fBasketballBlog

Don't worry, Pau -- no one could keep up with Crawford last night. (AP Photo/Bret Hartman)

Beast of the Night: Jamal Crawford finished with 21 points, five rebounds, five assists, one steal, two blocks and five threes in his second consecutive start last night. He shot 53 percent (8-15) from the floor and had one turnover. Crawford looks set to continue being the Blazers’ starting point guard, relegating the struggling Raymond Felton to the bench. So long as he’s starting, Crawford will see a nice bump in value.

Lines for Discussion:
Drew Gooden: 7-15 FG (47%), 9-9 FT (100%), 23 Pts, 8 Reb, 2 Ast, 1 TO; his health, as usual, remains something worth monitoring throughout the rest of the season

Kevin Garnett: 9-18 FG (50%), 7-9 FT (78%), 25 Pts, 10 Reb, 3 Ast, 2 Stl, 2 Blk, 1 TO; all Garnett’s numbers (except for his turnovers) are better when he’s a starting center this season

Jeremy Lin: 6-12 FG (50%), 7-9 FT (78%), 19 Pts, 5 Reb, 13 Ast, 1 Stl, 1 TO; if Baron Davis can continue to give a solid 15-20 minutes a night, and if Lin can continue to keep his turnovers down, the Harvard grad will have a shot at maintaining top 35 value

Marc Gasol: 8-14 FG (57%), 6-6 FT (100 %), 22 Pts, 11 Reb, 5 Ast, 4 Blk, 3 TO; with Zach Randolph getting closer to returning, Gasol’s owners should already be considering selling high

Kobe Bryant: 11-23 (48%), 9-10 FT (90%), 31 Pts, 7 Reb, 8 Ast, 1 Stl, 5 TO; you shouldn’t be surprised

Waiver-Wire Watch (four stars = must add; one star = keep an eye on him):
Trevor Booker: 3-9 FG (33%), 1-1 FT (100%), 7 Pts, 13 Reb, 1 Ast, 3 Stl, 2 Blk, 1 TO (**)

Ekpe Udoh: 12 Pts, 8 Reb, 1 Ast, 3 Stl, 3 Blk, 1 TO (**)

Linas Kleiza: 21 Pts, 5 threes, 4 Reb, 1 Stl (***)

Steve Novak: 17 Pts, 5 threes, 1 Reb, 1 Stl (***)

C.J. Miles: 27 Pts, 3 threes, 1 Reb, 1 TO (*)

Gary Neal: 21 Pts, 2 threes, 2 Reb, 3 Ast, 1 Stl, 1 TO (**)

Zaza Pachulia: 13 Pts, 16 Reb, 3 Ast, 2 Blk, 1 TO (**)

Amir Johnson: 7 Pts, 7 Reb, 4 Ast, 2 Stl, 5 Blk, 2 TO (****)

Marco Belinelli: 20 Pts, 2 threes, 7 Reb, 3 Ast, 1 TO (****)

Derrick Williams: 10 Pts, 2 threes, 7 Reb, 1 Ast, 2 TO (**)

Injuries:
Al Horford (pectoral muscle): has been given clearance to begin rehab and could return sooner than expected

Jason Collins (elbow): expected to begin rehab Friday

Vladimir Radmanovic (illness): day-to-day

Nene (calf): day-to-day

Rudy Fernandez (back): day-to-day

Quentin Richardson (Achilles): day-to-day

Kurt Thomas (concussion): day-to-day

Jamaal Tinsley (illness): day-to-day

Raja Bell (groin): day-to-day

Paul Millsap (heel): day-to-day

Andray Blatche (calf): targeting March 3 for his return

Rashard Lewis (knee): day-to-day

J.J. Barea (calf): day-to-day

Luke Ridnour (finger): monitor his status

Luc Mbah a Moute (shoulder): day-to-day

Devin Harris (nausea): monitor his status

For Tonight:
See how Crawford fares as the Blazers host the Heat.

[See another version of this post on DimeMag.com]