential, along with his ability to hit nearly a pair of threes a game

Nicolas Batum: 7-16 FG (44%), 1-1 FT (100%), 3 threes, 18 Pts, 6 Reb, 5 Ast, 2 Stl, 4 Blk, 5 TO; since Valentine’s Day, Batum is averaging 21.8 points, 5.6 rebounds, 2.0 assists, 1.2 steals, 1.8 blocks and 2.6 threes per game

Waiver-Wire Watch (four stars = must add; one star = keep an eye on him):
Zaza Pachulia: 8 Pts, 7 Reb, 1 Ast, 2 Blk, 1 TO (**)

Willie Green: 6 Pts, 1 Reb, 1 Ast, 1 TO (*)

Jannero Pargo: 19 Pts, 5 threes, 5 Reb, 1 Ast, 1 Stl, 2 TO (*)

Larry Sanders: 13 Pts, 12 Reb, 2 ast, 2 Stl, 3 Blk, 3 TO (**)

Kendrick Perkins: 5 Pts, 13 Reb, 3 Ast, 6 Blk, 6 TO (*)

Martell Webster: 10 Pts, 1 three, 4 Reb, 1 Ast, 1 Stl, 2 Blk, 3 TO (*)

Michael Redd: 14 Pts, 2 threes, 4 Reb, 3 Ast, 1 TO (*)

Reggie Evans: 6 Pts, 12 Reb, 3 Stl, 1 Blk, 1 TO (*)

Ekpe Udoh: 19 Pts, 8 Reb, 1 Ast, 1 Stl, 2 Blk (**)

Steve Blake: 17 Pts, 5 threes, 2 Reb, 1 Ast, 1 TO (*)

Injuries:
Joe Johnson (knee): doubtful for Wednesday

Marvin Williams (personal): monitor his status

Jermaine O’Neal (wrist): left last night’s game early and didn’t return; monitor his status

Rajon Rondo (suspension): out for one more game, which means his next game will be on Feb. 28

C.J. Watson (head): day-to-day

Ty Lawson (ankle): left last night’s game early and didn’t return; monitor his status

Rudy Fernandez (back): day-to-day

Andris Biedrins (flu): probable for Thursday

Nikola Pekovic (ankle): left last night’s game early and didn’t return; monitor his status

Darko Milicic (stomach): day-to-day

Iman Shumpert (knee): will be evaluated after the All-Star break

James Harden (ankle): day-to-day

Jason Richardson (chest): day-to-day

Brandon Bass (knee): day-to-day

Kevin Garnett (personal): day-to-day

Gerald Henderson (hamstring): day-to-day

Daniel Gibson (ankle): questionable tonight

Nene (calf): day-to-day

George Hill (ankle): monitor his status for tonight

Zach Randolph (knee): did some light shooting before last night’s game

Brook Lopez (foot): will play Wednesday

Jason Smith (concussion): day-to-day

Bill Walker (elbow): day-to-day

Nick Collison (groin): day-to-day

Quentin Richardson (quad): day-to-day

Greg Oden (knee): microfracture surgery on his left knee rules him out for this season

Manu Ginobili (oblique): out several weeks

Linas Kleiza (knee): expected to return Wednesday

Andrea Bargnani (calf): ruled out until after the break

Raja Bell (groin): day-to-day

For Tonight:
See if Jarrett Jack’s minutes are held back in this second game of a back-to-back-to-back set for the Hornets, as they visit the Pacers.